Bhagavata Purana — Skandha 11 — Chapter 24

SB 11 24.1

श्री-भगवान् उवाच अथ ते सम्प्रवक्ष्यामि साङ्ख्यं पूर्वैर् विनिश्चितम् यद् विज्ञाय पुमान् सद्यो जह्याद् वैकल्पिकं भ्रमम्

śrī-bhagavān uvāca atha te sampravakṣyāmi sāṅkhyaṃ pūrvair viniścitam yad vijñāya pumān sadyo jahyād vaikalpikaṃ bhramam

The Blessed Lord said: Now I shall fully declare to you the Sāṅkhya that was settled by the ancients, by knowing which a man may at once abandon the delusion born of differentiation.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.2

आसीज् ज्ञानम् अथो अर्थ एकम् एवाविकल्पितम् यदा विवेक-निपुणा आदौ कृत-युगे ऽयुगे

āsīj jñānam atho artha ekam evāvikalpitam yadā viveka-nipuṇā ādau kṛta-yuge 'yuge

There was knowledge, and then the object — one only, undifferentiated — at that time when men were skilled in discrimination, in the beginning, in the Kṛta age, the age that is no (real) age.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain

SB 11 24.3

तन् माया-फल-रूपेण केवलं निर्विकल्पितम् वाङ्-मनो-ऽगोचरं सत्यं द्विधा समभवद् बृहत्

tan māyā-phala-rūpeṇa kevalaṃ nirvikalpitam vāṅ-mano-'gocaraṃ satyaṃ dvidhā samabhavad bṛhat

That one alone, undifferentiated, beyond the range of speech and mind, real, vast, became twofold in the form of the fruit of māyā.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.4

तयोर् एकतरो ह्य् अर्थः प्रकृतिः सोभयात्मिका ज्ञानं त्व् अन्यतमो भावः पुरुषः सो ऽभिधीयते

tayor ekataro hy arthaḥ prakṛtiḥ sobhayātmikā jñānaṃ tv anyatamo bhāvaḥ puruṣaḥ so 'bhidhīyate

Of those two, the one is the object: it is prakṛti, comprising both (cause and effect); the other state is knowledge: that is called puruṣa.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.5

तमो रजः सत्त्वम् इति प्रकृतेर् अभवन् गुणाः मया प्रक्षोभ्यमाणायाः पुरुषानुमतेन च

tamo rajaḥ sattvam iti prakṛter abhavan guṇāḥ mayā prakṣobhyamāṇāyāḥ puruṣānumatena ca

Darkness, passion and goodness — these became the qualities of prakṛti when she was agitated by me and with the consent of the puruṣa.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.6

तेभ्यः समभवत् सूत्रं महान् सूत्रेण संयुतः ततो विकुर्वतो जातो यो ऽहङ्कारो विमोहनः

tebhyaḥ samabhavat sūtraṃ mahān sūtreṇa saṃyutaḥ tato vikurvato jāto yo 'haṅkāro vimohanaḥ

From them arose the thread (sūtra); the great one (mahat) is conjoined with the thread. Then, as that underwent transformation, was born the ego, which bewilders.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.7

वैकारिकस् तैजसश् च तामसश् चेत्य् अहं त्रि-वृत् तन्-मात्रेन्द्रिय-मनसां कारणं चिद्-अचिन्-मयः

vaikārikas taijasaś ca tāmasaś cety ahaṃ tri-vṛt tan-mātrendriya-manasāṃ kāraṇaṃ cid-acin-mayaḥ

Vaikārika, taijasa and tāmasa — thus the ego is threefold: it is the cause of the subtle elements, the senses and the mind, and consists of both the conscious and the unconscious.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.8

अर्थस् तन्-मात्रिकाज् जज्ञे तामसाद् इन्द्रियाणि च तैजसाद् देवता आसन्न् एकादश च वैकृतात्

arthas tan-mātrikāj jajñe tāmasād indriyāṇi ca taijasād devatā āsann ekādaśa ca vaikṛtāt

The object arose from the tāmasa (ego), which produces the subtle elements; and the senses from the taijasa; and from the vaikṛta arose the deities, eleven in number.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain

SB 11 24.9

मया सञ्चोदिता भावाः सर्वे संहत्य-कारिणः अण्डम् उत्पादयाम् आसुर् ममायतनम् उत्तमम्

mayā sañcoditā bhāvāḥ sarve saṃhatya-kāriṇaḥ aṇḍam utpādayām āsur mamāyatanam uttamam

Impelled by me, all these entities, working in combination, produced the egg, my highest dwelling place.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.10

तस्मिन्न् अहं समभवम् अण्डे सलिल-संस्थितौ मम नाभ्याम् अभूत् पद्मं विश्वाख्यं तत्र चात्म-भूः

tasminn ahaṃ samabhavam aṇḍe salila-saṃsthitau mama nābhyām abhūt padmaṃ viśvākhyaṃ tatra cātma-bhūḥ

In that egg, set in the waters, I came to be; from my navel arose the lotus called Viśva, and upon it the self-born one.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.11

सो ऽसृजत् तपसा युक्तो रजसा मद्-अनुग्रहात् लोकान् स-पालान् विश्वात्मा भूर् भुवः स्वर् इति त्रिधा

so 'sṛjat tapasā yukto rajasā mad-anugrahāt lokān sa-pālān viśvātmā bhūr bhuvaḥ svar iti tridhā

He, endowed with austerity, by means of rajas and by my grace, being the self of the universe, created the worlds along with their guardians, threefold as Bhūr, Bhuvaḥ and Svar.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.12

देवानाम् ओक आसीत् स्वर् भूतानां च भुवः पदम् मर्त्यादीनां च भूर् लोकः सिद्धानां त्रितयात् परम्

devānām oka āsīt svar bhūtānāṃ ca bhuvaḥ padam martyādīnāṃ ca bhūr lokaḥ siddhānāṃ tritayāt param

Svar was the dwelling of the gods, and Bhuvaḥ the station of the spirits, and Bhūr the world of mortals and the rest; beyond these three (are the worlds) of the perfected ones.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.13

अधो ऽसुराणां नागानां भूमेर् ओको ऽसृजत् प्रभुः त्रि-लोक्यां गतयः सर्वाः कर्मणां त्रि-गुणात्मनाम्

adho 'surāṇāṃ nāgānāṃ bhūmer oko 'sṛjat prabhuḥ tri-lokyāṃ gatayaḥ sarvāḥ karmaṇāṃ tri-guṇātmanām

Below the earth the Lord created the dwelling of the asuras and the nāgas; within the three worlds lie all the destinations of actions composed of the three guṇas.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.14

योगस्य तपसश् चैव न्यासस्य गतयो ऽमलाः महर् जनस् तपः सत्यं भक्ति-योगस्य मद्-गतिः

yogasya tapasaś caiva nyāsasya gatayo 'malāḥ mahar janas tapaḥ satyaṃ bhakti-yogasya mad-gatiḥ

But of yoga, of austerity, and of renunciation the destinations are the spotless ones—Mahar, Janas, Tapas and Satya; while of bhakti-yoga the goal is I myself.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.15

मया कालात्मना धात्रा कर्म-युक्तम् इदं जगत् गुण-प्रवाह एतस्मिन्न् उन्मज्जति निमज्जति

mayā kālātmanā dhātrā karma-yuktam idaṃ jagat guṇa-pravāha etasminn unmajjati nimajjati

By me, the ordainer, whose self is time, this world is yoked to action; in it the current of the guṇas rises up and sinks down.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.16

अणुर् बृहत् कृशः स्थूलो यो यो भावः प्रसिध्यति सर्वो ऽप्य् उभय-संयुक्तः प्रकृत्या पुरुषेण च

aṇur bṛhat kṛśaḥ sthūlo yo yo bhāvaḥ prasidhyati sarvo 'py ubhaya-saṃyuktaḥ prakṛtyā puruṣeṇa ca

Whatever entity is established—minute or vast, thin or bulky—all of it is joined with both, with prakṛti and with puruṣa.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.17

यस् तु यस्यादिर् अन्तश् च स वै मध्यं च तस्य सन् विकारो व्यवहारार्थो यथा तैजस-पार्थिवाः

yas tu yasyādir antaś ca sa vai madhyaṃ ca tasya san vikāro vyavahārārtho yathā taijasa-pārthivāḥ

That which is the beginning and the end of a thing, that indeed also exists as its middle; a modification is (real only) for the purpose of common dealing, as with things made of gold and of clay.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain

SB 11 24.18

यद् उपादाय पूर्वस् तु भावो विकुरुते ऽपरम् आदिर् अन्तो यदा यस्य तत् सत्यम् अभिधीयते

yad upādāya pūrvas tu bhāvo vikurute 'param ādir anto yadā yasya tat satyam abhidhīyate

But that prior entity, taking which as material it transforms into another, that—when it is the beginning and the end of a thing—is called the real.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.19

प्रकृतिर् यस्योपादानम् आधारः पुरुषः परः सतो ऽभिव्यञ्जकः कालो ब्रह्म तत् त्रितयं त्व् अहम्

prakṛtir yasyopādānam ādhāraḥ puruṣaḥ paraḥ sato 'bhivyañjakaḥ kālo brahma tat tritayaṃ tv aham

Prakṛti, which is the material cause of it; the supreme puruṣa, which is its support; and time, which manifests what exists—that triad is Brahman, and it is I.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.20

सर्गः प्रवर्तते तावत् पौर्वापर्येण नित्यशः महान् गुण-विसर्गार्थः स्थित्य्-अन्तो यावद् ईक्षणम्

sargaḥ pravartate tāvat paurvāparyeṇa nityaśaḥ mahān guṇa-visargārthaḥ sthity-anto yāvad īkṣaṇam

The great creation proceeds continually, in sequence of earlier and later, for the sake of the outpouring of the guṇas, and its maintenance lasts until (my) glance (ends it).

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain

SB 11 24.21

विराण् मयासाद्यमानो लोक-कल्प-विकल्पकः पञ्चत्वाय विशेषाय कल्पते भुवनैः सह

virāṇ mayāsādyamāno loka-kalpa-vikalpakaḥ pañcatvāya viśeṣāya kalpate bhuvanaiḥ saha

The Virāṭ, the cosmic form, which brings about the various arrangements of the worlds, when approached by me becomes fit for dissolution into the five (elements) together with its worlds.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain

SB 11 24.22

अन्ने प्रलीयते मर्त्यम् अन्नं धानासु लीयते धाना भूमौ प्रलीयन्ते भूमिर् गन्धे प्रलीयते

anne pralīyate martyam annaṃ dhānāsu līyate dhānā bhūmau pralīyante bhūmir gandhe pralīyate

The mortal (body) dissolves into food, food dissolves into grains, the grains dissolve into earth, earth dissolves into odour.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.23

अप्सु प्रलीयते गन्ध आपश् च स्व-गुणे रसे लीयते ज्योतिषि रसो ज्योती रूपे प्रलीयते

apsu pralīyate gandha āpaś ca sva-guṇe rase līyate jyotiṣi raso jyotī rūpe pralīyate

Odour dissolves into water, and water into its own quality, taste; taste dissolves into fire, fire into form.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.24

रूपं वायौ स च स्पर्शे लीयते सो ऽपि चाम्बरे अम्बरं शब्द-तन्-मात्र इन्द्रियाणि स्व-योनिषु

rūpaṃ vāyau sa ca sparśe līyate so 'pi cāmbare ambaraṃ śabda-tan-mātra indriyāṇi sva-yoniṣu

Form (dissolves) into air, and air into touch, and that too into ether; ether into the subtle element sound, and the senses into their own sources.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.25

योनिर् वैकारिके सौम्य लीयते मनसीश्वरे शब्दो भूतादिम् अप्येति भूतादिर् महति प्रभुः

yonir vaikārike saumya līyate manasīśvare śabdo bhūtādim apyeti bhūtādir mahati prabhuḥ

Their source dissolves, O gentle one, into the vaikārika (sattvic ego) in the mind, its lord; sound goes into the origin of the elements (tāmasic ego), and that potent origin of the elements into the mahat.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition — the model flagged this verse as uncertain

SB 11 24.26

स लीयते महान् स्वेषु गुणेसु गुण-वत्तमः ते ऽव्यक्ते सम्प्रलीयन्ते तत् काले लीयते ऽव्यये

sa līyate mahān sveṣu guṇesu guṇa-vattamaḥ te 'vyakte sampralīyante tat kāle līyate 'vyaye

That mahat, most endowed with the guṇas, dissolves into its own guṇas; they dissolve completely into the unmanifest, and that into imperishable time.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.27

कालो माया-मये जीवे जीव आत्मनि मय्य् अजे आत्मा केवल आत्म-स्थो विकल्पापाय-लक्षणः

kālo māyā-maye jīve jīva ātmani mayy aje ātmā kevala ātma-stho vikalpāpāya-lakṣaṇaḥ

Time (dissolves) into the jīva made of māyā, the jīva into me, the unborn Self; the Self alone abides in itself, characterised by the appearance and disappearance (of manifestations).

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.28

एवम् अन्वीक्षमाणस्य कथं वैकल्पिको भ्रमः मनसो हृदि तिष्ठेत व्योम्नीवार्कोदये तमः

evam anvīkṣamāṇasya kathaṃ vaikalpiko bhramaḥ manaso hṛdi tiṣṭheta vyomnīvārkodaye tamaḥ

For one who thus observes, how could the delusion of the mind, born of differentiation, remain in the heart—any more than darkness in the sky when the sun has risen?

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition

SB 11 24.29

एष साङ्ख्य-विधिः प्रोक्तः संशय-ग्रन्थि-भेदनः प्रतिलोमानुलोमाभ्यां परावर-दृश मया

eṣa sāṅkhya-vidhiḥ proktaḥ saṃśaya-granthi-bhedanaḥ pratilomānulomābhyāṃ parāvara-dṛśa mayā

This method of Sāṅkhya, which cuts the knot of doubt, has been declared—by the reverse and the forward order—by me, the seer of the higher and the lower.

AI translation rendered from the Sanskrit, not a published edition