SB 10.13.19 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

यावद् वत्सपवत्सकाल्पकवपुर्यावत् कराङ्‌‌घ्र्यादिकं यावद् यष्टिविषाणवेणुदलशिग् यावद् विभूषाम्बरम् । यावच्छीलगुणाभिधाकृतिवयो यावद् विहारादिकं सर्वं विष्णुमयं गिरोऽङ्गवदज: सर्वस्वरूपो बभौ ॥ १९ ॥

Verse text

yāvad vatsapa-vatsakālpaka-vapur yāvat karāṅghry-ādikaṁ yāvad yaṣṭi-viṣāṇa-veṇu-dala-śig yāvad vibhūṣāmbaram yāvac chīla-guṇābhidhākṛti-vayo yāvad vihārādikaṁ sarvaṁ viṣṇumayaṁ giro ’ṅga-vad ajaḥ sarva-svarūpo babhau

Synonyms

yāvat vatsapa — exactly like the cowherd boys ; vatsaka — alpaka — vapuḥ — and exactly like the tender bodies of the calves ; yāvat kara — aṅghri — ādikam — exactly to the measurement of their particular varieties of legs and hands ; yāvat yaṣṭi — viṣāṇa — veṇu — dala — śik — not only like their bodies but exactly like their bugles, flutes, sticks, lunch bags and so on ; yāvat vibhūṣā — ambaram — exactly like their ornaments and dress in all their varied particulars ; yāvat śīla — guṇa — abhidhā — ākṛti — vayaḥ — their exact character, habits, features, attributes and explicit bodily features ; yāvat vihāra — ādikam — exactly according to their tastes or amusements ; sarvam — everything in detail ; viṣṇu — mayam — expansions of Vāsudeva, Viṣṇu ; giraḥ aṅga — vat — voices exactly like theirs ; ajaḥ — Kṛṣṇa ; sarva — svarūpaḥ babhau — created everything in detail as Himself, without any change .

Translation

By His Vāsudeva feature, Kṛṣṇa simultaneously expanded Himself into the exact number of missing cowherd boys and calves, with their exact bodily features, their particular types of hands, legs and other limbs, their sticks, bugles and flutes, their lunch bags, their particular types of dress and ornaments placed in various ways, their names, ages and forms, and their special activities and characteristics. By expanding Himself in this way, beautiful Kṛṣṇa proved the statement samagra-jagad viṣṇumayam: “Lord Viṣṇu is all-pervading.”

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

By His Vāsudeva feature, Kṛṣṇa simultaneously expanded Himself into the exact number of missing cowherd boys and calves, with their exact bodily features, their particular types of hands, legs and other limbs, their sticks, bugles and flutes, their lunch bags, their particular types of dress and ornaments placed in various ways, their names, ages and forms, and their special activities and characteristics. By expanding Himself in this way, beautiful Kṛṣṇa proved the statement samagra-jagad viṣṇumayam: "Lord Viṣṇu is all-pervading." KB 10.13.19 In the Vedas it is said that the Supreme Personality of Godhead has already expanded Himself into so many living entities by His energy. Therefore it was not very difficult for Him to expand Himself again into so many boys and calves. He expanded Himself to become exactly like the boys, who were of all different features and facial and bodily construction, and who were different in their clothing and ornaments and in their behavior and personal activities. In other words, although each boy, being an individual soul, had entirely different tastes, activities and behavior, Kṛṣṇa exactly expanded Himself into all the different positions of the individual boys. He also became the calves, who were also of different sizes, colors, activities, etc. This was possible because everything is an expansion of Kṛṣṇa’s energy. In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa it is said, parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktiḥ. Whatever we actually see in the cosmic manifestation—be it matter or the activities of the living entities—is simply an expansion of the energies of the Lord, as heat and light are the different expansions of fire.

Purport

As stated in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.33) : advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca Kṛṣṇa, paraṁ brahma, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is ādyam, the beginning of everything; He is ādi-puruṣam, the ever-youthful original person. He can expand Himself in more forms than one can imagine, yet He does not fall down from His original form as Kṛṣṇa; therefore He is called Acyuta. This is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sarvaṁ viṣṇumayaṁ jagat. Sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma . Kṛṣṇa thus proved that He is everything, that He can become everything, but that still He is personally different from everything ( mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ ). This is Kṛṣṇa, who is understood by acintya-bhedābheda-tattva philosophy. Pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate: Kṛṣṇa is always complete, and although He can create millions of universes, all of them full in all opulences, He remains as opulent as ever, without any change ( advaitam ). This is explained by different Vaiṣṇava ācāryas through philosophies such as viśuddhādvaita, viśiṣṭādvaita and dvaitādvaita. Therefore one must learn about Kṛṣṇa from the ācāryas. Ācāryavān puruṣo veda: one who follows the path of the ācāryas knows things as they are. Such a person can know Kṛṣṇa as He is, at least to some extent, and as soon as one understands Kṛṣṇa ( janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ ), one is liberated from material bondage ( tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so ’rjuna ).

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

This is a more elaborate description of the expanded calves and boys. It is in the singular because it is describing the class (jati). They all had very small bodies just like the original boys (yavat). They had remembrance of their previous activities and how they acted in relation to their parents (viharadikam). Krsna is addressed as ajah unborn, but it also stands for ajanya, an unfavorable portent to be feared (by Brahma). He is the original form of all the forms (sarva svarupa), and he is the embodied form of the statement "sarvam visnu mayam jagat" (the whole universe is Visnu).

Purport (Jiva Goswami)

This is explained. The word yāvat means according to proper placement, to proper number, to proper measurement etc. He became the bodies of exact number of calves and boys with their helpers (alpaka) and the smaller calves and even the playthings of the calves. The feet and hands were the same size. The implements like sticks were exactly the same. Their natures (śīla) and specific excellence by training (guṇa) were the same. Their speech (abhidhā) or being known by certain names was the same. The forms were the same. They had the same behavior towards their parents with remembrance of their previous actions. He took on all those forms because he was everything material and spiritual (sarva-svarūpaḥ). Everything was the Lord (viṣṇu-mayam), not the jīva. The word maya means svarūpa as in the following example. ātmā jñāna-mayaḥ śuddhaḥ: being composed of pure consciousness, or knowledge, the soul is distinct from everything material. (SB 10.47.31) The word viṣṇu also indicates “being spread everywhere.” The Lord is everything also because he is unlimited. Śruti says yad gataṁ bhavac ca bhaviṣyac ca: he is past, present and future. (Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad 3.8.4) For things to be visible they must be born. In the case of the Lord however he is unborn (ajaḥ). Though one person, by his inconceivable power he was different and non-different since he was all the calves and boys and also separate from them. An example is given. The subject or object of a sentence (aṅga) is indicated by the endings of words. Just as the functional words are non-different from the ending (which give them significance), the Lord is non-different from the objects of the world.

Purport (Sanatana Goswami)

Yāvat means the same. The suffix ka on alpaka indicates very small. They appeared like normal boys though they were the greatest, filled with eternity, knowledge and bliss. Or they had bodies greater than that of inferior Brahmā (ka). They were similar to the previous forms. All the limbs including (ādikam) head, hair, nails, odor, voice and complexion were similar. Their ornaments and internal qualities like peacefulls, talkativeness and skillfulness were also similar. Their qualities like compassion and their names or words, and actions (kṛtiḥ) were similar. Ādikam is used a second time to indicate that there was memory of the boys’ previous interactions with their parents because these forms were his aṁśas. Or ādikam means one could not distinguish in any detail between the spiritual bodies he made and the original boys because the boys were anyways his eternal devotees with spiritual bodies. Or ādikam can indicates that all this was actually Kṛṣṇa himself. Or that is stated in the next verse with svayam ātmātma. All these forms were forms of the Lord (viśnu-mayam). Maya means “having the essential nature of.” Viśnu indicates the nature of spreading everywhere. By being all these separate forms Kṛṣṇa was both different from and non-different from them. An example is given. The subject or object of a sentence (aṅga) is indicated by the endings of words. Just as the functional words are non-different from the ending (which give them significance), the Lord is non-different from the objects of the world. He does not appear in the mind by yoga (ajaḥ). Still he appeared gloriously (bibhau) as all those forms, being seemingly surrounded by devotees. Or though one entity, he manifested (bibhau) as those forms by his special power, but not by taking up separate forms. He was actually only “like” the forms of calves and cowherd (ubhayāyitam), because these forms were the Lord. That is the Vaiṣṇṇava conclusion. This is explained in Bhāgavatamṛta. The example should be seen there. As the words of sentences take on various meanings by adding endings, so the Lord became many. Thus though the Lord is eternity, knowledge and bliss, there are distinctions in his senses as with his various limbs like his face. Though without distinctions, the Lord has many distinctions. This is most favorable to Vaiṣṇava philosophy. The advaita philosophy is unfavorable. The Vaiṣṇavas accept that the Lord can also expand himself into other forms.