SB 11.16.37 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

पृथिवी वायुराकाश आपो ज्योतिरहं महान् । विकार: पुरुषोऽव्यक्तं रज: सत्त्वं तम: परम् । अहमेतत्प्रसङ्ख्यानं ज्ञानं तत्त्वविनिश्चय: ॥ ३७ ॥

Verse text

pṛthivī vāyur ākāśa āpo jyotir ahaṁ mahān vikāraḥ puruṣo ’vyaktaṁ rajaḥ sattvaṁ tamaḥ param aham etat prasaṅkhyānaṁ jṣānaṁ tattva-viniścayaḥ

Synonyms

pṛthivī — the subtle form of earth, aroma ; vāyuḥ — the subtle form of air, touch ; ākāśaḥ — the subtle form of sky, sound ; āpaḥ — the subtle form of water, taste ; jyotiḥ — the subtle form of fire, form ; aham — false ego ; mahān — the mahat-tattva ; vikāraḥ — the sixteen elements (earth, water, fire, air and sky, the five working senses, the five knowledge-acquiring senses and the mind) ; puruṣaḥ — the living entity ; avyaktam — material nature, prakṛti ; rajaḥ — the mode of passion ; sattvam — the mode of goodness ; tamaḥ — the mode of ignorance ; param — the Supreme Lord ; aham — I am ; etat — this ; prasaṅkhyānam — all that has been enumerated ; jṣānam — knowledge of the above-mentioned elements by individual symptoms ; tattva — viniścayaḥ — steady conviction, which is the fruit of knowledge .

Translation

I am form, taste, aroma, touch and sound; false ego; the mahat-tattva; earth, water, fire, air and sky; the living entity; material nature; the modes of goodness, passion and ignorance; and the transcendental Lord. All these items, along with knowledge of their individual symptoms and the steady conviction that results from this knowledge, represent Me.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

I am form, taste, aroma, touch and sound; ahaṅkāra; the mahat-tattva; earth, water, fire, air and sky; the eleven senses; the living entity; prakṛti; the modes of goodness, passion and ignorance; and Brahman. I am all of these items, along with knowledge of them, and the determination of truth resulting from that knowledge. Having indicated vibhūtis by showing the best of a group or the key element in a relationship, again the Lord describes them all in general, in two and half verses. The list of elements indicates the tan-mātras. Aham is ahaṅkāra. Mahān is mahat-tattva. These seven are the modifications of prakṛti. The transformation (vikāraḥ) refers to the five gross elements and the eleven senses. This makes sixteen. Puruṣaḥ refers to the jīva. Avyaktam is prakṛti. The total is now twenty-five elements. It is said: mūla-prakṛtir avikṛtir mahad-ādyāḥ prakṛti-vikṛtayaḥ sapta | ṣoḍaśakaś ca vikāro na prakṛtir na vikṛtiḥ puruṣaḥ || Mūla-prakṛti is unchanged. Transformations of prakṛti are seven (mahat-tattva, ahaṅkāra and five tan-mātras), which further transform into sixteen (five gross elements and eleven senses). Prakṛti remains separate and puruṣa do not transform. Sāṅkhya-kārikā by Īśvara-kṛṣṇa I am also the guṇas of prakṛti known as rajas, tamas and sattva and I am Brahman (param). I am everything. I am the knowledge of these enumerated elements and the result, determination of truth.

Purport

Having given a brief but detailed synopsis of His personal opulences within this world, the Lord now briefly summarizes the opulences that expand from His bodily effulgence. It is stated in Brahma-saṁhitā that all of the material universes with their infinite varieties, transformations and opulences rest on the bodily effulgence of the Lord. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī has elaborately explained this point in his commentary on this verse.