SB 3.22.2 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

मनुरुवाच ब्रह्मासृजत्स्वमुखतो युष्मानात्मपरीप्सया । छन्दोमयस्तपोविद्यायोगयुक्तानलम्पटान् ॥ २ ॥

Verse text

manur uvāca brahmāsṛjat sva-mukhato yuṣmān ātma-parīpsayā chandomayas tapo-vidyā- yoga-yuktān alampaṭān

Synonyms

manuḥ — Manu ; uvāca — said ; brahmā — Lord Brahmā ; asṛjat — created ; sva — mukhataḥ — from his face ; yuṣmān — you ( brāhmaṇas ) ; ātma — parīpsayā — to protect himself by expanding ; chandaḥ — mayaḥ — the form of the Vedas ; tapaḥ — vidyā — yoga — yuktān — full of austerity, knowledge and mystic power ; alampaṭān — averse to sense gratification .

Translation

Manu replied: To expand himself in Vedic knowledge, Lord Brahmā, the personified Veda, from his face created you, the brāhmaṇas, who are full of austerity, knowledge and mystic power and are averse to sense gratification.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Manu said: Desiring to propagate the Vedas Brahmā, the form of the Vedas, created you, the brāhmaṇas, endowed with austerity, knowledge and yoga, from his face Fearing the sage would refuse his daughter in marriage, Manu first explained with reasoning the relationship between the brāhmaṇas and kṣatriyas in two and a half verses. Brahmā created the brāhmaṇas with a desire to preserve the Vedas by propagating them (ātma-parīpsayā).

Purport

The purpose of the Vedas is to propagate the transcendental knowledge of the Absolute Truth. The brāhmaṇas were created from the mouth of the Supreme Person, and therefore they are meant to spread the knowledge of the Vedas in order to spread the glories of the Lord. In Bhagavad-gītā also Lord Kṛṣṇa says that all the Vedas are meant for understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is especially mentioned here ( yoga-yuktān alampaṭān ) that brāhmaṇas are full of mystic power and are completely averse to sense gratification. Actually there are two kinds of occupations. One occupation, in the material world, is sense gratification, and the other occupation is spiritual activity — to satisfy the Lord by His glorification. Those who engage in sense gratification are called demons, and those who spread the glorification of the Lord or satisfy the transcendental senses of the Lord are called demigods. It is specifically mentioned here that the brāhmaṇas are created from the face of the cosmic personality, or virāṭ-puruṣa. Similarly, the kṣatriyas are said to be created from His arms, the vaiśyas are created from His waist, and the śūdras are created from His legs. Brāhmaṇas are especially meant for austerity, learning and knowledge and are averse to all kinds of sense gratification.