SB 5.18.37 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

द्रव्यक्रियाहेत्वयनेशकर्तृभि- र्मायागुणैर्वस्तुनिरीक्षितात्मने । अन्वीक्षयाङ्गातिशयात्मबुद्धिभि- र्निरस्तमायाकृतये नमो नम: ॥ ३७ ॥

Verse text

dravya-kriyā-hetv-ayaneśa-kartṛbhir māyā-guṇair vastu-nirīkṣitātmane anvīkṣayāṅgātiśayātma-buddhibhir nirasta-māyākṛtaye namo namaḥ

Synonyms

dravya — by the objects of sense enjoyment ; kriyā — the activities of the senses ; hetu — the predominating deities of sensory activities ; ayana — the body ; īśa — the predominating time ; kartṛbhiḥ — by false egotism ; māyā — guṇaiḥ — by the modes of material nature ; vastu — as a fact ; nirīkṣita — being observed ; ātmane — unto the Supreme Soul ; anvīkṣayā — by careful consideration ; aṅga — by the limbs of yogic practice ; atiśaya — ātma — buddhibhiḥ — by those whose intelligence has become fixed ; nirasta — completely freed from ; māyā — the illusory energy ; ākṛtaye — whose form ; namaḥ — all respectful obeisances ; namaḥ — respectful obeisances .

Translation

The objects of material enjoyment [sound, form, taste, touch and smell], the activities of the senses, the controllers of sensory activities [the demigods], the body, eternal time and egotism are all creations of Your material energy. Those whose intelligence has become fixed by perfect execution of mystic yoga can see that all these elements result from the actions of Your external energy. They can also see Your transcendental form as Supersoul in the background of everything. Therefore I repeatedly offer my respectful obeisances unto You.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

I offer respects to you whose form is seen in truth by intelligence and great effort in the aṅgas of bhakti such as hearing and chanting, and by repeated contemplation of the mind on practices of hearing, chanting, and serving, and by contemplation of the effects of māyā—the sense objects, the senses, the sense devatās, the body, time and ahaṅkāra. I offer respects to you whose form is devoid of māyā. It is possible to make you appear even though a person has the gross and subtle material bodies. If one churns (practices) one can see the Lord’s form. I offer respects to you whose form is seen in truth (vastu) by intelligence and great effort (ātma) in the aṅgas of bhakti such as hearing and chanting, and by repeated contemplation (anvīkṣaya) of the mind on practices of hearing, chanting, and serving, along with the effects of māyā—the sense objects (dravya), the senses (kriya), the sense devatās (hetu), the body (ayana), time (īśa) and ahaṅkāra (kartṛbhiḥ). Your form is spiritual. I offer respects to you whose form is devoid of māyā. Or I offer respects to you who make the devotee’s form free of māyā.

Purport

The objects of material enjoyment, the sensory activities, attachment to sensual pleasure, the body, false egotism and so on are produced by the Lord’s external energy, māyā. The background of all these activities is the living being, and the director of the living beings is the Supersoul. The living being is not the all in all. He is directed by the Supersoul. In Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) Kṛṣṇa confirms this: sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo mattaḥ smṛtir jṣānam apohanaṁ ca “I am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness.” The living entity depends on the Supersoul for directions. A person advanced in spiritual knowledge, or a person expert in the practice of mystic yoga ( yama, niyama, āsana and so on) can understand transcendence either as Paramātmā or as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Lord is the original cause of all natural events. Therefore He is described as sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam, the cause of all causes. Behind everything visible to our material eyes is some cause, and one who can see the original cause of all causes, Lord Kṛṣṇa, can actually see. Kṛṣṇa, the sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha, is the background of everything, as He Himself confirms in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10) : mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram hetunānena kaunteya jagad viparivartate “This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, and it is producing all moving and unmoving beings. By its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.”