SB 7.9.47 · Srimad Bhagavatam

Devanagari

रूपे इमे सदसती तव वेदसृष्टे बीजाङ्कुराविव न चान्यदरूपकस्य । युक्ता: समक्षमुभयत्र विचक्षन्ते त्वां योगेन वह्निमिव दारुषु नान्यत: स्यात् ॥ ४७ ॥

Verse text

rūpe ime sad-asatī tava veda-sṛṣṭe bījāṅkurāv iva na cānyad arūpakasya yuktāḥ samakṣam ubhayatra vicakṣante tvāṁ yogena vahnim iva dāruṣu nānyataḥ syāt

Synonyms

rūpe — in the forms ; ime — these two ; sat — asatī — the cause and the effect ; tava — Your ; veda — sṛṣṭe — explained in the Vedas ; bīja — aṅkurau — the seed and the sprout ; iva — like ; na — never ; ca — also ; anyat — any other ; arūpakasya — of You, who possess no material form ; yuktāḥ — those engaged in Your devotional service ; samakṣam — before the very eyes ; ubhayatra — in both ways (spiritually and materially) ; vicakṣante — can actually see ; tvām — You ; yogena — simply by the method of devotional service ; vahnim — fire ; iva — like ; dāruṣu — in wood ; na — not ; anyataḥ — from any other means ; syāt — it is possible .

Translation

By authorized Vedic knowledge one can see that the forms of cause and effect in the cosmic manifestation belong to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for the cosmic manifestation is His energy. Both cause and effect are nothing but energies of the Lord. Therefore, O my Lord, just as a wise man, by considering cause and effect, can see how fire pervades wood, those engaged in devotional service understand how You are both the cause and effect.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

You, who possess no material form, have two forms, like a sprout and a seed, known as effect and cause, revealed in the Vedas. You are not different from either form. The wise seek you out directly in both forms by bhakti-yoga and no other method, just as fire is produced in wood by rubbing alone. You cannot be attained by silence or other practices if they are without bhakti. Cause and effect, like seed and sprout, flowing from one to the other, the total and individual forms, [Note: Here cause and effect refer to prakṛti (cause) and its transformations (effect). ] are your two forms. This universe as a total and as a part is not different from you (na anyat). You do not have a material form (arūpasya). Those with intelligence (yuktāḥ) search to attain you as both the whole and the part, since you are their final cause. They search by bhakti-yoga not by other processes like jṣāna. Bhaktyāham ekayā grāhya: I am only achieved by bhakti. (SB 11.14.21) Fire is revealed by rubbing (yogena).

Purport

As described in previous verses, many so-called students of spiritual understanding follow the ten different methods known as mauna-vrata-śruta-tapo-’dhyayana-sva-dharma-vyākhyā-raho-japa-samādhayaḥ. These may be very attractive, but by following such methods, one cannot actually understand the real cause and effect and the original cause of everything ( janmādy asya yataḥ ). The original source of everything is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself ( sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam ). This original source of everything is Kṛṣṇa, the supreme ruler. īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ . He has His eternal spiritual form. Indeed, He is the root of everything ( bījaṁ māṁ sarva-bhūtānām ). Whatever manifestations exist, their cause is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This cannot be understood by so-called silence or by any other hodgepodge method. The supreme cause can be understood only by devotional service, as stated in Bhagavad-gītā ( bhaktyā mām abhijānāti ). Elsewhere in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.14.21) , the Supreme Godhead personally says, bhaktyāham ekayā grāhyaḥ: one can understand the original cause of all causes, the Supreme Person, only by devotional service, not by show-bottle exhibitionism.