FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.15.42

त्रित्वे हुत्वा च पञ्चत्वं तच्चैकत्वेऽजुहोन्मुनि: । सर्वमात्मन्यजुहवीद्ब्रह्मण्यात्मानमव्यये ॥ ४२ ॥
tritve hutvā ca pañcatvaṁ
[tritve hutvaa cha panchatvam]
tac caikatve ’juhon muniḥ
[tach chaikatve ’juhon munih]
sarvam ātmany ajuhavīd
[sarvam aatmany ajuhaveed]
brahmaṇy ātmānam avyaye
[brahmany aatmaanam avyaye]
tritve — into the three qualities hutvā — having offered ca — also pañcatvam — five elements tat — that ca — also ekatve — in one nescience ajuhot — amalgamated muniḥ — the thoughtful sarvam — the sum total ātmani — in the soul ajuhavīt — fixed brahmaṇi — unto the spirit ātmānam — the soul avyaye — unto the inexhaustible.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tritve hutvā ca pañcatvaṁ
tritve
into the three qualities
hutvā
having offered
ca
also
pañcatvam
five elements
tac caikatve ’juhon muniḥ
tat
that
ca
also
ekatve
in one nescience
sarvam ātmany ajuhavīd
ajuhot
amalgamated
muniḥ
the thoughtful
sarvam
the sum total
brahmaṇy ātmānam avyaye
ātmani
in the soul
ajuhavīt
fixed
brahmaṇi
unto the spirit
ātmānam
the soul
avyaye
unto the inexhaustible.
Thus annihilating the gross body of five elements into the three qualitative modes of material nature, he merged them in one nescience and then absorbed that nescience in the self, Brahman, which is inexhaustible in all circumstances.

All that is manifested in the material world is the product of the mahat-tattva-avyakta, and things that are visible in our material vision are nothing but combinations and permutations of such variegated material products. But the living entity is different from such material products. It is due to the living entity’s forgetfulness of his eternal nature as eternal servitor of the Lord, and his false conception of being a so-called lord of the material nature, that he is obliged to enter into the existence of false sense enjoyment. Thus a concomitant generation of material energies is the principal cause of the mind’s being materially affected. Thus the gross body of five elements is produced. Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira reversed the action and merged the five elements of the body in the three modes of material nature. The qualitative distinction of the body as being good, bad or mediocre is extinguished, and again the qualitative manifestations become merged in the material energy, which is produced from a false sense of the pure living being. When one is thus inclined to become an associate of the Supreme Lord, the Personality of Godhead, in one of the innumerable planets of the spiritual sky, especially in Goloka Vṛndāvana, one has to think always that he is different from the material energy; he has nothing to do with it, and he has to realize himself as pure spirit, Brahman, qualitatively equal with the Supreme Brahman (Parameśvara). Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, after distributing his kingdom to Parīkṣit and Vajra, did not think himself Emperor of the world or head of the Kuru dynasty. This sense of freedom from material relations, as well as freedom from the material encagement of the gross and subtle encirclement, makes one free to act as the servitor of the Lord, even though one is in the material world. This stage is called the jīvan-mukta stage, or the liberated stage, even in the material world. That is the process of ending material existence. One must not only think that he is Brahman, but must act like Brahman. One who only thinks himself Brahman is an impersonalist. And one who acts like Brahman is the pure devotee.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
He offered the body into the three guṇas and the three guṇas into prakṛti. He offered everything into the jīva and offered the jīva into indestructible Kṛṣṇa.
Commentary

Where will the five elements be situated? He offered the body of five elements into the three guṇas (tritve). He offered the three into one aggregate, a portion of māyā. He offered all that into the jīva. Ajuhavīt is poetic license for ajohavīt. “Jīva! This portion of māyā, with the three guṇas is yours. Remain separate from that and do not come under its control.” He offered the jīva into the brahman. Offering the kingdom to Parīkṣit, Mathurā to Vraja, distancing himself from all those relationships, he became oblivious to the external world. Offering the senses and the rest to their respective controllers, he became oblivious to internal functions. The jīva belongs to Kṛṣṇa or brahman. The aggregate of māyā belongs to the jīva. The guṇas belong to the aggregate. The five elements belong to the guṇas. Death belongs to the five elements of the body. Apāna belongs to death. Prāṇa belongs to apāna. The mind belongs to prāṇa. The senses belong to the mind. The sense objects belong to the senses. The enjoyer of the sense objects is Parīkṣit, not me. It should be understood however that because Yudhiṣṭhira is an eternal associate of the Lord, this meditation where he considers his eternal form to be a temporary body is of no significance at all.

He annihilated the gross body into the three modes, merged them in one nescience, absorbed that nescience in the self, the inexhaustible Brahman. The path doesn't bypass the levels; it integrates them.
Reflection Questions
  • What level am I trying to skip in my spiritual integration?
  • Where would patient sequence beat my impatient shortcut?
📝 My note

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