FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.14.13

जगत् त्रयान्तोदधिसम्प्लवोदे नारायणस्योदरनाभिनालात् । विनिर्गतोऽजस्त्विति वाङ्‍‍‍‍न वै मृषा किन्‍त्वीश्वर त्वन्न विनिर्गतोऽस्मि ॥ १३ ॥
jagat-trayāntodadhi-samplavode
[jagat-trayaantodadhi-samplavode]
nārāyaṇasyodara-nābhi-nālāt
[naaraayanasyodara-naabhi-naalaat]
vinirgato ’jas tv iti vāṅ na vai mṛṣā
[vinirgato ’jas tv iti vaan na vai mrishaa]
kintv īśvara tvan na vinirgato ’smi
[kintv eeshvara tvan na vinirgato ’smi]
jagat - traya — of the three worlds anta — in the dissolution udadhi — of all the oceans samplava — of the total deluge ude — in the water nārāyaṇasya — of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa udara — growing from the abdomen nābhi — from the navel nālāt — out of the lotus stem vinirgataḥ — came out ajaḥ — Brahmā tu — indeed iti — thus speaking vāk — the words na — are not vai — certainly mṛṣā — false kintu — thus īśvara — O Lord tvat — from You na — not vinirgataḥ — specifically emanated asmi — am I .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
jagat-trayāntodadhi-samplavode
jagat - traya
of the three worlds
anta
in the dissolution
udadhi
of all the oceans
samplava
of the total deluge
ude
in the water
nārāyaṇasyodara-nābhi-nālāt
nārāyaṇasya
of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa
udara
growing from the abdomen
nābhi
from the navel
nālāt
out of the lotus stem
vinirgato ’jas tv iti vāṅ na vai mṛṣā
vinirgataḥ
came out
ajaḥ
Brahmā
tu
indeed
iti
thus speaking
vāk
the words
na
are not
vai
certainly
mṛṣā
false
kintv īśvara tvan na vinirgato ’smi
kintu
thus
īśvara
O Lord
tvat
from You
na
not
vinirgataḥ
specifically emanated
asmi
am I .
  • nārāyaṇasya — of Nārāyaṇa
    Genitive — 'belonging to'. Nārāyaṇa = nara (water, men) + ayana (resting-place). The Lord lying on causal waters. For Gauḍīyas Nārāyaṇa is Kṛṣṇa's plenary portion in Vaikuṇṭha-aiśvarya; the boy of Vraja is the source.
  • udara-nābhi-nālāt — from the lotus-stem of His navel
    Compound: udara (belly) + nābhi (navel) + nāla (stalk). The standard Vaiṣṇava cosmogony. Brahmā traces his own birth back to the lotus and through the lotus to Kṛṣṇa — establishing svayaṁ-bhagavān as the source of even the demigod responsible for creation.
  • ajaḥ — the unborn (Brahmā)
    From a- + ja. Brahmā's title. Used here pointedly — 'I, called the unborn, was born from You.' The title is honorary, not absolute; only Kṛṣṇa is aja in the full sense.
  • mṛṣā — false
    Adverb — falsely. Brahmā says the Vedic statements about Nārāyaṇa's lotus-birth are not mṛṣā. Śruti is held as pramāṇa; the Gauḍīya line rests its theology on śabda-pramāṇa rather than independent inference.
  • vinirgataḥ asmi — I have come forth
    Phrase: vi-nir-gata (come out from) + asmi (I am). Brahmā stakes his ontological dependence on Kṛṣṇa in the present perfect: I have come from You and remain having-come-from-You. Sambandha-jñāna in one verb.
My dear Lord, it is said that when the three planetary systems are merged into the water at the time of dissolution, Your plenary portion, Nārāyaṇa, lies down on the water, gradually a lotus flower grows from His navel, and Brahmā takes birth upon that lotus flower. Certainly, these words are not false. Thus am I not born from You?

Although every living being is a child of God, Lord Brahmā here makes a special claim because he takes birth on a lotus flower that emanates from the navel of Nārāyaṇa, the Personality of Godhead. Ultimately, all living beings are equally expansions of the transcendental body of the Supreme Lord. But Brahmā has an intimate relationship with the Lord because of the activities of universal creation, and so he uses the prefix vi in the word vinirgata to beg the Lord’s special mercy. Lord Brahmā is called aja because he is not born from any mother but rather emanates directly from the body of the Lord. As Śrīla Prabhupāda states in Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead: “It is naturally concluded that the mother of Brahmā is Nārāyaṇa.” On these grounds, Lord Brahmā is requesting special forgiveness for his offenses.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
My dear Lord, it is said that when the three planetary systems are merged into the water at the time of dissolution, Your plenary portion, Nārāyaṇa, lies down on the water, gradually a lotus flower grows from His navel, and Brahmā takes birth upon that lotus flower. Certainly, these words are not false. Thus am I not born from You?
Commentary

"The son also comes out of the womb eventually. That is explained in this verse. During the time of dissolution of the universes in the water where all the oceans are merged, others may or may not come from you, but certainly do I not emerge from you?"

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Since my mercy you became my father, you should forgive me. He praises the Lord as Virāḍ-antaryāmī, known as Aniruddha (Kṣīrodakaśāyī), different from the second puruṣa. At the time of devastation of the universe (jagat-trayānta), in the water remaining at the beginning of Brahmā’s day, Brahmā came out of the lotus in Nārāyaṇa’s navel. Or in the Garbhodaka Ocean at the bottom (anta) of the three worlds, Brahmā was born from the lotus. There is another explanation. This describes Brahmā’s birth, not his day. The word udara suggests everything existed within him at that time. Nalāt means from the lotus, indicated by its stem. Or nāla means lotus accrording to Viśva-koṣa. It can be regarded as a taddhita formation (that which is related to the stem or nala). The word tu suggests that Brahmā came out without a mother. He also stayed for a long time within Viṣṇu before coming out (vi-nirgatah). He says “O Lord!” to indicate that he is still not qualified to think of the Lord as his father.

Related values
Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)Maitri (Friendship / Goodwill)Kritajnata (Gratitude)Hrih (Modesty / Sense of Shame)Satya (Truthfulness)Samata (Equanimity / Even-mindedness)Vairagya (Detachment / Dispassion)
Related verses
Brahmā stakes his appeal on origin — 'I came out of Your navel; am I not Your child?' Every soul has this same intimate claim, and asking from this place of relationship moves the Lord more than asking from merit.
Reflection Questions
  • What changes when I address Kṛṣṇa as the one I literally came from, rather than as a distant deity?
  • What request have I been suppressing that I should now place before Him as a child?

A son cannot deny the river his father stands in, nor can he claim he was not born of that father. Brahmā runs the logic: Nārāyaṇa lies on the causal waters, the lotus grows from His navel, Brahmā is born from the lotus — and that Nārāyaṇa is You. Therefore I am Yours. The whole stotra's tattva-spine.

📝 My note

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