Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.14.50
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
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sva-ātmā eva vallabhaḥ
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one's own self is alone the beloved
Phrase: sva-ātman (own self) + eva (alone) + vallabha (beloved). The Vedānta's premise: ātmā is the source of love. Śukadeva will reposition this — the sva-ātmā the gopīs love is the paramātmā Kṛṣṇa. Gauḍīya extension of an Upaniṣadic dictum.
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itare
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the others
Pronoun — others. Children, wealth, etc., are placed in the 'others' category. The grammar of priority: ātmā first, all else derivative. Śukadeva will collapse this when he locates the ātmā as Kṛṣṇa.
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apatya-vitta-ādyāḥ
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offspring, wealth, etc.
Compound: apatya (children) + vitta (wealth) + ādi (etc.). The standard objects of secondary love. Their value is derived, not intrinsic. The Bhāgavatam's standing dismissal of dehātmavāda is set up here for the bhakti-twist.
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vallabhatayā eva hi
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only because of (one's own) dearness
Phrase: vallabha (dear) + -tā (-ness) + eva hi (only because of). The 'only' is exclusive: nothing is dear except as derived from self-dearness. Sets up the question — who is the actual Self?
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bhūtānām
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of (all) living beings
Genitive plural of bhūta — living being. Universal scope. Śukadeva is not making an exception for the gopīs; he is stating a universal law. Then, in verse 55, he reveals that the universal law is fulfilled most truly in them.
Sometimes modern thinkers become puzzled when they study the psychology of moral behavior. Although every living entity is inclined toward self-preservation, as stated here, sometimes a person voluntarily sacrifices his own apparent interest through philanthropic or patriotic activities, such as giving his money for the benefit of others or giving his life for the national interest. Such so-called selfless behavior appears to contradict the principle of material self-centeredness and self-preservation. As explained in this verse, however, a living entity serves his society, nation, family and so on only because these objects of affection represent the expanded concept of false ego. A patriot sees himself as a great servitor of a great nation, and thus he sacrifices his life to gratify his sense of egotism. Similarly, it is common knowledge that a man feels great pleasure by thinking that he is sacrificing everything to please his dear wife and children. A man derives great egotistic pleasure by seeing himself as a selfless well-wisher of his so-called family and community. Thus, to gratify his proud sense of false ego, a man is prepared even to lay down his life. This apparently contradictory behavior is yet another demonstration of the bewilderment of material life, which has neither rhyme nor reason, being a manifestation of gross ignorance of the nonmaterial soul.
Sukadeva speaks. "O king! A person has more attachment for his self than for his children." This fact will be examined first in five verses before coming to a conclusion. In ordinary dealings ones own self is the object of extreme attachment . For each body there is one soul, for that body alone and not others.
Kṛṣṇa as Paramātmā gives affection to all beings. He is dearer to everyone than their own ātmā. What to speak of being dearer than one’s relatives and objects which give pleasure. To say that, first the dearness of one’s own ātmā is established. All other dear objects are based upon this. This is explained in five verses. Because of no clear distinction of body from soul, svātmā here refers to the conception of self arising from ahaṅkāra. Thus possessiveness in this case excludes prema. The word sva (own) indicates that every individual experiences the self. On king! Because of such qualities in humans, the king also protects the citizens. The word hi indicates that the experience is the proof.
Kṛṣṇa as Paramātmā gives affection to all beings. He is dearer to everyone than their own ātmā. What to speak of being dearer than one’s relatives and objects which give pleasure. To say that, first the dearness of one’s own ātmā is established. All other dear objects are based upon this. This is explained in five verses. Because jñāna has not developed, one has affection for one’s own ātmā because of seeing difference from the ātmā of others. One directly experiences spontaneously the dearness of one’s own ātmā. It is dearer than children, wife and house (apatya-vittādyaḥ). The body is not mentioned because previously the body was mentioned as the most dear by conceiving of it as the self. Or body is also included in ādyāḥ. One directly sees is dearness by the way one especially cares for one’s own body. O king! For a king like you, protecting the citizens is dear. This is because of the dearness of one’s ātmā, since it is the essence of all other ātmās. Hi indicates this is proved by experience.
- Which of my 'selfless' acts actually serves an extended sense of self?
- How would my service shift if I admitted the self's stake and then offered that self to Kṛṣṇa?
A man loves his shirt because it covers him; he loves his money because it serves him; he loves his children because they extend him. All love radiates from love-of-self. Śukadeva agrees: ātmā is the original beloved; every secondary love borrows its current from this primary one. Then — the chapter's surprise — he will identify the ātmā as Kṛṣṇa.
My note
Source: vedabase.io