Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.7.2
मया निष्पादितं ह्यत्र देवकार्यमशेषत: ।
यदर्थमवतीर्णोऽहमंशेन ब्रह्मणार्थित: ॥ २ ॥
mayā niṣpāditaṁ hy atra
[mayaa nishpaaditam hy atra]
deva-kāryam aśeṣataḥ
[deva-kaaryam asheshatah]
yad-artham avatīrṇo ’ham
[yad-artham avateerno ’ham]
aṁśena brahmaṇārthitaḥ
[amshena brahmanaarthitah]
Word-for-word
mayā
—
by Me
niṣpāditam
—
accomplished
hi
—
certainly
atra
—
within this world
deva-kāryam
—
work for the benefit of the demigods
aśeṣataḥ
—
completely, with nothing remaining
yat
—
for whose
artham
—
sake
avatīrṇaḥ
—
incarnated
aham
—
I
aṁśena
—
with My plenary portion, Baladeva
brahmaṇā
—
by Lord Brahmā
arthitaḥ
—
being prayed for.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
mayā niṣpāditaṁ hy atra
mayā
by Me
niṣpāditam
accomplished
deva-kāryam aśeṣataḥ
yad-artham avatīrṇo ’ham
aṁśena brahmaṇārthitaḥ
hi
certainly
atra
within this world
deva-kāryam
work for the benefit of the demigods
aśeṣataḥ
completely, with nothing remaining
yat
for whose
artham
sake
avatīrṇaḥ
incarnated
aham
I
aṁśena
with My plenary portion, Baladeva
brahmaṇā
by Lord Brahmā
arthitaḥ
being prayed for.
Answering the prayer of Lord Brahmā, I descended within this world along with My plenary portion, Lord Baladeva, and performed various activities on behalf of the demigods. I have now completed My mission here.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
Answering the prayer of Brahmā, I descended within this world along with my portion, Baladeva, and performed various activities on behalf of the devatās. I have now completed my mission here.
Aṁśena means “with Balarāma.”
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Kṛṣṇa descends in answer to prayer, accomplishes the deva-kārya completely, then withdraws — His mission, not ours, sets the timing.
Practical Applications
- Name one task today that you treat as 'your' mission, and consciously re-frame it as service offered upward to Kṛṣṇa, who alone completes anything.
- When a prayer of yours seems unanswered, refuse the conclusion that He is absent — He descends in answer to sincere prayer in His own time and form.
- At day's end, audit what you 'finished' and acknowledge that completion (aśeṣataḥ) belongs to Him; offer the day's results and release them.
Reflection Questions
- Where am I quietly resenting that Kṛṣṇa's mission in my life is not on my timetable, and what does His aśeṣataḥ — complete on His side — ask me to surrender?
- If even Kṛṣṇa descends only when prayed for, what prayer have I been postponing, and what does that postponement reveal about my real refuge?
For Each Age Group
youth
- Before an exam or audition you've been praying about, remember Brahmā had to ask — practice actually asking Kṛṣṇa, in your own words, instead of only worrying.
- When a friend group or social media moment feels like 'your big mission,' check whether you're inflating ordinary work with Kṛṣṇa-sized language; keep the scale honest.
- If a prayer of yours seems ignored, refuse the cynic's conclusion that no one is listening — His timing for descent is His, not yours, even at your age.
householder
- Name the family project (a move, a child's schooling, a career pivot) you secretly treat as 'my mission'; rename it as service and pray, like Brahmā, for Kṛṣṇa to enter it.
- When you finish a long-running responsibility, refuse the proud 'I did it' — offer the aśeṣataḥ to Him and notice how much lighter the next responsibility becomes.
- Speak with your spouse this week about one decision you've been making by spreadsheet alone, and bring it into prayer before any further step.
senior
- Look back on the 'missions' of your life — career, raising children, building a home — and name which you still cling to as yours rather than His already-completed work.
- When the body signals that your time here is winding down, take this verse as your own template: mission on His terms, departure on His terms, no anxiety.
- Mentor one younger person specifically on the practice of praying for Kṛṣṇa's descent into a situation, rather than strategizing alone.
Common Pitfalls
- Reading the verse as His exit from history, and quietly concluding He is no longer accessible — forgetting that the holy name and the sādhu-saṅga are His continued descent.
- Imagining one's own work as a parallel 'mission accomplished,' inflating ahaṅkāra by borrowing Kṛṣṇa's language for ordinary karma.
- Hearing 'on behalf of the demigods' and drifting toward demigod-confusion — as if Kṛṣṇa is one functionary among many, rather than the source whom even Brahmā petitions.
Discussion Prompts
- If Kṛṣṇa says His work here is finished, in what sense is He still acting in our lives today — and where do we disagree about what counts as His action?
- Brahmā had to pray for the descent. What does this say about whether our prayers actually move anything, and where does that idea make us uncomfortable?
- What is the difference between Kṛṣṇa's 'mission complete' (aśeṣataḥ) and our restless sense that our own work is never done?
Role Play
A senior devotee tells a younger one, 'Kṛṣṇa already finished His work on earth — we're just living in the aftermath, so don't expect any personal intervention.' One student plays the senior, another plays a sincere new student who feels this drains hope from sādhana; a teacher coaches the new student to respond from this verse without dismissing the senior's point about aśeṣataḥ.
Objections & Responses
- If Kṛṣṇa has already 'completed His mission' and withdrawn, this verse sounds like a polite goodbye — why should a modern person bother praying to someone who has closed the office?
The verse describes the completion of one specific deva-kārya, not the end of His accessibility. Brahmā's prayer brought the descent; our prayer — through the holy name, the Bhāgavatam, and sādhu-saṅga — continues to draw Him near. He withdrew the form, not the relationship. - Saying Kṛṣṇa descended 'on behalf of the demigods' makes Him sound like staff sent to handle a request — hardly the Supreme.
Notice who is petitioning whom. Brahmā, the first created being, prays; Kṛṣṇa, the original Person, chooses to descend with His own plenary portion. The demigods are dependents seeking shelter, not employers — His response is mercy, not obligation, and that is precisely what marks Him as Supreme.
My note
Source: vedabase.io