FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.24.26

स चावतीर्णं त्रियुगमाज्ञाय विबुधर्षभम् । विविक्त उपसङ्गम्य प्रणम्य समभाषत ॥ २६ ॥
sa cāvatīrṇaṁ tri-yugam
[sa chaavateernam tri-yugam]
ājñāya vibudharṣabham
[aajnaaya vibudharshabham]
vivikta upasaṅgamya
[vivikta upasangamya]
praṇamya samabhāṣata
[pranamya samabhaashata]
saḥ — the sage Kardama ca — and avatīrṇam — descended tri-yugam — Viṣṇu ājñāya — having understood vibudha-ṛṣabham — the chief of the demigods vivikte — in a secluded place upasaṅgamya — having approached praṇamya — offering obeisances samabhāṣata — he spoke.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
sa cāvatīrṇaṁ tri-yugam
saḥ
the sage Kardama
ca
and
avatīrṇam
descended
tri-yugam
Viṣṇu
ājñāya vibudharṣabham
ājñāya
having understood
vibudha-ṛṣabham
the chief of the demigods
vivikta upasaṅgamya
vivikte
in a secluded place
upasaṅgamya
having approached
praṇamya samabhāṣata
praṇamya
offering obeisances
samabhāṣata
he spoke.
When Kardama Muni understood that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the chief of all the demigods, Viṣṇu, had descended, Kardama approached Him in a secluded place, offered obeisances and spoke as follows.

Lord Viṣṇu is called tri-yuga. He appears in three yugas — Satya, Tretā and Dvāpara — but in Kali-yuga He does not appear. From the prayers of Prahlāda Mahārāja, however, we understand that He appears garbed as a devotee in Kali-yuga. Lord Caitanya is that devotee. Kṛṣṇa appeared in the form of a devotee, but although He never disclosed Himself, Rūpa Gosvāmī could understand His identity, for the Lord cannot hide Himself from a pure devotee. Rūpa Gosvāmī detected Him when he offered his first obeisances to Lord Caitanya. He knew that Lord Caitanya was Kṛṣṇa Himself and therefore offered his obeisances with the following words: “I offer my respects to Kṛṣṇa, who has now appeared as Lord Caitanya.” This is also confirmed in the prayers of Prahlāda Mahārāja: in Kali-yuga He does not directly appear, but He appears as a devotee. Viṣṇu is therefore known as tri-yuga. Another explanation of tri-yuga is that He has three pairs of divine attributes, namely power and affluence, piety and renown, and wisdom and dispassion. According to Śrīdhara Svāmī, His three pairs of opulences are complete riches and complete strength, complete fame and complete beauty, and complete wisdom and complete renunciation. There are different interpretations of tri-yuga, but it is accepted by all learned scholars that tri-yuga means Viṣṇu. When Kardama Muni understood that his son, Kapila, was Viṣṇu Himself, he wanted to offer his obeisances. Therefore, when Kapila was alone he offered his respects and expressed his mind as follows.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Understanding that the Lord, chief of the deities, had appeared, Kardama approached him in a solitary place and, offering respects, spoke to him. Sa means Kardama.
Worship in this verse is described as the soul's most natural language, the one we forget we already know. The verse invites us to use it without dressing it up. The pivot here is Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Reflection Questions
  • What honest sentence would you say to the Lord right now if no one else could hear?
  • What would change if you brought your actual problem, in plain language, to the Lord today?
📝 My note

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