FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.32.11

अथ तं सर्वभूतानां हृत्पद्मेषु कृतालयम् । श्रुतानुभावं शरणं व्रज भावेन भामिनि ॥ ११ ॥
atha taṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
[atha tam sarva-bhootaanaam]
hṛt-padmeṣu kṛtālayam
[hrit-padmeshu kritaalayam]
śrutānubhāvaṁ śaraṇaṁ
[shrutaanubhaavam sharanam]
vraja bhāvena bhāmini
[vraja bhaavena bhaamini]
atha — therefore tam — the Supreme Personality of Godhead sarva-bhūtānām — of all living entities hṛt-padmeṣu — in the lotus hearts kṛta-ālayam — residing śruta-anubhāvam — whose glories you have heard śaraṇam — unto the shelter vraja — go bhāvena — by devotional service bhāmini — My dear mother.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
atha taṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
atha
therefore
tam
the Supreme Personality of Godhead
sarva-bhūtānām
of all living entities
hṛt-padmeṣu kṛtālayam
hṛt-padmeṣu
in the lotus hearts
kṛta-ālayam
residing
śrutānubhāvaṁ śaraṇaṁ
śruta-anubhāvam
whose glories you have heard
śaraṇam
unto the shelter
vraja bhāvena bhāmini
vraja
go
bhāvena
by devotional service
bhāmini
My dear mother.
Therefore, My dear mother, by devotional service take direct shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is seated in everyone’s heart.

One can attain direct contact with the Supreme Personality of Godhead in full Kṛṣṇa consciousness and revive one’s eternal relationship with Him as lover, as Supreme Soul, as son, as friend or as master. One can reestablish the transcendental loving relationship with the Supreme Lord in so many ways, and that feeling is true oneness. The oneness of the Māyāvādī philosophers and the oneness of Vaiṣṇava philosophers are different. The Māyāvādī and Vaiṣṇava philosophers both want to merge into the Supreme, but the Vaiṣṇavas do not lose their identities. They want to keep the identity of lover, parent, friend or servant.

In the transcendental world, the servant and master are one. That is the absolute platform. Although the relationship is servant and master, both the servant and the served stand on the same platform. That is oneness. Lord Kapila advised His mother that she did not need any indirect process. She was already situated in that direct process because the Supreme Lord had taken birth as her son. Actually, she did not need any further instruction because she was already in the perfectional stage. Kapiladeva advised her to continue in the same way. He therefore addressed His mother as bhāmini to indicate that she was already thinking of the Lord as her son. Devahūti is advised by Lord Kapila to take directly to devotional service, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, because without that consciousness one cannot become liberated from the clutches of māyā.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
O affectionate mother! Surrender with love to the Lord of all beings, who resides in the lotus of the heart, and is realized by hearing. Since without bhakti no one can become liberated, you should surrender to the Lord alone. O bhāvini (instead of bhāmini), who think of me, the Supreme Lord as your son! I have given teachings of bhakti to you, but that is useless since you are so advanced.
The Lord is named here as the actual proprietor of everything we manage. The verse asks us to relax our grip on what was never ours and let Him hold it again. The pivot here is Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Reflection Questions
  • Where does your idea of God blur into a generic 'higher power' that asks nothing of you?
  • What would change if you treated one possession this week as belonging to the Lord and on loan to you?
📝 My note

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