FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.9.25

सोऽसावदभ्रकरुणो भगवान् विवृद्ध- प्रेमस्मितेन नयनाम्बुरुहं विजृम्भन् । उत्थाय विश्वविजयाय च नो विषादं माध्व्या गिरापनयतात्पुरुष: पुराण: ॥ २५ ॥
so ’sāv adabhra-karuṇo bhagavān vivṛddha-
[so ’saav adabhra-karuno bhagavaan vivriddha-]
prema-smitena nayanāmburuhaṁ vijṛmbhan
[prema-smitena nayanaamburuham vijrimbhan]
utthāya viśva-vijayāya ca no viṣādaṁ
[utthaaya vishva-vijayaaya cha no vishaadam]
mādhvyā girāpanayatāt puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ
[maadhvyaa giraapanayataat purushah puraanah]
saḥ — He (the Lord) asau — that adabhra — unlimited karuṇaḥ — merciful bhagavān — the Personality of Godhead vivṛddha — excessive prema — love smitena — by smiling nayana-amburuham — the lotus eyes vijṛmbhan — by opening utthāya — for flourishing viśva-vijayāya — for glorifying the cosmic creation ca — as also naḥ — our viṣādam — dejection mādhvyā — by sweet girā — words apanayatāt — let Him kindly remove puruṣaḥ — the Supreme purāṇaḥ — oldest.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
so ’sāv adabhra-karuṇo bhagavān vivṛddha-
saḥ
He (the Lord)
prema-smitena nayanāmburuhaṁ vijṛmbhan
asau
that
utthāya viśva-vijayāya ca no viṣādaṁ
adabhra
unlimited
karuṇaḥ
merciful
bhagavān
the Personality of Godhead
vivṛddha
excessive
prema
love
smitena
by smiling
mādhvyā girāpanayatāt puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ
nayana-amburuham
the lotus eyes
vijṛmbhan
by opening
utthāya
for flourishing
viśva-vijayāya
for glorifying the cosmic creation
ca
as also
naḥ
our
viṣādam
dejection
mādhvyā
by sweet
girā
words
apanayatāt
let Him kindly remove
puruṣaḥ
the Supreme
purāṇaḥ
oldest.
The Lord, who is supreme and is the oldest of all, is unlimitedly merciful. I wish that He may smilingly bestow His benediction upon me by opening His lotus eyes. He can uplift the entire cosmic creation and remove our dejection by kindly speaking His directions.

The Lord is ever increasingly merciful upon the fallen souls of this material world. The whole cosmic manifestation is a chance for all to improve themselves in devotional service to the Lord, and everyone is meant for that purpose. The Lord expands Himself into many personalities who are either self-expansions or separated expansions. The personalities of the individual souls are His separated expansions, whereas the self-expansions are the Lord Himself. The self-expansions are predominators, and the separated expansions are predominated for reciprocation of transcendental bliss with the supreme form of bliss and knowledge. The liberated souls can join in this blissful reciprocation of predominator and predominated without materially concocted ideas. The typical example of such a transcendental exchange between the predominator and the predominated is the Lord’s rāsa-līlā with the gopīs. The gopīs are predominated expansions of the internal potency, and therefore the Lord’s participation in the rāsa-līlā dance is never to be considered like the mundane relationship of man and woman. It is, rather, the highest perfectional stage of the exchange of feelings between the Lord and the living entities. The Lord gives the fallen souls the chance for this highest perfection of life. Lord Brahmā is entrusted with the management of the complete cosmic show, and therefore he prays that the Lord bestow His blessings upon him so that he may execute its purpose.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
May the Supreme Lord, the eternal person, of abundant mercy, opening his lotus eyes with a smile filled with prema, wake up, so that I will not be defeated in the work of creation! May he dispel my sorrow with his sweet instructions on creation! The servant will certainly be blissful by the glance of mercy and merciful instructions. Brahmā prays for both. Opening (vijṛmbhan) your lotus eyes, wake up, so that I will not be defeated during creation everywhere in this universe (viśva-vijayāya). The word ca indicates that the Lord should open his eyes so that his other desire (to remember the Lord) is fulfilled. Dispel my sorrow by your sweet words, which order me to carry out creation.
The verse describes a universe that is not a random stage but an arrangement with a purpose. Our work is not to engineer that purpose but to find our seat within it. The verse keeps returning to devotional service to the Lord.
Reflection Questions
  • Where have you been demanding outcomes from a system you did not design?
  • What would humility actually look like for you in your work this week?
📝 My note

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