FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.16.35

तव विभव: खलु भगवन् जगदुदयस्थितिलयादीनि । विश्वसृजस्तेꣷशांशा स्तत्र मृषा स्पर्धन्ति पृथगभिमत्या ॥ ३५ ॥
tava vibhavaḥ khalu bhagavan
[tava vibhavah khalu bhagavan]
jagad-udaya-sthiti-layādīni
[jagad-udaya-sthiti-layaadeeni]
viśva-sṛjas te ’ṁśāṁśās
[vishva-srijas te ’mshaamshaas]
tatra mṛṣā spardhanti pṛthag abhimatyā
[tatra mrishaa spardhanti prithag abhimatyaa]
tava — Your vibhavaḥ — opulences khalu — indeed bhagavan — O Supreme Personality of Godhead jagat — of the cosmic manifestation udaya — the creation sthiti — maintenance laya-ādīni — dissolution and so on viśva-sṛjaḥ — the creators of the manifested world te — they aṁśa-aṁśāḥ — parts of Your plenary portion tatra — in that mṛṣā — in vain spardhanti — rival one another pṛthak — of separateness abhimatyā — by a false conception.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tava vibhavaḥ khalu bhagavan
tava
Your
vibhavaḥ
opulences
khalu
indeed
bhagavan
O Supreme Personality of Godhead
jagad-udaya-sthiti-layādīni
jagat
of the cosmic manifestation
udaya
the creation
sthiti
maintenance
laya-ādīni
dissolution and so on
viśva-sṛjas te ’ṁśāṁśās
viśva-sṛjaḥ
the creators of the manifested world
te
they
aṁśa-aṁśāḥ
parts of Your plenary portion
tatra mṛṣā spardhanti pṛthag abhimatyā
tatra
in that
mṛṣā
in vain
spardhanti
rival one another
pṛthak
of separateness
abhimatyā
by a false conception.
My dear Lord, this cosmic manifestation and its creation, maintenance and annihilation are all but Your opulences. Since Lord Brahmā and the other creators are nothing but small portions of a portion of You, their partial power to create does not make them God [īśvara]. Their consciousness of themselves as separate Lords is therefore merely false prestige. It is not valid.

A devotee who has fully surrendered to the lotus feet of the Lord knows very well that the creative energy of the living entities, from Lord Brahmā down to the small ant, exists because the living entities are part and parcel of the Lord. In Bhagavad-gītā (15.7) the Lord says, mamaivāṁśo jīva-loke jīva-bhūtaḥ sanātanaḥ: “The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal, fragmental parts.” The living entities are nothing but very small portions of the supreme spirit, like sparks of a fire. Because they are part of the Supreme, they have a creative quality in a very minute quantity.

The so-called scientists of the modern materialistic world are proud because they have created modern facilities like great airplanes, but the credit for creating the airplanes should go to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not to the scientists who have invented or created the so-called wonderful products. The first consideration is the intelligence of the scientist; one must be elevated by the dictation of the Supreme Lord, who says in Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) , mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca: “From Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness.” Because the Supreme Lord, as Supersoul, sits within the core of every living entity’s heart, the dictation by which one advances in scientific knowledge or creative faculties comes from Him. Furthermore, the ingredients to manufacture wonderful machines like airplanes are also supplied by the Lord, not by the scientists. Before the airplane was created, its ingredients already existed, having been caused by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but when the manifested creation of the airplane is ruined, the remaining debris is a problem for the so-called creators. Another example is that the West is creating many automobiles. The ingredients for these cars are supplied, of course, by the Supreme Lord, and the intelligence for the so-called creation is also supplied by the Lord. Ultimately, when the cars are demolished, the so-called creators are faced with the problem of what to do with their ingredients. The actual creator, the original creator, is the Personality of Godhead. Only in the interim does someone create something with intelligence supplied by the Lord, and later the creation again becomes a problem. Therefore the so-called creator is not to be credited with the act of creation; the only credit goes to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is rightly stated herein that the credit for all the opulences of creation, maintenance and annihilation belongs to the Supreme Lord, not to the living entities.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
O Lord! Creation, maintenance and destruction of the universe is your greatness. The creators of the universe, portions of portions of you, compete in vain, thinking themselves separate from you. Having explained the mutual control that the Lord and the devotee have over each other, Citraketu now explains the powers of the Lord in three verses. Vibhavaḥ means greatness. Creation and destruction are your greatness. “But we see that Brahmā and others create the universe.” Those creates are only portions of portions of you. “But Brahmā and Śiva are devotees. They compete in establishing the lordship of their masters.” That competition is useless because they identify with a particular body: I am Brahmā, I am Śiva, I am the sun god.
Cosmic creation, maintenance, annihilation are Your opulences — Brahmā and others are partial portions of a portion. The hierarchy is huge; we are tiny — and that is good news, not bad.
Reflection Questions
  • Where do I find the hierarchy oppressive when it could be a relief?
  • What does being small in the right system mean for my responsibility?
📝 My note

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