FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 8.18.12

यत् तद् वपुर्भाति विभूषणायुधै- रव्यक्तचिद्वय‍क्तमधारयद्धरि: । बभूव तेनैव स वामनो वटु: सम्पश्यतोर्दिव्यगतिर्यथा नट: ॥ १२ ॥
yat tad vapur bhāti vibhūṣaṇāyudhair
[yat tad vapur bhaati vibhooshanaayudhair]
avyakta-cid-vyaktam adhārayad dhariḥ
[avyakta-chid-vyaktam adhaarayad dharih]
babhūva tenaiva sa vāmano vaṭuḥ
[babhoova tenaiva sa vaamano vatuh]
sampaśyator divya-gatir yathā naṭaḥ
[sampashyator divya-gatir yathaa natah]
Word-for-word
yat — which tat — that vapuḥ — transcendental body bhāti — manifests vibhūṣaṇa — with regular ornaments āyudhaiḥ — and with weapons avyakta — unmanifested cit-vyaktam — spiritually manifested adhārayat — assumed hariḥ — the Lord babhūva — immediately became tena — with that eva — certainly saḥ — He (the Lord) vāmanaḥ — dwarf vaṭuḥ — a brāhmaṇa brahmacārī sampaśyatoḥ — while both His father and mother were seeing divya-gatiḥ — whose movements are wonderful yathā — as naṭaḥ — a theatrical actor.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
yat tad vapur bhāti vibhūṣaṇāyudhair
yat
which
tat
that
vapuḥ
transcendental body
bhāti
manifests
vibhūṣaṇa
with regular ornaments
āyudhaiḥ
and with weapons
avyakta-cid-vyaktam adhārayad dhariḥ
avyakta
unmanifested
cit-vyaktam
spiritually manifested
adhārayat
assumed
hariḥ
the Lord
babhūva tenaiva sa vāmano vaṭuḥ
babhūva
immediately became
tena
with that
eva
certainly
saḥ
He (the Lord)
vāmanaḥ
dwarf
vaṭuḥ
a brāhmaṇa brahmacārī
sampaśyator divya-gatir yathā naṭaḥ
sampaśyatoḥ
while both His father and mother were seeing
divya-gatiḥ
whose movements are wonderful
yathā
as
naṭaḥ
a theatrical actor.
The Lord appeared in His original form, with ornaments and weapons in His hands. Although this ever-existing form is not visible in the material world, He nonetheless appeared in this form. Then, in the presence of His father and mother, He assumed the form of Vāmana, a brāhmaṇa-dwarf, a brahmacārī, just like a theatrical actor.
Purport

The word naṭaḥ is significant. An actor changes dress to play different parts, but is always the same man. Similarly, as described in the Brahma-saṁhitā (5.33, 39), the Lord assumes many thousands and millions of forms ( advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣam ). He is always present with innumerable incarnations ( rāmādi-mūrtiṣu kalā-niyamena tiṣṭhan nānāvatāram akarod bhuvaneṣu kintu ). Nonetheless, although He appears in various incarnations, they are not different from one another. He is the same person, with the same potency, the same eternity and the same spiritual existence, but He can simultaneously assume various forms. When Vāmanadeva appeared from the womb of His mother, He appeared in the form of Nārāyaṇa, with four hands equipped with the necessary symbolic weapons, and then immediately transformed Himself into a brahmacārī ( vaṭu ). This means that His body is not material. One who thinks that the Supreme Lord assumes a material body is not intelligent. He has to learn more about the Lord’s position. As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9) , janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ. One has to understand the transcendental appearance of the Lord in His original transcendental body ( sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha ).

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The Lord, whose body is eternally endowed with ornaments and weapons and is invisible to the world and who has a spiritual form, became visible. Then, in the presence of his parents, to please them, the Lord, like an actor whose actions are hard to understand, became Vāmana, a brāhmaṇa-dwarf, a brahmacārī. The Lord whose body appears with ornaments and weapons became visible. “Appears” is in the present tense to indicate that his body is eternal. That body, which is also invisible and has a spiritual svarūpa, became visible (adhārayat). He did not accept a form temporarily. He did this to please his parents. He did not do this by any material means. The Lord, like an actor with great powers of yoga, whose actions are hard to understand (divya), produces a body different from his original form, but does it so there is non-difference. In this way the Lord manifested a body which was spiritual.
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
He appeared in original four-armed form, then in His parents' presence assumed the Vāmana dwarf-brahmacārī form like a theatrical actor. The actor remains the same despite costume change. Forms are roles; identity is one.
Reflection Questions
  • Where do I confuse the Lord's various roles for many gods?
  • What single identity holds together the many roles I myself play across the day?
📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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