Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.6.20
శ్రీబాదరాయణిరువాచ
ఇత్యభిష్టూయ విబుధై: సేశ: శతధృతిర్హరిమ్ ।
అభ్యభాషత గోవిన్దం ప్రణమ్యామ్బరమాశ్రిత: ॥ ౨౦ ॥
śrī-bādarāyaṇir uvāca
[shree-baadaraayanir uvaacha]
ity abhiṣṭūya vibudhaiḥ
[ity abhishtooya vibudhaih]
seśaḥ śata-dhṛtir harim
[seshah shata-dhritir harim]
abhyabhāṣata govindaṁ
[abhyabhaashata govindam]
praṇamyāmbaram āśritaḥ
[pranamyaambaram aashritah]
Word-for-word
śrī-bādarāyaṇiḥ uvāca
—
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
iti
—
thus
abhiṣṭūya
—
praising
vibudhaiḥ
—
along with all the demigods
sa-īśaḥ
—
and also Lord Śiva
śata-dhṛtiḥ
—
Lord Brahmā
harim
—
the Supreme Lord
abhyabhāṣata
—
spoke
govindam
—
to Govinda
praṇamya
—
offering obeisances
ambaram
—
in the sky
āśritaḥ
—
situated.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrī-bādarāyaṇir uvāca
śrī-bādarāyaṇiḥ uvāca
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
ity abhiṣṭūya vibudhaiḥ
iti
thus
abhiṣṭūya
praising
vibudhaiḥ
along with all the demigods
seśaḥ śata-dhṛtir harim
sa-īśaḥ
and also Lord Śiva
śata-dhṛtiḥ
Lord Brahmā
harim
the Supreme Lord
abhyabhāṣata govindaṁ
abhyabhāṣata
spoke
govindam
to Govinda
praṇamyāmbaram āśritaḥ
praṇamya
offering obeisances
ambaram
in the sky
āśritaḥ
situated.
Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: After Brahmā, along with Lord Śiva and the other demigods, thus offered prayers to the Supreme Lord, Govinda, Lord Brahmā situated himself in the sky and addressed the Lord as follows.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura
Gauḍīya
Translation
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: After Brahmā, along with Lord Śiva and the other devatās, thus offered prayers to Govinda, Brahmā situated himself in the sky and addressed the Lord as follows.
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
When the highest demigods themselves bow and offer prayers to Govinda, take it as a settled signal: surrender belongs to Kṛṣṇa alone.
Practical Applications
- Before any prayer today, physically bow or pause and address Kṛṣṇa by name as Govinda, not as a vague higher power.
- Notice when you treat any boss, guru, or institution as ultimate, and consciously re-route that final reliance to Kṛṣṇa.
- Refuse to flatten Kṛṣṇa into one option among many; speak of Him today as the Lord whom even Brahmā and Śiva petition.
Reflection Questions
- Whom in my life have I quietly placed in Govinda's position, expecting from them what only He can give?
- If even śata-dhṛti Brahmā stands in the sky to address Kṛṣṇa with folded hands, what posture of heart am I still withholding?
For Each Age Group
youth
- Before an exam or interview, instead of generic "send good vibes" prayers, address Kṛṣṇa by name as Govinda even if just in your head.
- When a senior, professor, or influencer feels overwhelmingly authoritative, remember that even Brahmā stands with folded hands before Kṛṣṇa — keep your final loyalty straight.
- On social media, notice how easily you absolutize celebrities; consciously offer one praṇāma mentally to Govinda to reset who actually sits at the top.
householder
- Begin family meals or the workday by addressing Govinda by name, modeling for your children that even the highest authorities answer to Him.
- When career pressure tempts you to treat your boss or the market as ultimate, recall this verse and re-route your dependence to Kṛṣṇa while still doing your duty.
- In a family disagreement, pause and offer the decision to Govinda first, the way Brahmā addresses Him from the sky before acting.
senior
- As your body weakens, take comfort that even the cosmic creator petitions Govinda — your dependence on Him is not decline but maturity.
- When mentoring children or grandchildren, name Kṛṣṇa specifically as Govinda; leave them a personal Lord, not a vague spirituality.
- Loosen attachment to legacy by remembering that Brahmā himself, after building universes, still stands praying — your works too belong at His feet.
Common Pitfalls
- Reading the demigods' prayers as mere mythology and missing that they model the correct stance for me toward Kṛṣṇa.
- Using Brahmā's exalted position to justify staying distant — "that's for great souls, not me" — instead of imitating his humility.
- Treating Govinda as a sectarian name rather than the personal Supreme to whom even the universal creator submits.
Discussion Prompts
- If Brahmā, the creator of this universe, still situates himself in the sky to address Kṛṣṇa, what does that say about every authority figure we are tempted to absolutize?
- Share a moment when you offered prayers but were not sure to whom — how would naming Govinda specifically have changed it?
- Where do you feel resistance to a personal Supreme, and is that resistance philosophical or simply unfamiliar?
Role Play
One student plays a sincere seeker who insists "all paths lead to the same impersonal light"; another plays a Gauḍīya friend who must respond using only this verse — the fact that Brahmā and Śiva themselves address a specific person, Govinda, with praṇāma.
Objections & Responses
- Isn't it primitive to imagine gods bowing to another god? Sounds like mythology dressed up as theology.
The verse is not flattering one deity over others; it is showing the internal hierarchy of reality. The very powers who run the cosmos — creation and destruction — themselves take shelter of Govinda. That is a structural claim about who the Absolute is, not a tribal boast. - Why does the Supreme need to be a person named Govinda? Isn't formless awareness more universal?
Formlessness is one feature of the Absolute, but personhood is the fuller truth — a person can be loved, served, and addressed. Brahmā does not address an abstraction from the sky; he addresses Govinda by name. Relationship requires a person on the other end.
My note
Source: vedabase.io