SB 5.17.16 — FolioCorpus

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 5.17.16

భవానీనాథై: స్త్రీగణార్బుదసహస్రైరవరుధ్యమానో భగవతశ్చతుర్మూర్తేర్మహాపురుషస్య తురీయాం తామసీం మూర్తిం ప్రకృతిమాత్మన: సఙ్కర్షణసంజ్ఞామాత్మసమాధిరూపేణ సన్నిధాప్యైతదభిగృణన్ భవ ఉప-ధావతి ॥ ౧౬ ॥

bhavānī-nāthaiḥ strī-gaṇārbuda-sahasrair avarudhyamāno bhagavataś catur-mūrter mahā-puruṣasya turīyāṁ tāmasīṁ mūrtiṁ prakṛtim ātmanaḥ saṅkarṣaṇa-saṁjṣām ātma-samādhi-rūpeṇa sannidhāpyaitad abhigṛṇan bhava upadhāvati.

[bhavaanee-naathaih stree-ganaarbuda-sahasrair avarudhyamaano bhagavatash chatur-moorter mahaa-purushasya tureeyaam taamaseem moortim prakritim aatmanah sankarshana-samjshaam aatma-samaadhi-roopena sannidhaapyaitad abhigrinan bhava upadhaavati.]

Word-for-word

bhavānī-nāthaiḥ — by the company of Bhavānī strī-gaṇa — of females arbuda-sahasraiḥ — by ten billion avarudhyamānaḥ — always being served bhagavataḥ catuḥ-mūrteḥ — the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is expanded in four mahā-puruṣasya — of the Supreme Person turīyām — the fourth expansion tāmasīm — related to the mode of ignorance mūrtim — the form prakṛtim — as the source ātmanaḥ — of himself (Lord Śiva) saṅkarṣaṇa-saṁjṣām — known as Saṅkarṣaṇa ātma-samādhi-rūpeṇa — by meditating upon Him in trance sannidhāpya — bringing Him near etat — this abhigṛṇan — clearly chanting bhavaḥ — Lord Śiva upadhāvati — worships.

Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)

bhavānī-nāthaiḥ

by the company of Bhavānī

strī-gaṇa

of females

arbuda-sahasraiḥ

by ten billion

avarudhyamānaḥ

always being served

bhagavataḥ catuḥ-mūrteḥ

the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is expanded in four

mahā-puruṣasya

of the Supreme Person

turīyām

the fourth expansion

tāmasīm

related to the mode of ignorance

mūrtim

the form

prakṛtim

as the source

ātmanaḥ

of himself (Lord Śiva)

saṅkarṣaṇa-saṁjṣām

known as Saṅkarṣaṇa

ātma-samādhi-rūpeṇa

by meditating upon Him in trance

sannidhāpya

bringing Him near

etat

this

abhigṛṇan

clearly chanting

bhavaḥ

Lord Śiva

upadhāvati

worships.

In Ilāvṛta-varṣa, Lord Śiva is always encircled by ten billion maidservants of Goddess Durgā, who minister to him. The quadruple expansion of the Supreme Lord is composed of Vāsudeva, Pradyumna, Aniruddha and Saṅkarṣaṇa. Saṅkarṣaṇa, the fourth expansion, is certainly transcendental, but because His activities of destruction in the material world are in the mode of ignorance, He is known as tāmasī, the Lord’s form in the mode of ignorance. Lord Śiva knows that Saṅkarṣaṇa is the original cause of his own existence, and thus he always meditates upon Him in trance by chanting the following mantra.

Purport

Sometimes we see a picture of Lord Śiva engaged in meditation. This verse explains that Lord Śiva is always meditating upon Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa in trance. Lord Śiva is in charge of the destruction of the material world. Lord Brahmā creates the material world, Lord Viṣṇu maintains it, and Lord Śiva destroys it. Because destruction is in the mode of ignorance, Lord Śiva and his worshipable Deity, Saṅkarṣaṇa, are technically called tāmasī. Lord Śiva is the incarnation of tamo-guṇa. Since both Lord Śiva and Saṅkarṣaṇa are always enlightened and situated in the transcendental position, they have nothing to do with the modes of material nature — goodness, passion and ignorance — but because their activities involve them with the mode of ignorance, they are sometimes called tāmasī.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda

Gauḍīya Ācāryas

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya

Translation

In Ilāvṛta-varṣa, Lord Śiva is always encircled by ten billion maidservants of goddess Durgā. Uttering the following mantra in meditation, Śiva worships Saṅkarṣaṇa, his source, the spiritual form in charge of ignorance, among the four forms of the Lord. Surround by the servants of Durgā, served by them, he worships the form of ignorance. This is the form in charge of destruction. This form is actually beyond the three guṇas, being purely spiritual. This will be confirmed later in this chapter with na yasya māyā and tribhir vihīnām. (SB 5.17.19-21) Ātmanaḥ prakṛtim means the cause of himself, since Saṅkarṣaṇa is the aṁśī and Śiva is aṁśa. Ātma-samādhi-rūpeṇa means by a form of meditation on the self.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io