SB 1.1.1 - translations of VCT

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Hare Krishna,

 

Given below, and also in the attached word document (with diacritics), are

the five translations of the first verse of Srimad Bhagavatam by Visvanatha

Cakravarti Thakura. This was culled from the translation of the commentaries

by Matsya Avatara Prabhu, who kindly corrected the mistakes I made.

 

Your servant

Radhikesh dasa

 

The Supreme Controller is the cause (yatah) of the creation, maintenance and

destruction (janmadi) of this (asya) world. He is the material cause of the

world because of His presence (anvaya) in the creation, and the absence

(itara) of the creation in Him. He is also (ca) the instrumental cause of

the world. He is cognizant (abhijnah) of all things (arthesu) created and

not created. He acts independently (svarat) simply by His own form and does

not require any instrumental organ to see or do other things. It was He who

(yah) imparted (tene) the Vedas (brahma) to the first sage (adi-kavaye),

Brahma, thru the heart (hrda) of Brahma, since by himself Brahma couldn't

have understood the truth about the Lord (yat), because even the great

demigods (surayah) are bewildered (muhyanti) about the Lord. Just like

(yatha) the misapprehension (vinimayah) of light, water and earth

(tejo-vari-mrdam), the conception that the Lord's body (yatra) is a product

of the three gunas (tri-sargah), is false (mrsa) because the Lord's body is

made of full consciousness. The cheaters (kuhakam), who doubt this, are

always (sada) driven away (nirasta) by the Lord's own (svena) power

(dhamna). We meditate (dhimahi) on such a Lord, who is the supreme (param)

truth (satyam).

 

We meditate (dhimahi) on the Supreme Truth (param satyam), Krsna, by whom

the ignorance of the living beings (kuhakam) is always (sada) driven off

(nirasta) thru the manifestation of His own form and dhama (svena dhamna).

The conception that Krsna's body (yatra) is created by a combination of the

three gunas (tri-sargah), which is just like (yatha) a combination

(vinimayah) of the three visible elements - fire, water and earth

(tejo-vari-mrdam), is false (mrsa). Krsna manifests His form by His own

sweet will even to the demons. And (ca), being cognizant (abhijnah) of the

Kamsa's vicious purposes (arthesu) and His own sweet purposes in creating

parental love and other kinds of love, He went (ayat) to (anu) another place

(itaratah) i.e. the house of Nanda, from the house of Vasudeva, where (yato)

His (asya) birth, manifestation of majesty and so on (janmadi) took place.

He went to Vraja for the sake of becoming beautifully situated with His own

father and other devotees (svarat). There the Lord (yah) showed (tene)

spiritual (brahma) calves and boys to the first sage (adi-kavaye), Brahma,

by His own will (hrda). Indeed even great sages (surayah) such as Siva and

Narada are bewildered (muhyanti) about this (yatra) display of yoga-maya.

 

We meditate (dhimahi) upon the supreme truth (param satyam) Sri Krsna, from

whom (yatah) comes the birth (janma) of the original (adyasya) rasa i.e.

srngara-rasa. This rasa is produced by union (anvayat) and (ca) separation

(itaratah). Krsna is cognizant (abhijnah) of the things (arthesu) helpful

for bringing about rasa such as the sixty four arts. Being independent

(svarat), He is not affected by time and karma unlike other mundane heroes.

He is the one who (yah) imparted (tene) the truth (brahma) about adi-rasa

unto the original sage (adi-kavi) of rasa, Bharata, thru the sage's mind

(hrda). Properly speaking, rasa is related only to Him, but the poets

(surayah) are bewildered (muhyanti) in regard to the truth (yat) about rasa,

because they describe rasa in relation to mundane heroes. This is like

(yatha) mistaking (vinimayah) light (tejah) and so on to be water (vari) and

so on. Moreover, in relation to Krsna (yatra), a literary creation (sargah)

of the three kinds (tri) kinds of meanings namely literal (vacya),

figurative (laksya), and suggestive (vyangya), being not false (amrsa), can

be astonishing, by its otherworldliness. However, the cheaters (kuhakam),

who do not esteem rasa, are always (sada) driven away by the special (svena)

power (dhamna) of astonishment arising from the direct perception

 

We meditate (dhimahi) truly (satyam) and in the best of all ways (param),

devoid of any cheating (nirasta-kuhakam) upon Radha and Krsna are from whom

(yatah) comes the manifestation (janma) of the original (adyasya) rasa.

Krsna is knowledgeable (abhijnah) about the objects (arthesu) i.e. the

primary rasas, because of His following (anvayat) Radha, after abandoning

the other (itara) beloveds. And (ca) Radha is svarat because She rules over

Krsna. It was Krsna who (yah) imparted (tene) thru the heart (hrda) the

scripture (brahma) Bhagavatam, which reveals all these qualities thru the

five rasa-lila chapters, to Suka (adi-kavi). This Bhagavatam (yat) causes

the sages (surayah) to reach a state of blissful, swooning stupefaction

(muhyanti), even though the sages are by nature wise. This is just like

(yatha) the reversal (vinimayah) of the properties of light, water and earth

(tejo-vari-mrdam) i.e. the moon, though a moving object, becomes paralyzed

by the vision of rasa-lila, the water becomes paralyzed by the sound of

Krsna's flute and takes on the solid property, and rocks (earth) take on the

property of water by melting. This couple, Radha and Krsna, are the

foundational cause (yatra) of the three created potencies (tri sargah) i.e.

Sri, Bhu and Lila, or the cowherd maidens, queens and goddesses of fortune,

or the internal, external and marginal potencies of Sri, Bhu and Lila. Thus

the potencies are true (amrsa) and always (sada) exist by their own (svena)

greatness (dhamna).

 

 

Bhakti-yoga (yatah) gives rise (janma) to the perception of the original

(adyasya) i.e. the Supreme Lord as Bhagavan. And (ca) because of connection

(anvayat) with it, other (itara) things such as niskama karma yoga and jnana

yoga give rise to the perception of the Lord as Supersoul and Brahman.

Bhakti yoga is fully independent (svarat). It doesn't depend on knowledge,

but rather full (abhi) knowledge (jna) comes from it. Bhakti yoga is

attained only by the mercy of a devotee because we see that it (yah) was

mercifully revealed (tene) to the first sage Vyasa (adi-kavi) by Narada, who

carries Brahman in his heart (brahma-hrd). Even the great sages (surayah)

are bewildered (muhyanti) about bhakti-yoga (yat) because the intelligence

and other faculties are unable to enter into it. The conception that bhakti

yoga (yatra) is a product (sargah) of the three gunas (tri) is irrational

(mrsa). Rather just as (yatha) milk, although naturally free from fire,

water, and dirt particles (tejo-vari-mrdam), becomes

"scorched,""watered-down" and "polluted" because of mixing (vinimayah) with

these various elements, so bhakti-yoga, which is beyond the three gunas, is

called sattvika, rajasa, and tamasa because of contact with sattva and the

other gunas present within a person. Bhakti yoga, however, always (sada)

drives out (nirasta) cheaters (kuhakam) by its own (svena) pure form

(dhamna), which is full of sweetness. Thus we meditate (dhimahi) upon bhakti

yoga which is true (satyam) and which is full of supremely (param)

auspicious qualities.