Bhagavān

satyaṁ diśaty arthitam arthito nṛṇāṁ

satyaṁ diśaty arthitam arthito nṛṇāṁ
naivārtha-do yat punar arthitā yataḥ |
svayaṁ vidhatte bhajatām anicchatām
icchā-pidhānaṁ nija-pāda-pallavam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 5.19.26; cited in Bhakti Sandarbha 98, Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.22.40, 2.24.199)

“It is true that Prabhu bestows, when requested, the requested object of human beings, but he is certainly not munificent [just] by means of that since [thereafter] they again become requesters [of something else once the object which he has already bestowed upon them has been enjoyed, found to be ultimately unfulfilling, and left the requester with still unsatisfied desirousness]. [Thus,] He of his own accord bestows his own bud-like feet upon worshippers who are undesirous [of his feet] which are covering of [i.e., fulfilling and quelling of all] desires.”

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na vidyate yasya ca janma karma vā

na vidyate yasya ca janma karma vā
na nāma-rūpe guṇa-doṣa eva vā |
tathāpi lokāpyaya-sambhavāya yaḥ
sva-māyayā tāny anukālam ṛcchati ||
tasmai namaḥ pareśāya brahmaṇe’nanta-śaktaye |
arūpāyoru-rūpāya nama āścarya-karmaṇe ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 8.3.8–9)

“Obeisance unto the Supreme Īśa, unto Brahman, unto he possessed of unending potency, unto he who has no birth or action, no name or form, and no faults in the form of [material] qualities whatsoever, and who by means of his own māyā still accepts these [i.e., births, actions, names, forms, and qualities] perpetually for the sake of the dissolution and the attainment of the people. Obeisance unto he who has no [material] form, unto he who has an excellent [spiritual] form, unto he of astonishing action.”

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sṛṣṭy-ādikaṁ harir naiva prayojanam apekṣya tu

sṛṣṭy-ādikaṁ harir naiva prayojanam apekṣya tu |
kurute kevalānandād yathā martyasya nartanam ||
pūrṇānandasya tasyeha prayojana-matiḥ kutaḥ |
muktā apy āpta-kāmāḥ syuḥ kim u tasyākhilātmanaḥ ||
(Nārāyaṇa-saṁhitā; cited in Bhagavat Sandarbha: 47; Paramātma Sandarbha: 93; Govinda-bhāṣya on Vedānta-sūtra: 2.1.32)

“Without reference to a motive whatsoever, Hari performs the emanation and so forth [of the universe] out of bliss alone like an inebriated person’s dancing [which occurs as a result of bliss and not for the sake of attaining bliss]. Where is the notion of a motive in this regard for he who is possessed of complete bliss? Even the liberated shall be possessed of fulfilled desires. So how much more so shall this be so for he who is the Self of all?”

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sarva-dharmopapatteś ca

sarva-dharmopapatteś ca |
(Vedānta-sūtra: 2.1.37)

“And because of the establishment of all attributes [in Brahman, Brahman rightly both remains impartial to jīvas in general and favors his bhaktas specifically].

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upapadyate cābhyupalabhyate ca

upapadyate cābhyupalabhyate ca |
(Vedānta-sūtra: 2.1.36)

“That [i.e., partiality on the part of Brahman in the form of favoring bhaktas] is also established, and is also observable.”

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na karmāvibhāgād iti cen nānāditvāt

na karmāvibhāgād iti cen nānāditvāt |
(Vedānta-sūtra: 2.1.35)

“‘No, [Brahman cannot be said to be free from partiality or cruelty just by making reference to karma] because of the non-distinction of karma [from Brahman prior to the emanation of the universe].’ If this [objection is raised], [then to that it is said] no, [karma is not simply undivided prior to the emanation of the universe] because of [karma’s] being beginningless [i.e., because of karma’s becoming recurrently distinguished from Brahman in each successive emanation of the universe in accord with its state at the end of each previous emanation of the universe in a perpetual cycle without beginning].”

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lokavat tu līlā-kaivalyam

lokavat tu līlā-kaivalyam |
(Vedānta-sūtra: 2.1.33)

“Like a person’s [endeavor to act], it [i.e., Brahman’s endeavor of emanating the universe], rather, is a singularity of play.”

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pātraṁ tv atra niruktaṁ vai kavibhiḥ pātra-vittamaiḥ

pātraṁ tv atra niruktaṁ vai kavibhiḥ pātra-vittamaiḥ |
harir evaika urvīśa yan-mayaṁ vai carācaram ||
devarṣy-arhatsu vai satsu tatra brahmātmajādiṣu |
rājan yad agra-pūjāyāṁ mataḥ pātratayācyutaḥ ||
jīva-rāśibhir ākīrṇa aṇḍa-kośāṅghripo mahān |
tan-mūlatvād acyutejyā sarva-jīvātma-tarpaṇam ||
purāṇy anena sṛṣṭāni nṛ-tiryag-ṛṣi-devatāḥ |
śete jīvena rūpeṇa pureṣu puruṣo hy asau ||
teṣv eva bhagavān rājaṁs tāratamyena vartate |
tasmāt pātraṁ hi puruṣo yāvān ātmā yatheyate ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 7.14.34–38)

“[Śrī Nārada to Śrī Yudhiṣṭhira:] O Ruler of the earth! The one Hari alone, of whom the universe [lit., the moving and the unmoving] is constituted, has been declared the [most] fit recipient of honor (pātram) here [i.e., on the earth] by the learned most knowledgable in regard to fit recipients of honor since, O King, Acyuta [i.e., Hari] was accepted as being the fit recipient of the first worship there [i.e., at your Rājasūya sacrifice] even when the devas, ṛṣis, ascetics, sons of Brahmā [i.e., Sanat, Sanandana, and so on], and others were present. Worship of Acyuta is satisfying to all jīvas and oneself because of [his] being the root of the vast tree of the universe filled with the multitudes of jīvas. The abodes [i.e., bodies] of human beings, animals, sages, and devatās [i.e., all living beings] were emanated by him. He, the Puruṣa, [then] lies in those abodes in the form of life [i.e., in the form of he who is the cause of life in those abodes, i.e., the Inner Regulator (Antaryāmī)]. O King, Bhagavān is present in these [abodes, i.e., bodies] verily in a gradation. Therefore, a person [i.e., a human being] is a fit recipient of honor as and to the extent the Self [i.e., Bhagavān] is perceived.”

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aiśvaryasya samagrasya vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ

aiśvaryasya samagrasya vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ |
jñāna-vairāgyayoś caiva ṣaṇṇāṁ bhaga itīṅganā ||
(Viṣṇu Purāṇa: 6.5.74; cited in Bhagavat Sandarbha: 3)

“[The word] Bhaga [i.e., ‘excellence’] is an indication of six [attributes]: complete mastery, potency, fame, wealth, knowledge, and non-attachment.”

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