Srimad Bhagavatam Canto 2 Chapter 5 Verse 16

Canto 2: The Cosmic Manifestation | Chapter 5: The Cause of All Causes

Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 2.5.16

nārāyaṇa-paro yogo

nārāyaṇa-paraḿ tapaḥ

nārāyaṇa-paraḿ jñānaḿ

nārāyaṇa-parā gatiḥ

SYNONYMS

nārāyaṇa-paraḥ — just to know Nārāyaṇa; yogaḥ — concentration of mind; nārāyaṇa-param — just with an aim to achieve Nārāyaṇa; tapaḥ — austerity; nārāyaṇa-param — just to realize a glimpse of Nārāyaṇa; jñānam — culture of transcendental knowledge; nārāyaṇa-parā — the path of salvation ends by entering the kingdom of Nārāyaṇa; gatiḥ — progressive path.

TRANSLATION

All different types of meditation or mysticism are means for realizing Nārāyaṇa. All austerities are aimed at achieving Nārāyaṇa. Culture of transcendental knowledge is for getting a glimpse of Nārāyaṇa, and ultimately salvation is entering the kingdom of Nārāyaṇa.

PURPORT

In meditation, there are two systems of yoga, namely aṣṭāńga-yoga and sāńkhya-yoga. Aṣṭāńga-yoga is practice in concentrating the mind, releasing oneself from all engagements by the regulative processes of meditation, concentration, sitting postures, blocking the movements of the internal circulation of air, etc. Sāńkhya-yoga is meant to distinguish the truth from ephemerals. But ultimately both the systems are meant for realizing the impersonal Brahman, which is but a partial representation of Nārāyaṇa, the Personality of Godhead. As we have explained before, the impersonal Brahman effulgence is only a part of the Personality of Godhead. Impersonal Brahman is situated on the person of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as such, Brahman is the glorification of the personality of the Godhead. This is confirmed both in the Bhagavad-gītā and in the Matsya Purāṇa. Gati refers to the ultimate destination, or the last word in liberation. Oneness with the impersonal brahmajyoti is not ultimate liberation; superior to that is the sublime association of the Personality of Godhead in one of the innumerable spiritual planets in the Vaikuṇṭha sky. Therefore the conclusion is that Nārāyaṇa, or the Personality of Godhead, is the ultimate destination for all kinds of yoga systems as well as all kinds of liberation.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness