SB 1.2.3 (1962)
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
TEXT No. 1
Yah swanubhabam akahila sruti saram ekam
Adhyatama deepam atititeersatam tamondham
Samsarinam korunaya aha puranam guhyam
Tam vyasasunam upayami gurum muninam.
ENGLISH SYNONYMS
Yah—he who, Swanubhabam—self assimilated (experienced), Akhila—all round, Sruti—Vedas, Saram—cream, Ekam—the only one, Adhyatma—transcendental, Deepam—torchlight, Atititeersatam—desiring to overcome, Tamondham—deeply dark material existence, Samsarinam—of the materialistic men, Karunaya—out of causeless mercy, Aha—said, Purnam—supplimentary to the Vedas, Guhyam—very confidential, Tam—unto him, Vyasasunum—the son of Vyasadeve, upayami—let me offer my obeisances, gurum—spiritual master, muninam—of the great sages.
TRANSLATION
Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto him who is the spiritual master of all sages and the son of Vyasadeva, who, out of his great compassion for the gross materialists desiring to cross over the darkest region of material existence, said the most confidential supplement of the cream of Vedic knowledge after having personally assimilated the same by experience.
PURPORT
In this prayer of Srila Suta Goswami, practically the complete introduction of the Srimad Bhagwatam is summarised. Srimad Bhagwatam is the supplementary natural commentation of the Vedanta Sutras. Vedanta Sutras or the Brahma Sutras were compiled by Vyasdeva just to present a cream of all Vedic knowledge. And Srimad Bhagwatam is the natural commentation of the same cream. Srila Sukadeva Goswami was a thoroughly passed Master of Art on the Vedanta Sutra and as such he personally realised the commentation, on the Vedanta Sutra under the heading of Srimad Bhagwatam. And out of his own accord just to show his boundless mercy upon the bewildered materialistic men, who wanted to cross over the nescience completely,—said for the first time this confidential part of the supplements of the Vedic knowledge.
There is no use arguing that any materialistic man can be happy. Any materialistic man, however, great he may be even in the position of a Brahma down to the insignificant creature like the ant, cannot be happy. Every one is trying for himself to make a permanent plan for happiness but he is becoming baffled in the next moment because that is the law of material energy. Therefore, the materialistic world is the darkest region of God's creation. The unhappy materialistic man can get out of it simply by desiring to get out of it. Unfortunately they are so much foolish that they do not wish to get out of it. They are there compared with the camel. The camel relishes thorny twigs although thorns cut it's tongue and there is discharge of blood within the mouth. The fact is that the camel tastes its own blood emanating out of the cuts by the thorny creepers but the camel relishes the thorns because it becomes tasteful being mixed up with its own blood. Similarly the camel and ass like the materialist tastes his own blood as sweet as honey and does not wish to get out of it even though he is always harassed by his own material creations. Such materialist is called the karmis. Out of such crores of karmis only a few may feel tired of such material engagements and desire to get out of the hurdle. And such intelligent persons are called Jnanins. The Vedanta Sutra is meant for such Jnanins. But Srila Vyasadeva as He is the incarnation of power of the Supreme Lord, could foresee the misuse of the Vedanta Sutra by unscrupulous men, and, therefore, He personally made a commentation of the Vedanta Sutra in the shape of the Bhagwat Puranam. It is clearly said that this Bhagwat is the original commentation of the Brahma Sutras. Not only that Srila Vyasadeva instructed the same to His own son Srila Sukadeva Goswami who was already on the liberated stage of transcendence. Srila Sukadeva Goswami realised it personally and then explained it. By the mercy of Srila Sukadeva Goswami the Bhagwat-Vedanta-Sutra has become as easy for all those sincere souls who want to get out of the material existence.
Srimad Bhagwatam is the only one unrivalled commentation of the Vedanta Sutra. Sripad Sankaracharya intentionally did not touch it because he knew it well that it would be difficult for him to surpass the natural commentation. He made his Sarirak Bhasya and his so called followers deprecated the Bhagwatam as something new presentation. One should not, therefore, be misled by such propaganda of the Mayavada school against the Bhagwatam. The sincere student may know it from this introductory sloka that Srimad Bhagwatam is the ONLY ONE transcendental literature meant for those who are Paramhansas and completely freed from the material disease called by the name malice. The Mayavadins are envious of the Personality of Godhead inspite of Sripad Shankaracharya's admission that Narayana the Personality of Godhead is above the material creation. The envious Mayavadi cannot have an access in the Bhagwatam but those who are really anxious for getting out of this material existence may take shelter of this Bhagwatam because it is uttered by such liberated personality as Srila Sukdeva Goswami. It is the transcendental torchlight through which one can see perfectly the transcendental Absolute-Truth realised as Brahma, Paramatma or Bhagawan.