Copyright © r The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness
| Canto 1: Creation | Chapter 3: Krishna Is the Source of All Incarnations |
Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 1.3.10
provācāsuraye sāńkhyam
SYNONYMS
pańcamah — the fifth one; kapilah — Kapila; nāma — of the name; siddheśah — the foremost amongst the perfect; kāla — time; viplutam — lost; provāca — said; āsuraye — unto the brāhmana named Āsuri; sāńkhyam — metaphysics; tattva-grāma — the sum total of the creative elements; vinirnayam — exposition.
TRANSLATION
The fifth incarnation, named Lord Kapila, is foremost among perfected beings. He gave an exposition of the creative elements and metaphysics to Āsuri Brāhmana, for in course of time this knowledge had been lost.
PURPORT
The sum total of the creative elements is twenty-four in all. Each and every one of them is explicitly explained in the system of Sāńkhya philosophy. Sāńkhya philosophy is generally called metaphysics by the European scholars. The etymological meaning of sāńkhya is "that which explains very lucidly by analysis of the material elements." This was done for the first time by Lord Kapila, who is said herein to be the fifth in the line of incarnations.
Copyright © r The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International, Inc.
His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness