Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.20.52

tapasā vidyayā yukto

yogena susamādhinā

ṛṣīn ṛṣir hṛṣīkeśaḥ

sasarjābhimatāḥ prajāḥ

SYNONYMS

tapasā — by penance; vidyayā — by worship; yuktaḥ — being engaged; yogena — by concentration of the mind in devotion; su-samādhinā — by nice meditation; ṛṣīn — the sages; ṛṣiḥ — the first seer (Brahmā); hṛṣīkeśaḥ — the controller of his senses; sasarja — created; abhimatāḥ — beloved; prajāḥ — sons.

TRANSLATION

Having equipped himself with austere penance, adoration, mental concentration and absorption in devotion, accompanied by dispassion, and having controlled his senses, Brahmā, the self-born living creature, evolved great sages as his beloved sons.

PURPORT

The ritualistic performances of sacrifice are meant for material economic development; in other words, they are meant to keep the body in good condition for cultivation of spiritual knowledge. But for actual attainment of spiritual knowledge, other qualifications are needed. What is essential is vidyā, or worship of the Supreme Lord. Sometimes the word yoga is used to refer to the gymnastic performances of different bodily postures which help mental concentration. Generally, the different bodily postures in the yoga system are accepted by less intelligent men to be the end of yoga, but actually they are meant to concentrate the mind upon the Supersoul. After creating persons for economic development, Brahmā created sages who would set the example for spiritual realization.

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