Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 4.31.18

tenaikam ātmānam aśeṣa-dehināḿ

kālaḿ pradhānaḿ puruṣaḿ pareśam

sva-tejasā dhvasta-guṇa-pravāham

ātmaika-bhāvena bhajadhvam addhā

SYNONYMS

tena — therefore; ekam — one; ātmānam — unto the Supreme Soul; aśeṣa — unlimited; dehinām — of the individual souls; kālam — time; pradhānam — the material cause; puruṣam — the Supreme Person; para-īśam — the transcendental controller; sva-tejasā — by His spiritual energy; dhvasta — aloof; guṇa-pravāham — from material emanations; ātma — self; eka-bhāvena — accepting as qualitatively one; bhajadhvam — engage in devotional service; addhā — directly.

TRANSLATION

Because the Supreme Lord is the cause of all causes, He is the Supersoul of all individual living entities, and He exists as both the remote and immediate cause. Since He is aloof from the material emanations, He is free from their interactions and is Lord of material nature. You should therefore engage in His devotional service, thinking yourself qualitatively one with Him.

PURPORT

According to Vedic calculations, there are three causes of creation — time, the ingredient and the creator. Combined, these are called tritayātmaka, the three causes. Everything in this material world is created by these three causes. All of these causes are found in the Personality of Godhead. As confirmed in Brahma-saḿhitā: sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam [Bs. 5.1]. Nārada Muni therefore advises the Pracetās to worship the direct cause, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As stated before, when the root of a tree is watered, all the parts are energized. According to the advice of Nārada Muni, one should directly engage in devotional service. This will include all pious activity. Caitanya-caritāmṛta states, kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya: when one worships the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, in devotional service, one automatically performs all other pious activity. In this verse the words sva-tejasā dhvasta-guṇa-pravāham are very significant. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is never affected by the material qualities, although they all emanate from His spiritual energy. Those who are really conversant with this knowledge can utilize everything for the service of the Lord because nothing in this material world is unconnected with the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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