Canto 9: Liberation | Chapter 24: Kṛṣṇa the Supreme Personality of Godhead |
Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 9.24.53-55
pravara-śruta-mukhyāḿś ca
sākṣād dharmo vasūn iva
vasudevas tu devakyām
aṣṭa putrān ajījanat
kīrtimantaḿ suṣeṇaḿ ca
bhadrasenam udāra-dhīḥ
ṛjuḿ sammardanaḿ bhadraḿ
sańkarṣaṇam ahīśvaram
aṣṭamas tu tayor āsīt
svayam eva hariḥ kila
subhadrā ca mahābhāgā
tava rājan pitāmahī
SYNONYMS
pravara — Pravara (in some readings, Pauvara); śruta — Śruta; mukhyān — headed by; ca — and; sākṣāt — directly; dharmaḥ — religion personified; vasūn iva — exactly like the chief Vasus in the heavenly planets; vasudevaḥ — Śrīla Vasudeva, the father of Kṛṣṇa; tu — indeed; devakyām — in the womb of Devakī; aṣṭa — eight; putrān — sons; ajījanat — begot; kīrtimantam — Kīrtimān; suṣeṇam ca — and Suṣeṇa; bhadrasenam — Bhadrasena; udāra-dhīḥ — all fully qualified; ṛjum — Ṛju; sammardanam — Sammardana; bhadram — Bhadra; sańkarṣaṇam — Sańkarṣaṇa; ahi-īśvaram — the supreme controller and serpent incarnation; aṣṭamaḥ — the eighth one; tu — but; tayoḥ — of both (Devakī and Vasudeva); āsīt — appeared; svayam eva — directly, personally; hariḥ — the Supreme Personality of Godhead; kila — what to speak of; subhadrā — a sister, Subhadrā; ca — and; mahābhāgā — highly fortunate; tava — your; rājan — O Mahārāja Parīkṣit; pitāmahī — grandmother.
TRANSLATION
The eight sons born of Sahadevā such as Pravara and Śruta, were exact incarnations of the eight Vasus in the heavenly planets. Vasudeva also begot eight highly qualified sons through the womb of Devakī. These included Kīrtimān, Suṣeṇa, Bhadrasena, Ṛju, Sammardana, Bhadra and Sańkarṣaṇa, the controller and serpent incarnation. The eighth son was the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself — Kṛṣṇa. The highly fortunate Subhadrā, the one daughter, was your grandmother.
PURPORT
The fifty-fifth verse says, svayam eva hariḥ kila, indicating that Kṛṣṇa, the eighth son of Devakī, is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Kṛṣṇa is not an incarnation. Although there is no difference between the Supreme Personality of Godhead Hari and His incarnation, Kṛṣṇa is the original Supreme Person, the complete Godhead. Incarnations exhibit only a certain percentage of the potencies of Godhead; the complete Godhead is Kṛṣṇa Himself, who appeared as the eighth son of Devakī.
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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness