Category:Bhagavatam Verses Spoken by Svayambhuva Manu - Vaniquotes
- Svāyambhuva Manu is the 26th top speaker of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with 53 verses at Vanisource. He speaks only in the 3rd (17 verses), 4th (28 verses), and 8th canto (8 verses).
Theme Analysis
Svāyambhuva Manu represents the ideal administrative head of the universe, embodying the principles of duty (dharma) and obedience to authority. His verses in the Third, Fourth, and Eighth Cantos illustrate three distinct phases of leadership: the obedient son, the responsible father, and the wise grandfather. Upon his creation, his first act is to ask his father, Lord Brahmā, for service, establishing the standard that all living entities exist to serve the Supreme. As a father, he dutifully offers his daughter Devahūti to the sage Kardama Muni, exemplifying how a householder must accept a suitable match when it comes unsolicited. Most significantly, as a grandfather, he instructs Dhruva Mahārāja to cease his violent war against the Yakṣas. In these verses, Manu elucidates the Īśopaniṣad principle—that everything belongs to the Lord and one should not infringe upon others' rights—and explains the philosophy of karma, comparing the Lord's universal direction to a magnet moving iron. Finally, his prayers in the Eighth Canto reveal his deep theological understanding of the Lord as the supreme witness and controller.
- Service to the Creator: Manu's first words are an inquiry into how he can serve his father, Brahmā. He acknowledges Brahmā as the source of his subsistence, setting the precedent that progeny should serve their progenitors.
- The Duty of Marriage: Counseling Kardama Muni, Manu argues that denying a suitable, unsolicited offer of marriage is not commendable, even for a renunciant. He acts as the perfect matchmaker for his daughter Devahūti.
- The Dangers of Anger: Instructing Dhruva, Manu warns that anger is the path to hell and the enemy of spiritual realization. He urges Dhruva to stop the killing of innocent Yakṣas, teaching that collective punishment is sinful.
- Karma and Destiny: He explains that happiness and distress are the results of one's own karma, comparing the living entity to dust blown by the wind of time. He absolves the Yakṣas of being the ultimate cause of death.
- The Magnet Analogy: Manu describes the Lord's passive yet potent control over the universe, stating that the cosmos moves by His impetus just as iron moves near a magnet.
- Social Harmony: He elucidates the symbiotic relationship between brāhmaṇas (the heart) and kṣatriyas (the arms), enforcing that society flourishes only when these classes cooperate.
- Explore the synthesized essence of the category in this Vanipedia article: The Instructions of Svāyambhuva Manu - Governance, Marriage, and Non-Violence.
Pages in category "Bhagavatam Verses Spoken by Svayambhuva Manu - Vaniquotes"
The following 67 pages are in this category, out of 67 total.
A
- A person who desires liberation from this material world should not fall under the control of anger because when bewildered by anger one becomes a source of dread for all others
- Although one living entity's duration of life is very small whereas that of another is very great, He (Visnu) is always in His transcendental position, and there is no question of lessening or increasing His duration of life
- Although the Supreme Personality of Godhead constantly watches the activities of the world, no one sees Him. However, one should not think that because no one sees Him, He does not see, for His power to see is never diminished
- As the supreme teacher of human society, He teaches His own way of activities, and thus He inaugurates the real path of religion. I request everyone to follow Him
E
F
- For the protection of the brahmanas, the thousand-legged Supreme Being created us, the ksatriyas, from His thousand arms. Hence the brahmanas are said to be His heart and the ksatriyas His arms
- For this reason, my son, you should immediately pacify Kuvera with gentle words and prayers, and thus his wrath may not affect our family
I
- I have fortunately been instructed by you, and thus great favor has been bestowed upon me. I thank God that I have listened with open ears to your pure words
- It appears that He is acting, but He is not the actor. He is killing, but He is not the killer. Thus it is understood that only by His inconceivable power is everything happening
- It is my good fortune that I have been able to see you, for you cannot easily be seen by persons who have not subdued the mind or controlled the senses. I am all the more fortunate to have touched with my head the blessed dust of your feet
- It is very difficult to achieve the spiritual abode of Hari, in the Vaikuntha planets, but you are so fortunate that you are already destined to go to that abode by worshiping Him as the supreme abode of all living entities
L
- Lord is always thinking of you, & you are also recognized by all His confidential devotees because you are a pure devotee of the Lord. Your life is meant for exemplary behavior. I am therefore surprised - why have you undertaken such an abominable task?
- Lord Manu said: My dear son, please stop. It is not good to become unnecessarily angry - it is the path to hellish life. Now you are going beyond the limit by killing Yaksas who are actually not offenders
M
- Manu continued: My dear King Dhruva, it is simply by the illusory, material energy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and by the interaction of the three modes of material nature that creation, maintenance and annihilation take place
- Manu replied: To expand himself in Vedic knowledge, Lord Brahma, the personified Veda, from his face created you, the brahmanas, who are full of austerity, knowledge and mystic power and are averse to sense gratification
- My (Manu) dear Dhruva, at the age of only five years you were very grievously afflicted by the words of your mother's co-wife, and you very boldly gave up the protection of your mother and went to the forest to engage in the yogic process
- My daughter is the sister of Priyavrata and Uttanapada. She is seeking a suitable husband in terms of age, character and good qualities
- My dear boy Dhruva, please surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the ultimate goal of the progress of the world
- My dear Dhruva, please, therefore, turn your attention to the Supreme Person, who is the infallible Brahman. Face the SPG in your original position, and thus, by self-realization, you will find this material differentiation to be merely flickering
- My dear Dhruva, the SPG is ever existing, but in the form of time, He is the killer of everything. He has no beginning, although He is the beginning of everything, nor is He ever exhaustible, although everything is exhausted in due course of time
- My dear Dhruva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is uncontaminated by the material modes of nature. He is the remote cause of the creation of this material cosmic manifestation
- My dear Dhruva, you thought that the Yaksas killed your brother, and therefore you have killed great numbers of them. But by this action you have agitated the mind of Lord Siva's brother Kuvera, who is the treasurer of the demigods
- My dear son, it has been proved that you are very much affectionate towards your brother and are greatly aggrieved at his being killed by the Yaksas, but just consider - for one Yaksa's offense, you have killed many others, who are innocent
- My dear son, the killing of the sinless Yaksas which you have undertaken is not at all approved by authorities, and it does not befit our family, which is supposed to know the laws of religion and irreligion
- My dear son, those Yaksas, who are descendants of Kuvera, are not actually the killers of your brother; the birth and death of every living entity are caused by the Supreme, who is certainly the cause of all causes
O
- O great sage, graciously be pleased to listen to the prayer of my humble self, for my mind is troubled by affection for my daughter
- O master of the demigods, please attempt to lift the earth, which is merged in the great water, because it is the dwelling place for all the living entities. It can be done by your endeavor and by the mercy of the Lord
- O worshipful one (Brahma), please give us (Svayambhuva Manu and Satarupa) your direction for the execution of duty within our working capacity so that we can follow it for fame in this life and progress in the next
- One should not accept the body as the self and thus, like the animals, kill the bodies of others. This is especially forbidden by saintly persons, who follow the path of devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead
- One who actually satisfies the Supreme Personality of Godhead during one's lifetime becomes liberated from the gross and subtle material conditions. Thus being freed from all material modes of nature, he achieves unlimited spiritual bliss
- One who rejects an offering that comes of its own accord but later begs a boon from a miser thus loses his widespread reputation, and his pride is humbled by the neglectful behavior of others
S
- Sri Manu said: O all-powerful lord, O killer of all sins, I shall abide by your order. Now please let me know my place and that of the living entities born of me
- Svayambhuva Manu continued: O wise man, I heard that you were prepared to marry. Please accept her hand, which is being offered to you by me, since you have not taken a vow of perpetual celibacy
T
- That is why the brahmanas and ksatriyas protect each other, as well as themselves; and the Lord Himself, who is both the cause and effect and is yet immutable, protects them through each other
- The Absolute Truth, Transcendence, is never subject to the understanding of imperfect sensory endeavor, nor is He subject to direct experience
- The creation of the material world begins with the five elements & thus everything, including the body of a man & woman is created of these elements. By the sexual life of man & woman, the number of men & women in this material world is further increased
- The differentiation among varieties of life and their suffering and enjoyment is explained by some to be the result of karma. Others say it is due to nature, others due to time, others due to fate, and still others say that it is due to desire
- The dualities found within this material world, such as beginning and end, mine and theirs, are all absent from the personality of the Supreme Lord
- The entire cosmic manifestation is the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, who has millions of names and unlimited potencies. He is self-effulgent, unborn & changeless. He is the beginning of everything but He has no beginning
- The great sage (Kardama Muni) replied (to Syamabhuva Manu): Certainly I have a desire to marry, and your daughter (Devahuti) has not yet married or given her word to anyone. Therefore our marriage according to the Vedic system can take place
- The living entities are created through the agency of the father and killed through the agency of death, but He is perpetually free of birth and death
- The Lord is very satisfied with His devotee when the devotee greets other people with tolerance, mercy, friendship and equality
- The moment she heard from the sage Narada of your noble character, learning, beautiful appearance, youth and other virtues, she fixed her mind upon you
- The SPG is full in opulence by His own gain, yet He acts as the creator, maintainer and annihilator of this material world. In spite of acting in that way, He is never entangled. Hence devotees who follow in His footsteps are also never entangled
- The supreme living being has created this material world of animation; it is not that He was created by this material world. When everything is silent, the Supreme Being stays awake as a witness
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead creates this material world, maintains it, and annihilates it in due course of time, but because He is transcendental to such activities, He is never affected by ego in such action or by the modes of material nature
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead has no beginning, no end and no middle. Nor does He belong to a particular person or nation. He has no inside or outside
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the Supersoul of all living entities. He is the controller and maintainer of everyone; through the agency of His external energy, He creates, maintains and annihilates everyone
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead, by His inconceivable supreme energy, time, causes the interaction of the three modes of material nature, and thus varieties of energy become manifest
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead, in His feature of eternal time, is present in the material world and is neutral towards everyone. No one is His ally, and no one is His enemy
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, works just like an ordinary human being, yet He does not desire to enjoy the fruits of work. He is full in knowledge, free from material desires and diversions, and completely independent
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu, is all-powerful, and He awards the results of one's fruitive activities
- The universe appears to be created, maintained & annihilated by Him because He has created this cosmic manifestation by His external energy. Nonetheless, He remains inactive in His spiritual energy & is untouched by the activities of the material energy
- The universe, which emanates from Him, is another feature of the Lord. Therefore the Supreme Lord is the ultimate truth, and He is complete in greatness
- Therefore please accept her, O chief of the brahmanas, for I offer her with faith and she is in every respect fit to be your wife and take charge of your household duties
- Thus regaining your natural position & rendering service unto the Supreme Lord, who is the all-powerful reservoir of all pleasure and who lives in all living entities as the Supersoul, you will very soon forget the illusory understanding of "I" and "my."
- To deny an offering that has come of itself is not commendable even for one absolutely free from all attachment, much less one addicted to sensual pleasure
- To enable people to reach the stage of activities that are not tinged by fruitive results, great saints first engage people in fruitive activities
W
- When He (the Supreme Personality of Godhead) gives the impetus, many other causes and effects are produced, and thus the whole universe moves, just as iron moves by the integrated force of a magnet
- Within the jurisdiction of the time element, everyone enjoys or suffers the result of his own karma. As, when the wind blows, small particles of dust fly in the air, so, according to one's particular karma, one suffers or enjoys material life
- Within this universe, the SPG in His Supersoul feature is present everywhere, wherever there are animate or inanimate beings. Therefore, one should accept only that which is allotted to him; one should not desire to infringe upon the property of others