Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 1 Chapter 5 Text 20-22

1. Srimad-BhagavatamCanto 1Chapter 5Text 20-22 Culmination of all the activities is to glorify the Supreme Lord.

2. Text 20 idaḿhiviśvaḿbhagavān ivetaro yato jagat-sthāna-nirodha-sambhavāḥ taddhisvayaḿveda bhavāḿs tathāpite prādeśa-mātraḿbhavataḥpradarśitam The Supreme Lord Personality of Godhead is Himself this cosmos, and still He is aloof from it. From Him only has this cosmic manifestation emanated, in Him it rests, and unto Him it enters after annihilation. Your good self knows all about this. I have given only a synopsis.

3. Position of the Supreme Lord • For a pure devotee, the conception of Mukunda, Lord ŚrīKṛṣṇa, is both personal and impersonal. • According to the Vedic version, the Lord is naturally fully powerful, and thus His supreme energies are always perfect and identical with Him. • The human being, after attaining complete perfection, may achieve a large percentage of the qualities of the Lord (say up to seventy-eight percent), but it is never possible to surpass the Lord or to become equal with Him.

4. Text 21 tvam ātmanātmānam avehy amogha-dṛk parasyapuḿsaḥparamātmanaḥkalām ajaḿprajātaḿjagataḥśivāyatan mahānubhāvābhyudayo 'dhigaṇyatām Your Goodness has perfect vision. You yourself can know the Supersoul Personality of Godhead because you are present as the plenary portion of the Lord. Although you are birthless, you have appeared on this earth for the well-being of all people. Please, therefore, describe the transcendental pastimes of the Supreme Personality of Godhead ŚrīKṛṣṇa more vividly.

5. Position of Vyasdev • ŚrīlaVyāsadeva is the empowered plenary portion incarnation of the Personality of Godhead ŚrīKṛṣṇa. He descended by his causeless mercy to deliver the fallen souls in the material world. • The fallen and forgotten souls are detached from the transcendental loving service of the Lord. • Although formally ŚrīlaNāradaṚṣi is his spiritual master, ŚrīlaVyāsadeva is not at all dependent on a spiritual master because in essence he is the spiritual master of everyone else. • In order to direct people in general to the lotus feet of Lord ŚrīKṛṣṇa, He Himself in the incarnation of Vyāsadeva is delineating the transcendental pastimes of the Lord.

6. Text 22 idaḿhi puḿsas tapasaḥśrutasyavā sviṣṭasyasūktasyacabuddhi-dattayoḥ avicyuto 'rthaḥ kavibhir nirūpito yad-uttamaśloka-guṇānuvarṇanam Learned circles have positively concluded that the infallible purpose of the advancement of knowledge, namely austerities, study of the Vedas, sacrifice, chanting of hymns and charity, culminates in the transcendental descriptions of the Lord, who is defined in choice poetry.

7. Using everything in service of Lord • Human intellect is developed for advancement of learning in art, science, philosophy, physics, chemistry, psychology, economics, politics, etc. By culture of such knowledge the human society can attain perfection of life. This perfection of life culminates in the realization of the Supreme Being, Viṣṇu. • All "knowledge" not engaged in the service of the Lord is but nescience. Real utilization of advanced knowledge is to establish the glories of the Lord, and that is the real import. Scientific knowledge engaged in the service of the Lord and all similar activities are all factually hari-kīrtana, or glorification of the Lord.