I have been mentioning at least one passage from Srimad Bhagavatham in most of my posts.
Now, I would like to mention the magnificence of this transcendental literature, which is verily Lord Shri Krishna Himself in a literary form, just meant for liberating us from this age of darkness:
“Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the spotless Purāṇa. It is most dear to the Vaiṣṇavas because it describes the pure and supreme knowledge of the paramahaṁsas. This Bhāgavatam reveals the means for becoming free from all material work, together with the processes of transcendental knowledge, renunciation and devotion. Anyone who seriously tries to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, who properly hears and chants it with devotion, becomes completely liberated.” – SB 12.13.18.
Srimad Bhagavatham was first revealed by The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Shri Krishna to Lord Brahma, the creator of this universe when he was anxious of how to proceed with the creation process.
Srimad Bhagavatham is the essence of all Vedanta philosophy because its subject matter is The Absolute Truth.
The goal of this transcendental literature is to free our self from the clutches of this material existence that is going on since time immemorial by encouraging renunciation and inculcate exclusive devotion to the Supreme Truth, the permanent reality!
In this material universe, even Lord Brahma, the topmost living being who has the longest lifespan is not free from the four vices of material existence – birth, death, disease and old age, anxiously desires salvation and the Supreme personality of Godhead, Lord Shri Krishna mercifully explained the science of Srimad Bhagavatham to him.
Sri Sukadeva Gosvami(son of Maharishi Veda Vyasa, the literary incarnation of God and the author of Srimad Bhagavatham), the best of mystic sages and a personal manifestation of the Absolute Truth narrated Srimad Bhagavatham to Maharaja Pariksit having been bitten by a snake due to a curse and had only seven days to live, delivered him from the clutches of material existence by narrating Srimad Bhagavatam in entirety to him.
Spirituality is the only way to solace 
Bhagavatam is one of the grand keys to open the pandora of Puranas. Have you really read/gone through the scripture? Just curious. Because, the chapters on. Simsumara chakra(tortoise back), Kapila and Devahuti discussions, vidura and maitreya discussions, etc are filled with many inter sting points. In fact, Rajini, the metamorphosis of Life from Mineral, Plant and human kingdoms is very secretively given in this Purana. The Darwin’s theory of material evolution forms a subset of our grand theory of evolution of soul. Also, can you give me the sources of your knowledge that will give me a hint as to what line of thought influenced your writings? It helps me to tailor my comments in best way possible, if I am aware of that source of course! Anyway, I will be reading other articles of yours today.
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Bhagavatham is my life since 2011 🙂 it continues to inspire for lifetimes of learning. Sisumara chakra is dolphin..the symmetrical arrangements of 27 stars on both sides, the arrangement of various other planets and luminaries…tortoise or kurma avatar comes in the 8th canto during charning of ocean for nectar… there are so many in Bhagavatham that is so subtle…for example Hiranyakashipu’s sermon to his mother diti and hiranyaksha wife on the soul when they were lamenting for hiranyaksha’s death, the story of the king of ushinara kingdom and yama in the form of small boy clearing the illusions about death, the hamsa guhya prayers by prajapathi daksha for creating progeny, the story of King Chitraketu and his small son teaching the philosophy of souls thru the dhristi of sage narada and angira, the most important story told to prachinabaari on puranjana by sage narada, song sung by lord shiva to the prachetas, the narayana kavacha for killing vritrasura, the story of jada bharath, the enigmatic comparisons meted out to son of daksha by narada, the bhumi gita, the uddhava gita, the aila gita, the gopi gita on the prayers of their separation with lord krishna, the story of various incarnations, the teachings of the sages at kurukshetra, the chatur sloki bhagavatham on the absolute truth, the concept of creation, the concept of time, the dimensions of universe, the concepts of creation, annihilation and dissolutions, the three modes of material nature, the various types of Mayas of the supreme lord, prayers by vidura, akrura, the demigods, instructions by nine yogendras to king nimi, the lilas of krishna in 10th canto. etc i just mention whatever that comes straght out of my mind. there is much much more direct and subler aspects. i mean Bhagavatham is more than everything to me…and it is the driving force in my life 🙂
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Simsumara is Tortisr and kurma is turtle (both have a diff), just a humble correction.
I can see your immersive joy in Bhagavatam. This is the intended purpose of outcome of Bhagavatam by Vyasa. You are blessed. A continuous effort on knowing and being with something is called Dharanaa and this reveals many secrets that can not be understood by normal read. Since 2011 implies your deep constant connection with it and so the unfoldment of wisdom like a lotus flower.
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Thank you so much…I would do more exhaustive study on Srimad Bhagavatham than anything else for the rest of my life if given a chance 🙂
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https://vedabase.io/en/library/sb/5/23/4/ – This great machine, consisting of the stars and planets, resembles the form of a śiśumāra [dolphin] in the water. It is sometimes considered an incarnation of Kṛṣṇa, Vāsudeva. Great yogīs meditate upon Vāsudeva in this form because it is actually visible.
the form could also be intrepreted as a tortoise as you have been mentioning.as mentioned in this link:
https://dictionary.babylon-software.com/sisumara/ – a group of stars and constellations said to resemble a dolphin, porpoise, or tortoise; held to be a form of Vishnu, and often considered as a representation of the great circle of time. As an imaginary belt, a symbolic representation of the celestial sphere, or a theoretical revolving zone or belt within which move the celestial bodies — which are the bodies of spiritual entities.
More information here: http://www.decodinghinduism.com/search/label/sisumara%20planetary%20system
this is another link – http://www.kamakoti.org/kamakoti/details/bhagvatpurana24.html – (not related to ISKCON 🙂 ) – Sisumara Planetary System
– Some 13,00,000 yojanas ( 10,400,000 miles) above the ‘Great Bear’ shines high the Pole Star and the‘Sisumara System’ or the Great Machine, comprising the Stars and Planets, resembling a Dolphin in water.
anyways it’s an aquatic with the arrangement of the various celestial bodies at various places and varied intrepretations thru various sources always results in ambiguity 😦 but what we require is the right conclusion and the form doesn’t matter 🙂
i hope this provides some clarification.
P.S: i think you will be a very good player of chess and we will have some amazing battles 🙂
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How did you know of chess? I do like playing it. Yes, we may play one day.
There is a difference between exoteric and esoteric approach of Scriptures. A symbol is unique and very special association of spiritual and mundane aspects. I respect the links and info you sent. But, the truth of it lies in “Why” of the reasoning. The form is important, for it encompasses the subtle aspects that can not be grasped on first sight. A dolphin is no symbol for Simsumara because, it’s back is smooth. The Tortisr back has divisions and a symmetry of arrangement of scales. This symmetry is mapped to the upper dome of visible skies (mahaakaasa) and inner dome of psychic skies (chittaakaasa). Also, the reference point from where all the m asurements given in Bhagavatam are made, is not our solar system or our galaxy,but a far of star, in which is one of the 7 evolved solar systems (out of 12 – hint: Dvaadasa Aadityas).
But one should ask, why speak of these magnitudes in a scripture whose sole goal was divine romance? One of reasons is the internal mapping of external Universe – called “Yay Pinde Tat Brahmaande – As above so below”. Without this, one is left with mere glamour of vastness of scripture without applicability. And for this reason, turtle is used to suggest the role of Vishnu in preserving the secrets of Visible and invisible cosmos.
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Another point is, the exoteric astrologists and astronomers think that the zodiac we are given the names of Ram, Bull, etc., For the shapes they resemble. This is absurd. The same reasoning I saw in above links when they said “resemble dolphin”. No group of stars or constellation resemble any living being. It is the effects produced that resulted in their esoteric symbolical name. For example, if you refer to T.Subbarow’s essay on Zodiac, you will know how The constellation Leo or Simha got its name. Simha does not mean lion, bit in one of its derivative forms implies lion, in Sanskrit. Same with Aswa. So, unless the effects are perceived, it’s futile to understand visible arrangement as particular being. I hope you understand the roots off the approach. Exoteric helps you upto certain extent. But true esoteric intuition from within tales you and helps you cross the ocean of mysticism.
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I can clearly observe your analytical brain to put forth logical arguments at the drop of a hat. With the kind of exposure you have it is not easy to guess this because chess is a play of spatial arrangements with positions and counter positions 🙂 and i am sure you are very good at that with the kind of background you have as i could observe.
Turtle/Tortoise is used to a great effect in gita’s second chapter as to how to withdraw our senses and keep it under control. Vishnu or Rishikesha is master of senses and sense control and so it is for a big reason to specify turtle and give so much importance to it.
Bhagavatham says there are millions and millions of universes floating in the causal ocean and virata rupa is associated with each one of them…brahma is associated with each one of them…the arrangement of 14 planetary systems is associated with each of them…and so on
Likewise each living organism itself is an universe with a microcosmic arrangement with the equivalent arrangement of planetary systems. the part from the waist is considered asoucha or impure and it is where the lower 7 planetary systems starting from atala to patala are situated…and then similarly we move upwards from bhur loka towards the top of the head which is satyaloka where the supreme consciousness and the control system or brain centre is located.
this body is a temple and the heart is the alter where the deity of supreme god resides. when we abuse the body mind and soul with impure food impure thoughts and impure actions the entire universe (our body) is polluted and similarly the entire physical universe is polluted in that way as we try to dominate the material nature rampantly! Material Universe has its own process to circulate itself in the form of eternal time through yuga cycles but this material body decays and the soul just keep transmigrating from body to body having failed to realise the ultimate purpose of life.
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🙂 pets reserve this for our later topic – conversation: “The mysteries of multiverse and monoverse in scripture”. The comment section will be bloated with incoherent comments ( when we look back in future).
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Thanks for the chess deduction.
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thank you very much 🙂
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yes you are right. totally agree!
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Thank you for sharing the essence of our scriptures through your translations. 🙏
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Thank you very much Savvy. i am obliged.
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Thank you for this post and writing about Bhagavatam! It is the Lord’s own body – for us to connect and dissolve in during this dark age. We are so blessed to know and behold Him, in our own hands as we read the Bhagavatam and in our hearts as we listen to the stories. Thank You for sharing and reminding us again and again – the true goal of human existence. Sri Krishna Paramatma ki Jai!
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Same likewise to you for all of your contributions. You never divert yourself from Krishna in any of your posts…but I go wild with so many things 😁
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So many things….and in all those things and your writing…is only He! 🙂 He plays hide and seek with us, each moment in our lives. May He bless us soon by getting caught – in our hearts, so we are never in any thing else. Sarvam Sri Krishna! 🙂
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Yes totally agree… he plays hide-and-seek with us for a good reason… to realise our follies by thinking we can do things ourselves but we just gets entangled and messes up with everything only to realise later that we have to leave everything to Him… but this cycle unfortunately keeps continuing due to our persistently obstinate nature 😦 and He will definitely put an end to it one day by giving us realisation by giving us some learnings…
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Yes, you are totally right! Just praying for that day to come soon and our follies to end the super fast! Jai Sri Krishna! 🙂
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Yes unless the concepts of renunciation the core subject matter of Srimad Bhagavatham does not get to both the head and the heart even Krishna can’t do much about it because we have become the fragment having split away from the original source to aspire for minute independence only to get caught up with the material nature perpetually and suffering like this…
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Bhagavad Gita 15.7
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Thank you! 🙂
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You are most welcome…
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