12 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 2, Ch. 1

interest in the matter of the Lord’s activities is definite proof that the Lord
is not like one of us in the material world. In the Vedic literatures also, it
is confirmed that the Supreme Lord is one, but that He is engaged in His
transcendental pastimes in the company of His unalloyed devotees and
that simultaneously He is present as the Supersoul, an expansion of
Baladeva, in the heart of all living entities. Therefore, the highest per-
fection of transcendental realization is to take pleasure in hearing and
describing the transcendental qualities of the Lord and not in merging into
His impersonal Brahman existence, as the impersonalist monist aspires.
Real transcendental pleasure is realized in the glorification of the tran-
scendental Lord, and not in the feeling of being situated in His impersonal
feature. But there are also others who are not the topmost transcen-
dentalists, but are in the lower status, and who do not take pleasure in
describing the transcendental activities of the Lord. Rather, they discuss
such activities of the Lord formally with the aim of merging into His
existence.

TEXT 8

TA ATTA ATA Gey aT EAA |
mira art qk aera II <I

idam bhagavatam nama
puranam brahma-sammitam
adhitavan dvdparadau
pitur dvaipdyanad aham

idam—this; bhdagavatam—Srimad-Bhagavatam; nama—ef the name;
purdnam—Vedic supplimentary; brahma-sammitam—approved as the es-
sence of the Vedas; adhitavan—studied; dvaparadau—at the end of the
Dvapara-yuga; pituh—from my father; dvaipayanat—Dvaipayana V yasadeva
aham—myself.

TRANSLATION
At the end of the Dvapara-yuga, I studied this great supplement of

Vedic literature of the name Srimad-Bhagavatam, which is equal to all the
Vedas, from my father, Srila Dvaipayana Vyasadeva.
