100 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 8, Ch. 12

Sri-mahddevah uvaéca—Lord Siva (Mahadeva) said; deva-deva—O
best demigod among the demigods; jagat-vydpin—O all-pervading Lord;
jagat-isa—O master of the universe; jagat-maya—O my Lord, who are
transformed by Your energy into this creation; sarvesam api—all kinds
of; bhavaném—situations; tvam—You; datma—the moving force;
hetuh—because of this; isvarah—the Supreme Lord, Paramesvara.

TRANSLATION

Lord Mahadeva said: O chief demigod among the demigods, O
all-pervading Lord, master of the universe, by Your energy You
are transformed into the creation. You are the root and efficient
cause of everything. You are not material. Indeed, You are the
Supersoul or supreme living force of everything. Therefore, You
are ParameSvara, the supreme controller of all controllers.

PURPORT

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Visnu, resides within the ma-
terial world as the sattva-guna-avatara. Lord Siva is the tamo-guna-
avatara, and Lord Brahma is the rajo-guna-avatara, but although Lord
Visnu is among them, He is not in the same category. Lord Visnu is deva-
deva, the chief of all the demigods. Since Lord Siva is in this material
world, the energy of the Supreme Lord, Visnu, includes Lord Siva. Lord
Visnu is therefore called jagad-vyapi, “the all-pervading Lord.” Lord
Siva is sometimes called Mahesvara, and so people think that Lord Siva is
everything. But here Lord Siva addresses Lord Visnu as Jagad-iga, “the
master of the universe.”’ Lord Siva is sometimes called Visvesvara, but
here he addresses Lord Visnu as Jagan-maya, indicating that even
Visvesvara is under Lord Visnu’s control. Lord Visnu is the master of the
spiritual world, yet He controls the material world also, as stated in
Bhagavad-gita (mayadhyaksena prakrtih sityate sacardcaram). Lord
Brahma and Lord Siva are also sometimes called isvara, but the supreme
isvara is Lord Visnu, Lord Krsna. As stated in Brahma-samhita, isvarah
paramah krsnah: the Supreme Lord is Krsna, Lord Visnu. Everything in
existence works in proper order because of Lord Visnu. Anddntara-stha-
paramdnu-cayantara-stham. Even paramdnu, the small atoms, work
because of Lord Visnu’s presence within them.
