Bhagavatam 11/15/14
महत्यात्मनि य: सूत्रे धारयेन्मयि मानसम् । प्राकाम्यं पारमेष्ठ्यं मे विन्दतेऽव्यक्तजन्मन: ॥
mahaty ātmani yaḥ sūtre; dhārayen mayi mānasam; prākāmyaṁ pārameṣṭhyaṁ me; vindate ’vyakta-janmanaḥ
Word-for-Word Breakdown:
mahati — in the space of mind (cosmic mind, mahat-tattva); ātmani — in the Self (or Supreme Self); yaḥ — one who; sūtre — on the thread (subtle background or essence); dhārayet — focuses/concentrates; mayi — on Me (the Supreme Lord); mānasam — the mind; prākāmyam — the mystic perfection of prākāmya (fulfillment of desires); pārameṣṭhyam — supreme, exalted; me — from Me; vindate — attains/enjoys; avyakta-janmanaḥ — born of the unmanifest (cosmic origin).
Translation
One who concentrates the mind on Me (the Self), seeing the Self as the vast space of awareness —the subtle background (sutra) underlying all experience, arising from the Unmanifest —attains Prākāmya Siddhi, the supreme perfection of effortlessly enjoying all things.
Commentary
This profound verse from the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.15.14) outlines a subtle yet powerful meditative practice that leads to the perfection known as prākāmya-siddhi—the mystic ability to experience the effortless fulfillment of all desires. It builds upon earlier teachings, such as those in Bhagavatam 11.7.9 and 11.7.3, which guide the practitioner toward realizing their true nature as expansive, non-localized awareness.
The journey begins with the recognition of oneself as pure consciousness—the silent witness of all thoughts, sensations, and perceptions. Although awareness may at first appear localized within the body or head, meditation gradually uncovers its true nature as vast, boundless, and pervasive. One learns to rest in this open field of awareness, which encompasses the entire space of mind.
This “space of mind” is not limited to one’s personal inner world. It points to the cosmic mind—mahat-tattva—the subtle substratum (sūtra) underlying all individual minds. While we cannot access the thoughts of others directly, the cosmic mind acts like a shared background, connecting all streams of consciousness—like threads woven together into a single fabric of awareness.
When the mind is steadily focused on the Self, the world is no longer perceived as fragmented or external. Instead, it appears as a seamless manifestation within the vast awareness of the Self. Like a dream in which the dreamer is both the creator and the dream, the meditator realizes that all appearances arise within consciousness and are never separate from it.
This realization dissolves the illusion of duality. The seeker no longer identifies with the limited ego but awakens to the truth: the Self is cosmic, infinite, and one with all that is.
As meditation deepens, awareness shifts from the personal to the source of all awareness—the Unmanifest (avyakta), from which all phenomena emerge. The avyakta-janmanaḥ—the One born of the Unmanifest—is untouched by appearances and yet is their very ground and essence.
Anchoring the mind in this Unmanifest Self, the meditator comes to see that the true Self remains eternally pure, unaffected by any mental fluctuation. Resting in that awareness, one experiences a spontaneous bliss—not through effort or striving, but through being. Every experience becomes infused with fulfillment, not as an act of acquisition, but as a reflection of one’s natural state.
This is the perfection of prākāmya-siddhi—not merely the ability to manifest desires, but the supreme (pārameṣṭhya) realization in which fulfillment flows effortlessly from unity with the Self. It is the state of abiding as awareness itself—free, unlimited, and nondual.