SB 12.6.42 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

तस्य ह्यासंस्त्रयो वर्णा अकाराद्या भृगूद्वह । धार्यन्ते यैस्त्रयो भावा गुणनामार्थवृत्तय: ॥ ४२ ॥

Verse text

tasya hy āsaṁs trayo varṇā a-kārādyā bhṛgūdvaha dhāryante yais trayo bhāvā guṇa-nāmārtha-vṛttayaḥ

Synonyms

tasya — of that oṁkāra ; hi — indeed ; āsan — came into being ; trayaḥ — three ; varṇāḥ — sounds of the alphabet ; a — kāra — ādyāḥ — beginning with the letter a ; bhṛgu — udvaha — O most eminent of the descendants of Bhṛgu ; dhāryante — are sustained ; yaiḥ — by which three sounds ; trayaḥ — the threefold ; bhāvāḥ — states of existence ; guṇa — the qualities of nature ; nāma — names ; artha — goals ; vṛttayaḥ — and states of consciousness .

Translation

Oṁkāra exhibited the three original sounds of the alphabet — A, U and M. These three, O most eminent descendant of Bhṛgu, sustain all the different threefold aspects of material existence, including the three modes of nature, the names of the Ṛg, Yajur and Sāma Vedas, the goals known as the Bhūr, Bhuvar and Svar planetary systems, and the three functional platforms called waking consciousness, sleep and deep sleep.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

O eminent descendant of Bhṛgu! Oṁ has the three syllables by which the three Vedas are sustained. The three Vedas sustain the qualities, words, gender and meaning of words. This verse shows how oṁ is the cause. Oṁ has three syllables a, u and m by which the three Vedas are sustained. By the three Vedas, qualities, names, gender and meaning are manifested. Guṇa refers things like the power or clarity of sound. Nāma refers to words. Artha refers to indications of gender of words. Vṛtti refers to the meaning of words. Oṁ is like a seed. The banyan tree comes from the seed, and the trunk, branches, flowers and fruit come from the banyan tree.