SRIMAD-BHAGAVATAM 8 CHAPTER 5 TEXT 32
pādau mahīyaṁ sva-kṛtaiva yasya
catur-vidho yatra hi bhūta-sargaḥ
sa vai mahā-pūruṣa ātma-tantraḥ
prasīdatāṁ brahma mahā-vibhūtiḥ
TRANSLATION
On this earth there are four kinds of living entities, who are all created by Him. The material creation rests on His lotus feet. He is the great Supreme Person, full of opulence and power. May He be pleased with us.
PURPORT
The word mahī refers to the five material elements—earth, water, air, fire and sky—which rest upon the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Mahat-padaṁ puṇya-yaśo murāreḥ. The mahat-tattva, the total material energy, rests on His lotus feet, for the cosmic manifestation is but another opulence of the Lord. In this cosmic manifestation there are four kinds of living entities—jarāyu ja (those born from embryos), aṇḍa ja (those born from eggs), sveda ja (those born from perspiration), and udbhijja (those born from seeds). Everything is generated from the Lord, as confirmed in the Vedānta-sūtra (janmādy asya yataḥ [SB 1.1.1]). No one is independent, but the Supreme Soul is completely independent. Janmādy asya yato ’nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijnaḥ sva-rāṭ [SB 1.1.1]. The word sva-rāṭ means “independent.” We are dependent, whereas the Supreme Lord is completely independent. Therefore the Supreme Lord is the greatest of all. Even Lord Brahmā, who created the cosmic manifestation, is but another opulence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The material creation is activated by the Lord, and therefore the Lord is not a part of the material creation. The Lord exists in His original, spiritual position. The universal form of the Lord, vairāja-mūrti, is another feature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.