SB 1.7.2

सूत उवाच
ब्रह्मनद्यां सरस्वत्यामाश्रमः पश्चिमे तटे ।
शम्याप्रास इति प्रोक्त ऋषीणां सत्रवर्धनः ॥२॥

sūta uvāca
brahma-nadyāṁ sarasvatyām
āśramaḥ paścime taṭe
śamyāprāsa iti prokta
ṛṣīṇāṁ satra-vardhanaḥ

sūtaḥplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigsutah

a son (born of Lord Brahmā's mind); a son; as Your son (you wanted a son exactly like Me); her son; his son; one son; son (Baladeva, born of Rohiṇī); son; the soma-yajña; the son (Prahlāda); the son; was the son.—Śrī Sūta; uvācaplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_biguvāca

answered; described; explained; he recited; he said; inquired; prayed; replied; said; she said; she spoke; spoke; talked with them.—said; brahmaplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigbrahma

brahma; brāhmaṇas; mantras beginning with oṁ (such as oṁ tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sūrayaḥ); Veda; Vedas; absolute; Absolute Truth; all my brahminical qualifications; all the Vedas; all the Vedas with their different branches of knowledge; all the Vedas; all transcendental literatures; and brahma; Being; brahma; Brahmaloka; Brahman; brahminical civilization; brahminical culture; by Lord Brahmā; called by the name Brahman; from the activities of Brahman realization or austerity; Gāyatrī hymns; impersonal Brahman; impersonal Brahman realization; is the brāhmaṇas; knowledge of Brahman; Kṛṣṇa; Lord Brahmā; of a brāhmaṇa; of impersonal Brahman; of impersonal Brahman, or the Absolute Truth; of Lord Brahmā; of the brāhmaṇas; of the impersonal effulgence; spirit; spiritual; spiritual kingdom; spiritual knowledge; spiritual nature; spiritual power; Supreme; the brāhmaṇas; the Vedas; the Absolute; the Absolute Truth; the all-pervading Absolute Truth; the brahminical culture; the greatest; the Gāyatrī mantra; the impersonal Brahman (which is an emanation from Kṛṣṇa); the impersonal Brahman; the impersonal Brahman effulgence; the impersonal feature; the Parabrahman, Kṛṣṇa; the personified Vedas; the Supreme; the Supreme Absolute Truth; the Supreme Brahman; the Supreme Brahman, the Personality of Godhead; the Supreme Lord; the Supreme Personality of Godhead; the supreme spirit; the supreme truth, the Absolute Truth, Brahman; the Vedic knowledge; the Vedic literatures; the Vedic wisdom; Transcendence; transcendental; truth; unlimited; Vedic; Vedic knowledge; Vedic sound; without change; You are known as Brahman.-nadyāmplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bignadyām

in the river.—on the bank of the river intimately related with Vedas, brāhmaṇas, saints, and the Lord; sarasvatyāmplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigsarasvatyām

in the womb of Sarasvatī; on the bank of the great river Sarasvatī; on the bank of the River Sarasvatī; on the bank of the Sarasvatī; Sarasvatī.—Sarasvatī; āśramaḥplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigasramah

cottage for meditation; household life; shelter; the symbolic dress (with daṇḍa and kamaṇḍalu).—cottage for meditation; paścimeplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigpaścime

on the west; on the western side; similarly, on the western side; to the western part of India.—on the west; taṭeplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigtate

bank; on the bank; on the bank of; on the beach.—bank; śamyāprāsaḥplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigśamyāprāsaḥ

the place named Śamyāprāsa.—the place named Śamyāprāsa; itiplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigiti

thus; all these; also; and so on; as; as such; considering all these things; considering in that way; here; in this way (after giving everything to the brāhmaṇas); in this way; it is thus; known by these names; like that; like this; so it is; such; taking it as; that; therefore; they; this; thus (Hariścandra said); thus (saying out of contempt); thus (thinking in the above-mentioned way); thus (thinking); thus; thus accepted; thus accepting the words of Lord Brahmā; thus deciding; thus stated; thus thinking; thus vituperating.—thus; proktaḥplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigproktah

being ordered; called; described; described before; have been explained; is called; is well known; said; said to be; spoken; was well known; well known.—said to be; ṛṣīṇāmplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigṛṣīṇām

among the ṛṣis; of great sages, saintly persons, or Vaiṣṇavas; of great saintly persons; of the ṛṣis; of the great ṛṣis; of the great sages; of the sages; of the teachers; to the sages.—of the sages; satraplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigsatra

remnants of yajña.-vardhanaḥplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigvardhanaḥ

increasing; who increases.—that which enlivens activities. ¶

Śrī Sūta said: On the western bank of the River Sarasvatī, which is intimately related with the Vedas, there is a cottage for meditation at Śamyāprāsa which enlivens the transcendental activities of the sages. ¶

For spiritual advancement of knowledge a suitable place and atmosphere are definitely required. The place on the western bank of the Sarasvatī is especially suitable for this purpose. And there is the āśrama of Vyāsadeva at Śamyāprāsa. Śrīla Vyāsadeva was a householder, yet his residential place is called an āśrama. An āśrama is a place where spiritual culture is always foremost. It does not matter whether the place belongs to a householder or a mendicant. The whole varṇāśrama system is so designed that each and every status of life is called an āśrama. This means that spiritual culture is the common factor for all. The brahmacārīs, the gṛhasthas, the vānaprasthas and the sannyāsīs all belong to the same mission of life, namely, realization of the Supreme. Therefore none of them are less important as far as spiritual culture is concerned. The difference is a matter of formality on the strength of renunciation. The sannyāsīs are held in high estimation on the strength of practical renunciation. ¶