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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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How to study this verse, in six steps
  1. 1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
  2. 2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
  3. 3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
  4. 4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
  5. 5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
  6. 6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.
Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›
Canto 1 · Chapter 13: Dhṛtarāṣṭra Quits Home
1.13.431.13.45

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.13.44

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Nārada Munisince 1.13.41inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

यन्मन्यसे ध्रुवं लोकमध्रुवं वा न चोभयम् ।

सर्वथा न हि शोच्यास्ते स्‍नेहादन्यत्र मोहजात् ॥ ४४ ॥

yan manyase dhruvaṁ lokam

adhruvaṁ vā na cobhayam

sarvathā na hi śocyās te

snehād anyatra mohajāt

Translation

O King, in all circumstances, whether you consider the soul to be an eternal principle, or the material body to be perishable, or everything to exist in the impersonal Absolute Truth, or everything to be an inexplicable combination of matter and spirit, feelings of separation are due only to illusory affection and nothing more.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Eternal Soul Exists to Serve

  1. 1

    Every living being is an individual part and parcel of the Supreme Being. Our constitutional position is subordinate, cooperative service.

  2. 2

    The living being is eternal, while the material body is temporary and perishable. By the law of karma, the soul passes from one material body to another.

  3. 3

    The living being remains under the Supreme Lord’s control in both conditioned and liberated life. Understanding the eternal soul and the changing body removes the basis for bewildered lamentation.

Key points from the purport
  • It is admitted, however, by all schools of philosophy that the living being is eternal and that the covering body of the five material elements is perishable and temporary.
  • The eternal living entity transmigrates from one material body to another by the law of karma, and material bodies are perishable by their fundamental structures.
  • Therefore there is nothing to be lamented in the case of the soul’s being transferred into another body, or the material body’s perishing at a certain stage.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Bereavement → Renunciation. The worldly support system recedes and attachment is exposed.

Chapters 13–15 of Canto 1: Dhṛtarāṣṭra departs; Kṛṣṇa disappears; Pāṇḍavas retire. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 13: Dhṛtarāṣṭra Quits Home

Vidura warns of inevitable death; Dhṛtarāṣṭra leaves home, and Yudhiṣṭhira finds his elders absent.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.13
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yateven though
  2. manyaseyou think
  3. dhruvamAbsolute Truth
  4. lokampersons
  5. adhruvamnonreality
  6. vāeither
  7. naor not
  8. caalso
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Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 1.13

    In this verse: “separation”, “lamentation”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 1.13

    In this verse: “absolute truth”, “understanding”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 1.13

    In this verse: “material”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How might seeing yourself and others as eternal servants of the Lord reshape your feelings about separation?

Practice

Spend one quiet minute reflecting: “The body is temporary; the living being is eternal and meant for cooperative service.”

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Eternal Soul Exists to ServeThis verse's lesson: one practice and one question for today

Study points are short summaries, not the translation. Confirm them in the original text and purport on Vedabase.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 1.13.44? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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