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

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Canto 1 · Creation · 19 chapters

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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 15: The Pāṇḍavas Retire Timely
1.15.31.15.5

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.15.4

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Sūta Gosvāmīsince 1.15.1inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

सख्यं मैत्रीं सौहृदं च सारथ्यादिषु संस्मरन् ।

नृपमग्रजमित्याह बाष्पगद्गदया गिरा ॥ ४ ॥

sakhyaṁ maitrīṁ sauhṛdaṁ ca

sārathyādiṣu saṁsmaran

nṛpam agrajam ity āha

bāṣpa-gadgadayā girā

Translation

Remembering Lord Kṛṣṇa and His well wishes, benefactions, intimate familial relations and His chariot driving, Arjuna, overwhelmed and breathing very heavily, began to speak.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Perfect Friendship

  1. 1

    The supreme living being is perfect in all relations with His pure devotee. His dealings with Arjuna display friendship of the highest perfect order.

  2. 2

    Kṛṣṇa was both Arjuna’s well-wisher and benefactor. He also established a family relationship by arranging Subhadrā’s marriage with Arjuna.

  3. 3

    The Lord became Arjuna’s chariot driver to protect His friend from warfare risks. Remembering these kindnesses one after another, Arjuna became overwhelmed.

Key points from the purport
  • He was not only a well-wisher of Arjuna but actually a benefactor, and to make it still more perfect the Lord tied him into a family relationship by arranging Subhadrā’s marriage with him.
  • And above all, the Lord agreed to become a chariot driver of Arjuna in order to protect His friend from warfare risks, and the Lord became actually happy when He established the Pāṇḍavas to rule over the world.
  • Arjuna remembered all these one after another, and thus he became overwhelmed with such thoughts.

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 15: The Pāṇḍavas Retire Timely

Arjuna grieves over Kṛṣṇa’s departure, and the Pāṇḍavas retire, fixing their minds on His lotus feet.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.15
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. sakhyamwell-wishing
  2. maitrīmbenediction
  3. sauhṛdamintimately related
  4. caalso
  5. sārathya-ādiṣuin becoming the chariot driver
  6. saṁsmaranremembering all these
  7. nṛpamunto the King
  8. agrajamthe eldest brother
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Īśānukathā · The science of God

    Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 1.15

    In this verse: “devotee”

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 1.15

    In this verse: “kindnesses”

  • Sakhya · Sacred friendship

    The affection of companions and friends of the Lord. · Theme in SB 1.15

    In this verse: “friendship”

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

Which of Kṛṣṇa’s acts of friendship toward Arjuna most touches your heart?

Practice

Choose one kindness described here and spend a minute remembering it with appreciation.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Lord’s Perfect FriendshipThis 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 1.15.4? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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