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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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Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 16: How Parīkṣit Received the Age of Kali
1.16.71.16.9

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.16.8

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śaunaka Ṛṣisince 1.16.5inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

न कश्चिन्म्रियते तावद् यावदास्त इहान्तक: ।

एतदर्थं हि भगवानाहूत: परमर्षिभि: ।

अहो नृलोके पीयेत हरिलीलामृतं वच: ॥ ८ ॥

na kaścin mriyate tāvad

yāvad āsta ihāntakaḥ

etad-arthaṁ hi bhagavān

āhūtaḥ paramarṣibhiḥ

aho nṛ-loke pīyeta

hari-līlāmṛtaṁ vacaḥ

Translation

As long as Yamarāja, who causes everyone’s death, is present here, no one shall meet with death. The great sages have invited the controller of death, Yamarāja, who is the representative of the Lord. Living beings who are under his grip should take advantage by hearing the deathless nectar in the form of this narration of the transcendental pastimes of the Lord.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Hear the Deathless Nectar

  1. 1

    The sages invited Yamarāja, the Lord's representative, so that no one would meet death while he remained at their gathering.

  2. 2

    Those under death's grip were urged to hear the nectar of the Lord's transcendental pastimes. This hearing offered a precious opportunity to seek eternal life.

  3. 3

    The purport recommends becoming accustomed to hearing the Lord's pastimes systematically from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. It presents this course of life as the surest remedy for freedom from death.

Key points from the purport
  • Every human being dislikes meeting death, but he does not know how to get rid of death.
  • The surest remedy for avoiding death is to accustom oneself to hearing the nectarean pastimes of the Lord as they are systematically narrated in the text of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
  • It is advised herein, therefore, that any human being who desires freedom from death should take to this course of life as recommended by the ṛṣis headed by Śaunaka.

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

Moral alarm → Resolve. The king's duty is tested in a deteriorating age.

Chapters 16–17 of Canto 1: Parīkṣit confronts Kali. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 16: How Parīkṣit Received the Age of Kali

Parīkṣit rules as a devotee while the personality of religion and mother earth discuss their distress.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.16
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nanot
  2. kaścitanyone
  3. mriyatewill die
  4. tāvatso long
  5. yāvatas long as
  6. āsteis present
  7. ihaherein
  8. antakaḥone who causes the end of life
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

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 1.16

    In this verse: “hearing”, “narration”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 1.16

    In this verse: “death”

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 can I make hearing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam a steady part of my life?

Practice

Choose a regular time today and read or hear one passage of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam attentively.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayHear the Deathless NectarThis 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 1.16.8? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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