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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

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
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 18: Mahārāja Parīkṣit Cursed by a Brāhmaṇa Boy

1.18.12 1.18.14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.18.13

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:The good sagessince 1.18.11inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

तुलयाम लवेनापि न स्वर्गं नापुनर्भवम् ।

भगवत्सङ्गिसङ्गस्य मर्त्यानां किमुताशिष: ॥ १३ ॥

tulayāma lavenāpi

na svargaṁ nāpunar-bhavam

bhagavat-saṅgi-saṅgasya

martyānāṁ kim utāśiṣaḥ

Translation

The value of a moment’s association with the devotee of the Lord cannot even be compared to the attainment of heavenly planets or liberation from matter, and what to speak of worldly benedictions in the form of material prosperity, which are for those who are meant for death.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

A Devotee’s Association Is Beyond Compare

1
Even a moment’s association with a pure devotee cannot be compared with heavenly happiness, liberation, or material prosperity. The devotee’s spiritual assets are entirely different from material assets.
2
Pure devotees do not aspire for heavenly pleasures or freedom from material bondage. They are already engaged in transcendental existence through loving service to the Lord.
3
Material benefits end with the body, but devotional service is eternal. Association with the Lord’s name, form, qualities, and devotees is always desirable and praiseworthy.

Key points from the purport

One cannot compare the association of a pure devotee to anything material.
But the pure devotees of the Lord do not aspire after the happiness obtained in the heavenly kingdom, nor do they aspire after liberation from material bondage.
In other words, for the pure devotees of the Lord the material pleasures obtainable in the heavenly planets are like phantasmagoria, and because they are already liberated from all material conceptions of pleasure and distress, they are factually liberated even in the material world.

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

Connected verses· 1

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 22.55

This is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.18.13).

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

How it feels

Remorse and urgency → Surrender and inquiry. Seven days to live become the impetus for complete spiritual hearing.

Chapters 18–19 of Canto 1: Parīkṣit is cursed and welcomes Śukadeva. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 18: Mahārāja Parīkṣit Cursed by a Brāhmaṇa Boy

A sage’s son curses Parīkṣit, but his father condemns the punishment of the saintly king.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.18

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

tulayāmato be balanced with
lavenaby a moment
apieven
nanever
svargamheavenly planets
nanor
apunaḥ-bhavamliberation from matter
bhagavat-saṅgidevotee of the Lord

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 1.18
In this verse: “devotee”, “devotional service”
Abhaya · Fearlessness
Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 1.18
In this verse: “death”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 1.18
In this verse: “material”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Do I value association that nourishes service to the Lord more than opportunities for material gain?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes today to hear a devotee speak about the Lord’s name, form, or qualities.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayA Devotee’s Association Is Beyond CompareThis 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 1.18.13? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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