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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 3: Kṛṣṇa Is the Source of All Incarnations
1.3.431.4.1

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.3.44

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Sūta Gosvāmīsince 1.3.1inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

तत्र कीर्तयतो विप्रा विप्रर्षेर्भूरितेजस: ।

अहं चाध्यगमं तत्र निविष्टस्तदनुग्रहात् ।

सोऽहं व: श्रावयिष्यामि यथाधीतं यथामति ॥ ४४ ॥

tatra kīrtayato viprā

viprarṣer bhūri-tejasaḥ

ahaṁ cādhyagamaṁ tatra

niviṣṭas tad-anugrahāt

so ’haṁ vaḥ śrāvayiṣyāmi

yathādhītaṁ yathā-mati

Translation

O learned brāhmaṇas, when Śukadeva Gosvāmī recited Bhāgavatam there [in the presence of Emperor Parīkṣit], I heard him with rapt attention, and thus, by his mercy, I learned the Bhāgavatam from that great and powerful sage. Now I shall try to make you hear the very same thing as I learned it from him and as I have realized it.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Hear Attentively From a Genuine Teacher

  1. 1

    One should learn Bhāgavatam from a self-realized soul, a genuine representative of Śukadeva Gosvāmī—not from someone seeking money for sense enjoyment or interpreting it through mundane scholarship. Sūta Gosvāmī faithfully presented the message he had received.

  2. 2

    Simple hearing is not enough; one must realize the text with proper attention. Sūta Gosvāmī heard with rapt attention and learned Bhāgavatam by Śukadeva Gosvāmī’s mercy.

  3. 3

    Purity in daily conduct supports purity of mind and attentive hearing. By hearing with rapt attention from the right person, one can realize the presence of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the pages of Bhāgavatam.

Key points from the purport
  • One can certainly see directly the presence of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the pages of Bhāgavatam if one has heard it from a self-realized great soul like Śukadeva Gosvāmī.
  • One has to learn Bhāgavatam from the representative of Śukadeva Gosvāmī, and no one else, if one at all wants to see Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa in the pages.
  • Śukadeva Gosvāmī presented Bhāgavatam as he heard it from his great father, and so also Sūta Gosvāmī is presenting Bhāgavatam as he had heard it from Śukadeva Gosvāmī.

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

Concern → Purpose. A spiritually urgent question emerges for the age of Kali.

Chapters 1–3 of Canto 1: The sages ask the ultimate questions. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 3: Kṛṣṇa Is the Source of All Incarnations

Sūta describes the Lord’s incarnations and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as His literary incarnation.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.3
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tatrathere
  2. kīrtayataḥwhile reciting
  3. viprāḥO brāhmaṇas
  4. vipra-ṛṣeḥfrom the great brāhmaṇa-ṛṣi
  5. bhūrigreatly
  6. tejasaḥpowerful
  7. ahamI
  8. caalso
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 1.3

    In this verse: “heard”, “recited”, “hearing”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 1.3

    In this verse: “emperor”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 1.3

    In this verse: “mercy”

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

What can I change in my daily conduct to hear Bhāgavatam with a purer, more attentive mind?

Practice

Today, set aside five undistracted minutes to read this translation and purport attentively, then recall one teaching exactly as you received it.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayHear Attentively From a Genuine TeacherThis 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 1.3.44? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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