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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 8: Prayers by Queen Kuntī and Parīkṣit Saved
1.8.471.8.49

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 1.8.48

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhirasince 1.8.48inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

अहो मे पश्यताज्ञानं हृदि रूढं दुरात्मन: ।

पारक्यस्यैव देहस्य बह्‍व्यो मेऽक्षौहिणीर्हता: ॥ ४८ ॥

aho me paśyatājñānaṁ

hṛdi rūḍhaṁ durātmanaḥ

pārakyasyaiva dehasya

bahvyo me ’kṣauhiṇīr hatāḥ

Translation

King Yudhiṣṭhira said: O my lot! I am the most sinful man! Just see my heart, which is full of ignorance! This body, which is ultimately meant for others, has killed many, many phalanxes of men.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Use This Temporary Body to Serve

  1. 1

    Although the most pious king, Yudhiṣṭhira took responsibility for the many lives lost. The battle had been fought to restore him to the throne.

  2. 2

    The body is ultimately meant for others. While alive, it is meant for their service; after death, it becomes food for other creatures.

  3. 3

    Yudhiṣṭhira lamented that so many had been killed for the sake of such a temporary body. His words express deep sorrow over the cost of his becoming king.

Key points from the purport
  • Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, as the most pious king of the world, takes for himself the responsibility for killing such a huge number of living beings because the battle was fought to reinstate him on the throne.
  • While there is life in the body, it is meant for the service of others, and when it is dead it is meant to be eaten by dogs and jackals or maggots.
  • He is sorry because for such a temporary body such a huge massacre was committed.

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

Grief → Trust. Violence and bereavement make Kṛṣṇa's protective presence precious.

Chapters 7–9 of Canto 1: Postwar anguish, Kuntī and Bhīṣma. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 8: Prayers by Queen Kuntī and Parīkṣit Saved

Kṛṣṇa protects Parīkṣit, Kuntī prays for undivided attraction to Him, and Yudhiṣṭhira grieves.

Back to this verse in chapter 1.8
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. ahoO
  2. memy
  3. paśyatajust see
  4. ajñānamignorance
  5. hṛdiin the heart
  6. rūḍhamsituated in
  7. durātmanaḥof the sinful
  8. pārakyasyameant for others
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 1.8

    In this verse: “king”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 1.8

    In this verse: “sinful”

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 1.8

    In this verse: “lamented”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How am I using this temporary body for the service of others?

Practice

Use your hands today to complete one helpful task for another person.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

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Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

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

2 lectures given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayUse This Temporary Body 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 1.8.48? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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