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

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Canto 10 · The Summum Bonum · 90 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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.1.60

Who is speaking and story frame

प्रतियातु कुमारोऽयं न ह्यस्मादस्ति मे भयम् । अष्टमाद् युवयोर्गर्भान्मृत्युर्मे विहित: किल ॥ ६० ॥

pratiyātu kumāro ’yaṁ

na hy asmād asti me bhayam

aṣṭamād yuvayor garbhān

mṛtyur me vihitaḥ kila

Translation

O Vasudeva, you may take back your child and go home. I have no fear of your first child. It is the eighth child of you and Devakī I am concerned with because that is the child by whom I am destined to be killed.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kaṁsa Spares the First Child

  1. 1

    Kaṁsa told Vasudeva to take his newborn child back home.

  2. 2

    Kaṁsa said that he had no fear of this first child.

  3. 3

    His concern was the eighth child of Vasudeva and Devakī, by whom he was destined to be killed.

How it feels

Terror → Wonder and relief. The threat of destruction yields to divine appearance.

Chapters 1–4 of Canto 10: Threat from Kaṁsa and Kṛṣṇa's birth. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: The Advent of Lord Kṛṣṇa: Introduction

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Although Vasudeva did not trust him, Kaṁsa requested Vasudeva to take the child back. Later, however, after Nārada approached Kaṁsa and disclosed to him that the demigods were appearing in the Yadu and Vṛṣṇi dynasties and conspiring to kill him, Kaṁsa decided to kill all the children born in these families, and he also decided that any child born from the womb of Devakī must be killed.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.1
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. pratiyātumy dear Vasudeva, take back your child and go home
  2. kumāraḥnewborn child
  3. ayamthis
  4. nanot
  5. hiindeed
  6. asmātfrom him
  7. astithere is
  8. memy
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

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 10.1

    In this verse: “child”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 10.1

    In this verse: “fear”

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 much do my own fears shape the decisions I make about others?

Practice

Before one decision today, pause to notice whether fear for yourself is directing it.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayKaṁsa Spares the First ChildThis 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 10.1.60? Get an answer from the verses themselves.