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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 10.13.19

Who is speaking and story frame

यावद् वत्सपवत्सकाल्पकवपुर्यावत् कराङ्‌‌घ्र्यादिकं

यावद् यष्टिविषाणवेणुदलशिग् यावद् विभूषाम्बरम् ।

यावच्छीलगुणाभिधाकृतिवयो यावद् विहारादिकं

सर्वं विष्णुमयं गिरोऽङ्गवदज: सर्वस्वरूपो बभौ ॥ १९ ॥

yāvad vatsapa-vatsakālpaka-vapur yāvat karāṅghry-ādikaṁ

yāvad yaṣṭi-viṣāṇa-veṇu-dala-śig yāvad vibhūṣāmbaram

yāvac chīla-guṇābhidhākṛti-vayo yāvad vihārādikaṁ

sarvaṁ viṣṇumayaṁ giro ’ṅga-vad ajaḥ sarva-svarūpo babhau

Translation

By His Vāsudeva feature, Kṛṣṇa simultaneously expanded Himself into the exact number of missing cowherd boys and calves, with their exact bodily features, their particular types of hands, legs and other limbs, their sticks, bugles and flutes, their lunch bags, their particular types of dress and ornaments placed in various ways, their names, ages and forms, and their special activities and characteristics. By expanding Himself in this way, beautiful Kṛṣṇa proved the statement samagra-jagad viṣṇumayam: “Lord Viṣṇu is all-pervading.”

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Expands Yet Always Remains Complete

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa expanded into the exact number of missing boys and calves. Every bodily feature, possession, name, habit and activity was reproduced in detail.

  2. 2

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead can expand into countless forms without losing His original form as Kṛṣṇa. He can become everything while remaining personally distinct, always complete and unchanged.

  3. 3

    One must learn about Kṛṣṇa from the ācāryas. Following their path allows one to understand Him, and true understanding of Kṛṣṇa frees one from material bondage.

Key points from the purport
  • He can expand Himself in more forms than one can imagine, yet He does not fall down from His original form as Kṛṣṇa; therefore He is called Acyuta.
  • Kṛṣṇa thus proved that He is everything, that He can become everything, but that still He is personally different from everything (mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ).
  • Therefore one must learn about Kṛṣṇa from the ācāryas.

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

Peril and pride → Friendship and humility. Divinity is revealed amid intimate childhood play.

Chapters 12–19 of Canto 10: Childhood dangers and Brahmā's amazement. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 13: The Stealing of the Boys and Calves by Brahmā

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Then the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the cause of all causes, in order to please Lord Brahmā, as well as His own associates and their mothers, expanded Himself to become the calves and boys, exactly as they were before. In this way, He discovered another pastime.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.13
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yāvat vatsapaexactly like the cowherd boys
  2. vatsaka-alpaka-vapuḥand exactly like the tender bodies of the calves
  3. yāvat kara-aṅghri-ādikamexactly to the measurement of their particular varieties of legs and hands
  4. yāvat yaṣṭi-viṣāṇa-veṇu-dala-śiknot only like their bodies but exactly like their bugles, flutes, sticks, lunch bags and so on
  5. yāvat vibhūṣā-ambaramexactly like their ornaments and dress in all their varied particulars
  6. yāvat śīla-guṇa-abhidhā-ākṛti-vayaḥtheir exact character, habits, features, attributes and explicit bodily features
  7. yāvat vihāra-ādikamexactly according to their tastes or amusements
  8. sarvameverything in detail
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Sakhya · Sacred friendship

    The affection of companions and friends of the Lord. · Theme in SB 10.13

    In this verse: “cowherd boys”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 10.13

    In this verse: “material”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 10.13

    In this verse: “understand”

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

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Why is guidance from the ācāryas important when learning about Kṛṣṇa’s unlimited expansions?

Practice

Reread Śrīla Prabhupāda’s explanation that Kṛṣṇa remains complete, and write down one thing it teaches you about Him.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Expands Yet Always Remains CompleteThis 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 10.13.19? Get an answer from the verses themselves.