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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 ›
Canto 10 · Chapter 13: The Stealing of the Boys and Calves by Brahmā
10.13.1910.13.21

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.13.20

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 10.13.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

स्वयमात्मात्मगोवत्सान् प्रतिवार्यात्मवत्सपै: ।

क्रीडन्नात्मविहारैश्च सर्वात्मा प्राविशद् व्रजम् ॥ २० ॥

svayam ātmātma-govatsān

prativāryātma-vatsapaiḥ

krīḍann ātma-vihāraiś ca

sarvātmā prāviśad vrajam

Translation

Now expanding Himself so as to appear as all the calves and cowherd boys, all of them as they were, and at the same time appear as their leader, Kṛṣṇa entered Vrajabhūmi, the land of His father, Nanda Mahārāja, just as He usually did while enjoying their company.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Enjoys Through His Inconceivable Potency

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa returned to Vrajabhūmi as the leader of the calves and boys while also being every calf and boy Himself. He continued their usual activities without anyone knowing, even Baladeva.

  2. 2

    He directed the boys and cared for the calves, although all of them were His own expansions. This displayed His inconceivable potency.

  3. 3

    Through His pleasure potency, Kṛṣṇa became all the calves and boys and enjoyed transcendental bliss. This work of Yoga-māyā was inconceivable to those under Mahā-māyā.

Key points from the purport
  • Kṛṣṇa usually stayed in the forest and pasturing ground, taking care of the calves and cows with His associates the cowherd boys.
  • Kṛṣṇa, by expanding His pleasure potency, becomes Rādhārāṇī.
  • The same pleasure potency (ānanda-cinmaya-rasa) was expanded by Kṛṣṇa when He Himself became all the calves and boys and enjoyed transcendental bliss in Vrajabhūmi.

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
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. svayam ātmāKṛṣṇa, who is personally the Supreme Soul, the Supersoul
  2. ātma-go-vatsānnow expanded into calves that were also He Himself
  3. prativārya ātma-vatsapaiḥagain He Himself was represented as the cowherd boys controlling and commanding the calves
  4. krīḍanthus Himself constituting everything in these transcendental pastimes
  5. ātma-vihāraiḥ caenjoying Himself by Himself in different ways
  6. sarva-ātmāthe Supersoul, Kṛṣṇa
  7. prāviśatentered
  8. vrajamVrajabhūmi, the land of Mahārāja Nanda and Yaśodā
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 10.13

    In this verse: “nanda”, “father”

  • Sakhya · Sacred friendship

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

    In this verse: “cowherd boys”

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 does this pastime invite you to approach Kṛṣṇa’s potency with humility?

Practice

Recall Kṛṣṇa returning with the calves and boys, and offer a brief prayer to serve Him with humility.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 10.13's connections

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Enjoys Through His Inconceivable PotencyThis 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 10.13.20? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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