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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 14: Brahmā’s Prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa
10.14.3910.14.41

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.14.40

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 10.14.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

श्रीकृष्ण वृष्णिकुलपुष्करजोषदायिन्

क्ष्मानिर्जरद्विजपशूदधिवृद्धिकारिन् ।

उद्धर्मशार्वरहर क्षितिराक्षसध्रु-

गाकल्पमार्कमर्हन् भगवन्नमस्ते ॥ ४० ॥

śrī-kṛṣṇa vṛṣṇi-kula-puṣkara-joṣa-dāyin

kṣmā-nirjara-dvija-paśūdadhi-vṛddhi-kārin

uddharma-śārvara-hara kṣiti-rākṣasa-dhrug

ā-kalpam ārkam arhan bhagavan namas te

Translation

My dear Śrī Kṛṣṇa, You bestow happiness upon the lotuslike Vṛṣṇi dynasty and expand the great oceans consisting of the earth, the demigods, the brāhmaṇas and the cows. You dispel the dense darkness of irreligion and oppose the demons who have appeared on this earth. O Supreme Personality of Godhead, as long as this universe exists and as long as the sun shines, I will offer my obeisances unto You.

Read the purport on Vedabase.io

From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Glorify Kṛṣṇa and Seek Inner Purification

  1. 1

    Brahmā glorifies Kṛṣṇa’s holy names, which indicate His varied pastimes. He offers lasting obeisances to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

  2. 2

    Kṛṣṇa dispels the darkness of irreligion and removes the earth’s demoniac burden. Brahmā also indirectly asks Him to remove his own subtle atheism, which led him to challenge the Lord.

  3. 3

    Brahmā regrets challenging Kṛṣṇa because of His simple cowherd appearance. His prayers remove doubts and establish the conclusions of devotional service.

Key points from the purport
  • According to Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī, Lord Brahmā is here engaged in the ecstasy of nāma-saṅkīrtana, glorifying various holy names of Lord Kṛṣṇa that indicate His variegated pastimes.
  • Here Lord Brahmā indirectly states that Lord Kṛṣṇa should remove Brahmā’s own subtle atheism, which had led him to try to exert illusory power over Lord Kṛṣṇa.
  • According to Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, Lord Brahmā, in his shame, felt himself to be like a brahma-rākṣasa from Satyaloka who had come to the earth to disturb Lord Kṛṣṇa and His intimate friends and calves.

The purport'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 14: Brahmā’s Prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Brahmā then glorified the inconceivable opulence of the Personality of Godhead and described the ways in which Brahmā and Śiva differ from Lord Viṣṇu, the reason for the Supreme Lord’s appearance in various species of demigods, animals and so on, the eternal nature of the pastimes of the Personality of Godhead, and the temporality of the material world. By knowing the Supreme Personality in truth, the individual spirit soul can achieve liberation from bondage.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.14
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. śrī-kṛṣṇaO Lord Kṛṣṇa
  2. vṛṣṇi-kulaof the Yadu dynasty
  3. puṣkarato the lotus
  4. joṣapleasure
  5. dāyinO You who bestow
  6. kṣmāof the earth
  7. nirjarathe demigods
  8. dvijathe brāhmaṇas
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord

    How does the Lord care for His devotees? · Subject 4 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 10.14

    In this verse: “devotional service”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 10.14

    In this verse: “glorifies”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Do I recognize any wish to exert control over Kṛṣṇa rather than serve Him?

Practice

Offer one respectful bow to Kṛṣṇa and ask Him to remove the pride that interferes with your devotional service.

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 10.14's connections

Live this todayGlorify Kṛṣṇa and Seek Inner PurificationThis 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 10.14.40? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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