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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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Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

How to study this verse, in six steps

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
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 22: Kṛṣṇa Steals the Garments of the Unmarried Gopīs

10.22.24 10.22.26

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.22.25

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Lord Kṛṣṇasince 10.22.25inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

सङ्कल्पो विदित: साध्व्यो भवतीनां मदर्चनम् ।

मयानुमोदित: सोऽसौ सत्यो भवितुमर्हति ॥ २५ ॥

saṅkalpo viditaḥ sādhvyo

bhavatīnāṁ mad-arcanam

mayānumoditaḥ so ’sau

satyo bhavitum arhati

Translation

[Lord Kṛṣṇa said:] O saintly girls, I understand that your real motive in this austerity has been to worship Me. That intent of yours is approved of by Me, and indeed it must come to pass.

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.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Pure Loving Service Pleases Kṛṣṇa

1
Kṛṣṇa understood that the gopīs’ real motive was to worship Him. He approved their intention and assured them that it would be fulfilled.
2
Like Kṛṣṇa, the gopīs were free from impure desire. Their wish to have Him as their husband arose from an overwhelming desire to serve and please Him, not from personal sense gratification.
3
In their intense love, they saw Kṛṣṇa not as God but as the most wonderful boy in creation. The Lord was moved by their pure loving devotion, not by ordinary lust.

Key points from the purport

Just as Kṛṣṇa is free of all impure desire, so are the gopīs.
Their attempt to gain Kṛṣṇa as their husband was therefore motivated not by a desire for personal sense gratification but by their overwhelming desire to serve Kṛṣṇa and to please Him.
Lord Kṛṣṇa understood the pure desire of the gopīs and was thus satisfied.

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

Attraction and threat → Joy and trust. The pastoral world becomes the setting for protection and love.

Chapters 20–28 of Canto 10: Forest seasons, flute and Govardhana. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 22: Kṛṣṇa Steals the Garments of the Unmarried Gopīs

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Then your vow of austerity will achieve its full result.” The gopīs followed this instruction and, folding their hands in respect, offered obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 10.22

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

saṅkalpaḥthe motivation
viditaḥunderstood
sādhvyaḥO pious girls
bhavatīnāmyour
mat-arcanamworship of Me
mayāby Me
anumoditaḥapproved of
saḥ asauthat

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 10.22
In this verse: “worship”, “devotion”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 10.22
In this verse: “lust”, “sense gratification”
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 10.22
In this verse: “understand”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Am I seeking my own satisfaction, or am I trying to please Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Choose one small devotional act today and do it with the explicit intention of pleasing Kṛṣṇa.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayPure Loving Service Pleases KṛṣṇaThis 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 10.22.25? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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