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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 10.23.42

Who is speaking and story frame

अहो पश्यत नारीणामपि कृष्णे जगद्गुरौ ।

दुरन्तभावं योऽविध्यन्मृत्युपाशान् गृहाभिधान् ॥ ४२ ॥

aho paśyata nārīṇām

api kṛṣṇe jagad-gurau

duranta-bhāvaṁ yo ’vidhyan

mṛtyu-pāśān gṛhābhidhān

Translation

Just see the unlimited love these women have developed for Lord Kṛṣṇa, the spiritual master of the entire universe! This love has broken for them the very bonds of death — their attachment to family life.

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.

Love for Kṛṣṇa Breaks Material Attachment

  1. 1

    The women developed unlimited love for Lord Kṛṣṇa, the spiritual master of the entire universe. This love broke their attachment to family life, described as the bonds of death.

  2. 2

    Although the men were outwardly their teachers, the women had become perfect in Kṛṣṇa consciousness while the men remained in ignorance. On returning home, the women displayed transcendental ecstatic symptoms.

  3. 3

    Their husbands recognized Kṛṣṇa as the universal spiritual master and acknowledged the women’s perfected attachment to Him. They accepted the women as worshipable spiritual masters, no longer regarding them as their wives or property.

Key points from the purport
  • Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī goes on to state that while one may object that it is not fitting for a woman to love anyone other than her husband, here the husbands themselves point out that they are gurus only in imitation of the Supreme Lord, who is jagad-guru, the universal teacher and spiritual master.
  • The husbands noted that the women, having perfected their transcendental attachment for Kṛṣṇa, did not have even a trace of attachment left for home, husband, children and so forth.
  • Therefore from that day on the husbands accepted those ladies as their worshipable spiritual masters and no longer thought of them as their wives or property.

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

Further reading

Chapter 23: The Brāhmaṇas’ Wives Blessed

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Kṛṣṇa told the women that while one can develop transcendental love for Him by seeing His Deity form in the temple, meditating upon Him and chanting His glories, one cannot achieve this result simply by being in His physical presence. He advised them that since they were housewives, their particular duty was to help their husbands perform sacrifices.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.23
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. aho paśyatajust see
  2. nārīṇāmof these women
  3. apieven
  4. kṛṣṇefor Lord Kṛṣṇa
  5. jagat-gurauthe spiritual master of the entire universe
  6. durantaunlimited
  7. bhāvamthe devotion
  8. yaḥwhich
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Prema · Transcendental love

    The intimacy and sweetness of devotion to Kṛṣṇa. · Theme in SB 10.23

    In this verse: “love”, “ecstatic”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 10.23

    In this verse: “attachment”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 10.23

    In this verse: “death”

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

Do I recognize spiritual maturity by devotion to Kṛṣṇa rather than by family position or authority?

Practice

Reflect on one family relationship today and consciously regard that person with respect rather than a sense of ownership.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayLove for Kṛṣṇa Breaks Material AttachmentThis 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 10.23.42? Get an answer from the verses themselves.