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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 10.24.4

Who is speaking and story frame

एतद् ब्रूहि महान् कामो मह्यं शुश्रूषवे पित: । न हि गोप्यं हि साधूनां कृत्यं सर्वात्मनामिह । अस्त्यस्वपरद‍ृष्टीनाममित्रोदास्तविद्विषाम् ॥ ४ ॥

etad brūhi mahān kāmo

mahyaṁ śuśrūṣave pitaḥ

na hi gopyaṁ hi sadhūnāṁ

kṛtyaṁ sarvātmanām iha

asty asva-para-dṛṣṭīnām

amitrodāsta-vidviṣām

Translation

Please tell Me about it, O father. I have a great desire to know and am ready to hear in good faith. Certainly, no secrets are to be kept by saintly personalities, who see all others as equal to themselves, who have no conception of “mine” or “another’s” and who do not consider who is a friend, who is an enemy and who is neutral.

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.

Hear Faithfully and Ask Seriously

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa expressed a great desire to know and a readiness to hear in good faith.

  2. 2

    He described saintly people as seeing others as equal to themselves, without distinctions of “mine” and “another’s,” or friend and enemy.

  3. 3

    Nanda might have regarded His son as too young to question a Vedic sacrifice. Kṛṣṇa’s statement showed that His inquiry was serious, not whimsical, and deserved a serious answer.

Key points from the purport
  • Lord Kṛṣṇa’s father might have thought that his son was a mere child and thus could not properly question the validity of a Vedic sacrifice.
  • But the Lord’s clever statement here would certainly have convinced Nanda that Śrī Kṛṣṇa was making a serious, not a whimsical, inquiry and that a serious answer should thus be given.

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 24: Worshiping Govardhana Hill

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Thus it is karma alone that is our enemy, our friend, our guru and our lord, and Indra can do nothing to alter the happiness and distress of anyone, for everyone is tightly bound by his karmic reactions. The material modes of goodness, passion and ignorance bring about the creation, maintenance and destruction of this world.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.24
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. etatthis
  2. brūhiplease speak
  3. mahāngreat
  4. kāmaḥdesire
  5. mahyamto Me
  6. śuśrūṣavewho am ready to hear faithfully
  7. pitaḥO father
  8. nanot
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Manvantara · The change of Manus

    What gives human life its right direction? · Subject 6 of 10

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 10.24

    In this verse: “father”, “nanda”

  • Sakhya · Sacred friendship

    The affection of companions and friends of the Lord. · Theme in SB 10.24

    In this verse: “friend”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 10.24

    In this verse: “inquiry”

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 ask spiritual questions with a genuine readiness to hear the answer?

Practice

Ask one sincere spiritual question today, and hear the response without interrupting.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayHear Faithfully and Ask SeriouslyThis 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 10.24.4? Get an answer from the verses themselves.