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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 40: The Prayers of Akrūra

10.40.17-18 10.40.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.40.19

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Akrūrasince 10.40.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

नमस्तेऽद्भ‍ुतसिंहाय साधुलोकभयापह ।

वामनाय नमस्तुभ्यं क्रान्तत्रिभुवनाय च ॥ १९ ॥

namas te ’dbhuta-siṁhāya

sādhu-loka-bhayāpaha

vāmanāya namas tubhyaṁ

krānta-tribhuvanāya ca

Translation

Obeisances to You, the amazing lion [Lord Nṛsiṁha], who remove Your saintly devotees’ fear, and to the dwarf Vāmana, who stepped over the three worlds.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

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.

The Lord Removes His Devotees’ Fear

1
The prayer offers obeisances to Lord Nṛsiṁha, the amazing lion.
2
Lord Nṛsiṁha removes the fear of His saintly devotees.
3
The prayer also offers obeisances to the dwarf Vāmana, who stepped over the three worlds.

How it feels

Anxiety and conflict → Liberation and joy. Heroic victory is complicated by separation from Vraja.

Chapters 39–45 of Canto 10: Mathurā, Kaṁsa and reunion with parents. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 40: The Prayers of Akrūra

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Like aquatics moving about in water or like tiny insects burrowing in an udumbara fruit, all living beings move about within the Lord. These living beings, bewildered by His Māyā, wander along the path of material work, falsely identifying with body, home and so forth.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 10.40

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

namaḥobeisances
teto You
adbhutaamazing
siṁhāyato the lion
sadhu-lokaof all saintly devotees
bhayaof the fear
apahaO remover
vāmanāyato the dwarf

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
Bhakti · Devotion and loving service
How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 10.40
In this verse: “devotees’”, “devotees”
Abhaya · Fearlessness
Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 10.40
In this verse: “fear”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What fear would I like to bring before Lord Nṛsiṁha in prayer?

Practice

Offer a short prayer to Lord Nṛsiṁha, remembering Him as the remover of His devotees’ fear.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

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 10.40's connections

Live this todayThe Lord Removes His Devotees’ FearThis 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 10.40.19? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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