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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 47: The Song of the Bee
10.47.5810.47.60

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.47.59

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Uddhavasince 10.47.58inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

क्व‍ेमा: स्‍त्रियो वनचरीर्व्यभिचारदुष्टा:

कृष्णे क्व‍ चैष परमात्मनि रूढभाव: ।

नन्वीश्वरोऽनुभजतोऽविदुषोऽपि साक्षा-

च्छ्रेयस्तनोत्यगदराज इवोपयुक्त: ॥ ५९ ॥

kvemāḥ striyo vana-carīr vyabhicāra-duṣṭāḥ

kṛṣṇe kva caiṣa paramātmani rūḍha-bhāvaḥ

nanv īśvaro ’nubhajato ’viduṣo ’pi sākṣāc

chreyas tanoty agada-rāja ivopayuktaḥ

Translation

How amazing it is that these simple women who wander about the forest, seemingly spoiled by improper behavior, have achieved the perfection of unalloyed love for Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Soul! Still, it is true that the Supreme Lord Himself awards His blessings even to an ignorant worshiper, just as the best medicine works even when taken by a person ignorant of its ingredients.

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.

Single-Minded Devotion Brings the Highest Good

  1. 1

    The gopīs’ apparently insignificant and impure position sharply contrasts with their attainment of perfect love for Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Soul.

  2. 2

    Their behavior only apparently resembles ordinary adultery. Those wise in spiritual science and the revealed scriptures praise their single-minded devotion to the Lord.

  3. 3

    Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, blesses even an ignorant worshiper. Like effective medicine, His blessings do not depend on the worshiper’s understanding of how they work.

Key points from the purport
  • The second type of adulterous woman is she who abandons her husband to enjoy only with her lover.
  • The last kind of adulterous woman is she who abandons her husband and enjoys in the attitude of being a lover of the Supreme Lord alone.
  • Thus the term vyabhicāra-duṣṭāḥ, “corrupted by deviation,” indicates the apparent resemblance between the gopīs’ behavior and that of ordinary adulterous women.

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

Heartache → Unbroken remembrance. Love endures and deepens despite visible absence.

Chapters 46–49 of Canto 10: Uddhava, the gopīs and the Song of the Bee. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 47: The Song of the Bee

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Very satisfied at seeing the extent of the gopīs’ love for the Lord, he declared, “These cowherd girls have perfected their lives by coming to the platform of unalloyed love for Kṛṣṇa. Indeed, even Lord Brahmā is inferior to them.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.47
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kvawhere, in comparison
  2. imāḥthese
  3. striyaḥwomen
  4. vanain the forests
  5. carīḥwho wander
  6. vyabhicāraby improper behavior
  7. duṣṭāḥcontaminated
  8. kṛṣṇefor Kṛṣṇa
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 10.47

    In this verse: “worshiper”, “devotion”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 10.47

    In this verse: “blessings”, “blesses”

  • Prema · Transcendental love

    The intimacy and sweetness of devotion to Kṛṣṇa. · Theme in SB 10.47

    In this verse: “love”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Does feeling insufficiently learned ever hold you back from sincerely worshiping Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Offer one simple prayer to Kṛṣṇa today, asking for single-minded devotion rather than waiting to know everything.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todaySingle-Minded Devotion Brings the Highest GoodThis 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.

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