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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

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 56: The Syamantaka Jewel

10.56.23 10.56.25

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.56.24

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 10.56.9inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

आसीत्तदष्टाविंशाहमितरेतरमुष्टिभि: ।

वज्रनिष्पेषपरुषैरविश्रममहर्निशम् ॥ २४ ॥

āsīt tad aṣṭā-vimśāham

itaretara-muṣṭibhiḥ

vajra-niṣpeṣa-paruṣair

aviśramam ahar-niśam

Translation

The fight went on without rest for twenty-eight days, the two opponents striking each other with their fists, which fell like the cracking blows of lightning.

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.

Twenty-Eight Days Without Rest

1
The fight continued without rest for twenty-eight days.
2
The two opponents struck each other with fists whose blows were like lightning.
3
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī emphasizes that the fighting continued day and night without intermission.

Key points from the purport

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī points out that the fight continued day and night without intermission.

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

Yearning and danger → Marriage and reciprocity. A wider range of divine relationships appears.

Chapters 50–59 of Canto 10: Dvārakā, Rukmiṇī and royal rescues. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 56: The Syamantaka Jewel

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

For twenty-eight days continuously the two fought, until finally Jāmbavān grew weak from the Lord’s blows. Now understanding that Kṛṣṇa was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Jāmbavān began to praise Him.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 10.56