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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 ›
Canto 10 · Chapter 6: The Killing of the Demon Pūtanā
10.6.1210.6.14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.6.13

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 10.6.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

निशाचरीत्थं व्यथितस्तना व्यसु-

र्व्यादाय केशांश्चरणौ भुजावपि ।

प्रसार्य गोष्ठे निजरूपमास्थिता

वज्राहतो वृत्र इवापतन्नृप ॥ १३ ॥

niśā-carītthaṁ vyathita-stanā vyasur

vyādāya keśāṁś caraṇau bhujāv api

prasārya goṣṭhe nija-rūpam āsthitā

vajrāhato vṛtra ivāpatan nṛpa

Translation

In this way the demon Pūtanā, very much aggrieved because her breast was being attacked by Kṛṣṇa, lost her life. O King Parīkṣit, opening her mouth wide and spreading her arms, legs and hair, she fell down in the pasturing ground in her original form as a Rākṣasī, as Vṛtrāsura had fallen when killed by the thunderbolt of Indra.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Pūtanā’s Mystic Disguise Cannot Remain

  1. 1

    Pūtanā was a great Rākṣasī who could cover her original form by mystic power.

  2. 2

    Severely aggrieved as Kṛṣṇa attacked her breast, she lost her life. Her mystic power could no longer hide her original form.

  3. 3

    With her mouth open and her arms, legs and hair spread out, she fell in the pasturing ground as a Rākṣasī.

Key points from the purport
  • Pūtanā was a great Rākṣasī who knew the art of covering her original form by mystic power, but when she was killed her mystic power could not hide her, and she appeared in her original form.

Śrīla Prabhupāda'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

Worry and play → Parental tenderness. The Supreme becomes the beloved child of His devotees.

Chapters 5–11 of Canto 10: Gokula, Yaśodā and the infant Lord. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 6: The Killing of the Demon Pūtanā

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The child Kṛṣṇa, therefore, squeezed Pūtanā’s breast so severely that in unbearable pain she had to assume her original body and fell to the ground. Then Kṛṣṇa began playing on her breast just like a small child.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.6
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. niśā-carīthe Rākṣasī
  2. itthamin this way
  3. vyathita-stanābeing severely aggrieved because of pressure on her breast
  4. vyasuḥlost her life
  5. vyādāyaopening her mouth wide
  6. keśānbunch of hairs
  7. caraṇauher two legs
  8. bhujauher two hands
3

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

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 10.6

    In this verse: “king”

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

What does Pūtanā’s inability to maintain her disguise reveal about the limits of her mystic power?

Practice

Write one sentence describing what happened to Pūtanā’s mystic disguise when Kṛṣṇa killed her.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

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 10.6's connections

Live this todayPūtanā’s Mystic Disguise Cannot RemainThis 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 10.6.13? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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