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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 60: Lord Kṛṣṇa Teases Queen Rukmiṇī.
10.60.4110.60.43

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.60.42

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Rukmiṇīsince 10.60.34inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

कान्यं श्रयेत तव पादसरोजगन्ध-

माघ्राय सन्मुखरितं जनतापवर्गम् ।

लक्ष्म्यालयं त्वविगणय्य गुणालयस्य

मर्त्या सदोरुभयमर्थविविक्तद‍ृष्टि: ॥ ४२ ॥

kānyaṁ śrayeta tava pāda-saroja-gandham

āghrāya san-mukharitaṁ janatāpavargam

lakṣmy-ālayaṁ tv avigaṇayya guṇālayasya

martyā sadoru-bhayam artha-viviita-dṛṣṭiḥ

Translation

The aroma of Your lotus feet, which is glorified by great saints, awards people liberation and is the abode of Goddess Lakṣmī. What woman would take shelter of any other man after savoring that aroma? Since You are the abode of transcendental qualities, what mortal woman with the insight to distinguish her own true interest would disregard that fragrance and depend instead on someone who is always subject to terrible fear?

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.

Take Shelter of Kṛṣṇa’s Eternal Qualities

  1. 1

    The aroma of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet is praised by great saints, grants liberation and is the abode of Goddess Lakṣmī. Rukmiṇī asks who would seek another shelter after savoring it.

  2. 2

    Rather than lacking good qualities, Kṛṣṇa is the abode of all transcendental qualities. His eternal, spiritual body is omnipotent and infinitely beautiful.

  3. 3

    Worldly power can become helplessness and confusion in a moment, and mortal bodies inevitably perish. Rukmiṇī therefore identifies shelter in the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, as one’s true interest.

Key points from the purport
  • In text 16 Lord Kṛṣṇa claimed that He was guṇair hīnāḥ, “bereft of all good qualities.”
  • To refute this claim, the devoted Rukmiṇī here states that the Lord is guṇālaya, “the abode of all good qualities.”
  • The Lord, however, has an eternal, spiritual body that is omnipotent and infinitely beautiful, and thus, as Queen Rukmiṇī argues here, how could any sane, enlightened woman take shelter of anyone but the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa?

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

Conflict and affection → Devotional wonder. Divine intimacy coexists with royal duties.

Chapters 60–69 of Canto 10: Palace life, family bonds and heroic protection. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 60: Lord Kṛṣṇa Teases Queen Rukmiṇī.

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Seeing that Kṛṣṇa had spoken only in jest, she said, “What You said about the two of us being mismatched is actually true. After all, no one is equal to You, the omnipotent master of the three principal deities — Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Śiva.”
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.60
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kawhat woman
  2. anyamanother man
  3. śrayetawould take shelter of
  4. tavaYour
  5. pādaof the feet
  6. sarojaof the lotus
  7. gandhamthe aroma
  8. āghrāyahaving smelled
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 10.60

    In this verse: “glorified”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 10.60

    In this verse: “fear”

  • Śaraṇāgati · Wholehearted surrender

    Relinquishing ownership while entrusting oneself to the Lord. · Theme in SB 10.60

    In this verse: “shelter”

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

Am I looking for lasting shelter in something that can be lost in a moment?

Practice

Offer a brief prayer at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet today, asking to recognize your true interest in taking shelter of Him.

5

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 10.60's connections

Live this todayTake Shelter of Kṛṣṇa’s Eternal QualitiesThis 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 10.60.42? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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