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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
  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 63: Lord Kṛṣṇa Fights with Bāṇāsura
10.63.3410.63.37

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Texts 10.63.35-36

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śrī Rudrasince 10.63.34inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

नाभिर्नभोऽग्निर्मुखमम्बु रेतो

द्यौ: शीर्षमाशा: श्रुतिरङ्‍‍घ्रिरुर्वी ।

चन्द्रो मनो यस्य द‍ृगर्क आत्मा

अहं समुद्रो जठरं भुजेन्द्र: ॥ ३५ ॥

रोमाणि यस्यौषधयोऽम्बुवाहा:

केशा विरिञ्चो धिषणा विसर्ग: ।

प्रजापतिर्हृदयं यस्य धर्म:

स वै भवान् पुरुषो लोककल्प: ॥ ३६ ॥

nābhir nabho ’gnir mukham ambu reto

dyauḥ śīrṣam āśāḥ śrutir aṅghrir urvī

candro mano yasya dṛg arka ātmā

ahaṁ samudro jaṭharaṁ bhujendraḥ

romāṇi yasyauṣadhayo ’mbu-vāhāḥ

keśā viriñco dhiṣaṇā visargaḥ

prajā-patir hṛdayaṁ yasya dharmaḥ

sa vai bhavān puruṣo loka-kalpaḥ

Translation

The sky is Your navel, fire Your face, water Your semen, and heaven Your head. The cardinal directions are Your sense of hearing, herbal plants the hairs on Your body, and water-bearing clouds the hair on Your head. The earth is Your foot, the moon Your mind, and the sun Your vision, while I am Your ego. The ocean is Your abdomen, Indra Your arm, Lord Brahmā Your intelligence, the progenitor of mankind Your genitals, and religion Your heart. You are indeed the original puruṣa, creator of the worlds.

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.

Surrender Opens the Way to Understanding

  1. 1

    Śiva describes the worlds and their rulers as parts of the Lord’s cosmic manifestation. He honors the Lord as the original puruṣa, creator of the worlds.

  2. 2

    Like tiny bugs living inside a fruit, we tiny living beings cannot comprehend the Supreme Absolute Truth in whom we exist.

  3. 3

    Even the Lord’s cosmic manifestation is difficult to understand, what to speak of His transcendental form as Śrī Kṛṣṇa. We should surrender in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and the Lord Himself will help us understand.

Key points from the purport
  • Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī explains that just as the tiny bugs living inside a fruit cannot comprehend the fruit, so we tiny living beings cannot understand the Supreme Absolute Truth, in whom we exist.
  • It is difficult to understand the cosmic manifestation of the Lord, what to speak of His transcendental form as Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
  • Therefore we should surrender in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and the Lord Himself will help us understand.

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 63: Lord Kṛṣṇa Fights with Bāṇāsura

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Next Bāṇāsura’s mother, trying to save her son, appeared naked in front of Lord Kṛṣṇa, who averted His face to avoid looking at her. Seeing his chance, Bāṇa fled into his city.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.63
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nābhiḥthe navel
  2. nabhaḥthe sky
  3. agniḥfire
  4. mukhamthe face
  5. ambuwater
  6. retaḥthe semen
  7. dyauḥheaven
  8. śīrṣamthe head
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 10.63

    In this verse: “religion”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 10.63

    In this verse: “hearing”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 10.63

    In this verse: “absolute truth”, “understand”

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

Can I approach Kṛṣṇa with surrender rather than expect to understand Him by my own ability?

Practice

Before studying today, ask Kṛṣṇa to help you understand Him with a surrendered heart.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todaySurrender Opens the Way to UnderstandingThis 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 10.63.35-36? Get an answer from the verses themselves.