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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 77: Lord Kṛṣṇa Slays the Demon Śālva
10.77.2810.77.30

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.77.29

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śālvasince 10.77.26inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

न तत्र दूतं न पितु: कलेवरं

प्रबुद्ध आजौ समपश्यदच्युत: ।

स्वाप्नं यथा चाम्बरचारिणं रिपुं

सौभस्थमालोक्य निहन्तुमुद्यत: ॥ २९ ॥

na tatra dūtaṁ na pituḥ kalevaraṁ

prabuddha ājau samapaśyad acyutaḥ

svāpnaṁ yathā cāmbara-cāriṇaṁ ripuṁ

saubha-stham ālokya nihantum udyataḥ

Translation

Now alert to the actual situation, Lord Acyuta saw before Him on the battlefield neither the messenger nor His father’s body. It was as if He had awakened from a dream. Seeing His enemy flying above Him in his Saubha plane, the Lord then prepared to kill him.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

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.

The Apparent Scene Vanishes Like a Dream

  1. 1

    Alert to the actual situation, Lord Acyuta saw neither the messenger nor His father’s body on the battlefield.

  2. 2

    The change is compared to awakening from a dream. The verse uses this comparison to describe the disappearance of the apparent scene.

  3. 3

    Seeing His enemy flying above Him in the Saubha plane, the Lord prepared to kill him.

How it feels

War and pride → Justice and protection. The public expression of divine power comes to the foreground.

Chapters 70–79 of Canto 10: Kingship, Jarāsandha and royal challenges. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 77: Lord Kṛṣṇa Slays the Demon Śālva

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Śālva descended from his airplane and rushed toward Lord Kṛṣṇa to attack Him, but the Lord took up His Sudarśana disc and severed Śālva’s head from his body. With the killing of Śālva, the demigods in the sky played kettledrums in jubilation.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.77
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nanot
  2. tatrathere
  3. dūtamthe messenger
  4. nanor
  5. pituḥof His father
  6. kalevaramthe body
  7. prabuddhaḥalert
  8. ājauon the battlefield
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

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 10.77

    In this verse: “father’s”

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 the dream comparison help you understand about the scene before Lord Acyuta?

Practice

List what was absent and what the Lord actually saw when the apparent scene had vanished.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Apparent Scene Vanishes Like a DreamThis 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 10.77.29? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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