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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 8: Lord Kṛṣṇa Shows the Universal Form Within His Mouth
10.8.1210.8.14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.8.13

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Garga Munisince 10.8.12inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

आसन् वर्णास्त्रयो ह्यस्य गृह्णतोऽनुयुगं तनू: ।

शुक्लो रक्तस्तथा पीत इदानीं कृष्णतां गत: ॥ १३ ॥

āsan varṇās trayo hy asya

gṛhṇato ’nuyugaṁ tanūḥ

śuklo raktas tathā pīta

idānīṁ kṛṣṇatāṁ gataḥ

Translation

Your son Kṛṣṇa appears as an incarnation in every millennium. In the past, He assumed three different colors — white, red and yellow — and now He has appeared in a blackish color. [In another Dvāpara-yuga, He appeared (as Lord Rāmacandra) in the color of śuka, a parrot. All such incarnations have now assembled in Kṛṣṇa.]

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Is the Source of All Incarnations

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and is free to appear as He desires. Garga Muni indirectly revealed this while avoiding an open disclosure because of Kaṁsa’s atrocities.

  2. 2

    The same Supreme Person appears in different ages with different colors. Here He appeared personally in His original, blackish form as Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the all-attractive.

  3. 3

    Kṛṣṇa is the source of all avatāras, and all their features are present within Him. When Kṛṣṇa appears, all the avatāras appear with Him.

Key points from the purport
  • In every millennium, Kṛṣṇa appears in a different form, either as white, red or yellow, but this time He personally appeared in His original, blackish form and, as predicted by Garga Muni, exhibited the power of Nārāyaṇa.
  • Factually, Kṛṣṇa is the source of all avatāras, and therefore all the different features of the different avatāras are present in Kṛṣṇa.
  • When Kṛṣṇa appears, all the avatāras appear with Him.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 4

The purport of SB 10.8.13 quotesSB 1.3.26

As described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.3.26): The avatāras incessantly appear, like incessantly flowing water.

Quoted in the purport ofCC Ādi 3.36

This is a verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.8.13).

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 6.101

This verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.8.13) was spoken by Garga Muni when he was performing the rituals at Lord Kṛṣṇa’s name-giving ceremony.

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 20.331

This verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (10.8.13) was spoken by Garga Muni when performing the name-giving ceremony for Kṛṣṇa at the house of Nanda Mahārāja.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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 8: Lord Kṛṣṇa Shows the Universal Form Within His Mouth

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Kṛṣṇa, the son of Yaśodā, previously appeared in many other colors, such as white, red and yellow, and He had now assumed the color black. Because He was sometimes the son of Vasudeva, His name is Vāsudeva.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.8
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. āsanwere assumed
  2. varṇāḥ trayaḥthree colors
  3. hiindeed
  4. asyaof your son Kṛṣṇa
  5. gṛhṇataḥaccepting
  6. anuyugam tanūḥtranscendental bodies according to the different yugas
  7. śuklaḥsometimes white
  8. raktaḥsometimes red
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

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

How does knowing that Kṛṣṇa is the source of all avatāras deepen my appreciation of Him?

Practice

Pause today to remember this teaching: Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the source of all avatāras.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

Quoted in 8 lectures. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Quoted in 8 lectures

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

7

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

The purport quotesSB 1.3.26SB 11.5.32

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 10.8's connections

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Is the Source of All IncarnationsThis 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 10.8.13? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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