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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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Texts 10.80.16-17

Who is speaking and story frame

त्रीणि गुल्मान्यतीयाय तिस्र: कक्षाश्च सद्विज: ।

विप्रोऽगम्यान्धकवृष्णीनां गृहेष्वच्युतधर्मिणाम् ॥ १६ ॥

गृहं द्वय‍ष्टसहस्राणां महिषीणां हरेर्द्विज: ।

विवेशैकतमं श्रीमद् ब्रह्मानन्दं गतो यथा ॥ १७ ॥

trīṇi gulmāny atīyāya

tisraḥ kakṣāś ca sa-dvijaḥ

vipro ’gamyāndhaka-vṛṣṇīnāṁ

gṛheṣv acyuta-dharmiṇām

gṛhaṁ dvy-aṣṭa-sahasrāṇāṁ

mahiṣīṇāṁ harer dvijaḥ

viveśaikatamaṁ śrīmad

brahmānandaṁ gato yathā

Translation

The learned brāhmaṇa, joined by some local brāhmaṇas, passed three guard stations and went through three gateways, and then he walked by the homes of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s faithful devotees, the Andhakas and Vṛṣṇis, which ordinarily no one could do. He then entered one of the opulent palaces belonging to Lord Hari’s sixteen thousand queens, and when he did so he felt as if he were attaining the bliss of liberation.

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.

Absorbed in Approaching the Lord

  1. 1

    Accompanied by local brāhmaṇas, Sudāmā passed three guard stations and three gateways. He walked through an area ordinarily inaccessible to others.

  2. 2

    He entered the palace of Rukmiṇī, one of Lord Hari’s queens. The purport describes him standing silently for a moment at its doorway.

  3. 3

    Upon entering the palace precincts and then the palace itself, he forgot everything else. His state is compared to the bliss of spiritual liberation.

Key points from the purport
  • When the saintly brāhmaṇa entered the precincts of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s palaces and then actually entered one of the palaces, he completely forgot everything else, and thus his state of mind is compared to that of one who has just achieved the bliss of spiritual liberation.
  • Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī quotes from the Padma Purāṇa, Uttara-khaṇḍa, wherein we learn that the brāhmaṇa actually entered the palace of Rukmiṇī: sa tu rukmiṇy-antaḥ-pura-dvāri kṣaṇaṁ tūṣṇīṁ sthitaḥ.

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

Humility and separation → Friendship and reunion. The sweetness of relationship outweighs prestige.

Chapters 80–86 of Canto 10: Sudāmā and reunion with the residents of Vraja. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 80: The Brāhmaṇa Sudāmā Visits Lord Kṛṣṇa in Dvārakā

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

One day Sudāmā’s wife, unable to find any food to prepare for her husband, went to him and asked that he visit his friend Kṛṣṇa in Dvārakā and beg some charity. Sudāmā was reluctant, but when she persisted he agreed to go, reflecting that an opportunity to see the Lord was extremely auspicious.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.80
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. trīṇithree
  2. gulmānicontingents of guards
  3. atīyāyapassing
  4. tisraḥthree
  5. kakṣāḥgateways
  6. caand
  7. sa-dvijaḥaccompanied by brāhmaṇas
  8. vipraḥthe learned brāhmaṇa
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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 10.80

    In this verse: “devotees”

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 10.80

    In this verse: “guard”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

When do I allow thoughts of approaching Kṛṣṇa to quiet my other concerns?

Practice

Pause silently for a moment before your devotional service today, setting other concerns aside.

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.

Live this todayAbsorbed in Approaching the LordThis 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 10.80.16-17? Get an answer from the verses themselves.