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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 87: The Prayers of the Personified Vedas
10.87.1610.87.18

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 10.87.17

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The śrutissince 10.87.14inside 5 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārāyaṇa Ṛṣi → Nārada MuniSanandana Kumāra → the sages of JanalokaThe personified Vedas → the Supreme Lord

द‍ृतय इव श्वसन्त्यसुभृतो यदि तेऽनुविधा

महदहमादयोऽण्डमसृजन् यदनुग्रहत: ।

पुरुषविधोऽन्वयोऽत्र चरमोऽन्नमयादिषु य:

सदसत: परं त्वमथ यदेष्ववशेषमृतम् ॥ १७ ॥

dṛtaya iva śvasanty asu-bhṛto yadi te ’nuvidhā

mahad-aham-ādayo ’ṇḍam asṛjan yad-anugrahataḥ

puruṣa-vidho ’nvayo ’tra caramo ’nna-mayādiṣu yaḥ

sad-asataḥ paraṁ tvam atha yad eṣv avaśeṣam ṛtam

Translation

Only if they become Your faithful followers are those who breathe actually alive, otherwise their breathing is like that of a bellows. It is by Your mercy alone that the elements, beginning with the mahat-tattva and false ego, created the egg of this universe. Among the manifestations known as anna-maya and so forth, You are the ultimate one, entering within the material coverings along with the living entity and assuming the same forms as those he takes. Distinct from the gross and subtle material manifestations, You are the reality underlying them all.

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.

Devotion Gives Human Life Its Purpose

  1. 1

    Human life is a fortunate opportunity to worship our most well-wishing benefactor. Without becoming His faithful followers, our breathing is compared to that of a bellows.

  2. 2

    Material nature works under the direction of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The elements could not combine to produce the universe without His mercy.

  3. 3

    Reviving Kṛṣṇa consciousness need not be difficult: despite our weaknesses, we can willingly become His trusting and trustworthy servants. He asks us to think of Him, become His devotees, offer obeisances and worship Him.

Key points from the purport
  • Then, by evolution of spiritual life, he comes to understand the Supreme Lord, or the Supreme Soul.
  • As long as the living entities are situated in the lower four stages of life — anna-maya, prāṇa-maya, mano-maya and vijñāna-maya — they are considered to be in the material condition of life, but as soon as one reaches the stage of ānanda-maya, he becomes a liberated soul.
  • When our senses are purified, they become freed from all material stages, namely anna-maya, prāṇa-maya, mano-maya and vijñāna-maya, and they become situated in the highest stage — ānanda-maya, or blissful life in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

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

Connected verses· 5

The purport of SB 10.87.17 quotesBG 9.34

A person must revive his Kṛṣṇa consciousness to be relieved of the suffering caused by ignorance, but the process by which this is done need not be difficult, as Lord Kṛṣṇa assures us in Bhagavad-gītā (9.34): “Engage your mind in always thinking of Me, become My devotee, offer obeisances to Me and worship Me.

The purport of SB 10.87.17 quotesBG 18.61

Lord Kṛṣṇa describes this situation as yantrārūḍhāni māyayā, riding helplessly as a passenger in a mechanical vehicle.

The purport of SB 10.87.17 quotesBG 9.10

As Kṛṣṇa states in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10): “This material nature, which is one of My energies, is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, producing all moving and nonmoving beings.

The purport of SB 10.87.17 quotesSB 3.5.38

This is described in the Third Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (3.5.38-39):

The purport of SB 10.87.17 quotesSB 3.6.1

Hearing the prayers of the assembled demigods of the elements, the Supreme Lord then showed His favor:

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

Awe → Reverent fulfillment. The canto closes with theological wonder.

Chapters 87–90 of Canto 10: The Vedas praise and the Lord's glories conclude. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 87: The Prayers of the Personified Vedas

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

In reply, Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi related an account of how this very question had been discussed long ago among the great sages living on Janaloka. Once these sages, feeling inquisitive about the nature of the Absolute Truth, chose Sanandana Kumāra to speak on the subject.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 10.87
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. dṛtayaḥbellows
  2. ivaas if
  3. śvasantithey breathe
  4. asu-bhṛtaḥalive
  5. yadiif
  6. teYour
  7. anuvidhāḥfaithful followers
  8. mahatthe total material energy
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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 10.87

    In this verse: “devotees”, “worship”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 10.87

    In this verse: “material”

  • Dainya · Humility

    Ego yields to insight, service and surrender. · Theme in SB 10.87

    In this verse: “false ego”

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 can I use this human life to become a more trusting servant of Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Today, offer one deliberate bow to Kṛṣṇa, remembering His invitation to become His devotee.

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 10.87's connections

Live this todayDevotion Gives Human Life Its PurposeThis 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 10.87.17? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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