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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 11 · General History · 31 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 11 · Chapter 10: The Nature of Fruitive Activity
11.10.1811.10.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.10.19

Nirodha· Winding up
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Supreme Personality of Godheadsince 11.10.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Kṛṣṇa → Uddhava

यदि प्राप्तिं विघातं च जानन्ति सुखदु:खयो: ।

तेऽप्यद्धा न विदुर्योगं मृत्युर्न प्रभवेद् यथा ॥ १९ ॥

yadi prāptiṁ vighātaṁ ca

jānanti sukha-duḥkhayoḥ

te ’py addhā na vidur yogaṁ

mṛtyur na prabhaved yathā

Translation

Even if people know how to achieve happiness and avoid unhappiness, they still do not know the process by which death will not be able to exert its power over them.

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.

Accept the Mercy of the Holy Names

  1. 1

    Knowing how to gain material pleasure or reduce distress does not mean knowing how to overcome death.

  2. 2

    Lord Kṛṣṇa comes as death and takes everything away. Ignoring this danger cannot give secure happiness.

  3. 3

    Caitanya Mahāprabhu offers the real means of achieving unqualified happiness: chanting the Lord’s holy names. Accepting this mercy is in our own self-interest.

Key points from the purport
  • If the so-called intelligent materialists know the means of achieving happiness and destroying unhappiness, then they should deliver people from inevitable death.
  • The scientists are busily working to solve this problem, but since they have completely failed, it is understood that they are not actually intelligent and that they do not know the means of achieving happiness and eliminating misery.
  • We should surrender to the lotus feet of Lord Caitanya, who offers the real means for achieving unqualified happiness: the chanting of the holy names of the Lord.

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

Uncertainty → Clarity. The coming separation makes the instruction personally urgent.

Chapters 10–20 of Canto 11: Kṛṣṇa's teachings on self, yoga and wisdom. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 10: The Nature of Fruitive Activity

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

In this way there is no possibility that one who is attached to the fruits of his material work can achieve any substantial goal in life. The pleasures of heaven and other destinations, which are achieved by sacrificial rituals, can be experienced for only a short time.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.10
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yadiif
  2. prāptimachievement
  3. vighātamremoval
  4. caalso
  5. jānantithey know
  6. sukhaof happiness
  7. duḥkhayoḥand of distress
  8. tethey
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead

    What happens when everything here comes to an end? · Subject 8 of 10

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 11.10

    In this verse: “death”, “danger”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 11.10

    In this verse: “material”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 11.10

    In this verse: “chanting”

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

Am I making room for the Lord’s mercy, or only trying to improve temporary comforts?

Practice

Set aside a few quiet minutes today to chant the holy names of the Lord.

Live this todayAccept the Mercy of the Holy NamesThis 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 11.10.19? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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