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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 12: Beyond Renunciation and Knowledge
11.12.1011.12.12

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.12.11

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Supreme Personality of Godheadsince 11.12.1-2inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Kṛṣṇa → Uddhava

तास्ता: क्षपा: प्रेष्ठतमेन नीता

मयैव वृन्दावनगोचरेण ।

क्षणार्धवत्ता: पुनरङ्ग तासां

हीना मया कल्पसमा बभूवु: ॥ ११ ॥

tās tāḥ kṣapāḥ preṣṭhatamena nītā

mayaiva vṛndāvana-gocareṇa

kṣaṇārdha-vat tāḥ punar aṅga tāsāṁ

hīnā mayā kalpa-samā babhūvuḥ

Translation

Dear Uddhava, all of those nights that the gopīs spent with Me, their most dearly beloved, in the land of Vṛndāvana seemed to them to pass in less than a moment. Bereft of My association, however, the gopīs felt that those same nights dragged on forever, as if each night were equal to a day of Brahmā.

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.

Love Absorbed in Remembrance of Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    With Kṛṣṇa, the gopīs felt that nights passed in less than a moment. Without Him, those same nights seemed to last as long as a day of Brahmā.

  2. 2

    Although outwardly appearing bewildered in separation, the gopīs achieved the highest perfectional stage of samādhi. Their consciousness was intensely and intimately attached to Lord Kṛṣṇa.

  3. 3

    Rapt in loving remembrance of Kṛṣṇa, they were unaware of their bodies and everything else. Their Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the perfection of spiritual life.

Key points from the purport
  • Just like great sages who become detached from the names and forms of the material world, the gopīs could not think of anything, because they were rapt in loving remembrance of Lord Kṛṣṇa.
  • Thus a day of Brahmā seemed like a single moment for the gopīs when Lord Kṛṣṇa was present with them, and a single moment seemed like a day of Brahmā when Lord Kṛṣṇa was absent.
  • The Kṛṣṇa consciousness of the gopīs is the perfection of spiritual life, and the symptoms of such perfection are described here.

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 12: Beyond Renunciation and Knowledge

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

However, when Akrūra took Śrī Kṛṣṇa along with Baladeva to Mathurā, the gopīs then thought each night without Him to be equal in duration to a millennium of the demigods. Being tormented by separation from Lord Kṛṣṇa, they could not imagine anything that could give them satisfaction other than His return.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.12
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tāḥ tāḥall those
  2. kṣapāḥnights
  3. preṣṭha-tamenawith the most dearly beloved
  4. nītāḥspent
  5. mayāwith Me
  6. evaindeed
  7. vṛndāvanain Vṛndāvana
  8. go-careṇawho can be known
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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 11.12

    In this verse: “attached”

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 11.12

    In this verse: “separation”

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 usually occupies my thoughts, and how can I make more room for loving remembrance of Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Set aside one quiet minute today to remember Lord Kṛṣṇa, gently returning your attention to Him when it wanders.

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 11.12's connections

Live this todayLove Absorbed in Remembrance of KṛṣṇaThis 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 11.12.11? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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