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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 20: Pure Devotional Service Surpasses Knowledge and Detachment
11.20.411.20.6

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.20.5

Manvantara· The Manus and right duty
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Uddhavasince 11.20.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Kṛṣṇa → Uddhava

गुणदोषभिदाद‍ृष्टिर्निगमात्ते न हि स्वत: ।

निगमेनापवादश्च भिदाया इति ह भ्रम: ॥ ५ ॥

guṇa-doṣa-bhidā-dṛṣṭir

nigamāt te na hi svataḥ

nigamenāpavādaś ca

bhidāyā iti ha bhramaḥ

Translation

My dear Lord, the distinction observed between piety and sin comes from Your own Vedic knowledge and does not arise by itself. If the same Vedic literature subsequently nullifies such distinction between piety and sin, there will certainly be confusion.

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.

Piety Finds Its Goal in Pleasing Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    Vedic knowledge comes from the Personality of Godhead, so whatever Lord Kṛṣṇa speaks is perfect knowledge. Uddhava asks Him to explain the apparent contradiction between distinguishing piety from sin and transcending both.

  2. 2

    Material piety is a means, not an absolute end, because the material world is temporary and limited. Its ultimate goal is going back home, back to Godhead.

  3. 3

    The permanent measure of virtue is whether a person or activity pleases the Lord. Forgetting Him makes morality incomplete, but the purport also acknowledges the danger of atrocities committed in God’s name.

Key points from the purport
  • Vedic knowledge emanates from the breathing of the Personality of Godhead; therefore, whatever Lord Kṛṣṇa speaks is Veda, or perfect knowledge.
  • The Vedic literatures are full of descriptions of piety and sin, but Lord Kṛṣṇa’s statement that one should transcend piety and sin is also to be understood as Vedic knowledge.
  • Śrī Uddhava has understood this point and therefore requests Lord Kṛṣṇa to clear up an apparent contradiction.

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· 1

The purport of SB 11.20.5 quotesBG 15.15

In the Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) Lord Kṛṣṇa states, vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ: “By all the Vedas I am to be known.

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

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 20: Pure Devotional Service Surpasses Knowledge and Detachment

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

In these Vedic literatures is found an outlook of duality, based on such concepts as the varṇāśrama system, and at the same time the Vedas reject this dualistic vision. Uddhava, desiring to understand the reason why the scriptures contain such conflicting ideas, and how these might be reconciled, inquired from Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa about this matter.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.20
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. guṇapiety
  2. doṣasin
  3. bhidāthe difference between
  4. dṛṣṭiḥseeing
  5. nigamātfrom Vedic knowledge
  6. teYour
  7. nanot
  8. hiindeed
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Manvantara · The change of Manus

    What gives human life its right direction? · Subject 6 of 10

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 11.20

    In this verse: “knowledge”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 11.20

    In this verse: “material”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 11.20

    In this verse: “danger”

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 treating goodness as an end in itself, or as a means of pleasing the Supreme Lord?

Practice

Before one action today, pause and consider whether it is meant to please Kṛṣṇa rather than merely establish your own goodness.

Live this todayPiety Finds Its Goal in Pleasing 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.

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