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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 3: Liberation from the Illusory Energy
11.3.4811.3.50-51

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.3.49

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śrī Āvirhotrasince 11.3.43inside 4 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → VasudevaThe nine Yogendras → King Nimi

शुचि: सम्मुखमासीन: प्राणसंयमनादिभि: ।

पिण्डं विशोध्य सन्न्यासकृतरक्षोऽर्चयेद्धरिम् ॥ ४९ ॥

śuciḥ sammukham āsīnaḥ

prāṇa-saṁyamanādibhiḥ

piṇḍaṁ viśodhya sannyāsa-

kṛta-rakṣo ’rcayed dharim

Translation

After cleansing oneself, purifying the body by prāṇāyāma, bhūta-śuddhi and other processes, and marking the body with sacred tilaka for protection, one should sit in front of the Deity and worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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.

Worship With Inner and Outer Cleanliness

  1. 1

    Before worship, one should cleanse oneself, purify the body and apply sacred tilaka for protection. One then sits before the Deity to worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

  2. 2

    Cleanliness also means acting for the Lord’s pleasure. Remembering Him through chanting and hearing His holy name brings one toward purity within and without.

  3. 3

    External marks and rituals are not enough if the mind remains absorbed in sense gratification. Genuine worship requires a favorable attitude toward the Lord and the understanding that we are His insignificant servants.

Key points from the purport
  • Śuciḥ means that one should perform activities only for the pleasure of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • Therefore the word śuciḥ here indicates that one should worship the Lord in a favorable frame of mind, considering the Lord to be sacred and one’s self to be an insignificant servant of the Lord.
  • Those who are not favorably inclined toward the Supreme Personality of Godhead do not like to worship the Deity in the temple, and they discourage people from going to the temple of the Lord by saying that since the Lord is omnipresent there is no need to do so.

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

Foreboding → Devotional urgency. Uddhava realizes that Kṛṣṇa's visible association is nearing an end.

Chapters 1–6 of Canto 11: The Yadu curse, the nine Yogendras and farewell signs. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 3: Liberation from the Illusory Energy

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

When a devotee obtains the mercy of his spiritual master, who reveals to him the injunctions of Vedic scriptures, he worships the Supreme Personality of Godhead in the particular personal form he finds most attractive. In this way the devotee quickly becomes liberated from all material bondage.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.3
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. śuciḥclean
  2. sammukhamfacing (the Deity)
  3. āsīnaḥthus seated
  4. prāṇa-saṁyamana-ādibhiḥby prāṇāyāma (breathing exercises) and other means
  5. piṇḍamthe gross body
  6. viśodhyapurifying
  7. sannyāsaby placing transcendental marks of tilaka on various places of the body
  8. kṛta-rakṣaḥin this way invoking the Lord’s protection
  9. arcayetone should worship
  10. harimLord Hari
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 11.3

    In this verse: “purifying”, “cleansing”, “purify”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 11.3

    In this verse: “chanting”, “hearing”, “holy name”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 11.3

    In this verse: “worship”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Does my inner attitude support the outward acts of my worship?

Practice

Clean yourself before worship today, then spend a few moments chanting and hearing the Lord’s holy name with the intention to serve Him.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayWorship With Inner and Outer CleanlinessThis 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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