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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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 11.9.8

Who is speaking and story frame

उभयोरप्यभूद् घोषो ह्यवघ्नन्त्या: स्वशङ्खयो: ।

तत्राप्येकं निरभिददेकस्मान्नाभवद् ध्वनि: ॥ ८ ॥

ubhayor apy abhūd ghoṣo

hy avaghnantyāḥ sva-śaṅkhayoḥ

tatrāpy ekaṁ nirabhidad

ekasmān nābhavad dhvaniḥ

Translation

Thereafter, as the young girl continued to husk the rice, the two bracelets on each wrist continued to collide and make noise. Therefore she took one bracelet off each arm, and with only one left on each wrist there was no more noise.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

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.

Further Simplification Ends the Noise

  1. 1

    As the girl continued husking rice, the two bracelets on each wrist still collided.

  2. 2

    Leaving two bracelets had not stopped the noise, so she removed one more from each arm.

  3. 3

    With only one bracelet on each wrist, there was no more noise.

How it feels

Grief and dependence → Detachment. The temporary world becomes a source of spiritual instruction.

Chapters 7–9 of Canto 11: The avadhuta's twenty-four teachers. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 9: Detachment from All that Is Material

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The instruction received from the young girl who kept just one conchshell bracelet on each wrist is that one should remain alone and thus steady one’s mind. Then only will it be possible for one to fix one’s mind completely on the Personality of Godhead.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 11.9
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. ubhayoḥfrom the two (on each hand)
  2. apistill
  3. abhūtthere was
  4. ghoṣaḥnoise
  5. hiindeed
  6. avaghnantyāḥof her who was husking the rice
  7. sva-śaṅkhayoḥfrom each set of two shell ornaments
  8. tatratherein
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

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

Is there a disturbance that my first attempt to simplify has not yet resolved?

Practice

Check one source of unnecessary noise today and make a further small adjustment if it persists.

5

The story around it

The stories this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayFurther Simplification Ends the NoiseThis 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 11.9.8? Get an answer from the verses themselves.