1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

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

Or browse by canto and chapter

Canto

Canto 12 · The Age of Deterioration · 13 chapters

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

How to study this verse, in six steps

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.

Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›

Canto 12 · Chapter 10: Lord Śiva and Umā Glorify Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi

12.10.2 12.10.4

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 12.10.3

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Sūta Gosvāmīsince 12.10.3inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

सूत उवाच

तमेवं निभृतात्मानं वृषेण दिवि पर्यटन् ।

रुद्राण्या भगवान् रुद्रो ददर्श स्वगणैर्वृत: ॥ ३ ॥

sūta uvāca

tam evaṁ nibhṛtātmānaṁ

vṛṣeṇa divi paryaṭan

rudrāṇyā bhagavān rudro

dadarśa sva-gaṇair vṛtaḥ

Translation

Sūta Gosvāmī said: Lord Rudra, traveling in the sky on his bull and accompanied by his consort, Rudrāṇī, as well as his personal associates, observed Mārkaṇḍeya in trance.

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.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Mārkaṇḍeya Remains Absorbed in Trance

1
Lord Rudra was traveling through the sky on his bull.
2
His consort, Rudrāṇī, and his personal associates accompanied him.
3
During this journey, Lord Rudra observed Mārkaṇḍeya absorbed in trance.

How it feels

Terror and bewilderment → Wonder and surrender. Annihilation gives way to a tender divine vision.

Chapters 9–10 of Canto 12: Mārkaṇḍeya witnesses the deluge and divine child. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 10: Lord Śiva and Umā Glorify Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

In this chapter Śrī Sūta Gosvāmī describes how Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi received benedictions from Lord Śiva. Once, as Lord Śiva was traveling in the sky with his wife, Pārvatī, he came across Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya merged in meditative trance.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 12.10