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Study a Verse

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

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Canto 12 · The Age of Deterioration · 13 chapters

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

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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

12.10.31-32 12.10.34

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 12.10.33

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣisince 12.10.28inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

कं वृणे नु परं भूमन् वरं त्वद् वरदर्शनात् ।

यद्दर्शनात् पूर्णकाम: सत्यकाम: पुमान् भवेत् ॥ ३३ ॥

kaṁ vṛṇe nu paraṁ bhūman

varaṁ tvad vara-darśanāt

yad-darśanāt pūrṇa-kāmaḥ

satya-kāmaḥ pumān bhavet

Translation

O all-pervading lord, since I have received the benediction of seeing you, what other benediction can I ask for? Simply by seeing you, a person fulfills all his desires and can achieve anything imaginable.

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.

Seeing the Lord’s Representative Is a Benediction

1
Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi considers the sight of Lord Śiva itself a benediction.
2
He asks what further benediction he could request after receiving that opportunity.
3
He declares that simply seeing Lord Śiva fulfills a person’s desires and enables that person to achieve anything imaginable.

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:

Then Lord Śiva praised the saintly devotees of the Personality of Godhead and requested Śrī Mārkaṇḍeya to choose whatever benediction he desired. Mārkaṇḍeya begged for unflinching devotion to the Supreme Lord Śrī Hari, to the devotees of the Supreme Lord and to Lord Śiva himself.

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