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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

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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 12.2.41

Who is speaking and story frame

कृमिविड्भस्मसंज्ञान्ते राजनाम्नोऽपि यस्य च ।

भूतध्रुक् तत्कृते स्वार्थं किं वेद निरयो यत: ॥ ४१ ॥

kṛmi-viḍ-bhasma-saṁjñānte

rāja-nāmno ’pi yasya ca

bhūta-dhruk tat-kṛte svārthaṁ

kiṁ veda nirayo yataḥ

Translation

Even though a person’s body may now have the designation “king,” in the end its name will be “worms,” “stool” or “ashes.” What can a person who injures other living beings for the sake of his body know about his own self-interest, since his activities are simply leading him to hell?

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.

Give Up Violence Through Kṛṣṇa Consciousness

  1. 1

    Even a body called “king” will eventually become worms, stool or ashes.

  2. 2

    Injuring other living beings for this temporary body leads toward hell, not true self-interest. Nonhuman beings are also creatures of God.

  3. 3

    One should give up all envious violence and learn to see God in everything through Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Key points from the purport
  • After death, the body may be buried and eaten by worms, or it may be thrown in the street or forest to be eaten by animals who will pass out its remnants as stool, or it may be burned and converted into ashes.
  • Therefore one should not pave his way to hell by using his temporary body to injure the bodies of other living beings.
  • One should give up all envious violence and learn to see God in everything by the process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

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

Civilizational dread → Dispassion. Social and cosmic impermanence expose the limits of worldly plans.

Chapters 1–4 of Canto 12: The deterioration of Kali and universal dissolution. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 2: The Symptoms of Kali-yuga

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Even now two saintly kṣatriyas are living who at the end of this Kali-yuga will reinitiate the pious dynasties of the sun-god, Vivasvān, and the moon-god, Candra. One of these kings is Devāpi, a brother of Mahārāja Śantanu, and the other is Maru, a descendant of Ikṣvāku.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 12.2
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kṛmiof worms
  2. viṭstool
  3. bhasmaand ashes
  4. saṁjñāthe designation
  5. antein the end
  6. rāja-nāmnaḥgoing by the name “king”
  7. apieven though
  8. yasyaof which (body)
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 12.2

    In this verse: “king”

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 12.2

    In this verse: “give up”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Am I overlooking harm to another creature for the sake of my own bodily comfort?

Practice

Choose one concrete way today to avoid harming a human or nonhuman creature, remembering that both are creatures of God.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayGive Up Violence Through Kṛṣṇa ConsciousnessThis 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 12.2.41? Get an answer from the verses themselves.