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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 ›
Canto 12 · Chapter 3: The Bhūmi-gītā
12.3.9-1312.3.15

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 12.3.14

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 12.3.14inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

कथा इमास्ते कथिता महीयसां

विताय लोकेषु यश: परेयुषाम् ।

विज्ञानवैराग्यविवक्षया विभो

वचोविभूतीर्न तु पारमार्थ्यम् ॥ १४ ॥

kathā imās te kathitā mahīyasāṁ

vitāya lokeṣu yaśaḥ pareyuṣām

vijñāna-vairāgya-vivakṣayā vibho

vaco-vibhūtīr na tu pāramārthyam

Translation

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O mighty Parīkṣit, I have related to you the narrations of all these great kings, who spread their fame throughout the world and then departed. My real purpose was to teach transcendental knowledge and renunciation. Stories of kings lend power and opulence to these narrations but do not in themselves constitute the ultimate aspect of knowledge.

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.

Royal Histories Teach Knowledge and Renunciation

  1. 1

    Śukadeva Gosvāmī recounts the lives of famous kings who eventually departed in order to teach transcendental knowledge and renunciation.

  2. 2

    The power and opulence of kings enrich these narrations, but they are not the ultimate aspect of knowledge.

  3. 3

    All the narrations of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam give supreme spiritual lessons. In relation with Kṛṣṇa, ordinary topics become transcendental narrations that can bring the reader to life’s perfection.

Key points from the purport
  • Since all the narrations of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam bring the reader to the perfection of transcendental knowledge, they all give supreme spiritual lessons though apparently dealing with kings or other mundane subject matter.
  • In relation with Kṛṣṇa, all ordinary topics become transcendental narrations, with the power to bring the reader to the perfection of life.

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 3: The Bhūmi-gītā

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Seeing their false hopes, the earth simply laughs, for eventually they all must leave this planet and go elsewhere, as have all the great kings and monarchs of the past. Moreover, after usurping the earth or some part of it — which is actually unconquerable and must in every case be given up — fathers, sons, brothers, friends and relatives quarrel over it.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 12.3
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kathāḥthe narrations
  2. imāḥthese
  3. teunto you
  4. kathitāḥhave been spoken
  5. mahīyasāmof great kings
  6. vitāyaspreading
  7. lokeṣuthroughout all the worlds
  8. yaśaḥtheir fame
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 12.3

    In this verse: “knowledge”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 12.3

    In this verse: “narrations”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 12.3

    In this verse: “kings”

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

Am I reading these histories mainly for their grandeur or for their spiritual lessons?

Practice

Reread one of today’s royal narrations and write one lesson about renunciation or its relation with Kṛṣṇa.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayRoyal Histories Teach Knowledge and RenunciationThis 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 12.3.14? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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