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

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Canto

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 4: The Four Categories of Universal Annihilation

12.4.4 12.4.6

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 12.4.5

Nirodha· Winding up

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 12.4.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

द्विपरार्धे त्वतिक्रान्ते ब्रह्मण: परमेष्ठिन: ।

तदा प्रकृतय: सप्त कल्पन्ते प्रलयाय वै ॥ ५ ॥

dvi-parārdhe tv atikrānte

brahmaṇaḥ parameṣṭhinaḥ

tadā prakṛtayaḥ sapta

kalpante pralayāya vai

Translation

When the two halves of the lifetime of Lord Brahmā, the most elevated created being, are complete, the seven basic elements of creation are annihilated.

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.

Even Brahmā’s Lifetime Comes to an End

1
Lord Brahmā is the most elevated created being.
2
His lifetime consists of two halves, both of which eventually reach completion.
3
When his lifetime is complete, the seven basic elements of creation are annihilated.

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

Chapter 4: The Four Categories of Universal Annihilation

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

At that time the seven elements of material nature, beginning with the mahat, and the entire universal egg composed of them are destroyed. When a person achieves knowledge of the Absolute, he understands factual reality.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 12.4

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

dvi-parārdhetwo parārdhas
tuand
atikrāntewhen they have become completed
brahmaṇaḥof Lord Brahmā
parame-sthinaḥthe most highly situated living entity
tadāthen
prakṛtayaḥthe elements of nature
saptaseven

Key ideas in this verse

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

Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead
What happens when everything here comes to an end? · Subject 8 of 10

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What can you learn from the fact that even the most elevated created being has a limited lifetime?

Practice

Write a sentence reflecting on the limits of a created being’s lifetime, however elevated.

Live this todayEven Brahmā’s Lifetime Comes to an EndThis 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 12.4.5? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

Next in Learn · 5 of 11 · 2 minAsk the BhāgavatamBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the Bhāgavatam's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnCantos & stories