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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

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 5: Śukadeva Gosvāmī’s Final Instructions to Mahārāja Parīkṣit

12.5.5 12.5.7

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 12.5.6

Ūti· What drives us to act

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 12.5.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

मन: सृजति वै देहान् गुणान् कर्माणि चात्मन: ।

तन्मन: सृजते माया ततो जीवस्य संसृति: ॥ ६ ॥

manaḥ sṛjati vai dehān

guṇān karmāṇi cātmanaḥ

tan manaḥ sṛjate māyā

tato jīvasya saṁsṛtiḥ

Translation

The material bodies, qualities and activities of the spirit soul are created by the material mind. That mind is itself created by the illusory potency of the Supreme Lord, and thus the soul assumes material existence.

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.

The Mind Shapes Material Existence

1
The material mind creates the spirit soul’s material bodies, qualities and activities.
2
The mind itself is created by the illusory potency of the Supreme Lord.
3
Through this process, the soul assumes material existence.

How it feels

Approaching death → Demonstrated fearlessness. Parīkṣit is already a great devotee; his final hearing exemplifies fearlessness for the audience.

Chapters 5–6 of Canto 12: Śukadeva's final instruction and Parīkṣit's passing. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 5: Śukadeva Gosvāmī’s Final Instructions to Mahārāja Parīkṣit

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī then states that in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam he has repeatedly chanted the glories of the Supreme Soul, Lord Śrī Hari, from whose satisfaction Brahmā takes birth and from whose anger Rudra is born. The idea “I will die” is simply the mentality of animals, because the soul does not undergo the bodily phases of previous nonexistence, birth, existence and death.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 12.5

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

manaḥthe mind
sṛjatiproduces
vaiindeed
dehānthe material bodies
guṇānthe qualities
karmāṇithe activities
caand
ātmanaḥof the soul

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
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 12.5
In this verse: “spirit soul”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 12.5
In this verse: “material”

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this verse help me distinguish the spirit soul from the material mind?

Practice

Pause over one thought about your bodily identity today and reflect on the distinction between the mind and the soul.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Mind Shapes Material ExistenceThis 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 12.5.6? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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