1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

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

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 12 · The Age of Deterioration · 13 chapters

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 12.8.48

Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣisince 12.8.40inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

यं वै न वेद वितथाक्षपथैर्भ्रमद्धी:

सन्तं स्वकेष्वसुषु हृद्यपि द‍ृक्पथेषु ।

तन्माययावृतमति: स उ एव साक्षा-

दाद्यस्तवाखिलगुरोरुपसाद्य वेदम् ॥ ४८ ॥

yaṁ vai na veda vitathākṣa-pathair bhramad-dhīḥ

santaṁ svakeṣv asuṣu hṛdy api dṛk-patheṣu

tan-māyayāvṛta-matiḥ sa u eva sākṣād

ādyas tavākhila-guror upasādya vedam

Translation

A materialist, his intelligence perverted by the action of his deceptive senses, cannot recognize You at all, although You are always present within his own senses and heart and also among the objects of his perception. Yet even though one’s understanding has been covered by Your illusory potency, if one obtains Vedic knowledge from You, the supreme spiritual master of all, he can directly understand You.

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.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Vedic Knowledge Reveals the Ever-Present Lord

  1. 1

    The Lord is present within one’s senses and heart, and among the objects one perceives.

  2. 2

    Yet a materialist cannot recognize Him, because deceptive senses divert the intelligence and His illusory potency covers understanding.

  3. 3

    Even with understanding covered, one can directly understand the Lord by receiving Vedic knowledge from Him. He is the supreme spiritual master of all.

How it feels

Inquiry → Reverence. The transmission of sacred knowledge continues beyond the king's life.

Chapters 7–8 of Canto 12: The Vedic corpus and Mārkaṇḍeya's devotion. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 8: Mārkaṇḍeya’s Prayers to Nara-Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

“The living entity bewildered by illusion can directly understand You if he receives the knowledge presented in the Vedas and promulgated by You, the spiritual master of the entire universe. Even great thinkers like Brahmā are simply bewildered when they try to understand Your identity by struggling on the path of sāṅkhya-yoga.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 12.8
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yamwhom
  2. vaiindeed
  3. na vedadoes not recognize
  4. vitathadeceptive
  5. akṣa-pathaiḥby methods of empirical perception
  6. bhramatbecoming diverted
  7. dhīḥwhose intelligence
  8. santampresent
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 12.8

    In this verse: “knowledge”, “understanding”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 12.8

    In this verse: “materialist”

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 willing to learn from the Lord rather than rely only on what my senses tell me?

Practice

Reread this translation slowly today, attending to what it teaches about the Lord’s presence and the need for Vedic knowledge.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayVedic Knowledge Reveals the Ever-Present LordThis 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 12.8.48? Get an answer from the verses themselves.