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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 9: Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi Sees the Illusory Potency of the Lord
12.9.1512.9.17-18

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 12.9.16

Nirodha· Winding up
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Sūta Gosvāmīsince 12.9.7inside 1 frame: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya

क्षुत्तृट्परीतो मकरैस्तिमिङ्गिलै-

रुपद्रुतो वीचिनभस्वता हत: ।

तमस्यपारे पतितो भ्रमन् दिशो

न वेद खं गां च परिश्रमेषित: ॥ १६ ॥

kṣut-tṛṭ-parīto makarais timiṅgilair

upadruto vīci-nabhasvatāhataḥ

tamasy apāre patito bhraman diśo

na veda khaṁ gāṁ ca pariśrameṣitaḥ

Translation

Tormented by hunger and thirst, attacked by monstrous makaras and timiṅgila fish and battered by the wind and waves, he moved aimlessly through the infinite darkness into which he had fallen. As he grew increasingly exhausted, he lost all sense of direction and could not tell the sky from the earth.

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.

Exhaustion Leaves the Sage Without Direction

  1. 1

    Mārkaṇḍeya was tormented by hunger and thirst and attacked by monstrous makaras and timiṅgila fish.

  2. 2

    Battered by wind and waves, he moved aimlessly through infinite darkness.

  3. 3

    Increasing exhaustion left him unable to recognize directions or distinguish sky from earth.

How it feels

Terror and bewilderment → Wonder and surrender. Annihilation gives way to a tender divine vision.

Chapters 9–10 of Canto 12: Mārkaṇḍeya witnesses the deluge and divine child. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 9: Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi Sees the Illusory Potency of the Lord

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

As Mārkaṇḍeya moved toward the leaf, he was pulled by the boy’s inhalation and, just like a mosquito, drawn within His body. Inside the boy’s body, Mārkaṇḍeya was amazed to see the entire universe just as it had been before the annihilation.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 12.9
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kṣutby hunger
  2. tṛṭand thirst
  3. parītaḥenveloped
  4. makaraiḥby the makaras, a species of monster crocodile
  5. timiṅgilaiḥand by the timiṅgila, a variety of huge fish that eats whales
  6. upadrutaḥharassed
  7. vīciby the waves
  8. nabhasvatāand the wind
3

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

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this description deepen my understanding of helplessness?

Practice

Name the different hardships in this verse, then pause to consider their combined weight.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayExhaustion Leaves the Sage Without DirectionThis 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 12.9.16? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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