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

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Canto 2 · The Cosmic Manifestation · 10 chapters

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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 2 · Chapter 3: Pure Devotional Service: The Change in Heart

2.3.18 2.3.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.3.19

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śaunaka Ṛṣisince 2.3.13inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

श्वविड्‍वराहोष्ट्रखरै: संस्तुत: पुरुष: पशु: ।

न यत्कर्णपथोपेतो जातु नाम गदाग्रज: ॥ १९ ॥

śva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra-kharaiḥ

saṁstutaḥ puruṣaḥ paśuḥ

na yat-karṇa-pathopeto

jātu nāma gadāgrajaḥ

Translation

Men who are like dogs, hogs, camels and asses praise those men who never listen to the transcendental pastimes of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the deliverer from evils.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Seek Spiritual Understanding, Not Mere Praise

1
Human beings need systematic training in spiritual values. Without it, education and hard work may remain directed only toward material needs and enjoyment.
2
Human beings are meant to discriminate in eating and accept remnants of food offered to Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. The purport names foods such as grains, vegetables, fruits and milk rather than animal food.
3
Public praise does not establish spiritual greatness. Even a powerful leader falls short of human life’s purpose without a taste for hearing about Kṛṣṇa and understanding the science of Kṛṣṇa.

Key points from the purport

But the human being is not meant for eating everything and anything; he is meant to eat grains, vegetables, fruits, milk, sugar, etc. Animal food is not meant for the human being.
Therefore, a human being is meant to eat a particular type of food.
The Bhāgavatam openly declares that although a person may be a great leader of such dogs and hogs disguised as men, if he has no taste for being enlightened in the science of Kṛṣṇa, such a leader is also an animal and nothing more.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 2

The purport of SB 2.3.19 quotesBG 9.26

Human beings are expected to accept the remnants of food offered to Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, and the Lord accepts foodstuff from the categories of leaves, flowers, fruits, etc..

Quoted in the purport ofSB 8.2.6

As described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.3.19), śva-vid-varāhoṣṭra-kharaiḥ saṁstutaḥ puruṣaḥ paśuḥ: materialistic leaders are praised by dogs, hogs, camels and asses, and they themselves are also big animals.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

How it feels

Death anxiety → Steady attention. The answer to mortality begins with spiritual focus.

Chapters 1–3 of Canto 2: The practice of hearing, remembering and devotion. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 3: Pure Devotional Service: The Change in Heart

Everyone should worship the Supreme Lord and engage the senses in devotion that changes the heart.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.3

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

śvaa dog
viṭ-varāhathe village hog who eats stool
uṣṭrathe camel
kharaiḥand by the asses
saṁstutaḥperfectly praised
puruṣaḥa person
paśuḥanimal
nanever

Key ideas in this verse

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

Īśānukathā · The science of God
Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10
Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting
Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 2.3
In this verse: “hearing”
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 2.3
In this verse: “understanding”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 2.3
In this verse: “material”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Do the qualities I admire in others include a genuine desire to hear about Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Spend five minutes listening to an account of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s transcendental pastimes.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

4 lectures given on it · quoted in 23 more lectures. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Show 2 more lectures on it

Quoted in 23 other lectures

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

Live this todaySeek Spiritual Understanding, Not Mere PraiseOne of the 108 chosen lessons: a practice and a question from this verse

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 2.3.19? 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