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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
  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 2 · Chapter 5: The Cause of All Causes
2.5.142.5.16

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.5.15

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 2.5.9inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Brahmā → Nārada Muni

नारायणपरा वेदा देवा नारायणाङ्गजा: ।

नारायणपरा लोका नारायणपरा मखा: ॥ १५ ॥

nārāyaṇa-parā vedā

devā nārāyaṇāṅgajāḥ

nārāyaṇa-parā lokā

nārāyaṇa-parā makhāḥ

Translation

The Vedic literatures are made by and are meant for the Supreme Lord, the demigods are also meant for serving the Lord as parts of His body, the different planets are also meant for the sake of the Lord, and different sacrifices are performed just to please Him.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Knowledge and Sacrifice Should Lead to Nārāyaṇa

  1. 1

    The Supreme Lord is the author and purpose of revealed scripture. The Vedas revive the conditioned soul’s forgotten God consciousness.

  2. 2

    The demigods are the Lord’s assisting hands and depend on Nārāyaṇa. Respect for them is grounded in their relationship with Him, just as officers are respected through their relation to a king.

  3. 3

    Sacrifices are meant to please Nārāyaṇa and reach His eternal abode. Saṅkīrtana-yajña is the best sacrifice recommended in this Age of Kali and a mainstay of devotional service.

Key points from the purport
  • Duration of life, with a proportionate quantity of bliss and knowledge, may be increased from one planet to another.
  • Therefore, the progressive journey from one planet to another culminates in reaching the supreme planet of the Lord (mad-dhāma), where life is eternal and full of bliss and knowledge.
  • All different kinds of sacrifice are performed just to satisfy Lord Nārāyaṇa with a view to reach Him, and the best sacrifice recommended in this Age of Kali is saṅkīrtana-yajña, the mainstay of the devotional service of a nārāyaṇa-para devotee.

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

How it feels

Uncertainty → Awe. The scale of reality widens dramatically.

Chapters 4–7 of Canto 2: The creation, cosmic Person and incarnations. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 5: The Cause of All Causes

Nārada questions Brahmā, who explains his dependence on the Supreme Lord and describes creation.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.5
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nārāyaṇathe Supreme Lord
  2. parāḥis the cause and is meant for
  3. vedāḥknowledge
  4. devāḥthe demigods
  5. nārāyaṇathe Supreme Lord
  6. aṅga-jāḥassisting hands
  7. nārāyaṇathe Personality of Godhead
  8. parāḥfor the sake of
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 2.5

    In this verse: “devotional service”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 2.5

    In this verse: “king”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Is my pursuit of knowledge helping me remember and serve the Lord?

Practice

Read a short passage from this verse’s purport with the specific aim of reviving your God consciousness.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayKnowledge and Sacrifice Should Lead to NārāyaṇaThis 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 2.5.15? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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