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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 7: Scheduled Incarnations with Specific Functions
2.6.462.7.2

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.7.1

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 2.7.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitLord Brahmā → Nārada Muni

ब्रह्मोवाच

यत्रोद्यत: क्षितितलोद्धरणाय बिभ्रत्

क्रौडीं तनुं सकलयज्ञमयीमनन्त: ।

अन्तर्महार्णव उपागतमादिदैत्यं

तं दंष्ट्रयाद्रिमिव वज्रधरो ददार ॥ १ ॥

brahmovāca

yatrodyataḥ kṣiti-taloddharaṇāya bibhrat

krauḍīṁ tanuṁ sakala-yajña-mayīm anantaḥ

antar-mahārṇava upāgatam ādi-daityaṁ

taṁ daṁṣṭrayādrim iva vajra-dharo dadāra

Translation

Lord Brahmā said: When the unlimitedly powerful Lord assumed the form of a boar as a pastime, just to lift the planet earth, which was drowned in the great ocean of the universe called the Garbhodaka, the first demon [Hiraṇyākṣa] appeared, and the Lord pierced him with His tusk.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord Maintains His Creation

  1. 1

    The unlimitedly powerful Lord assumed a gigantic boar form to lift the earth from the Garbhodaka Ocean. He acted as the maintainer of the whole material creation.

  2. 2

    A genuine incarnation is not a product of imagination. The Lord appears under extraordinary circumstances and performs tasks beyond human capacity.

  3. 3

    Hiraṇyākṣa tried to disturb the Lord’s work and was killed by Him. Śrī Jayadeva Gosvāmī glorifies the Supreme Lord carrying the earth on His tusks.

Key points from the purport
  • Lord Brahmā is the first demigod, and Hiraṇyākṣa is the first demon in this universe.
  • The Lord, as maintainer of the whole creation of the material world, therefore assumed the gigantic form of a boar with a proportionate snout and picked up the earth from within the water of Garbhodaka.
  • When the Lord appeared to pick up the earth, the demon of the name Hiraṇyākṣa tried to create a disturbance in the methodical functions of the Lord, and therefore he was killed by being pierced by the Lord’s tusk.

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 7: Scheduled Incarnations with Specific Functions

Brahmā recounts the Lord’s incarnations and explains that unalloyed surrender enables one to understand Him.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.7
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. brahmā uvācaLord Brahmā said
  2. yatraat that time (when)
  3. udyataḥattempted
  4. kṣiti-talathe planet earth
  5. uddharaṇāyafor the matter of lifting
  6. bibhratassumed
  7. krauḍīmpastimes
  8. tanumform
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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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 2.7

    In this verse: “material”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 2.7

    In this verse: “glorifies”

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

How does the Lord’s care for His creation deepen your appreciation of Him?

Practice

Read Śrī Jayadeva Gosvāmī’s prayer in the purport aloud once, reflecting on the Lord as the maintainer.

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The story around it

The stories this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Lord Maintains His CreationThis 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 2.7.1? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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