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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 8: Questions by King Parīkṣit
2.8.172.8.19

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 2.8.18

Manvantara· The Manus and right duty
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Kingsince 2.8.2inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

नृणां साधारणो धर्म: सविशेषश्च याद‍ृश: ।

श्रेणीनां राजर्षीणां च धर्म: कृच्छ्रेषु जीवताम् ॥ १८ ॥

nṛṇāṁ sādhāraṇo dharmaḥ

saviśeṣaś ca yādṛśaḥ

śreṇīnāṁ rājarṣīṇāṁ ca

dharmaḥ kṛcchreṣu jīvatām

Translation

Please also explain what may generally be the common religious affiliations of human society, as well as their specific occupational duties in religion, the classification of the social orders as well as the administrative royal orders, and the religious principles for one who may be in distress.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotional Service Is Everyone’s Common Religion

  1. 1

    Devotional service is the common religion of all human beings and can be shared by every living being. Under a genuine devotee’s guidance, no background excludes one from serving the Lord.

  2. 2

    Religious affiliations vary with countries and circumstances, but devotional service is the basic principle. Unlike a circumstantial leader, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Kṛṣṇa, does not require discipline to become supreme.

  3. 3

    One can achieve life’s highest perfection by offering the results of occupational duties in devotional service. The purport presents devotion as the enduring religious principle, with no need for a separate religion in distress.

Key points from the purport
  • The common religion of all classes of human beings, regardless of whosoever and whatsoever one may be, is devotional service.
  • The occupational duties of the castes and the orders of society, following the principles of livelihood, also depend on the principle of devotional service.
  • People following the principles of devotional service to the Lord can never be put into difficulty, and thus there cannot be any question of āpad-dharma, or religion in distress.

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

Inquiry → Conviction. Divine knowledge resolves fundamental cosmic uncertainty.

Chapters 8–10 of Canto 2: Parīkṣit questions; Brahmā receives revelation. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 8: Questions by King Parīkṣit

Parīkṣit requests further hearing about Kṛṣṇa and asks questions about creation, time, duty, and devotional service.

Back to this verse in chapter 2.8
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nṛṇāmof human society
  2. sādhāraṇaḥgeneral
  3. dharmaḥreligious affiliation
  4. sa-viśeṣaḥspecific
  5. caalso
  6. yādṛśaḥas they are
  7. śreṇīnāmof the particular three classes
  8. rājarṣīṇāmof the saintly royal order
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Manvantara · The change of Manus

    What gives human life its right direction? · Subject 6 of 10

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 2.8

    In this verse: “religious”, “duties”, “principles”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 2.8

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotee’s”

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 2.8

    In this verse: “distress”

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 can I make devotional service the shared purpose behind my daily duties?

Practice

Offer the result of one task today to the Lord rather than keeping its purpose only for yourself.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 2.8's connections

Live this todayDevotional Service Is Everyone’s Common ReligionThis 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 2.8.18? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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