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

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Canto 3 · The Status Quo · 33 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 3 · Chapter 1: Questions by Vidura
3.1.223.1.24

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.1.23

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Vidurasince 3.1.11inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

अन्यानि चेह द्विजदेवदेवै:

कृतानि नानायतनानि विष्णो: ।

प्रत्यङ्गमुख्याङ्कितमन्दिराणि

यद्दर्शनात्कृष्णमनुस्मरन्ति ॥ २३ ॥

anyāni ceha dvija-deva-devaiḥ

kṛtāni nānāyatanāni viṣṇoḥ

pratyaṅga-mukhyāṅkita-mandirāṇi

yad-darśanāt kṛṣṇam anusmaranti

Translation

There were also many other temples of various forms of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Viṣṇu, established by great sages and demigods. These temples were marked with the chief emblems of the Lord, and they reminded one always of the original Personality of Godhead, Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Temples Help Us Remember Lord Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    Great sages and demigods established temples of Viṣṇu to raise people to God consciousness. The Lord’s innumerable forms are nondifferent from one another.

  2. 2

    Lord Kṛṣṇa is the original Personality of Godhead. The wheel, or cakra, symbolizes His power to control the whole manifestation.

  3. 3

    The wheel on a high temple allows people to see the Lord’s emblem from far away and immediately remember Kṛṣṇa.

Key points from the purport
  • Both the dvija-devas and the devas always establish temples of Lord Viṣṇu in His various forms, such as Govinda, Madhusūdana, Nṛsiṁha, Mādhava, Keśava, Nārāyaṇa, Padmanābha, Pārtha-sārathi and many others.
  • Lord Kṛṣṇa, being the original Viṣṇu form, has only one emblem, namely the wheel, and therefore He is sometimes called the Cakrī.
  • The tops of Viṣṇu temples are marked with the symbol of the wheel so that people may have the chance to see the symbol from a very long distance and at once remember Lord Kṛṣṇa.

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

Separation → Devotional remembrance. Uddhava's tears and silence make remembrance emotionally immediate.

Chapters 1–4 of Canto 3: Vidura meets Uddhava and hears of Kṛṣṇa. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: Questions by Vidura

Vidura leaves home, travels to holy places, and asks Uddhava about Kṛṣṇa’s associates and his relatives.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.1
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. anyāniothers
  2. caalso
  3. ihahere
  4. dvija-devaby the great sages
  5. devaiḥand the demigods
  6. kṛtāniestablished by
  7. nānāvarious
  8. āyatanānivarious forms
3

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

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

Do I let the sight of a temple turn my attention toward Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Look at a Viṣṇu temple or a picture of one today, and take a moment to remember Lord Kṛṣṇa.

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 3.1's connections

Live this todayTemples Help Us Remember Lord KṛṣṇaThis 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 3.1.23? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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