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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 12: Creation of the Kumāras and Others
3.12.43.12.6

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.12.5

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.12.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

तान् बभाषे स्वभू: पुत्रान् प्रजा: सृजत पुत्रका: ।

तन्नैच्छन्मोक्षधर्माणो वासुदेवपरायणा: ॥ ५ ॥

tān babhāṣe svabhūḥ putrān

prajāḥ sṛjata putrakāḥ

tan naicchan mokṣa-dharmāṇo

vāsudeva-parāyaṇāḥ

Translation

Brahmā spoke to his sons after generating them. “My dear sons,” he said, “now generate progeny.” But due to their being attached to Vāsudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they aimed at liberation, and therefore they expressed their unwillingness.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Complete Shelter in Vāsudeva

  1. 1

    The Kumāras declined Brahmā’s request to generate progeny because they were attached to Vāsudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and aimed at liberation.

  2. 2

    The purport warns those serious about release from material bondage against entanglement in family bondage.

  3. 3

    One who has taken absolute shelter of the Lord and is fully engaged in His devotional service is no longer a debtor or servant of others. Thus the Kumāras were not wrong to refuse their father’s request.

Key points from the purport
  • The four sons of Brahmā, the Kumāras, declined to become family men even on the request of their great father, Brahmā.
  • People may ask how the Kumāras could refuse the orders of Brahmā, who was their father and, above all, the creator of the universe.
  • Thus there was nothing wrong in the acts of the Kumāras when they refused their great father’s request that they become family men.

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· 1

The purport of SB 3.12.5 quotesSB 11.5.41

It is enjoined in the Bhāgavatam (11.5.41): “Anyone who has completely given up all worldly relationships and has taken absolute shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord, who gives us salvation and who alone is fit to be taken shelter of, is no longer a debtor or servant of anyone, including the demigods, forefathers, sages, other living entities, relatives,…

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

Mystery → Cosmic wonder. The origin of the world is revealed through inquiry and divine grace.

Chapters 5–12 of Canto 3: Creation and Brahmā's bewilderment. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 12: Creation of the Kumāras and Others

Brahmā’s creation continues with sages, Rudra, sacrificial practices, religious principles, and further forms of life.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.12
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tānunto the Kumāras, as above mentioned
  2. babhāṣeaddressed
  3. svabhūḥBrahmā
  4. putrānunto the sons
  5. prajāḥgenerations
  6. sṛjatato create
  7. putrakāḥO my sons
  8. tatthat
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 3.12

    In this verse: “attached”, “material”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 3.12

    In this verse: “devotional service”

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 3.12

    In this verse: “father’s”

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 deeply is my spiritual life rooted in attachment to Vāsudeva?

Practice

Reserve a few minutes today for undistracted devotional service to Vāsudeva.

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.

The purport quotesSB 11.5.41

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 3.12's connections

Live this todayComplete Shelter in VāsudevaThis 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 3.12.5? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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