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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 13: The Appearance of Lord Varāha
3.13.383.13.40

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.13.39

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.13.16inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

नमो नमस्तेऽखिलमन्त्रदेवता-

द्रव्याय सर्वक्रतवे क्रियात्मने ।

वैराग्यभक्त्यात्मजयानुभावित-

ज्ञानाय विद्यागुरवे नमो नम: ॥ ३९ ॥

namo namas te ’khila-mantra-devatā-

dravyāya sarva-kratave kriyātmane

vairāgya-bhaktyātmajayānubhāvita-

jñānāya vidyā-gurave namo namaḥ

Translation

O Lord, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead and are worshipable by universal prayers, Vedic hymns and sacrificial ingredients. We offer our obeisances unto You. You can be realized by the pure mind freed from all visible and invisible material contamination. We offer our respectful obeisances to You as the supreme spiritual master of knowledge in devotional service.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Pure Devotion Leads to the Lord

  1. 1

    Bhakti requires freedom from material contamination and desires; this freedom is called vairāgya. Devotional service according to regulative principles automatically frees one from material desires.

  2. 2

    The Lord, situated in everyone’s heart, guides the devotee in pure devotional service. To one who serves constantly with faith and love, He gives the intelligence to attain Him.

  3. 3

    The ultimate goal of Vedic rituals and sacrifices is bhakti. Without devotional service, one cannot understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Key points from the purport
  • The qualification of bhakti, or devotional service to the Lord, is that the devotee should be free from all material contaminations and desires.
  • One who engages in devotional service to the Lord according to regulative principles is automatically freed from material desires, and in that pure state of mind one can realize the Personality of Godhead.
  • The Personality of Godhead, being situated in everyone’s heart, instructs the devotee regarding pure devotional service so that he may ultimately achieve the association of the Lord.

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 3.13.39 quotesBG 10.10

This is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (10.10) as follows: “To one who constantly engages in the devotional service of the Lord with faith and love, the Lord certainly gives the intelligence to achieve Him at the ultimate end.”

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

Threat and anger → Rescue and wonder. Divine protection appears amid cosmic confrontation.

Chapters 13–19 of Canto 3: Varāha, Jaya and Vijaya, Hiraṇyākṣa. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 13: The Appearance of Lord Varāha

Lord Varāha appears from Brahmā’s nose, lifts the submerged earth, and receives the sages’ prayers.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.13
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. namaḥ namaḥobeisances unto You
  2. teunto You, who are worshipable
  3. akhilaall-inclusive
  4. mantrahymns
  5. devatāthe Supreme Lord
  6. dravyāyaunto all ingredients for performing sacrifices
  7. sarva-krataveunto all kinds of sacrifices
  8. kriyā-ātmaneunto You, the supreme form of all sacrifices
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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 3.13

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “worshipable”, “devotee”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 3.13

    In this verse: “knowledge”, “understand”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 3.13

    In this verse: “material”

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

What material desire distracts me from serving the Lord with faith and love?

Practice

Set aside one distraction for a few minutes and offer the Lord a focused prayer for guidance in devotional service.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayPure Devotion Leads to the LordThis 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.

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