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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 14: Pregnancy of Diti in the Evening
3.14.93.14.11

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.14.10

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.14.5inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

दितिरुवाच

एष मां त्वत्कृते विद्वन् काम आत्तशरासन: ।

दुनोति दीनां विक्रम्य रम्भामिव मतङ्गज: ॥ १० ॥

ditir uvāca

eṣa māṁ tvat-kṛte vidvan

kāma ātta-śarāsanaḥ

dunoti dīnāṁ vikramya

rambhām iva mataṅgajaḥ

Translation

In that place the beautiful Diti expressed her desire: O learned one, Cupid is taking his arrows and distressing me forcibly, as a mad elephant troubles a banana tree.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Strong Desire Calls for Protection

  1. 1

    Seeing her husband absorbed in trance, Diti spoke loudly and frankly about her distress. She did not try to attract him through bodily expressions.

  2. 2

    She compared her sex desire to a mad elephant troubling a banana tree. Although it was not natural for her to disturb her husband’s trance, she could not control her strong sexual appetite.

  3. 3

    The purport explains that, because her desire was so overwhelming, her husband’s prime duty was to give her protection by fulfilling her desire.

Key points from the purport
  • Beautiful Diti, seeing her husband absorbed in trance, began to speak loudly, not attempting to attract him by bodily expressions.
  • She frankly said that her whole body was distressed by sex desire because of her husband’s presence, just as a banana tree is troubled by a mad elephant.
  • Her sex desire was like a mad elephant, and therefore it was the prime duty of her husband to give her all protection by fulfilling her desire.

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

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 14: Pregnancy of Diti in the Evening

Diti desires sons, her husband performs a forbidden act, and their sons’ destruction by the Lord is foretold.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.14
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. ditiḥ uvācabeautiful Diti said
  2. eṣaḥall these
  3. māmunto me
  4. tvat-kṛtefor you
  5. vidvanO learned one
  6. kāmaḥCupid
  7. ātta-śarāsanaḥtaking his arrows
  8. dunotidistresses
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 3.14

    In this verse: “distressing”, “distress”

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 3.14

    In this verse: “duty”

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 3.14

    In this verse: “protection”

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 does Diti’s comparison help me understand about the distress caused by uncontrolled desire?

Practice

Write one sentence describing what the image of a mad elephant and a banana tree conveys about Diti’s condition.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayStrong Desire Calls for ProtectionThis 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 3.14.10? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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