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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.
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Canto 3 · Chapter 14: Pregnancy of Diti in the Evening
3.14.383.14.40

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.14.39

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The learned Kaśyapasince 3.14.38inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

भविष्यतस्तवाभद्रावभद्रे जाठराधमौ ।

लोकान् सपालांस्त्रींश्चण्डि मुहुराक्रन्दयिष्यत: ॥ ३९ ॥

bhaviṣyatas tavābhadrāv

abhadre jāṭharādhamau

lokān sa-pālāṁs trīṁś caṇḍi

muhur ākrandayiṣyataḥ

Translation

O haughty one, you will have two contemptuous sons born of your condemned womb. Unlucky woman, they will cause constant lamentation to all the three worlds!

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Neglected Principles Can Bring Widespread Suffering

  1. 1

    Kaśyapa foretold that Diti would have two contemptuous sons. They would cause constant lamentation throughout the three worlds.

  2. 2

    The purport explains that Kaśyapa could foresee their character. It connects this prediction with Diti’s transgression of scriptural laws under the force of sexual desire.

  3. 3

    The purport warns that deliberate neglect of religious regulation affects children and society. Its emphasis is on taking the responsibilities of parenthood seriously.

Key points from the purport
  • Contemptuous sons are born of the condemned womb of their mother.
  • The womb was condemned because of the mother’s being too sexually inclined and thus transgressing all the laws and injunctions of the scriptures.
  • In a society where such women are predominant, one should not expect good children.

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 3.14.39 quotesBG 1.40

In Bhagavad-gītā (1.40) it is said, “When there is deliberate negligence of the regulative principles of religious life, the women as a class become polluted, and as a result there are unwanted children.”

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 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
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. bhaviṣyataḥwill take birth
  2. tavayour
  3. abhadrautwo contemptuous sons
  4. abhadreO unlucky one
  5. jāṭhara-adhamauborn of a condemned womb
  6. lokānall planets
  7. sa-pālānwith their rulers
  8. trīnthree
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

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 3.14

    In this verse: “lamentation”

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

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

    In this verse: “religious”

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 3.14

    In this verse: “children”

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 might neglecting a principle today affect people beyond myself?

Practice

Before one consequential choice today, pause and consider how it could affect others.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayNeglected Principles Can Bring Widespread SufferingThis 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 3.14.39? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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