1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

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

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 3 · The Status Quo · 33 chapters

123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 16: The Two Doorkeepers of Vaikuṇṭha, Jaya and Vijaya, Cursed by the Sages
3.16.363.17.1

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.16.37

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 3.16.35inside 4 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → ViduraLord Brahmā → the demigods

विश्वस्य य: स्थितिलयोद्भवहेतुराद्यो

योगेश्वरैरपि दुरत्यययोगमाय: ।

क्षेमं विधास्यति स नो भगवांस्त्र्यधीश-

स्तत्रास्मदीयविमृशेन कियानिहार्थ: ॥ ३७ ॥

viśvasya yaḥ sthiti-layodbhava-hetur ādyo

yogeśvarair api duratyaya-yogamāyaḥ

kṣemaṁ vidhāsyati sa no bhagavāṁs tryadhīśas

tatrāsmadīya-vimṛśena kiyān ihārthaḥ

Translation

My dear sons, the Lord is the controller of the three modes of nature and is responsible for the creation, preservation and dissolution of the universe. His wonderful creative power, yoga-māyā, cannot be easily understood even by the masters of yoga. That most ancient person, the Personality of Godhead, will alone come to our rescue. What purpose can we serve on His behalf by deliberating on the subject?

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Continue Serving Through Reverses

  1. 1

    The Lord controls the three modes of nature and the creation, preservation and dissolution of the universe. Even masters of yoga cannot easily understand His yoga-māyā.

  2. 2

    Difficulties faced by devotees do not mean that the Lord has abandoned them. The purport teaches that a devotee accepts even reverses as His grace, trusting that He has a plan.

  3. 3

    One who continues serving the Lord even in adverse conditions is assured of returning to Godhead. Brahmā therefore encouraged the demigods to trust the Supreme Lord rather than remain absorbed in anxious discussion.

Key points from the purport
  • When something is arranged by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one should not be disturbed by it, even if it appears to be a reverse according to one’s calculations.
  • Seeing all these reverses affect devotees, one should not be disturbed; one should simply understand that in these matters there must be some plan of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • One who continues to serve the Lord even in reverse conditions is assured that he will go back to Godhead, back to the Vaikuṇṭha planets.

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 16: The Two Doorkeepers of Vaikuṇṭha, Jaya and Vijaya, Cursed by the Sages

The Lord honors the sages and assures His fallen doorkeepers that they will soon return.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.16
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. viśvasyaof the universe
  2. yaḥwho
  3. sthitimaintenance
  4. layadestruction
  5. udbhavacreation
  6. hetuḥthe cause
  7. ādyaḥthe most ancient person
  8. yoga-īśvaraiḥby the masters of yoga
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 3.16

    In this verse: “rescue”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 3.16

    In this verse: “grace”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 3.16

    In this verse: “devotees”

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 small act of devotional service can I continue even when circumstances are difficult?

Practice

Choose one small act of service to the Lord and complete it today, even if an inconvenience arises.

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 3.16's connections

Live this todayContinue Serving Through ReversesThis 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 3.16.37? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
  1. Learn
  2. Live
  3. Lead
Next in Learn · 5 of 11 · 2 minAsk the BhāgavatamBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the Bhāgavatam's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnCantos & stories