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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 18: The Battle Between Lord Boar and the Demon Hiraṇyākṣa
3.18.123.18.14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.18.13

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.18.13inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

मैत्रेय उवाचसोऽधिक्षिप्तो भगवता प्रलब्धश्च रुषा भृशम् ।

आजहारोल्बणं क्रोधं क्रीड्यमानोऽहिराडिव ॥ १३ ॥

maitreya uvāca

so ’dhikṣipto bhagavatā

pralabdhaś ca ruṣā bhṛśam

ājahārolbaṇaṁ krodhaṁ

krīḍyamāno ’hi-rāḍ iva

Translation

Śrī Maitreya said: The demon, being thus challenged by the Personality of Godhead, became angry and agitated, and he trembled in anger like a challenged cobra.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Powerful Are Insignificant Before the Lord

  1. 1

    Challenged by the Personality of Godhead, the demon becomes angry and agitated. He trembles like a challenged cobra.

  2. 2

    A cobra is fierce before ordinary people but becomes a plaything before an enchanter. Similarly, a demon may be powerful in his own domain but is insignificant before the Lord.

  3. 3

    Rāvaṇa was fierce before the demigods, but before Lord Rāmacandra he trembled. His prayers to Lord Śiva did not help him.

Key points from the purport
  • A cobra is very fierce before ordinary persons, but before an enchanter who can play with him, he is a plaything.
  • Similarly, a demon may be very powerful in his own domain, but before the Lord he is insignificant.
  • The demon Rāvaṇa was a fierce figure before the demigods, but when he was before Lord Rāmacandra he trembled and prayed to his deity, Lord Śiva, but to no avail.

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 18: The Battle Between Lord Boar and the Demon Hiraṇyākṣa

Hiraṇyākṣa challenges Lord Varāha, who protects the earth and fights him as Brahmā prays for victory.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.18
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. maitreyaḥthe great sage Maitreya
  2. uvācasaid
  3. saḥthe demon
  4. adhikṣiptaḥhaving been insulted
  5. bhagavatāby the Personality of Godhead
  6. pralabdhaḥridiculed
  7. caand
  8. ruṣāangry
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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

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does remembering the Lord's greatness change my view of my own strength?

Practice

When you feel proud of an ability today, pause and remember how small that power is before the Lord.

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 3.18's connections

Live this todayThe Powerful Are Insignificant Before 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.

Ask the BhāgavatamHave a question about SB 3.18.13? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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