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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
3.18.13.18.3

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.18.2

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.18.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

ददर्श तत्राभिजितं धराधरं

प्रोन्नीयमानावनिमग्रदंष्ट्रया ।

मुष्णन्तमक्ष्णा स्वरुचोऽरुणश्रिया

जहास चाहो वनगोचरो मृग: ॥ २ ॥

dadarśa tatrābhijitaṁ dharā-dharaṁ

pronnīyamānāvanim agra-daṁṣṭrayā

muṣṇantam akṣṇā sva-ruco ’ruṇa-śriyā

jahāsa cāho vana-gocaro mṛgaḥ

Translation

He saw there the all-powerful Personality of Godhead in His boar incarnation, bearing the earth upward on the ends of His tusks and robbing him of his splendor with His reddish eyes. The demon laughed: Oh, an amphibious beast!

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Form Is Transcendental

  1. 1

    Varāha, the all-powerful Personality of Godhead, lifted the submerged earth with His tusks. Hiraṇyākṣa challenged Him and called Him a beast.

  2. 2

    Demons misunderstand the Lord’s incarnations as ordinary material bodies. They deride His descent even when He appears in human form.

  3. 3

    The Lord’s form is transcendental, not material like ours. The purport also affirms that Nityānanda Prabhu’s body is spiritual.

Key points from the purport
  • In a previous chapter we have discussed the incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead as Varāha, the boar.
  • They misunderstand the body of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, even in His human form, and they deride His descent.
  • Nityānanda Prabhu’s body is spiritual, but demoniac persons consider the body of the Supreme Personality to be material, just like ours.

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. dadarśahe saw
  2. tatrathere
  3. abhijitamthe victorious
  4. dharāthe earth
  5. dharambearing
  6. pronnīyamānabeing raised upward
  7. avanimthe earth
  8. agra-daṁṣṭrayāby the tip of His tusk
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord

    How does the Lord care for His devotees? · Subject 4 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 3.18

    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

Am I trying to understand the Lord’s form, or judging it by ordinary appearances?

Practice

Read the description of Varāha lifting the earth again, remembering that His form is spiritual.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Lord’s Form Is TranscendentalThis 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 3.18.2? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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