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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 19: The Killing of the Demon Hiraṇyākṣa
3.19.313.19.33

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.19.32

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.19.32inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

मया यथानूक्तमवादि ते हरे:

कृतावतारस्य सुमित्र चेष्टितम् ।

यथा हिरण्याक्ष उदारविक्रमो

महामृधे क्रीडनवन्निराकृत: ॥ ३२ ॥

mayā yathānūktam avādi te hareḥ

kṛtāvatārasya sumitra ceṣṭitam

yathā hiraṇyākṣa udāra-vikramo

mahā-mṛdhe krīḍanavan nirākṛtaḥ

Translation

Maitreya continued: My dear Vidura, I have explained to you the Personality of Godhead’s coming down as the first boar incarnation and killing in a great fight a demon of unprecedented prowess as if he were just a plaything. This has been narrated by me as I heard it from my predecessor spiritual master.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Receive and Repeat the Message Faithfully

  1. 1

    Maitreya narrated what he had heard from his spiritual master. He did not manufacture anything or add his own interpretation.

  2. 2

    This is the system of paramparā: receiving the transcendental message in disciplic succession. Authoritative teaching depends on this bona fide process of hearing.

  3. 3

    Although Hiraṇyākṣa appeared extraordinarily powerful, he was like a doll before the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Defeating him required no difficulty for the Lord.

Key points from the purport
  • Here the sage Maitreya admits that he explained the incident of the killing of Hiraṇyākṣa by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a straight narration; he did not manufacture anything or add interpretation, but explained whatever he had heard from his spiritual master.
  • It is also stated here that although the demon Hiraṇyākṣa was unlimited in prowess, he was just like a doll for the Lord.
  • A child breaks so many dolls without real endeavor.

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 19: The Killing of the Demon Hiraṇyākṣa

Lord Varāha defeats Hiraṇyākṣa and returns to His abode amid the demigods’ praises.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.19
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. mayāby me
  2. yathāas
  3. anūktamtold
  4. avādiwas explained
  5. teto you
  6. hareḥof the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  7. kṛta-avatārasyawho assumed the incarnation
  8. sumitraO dear Vidura
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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

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 3.19

    In this verse: “heard”, “hearing”

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

When I share spiritual teachings, do I faithfully repeat what I have received?

Practice

Write a two-sentence summary of this translation, checking that you have added no invented details.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayReceive and Repeat the Message FaithfullyThis 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 3.19.32? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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