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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 2: Remembrance of Lord Kṛṣṇa
3.2.193.2.21

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.2.20

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Uddhavasince 3.2.7inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitUddhava → Vidura

तथैव चान्ये नरलोकवीरा

य आहवे कृष्णमुखारविन्दम् ।

नेत्रै: पिबन्तो नयनाभिरामं

पार्थास्त्रपूत: पदमापुरस्य ॥ २० ॥

tathaiva cānye nara-loka-vīrā

ya āhave kṛṣṇa-mukhāravindam

netraiḥ pibanto nayanābhirāmaṁ

pārthāstra-pūtaḥ padam āpur asya

Translation

Certainly others who were fighters on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra were purified by the onslaught of Arjuna’s arrows, and while seeing the lotuslike face of Kṛṣṇa, so pleasing to the eyes, they achieved the abode of the Lord.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotional Service Awakens Dormant Love

  1. 1

    Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa appears to deliver the faithful and annihilate miscreants. Because He is absolute, both kinds of action are ultimately auspicious.

  2. 2

    Warriors purified by Arjuna’s arrows appreciated Kṛṣṇa’s beautiful face, and their dormant love of God awakened. They attained the spiritual planets rather than merging in the impersonal brahmajyoti.

  3. 3

    Devotional service is meant to awaken the eternal love of God dormant in every living being. This love awakens through association with pure devotees, whose activities are performed for the Lord rather than personal interest.

Key points from the purport
  • Śiśupāla saw the Lord also, but he saw Him as his enemy, and his love was not awakened.
  • This love of God is awakened by the association of pure devotees of the Lord.
  • Those who saw the beautiful face of the Lord on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra were purified first by Arjuna when he made his onslaught with arrows.

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

Separation → Devotional remembrance. Uddhava's tears and silence make remembrance emotionally immediate.

Chapters 1–4 of Canto 3: Vidura meets Uddhava and hears of Kṛṣṇa. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 2: Remembrance of Lord Kṛṣṇa

Uddhava remembers Kṛṣṇa in devotional ecstasy and recounts His disappearance, supremacy, and childhood activities.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.2
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tathāas also
  2. eva caand certainly
  3. anyeothers
  4. nara-lokahuman society
  5. vīrāḥfighters
  6. yethose
  7. āhaveon the battlefield (of Kurukṣetra)
  8. kṛṣṇaLord Kṛṣṇa’s
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 3.2

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotees”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 3.2

    In this verse: “purified”

  • Prema · Transcendental love

    The intimacy and sweetness of devotion to Kṛṣṇa. · Theme in SB 3.2

    In this verse: “love”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How can I approach devotional service as a way to awaken love rather than pursue personal benefit?

Practice

Do one small act of devotional service today with the deliberate intention of pleasing Kṛṣṇa.

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 3.2's connections

Live this todayDevotional Service Awakens Dormant LoveThis 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 3.2.20? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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