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 20: Conversation Between Maitreya and Vidura
3.20.203.20.22

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.20.21

Visarga· Brahmā's creation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.20.12inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

देवस्तानाह संविग्नो मा मां जक्षत रक्षत ।

अहो मे यक्षरक्षांसि प्रजा यूयं बभूविथ ॥ २१ ॥

devas tān āha saṁvigno

mā māṁ jakṣata rakṣata

aho me yakṣa-rakṣāṁsi

prajā yūyaṁ babhūvitha

Translation

Brahmā, the head of the demigods, full of anxiety, asked them, “Do not eat me, but protect me. You are born from me and have become my sons. Therefore you are Yakṣas and Rākṣasas.”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Ignorance Leads to Destructive Behavior

  1. 1

    Brahmā anxiously asked those born from him not to eat him, but to protect him as their father.

  2. 2

    The purport explains the names Yakṣas and Rākṣasas through their cries that Brahmā should be eaten or should not be protected.

  3. 3

    These beings were born of the mode of ignorance. Their destructive behavior expressed that influence.

Key points from the purport
  • The demons who were born from the body of Brahmā were called Yakṣas and Rākṣasas because some of them cried that Brahmā should be eaten and the others cried that he should not be protected.
  • The ones who said that he should be eaten were called Yakṣas, and the ones who said that he should not be protected became Rākṣasas, man-eaters.
  • They are born of the mode of ignorance, and therefore, because of their behavior, they are called Rākṣasas, or man-eaters.

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

Longing and service → Preparedness. Family devotion turns toward higher spiritual fulfillment.

Chapters 20–24 of Canto 3: Kardama, Devahūti, family and renunciation. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 20: Conversation Between Maitreya and Vidura

Questions about Manu lead to further accounts of Brahmā’s creation of demigods, demons, and other beings.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.20
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. devaḥLord Brahmā
  2. tānto them
  3. āhasaid
  4. saṁvignaḥbeing anxious
  5. mādo not
  6. māmme
  7. jakṣataeat
  8. rakṣataprotect
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Visarga · Subcreation

    How do living beings and their worlds appear? · Subject 2 of 10

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 3.20

    In this verse: “protect”

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 3.20

    In this verse: “father”

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 have I needed to replace a harmful impulse with a protective response?

Practice

Pause before one angry response today and choose words that do not harm.

Live this todayIgnorance Leads to Destructive BehaviorThis 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 3.20.21? 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