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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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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
3.20.333.20.35

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.20.34

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Brahmāsince 3.20.26inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

कासि कस्यासि रम्भोरु को वार्थस्तेऽत्र

भामिनि ।

रूपद्रविणपण्येन दुर्भगान्नो विबाधसे ॥ ३४ ॥

kāsi kasyāsi rambhoru

ko vārthas te ’tra bhāmini

rūpa-draviṇa-paṇyena

durbhagān no vibādhase

Translation

Who are you, O pretty girl? Whose wife or daughter are you, and what can be the object of your appearing before us? Why do you tantalize us, unfortunate as we are, with the priceless commodity of your beauty?

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Offer Work's Results to Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    The demons spoke of beauty as a priceless commodity. The purport describes their willingness to pay any price for material bodily beauty.

  2. 2

    Working hard merely to enjoy sex life is not karma-yoga. Calling oneself a karma-yogī does not establish an understanding of yoga.

  3. 3

    Yoga means linking with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, or acting in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. A karma-yogī offers the results of work to His service, whatever the occupation.

Key points from the purport
  • The mentality of the demons in being enamored by the false beauty of this material world is expressed herein.
  • The demoniac can pay any price for the skin beauty of this material world.
  • A person who works very hard, no matter in what occupation, and who offers the result of the work to the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is called a karma-yogi.

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
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kāwho
  2. asiare you
  3. kasyabelonging to whom
  4. asiare you
  5. rambhoruO pretty one
  6. kaḥwhat
  7. vāor
  8. arthaḥobject
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 3.20

    In this verse: “material”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 3.20

    In this verse: “understanding”

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

Is my work mainly serving personal enjoyment, or can its results serve Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Choose one task today and offer a concrete part of its result to Kṛṣṇa's service.

Live this todayOffer Work's Results to KṛṣṇaThis 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 3.20.34? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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