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
3.20.353.20.37

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.20.36

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

नैकत्र ते जयति शालिनि पादपद्मं

घ्नन्त्या मुहु: करतलेन पतत्पतङ्गम् ।

मध्यं विषीदति बृहत्स्तनभारभीतं

शान्तेव द‍ृष्टिरमला सुशिखासमूह: ॥ ३६ ॥

naikatra te jayati śālini pāda-padmaṁ

ghnantyā muhuḥ kara-talena patat-pataṅgam

madhyaṁ viṣīdati bṛhat-stana-bhāra-bhītaṁ

śānteva dṛṣṭir amalā suśikhā-samūhaḥ

Translation

O beautiful woman, when you strike the bouncing ball against the ground with your hand again and again, your lotus feet do not stay in one place. Oppressed by the weight of your full-grown breasts, your waist becomes fatigued, and your clear vision grows dull, as it were. Pray braid your comely hair.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Dwelling on Beauty Agitates Desire

  1. 1

    The demons observed and praised the woman's gestures, hair, and bodily movements as she played. Their attention remained fixed on her physical beauty.

  2. 2

    As they enjoyed watching her, their minds became agitated by sexual desire. Each movement became another object of fascination.

  3. 3

    The purport compares them to moths surrounding a fire and being killed. The comparison warns that an attraction can harm those who surrender to it.

Key points from the purport
  • Here they praise her full-grown breasts, her scattered hair and her movements in stepping forward and backward while playing with the ball.
  • As moths at night surround a fire and are killed, so the demons become victims of the movements of the ball-like breasts of a beautiful woman.
  • The scattered hair of a beautiful woman also afflicts the heart of a lusty demon.

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. nanot
  2. ekatrain one place
  3. teyour
  4. jayatistay
  5. śāliniO beautiful woman
  6. pāda-padmamlotus feet
  7. ghnantyāḥstriking
  8. muhuḥagain and again
3

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

  • Śaraṇāgati · Wholehearted surrender

    Relinquishing ownership while entrusting oneself to the Lord. · Theme in SB 3.20

    In this verse: “surrender”

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 does my attention to physical beauty begin to disturb my mind?

Practice

If you notice yourself dwelling on someone's body today, gently turn your gaze away rather than prolonging the thought.

Live this todayDwelling on Beauty Agitates DesireThis 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 3.20.36? 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