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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 4: Vidura Approaches Maitreya
3.4.193.4.21

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.4.20

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Uddhavasince 3.4.14inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitUddhava → Vidura

स एवमाराधितपादतीर्था-

दधीततत्त्वात्मविबोधमार्ग:

प्रणम्य पादौ परिवृत्य देव-

मिहागतोऽहं विरहातुरात्मा ॥ २० ॥

sa evam ārādhita-pāda-tīrthād

adhīta-tattvātma-vibodha-mārgaḥ

praṇamya pādau parivṛtya devam

ihāgato ’haṁ virahāturātmā

Translation

I have studied the path of understanding self-knowledge from my spiritual master, the Personality of Godhead, and thus after circumambulating Him I have come to this place, very much aggrieved due to separation.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Understand Through Love, Not Distorted Interpretation

  1. 1

    Uddhava learned self-knowledge directly from the Personality of Godhead, his spiritual master. After circumambulating the Lord, he departed deeply aggrieved by separation.

  2. 2

    The purport presents Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as a science of the personal Lord, understood through devotion. Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not an impersonal conclusion.

  3. 3

    The confidential self-knowledge Uddhava received awakened feelings of separation in transcendental love. The purport warns against twisting the text’s meaning instead of approaching its teachings through loving devotion.

Key points from the purport
  • The unauthorized dry speculators are offenders at the lotus feet of the Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa because they distort the purports of Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to mislead the public and prepare a direct path to the hell known as Andha-tāmisra.
  • Thus Lord Kṛṣṇa was accepted by Śaṅkarācārya as the Supreme Personality of Godhead in his commentation on Bhagavad-gītā.
  • Yet such unauthorized persons perversely try to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and thus they commit offenses at the feet of the Lord, which even Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya dared not do.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 2

The purport of SB 3.4.20 quotesBG 16.20

As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (16.20) such envious speculators are without knowledge and are surely condemned life after life.

The purport of SB 3.4.20 quotesSB 1.1.2

Śrīla Vyāsadeva has definitely forbidden persons engaged in religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and, finally, salvation, from trying to understand Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is not meant for them.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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 4: Vidura Approaches Maitreya

Uddhava recalls the Lord’s instructions and directs Vidura to receive transcendental knowledge from Maitreya.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.4
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. saḥso myself
  2. evamthus
  3. ārādhitaworshiped
  4. pāda-tīrthātfrom the Personality of Godhead
  5. adhītastudied
  6. tattva-ātmaself-knowledge
  7. vibodhaunderstanding
  8. mārgaḥpath
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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

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 3.4

    In this verse: “separation”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 3.4

    In this verse: “understanding”

  • Prema · Transcendental love

    The intimacy and sweetness of devotion to Kṛṣṇa. · Theme in SB 3.4

    In this verse: “love”

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

Am I willing to let Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam guide my understanding rather than reshape it to fit my preferences?

Practice

Reread this translation and write one sentence about how Uddhava’s learning deepened his love for the Lord.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

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Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

The purport quotesSB 1.1.2

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 3.4's connections

Live this todayUnderstand Through Love, Not Distorted InterpretationThis 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 3.4.20? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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