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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 5: Vidura’s Talks with Maitreya
3.5.193.5.21

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 3.5.20

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 3.5.18inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

माण्डव्यशापाद्भगवान् प्रजासंयमनो यम: ।

भ्रातु: क्षेत्रे भुजिष्यायां जात: सत्यवतीसुतात् ॥ २० ॥

māṇḍavya-śāpād bhagavān

prajā-saṁyamano yamaḥ

bhrātuḥ kṣetre bhujiṣyāyāṁ

jātaḥ satyavatī-sutāt

Translation

I know that you are now Vidura due to the cursing of Māṇḍavya Muni and that formerly you were King Yamarāja, the great controller of living entities after their death. You were begotten by the son of Satyavatī, Vyāsadeva, in the kept wife of his brother.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Use Favorable Connections for Devotional Life

  1. 1

    Vidura was formerly Yamarāja, who takes charge of living entities after death. Birth, maintenance and death are conditional states within the material world.

  2. 2

    After receiving undue punishment from Yamarāja, Māṇḍavya Muni cursed him to become a śūdra. Thus Yamarāja took birth as Vidura.

  3. 3

    Despite the circumstances of his mother’s position, Vidura’s high parentage and great connections favored his becoming a great devotee. Such family connections are an advantage for attaining devotional life.

Key points from the purport
  • Māṇḍavya Muni was a great sage (cf. Bhāg. 1.13.1), and Vidura was formerly the controller Yamarāja, who takes charge of the living entities after death.
  • As the appointed controller after death, Yamarāja once tried Māṇḍavya Muni for his childhood profligacy and ordered him to be pierced with a lance.
  • Thus Yamarāja took birth in the womb of the kept wife of Vicitravīrya from the semen of Vicitravīrya’s brother, Vyāsadeva.

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· 1

The purport of SB 3.5.20 quotesSB 1.13.1

Māṇḍavya Muni was a great sage (cf. Bhāg. 1.13.1), and Vidura was formerly the controller Yamarāja, who takes charge of the living entities after death.

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

Mystery → Cosmic wonder. The origin of the world is revealed through inquiry and divine grace.

Chapters 5–12 of Canto 3: Creation and Brahmā's bewilderment. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 5: Vidura’s Talks with Maitreya

Vidura meets Maitreya, who begins explaining the Lord’s activities and the unfolding of material creation.

Back to this verse in chapter 3.5
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. māṇḍavyathe great ṛṣi Māṇḍavya Muni
  2. śāpātby his curse
  3. bhagavānthe greatly powerful
  4. prajāone who is born
  5. saṁyamanaḥcontroller of death
  6. yamaḥknown as Yamarāja
  7. bhrātuḥof the brother
  8. kṣetrein the wife
3

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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 3.5

    In this verse: “devotional”, “devotee”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 3.5

    In this verse: “death”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 3.5

    In this verse: “king”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Which connections in my life can help me develop devotion to the Lord?

Practice

Contact one person who encourages your devotional life and thank them for their support.

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.

The purport quotesSB 1.13.1

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 3.5's connections

Live this todayUse Favorable Connections for Devotional LifeThis 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 3.5.20? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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