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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 4 · The Creation of the Fourth Order · 31 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 4 · Chapter 10: Dhruva Mahārāja’s Fight with the Yakṣas
4.10.24.10.4

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.10.3

Nirodha· Winding up
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.10.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

उत्तमस्त्वकृतोद्वाहो मृगयायां बलीयसा । हत: पुण्यजनेनाद्रौ तन्मातास्य गतिं गता ॥ ३ ॥

uttamas tv akṛtodvāho

mṛgayāyāṁ balīyasā

hataḥ puṇya-janenādrau

tan-mātāsya gatiṁ gatā

Translation

Dhruva Mahārāja’s younger brother Uttama, who was still unmarried, once went on a hunting excursion and was killed by a powerful Yakṣa in the Himālaya Mountains. Along with him, his mother, Suruci, also followed the path of her son [she died].

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Deaths of Uttama and Suruci

  1. 1

    Uttama was Dhruva Mahārāja’s younger brother and was still unmarried.

  2. 2

    During a hunting excursion in the Himālaya Mountains, Uttama was killed by a powerful Yakṣa.

  3. 3

    His mother, Suruci, also followed the path of her son and died. The translation does not explain how she died.

How it feels

Rejection → Transformed aspiration. A child's wounded pride is purified by divine encounter.

Chapters 8–12 of Canto 4: Dhruva seeks and encounters the Lord. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 10: Dhruva Mahārāja’s Fight with the Yakṣas

After Uttama is killed by a Yakṣa, Dhruva fights the Yakṣas and faces their illusions.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.10
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. uttamaḥUttama
  2. tubut
  3. akṛtawithout
  4. udvāhaḥmarriage
  5. mṛgayāyāmon a hunting excursion
  6. balīyasāvery powerful
  7. hataḥwas killed
  8. puṇya-janenaby a Yakṣa
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead

    What happens when everything here comes to an end? · Subject 8 of 10

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 4.10

    In this verse: “mother”

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

Can I distinguish what this account states from details it leaves unexplained?

Practice

Reread the translation and summarize the two deaths without adding an unstated cause for Suruci’s death.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Deaths of Uttama and SuruciThis 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 4.10.3? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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