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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
4.10.294.11.1

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.10.30

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:All the sagessince 4.10.30inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

मुनय ऊचु:

औत्तानपाद भगवांस्तव शार्ङ्गधन्वा

देव: क्षिणोत्ववनतार्तिहरो विपक्षान् ।

यन्नामधेयमभिधाय निशम्य चाद्धा

लोकोऽञ्जसा तरति दुस्तरमङ्ग मृत्युम् ॥ ३० ॥

munaya ūcuḥ

auttānapāda bhagavāṁs tava śārṅgadhanvā

devaḥ kṣiṇotv avanatārti-haro vipakṣān

yan-nāmadheyam abhidhāya niśamya cāddhā

loko ’ñjasā tarati dustaram aṅga mṛtyum

Translation

All the sages said: Dear Dhruva, O son of King Uttānapāda, may the Supreme Personality of Godhead known as Śārṅgadhanvā, who relieves the distresses of His devotees, kill all your threatening enemies. The holy name of the Lord is as powerful as the Lord Himself. Therefore, simply by chanting and hearing the holy name of the Lord, many men can be fully protected from fierce death without difficulty. Thus a devotee is saved.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord's Holy Name Protects His Devotees

  1. 1

    A devotee is always protected by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By His inspiration, the sages came to assure Dhruva Mahārāja, a fully surrendered soul, that there was no danger.

  2. 2

    The Lord's holy name is as powerful as the Lord Himself. Chanting and hearing His name can carry one beyond fierce death, so the Yakṣas' illusory feats could certainly be overcome.

  3. 3

    By the Lord's grace, a devotee who chants Hare Kṛṣṇa at death enters the spiritual sky and never returns to repeated birth and death. The purport directs our hope toward surrender and devotion to the Supreme Lord.

Key points from the purport
  • The great ṛṣis approached Dhruva Mahārāja at a time when his mind was very perplexed due to the magical feats exhibited by the Yakṣas.
  • By the grace of the Lord, if a devotee, at the time of death, can simply chant His holy name — Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare — simply by chanting this mahā-mantra he immediately surpasses the great ocean of the material sky and enters the spiritual sky.
  • Simply by chanting the holy name of the Lord, one can surpass the ocean of death, so Dhruva Mahārāja was certainly able to surpass the illusory magical feats of the Yakṣas, which for the time being disturbed his mind.

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

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
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. munayaḥ ūcuḥthe sages said
  2. auttānapādaO son of King Uttānapāda
  3. bhagavānthe Supreme Personality of Godhead
  4. tavayour
  5. śārṅga-dhanvāone who bears the bow called Śārṅga
  6. devaḥthe Lord
  7. kṣiṇotumay He kill
  8. avanataof the surrendered soul
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord

    How does the Lord care for His devotees? · Subject 4 of 10

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 4.10

    In this verse: “chanting”, “hearing”, “holy name”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.10

    In this verse: “devotees”, “devotion”, “devotee”

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 4.10

    In this verse: “protected”, “saved”

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

How can the assurance that the Lord's name is as powerful as the Lord Himself deepen your chanting?

Practice

Chant once today, listening carefully: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Lord's Holy Name Protects His DevoteesThis 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.

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