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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 11: Svāyambhuva Manu Advises Dhruva Mahārāja to Stop Fighting
4.11.24.11.4

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.11.3

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.11.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

तस्यार्षास्त्रं धनुषि प्रयुञ्जत:

सुवर्णपुङ्खा: कलहंसवासस: ।

विनि:सृता आविविशुर्द्विषद्बलं

यथा वनं भीमरवा: शिखण्डिन: ॥ ३ ॥

tasyārṣāstraṁ dhanuṣi prayuñjataḥ

suvarṇa-puṅkhāḥ kalahaṁsa-vāsasaḥ

viniḥsṛtā āviviśur dviṣad-balaṁ

yathā vanaṁ bhīma-ravāḥ śikhaṇḍinaḥ

Translation

Even as Dhruva Mahārāja fixed the weapon made by Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi onto his bow, arrows with golden shafts and feathers like the wings of a swan flew out from it. They entered the enemy soldiers with a great hissing sound, just as peacocks enter a forest with tumultuous crowing.

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 Power of Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi’s Weapon

  1. 1

    Dhruva Mahārāja fixed the weapon made by Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi onto his bow.

  2. 2

    Arrows with golden shafts and feathers like swan wings flew from the weapon.

  3. 3

    The arrows entered the enemy soldiers with a great hissing sound. Their entry is compared to peacocks entering a forest with tumultuous crowing.

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 11: Svāyambhuva Manu Advises Dhruva Mahārāja to Stop Fighting

Svāyambhuva Manu urges Dhruva to stop killing innocent Yakṣas and turn his attention to the Supreme Lord.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.11
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tasyawhile Dhruva
  2. ārṣa-astramthe weapon given by Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi
  3. dhanuṣion his bow
  4. prayuñjataḥfixed
  5. suvarṇa-puṅkhāḥ(arrows) with golden shafts
  6. kalahaṁsa-vāsasaḥwith feathers like the wings of a swan
  7. viniḥsṛtāḥsprang out
  8. āviviśuḥentered
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

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

What details help me appreciate the power of the weapon supplied by Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi?

Practice

Reread the translation slowly, noticing the weapon’s source and the two comparisons used to describe its arrows.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Power of Nārāyaṇa Ṛṣi’s WeaponThis 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 4.11.3? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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