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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 12: Dhruva Mahārāja Goes Back to Godhead
4.12.324.12.34

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.12.33

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.12.28inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

इति व्यवसितं तस्य व्यवसाय सुरोत्तमौ ।

दर्शयामासतुर्देवीं पुरो यानेन गच्छतीम् ॥ ३३ ॥

iti vyavasitaṁ tasya

vyavasāya surottamau

darśayām āsatur devīṁ

puro yānena gacchatīm

Translation

The great associates of Vaikuṇṭhaloka, Nanda and Sunanda, could understand the mind of Dhruva Mahārāja, and thus they showed him that his mother, Sunīti, was going forward in another plane.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Strong Devotion Can Carry Others Home

  1. 1

    Nanda and Sunanda understood Dhruva Mahārāja’s thoughts. They showed him Sunīti traveling ahead in another airplane.

  2. 2

    A disciple or child who strongly executes devotional service can carry a parent or spiritual instructor to Vaikuṇṭhaloka. Sunīti received this benefit although she had not performed austerities like Dhruva Mahārāja.

  3. 3

    Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura considered delivering even one soul back to Godhead enough to make his mission successful. This shows the great value of helping someone become a strong devotee.

Key points from the purport
  • Although Sunīti was an instructor to Dhruva Mahārāja, she could not go to the forest because she was a woman, nor could she execute austerities and penances as Dhruva Mahārāja did.
  • Still, Dhruva Mahārāja was able to take his mother with him.
  • The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is spreading now all over the world, and sometimes I think that even though I am crippled in many ways, if one of my disciples becomes as strong as Dhruva Mahārāja, then he will be able to carry me with him to Vaikuṇṭhaloka.

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 12: Dhruva Mahārāja Goes Back to Godhead

Dhruva stops fighting, continues devotional service, leaves his kingdom, and goes back to Godhead.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.12
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. itithus
  2. vyavasitamcontemplation
  3. tasyaof Dhruva
  4. vyavasāyaunderstanding
  5. sura-uttamauthe two chief associates
  6. darśayām āsatuḥshowed (to him)
  7. devīmexalted Sunīti
  8. puraḥbefore
  9. yānenaby airplane
  10. gacchatīmgoing forward
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

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 4.12

    In this verse: “nanda”, “mother”, “child”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.12

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotee”, “bhaktisiddhānta”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 4.12

    In this verse: “understand”

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 might strengthening my devotional service benefit those who have guided and cared for me?

Practice

Give one act of devotional service your full attention today, remembering that strong devotion can benefit others.

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.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 4.12's connections

Live this todayStrong Devotion Can Carry Others HomeThis 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 4.12.33? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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