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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
4.12.344.12.36

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.12.35

Nirodha· Winding up
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

त्रिलोकीं देवयानेन सोऽतिव्रज्य मुनीनपि ।

परस्ताद्यद् ध्रुवगतिर्विष्णो: पदमथाभ्यगात् ॥ ३५ ॥

tri-lokīṁ deva-yānena

so ’tivrajya munīn api

parastād yad dhruva-gatir

viṣṇoḥ padam athābhyagāt

Translation

Dhruva Mahārāja thus surpassed the seven planetary systems of the great sages who are known as saptarṣi. Beyond that region, he achieved the transcendental situation of permanent life in the planet where Lord Viṣṇu lives.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Eternal Life Is Found in Vaikuṇṭha

  1. 1

    Dhruva Mahārāja passed beyond the seven planetary systems of the great sages. He reached the planet where Lord Viṣṇu lives and attained permanent life.

  2. 2

    Sunanda and Nanda piloted the transcendental airplane into the spiritual region. The planets there are known as Viṣṇuloka or Vaikuṇṭhaloka, where life is eternal, blissful and full of knowledge.

  3. 3

    Even life on the highest material planet ends with the annihilation of the universe. Only in Vaikuṇṭhaloka can one attain eternally blissful life.

Key points from the purport
  • Only such spiritual astronauts can pilot their airplane beyond the seven planets and arrive in the region of eternal, blissful life.
  • Below Vaikuṇṭhaloka is the material universe, where Lord Brahmā and others in Brahmaloka can live until the annihilation of this universe; but that life is not permanent.
  • Only by arriving in Vaikuṇṭhaloka can one live an eternally blissful life.

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
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tri-lokīmthe three planetary systems
  2. deva-yānenaby the transcendental airplane
  3. saḥDhruva
  4. ativrajyahaving surpassed
  5. munīngreat sages
  6. apieven
  7. parastātbeyond
  8. yatwhich
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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.12

    In this verse: “material”

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

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

    In this verse: “nanda”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

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

    In this verse: “knowledge”

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

Am I seeking only a better temporary situation, or keeping eternal spiritual life in view?

Practice

Take one minute today to reflect on the difference between long material life and eternal life in Lord Viṣṇu’s abode.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayEternal Life Is Found in VaikuṇṭhaThis 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 4.12.35? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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