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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
4.12.44.12.6

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.12.5

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The master of the treasury, Kuverasince 4.12.2inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

तद्गच्छ ध्रुव भद्रं ते भगवन्तमधोक्षजम् ।

सर्वभूतात्मभावेन सर्वभूतात्मविग्रहम् ॥ ५ ॥

tad gaccha dhruva bhadraṁ te

bhagavantam adhokṣajam

sarva-bhūtātma-bhāvena

sarva-bhūtātma-vigraham

Translation

My dear Dhruva, come forward. May the Lord always grace you with good fortune. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is beyond our sensory perception, is the Supersoul of all living entities, and thus all entities are one, without distinction. Therefore begin rendering service unto the transcendental form of the Lord, who is the ultimate shelter of all living entities.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Serve the Lord, Shelter of Everyone

  1. 1

    The Absolute Truth is ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who has a specific transcendental form. His form is not material, and He is beyond material sensory perception.

  2. 2

    Living entities are His marginal energy: they are not different from Him, yet they are not equal to Him. Nothing exists independently of the Lord.

  3. 3

    Serving the supreme form includes service to other living entities. Just as watering a tree’s root nourishes its leaves, twigs, flowers and fruits, service to the Lord benefits all.

Key points from the purport
  • Here the word vigraham, “having specific form,” is very significant, for it indicates that the Absolute Truth is ultimately the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • The living entities are the marginal energy of the supreme form.
  • Dhruva Mahārāja is advised herewith to render service unto the supreme form.

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. tattherefore
  2. gacchacome
  3. dhruvaDhruva
  4. bhadramgood fortune
  5. teunto you
  6. bhagavantamunto the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  7. adhokṣajamwho is beyond the concepts of material senses
  8. sarva-bhūtaall living entities
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 4.12

    In this verse: “grace”

  • Śaraṇāgati · Wholehearted surrender

    Relinquishing ownership while entrusting oneself to the Lord. · Theme in SB 4.12

    In this verse: “shelter”

  • Moha · Material attachment

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

    In this verse: “material”

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 does the example of watering a tree’s root deepen my understanding of serving the Lord?

Practice

Set aside a brief time today to offer service to the Lord, remembering Him as everyone’s ultimate shelter.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayServe the Lord, Shelter of EveryoneThis 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 4.12.5? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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