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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 14: The Story of King Vena
4.14.39-404.14.42

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.14.41

Manvantara· The Manus and right duty
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The saintly sagessince 4.14.32inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

ब्राह्मण: समद‍ृक् शान्तो दीनानां समुपेक्षक: ।

स्रवते ब्रह्म तस्यापि भिन्नभाण्डात्पयो यथा ॥ ४१ ॥

brāhmaṇaḥ sama-dṛk śānto

dīnānāṁ samupekṣakaḥ

sravate brahma tasyāpi

bhinna-bhāṇḍāt payo yathā

Translation

The great sages began to think that although a brāhmaṇa is peaceful and impartial because he is equal to everyone, it is still not his duty to neglect poor humans. By such neglect, a brāhmaṇa’s spiritual power diminishes, just as water kept in a cracked pot leaks out.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Spiritual Advancement Must Not Neglect the Distressed

  1. 1

    A peaceful, impartial brāhmaṇa must not neglect people in distress. Such neglect diminishes spiritual power like water leaking from a cracked pot.

  2. 2

    Prahlāda Mahārāja did not want liberation alone; he wanted to deliver all fallen souls. The purport presents this concern alongside the duty to relieve human suffering.

  3. 3

    Brahminical culture remains incomplete unless one becomes a Vaiṣṇava. Learning reaches this elevated condition through understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Key points from the purport
  • Brāhmaṇas, the topmost section of human society, are mostly devotees.
  • If they do not do something to relieve the distressed condition of human society, it is said that due to such neglect their spiritual knowledge diminishes.
  • Therefore the semen in the family must be protected by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Keśava.

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

Anger and disorder → Duty and devotion. Kingship shifts from domination to stewardship and renunciation.

Chapters 13–23 of Canto 4: Vena and Pṛthu: power, the Earth and stewardship. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 14: The Story of King Vena

Vena rejects the sages’ advice; after his death, they seek to preserve King Aṅga’s family.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.14
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. brāhmaṇaḥa brāhmaṇa
  2. sama-dṛkequipoised
  3. śāntaḥpeaceful
  4. dīnānāmthe poor
  5. samupekṣakaḥgrossly neglecting
  6. sravatediminishes
  7. brahmaspiritual power
  8. tasyahis
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Manvantara · The change of Manus

    What gives human life its right direction? · Subject 6 of 10

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 4.14

    In this verse: “suffering”, “distress”

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 4.14

    In this verse: “duty”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 4.14

    In this verse: “understanding”

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

Does my pursuit of spiritual advancement make me more attentive to people in distress?

Practice

Offer one concrete act of help to someone in difficulty today.

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 4.14's connections

Live this todaySpiritual Advancement Must Not Neglect the DistressedThis 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 4.14.41? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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