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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 18: Pṛthu Mahārāja Milks the Earth Planet
4.18.44.18.6

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.18.5

Manvantara· The Manus and right duty
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.18.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

ताननाद‍ृत्य योऽविद्वानर्थानारभते स्वयम् ।

तस्य व्यभिचरन्त्यर्था आरब्धाश्च पुन: पुन: ॥ ५ ॥

tān anādṛtya yo ’vidvān

arthān ārabhate svayam

tasya vyabhicaranty arthā

ārabdhāś ca punaḥ punaḥ

Translation

A foolish person who manufactures his own ways and means through mental speculation and does not recognize the authority of the sages who lay down unimpeachable directions is simply unsuccessful again and again in his attempts.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Receive Direction Beyond Our Defects

  1. 1

    A conditioned soul has four defects: mistakes, illusion, a tendency to cheat, and imperfect senses. Therefore, we need direction from liberated persons.

  2. 2

    The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement receives instructions from the Supreme Personality of Godhead through those who strictly follow Him.

  3. 3

    Even a follower who is not liberated can act free from material contamination by faithfully following the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Rejecting this guidance for invented ideas leads to repeated failure.

Key points from the purport
  • At the present moment it has become fashionable to disobey the unimpeachable directions given by the ācāryas and liberated souls of the past.
  • One can immediately become a spiritual master by having full faith in the transcendental words of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and by following His instructions.
  • Because the entire world is now following the imperfect directions of conditioned souls, humanity is completely bewildered.

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 18: Pṛthu Mahārāja Milks the Earth Planet

Pṛthu and others milk the earth; he provides citizens with food, employment, and places to live.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.18
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tānthose
  2. anādṛtyaneglecting
  3. yaḥanyone who
  4. avidvānrascal
  5. arthānschemes
  6. ārabhatebegins
  7. svayampersonally
  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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.18

    In this verse: “illusion”, “material”

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 4.18

    In this verse: “free from”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 4.18

    In this verse: “contamination”

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 recognizing my own defects change the way I receive spiritual instruction?

Practice

Identify one assumption you may have mistaken for knowledge, and compare it with the instructions in this reading.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayReceive Direction Beyond Our DefectsThis 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 4.18.5? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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