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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 19: King Pṛthu’s One Hundred Horse Sacrifices
4.19.104.19.12

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.19.11

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.19.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

चरमेणाश्वमेधेन यजमाने यजुष्पतिम् ।

वैन्ये यज्ञपशुं स्पर्धन्नपोवाह तिरोहित: ॥ ११ ॥

carameṇāśvamedhena

yajamāne yajuṣ-patim

vainye yajña-paśuṁ spardhann

apovāha tirohitaḥ

Translation

When Pṛthu Mahārāja was performing the last horse sacrifice [aśvamedha-yajña], King Indra, invisible to everyone, stole the horse intended for sacrifice. He did this because of his great envy of King Pṛthu.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Envy Can Degrade Even the Exalted

  1. 1

    Indra had performed one hundred horse sacrifices, but he did not want anyone to excel him. His envy led him to steal Pṛthu Mahārāja’s sacrificial horse.

  2. 2

    Although King of heaven, Indra was an ordinary living entity subject to envy. By making himself invisible, he obstructed the sacrifice.

  3. 3

    The purport explains that properly pronounced Vedic mantras gave the sacrificed animal a new life. This renewal was the test of a successful yajña.

Key points from the purport
  • King Indra is known as śata-kratu, which indicates that he has performed one hundred horse sacrifices (aśvamedha-yajña).
  • When King Pṛthu was performing one hundred yajñas, Indra became very envious because he did not want anyone to excel him.
  • Being an ordinary living entity, he became envious of King Pṛthu, and, making himself invisible, he stole the horse and thus impeded the yajña performance.

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 19: King Pṛthu’s One Hundred Horse Sacrifices

Indra repeatedly takes the sacrificial horse, and Brahmā restrains Pṛthu’s anger.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.19
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. carameṇaby the last one
  2. aśva-medhenaby the aśvamedha sacrifice
  3. yajamānewhen he was performing the sacrifice
  4. yajuḥ-patimfor satisfaction of the Lord of yajña, Viṣṇu
  5. vainyethe son of King Vena
  6. yajña-paśumthe animal meant to be sacrificed in the yajña
  7. spardhanbeing envious
  8. apovāhastole
  9. tirohitaḥbeing invisible
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 4.19

    In this verse: “king”

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

When someone excels me, do I feel glad for them or wish to hold them back?

Practice

Today, sincerely congratulate someone whose success has stirred envy in you.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayEnvy Can Degrade Even the ExaltedThis 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 4.19.11? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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