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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 2: Dakṣa Curses Lord Śiva
4.2.214.2.23

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.2.22

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.2.19inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

गृहेषु कूटधर्मेषु सक्तो ग्राम्यसुखेच्छया ।

कर्मतन्त्रं वितनुते वेदवादविपन्नधी: ॥ २२ ॥

gṛheṣu kūṭa-dharmeṣu

sakto grāmya-sukhecchayā

karma-tantraṁ vitanute

veda-vāda-vipanna-dhīḥ

Translation

Pretentiously religious householder life, in which one is attracted to material happiness and thus also attracted to the superficial explanation of the Vedas, robs one of all intelligence and attaches one to fruitive activities as all in all.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Look Beyond Material Happiness

  1. 1

    Persons who identify with the body are attracted to fruitive activities described in the Vedas. They regard heavenly happiness as everything.

  2. 2

    Such persons carefully follow household rules for promotion to heavenly planets, but lack knowledge of the spiritual kingdom, the kingdom of God.

  3. 3

    The verse warns against pretentious religiosity centered on material happiness. Such attachment obscures knowledge of eternal, blissful, spiritual life.

Key points from the purport
  • Persons who identify with bodily existence are attached to the fruitive activities described in the Vedic literature.
  • For example, in the Vedas it is said that one who observes the cāturmāsya vow will attain eternal happiness in the heavenly kingdom.
  • It is stated here that such persons are attached to grāmya-sukha, which means “material happiness,” without knowledge of eternal, blissful, spiritual 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

Humiliation and anger → Reconciliation. Relational offense leads to grief and destruction before restoration.

Chapters 1–7 of Canto 4: Dakṣa, Satī and Śiva. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 2: Dakṣa Curses Lord Śiva

Dakṣa insults and curses Lord Śiva at a great sacrificial assembly.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.2
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. gṛheṣuin householder life
  2. kūṭa-dharmeṣuof pretentious religiosity
  3. saktaḥbeing attracted
  4. grāmya-sukha-icchayāby desire for material happiness
  5. karma-tantramfruitive activities
  6. vitanutehe performs
  7. veda-vādaby the explanations of the Vedas
  8. vipanna-dhīḥintelligence being lost
3

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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.2

    In this verse: “attaches”, “householder”, “material”

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 4.2

    In this verse: “religious”, “religiosity”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 4.2

    In this verse: “kingdom”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Am I seeking only material comfort from religious practice, or knowledge of spiritual life?

Practice

Take one minute today to examine whether a religious practice you follow is motivated mainly by material happiness.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayLook Beyond Material HappinessThis 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 4.2.22? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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