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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.
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Canto 4 · Chapter 22: Pṛthu Mahārāja’s Meeting with the Four Kumāras
4.22.504.22.52

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.22.51

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.22.48inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

फलं ब्रह्मणि संन्यस्य निर्विषङ्ग: समाहित: ।

कर्माध्यक्षं च मन्वान आत्मानं प्रकृते: परम् ॥ ५१ ॥

phalaṁ brahmaṇi sannyasya

nirviṣaṅgaḥ samāhitaḥ

karmādhyakṣaṁ ca manvāna

ātmānaṁ prakṛteḥ param

Translation

Mahārāja Pṛthu completely dedicated himself to be an eternal servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, transcendental to material nature. Consequently all the fruits of his activities were dedicated to the Lord, and he always thought of himself as the servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is the proprietor of everything.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Offer Your Work’s Results to the Lord

  1. 1

    The first requirement of karma-yoga is to give the fruits of one’s activities to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Though a householder, Pṛthu Mahārāja was truly renounced because he did this.

  2. 2

    The Lord is the proprietor of everything, and the devotee is His eternal servant. Kṛṣṇa directs material nature but is not a creation of it.

  3. 3

    One who remains Kṛṣṇa’s servant and engages everything in His service can be liberated even in this lifetime. The devotee works according to devotional principles, knowing that results depend on the Lord’s will.

Key points from the purport
  • The life and dedication of Mahārāja Pṛthu in the transcendental loving service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead serve as a good example of karma-yoga.
  • When the fruits of one’s activities are rendered to the service of the Lord, one is actually practicing karma-yoga.
  • The results of his activities are completely dependent on the supreme will of the Lord.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 3

The purport of SB 4.22.51 quotesBG 18.2

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (18.2), giving up the fruits of one’s activities to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is called sannyāsa: “To give up the results of all activities is called renunciation [ tyāga] by the wise.

The purport of SB 4.22.51 quotesSB 7.5.23-24

sakhyam ātma-nivedanam. These methods of karma-yoga and bhakti-yoga are being broadcast all over the world by the International Society for Krishna Consciousness.

The purport of SB 4.22.51 quotesBG 9.10

The Lord is the supreme superintendent of all material creations, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10): “This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, producing all the moving and unmoving beings, and by its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.”

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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 22: Pṛthu Mahārāja’s Meeting with the Four Kumāras

The four Kumāras instruct Pṛthu, who dedicates himself and the fruits of his activities to the Lord.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.22
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. phalamresult
  2. brahmaṇiin the Absolute Truth
  3. sannyasyagiving up
  4. nirviṣaṅgaḥwithout being contaminated
  5. samāhitaḥcompletely dedicated
  6. karmaactivity
  7. adhyakṣamsuperintendent
  8. caand
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.22

    In this verse: “material”, “householder”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.22

    In this verse: “devotional”, “devotee”

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 4.22

    In this verse: “renounced”

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

Am I treating the results of my work as my property or as something meant for the Lord’s service?

Practice

Dedicate the result of one task to Kṛṣṇa’s service, remembering that its success depends on His will.

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 4.22's connections

Live this todayOffer Your Work’s Results to the LordThis 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 4.22.51? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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