1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 4 · The Creation of the Fourth Order · 31 chapters

12345678910111213141516171819202122232425262728293031

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Śiva
4.24.94.24.11

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.24.10

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.24.9inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

यस्येदं देवयजनमनुयज्ञं वितन्वत: ।

प्राचीनाग्रै: कुशैरासीदास्तृतं वसुधातलम् ॥ १० ॥

yasyedaṁ deva-yajanam

anuyajñaṁ vitanvataḥ

prācīnāgraiḥ kuśair āsīd

āstṛtaṁ vasudhā-talam

Translation

Mahārāja Barhiṣat executed many sacrifices all over the world. He scattered kuśa grasses and kept the tops of the grasses pointed eastward.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Chanting the Holy Name Benefits Everyone

  1. 1

    Mahārāja Barhiṣat performed sacrifices one after another, scattering kuśa grass with its tips pointing eastward. The purport calls for saṅkīrtana-yajña to spread similarly throughout the world.

  2. 2

    The holy name is so powerful that chanting it, jokingly or seriously, brings the benefit of cleansing the heart. Everyone can receive the effect of this transcendental sound.

  3. 3

    Repeated sacrifices like Barhiṣat’s are not possible now, but saṅkīrtana-yajña costs nothing and can be performed anywhere. Widespread chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa can make the people of the world very happy.

Key points from the purport
  • At the present moment there is a similar need to perform saṅkīrtana-yajña all over the world.
  • The members of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement should perform saṅkīrtana-yajñas one after another, so much so that all the people of the world will either jokingly or seriously chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare, and thus they will derive the benefit of cleansing the heart.
  • If the surface of the globe is overflooded with the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, the people of the world will be very, very happy.

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

Worldly absorption → Sobering awareness. The mind's identification with material life becomes visible.

Chapters 24–29 of Canto 4: Śiva's song and the allegory of Purañjana. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Śiva

Lord Śiva mercifully teaches the Pracetās prayers glorifying the Supreme Lord.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.24
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yasyawhose
  2. idamthis
  3. deva-yajanamsatisfying the demigods by sacrifices
  4. anuyajñamcontinually sacrificing
  5. vitanvataḥexecuting
  6. prācīna-agraiḥkeeping the kuśa grass facing toward the eastern side
  7. kuśaiḥthe kuśa grass
  8. āsītremained
  9. āstṛtamscattered
  10. vasudhā-talamall over the surface of the globe
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

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “chanting”, “holy name”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “cleansing”

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

What keeps me from taking up the freely available practice of chanting?

Practice

Sit down today and attentively chant: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayChanting the Holy Name Benefits EveryoneThis 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 4.24.10? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
  1. Learn
  2. Live
  3. Lead
Next in Learn · 5 of 11 · 2 minAsk the BhāgavatamBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the Bhāgavatam's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnCantos & stories