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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 24: Chanting the Song Sung by Lord Śiva
4.24.444.24.47-48

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Texts 4.24.45-46

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Maitreya Ṛṣisince 4.24.32inside 4 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → ViduraLord Śiva → the Pracetās

स्‍निग्धप्रावृड्‌घनश्यामं सर्वसौन्दर्यसङ्ग्रहम् ।

चार्वायतचतुर्बाहु सुजातरुचिराननम् ॥ ४५ ॥

पद्मकोशपलाशाक्षं सुन्दरभ्रु सुनासिकम् ।

सुद्विजं सुकपोलास्यं समकर्णविभूषणम् ॥ ४६ ॥

snigdha-prāvṛḍ-ghana-śyāmaṁ

sarva-saundarya-saṅgraham

cārv-āyata-catur-bāhu

sujāta-rucirānanam

padma-kośa-palāśākṣaṁ

sundara-bhru sunāsikam

sudvijaṁ sukapolāsyaṁ

sama-karṇa-vibhūṣaṇam

Translation

The Lord’s beauty resembles a dark cloud during the rainy season. As the rainfall glistens, His bodily features also glisten. Indeed, He is the sum total of all beauty. The Lord has four arms and an exquisitely beautiful face with eyes like lotus petals, a beautiful highly raised nose, a mind-attracting smile, a beautiful forehead and equally beautiful and fully decorated ears.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Approach the Beautiful Lord Through Regulated Service

  1. 1

    The Lord’s dark-cloud complexion is deeply pleasing, and His beauty surpasses that of millions of Cupids. Lord Śiva describes the beautiful, opulent four-armed form of Nārāyaṇa, or Viṣṇu.

  2. 2

    Beginning devotees worship through regulative principles, called vidhi-mārga. One should not try to jump to the intimate devotional relationships of Vṛndāvana without this foundation of service.

  3. 3

    All four arms of Lord Viṣṇu are auspicious, whether protecting devotees or overcoming demons. Devotees enter the Vaikuṇṭha planets, while devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa are elevated to Goloka Vṛndāvana.

Key points from the purport
  • Actually, neophyte devotees worship the Lord according to the pāñcarātrika-vidhi, or the regulative principles enjoined in the Nārada-pañcarātra.
  • Those who worship Lord Kṛṣṇa describe Him as sujāta-rucirānanam.
  • Lord Kṛṣṇa was not very pleasing to the demons when He was present in Vṛndāvana, but the Six Gosvāmīs were pleasing to the demons when they were present in Vṛndāvana.

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· 2

The purport of SB 4.24.45-46 quotesBG 11.33

Nimitta-mātraṁ bhava savyasācin: “You, O Savyasācī [Arjuna], can be but an instrument in the fight.”

Quoted in the purport ofSB 4.31.3

In his prayers, Lord Śiva concentrated upon the personal features of Parabrahman, described in personal terms as snigdha-prāvṛḍ-ghana-śyāmam.

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

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. snigdhaglistening
  2. prāvṛṭrainy season
  3. ghana-śyāmamdensely cloudy
  4. sarvaall
  5. saundaryabeauty
  6. saṅgrahamcollection
  7. cārubeautiful
  8. āyatabodily feature
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Īśānukathā · The science of God

    Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “devotional”, “devotees”, “worship”

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “principles”

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “protecting”

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 can I value steady, regulated service rather than seek an advanced position prematurely?

Practice

Reread the description of the Lord’s four-armed form and spend one quiet minute remembering His beauty.

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 4.24's connections

Live this todayApproach the Beautiful Lord Through Regulated ServiceThis 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 4.24.45-46? Get an answer from the verses themselves.