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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
4.24.45-464.24.49

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Texts 4.24.47-48

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

प्रीतिप्रहसितापाङ्गमलकै रूपशोभितम् ।

लसत्पङ्कजकिञ्जल्कदुकूलं मृष्टकुण्डलम् ॥ ४७ ॥

स्फुरत्किरीटवलयहारनूपुरमेखलम् ।

शङ्खचक्रगदापद्ममालामण्युत्तमर्द्धिमत् ॥ ४८ ॥

prīti-prahasitāpāṅgam

alakai rūpa-śobhitam

lasat-paṅkaja-kiñjalka-

dukūlaṁ mṛṣṭa-kuṇḍalam

sphurat-kirīṭa-valaya-

hāra-nūpura-mekhalam

śaṅkha-cakra-gadā-padma-

mālā-maṇy-uttamarddhimat

Translation

The Lord is superexcellently beautiful on account of His open and merciful smile and His sidelong glance upon His devotees. His black hair is curly, and His garments, waving in the wind, appear like flying saffron pollen from lotus flowers. His glittering earrings, shining helmet, bangles, garland, ankle bells, waist belt and various other bodily ornaments combine with conchshell, disc, club and lotus flower to increase the natural beauty of the Kaustubha pearl on His chest.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Merciful Smile and Auspicious Signs

  1. 1

    The Lord’s merciful smile and sidelong glance upon His devotees make Him superexcellently beautiful. His curling black hair, flowing garments and ornaments further adorn His form.

  2. 2

    The purport especially connects Kṛṣṇa’s smile and sidelong glances with His dealings with the gopīs. His joking mood increases their feelings of conjugal rasa, or devotional relationship.

  3. 3

    The conchshell, club, disc and lotus flower may be held in His hands or appear as signs on His palms. These signs mark great personalities and especially indicate the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Key points from the purport
  • The word prahasitāpāṅga, referring to Kṛṣṇa’s smile and sidelong glances at His devotees, specifically applies to His dealings with the gopīs.
  • The conchshell, club, disc and lotus flower can be either held in His hands or seen on the palms of His hands.
  • According to palmistry, the signs of a conchshell, club, lotus flower and disc mark the palms of great personalities and especially indicate the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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. prītimerciful
  2. prahasitasmiling
  3. apāṅgamsidelong glance
  4. alakaiḥwith curling hair
  5. rūpabeauty
  6. śobhitamincreased
  7. lasatglittering
  8. paṅkajaof the lotus
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: “devotees”, “devotional”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “merciful”

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 draws my attention to the Lord’s mercy in this description of His beauty?

Practice

Read the translation slowly once, then pause to remember the Lord’s merciful smile upon His devotees.

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 todayThe Lord’s Merciful Smile and Auspicious SignsThis 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 4.24.47-48? Get an answer from the verses themselves.