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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
4.24.494.24.51

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.24.50

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

पूररेचकसंविग्नवलिवल्गुदलोदरम् ।

प्रतिसङ्‌क्रामयद्विश्वं नाभ्यावर्तगभीरया ॥ ५० ॥

pūra-recaka-saṁvigna-

vali-valgu-dalodaram

pratisaṅkrāmayad viśvaṁ

nābhyāvarta-gabhīrayā

Translation

The Lord’s abdomen is beautiful due to three ripples in the flesh. Being so round, His abdomen resembles the leaf of a banyan tree, and when He exhales and inhales, the movement of the ripples appears very, very beautiful. The coils within the navel of the Lord are so deep that it appears that the entire universe sprouted out of it and yet again wishes to go back.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Beautiful Form Is Personal

  1. 1

    The three ripples on the Lord’s abdomen move beautifully as He breathes. His deep, coiling navel further increases His bodily beauty.

  2. 2

    The universe is born from the lotus stem sprouting from the Lord’s navel, where Lord Brahmā sits to create. It appears that the universe wants to return there, attracted by the Lord’s beauty.

  3. 3

    These bodily details indicate the Personality of Godhead, whose beautiful form impersonalists cannot appreciate. Lord Śiva’s prayers describe Lord Viṣṇu, who is worshiped by both Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva.

Key points from the purport
  • The whole universe is born out of the lotus stem which sprouted from the navel of the Lord.
  • The navel of the Lord is so deep and coiling that it appears that the whole universe again wants to withdraw into the navel, being attracted by the Lord’s beauty.
  • Lord Viṣṇu is known as śiva-viriñci-nutam (Bhāg. 11.5.33), for He is always worshiped by Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva.

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· 1

The purport of SB 4.24.50 quotesSB 11.5.33

Lord Viṣṇu is known as śiva-viriñci-nutam, for He is always worshiped by Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva.

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. pūrainhaling
  2. recakaexhaling
  3. saṁvignaagitated
  4. valithe wrinkles on the abdomen
  5. valgubeautiful
  6. dalalike the banyan leaf
  7. udaramabdomen
  8. pratisaṅkrāmayatcoiling down
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: “worshiped”

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 does Lord Śiva’s description help you think of the Lord as a person rather than something formless?

Practice

Reread the translation and pause to appreciate one beautiful feature of the Lord’s personal form.

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 Beautiful Form Is PersonalThis 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 4.24.50? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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