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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
4.24.654.24.67

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.24.66

Ūti· What drives us to act
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

प्रमत्तमुच्चैरिति कृत्यचिन्तया

प्रवृद्धलोभं विषयेषु लालसम् ।

त्वमप्रमत्त: सहसाभिपद्यसे

क्षुल्लेलिहानोऽहिरिवाखुमन्तक: ॥ ६६ ॥

pramattam uccair iti kṛtya-cintayā

pravṛddha-lobhaṁ viṣayeṣu lālasam

tvam apramattaḥ sahasābhipadyase

kṣul-lelihāno ’hir ivākhum antakaḥ

Translation

My dear Lord, all living entities within this material world are mad after planning for things, and they are always busy with a desire to do this or that. This is due to uncontrollable greed. The greed for material enjoyment is always existing in the living entity, but Your Lordship is always alert, and in due course of time You strike him, just as a snake seizes a mouse and very easily swallows him.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Accept Kṛṣṇa’s Authority and Find Peace

  1. 1

    Greed for material enjoyment drives people to make endless plans. The bewildered soul thinks himself the doer, although activities are carried out by nature under the Lord’s direction.

  2. 2

    Without accepting the Lord’s authority, people become confused and frustrated in their plans. Families and empires are destroyed in time, and greedy leaders’ plans increase people’s suffering.

  3. 3

    Peace comes from knowing Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as the real enjoyer, proprietor of everything and friend of all living entities. Understanding this brings happiness and peace both individually and collectively.

Key points from the purport
  • But still the foolish atheists do not accept the supreme authority of the Lord.
  • According to the laws of nature, which are backed by the Lord, nothing can be permanent within this material world; therefore everyone should be allowed to take shelter of the Absolute in order to be saved.
  • The Lord is the proprietor of everything all over the universe, and He is the supreme friend of all living entities as well.

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 4.24.66 quotesBG 3.27

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.27): “The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities which are in actuality carried out by nature.”

The purport of SB 4.24.66 quotesBG 5.29

In this regard, Lord Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (5.29): “The sage who knows Me as the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods, and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities attains peace from the pangs of material miseries.”

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
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. pramattampersons who are mad
  2. uccaiḥloudly
  3. itithus
  4. kṛtyato be done
  5. cintayāby such desire
  6. pravṛddhavery much advanced
  7. lobhamgreed
  8. viṣayeṣuin material enjoyment
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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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “material”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “understanding”

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 4.24

    In this verse: “suffering”

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 would one of my plans change if I remembered that Kṛṣṇa is the proprietor and my true well-wisher?

Practice

Before making one plan today, pause and remember: “Kṛṣṇa is the real enjoyer, the proprietor of everything and the friend of all living entities.”

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayAccept Kṛṣṇa’s Authority and Find PeaceThis 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 4.24.66? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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