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

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

How to study this verse, in six steps

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
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 28: Purañjana Becomes a Woman in the Next Life

4.28.23 4.28.25

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.28.24

Nirodha· Winding up

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:King Purañjanasince 4.28.21inside 5 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → ViduraNārada Muni → King PrācīnabarhiThe allegory of King Purañjana → Prācīnabarhi, as listener

पुरीं विहायोपगत उपरुद्धो भुजङ्गम: ।

यदा तमेवानु पुरी विशीर्णा प्रकृतिं गता ॥ २४ ॥

purīṁ vihāyopagata

uparuddho bhujaṅgamaḥ

yadā tam evānu purī

viśīrṇā prakṛtiṁ gatā

Translation

The serpent, who had already been arrested by the soldiers of Yavana-rāja and was out of the city, began to follow his master along with the others. As soon as they all left the city, it was immediately dismantled and smashed to dust.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Care for the Soul Within

1
When the living entity and his companions leave, the body stops working and returns to its basic material elements. The return to dust refers to the body.
2
Caring only for the external body is like improving a city without caring for its inhabitants. The spirit soul is the principal factor within the body.
3
Spiritual knowledge reveals one's real self-interest and saves the soul from continued transmigration. Civilization without Kṛṣṇa consciousness remains absorbed in the bodily conception of life.

Key points from the purport

When the living entity is arrested, all his followers — namely the life air, the senses and sense objects — immediately leave the lump of matter, the body.
When a city attacked by enemies is vacated by its inhabitants, the enemy immediately takes advantage of that city and bombards it to smash the whole thing to dust.
Similarly, a living entity who is not properly enlightened in spiritual knowledge simply takes care of the external body, not knowing that the spirit soul is the principal factor within the body.

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 4.28.24 quotesSB 10.84.13

“A human being who identifies this body made of three elements with his self, who considers the by-products of the body to be his kinsmen, who considers the land of birth worshipable, and who goes to a place of pilgrimage simply to take a bath rather than meet men of transcendental knowledge there, is to be considered like an ass…

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

Chapter 28: Purañjana Becomes a Woman in the Next Life

Purañjana’s city falls; he becomes a woman, and a brāhmaṇa recalls the soul’s forgotten spiritual friendship.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.28

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

purīmthe city
vihāyahaving given up
upagataḥgone out
uparuddhaḥarrested
bhujaṅgamaḥthe serpent
yadāwhen
tamhim
evacertainly

Key ideas in this verse

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

Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead
What happens when everything here comes to an end? · Subject 8 of 10
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 4.28
In this verse: “knowledge”, “spirit soul”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.28
In this verse: “material”
Sakhya · Sacred friendship
The affection of companions and friends of the Lord. · Theme in SB 4.28
In this verse: “companions”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Am I giving attention to the soul, or only to the body's needs and comforts?

Practice

Spend five minutes studying spiritual knowledge today, giving the soul attention alongside your bodily care.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

The purport quotesSB 10.84.13

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 4.28's connections

Live this todayCare for the Soul WithinThis 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 4.28.24? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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