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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 28: Purañjana Becomes a Woman in the Next Life
4.28.264.28.28

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.28.27

Ūti· What drives us to act
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

अनन्तपारे तमसि मग्नो नष्टस्मृति: समा: ।

शाश्वतीरनुभूयार्तिं प्रमदासङ्गदूषित: ॥ २७ ॥

ananta-pāre tamasi

magno naṣṭa-smṛtiḥ samāḥ

śāśvatīr anubhūyārtiṁ

pramadā-saṅga-dūṣitaḥ

Translation

Due to his contaminated association with women, a living entity like King Purañjana eternally suffers all the pangs of material existence and remains in the dark region of material life, bereft of all remembrance for many, many years.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Remember Your Identity as Kṛṣṇa's Servant

  1. 1

    The purport describes how attachment to a woman can make one forget one's real identity as the eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. This forgetfulness prolongs suffering in one body after another.

  2. 2

    The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement reminds the forgetful living entity of his original Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Its purpose is to save him from ignorance and bodily transmigration.

  3. 3

    Trying to escape anxiety through drink and sex indulgence only prolongs material life. The stages of Vedic life are designed to cultivate detachment rather than deepen such attachment.

Key points from the purport
  • Material existence is experienced when one becomes attached to a woman and forgets his real identity as the eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa (naṣṭa-smṛtiḥ).
  • In this way, in one body after another, the living entity perpetually suffers the threefold miseries of material existence.
  • People are always trying to find many ways to mitigate anxiety, but because they are not guided by a real leader, they try to forget material anxiety through drink and sex indulgence.

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 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
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. ananta-pāreunlimitedly expanded
  2. tamasiin the material existence of darkness
  3. magnaḥbeing merged
  4. naṣṭa-smṛtiḥbereft of all intelligence
  5. samāḥfor many years
  6. śāśvatīḥpractically eternally
  7. anubhūyaexperiencing
  8. ārtimthe threefold miseries
3

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 4.28

    In this verse: “material”, “attachment”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 4.28

    In this verse: “king”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 4.28

    In this verse: “contaminated”

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

When anxiety arises, do I seek more sense enjoyment or remember my identity as Kṛṣṇa's servant?

Practice

When one anxious thought arises today, pause and reflect: "My real identity is the eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa."

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayRemember Your Identity as Kṛṣṇa's ServantThis 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.

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