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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 30: The Activities of the Pracetās
4.29.2b4.30.2

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.30.1

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Vidurasince 4.30.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

विदुर उवाच

ये त्वयाभिहिता ब्रह्मन् सुता: प्राचीनबर्हिष: ।

ते रुद्रगीतेन हरिं सिद्धिमापु: प्रतोष्य काम् ॥ १ ॥

vidura uvāca

ye tvayābhihitā brahman

sutāḥ prācīnabarhiṣaḥ

te rudra-gītena hariṁ

siddhim āpuḥ pratoṣya kām

Translation

Vidura inquired from Maitreya: O brāhmaṇa, you formerly spoke about the sons of Prācīnabarhi and informed me that they satisfied the Supreme Personality of Godhead by chanting a song composed by Lord Śiva. What did they achieve in this way?

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Highest Perfection Is Returning to Godhead

  1. 1

    Vidura wanted to know what the sons of Prācīnabarhi achieved by satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead. His inquiry concerns success in spiritual life.

  2. 2

    The highest perfection is to return home, back to Godhead. Those who attain Kṛṣṇa do not return to this temporary world of misery and repeated birth.

  3. 3

    By Lord Śiva’s grace, the Pracetās learned to satisfy the Lord by chanting his songs. They attained perfection and returned to Godhead after enjoying material facilities.

Key points from the purport
  • These sons went beside a great lake, which was like an ocean, and fortunately finding Lord Śiva, they learned how to satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead by chanting the songs composed by Lord Śiva.
  • Now Vidura again wanted to hear about Prācīnabarhi’s sons, and he was especially inquisitive to know what they achieved by satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • By the grace of Lord Śiva, the Pracetās actually attained perfection and returned home, back to Godhead, after enjoying material facilities to the highest extent.

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 4.30.1 quotesBG 7.3

Lord Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (7.3), manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye: out of many, many millions of people, one may be interested in learning how to attain success in spiritual matters.

The purport of SB 4.30.1 quotesBG 8.15

The supreme success is mentioned also in Bhagavad-gītā (8.15): “After attaining Me, the great souls, who are yogīs in devotion, never return to this temporary world, which is full of miseries, because they have attained the highest perfection.”

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

Search → Devotional resolution. Prayer and instruction redirect household and societal life.

Chapters 30–31 of Canto 4: Pracetās and Nārada's concluding guidance. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 30: The Activities of the Pracetās

The Lord appears to the Pracetās, who pray only for His satisfaction; Brahmā later pacifies them.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.30
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. viduraḥ uvācaVidura said
  2. yethose who
  3. tvayāby you
  4. abhihitāḥwere spoken about
  5. brahmanO brāhmaṇa
  6. sutāḥsons
  7. prācīnabarhiṣaḥof King Prācīnabarhi
  8. teall of them
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 4.30

    In this verse: “inquired”, “inquiry”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 4.30

    In this verse: “chanting”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.30

    In this verse: “material”

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 returning to Godhead change my understanding of success?

Practice

Write one sentence describing spiritual success as attaining Kṛṣṇa rather than gaining temporary comforts.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Highest Perfection Is Returning to GodheadThis 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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