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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
4.30.244.30.26

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.30.25

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The Pracetāssince 4.30.22inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

नम: कमलनाभाय नम: कमलमालिने ।

नम: कमलपादाय नमस्ते कमलेक्षण ॥ २५ ॥

namaḥ kamala-nābhāya

namaḥ kamala-māline

namaḥ kamala-pādāya

namas te kamalekṣaṇa

Translation

Dear Lord, we offer our respectful obeisances unto You because from Your abdomen sprouts the lotus flower, the origin of all living entities. You are always decorated with a lotus garland, and Your feet resemble the lotus flower with all its fragrance. Your eyes are also like the petals of a lotus flower. Therefore we always offer our respectful obeisances unto You.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Kṛṣṇa Is the Origin of Everything

  1. 1

    A lotus flower sprouts from the abdomen of Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu. Lord Brahmā is born from this lotus and subsequently creates the whole universe.

  2. 2

    Lord Viṣṇu is the origin of material creation, and Lord Kṛṣṇa is the origin of all the viṣṇu-tattvas. Consequently, Kṛṣṇa is the origin of everything.

  3. 3

    Those who understand that everything comes from Kṛṣṇa engage in His devotional service. They worship Him with all their hearts.

Key points from the purport
  • The word kamala-nābhāya indicates that Lord Viṣṇu is the origin of the material creation.
  • The origin of all creation is therefore Lord Viṣṇu, and the origin of all the viṣṇu-tattvas is Lord Kṛṣṇa.
  • Lord Kṛṣṇa says, “I am the origin of everything.”

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 4.30.25 quotesBG 10.8

This is also confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (10.8): “I am the source of all spiritual and material worlds.

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. namaḥwe offer our respectful obeisances
  2. kamala-nābhāyaunto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, from whose abdomen the original lotus flower originated
  3. namaḥobeisances
  4. kamala-mālinewho is always decorated with a garland of lotus flowers
  5. namaḥobeisances
  6. kamala-pādāyawhose feet are as beautiful and fragrant as the lotus flower
  7. namaḥ teobeisances unto You
  8. kamala-īkṣaṇawhose eyes are exactly like the petals of the lotus flower
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 4.30

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “worship”

  • Moha · Material attachment

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

    In this verse: “material”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

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

    In this verse: “understand”

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 can remembering Kṛṣṇa as the origin of everything deepen my worship?

Practice

Offer respectful obeisances to Kṛṣṇa today, remembering that everything comes from Him.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayKṛṣṇa Is the Origin of EverythingThis 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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