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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
4.30.324.30.34

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.30.33

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

यावत्ते मायया स्पृष्टा भ्रमाम इह कर्मभि: ।

तावद्भवत्प्रसङ्गानां सङ्ग: स्यान्नो भवे भवे ॥ ३३ ॥

yāvat te māyayā spṛṣṭā

bhramāma iha karmabhiḥ

tāvad bhavat-prasaṅgānāṁ

saṅgaḥ syān no bhave bhave

Translation

Dear Lord, as long as we have to remain within this material world due to our material contamination and wander from one type of body to another and from one planet to another, we pray that we may associate with those who are engaged in discussing Your pastimes. We pray for this benediction life after life, in different bodily forms and on different planets.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Seek Devotee Association Life After Life

  1. 1

    The best benediction a devotee can ask for is association with devotees who discuss the Lord’s pastimes. Whatever one’s circumstances, hearing about the Supreme Lord should continue.

  2. 2

    A pure devotee values hearing and devotional service more than liberation from birth and death. The Pracetās pray for this opportunity in every form of life.

  3. 3

    Where pure devotees assemble to chant, hear and discuss the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that place becomes Vaikuṇṭha. The Lord is personally present wherever His devotees chant His glories without offense.

Key points from the purport
  • Thus for a devotee, everything is in the spiritual world, for as long as he can hear about the pastimes of the Lord, or wherever he can chant, the Lord is personally present (yatra gāyanti mad-bhaktāḥ tatra tiṣṭhāmi nārada).
  • For the devotee there is no need to pray to the Lord for transferal to the Vaikuṇṭha world.
  • The conclusion is that a pure devotee is not anxious to stop the repetition of birth and death, but is always eager to associate with other devotees who are engaged in chanting and hearing about the glories of the Lord.

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 4.30.33 quotesSB 10.14.3

This is also confirmed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu: sthāne sthitāḥ śruti-gatāṁ tanu-vāṅ-manobhiḥ.

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. yāvatas long as
  2. teYour
  3. māyayāby the illusory energy
  4. spṛṣṭāḥcontaminated
  5. bhramāmaḥwe wander
  6. ihain this material world
  7. karmabhiḥby the reaction of fruitive activities
  8. tāvatso long
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”, “devotee”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

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

    In this verse: “chant”, “hearing”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 4.30

    In this verse: “contamination”

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

Do I value opportunities to hear about the Lord more than a change in my circumstances?

Practice

Spend five minutes hearing about the Lord’s pastimes with a devotee today.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

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

The purport quotesSB 10.14.3

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 4.30's connections

Live this todaySeek Devotee Association Life After LifeThis 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 4.30.33? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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