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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 31: Nārada Instructs the Pracetās
4.31.174.31.19

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.31.18

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Nārada Munisince 4.31.9inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

तेनैकमात्मानमशेषदेहिनां

कालं प्रधानं पुरुषं परेशम् ।

स्वतेजसा ध्वस्तगुणप्रवाह-

मात्मैकभावेन भजध्वमद्धा ॥ १८ ॥

tenaikam ātmānam aśeṣa-dehināṁ

kālaṁ pradhānaṁ puruṣaṁ pareśam

sva-tejasā dhvasta-guṇa-pravāham

ātmaika-bhāvena bhajadhvam addhā

Translation

Because the Supreme Lord is the cause of all causes, He is the Supersoul of all individual living entities, and He exists as both the remote and immediate cause. Since He is aloof from the material emanations, He is free from their interactions and is Lord of material nature. You should therefore engage in His devotional service, thinking yourself qualitatively one with Him.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Serve the Cause of All Causes

  1. 1

    Time, the ingredient and the creator are the three causes of material creation. All three are found in the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

  2. 2

    Nārada Muni advises direct devotional service to the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa. Just as watering a tree’s root nourishes all its parts, this service includes all other pious activity.

  3. 3

    The Lord remains unaffected by material qualities, although they emanate from His spiritual energy. Understanding that nothing is unconnected with Him, one can use everything in His service.

Key points from the purport
  • Nārada Muni therefore advises the Pracetās to worship the direct cause, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • According to the advice of Nārada Muni, one should directly engage in devotional service.
  • Those who are really conversant with this knowledge can utilize everything for the service of the Lord because nothing in this material world is unconnected with the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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

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 31: Nārada Instructs the Pracetās

The Pracetās leave home and receive Nārada’s instructions on satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.31
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tenatherefore
  2. ekamone
  3. ātmānamunto the Supreme Soul
  4. aśeṣaunlimited
  5. dehināmof the individual souls
  6. kālamtime
  7. pradhānamthe material cause
  8. puruṣamthe Supreme Person
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Āśraya · The summum bonum

    Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.31

    In this verse: “devotional service”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.31

    In this verse: “material”

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 4.31

    In this verse: “free from”

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

What resource in my daily life could I use in the Lord’s service?

Practice

Set aside five minutes of your time today specifically for devotional service to Kṛṣṇa.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayServe the Cause of All CausesThis 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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