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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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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 7: The Sacrifice Performed by Dakṣa
4.7.354.7.37

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.7.36

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The wife of Dakṣasince 4.7.36inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

यजमान्युवाच

स्वागतं ते प्रसीदेश तुभ्यं नम:

श्रीनिवास श्रिया कान्तया त्राहि न: ।

त्वामृतेऽधीश नाङ्गैर्मख: शोभते

शीर्षहीन: कबन्धो यथा पुरुष: ॥ ३६ ॥

yajamāny uvāca

svāgataṁ te prasīdeśa tubhyaṁ namaḥ

śrīnivāsa śriyā kāntayā trāhi naḥ

tvām ṛte ’dhīśa nāṅgair makhaḥ śobhate

śīrṣa-hīnaḥ ka-bandho yathā puruṣaḥ

Translation

The wife of Dakṣa prayed as follows: My dear Lord, it is very fortunate that You have appeared in this arena of sacrifice. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You, and I request that You be pleased on this occasion. The sacrificial arena is not beautiful without You, just as a body is not beautiful without the head.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Make the Lord’s Pleasure Your Purpose

  1. 1

    All activities should be performed for the pleasure of Lord Viṣṇu. Activities that do not please Him cause bondage in the material world.

  2. 2

    Without the Lord, a grand sacrifice is like a decorated body without a head. Likewise, material advancement has no real value without Kṛṣṇa consciousness and understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

  3. 3

    Prasūti asked the Lord to turn the priests into Vaiṣṇavas rather than workers seeking material benefits from sacrifices. Devotional service, not material gain, is the purpose.

Key points from the purport
  • Material civilization is very proud of being advanced, but it is actually the useless trunk of a body without a head.
  • Prasūti, then, was the aunt of Lord Viṣṇu.
  • Prasūti, the wife of Dakṣa, implored the Lord to turn the priests into Vaiṣṇavas instead of simply fruitive workers performing sacrifices for some material benefits.

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

Humiliation and anger → Reconciliation. Relational offense leads to grief and destruction before restoration.

Chapters 1–7 of Canto 4: Dakṣa, Satī and Śiva. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 7: The Sacrifice Performed by Dakṣa

Lord Śiva is pacified, Dakṣa acknowledges his offense, and Lord Viṣṇu accepts the sacrifice.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.7
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yajamānīthe wife of Dakṣa
  2. uvācaprayed
  3. su-āgatamauspicious appearance
  4. teYour
  5. prasīdabecome pleased
  6. īśamy dear Lord
  7. tubhyamunto You
  8. namaḥrespectful obeisances
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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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 4.7

    In this verse: “material”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 4.7

    In this verse: “devotional service”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 4.7

    In this verse: “understanding”

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

Is my main concern the outward success of my activities, or whether they please the Lord?

Practice

Choose one task today and consciously undertake it for the Lord’s pleasure rather than for praise or personal gain.

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.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 4.7's connections

Live this todayMake the Lord’s Pleasure Your PurposeThis 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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