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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 7: The Sacrifice Performed by Dakṣa
4.7.404.7.42

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.7.41

Āśraya· The supreme shelter
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The fire-godsince 4.7.41inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

अग्निरुवाच

यत्तेजसाहं सुसमिद्धतेजा

हव्यं वहे स्वध्वर आज्यसिक्तम् ।

तं यज्ञियं पञ्चविधं च पञ्चभि:

स्विष्टं यजुर्भि: प्रणतोऽस्मि यज्ञम् ॥ ४१ ॥

agnir uvāca

yat-tejasāhaṁ susamiddha-tejā

havyaṁ vahe svadhvara ājya-siktam

taṁ yajñiyaṁ pañca-vidhaṁ ca pañcabhiḥ

sviṣṭaṁ yajurbhiḥ praṇato ’smi yajñam

Translation

The fire-god said: My dear Lord, I offer my respectful obeisances unto You because by Your favor I am as luminous as blazing fire and I accept the offerings mixed with butter and offered in sacrifice. The five kinds of offerings according to the Yajur Veda are all Your different energies, and You are worshiped by five kinds of Vedic hymns. Sacrifice means You, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Sacrifice Means Pleasing the Supreme Lord

  1. 1

    Yajña is a name of Lord Viṣṇu, and sacrifice is meant for His satisfaction. Actions performed for other purposes become causes of bondage.

  2. 2

    The whole target of life is to please Lord Viṣṇu. A person in Kṛṣṇa consciousness dedicates life to satisfying Kṛṣṇa, the origin of all Viṣṇu forms.

  3. 3

    In this Age of Kali, the successful sacrifice is saṅkīrtana, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya has appeared to accept this sacrifice.

Key points from the purport
  • In Bhagavad-gītā it is clearly said that yajña should be performed for Lord Viṣṇu.
  • Moreover, this yajña performance confirms that Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu is Viṣṇu Himself.
  • As Lord Viṣṇu appeared at the Dakṣa yajña long, long ago, Lord Caitanya has appeared in this age to accept our saṅkīrtana-yajña.

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. agniḥthe fire-god
  2. uvācasaid
  3. yat-tejasāby whose effulgence
  4. ahamI
  5. su-samiddha-tejāḥas luminous as blazing fire
  6. havyamofferings
  7. vaheI am accepting
  8. su-adhvarein the sacrifice
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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 4.7

    In this verse: “worshiped”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 4.7

    In this verse: “favor”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 4.7

    In this verse: “chanting”

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 could I do today for Kṛṣṇa’s satisfaction rather than only my own?

Practice

Chant attentively: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todaySacrifice Means Pleasing the Supreme LordThis 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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