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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 8: Dhruva Mahārāja Leaves Home for the Forest
4.8.104.8.12

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.8.11

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Queen Surucisince 4.8.11inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

न वत्स नृपतेर्धिष्ण्यं भवानारोढुमर्हति ।

न गृहीतो मया यत्त्वं कुक्षावपि नृपात्मज: ॥ ११ ॥

na vatsa nṛpater dhiṣṇyaṁ

bhavān āroḍhum arhati

na gṛhīto mayā yat tvaṁ

kukṣāv api nṛpātmajaḥ

Translation

Queen Suruci told Dhruva Mahārāja: My dear child, you do not deserve to sit on the throne or on the lap of the King. Surely you are also the son of the King, but because you did not take your birth from my womb, you are not qualified to sit on your father’s lap.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Pride Makes Birth a Barrier

  1. 1

    Suruci proudly told Dhruva Mahārāja that being the King’s son did not qualify him to sit on the King’s lap or throne.

  2. 2

    She claimed that this privilege depended on having taken birth from her womb.

  3. 3

    Her words indirectly treated Dhruva Mahārāja as an illegitimate son because he was born of the other queen.

Key points from the purport
  • Queen Suruci very proudly informed Dhruva Mahārāja that to be the King’s son was not the qualification for sitting on the lap or throne of the King.
  • Rather, this privilege was dependent on one’s having taken birth from her womb.
  • In other words, she indirectly informed Dhruva Mahārāja that although he happened to be born of the King, he was considered an illegitimate son because of his birth from the womb of the other queen.

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

Rejection → Transformed aspiration. A child's wounded pride is purified by divine encounter.

Chapters 8–12 of Canto 4: Dhruva seeks and encounters the Lord. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 8: Dhruva Mahārāja Leaves Home for the Forest

Dhruva leaves home, receives Nārada’s instructions, and worships the Supreme Personality of Godhead with austerity.

Back to this verse in chapter 4.8
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nanot
  2. vatsamy dear child
  3. nṛpateḥof the King
  4. dhiṣṇyamseat
  5. bhavānyourself
  6. āroḍhumto get on
  7. arhatideserve
  8. nanot
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 4.8

    In this verse: “father’s”, “child”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 4.8

    In this verse: “king”, “king’s”

  • Dainya · Humility

    Ego yields to insight, service and surrender. · Theme in SB 4.8

    In this verse: “proudly”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Do I ever let pride lead me to exclude someone because of their family?

Practice

Notice one opportunity today to include someone rather than judge their family background.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayPride Makes Birth a BarrierThis 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 4.8.11? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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