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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.
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Canto 4 · Chapter 8: Dhruva Mahārāja Leaves Home for the Forest
4.8.424.8.44

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 4.8.43

Mukti· Liberation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Nārada Munisince 4.8.43inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitMaitreya Ṛṣi → Vidura

स्‍नात्वानुसवनं तस्मिन् कालिन्द्या: सलिले शिवे ।

कृत्वोचितानि निवसन्नात्मन: कल्पितासन: ॥ ४३ ॥

snātvānusavanaṁ tasmin

kālindyāḥ salile śive

kṛtvocitāni nivasann

ātmanaḥ kalpitāsanaḥ

Translation

Nārada Muni instructed: My dear boy, in the waters of the Yamunā River, which is known as Kālindī, you should take three baths daily because the water is very auspicious, sacred and clear. After bathing, you should perform the necessary regulative principles for aṣṭāṅga-yoga and then sit down on your āsana [sitting place] in a calm and quiet position.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Prepare to Concentrate on Lord Viṣṇu

  1. 1

    Nārada Muni instructed Dhruva Mahārāja to bathe three times daily in the sacred, clear waters of the Yamunā. This external purification is part of the gradual process of mystic yoga.

  2. 2

    After bathing and following the necessary regulative principles, Dhruva was to sit calmly on his prepared āsana, or sitting place.

  3. 3

    Aṣṭāṅga-yoga is not a bodily gymnastic exercise. Its purpose is to settle the mind and concentrate it on the form of Lord Viṣṇu.

Key points from the purport
  • Before sitting on his āsana, which is also described in Bhagavad-gītā, one has to cleanse himself very nicely in clear or sacred water thrice daily.
  • The water of the Yamunā is naturally very clear and pure, and thus if anyone bathes there three times, undoubtedly he will be very greatly purified externally.
  • Nārada Muni, therefore, instructed Dhruva Mahārāja to go to the bank of the Yamunā and thus become externally purified.

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
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. snātvāafter taking bath
  2. anusavanamthree times
  3. tasminin that
  4. kālindyāḥin the river Kālindī (the Yamunā)
  5. salilein the water
  6. śivewhich is very auspicious
  7. kṛtvāperforming
  8. ucitānisuitable
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 4.8

    In this verse: “principles”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 4.8

    In this verse: “purification”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Do I understand yoga chiefly as bodily exercise or as concentration on the Lord?

Practice

After washing today, sit quietly for a minute and direct your attention toward Lord Viṣṇu.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayPrepare to Concentrate on Lord ViṣṇuThis 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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