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

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Canto 5 · The Creative Impetus · 26 chapters

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How to study this verse, in six steps

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.

Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›

Canto 5 · Chapter 10: The Discussion Between Jaḍa Bharata and Mahārāja Rahūgaṇa

5.10.11 5.10.13

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.10.12

Mukti· Liberation

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:The great brāhmaṇa Jaḍa Bharatasince 5.10.9inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitJaḍa Bharata → King Rahūgaṇa

विशेषबुद्धेर्विवरं मनाक् च

पश्याम यन्न व्यवहारतोऽन्यत् ।

क ईश्वरस्तत्र किमीशितव्यं

तथापि राजन् करवाम किं ते ॥ १२ ॥

viśeṣa-buddher vivaraṁ manāk ca

paśyāma yan na vyavahārato ’nyat

ka īśvaras tatra kim īśitavyaṁ

tathāpi rājan karavāma kiṁ te

Translation

My dear King, if you still think that you are the King and that I am your servant, you should order me, and I should follow your order. I can then say that this differentiation is temporary, and it expands only from usage or convention. I do not see any other cause. In that case, who is the master, and who is the servant? Everyone is being forced by the laws of material nature; therefore no one is master, and no one is servant. Nonetheless, if you think that you are the master and that I am the servant, I shall accept this. Please order me. What can I do for you?

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Return to Our Eternal Position as Servants

1
Bodily relationships and positions are temporary, like straws gathered and separated by ocean waves. Material nature brings people together and separates them.
2
Under material nature’s direction, we play as masters or servants like actors on a stage. Human life offers the opportunity to return to our original position in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
3
Understanding that we are eternal servants of Kṛṣṇa ends this floating condition. We should agree to be controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His eternal servants.

Key points from the purport

All these conceptions are temporary due to the inevitable change of body and the arrangement of material nature.
At the present moment, the real master is material nature.
Under the spell of material nature, we are becoming servants and masters, but if we agree to be controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His eternal servants, this temporary condition ceases to exist.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

Connected verses· 2

The purport of SB 5.10.12 quotesBG 3.37

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.37): kāma eṣa krodha eṣa rajo-guṇa-samudbhavaḥ.

The purport of SB 5.10.12 quotesBG 7.14

Daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā. Under the spell of material nature, we are becoming servants and masters, but if we agree to be controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His eternal servants, this temporary condition ceases to exist.

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

How it feels

Misjudgment → Humility and insight. Spiritual insight hides behind social appearances.

Chapters 10–14 of Canto 5: Jaḍa Bharata instructs Rahūgaṇa. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 10: The Discussion Between Jaḍa Bharata and Mahārāja Rahūgaṇa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

He was therefore forced to carry the palanquin. Jaḍa Bharata, however, did not protest this proud order, but humbly accepted the job and carried the palanquin.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 5.10

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

viśeṣa-buddheḥof the conception of the distinction between master and servant
vivaramthe scope
manāka little
caalso
paśyāmaḥI see
yatwhich
nanot
vyavahārataḥthan the temporary usage or convention

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
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.10
In this verse: “material”
Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership
Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 5.10
In this verse: “king”
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 5.10
In this verse: “understanding”

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How would remembering my eternal service to Kṛṣṇa change my desire to control others?

Practice

When you feel the urge to assert control today, pause and recall your position as Kṛṣṇa’s eternal servant.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayReturn to Our Eternal Position as ServantsThis 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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