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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
  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 5 · Chapter 11: Jaḍa Bharata Instructs King Rahūgaṇa
5.11.95.11.11

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.11.10

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:The brāhmaṇa Jaḍa Bharatasince 5.11.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitJaḍa Bharata → King Rahūgaṇa

गन्धाकृतिस्पर्शरसश्रवांसि

विसर्गरत्यर्त्यभिजल्पशिल्पा: ।

एकादशं स्वीकरणं ममेति

शय्यामहं द्वादशमेक आहु: ॥ १० ॥

gandhākṛti-sparśa-rasa-śravāṁsi

visarga-raty-arty-abhijalpa-śilpāḥ

ekādaśaṁ svīkaraṇaṁ mameti

śayyām ahaṁ dvādaśam eka āhuḥ

Translation

Sound, touch, form, taste and smell are the objects of the five knowledge-acquiring senses. Speech, touch, movement, evacuation and sexual intercourse are the objects of the working senses. Besides this, there is another conception by which one thinks, “This is my body, this is my society, this is my family, this is my nation,” and so forth. This eleventh function of the mind is called the false ego. According to some philosophers, this is the twelfth function, and its field of activity is the body.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Senses Gather; False Ego Claims

  1. 1

    The knowledge-acquiring senses have different objects. Through the nose we smell, through the eyes we see, and through the ears we hear.

  2. 2

    The working senses, called karmendriyas, include the hands, legs, genitals, rectum and mouth. They carry out different activities.

  3. 3

    When false ego expands, one thinks, “This is my body, family, society, country.” This sense of ownership is another function of the mind.

Key points from the purport
  • There are different objects for the eleven items.
  • Similarly, there are the karmendriyas, the working senses — the hands, legs, genitals, rectum, mouth and so forth.
  • When the false ego expands, it makes one think, “This is my body, family, society, country,” etc.

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

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

Further reading

Chapter 11: Jaḍa Bharata Instructs King Rahūgaṇa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Forgetting that he is an eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa and that service to Kṛṣṇa is his only business, one is doomed by material nature to serve the objects of the senses. One should kill mental concoctions by the sword of service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His devotee ( guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja).”
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.11
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. gandhasmell
  2. ākṛtiform
  3. sparśatouch
  4. rasataste
  5. śravāṁsiand sound
  6. visargaevacuating
  7. ratisexual intercourse
  8. artimovement
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 5.11

    In this verse: “knowledge-acquiring”, “philosophers”

  • Dainya · Humility

    Ego yields to insight, service and surrender. · Theme in SB 5.11

    In this verse: “false ego”

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

Can I notice the difference between sensing something and claiming it as mine?

Practice

During one ordinary activity, identify a sense gathering knowledge and a working sense carrying out an action.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe Senses Gather; False Ego ClaimsThis 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 5.11.10? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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