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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
5.11.115.11.13-14

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.11.12

Mukti· Liberation
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

क्षेत्रज्ञ एता मनसो विभूती-

र्जीवस्य मायारचितस्य नित्या: ।

आविर्हिता: क्‍वापि तिरोहिताश्च

शुद्धो विचष्टे ह्यविशुद्धकर्तु: ॥ १२ ॥

kṣetrajña etā manaso vibhūtīr

jīvasya māyā-racitasya nityāḥ

āvirhitāḥ kvāpi tirohitāś ca

śuddho vicaṣṭe hy aviśuddha-kartuḥ

Translation

The individual soul bereft of Kṛṣṇa consciousness has many ideas and activities created in the mind by the external energy. They have been existing from time immemorial. Sometimes they are manifest in the wakening state and in the dream state, but during deep sleep [unconsciousness] or trance, they disappear. A person who is liberated in this life [jīvan-mukta] can see all these things vividly.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Freedom Through Kṛṣṇa’s Service

  1. 1

    The individual living being knows his own body to some extent. Paramātmā, the supreme living being, is all-pervading and knows the condition of all bodies.

  2. 2

    The mind is the cause of conditioned life. When the mind is trained and the soul is no longer under its control, the soul can be liberated even in this world.

  3. 3

    Those who are spiritually awake understand that they are eternally part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One whose only business is serving Kṛṣṇa is considered liberated.

Key points from the purport
  • One is eternally conditioned and the other eternally liberated.
  • When the mind is trained and the soul is not under the mind’s control, the soul can be liberated even in this material world.
  • If one takes to Kṛṣṇa’s service, he is liberated, even though he appears to be a conditioned soul within the material world.

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· 1

The purport of SB 5.11.12 quotesBG 13.3

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (13.3), kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata.

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

Further reading

Chapter 11: Jaḍa Bharata Instructs King Rahūgaṇa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The cause of conditional life is attachment to the external energy. One has to conquer these mental concoctions: unless one does so, he will never be freed from material anxieties.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.11
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kṣetra-jñaḥthe individual soul
  2. etāḥall these
  3. manasaḥof the mind
  4. vibhūtīḥdifferent activities
  5. jīvasyaof the living entity
  6. māyā-racitasyacreated by the external, material energy
  7. nityāḥfrom time immemorial
  8. āvirhitāḥsometimes manifested
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

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

    In this verse: “understand”

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

How can I make service to Kṛṣṇa more central to my day?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes today specifically for Kṛṣṇa’s service, rather than following another demand of the mind.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayFreedom Through Kṛṣṇa’s ServiceThis 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 5.11.12? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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