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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.
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Canto 5 · Chapter 11: Jaḍa Bharata Instructs King Rahūgaṇa
5.11.13-145.11.16

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.11.15

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
A turning point forBharata / Jaḍa Bharata· Wisdom to Rahūgaṇa

न यावदेतां तनुभृन्नरेन्द्र

विधूय मायां वयुनोदयेन ।

विमुक्तसङ्गो जितषट्‌सपत्नो

वेदात्मतत्त्वं भ्रमतीह तावत् ॥ १५ ॥

na yāvad etāṁ tanu-bhṛn narendra

vidhūya māyāṁ vayunodayena

vimukta-saṅgo jita-ṣaṭ-sapatno

vedātma-tattvaṁ bhramatīha tāvat

Translation

My dear King Rahūgaṇa, as long as the conditioned soul accepts the material body and is not freed from the contamination of material enjoyment, and as long as he does not conquer his six enemies and come to the platform of self-realization by awakening his spiritual knowledge, he has to wander among different places and different species of life in this material world.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Human Life Is Meant for Spiritual Awakening

  1. 1

    When the mind is absorbed in material conceptions, one identifies with a particular nation, family, country or creed. These are designations, called upādhis.

  2. 2

    As long as one remains bound by these designations, conditioned life continues. The human form of life is meant for cleansing away these misconceptions.

  3. 3

    One must become free from the contamination of material enjoyment and awaken spiritual knowledge. Otherwise, one continues wandering through different places and species of life.

Key points from the purport
  • When one’s mind is absorbed in the material conception, he thinks that he belongs to a particular nation, family, country or creed.
  • As long as one is not freed, he has to continue conditioned life in material existence.
  • If this is not done, one has to repeat the cycle of birth and death and thus suffer all material conditions.

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:

One has to conquer these mental concoctions: unless one does so, he will never be freed from material anxieties. Although mental concoctions have no value, their influence is still very formidable.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.11
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. nanot
  2. yāvatas long as
  3. etāmthis
  4. tanu-bhṛtone who has accepted a material body
  5. narendraO King
  6. vidhūya māyāmwashing away the infection accumulated because of contamination by the material world
  7. vayunā udayenaby awakening of transcendental knowledge due to good association and study of the Vedic literatures
  8. vimukta-saṅgaḥfree from all material association
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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

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 5.11

    In this verse: “contamination”, “cleansing”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

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

    In this verse: “knowledge”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.11

    In this verse: “material”

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

Which material designation do I most often mistake for my essential identity?

Practice

Write down one designation you use for yourself and reflect that human life is meant for spiritual realization beyond it.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayHuman Life Is Meant for Spiritual AwakeningThis 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 5.11.15? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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