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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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.16.8

Who is speaking and story frame

उत्तरोत्तरेणेलावृतं नील: श्‍वेत: श‍ृङ्गवानिति त्रयो रम्यकहिरण्मयकुरूणां वर्षाणां मर्यादागिरय: प्रागायता उभयत: क्षारोदावधयो द्विसहस्रपृथव एकैकश: पूर्वस्मात्पूर्वस्मादुत्तर उत्तरो दशांशाधिकांशेन दैर्घ्य एव ह्रसन्ति ॥ ८ ॥

uttarottareṇelāvṛtaṁ nīlaḥ śvetaḥ śṛṅgavān iti trayo ramyaka-hiraṇmaya-kurūṇāṁ varṣāṇāṁ maryādā-girayaḥ prāg-āyatā ubhayataḥ kṣārodāvadhayo dvi-sahasra-pṛthava ekaikaśaḥ pūrvasmāt pūrvasmād uttara uttaro daśāṁśādhikāṁśena dairghya eva hrasanti.

Translation

Just north of Ilāvṛta-varṣa — and going further northward, one after another — are three mountains named Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅgavān. These mark the borders of the three varṣas named Ramyaka, Hiraṇmaya and Kuru and separate them from one another. The width of these mountains is 2,000 yojanas [16,000 miles]. Lengthwise, they extend east and west to the beaches of the ocean of salt water. Going from south to north, the length of each mountain is one tenth that of the previous mountain, but the height of them all is the same.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Northern Mountains and Their Boundaries

  1. 1

    North of Ilāvṛta-varṣa stand Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅgavān, one after another. They mark the borders of Ramyaka, Hiraṇmaya and Kuru.

  2. 2

    These mountains are 2,000 yojanas wide and extend east and west to the saltwater ocean. The translation describes their lengths as decreasing northward while their heights remain equal.

  3. 3

    The purport cites Madhvācārya’s quotation from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa and describes an invisible planet called Rāhu. It attributes solar and lunar eclipses to Rāhu’s movements.

Key points from the purport
  • In this regard, Madhvācārya quotes the following verses from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa:
  • The movements of Rāhu cause both solar and lunar eclipses.
  • We suggest that the modern expeditions attempting to reach the moon are mistakenly going to Rāhu.

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

Smallness → Awe and reverence. A vast cosmos changes the reader's perspective.

Chapters 15–25 of Canto 5: The cosmic regions and divine worship. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 16: A Description of Jambūdvīpa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

On the southern side of the land known as Ilāvṛta-varṣa are the mountains known as Himavān, Hemakūṭa and Niṣadha, and on the northern side are the mountains Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅga. Similarly, on the eastern and western side there are Mālyavān and Gandhamādana, two large mountains.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.16
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. uttara-uttareṇa ilāvṛtamfurther and further north of Ilāvṛta-varṣa
  2. nīlaḥNīla
  3. śvetaḥŚveta
  4. śṛṅgavānŚṛṅgavān
  5. itithus
  6. trayaḥthree mountains
  7. ramyakaRamyaka
  8. hiraṇmayaHiraṇmaya
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Sthāna · Planetary systems

    How is the universe arranged, and what is our right place in it? · Subject 3 of 10

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 does following the south-to-north sequence help me organize what I read?

Practice

Write Nīla, Śveta and Śṛṅgavān in south-to-north order, with the corresponding regions beside them.

Live this todayThe Northern Mountains and Their BoundariesThis 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 5.16.8? Get an answer from the verses themselves.