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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 18: The Prayers Offered to the Lord by the Residents of Jambūdvīpa
5.18.205.18.22

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.18.21

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 5.18.15inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

या तस्य ते पादसरोरुहार्हणं

निकामयेत्साखिलकामलम्पटा ।

तदेव रासीप्सितमीप्सितोऽर्चितो

यद्भ‍ग्नयाच्ञा भगवन् प्रतप्यते ॥ २१ ॥

yā tasya te pāda-saroruhārhaṇaṁ

nikāmayet sākhila-kāma-lampaṭā

tad eva rāsīpsitam īpsito ’rcito

yad-bhagna-yācñā bhagavan pratapyate

Translation

My dear Lord, You automatically fulfill all the desires of a woman who worships Your lotus feet in pure love. However, if a woman worships Your lotus feet for a particular purpose, You also quickly fulfill her desires, but in the end she becomes broken-hearted and laments. Therefore one need not worship Your lotus feet for some material benefit.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Serve the Lord Without Material Motives

  1. 1

    Pure devotional service means serving the Lord as He desires, not worshiping Him for material gain. Beginners follow the spiritual master and the śāstras, gradually awakening spontaneous love for Kṛṣṇa.

  2. 2

    The Supreme Lord personally protects what His fully engaged devotee has and supplies what is needed. Material benefits can end in lamentation, so Lakṣmīdevī advises service without material requests.

  3. 3

    Beginners who approach the Lord with desires are still magnanimous, and their desires can gradually vanish. Whatever desires one has, one should worship the Supreme Lord and learn to depend completely on His service.

Key points from the purport
  • Therefore why should one bother the Lord for something material?
  • Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura explains that even if a devotee wishes the Lord to fulfill a particular desire, the devotee should not be considered a sakāma-bhakta (a devotee with some motive).
  • Therefore let us completely depend on the service of the Lord without bothering Him with our material requests.

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· 4

The purport of SB 5.18.21 quotesBG 9.22

Kṛṣṇa promises in Bhagavad-gītā (9.22): The Supreme Lord personally takes care of anyone who is completely engaged in His devotional service.

The purport of SB 5.18.21 quotesBG 7.16

In the Bhagavad-gītā (7.16) Kṛṣṇa says: “O best among the Bharatas [Arjuna], four kinds of pious men render devotional service unto Me — the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.”

The purport of SB 5.18.21 quotesSB 2.3.10

“A person who has broader intelligence, whether he is full of all material desire, is free from material desire, or has a desire for liberation, must by all means worship the supreme whole, the Personality of Godhead.”

The purport of SB 5.18.21 quotesBG 7.20

Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (7.20): “Those whose minds are distorted by material desires surrender unto demigods and follow the particular rules and regulations of worship according to their own natures.”

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

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 18: The Prayers Offered to the Lord by the Residents of Jambūdvīpa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Lacking attachment for the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he remains attached to family life in this material world. Thus the lesson of this chapter is that one should get out of family life and completely take shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.18
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yāa woman who
  2. tasyaof Him
  3. teof You
  4. pāda-saroruhaof the lotus feet
  5. arhaṇamthe worship
  6. nikāmayetfully desires
  7. sāsuch a woman
  8. akhila-kāma-lampaṭāalthough maintaining all kinds of material desire
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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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 5.18

    In this verse: “worships”, “devotional service”, “devotee”

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 5.18

    In this verse: “laments”, “lamentation”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.18

    In this verse: “material”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Am I approaching Kṛṣṇa mainly for something I want, or to learn how He wishes to be served?

Practice

Offer one brief prayer today asking to serve Kṛṣṇa without requesting a material benefit.

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Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

The purport quotesSB 2.3.10

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 5.18's connections

Live this todayServe the Lord Without Material MotivesThis 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 5.18.21? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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