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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
5.18.75.18.9

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.18.8

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 5.18.7inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

ॐ नमो भगवते नरसिंहाय नमस्तेजस्तेजसे आविराविर्भव वज्रनख वज्रदंष्ट्र कर्माशयान् रन्धय रन्धय तमो ग्रस ग्रस ॐ स्वाहा । अभयमभयमात्मनि भूयिष्ठा ॐ क्ष्रौम् ॥ ८ ॥

oṁ namo bhagavate narasiṁhāya namas tejas-tejase āvir-āvirbhava vajra-nakha vajra-daṁṣṭra karmāśayān randhaya randhaya tamo grasa grasa om svāhā; abhayam abhayam ātmani bhūyiṣṭhā oṁ kṣraum.

Translation

I offer my respectful obeisances unto Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, the source of all power. O my Lord who possess nails and teeth just like thunderbolts, kindly vanquish our demonlike desires for fruitive activity in this material world. Please appear in our hearts and drive away our ignorance so that by Your mercy we may become fearless in the struggle for existence in this material world.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Pray for Freedom From Material Desires

  1. 1

    Prahlāda prays to Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, the source of all power, to destroy desires for fruitive activity. He asks the Lord to appear in the heart, remove ignorance and grant fearlessness.

  2. 2

    Strong desires for material enjoyment lead the conditioned soul to accept one body after another. Devotional service to the Lord can release these hard-knotted desires.

  3. 3

    Pure devotional service means serving the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa favorably, without seeking material profit or gain through fruitive activity or philosophical speculation. Devotees aspiring to freedom from material desires should pray to Nṛsiṁhadeva.

Key points from the purport
  • Unless one is completely freed of all material desires, which are caused by the dense darkness of ignorance, one cannot fully engage in the devotional service of the Lord.
  • Therefore we should always offer our prayers to Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, who killed Hiraṇyakaśipu, the personification of material desire.
  • Any devotee aspiring to be free of material desires should offer his respectful prayers to Nṛsiṁhadeva as Prahlāda Mahārāja did in this verse.

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 5.18.8 quotesSB 4.22.39

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (4.22.39) Sanat-kumāra speaks the following words to Mahārāja Pṛthu: “Devotees always engaged in the service of the toes of the Lord’s lotus feet can very easily become free from hard-knotted desires for fruitive activities.

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:

The conditioned living entity has the defect of being always fearful, but simply by the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he can rid himself of this defect of material life. Therefore the Lord alone can be addressed as master.
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. omO Lord
  2. namaḥmy respectful obeisances
  3. bhagavateunto the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  4. nara-siṁhāyaknown as Lord Nṛsiṁha
  5. namaḥobeisances
  6. tejaḥ-tejasethe power of all power
  7. āviḥ-āvirbhavaplease be fully manifest
  8. vajra-nakhaO You who possess nails like thunderbolts
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Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord

    How does the Lord care for His devotees? · Subject 4 of 10

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 5.18

    In this verse: “fearless”, “fearlessness”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 5.18

    In this verse: “mercy”, “favorably”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

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

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotees”

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

What desire for material gain would I like to ask Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva to remove?

Practice

Offer the prayer in this translation to Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, sincerely asking for freedom from one material desire.

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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 4.22.39

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

Live this todayPray for Freedom From Material DesiresThis 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 5.18.8? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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