1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 5 · The Creative Impetus · 26 chapters

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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 5.19.20

Who is speaking and story frame

योऽसौ भगवति सर्वभूतात्मन्यनात्म्येऽनिरुक्तेऽनिलयने परमात्मनि वासुदेवेऽनन्यनिमित्तभक्तियोगलक्षणो नानागतिनिमित्ताविद्याग्रन्थिरन्धनद्वारेण यदा हि महापुरुषपुरुषप्रसङ्ग: ॥ २० ॥

yo ’sau bhagavati sarva-bhūtātmany anātmye ’nirukte ’nilayane paramātmani vāsudeve ’nanya-nimitta-bhakti-yoga-lakṣaṇo nānā-gati-nimittāvidyā-granthi-randhana-dvāreṇa yadā hi mahā-puruṣa-puruṣa-prasaṅgaḥ.

Translation

After many, many births, when the results of one’s pious activities mature, one gets an opportunity to associate with pure devotees. Then one is able to cut the knot of bondage to ignorance, which bound him because of varied fruitive activities. As a result of associating with devotees, one gradually renders service to Lord Vāsudeva, who is transcendental, free from attachment to the material world, beyond the mind and words, and independent of everything else. That bhakti-yoga, devotional service to Lord Vāsudeva, is the real path of liberation.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotional Service Is Actual Liberation

  1. 1

    Association with pure devotees gives the opportunity to cut the bondage of ignorance. Through that association, one gradually renders devotional service to Lord Vāsudeva.

  2. 2

    Brahman realization begins liberation, and Paramātmā realization is further advancement. Real liberation means understanding oneself as an eternal servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

  3. 3

    Spiritual realization brings joy and equal regard for living beings. When the mind is engaged at the Lord’s lotus feet, attraction to material activities fades and one becomes established in spiritual, blissful service.

Key points from the purport
  • Brahman realization is the beginning of liberation, and Paramātmā realization is still further advancement toward the realm of liberation, but one achieves real liberation when he understands his position as an eternal servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (muktir hitvānyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ).
  • In the material world, in the bodily concept of life, everyone is working in the wrong direction.
  • A living entity becomes established in spiritual, blissful life when he fully understands that his happiness depends on spiritual self-realization, which is the basic principle of ānanda (bliss), and when he is eternally situated in the service of the Lord, who has no other lord above Him.

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 5.19.20 quotesBG 18.54

As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (18.54): “One who is thus transcendentally situated realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful.

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 19: A Description of the Island of Jambūdvīpa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

One then gets the opportunity to offer unalloyed devotional service to the Supreme Lord, Vāsudeva. Because of this opportunity, the inhabitants of Bhārata-varṣa are praised even in the heavenly planets.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.19
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yaḥanyone who
  2. asauthat
  3. bhagavatiunto the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  4. sarva-bhūta-ātmanithe Supersoul of all living entities
  5. anātmyehaving no attachment
  6. aniruktewho is beyond the mind and speech
  7. anilayanenot dependent on anything else
  8. parama-ātmaniunto the Supreme Soul
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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 5.19

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotees”, “bhakti-yoga”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.19

    In this verse: “attachment”, “material”

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 5.19

    In this verse: “free from”

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 would remembering that I am the Lord’s eternal servant change my priorities today?

Practice

Set aside one minute to remember the Lord’s lotus feet and your position as His eternal servant.

Live this todayDevotional Service Is Actual LiberationThis 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 5.19.20? Get an answer from the verses themselves.