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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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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.20.29

Who is speaking and story frame

एवमेव दधिमण्डोदात्परत: पुष्करद्वीपस्ततो द्विगुणायाम: समन्तत उपकल्पित: समानेन स्वादूदकेन समुद्रेण बहिरावृतो यस्मिन् बृहत्पुष्करं ज्वलनशिखामलकनकपत्रायुतायुतं भगवत: कमलासनस्याध्यासनं परिकल्पितम् ॥ २९ ॥

evam eva dadhi-maṇḍodāt parataḥ puṣkaradvīpas tato dvi-guṇāyāmaḥ samantata upakalpitaḥ samānena svādūdakena samudreṇa bahir āvṛto yasmin bṛhat-puṣkaraṁ jvalana-śikhāmala-kanaka-patrāyutāyutaṁ bhagavataḥ kamalāsanasyādhyāsanaṁ parikalpitam.

Translation

Outside the ocean of yogurt is another island, known as Puṣkaradvīpa, which is 6,400,000 yojanas [51,200,000 miles] wide, twice as wide as the ocean of yogurt. It is surrounded by an ocean of very tasteful water as broad as the island itself. On Puṣkaradvīpa there is a great lotus flower with 100,000,000 pure golden petals, as effulgent as the flames of fire. That lotus flower is considered the sitting place of Lord Brahmā, who is the most powerful living being and who is therefore sometimes called bhagavān.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Puṣkaradvīpa and Brahmā’s Golden Lotus

  1. 1

    Puṣkaradvīpa lies beyond the ocean of yogurt and is 6,400,000 yojanas, or 51,200,000 miles, wide. An ocean of very tasteful water, equally broad, surrounds it.

  2. 2

    A great lotus flower on the island has 100,000,000 pure golden petals. Its brilliance resembles flames of fire.

  3. 3

    This lotus is considered the sitting place of Lord Brahmā. The verse describes him as the most powerful living being and explains that he is therefore sometimes called bhagavān.

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 20: Studying the Structure of the Universe

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The fifth island, Śākadvīpa, which is 25,600,000 miles wide, is surrounded by an ocean of yogurt. Its master is Medhātithi, another son of Mahārāja Priyavrata.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.20
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. evam evathus
  2. dadhi-maṇḍa-udātthe ocean of yogurt
  3. parataḥbeyond
  4. puṣkara-dvīpaḥanother island, named Puṣkaradvīpa
  5. tataḥthan that (Śākadvīpa)
  6. dvi-guṇa-āyāmaḥwhose measurement is twice as great
  7. samantataḥon all sides
  8. upakalpitaḥsurrounded
3

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

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What reason does the verse give for sometimes calling Lord Brahmā bhagavān?

Practice

Write one sentence describing the golden lotus and whose sitting place it is.

Live this todayPuṣkaradvīpa and Brahmā’s Golden LotusThis 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 5.20.29? Get an answer from the verses themselves.