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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 5.22.9

Who is speaking and story frame

अथ चापूर्यमाणाभिश्च कलाभिरमराणां क्षीयमाणाभिश्च कलाभि: पितृणामहोरात्राणि पूर्वपक्षापरपक्षाभ्यां वितन्वान: सर्वजीवनिवहप्राणो जीवश्चैकमेकं नक्षत्रं त्रिंशता मुहूर्तैर्भुङ्क्ते ॥ ९ ॥

atha cāpūryamāṇābhiś ca kalābhir amarāṇāṁ kṣīyamāṇābhiś ca kalābhiḥ pitṝṇām aho-rātrāṇi pūrva-pakṣāpara-pakṣābhyāṁ vitanvānaḥ sarva-jīva-nivaha-prāṇo jīvaś caikam ekaṁ nakṣatraṁ triṁśatā muhūrtair bhuṅkte.

Translation

When the moon is waxing, the illuminating portions of it increase daily, thus creating day for the demigods and night for the pitās. When the moon is waning, however, it causes night for the demigods and day for the pitās. In this way the moon passes through each constellation of stars in thirty muhūrtas [an entire day]. The moon is the source of nectarean coolness that influences the growth of food grains, and therefore the moon-god is considered the life of all living entities. He is consequently called Jīva, the chief living being within the universe.

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.

The Moon Nourishes Life and Marks Time

  1. 1

    The waxing moon creates day for the demigods and night for the pitās. The waning moon creates the reverse.

  2. 2

    The moon passes through each constellation in thirty muhūrtas, described here as an entire day.

  3. 3

    Its nectarean coolness influences the growth of food grains. The moon-god is therefore considered the life of all living entities and called Jīva, the chief living being within the universe.

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 22: The Orbits of the Planets

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Day and night on the heavenly planets and Pitṛloka are calculated according to its waning and waxing. Above the moon by a distance of 200,000 yojanas are some stars, and above these stars is Śukra-graha (Venus), whose influence is always auspicious for the inhabitants of the entire universe.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.22
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. athathus
  2. caalso
  3. āpūryamāṇābhiḥgradually increasing
  4. caand
  5. kalābhiḥby the parts of the moon
  6. amarāṇāmof the demigods
  7. kṣīyamāṇābhiḥby gradually decreasing
  8. caand
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

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 this verse broaden my appreciation of the moon beyond its visible light?

Practice

At one meal today, pause to remember the moon’s nourishing influence on food grains as described here.

Live this todayThe Moon Nourishes Life and Marks TimeThis 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 5.22.9? Get an answer from the verses themselves.