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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 5.26.19

Who is speaking and story frame

यस्त्विह वै स्तेयेन बलाद्वा हिरण्यरत्नादीनि ब्राह्मणस्य वापहरत्यन्यस्य वानापदि पुरुषस्तममुत्र राजन् यमपुरुषा अयस्मयैरग्निपिण्डै: सन्दंशैस्त्वचि निष्कुषन्ति ॥ १९ ॥

yas tv iha vai steyena balād vā hiraṇya-ratnādīni brāhmaṇasya vāpaharaty anyasya vānāpadi puruṣas tam amutra rājan yama-puruṣā ayasmayair agni-piṇḍaiḥ sandaṁśais tvaci niṣkuṣanti.

Translation

My dear King, a person who in the absence of an emergency robs a brāhmaṇa — or, indeed, anyone else — of his gems and gold is put into a hell known as Sandaṁśa. There his skin is torn and separated by red-hot iron balls and tongs. In this way, his entire body is cut to pieces.

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.

Respect What Belongs to Others

  1. 1

    The verse warns against robbing a brāhmaṇa—or anyone else—of gems and gold in the absence of an emergency.

  2. 2

    A person who commits this theft is sent to the hell called Sandaṁśa.

  3. 3

    There, red-hot iron balls and tongs tear his body apart. The description emphasizes the grave consequences of robbery.

How it feels

Moral dread → Wakefulness. Consequences of action are rendered emotionally vivid.

Chapter 26 of Canto 5: The hellish planets. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 26: A Description of the Hellish Planets

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

A person who kills a brāhmaṇa is put into the hell known as Kālasūtra, where the land, perfectly level and made of copper, is as hot as an oven. The killer of a brāhmaṇa burns in that land for many years.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.26
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yaḥany person who
  2. tubut
  3. ihain this life
  4. vaiindeed
  5. steyenaby thievery
  6. balātby force
  7. vāor
  8. hiraṇyagold
3

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

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 5.26

    In this verse: “separated”, “absence”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 5.26

    In this verse: “king”

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

Do I respect others’ possessions even when I strongly desire them?

Practice

Before using something that belongs to another person today, ask permission.

Live this todayRespect What Belongs to OthersThis 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 5.26.19? Get an answer from the verses themselves.