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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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Canto 5 · Chapter 4: The Characteristics of Ṛṣabhadeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
5.4.65.4.8

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.4.7

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 5.4.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

ब्रह्मण्योऽन्य: कुतो नाभेर्विप्रा मङ्गलपूजिता: ।

यस्य बर्हिषि यज्ञेशं दर्शयामासुरोजसा ॥ ७ ॥

brahmaṇyo ’nyaḥ kuto nābher

viprā maṅgala-pūjitāḥ

yasya barhiṣi yajñeśaṁ

darśayām āsur ojasā

Translation

[The second prayer is this.] “Who is a better worshiper of brāhmaṇas than Mahārāja Nābhi? Because he worshiped the qualified brāhmaṇas to their full satisfaction, the brāhmaṇas, by their brahminical prowess, showed Mahārāja Nābhi the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa, in person.”

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotion Is the Essential Spiritual Qualification

  1. 1

    Mahārāja Nābhi fully satisfied qualified brāhmaṇas through his worship. Their prayers enabled him to see the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa, face to face.

  2. 2

    These priests were not merely expert in Vedic mantras and rituals; they were Vaiṣṇavas. Their power to call upon the Lord came from devotional service.

  3. 3

    Vedic scholarship alone does not qualify someone to become a spiritual master without being a Vaiṣṇava. A Vaiṣṇava can be a spiritual master even when born in a family of a lower caste.

Key points from the purport
  • They were so powerful that they could bring forth the Supreme Personality of Godhead by their prayers.
  • Unless one is a Vaiṣṇava, he cannot call forth the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • Therefore by their spiritual powers they could call on the Supreme Personality of Godhead and enable their disciple, Mahārāja Nābhi, to see the Lord face to face.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

How it feels

Responsibility → Renunciation. Leadership is set beside the renounced ideal.

Chapters 1–6 of Canto 5: Priyavrata and Ṛṣabhadeva. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 4: The Characteristics of Ṛṣabhadeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Upon receiving Ṛṣabhadeva, who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, as his son, King Nābhi began to raise Him very carefully. After that, he entrusted the ruling power to Him and, retiring from family life, lived at Badarikāśrama completely engaged in the worship of Vāsudeva, the Supreme Lord.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.4
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. brahmaṇyaḥa devotee of the brāhmaṇas
  2. anyaḥany, other
  3. kutaḥwhere is
  4. nābheḥbesides Mahārāja Nābhi
  5. viprāḥthe brāhmaṇas
  6. maṅgala-pūjitāḥwell worshiped and satisfied
  7. yasyaof whom
  8. barhiṣiin the sacrificial arena
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Īśānukathā · The science of God

    Who is the Lord, and how do His devotees live? · Subject 7 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 5.4

    In this verse: “worshiper”, “devotional service”, “worship”

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 value devotional qualification more than scholarship or family background?

Practice

Write down why devotion, rather than learning or birth alone, is essential in a spiritual teacher.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayDevotion Is the Essential Spiritual QualificationThis 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 5.4.7? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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