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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

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
6Write down what touched you. Note the main points in your own notebook.

Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›

Canto 5 · Chapter 6: The Activities of Lord Ṛṣabhadeva

5.6.18 5.7.1

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 5.6.19

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 5.6.18inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

नित्यानुभूतनिजलाभनिवृत्ततृष्ण:

श्रेयस्यतद्रचनया चिरसुप्तबुद्धे: ।

लोकस्य य: करुणयाभयमात्मलोक-

माख्यान्नमो भगवते ऋषभाय तस्मै ॥ १९ ॥

nityānubhūta-nija-lābha-nivṛtta-tṛṣṇaḥ

śreyasy atad-racanayā cira-supta-buddheḥ

lokasya yaḥ karuṇayābhayam ātma-lokam

ākhyān namo bhagavate ṛṣabhāya tasmai

Translation

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva, was fully aware of His true identity; therefore He was self-sufficient, and He did not desire external gratification. There was no need for Him to aspire for success, since He was complete in Himself. Those who unnecessarily engage in bodily conceptions and create an atmosphere of materialism are always ignorant of their real self-interest. Out of His causeless mercy, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva taught the self’s real identity and the goal of life. We therefore offer our respectful obeisances unto the Lord, who appeared as Lord Ṛṣabhadeva.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Find Satisfaction in Your Spiritual Identity

1
Lord Ṛṣabhadeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is complete in Himself and needs no external gratification. As His parts and parcels, we should follow His instructions rather than create unnecessary bodily demands.
2
By following the Lord’s instructions, one can become satisfied in one’s spiritual position, free from hankering and lamentation even within this material world.
3
Material adjustments cannot provide true happiness. Our real self-interest is to take shelter at Lord Viṣṇu’s lotus feet, as Lord Ṛṣabhadeva mercifully taught through His behavior and instructions.

Key points from the purport

Being the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva is complete in Himself.
We living entities, as parts and parcels of the Supreme Lord, should follow the instructions of Lord Ṛṣabhadeva and become self-sufficient.
By His personal behavior and instructions, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva enlightened the conditioned soul and showed him how to become self-sufficient in his spiritual identity.

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 5.6.19 quotesBG 18.54

As confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (18.54): brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati.

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

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

Chapter 6: The Activities of Lord Ṛṣabhadeva

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The Supreme Lord gives these devotees whatever they desire, but they cannot attain the most important function of devotional service. Devotional service to the Lord is guaranteed for those who do not desire liberation and mystic power.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 5.6

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

nitya-anubhūtadue to being always conscious of His real identity
nija-lābha-nivṛtta-tṛṣṇaḥwho was complete in Himself and had no other desire to fulfill
śreyasiin life’s genuine welfare
a-tat-racanayāby expanding activities in the material field, mistaking the body for the self
cirafor a long time
suptasleeping
buddheḥwhose intelligence
lokasyaof men

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
Kṛpā · Divine mercy
Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 5.6
In this verse: “mercy”, “causeless”, “mercifully”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.6
In this verse: “materialism”, “material”
Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment
Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 5.6
In this verse: “free from”

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What unnecessary demand am I treating as essential to my happiness?

Practice

Set aside one unnecessary demand today and spend a few minutes reading the Lord’s instructions instead.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayFind Satisfaction in Your Spiritual IdentityThis 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.

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