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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 5.6.7

Who is speaking and story frame

तस्य ह वा एवं मुक्तलिङ्गस्य भगवत ऋषभस्य योगमायावासनया देह इमां जगतीमभिमानाभासेन सङ्‍क्रममाण: कोङ्कवेङ्ककुटकान्दक्षिणकर्णाटकान्देशान् यद‍ृच्छयोपगत: कुटकाचलोपवन आस्यकृताश्मकवल उन्माद इव मुक्तमूर्धजोऽसंवीत एव विचचार ॥ ७ ॥

tasya ha vā evaṁ mukta-liṅgasya bhagavata ṛṣabhasya yoga-māyā-vāsanayā deha imāṁ jagatīm abhimānābhāsena saṅkramamāṇaḥ koṅka-veṅka-kuṭakān dakṣiṇa-karṇāṭakān deśān yadṛcchayopagataḥ kuṭakācalopavana āsya kṛtāśma-kavala unmāda iva mukta-mūrdhajo ’saṁvīta eva vicacāra.

Translation

Actually Lord Ṛṣabhadeva had no material body, but due to yoga-māyā He considered His body material, and therefore, because He played like an ordinary human being, He gave up the mentality of identifying with it. Following this principle, He began to wander all over the world. While traveling, He came to the province of Karṇāṭa in South India and passed through Koṅka, Veṅka and Kuṭaka. He had no plan to travel this way, but He arrived near Kuṭakācala and entered a forest there. He placed stones within His mouth and began to wander through the forest, naked and with His hair disheveled like a madman.

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.

Ṛṣabhadeva’s Body Was Not Material

  1. 1

    Lord Ṛṣabhadeva actually had no material body. Through yoga-māyā, He played the part of an ordinary human being.

  2. 2

    He gave up the mentality of identifying with the body and wandered throughout the world without a planned route.

  3. 3

    He reached the forest near Kuṭakācala, placed stones in His mouth and wandered naked with disheveled hair, appearing like a madman.

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 6: The Activities of Lord Ṛṣabhadeva

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

While traveling in South India, through the provinces of Karṇāṭa, Koṅka, Veṅka and Kuṭaka, Lord Ṛṣabhadeva arrived in the neighborhood of Kuṭakācala. Suddenly there was a forest fire that burned the forest and Lord Ṛṣabhadeva’s body to ashes.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 5.6
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tasyaof Him (Lord Ṛṣabhadeva)
  2. ha vāas it were
  3. evamthus
  4. mukta-liṅgasyawho had no identification with the gross and subtle body
  5. bhagavataḥof the Supreme Personality of Godhead
  6. ṛṣabhasyaof Lord Ṛṣabhadeva
  7. yoga-māyā-vāsanayāby the accomplishment of yoga-māyā for the purpose of the Lord’s pastimes
  8. dehaḥbody
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

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 5.6

    In this verse: “gave up”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 5.6

    In this verse: “material”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does this account teach me about the difference between the Lord’s appearance and His actual nature?

Practice

Reread the opening sentence of the translation and reflect on the statement that Lord Ṛṣabhadeva had no material body.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayṚṣabhadeva’s Body Was Not MaterialThis 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 5.6.7? Get an answer from the verses themselves.