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Canto 6 · Prescribed Duties for Mankind · 19 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 ›
Canto 6 · Chapter 1: The History of the Life of Ajāmila
6.1.226.1.24

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.1.23

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmī, the son of Vedavyāsasince 6.1.11inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

एवं निवसतस्तस्य लालयानस्य तत्सुतान् ।

कालोऽत्यगान्महान् राजन्नष्टाशीत्यायुष: समा: ॥ २३ ॥

evaṁ nivasatas tasya

lālayānasya tat-sutān

kālo ’tyagān mahān rājann

aṣṭāśītyāyuṣaḥ samāḥ

Translation

My dear King, while he thus spent his time in abominable, sinful activities to maintain his family of many sons, eighty-eight years of his life passed by.

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.

Notice How a Lifetime Is Spent

  1. 1

    Ajāmila continued spending his time in sinful activities. This became the pattern of his life.

  2. 2

    He carried out these activities to maintain his family of many sons. Supporting his family did not make those actions less sinful.

  3. 3

    Eighty-eight years of his life passed in this way. The verse draws attention to the great amount of time spent in these activities.

How it feels

Guilt and mortal terror → Mercy and renewed devotion. The holy name opens a path beyond an apparently hopeless death.

Chapters 1–3 of Canto 6: Ajāmila and the Viṣṇudūtas. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: The History of the Life of Ajāmila

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Consequently one is prone to commit sinful activities even after atonement, which is therefore very inadequate for purification. On the path of speculative knowledge one becomes free from sinful life by understanding things as they are.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.1
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. evamin this way
  2. nivasataḥliving
  3. tasyaof him (Ajāmila)
  4. lālayānasyamaintaining
  5. tatof her (the śūdrāṇī)
  6. sutānsons
  7. kālaḥtime
  8. atyagātpassed away
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

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 6.1

    In this verse: “sinful”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 6.1

    In this verse: “king”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What pattern of actions is shaping the way I spend my life?

Practice

Review how you spent today, and identify one harmful action you will not repeat tomorrow.

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.

3 lectures given on it · quoted in 2 more lectures. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Show 1 more lecture on it
Quoted in 2 other lectures

In each of these he quotes this verse while speaking on another verse or subject. "Find the quote" opens the transcript at that spot.

Live this todayNotice How a Lifetime Is SpentThis 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 6.1.23? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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