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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 6 · Chapter 14: King Citraketu’s Lamentation
6.14.586.14.60

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.14.59

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 6.14.59inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

श्रीशुक उवाच

विलपन्त्या मृतं पुत्रमिति चित्रविलापनै: ।

चित्रकेतुर्भृशं तप्तो मुक्तकण्ठो रुरोद ह ॥ ५९ ॥

śrī-śuka uvāca

vilapantyā mṛtaṁ putram

iti citra-vilāpanaiḥ

citraketur bhṛśaṁ tapto

mukta-kaṇṭho ruroda ha

Translation

Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: Accompanied by his wife, who was thus lamenting for her dead son, King Citraketu began crying loudly with an open mouth, being greatly aggrieved.

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.

The King Cries with His Queen

  1. 1

    Śrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes the Queen continuing to lament for her dead son.

  2. 2

    King Citraketu joins his wife in crying.

  3. 3

    Greatly aggrieved, the King cries loudly with an open mouth.

How it feels

Parental grief → Detachment and surrender. A flashback discloses the devotional history behind Vṛtrāsura.

Chapters 14–17 of Canto 6: Citraketu's grief, realization and curse. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 14: King Citraketu’s Lamentation

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

When Aṅgirā inquired from the King about his welfare, the King expressed his moroseness, and therefore by the grace of the great sage, the King’s first wife, Kṛtadyuti, gave birth to a son, who was the cause of both happiness and lamentation. Upon the birth of this son, the King and all the residents of the palace were very happy.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.14
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. śrī-śukaḥ uvācaŚrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
  2. vilapantyāwith the woman who was lamenting
  3. mṛtamdead
  4. putramfor the son
  5. itithus
  6. citra-vilāpanaiḥwith various lamentations
  7. citraketuḥKing Citraketu
  8. bhṛśamvery much
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 6.14

    In this verse: “lamenting”, “crying”, “lament”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 6.14

    In this verse: “king”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does the King’s open grief affect my understanding of another person’s sorrow?

Practice

Give someone who is hurting room to speak without asking them to hide their tears.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayThe King Cries with His QueenThis 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 6.14.59? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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