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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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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 18: Diti Vows to Kill King Indra
6.18.76.18.9

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.18.8

Visarga· Brahmā's creation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 6.18.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

उरुक्रमस्य देवस्य मायावामनरूपिण: ।

कीर्तौ पत्‍न्‍यां बृहच्छ्‌लोकस्तस्यासन् सौभगादय: ॥ ८ ॥

urukramasya devasya

māyā-vāmana-rūpiṇaḥ

kīrtau patnyāṁ bṛhacchlokas

tasyāsan saubhagādayaḥ

Translation

By His own potency, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who has multifarious potencies, appeared in the form of a dwarf as Urukrama, the twelfth son of Aditi. In the womb of His wife, whose name was Kīrti, He begot one son, named Bṛhatśloka, who had many sons, headed by Saubhaga.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord Appears by His Own Potency

  1. 1

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead appeared as the dwarf Urukrama, Aditi’s twelfth son. Through His wife Kīrti, He begot Bṛhatśloka, whose sons were headed by Saubhaga.

  2. 2

    The Lord is unborn, and His transcendental body never deteriorates. When He incarnates, He appears by His own potency without help from the external energy.

  3. 3

    The spiritual potency is also called māyā. Describing the Lord’s body as māyāmaya refers to His internal potency, not to a body formed from external energy.

Key points from the purport
  • When the Supreme Personality of Godhead incarnates, He does not need any help from the external energy, for He appears as He is by His own potency.
  • It is said, ato māyāmayaṁ viṣṇuṁ pravadanti manīṣiṇaḥ: the body accepted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead is called māyāmaya.
  • This does not mean that He is formed of the external energy; this māyā refers to His internal potency.

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 6.18.8 quotesBG 4.6

As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.6): “Although I am unborn and My transcendental body never deteriorates, and although I am the Lord of all sentient beings, I still appear in every millennium in My original transcendental form.”

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

Resentment and resolve → Constraint and consequence. Family conflict frames a test of intention.

Chapters 18–19 of Canto 6: Diti's vow and discipline. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 18: Diti Vows to Kill King Indra

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

From His wife, whose name was Kīrti, appeared a son named Bṛhatśloka. Bṛhatśloka’s first son was known as Saubhaga.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.18
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. urukramasyaof Urukrama
  2. devasyathe Lord
  3. māyāby His internal potency
  4. vāmana-rūpiṇaḥhaving the form of a dwarf
  5. kīrtauin Kīrti
  6. patnyāmHis wife
  7. bṛhacchlokaḥBṛhatśloka
  8. tasyaof him
  9. āsanwere
  10. saubhaga-ādayaḥsons beginning with Saubhaga
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Visarga · Subcreation

    How do living beings and their worlds appear? · Subject 2 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 6.18

    In this verse: “māyā”

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

Am I understanding the Lord’s appearance as an act of His own spiritual potency?

Practice

Pause today to remember this teaching: the Supreme Personality of Godhead appears by His own potency.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 6.18's connections

Live this todayThe Lord Appears by His Own PotencyThis 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 6.18.8? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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