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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.
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Canto 6 · Chapter 2: Ajāmila Delivered by the Viṣṇudūtas
6.2.296.2.31

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.2.30

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Ajāmilasince 6.2.26inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

किमिदं स्वप्न आहो स्वित् साक्षाद् द‍ृष्टमिहाद्भ‍ुतम् ।

क्‍व याता अद्य ते ये मां व्यकर्षन् पाशपाणय: ॥ ३० ॥

kim idaṁ svapna āho svit

sākṣād dṛṣṭam ihādbhutam

kva yātā adya te ye māṁ

vyakarṣan pāśa-pāṇayaḥ

Translation

Was this a dream I saw, or was it reality? I saw fearsome men with ropes in their hands coming to arrest me and drag me away. Where have they gone?

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.

Ajāmila Reflects on His Frightening Experience

  1. 1

    Ajāmila wondered whether what he had seen was a dream or reality.

  2. 2

    He remembered fearsome men carrying ropes who had come to arrest him and drag him away.

  3. 3

    Those men were no longer present, and he asked where they had gone.

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 2: Ajāmila Delivered by the Viṣṇudūtas

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

As they were saying this, the Viṣṇudūtas released Ajāmila from the ropes of the Yamadūtas and left for their own abode. The brāhmaṇa Ajāmila, however, offered his respectful obeisances to the Viṣṇudūtas.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.2
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kimwhether
  2. idamthis
  3. svapnein a dream
  4. āho svitor
  5. sākṣātdirectly
  6. dṛṣṭamseen
  7. ihahere
  8. adbhutamwonderful
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

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 6.2

    In this verse: “fearsome”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What does Ajāmila's questioning reveal about how deeply this experience affected him?

Practice

Read the translation slowly and briefly reflect on Ajāmila's fear and astonishment.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayAjāmila Reflects on His Frightening ExperienceThis 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 6.2.30? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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