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

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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 4: The Haṁsa-guhya Prayers Offered to the Lord by Prajāpati Dakṣa
6.4.156.4.17

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.4.16

Visarga· Brahmā's creation
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 6.4.16inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

इत्यामन्‍त्र्‍य वरारोहां कन्यामाप्सरसीं नृप ।

सोमो राजा ययौ दत्त्वा ते धर्मेणोपयेमिरे ॥ १६ ॥

ity āmantrya varārohāṁ

kanyām āpsarasīṁ nṛpa

somo rājā yayau dattvā

te dharmeṇopayemire

Translation

Śukadeva Gosvāmī continued: My dear King, after thus pacifying the Pracetās, Soma, the king of the moon, gave them the beautiful girl born of Pramlocā Apsarā. The Pracetās all received Pramlocā’s daughter, who had high, very beautiful hips, and married her according to the religious system.

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.

Peace Followed by Religious Marriage

  1. 1

    Śukadeva Gosvāmī explains that Soma, the king of the moon, pacified the Pracetās.

  2. 2

    After pacifying them, Soma gave them the beautiful daughter of Pramlocā Apsarā.

  3. 3

    All the Pracetās received her and married her according to the religious system.

How it feels

Anger and conflict → Spiritual commitment. Competing understandings of duty create relational tension.

Chapters 4–6 of Canto 6: Dakṣa, Nārada and the consequences of preaching. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 4: The Haṁsa-guhya Prayers Offered to the Lord by Prajāpati Dakṣa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Just to satisfy the Pracetās, Soma gave them a beautiful girl born of Pramlocā Apsarā. By the semen of all the Pracetās, Dakṣa was born of that girl.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.4
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. itithus
  2. āmantryaaddressing
  3. vara-ārohāmpossessing high, beautiful hips
  4. kanyāmthe girl
  5. āpsarasīmborn of an Apsarā
  6. nṛpaO King
  7. somaḥSoma, the predominating deity of the moon
  8. rājāthe king
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

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “religious”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “king”

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

How can I make my words more pacifying when others are disturbed?

Practice

In one tense conversation today, speak gently with the aim of calming rather than escalating it.

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 6.4's connections

Live this todayPeace Followed by Religious MarriageThis 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 6.4.16? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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