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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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Texts 6.4.27-28

Who is speaking and story frame

मनीषिणोऽन्तर्हृदि सन्निवेशितं

स्वशक्तिभिर्नवभिश्च त्रिवृद्भ‍ि: ।

वह्निं यथा दारुणि पाञ्चदश्यं

मनीषया निष्कर्षन्ति गूढम् ॥ २७ ॥

स वै ममाशेषविशेषमाया

निषेधनिर्वाणसुखानुभूति: ।

स सर्वनामा स च विश्वरूप:

प्रसीदतामनिरुक्तात्मशक्ति: ॥ २८ ॥

manīṣiṇo ’ntar-hṛdi sanniveśitaṁ

sva-śaktibhir navabhiś ca trivṛdbhiḥ

vahniṁ yathā dāruṇi pāñcadaśyaṁ

manīṣayā niṣkarṣanti gūḍham

sa vai mamāśeṣa-viśeṣa-māyā-

niṣedha-nirvāṇa-sukhānubhūtiḥ

sa sarva-nāmā sa ca viśva-rūpaḥ

prasīdatām aniruktātma-śaktiḥ

Translation

Just as great learned brāhmaṇas who are expert in performing ritualistic ceremonies and sacrifices can extract the fire dormant within wooden fuel by chanting the fifteen Sāmidhenī mantras, thus proving the efficacy of the Vedic mantras, so those who are actually advanced in consciousness — in other words, those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious — can find the Supersoul, who by His own spiritual potency is situated within the heart. The heart is covered by the three modes of material nature and the nine material elements [material nature, the total material energy, the ego, the mind and the five objects of sense gratification], and also by the five material elements and the ten senses. These twenty-seven elements constitute the external energy of the Lord. Great yogīs meditate upon the Lord, who is situated as the Supersoul, Paramātmā, within the core of the heart. May that Supersoul be pleased with me. The Supersoul is realized when one is eager for liberation from the unlimited varieties of material life. One actually attains such liberation when he engages in the transcendental loving service of the Lord and realizes the Lord because of his attitude of service. The Lord may be addressed by various spiritual names, which are inconceivable to the material senses. When will that Supreme Personality of Godhead be pleased with me?

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotional Service Makes the Lord Accessible

  1. 1

    Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is extremely difficult to understand, yet the perfect path of devotional service makes understanding Him easy. Through pure devotion, one can come in contact with Him despite material impediments.

  2. 2

    Pure devotional service begins with hearing and chanting about the Lord. Continuing this process purifies the heart and leads to transcendental love and appreciation of His name, form, qualities and pastimes.

  3. 3

    Seeking material happiness brings distress, but redirecting one's endeavors toward pleasing the Lord removes this misery. Pleased with His devotee, the Lord turns material impediments into spiritual service.

Key points from the purport
  • To understand Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one must undergo severe penances and austerities, but since the path of devotional service is perfect, by following this process one can very easily come to the spiritual platform and understand the Lord.
  • In other words, a pure devotee, by devotional service, is able to see the Supreme Personality of Godhead despite many material impediments, which are all various energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
  • In other words, experiencing the Supreme Personality of Godhead is extremely difficult for those devoid of devotional service, but everything becomes easier for a devotee, and thus he can very easily meet the Supreme Lord.

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· 4

The purport of SB 6.4.27-28 quotesBG 7.28

The pure stage of existence is described in Bhagavad-gītā (7.28), wherein Kṛṣṇa says: “Persons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life, whose sinful actions are completely eradicated and who are freed from the duality of delusion, engage themselves in My service with determination.”

The purport of SB 6.4.27-28 quotesBG 9.14

Elsewhere in Bhagavad-gītā (9.14) the Lord says: “Always chanting My glories, endeavoring with great determination, bowing down before Me, these great souls perpetually worship Me with devotion.”

The purport of SB 6.4.27-28 quotesBG 18.55

This, too, is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (18.55), wherein Kṛṣṇa says: “One can understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead as He is only by devotional service.

The purport of SB 6.4.27-28 quotesSB 2.8.5

In this regard, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura quotes a verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.8.5): praviṣṭaḥ karṇa-randhreṇa svānāṁ bhāva-saroruham.

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

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:

The conception of God derived through the material senses is inaccurate because the Supreme Lord is beyond the material senses, but when one engages his senses in devotional service, the eternal Supreme Personality of Godhead is revealed on the platform of the soul. When that Supreme Godhead becomes the aim of one’s life, one is said to have attained spiritual knowledge.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.4
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. manīṣiṇaḥgreat learned brāhmaṇas performing ritualistic ceremonies and sacrifices
  2. antaḥ-hṛdiwithin the core of the heart
  3. sanniveśitambeing situated
  4. sva-śaktibhiḥwith His own spiritual potencies
  5. navabhiḥalso with the nine different material potencies (the material nature, the total material energy, the ego, the mind and the five objects of the senses)
  6. caand (the five gross material elements and the ten acting and knowledge-gathering senses)
  7. trivṛdbhiḥby the three material modes of nature
  8. vahnimfire
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Mukti · Liberation

    What is real freedom for the soul? · Subject 9 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “sense gratification”, “material”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “chanting”, “hearing”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotee”

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

Which endeavor for my own happiness could I redirect toward pleasing the Lord?

Practice

Read aloud a short passage about Kṛṣṇa from this purport, listening carefully with the desire to please Him.

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.

The purport quotesSB 2.8.5

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 6.4's connections

Live this todayDevotional Service Makes the Lord AccessibleThis 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 6.4.27-28? Get an answer from the verses themselves.