1 · Learn4 of 6 · 5 min

Study a Verse

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

Or browse by canto and chapter
Canto

Canto 6 · Prescribed Duties for Mankind · 19 chapters

12345678910111213141516171819

Choose a chapter to see all its verses.

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
6.4.306.4.32

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.4.31

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Prajāpati Dakṣasince 6.4.23inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

यच्छक्तयो वदतां वादिनां वै

विवादसंवादभुवो भवन्ति ।

कुर्वन्ति चैषां मुहुरात्ममोहं

तस्मै नमोऽनन्तगुणाय भूम्ने ॥ ३१ ॥

yac-chaktayo vadatāṁ vādināṁ vai

vivāda-saṁvāda-bhuvo bhavanti

kurvanti caiṣāṁ muhur ātma-mohaṁ

tasmai namo ’nanta-guṇāya bhūmne

Translation

Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the all-pervading Supreme Personality of Godhead, who possesses unlimited transcendental qualities. Acting from within the cores of the hearts of all philosophers, who propagate various views, He causes them to forget their own souls while sometimes agreeing and sometimes disagreeing among themselves. Thus He creates within this material world a situation in which they are unable to come to a conclusion. I offer my obeisances unto Him.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotees Recognize the Ultimate Cause

  1. 1

    Human life is meant for understanding the ultimate cause. Devotees accept Kṛṣṇa as that cause, supported by Vedic literature and His own statement that He is the source of everything.

  2. 2

    Philosophical speculators invent opposing explanations and cannot reach a conclusion. Bewilderment about the soul and envy of the Supreme Lord keep them in darkness.

  3. 3

    The all-pervading Supreme Personality of Godhead possesses unlimited transcendental qualities. His form, knowledge, strength and opulence are free from material contamination.

Key points from the purport
  • All of these speculators are envious of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (16.19-20):
  • Because of their envy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, nondevotees are born in demoniac families life after life.
  • The demoniac speculators cannot understand the transcendental qualities, form, pastimes, strength, knowledge and opulence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, which are all free from material contamination (vinā heyair guṇādibhiḥ).

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· 5

The purport of SB 6.4.31 quotesBG 10.12

As Arjuna told Kṛṣṇa in Bhagavad-gītā (10.12): “You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person.

The purport of SB 6.4.31 quotesBG 16.19

All of these speculators are envious of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (16.19-20):

Quoted in the purport ofSB 11.22.5

As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.4.31): “Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the all-pervading Supreme Personality of Godhead, who possesses unlimited transcendental qualities.

Quoted in the purport ofSB 12.6.30-31

As stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.4.31): “Let me offer my respectful obeisances unto the all-pervading Supreme Personality of Godhead, who possesses unlimited transcendental qualities.

Quoted in the purport ofCC Madhya 6.108

This is a quotation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.4.31).

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:

As the air passes over a lotus flower and carries the scent of the flower with it, or as the air sometimes carries dust and therefore assumes colors, the Supreme Personality of Godhead appears as the various demigods according to the desires of His various foolish worshipers, but actually He is the supreme truth, Lord Viṣṇu. To fulfill the desires of His devotees, He appears in various incarnations, and therefore there is no need to worship the demigods.”
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.4
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. yat-śaktayaḥwhose multifarious potencies
  2. vadatāmspeaking different philosophies
  3. vādināmof the speakers
  4. vaiindeed
  5. vivādaof argument
  6. saṁvādaand agreement
  7. bhuvaḥthe causes
  8. bhavantiare
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “philosophers”, “knowledge”, “philosophical”

  • Moha · Material attachment

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

    In this verse: “material”

  • Vairāgya · Freedom from attachment

    Release from possessiveness and false identities. · Theme in SB 6.4

    In this verse: “free from”

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

When I seek understanding, am I trying to recognize the truth or make my own view seem most important?

Practice

Pause for a minute today to reflect on Kṛṣṇa’s statement, “I am the source of everything,” and offer Him your respects.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayDevotees Recognize the Ultimate CauseThis 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 6.4.31? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
  1. Learn
  2. Live
  3. Lead
Next in Learn · 5 of 11 · 2 minAsk the BhāgavatamBring your own question. Get an answer drawn only from the Bhāgavatam's translations, with every verse shown.Back · LearnCantos & stories