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

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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.5.16

Who is speaking and story frame

सृष्ट्यप्ययकरीं मायां वेलाकूलान्तवेगिताम् ।

मत्तस्य तामविज्ञस्य किमसत्कर्मभिर्भवेत् ॥ १६ ॥

sṛṣṭy-apyaya-karīṁ māyāṁ

velā-kūlānta-vegitām

mattasya tām avijñasya

kim asat-karmabhir bhavet

Translation

[Nārada Muni had said that there is a river flowing in both directions. The Haryaśvas understood the purport of this statement.] Material nature functions in two ways — by creation and dissolution. Thus the river of material nature flows both ways. A living entity who unknowingly falls in this river is submerged in its waves, and since the current is swifter near the banks of the river, he is unable to get out. What will be the benefit of performing fruitive activities in that river of māyā?

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Cross Māyā Through Kṛṣṇa Consciousness

  1. 1

    Material nature is like a river flowing toward both creation and dissolution. Temporary fruitive activities cannot free someone who is being tossed by its waves.

  2. 2

    Māyā acts under the Supreme Lord’s direction. The same māyā can help release the living entity when he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa.

  3. 3

    Kṛṣṇa consciousness includes both knowledge from Vedic literature and the practice of austerity. Understanding how māyā works and how to become free is one’s first duty.

Key points from the purport
  • One may be submerged in the waves of the river of māyā, but one may also get free from the waves by coming to the banks of knowledge and austerity.
  • When one falls in the river of nescience, he is always tossed here and there by the waves, but the same māyā can also save him when be surrenders to Kṛṣṇa, or becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious.
  • One must understand how māyā works and how one can be released from the tossing waves of the river of nescience.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

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 5: Nārada Muni Cursed by Prajāpati Dakṣa

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

However, when Śrīla Nārada Muni saw these boys engaged in such commendable austerities simply for material creation, he thought it better to release them from this tendency. Nārada Muni described to the boys their ultimate goal of life and advised them not to become ordinary karmīs to beget children.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 6.5
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. sṛṣṭicreation
  2. apyayadissolution
  3. karīmone who causes
  4. māyāmthe illusory energy
  5. velā-kūla-antanear the banks
  6. vegitāmbeing very rapid
  7. mattasyaof one who is mad
  8. tāmthat material nature
  9. avijñasyawho does not know
  10. kim asat-karmabhiḥ bhavetwhat benefit can there be by performing temporary fruitive activities
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 6.5

    In this verse: “māyā”, “material”

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 6.5

    In this verse: “knowledge”, “understanding”

  • Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct

    Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 6.5

    In this verse: “duty”

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 seeking freedom from material life, or merely becoming busier within it?

Practice

Give up one small comfort today to make time for reading Vedic literature with attention.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayCross Māyā Through Kṛṣṇa ConsciousnessThis 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 6.5.16? Get an answer from the verses themselves.