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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

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
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 8: The Nārāyaṇa-kavaca Shield

6.8.32-33 6.8.35

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.8.34

Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protection

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Viśvarūpasince 6.8.4-6inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

विदिक्षु दिक्षूर्ध्वमध: समन्ता-

दन्तर्बहिर्भगवान्नारसिंह: ।

प्रहापयँल्लोकभयं स्वनेन

स्वतेजसा ग्रस्तसमस्ततेजा: ॥ ३४ ॥

vidikṣu dikṣūrdhvam adhaḥ samantād

antar bahir bhagavān nārasiṁhaḥ

prahāpayaḻ loka-bhayaṁ svanena

sva-tejasā grasta-samasta-tejāḥ

Translation

Prahlāda Mahārāja loudly chanted the holy name of Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva. May Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva, roaring for His devotee Prahlāda Mahārāja, protect us from all fear of dangers created by stalwart leaders in all directions through poison, weapons, water, fire, air and so on. May the Lord cover their influence by His own transcendental influence. May Nṛsiṁhadeva protect us in all directions and in all corners, above, below, within and without.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Nṛsiṁhadeva Protects Within and Without

1
Prahlāda Mahārāja loudly chanted Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva’s holy name. The prayer addresses the Lord who roars for His devotee.
2
It asks the Lord to protect us from fear of dangers created by powerful leaders through poison, weapons, water, fire and air.
3
The prayer asks that the Lord’s transcendental influence cover all threatening influences. It seeks His protection in every direction, within and without.

How it feels

Offense and dread → Moral reckoning. Heroic power does not guarantee inner freedom.

Chapters 7–10 of Canto 6: Indra, Bṛhaspati and the emergence of Vṛtrāsura. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 8: The Nārāyaṇa-kavaca Shield

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

One must progressively place the syllables of the mantra on the heart, the head, between the two eyebrows, on the śikhā and between the eyes, and then one should chant maḥ astrāya phaṭ and with this mantra protect himself from all directions. Nādevo devam arcayet: one who has not risen to the level of a deva cannot chant this mantra.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 6.8

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

vidikṣuin all corners
dikṣuin all directions (east, west, north and south)
ūrdhvamabove
adhaḥbelow
samantāton all sides
antaḥinternally
bahiḥexternally
bhagavānthe Supreme Personality of Godhead

Key ideas in this verse

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

Poṣaṇa · Protection by the Lord
How does the Lord care for His devotees? · Subject 4 of 10
Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting
Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 6.8
In this verse: “chanted”, “holy name”
Abhaya · Fearlessness
Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 6.8
In this verse: “fear”, “dangers”
Bhakti · Devotion and loving service
How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 6.8
In this verse: “devotee”

Chapter themes come from the story phase this chapter belongs to.

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What inward or outward fear would I like to place before Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva?

Practice

Say Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva’s holy name aloud and ask for His protection within and without.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

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 6.8's connections

Live this todayNṛsiṁhadeva Protects Within and WithoutThis 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 6.8.34? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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