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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 9: Appearance of the Demon Vṛtrāsura

6.9.49 6.9.51

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 6.9.50

Mukti· Liberation

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:The Supreme Personality of Godheadsince 6.9.47inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

स्वयं नि:श्रेयसं विद्वान् न वक्त्यज्ञाय कर्म हि ।

न राति रोगिणोऽपथ्यं वाञ्छतोऽपि भिषक्तम: ॥ ५० ॥

svayaṁ niḥśreyasaṁ vidvān

na vakty ajñāya karma hi

na rāti rogiṇo ’pathyaṁ

vāñchato ’pi bhiṣaktamaḥ

Translation

A pure devotee who is fully accomplished in the science of devotional service will never instruct a foolish person to engage in fruitive activities for material enjoyment, not to speak of helping him in such activities. Such a devotee is like an experienced physician, who never encourages a patient to eat food injurious to his health, even if the patient desires it.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

True Blessings Lead Back to Godhead

1
A pure devotee does not encourage activities meant for material enjoyment. Like an experienced physician, the devotee does not give what harms someone merely because it is desired.
2
Benedictions sought from demigods for sense gratification are limited and temporary. Lord Viṣṇu gives blessings that help one return home, back to Godhead.
3
Lord Viṣṇu, or Lord Kṛṣṇa, gives guidance to a devotee constantly engaged in His service. His blessing leads the devotee to Him rather than to another material birth.

Key points from the purport

Here is the difference between the benedictions awarded by the demigods and those awarded by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu.
Devotees of the demigods ask for benedictions simply for sense gratification, and therefore they have been described in Bhagavad-gītā (7.20) as bereft of intelligence.
All requests for benedictions from the demigods, however, are due to material lust.

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· 3

The purport of SB 6.9.50 quotesBG 7.20

Devotees of the demigods ask for benedictions simply for sense gratification, and therefore they have been described in Bhagavad-gītā (7.20) as bereft of intelligence.

The purport of SB 6.9.50 quotesBG 10.10

This is also confirmed by the Lord Himself in Bhagavad-gītā (10.10): Lord Viṣṇu, or Lord Kṛṣṇa, instructs a devotee who constantly engages in His service how to approach Him at the end of his material body.

The purport of SB 6.9.50 quotesBG 4.9

The Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.9): “One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities, does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.”

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

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 9: Appearance of the Demon Vṛtrāsura

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

A dog can swim, but that does not mean that one can cross the ocean by grasping a dog’s tail. Being pleased with the demigods, the Supreme Personality of Godhead advised them to approach Dadhīci to beg him for the bones of his own body.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 6.9

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

svayampersonally
niḥśreyasamthe supreme goal of life, namely the means of obtaining ecstatic love for the Supreme Personality of Godhead
vit-vānone who is accomplished in devotional service
nanot
vaktiteaches
ajñāyaunto a foolish person not conversant with the ultimate goal of life
karmafruitive activities
hiindeed

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
Bhakti · Devotion and loving service
How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 6.9
In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotee”
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 6.9
In this verse: “material”, “sense gratification”
Kṛpā · Divine mercy
Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 6.9
In this verse: “blessings”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Am I seeking blessings that deepen devotional service or merely satisfy temporary desires?

Practice

Ask Kṛṣṇa for guidance toward His service rather than for one temporary enjoyment.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayTrue Blessings Lead Back to GodheadThis 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 6.9.50? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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