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

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Canto 7 · The Science of God · 15 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 ›
Canto 7 · Chapter 1: The Supreme Lord Is Equal to Everyone
7.1.367.1.38

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.1.37

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Nārada Munisince 7.1.36inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira

पञ्चषड्ढायनार्भाभा: पूर्वेषामपि पूर्वजा: ।

दिग्वासस: शिशून् मत्वा द्वा:स्थौ तान् प्रत्यषेधताम् ॥ ३७ ॥

pañca-ṣaḍḍhāyanārbhābhāḥ

pūrveṣām api pūrvajāḥ

dig-vāsasaḥ śiśūn matvā

dvāḥ-sthau tān pratyaṣedhatām

Translation

Although these four great sages were older than Brahmā’s other sons like Marīci, they appeared like small naked children only five or six years old. When Jaya and Vijaya saw them trying to enter Vaikuṇṭhaloka, these two gatekeepers, thinking them ordinary children, forbade them to enter.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Associates Remain Liberated

  1. 1

    Although older than Brahmā’s other sons like Marīci, the four sages looked like naked children of five or six. Jaya and Vijaya mistook them for ordinary children and blocked their entrance.

  2. 2

    The personal associates of Lord Viṣṇu in Vaikuṇṭhaloka are always liberated. Curses or blessings do not contaminate them with the material modes of nature.

  3. 3

    Once they reach Vaikuṇṭha, the Lord’s associates no longer possess material bodies. Even when they descend as if cursed, they remain liberated.

Key points from the purport
  • The purport is that the personal associates of Lord Viṣṇu in Vaikuṇṭhaloka are always liberated souls.
  • Even if sometimes cursed or blessed, they are always liberated and never contaminated by the material modes of nature.
  • Therefore even if the associates of Lord Viṣṇu sometimes descend as if cursed, they are always liberated.

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

Pride and rage → Oppression. The ruler's power intensifies his insecurity.

Chapters 1–4 of Canto 7: Hiraṇyakaśipu's ascent and intimidation. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: The Supreme Lord Is Equal to Everyone

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī explains that because of their offenses at the feet of devotees, two attendants of the Lord in Vaikuṇṭha named Jaya and Vijaya became Hiraṇyakaśipu and Hiraṇyākṣa in Satya-yuga, Rāvaṇa and Kumbhakarṇa in the next yuga, Tretā-yuga, and Śiśupāla and Dantavakra at the end of Dvāpara-yuga. Because of their fruitive acts, Jaya and Vijaya agreed to become the Lord’s enemies, and when killed in that mentality, they attained salvation in oneness.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 7.1
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. pañca-ṣaṭ-dhāfive or six years
  2. āyanaapproaching
  3. arbha-ābhāḥlike boys
  4. pūrveṣāmthe ancients of the universe (Marīci and the rest)
  5. apieven though
  6. pūrva-jāḥborn before
  7. dik-vāsasaḥbeing naked
  8. śiśūnchildren
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

  • Vātsalya · Parental affection

    Affection and protective concern for the Lord as a child. · Theme in SB 7.1

    In this verse: “children”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 7.1

    In this verse: “material”

  • Kṛpā · Divine mercy

    Grace received beyond material calculations. · Theme in SB 7.1

    In this verse: “blessings”

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

What does this account teach me about the limits of judging by outward appearance?

Practice

Before judging someone by appearance today, pause and remember the gatekeepers’ mistake.

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.

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 7.1's connections

Live this todayThe Lord’s Associates Remain LiberatedThis 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 7.1.37? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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