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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

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 7 · Chapter 10: Prahlāda, the Best Among Exalted Devotees

7.10.61 7.10.63

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.10.62

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Nārada Munisince 7.10.53inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira

वत्सश्चासीत्तदा ब्रह्मा स्वयं विष्णुरयं हि गौ: ।

प्रविश्य त्रिपुरं काले रसकूपामृतं पपौ ॥ ६२ ॥

vatsaś cāsīt tadā brahmā

svayaṁ viṣṇur ayaṁ hi gauḥ

praviśya tripuraṁ kāle

rasa-kūpāmṛtaṁ papau

Translation

Then Lord Brahmā became a calf and Lord Viṣṇu a cow, and at noon they entered the residences and drank all the nectar in the well.

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.

Lord Viṣṇu and Lord Brahmā Drink the Nectar

1
Lord Brahmā became a calf, and Lord Viṣṇu became a cow.
2
At noon, they entered the residences.
3
They drank all the nectar in the well, leaving none of it there.

How it feels

Terror and divine fury → Protection and compassion. The crisis resolves through relationship rather than domination.

Chapters 8–10 of Canto 7: Nṛsiṁhadeva appears; Prahlāda pacifies Him. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 10: Prahlāda, the Best Among Exalted Devotees

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Nārada Muni praised Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja because the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, was the greatest well-wisher and friend of the Pāṇḍavas and almost always stayed in their house. Thus the fortune of the Pāṇḍavas was greater than that of Prahlāda Mahārāja.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 7.10

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

vatsaḥa calf
caalso
āsītbecame
tadāat that time
brahmāLord Brahmā
svayampersonally
viṣṇuḥLord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead
ayamthis

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

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Which detail of Lord Viṣṇu and Lord Brahmā’s action helps you remember this verse?

Practice

Recall the verse in your own words, including the forms they took, when they entered and what they did.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayLord Viṣṇu and Lord Brahmā Drink the NectarThis 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 7.10.62? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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