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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 13: The Behavior of a Perfect Person
7.13.187.13.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.13.19

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Nārada Munisince 7.13.1inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira

कवि: कल्पो निपुणद‍ृक् चित्रप्रियकथ: सम: । लोकस्य कुर्वत: कर्म शेषे तद्वीक्षितापि वा ॥ १९ ॥

kaviḥ kalpo nipuṇa-dṛk

citra-priya-kathaḥ samaḥ

lokasya kurvataḥ karma

śeṣe tad-vīkṣitāpi vā

Translation

Your Honor appears learned, expert and intelligent in every way. You can speak very well, saying things that are pleasing to the heart. You see that people in general are engaged in fruitive activities, yet you are lying here inactive.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Seek Understanding Before Judging Inactivity

  1. 1

    Prahlāda Mahārāja could recognize from the saint’s bodily features that he was learned, intelligent and expert.

  2. 2

    He also acknowledged the saint’s ability to speak words pleasing to the heart. The saint’s inactivity did not prevent Prahlāda from noticing these qualities.

  3. 3

    While people in general pursued fruitive activities, the saint lay inactive and observed them. Prahlāda Mahārāja naturally wanted to understand why.

Key points from the purport
  • Prahlāda Mahārāja studied the bodily features of the saintly person, and through the saint’s physiognomy Prahlāda Mahārāja could understand that he was intelligent and expert, although he was lying down and not doing anything.
  • Prahlāda was naturally inquisitive about why he was lying there inactive.

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

Seriousness → Principled living. The example of bhakti becomes a guide to daily life.

Chapters 11–15 of Canto 7: Teachings on social and spiritual conduct. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 13: The Behavior of a Perfect Person

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

He should not try to allure people into becoming his disciples just so that the number of his disciples may increase. He should give up the habit of reading many books as a means of livelihood, and he should not attempt to increase the number of temples and maṭhas, or monasteries.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 7.13
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. kaviḥvery learned
  2. kalpaḥexpert
  3. nipuṇa-dṛkintelligent
  4. citra-priya-kathaḥable to speak palatable words that are pleasing to the heart
  5. samaḥequipoised
  6. lokasyaof the people in general
  7. kurvataḥengaged in
  8. karmafruitive work
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 7.13

    In this verse: “understand”

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

Do I overlook someone’s qualities when their way of living differs from what I expect?

Practice

Today, acknowledge one good quality in someone whose behavior you do not fully understand.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todaySeek Understanding Before Judging InactivityThis 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.

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