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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

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15

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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 14: Ideal Family Life

7.14.37 7.14.39

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.14.38

Āśraya· The supreme shelter

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Nārada Munisince 7.14.27-28inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira

तेष्वेव भगवान् राजंस्तारतम्येन वर्तते ।

तस्मात्पात्रं हि पुरुषो यावानात्मा यथेयते ॥ ३८ ॥

teṣv eva bhagavān rājaṁs

tāratamyena vartate

tasmāt pātraṁ hi puruṣo

yāvān ātmā yatheyate

Translation

O King Yudhiṣṭhira, the Supersoul in every body gives intelligence to the individual soul according to his capacity for understanding. Therefore the Supersoul is the chief within the body. The Supersoul is manifested to the individual soul according to the individual’s comparative development of knowledge, austerity, penance and so on.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Honor Spiritual Advancement Through Thoughtful Charity

1
The Supreme Personality of Godhead, as the Supersoul, gives intelligence according to the individual soul’s capacity to understand. He is the chief within every body.
2
A person’s importance rests on advancement in spiritual consciousness. The purport places the Vaiṣṇava above the spiritually advanced brāhmaṇa, and the Supreme Lord above all.
3
Charity in goodness is given out of duty, at the proper time and place, to a worthy recipient, without expecting a return. Giving to brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas worships the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Key points from the purport

In Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) it is said, mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca: the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His localized aspect gives intelligence to the individual soul as far as he is able to grasp it.
Therefore we find the individual soul in different high and low positions.
Therefore, the brāhmaṇa Vaiṣṇava is important, and, above all, the Supersoul, the Personality of Godhead, is the most important personality.

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· 2

The purport of SB 7.14.38 quotesBG 15.15

In Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) it is said, mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca: the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His localized aspect gives intelligence to the individual soul as far as he is able to grasp it.

The purport of SB 7.14.38 quotesBG 17.20

When charity is to be given, one should take instruction from Bhagavad-gītā (17.20): “That gift which is given out of duty, at the proper time and place, to a worthy person, and without expectation of return, is considered to be charity in the mode of goodness.”

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

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

Chapter 14: Ideal Family Life

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The gṛhastha should not eat anything not offered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As it is said in the Bhagavad-gītā (3.13), yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ: “The devotees of the Lord are released from all kinds of sins because they eat food that is offered first for sacrifice.”

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 7.14

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

teṣuamong the different types of bodies (demigod, human, animal, bird, etc.)
evaindeed
bhagavānthe Supreme Personality of Godhead in His Paramātmā feature
rājanO King
tāratamyenacomparatively, more or less
vartateis situated
tasmāttherefore
pātramthe Supreme Person

Key ideas in this verse

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

Āśraya · The summum bonum
Who is the shelter of everything? · Subject 10 of 10
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 7.14
In this verse: “knowledge”, “understanding”, “understand”
Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership
Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 7.14
In this verse: “king”
Bhakti · Devotion and loving service
How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 7.14
In this verse: “worships”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Can I give in support of spiritual service without expecting anything in return?

Practice

Give a small gift to a Vaiṣṇava today without seeking repayment or recognition.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayHonor Spiritual Advancement Through Thoughtful CharityThis 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 7.14.38? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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