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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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.15.58

Who is speaking and story frame

आबाधितोऽपि ह्याभासो यथा वस्तुतया स्मृत: ।

दुर्घटत्वादैन्द्रियकं तद्वदर्थविकल्पितम् ॥ ५८ ॥

ābādhito ’pi hy ābhāso

yathā vastutayā smṛtaḥ

durghaṭatvād aindriyakaṁ

tadvad artha-vikalpitam

Translation

Although one may consider the reflection of the sun from a mirror to be false, it has its factual existence. Accordingly, to prove by speculative knowledge that there is no reality would be extremely difficult.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Reality Has Its Source in Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    Mistaking a rope for a snake does not mean that snakes do not exist. Similarly, the varieties of this world reflect reality in the spiritual world, Vaikuṇṭha.

  2. 2

    A reflection of sunlight cannot exist without the sun. Likewise, nothing can exist or work independently of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

  3. 3

    Staunch faith in Kṛṣṇa and His instructions reveals reality beyond imperfect speculation. Everything comes from Him and is simultaneously one with and different from Him, but not everything is therefore to be worshiped.

Key points from the purport
  • The Vaiṣṇavas say, however, that although the idea that the rope is a snake is false, the snake is not false; one has experience of a snake in reality, and therefore he knows that although the representation of the rope as a snake is false or illusory, there is a snake in reality.
  • Similarly, this world, which is full of varieties, is not false; it is a reflection of the reality in the Vaikuṇṭha world, the spiritual world.
  • Thus the jugglery of words used by the Māyāvādī philosopher to prove that this material world is false may amaze inexperienced children, but a man with full knowledge knows perfectly well that there cannot be any existence without Kṛṣṇa.

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 7.15.58 quotesBG 7.1

Kṛṣṇa also says in Bhagavad-gītā (7.1): “Now hear, O son of Pṛthā [Arjuna], how by practicing yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.”

The purport of SB 7.15.58 quotesBG 9.10

This is explained in Bhagavad-gītā (9.10) by the Lord Himself: “This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, and it is producing all moving and unmoving beings.

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

Further reading

Chapter 15: Instructions for Civilized Human Beings

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

One should never consider the spiritual master an ordinary human being, even though the members of the spiritual master’s family may think of him as such. Meditation and other processes of austerity are useful only if they help in advancement toward Kṛṣṇa consciousness; otherwise, they are simply a waste of time and labor.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 7.15
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. ābādhitaḥrejected
  2. apialthough
  3. hicertainly
  4. ābhāsaḥa reflection
  5. yathāas
  6. vastutayāa form of reality
  7. smṛtaḥaccepted
  8. durghaṭatvātbecause of being very difficult to prove the reality
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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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 7.15

    In this verse: “knowledge”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 7.15

    In this verse: “worshiped”

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

How could faith in Kṛṣṇa's instructions guide my search for reality?

Practice

Reread Kṛṣṇa's statement about material nature working under His direction, and spend a minute reflecting on your dependence on Him.

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.

Live this todayReality Has Its Source in KṛṣṇaThis 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 7.15.58? Get an answer from the verses themselves.