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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 5: Prahlāda Mahārāja, the Saintly Son of Hiraṇyakaśipu

7.5.18 7.5.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.5.19

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Nārada Munisince 7.5.15inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira

तत एनं गुरुर्ज्ञात्वा ज्ञातज्ञेयचतुष्टयम् ।

दैत्येन्द्रं दर्शयामास मातृमृष्टमलङ्‌कृतम् ॥ १९ ॥

tata enaṁ gurur jñātvā

jñāta-jñeya-catuṣṭayam

daityendraṁ darśayām āsa

mātṛ-mṛṣṭam alaṅkṛtam

Translation

After some time, the teachers Ṣaṇḍa and Amarka thought that Prahlāda Mahārāja was sufficiently educated in the diplomatic affairs of pacifying public leaders, appeasing them by giving them lucrative posts, dividing and ruling over them, and punishing them in cases of disobedience. Then, one day, after Prahlāda’s mother had personally washed the boy and dressed him nicely with sufficient ornaments, they presented him before his father.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Training in the Four Diplomatic Principles

1
The purport explains that a student preparing to become a ruler must learn four diplomatic principles. Hiraṇyakaśipu’s teachers trained Prahlāda Mahārāja in these methods.
2
The ruler first tries to pacify an opponent with sweet words, then offers a lucrative post. If these fail, he tries to divide the opposing group and finally resorts to punishment.
3
The teachers thought Prahlāda had sufficiently learned these affairs. After his mother washed and dressed him nicely, they presented him before his father.

Key points from the purport

Therefore, when a citizen agitates the public against the king, the duty of the king is to call him and try to pacify him with sweet words, saying, “You are very important in the state.
If the citizen is not pacified, the king should then offer him some lucrative post as a governor or minister — any post that draws a high salary — so that he may be agreeable.
The teachers appointed by Hiraṇyakaśipu taught Prahlāda Mahārāja how to be a diplomat so that he could rule over the citizens very nicely.

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

Threat → Steady faith. A vulnerable child remains inwardly unshaken.

Chapters 5–7 of Canto 7: Prahlāda refuses to abandon his devotion. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 5: Prahlāda Mahārāja, the Saintly Son of Hiraṇyakaśipu

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Once upon a time, Hiraṇyakaśipu inquired from his son what the best thing was that he had learned from his teachers. Prahlāda Mahārāja replied that a man engrossed in the material consciousness of duality, thinking, “This is mine, and that belongs to my enemy,” should give up his householder life and go to the forest to worship the Supreme Lord.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 7.5

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

tataḥthereafter
enamhim (Prahlāda Mahārāja)
guruḥhis teachers
jñātvāknowing
jñātaknown
jñeyawhich are to be known
catuṣṭayamthe four diplomatic principles ( sāma, the process of pacifying
dānathe process of giving money in charity; bheda, the principle of dividing; and daṇḍa, the principle of punishment)

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 7.5
In this verse: “mother”, “father”
Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct
Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 7.5
In this verse: “principles”
Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership
Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 7.5
In this verse: “ruler”

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

What do these lessons reveal about the kind of ruler the teachers wanted Prahlāda to become?

Practice

Write down the four diplomatic methods in their order to clarify the training Prahlāda received.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayTraining in the Four Diplomatic PrinciplesThis 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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