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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 9: Prahlāda Pacifies Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva with Prayers
7.9.357.9.37

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 7.9.36

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Prahlāda Mahārājasince 7.9.9inside 3 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King ParīkṣitNārada Muni → Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira

एवं सहस्रवदनाङ्‌घ्रिशिर:करोरु-

नासाद्यकर्णनयनाभरणायुधाढ्यम् ।

मायामयं सदुपलक्षितसन्निवेशं

द‍ृष्ट्वा महापुरुषमाप मुदं विरिञ्च: ॥ ३६ ॥

evaṁ sahasra-vadanāṅghri-śiraḥ-karoru-

nāsādya-karṇa-nayanābharaṇāyudhāḍhyam

māyāmayaṁ sad-upalakṣita-sanniveśaṁ

dṛṣṭvā mahā-puruṣam āpa mudaṁ viriñcaḥ

Translation

Lord Brahmā could then see You possessing thousands and thousands of faces, feet, heads, hands, thighs, noses, ears and eyes. You were very nicely dressed, being decorated and bedecked with varieties of ornaments and weapons. Seeing You in the form of Lord Viṣṇu, Your symptoms and form being transcendental, Your legs extending from the lower planets, Lord Brahmā achieved transcendental bliss.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Realization Leads to the Lord’s Personal Form

  1. 1

    Completely purified, Brahmā saw the transcendental form of Lord Viṣṇu and experienced bliss. Genuine self-realization means seeing the Lord’s personal form, not merely His impersonal effulgence.

  2. 2

    Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, with an eternal, blissful, spiritual form. The impersonal Brahman effulgence emanates from His supreme form, not the other way around.

  3. 3

    The Lord’s form is factual, not an illusion, and seeing it is the result of perfect knowledge. One who is perfectly in knowledge surrenders to the Personality of Godhead.

Key points from the purport
  • Upon being purified, Brahmā could see the supreme form of the Lord.
  • When one is in perfect transcendental bliss, he can see the Lord’s supreme form (vigraha).
  • Lord Brahmā saw that as aromas and colors spread throughout the earth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead pervades the cosmic manifestation in a subtle form.

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

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

Further reading

Chapter 9: Prahlāda Pacifies Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva with Prayers

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

For example, although Lord Brahmā appeared from the lotus seat that had grown from the abdomen of Garbhodakaśāyī Viṣṇu, he could not understand what to do after his appearance. He was attacked by two demons, Madhu and Kaiṭabha, who took away Vedic knowledge, but the Lord killed them and entrusted to Lord Brahmā the Vedic knowledge.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 7.9
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. evamin this way
  2. sahasrathousands and thousands
  3. vadanafaces
  4. aṅghrifeet
  5. śiraḥheads
  6. karahands
  7. uruthighs
  8. nāsa-ādyanoses, etc.
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

  • Śaraṇāgati · Wholehearted surrender

    Relinquishing ownership while entrusting oneself to the Lord. · Theme in SB 7.9

    In this verse: “surrenders”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 7.9

    In this verse: “illusion”

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 7.9

    In this verse: “purified”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does understanding the Lord as an eternal person deepen your desire to surrender to Him?

Practice

Offer a short prayer to Kṛṣṇa, acknowledging His eternal personal form and asking to serve Him.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Śrīla Prabhupāda speaks

His recorded lectures on this verse, and the talks where he quotes it.

1 lecture given on it. Recordings and transcripts on prabhupada.io.

Live this todayRealization Leads to the Lord’s Personal FormThis 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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