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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 8 · Withdrawal of the Cosmic Creations · 24 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.
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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 8.1.14

Who is speaking and story frame

अथाग्रे ऋषय: कर्माणीहन्तेऽकर्महेतवे ।

ईहमानो हि पुरुष: प्रायोऽनीहां प्रपद्यते ॥ १४ ॥

athāgre ṛṣayaḥ karmāṇ-

īhante ’karma-hetave

īhamāno hi puruṣaḥ

prāyo ’nīhāṁ prapadyate

Translation

Therefore, to enable people to reach the stage of activities that are not tinged by fruitive results, great saints first engage people in fruitive activities, for unless one begins by performing activities as recommended in the śāstras, one cannot reach the stage of liberation, or activities that produce no reactions.

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

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Act to Please Kṛṣṇa

  1. 1

    Saintly persons first guide people into activities recommended in the śāstras so they can progress toward freedom from material reactions. Work performed as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu frees us from the bondage that other work creates.

  2. 2

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead is the actual enjoyer of sacrifice. By working for His satisfaction, we gradually lose our taste for material activities and advance toward devotional service.

  3. 3

    One cannot please Kṛṣṇa merely by sitting idly or imitating advanced devotees. We should act seriously under the spiritual master’s direction and gradually come to pure devotional service.

Key points from the purport
  • Therefore it is advised that active persons engage in activities of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, which are called yajña, because then they will gradually come to the platform of devotional service.
  • One cannot please Kṛṣṇa by sitting idly; one must act according to the directions of the spiritual master for the sake of pleasing the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and then one will gradually come to the stage of pure devotional service.
  • Engage yourself in Kṛṣṇa conscious activities, and gradually you will come to the stage of liberation (muktir hitvānyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ).

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· 5

The purport of SB 8.1.14 quotesBG 3.9

In Bhagavad-gītā (3.9) Lord Kṛṣṇa advises, yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: “Work done as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu has to be performed; otherwise work binds one to this material world.”

The purport of SB 8.1.14 quotesSB 1.2.13

“O best among the twice-born, it is concluded that the highest perfection one can achieve, by discharging his prescribed duties [ dharma] according to caste divisions and order of life, is to please the Lord Hari.”

The purport of SB 8.1.14 quotesSB 1.5.12

As confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.5.12): “Knowledge of self-realization, even though freed from all material affinity, does not look well if devoid of a conception of the infallible [God].”

The purport of SB 8.1.14 quotesBG 6.3

Therefore, in Bhagavad-gītā (6.3) karma-yoga is recommended: “For one who is a neophyte in the yoga system, work is said to be the means; and for one who has already attained to yoga, cessation of all material activities is said to be the means.”

The purport of SB 8.1.14 quotesBG 3.6

“One who restrains the senses and organs of action, but whose mind dwells on sense objects, certainly deludes himself and is called a pretender.”

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

Helplessness → Surrender and rescue. A mighty animal finally realizes the limits of strength.

Chapters 1–4 of Canto 8: Gajendra's struggle and prayers. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: The Manus, Administrators of the Universe

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Because Śukadeva Gosvāmī had already described the activities of Kapila in the Third Canto, he now described the activities of Yajña. The original Manu, along with his wife, Śatarūpā, went into the forest to practice austerities on the bank of the river Sunandā.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 8.1
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. athatherefore
  2. agrein the beginning
  3. ṛṣayaḥall learned ṛṣis, saintly persons
  4. karmāṇifruitive activities
  5. īhanteexecute
  6. akarmafreedom from fruitive results
  7. hetavefor the purpose of
  8. īhamānaḥengaging in such activities
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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

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 8.1

    In this verse: “devotional service”, “devotees”

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 8.1

    In this verse: “material”

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

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

In one of your daily duties, are you seeking only your own enjoyment or trying to please Kṛṣṇa?

Practice

Choose one duty today and begin it with the deliberate intention of pleasing Kṛṣṇa rather than seeking personal praise.

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Connected stories

Keep going: stories told elsewhere in the Bhāgavatam that this verse or its purport brings in.

The purport quotesSB 1.2.13SB 1.5.12

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 8.1's connections

Live this todayAct to Please 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 8.1.14? Get an answer from the verses themselves.