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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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Canto 8 · Chapter 10: The Battle Between the Demigods and the Demons
8.9.298.10.2

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 8.10.1

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 8.10.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

श्रीशुक उवाच

इति दानवदैतेया नाविन्दन्नमृतं नृप ।

युक्ता: कर्मणि यत्ताश्च वासुदेवपराङ्‌मुखा: ॥ १ ॥

śrī-śuka uvāca

iti dānava-daiteyā

nāvindann amṛtaṁ nṛpa

yuktāḥ karmaṇi yattāś ca

vāsudeva-parāṅmukhāḥ

Translation

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O King, the demons and Daityas all engaged with full attention and effort in churning the ocean, but because they were not devotees of Vāsudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, they were not able to drink the nectar.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Effort Alone Did Not Bring Nectar

  1. 1

    The demons and Daityas churned the ocean with full attention and effort.

  2. 2

    Yet they were unable to drink the nectar because they were not devotees of Vāsudeva.

  3. 3

    Vāsudeva is Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The verse draws attention to devotion, not effort alone.

How it feels

Danger and ambition → Divine rescue and surprise. Cooperation, rivalry and revelation alternate rapidly.

Chapters 5–12 of Canto 8: Churning the ocean, poison and nectar. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 10: The Battle Between the Demigods and the Demons

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The demigods and demons churned the Ocean of Milk to get nectar from it, but the demons, not being devotees of the Lord, could derive no profit. After feeding nectar to the demigods, Lord Viṣṇu returned to His abode on the back of Garuḍa, but the demons, being most aggrieved, again declared war against the demigods.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 8.10
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. śrī-śukaḥ uvācaŚrī Śukadeva Gosvāmī said
  2. itithus
  3. dānava-daiteyāḥthe asuras and the demons
  4. nanot
  5. avindanachieved (the desired result)
  6. amṛtamnectar
  7. nṛpaO King
  8. yuktāḥall being combined
3

Key ideas in this verse

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

  • Ūti · The creative impetus

    Why do we act, and what keeps us bound? · Subject 5 of 10

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 8.10

    In this verse: “devotees”, “devotion”

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 8.10

    In this verse: “king”

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

Am I giving attention to devotion, as well as to the results I want?

Practice

Before one task today, pause and remember Kṛṣṇa, making devotion your aim.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayEffort Alone Did Not Bring NectarThis 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 8.10.1? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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