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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

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 8 · Chapter 16: Executing the Payo-vrata Process of Worship

8.16.4 8.16.6

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 8.16.5

Manvantara· The Manus and right duty

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 8.16.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

अपि वाकुशलं किञ्चिद् गृहेषु गृहमेधिनि ।

धर्मस्यार्थस्य कामस्य यत्र योगो ह्ययोगिनाम् ॥ ५ ॥

api vākuśalaṁ kiñcid

gṛheṣu gṛha-medhini

dharmasyārthasya kāmasya

yatra yogo hy ayoginām

Translation

O my wife, who are very much attached to household life, if the principles of religion, economic development and satisfaction of the senses are properly followed in household life, one’s activities are as good as those of a transcendentalist. I wonder whether there have been any discrepancies in following these principles.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Give Household Life a Spiritual Aim

1
A gṛhamedhī is satisfied in household life for sense gratification. The happiness gained from this alone is very meager.
2
The śāstras regulate religion, economic development and sense gratification so that one can advance toward liberation. Religion is not meant merely to improve material enjoyment.
3
Household life should aim at spiritual understanding and inquiry into the ultimate goal of life. With this aim, it can be as good as the life of a yogi.

Key points from the purport

Generally, those who are in household life pursue sense gratification in the field of activities performed for material results.
Those who are in household life should not think that religion is meant to improve the process of the householder’s sense gratification.
Kaśyapa Muni therefore inquired from his wife whether the principles of religion, economic development and sense gratification were being properly followed in terms of the śāstric injunctions.

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· 1

The purport of SB 8.16.5 quotesSB 1.2.9

As explained in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.9), dharmasya hy āpavargyasya nārtho ’rthāyopakalpate: “All occupational engagements are certainly meant for ultimate liberation.

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

Loss and hope → Revelation. A shift in fortune sets up a spiritual test.

Chapters 15–18 of Canto 8: Bali, Aditi and Vāmana's appearance. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 16: Executing the Payo-vrata Process of Worship

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Since the demigods were not visible in the heavenly kingdom, their mother, Aditi, because of separation from them, was very much aggrieved. One day after many, many years, the great sage Kaśyapa emerged from a trance of meditation and returned to his āśrama.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 8.16

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

apiI am wondering
vāeither
akuśalaminauspiciousness
kiñcitsome
gṛheṣuat home
gṛha-medhiniO my wife, who are attached to household life
dharmasyaof the principles of religion
arthasyaof the economic condition

Key ideas in this verse

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

Manvantara · The change of Manus
What gives human life its right direction? · Subject 6 of 10
Moha · Material attachment
The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 8.16
In this verse: “attached”, “household”, “sense gratification”
Dharma · Duty and righteous conduct
Right action as duty, responsibility and devotion. · Theme in SB 8.16
In this verse: “religion”, “principles”
Jñāna · Spiritual insight
Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 8.16
In this verse: “inquiry”, “understanding”

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

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

Are my household activities helping me seek spiritual understanding, or only greater comfort?

Practice

Set aside five minutes today to study spiritual teachings with the aim of understanding life’s ultimate goal.

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Connected stories

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

The purport quotesSB 1.2.9

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 8.16's connections

Live this todayGive Household Life a Spiritual AimThis 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 8.16.5? Get an answer from the verses themselves.

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