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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.
Read the full guide: how to hear the Bhāgavatam ›
Canto 8 · Chapter 19: Lord Vāmanadeva Begs Charity from Bali Mahārāja
8.19.98.19.11

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 8.19.10

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Lord Vāmanadevasince 8.19.10inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

एवं स निश्चित्य रिपो: शरीर-

माधावतो निर्विविशेऽसुरेन्द्र ।

श्वासानिलान्तर्हितसूक्ष्मदेह-

स्तत्प्राणरन्ध्रेण विविग्नचेता: ॥ १० ॥

evaṁ sa niścitya ripoḥ śarīram

ādhāvato nirviviśe ’surendra

śvāsānilāntarhita-sūkṣma-dehas

tat-prāṇa-randhreṇa vivigna-cetāḥ

Translation

Lord Vāmanadeva continued: O King of the demons, after Lord Viṣṇu made this decision, He entered the body of His enemy Hiraṇyakaśipu, who was running after Him with great force. In a subtle body inconceivable to Hiraṇyakaśipu, Lord Viṣṇu, who was in great anxiety, entered Hiraṇyakaśipu’s nostril along with his breath.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Anxiety Is Compassion, Not Fear

  1. 1

    Lord Viṣṇu entered Hiraṇyakaśipu’s nostril along with his breath, in a subtle body inconceivable to him.

  2. 2

    The Supreme Personality of Godhead is already in the core of everyone’s heart. Therefore entering Hiraṇyakaśipu’s body was not at all difficult for Lord Viṣṇu.

  3. 3

    The Lord’s anxiety was not fear of Hiraṇyakaśipu. Out of compassion, He was concerned about how to act for his welfare.

Key points from the purport
  • The Supreme Personality of Godhead is already in the core of everyone’s heart. īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe ’rjuna tiṣṭhati (Bg. 18.61).
  • Logically, therefore, it was not at all difficult for Lord Viṣṇu to enter Hiraṇyakaśipu’s body.
  • It is not that Lord Viṣṇu was afraid of Hiraṇyakaśipu; rather, because of compassion, Lord Viṣṇu was in anxiety about how to act for his welfare.

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 8.19.10 quotesBG 18.61

The Supreme Personality of Godhead is already in the core of everyone’s heart. īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe ’rjuna tiṣṭhati.

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

Public loss and humiliation → Total surrender. An apparent external defeat conceals a devotional triumph.

Chapters 19–23 of Canto 8: Vāmana tests Bali; Bali offers everything. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 19: Lord Vāmanadeva Begs Charity from Bali Mahārāja

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

When Bali Mahārāja, thinking Vāmanadeva to be the son of a brāhmaṇa, told Him to ask for anything He liked, Lord Vāmanadeva praised Hiraṇyakaśipu and Hiraṇyākṣa for their heroic activities, and after thus praising the family in which Bali Mahārāja had been born, He begged the King for three paces of land.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 8.19
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. evamin this way
  2. saḥHe (Lord Viṣṇu)
  3. niścityadeciding
  4. ripoḥof the enemy
  5. śarīramthe body
  6. ādhāvataḥwho was running after Him with great force
  7. nirviviśeentered
  8. asura-indraO King of the demons (Mahārāja Bali)
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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

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 8.19

    In this verse: “king”

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 8.19

    In this verse: “compassion”, “welfare”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 8.19

    In this verse: “fear”

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

How does the Lord’s concern for His enemy’s welfare deepen my appreciation of His compassion?

Practice

Pause today to remember the Lord in everyone’s heart, including someone you find difficult.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

6

Connected stories

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

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 8.19's connections

Live this todayThe Lord’s Anxiety Is Compassion, Not FearThis 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 8.19.10? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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