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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
8.19.108.19.12

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 8.19.11

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

स तन्निकेतं परिमृश्य शून्य-

मपश्यमान: कुपितो ननाद ।

क्ष्मां द्यां दिश: खं विवरान्समुद्रान्

विष्णुं विचिन्वन् न ददर्श वीर: ॥ ११ ॥

sa tan-niketaṁ parimṛśya śūnyam

apaśyamānaḥ kupito nanāda

kṣmāṁ dyāṁ diśaḥ khaṁ vivarān samudrān

viṣṇuṁ vicinvan na dadarśa vīraḥ

Translation

Upon seeing that the residence of Lord Viṣṇu was vacant, Hiraṇyakaśipu began searching for Lord Viṣṇu everywhere. Angry at not seeing Him, Hiraṇyakaśipu screamed loudly and searched the entire universe, including the surface of the earth, the higher planetary systems, all directions and all the caves and oceans. But Hiraṇyakaśipu, the greatest hero, did not see Viṣṇu anywhere.

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.

Power Alone Cannot Find Lord Viṣṇu

  1. 1

    Finding Lord Viṣṇu’s residence vacant, Hiraṇyakaśipu became angry and screamed loudly.

  2. 2

    He searched the earth, higher planetary systems, all directions, caves and oceans.

  3. 3

    Although Hiraṇyakaśipu was a great hero, he did not see Lord Viṣṇu anywhere.

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
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. saḥthat Hiraṇyakaśipu
  2. tat-niketamthe residence of Lord Viṣṇu
  3. parimṛśyasearching
  4. śūnyamvacant
  5. apaśyamānaḥnot seeing Lord Viṣṇu
  6. kupitaḥbeing very angry
  7. nanādacried very loudly
  8. kṣmāmon the surface of the earth
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

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

What does Hiraṇyakaśipu’s unsuccessful search show you about the limits of personal power?

Practice

Take a quiet moment today to reflect on how even Hiraṇyakaśipu’s great power could not make Lord Viṣṇu visible to him.

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 todayPower Alone Cannot Find Lord ViṣṇuThis 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 8.19.11? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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