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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 6: The Demigods and Demons Declare a Truce
8.6.308.6.32

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 8.6.31

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 8.6.26inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

तत्त्वरोचत दैत्यस्य तत्रान्ये येऽसुराधिपा: ।

शम्बरोऽरिष्टनेमिश्च ये च त्रिपुरवासिन: ॥ ३१ ॥

tat tv arocata daityasya

tatrānye ye ’surādhipāḥ

śambaro ’riṣṭanemiś ca

ye ca tripura-vāsinaḥ

Translation

The proposals submitted by King Indra were immediately accepted by Bali Mahārāja and his assistants, headed by Śambara and Ariṣṭanemi, and by all the other residents of Tripura.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Devotion Makes the Essential Difference

  1. 1

    Bali Mahārāja and his associates immediately accepted the proposal to produce nectar. The purport explains that politics, diplomacy and cheating exist even in the upper planetary systems.

  2. 2

    The demons intended to take the nectar from the weakened demigods for themselves, and the demigods had similar intentions. The essential difference was that Lord Viṣṇu supported the demigods because they were His devotees.

  3. 3

    The demons did not care about Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The purport distinguishes the God-conscious party from the godless party and locates happiness and victory on the God-conscious side.

Key points from the purport
  • The demigods went to Bali Mahārāja with the proposal to manufacture nectar, and the Daityas, the demons, immediately accepted it, thinking that since the demigods were already weak, when the nectar was produced the demons would take it from them and use it for their own purposes.
  • All over the universe there are two parties — the Viṣṇu party, or God-conscious party, and the godless party.
  • The godless party is never happy or victorious, but the God-conscious party is always happy and victorious.

Śrīla Prabhupāda's own sentences, chosen from the purport as its central points. Read the full purport on Vedabase to see them in place.

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 6: The Demigods and Demons Declare a Truce

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Following the instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the demigods established a peace with Mahārāja Bali, the King of the demons. Then both the demons and the demigods started for the ocean, taking Mandara Mountain with them.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 8.6
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tatall those words
  2. tubut
  3. arocatawere very pleasing
  4. daityasyato Bali Mahārāja
  5. tatraas well as
  6. anyeothers
  7. yewho were
  8. asura-adhipāḥthe chiefs of the asuras
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

  • Rāja-dharma · Devotional leadership

    Serving and protecting through responsibility. · Theme in SB 8.6

    In this verse: “king”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 8.6

    In this verse: “devotees”

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 seeking only my own advantage, or am I caring about the Lord and His service?

Practice

Before one decision today, pause and ask whether it supports your devotional service to the Lord.

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 8.6's connections

Live this todayDevotion Makes the Essential DifferenceThis 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 8.6.31? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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