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Read one verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam with its Sanskrit, word meanings, translation and study points.

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Canto 9 · Liberation · 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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 9.1.17

Who is speaking and story frame

भगवन् किमिदं जातं कर्म वो ब्रह्मवादिनाम् ।

विपर्ययमहो कष्टं मैवं स्याद् ब्रह्मविक्रिया ॥ १७ ॥

bhagavan kim idaṁ jātaṁ

karma vo brahma-vādinām

viparyayam aho kaṣṭaṁ

maivaṁ syād brahma-vikriyā

Translation

My lord, all of you are expert in chanting the Vedic mantras. How then has the result been opposite to the one desired? This is a matter for lamentation. There should not have been such a reversal of the results of the Vedic mantras.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Hare Kṛṣṇa Chanting Is Our Shelter

  1. 1

    Manu lamented that the sacrifice had produced the opposite of the desired result. The purport explains that properly chanted Vedic mantras must fulfill the purpose of the sacrifice.

  2. 2

    Other sacrificial processes are difficult in this age because qualified chanters and the necessary ingredients are lacking. The Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is therefore our shelter.

  3. 3

    The best sacrifice for this age is saṅkīrtana-yajña, the congregational chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa. This chanting cleanses the heart, extinguishes the suffering of repeated birth and death, and increases transcendental bliss.

Key points from the purport
  • In this age, the performance of yajña has been forbidden because no one can properly chant the Vedic mantras.
  • Therefore the Hare Kṛṣṇa chant is called the mahā-mantra, the great, exalted mantra above all other Vedic mantras, because simply chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra brings so many beneficial effects.
  • Because human society is poverty-stricken and men are devoid of Vedic knowledge and the power to chant the Vedic mantras, the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is the only shelter.

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 9.1.17 quotesSB 11.5.32

Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ. Those who are intelligent take advantage of the greatest yajña in this age by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra in congregation.

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

Change → Acceptance. The instability of worldly identities is a recurring premise.

Chapters 1–3 of Canto 9: Dynastic origins and domestic transformations. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 1: King Sudyumna Becomes a Woman

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Śrāddhadeva, or Vaivasvata Manu, the father of Mahārāja Ikṣvāku, was sonless before Ikṣvāku’s birth, but by the grace of the great sage Vasiṣṭha he performed a yajña to satisfy Mitra and Varuṇa. Then, although Vaivasvata Manu wanted a son, by the desire of his wife he got a daughter named Ilā.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 9.1
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. bhagavanO my lord
  2. kim idamwhat is this
  3. jātamborn
  4. karmafruitive activities
  5. vaḥof all of you
  6. brahma-vādināmof you, who are expert in chanting the Vedic mantras
  7. viparyayamdeviation
  8. ahoalas
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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

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 9.1

    In this verse: “chanting”, “chanted”

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 9.1

    In this verse: “lamentation”, “lamented”

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 9.1

    In this verse: “suffering”

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

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How can I give chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa a more regular place in my life?

Practice

Set aside a few minutes today to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, together with someone else if possible.

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The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

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Connected stories

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

The purport quotesSB 11.5.32

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 9.1's connections

Live this todayHare Kṛṣṇa Chanting Is Our ShelterThis 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 9.1.17? Get an answer from the verses themselves.