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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 ›
Canto 9 · Chapter 10: The Pastimes of the Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra
9.10.19.10.3

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 9.10.2

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 9.10.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

तस्यापि भगवानेष साक्षाद् ब्रह्ममयो हरि: ।

अंशांशेन चतुर्धागात् पुत्रत्वं प्रार्थित: सुरै: ।

रामलक्ष्मणभरतशत्रुघ्ना इति संज्ञया ॥ २ ॥

tasyāpi bhagavān eṣa

sākṣād brahmamayo hariḥ

aṁśāṁśena caturdhāgāt

putratvaṁ prārthitaḥ suraiḥ

rāma-lakṣmaṇa-bharata-

śatrughnā iti saṁjñayā

Translation

Being prayed for by the demigods, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth Himself, directly appeared with His expansion and expansions of the expansion. Their holy names were Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna. These celebrated incarnations thus appeared in four forms as the sons of Mahārāja Daśaratha.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Four Eternal Forms of the Supreme Lord

  1. 1

    In response to the demigods’ prayers, the Supreme Personality of Godhead appeared in four forms as the sons of Mahārāja Daśaratha.

  2. 2

    Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna are all viṣṇu-tattva, not jīva-tattva. They are forms of the Supreme Lord, not ordinary living beings.

  3. 3

    These forms exist eternally as individual Personalities of Godhead. Like many equally powerful candles, they are all equally powerful.

Key points from the purport
  • The Supreme Personality of Godhead expands into many, many forms.
  • The Lord is situated in many forms, such as Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna, and these forms may exist in any part of His creation.
  • Lord Rāmacandra, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna, who, being viṣṇu-tattva, are all equally powerful, became the sons of Mahārāja Daśaratha in response to prayers by the demigods.

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

Exile and separation → Loyalty and reunion. Duty, loss and sacrifice shape the dramatic center of this canto.

Chapters 10–12 of Canto 9: The pastimes of Lord Rāmacandra. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Further reading

Chapter 10: The Pastimes of the Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

The son of Raghu was Aja, the son of Aja was Daśaratha, and the son of Daśaratha was Lord Rāmacandra, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. When the Lord descended into this world in His full quadruple expansion — as Lord Rāmacandra, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna — great sages like Vālmīki who were actually in knowledge of the Absolute Truth described His transcendental pastimes.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 9.10
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tasyaof him, Mahārāja Daśaratha
  2. apialso
  3. bhagavānthe Supreme Personality of Godhead
  4. eṣaḥall of them
  5. sākṣātdirectly
  6. brahma-mayaḥthe Supreme Parabrahman, the Absolute Truth
  7. hariḥthe Supreme Personality of Godhead
  8. aṁśa-aṁśenaby an expansion of a plenary portion
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

  • Jñāna · Spiritual insight

    Inquiry, revelation and discrimination between self and matter. · Theme in SB 9.10

    In this verse: “absolute truth”

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does knowing that these four forms are eternal deepen my respect for Them?

Practice

Slowly recite the holy names Rāma, Lakṣmaṇa, Bharata and Śatrughna, remembering Their divine nature.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayFour Eternal Forms of the Supreme LordThis 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 9.10.2? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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