Study a Verse

• But those who are learned and spiritually advanced will never accept such notions; they will accept the descriptions of Lord Rāmacandra and His activities only as presented by tattva-darśīs, those who know the Absolute Truth.
• Therefore although there are many so-called Rāmāyaṇas, or histories of Lord Rāmacandra’s activities, some of them are not actually authoritative.
• While describing the history of Lord Rāmacandra, Śukadeva Gosvāmī told Mahārāja Parīkṣit, “You have already heard about the activities of Lord Rāmacandra.”

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

Each link is a verse the purport itself quotes, or a purport elsewhere that quotes this verse, shown with the purport's own words.

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

Chapter 10: The Pastimes of the Supreme Lord, Rāmacandra

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

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. Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī describes these pastimes in brief.