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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 11: Lord Rāmacandra Rules the World
9.11.189.11.20

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 9.11.19

Nirodha· Winding up
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 9.11.10inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

स्मरतां हृदि विन्यस्य विद्धं दण्डककण्टकै: ।

स्वपादपल्लवं राम आत्मज्योतिरगात् तत: ॥ १९ ॥

smaratāṁ hṛdi vinyasya

viddhaṁ daṇḍaka-kaṇṭakaiḥ

sva-pāda-pallavaṁ rāma

ātma-jyotir agāt tataḥ

Translation

After completing the sacrifice, Lord Rāmacandra, whose lotus feet were sometimes pierced by thorns when He lived in Daṇḍakāraṇya, placed those lotus feet in the hearts of those who always think of Him. Then He entered His own abode, the Vaikuṇṭha planet beyond the brahmajyoti.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

The Lord’s Lotus Feet Remain With Devotees

  1. 1

    The Lord’s lotus feet are always a subject for devotees’ meditation. Before returning to His abode, Lord Rāmacandra placed His lotus feet in the hearts of those who always think of Him.

  2. 2

    The Lord does not experience material pain or pleasure, yet devotees cannot tolerate even the thought of thorns pricking His feet. The gopīs felt similar distress when thinking of Kṛṣṇa walking in the forest.

  3. 3

    The brahmajyoti consists of rays from the Lord’s body, and the Vaikuṇṭha planets lie beyond it. Impersonal liberation does not provide an eternal shelter there; the Vaikuṇṭha planets are properly understood only by a pure devotee.

Key points from the purport
  • The lotus feet of the Lord are always a subject matter for meditation for devotees.
  • The devotees, who could not tolerate even thinking of the Lord’s lotus feet being pricked by a thorn, were again put into tribulation by thinking of the Lord’s disappearance, for the Lord had to return to His abode after finishing His pastimes in this material world.
  • Similarly, when the Lord or His devotees enter the Vaikuṇṭha planets, they go through the brahmajyoti.

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 9.11.19 quotesSB 10.2.32

Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho ’nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ. The Vaikuṇṭha planets are covered by the brahmajyoti, and therefore one cannot properly understand what those Vaikuṇṭha planets are unless one is a pure devotee.

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

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 11: Lord Rāmacandra Rules the World

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Meanwhile, Sītādevī placed her two sons in the care of Vālmīki Muni and then entered into the earth. Upon hearing of this, Lord Rāmacandra was very much aggrieved, and thus He performed sacrifices for thirteen thousand years.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 9.11
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. smaratāmof persons who always think of Him
  2. hṛdiin the core of the heart
  3. vinyasyaplacing
  4. viddhampierced
  5. daṇḍaka-kaṇṭakaiḥby thorns in the forest of Daṇḍakāraṇya (while Lord Rāmacandra was living there)
  6. sva-pāda-pallavamthe petals of His lotus feet
  7. rāmaḥLord Rāmacandra
  8. ātma-jyotiḥthe rays of His bodily luster, known as the brahmajyoti
  9. agātentered
  10. tataḥbeyond the brahmajyoti, or in His own Vaikuṇṭha planet
3

Key ideas in this verse

The subject this verse serves and the themes it speaks of.

  • Nirodha · Returning home, back to Godhead

    What happens when everything here comes to an end? · Subject 8 of 10

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 9.11

    In this verse: “material”

  • Bhakti · Devotion and loving service

    How devotion reorganizes desire and action. · Theme in SB 9.11

    In this verse: “devotees’”

  • Karuṇā · Compassion

    Concern for others expressed through bhakti. · Theme in SB 9.11

    In this verse: “distress”

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Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How can I make remembrance of the Lord’s lotus feet more personal and attentive?

Practice

Spend one minute meditating on the Lord’s lotus feet, remembering His care for those who always think of Him.

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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 10.2.32

Found where this verse or Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport names them. See all of chapter 9.11's connections

Live this todayThe Lord’s Lotus Feet Remain With DevoteesThis 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 9.11.19? Get an answer from the verses themselves.
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