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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

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

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How to study this verse, in six steps

1Chant the verse. Say the Sanskrit slowly and carefully.
2Read the word meanings. Go through each Sanskrit word and its meaning.
3Find the meaning yourself. Before the translation, piece the meaning together from the words.
4Read the translation. Ask: what is the Lord teaching here, and how does it apply to my life?
5Read the purport slowly. Read it two or three times. Don't rush.
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 15: Paraśurāma, the Lord’s Warrior Incarnation

9.15.12-13 9.15.15

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 9.15.14

Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devotees

Who is speaking and story frame

Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 9.15.1inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

यमाहुर्वासुदेवांशं हैहयानां कुलान्तकम् ।

त्रि:सप्तकृत्वो य इमां चक्रे नि:क्षत्रियां महीम् ॥ १४ ॥

yam āhur vāsudevāṁśaṁ

haihayānāṁ kulāntakam

triḥ-sapta-kṛtvo ya imāṁ

cakre niḥkṣatriyāṁ mahīm

Translation

Learned scholars accept this Paraśurāma as the celebrated incarnation of Vāsudeva who annihilated the dynasty of Kārtavīrya. Paraśurāma killed all the kṣatriyas on earth twenty-one times.

Read this verse on Vedabase.io

This verse has no purport; its meaning is explained by the verses around it.

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Paraśurāma Is an Incarnation of Vāsudeva

1
Learned scholars accept Paraśurāma as the celebrated incarnation of Vāsudeva.
2
Paraśurāma annihilated the dynasty of Kārtavīrya.
3
He killed all the kṣatriyas on earth twenty-one times.

How it feels

Longing and conflict → Detachment and justice. Dynastic episodes explore personal desire and force.

Chapters 13–17 of Canto 9: Nimi, Purūravā and Paraśurāma. An editorial reading of the story's mood, not the text itself. See the emotional arc

Chapter 15: Paraśurāma, the Lord’s Warrior Incarnation

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Later, he annihilated the kṣatriya dynasty twenty-one times. After Paraśurāma killed Kārtavīryārjuna, Jamadagni told him that killing a king is sinful and that as a brāhmaṇa he should have tolerated the offense.

Read the whole chapter summary Back to this verse in chapter 9.15