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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 ›
Canto 9 · Chapter 15: Paraśurāma, the Lord’s Warrior Incarnation
9.15.259.15.27

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 9.15.26

Ūti· What drives us to act
Who is speaking and story frame
Speaking:Śukadeva Gosvāmīsince 9.15.17-19inside 2 frames: Sūta Gosvāmī → the sages at NaimiṣāraṇyaŚukadeva Gosvāmī → King Parīkṣit

हविर्धानीमृषेर्दर्पान्नरान् हर्तुमचोदयत् ।

ते च माहिष्मतीं निन्यु: सवत्सां क्रन्दतीं बलात् ॥ २६ ॥

havirdhānīm ṛṣer darpān

narān hartum acodayat

te ca māhiṣmatīṁ ninyuḥ

sa-vatsāṁ krandatīṁ balāt

Translation

Being puffed up by material power, Kārtavīryārjuna encouraged his men to steal Jamadagni’s kāmadhenu. Thus the men forcibly took away the crying kāmadhenu, along with her calf, to Māhiṣmatī, Kārtavīryārjuna’s capital.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
1

Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Cow Protection Supports Sacrifice

  1. 1

    Puffed up by material power, Kārtavīryārjuna had Jamadagni’s crying kāmadhenu taken away with her calf. This cow supplied ghee for sacrifices.

  2. 2

    Human beings should be trained to perform yajñas rather than work only for sense gratification. The purport connects regular sacrifice with proper rainfall and the necessities of life.

  3. 3

    Sacrifice requires clarified butter, and clarified butter requires cow protection. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement seeks to revive a civilization in which everyone can be happy.

Key points from the purport
  • In human life, one should be trained to perform yajñas.
  • Therefore, if we neglect the Vedic way of civilization, we shall certainly suffer.
  • The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is therefore meant to revive a mode of civilization in which everyone will be happy.

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 9.15.26 quotesBG 3.9

As we are informed in Bhagavad-gītā (3.9), yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: if we do not perform yajña, we shall simply work very hard for sense gratification like dogs and hogs.

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

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

Further reading

Chapter 15: Paraśurāma, the Lord’s Warrior Incarnation

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

When a king named Kārtavīryārjuna stole Jamadagni’s desire cow, Paraśurāma, who is ascertained by learned experts to be a saktyāveśa incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, killed Kārtavīryārjuna. Later, he annihilated the kṣatriya dynasty twenty-one times.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 9.15
2

Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. haviḥ-dhānīmthe kāmadhenu
  2. ṛṣeḥof the great sage Jamadagni
  3. darpātbecause of his being puffed up with material power
  4. narānall his men (soldiers)
  5. hartumto steal or take away
  6. acodayatencouraged
  7. tethe men of Kārtavīryārjuna
  8. caalso
3

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

  • Moha · Material attachment

    The pull of ego, desire and impermanent relationships. · Theme in SB 9.15

    In this verse: “material”, “sense gratification”

  • Viraha · Longing in separation

    Love and remembrance experienced in apparent absence. · Theme in SB 9.15

    In this verse: “crying”

  • Rakṣā · Divine protection

    Protection of devotees through the Lord’s intervention. · Theme in SB 9.15

    In this verse: “protection”

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

4

Live it

Take one thing from this verse into your day.

Ask yourself

How does this teaching challenge the idea that material power alone makes a civilization successful?

Practice

Write down the connection between cow protection, clarified butter and yajña.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayCow Protection Supports SacrificeThis 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 9.15.26? Get an answer from the verses themselves.