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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 ›

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Text 9.16.23

Who is speaking and story frame

ततश्चावभृथस्‍नानविधूताशेषकिल्बिष: ।

सरस्वत्यां महानद्यां रेजे व्यब्भ्र इवांशुमान् ॥ २३ ॥

tataś cāvabhṛtha-snāna-

vidhūtāśeṣa-kilbiṣaḥ

sarasvatyāṁ mahā-nadyāṁ

reje vyabbhra ivāṁśumān

Translation

Thereafter, having completed the ritualistic sacrificial ceremonies, Lord Paraśurāma took the bath known as the avabhṛtha-snāna. Standing on the bank of the great river Sarasvatī, cleared of all sins, Lord Paraśurāma appeared like the sun in a clear, cloudless sky.

Read Śrīla Prabhupāda's purport on Vedabase.io
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Understand it

Three study points drawn from the translation and purport.

Chanting Frees Us from Sinful Reactions

  1. 1

    After completing the sacrifices, Lord Paraśurāma took the avabhṛtha-snāna. Cleared of all sins, He appeared like the sun in a cloudless sky.

  2. 2

    Work should be performed as a sacrifice for Lord Viṣṇu; otherwise it binds us to repeated birth and death. Even careful people unknowingly harm other living beings.

  3. 3

    Lord Caitanya is Kṛṣṇa Himself, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and teaches Kṛṣṇa consciousness through chanting. Chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra is the special sacrifice recommended in this age for protection from known and unknown sinful activities.

Key points from the purport
  • Therefore one is advised to work to perform yajña meant for satisfying Lord Viṣṇu.
  • Although Lord Paraśurāma was an incarnation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he had to account for sinful activities.
  • We are surrounded by unlimited sins, and therefore it is compulsory that one take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra.

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 9.16.23 quotesBG 3.9

As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (3.9), yajñārthāt karmaṇo ’nyatra loko ’yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ: “Work done as a sacrifice for Viṣṇu has to be performed; otherwise work binds one to this material world.”

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 16: Lord Paraśurāma Destroys the World’s Ruling Class

From the chapter summary, the lines nearest this verse:

Taking up his axe, he went to Māhiṣmatī-pura, the capital of Kārtavīryārjuna, and killed all of Kārtavīryārjuna’s sons, whose blood became a great river. Paraśurāma, however, was not satisfied with killing only the sons of Kārtavīryārjuna; later, when the kṣatriyas became disturbing, he killed them twenty-one times, so that there were no kṣatriyas on the surface of the earth.
Read the whole chapter summaryBack to this verse in chapter 9.16
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Word for word

Learn the Sanskrit words of the verse.

  1. tataḥthereafter
  2. caalso
  3. avabhṛtha-snānaby bathing after finishing the sacrifice
  4. vidhūtacleansed
  5. aśeṣaunlimited
  6. kilbiṣaḥwhose reactions of sinful activities
  7. sarasvatyāmon the bank of the great river Sarasvatī
  8. mahā-nadyāmone of the biggest rivers in India
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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

  • Śuddhi · Inner transformation

    The reorientation of the heart toward service. · Theme in SB 9.16

    In this verse: “sins”, “sinful”

  • Kīrtana · Hearing and chanting

    Remembering the Lord through sacred sound. · Theme in SB 9.16

    In this verse: “chanting”

  • Abhaya · Fearlessness

    Steadiness through faith amid danger and death. · Theme in SB 9.16

    In this verse: “death”

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 can I make chanting and service to the Lord part of my daily work?

Practice

Set aside two minutes today to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra attentively.

5

The story around it

The story this chapter belongs to.

Live this todayChanting Frees Us from Sinful ReactionsThis 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 9.16.23? Get an answer from the verses themselves.