FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.23.18

श्रुत्वाच्युतमुपायातं नित्यं तद्दर्शनोत्सुका: । तत्कथाक्षिप्तमनसो बभूवुर्जातसम्भ्रमा: ॥ १८ ॥
śrutvācyutam upāyātaṁ
[shrutvaachyutam upaayaatam]
nityaṁ tad-darśanotsukāḥ
[nityam tad-darshanotsukaah]
tat-kathākṣipta-manaso
[tat-kathaakshipta-manaso]
babhūvur jāta-sambhramāḥ
[babhoovur jaata-sambhramaah]
Word-for-word
śrutvā — hearing acyutam — Lord Kṛṣṇa upāyātam — come nearby nityam — constantly tat - darśana — for the sight of Him utsukāḥ — eager tat - kathā — by descriptions of Him ākṣpita — enchanted manasaḥ — their minds babhūvuḥ — they became jāta - sambhramāḥ — excited .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
śrutvācyutam upāyātaṁ
śrutvā
hearing
acyutam
Lord Kṛṣṇa
upāyātam
come nearby
nityaṁ tad-darśanotsukāḥ
nityam
constantly
tat - darśana
for the sight of Him
utsukāḥ
eager
tat-kathākṣipta-manaso
tat - kathā
by descriptions of Him
ākṣpita
enchanted
manasaḥ
their minds
babhūvur jāta-sambhramāḥ
babhūvuḥ
they became
jāta - sambhramāḥ
excited .
Important Words
  • acyutam — Lord Kṛṣṇa
    'The infallible one.' The wives hear His name in this specific form — the Lord who never falls — and immediately something in them that had been slipping is steadied.
  • tat-darśana-utsukāḥ — eager for the sight of Him
    Compound: tat (His) + darśana (sight) + utsukāḥ (eager). Darśana-utsukatā — eagerness for the sight of Bhagavān — is one of the bhāva-aṅgas Rūpa Gosvāmī codifies in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu.
  • tat-kathā — by descriptions of Him
    Compound: tat (His) + kathā (narration). Kṛṣṇa-kathā as the means by which bhāva developed in the wives — exactly the program of the Bhāgavatam itself. They have been built by hearing.
  • ākṣpita — enchanted
    Past participle of ā + √kṣip — 'thrown, hurled.' Their minds have been thrown toward Kṛṣṇa by the kathā; the verb is violent, like a stone in a sling. Bhakti is not gentle when it ripens.
  • jāta-sambhramāḥ — excited
    Compound: jāta (born) + sambhramāḥ (flutter, agitation). The eight sāttvika-bhāvas include stambha, sveda, etc.; sambhrama is the immediate eager-disorder that arises at the sudden presence of the beloved.
The wives of the brāhmaṇas were always eager to see Kṛṣṇa, for their minds had been enchanted by descriptions of Him. Thus as soon as they heard that He had come, they became very excited.
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The wives of the brāhmaṇas were always eager to see Kṛṣṇa, for their minds had been enchanted by descriptions of Him. Thus as soon as they heard that He had come, they became very excited.
Commentary

The wives began criticizing their minds on hearing that Krsna was hungry. " O you low mind, though you have heard that your beloved Krsna is suffering from hunger why did you not wake up from fainting?"

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Acyutam means “he who never leaves the heart.” They heard that Acyuta was personally very close (upāyātam). Their minds were disturbed on hearing that he was hungry (tat-kathākśipta-manasaḥ).

Related values & verses
Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Atma Nigraha (Self-control)Karuna (Kindness / Compassion)
Related verses
BG 15.9 BG 18.64 BG 2.62 BG 3.11 BG 12.3 SB 4.29.2 BG 9.11 BG 7.8 BG 10.3 BG 13.1 BG 5.18 BG 6.1 BG 6.5 BG 1.1 BG 16.4
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
The wives were always eager to see Kṛṣṇa, minds enchanted by descriptions of Him; hearing He's come, they grow excited. Devotion ripened by hearing comes alive the moment the news arrives — anticipation does the heavy lifting.
Reflection Questions
  • Where has hearing about Kṛṣṇa secretly prepared me to act faster when an opening comes?
  • Whose excitement at the news of Him do I underestimate as I deliver?
Analogy

A reservoir behind a dam, water level rising over years through every monsoon of kṛṣṇa-kathā — a single word now is enough to break the wall. The wives have been hearing about Kṛṣṇa for years; one sentence about His arrival is all the trigger that is needed.

Stories
The Brāhmaṇa who heard Bhāgavata for seven days

Tradition records that even ordinary listeners who hear Bhāgavatam continuously soften into bhakti without intending to — Parīkṣit himself attains liberation in seven days at the riverside, not by austerity but by śravaṇa.

The wives in this verse exemplify the principle: long śravaṇa builds bhāva quietly, and then a single contact — here, news of Kṛṣṇa's nearness — completes what years of hearing have prepared.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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