FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.27

तुदन्त्यामत्वचं दंशा मशका मत्कुणादय: । रुदन्तं विगतज्ञानं कृमय: कृमिकं यथा ॥ २७ ॥
tudanty āma-tvacaṁ daṁśā
[tudanty aama-tvacham damshaa]
maśakā matkuṇādayaḥ
[mashakaa matkunaadayah]
rudantaṁ vigata-jñānaṁ
[rudantam vigata-jnaanam]
kṛmayaḥ kṛmikaṁ yathā
[krimayah krimikam yathaa]
tudanti — they bite āma-tvacam — the baby, whose skin is soft daṁśāḥ — gnats maśakāḥ — mosquitoes matkuṇa — bugs ādayaḥ — and other creatures rudantam — crying vigata — deprived of jñānam — wisdom kṛmayaḥ — worms kṛmikam — a worm yathā — just as.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tudanty āma-tvacaṁ daṁśā
tudanti
they bite
āma-tvacam
the baby, whose skin is soft
daṁśāḥ
gnats
maśakā matkuṇādayaḥ
maśakāḥ
mosquitoes
matkuṇa
bugs
ādayaḥ
and other creatures
rudantaṁ vigata-jñānaṁ
rudantam
crying
vigata
deprived of
jñānam
wisdom
kṛmayaḥ kṛmikaṁ yathā
kṛmayaḥ
worms
kṛmikam
a worm
yathā
just as.
In his helpless condition, gnats, mosquitoes, bugs and other germs bite the baby, whose skin is tender, just as smaller worms bite a big worm. The child, deprived of his wisdom, cries bitterly.

The word vigata jñānam means that the spiritual knowledge which the child developed in the abdomen is already lost to the spell of māyā. Owing to various kinds of disturbances and to being out of the abdomen, the child cannot remember what he was thinking of for his salvation. It is assumed that even if a person acquires some spiritually uplifting knowledge, circumstantially he is prone to forget it. Not only children but also elderly persons should be very careful to protect their sense of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and avoid unfavorable circumstances so that they may not forget their prime duty.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Just as big worms bit small worms, gnats, mosquitoes and other bugs bit the baby with his soft skin, who cries in ignorance. Āmā means soft. Kṛmikam means small worm.
The verse points at the threefold miseries not to depress the reader but to interrupt the fantasy that the next arrangement will finally be different.
Reflection Questions
  • Where have you been blaming people for what is actually a structural feature of material life?
  • How would you live this week if you stopped expecting the material world to finally cooperate?
📝 My note

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