FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.8.7

प्रोक्तं किलैतद्भगवत्तमेन निवृत्तिधर्माभिरताय तेन । सनत्कुमाराय स चाह पृष्ट: सांख्यायनायाङ्ग धृतव्रताय ॥ ७ ॥
proktaṁ kilaitad bhagavattamena
[proktam kilaitad bhagavattamena]
nivṛtti-dharmābhiratāya tena
[nivritti-dharmaabhirataaya tena]
sanat-kumārāya sa cāha pṛṣṭaḥ
[sanat-kumaaraaya sa chaaha prishtah]
sāṅkhyāyanāyāṅga dhṛta-vratāya
[saankhyaayanaayaanga dhrita-vrataaya]
proktam — was said kila — certainly etat — this bhagavattamena — by Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa nivṛtti — renunciation dharma-abhiratāya — unto one who has taken this religious vow tena — by Him sanat-kumārāya — unto Sanat-kumāra saḥ — he ca — also āha — said pṛṣṭaḥ — when inquired of sāṅkhyāyanāya — unto the great sage Sāṅkhyāyana aṅga — my dear Vidura dhṛta-vratāya — unto one who has taken such a vow.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
proktaṁ kilaitad bhagavattamena
proktam
was said
kila
certainly
etat
this
bhagavattamena
by Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa
nivṛtti-dharmābhiratāya tena
nivṛtti
renunciation
dharma-abhiratāya
unto one who has taken this religious vow
tena
by Him
sanat-kumārāya sa cāha pṛṣṭaḥ
sanat-kumārāya
unto Sanat-kumāra
saḥ
he
ca
also
āha
said
pṛṣṭaḥ
when inquired of
sāṅkhyāyanāyāṅga dhṛta-vratāya
sāṅkhyāyanāya
unto the great sage Sāṅkhyāyana
aṅga
my dear Vidura
dhṛta-vratāya
unto one who has taken such a vow.
Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa thus spoke the purport of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to the great sage Sanat-kumāra, who had already taken the vow of renunciation. Sanat-kumāra also, in his turn, when inquired of by Sāṅkhyāyana Muni, explained Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as he had heard it from Saṅkarṣaṇa.

This is the way of the paramparā system. Although Sanat-kumāra, the well-known great saintly Kumāra, was in the perfect stage of life, still he heard the message of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa. Similarly, when he was questioned by Sāṅkhyāyana Ṛṣi, he spoke to him the same message he had heard from Lord Saṅkarṣaṇa. In other words, unless one hears from the proper authority one cannot become a preacher. In devotional service, therefore, two items out of the nine, namely hearing and chanting, are most important. Without hearing nicely, one cannot preach the message of Vedic knowledge.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
The Lord spoke this Bhāgavatam to Sanat-kumāra, who was engaged in pure bhakti. Sanat-kumāra spoke it to the sage named Sāṅkhyāyana, engaged in determined vows. This was spoken by Saṅkārṣaṇa (bhagavattamena) to Sanat-kumāra. Bhagavattama has the same meaning as bhagavān. Or bhagvattama can mean “the best of the devotees who have knowledge concerning the creation of the universe.”
Chanting and hearing, in this verse, are not religious rituals but the actual means of changing what we love. The mouth and ear do what willpower alone cannot.
Reflection Questions
  • What podcast or playlist would you have to give up to make room for daily kṛṣṇa-kathā?
  • What input have you been allowing in that quietly undoes your hearing of the Lord?
📝 My note

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