Shloka 6

Kapila on Liberation: Detachment, Devotional Discipline, and the Soul’s Aloofness from the Guṇas

Devanagari script

यमादिभिर्योगपथैरभ्यसन्श्रद्धयान्वित: । मयि भावेन सत्येन मत्कथाश्रवणेन च ॥ ६ ॥

Transliteration

yamādibhir yoga-pathair abhyasañ śraddhayānvitaḥ mayi bhāvena satyena mat-kathā-śravaṇena ca

Translation

By practicing the yoga paths beginning with yama and the like, endowed with faith, and by a truthful loving mood toward Me—through hearing and chanting My narrations—one rises to pure devotional service.

Synonyms

• yama-ādibhiḥ: by yama and the rest (disciplines)
• yama-ādibhiḥ: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yama (प्रातिपदिक) + ādi (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘yamaḥ ādiḥ yeṣām’ (yama etc.); Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural (बहुवचन)

• yoga-pathaiḥ: by the paths of yoga
• yoga-pathaiḥ: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: yoga (प्रातिपदिक) + patha (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa (तत्पुरुष) ‘yogasya pathaḥ’; Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Plural

• abhyasan: practicing
• abhyasan: Kriyā (क्रिया/Action)
• Type: Verb
• Root: abhi√as (धातु)
• Form: Verb; Present participle (शतृ/वर्तमानकृदन्त) used as finite in context; Masculine, Nominative singular implied with ‘(saḥ)’; from abhi√as ‘to practice’

• śraddhayā: with faith
• śraddhayā: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: śraddhā (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Feminine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• anvitaḥ: endowed (with)
• anvitaḥ: Viśeṣaṇa (विशेषण/Qualifier)
• Type: Adjective
• Root: anu√i (धातु) + anvita (कृदन्त-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Past passive participle (क्त), Masculine, Nominative (1st/प्रथमा), Singular; ‘endowed/connected with’

• mayi: in me
• mayi: Adhikaraṇa (अधिकरण/Location-Object of devotion)
• Type: Noun
• Root: asmad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Pronoun (सर्वनाम), Locative (7th/सप्तमी), Singular; 1st person pronoun used for Bhagavān speaking

• bhāvena: by (devotional) feeling/attitude
• bhāvena: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: bhāva (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• satyena: with truthfulness / truly
• satyena: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: satya (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Neuter/Masculine, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular; adverbial-instrumental ‘truly/with truthfulness’

• mat-kathā-śravaṇena: by hearing my narrations
• mat-kathā-śravaṇena: Karaṇa (करण/Instrument)
• Type: Noun
• Root: mad (सर्वनाम-प्रातिपदिक) + kathā (प्रातिपदिक) + śravaṇa (प्रातिपदिक)
• Form: Tatpuruṣa chain (तत्पुरुष): mat-kathā (my stories) + śravaṇa (hearing); Neuter, Instrumental (3rd/तृतीया), Singular

• ca: and
• ca: Samuccaya (समुच्चय/Coordination)
• Type: Indeclinable
• Root: ca (अव्यय)
• Form: Avyaya, conjunction

Purport

Yoga is practiced in eight different stages: yama, niyama, āsana, prāṇāyāma, pratyāhāra, dhāraṇā, dhyāna and samādhi. Yama and niyama mean practicing the controlling process by following strict regulations, and āsana refers to the sitting postures. These help raise one to the standard of faithfulness in devotional service. The practice of yoga by physical exercise is not the ultimate goal; the real end is to concentrate and to control the mind and train oneself to be situated in faithful devotional service.

Characters & Entities

• Kapila
• Devahuti

FAQs

What does the Srimad Bhagavatam say about combining yoga discipline with bhakti?

This verse teaches that yoga practices beginning with yama should be performed with faith, truthfulness, and a devotional focus on the Lord—especially supported by hearing His narrations.

Why did Kapiladeva teach this to Devahuti in Canto 3 Chapter 27?

Kapiladeva is instructing His mother Devahuti on bhakti-yoga, showing that inner devotion and hearing about the Lord give spiritual power and proper direction to yogic discipline.

How can I apply ‘mat-katha-shravanam’ (hearing about the Lord) in modern life?

Set a daily habit of hearing or reading Bhagavatam/Krishna-katha, and let that remembrance guide ethical restraint (yama), sincerity, and devotional intention in everyday decisions.