SB 12.8.1
Devanāgarī
श्रीशौनक उवाच सूत जीव चिरं साधो वद नो वदतां वर । तमस्यपारे भ्रमतां नृणां त्वं पारदर्शन: ॥ १ ॥
Text
śrī-śaunaka uvāca sūta jīva ciraṁ sādho vada no vadatāṁ vara tamasy apāre bhramatāṁ nṝṇāṁ tvaṁ pāra-darśanaḥ
Synonyms
śrī-śaunakaḥuvāca—Śrī Śaunaka said;sūta—O Sūta Gosvāmī;jīva—may you live;ciram—for a long time;sādho—O saint;vada—please speak;naḥ—to us;vadatām—of speakers;vara—O you who are the best;tamasi—in darkness;apāre—unbounded;bhramatām—who are wandering;nṝṇām—for men;tvam—you;pāra-darśanaḥ—the seer of the opposite shore.
Translation
Śrī Śaunaka said: O Sūta, may you live a long life! O saintly one, best of speakers, please continue speaking to us. Indeed, only you can show men the path out of the ignorance in which they are wandering.
Purport
According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, the sages saw that Sūta Gosvāmī was about to end his narration of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and thus they urged him to first tell the story of Mārkaṇḍeya Ṛṣi.