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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
Śukadeva Gosvāmī's answer to this question, and numerous other questions posed by Mahārāja Parikṣit, concerning everything from the nature of the self to the origin of the universe, held the assembled sages in rapt attention continuously for the seven days leading to the King's death. The sage Sūta Gosvāmī, who was present on the bank of the Ganges when Śukadeva Gosvāmī first recited  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam , later repeated the  Bhāgavatam  before a gathering of sages in the forest of Naimiṣāraṇya. Those sages, concerned about the spiritual welfare of the people in general, had gathered to perform a long, continuous chain of sacrifices to counteract the degrading influence of the incipient age of Kali. In response to the sages' request that he speak the essence of Vedic wisdom, Sūta Gosvāmī repeated from memory the entire eighteen thousand verses of  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam , as spoken by Śukadeva Gosvāmī to Mahārāja Parikṣit.
The reader of  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  hears Sūta Gosvāmī relate the questions of Mahārāja Parikṣit and the answers of Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Also, Sūta Gosvāmī sometimes responds directly to questions put by Śaunaka Rṣi, the spokesman for the sages gathered at Naimiṣāraṇya. One therefore simultaneously hears two dialogues: one between Mahārāja Parikṣit and Śukadeva Gosvāmī on the bank of the Ganges, and another at Naimiṣāraṇya between Sūta Gosvāmī and the sages at Naimiṣāraṇya Forest, headed by Śaunaka Rṣi. Furthermore, while instructing King Parikṣit, Śukadeva Gosvāmī often relates historical episodes and gives accounts of lengthy philosophical discussions between such great souls as the saint Maitreya and his disciple Vidura. With this understanding of the history of the  Bhāgavatam , the reader will easily be able to follow its intermingling of dialogues and events from various sources. Since philosophical wisdom, not chronological order, is most important in the text, one need only be attentive to the subject matter of  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  to appreciate fully its profound message.
The translator of this edition compares the  Bhāgavatam  to sugar candy—wherever you taste it, you will find it equally sweet and relishable. Therefore, to taste the sweetness of the  Bhāgavatam , one may begin by reading any of its volumes. After such an introductory taste, however, the serious reader is best advised to go back to Volume One of the First Canto and then proceed through the  Bhāgavatam , volume after volume, in its natural order.