Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 1 - Chapter 1 - Verse 3

Sanskrit:

स्वायम्भुव कया वृत्त्या वर्तितं ते परं वय: ।कथं चेदमुदस्राक्षी: काले प्राप्ते कलेवरम् ॥ ३ ॥

ITRANS:

svāyambhuva kayā vṛttyāvartitaṁ te paraṁ vayaḥkathaṁ cedam udasrākṣīḥkāle prāpte kalevaram

Translation:

O son of Brahmā, how did you pass your life after initiation, and how did you attain this body, having quit your old one in due course?

Purport:

Śrī Nārada Muni in his previous life was just an ordinary maidservant’s son, so how he became so perfectly transformed into the spiritual body of eternal life, bliss and knowledge is certainly important. Śrī Vyāsadeva desired him to disclose the facts for everyone’s satisfaction.