Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 1.11.12
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesCivilization Should Nurture Spiritual Understanding
“The city of Dvārakāpurī was filled with the opulences of all seasons. There were hermitages, orchards, flower gardens, parks and reservoirs of water breeding lotus flowers all over.”
What the purport teaches
- Dvārakā was surrounded by fruit orchards, flower gardens, parks and reservoirs where lotuses grew. These gifts of nature enriched the whole residential area, not merely the homes of leaders.
- Advancement of civilization is measured by developing people's spiritual instincts and giving them a chance to go back to Godhead, not by increasing mills and factories.
- Human energy should develop the finer senses for spiritual understanding. The purport presents Dvārakā-dhāma as the ideal of human civilization.
Try this today
Spend five minutes in a natural setting today and reflect on making spiritual understanding a priority.
Ask yourself
Does my idea of progress leave room for spiritual understanding?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.