Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 1.2.20
Mukti· LiberationDevotional Service Reveals the Personality of Godhead
“Thus established in the mode of unalloyed goodness, the man whose mind has been enlivened by contact with devotional service to the Lord gains positive scientific knowledge of the Personality of Godhead in the stage of liberation from all material association.”
What the purport teaches
- Understanding that one is spirit, not a product of matter, is a perfection of human life. Rising above passion and ignorance frees one from material hankering and enlivens the mind.
- Realizing one’s spiritual nature is not yet perfect knowledge of the Personality of Godhead. Even the qualified brāhmaṇa must become a Vaiṣṇava and transcend the material modes.
- Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is understood only through devotional service, or bhakti-yoga. In the enlivened state of liberation, the pure devotee can know Him in truth.
Try this today
Reread this translation slowly, focusing on devotional service as the means of truly knowing Kṛṣṇa.
Ask yourself
Do I see spiritual understanding as a step toward devotional service, rather than an end by itself?
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.