Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 1.8.26 · one of the 108 chosen verses
Mukti· LiberationHumility Makes Calling Kṛṣṇa Sincere
“My Lord, Your Lordship can easily be approached, but only by those who are materially exhausted. One who is on the path of [material] progress, trying to improve himself with respectable parentage, great opulence, high education and bodily beauty, cannot approach You with sincere feeling.”
What the purport teaches
- High parentage, wealth, education and beauty can intoxicate a person with pride in temporary possessions. Such pride obstructs approaching the Lord with sincere feeling.
- The Lord’s holy name has great power, but the quality of feeling in uttering it matters. A helpless person can sincerely call, “O Govinda, O Kṛṣṇa.”
- The aim is to decrease material intoxication rather than increase it. The purport compares this decrease to a fever falling, a sign of improvement rather than a cause for discouragement.
Try this today
Quietly say, “O Govinda, O Kṛṣṇa,” giving attention to sincere feeling rather than pride in your circumstances.
Ask yourself
Which temporary possession or advantage most tempts me to feel self-sufficient?
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.