Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.1.48
Manvantara· The Manus and right dutyProtect Life and Cultivate Spiritual Life
“As long as he has intelligence and bodily strength, an intelligent person must try to avoid death. This is the duty of every embodied person. But if death cannot be avoided in spite of one’s endeavors, a person facing death commits no offense.”
What the purport teaches
- An intelligent person should use intelligence and bodily strength to avoid death. Trying to save oneself from untimely death is a duty.
- Every living soul is eternal by nature. Everyone should cultivate spiritual life to avoid death and rebirth.
- Vasudeva had a duty to try his best to save Devakī. If death cannot be avoided despite one's endeavors, the person facing it commits no offense.
Try this today
Set aside a few minutes today to study this teaching about the eternal soul.
Ask yourself
How am I caring for life while also cultivating spiritual life?
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.