Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.14.6
Mukti· LiberationDevotees’ Mercy Reveals the Personal Lord
“Nondevotees, however, cannot realize You in Your full personal feature. Nevertheless, it may be possible for them to realize Your expansion as the impersonal Supreme by cultivating direct perception of the Self within the heart. But they can do this only by purifying their mind and senses of all conceptions of material distinctions and all attachment to material sense objects. Only in this way will Your impersonal feature manifest itself to them.”
What the purport teaches
- God is understood progressively as the impersonal effulgence, the localized Supersoul and the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Kṛṣṇa is beyond material qualities, not without transcendental qualities.
- Even impersonal realization requires purification of the mind and senses from material distinctions and attachments. Yoga and philosophical speculation are virtually useless for understanding the Lord’s unlimited personal qualities.
- Realizing God’s personal feature begins through the mercy of His pure devotees or association with the Lord Himself. This process culminates in pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the supreme perfection of knowledge.
Try this today
Reread the purport’s final paragraph, reflecting on the importance of receiving guidance from the Lord’s pure devotees.
Ask yourself
How does the distinction between material and transcendental qualities shape your understanding of Kṛṣṇa?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
From Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.