Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.2.18
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesInitiation Awakens the Lord’s Presence
“Thereafter, accompanied by plenary expansions, the fully opulent Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is all-auspicious for the entire universe, was transferred from the mind of Vasudeva to the mind of Devakī. Devakī, having thus been initiated by Vasudeva, became beautiful by carrying Lord Kṛṣṇa, the original consciousness for everyone, the cause of all causes, within the core of her heart, just as the east becomes beautiful by carrying the rising moon.”
What the purport teaches
- Kṛṣṇa was transferred from Vasudeva’s heart to Devakī’s heart through dīkṣā, initiation, not ordinary human conception. This was a heart-to-heart relationship.
- The purport stresses initiation by a bona fide spiritual master who always carries the Supreme Personality of Godhead within the heart. Through such initiation, the devotee’s awareness of the Lord’s presence is awakened.
- Kṛṣṇa is always complete in wealth, strength, fame, knowledge, beauty and renunciation, and accompanied by His plenary expansions. Devakī became the residence of this Supreme Personality of Godhead, the cause of all creation.
Try this today
Write down the qualification for a spiritual master emphasized here: always carrying the Supreme Personality of Godhead within the heart.
Ask yourself
Why is it important that a spiritual master carries the Supreme Personality of Godhead within the heart?
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.