Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.24.6
Ūti· What drives us to actUnderstand Rather Than Follow Blindly
“When people in this world perform activities, sometimes they understand what they are doing and sometimes they don’t. Those who know what they are doing achieve success in their work, whereas ignorant people do not.”
What the purport teaches
- People sometimes act with understanding and sometimes without it. Kṛṣṇa explained that understanding enables success in one’s work.
- A ceremony or activity should be performed only after thoroughly understanding it through discussion with friends. We should not be blind followers of tradition.
- As Nanda’s young son, Kṛṣṇa would naturally be expected to take interest in His father’s religious activities. It was therefore Nanda’s duty to explain the ceremony thoroughly.
Try this today
Discuss one religious practice with a trusted friend today to better understand why it is performed.
Ask yourself
Which practice do I follow mainly from habit, without understanding its purpose?
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.