Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.29.10-11
Mukti· LiberationLove for Kṛṣṇa Transcends Karmic Bondage
“For those gopīs who could not go to see Kṛṣṇa, intolerable separation from their beloved caused an intense agony that burned away all impious karma. By meditating upon Him they realized His embrace, and the ecstasy they then felt exhausted their material piety. Although Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Soul, these girls simply thought of Him as their male lover and associated with Him in that intimate mood. Thus their karmic bondage was nullified and they abandoned their gross material bodies.”
What the purport teaches
- The gopīs who could not go to Kṛṣṇa experienced intense separation. By meditating upon Him, they experienced His embrace and great transcendental joy.
- Hearing of the gopīs’ separation and joy can free one from both sinful and pious reactions. Neither separation from the Supreme Lord nor direct association with Him belongs to the category of karma.
- Under a bona fide spiritual master’s instructions, devotees engage their senses in hearing, chanting, remembering and serving the Lord. By making His transcendental qualities the objects of their senses, their bodies transcend the material modes.
Try this today
Spend two minutes reading these descriptions of the gopīs’ devotion, then quietly remember Kṛṣṇa.
Ask yourself
How can I engage my senses in devotion to Kṛṣṇa rather than in mundane distractions?
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.