Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.32.17
Ūti· What drives us to actTrue Friendship Has No Selfish Interest
“The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: So-called friends who show affection for each other only to benefit themselves are actually selfish. They have no true friendship, nor are they following the true principles of religion. Indeed, if they did not expect benefit for themselves, they would not reciprocate.”
What the purport teaches
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead explains that those who exchange affection only for personal benefit are selfish.
- Such dealings contain neither true friendship nor the true principles of religion. Without an expected benefit, these people would not reciprocate.
- In pure loving friendship there is no sense of selfish interest. There is only love for one’s friend.
Try this today
Do one thoughtful thing for a friend today without asking for anything in return.
Ask yourself
Would I still offer affection if I expected no benefit in return?
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.