Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.36.25
Ūti· What drives us to actA Courteous Address, a Cruel Order
“You, elephant-keeper, my good man, should position the elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa at the entrance to the wrestling arena and have him kill my two enemies.”
What the purport teaches
- The elephant-keeper is addressed politely as “my good man.”
- He is ordered to position the elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa at the entrance to the wrestling arena.
- The elephant is to kill the speaker’s two enemies. The courteous address does not soften the cruelty of the command.
Try this today
Before agreeing to one request today, consider whether carrying it out could harm someone.
Ask yourself
Do I judge a request by its actual purpose, rather than merely its polite wording?
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.