Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.4.18
Mukti· LiberationMaterial Togetherness Cannot Last Forever
“O great souls, your children have suffered their own misfortune. Therefore, please do not lament for them. All living entities are under the control of the Supreme, and they cannot always live together.”
What the purport teaches
- Kaṁsa addresses Devakī and Vasudeva as great souls. Astonished that Durgā had appeared from Devakī, he appreciates their exalted position.
- Durgā controls the laws of nature and is not subject to them. Ordinary living beings, however, are controlled by those laws.
- Living entities cannot always remain together. Kaṁsa uses this understanding to try to pacify his sister and brother-in-law.
Try this today
Give someone close to you a few minutes of attentive company today, remembering that time together is not permanent.
Ask yourself
How does remembering that togetherness is temporary change the way I treat those near me?
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.