Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.53.57
Ūti· What drives us to actPride Reverses Our View of Reality
“The kings inimical to the Lord, headed by Jarāsandha, could not tolerate this humiliating defeat. They exclaimed, “Oh, damn us! Though we are mighty archers, mere cowherds have stolen our honor, just as puny animals might steal the honor of lions!””
What the purport teaches
- The kings headed by Jarāsandha cannot tolerate their humiliating defeat. They lament that those they dismiss as mere cowherds have taken their honor.
- The purport explains that the demons’ perverted intelligence makes them perceive the exact opposite of reality. They imagine themselves to be lions and Lord Kṛṣṇa to be inferior, although the actual comparison is reversed.
- Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, not an inferior creature. The purport warns that without Kṛṣṇa consciousness, life becomes most dangerous.
Try this today
If you feel slighted today, pause before responding and recall that devotional service to Kṛṣṇa matters more than defending your honor.
Ask yourself
When your pride is hurt, how might it distort your understanding?
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.