Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.80.16-17
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesAbsorbed in Approaching the Lord
“The learned brāhmaṇa, joined by some local brāhmaṇas, passed three guard stations and went through three gateways, and then he walked by the homes of Lord Kṛṣṇa’s faithful devotees, the Andhakas and Vṛṣṇis, which ordinarily no one could do. He then entered one of the opulent palaces belonging to Lord Hari’s sixteen thousand queens, and when he did so he felt as if he were attaining the bliss of liberation.”
What the purport teaches
- Accompanied by local brāhmaṇas, Sudāmā passed three guard stations and three gateways. He walked through an area ordinarily inaccessible to others.
- He entered the palace of Rukmiṇī, one of Lord Hari’s queens. The purport describes him standing silently for a moment at its doorway.
- Upon entering the palace precincts and then the palace itself, he forgot everything else. His state is compared to the bliss of spiritual liberation.
Try this today
Pause silently for a moment before your devotional service today, setting other concerns aside.
Ask yourself
When do I allow thoughts of approaching Kṛṣṇa to quiet my other concerns?
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.