Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.82.46
Āśraya· The supreme shelterThe Gopīs’ Love Surpasses Ordinary Knowledge
“In this way all created things reside within the basic elements of creation, while the spirit souls pervade the creation, remaining in their own true identity. You should see both of these — the material creation and the self — as manifest within Me, the imperishable Supreme Truth.”
What the purport teaches
- Material objects arise from the basic elements, while spirit souls remain in their own identity as enjoyers. Both are manifested within and pervaded by Kṛṣṇa, the imperishable Supreme Soul.
- A realized jñānī should feel no separation from the Lord, but the gopīs are much more elevated than ordinary jñānīs. They love Kṛṣṇa intensely as the all-attractive young cowherd boy.
- Yoga-māyā covered their knowledge of His majesty so they could relish the intense ecstasy of love in separation. Kṛṣṇa speaks of their lack of spiritual discrimination only in jest.
Try this today
Look at one material object and recall that its elements, and you as a spirit soul, exist within Kṛṣṇa.
Ask yourself
Why would it be mistaken to treat the gopīs’ feelings of separation as ordinary ignorance?
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.