Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 10.84.11
Mukti· LiberationSaintly Association Brings Immediate Purification
“Mere bodies of water are not the real sacred places of pilgrimage, nor are mere images of earth and stone the true worshipable deities. These purify one only after a long time, but saintly sages purify one immediately upon being seen.”
What the purport teaches
- The Personality of Godhead is absolute. His representation in stone, paint, sound or another authorized medium is nondifferent from His original form in Goloka Vṛndāvana.
- Demigods are infinitesimal spirit souls, and their representations are not identical with them. Demigod worship and ritual bathing give limited benefit to those lacking transcendental faith in the Supreme Lord.
- Great Vaiṣṇava saints are always absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and are living places of pilgrimage. Even a moment’s association, especially hearing their glorification of the Lord, can deliver one from material entanglement.
Try this today
Spend a few minutes hearing or reading a pure Vaiṣṇava’s glorification of the Lord.
Ask yourself
Do I seek the company and teachings of saints as eagerly as I seek sacred places?
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.