Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.10.5
Mukti· LiberationPreserve Purity and Seek Genuine Guidance
“One who has accepted Me as the supreme goal of life should strictly observe the scriptural injunctions forbidding sinful activities and, as far as possible, should execute the injunctions prescribing minor regulative duties such as cleanliness. Ultimately, however, one should approach a bona fide spiritual master who is full in knowledge of Me as I am, who is peaceful, and who by spiritual elevation is not different from Me.”
What the purport teaches
- Major regulative principles must be observed even in difficult circumstances. These include avoiding meat, fish, eggs, intoxication, gambling and illicit sex.
- Minor regulations, such as bathing three times daily, should be followed as far as possible. Difficulty in observing these is not the same as engaging in forbidden activities.
- Rules alone cannot give spiritual perfection; one must approach a bona fide spiritual master who knows the Lord’s personal form. Such a master controls his senses, is peaceful and is nondifferent from the Lord through complete surrender to His mission.
Try this today
Identify one situation today in which a major regulative principle could be difficult to maintain, and make a concrete plan to avoid compromising it.
Ask yourself
How can you value both purity in conduct and the guidance of a qualified spiritual master?
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.