Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.17.29
Manvantara· The Manus and right dutyServe the Spiritual Master With Humility
“While engaged in serving the spiritual master one should remain as a humble servant, and thus when the guru is walking the servant should humbly walk behind. When the guru lies down to sleep, the servant should also lie down nearby, and when the guru has awakened, the servant should sit near him, massaging his lotus feet and rendering other, similar services. When the guru is sitting down on his āsana, the servant should stand nearby with folded hands, awaiting the guru’s order. In this way one should always worship the spiritual master.”
What the purport teaches
- One should serve the spiritual master as a humble servant, walking behind him when he walks.
- When the guru rests, the servant should lie down nearby; when he awakens, the servant should sit near him and render services such as massaging his lotus feet.
- When the guru sits on his āsana, the servant should stand nearby with folded hands, awaiting his order. Such attentive service is a way of continually worshiping the spiritual master.
Try this today
Identify one small service to your spiritual master that you can carry out attentively today.
Ask yourself
Are you ready to serve humbly, without needing to be noticed?
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.