Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.20.31
Mukti· LiberationDepend on Devotion and Kṛṣṇa’s Mercy
“Therefore, for a devotee engaged in My loving service, with mind fixed on Me, the cultivation of knowledge and renunciation is generally not the means of achieving the highest perfection within this world.”
What the purport teaches
- Devotional service to Lord Kṛṣṇa is itself the supreme transcendental process. It does not depend on separate cultivation of knowledge and renunciation.
- By chanting and hearing the Lord’s glories, a devotee automatically develops knowledge. As attachment to the Lord increases, attachment to material nature diminishes.
- Lingering material desires are removed through devotional service in due course of time. Rather than trusting proudly in independent efforts, one should depend on Kṛṣṇa’s mercy and faithfully follow the rules of bhakti-yoga.
Try this today
Spend five minutes hearing or chanting Lord Kṛṣṇa’s glories, depending on His mercy rather than your own strength.
Ask yourself
When lingering attachments trouble me, do I trust the purifying power of devotional service?
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.