Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.21.42
Āśraya· The supreme shelterKṛṣṇa Knows the Heart of the Vedas
“In the entire world no one but Me actually understands the confidential purpose of Vedic knowledge. Thus people do not know what the Vedas are actually prescribing in the ritualistic injunctions of karma-kāṇḍa, or what object is actually being indicated in the formulas of worship found in the upāsanā-kāṇḍa, or that which is elaborately discussed through various hypotheses in the jñāna-kāṇḍa section of the Vedas.”
What the purport teaches
- Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the source, maintainer and ultimate goal of Vedic knowledge. He alone fully knows its confidential purpose.
- The actual purpose of religion is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or pure love of Godhead. All Vedic formulas are preliminary stages leading to full surrender in devotional service to the Lord.
- The Lord’s pure devotees represent Him and never speak anything unauthorized by Him. Because they repeat His own words, they too are understood as true knowers of the Vedas.
Try this today
Reread the translation today, then pause to remember that its speaker, Kṛṣṇa, is both the source and the goal of Vedic knowledge.
Ask yourself
How can I keep loving service to Kṛṣṇa at the center of my study?
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.