Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.22.42
Ūti· What drives us to actMaterial Rankings Do Not Define the Soul
“Because the mind, which is the resting place of the senses, has created the identification with a new body, the threefold material variety of high, middle and low class appears as if present within the reality of the soul. Thus the self creates external and internal duality, just as a man might give birth to a bad son.”
What the purport teaches
- Bodily wealth, beauty, strength, intelligence, fame and detachment are judged excellent, ordinary or inferior. Through bodily identification, the soul applies these rankings to himself and others.
- The eternal soul exists beyond material duality but falsely takes the body’s situation as his own. This identification involves him in bodily happiness and distress.
- A peaceful father may become involved in conflicts because of a troublesome son. Similarly, the soul has no intrinsic problems but becomes entangled through false identification with the body.
Try this today
When you catch yourself ranking someone by wealth, appearance or ability today, pause and remember that the soul is beyond those material distinctions.
Ask yourself
When do I judge my worth or another person’s worth by material circumstances?
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.