Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.3.24
Mukti· LiberationCultivate Qualities That Support Devotional Service
“To serve the spiritual master the disciple should learn cleanliness, austerity, tolerance, silence, study of Vedic knowledge, simplicity, celibacy, nonviolence, and equanimity in the face of material dualities such as heat and cold, happiness and distress.”
What the purport teaches
- To serve the spiritual master, cultivate cleanliness, austerity, tolerance, silence, Vedic study, simplicity, celibacy, nonviolence and equanimity. Cleanliness includes freedom from false pride, while austerity means remaining steady in duty despite impulses of lust, anger and greed.
- Tolerance means being forgiving rather than vindictive. Silence means avoiding worthless talk and instead glorifying Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
- Study books that increase the desire to serve the Supreme Lord, rather than reading for scholarly prestige. Spiritual perfection is possible within daily life by dedicating one’s work to the Lord and sincerely taking shelter of Kṛṣṇa’s holy names.
Try this today
Replace one moment of frivolous talk today with reading aloud a short passage that glorifies Kṛṣṇa.
Ask yourself
Which habit in my daily work or speech could I change to better support loving service to Kṛṣṇa?
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.