Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.3.25
Mukti· LiberationRemember the Lord and Learn Contentment
“One should practice meditation by constantly seeing oneself to be an eternal cognizant spirit soul and seeing the Lord to be the absolute controller of everything. To increase one’s meditation, one should live in a secluded place and give up false attachment to one’s home and household paraphernalia. Giving up the decorations of the temporary material body, one should dress himself with scraps of cloth found in rejected places, or with the bark of trees. In this way one should learn to be satisfied in any material situation.”
What the purport teaches
- Practice meditation by remembering that you are an eternal, conscious spirit soul and that the Lord is the absolute controller of everything.
- Seclusion means freedom from material disturbances, not physical isolation from everyone. Live in the association of Vaiṣṇavas, whose common goal is advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
- Give up false attachment to home and bodily decoration, while dressing cleanly and decently to help others approach Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Learning satisfaction in any material situation prepares you to remember the Absolute Truth at death.
Try this today
When a small discomfort arises today, pause and remember: I am an eternal spirit soul, and the Lord is the controller.
Ask yourself
Which attachment to material comfort makes it harder for me to remember the Lord?
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.