Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.3.32
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesPure Love Is Devotion’s Mature Fruit
“Having achieved love of Godhead, the devotees sometimes weep loudly, absorbed in thought of the infallible Lord. Sometimes they laugh, feel great pleasure, speak out loud to the Lord, dance or sing. Such devotees, having transcended material, conditioned life, sometimes imitate the unborn Supreme by acting out His pastimes. And sometimes, achieving His personal audience, they remain peaceful and silent.”
What the purport teaches
- Pure love of Godhead is the mature fruit of devotional service. Absorbed in the Lord, devotees may cry, laugh, dance, sing or remain peacefully silent in His presence.
- When all the devotee’s senses are absorbed in Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the devotee transcends material conditioned life. Full, unfailing devotional service carries one beyond the modes of material nature.
- One should give up envy and false prestige and humbly seek the Supreme Personality of Godhead’s mercy. A sincere soul who serves a bona fide spiritual master, the representative of that mercy, achieves life’s highest perfection.
Try this today
Identify one attitude of envy or false prestige in yourself, and offer a brief prayer for humility and the Lord’s mercy.
Ask yourself
Where might envy or false prestige be keeping me from humbly receiving spiritual guidance?
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.