Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.6.8
Āśraya· The supreme shelterKṛṣṇa Remains Beyond Material Influence
“O unconquerable Lord, You engage Your illusory energy, composed of three modes, to unleash, maintain and devastate the inconceivable manifest cosmos, all within Your own self. As the supreme superintendent of māyā, You appear to be situated in the interaction of the modes of nature; however, You are never affected by material activities. In fact, You are directly engaged in Your own eternal, spiritual bliss, and thus You cannot be accused of any material infection.”
What the purport teaches
- The Lord creates, maintains and destroys the cosmos through His illusory energy, yet material activities never affect Him. The ultimate cause of these cosmic workings is beyond mundane speculation.
- No fault or discrepancy exists in the body, character, activities or instructions of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is free from all three modes of material nature.
- Kṛṣṇa eternally relishes the loving devotion of His associates in spiritual bliss. He has nothing to gain from anyone, so fruitive activity cannot exist within Him.
Try this today
Reread the translation and pause over the statement that Kṛṣṇa is always engaged in His own eternal, spiritual bliss.
Ask yourself
Do I sometimes judge Kṛṣṇa’s activities by the limitations of material life?
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.