Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 11.8.9
Mukti· LiberationTake Enough, Give Energy to Kṛṣṇa
“A saintly person should accept only enough food to keep his body and soul together. He should go from door to door accepting just a little bit of food from each family. Thus he should practice the occupation of the honeybee.”
What the purport teaches
- A saintly mendicant should accept only enough food to maintain the body, taking a little from different households like a honeybee. He should not burden one family by taking too often.
- Attachment to excellent food can entangle a renunciant, just as a bee becomes trapped in a closing lotus. Visiting many houses is also no excuse for eating sumptuously at each one.
- Excessive attachment to satisfying the tongue leads to overeating and uncontrollable lust. Human energy should instead be used strenuously to spread the glories of the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa.
Try this today
Eat a sufficient, moderate meal today, then share one teaching about Kṛṣṇa's glories with someone willing to hear.
Ask yourself
How can I direct more energy toward glorifying Kṛṣṇa and less toward satisfying my tongue?
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.