Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 12.4.14
Nirodha· Winding upElements Dissolve as Their Qualities Disappear
“As the entire universe is flooded, the water will rob the earth of its unique quality of fragrance, and the element earth, deprived of its distinguishing quality, will be dissolved.”
What the purport teaches
- Sky possesses sound; air possesses sound and touch; fire possesses sound, touch and form.
- Water also possesses flavor, and earth adds aroma to these qualities. During the universal flood, water takes away earth's distinguishing quality of fragrance.
- When an element loses its unique quality, it becomes indistinguishable from the more subtle elements. In this way, earth is dissolved as a distinct element.
Try this today
Write the five elements in order, adding each element's distinguishing quality beside it.
Ask yourself
How does the loss of earth's distinguishing quality help me understand its dissolution?
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.