Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 2.6.23
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesWorship With Gratitude for the Lord’s Gifts
“When I was born from the abdominal lotus flower of the Lord [Mahā-Viṣṇu], the great person, I had no ingredients for sacrificial performances except the bodily limbs of the great Personality of Godhead.”
What the purport teaches
- Brahmā was born from the abdominal lotus of Mahā-Viṣṇu, a plenary expansion of Lord Kṛṣṇa. Inspired by the Lord within his heart, he underwent austerity to acquire sacrificial ingredients.
- Nothing is created out of nothing; everything comes from the Lord. Even the ingredients used to worship Him come from His bodily limbs.
- The devotee worships out of gratitude, knowing that everything belongs to the Lord. This understanding leads to loving service, not to claiming to be the Lord.
Try this today
Choose one resource you have today and use it in the Lord’s service with gratitude.
Ask yourself
What do I call my own that I could instead recognize as the Lord’s property?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points, practice and question are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport. Read the full purport to go deeper.