Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 3.13.37
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesInitiation and Sacrifice Rest in the Lord
“Moreover, O Lord, the repetition of Your appearance is the desire for all kinds of initiation. Your neck is the place for three desires, and Your tusks are the result of initiation and the end of all desires. Your tongue is the prior activities of initiation, Your head is the fire without sacrifice as well as the fire of worship, and Your living forces are the aggregate of all desires.”
What the purport teaches
- The Lord’s repeated appearance is described as the desire for all kinds of initiation. His neck is the place for three desires.
- His tusks are the result of initiation and the end of all desires. His tongue is the prior activities of initiation.
- His head is described as both the fire without sacrifice and the fire of worship. His living forces are the aggregate of all desires.
Try this today
Read this verse aloud once as a prayer, giving careful attention to one of its descriptions.
Ask yourself
How does this prayer help you see initiation and worship in relation to the Lord?
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.