Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 3.27.18
Mukti· LiberationExamining Intelligence and Consciousness
“As there is no separate existence of the earth and its aroma or of water and its taste, there cannot be any separate existence of intelligence and consciousness.”
What the purport teaches
- Earth and its aroma are presented as inseparable. The purport explains that without aroma, the matter cannot be identified.
- Water without taste and fire without heat have no meaning in these examples. Their qualities are essential to how we recognize them.
- The same reasoning is applied to intelligence and consciousness. The purport states that when intelligence is absent, spirit has no meaning.
Try this today
Read the earth-and-aroma and water-and-taste comparisons slowly, then restate their connection to intelligence and consciousness in your own words.
Ask yourself
How do these examples help me understand the proposed relationship between intelligence and consciousness?
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.