Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 3.28.38
Mukti· LiberationAwaken Beyond the Bodily Concept
“The body of such a liberated yogī, along with the senses, is taken charge of by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and it functions until its destined activities are finished. The liberated devotee, being awake to his constitutional position and thus situated in samādhi, the highest perfectional stage of yoga, does not accept the by-products of the material body as his own. Thus he considers his bodily activities to be like the activities of a body in a dream.”
What the purport teaches
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead takes charge of the liberated devotee’s body and senses. They continue functioning until the reactions of past activities are finished.
- Like an electric fan that keeps moving after being switched off, the liberated soul’s bodily activities continue for some time. These activities do not bind him to the bodily concept of life.
- Awake to his constitutional position, the liberated devotee does not identify with his body or its expansions, such as family and house. He regards bodily activities as one regards the activities of a body in a dream.
Try this today
Pause once today and reflect: “My body and its activities do not define my constitutional position.”
Ask yourself
When do I most strongly identify myself with my body or its extensions?
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.