Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 3.29.8
Ūti· What drives us to actPride and Envy Darken Devotional Service
“Devotional service executed by a person who is envious, proud, violent and angry, and who is a separatist, is considered to be in the mode of darkness.”
What the purport teaches
- Devotional service mixed with violence, pride, envy and anger is in the mode of darkness. Thinking oneself the best devotee does not make one's devotion pure.
- Pure devotional service aims only to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the conditioned stage, one should serve in full surrender under a bona fide spiritual master's direction.
- A devotee of poor character may be respected for accepting the Supreme Lord as life's goal. Still, one should not keep company with a devotee acting in the mode of ignorance.
Try this today
Before serving today, notice any wish to appear better than others and deliberately turn your intention toward pleasing the Lord.
Ask yourself
Do pride or envy draw my attention away from pleasing 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.