Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.18.9-10
Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protectionKṛṣṇa Consciousness Nourishes All Living Entities
“O great hero, protector of living entities, if you desire to relieve the living entities by supplying them sufficient grain, and if you desire to nourish them by taking milk from me, you should make arrangements to bring a calf suitable for this purpose and a pot in which the milk can be kept, as well as a milkman to do the work. Since I will be very much affectionate towards my calf, your desire to take milk from me will be fulfilled.”
What the purport teaches
- To obtain milk, the earth requested a suitable calf, an expert milkman, and a proper pot. A cow gives sufficient milk out of affection for her calf.
- Similarly, the earth supplies necessities through her affection for those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious. Human conduct affects the well-being of other living entities.
- When human beings behave properly, animals also receive sufficient food and can be happy. People have a duty to protect and feed animals, not kill them to compensate for grain scarcity.
Try this today
Make one small contribution today toward providing suitable food or protection for an animal.
Ask yourself
How seriously do I take my responsibility for the nourishment and protection of animals?
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.