Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.20.5
Mukti· LiberationRise Beyond Bodily Desires Through Devotion
“Those who are in full knowledge of the bodily conception of life, who know that this body is composed of nescience, desires and activities resulting from illusion, do not become addicted to the body.”
What the purport teaches
- Those with good intelligence do not accept themselves to be the body. Knowing its connection with ignorance, desires and illusory activities, they do not become addicted to it.
- Expecting lasting happiness from sense gratification, bodily desires or rituals for material elevation is illusion. Such expectations rest on the bodily conception of life.
- Vedic ritualistic activities mainly concern the three modes of material nature. The instruction is to rise above these modes through the transcendental activities of devotional service.
Try this today
Set aside one optional pursuit of sense gratification today and use that time for devotional service.
Ask yourself
Which desire am I treating as a source of happiness simply because it promises bodily enjoyment?
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.