Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.5.24
Nirodha· Winding upThe Purpose of Sacrificial Animal Offerings
“Then Vīrabhadra saw the wooden device in the sacrificial arena by which the animals were to have been killed. He took the opportunity of this facility to behead Dakṣa.”
What the purport teaches
- Vīrabhadra saw the wooden device intended for animal sacrifice and used it to behead Dakṣa, astonishing everyone.
- The purport explains that the device was not meant to facilitate eating animal flesh. The sacrifice was intended to give the animal a new life through the power of Vedic mantra.
- These sacrifices tested whether the brāhmaṇas were uttering the Vedic hymns correctly. Old animals received new bodies in exchange for their old ones and thus were not the losers.
Try this today
Write down the purport’s distinction between giving an animal a new body through Vedic mantra and killing it for food.
Ask yourself
How does the stated purpose of these sacrifices differ from killing animals for their flesh?
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.