Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.6.33
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesRemembering Viṣṇu Is Devotional Meditation
“The demigods saw Lord Śiva sitting under that tree, which was competent to give perfection to mystic yogīs and deliver all people. As grave as time eternal, he appeared to have given up all anger.”
What the purport teaches
- The demigods saw Lord Śiva seated beneath the tree, grave as eternal time and apparently free from anger. Many great yogīs and devotees were also there, meditating on Lord Viṣṇu.
- Yoga means meditation on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and mahā-yoga refers to devotional service to Viṣṇu. Remembering His form within the heart is smaraṇam, one of the nine processes of devotional service.
- Such meditators generally desire freedom from material bondage and are promoted to a Vaikuṇṭha planet. Liberation means freedom from the miserable condition of repeated suffering caused by bodily identification.
Try this today
Sit quietly for a few minutes and remember Lord Viṣṇu’s form, approaching this remembrance as devotional service.
Ask yourself
How does understanding meditation as remembering Viṣṇu clarify its devotional purpose for me?
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.