Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.7.43
Āśraya· The supreme shelterServing Kṛṣṇa Serves Everyone
“The Gandharvas said: Dear Lord, all the demigods, including Lord Śiva, Lord Brahmā and Indra, along with Marīci and the other great sages, are all only differentiated parts and parcels of Your body. You are the Supreme Almighty Great; the whole creation is just like a plaything for You. We always accept You as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and we offer our respectful obeisances unto You.”
What the purport teaches
- Kṛṣṇa alone is the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the master of everyone. However exalted their positions, the demigods are not supreme.
- Viṣṇu manifestations are called svāṁśa, and living entities are called vibhinnāṁśa. Everyone is constitutionally meant to serve Kṛṣṇa; even His immediate expansion, Baladeva, serves Him.
- Worship of Kṛṣṇa includes worship of all His parts and parcels. It is like watering a tree’s root, which also nourishes its branches, twigs, leaves and flowers.
Try this today
Offer respectful obeisances to Kṛṣṇa, acknowledging Him as the Supreme Lord and yourself as His servant.
Ask yourself
How does the image of watering a tree’s root help me understand worship of Kṛṣṇa?
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.