Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 4.8.20
Poṣaṇa· The Lord's protectionEffort Must Depend on the Lord’s Mercy
“Sunīti continued: The Supreme Personality of Godhead is so great that simply by worshiping His lotus feet, your great-grandfather, Lord Brahmā, acquired the necessary qualifications to create this universe. Although he is unborn and is the chief of all living creatures, he is situated in that exalted post because of the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, whom even great yogīs worship by controlling the mind and regulating the life air [prāṇa].”
What the purport teaches
- Lord Brahmā, Dhruva Mahārāja’s great-grandfather, is also a living being. By penance and austerity, he received the exalted position of creator through the Supreme Lord’s mercy.
- By worshiping the Lord’s lotus feet, Brahmā acquired the qualifications needed to create the universe.
- Success requires not only penance and austerity but also dependence on the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Sunīti thus confirmed the instruction to worship Him.
Try this today
Before beginning one task today, offer a brief prayer acknowledging your dependence on the Supreme Lord’s mercy.
Ask yourself
Do I depend only on my effort, or also seek the Supreme Lord’s mercy?
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.