Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.10.12
Mukti· LiberationReturn to Our Eternal Position as Servants
“My dear King, if you still think that you are the King and that I am your servant, you should order me, and I should follow your order. I can then say that this differentiation is temporary, and it expands only from usage or convention. I do not see any other cause. In that case, who is the master, and who is the servant? Everyone is being forced by the laws of material nature; therefore no one is master, and no one is servant. Nonetheless, if you think that you are the master and that I am the servant, I shall accept this. Please order me. What can I do for you?”
What the purport teaches
- Bodily relationships and positions are temporary, like straws gathered and separated by ocean waves. Material nature brings people together and separates them.
- Under material nature’s direction, we play as masters or servants like actors on a stage. Human life offers the opportunity to return to our original position in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
- Understanding that we are eternal servants of Kṛṣṇa ends this floating condition. We should agree to be controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His eternal servants.
Try this today
When you feel the urge to assert control today, pause and recall your position as Kṛṣṇa’s eternal servant.
Ask yourself
How would remembering my eternal service to Kṛṣṇa change my desire to control others?
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.