Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.10.21
Mukti· LiberationTemporary Does Not Mean False
“You have said, “I am not fatigued from labor.” Although the soul is different from the body, there is fatigue because of bodily labor, and it appears to be the fatigue of the soul. When you are carrying the palanquin, there is certainly labor for the soul. This is my conjecture. You have also said that the external behavior exhibited between the master and the servant is not factual, but although in the phenomenal world it is not factual, the products of the phenomenal world can actually affect things. That is visible and experienced. As such, even though material activities are impermanent, they cannot be said to be untrue.”
What the purport teaches
- Vaiṣṇava philosophers understand that the material world is a temporary manifestation, but it is not false.
- Fatigue does not belong to the soul itself. Yet while immersed in the bodily conception, the conditioned soul suffers, just as a frightening dream affects its dreamer.
- A waterpot is made of earth and is temporary, yet it can hold water. Its temporary nature does not make its practical use false.
Try this today
When using a pot or cup today, notice that it is temporary yet serves a practical purpose.
Ask yourself
Do I confuse something being temporary with its having no real effect or use?
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.