Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.13.10
Ūti· What drives us to actRestraint Protects Against Needless Suffering
“Sometimes, in order to have a little insignificant sex enjoyment, one searches after debauched women. In this attempt, one is insulted and chastised by the women’s kinsmen. This is like going to take honey from a beehive and being attacked by the bees. Sometimes, after spending lots of money, one may acquire another woman for some extra sense enjoyment. Unfortunately, the object of sense enjoyment, the woman, is taken away or kidnapped by another debauchee.”
What the purport teaches
- Seeking illicit sexual enjoyment is compared to taking honey and being attacked by bees. The small pleasure brings great difficulty and humiliation.
- A person dissatisfied with one wife struggles to obtain further enjoyment, yet may lose what was gained. Such pursuits keep one in the forest of material life.
- Devotees in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement are forbidden to have illicit sex. The purport advises satisfaction within lawful marriage rather than creating disturbances in society.
Try this today
Avoid one temptation today that encourages sexual enjoyment outside marriage.
Ask yourself
How can contentment and restraint protect me from unnecessary trouble?
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.