Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.13.7
Ūti· What drives us to actRemember the Real Business of Self-Realization
“Sometimes, being defeated or plundered by a superior, powerful agent, a living entity loses all his possessions. He then becomes very morose, and lamenting their loss, he sometimes becomes unconscious. Sometimes he imagines a great palatial city in which he desires to live happily with his family members and riches. He thinks himself fully satisfied if this is possible, but such so-called happiness continues only for a moment.”
What the purport teaches
- The conditioned soul spends his energy imagining grand homes where he can live peacefully with his family forever. The laws of nature do not allow such permanence.
- Even an actual palace must be left at death, and powerful enemies may take one's possessions earlier. Material success therefore offers only temporary satisfaction.
- The happiness of family, friends and society is compared to a drop of water in a scorching desert. Attraction to such limited happiness makes one forget the real business of self-realization.
Try this today
Set aside five minutes today from planning material success to reflect on your need for self-realization.
Ask yourself
Which ambition is taking attention away from self-realization?
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.