Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.23.3
Sthāna· The universe in orderEverything Moves Under Kṛṣṇa’s Direction
“When bulls are yoked together and tied to a central post to thresh rice, they tread around that pivot without deviating from their proper positions — one bull being closest to the post, another in the middle, and a third on the outside. Similarly, all the planets and all the hundreds and thousands of stars revolve around the polestar, the planet of Mahārāja Dhruva, in their respective orbits, some higher and some lower. Fastened by the Supreme Personality of Godhead to the machine of material nature according to the results of their fruitive acts, they are driven around the polestar by the wind and will continue to be so until the end of creation. These planets float in the air within the vast sky, just as clouds with hundreds of tons of water float in the air or as the great śyena eagles, due to the results of past activities, fly high in the sky and have no chance of falling to the ground.”
What the purport teaches
- The stars and planets are servants of Govinda, or Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Their predominating deities carry out His orders in their respective orbits.
- The planetary orbits and the bodies of living entities are compared to machines supplied by material nature. Both work under the direction of the Supreme Lord.
- The universe is compared to a great fort from which conditioned souls cannot leave without the Lord’s mercy. Through Kṛṣṇa consciousness and His mercy, one can be liberated and reach the spiritual world.
Try this today
Offer a short prayer to Kṛṣṇa, asking for His mercy to grow in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Ask yourself
How can remembering Kṛṣṇa’s direction and mercy change my sense of independence?
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.