Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 5.26.21
Ūti· What drives us to actRestrain Desire and Respect Nature’s Laws
“A person who indulges in sex indiscriminately — even with animals — is taken after death to the hell known as Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī. In this hell there is a silk-cotton tree full of thorns as strong as thunderbolts. The agents of Yamarāja hang the sinful man on that tree and pull him down forcibly so that the thorns very severely tear his body.”
What the purport teaches
- The sexual urge is strong, but indulging in sex indiscriminately brings severe consequences. The verse describes punishment in Vajrakaṇṭaka-śālmalī.
- The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement forbids illicit sex. The purport emphasizes the seriousness of this sinful activity.
- Disbelief does not cancel the consequences of one’s actions. The laws of nature must be carried out, and no one can avoid them.
Try this today
Identify one situation that encourages illicit sexual behavior and take one concrete step to avoid it today.
Ask yourself
How can remembering the consequences of desire help me exercise restraint?
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.