Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 6.15.12-15
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesReal Knowledge Awakens Our Relationship With Kṛṣṇa
“O great souls, I have heard that among the great and perfect persons wandering the surface of the earth to instruct knowledge to people covered by ignorance are Sanat-kumāra, Nārada, Ṛbhu, Aṅgirā, Devala, Asita, Apāntaratamā [Vyāsadeva], Mārkaṇḍeya, Gautama, Vasiṣṭha, Bhagavān Paraśurāma, Kapila, Śukadeva, Durvāsā, Yājñavalkya, Jātukarṇa and Aruṇi. Others are Romaśa, Cyavana, Dattātreya, Āsuri, Patañjali, the great sage Dhaumya who is like the head of the Vedas, the sage Pañcaśikha, Hiraṇyanābha, Kauśalya, Śrutadeva and Ṛtadhvaja. You must certainly be among them.”
What the purport teaches
- Great devotees travel throughout the world to distribute real knowledge, not to mislead people. Without this knowledge, human life is wasted.
- Human life is meant for realizing one's relationship with Kṛṣṇa, or God. These devotees awaken Kṛṣṇa consciousness in people's hearts.
- Real knowledge concerns the living entity dwelling within the body. Ignorance makes us identify with the body and experience pleasure and pain through that identification.
Try this today
Write one sentence distinguishing the living entity from the body it inhabits.
Ask yourself
How much of my learning helps me understand my relationship with Kṛṣṇa?
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.