Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 6.17.29
Ūti· What drives us to actRemember the Lord Amid Material Dualities
“Because of the actions of the Supreme Lord’s external energy, the living entities are conditioned in contact with material bodies. The dualities of happiness and distress, birth and death, curses and favors, are natural by-products of this contact in the material world.”
What the purport teaches
- Contact with material bodies brings dualities such as happiness and distress, birth and death, curses and favors.
- Durgā, the Lord’s material energy, is extremely powerful but does not act independently. She acts under the direction of Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
- Devotees attached to the Lord’s service are not disturbed by these dualities. They fix their minds on His lotus feet and concentrate on His holy name.
Try this today
During one change of mood today, spend a minute concentrating on the Lord’s holy name.
Ask yourself
Where does my mind turn when happiness or distress comes?
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.