Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 6.17.32
Āśraya· The supreme shelterThe Lord Is Known Through Pure Devotion
“Neither I [Lord Śiva], nor Brahmā, nor the Aśvinī-kumāras, nor Nārada or the other great sages who are Brahmā’s sons, nor even the demigods can understand the pastimes and personality of the Supreme Lord. Although we are part of the Supreme Lord, we consider ourselves independent, separate controllers, and thus we cannot understand His identity.”
What the purport teaches
- Lord Śiva includes himself among those unable to understand the Supreme Lord’s personality and pastimes. Considering oneself an independent controller obstructs understanding of the Lord.
- Govinda is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, absolute, infallible and beginningless. Although He expands into unlimited forms, He remains the same original person.
- Even the best Vedic scholars cannot understand the Lord’s eternal, blissful, all-knowing forms, yet those forms are manifest to pure devotees. Lord Śiva is above ordinary living entities, but is not in the category of Lord Viṣṇu.
Try this today
Offer a brief prayer to Govinda today, acknowledging your limited understanding and asking to serve Him with pure devotion.
Ask yourself
How might thinking of myself as an independent controller limit my understanding of the Lord?
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.