Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 7.13.19
Īśānukathā· The Lord and His devoteesSeek Understanding Before Judging Inactivity
“Your Honor appears learned, expert and intelligent in every way. You can speak very well, saying things that are pleasing to the heart. You see that people in general are engaged in fruitive activities, yet you are lying here inactive.”
What the purport teaches
- Prahlāda Mahārāja could recognize from the saint’s bodily features that he was learned, intelligent and expert.
- He also acknowledged the saint’s ability to speak words pleasing to the heart. The saint’s inactivity did not prevent Prahlāda from noticing these qualities.
- While people in general pursued fruitive activities, the saint lay inactive and observed them. Prahlāda Mahārāja naturally wanted to understand why.
Try this today
Today, acknowledge one good quality in someone whose behavior you do not fully understand.
Ask yourself
Do I overlook someone’s qualities when their way of living differs from what I expect?
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.