Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 7.13.44
Mukti· LiberationSelf-Realization Leads to Surrender
“A learned, thoughtful person must realize that material existence is illusion. This is possible only by self-realization. A self-realized person, who has actually seen the truth, should retire from all material activities, being situated in self-realization.”
What the purport teaches
- Thoughtful study reveals that the soul is different from the body’s material constituents. Self-realization includes understanding that the individual soul is subordinate to the supreme spirit soul.
- The individual soul and the Supersoul, Paramātmā, are like two birds in the same tree of the body. The individual enjoys the fruits, while the supreme friend witnesses and offers guidance.
- When one recognizes this supreme friend, one takes shelter of Him and surrenders. This is the beginning of bhakti-yoga, or actual life in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, rather than continued material activity.
Try this today
Spend a quiet minute remembering that you are distinct from the body and subordinate to the supreme friend within.
Ask yourself
How might remembering the Supersoul as my supreme friend change my outlook?
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.