Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 7.15.70
Ūti· What drives us to actBeauty and Desire Can Bewilder
“I had a beautiful face and a pleasing, attractive bodily structure. Decorated with flower garlands and sandalwood pulp, I was most pleasing to the women of my city. Thus I was bewildered, always feeling lusty desires.”
What the purport teaches
- As Upabarhaṇa, Nārada Muni had great beauty and skill in decorating himself. He used these gifts to attract women and became bewildered by lusty desires.
- The purport warns that unrestricted attraction and mingling lead to spiritual decline. Outward beauty does not protect a person from this danger.
- Without cultural and spiritual education, people manufacture their own way of life. The purport describes the result as increasing misfortune and disturbance.
Try this today
Set aside one activity meant only to attract admiration today, and use that time for spiritual study.
Ask yourself
When does my desire to appear attractive distract me from spiritual training?
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.