Live the Bhāgavatam · SB 9.10.11
Ūti· What drives us to actThe Lord’s Separation Is Spiritual
“When Rāmacandra entered the forest and Lakṣmaṇa was also absent, the worst of the Rākṣasas, Rāvaṇa, kidnapped Sītādevī, the daughter of the King of Videha, just as a tiger seizes unprotected sheep when the shepherd is absent. Then Lord Rāmacandra wandered in the forest with His brother Lakṣmaṇa as if very much distressed due to separation from His wife. Thus He showed by His personal example the condition of a person attached to women.”
What the purport teaches
- Lord Rāmacandra wandered with Lakṣmaṇa as if deeply distressed by separation from Sītā. By this example, He showed the suffering connected with material attachment to women.
- The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not subject to material conditions. His separation from Sītā is vipralambha, a spiritual activity of His pleasure potency that increases spiritual bliss.
- Rāvaṇa could not actually take away the real Sītā; he took an illusory representation, māyā-sītā. The purport also emphasizes protecting women from exploitation.
Try this today
Write and reflect on this reminder: “The Lord’s mind, intelligence and senses are never affected by material conditions.”
Ask yourself
How does the distinction between material distress and spiritual separation change 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.