Live Caitanya Caritamrta · CC Ādi 4.68
Hlādinī’s Essence Is Love of God
“The essence of the hlādinī potency is love of God, the essence of love of God is emotion [bhāva], and the ultimate development of emotion is mahābhāva.”
What the purport teaches
- The essence of hlādinī is love of God, the essence of that love is bhāva, and the ultimate development of bhāva is mahābhāva.
- Love of Godhead has pure and adulterated forms. A living being becomes a pure lover of God when hlādinī-śakti emanates from Śrī Kṛṣṇa and is bestowed upon that being to attract Him.
- When hlādinī-śakti is adulterated by material energy and emanates from the living being, it does not attract Kṛṣṇa. Instead, the living being becomes captivated by material enjoyment and the distressful interactions of the material modes.
Try this today
Pause before one material pleasure today and reflect on the verse’s distinction between attraction to Kṛṣṇa and attraction to material enjoyment.
Ask yourself
Where do you notice the difference between seeking love of God and being drawn toward material enjoyment?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport; the practice and question are plain words for trying the verse today.