Live Caitanya Caritamrta · CC Ādi 7.18-19
Eternal associates share the Lord’s love
“The internal devotees or potencies are all eternal associates in the pastimes of the Lord. Only with them does the Lord advent to propound the saṅkīrtana movement, only with them does the Lord taste the mellow of conjugal love, and only with them does He distribute this love of God to people in general.”
What the purport teaches
- The Lord’s internal devotees are His eternal associates. With them He introduces the saṅkīrtana movement, tastes conjugal love and distributes love of God.
- The purport traces a gradual development from karmīs to those with perfect Vedic knowledge, then to those liberated from material bondage. Among liberated persons, a devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is considered the best.
- Among the Lord’s transcendental lovers, the gopīs are the best, and among them Śrīmatī Rādhikā is the best. She and Her ponds, Śyāma-kuṇḍa and Rādhā-kuṇḍa, are very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa.
Try this today
Set aside a brief moment today to remember the Lord and His eternal associates distributing love of God.
Ask yourself
What does this progression teach me about the value of devotion beyond knowledge and liberation?
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.