Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 36
Varṇāśrama-dharma as a Path to Bhakti
Yuga-dharma Origins, Universal Virtues, Brahmacarya and Gṛhastha Duties
एवं बृहद्व्रतधरो ब्राह्मणोऽग्निरिव ज्वलन् । मद्भक्तस्तीव्रतपसा दग्धकर्माशयोऽमल: ॥ ३६ ॥
evaṁ bṛhad-vrata-dharo brāhmaṇo ’gnir iva jvalan mad-bhaktas tīvra-tapasā dagdha-karmāśayo ’malaḥ
So wird der Brāhmaṇa, der das große Gelübde des Brahmacarya trägt, wie Feuer leuchtend. Durch strenge Askese verbrennt er die Neigung zu materiellen Handlungen und wird, frei vom Makel weltlichen Begehrens, Mein Geweihter.
The process of liberation is described in this verse. Once when Śrīla Prabhupāda was traveling by airplane, a fellow passenger, who happened to be a priest, told him that he had seen his disciples and found them “bright-faced.” Śrīla Prabhupāda was fond of relating this incident. The spirit soul is more brilliant than the sun, and as the process of spiritual purification gradually takes effect, even the external form of a devotee becomes effulgent. The glowing fire of spiritual knowledge burns to ashes the mentality of sense gratification, and one naturally becomes austere and disinterested in mundane enjoyment. Among all austerities, the best is celibacy, by which the shackles of material life immediately become slackened. One who is amala, free from material desire, is known as a pure devotee of the Lord. On the paths of jñāna, karma and yoga the mind retains the concept of personal interest, but on the path of pure devotion the mind is trained to see only the interests of the Personality of Godhead. Thus a pure devotee of the Lord is amala, completely pure.
FAQs
In Bhagavatam 11.17.36, Kṛṣṇa says His devotee, through intense tapasya, burns up the accumulated karma and its deep-rooted impressions, becoming amala (spotless).
Kṛṣṇa uses the fire metaphor to show the transformative power of strict vows and disciplined austerity: like fire consumes fuel, spiritual discipline consumes karmic contamination and purifies the practitioner.
Adopt steady devotional practice with disciplined restraint—such as regulated habits, sincere service, and purposeful austerity—so that attachments weaken and old karmic tendencies gradually burn away.