Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 1
Avadhūta’s Further Teachers: Detachment, Solitude, One-Pointed Meditation, and the Lord as Āśraya
श्रीब्राह्मण उवाच परिग्रहो हि दु:खाय यद् यत्प्रियतमं नृणाम् । अनन्तं सुखमाप्नोति तद् विद्वान् यस्त्वकिञ्चन: ॥ १ ॥
śrī-brāhmaṇa uvāca parigraho hi duḥkhāya yad yat priyatamaṁ nṛṇām anantaṁ sukham āpnoti tad vidvān yas tv akiñcanaḥ
Der heilige Brāhmaṇa sprach: Was Menschen am liebsten ist, wird durch Anhaften und Besitzdenken zur Ursache von Leid. Der Weise, der Besitzgier und Bindung aufgibt, erlangt grenzenloses Glück.
FAQs
This verse states that parigraha—accumulating and clinging to what is ‘most dear’—becomes a direct cause of suffering, because attachment makes the heart vulnerable to fear, loss, and anxiety.
King Yadu approached the Avadhūta to learn the secret of inner freedom. The Avadhūta begins by explaining that detachment from possessions and attachments is foundational for spiritual happiness.
Practice reducing unnecessary acquisition, simplify needs, and shift dependence from possessions to devotion and inner discipline—so happiness is less controlled by gain and loss.