Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 50
Kṛṣṇa’s Impending Departure; Uddhava’s Surrender; King Yadu and the Avadhūta’s Twenty-Four Gurus
Beginnings
गुणैर्गुणानुपादत्ते यथाकालं विमुञ्चति । न तेषु युज्यते योगी गोभिर्गा इव गोपति: ॥ ५० ॥
guṇair guṇān upādatte yathā-kālaṁ vimuñcati na teṣu yujyate yogī gobhir gā iva go-patiḥ
瑜伽行者以诸根随诸性（guṇa）而取受诸境，并于适时放舍；却不为其所缠。正如牧牛者在群牛之中而不被牛所系，行者处于诸性之中亦常不染。
A Kṛṣṇa conscious person never feels proprietorship over the opulences entrusted to him by Lord Kṛṣṇa for spreading the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. The devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa should not merely accumulate material wealth, but should distribute the opulences of Lord Kṛṣṇa in such a way that the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement spreads unlimitedly. This is a lesson to be learned from the sun.
FAQs
This verse teaches that a yogī may accept and later give up necessities through the modes of nature, yet remains unattached—like a cowherd managing cows without being bound by them.
In the Uddhava-gītā section, Kṛṣṇa instructs Uddhava on liberation: how to engage with practical life while remaining beyond the guṇas through steady spiritual vision and discipline.
Take what is required for duty and health, let go when the time passes, and regularly anchor the mind in spiritual practice so possessions and experiences don’t become identity or bondage.