SB 11.7.50 — FolioCorpus

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.7.50

गुणैर्गुणानुपादत्ते यथाकालं विमुञ्चति । न तेषु युज्यते योगी गोभिर्गा इव गोपति: ॥ ५० ॥

guṇair guṇān upādatte

[gunair gunaan upaadatte]

yathā-kālaṁ vimuñcati

[yathaa-kaalam vimunchati]

na teṣu yujyate yogī

[na teshu yujyate yogee]

gobhir gā iva go-patiḥ

[gobhir gaa iva go-patih]

Word-for-word

guṇaiḥ — by his senses guṇān — material sense objects upādatte — accepts yathā-kālam — at the proper time vimuñcati — gives them up na — he does not teṣu — in them yujyate — become entangled yogī — a self-realized sage gobhiḥ — by his rays gāḥ — bodies of water iva — as go-patiḥ — the sun.

Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)

guṇair guṇān upādatte

guṇaiḥ

by his senses

guṇān

material sense objects

upādatte

accepts

yathā-kālaṁ vimuñcati

yathā-kālam

at the proper time

vimuñcati

gives them up

na teṣu yujyate yogī

he does not

teṣu

in them

yujyate

become entangled

yogī

a self-realized sage

gobhir gā iva go-patiḥ

gobhiḥ

by his rays

gāḥ

bodies of water

iva

go-patiḥ

the sun.

Just as the sun evaporates large quantities of water by its potent rays and later returns the water to the earth in the form of rain, similarly, a saintly person accepts all types of material objects with his material senses, and at the appropriate time, when the proper person has approached him to request them, he returns such material objects. Thus, both in accepting and giving up the objects of the senses, he is not entangled.

Purport

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.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda

Gauḍīya Ācāryas

Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya

Translation

The yogī accepts objects by his senses and at an appropriate time gives them away without attachment, just as the sun draws water by its rays and then disperses it without attachment. Two verses explain what he learned from the sun. The yogī accepts sense objects by the senses, and when persons come with requests at some time, he gives away those items. He is not attached to them. He does not think “This was obtained by me, this was given by me.” He is like the sun, which takes up water using its rays.

Personal Guidance

Like the sun that takes water and gives it back as rain, a sādhu receives and releases material objects without proprietorship — handling, not hoarding.

Practical Applications

Identify one resource (money, time, a skill) you treat as yours, and consciously deploy it today as Kṛṣṇa's property entrusted for His service.
When something material leaves your hand — a gift given, a payment made, a possession lost — release it without inward clutching, treating yourself as a steward, not an owner.
Refuse to measure your spiritual standing by what you have accumulated; measure it by how freely the opulences flow through you to Kṛṣṇa's mission.

Reflection Questions

Where am I quietly accumulating opulences entrusted to me for Kṛṣṇa's service, and what fear is keeping me from passing them on?
In which dealings do I still feel like the proprietor rather than the sun returning water as rain to those who approach me?

For Each Age Group

youth

Treat the next allowance, stipend, or paycheck as something passing through your hands — set aside a specific portion for Kṛṣṇa's service before you spend on yourself.
When a friend asks to borrow notes, a device, or money, notice the inner grip and practice releasing cleanly, without keeping a mental ledger.
Refuse to curate your social media as a display of what you possess — post and share as if the followers, the platform, and the talent are all entrusted, not owned.

householder

Sit with your spouse this week and re-label the family budget in your own minds as Kṛṣṇa's funds under your management, then allocate a fixed percentage to His mission before household expenses.
When a relative, a guest, or a devotee approaches at the appropriate time with a genuine need, give without negotiating yourself down to a smaller, safer figure.
In raising your children, model the sun rather than the miser — let them see possessions, hospitality, and money flow through the home rather than pool in it.

senior

Begin actively transferring opulences — money, contacts, responsibilities, books — to the proper persons now, while you can do it consciously rather than have it done by circumstance.
When younger devotees or family members approach you for resources or your time, treat their request as Kṛṣṇa arranging the return of what was lent to you.
Loosen your grip on the legacy you imagined leaving in your own name; ensure that whatever you pass on is clearly stamped as Kṛṣṇa's property, not yours.

Common Pitfalls

Using non-proprietorship as an excuse for negligence — failing to manage entrusted resources carefully because 'it isn't mine anyway.'
Performing outward generosity while inwardly counting, comparing, and identifying with what was given.
Refusing to accept material opulences in the first place under the guise of renunciation, when Kṛṣṇa is sending them through you for His mission.

Discussion Prompts

Share one opulence currently entrusted to you — when do you most feel like its owner, and when does it feel like Kṛṣṇa's property in transit?
Where is the line, in practice, between prudent stewardship and proprietorship that the sun-metaphor would expose?
Do you find it harder to accept material objects without entanglement, or to release them without entanglement — and why?

Role Play

Two devotees co-manage a temple bookstore. One has just received a large donation earmarked broadly for 'preaching.' A long-time supporter approaches and requests funds for a project that is sincere but not the manager's first priority. Role-play the conversation between the manager who feels proprietorship over the fund and a senior devotee applying SB 11.7.50.

Objections & Responses

If a saintly person simply takes and gives away whatever comes, isn't this just passivity dressed up as spirituality? Someone has to plan and protect resources.
The verse compares the yogī to a go-patiḥ — a cowherd who actively tends his cows; it is not passivity. The sun gathers vast water and returns it at the proper time, to the proper place. Non-entanglement is not non-engagement: the devotee accepts, manages, and releases with full intelligence, but without the ahaṅkāra of ownership.
Modern life requires saving, investing, planning for children's education and old age. Treating opulences as Kṛṣṇa's property sounds irresponsible.
Prabhupāda's purport does not forbid managing wealth; it forbids accumulating it as one's own. A householder may save, insure, and invest — but as a trustee for Kṛṣṇa, his family, and the mission. The test is internal: when the proper person approaches at the proper time, can you release without contraction? That is the householder's sādhana, not a renunciate's evasion.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io