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- Read on →: prema-dhana vinu vyartha daridra jīvana
prema-dhana vinu vyartha daridra jīvana |
dāsa kari vetana more deha’ prema-dhana ||
(Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 3.20.37)“Without the wealth of prema, life is meaningless and poor. Please make me your servant and grant me a salary of the wealth of prema.”
- Read on →: kvāhaṁ manda-matiḥ kvedaṁ manthanaṁ kṣīra-vāridheḥ
kvāhaṁ manda-matiḥ kvedaṁ manthanaṁ kṣīra-vāridheḥ |
kiṁ tatra paramāṇur vai yatra majjati mandaraḥ ||
mūkaṁ karoti vācālaṁ paṅguṁ laṅghayate girim |
yat-kṛpā tam ahaṁ vande paramānanda-mādhavam ||
(Bhāvārtha-dīpikā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: Maṅgalācaraṇa, 5)“Where am I of dull-wit? And where is this churning of the ocean of ksir [i.e., this endeavor to explain Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (being made in this commentary)]? What is an atomic particle there where even [Mount] Mandara submerges [i.e., how can I tiny, incapable person like myself take on such an enormous task]? I offer obeisance unto Mādhava, Supreme Bliss, by whose grace a mute speaks and a cripple crosses a mountain [i.e., by whose grace even this otherwise impossible task becomes possible].”
- Read on →: athāta ānanda-dughaṁ padāmbujaṁ
athāta ānanda-dughaṁ padāmbujaṁ
haṁsāḥ śrayerann aravinda-locana |
sukhaṁ nu viśveśvara yoga-karmabhis
tvan-māyayāmī vihatā na māninaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.29.3; cited in Bhakti Sandarbha 326)[Translation as per Śrīdhara Svāmī’s ṭīkā:] “Therefore, O lotus-eyed One, O Lord of the universe, swans [i.e., those who are expert in discriminating between the essential and non-essential] take shelter in your bliss-exuding lotus feet happily and certainly, as they [i.e., your bhatkas] are not impeded by your māyā and thus are not proud on account of yoga or karma [i.e., they do not, like yogīs and karmīs, neglect to take shelter in your feet].”
- Read on →: kṛpāsya dainyādi-yuji prajāyate
kṛpāsya dainyādi-yuji prajāyate
yayā bhavet prema-viśeṣa-lakṣaṇā |
bhaktir hy ananyādhipater mahātmanaḥ
sā cottamā sādhana-rūpikāparā ||
(Nimbārkācārya’s Daśa-ślokī: 9)“His grace, by which unalloyed bhakti possessed of the special characteristic of prema to [him,] the Supreme Lord, the Great Ātmā, can come to be, manifests upon one endowed with humility (dainya) and so forth. That [i.e., prema-bhakti] is most excellent [i.e., the superlative form of bhakti manifest within siddhas]. The other [i.e., bhakti devoid of prema] is the sādhana form [i.e., the form of bhakti manifest within sādhakas].”
- Read on →: kevalaṁ paramaṁ dainyam avalambyāsya śikṣayā
kevalaṁ paramaṁ dainyam avalambyāsya śikṣayā |
śrīman-madana-gopāla-caraṇābjam upāsata ||
(Bṛhad Bhāgavatāmṛta: 1.7.153)“According to his [i.e., Nārada’s] teaching, they [i.e., the sages in Prayāga] took recourse to pure and profound humility and worshipped the lotus feet of Śriman Madana Gopāla.”
- Read on →: na hi sādhana-sampattyā haris tuṣyati kasyacit
na hi sādhana-sampattyā haris tuṣyati kasyacit |
bhaktānāṁ dainyam evaikaṁ hari-toṣana-sādhanam ||
(Subodhinī-ṭikā of Vallabhācārya on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 10)“Hari is not satisfied by anyone’s performance of [alt., abundance of, or excellence in,] sādhana. The humility of bhaktas is indeed the only means of satisfying Hari.”