अथापि नोपसज्जेत स्त्रीषु स्त्रैणेषु चार्थवित् ।
विषयेन्द्रियसंयोगान्मन: क्षुभ्यति नान्यथा ॥
अदृष्टादश्रुताद्भावान्न भाव उपजायते ।
असम्प्रयुञ्जत: प्राणान् शाम्यति स्तिमितं मन: ॥
तस्मात्सङ्गो न कर्तव्य: स्त्रीषु स्त्रैणेषु चेन्द्रियै: ।
विदुषां चाप्यविस्रब्ध: षड्वर्ग: किमु मादृशाम् ॥
athāpi nopasajjeta strīṣu straiṇeṣu cārtha-vit |
viṣayendriya-saṁyogān manaḥ kṣubhyati nānyathā ||
adṛṣṭād aśrutād bhāvān na bhāva upajāyate |
asamprayuñjataḥ prāṇān śāmyati stimitaṁ manaḥ ||
tasmāt saṅgo na kartavyaḥ strīṣu straiṇeṣu cendriyaiḥ |
viduṣāṁ cāpy avisrabdhaḥ ṣaḍ-vargaḥ kim u mādṛśām ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.26.22–24)
“Even then [i.e., even though women are disgusting in so far as their bodies are made of flesh, blood, stool, urine, pus, and so forth], a sagacious person should not associate with women or those subjugated by women. The mind is disturbed by contact of the senses with [their] objects and not otherwise [i.e., the mind is not disturbed if such contact does not occur]. Feeling does not arise from unseen or unheard of objects. [Thus,] The mind of one who is non-engaged with the prāṇas [i.e., senses] is still and peaceful. Therefore, association is not to be done by means of the senses with women or those subjugated by women, since the ṣaḍ-varga [i.e., the six senses] even of the wise, much less of myself [i.e., of I who am undiscerning], are untrustworthy.”
Commentary
In Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 3.31.41–42, Śrī Kapiladeva explains that just as men are discouraged from associating with women because of the disturbances to one’s sādhana that arise from that, so women are discouraged from associating with men for the same reasons. Thus, the censure of association with women spoken in these verses in the Eleventh Canto should be understood to apply not only specifically to women but rather to those of any body type that gives rise to disturbances in the mind.
yadyapy evaṁ bībhatsitā eva striyas tathāpi tāsu janā upasajjante vety ato niṣidhyati—athāpīti | artha-vit vivekī tu tathāpi na tāsu visajjeta, tad-darśanād api dūre tiṣṭhet yato viṣayety ādi | nanu nirjane sthitasyāpi muner manaḥ-kṣobhaḥ kvacid dṛśyate, satyam | sa khalu prācīna-strī-darśana-saṁskārottha eveti sopapattikam āha—adṛṣṭād iti | tasmāt prāṇān indriyāṇi strī-viṣaye na samprayuñjato janasya manaḥ stimitaṁ niścalaṁ sat śāmyati |
(Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā)
“Even though women are thus certainly disgusting [as described in the preceding verses], still men associate with them. Therefore, he prohibits [such association]: athāpi … [i.e., he speaks this verse]. ‘A sagacious person’ (artha-vit), that is, one who is discerning, however, still should not associate with them, that is, one should remain afar even from the sight of them, since viṣayendriya … [i.e., the reason for this is stated in the second half of the verse]. [An objection is raised:] ‘Well, disturbance of the mind of even a sage situated in seclusion is sometimes seen.’ [To that, it can be replied:] True. That [disturbance] is produced by a past saṁskāra from seeing women. Therefore, he says something well-founded: adṛṣṭād … [i.e., he speaks the next verse], that is, ‘Therefore, the mind of a person who does not engage the senses (prāṇān) in the object of women is still (stimitam) and peaceful.‘”