भक्तिं मुहुः प्रवहतां त्वयि मे प्रसङ्गो
भूयादनन्त महताममलाशयानाम् ।
येनाञ्जसोल्बणमुरुव्यसनं भवाब्धिं
नेष्ये भवद्गुणकथामृतपानमत्तः ॥
bhaktiṁ muhuḥ pravahatāṁ tvayi me prasaṅgo
bhūyād ananta mahatām amalāśayānām |
yenāñjasolbaṇam uru-vyasanaṁ bhavābdhim
neṣye bhavad-guṇa-kathāmṛta-pāna-mattaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 4.9.11; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 10.290, Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā on Bṛhad Bhāgavatāmṛta: 2.7.14)
“O Unending One! May I have the full association of mahats who are always fully sustaining bhakti to you and [thus] of taintless heart by which I, inebriated by drinking the nectar of narrations of your qualities, shall easily cross beyond the immense ocean of material existence beset with waves of afflictions.”
Commentary
bhaktiṁ tvayi pravahatāṁ sātatyena kurvatām ato’malāśayānāṁ viśuddha-cittānām ata eva mahatāṁ prakṛṣṭaḥ saṅgo me bhūyāt | nanu turīya-puruṣārthaṁ mokṣaṁ kiṁ na yācase, ānuṣaṅgika-phalatvena tasya svayam eva siddher ity āha—yena mahat-prasaṅgena bhavad-guṇa-kathayaivāmṛtaṁ, tasya pānena mattaḥ san añjasā anāyāsenaiva urūṇi vyasanāni yasmin tam api bhavābdhim saṁsāra-sāgaraṁ neṣye uttariṣyāmi | etad uktaṁ bhavati—yathā hi madhu-pānāsaktānāṁ tad-āsvādanam eva mukhya-phalaṁ śītādi-taraṇaṁ cānuṣaṅgikaṁ, tathā bhagavad-bhakti-sudhā-pāna-rasikānāṁ nirantara-tat-pānam eva mukhyaṁ phalam mokṣādikaṁ ca nāntarīyakam iti svata eva sidhyed iti |
(Excerpt from the Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā on Bṛhad Bhāgavatāmṛta: 2.7.14)
“[Dhruva’s prayer is:] May I have the full association of those who are fully sustaining (pravahatāṁ), that is, constantly engaging in, bhakti to you, are thus of taintless heart (amalāśayānāṁ), that is, of completely purified psyche, and therefore mahats.
“[A question is raised:] ‘Well, why don’t you ask for mokṣa, the fourth [i.e., ultimate] puruṣārtha?’ Because of its attainment [occurring] entirely of its own accord [i.e., automatically] on account of [its] being a concomitant result [of bhakti], he says, ‘Becoming by which (yena), that is, by the full association of mahats, inebriated as a result of drinking the nectar of narration of your qualities, I will easily, that is, entirely without difficulty, cross beyond (neṣye) the ocean of material existence (bhavābdhim) even though it is beset with waves of afflictions.’ This is said [in this regard]: as indeed relishing [the taste of] honey specifically is the primary goal of those who are attached to drinking it and the removal of cold and so forth is [only a] concomitant [result of drinking it for them], so constantly drinking the nectar of bhakti to Bhagavān specifically is the primary goal of relishers of the rasa thereof and mokṣa and so forth are not integral [to their desire and aim]. That [i.e., mokṣa] shall be attained entirely of its own accord [i.e., as a secondary, unsought, concomitant result of relishing the nectar of bhakti to Bhagavān].”
bhaktiṁ tvayi pravahatāṁ sātatyena kurvatām, ata evāmalāśayānāṁ prasaṅgo me mayā saha bhūyāt | nanu mokṣaḥ kiṁ na yācase? ata āha—yena mahat-prasaṅgena añjasā ayatnata eva, urūṇi vyasanāni yasmin tat, neṣye pāraṁ gamiṣyāmi, bhagavad-guṇa-kathaivāmṛtaṁ, tasya pānena mattaḥ san | atra matta-śabdenaivaṁ sūcyate—yathā madirā-matto na jānāti kathaṁ rātrir gatā dinam āyātaṁ veti, tathā sat-saṅga-jāta-kathāmṛta-pāna-matto’pi na jānāti kathaṁ saṁsāro’pagataḥ mokṣo vā jāta iti | evam amṛta-pānasya yathā deha-gehādy-ananusandhānaṁ na phalaṁ, kintu parama-madhura-rasāsvādanādikam eva, tathā sat-saṅgasya bhagavat-kathāmṛta-pānam eva phalaṁ, mokṣas tv ānuṣaṅgikaḥ svayam evopasthāsyati, kiṁ tad-yācaneneti bhāvaḥ |
(Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā on Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 10.290)
“[Dhruva’s prayer is:] May I have the full association of those who are fully sustaining (pravahatāṁ), that is, constantly engaging in, bhakti to you, and are thus of taintless heart (amalāśayānāṁ).
“[A question is raised:] ‘Well, why don’t you ask for mokṣa?’ Thus, he says, ‘By which (yena), that is, by the full association of mahats, I will easily, that is, entirely without exertion, cross beyond (neṣye) that [ocean of material existence (bhavābdhim)] which is beset with waves of afflictions, being inebriated by drinking the nectar of narrations of your qualities [in the full association with mahats].’ Here, by the word ‘inebriated’ (mattaḥ), the following is indicated: as someone inebriated by wine does not know how the night passed or how the day came, so also one who is inebriated by drinking the nectar of narrations [of Śrī Bhagavān] engendered in sat-saṅga does not know how saṁsāra fell away [from them] or how mokṣa manifested [for them]. Similarly, as the [primary] result of drinking nectar is not an absence of concern for one’s body, house, and so on and rather specifically is relishing a supremely sweet taste and so on, so the [primary] result of sat-saṅga is specifically drinking the nectar of narrations about Bhagavān. Mokṣa, on the contrary, will come about entirely of its own accord concomitantly. What [is the use] of asking for it? This is the purport.”
amalāśayānāṁ niṣkāmānāṁ, yena parama-puruṣārthatayābhimatena añjasā ayatnataḥ eva urūṇi vyasanāni yasmin taṁ neṣye gamayiṣyāmi tasyānubhava-mātraṁ dūrīkariṣyāmīty arthaḥ |
(Krama-sandarbha-ṭīkā)
“‘Of taintless heart’ (amalāśayānāṁ) means desireless. ‘By which’ (yena), that is, [by full association with mahats, which is] regarded as the supreme puruṣāṛtha, I shall easily, that is, indeed without exertion, cross beyond (neṣye) that [i.e., the ocean of material existence] in which there are waves of afflictions, meaning, I will do away only with experience of it [i.e., it is not that I seek to depart entirely the ocean of material existence but rather that I am content to remain within it and only seek to remove from myself conventional experience of it by absorbing myself in narrations of Bhagavān heard in the midst of full association with mahats who are desireless of anything within the ocean of material existence and ever engaged in bhakti to Bhagavān].”
sā ca śravaṇa-kīrtanādimayī bhaktiḥ sat-saṅgaṁ vinā na surasī bhavatīti sat-saṅgaṁ prārthayate | bhaktiṁ tvayi pravahatāṁ pravāha-rūpeṇāvicchinnām eva dadhatām | nanu tarhi saṁsāra-duḥkhābdher bhayaṁ te sthāsyaty eveti tatra sāṭopaṁ sa-bhujāsphoṭam āha—yena mahat-saṅga-balenaulbaṇam api bahu-vyasana-yuktam api bhavābdhiṁ neṣye grahīṣyāmi, yadi sa mad-abhimukham abhyeti, tadā āyātu, drakṣyāmi, kiṁ me kartuṁ śaknuyād iti bhāvaḥ | kīdṛśaḥ? san bhavad-guṇa-kathaiva amṛtaṁ, tat-pānena matta iti, nahi spardhāvajñā-dveṣādayaḥ sāṁsārikā dharmā mattaṁ duḥkhayituṁ śaknuvanti, nāpi mṛtyur amṛtaṁ pibantaṁ spraṣṭum api śaknuyād iti bhāvaḥ | atra sat-saṅgotthayaiva bhaktyā bhagavantaṁ sākṣātkṛtyāpi punaḥ sat-saṅgasya prārthanād bhakti-kāraṇam api bhakti-phalam api svayaṁ bhaktir sat-saṅga iti bhaktānāṁ mataṁ vyañjitam |
(Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā)
“That, furthermore, [viz.,] bhakti constituted of hearing, praising, and so forth, does not become highly relishable (surasī) without sat-saṅga. Therefore, sat-saṅga is prayed for [in this verse]. ‘Fully sustaining’ (pravahatāṁ) bhakti to you means carrying [it, i.e., engaging in it] without cessation like a stream.
“[An objection is raised:] ‘Well, then your fear of the ocean of suffering of saṁsāra shall certainly remain [since you are praying only for association with mahats engaged in bhakti within the realm of saṁsāra and not for mokṣa from saṁsāra].’ To this, he proudly and while slapping his arms [like a wrestler] says, ‘By which (yena), that is, on the strength of association with mahats, I shall take on (neṣye) the ocean of material existence although it is immense and although it is filled with numerous afflictions. If it approaches towards me, then let it come! I will see what it will be able to do to me!’ This is the purport. In what state [is he when he speaks this way]? Inebriated by drinking the nectar of narrations of your qualities. The worldly qualities of rivalry, disrespect, enmity, and so on certainly cannot trouble one who is inebriated, nor can death even touch one who drinks nectar (amṛta). This is the purport. In this case, from the prayer [made in this verse by Dhruva] for sat-saṅga even after [his attaining] direct perception of Bhagavān by means bhakti begot specifically from sat-saṅga the bhaktas’ view [in contrast the view of jñānīs and others] that sat-saṅga is bhakti itself as well as the cause of bhakti and the result of bhakti is suggested.”