Viśvanātha Cakravartī

rahūgaṇaitat tapasā na yāti

rahūgaṇaitat tapasā na yāti
na cejyayā nirvapaṇād gṛhād vā |
na cchandasā naiva jalāgni-sūryair
vinā mahat-pāda-rajo’bhiṣekam ||
yatrottamaḥśloka-guṇānuvādaḥ
prastūyate grāmya-kathā-vighātaḥ |
niṣevyamāṇo’nudinaṁ mumukṣor
matiṁ satīṁ yacchati vāsudeve ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 5.12.12–13)

“[Jaḍa Bhārata:] O Rahūgaṇa, neither by austerity, nor by sacrifice, nor by giving, nor by household life, nor by the Vedas, nor by [worship of] water, fire, and the sun does one attain this without bathing in the foot-dust of the mahats, amongst whom is sung recounting of the qualities of he of highest praise [i.e., Śrī Bhagavān], on account of which termination of village talk occurs, and which upon being honored daily produces a seeker of mokṣa’s genuine inclination towards Vāsudeva.”

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so’haṁ tavāṅghry-upagato’smy asatāṁ durāpaṁ

so’haṁ tavāṅghry-upagato’smy asatāṁ durāpaṁ
tac cāpy ahaṁ bhavad-anugraha īśa manye |
puṁso bhaved yarhi saṁsaraṇāpavargas
tvayy abja-nābha sad-upāsanayā matiḥ syāt ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.40.28)

“Being such [i.e., although I am unable to restrict my mind from the pull of the senses upon it towards their various objects], I have approached your feet, which are difficult to attain for the asat. That too, furthermore, I consider your favor, O Īśa! When the cessation of saṁsāra shall come about for a person, O you of lotus navel, inclination towards you shall come about as a result of worship of the sat.”

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pataty asre sāsrā bhavati pulake jāta-pulakāḥ

pataty asre sāsrā bhavati pulake jāta-pulakāḥ
smite bhāti smerāḥ sumalimaṇi jāte sumalināḥ |
anāsādya svālīr mukuram abhivīkṣya sva-vadanaṁ
sukhaṁ vā duḥkhaṁ vā kim api kathanīyaṁ mṛga-dṛśaḥ ||
(Alaṅkāra-kaustubha: 3.54)

“O you all of doe-eyes, when your tears fall, they have tears [in their eyes]. When your horripilation occurs, horripilation arises in them. When you have a smile, they have smiles. When your severe dejection occurs, they become severely dejected. [But when] Not having met your own friends, what sort of happiness or sadness there is [expressed on your face] can be said [by you only] after looking at your own face in a mirror.”

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yā nirvṛtis tanu-bhṛtāṁ tava pāda-padma

yā nirvṛtis tanu-bhṛtāṁ tava pāda-padma-
dhyānād bhavaj-jana-kathā-śravaṇena vā syāt |
sā brahmaṇi sva-mahimany api nātha mā bhūt
kiṁ tv antakāsi-lulitāt patatāṁ vimānāt ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 4.9.10; cited in Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 1.2.29)

“O Lord, that bliss which can arise for embodied beings from meditation upon your lotus feet or through hearing narratives of persons who are your own does not occur even in [realization of] Brahman, your own [all-pervading] greatness. How then could it occur for [the devas of Svarga,] those who [all eventually] fall from airplanes slashed by the sword of death [i.e., time]?”

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tad bhūri-bhāgyam iha janma kim apy aṭavyāṁ

tad bhūri-bhāgyam iha janma kim apy aṭavyāṁ
yad gokule’pi katamāṅghri-rajo-’bhiṣekam |
yaj-jīvitaṁ tu nikhilaṁ bhagavān mukundas
tv adyāpi yat-pada-rajaḥ śruti-mṛgyam eva ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.14.34)

[A translation based on the commentary of Śrī Śrīdhara Svāmīpāda:] “May I have that great fortune in which a birth of any sort here in the forest in Gokula shall occur wherein I may also receive an ablution in the dust of the feet of anyone [there] whose entire life is Bhagavān, Mukunda, [he] whose footdust is verily an object to be sought by the Śrutis even to this very day.”

[A translation based on the commentary of Śrī Viśvanātha Carkavartīpāda:] “May I have that great fortune in which a birth of any sort here in the forest or even in Gokula shall occur wherein I may receive an ablution in the dust of the feet of anyone [there] whose entire life is Bhagavān, Mukunda, and whose footdust is verily an object to be sought by the Śrutis even to this very day.”

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aho imaṁ paśyata me vināśaṁ

aho imaṁ paśyata me vināśaṁ
tapasvinaḥ sac-carita-vratasya |
antarjale vāri-cara-prasaṅgāt
pracyāvitaṁ brahma ciraṁ dhṛtaṁ yat ||
saṅgaṁ tyajeta mithuna-vratīnāṁ mumukṣuḥ
sarvātmanā na visṛjed bahir-indriyāṇi |
ekaś caran rahasi cittam ananta īśe
yuñjīta tad-vratiṣu sādhuṣu cet prasaṅgaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 9.6.50–51)

“Aho! See this ruination of mine, an ascetic avowed to the conduct of the sat [situated] underwater, wherein [my] long-sustained austerity was lost because of [observance of] the intercourse of fish. A seeker of mukti should completely forsake the association of those avowed to matrimony [alt., those who engage in sexual intercourse] and should not cast forth the external senses. Dwelling alone in seclusion, one should fix the mind upon the Infinite, Īśa, and upon the sādhus devoted to him if ideal association [with such sādhus] should come about.”

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tasmai namo bhagavate vāsudevāya dhīmahi

tasmai namo bhagavate vāsudevāya dhīmahi |
yan-māyayā durjayayā māṁ vadanti jagad-gurum ||
vilajjamānayā yasya sthātum īkṣā-pathe’muyā |
vimohitā vikatthante mamāham iti durddhiyaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 2.5.12–13; cited in Tattva Sandarbha: 32; Bhagavat Sandarbha: 28, 100; Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.22.32)

“[Brahmādeva:] Obeisance unto him, Bhagavān. We meditate on Vāsudeva, because of whose difficult to surmount māyā people call me the master of the universe, and thoroughly deluded by she [i.e., Māyā] who is ashamed to stand in whose purview, the ignorant boast of ‘I’ and ‘mine.’”

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śreyo hi jñānam abhyāsāj jñānād dhyānaṁ viśiṣyate

śreyo hi jñānam abhyāsāj jñānād dhyānaṁ viśiṣyate |
dhyānāt karma-phala-tyāgas tyāgāc chāntir anantaram ||
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 12.12)

“Contemplation is indeed better than repeated concentration, and meditation is superior to contemplation. From meditation comes relinquishment of the results of action, and thereafter, from relinquishment, peace.”

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mayy eva mana ādhatsva mayi buddhiṁ niveśaya

mayy eva mana ādhatsva mayi buddhiṁ niveśaya |
nivasiṣyasi mayy eva ata ūrdhvaṁ na saṁśayaḥ ||
atha cittaṁ samādhātuṁ na śaknoṣi mayi sthiram |
abhyāsa-yogena tato mām icchāptuṁ dhanañjaya ||
abhyāse’py asamartho’si mat-karma-paramo bhava |
mad-artham api karmāṇi kurvan siddhim avāpsyasi ||
athaitad apy aśakto’si kartuṁ mad-yogam āśritaḥ |
sarva-karma-phala-tyāgaṁ tataḥ kuru yatātmavān ||
(Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā: 12.8–11)

“Fix the mind only on me. Absorb the intellect in me. Thereafter, you will dwell in me alone. There is no doubt. If you are unable to fully fix the mind on me steadily, O Dhanañjaya, then try to attain me by means of the practice of repeated concentration. If you are incapable of repeated concentration as well, then be one for whom actions related to me are paramount. By performing actions just for my sake, you will attain success (siddhi). If you are unable to do even this, then, taking shelter in connection with me and being possessed of self-regulation, relinquish the results of all your actions.”

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