niṣṭhā tatrāvikṣepeṇa sātatyam
niṣṭhā tatrāvikṣepeṇa sātatyam |
(Durgama-saṅgamanī-ṭīkā on Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 1.4.15)
“Niṣṭhā is unwavering constancy therein [in bhajana].”
Sādhana-bhakti
kintu yadi latāra saṅge uṭhe ‘upaśākhā’
kintu yadi latāra saṅge uṭhe ‘upaśākhā’ |
bhukti-mukti-vāñchā, yata asaṅkhya tāra lekhā ||
‘niṣiddhācāra’, ‘kuṭīnāṭī’, ‘jīva-hiṁsana’ |
‘lābha’, ‘pūjā’, ‘pratiṣṭhādi’ yata upaśākhā-gaṇa ||
seka-jala pāñā upaśākhā bāḍi yāya |
stabdha hañā mūla-śākhā bāḍite nā pāya ||
(Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.19.160)
“With the creeper [of bhakti] arise weeds, desires for enjoyment and mukti, which are innumerable. Forbidden behavior, deceit, harming living beings, [seeking] profit, adoration, prestige, and so on, are some of these weeds. These weeds grow by absorbing the sprinkled water [i.e., the water meant for the creeper of bhakti], and the host plant becomes stunted and unable to grow.”
utsāhamayī ghana-taralā
utsāhamayī ghana-taralā vyūḍha-vikalpā viṣaya-saṅgarā niyamākṣamā taraṅga-raṅgiṇīti ṣaḍ-vidhā bhavantīti |
(Mādhurya-kādambinī: 2.5)
“(1) Utsāhamayī: [being] filled with [initial, superficial] excitement, (2) ghana-taralā [lit., ‘thick-thin’]: inconsistent endeavor, (3) vyūḍha-vikalpā: prolonged indecision, (4) viṣaya-saṅgarā: struggle with the objects of the senses, (5) niyamākṣamā: inability to adhere to regulations, and (6) taraṅga-raṅginī: [lit., ‘sporting in the waves’] enjoying the byproducts of bhakti [e.g., personal gain and prestige] are the six types [of unfixed (aniṣṭhita) bhajana-kriyā.”
sakala-sādhana-śreṣṭha ei pañca aṅga
sakala-sādhana-śreṣṭha ei pañca aṅga |
kṛṣṇa-prema janmāya ei pā̐cera alpa-saṅga ||
(Chaitanya-charitāmṛta: 2.22.125)
“These five limbs are the best of all sādhanas. Even slight connection with these five gives rise to Kṛṣṇa-prema.”
śraddhā viśeṣataḥ prītiḥ
śraddhā viśeṣataḥ prītiḥ śrī-mūrter aṅghri-sevane |
śrīmad-bhāgavatārthānām āsvādo rasikaiḥ saha ||
sajātīyāśaye snigdhe sādhau saṅgaḥ svato vare |
nāma-saṅkīrtanaṁ śrīman-mathurā-maṇḍale sthitiḥ ||
(Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 1.2.90–2)
“(60) Śraddhā and special affinity (prīti) for serving the feet of the śrī-mūrti, (61) tasting the meanings of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam with relishers of rasa (rasikas), (62) associating with sādhus who are of like aspiration, affectionate, and superior to oneself, (63) saṅkīrtana of the name, and (64) residing in the beautiful district of Mathurā.”
guru-pādāśrayas tasmāt
guru-pādāśrayas tasmāt kṛṣṇa-dīkṣādi-śikṣaṇam |
viśrambheṇa guroḥ sevā sādhu-vartmānuvartanam || …
trayāṁ pradhānam evoktaṁ guru-pādāśrayādikam |
(Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 1.2.74, 83)
“(1) [Taking] Shelter at the feet of guru; (2) [receiving] instruction [from guru] beginning with Kṛṣṇa-mantra-dīkṣā; (3) serving guru with confidence; (4) following the path of the sādhus. … The three [practices] beginning with [taking] shelter at the feet of guru [amongst the sixty-four listed] are said to be principal.”
tena gopikādy-anugatimaya-sva-nyūnatā-duḥkhāṅgīkāras
tena gopikādy-anugatimaya-sva-nyūnatā-duḥkhāṅgīkāras tu viriñca-bhava-lakṣmy-ādibhir īśvarābhimānibhiḥ sva-sva-loka-sthitair duḥśaka eva, anyeṣāṁ tu tādṛśopadeśasyālābhād arocakatvād vā tad-anugaty-abhāva eva … |
(Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.9.21)
“Acceptance of the hardship of their own inferiority in following the gopikās and others [i.e., other residents of Gokula], is not possible for Brahmā, Śiva, Lakṣmī, and others who are situated in their own domains and have the mentality of being īśvaras. In the case of others, however, an absence of following them [i.e., the residents of Gokula] is because of not having received such instruction [to do so] or having no taste for it.”
śrī-bhāgavate’smin bhagavat-premaiva
śrī-bhāgavate’smin bhagavat-premaiva sarva-puruṣārtha-śiromaṇitvenodghuṣyate | tasya mūla-bhūtāśrayāṇāṁ bhaktānāṁ madhye nitya-siddhatva eva tasya nitya-sthitiḥ sambhavet, teṣv api madhye gokula-vartinas tan-mātādaya eva śreṣṭhāḥ yeṣāṁ vātsalyādi-bhāva-viṣayī-bhūtaḥ kṛṣṇas tad-anugamana-bhaktimadbhir eva sulabho nānyair …|
(Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.9.21)
“In this Śrīmad Bhāgavatam only Bhagavat-prema is proclaimed to be the crown jewel of all puruṣārthas. Its [i.e., prema’s] eternal existence is possible within its substrata, bhaktas, only because of their being nitya-siddha. Among them, furthermore, the best are the residents of Gokula, such as his [i.e., Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s] mother, the object of whose bhāvas of vātsalya and so forth—Kṛṣṇa—is easily attainable only by devotees who follow them [i.e., those residents of Gokula] and not by others [i.e., those who practice bhakti without following the residents of Gokula].”
karma, tapa, yoga, jñāna
karma, tapa, yoga, jñāna, vidhi-bhakti, japa, dhyāna,
ihā haite mādhurya durlabha |
kevala ye rāga-mārge, bhaje kṛṣṇe anurāge,
tāre kṛṣṇa-mādhurya sulabha ||
(Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.21.119)
“Karma [i.e., observing the duties of one’s varṇa and āśrama], tapa (austerity), yoga, jñāna [i.e., deliberation on the meaning of the Upaniṣads], vidhi-bhakti [i.e., devotion motivated by śāstric injunctions], japa (repetition of a mantra), dhyāna (meditation)—through these [Kṛṣṇa’s] mādhurya is difficult to attain. Only for one who worships Kṛṣṇa with anurāga (loving attachment) according to the path of rāga is Kṛṣṇa’s mādhurya easy to attain.”
rāgera bhajana-patha
rāgera bhajana-patha, kahi ebe abhimata,
loka-veda-sāra ei vāṇī |
sakhīra anugā haiyā, vraje siddha-deha pāiyā,
sei bhāve juḍābe parāṇī ||
(Prema-bhakti-candrika: 48)
“I now speak of the approved path of rāga-bhajana. This teaching is the essence of the world [i.e., worldly propriety] and the Vedas. Becoming a follower of the sakhīs, and receiving a siddha-deha in Vraja, soothe the heart with this bhāva.”