īśvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca |
prema-maitrī-kṛpopekṣā yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.2.46; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 10.25, 10.75; Bhakti Sandarbha: 189; Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.22.73)
“One who fosters prema, friendship, grace, and disregard [respectively] in relation to Īśvara, his dependents, the unwise, and the inimical is an intermediate [bhāgavata].”
īśvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca Read on →
Vṛtrāsura-stuti
Six verses illustrating the nature of pure prīti for Bhagavān spoken by Vṛtrāsura.
Excerpted from Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 6.11.22–27.
dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā samānaṁ vṛkṣaṁ pariṣasvajāte |
tayor anyaḥ pippalaṁ svādv atty anaśnann anyo abhicākaśīti ||
samāne vṛkṣe puruṣo nimagno’niśayā śocati muhyamānaḥ |
juṣṭaṁ yadā paśyaty anyam īśam asya mahimānam iti vīta-śokaḥ ||
(Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad: 3.1.1–2)
“Two birds of beautiful plumage,
Ever-united in friendship,
Perch on the same tree.
Among them,
One eats the tasty berry [of the tree],
And the other, not eating, watches over [the first].
On the same tree,
The puruṣa [i.e., the embodied living entity], absorbed,
Laments because of [his] powerlessness, being deluded.
When he sees the other, the Lord, satisfied, and his [i.e., the Lord’s] greatness, he becomes free from lamentation.”
dvā suparṇā sayujā sakhāyā samānaṁ vṛkṣaṁ pariṣasvajāte Read on →
aniṣṭāśaṅkīni bandhu-hṛdayāni bhavanti |
(Unknown source; cited in the Durgama-saṅgamanī-tīkā on Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 2.4.52, Laghu Vaiṣṇava-toṣaṇī-ṭīkā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.31.19)
“The hearts of friends (bandhus) are apprehensive about misfortune [befalling their friends].”
aniṣṭāśaṅkīni bandhu-hṛdayāni bhavanti Read on →
aho bhāgyam aho bhāgyaṁ nanda-gopa-vrajaukasām |
yan mitraṁ paramānandaṁ pūrṇaṁ brahma sanātanam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.14.32)
“Aho! The fortune! Aho! The fortune of the residents of Chief Nanda’s Vraja, whose eternal friend is the Complete Brahman, the highest bliss!”
aho bhāgyam aho bhāgyaṁ nanda-gopa-vrajaukasām Read on →
bhuvi puru-puṇya-tīrtha-sadanāny ṛṣayo vimadās
ta uta bhavat-padāmbuja-hṛdo’gha-bhid-aṅghri-jalāḥ |
dadhati sakṛn manas tvayi ya ātmani nitya-sukhe
na punar upāsate puruṣa-sāra-harāvasathān ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.87.35)
“Dwelling in the numerous sacred tīrthas on the earth, free from delusion [alt., pride], their hearts fixed on your lotus feet, and the water from their feet dispelling sin, the ṛṣis who once fix their mind on you, the Self, Eternal Happiness, do not again dwell in homes, which steal away the essence of human beings.”
bhuvi puru-puṇya-tīrtha-sadanāny ṛṣayo vimadās Read on →
kiṁ varṇaye tava vibho yad-udīrito’suḥ
saṁspandate tam anu vāṅ-mana-indriyāṇi |
spandanti vai tanu-bhṛtām aja-śarvayoś ca
svasyāpy athāpi bhajatām asi bhāva-bandhuḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 12.8.40)
“O Vibhu [i.e., O omnipresent, omnipotent, eternal Master], how can I describe you? The prāṇa [i.e., vital air] of all embodied beings, of Brahmā and Śiva, and of myself as well, moves propelled by you, and following that [prāṇa], the speech, the mind, and the senses [of all] attain functionality. Still, you are the bhāva-bandhu [i.e., the affectionate friend, by virtue of bhāva,] of those who serve [you].”
kiṁ varṇaye tava vibho yad-udīrito’suḥ Read on →
varaṁ na rājyaṁ na kurāja-rājyaṁ
varaṁ na mitraṁ na kumitra-mitram |
varaṁ na śiṣyo na kuśiṣya-śiṣyo
varaṁ na dārā na kudāra-dāraḥ ||
(Cāṇakya-nīti-darpaṇa: 6.13)
“Better no kingdom than a kingdom with a bad king. Better no friend than a friend who is a bad friend. Better no disciple than a disciple who is a bad disciple. Better no wife than a wife who is a bad wife.”
varaṁ na rājyaṁ na kurāja-rājyaṁ Read on →
sad-bhāvena haren mitraṁ sambhrameṇa tu bāndhavān |
strī-bhṛtyau dāna-mānābhyāṁ dākṣiṇyenetarān janān ||
(Hitopadeśa: Sandhi, 112)
“Win over a friend with sincerity, relatives with honor, a wife or a servant with gifts and recognition, and others with cordiality.”
sad-bhāvena haren mitraṁ sambhrameṇa tu bāndhavān Read on →
