Grace

śrutaya ūcuḥ

śrutaya ūcuḥ—
kandarpa-koṭi-lāvaṇye tvayi dṛṣṭe manāṁsi naḥ |
kāminī-bhāvam āsādya smara-kṣubdhāny asaṁśayam |
yathā tval-loka-vāsinyaḥ kāma-tattvena gopikāḥ |
bhajanti ramaṇaṁ matvā cikīrṣājani nas tathā ||
śrī-bhagavān uvāca—
durlabho durghaṭaś caiva yuṣmākaṁ sumanorathaḥ |
mayānumoditaḥ samyak so’pi bhavitum arhati ||
āgāmini viriñcau tu jāte sṛṣṭy-artham udyate |
kalpaṁ sārasvataṁ prāpya vraje gopyā bhaviṣyatha ||
pṛthivyāṁ bhārate kṣetre māthure mama maṇḍale |
vṛndāvane bhaviṣyāmi preyān vo rāsa-maṇḍale ||
jāra-dharmeṇa susnehaṁ sudṛḍhaṁ sarvato’dhikam |
mayi samprāpya sarve’pi kṛtakṛtyā bhaviṣyatha ||
(Bṛhad Vāmana Purāṇa; cited in the Locana-rocanī-ṭīkā and Ānanda-candrikā-ṭīkā on Ujjvala-nīlamāṇi: 3.47)

“The Śrutis say, ‘Upon seeing you possessed of the loveliness of a crore of Kandarpas, our minds take on the bhāva of a ladylove (kāminī) and are undoubtedly agitated by passion. As the gopikās residing in your abode worship you with the essence of kāma, having accepted you as their lover, so [too] our desire has arisen to do so.’ Śrī Bhagavān says, ‘This excellent desire of you all is difficult to attain and difficult to accomplish. [When] Approved by me in full [however], it too can come to be. When a future Brahmā is born and arises for the purpose of emanation [of the universe], you all will arrive in the Sārasvata-kalpa and become gopīs in Vraja. In the rāsa circle in Vṛndāvana within my district of Mathurā in the land of Bhārata on Earth, I will become the beloved of you all. Attaining in full profound affection for me that is profoundly firm and all-surpassing, you all too will become successful.”

Read on →

satyaṁ diśaty arthitam arthito nṛṇāṁ

satyaṁ diśaty arthitam arthito nṛṇāṁ
naivārtha-do yat punar arthitā yataḥ |
svayaṁ vidhatte bhajatām anicchatām
icchā-pidhānaṁ nija-pāda-pallavam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 5.19.26; cited in Bhakti Sandarbha 98, Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.22.40, 2.24.199)

“It is true that Prabhu bestows, when requested, the requested object of human beings, but he is certainly not munificent [just] by means of that since [thereafter] they again become requesters [of something else once the object which he has already bestowed upon them has been enjoyed, found to be ultimately unfulfilling, and left the requester with still unsatisfied desirousness]. [Thus,] He of his own accord bestows his own bud-like feet upon worshippers who are undesirous [of his feet] which are covering of [i.e., fulfilling and quelling of all] desires.”

Read on →

na vidyate yasya ca janma karma vā

na vidyate yasya ca janma karma vā
na nāma-rūpe guṇa-doṣa eva vā |
tathāpi lokāpyaya-sambhavāya yaḥ
sva-māyayā tāny anukālam ṛcchati ||
tasmai namaḥ pareśāya brahmaṇe’nanta-śaktaye |
arūpāyoru-rūpāya nama āścarya-karmaṇe ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 8.3.8–9)

“Obeisance unto the Supreme Īśa, unto Brahman, unto he possessed of unending potency, unto he who has no birth or action, no name or form, and no faults in the form of [material] qualities whatsoever, and who by means of his own māyā still accepts these [i.e., births, actions, names, forms, and qualities] perpetually for the sake of the dissolution and the attainment of the people. Obeisance unto he who has no [material] form, unto he who has an excellent [spiritual] form, unto he of astonishing action.”

Read on →

upapadyate cābhyupalabhyate ca

upapadyate cābhyupalabhyate ca |
(Vedānta-sūtra: 2.1.36)

“That [i.e., partiality on the part of Brahman in the form of favoring bhaktas] is also established, and is also observable.”

Read on →

nārāyaṇaḥ paraṁ brahma taj jñānenātha gamyate

nārāyaṇaḥ paraṁ brahma taj jñānenātha gamyate |
jñānasya sādhanaṁ śāstraṁ śāstraṁ ca guru-vaktragam ||
brahma-prāptir ato hetor gurv-adhīnā sadaiva hi |
hetunānena vai viprā gurur gurutaraḥ smṛtaḥ ||
yasmād devo jagannāthaḥ kṛtvā martyamayīṁ tanum |
magnān uddharate lokān kāruṇyāc chāstra-pāṇinā ||
tasmād bhaktir gurau kāryā saṁsāra-bhaya-bhīruṇā |
śāstra-jñānena yo’jñānaṁ timiraṁ vinipātayet ||
śāstraṁ pāpa-haraṁ puṇyaṁ pavitraṁ bhoga-mokṣadam |
śāntidaṁ ca mahārthaṁ ca vakti yaḥ sa jagad-guruḥ ||
(Nārada Pañcarātra; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 10.413–417)

“Nārāyaṇa is the Supreme Brahman, and he is attained by means of knowledge (jñāna). The means of acquiring knowledge (jñāna) is the śāstra, and the śāstra is learned from the mouth of the guru. For this reason, the attainment of Brahman is indeed verily always dependent on the guru, and for that reason, O brāhmaṇas, the guru is known to be very important [lit., ‘very heavy’]. Because Deva, the Lord of universe, out of compassion adopts a mortal form [i.e., the human form of the guru] and delivers the people immersed [in the ocean of saṁsāra] with the hand of the śāstra, bhakti to the guru is to be performed by those who are frighted by the fear of saṁsāra [i.e., by those who aspire to transcend saṁsāra]. He who can completely dispel the darkness of ignorance with knowledge of the śāstra—[he] who is a speaker of the śāstra, which is a remover of sin, sacred, purifying, a bestower of enjoyment and mokṣa, a bestower of peace, and possessed of deep meaning—is a guru of the world.”

Read on →

ātma-nindā kari laila prabhura śaraṇa

ātma-nindā kari laila prabhura śaraṇa |
kṛpā karibāre tabe prabhura haila mana ||
(Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.6.201)

“He [i.e., Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭāchārya] rebuked himself and took shelter of Prabhu. Prabhu then decided to bestow grace [upon him].”

Read on →

bhavāpavargo bhramato yadā bhavej

bhavāpavargo bhramato yadā bhavej
janasya tarhy acyuta sat-samāgamaḥ |
sat-saṅgamo yarhi tadaiva sad-gatau
parāvareśe tvayi jāyate matiḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.51.53; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 10.256; Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā on Bṛhad Bhāgavatāmṛta: 2.7.14; Bhakti Sandarbha: 179; Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.22.46, 84)

“When the cessation of worldly existence shall come about for a a wandering person, then, O Acyuta, association with the sat shall come about, and when association with the sat shall come about, only then does inclination manifest towards you, [who are] the Shelter of the sat [alt., whose shelter is the sat] and the Master of the higher and the lower.’”

Read on →

atha svārpaṇa-vidhiḥ

atha svārpaṇa-vidhiḥ—
ahaṁ bhagavato’ṁśo’smi sadā dāso’smi sarvathā |
tat-kṛpāpekṣako nityam ity ātmānaṁ samarpayet ||
(Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 8.418)

“Now, the method of offering the self [is explained; one should meditate]: ‘I am a part of Bhagavān. I am forever a servant [of him] in all respects. I am always a seeker of his grace.’ In this way, one should fully offer oneself.”

Read on →

īśvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca

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].”

Read on →

karuṇā-nikuramba-komale

karuṇā-nikuramba-komale
madhuraiśvarya-viśeṣa-śālini |
jayati vraja-rāja-nandane
na hi cintā-kaṇikābhyudeti naḥ ||
(Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.21.45)

“Since the Son of Vraja’s king, who is tender by virtue of his abundance of compassion and replete with a special form of sweet (madhura) aiśvarya, remains triumphant, not even a trace of worry arises in us.”

Read on →

Scroll to Top