sarvasvenāpi viprendra kartavyaḥ śāstra-saṅgrahaḥ |
vaiṣṇavais tu mahā-bhaktyā tuṣṭy-arthaṁ cakra-pāṇinaḥ ||
(Skanda Purāṇa; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 10.370)
“O best of brāhmaṇas, for the satisfaction of Bhagavān, collecting śāstras, even with the whole of one’s wealth, is to be done by Vaiṣṇavas with great bhakti.”
rājā paśyati karṇābhyāṁ dhiyā paśyanti paṇḍitāḥ |
paśuḥ paśyati gandhena bhūte paśyanti barbarāḥ ||
(Unknown source)
“A king sees through his ears [by hearing from his ministers, spies, subjects, and so forth]. The wise see through their intellect. An animal sees through scent [i.e., their sense of smell]. Fools [however] see [only] the past [i.e., they have no foresight at all].”
śāstrādīnāṁ vicārottham artha-nirdhāraṇaṁ matiḥ ||
atra kartavya-karaṇaṁ saṁśaya-bhramayoś chidā |
upadeśaś ca śiṣyāṇām ūhāpohādayo’pi ca ||
(Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 2.4.140)
“Ascertainment of an object based on deliberation upon śāstra and so forth is [called] understanding (mati). Herewith, performance of what is to be done, cutting away doubts and misunderstandings, instructing students, positive and negative reasoning, and so on occur.”
sodāharaṇam iti—atrodāharaṇāni caturbhiḥ pramāṇair labdhāni | śāstreṇa, tat-tātparyeṇa, tad-anusāri-mahājana-prasiddhyā, tat-tad-anusāri-sambhavena ca |
(Durgama-saṅgamanī-ṭīkā on Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 2.1.44)
“‘With illustration’ here means illustrations attained by four pramāṇas (means of knowing): (1) by śāstra, (2) by its intention (tātparya), (3) by the realization of mahājanas following that [i.e., the śāstra’s intention], and (4) by that which is produced following that [realization] of that [intention of the śāstra].”
titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ suhṛdaḥ sarva-dehinām |
ajāta-śatravaḥ śāntāḥ sādhavaḥ sādhu-bhūṣaṇāḥ ||
mayy ananyena bhāvena bhaktiṁ kurvanti ye dṛḍhām |
mat-kṛte tyakta-karmāṇas tyakta-svajana-bāndhavāḥ ||
mad-āśrayāḥ kathā mṛṣṭāḥ śṛṇvanti kathayanti ca |
tapanti vividhās tāpā naitān mad-gata-cetasaḥ ||
ta ete sādhavaḥ sādhvi sarva-saṅga-vivarjitāḥ |
saṅgas teṣv atha te prārthyaḥ saṅga-doṣa-harā hi te ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 3.25.21–24; cited in Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.22.81)
“[Bhagavān Kapila:] Those who are forbearing, compassionate, well-wishing of all embodied beings, without enemies, peaceful, and possessed of the adornment of good disposition are the sādhus. They who with unalloyed bhāva engage in resolute bhakti to me, they who have given up karmas and given up relatives and friends for me, they who hear and recount pure narrations about me, they of mind given over to me whom the various miseries do not trouble—O Sādhvī [i.e., O pure Mother], they are the sādhus, and [they] are completely free from all attachment. Therefore, attachment to them is to be desired by you, as they are removers of the fault of attachment.”
śruti-smṛti-purāṇādi-pañcarātra-vidhiṁ vinā |
aikāntikī harer bhaktir utpātāyaiva kalpate ||
bhaktir aikāntikī veyam avicārāt pratīyate |
vastutas tu tathā naiva yad aśāstrīyatekṣyate ||
(Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu: 1.2.101–102; Brahma-yāmala; cited in Bhakti Sandarbha: 284, 312)
“‘Without [adherence to] the injunctions of the Śrutis, Smṛtis, Purāṇas, Pañcarātras, and other śāstras, [even] one-pointed bhakti to Hari leads only to disturbance.’ Such bhakti [as mentioned in this verse from Brahma-yāmala] may appear to be one-pointed as a result of misjudgement. In reality, however, it is not so because it is seen to be unsupported by śāstra.”
vādo nāvalambyaḥ |
bāhulyāvakāśatvād aniyatatvāc ca |
(Nārada-bhakti-sūtra: 74–75)
“Vāda is not to be taken support of because of [vāda] having scope for prolixity and being unrestrained [i.e., because vāda can go on unlimitedly and never reach a definitive end].”
yo’vamanyeta te mūle hetu-śāstrāśrayād dvijaḥ |
sa sādhubhir bahiṣkāryo nāstiko veda-nindakaḥ ||
(Manu Smṛti: 2.11)
“A twice-born who disregards those two sources [of instruction, i.e., the Śruti and Smṛti] on account of adherence to hetu-śāstra [i.e., nyāya-śāstra] is an unbeliever (nāstika), a defamer of the Veda, and to be shunned by sādhus.”
śraddhā hi śāstrārtha-viśvāsaḥ |
(Krama Sandarbha-ṭīkā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.20.9; Bhakti Sandarbha: 173)
“Śraddhā, indeed, is conviction in the meaning of śāstra.”
śraddhā śāstrābhidheyāvadhāraṇasya evāṅgaṁ, tad-viśvāsa-rūpatvāt | tato nānuṣṭhānāṅgatve praviśati |
(Bhakti Sandarbha: 172)
“Śraddhā is only part of ascertaining the object to be signified (abhidheya) in śāstra because of its being a form of conviction in that. Therefore, it does not enter into being part of the practice [thereof, i.e. it is not a part of bhakti itself].”
