Śrīmad Bhāgavatam – Page 68

ārādhyo bhagavān vrajeśa-tanayas tad-dhāma vṛndāvanaṁ

ārādhyo bhagavān vrajeśa-tanayas tad-dhāma vṛndāvanaṁ
ramyā kācid upāsanā vraja-vadhū-vargeṇa yā kalpitā |
śāstraṁ bhāgavataṁ pramāṇam amalaṁ premā pumārtho mahān
itthaṁ gaura-mahāprabhor matam atas tatrādaro naḥ paraḥ ||
(Caitanya-mata-mañjuṣā: 1.1)

“‘The object of worship is Bhagavān, the Son of Vraja’s king. His abode is Vṛndāvana. The lovely worship [that is to be performed] is that which is performed by the ladies of Vraja. The flawless pramāṇa [i.e., means of knowing these conclusions] is the śāstra [Śrīmad] Bhāgavatam, and the [rightful ultimate] aim of a human being is prema.’ This is the view of Gaura Mahāprabhu, and thus we have the highest regard for it.”

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tat-saṅga-bhraṁśitaiśvaryaṁ

tat-saṅga-bhraṁśitaiśvaryaṁ saṁsarantaṁ kubhāryavat |
tad-gatīr abudhasyeha kim asat-karmabhir bhavet ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 6.5.15)

“One situated in saṁsāra [i.e., a conditioned jīvātmā] is deprived of capability by its [i.e., the deluded intellect’s] association like a man with a wicked wife [i.e., the conditioned jīvātmā follow the movements of the deluded intellect just as a man who follows the dictates of a wicked wife]. What can be the use of the meaningless acts here [i.e., in this world] of one who does not understand its effects [i.e., of one who does not recognize the outcomes that will be inevitably experienced by indiscriminately following the dictates of the deluded intellect]?”

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nānā-rūpātmano buddhiḥ

nānā-rūpātmano buddhiḥ svairiṇīva guṇānvitā |
tan-niṣṭhām agatasyeha kim asat-karmabhir bhavet ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 6.5.14)

“The ātmā’s intellect (buddhi), like a wanton woman [i.e., like one intent upon selfish gain through reprehensible means], is of various forms and infused with [various, mundane] qualities. What can be the use of the meaningless acts here [i.e., in this world] of one who does not know its application [i.e., one who does not discern between proper and improper application of the intellect]?”

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eṣā buddhimatāṁ buddhir

eṣā buddhimatāṁ buddhir manīṣā ca manīṣiṇām |
yat satyam anṛteneha martyenāpnoti māmṛtam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.29.22)

“This is the intelligence of the intelligent, and the cleverness of the clever: here with that which is unreal and mortal [the material body], one attains Me, who am real and immortal.”

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prāyeṇa manujā loke

prāyeṇa manujā loke loka-tattva-vicakṣaṇāḥ |
samuddharanti hy ātmānam ātmanaivāśubhāśayāt ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.7.19)

“Generally, human beings in the world who are clear-sighted about the nature of the world [i.e., who are adept in discerning causes of benefit and harm in the visible world] deliver themselves from harmful predispositions [i.e., vāsanās related to sense objects] by their own selves [i.e., by exercising their own faculties of discernment].”

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sṛṣṭvā purāṇi vividhāny ajayātma-śaktyā

sṛṣṭvā purāṇi vividhāny ajayātma-śaktyā
vṛkṣān sarīsṛpa-paśūn khaga-dandaśūkān |
tais tair atuṣṭa-hṛdayaḥ puruṣaṁ vidhāya
brahmāvaloka-dhiṣaṇaṁ mudam āpa devaḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.9.28)

“After creating trees, reptiles, animals, birds, snakes, and various [other] bodies with his own śakti ajā [i.e., māyā] and being unsatisfied at heart with them, Deva [i.e., Bhagavān] made the human being, endowed with an intellect for perception of Brahman [i.e., with the capacity to realize the him, the Supreme,] and became pleased.”

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sauvīra-patir api

sauvīra-patir api sujana-samavagata-paramātma-satattva ātmany avidyādhyāropitāṁ ca dehātma-matiṁ visasarja | evaṁ hi nṛpa bhagavad-āśritāśritānubhāvaḥ |
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 5.13.25)

“The ruler of Suvīra [i.e., King Rahūgana], having fully understood from Sujana [i.e., Jaḍa Bharata] the Paramātmā in truth, forsook the notion superimposed by ignorance (avidyā) upon the ātmā [i.e., self] that the body is the self. Such, O King, is the result of taking shelter of one who has taken shelter of Bhagavān.”

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nirviṇṇasya viraktasya

nirviṇṇasya viraktasya puruṣasyokta-vedinaḥ |
manas tyajati daurātmyaṁ cintitasyānucintayā ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.20.23)

“The mind of a person who is disinterested, detached, cognizant of what has been said, and thoughtful, by means of contemplation gives up ill-naturedness.”

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haṁsāḥ sārāsāra-viveka-caturāḥ

haṁsāḥ sārāsāra-viveka-caturāḥ |
(Bhāvārtha-dīpikā on Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.29.3; cited in Bhakti Sandarbha: 326)

“Haṁsas [lit., “swans”] are those who are expert in discriminating between the essential and non-essential.”

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śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam |
arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ sakhyam ātma-nivedanam ||
iti puṁsārpitā viṣṇau bhaktiś cen nava-lakṣaṇā |
kriyeta bhagavaty addhā tan manye’dhītam uttamam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 7.5.23–24; cited in Hari-bhakti-vilāsa: 11.619–620, Bhakti Sandarbha: 169, Caitanya-caritāmṛta: 2.9.259–260)

[Prahlāda Mahārāja to Hiraṇyakaśipu:] “Hearing, praising, remembering, attending the feet, worshipping, offering obeisance, serving, befriending, and offering the self—if bhakti characterized by these nine [activities] is [itself first] directly offered to Bhagavān Viṣṇu and [then] performed by a person, I consider that the greatest learning.”

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