निरपेक्षं मुनिं शान्तं निर्वैरं समदर्शनम् ।
अनुव्रजाम्यहं नित्यं पूयेयेत्यङ्घ्रिरेणुभि: ॥
nirapekṣaṁ muniṁ śāntaṁ nirvairaṁ sama-darśanam |
anuvrajāmy ahaṁ nityaṁ pūyeyety aṅghri-reṇubhiḥ ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 11.14.16)
[Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa:] “I always follow one who is indifferent, contemplative, peaceful, free from enmity, and of equal vision so that I may be purified by the dust of his feet.”
Commentary
nirapekṣaṁ niṣkiñcana-bhaktam ata eva śāntaṁ kṣobha-rahitam ata evānyatra nirvairaṁ sama-darśanaṁ ca heyopādeya-bhāvanā-rahitaṁ muniṁ śrī-nāradādim anuvrajāmi, yatas tasya tādṛśa-niṣkapaṭa-bhakti-maya-sādhutva-darśanena mamāpi tatra bhakti-viśeṣo jāyate | kathaṁ gopanīya ity āha pūyeyeti | mad-bhakty-aniṣkṛti-doṣāt pavitritaḥ syām iti bhāveneti bhāvaḥ |
(Prīti Sandarbha: 38)
“[Bhagavān says:] ‘I always follow he who is ‘indifferent’ (nirapekṣam), that is, a disinterested bhakta [i.e., a bhakta who fosters no desire for anything of the world], thus ‘peaceful’ (śāntam), that is, free from agitation [in the mind], and thus ‘free from enmity’ (nirvairam) towards anyone, ‘of equal vision’ (sama-darśanam), that is, free from thought of acceptability and rejectability [towards anything unrelated to me], and a sage, like Śrī Nārada and others, since a particular type of bhakti to him [i.e., such a bhakta] manifests even within me by seeing his sādhutva [i.e., quality of being a sādhu] constituted of such guileless bhakti. How is Bhagavān in need of being protected [i.e., what need does he have to always follow along behind his own Bhagavān]?’ [In expectation of this question,] He thus says, ‘[So that] I may be purified’ (pūyeya). ‘May I become purified of my fault of non-requital of [his] bhakti.’ This is the purport [i.e., Bhagavān feels himself incapable of sufficiently reciprocating with his bhakta’s service to him, and to purify himself of this indebtedness, he always follows his bhakta].”
tad evaṁ prema-viśeṣa-pātratvena tādṛśaṁ bhaktaṁ stutvā gaurava-viśeṣa-pātratvena bhakta-viśeṣaṁ stauti | nirapekṣaṁ niṣkāma-bhaktam, ataḥ śāntaṁ kṣobha-rahitaṁ, nirvairaṁ mātsaryādi-rahitam, sama-darśanam anyatra heyopādeya-bhāvanā-rahitaṁ ca, muniṁ śrī-nāradādim anuvrajāmi, yatas tādṛśa-niṣkapaṭa-bhaktimaya-sādhutva-darśanena mamāpi tatra bhakti-viśeṣo jāyate | kathaṁ gopanīyaḥ? ity āha—pūyeyeti | mad-bhakty-aniṣkṛti-doṣāt pavitritaḥ syām iti bhāvenety arthaḥ | ‘śamo man-niṣṭhitā buddheḥ’ iti bhagavad-ukteḥ śānta-śabdenātra prītimān iti vā |
(Krama-sandarbha-ṭīkā)
“Thus, in this way having praised such a bhakta as being the bearer of a special type of prema, he [i.e., Bhagavān] praises this special type of bhakta as being a bearer of a special type of honor. [Bhagavān says:] ‘I always follow he who is ‘indifferent’ (nirapekṣam), that is, a desireless bhakta, thus ‘peaceful’ (śāntam), that is, free from agitation [in the mind], and thus ‘free from enmity’ (nirvairam), that is, free from envy and so forth, ‘of equal vision’ (sama-darśanam), that is, free from thought of acceptability and rejectability otherwise [i.e., towards anything unrelated to me], and a sage, like Śrī Nārada and others, since a particular type of bhakti to him [i.e., such a bhakta] manifests even within me by seeing his sādhutva [i.e., quality of being a sādhu] constituted of such guileless bhakti. How is Bhagavān in need of being protected [i.e., what need does he have to always follow along behind his own Bhagavān]?’ [In expectation of this question,] He thus says, ‘[So that] I may be purified’ (pūyeya). ‘May I become purified of my fault of non-requital of [his] bhakti’—with this thought [Bhagavān makes this statement]. This is the meaning [i.e., Bhagavān feels himself incapable of sufficiently reciprocating with his bhakta’s service to him, and to purify himself of this indebtedness, he always follows his bhakta]. ‘Equanimity’ (śama) is fixity of the mind upon me’—on account of this statement of Bhagavān [in SB 11.19.36], one possessed of prīti is, alternately, referred to here [in this verse] by the word ‘peaceful’ (śānta).”
kiṁ bahunā, bhakto yathā sadā mām anucarati, tathāham api bhakta-parokṣaḥ san bhaktam anucarāmi | ‘bhagavān bhakta-bhaktimān’ iti madīya-śukokter ity āha—nirapekṣam iti | muniṁ mad-rūpa-guṇa-līlā-parikarādi-manana-param | pūyeya mad-antarvarti-brahmāṇḍāni pavitrīkuryām iti bhāvanayety artha iti śrī-svāmi-caraṇāḥ | tad-bhakty-aniṣkṛti-doṣāt pavitritaḥ syām iti bhāvenety artha iti sandarbhaḥ | vastutas tu bhakta-caraṇa-dhūli-grahaṇaṁ vinā bhaktir na syāt | bhaktyā vinā man-mādhurya-rasānubhavo na syād iti mayaiva maryādā sthāpitā | ato’ham api bhakta iva bhaktyā pūrṇa-man-mādhurya-raso nimagno bhaveyam iti bhāvaḥ |
(Sārārtha-darśinī-ṭīkā)
“[Here Bhagavān conveys:] ‘What is the use of more [discussion]? As a bhakta always follows me, so too I, invisibly to the bhakta, follow the bhakta, as per the statement of my Śuka, “Bhagavān is a possessor of bhakti for [his] bhaktas.”’ Thus, he [i.e., Bhagavān] speaks this verse (nirapekṣam … ). ‘Sage’ (munim) means one give to contemplation on my figure, qualities, līlā, companions, and so forth. ‘[So that] I may be purified’ (pūyeya) is [spoken] with the thought, ‘Let me purify the universes situated inside me.’ This is the meaning according to Śrī Svāmīcaraṇa [i.e., Śrīdhara Svāmīpāda]. ‘May I become purified of the fault of non-requital of his bhakti’—with this thought [Bhagavān makes this statement]. This is the meaning according to the Sandarbha [i.e., to Śrī Jīva Gosvāmīpāda]. Actually, however, [Bhagavān’s intention is as follows:] ‘“Bhakti cannot come into being without accepting the foot-dust of bhaktas, and without bhakti, experience (anubhava) of the rasa of my sweetness (mādhurya) cannot occur.” This is the rule established by my very self. Therefore, I too shall become fully immersed in the rasa of my sweetness (mādhurya) by means of bhakti like a bhakta.’ This is the purport [i.e., Bhagavān’s intention in always following along behind his bhakta as described in this verse is that he wishes to relish his own sweetness (mādhurya) just as the bhaktas described in this verse do].”