पूर्वपूर्वेभ्य उत्तरोत्तराः श्रेष्ठा इत्यर्थः । एवं सर्वतः श्रैष्ठ्यं परमभगवतीषु श्रीराधादिषु पर्यवसितं ज्ञेयम् । तारतम्ये सत्यपि स्वस्वरसजातीयसुखपरमकाष्ठासम्पत्त्या सर्वेषामेव तेषां परिपूर्णार्थता सिध्यत्येव … ।
pūrva-pūrvebhya uttarottarāḥ śreṣṭhā ity arthaḥ | evaṁ sarvataḥ śraiṣṭhyaṁ parama-bhagavatīṣu śrī-rādhādiṣu paryavasitaṁ jñeyam | tāratamye saty api sva-sva-rasa-jātīya-sukha-parama-kāṣṭhā-sampattyā sarveṣām eva teṣāṁ paripūrṇārthatā sidhyaty eva … |
(Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā on Bṛhad Bhāgavāmṛta: 1.7.138)
“‘The latter are superior to the former’ is the meaning [i.e., among all the bhaktas mentioned earlier, starting from the brāhmaṇa at Prayāga, each of the bhakta mentioned later is superior to those mentioned earlier]. In this way, superiority to all is to be understood to be determined in the paramount bhagavatīs led by Śrī Rādhā [i.e., the gopīs of Vraja led by Śrī Rādhā, who are mentioned last in the discourse, are the foremost of all bhaktas of Śrī Bhagavān]. Even in the presence of this gradation [among all bhaktas], complete fulfillment indeed of all of them is verily established by means of [their] attainment of the apogee of the happiness belonging to their own respective rasas.”