वन्दे नन्दव्रजस्त्रीणां पादरेणुमभीक्ष्णशः ।
यासां हरिकथोद्गीतं पुनाति भुवनत्रयम् ॥
vande nanda-vraja-strīṇāṁ pāda-reṇum abhīkṣṇaśaḥ |
yāsāṁ hari-kathodgītaṁ punāti bhuvana-trayam ||
(Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: 10.47.63)
“I offer obeisance constantly to the foot-dust of the ladies of Nanda’s Vraja, whose resounding singing of narrations of Hari purifies the three worlds.”
Commentary
evaṁ tāsāṁ māhātmyaṁ parama-prītyā susvara-gānena saṅkīrtya pāda-padma-parisara-pradeśe daṇḍavan nipatya parama-durlabhatvam anenaiva tat-pada-paddhati-reṇum ekam eva dūrato hastenādāya śirasy ādhāya | kiṁ vā tāsām agre tam eva lakṣīkṛtya sāṣṭāṅgaṁ praṇamann āha—‘vande’ iti | vraja-strīṇām ity aparokṣe’pi prema-bharodayena parokṣavad uktiḥ | kiṁ vā parama-gauraveṇa saṁmānanārthaṁ tat-saṅkīrtana-sukhārthaṁ vā | abhīkṣṇaśaḥ ity asya pūrveṇa pareṇa cānvayaḥ | yāsāṁ hari-kathā-sambandhi uccair gītaṁ bhuvana-trayam ūrdhvam adho madhyaṁ ca lokaṁ jagad eva punāti | yathoktam asminn eva prasaṅge śrī-śukadeva-pādaiḥ—‘udgāyatīnām aravinda-locanaṁ vrajāṅganānāṁ divam aspṛśad dhvaniḥ | dadhnaś ca nirmanthana-śabda-miśrito nirasyate yena diśām amaṅgalam ||’ iti | yad vā yāsāṁ mahima-nibandhanaṁ gītam eva mamaitad gītam iva uccair atiśreṣṭhā hari-kathā | yad vā hari-katheti dṛṣṭāntatvenātropanyastaṁ hari-kathaiva yāsām uccair gītaṁ māhātmya-gāthā tribhuvanam eva vyāpya punāti, evaṁ nija-tad-gānābhiprāyo’pi sūcita iti |
(Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā)
“In this way having praised their [i.e., the gopīs’] greatness with a melodious song [i.e., with the last five verses] out of immense love, he falls prostrate in the area in front of their lotus feet and from a distance picks up and places on his head just one particle of dust from the path of [i.e., which has been walked by] their feet specifically because of [that dust’s] being most difficult to attain, or, he looks at just that [one particle of dust] in front of them and offers a prostrate obeisance, and says vande … [i.e., Uddhava speaks SB 10.47.63]. ‘Of the ladies of Vraja’ (Vraja-strīṇām)—although [Uddhava is] not distant [from the gopīs as he speaks at this time], this statement [i.e., of Uddhava in which he speaks of the gopīs indirectly in third person rather than directly in second person] is as though distant [from them even though he is right in front of them] because of an upwelling of an abundance of prema [in his heart]. Alternately, this [manner of speaking] is for the sake of [showing] respect [to the gopīs] out of profound reverence [for them], or, [it is] for the sake of the pleasure of mentioning them in full [i.e., of performing saṅkīrtana of them]. ‘Constantly’ (abhīkṣṇaśaḥ)—the syntactic connection of this [word] is with the former and the latter [i.e., it indicates that Uddhava both offers obeisance to the Vraja-gopīs’s foot-dust constantly and that the Hari-kathodgītam of the gopīs purifies the three worlds constantly]. [The meaning of the second half of the verse, yāsāṁ Hari-kathodgītaṁ punāti bhuvana-trayam, is as follows:] Whose (yāsām) [i.e., the gopīs’] resounding singing (udgītam) in regard to narrations (kathā) of Hari purifies (punāti) the three worlds (bhuvana-trayam), that is, the upper, middle, and lower planes, meaning, the entire universe, as is described in this regard specifically by the revered Śrī Śukadevapāda [in SB 10.46.46]: ‘The tune of the ladies of Vraja singing of he of lotus eyes mixed with the sounds of churning yoghurt, by which inauspiciousness in all directions is dispelled, touched the sky.’ Alternately, [the meaning is as follows:] songs (gītam) of whom, that is, compositions about the greatness [of whom—the gopīs], like this song of mine [that I have sung in the last five verses], which are high (ut—uccaiḥ), that is, exceeding great, narrations (kathā) of Hari [constantly purify the three worlds]. Alternately, [the meaning is as follows:] ‘narrations (kathā) of Hari’ is spoken as an illustration: high songs (udgītam), that is, compositions about the greatness of whom [i.e., of the gopīs], like narrations (kathā) of Hari, fill and purify indeed the three worlds. ‘The intent of this song of mine is also such’ is indicated [i.e., and it is Uddhava’s intent that his song in praise of the gopīs which he has sung over the last five verses shall also constantly purify the three worlds just as narrations of Hari are known to].”