Text 4

Upon reaching the condition described in the following verse (Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 11.2.43), one attains supreme spiritual peace (parā-śānti):

इत्य् अच्युताङ्घ्रिं भजतो’नुवृत्त्या भक्तिर् विरक्तिर् भगवत्-प्रबोधः
भवन्ति वै भागवतस्य राजन् ततः परां शान्तिम् उपैति साक्षात्

ity acyutāṅghriṃ bhajato’nuvṛttyā bhaktir viraktir bhagavat-prabodhaḥ
bhavanti vai bhāgavatasya rājan tataḥ parāṃ śāntim upaiti sākṣāt

O King, whoever devoutly worships the lotus feet of Śrī Bhagavān will develop detachment from material existence and devotion to Him that is saturated with prema. All knowledge related to Śrī Bhagavān will manifest in his heart, and thus he will begin to experience supreme peace.

हेन अनुवृत्ति सह येइ कृष्ण भजे
सुभक्ति, विराग, ज्ञान, ताङ्हार उपजे

hena anuvṛtti saha yei kṛṣṇa bhaje
subhakti, virāga, jñāna, tāṅhāra upaje

से तिन सुन्दर-रूपे एकत्रे बाडिया
परा-शान्ति-प्रेम-धन देय त’ आनिया

se tina sundara-rūpe ekatre bāḍiyā
parā-śānti-prema-dhana deya ta’ āniyā

Commentary: Bhajana-rahasya-vṛtti:

In this Text, Kavi Ṛṣi, the best of the nine Yogendras, responds to one of Nimi Mahārāja’s questions by saying that besides devotion to the Supreme Lord, there is no way to attain eternal auspiciousness. Temporary endeavours to attain imaginary peace or freedom from material suffering are foolish and can bring no actual auspiciousness to the living entity. The only auspiciousness is to take shelter of Śrī Bhagavān’s devotees, and by steady practice attain bhakti, which is beyond the three modes of material nature. A person who has pure bhakti, who is established in the devotional way of life (bhāgavatadharma) and who performs service with appropriate renunciation (yukta-vairāgya ) can never be touched by ignorance. Established in the kingdom of bhakti, he acquires higher and higher stages of elevated devotion and thus attains transcendental peace.

Practising and following means to take exclusive shelter of Śrī Bhagavān’s devotees; to remember and follow Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s associates is more beneficial than to remember and follow Śrī Kṛṣṇa Himself. It is more useful for the bhakti-sādhaka to follow the process of devotion shown by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī and Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, who themselves follow the gopīs, than it is to follow Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu directly. The method to awaken transcendental greed (lobha) is to remember, pray and weep for the sentiments of elevated devotees. Sādhana means to practise bhakti through the senses and with the aim of attaining svarūpa-siddhi^[1]. When bhāva appears, one’s practice is no longer sādhana-bhakti but bhāva-bhakti, and when one achieves vastu-siddhi^[2] he will attain transcendental loving service (prema-sevā).

Footnotes and references:

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[1]:

The stage in which one’s internal spiritual form and identity becomes manifest.

[2]:

The stage in which the vastu, or substantive entity known as the jīva, is fully liberated from matter.