Verse 2.2.163

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.2.163:

गूढोपनिषदः काश्चित् कैश्चिद् गूढैर् महागमैः ।
समं महा-पुराणैश् च तूष्णीम् आसन् कृत-स्मितः ॥ १६३ ॥

gūḍhopaniṣadaḥ kāścit kaiścid gūḍhair mahāgamaiḥ |
samaṃ mahā-purāṇaiś ca tūṣṇīm āsan kṛta-smitaḥ || 163 ||

gūḍha–confidential; upaniṣadaḥ–Upaniṣads; kāścit–certain; kaiścit–with some; gūḍhaiḥ–confidential; mahā-āgamaiḥ–great Āgamas; samam–with; mahā-purāṇaiḥ–great Purāṇas; ca–also; tūṣṇīm–silent; āsan–being; kṛta-smitaḥ–smiled.

Thereafter, some of the confidential Upaniṣads dedicated to bhakti, several confidential Mahā-āgamas, the Vaiṣṇava Tantras such as Sātvata-siddhānta and other Vaiṣṇava Tantras, and Śrīmad Bhāgavat Mahā-purāṇa smiled gravely while remaining silent.

Commentary: Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā with Bhāvānuvāda

(By Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī himself including a deep purport of that commentary)

Śrī Gopa-kumāra says, “Those rare and most confidential scriptures, who are devoted to the loving service of Bhagavān, including some very confidential Upaniṣads; some of the major, esoteric Āgamas; Vaiṣṇava Tantras such as Sātvatasiddhānta; and the Mahā-purāṇa Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, all smiled slightly and became silent. “They thought, ‘Ah! Is the opulence of the illusory potency (Māyā) of Bhagavān not astonishing? It is dismaying that even omniscient personalities cannot comprehend essential principles of truth that are unmistakably established in the scriptures. Or, another way of understanding this situation is that these omniscient personalities are disregarding bhakti by merely establishing that its point of exaltation lies in the glory of bestowing liberation. Whatever the case may be, there is no point in speaking with these scriptures.’ Thus, considering it useless to engage in discussion with someone of disparate opinion, and considering it improper to reveal supremely confidential truths about bhakti in such an assembly, those confidential and esoteric scriptures refrained from speaking.”

In essence: To ascend the highest peak of bhagavad-bhakti, one has to sequentially climb the lower steps of fruitive activities, speculative knowledge, and then liberation. The glories of these lower rungs culminate in the exaltation of bhakti, and thus, while expounding their greatness, one might also eventually glorify bhakti. However, that does not do justice to the real glories of devotion in pure love. As a great treasure that has fallen into some unfit place does not belong there, so it is unbefitting that bhakti be included in the ranks of karma, jñāna, and so on.