Verse 2.4.21

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.4.21:

अत्रादृष्टाश्रुताश्चर्य-समुद्रोर्मि-परम्पराम् ।
भगवद्-भक्ति-दिप्ताभ्यां नेत्राभ्यां गणय स्थिरः ॥ २१ ॥

atrādṛṣṭāśrutāścarya-samudrormi-paramparām |
bhagavad-bhakti-diptābhyāṃ netrābhyāṃ gaṇaya sthiraḥ || 21 ||

atra–here; adṛṣṭa–never seen; aśruta–never heard; āścarya–of wonders; samudra–of an ocean; ūrmi–waves; paramparām–one after the other; bhagavat-bhakti–by devotional service to the allopulent Lord; dīptābhyām–illuminated; netrābhyām–with eyes; gaṇaya–count; sthiraḥ–remaining steadfast.

“With your mind steady and your eyes illuminated by loving devotion to the Lord, behold the multitude of uncommon opulences in Vaikuṇṭha. Count the waves in the ocean of astonishing wonders that have never been seen or heard of before.”

Commentary: Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā with Bhāvānuvāda

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

The eternal Vaikuṇṭha associates jokingly speak this verse beginning with atra to remove any possible distress of separation that Gopa-kumāra might suffer. They say, “Sit here with a calm heart, and with your sight illuminated by loving service to the Lord (bhagavad-bhakti), count the sets of waves in the ocean of wonders–wonders unseen and unheard of before.”

They say this for a particular reason. By directly witnessing the endless succession of extraordinary wonders, Gopa-kumāra will experience the special glories of the Lord of Vaikuṇṭha, and thus his eagerness to have the Lord’s darśana will greatly increase. Another reason the Vaikuṇṭha associates asked Gopa-kumāra to sit near the outer gate of the city is that they wanted him to understand what it means to be a servant of the Lord in Vaikuṇṭha’s mood of great opulence.

“Count the endless flow of waves in the ocean of astonishing wonders.” This sentence has a double meaning and should be seen as joking words. Gopa-kumāra might ask, “What power do human eyes have to see such astonishing phenomena?” Therefore the associates say, “Such wonders spontaneously manifest in eyes that are illuminated by bhagavad-bhakti. It is only with these eyes that one can behold the Lord.”