Verse 2.42

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.42:

তোমরা যে আমারে শিখাও বিষ্ণু-ধর্ম তেঞি বুঝি,—আমার উত্তম আছে কর্ম ॥ ৪২ ॥

तोमरा ये आमारे शिखाओ विष्णु-धर्म तेञि बुझि,—आमार उत्तम आछे कर्म ॥ ४२ ॥

tomarā ye āmāre śikhāo viṣṇu-dharma teñi bujhi,—āmāra uttama āche karma || 42 ||

tomara ye amare sikhao visnu-dharma teni bujhi,—amara uttama ache karma (42)

English translation:

(42) “You always teach Me My duties to Lord Viṣṇu. This proves that I must have previously performed pious activities.

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

“You are teaching Me bhāgavata-dharma because I have previously accumulated heaps of pious activities.” Activities performed with a desire to enjoy immediate results are temporary smārta-dharma or nondevotional atheistic śākta-dharma. In the beginning such activities give some apparent temporary material happiness like heavenly pleasures to those unfortunate fruitive workers who are bewildered by false ego and attached to sense gratification, and ultimately they give the threefold miseries of material existence. Although the subjects of nondevotional morality, knowledge, and renunciation that are found in smārta-dharma may at first sight appear immediately beneficial, they do not lead one to the ultimate goal of life. Their fruits are temporary and ultimately yield bad results. But the fruit of cultivating bhāgavata-dharma is the awakening of the living entity’s eternal unadulterated auspiciousness.

The phrase viṣṇu-dharma means “supreme occupational duties,” “spiritual occupational duties,” “occupational duties in relation with the Supreme Lord,” or “constitutional activities of the soul.” These duties are explained in the following verses. The Hari-bhakti-vilāsa (Tenth Vilāsa) states:

tathā vaiṣṇava-dharmāṃś ca kriyamāṇān api svayam saṃpṛcchet tad vidaḥ sādhūn anyo ‘nya prīti vṛddhaye

śraddhayā bhagavad-dharmān vaiṣṇavāyānupṛcchate avaśyaṃ kathayed vidvān anyathā doṣa-bhāg bhavet

“Although one personally engages in Vaiṣṇava-dharma to increase his love, he should make inquiries from like-minded devotees. When an intelligent person is repeatedly questioned about Vaiṣṇava-dharma by a faithful person, he must glorify the principles of bhāgavata-dharma to such a devotee. Otherwise he will incur sin.

nākhyāti vaiṣṇavaṃ dharmaṃ viṣṇu-bhaktasya pṛcchataḥkalau bhāgavato bhūtvā

puṇyaṃ yāti śatābdikam

“It is further stated in this regard that if a devotee of the Lord is questioned by another devotee regarding Vaiṣṇava-dharma and he does not explain those principles to him, then whatever piety he has accumulated over the last one hundred births is all lost.”

In the Kāśī-khaṇḍa, Dvārakā-māhātmya, Candra Śarma speaks the following words: “I will not eat anything on the day of Ekādaśī. I will constantly remain awake. I will worship You every day with festivals. I will eat on those days like Ekādaśī and Janmāṣṭamī when they are even slightly mixed, being touched by another tithi. I will observe the eight types of Mahā-dvādaśī for Your pleasure. I will engage in Your devotional service with my life and wealth. I will regularly recite Your thousand names. I will regularly worship You with tulasī. I will wear

beads made of tulasī. I will chant and dance throughout the day and night of Ekādaśī. I will smear my body with the pulp of tulasī wood, and thereafter I will sing Your glories. I will visit Mathurā every year, and I will study literatures describing Your glories and hear topics about You. I will regularly touch the water that has washed Your feet to my head. I will duly accept Your remnants. I will touch Your garland remnants to my head, and I will offer You my favorite item and then take Your remnants. O Kṛṣṇa, I swear before You that I will perform only those activities that are pleasing to You.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (7.7.30-32) it is stated: “One must accept the bona fide spiritual master and render service unto him with great devotion and faith. Whatever one has in one’s possession should be offered to the spiritual master, and in the association of saintly persons and devotees one should worship the Lord, hear the glories of the Lord with faith, glorify the transcendental qualities and activities of the Lord, always meditate on the Lord’s lotus feet, and worship the Deity of the Lord strictly according to the injunctions of the śāstra and guru. One should always remember the Supreme Personality of Godhead in His localized representation as the Paramātmā, who is situated in the core of every living entity’s heart. Thus one should offer respect to every living entity according to that living entity’s position or manifestation.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.2.34) Kavi Muni, one of the nine Yogendras, speaks to Nimi, the King of Videha, as follows: “Even ignorant living entities can very easily come to know the Supreme Lord if they adopt those means prescribed by the Supreme Lord Himself. The process recommended by the Lord is to be known as bhāgavata-dharma, or devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.3.23-30) Prabuddha Muni, one of the nine Yogendras, speaks to Nimi, the King of Videha, as follows: “A sincere disciple should learn to dissociate the mind from everything material and positively cultivate association with his spiritual master and other saintly devotees. He should be merciful to those in an inferior position to him,

cultivate friendship with those on an equal level and meekly serve those in a higher spiritual position. Thus he should learn to deal properly with all living beings. To serve the spiritual master the disciple should learn cleanliness, austerity, tolerance, silence, study of Vedic knowledge, simplicity, celibacy, nonviolence, and equanimity in the face of material dualities such as heat and cold, happiness and distress. One should practice meditation by constantly seeing oneself to be an eternal cognizant spirit soul and seeing the Lord to be the absolute controller of everything. To increase one’s meditation, one should live in a secluded place and give up false attachment to one’s home and household paraphernalia. Giving up the decorations of the temporary material body, one should dress himself with scraps of cloth found in rejected places, or with the bark of trees. In this way one should learn to be satisfied in any material situation. One should have firm faith that he will achieve all success in life by following those scriptures that describe the glories of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Bhagavān. At the same time, one should avoid blaspheming other scriptures. One should rigidly control his mind, speech and bodily activities, always speak the truth, and bring the mind and senses under full control. One should hear, glorify and meditate upon the wonderful transcendental activities of the Lord. One should specifically become absorbed in the appearance, activities, qualities and holy names of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus inspired, one should perform all of one’s daily activities as an offering to the Lord.

One should perform sacrifice, charity and penance exclusively for the Lord’s satisfaction. Similarly, one should chant only those mantras which glorify the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And all one’s religious activities should be performed as an offering to the Lord. Whatever one finds pleasing or enjoyable he should immediately offer to the Supreme Lord, and even his wife, children, home and very life air he should offer at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One who desires his ultimate self-interest should cultivate friendship with those persons who have accepted Kṛṣṇa as the Lord of their life. One should further

develop an attitude of service toward all living beings. One should especially try to help those in the human form of life and, among them, especially those who accept the principles of religious behavior. Among religious persons, one should especially render service to the pure devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. One should learn how to associate with the devotees of the Lord by gathering with them to chant the glories of the Lord. This process is most purifying. As devotees thus develop their loving friendship, they feel mutual happiness and satisfaction. And by thus encouraging one another they are able to give up material sense gratification, which is the cause of all suffering.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.11.34-41, 11.19.20-23, and 11.29.9-12) the Supreme Lord speaks the following words: “My dear Uddhava, one can give up false pride and prestige by engaging in the following devotional activities. One may purify oneself by seeing, touching, worshiping, serving, and offering prayers of glorification and obeisances to My form as the Deity and to My pure devotees. One should also glorify My transcendental qualities and activities, hear with love and faith the narrations of My glories and constantly meditate on Me. One should offer to Me whatever one acquires, and accepting oneself as My eternal servant, one should give oneself completely to Me. One should always discuss My birth and activities and enjoy life by participating in festivals, such as Janmāṣṭamī, which glorify My pastimes. In My temple, one should also participate in festivals and ceremonies by singing, dancing, playing musical instruments and discussing Me with other Vaiṣṇavas.

One should observe all the regularly celebrated annual festivals by attending ceremonies, pilgrimages and making offerings. One should also observe religious vows such as Ekādaśī and take initiation by the procedures mentioned in the Vedas, Pañcarātra and other, similar literatures. One should faithfully and lovingly support the installation of My Deity, and individually or in cooperation with others one should work for the construction of Kṛṣṇa conscious temples and cities as well as flower gardens, fruit gardens and special areas to celebrate My pastimes.

One should consider oneself to be My humble servant, without duplicity, and thus should help to clean the temple, which is My home. First one should sweep and dust thoroughly, and then one should further cleanse with water and cow dung. Having dried the temple, one should sprinkle scented water and decorate the temple with maṇḍalas. One should thus act just like My servant. A devotee should never advertise his devotional activities; therefore his service will not be the cause of false pride. One should never use lamps that are offered to Me for other purposes simply because there is need of illumination, and similarly, one should never offer to Me anything that has been offered to or used by others. Whatever is most desired by one within this material world, and whatever is most dear to oneself—one should offer that very thing to Me. Such an offering qualifies one for eternal life. Firm faith in the blissful narration of My pastimes, constant chanting of My glories, unwavering attachment to ceremonial worship of Me, praising Me through beautiful hymns, great respect for My devotional service, offering obeisances with the entire body, performing first-class worship of My devotees, consciousness of Me in all living entities, offering of ordinary, bodily activities in My devotional service, use of words to describe My qualities, offering the mind to Me, rejection of all material desires, giving up wealth for My devotional service, renouncing material sense gratification and happiness, and performing all desirable activities such as charity, sacrifice, chanting, vows and austerities should all be executed for My pleasure. Always remembering Me, one should perform all his duties for Me without becoming impetuous. With mind and intelligence offered to Me, one should fix his mind in attraction to My devotional service. One should take shelter of holy places where My saintly devotees reside, and one should be guided by the exemplary activities of My devotees, who appear among the demigods, demons and human beings. Either alone or in public gatherings, with singing, dancing and other exhibitions of royal opulence, one should arrange to celebrate those holy days, ceremonies and festivals set aside specially for My worship. With a pure heart one should see Me,

the Supreme Soul within all beings and also within oneself, to be both unblemished by anything material and also present everywhere, both externally and internally, just like the omnipresent sky.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.2.12) Śrī Nārada speaks to Vasudeva as follows:

śruto ‘nupaṭhito dhyāta ādṛto vānumoditaḥ

sadyaḥ punāti sad-dharmo deva-viśva-druho ‘pi hi

“Pure devotional service rendered to the Supreme Lord is spiritually so potent that simply by hearing about such transcendental service, by chanting its glories in response, by meditating on it, by respectfully and faithfully accepting it, or by praising the devotional service of others, even persons who hate the demigods and all other living beings can be immediately purified.”

In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.2.35) Kavi Muni, one of the nine Yogendras, speaks to Nimi, the King of Videha, the following words:

yān āsthāya naro rājan na pramādyeta karhicit dhāvan nimīlya vā netre na skhalen na pated iha

“O King, one who accepts this process of devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead will never blunder on his path in this world. Even while running with eyes closed, he will never trip or fall.” In the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.3.33) Śrī Prabuddha Muni, one of the nine Yogendras, speaks to Nimi, the King of Videha, as follows:

iti bhāgavatān dharmān śikṣan bhaktyā tad-utthayā nārāyaṇa-paro māyām añjas tarati dustarām

“Thus learning the science of devotional service and practically engaging in the devotional service of the Lord, the devotee comes to the stage of love of Godhead. And by complete devotion to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Nārāyaṇa, the devotee easily crosses over the illusory energy, māyā, which is extremely difficult to cross.”

Lord Kṛṣṇa speaks the following words to Uddhava in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.29.20):

na hy aṅgopakrame dhvaṃso mad-dharmasyoddhavāṇv api mayā vyavasitaḥ samyaṅ nirguṇatvād anāśiṣaḥ

“My dear Uddhava, because I have personally established it, this process of devotional service unto Me is transcendental and free from any material motivation. Certainly a devotee never suffers even the slightest loss by adopting this process.”

The words uttama karma refer to heaps of previous pious activities or good fortune.