Verse 2.5.157

Bengali text, Devanagari and Unicode transliteration of verse 2.5.157:

কেহ নাচে, কেহ গায, কেহ গডি’ যায সবেই চরণ ধরে, যে যাহার পায ॥ ১৫৭ ॥

केह नाचे, केह गाय, केह गडि’ याय सबेइ चरण धरे, ये याहार पाय ॥ १५७ ॥

keha nāce, keha gāya, keha gaḍi’ yāya sabei caraṇa dhare, ye yāhāra pāya || 157 ||

keha nace, keha gaya, keha gadi’ yaya sabei carana dhare, ye yahara paya (157)

English translation:

(157) Some danced, some sang, and some rolled on the ground. Some devotees tried to catch hold of other’s feet.

Commentary: Gauḍīya-bhāṣya by Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura:

By taking the dust from each other’s feet, the Vaiṣṇavas express their humility. Materialistic persons who are bewildered by false ego demand respect from others in order to establish their prestige. A Vaiṣṇava is amānī, or free from the desire for respect from others, therefore they do not endeavor to increase their prestige like ignorant materialistic people. That is why the Vaiṣṇava respects a humble knowledgable brāhmaṇa who from the viewpoint of a mahā-bhāgavata sees a dog, a dog-eater, a cow, and an ass as equal. Those with dualistic vision can never be called knowers of Brahman. In other words, they are unqualified for understanding advaya-jñāna, the Absolute Truth. Lord Viṣṇu is situated within every living entity and within every material atom, which are therefore temples of Lord Hari. This principle is not understood by so- called brāhmaṇas who are victimized by the three modes of material nature. Only the Vaiṣṇavas can act as their spiritual masters and instruct them in Vedic mantras.

yasya deve parā bhaktir yathā deve tathā gurau tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ prakāśante mahātmanaḥ

“Only unto those great souls who have implicit faith in both the Lord and the spiritual master are all the imports of Vedic knowledge automatically

revealed.” The confidential truths of the Vedas are not manifested to those with biased vision that is the result of the intricacies of external knowledge. Material conceptions cannot lead one to Vaikuṇṭha. The conditioned souls, who are bewildered by māyā, are non-Vaiṣṇavas, and the liberated souls are transcendental, or Vaiṣṇavas. Therefore they constantly realize their respective conditioned and liberated positions.

The Vaiṣṇavas are more humble than the straw in the street, more tolerant than a tree, free from the desire for respect, and always ready to offer respect to others, in this way they always serve Kṛṣṇa by glorifying His holy names.