Verse 9.20

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 9.20:

त्रै-विद्या मां सोम-पाः पूत-पापा यज्ञैर् इष्ट्वा स्वर्-गतिं प्रार्थयन्ते ।
ते पुण्यम् आसाद्य सुरेन्द्र-लोकम् अश्नन्ति दिव्यान् दिवि देव-भोगान् ॥ २० ॥

trai-vidyā māṃ soma-pāḥ pūta-pāpā yajñair iṣṭvā svar-gatiṃ prārthayante |
te puṇyam āsādya surendra-lokam aśnanti divyān divi deva-bhogān || 20 ||

trai-vidyāḥ–those who are absorbed in fruitive work through the karma-kāṇḍa portions of the three Vedas; mām–Me (in the form of Indra); soma-pāḥ–drink the remnants of sacrifice as soma-rasa; pūta-pāpāḥ–being freed from sinful reaction; yajñaiḥ–through sacrifices; iṣṭvā–having worshipped; svaḥ-gatim–for the destination of the heavenly planets; prārthayante–they pray; te–they; puṇyam–in the form of pious merit; āsādya–upon achieving; sura-indra-lokam–and the planet of Indra; aśnanti–enjoy; divyān–divine; divi–in heaven; deva-bhogān–godly delights.

Those who are devoted to fruitive activity as described in the three Vedas worship Me as Indra or other demigods by performing yajña. Having become free from sins by drinking the soma juice, the remnants of the yajña, they pray for entrance into the heavenly planets. When they attain the planet of Indra by virtue of their pious deeds, they enjoy the celestial pleasures of the demigods.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

(By Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura; the innermost intention of the commentary named ‘the shower of essential meanings’)

“In this way, these three types of devotees who perform worship attain liberation, or mukti, knowing only Me to be Parameśvara, but those who are fruitive workers (karmīs) do not attain mukti.” To explain this, Śrī Bhagavān speaks two consecutive verses beginning with trai-vidyā. “Those who know the science of the three Vedas–Ṛg, Yajur and Sāma–and who are devoted to the actions (karma) prescribed in them worship Me indirectly by the performance of sacrifice. Even though they do not know that demigods such as Indra are My form, they worship Me in the form of Indra and so forth and drink soma juice, the remnants of sacrifice. Those who take this soma juice attain piety and enjoy celestial pleasures.”

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Prakāśikā-vṛtti

(By Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; the explanation that illuminates the commentary named Sārārtha-varṣiṇī)

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura quotes Kṛṣṇa as saying, “Only when there is some scent of bhakti in these three types of worship does the living entity begin worshipping Me in the form of Parameśvara. He will gradually give up the impurities of mixed worship and attain liberation (mokṣa) in the form of My śuddha-bhakti. If the worshipper abandons the false conception of himself as being Bhagavān, as in the ahaṅgraḥa-upāsanā process, he can gradually attain pure bhakti by properly deliberating on bhakti. The idea in the pratīka-upāsanā process that other demigods are Bhagavān can also gradually culminate in realization of My svarūpa, composed of eternality, cognizance and concentrated bliss, by deliberating on tattva in the association of saintly persons. The unsteady knowledge of Paramātmā in the process of viśvarūpa-upāsanā can also be removed by gradually realizing My svarūpa. The worshipper can then concentrate on My human-like sac-cid-ānanda feature.

“But if a person who performs one of these three types of worship persists in his attraction for karma and jñāna, which is a symptom of his aversion to Me, he cannot attain all-auspicious bhakti. Because of their aversion to Me, those who identify themselves with their object of worship (ahaṅgraḥa-upāsaka) gradually fall into the network of illusory māyāvāda reasoning. The pratīka-upāsakas become bound by the laws of karma prescribed in the Ṛg, Sāma and Yajur Vedas. Having studied these three types of Vedic knowledge, which give instruction on karma, they become freed from sin by drinking soma, the heavenly nectar. They worship Me by sacrifice and pray to attain the heavenly planets of the demigods as a result of their pious deeds. Thus they attain the divine pleasures of the demigods.”