Verses 12.6-7

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verses 12.6-7:

ये तु सर्वाणि कर्माणि मयि सन्न्यस्य मत्-पराः ।
अनन्येनैव योगेन मां ध्यायन्त उपासते ॥ ६ ॥
तेषाम् अहं समुद्धर्ता मृत्यु-संसार-सागरात् ।
भवामि न चिरात् पार्थ मय्य् आवेशित-चेतसाम् ॥ ७ ॥

ye tu sarvāṇi karmāṇi mayi sannyasya mat-parāḥ |
ananyenaiva yogena māṃ dhyāyanta upāsate || 6 ||
teṣām ahaṃ samuddhartā mṛtyu-saṃsāra-sāgarāt |
bhavāmi na cirāt pārtha mayy āveśita-cetasām || 7 ||

ye–whoever; tu–but; sarvāṇi–all; karmāṇi–activities; mayi–unto Me; sannyasya–renouncing; mat-parāḥ–dedicated to achieve Me; ananyena–unwavering; eva–certainly; yogena–connection; mām–Me; dhyāyantaḥ–meditate on; upāsate–worship; teṣām–for those; aham–I; samuddhartā–the deliverer; mṛtyu-saṃsāra–death and rebirth; sāgarāt–from the ocean; bhavāmi–become; na cirāt–before long; pārtha–O Pārtha; mayi–in Me; āveśita-cetasām–whose minds are absorbed.

But to those who dedicate all their actions to Me in order to attain Me, O Pārtha, absorbing themselves exclusively in worship of Me with unalloyed devotion, I award swift deliverance from the ocean of birth and death.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

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

Śrī Bhagavān says, “Simply by bhakti alone, without jñāna, My devotees are blissfully freed from material existence.” Here, the word sannyāsa means ‘to renounce’. “Whoever gives up all prescribed duties to attain Me, disregarding fruitive activities, empiric knowledge, austerities and other processes, and who engages in worship of Me with exclusive devotion, is easily and happily freed from the material world.” As it is said in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.20.32–33), “Whatever result one achieves by the performance of fruitive activities, austerities, empiric knowledge and renunciation, and also whatever My devotee may desire, be it the heavenly planets, liberation or even residence in My abode, can all be easily attained by performance of My bhakti-yoga.”

It is also said in the Nārāyaṇīya-mokṣa-dharma, “The fruits one receives by performing sādhana to attain the four human goals of life (religiousity, material prosperity, selfish desires and liberation) are attained by a person who has taken refuge in Śrī Nārāyaṇa without performing any extraneous endeavour.”

“If one asks, ‘By which sādhana do they cross over this material world?’ then listen. This question is improper in itself, because I personally deliver them, even if they do not perform any sādhana.” From this statement it is understood that Bhagavān exhibits His affection (vātsalya-bhāva) only to His devotees and not to the jñānīs.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Prakāśikā-vṛtti

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

In the previous two verses, Śrī Bhagavān is explaining the glories of exclusive devotion to Him (ananyā-bhakti) and the glories of His exclusive devotee (ananya-bhakta). By performing this one-pointed devotion and by receiving the mercy of Bhagavān, an unalloyed devotee can very easily cross over the ocean of material existence and attain supremely blissful loving service to Śrī Bhagavān.

Kṛṣṇa Himself is the shelter, or foundation, of the impersonal feature of brahma. This Śrī Kṛṣṇa, Svayam Bhagavān–that form of Godhead who has no source other than Himself–is also the source of Paramātmā and all divine incarnations (avatāras). A devotee who knows this reality takes shelter of exclusive, one-pointed devotion in the association of devotees. He does not have to undergo the difficulties experienced by those who worship the featureless and formless brahma, as described above, in either the stages of practice or perfection. In a short time, he easily attains service to Śrī Bhagavān that is filled with prema.

In introducing the devotees who take shelter of such exclusive, pure devotion, Śrī Bhagavān says, “Such one-pointed devotees consider their prescribed duties of varṇa and āśrama to be obstacles to bhakti and completely give them up. They consider loving service to Me to be the one and only goal worth attaining, and with exclusive devotion they engage in worshipping Me by hearing, chanting and remembering My names, forms, qualities and pastimes. Even during the sādhana stage, while performing śravaṇa (hearing), kīrtana (chanting) and so forth, they become absorbed in Me. I very quickly deliver such devotees, whose hearts are attached to Me and who are fully absorbed in Me, from this ocean of material existence, which is very difficult to cross. They need not be in anxiety about traversing it, like the jñānīs and yogīs are. Furthermore, they are unable to tolerate any delay in achieving Me. Placing them on the back of My carrier Garuḍa, I quickly carry them to My abode. They do not attain mukti gradually, through the paths of arci (light) and so forth, as followed by jñānīs and yogīs. By My own will, I free them from this illusory world, bring them to My abode, and engage them in prema-filled devotional service to Me.”

Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura quotes Kṛṣṇa as saying, “I very quickly deliver from the ocean of material existence, characterized by birth and death, they who take shelter of My personal feature. Such persons make all bodily and social activities completely subordinate to My bhakti, and they always meditate upon Me. By the process of exclusive devotion to Me, they worship My eternal, beautiful human-like form of Kṛṣṇa. In this way, their hearts become completely absorbed in Me. In other words, in their conditioned state, I give them liberation from the bondage of this illusory material existence. After their bondage to māyā has been cut, I protect them from the death of thinking that they are non-different from Me. This self-destructive conception of oneness is the cause of inauspiciousness for those who are attached to the unmanifest. My vow is ye yathā māṃ prapadyante tāṃs tathaiva bhajāmy aham (Gītā 4.11). From this it is understood that those who meditate on the unmanifest (avyakta) merge with My avyakta-svarūpa. Where is My loss in this? Having attained such a destination, the importance, or utility, of the jīva’s intrinsic form is withdrawn, or destroyed.”