BRS 1.2.148

Even though there are material desires in different religious processes, they are accepted as religious processes because of the bhakti in them. The sages have discerned that chanting the qualities of the Lord is the infallible (avicyutaḥ) cause of success (arthah) for the austerity and other processes executed by human beings. Medinī says: artho viṣayānarthayor dhana-kāraṇa-vastuni | abhidheye ca śabdānāṁ nivṛttau ca prayojane || Artha means object of the senses, need, wealth, cause, substance, meaning of words, prevention and goal. Since the results of austerity and other acts are achieved by bhakti according to the words of the Lord, what use are those processes? yat karmabhir yat tapasā jṣāna-vairāgyataś ca yat yogena dāna-dharmeṇa śreyobhir itarair api sarvaṁ mad-bhakti-yogena mad-bhakto labhate ’ṣjasā svargāpavargaṁ mad-dhāma kathaṣcid yadi vāṣchati Everything that can be achieved by fruitive activities, penance, knowledge, detachment, mystic yoga, charity, religious duties and all other means of perfecting life is easily achieved by My devotee through loving service unto Me. If somehow or other My devotee desires promotion to heaven, liberation, or residence in My abode, he easily achieves such benedictions. SB 11.20.32-33 According to the Padma Purāṇa, all processes, what to speak of those just mentioned, must contain bhakti: smartavyaḥ satataṁ viṣṇur vismartavyo na jātucit | sarve vidhi-niṣedhāḥ syur etayor eva kiṅkarāḥ || One should always remember Viṣṇu and never forget Him. All injunctions and prohibitions are dependent on these two principles. There is another meaning of the verse. “The final purport of the scriptures which enjoin austerities and other processes is the performance of bhakti to the Lord. Chanting about the Lord is the unmistakable conclusion of the scriptures.” According to the Lord Himself, the ultimate goal of all the statements of the scriptures is the Lord: kālena naṣṭā pralaye vāṇīyaṁ veda-saṁjṣitā mayādau brahmaṇe proktā dharmo yasyāṁ mad-ātmakaḥ By the influence of time, the transcendental sound of Vedic knowledge was lost at the time of annihilation. Therefore, when the subsequent creation took place, I spoke the Vedic knowledge to Brahmā because I Myself am the religious principles enunciated in the Vedas. SB 11.14.3 Madhusūdana Sarasvatī also gives the same meaning in his commentary on this Bhāgavatam verse. However, if one takes a meaning other than “cause” for the word artha, such as “goal,” then if bhakti is stated to be simply the goal of karma, there would be clear limitation on the powers of bhakti. With that meaning karma would not be dependent on bhakti since bhakti as the goal of karma does not infer dependence of karma on bhakti. Thus, only two meanings of the word artha are acceptable: cause (of the results given by other processes) and meaning (purport of the scriptures).