SB 1.4.32

SB 1.4.32

Devanagari

तस्यैवं खिलमात्मानं मन्यमानस्य खिद्यत: । कृष्णस्य नारदोऽभ्यागादाश्रमं प्रागुदाहृतम् ॥ ३२ ॥

Verse text

tasyaivaṁ khilam ātmānaṁ manyamānasya khidyataḥ kṛṣṇasya nārado ’bhyāgād āśramaṁ prāg udāhṛtam

Synonyms

tasya his ; evam thus ; khilam inferior ; ātmānam soul ; manyamānasya thinking within the mind ; khidyataḥ regretting ; kṛṣṇasya of Kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyana Vyāsa ; nāradaḥ abhyāgāt Nārada came there ; āśramam the cottage ; prāk before ; udāhṛtam said .

Translation

As mentioned before, Nārada reached the cottage of Kṛṣṇa-dvaipāyana Vyāsa on the banks of the Sarasvatī just as Vyāsadeva was regretting his defects.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

As Vyāsa was lamenting, considering himself most vile, Nārada approached the hermitage, which was previously described.

Purport

The vacuum felt by Vyāsadeva was not due to his lack of knowledge. Bhāgavata-dharma is purely devotional service of the Lord to which the monist has no access. The monist is not counted amongst the paramahaṁsas (the most perfect of the renounced order of life). Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is full of narrations of the transcendental activities of the Personality of Godhead. Although Vyāsadeva was an empowered divinity, he still felt dissatisfaction because in none of his works were the transcendental activities of the Lord properly explained. The inspiration was infused by Śrī Kṛṣṇa directly in the heart of Vyāsadeva, and thus he felt the vacuum as explained above. It is definitely expressed herewith that without the transcendental loving service of the Lord, everything is void; but in the transcendental service of the Lord, everything is tangible without any separate attempt at fruitive work or empiric philosophical speculation.

Commentary (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Khilam means “vile.” Vyāsa’s hermitage was on the bank of the Sarasvatī as previously described (prāg udāhṛtam). Lacking complete knowledge and being dissatisfied are impossible for Vyāsa, since he is an avatāra of the Lord. Therefore it should be understood that these conditions were strongly produced by Kṛṣṇa himself in order to manifest the Bhāgavatam, the crest jewel of all the scriptures, which is non-different from him. Similarly, even Balarāma’s knowledge became covered by Kṛṣṇa for the beauty of the pastimes in bewildering Brahmā. The Bhāgavatam became manifest by the instructions of Nārada; however it should be understood that the even the chief goal of human endeavor, liberation, is achieved only by bhakti, and not by any other method. yat karmabhir yat tapasā jṣāna-vairāgyataś ca yat yogena dāna-dharmeṇa śreyobhir itarair apisarvaṁ mad-bhakti-yogena mad-bhakto labhate ’ṣjasā svargāpavargaṁ mad-dhāma kathaṣcid yadi vāṣchati Everything that can be achieved by karma, penance, jṣāna, vairāgya, mystic yoga, charity, dharma and all other auspicious means of perfecting life is easily achieved by my devotee through bhakti. If somehow or other my devotee desires Svarga, liberation, or residence in my abode, he easily achieves such benedictions. SB 11.20.32-33 kiṁ vā yogena sāṅkhyena nyāsa-svādhyāyayor api kiṁ vā śreyobhir anyaiś ca na yatrātma-prado hariḥ What is the use of yoga, sāṅkhya, sannyāsa, study of the Vedas, other auspicious acts, in which the Lord does not give realization of himself?