Devanagari
न ह्यम्मयानि तीर्थानि न देवा मृच्छिलामया: ।
ते पुनन्त्युरुकालेन दर्शनादेव साधव: ॥ ११ ॥
Verse text
na hy am-mayāni tīrthāni
na devā mṛc-chilā-mayāḥ
te punanty uru-kālena
darśanād eva sādhavaḥ
Synonyms
na
—
not
;
hi
—
indeed
;
ap
—
of water
;
mayāni
—
composed
;
tīrthāni
—
holy places
;
na
—
not
;
devāḥ
—
deities
;
mṛt
—
of earth
;
śilā
—
and stone
;
mayāḥ
—
composed
;
te
—
they
;
punanti
—
purify
;
uru
—
kālena — after a long time
;
darśanāt
—
by being seen
;
eva
—
only
;
sādhavaḥ
—
saints .
Translation
Mere bodies of water are not the real sacred places of pilgrimage, nor are mere images of earth and stone the true worshipable deities. These purify one only after a long time, but saintly sages purify one immediately upon being seen.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Mere bodies of water are not the real sacred places of pilgrimage, nor are mere images of earth and stone the true worshipable deities. These purify one only after a long time, but saintly sages purify one immediately upon being seen.
KB 10.84.11
Lord Kṛṣṇa continued: “One cannot purify himself merely by traveling to holy places of pilgrimage and taking a bath there or by seeing the demigods’ forms in the temples. But if one happens to meet a great devotee, a mahātmā who is a representative of the Personality of Godhead, one is immediately purified.
Purport
Because the Personality of Godhead is absolute — the Supreme Spirit — any representation of Him, whether manifested in stone, paint, sound or any other authorized medium, is nondifferent from His original form in the topmost spiritual planet, Goloka Vṛndāvana. But ordinary demigods are not absolute, being infinitesimal spirit souls, and thus representations of the demigods are not identical with them. Worship of demigods or ritual bathing in a sanctified place gives only limited benefit to those who lack transcendental faith in the Supreme Lord.
On the other hand, great Vaiṣṇava saints like Vyāsadeva, Nārada and the four Kumāras are always absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and thus they are veritable moving
tīrthas,
places of pilgrimage. Even a moment’s association with them, especially by hearing their glorification of the Lord, can deliver one from all material entanglement. As King Yudhiṣṭhira said to Vidura,
bhavad-vidhā bhāgavatās
tīṛtha-bhūtāḥ svayaṁ vibho
tīrthī-kurvanti tīrthāni
svāntaḥ-sthena gadābhṛtā
“My Lord, devotees like your good self are verily holy places personified. Because you carry the Personality of Godhead within your heart, you turn all places into places of pilgrimage.” (
Bhāg.
1.13.10
)
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
By serving holy places and deities whose glories are proved in the scriptures, humans destroy their faults and develop spiritual knowledge. That is true, but this occurs by your presence to a much higher degree. He expresses lamentation. Bodies of water like rivers do not purify just by seeing them. Deities made of earth or stone, which are non-different from the devatā since the devatā resides there, do not purify just by seeing them. But the saintly persons purify others just by being seen.
Purport (Sanatana Goswami)
We have now attained a result greater than from bathing in unlimited tīrthas or by performing all deity worship.