Devanagari
मय्यर्पितात्मन: सभ्य निरपेक्षस्य सर्वत: ।
मयात्मना सुखं यत्तत् कुत: स्याद् विषयात्मनाम् ॥ १२ ॥
Verse text
mayy arpitātmanaḥ sabhya
nirapekṣasya sarvataḥ
mayātmanā sukhaṁ yat tat
kutaḥ syād viṣayātmanām
Synonyms
mayi
—
in Me
;
arpita
—
fixed
;
ātmanaḥ
—
of one whose consciousness
;
sabhya
—
O learned Uddhava
;
nirapekṣasya
—
of one bereft of material desires
;
sarvataḥ
—
in all respects
;
mayā
—
with Me
;
ātmanā
—
with the Supreme Personality of Godhead or with one’s own spiritual body
;
sukham
—
happiness
;
yat tat
—
such
;
kutaḥ
—
how
;
syāt
—
could it be
;
viṣaya
—
in material sense gratification
;
ātmanām
—
of those who are attached .
Translation
O learned Uddhava, those who fix their consciousness on Me, giving up all material desires, share with Me a happiness that cannot possibly be experienced by those engaged in sense gratification.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
O learned Uddhava! Those who fix their consciousness on me, giving up all material desires, attain happiness because of me. This cannot possibly be experienced by those engaged in sense gratification.
Therefore bhakti is the essence of the Vedas. Being defined as the best process, it brings about attainment of me. The rest of the chapter answers Uddhava’s question. The devotees attain happiness because of me, the shelter of prema, the ocean of form and qualities. Those who are fixed in material objects like sense control, mind control and knowledge, and even the jṣānīs, who are fixed in material sattva, do not attain even Brahman.
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? SB 4.31.12
Purport
The actual purport of Vedic knowledge is explained in this verse. The word
viṣayātmanām
includes those who are cultivating material peace of mind, self-control and speculative philosophy. But even if such persons rise to the platform of
sattva-guṇa,
the mode of goodness, they do not attain perfection, because
sattva-guṇa,
being material, is also part and parcel of
māyā,
or illusion. As stated by Śrī Nārada Muni:
kiṁ vā yogena sāṅkhyena
nyāsa-svādhyāyayor api
kiṁ vā śreyobhir anyaiś ca
na yatrātma-prado hariḥ
“The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not inclined to award Himself even to one who executes the
yoga
system, speculative philosophy, the renounced order of life or Vedic studies. Indeed, no so-called materially auspicious process can induce the Lord to reveal Himself.” (
Bhāg.
4.31.12
) According to Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī, one enjoys the happiness spoken of in this verse while associating, in one’s own spiritual body, with the supreme transcendental form of the Lord. The Lord’s transcendental form is filled with infinite, wonderful qualities, and the happiness of being with the Lord is unlimited. Unfortunately, materialistic people cannot possibly imagine such happiness, since they are not at all inclined to love the Supreme Personality of Godhead.