SB 4.23.12 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

छिन्नान्यधीरधिगतात्मगतिर्निरीह- स्तत्तत्यजेऽच्छिनदिदं वयुनेन येन । तावन्न योगगतिभिर्यतिरप्रमत्तो यावद्गदाग्रजकथासु रतिं न कुर्यात् ॥ १२ ॥

Verse text

chinnānya-dhīr adhigatātma-gatir nirīhas tat tatyaje ’cchinad idaṁ vayunena yena tāvan na yoga-gatibhir yatir apramatto yāvad gadāgraja-kathāsu ratiṁ na kuryāt

Synonyms

chinna — being separated ; anya — dhīḥ — all other concepts of life (the bodily concept of life) ; adhigata — being firmly convinced ; ātma — gatiḥ — the ultimate goal of spiritual life ; nirīhaḥ — desireless ; tat — that ; tatyaje — gave up ; acchinat — he had cut ; idam — this ; vayunena — with the knowledge ; yena — by which ; tāvat — so long ; na — never ; yoga — gatibhiḥ — the practice of the mystic yoga system ; yatiḥ — the practicer ; apramattaḥ — without any illusion ; yāvat — so long ; gadāgraja — of Kṛṣṇa ; kathāsu — words ; ratim — attraction ; na — never ; kuryāt — do it .

Translation

When he became completely free from the conception of bodily life, Mahārāja Pṛthu realized Lord Kṛṣṇa sitting in everyone’s heart as the Paramātmā. Being thus able to get all instructions from Him, he gave up all other practices of yoga and jṣāna. He was not even interested in the perfection of the yoga and jṣāna systems, for he thoroughly realized that devotional service to Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate goal of life and that unless the yogīs and jṣānīs become attracted to kṛṣṇa-kathā [narrations about Kṛṣṇa], their illusions concerning existence can never be dispelled.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

Having destroyed the concept of being his body, having realizing the form of Paramātmā, and being without desire for siddhis, Pṛthu destroyed his subtle body and then rejected jṣāna. As long as one does not have attraction for the topics of the Lord, the jṣānī will be attached to yoga siddhis and liberation. He destroyed the concept of being the body (chinna anya-dhiḥ). He realized the form of Paramātmā (adhigata atma-gatiḥ). He had no desire for siddhis (nirīhaḥ). “How could he give up all desires, since he accepted the process of vidyā or jṣāna?” By jṣāna (vayunena) he destroyed the subtle body (idam), and then rejected jṣāna. He accepted jṣāna to destroy the subtle body, and then rejected jṣāna. Thus actually he was without desire. The meaning is this. There are two types of results from śuddha-bhakti: the primary, desired result and the secondary, unsought results. The desired result is prema-bhakti. The unsought result is jṣāna, siddhis and other things. If a devotee has a desire for these secondary results that arrive on their own, his bhakti becomes restricted. antarāyān vadanty etā yuṣjato yogam uttamam mayā sampadyamānasya kāla-kṣapaṇa-hetavaḥ Learned experts state that the mystic perfections of yoga are actually impediments. For one who is practicing the supreme yoga, who is absorbed in my by having attained me, the siddhis are a waste of time. SB 11.15.33 However, the ability to reject these secondary results depends on the strength of one’s practice of śuddha-bhakti. Śrīdhara Svāmī says “Pṛthu did not have attraction to these secondary results because he was attracted to talks concerning Kṛṣṇa.”

Purport

As long as one is too much absorbed in the bodily conception of life, he becomes interested in many different processes of self-realization, such as the mystic yoga system or the system utilizing the speculative empiric methods. However, when one understands that the ultimate goal of life is to approach Kṛṣṇa, he realizes Kṛṣṇa within everyone’s heart and therefore helps everyone who is interested in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Actually the perfection of life depends on one’s inclination to hear about Kṛṣṇa. It is therefore mentioned in this verse, yāvad gadāgraja-kathāsu ratiṁ na kuryāt: unless one becomes interested in Kṛṣṇa, in His pastimes and activities, there is no question of liberation by means of yoga practice or speculative knowledge. Having attained to the stage of devotion, Mahārāja Pṛthu became uninterested in the practices of jṣāna and yoga and abandoned them. This is the stage of pure devotional life as described by Rūpa Gosvāmī: anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ jṣāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu- śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā Real jṣāna means understanding that the living entity is the eternal servant of the Lord. This knowledge is attained after many, many births, as confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā (7.19) : bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jṣānavān māṁ prapadyate. In the paramahaṁsa stage of life, one fully realizes Kṛṣṇa as everything: vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ. When one understands fully that Kṛṣṇa is everything and that Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the highest perfection of life, he becomes a paramahaṁsa, or mahātmā. Such a mahātmā or paramahaṁsa is very rare to find. A paramahaṁsa, or pure devotee, is never attracted by haṭha-yoga or speculative knowledge. He is simply interested in the unalloyed devotional service of the Lord. Sometimes one who was formerly addicted to these processes tries to perform devotional service and the jṣāna and yoga practices at the same time, but as soon as one comes to the unalloyed stage of devotional service, he is able to give up all other methods of self-realization. In other words, when one firmly realizes Kṛṣṇa as the supreme goal, he is no longer attracted by mystic yoga practice or the speculative empirical methods of knowledge.