Devanagari
तद्ब्रूह्यसङ्गो जडवन्निगूढ-
विज्ञानवीर्यो विचरस्यपार: ।
वचांसि योगग्रथितानि साधो
न न: क्षमन्ते मनसापि भेत्तुम् ॥ १८ ॥
Verse text
tad brūhy asaṅgo jaḍavan nigūḍha-
vijṣāna-vīryo vicarasy apāraḥ
vacāṁsi yoga-grathitāni sādho
na naḥ kṣamante manasāpi bhettum
Synonyms
tat
—
therefore
;
brūhi
—
please speak
;
asaṅgaḥ
—
who have no association with the material world
;
jaḍa
—
vat — appearing like a deaf and dumb man
;
nigūḍha
—
completely hidden
;
vijṣāna
—
vīryaḥ — who have full knowledge of the spiritual science and are thus very powerful
;
vicarasi
—
you are moving
;
apāraḥ
—
who possess unlimited spiritual glories
;
vacāṁsi
—
the words uttered by you
;
yoga
—
grathitāni — bearing the complete meaning of mystic yoga
;
sādho
—
O great saintly person
;
na
—
not
;
naḥ
—
of us
;
kṣamante
—
are able
;
manasā api
—
even by the mind
;
bhettum
—
to understand by analytical study .
Translation
My dear sir, it appears that the influence of your great spiritual knowledge is hidden. Factually you are bereft of all material association and fully absorbed in the thought of the Supreme. Consequently you are unlimitedly advanced in spiritual knowledge. Please tell me why you are wandering around like a dullard. O great saintly person, you have spoken words approved by the yogic process, but it is not possible for us to understand what you have said. Therefore kindly explain it.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Please speak. Not associating with the material world, appearing dull-witted, but having the power of realized knowledge, you wander about with no superior. O saint! I am not able to understand your words about yoga.
Therefore please speak, and say who you are. “I am your palanquin bearer.” Enough with trying to fool me! I know that you are a great yogī, because your words about yoga cannot be understood by my mind. Or, words concerning the yoga process, the teachings of the great yogīs, have not been able cut my doubts, since I am very tough, though I desired to understand those words with my attentive mind, without argument. But my doubts have been cut by your answers today.
Purport
Saintly people like Jaḍa Bharata do not speak ordinary words. Whatever they say is approved by great
yogīs
and those advanced in spiritual life. That is the difference between ordinary people and saintly people. The listener must also be advanced to understand the words of such exalted, spiritually advanced people as Jaḍa Bharata.
Bhagavad-gītā
was spoken to Arjuna, not to others. Lord Kṛṣṇa especially selected Arjuna for instruction in spiritual knowledge because Arjuna happened to be a great devotee and confidential friend. Similarly, great personalities also speak to the advanced, not to
śūdras, vaiśyas,
women or unintelligent men. Sometimes it is very risky to give great philosophical instructions to ordinary people, but Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, for the benefit of the fallen souls of Kali-yuga, has given us a very nice instrument, the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa
mantra.
The general mass of people, although
śūdras
and less, can be purified by chanting this Hare Kṛṣṇa
mantra.
Then they can understand the exalted philosophical statements of
Bhagavad-gītā
and
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement has therefore adopted the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa
mahā-mantra
for the general masses. When people gradually become purified, they are instructed in the lessons of
Bhagavad-gītā
and
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
Materialistic people like
strī, śūdra
and
dvija-bandhu
cannot understand words of spiritual advancement, yet one can take to the shelter of a Vaiṣṇava, for he knows the art of enlightening even
śūdras
in the highly elevated subject matter spoken in
Bhagavad-gītā
and
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.