SB 5.19.20 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

योऽसौ भगवति सर्वभूतात्मन्यनात्म्येऽनिरुक्तेऽनिलयने परमात्मनि वासुदेवेऽनन्यनिमित्तभक्तियोगलक्षणो नानागतिनिमित्ताविद्याग्रन्थिरन्धनद्वारेण यदा हि महापुरुषपुरुषप्रसङ्ग: ॥ २० ॥

Verse text

yo ’sau bhagavati sarva-bhūtātmany anātmye ’nirukte ’nilayane paramātmani vāsudeve ’nanya-nimitta-bhakti-yoga-lakṣaṇo nānā-gati-nimittāvidyā-granthi-randhana-dvāreṇa yadā hi mahā-puruṣa-puruṣa-prasaṅgaḥ.

Synonyms

yaḥ — anyone who ; asau — that ; bhagavati — unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead ; sarva — bhūta — ātmani — the Supersoul of all living entities ; anātmye — having no attachment ; anirukte — who is beyond the mind and speech ; anilayane — not dependent on anything else ; parama — ātmani — unto the Supreme Soul ; vāsudeve — Lord Vāsudeva, the son of Vasudeva ; ananya — without any other ; nimitta — cause ; bhakti — yoga — lakṣaṇaḥ — having symptoms of pure devotional service ; nānā — gati — of varied destinations ; nimitta — the cause ; avidyā — granthi — the bondage of ignorance ; randhana — of cutting ; dvāreṇa — by means ; yadā — when ; hi — indeed ; mahā — puruṣa — of the Supreme Personality of Godhead ; puruṣa — with the devotee ; prasaṅgaḥ — an intimate relationship .

Translation

After many, many births, when the results of one’s pious activities mature, one gets an opportunity to associate with pure devotees. Then one is able to cut the knot of bondage to ignorance, which bound him because of varied fruitive activities. As a result of associating with devotees, one gradually renders service to Lord Vāsudeva, who is transcendental, free from attachment to the material world, beyond the mind and words, and independent of everything else. That bhakti-yoga, devotional service to Lord Vāsudeva, is the real path of liberation.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

That liberation, whose essential nature is unmotivated bhakti-yoga to the Lord full of qualities, who attracts the minds of all beings, who is not the object of merging, who is not described by material words, who remains beyond destruction of the universe, who is the most excellent ātmā, who is the son of Vasudeva, takes place by destruction of the knot of ignorance which causes various material goals, when there is association with devotees of the Lord. What is the nature of this liberation and when does it occur? This verse answers. The Lord is full of all wonderful qualities such as auspiciousness and beauty (bhagavān). He thus attracts the mind of all beings (sarva-bhūta-ātmani). Therefore in the Lord there is no oneness with the jīva, only oneness by service (anātmye). His glories cannot be described by material words like “attraction” (anirukte). Even at the destruction of the universe, his form and qualities remain (anilayane). He has no destruction like the elements of matter. Since he is the abode of prema he is the soul of all beings, but he is also the supreme soul (paramātmā). Because of his special qualities he is the most worthy of worship. He is Vāsudeva, the son of Vasudeva. Bhakti-yoga, without material cause (ananya-nimitta) is the svarūpa of apavarga. Apavarga by conventional usage means liberation. That is true. But liberation, destruction of ignorance, is included in bhakti. Therefore bhakti can also be called liberation. This liberation is achieved by destruction of the knot of ignorance, which causes many goals. When does this take place? It takes place when there is association with the devotees of the Lord.

Purport

Brahman realization is the beginning of liberation, and Paramātmā realization is still further advancement toward the realm of liberation, but one achieves real liberation when he understands his position as an eternal servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead ( muktir hitvānyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ ). In the material world, in the bodily concept of life, everyone is working in the wrong direction. When one becomes brahma-bhūta, spiritually realized, one understands that he is not the body and that working in the bodily concept of life is useless and misdirected. Then his devotional service begins. As Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā (18.54) : brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām “One who is thus transcendentally situated realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything; he is equally disposed to every living entity. In that state he attains pure devotional service unto Me.” Devotional service is actual liberation. When one is attracted by the beauty of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and his mind is always engaged at the Lord’s lotus feet, he is no longer interested in subjects that do not help him in self-realization. In other words, he loses all attraction for material activities. In the Taittirīya Upaniṣad (2.7) it is said: eṣa hy evānandayati; yadā hy evaiṣa etasmin na dṛśye ’nātmye anirukte ’nilayane ’bhayaṁ pratiṣṭhāṁ vindate ’tha so ’bhayaṁ gato bhavati. A living entity becomes established in spiritual, blissful life when he fully understands that his happiness depends on spiritual self-realization, which is the basic principle of ānanda (bliss), and when he is eternally situated in the service of the Lord, who has no other lord above Him.