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Brihad Bhagavatamrita (commentary)

by Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktivedānta Nārāyana Gosvāmī Mahārāja | 2005 | 440,179 words | ISBN-13: 9781935428329

The Brihad-bhagavatamrita Verse 1.4.9, English translation, including commentary (Dig-darshini-tika): an important Vaishnava text dealing with the importance of devotional service. The Brihad-bhagavatamrita, although an indepent Sanskrit work, covers the essential teachings of the Shrimad Bhagavatam (Bhagavata-purana). This is verse 1.4.9 contained in Chapter 4—Bhakta (the devotee)—of Part one (prathama-khanda).

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 1.4.9:

यश� चित्�-चित्राग्रह-चातुरी-चयैर� उत्सृज्यमानं हरिण� पर� पदम् �
ब्रह्माद�-संप्रार्थ्यम� उपेक्ष्य केवल� वव्रेऽस्� भक्तिं नि�-जन्म-जन्मसु � � �

yaś citra-citrāgraha-cāturī-cayair utsṛjyamāna� hariṇ� para� padam |
brahmādi-saṃprārthyam upekṣya kevala� vavre'sya bhakti� nija-janma-janmasu || 9 ||

Although by various clever means 󲹲 Śrī Nṛsiṃhadeva indicated the offering of the topmost post that is prayed for by demigods such as , you did not accept it. You prayed only for the boon of causeless devotion to Śrī Hari’s lotus feet lifetime after lifetime.

Commentary: Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā with Bhāvānuvāda

(By Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī himself including a deep purport of that commentary)

Again, by Śrī Hari’s shrewd ingenuity, He insisted that you accept many benedictions. Among them, He wanted to offer you liberation or the topmost position on the planet of ղṇṭ, but you did not accept them.

Śī-岵ٲ (7.9.52) says:

प्रह्राद भद्र भद्र� ते प्रीतो’ह� ते’सुरोत्त�
वर� वृणीष्वाभिमत� का�-पूरो’स्म्य� अह� नृणाम्

prahrāda bhadra bhadra� te prīto’ha� te’surottama
vara� vṛṇīṣvābhimata� kāma-pūro’smy aha� nṛṇām

O gentle ʰ岹, O best of the demoniac families, all fortune unto you! I am extremely satisfied with you. I alone fulfill the desires of all living entities. Therefore you may ask any boon that you desire.

In the վṣṇ ʳܰṇa (1.20.17) this has been similarly stated:

कुर्वतस् ते प्रसन्नो� हं भक्तिम� अव्यभिचारिणीम्
यथाभिलषितो मत्त� प्रह्लाद व्रियतां वर�

kurvatas te prasanno� ha� bhaktim avyabhicāriṇīm
yathābhilaṣito matta� prahlāda vriyatā� vara�

O ʰ岹, You have excecuted everything with one-pointed devotion, therefore I am extremely pleased with you. And you may thus ask for any desired boon that you would like.

In this way 󲹲, after granting the boon of prema-bhakti, continued:

मय� भक्तिस� तवास्तय् एव भुयो’प्य� एव� भविष्यति
वरस् � मत्त� प्रह्लाद! क्रियतां यस्तविषत�

mayi bhaktis tavāstay eva bhuyo’py eva� bhaviṣyati
varas ca matta� prahlāda! kriyatā� yastaviṣata�

You will indeed have pure devotion unto Me, and in the future also you will have śܻ bhakti. Now, accept from Me your desired boon, ʰ岹!

Furthermore, it has been said in Śrī Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya (14.28, 29, 30):

�-भय� सम्भ्रमं वै� मद�-गौरव-कृतं त्यज
नै� प्रियो मे भक्तेष� स्वाधी�-प्रणयी भव
अप� मे पूर्�-कामस्य नव� नवम् इद� प्रियं
निःशङ्कः प्रणयाद् भक्त� यन� मा� पश्यति भासत�
सद� मुक्तो’प� बद्धो’स्म� भक्तेन स्ने�-रज्जुभिः
अजितो’प� जितो’ह� तैर् अवश्यो’प� वशी-कृतः

sa-bhaya� sambhrama� vaisa mad-gaurava-kṛta� tyaja
naiṣa priyo me bhakteṣu svādhīna-praṇayī bhava
api me pūrṇa-kāmasya nava� navam ida� priya�
niḥśaṅka� praṇayād bhakto yan mā� paśyati bhāsate
sadā mukto’pi baddho’smi bhaktena sneha-rajjubhi�
ajito’pi jito’ha� tair avaśyo’pi vaśī-kṛta�

O son, please abandon this reverential mood. Due to your showing respect to Me, this has come about, but such awe and reverential behavior by devotees is not so dear to me. My devotees converse with me with a more dynamic affection. Despite being self-satisfied, the devotion of My devotees is everfresh. Being always free, I am bound by the ropes of affection by My devotees, and in spite of being unconquerable, I am conquered by My devotees. Though I can not be subdued by others, I am subdued by My devotees.

And furthermore in Śrī Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya (14.31, 32):

त्यक्त-बन्ध�-धन-स्नेहो मय� यः कुरुते रतिम�
एकस् तस्यास्म� � � मे � ह्य् अन्यो’स्त्य� आवयो� सुहृत्
नित्यं � पूर्�-कामस्य जन्मान� विविधानि मे
भक्त-सर्वेष्ट-दाना� तस्मात� कि� ते प्रियं वद�

tyakta-bandhu-dhana-sneho mayi ya� kurute ratim
ekas tasyāsmi sa ca me na hy anyo’sty āvayo� suhṛt
nitya� ca pūrṇa-kāmasya janmāni vividhāni me
bhakta-sarveṣṭa-dānāya tasmāt ki� te priya� vad

These devotees give up affection for even their own relatives, brothers, kinsmen and love Me alone. I alone am theirs and they alone are Mine. There is no one else. Despite My variegated pastimes such as My birth and deeds being lasting and self-satisfying for their pleasure, I grant them their desired results and accept this as natural. Therefore, O son, what is dear to yourself? Please ask Me for that boon.

After hearing these words, Śrī ʰ岹 replied, and again Śrī Nṛsiṃhadeva spoke (Śrī Hari-bhakti-sudhodaya 14.32-33):

सत्य� मद�-दर्शनाद् अन्यद् वत्स नैवास्ति ते प्रियम�
अतएव हि सम्प्रीतिस् त्वय� मे’ती� वर्धते
अप� ते कृ�-कृत्यस्य मत�-प्रियं कृत्यम� अस्त� हि
किञ्चिच् � दतुम� इष्ट� मे मत�-प्रियार्थं वृणुस्� तत�

satya� mad-darśanād anyad vatsa naivāsti te priyam
ataeva hi samprītis tvayi me’tīva vardhate
api te kṛta-kṛtyasya mat-priya� kṛtyam asti hi
kiñcic ca datum iṣṭa� me mat-priyārtha� vṛṇusva tat

O son, you have told the truth. Other than My 岹śԲ there is nothing more dear to you. Therefore I am delighted, and your love for Me will grow more and more. O son, even though at this time you are fully satisfied. I also have one desire, that is, I am eager to offer you a benediction. For My pleasure, you should accept this boon.

In this way you, ʰ岹, rejected the topmost position given by Śrī Nṛsiṃadeva and only prayed for the benediction of devotion unto Śrī Hari lifetime after lifetime. Instead, you shunned liberation in the form of cessation of birth and death, thinking it harmful to bhakti. In other words, despite accepting countless births in comparison to liberation, you have only accepted bhakti.

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