Madhya 9.261

TEXT 261

TEXT

শ্রবণ-কীর্তন হইতে কৃষ্ণে হয় 'প্রেমা' ।
সেই পঞ্চম পুরুষার্থ - পুরুষার্থের সীমা ॥ ২৬১ ॥

sravana-kirtana ha-ite krsne haya 'prema'

sei pancama purusartha-purusarthera sima

SYNONYMS

sravana-kirtana-hearing and chanting; ha-ite-from; krsne-unto Lord Krsna; haya-there is; prema-transcendental love; sei-that; pancama purusa-artha-the fifth platform of perfection of life; purusa-arthera sima-the limit of goals of life.

TRANSLATION

"When one comes to the platform of loving service to Lord Krsna by executing these nine processes, he has attained the fifth platform of success and the limit of life's goals.

PURPORT

Everyone is after success in religion, economic development, sense gratification and ultimately merging into the existence of Brahman. These are the general practices of the common man, but according to the strict principles of the Vedas, the highest attainment is to rise to the platform of sravanam kirtanam-chanting and hearing about the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is confirmed in Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.1.2):

dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra paramo nirmatsaranam satam
vedyam vastavam atra vastu sivadam tapa-trayonmūlanam
srimad-bhagavate mahamuni-krte kim va parair isvaraḥ
sadyo hrdy avarudhyate 'tra krtibhiḥ susrūsubhis tat-ksanat

"Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhagavata Purana propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhagavatam, compiled by the great sage Sri Vyasadeva, is sufficient in itself for God realization. As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhagavatam, he becomes attached to the Supreme Lord."

According to Sridhara Svami, the material conception of success (moksa or liberation) is desired by those in material existence. Not being situated in material existence, the devotees have no desire for liberation.

A devotee is always liberated in all stages of life because he is always engaged in the nine items of devotional service (sravanam kirtanam, etc.). Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu's philosophy holds that devotional service to Krsna always exists in everyone's heart. It simply has to be awakened by the process of sravanam kirtanam visnoḥ. Sravanadi suddha-citte karaye udaya (Cc. Madhya 22.10 7). When a person is actually engaged in devotional service, his eternal relationship with the Lord, the servant-master relationship, is awakened.

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