BHAGAVAD-GITA 9:34

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 9:34

 

man-mana bhava mad-bhakto

mad-yaji mam namaskuru

mam evaisyasi yuktvaivam

atmamam mat-parayanah

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

mat-manah--always thinking of Me; bhava--become; mat--My;

bhaktah--devotee; mat--My; yaji--worshiper; mam--unto Me;

namaskuru--offer obeisances; mam--unto Me; eva--completely;

esyasi--you will come; yuktva--being absorbed; evam--thus;

atmanam--your soul; mat-parayanah--devoted to Me.

 

TRANSLATION

 

Engage your mind always in thinking of Me, become My devotee, offer

obeisances to Me and worship Me. Being completely absorbed in Me,

surely you will come to Me.

 

PURPORT

 

In this verse it is clearly indicated that Krsna consciousness is the

only means of being delivered from the clutches of this contaminated

material world. Sometimes unscrupulous commentators distort the

meaning of what is clearly stated here: that all devotional service

should be offered to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna.

Unfortunately, unscrupulous commentators divert the mind of the reader

to that which is not at all feasible. Such commentators do not know

that there is no difference between Krsna's mind and Krsna. Krsna is

not an ordinary human being; He is Absolute Truth. His body, His mind

and He Himself are one and absolute. It is stated in the Kurma Purana.

as it is quoted by Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami in his Anubhasya

comments on Caitanya-caritamrta (Fifth Chapter, Adi-lila, verses

41-48), deha-dehi-vibhedo 'yam nesvare vidyate kvacit. This means that

there is no difference in Krsna, the Supreme Lord, between Himself and

His body. But because the commentators do not know this science of

Krsna, they hide Krsna and divide His personality from His mind or

from His body. Although this is sheer ignorance of the science of

Krsna, some men make profit out of misleading people.

 

There are some who are demonic; they also think of Krsna, but

enviously, just like King Kamsa, Krsna's uncle. He was also thinking

of Krsna always, but he thought of Krsna as his enemy. He was always

in anxiety, wondering when Krsna would come to kill him. That kind of

thinking will not help us. One should be thinking of Krsna in

devotional love. That is bhakti. One should cultivate the knowledge of

Krsna continuously. What is that favorable cultivation? It is to learn

from a bona fide teacher. Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead,

and we have several times explained that His body is not material, but

is eternal, blissful knowledge. This kind of talk about Krsna will

help one become a devotee. Understanding Krsna otherwise, from the

wrong source, will prove fruitless.

 

One should therefore engage his mind in the eternal form, the primal

form of Krsna; with conviction in his heart that Krsna is the Supreme,

he should engage himself in worship. There are hundreds of thousands

of temples in India for the worship of Krsna, and devotional service

is practiced there. When such practice is made, one has to offer

obeisances to Krsna. One should lower his head before the Deity and

engage his mind, his body, his activities--everything. That will make

one fully absorbed in Krsna without deviation. This will help one

transfer to the Krsnaloka. One should not be deviated by unscrupulous

commentators. One must engage in the nine different processes of

devotional service, beginning with hearing and chanting about Krsna.

Pure devotional service is the highest achievement of human society.

 

The Seventh and Eighth chapters of Bhagavad-gita have explained pure

devotional service to the Lord that is free from speculative

knowledge, mystic yoga and fruitive activities. Those who are not

purely sanctified may be attracted by different features of the Lord

like the impersonal brahmajyoti and localized Paramatma, but a pure

devotee directly takes to the service of the Supreme Lord.

 

There is a beautiful poem about Krsna in which it is clearly stated

that any person who is engaged in the worship of demigods is most

unintelligent and cannot achieve at any time the supreme award of

Krsna. The devotee, in the beginning, may sometimes fall from the

standard, but still he should be considered superior to all other

philosophers and yogis. One who always engages in Krsna consciousness

should be understood to be a perfectly saintly person. His accidental

nondevotional activities will diminish, and he will soon be situated

without any doubt in complete perfection. The pure devotee has no

actual chance to fall down, because the Supreme Godhead personally

takes care of His pure devotees. Therefore, the intelligent person

should take directly to the process of Krsna consciousness and happily

live in this material world. He will eventually receive the supreme

award of Krsna.

 

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta Purports to the Ninth Chapter of the Srimad

Bhagavad-gita in the matter of the Most Confidential Knowledge.

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.