Need Of The Hour
manye dhanābhijana-rūpa-tapaḥ-śrutaujas-
tejaḥ-prabhāva-bala-pauruṣa-buddhi-yogāḥ
nārādhanāya hi bhavanti parasya puṁso
bhaktyā tutoṣa bhagavān gaja-yūtha-pāya [SB 7.9.9]
Translation : “Prahlāda Mahārāja continued: One may possess wealth, an aristocratic family, beauty, austerity, education, sensory expertise, luster, influence, physical strength, diligence, intelligence and mystic yogic power, but I think that even by all these qualifications one cannot satisfy the Supreme Personality of Godhead. However, one can satisfy the Lord simply by devotional service. Gajendra did this, and thus the Lord was satisfied with him.”
Purport : No kind of material qualification is the means for satisfying the Supreme Personality of Godhead. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, only by devotional service can the Lord be known (bhaktyā mām abhijānāti) . Unless the Lord is pleased by the service of a devotee, the Lord does not reveal Himself ( nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yoga-māyā-samāvṛtaḥ ). This is the verdict of all śāstras. Neither by speculation nor by material qualifications can one understand or approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
vyādhasyācaraṇaṁ dhruvasya ca vayo vidyā gajendrasya kā
kubjāyāḥ kim u nāma rūpam adhikaṁ kiṁ tat sudāmno dhanam |
vaṁśaḥ ko vidurasya yādava-pater ugrasya kiṁ pauruṣaṁ
bhaktyā tuṣyati kevalaṁ na ca guṇair bhakti-priyo mādhavaḥ || [Hari Bhakti Vilas 11.593]
“Did the hunter have good conduct? Did Dhruva have age? Did Gajendra have knowledge? Did Kubjā have special beauty? Did Sudāmā have wealth? Did Vidura have a noble lineage? Did the King of the Yadus, Ugrasena, have valor? He whose pleasure is bhakti, Mādhava, Is satisfied only by bhakti, And not by qualities”
na nāka-pṛṣṭhaṁ na ca pārameṣṭhyaṁ
na sārva-bhaumaṁ na rasādhipatyam
na yoga-siddhīr apunar-bhavaṁ vā
samañjasa tvā virahayya kāṅkṣe [SB 6.11.25]
“O my Lord, source of all opportunities, I do not desire to enjoy in Dhruvaloka, the heavenly planets or the planet where Lord Brahmā resides, nor do I want to be the supreme ruler of all the earthly planets or the lower planetary systems. I do not desire to be master of the powers of mystic yoga, nor do I want liberation if I have to give up service to you”
Narottam Das Thakur, a vaishnav poet, writes,
tādera caraṇa-sebi-bhakta-sane bās
janame janame hoy ei abhilāṣ
“To be a servant of their lotus feet and to reside in the company of devotees - this is my aspiration birth after birth.”
Srila Jagadananda Pandit writes,
sadhu-sange krsna-nama—ei matra chai
samsara jinite ara kona vastu nai [Sri Prema-vivarta: 6.13]
“I want only to chant the Name of Krishna and associate with devotees. There is no other way to conquer this world.”
