Devanagari
उदासीनोऽरिवद् वर्ज्य आत्मवत् सुहृदुच्यते ॥ ५ ॥
Verse text
udāsīno ’ri-vad varjya
ātma-vat suhṛd ucyate
Synonyms
udāsīnaḥ
—
one who is indifferent
;
ari
—
vat — just like an enemy
;
varjyaḥ
—
is to be avoided
;
ātma
—
vat — like one’s own self
;
suhṛt
—
a friend
;
ucyate
—
is said to be .
Translation
One who is neutral may be avoided like an enemy, but a friend should be considered like one’s own self.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
One who is neutral may be avoided like an enemy, but a friend should be considered like one's own self.
KB 10.24.5
And even for those who are not so liberal, nothing should be kept secret from the family members and friends, although secrecy may be maintained for persons who are inimical. Therefore you cannot keep any secrets from Me.
Purport
Even if Nanda Mahārāja did not see friends, enemies and neutral parties as entirely equal, Lord Kṛṣṇa, being Nanda Mahārāja’s son, was certainly a most trustworthy friend and should therefore not be left out of intimate discussions. In other words, Nanda Mahārāja might have thought that as a householder he could not act on the highest saintly platform, and thus Lord Kṛṣṇa furnished additional reasons why His father should trust Him and reveal the entire purpose of the sacrifice.
According to Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, Nanda Mahārāja stood silent, doubting his position of parental aloofness, since Garga Muni had predicted that his son would be “equal to Nārāyaṇa in His qualities,” and the young boy had already conquered and killed many powerful demons.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Someone may say, "As this is a secret affair, we should not tell a small boy with little intelligence." Thus Krsna utters statements which reveal that he is very learned. "Those who are of good character see all other people on the same level as themselves. They do not see in terms of distinctions of self and others, including friends, enemies and neutrals. Such persons do not hide any actions from me."
"But we are grhasthas, and cannot follow such standards."
To answer that objection he says, "One should give up those who are apathetic as if they were enemies." Ujvalanilamani defines the tatastha or neutral person as "the friends of the opposing group." The neutral person is not an enemy or a friend, and should not be avoided nor accepted. Therefore he is included among those to be avoided.
"But one should have faith in the friend as ones very self. I am more than a friend; I am an intimate."
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
He requests Nanda to tell him twice, to show his desire to hear. “Understand that this will please me.” Or “What is the use of telling you, since you are only a child?” I have a desire to hear. You should fulfill the desires of your son. Or, according to the rule that dharma should be taught to those desiring to hear, you must tell me since I have that desire. By calling his father again, he shows his strong affection. He knew about this sacrifice from previous years but asked out of sarcasm and to show disrespect for Indra. Being uncertain what to say, since Garga had said Kṛṣṇa was equal to Nārāyaṇa and he had killed many powerful demons, Nanda was silent. Kṛṣṇa again spoke to him. Since the devotees do not commit sin, they have no secret activities. The devotees are described by three adjectival phrases. They see Paramātmā everywhere (sarvaṭmanām) in the universe (iha). (They have no conception of “mine” or “another’s” and who do not consider who is a friend, who is an enemy and who is neutral.) Since you have all these qualities you should not hide your activities from me. “If we are engaged in worshipping Indra for our own benefit, how can we see Paramātmā everywhere?” Perhaps you even see with conceptions of “mine and theirs.” But still you should not hide your actions from me. You should exclude those who are indifferent, since the effect of the mantras will be absent. But I am most intimate among all friends as your son and should not be excluded from the secret.