Devanagari
तं न: समादिशोपायं येन ते चरणाब्जयो: ।
स्मृतिर्यथा न विरमेदपि संसरतामिह ॥ १५ ॥
Verse text
taṁ naḥ samādiśopāyaṁ
yena te caraṇābjayoḥ
smṛtir yathā na viramed
api saṁsaratām iha
Synonyms
tam
—
that
;
naḥ
—
to us
;
samādiśa
—
please instruct
;
upāyam
—
the means
;
yena
—
by which
;
te
—
Your
;
caraṇa
—
of the feet
;
abjayoḥ
—
lotuslike
;
smṛtiḥ
—
remembrance
;
yathā
—
as
;
na viramet
—
may not cease
;
api
—
even
;
saṁsaratām
—
for those traveling through the cycle of birth and death
;
iha
—
in this world .
Translation
Please tell us how we may constantly remember Your lotus feet, though we continue in the cycle of birth and death in this world.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
Please tell us how we may constantly remember Your lotus feet, though we continue in the cycle of birth and death in this world.
KB 10.73.15
“We pray for Your Lordship to favor us by instructing us how to engage in the transcendental loving service of Your lotus feet so that we may never forget our eternal relationship with Your Lordship. We do not want liberation from the entanglement of material existence. By Your will we may take birth in any species of life; it does not matter. We simply pray that we never forget Your lotus feet under any circumstances.
Purport
One can constantly remember the Lord only by His mercy. Such remembrance is the easy method to obtain supreme liberation, as explained in
Bhagavad-gītā
(8.14)
:
ananya-cetāḥ satataṁ
yo māṁ smarati nityaśaḥ
tasyāhaṁ sulabhaḥ pārtha
nitya-yuktasya yoginaḥ
“For one who always remembers Me without deviation, I am easy to obtain, O son of Pṛthā, because of his constant engagement in devotional service.”
The words
api saṁsaratām iha
indicate that the kings were approaching Lord Kṛṣṇa not merely for liberation but rather for the boon of always being able to remember His lotus feet. Such constant remembrance is a symptom of love, and love of Godhead is the actual goal of life.
Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
"Then I should give you sayujya mukti?"
" No, not at all." This they express in this verse.
"Please show us the exact method (sam) so we can understand and execute it, by which we will not forget your lotus feet. Though we are wandering in various bodies, we do not ask that you stop that wandering, nor do we even have desire for prema bhakti, more worthy of hankering." This is said out of an appearance of extreme humility. "Nor do we desire even remembrance of you, which is an anga of bhakti. We only desire the means for remembrance. And we do not ask that you give it to us, but rather that you indicate it, and clearly (sam) so that we can practice."
This shows the highest degree of qualities like desirelessness, humility and sense control which are necessary qualification for bhakti.
Purport (Jiva Goswami)
“What do you want?” In concluding, they make their request with great longing and feeling, but out of humility they do not state their desire directly. Please instruct us a method that is understandable and possible (sam—ādiśa) so that we do not give up remembrance of your feet. Or, or instruct us a method, according to your wish (yathā), by which we do not give up remembrance of your feet but constantly remember them. Previously we prayed for protection from frightful saṁsāra since it is an obstacle to remembering you. Now, if we remember you, we will be free of saṁsāra even if we are born in various bodies (iha). They pray for remembrance, not for protection. They do not even pray for that protection as a result of remembrance, out of great humility or great respect for the Lord. Or while desiring to be completely fixed in remembrance, even though they know the process, they express themselves in complete lowness as previously.