SB 10.8.6

SB 10.8.6

Devanagari

त्वं हि ब्रह्मविदां श्रेष्ठ: संस्कारान्कर्तुमर्हसि । बालयोरनयोर्नृणां जन्मना ब्राह्मणो गुरु: ॥ ६ ॥

Verse text

tvaṁ hi brahma-vidāṁ śreṣṭhaḥ saṁskārān kartum arhasi bālayor anayor nṝṇāṁ janmanā brāhmaṇo guruḥ

Synonyms

tvam Your Holiness ; hi indeed ; brahma vidām — of all brāhmaṇas, or persons who understand what is Brahman ( brahma jānātīti brāhmaṇaḥ ) ; śreṣṭhaḥ you are the best ; saṁskārān ceremonies performed for reformation (because by these reformatory activities one takes one’s second birth: saṁskārād bhaved dvijaḥ ) ; kartum arhasi because you have kindly come here, kindly execute ; bālayoḥ of these two sons (Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma) ; anayoḥ of both of Them ; nṝṇām not only of Them, but of all human society ; janmanā as soon as he takes birth ; brāhmaṇaḥ immediately the brāhmaṇa becomes ; guruḥ the guide.* .

Translation

My lord, you are the best of the brāhmaṇas, especially because you are fully aware of the jyotiḥ-śāstra, the astrological science. Therefore you are naturally the spiritual master of every human being. This being so, since you have kindly come to my house, kindly execute the reformatory activities for my two sons.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

My lord, you are the best of the brāhmaṇas, especially because you are fully aware of the jyotiḥ-śāstra, the astrological science. Therefore you are naturally the spiritual master of every human being. This being so, since you have kindly come to my house, kindly execute the reformatory activities for my two sons. KB 10.8.6 Nanda Mahārāja also addressed Garga Muni as “the best of the brāhmaṇas.” A brāhmaṇa is one who is expert in the knowledge of the Supreme. Without knowledge of the Supreme Absolute, one cannot be recognized as a brāhmaṇa. The exact word used in this connection is brahma-vidām, which means those who know the Supreme very well. An expert brāhmaṇa is able to give reformatory facilities to the subcastes—namely the kṣatriyas and vaiśyas. The śūdras observe no reformatory performances. The brāhmaṇa is considered to be the spiritual master or priest for the kṣatriya and vaiśya. Nanda Mahārāja happened to be a vaiśya, and he accepted Garga Muni as a first-class brāhmaṇa. He therefore offered his two foster sons—namely Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma—to him to purify. Nanda stated that not only these boys but all human beings just after birth should accept a qualified brāhmaṇa as spiritual master.

Purport

The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, says in Bhagavad-gītā (4.13) , cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ: the four varṇas — brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra — must be present in society. The brāhmaṇas are required for the guidance of the whole society. If there is no such institution as varṇāśrama-dharma and if human society has no such guide as the brāhmaṇa, human society will be hellish. In Kali-yuga, especially at the present moment, there is no such thing as a real brāhmaṇa, and therefore society is in a chaotic condition. Formerly there were qualified brāhmaṇas, but at present, although there are certainly persons who think themselves brāhmaṇas, they actually have no ability to guide society. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is therefore very much eager to reintroduce the varṇāśrama system into human society so that those who are bewildered or less intelligent will be able to take guidance from qualified brāhmaṇas. Brāhmaṇa means Vaiṣṇava. After one becomes a brāhmaṇa, the next stage of development in human society is to become a Vaiṣṇava. People in general must be guided to the destination or goal of life, and therefore they must understand Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The whole system of Vedic knowledge is based on this principle, but people have lost the clue ( na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum ), and they are simply pursuing sense gratification, with the risk of gliding down to a lower grade of life ( mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani ). It doesn’t matter whether one is born a brāhmaṇa or not. No one is born a brāhmaṇa; everyone is born a śūdra. But by the guidance of a brāhmaṇa and by saṁskāra, one can become dvija, twice-born, and then gradually become a brāhmaṇa. Brāhmaṇism is not a system meant to create a monopoly for a particular class of men. Everyone should be educated so as to become a brāhmaṇa. At least there must be an opportunity to allow everyone to attain the destination of life. Regardless of whether one is born in a brāhmaṇa family, a kṣatriya family or a śūdra family, one may be guided by a proper brāhmaṇa and be promoted to the highest platform of being a Vaiṣṇava. Thus the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement affords an opportunity to develop the right destiny for human society. Nanda Mahārāja took advantage of the opportunity of Garga Muni’s presence by requesting him to perform the necessary reformatory activities for his sons to guide Them toward the destination of life.

Purport (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

"Such a great personality coming to my house is just for my benefit. The benefit is twofold: for the present life and the future life. Of the two, I am now requesting you to delivery the auspiciousness of this present life." Thus Nanda begins to speak. "You are not only the best among astrologers but you are also the best among those who know about God. Because you are qualified in both fields—telling the future and chanting mantras—you are most suitable to perform samskaras." "But these should be done by guru." So Nanda says, "Brahmanas just by their birth are the gurus for all human beings."

Purport (Jiva Goswami)

Because (hi) you are the best of the knowers of the Vedas, because you are the best of the great devotees, you should perform the saṁskāras for the two boys according to their caste. By birth or caste you are also qualified, what to speak of your knowledge.

Purport (Sanatana Goswami)

Because (hi) you are the best of the knowers of the Vedas, because you are the best of the great devotees, you should perform the saṁskāras for the two boys according to their caste. According Vaiṣṇava custom you should name them, start their education, and give tilaka marks etc. This is described in Padma Purāṇa. By birth or caste you are also qualified, what to speak of your knowledge.