Devanagari
सन्तो दिशन्ति चक्षूंषि बहिरर्क: समुत्थित: ।
देवता बान्धवा: सन्त: सन्त आत्माहमेव च ॥ ३४ ॥
Verse text
santo diśanti cakṣūṁṣi
bahir arkaḥ samutthitaḥ
devatā bāndhavāḥ santaḥ
santa ātmāham eva ca
Synonyms
santaḥ
—
the devotees
;
diśanti
—
bestow
;
cakṣūṁṣi
—
eyes
;
bahiḥ
—
external
;
arkaḥ
—
the sun
;
samutthitaḥ
—
when it is fully risen
;
devatāḥ
—
worshipable deities
;
bāndhavāḥ
—
relatives
;
santaḥ
—
the devotees
;
santaḥ
—
the devotees
;
ātmā
—
one’s very soul
;
aham
—
Myself
;
eva ca
—
as well .
Translation
My devotees bestow divine eyes, whereas the sun allows only external sight, and that only when it is risen in the sky. My devotees are one’s real worshipable deities and real family; they are one’s own self, and ultimately they are nondifferent from Me.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
My devotees bestow eyes to others so they can see me and are also give illumination to the eye, like the sun when it has risen in the sky. My devotees are the deities, the real friends, and the object of love. They are nondifferent from me.
Moreover, for those who have dedicated themselves to the path of the devotees, the devotees bestow all things necessary. The devotees give eyes to see me directly. This means that they give the nine types of worship. The eyes cannot fulfill their functions without the sun. However, the devotees, situated externally, are the sun which has risen in the sky and illuminate the worship (the eye). The devotees alone, and not Indra and others, are worthy of worship for those treading the path of bhakti. The devotees alone, and not parents or relatives, are friends. The devotees alone, and not the body or one’s own ātmā, are the object of affection (ātmā). The devotees alone are me, the supreme deity. One should not give them up and worship only me.
Purport
Foolishness is the wealth of the impious, who place great value on their treasure and firmly make up their minds to remain in the darkness of ignorance. Saintly devotees of the Lord are just like the sun. By the light of their words, the living entities’ eyes of knowledge are opened and the darkness of ignorance is destroyed. Thus the saintly devotees are one’s real friends and relatives. They are the proper recipients of service — not the gross material body, which merely clamors for sense gratification.