SB 11.7.37 · Srimad-Bhagavatam

Devanagari

भूतैराक्रम्यमाणोऽपि धीरो दैववशानुगै: । तद् विद्वान्न चलेन्मार्गादन्वशिक्षं क्षितेर्व्रतम् ॥ ३७ ॥

Verse text

bhūtair ākramyamāṇo ’pi dhīro daiva-vaśānugaiḥ tad vidvān na calen mārgād anvaśikṣaṁ kṣiter vratam

Synonyms

bhūtaiḥ — by various creatures ; ākramyamāṇaḥ — being harassed ; api — although ; dhīraḥ — sober ; daiva — of fate ; vaśa — the control ; anugaiḥ — who are simply following ; tat — this fact ; vidvān — he who is in knowledge of ; na calet — should not deviate ; mārgāt — from the path ; anvaśikṣam — I have learned ; kṣiteḥ — from the earth ; vratam — this fixed practice .

Translation

A sober person, even when harassed by other living beings, should understand that his aggressors are acting helplessly under the control of God, and thus he should never be distracted from progress on his own path. This rule I have learned from the earth.

Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)

A sober person, even when harassed by other living beings, should understand that his aggressors are acting helplessly under the control of karma, and thus he should never be distracted from progress on his own path. This rule I have learned from the earth. I have learned tolerance from the earth. An intelligent person understands that all beings are under the control of devatās and Pitṛs.

Purport

The earth is the symbol of tolerance. By deep oil-drilling, atomic explosions, pollution, and so on, the earth is constantly harassed by demoniac living entities. Sometimes lush forests are cut down by greedy men with commercial interests, and thus a wasteland is created. Sometimes the earth’s surface is soaked by the blood of soldiers fighting in savage warfare. Yet, despite all these disturbances, the earth continues to provide all the necessities of the living beings. In this way one may learn the art of tolerance by studying the earth.