Devanagari
अथो विभूतिं मम मायाविनस्ता-
मैश्वर्यमष्टाङ्गमनुप्रवृत्तम् ।
श्रियं भागवतीं वास्पृहयन्ति भद्रां
परस्य मे तेऽश्नुवते तु लोके ॥ ३७ ॥
Verse text
atho vibhūtiṁ mama māyāvinas tām
aiśvaryam aṣṭāṅgam anupravṛttam
śriyaṁ bhāgavatīṁ vāspṛhayanti bhadrāṁ
parasya me te ’śnuvate tu loke
Synonyms
atho
—
then
;
vibhūtim
—
opulence
;
mama
—
of Me
;
māyāvinaḥ
—
of the Lord of māyā
;
tām
—
that
;
aiśvaryam
—
mystic perfection
;
aṣṭa
—
aṅgam — consisting of eight parts
;
anupravṛttam
—
following
;
śriyam
—
splendor
;
bhāgavatīm
—
of the kingdom of God
;
vā
—
or
;
aspṛhayanti
—
they do not desire
;
bhadrām
—
blissful
;
parasya
—
of the Supreme Lord
;
me
—
of Me
;
te
—
those devotees
;
aśnuvate
—
enjoy
;
tu
—
but
;
loke
—
in this life .
Translation
Thus because he is completely absorbed in thought of Me, the devotee does not desire even the highest benediction obtainable in the upper planetary systems, including Satyaloka. He does not desire the eight material perfections obtained from mystic yoga, nor does he desire to be elevated to the kingdom of God. Yet even without desiring them, the devotee enjoys, even in this life, all the offered benedictions.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The devotees certainly do not desire attainment of the happiness of the material universe piled up by māyā, the powers of yoga-siddhis following bhakti, the auspicious rewards of residing in Vaikuṇṭha, or the bliss of Brahman. But the devotees attain the planet of me, the Supreme Lord.
It is said that bhakti gives the results of karma, jṣāna and yoga, performed with the absence of those practices, since those practice cannot give results without some bhakti.
yat karmabhir yat tapasā jṣāna-vairāgyataś ca yat
yogena dāna-dharmeṇa śreyobhir itarair api
sarvaṁ mad-bhakti-yogena mad-bhakto labhate 'ṣjasā
svargāpavargaṁ mad-dhāma kathaṣcid yadi vāṣchati
Everything that can be achieved by karma, penance, jṣāna, vairāgya, mystic yoga, charity, dharma and all other auspicious means of perfecting life is easily achieved by my devotee through bhakti. If somehow or other my devotee desires Svarga, liberation, or residence in my abode, he easily achieves such benedictions. SB 11.20.32-33
Thus, in reality, Svarga and other results are the results of bhakti alone. This verse describes that the pure devotees living on the planet of the Lord experience all happiness, which arises from the bliss of worshipping the Lord. All the happiness within the universes consolidated by māyā, after destruction of ignorance, and the happiness derived from powers of yoga, are attained following bhakti (anu). The devotees certainly (nu) do not desire the wealth in Vaikuṇṭha such as sārṣṭi (bhāgavatīm śriyam) and the bliss of Brahman (indicated by the word ca), since their minds and senses are absorbed in the Lord’s smile and glance. Though they do not desire these things, they attain Vaikuṇṭḥa, the planet of the Supreme Lord. This shows the Lord’s particular affection for his devotees.
Purport
The
vibhūti,
or opulences, offered by
māyā
are of many varieties. We have experience of different varieties of material enjoyment even on this planet, but if one is able to promote himself to higher planets like Candraloka, the sun or, still higher, Maharloka, Janaloka and Tapoloka, or even ultimately the highest planet, which is inhabited by Brahmā and is called Satyaloka, there are immense possibilities for material enjoyment. For example, the duration of life on higher planets is far, far greater than on this planet. It is said that on the moon the duration of life is such that our six months are equal to one day. We cannot even imagine the duration of life on the highest planet. It is stated in
Bhagavad-gītā
that Brahmā’s twelve hours are inconceivable even to our mathematicians. These are all descriptions of the external energy of the Lord, or
māyā.
Besides these, there are other opulences which the
yogīs
can achieve by their mystic power. They are also material. A devotee does not aspire for all these material pleasures, although they are available to him simply by wishing. By the grace of the Lord, a devotee can achieve wonderful success simply by willing, but a real devotee does not like that. Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu has taught that one should not desire material opulence or material reputation, nor should one try to enjoy material beauty; one should simply aspire to be absorbed in the devotional service of the Lord, even if one does not get liberation but has to continue the process of birth and death unlimitedly. Actually, however, to one who engages in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, liberation is already guaranteed. Devotees enjoy all the benefits of the higher planets and the Vaikuṇṭha planets also. It is especially mentioned here,
bhāgavatīṁ bhadrām.
In the Vaikuṇṭha planets everything is eternally peaceful, yet a pure devotee does not even aspire to be promoted there. But still he gets that advantage; he enjoys all the facilities of the material and spiritual worlds, even during the present life span.