Devanagari
स उत्तमश्लोक महन्मुखच्युतो
भवत्पदाम्भोजसुधा कणानिल: ।
स्मृतिं पुनर्विस्मृततत्त्ववर्त्मनां
कुयोगिनां नो वितरत्यलं वरै: ॥ २५ ॥
Verse text
sa uttamaśloka mahan-mukha-cyuto
bhavat-padāmbhoja-sudhā kaṇānilaḥ
smṛtiṁ punar vismṛta-tattva-vartmanāṁ
kuyogināṁ no vitaraty alaṁ varaiḥ
Synonyms
saḥ
—
that
;
uttama
—
śloka — O Lord, who are praised by selected verses
;
mahat
—
of great devotees
;
mukha
—
cyutaḥ — delivered from the mouths
;
bhavat
—
Your
;
pada
—
ambhoja — from the lotus feet
;
sudhā
—
of nectar
;
kaṇa
—
particles
;
anilaḥ
—
soothing breeze
;
smṛtim
—
remembrance
;
punaḥ
—
again
;
vismṛta
—
forgotten
;
tattva
—
to the truth
;
vartmanām
—
of persons whose path
;
ku
—
yoginām — of persons not in the line of devotional service
;
naḥ
—
of us
;
vitarati
—
restores
;
alam
—
unnecessary
;
varaiḥ
—
other benedictions .
Translation
My dear Lord, You are glorified by the selected verses uttered by great personalities. Such glorification of Your lotus feet is just like saffron particles. When the transcendental vibration from the mouths of great devotees carries the aroma of the saffron dust of Your lotus feet, the forgetful living entity gradually remembers his eternal relationship with You. Devotees thus gradually come to the right conclusion about the value of life. My dear Lord, I therefore do not need any other benediction but the opportunity to hear from the mouth of Your pure devotee.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
O most praised Lord! The topics falling from the mouths of the great devotees, or even the wind touching a drop of nectar from your lotus feet, brings remembrance even for the bad yogīs who have forgotten the truth you have just taught. Away with all these benedictions including liberation!
“Why do you not desire liberation which is very rarely achieved even by great knowers of truth?” This idea is expressed by ironic condemnation (vyāja-stuti). Just the breeze touching a particle of the nectar of your lotus feet, what to speak of an actual particle of nectar, and what to speak of the nectar itself, anything related to topics of your qualities produces remembrance of your lotus feet. It produces remembrance for those who have forgotten the truth: I have forgotten just now the truth concerning Paramātmā, ātmā and body taught by you in verse 9, showing their natures by similarity and difference. Thus I am a bad yogī (kuyogīnām) (since I desire to remember difference rather than forget it). This is the ironic condemnation. Enough of benedictions, of being stuck on the path of forgetting differences between you and the jīva through kaivalya! I have no use for other benedictions since I am simply determined to taste your topics. I am a bad yogī, most fallen. Since I could not become a good yogī on the path practiced, why would I desire kaivalya? And how can I desire to attain power and wealth, since I am completely satisfied just by tasting the honey of your lotus feet like a bee, which is just an insect? Thus indirectly, the superiority of the devotee is indicated.
Purport
It is explained in the previous verse that one has to hear glorification of the Lord from the mouth of a pure devotee. This is further explained here. The transcendental vibration from the mouth of a pure devotee is so powerful that it can revive the living entity’s memory of his eternal relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In our material existence, under the influence of illusory
māyā,
we have almost forgotten our eternal relationship with the Lord, exactly like a man sleeping very deeply who forgets his duties. In the
Vedas
it is said that every one of us is sleeping under the influence of
māyā.
We must get up from this slumber and engage in the right service, for thus we can properly utilize the facility of this human form of life. As expressed in a song by Ṭhākura Bhaktivinoda, Lord Caitanya says,
jīva jāgo, jīva jāgo.
The Lord asks every sleeping living entity to get up and engage in devotional service so that his mission in this human form of life may be fulfilled. This awakening voice comes through the mouth of a pure devotee.
A pure devotee always engages in the service of the Lord, taking shelter of His lotus feet, and therefore he has a direct connection with the saffron mercy-particles that are strewn over the lotus feet of the Lord. Although when a pure devotee speaks the articulation of his voice may resemble the sound of this material sky, the voice is spiritually very powerful because it touches the particles of saffron dust on the lotus feet of the Lord. As soon as a sleeping living entity hears the powerful voice emanating from the mouth of a pure devotee, he immediately remembers his eternal relationship with the Lord, although up until that moment he had forgotten everything.
For a conditioned soul, therefore, it is very important to hear from the mouth of a pure devotee, who is fully surrendered to the lotus feet of the Lord without any material desire, speculative knowledge or contamination of the modes of material nature. Every one of us is
kuyogī
because we have engaged in the service of this material world, forgetting our eternal relationship with the Lord as His eternal loving servants. It is our duty to rise from the
kuyoga
platform to become
suyogīs,
perfect mystics. The process of hearing from a pure devotee is recommended in all Vedic scriptures, especially by Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. One may stay in his position of life — it does not matter what it is — but if one hears from the mouth of a pure devotee, he gradually comes to the understanding of his relationship with the Lord and thus engages in His loving service, and his life becomes completely perfect. Therefore, this process of hearing from the mouth of a pure devotee is very important for making progress in the line of spiritual understanding.