Devanagari
ब्राह्मणो ब्रह्मवर्चस्वी राजन्यो जगतीपति: ।
वैश्य: पठन् विट्पति: स्याच्छूद्र: सत्तमतामियात् ॥ ३२ ॥
Verse text
brāhmaṇo brahma-varcasvī
rājanyo jagatī-patiḥ
vaiśyaḥ paṭhan viṭ-patiḥ syāc
chūdraḥ sattamatām iyāt
Synonyms
brāhmaṇaḥ
—
the brāhmaṇas
;
brahma
—
varcasvī — one who has attained the power of spiritual success
;
rājanyaḥ
—
the royal order
;
jagatī
—
patiḥ — the king of the world
;
vaiśyaḥ
—
the mercantile class of men
;
paṭhan
—
by reading
;
viṭ
—
patiḥ — becomes master of animals
;
syāt
—
becomes
;
śūdraḥ
—
the laborer class of men
;
sattama
—
tām — the position of a great devotee
;
iyāt
—
attains .
Translation
If one hears of the characteristics of Pṛthu Mahārāja and is a brāhmaṇa, he becomes perfectly qualified with brahminical powers; if he is a kṣatriya, he becomes a king of the world; if he is a vaiśya, he becomes a master of other vaiśyas and many animals; and if he is a śūdra, he becomes the topmost devotee.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The brāhmaṇa becomes most learned, the kings become leaders of the world, the merchants become masters of cows, and laborers becomes the best devotee.
Viṭ-patiḥ means master of cows or master of other vaiśyas.
Purport
In
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
it is recommended that one should become a devotee regardless of one’s condition. Whether one is without desire (
akāma
) or with desire (
sakāma
), or whether one desires liberation (
mokṣa-kāma
), he is advised to worship the Supreme Lord and execute devotional service unto Him. By so doing, one attains all perfection in any field of life. The process of devotional service — especially hearing and chanting — is so powerful that it can bring a person to the perfectional stage. In this verse
brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas
and
śūdras
are mentioned, but here it should be understood that that reference is to the
brāhmaṇa
who is born in a brahminical family, the
kṣatriya
who is born in a
kṣatriya
family, the
vaiśya
who is born in a
vaiśya
family, and the
śūdra
who is born in a
śūdra
family. But whether one is a
brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya
or
śūdra,
he can attain perfection simply by hearing and chanting.
To take birth in a family of
brāhmaṇas
is not the ultimate finishing touch; one must have the power of a
brāhmaṇa,
which is called
brahma-tejas.
Similarly, taking birth in a royal family is not the all in all; one must possess the power to rule the world. Similarly, taking birth as a
vaiśya
is not all; one must possess hundreds or thousands of animals (specifically cows) and rule over other
vaiśyas
as Nanda Mahārāja did in Vṛndāvana. Nanda Mahārāja was a
vaiśya
who possessed nine hundred thousand cows and ruled over many cowherd men and boys. A person who is born in a
śūdra
family can become greater than a
brāhmaṇa
simply by accepting devotional service and giving aural reception to the pastimes of the Lord and His devotees.