Devanagari
सध्रीचीनो ह्ययं लोके पन्था: क्षेमोऽकुतोभय: ।
सुशीला: साधवो यत्र नारायणपरायणा: ॥ १७ ॥
Verse text
sadhrīcīno hy ayaṁ loke
panthāḥ kṣemo ’kuto-bhayaḥ
suśīlāḥ sādhavo yatra
nārāyaṇa-parāyaṇāḥ
Synonyms
sadhrīcīnaḥ
—
just appropriate
;
hi
—
certainly
;
ayam
—
this
;
loke
—
in the world
;
panthāḥ
—
path
;
kṣemaḥ
—
auspicious
;
akutaḥ
—
bhayaḥ — without fear
;
su
—
śīlāḥ — well-behaved
;
sādhavaḥ
—
saintly persons
;
yatra
—
wherein
;
nārāyaṇa
—
parāyaṇāḥ — those who have taken the path of Nārāyaṇa, devotional service, as their life and soul .
Translation
The path followed by pure devotees, who are well-behaved and fully endowed with the best qualifications, is certainly the most auspicious path in this material world. It is free from fear, and it is authorized by the śāstras.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
The path followed by person who are friendly, virtuous, and surrendered to Nārāyaṇa is certain, auspicious, and without fear of obstacles.
One should not say that bhakti-yoga is for those who are not capable of practicing jṣāna, yoga or austerities. Sadhrīcīnaḥ means certain, leading to the correct goal. This is the best process in all respects. There is no fear of any obstacle. On this path the practitioners are friendly. One need not fear that one will not have help as on the path of jṣāna. One need not fear of people becoming envious as when practicing karma.
Purport
One should not think that the person who takes to
bhakti
is one who cannot perform the ritualistic ceremonies recommended in the
karma-kāṇḍa
section of the
Vedas
or is not sufficiently educated to speculate on spiritual subjects. Māyāvādīs generally allege that the
bhakti
path is for women and illiterates. This is a groundless accusation. The
bhakti
path is followed by the most learned scholars, such as the Gosvāmīs, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Rāmānujācārya. These are the actual followers of the
bhakti
path. Regardless of whether or not one is educated or aristocratic, one must follow in their footsteps.
Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ:
one must follow the path of the
mahājanas.
The
mahājanas
are those who have taken to the path of devotional service (
suśīlāḥ sādhavo yatra nārāyaṇa-parāyaṇāḥ
), for these great personalities are the perfect persons. As stated in
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
(5.18.12)
:
yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiṣcanā
sarvair guṇais tatra samāsate surāḥ
“One who has unflinching devotion to the Personality of Godhead has all the good qualities of the demigods.” The less intelligent, however, misunderstand the
bhakti
path and therefore allege that it is for one who cannot execute ritualistic ceremonies or speculate. As confirmed here by the word
sadhrīcīnaḥ, bhakti
is the path that is appropriate, not the paths of
karma-kāṇḍa
and
jṣāna-kāṇḍa.
Māyāvādīs may be
suśīlāḥ sādhavaḥ
(well-behaved saintly persons), but there is nevertheless some doubt about whether they are actually making progress, for they have not accepted the path of
bhakti.
On the other hand, those who follow the path of the
ācāryas
are
suśīlāḥ
and
sādhavaḥ,
but furthermore their path is
akuto-bhaya,
which means free from fear. One should fearlessly follow the twelve
mahājanas
and their line of disciplic succession and thus be liberated from the clutches of
māyā.