Devanagari
प्रायो मुमुक्षवस्तेषां केचनैव द्विजोत्तम ।
मुमुक्षूणां सहस्रेषु कश्चिन्मुच्येत सिध्यति ॥ ४ ॥
Verse text
prāyo mumukṣavas teṣāṁ
kecanaiva dvijottama
mumukṣūṇāṁ sahasreṣu
kaścin mucyeta sidhyati
Synonyms
prāyaḥ
—
almost always
;
mumukṣavaḥ
—
persons interested in liberation
;
teṣām
—
of them
;
kecana
—
some
;
eva
—
indeed
;
dvija
—
uttama — O best of the brāhmaṇas
;
mumukṣūṇām
—
of those who desire to be liberated
;
sahasreṣu
—
in many thousands
;
kaścit
—
someone
;
mucyeta
—
may be actually liberated
;
sidhyati
—
someone is perfect .
Translation
O best of the brāhmaṇas, Śukadeva Gosvāmī, out of many persons who follow religious principles, only a few desire liberation from the material world. Among many thousands who desire liberation, one may actually achieve liberation, giving up material attachment to society, friendship, love, country, home, wife and children. And among many thousands of such liberated persons, one who can understand the true meaning of liberation is very rare.
Translation (Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura)
O best of the brāhmaṇas! Out of those follow dharma, only a few desire liberation. Among many thousands who desire liberation, one person becomes a jivamukta and out of many such persons, only one attains the spiritual world.
Mucyeta means he becomes a jīvanmukta.
Purport
There are four classes of men, namely
karmīs, jṣānīs, yogīs
and
bhaktas.
This statement pertains especially to
karmīs
and
jṣānīs.
A
karmī
tries to he happy within this material world by changing from one body to another. His objective is bodily comfort, either in this planet or in another. When such a person becomes a
jṣānī,
however, be aspires for liberation from material bondage. Among many such persons who aspire for liberation, one may actually be liberated during his life. Such a person gives up his attachment for society, friendship, love, country, family, wife and children. Among many such persons, who are in the
vānaprastha
stage, one may understand the value of becoming a
sannyāsī,
completely accepting the renounced order of life.