TEXT 26

atha tepe sa suciram
prinan govindam avyayam
svetadvipa-patim krsnam
goloka-stham parat param

prakrtya guna-rupinya
rupinya paryupasitam
sahasra-dala-sampanne
koti-kinjalka-brmhite

bhumis cintamanis tatra
karnikare mahasane
samasinam cid-anandam
jyoti-rupam sanatanam

sabda-brahma-mayam venum
vadayantam mukhambuje
vinasini-gana-vrtam
svaih svair amsair abhistutam

WORD FOR WORD

atha--then: tepe--practiced austerity; sa--he (Brahma); suciram--for a long time; prinan--satisfying; govindam--Govinda; avyayam--imperishable; svetadvipa-patim--the Lord of Svetadvipa; krsnam--Krsna; goloka-stham--situated in Goloka; parat param--the greatest of all; prakrtya--by the external energy; guna-rupinya--embodying all mundane qualities; rupinya--possessing form; paryupasitam--worshiped from outside; sahasra-dala-sampanne--on a lotus of a thousand petals; koti-kinjalka--by millions of filaments; brmhite--augmented; bhumih--the land; cintamanih--magical touchstone; tatra--there; karnikare--on the whorl; maha-asane--on a great throne; samasinam--seated; cit-anandam--the form of transcendental bliss; jyotih-rupam--the form of effulgence; sanatanam--eternal; sabda-brahma--divine sound; mayam-- comprising; venum--the flute; vadayantam--playing; mukha-ambuje--at His lotus mouths; vilasini-gana--by the gopis; vrtam--surrounded; svaih svaih--own respective; amsaih--by subjective portions; abhistutam--worshiped.

TRANSLATION

Brahma, being desirous of satisfying Govinda, practiced the cultural acts for Krsna in Goloka, Lord of Svetadvipa, for a long time. His meditation ran thus, "There exists a divine lotus of a thousand petals, augmented by millions of filaments, in the transcendental land of Goloka. On its whorl, there exists a great divine throne on which is seated Sri Krsna, the form of eternal effulgence of transcendental bliss, playing on His divine flute resonant with the divine sound, with His lotus mouth. He is worshiped by His amorous milkmaids with their respective subjective portions and extensions and also by His external energy [who stays outside] embodying all mundane qualities."

PURPORT

Although the object of meditation is fully transcendental, yet owing to her nature which is permeated with the quality of active mundane hankering, Maya, the nonspiritual potency of Krsna, embodying the principles of mixed sattva, rajahs, and tamas, in the forms of Durga, and other nonspiritual powers, meditated on the Supreme Lord Krsna as the object of their worship. So long as there is any trace of mundane desire in one's heart, it is the object of worship of Mayadevi (Durga) who has to be worshiped by such a person; nevertheless the fulfillment of one's heart's desire results from the worship of the object of worship of Mayadevi, and not from the worship of Mayadevi herself. This is in accordance with the sloka, akamah sarva-kamo va moksa-kama udara-dhih / tivrena bhakti-yogena yajeta purusam param. The meaning of this sloka of the Bhagavatam is that though other gods, as distinct manifestations of the Supreme Lord, are bestowers of sundry specific boons, yet a sensible person should worship the all-powerful Supreme Lord, giver of all good, with unalloyed devotion, without worshiping those mundane gift-giving deities. Accordingly, Brahma meditated upon Krsna in Goloka, the object of the worship, from a distance, of Mayadevi. True devotion is unalloyed devotional activity free from all mundane desire. The devotion of Brahma, etc., is not unmixed devotion. But there is a stage of unmixed predilection even in devotion for the attainment of one's selfish desire. This has been fully described in the concluding five slokas of this work. That is the easiest method of divine service, prior to the attainment of self-realization, by fallen souls.