Chapter 2: Contents of the Gétä Summarized
Bg 2.52
TEXT 52
yada te moha-kalilam
buddhir vyatitarisyati
tada gantasi nirvedam
srotavyasya srutasya ca
SYNONYMS
yadä—when; te—your; moha—illusory; kalilam—dense forest; buddhiù—transcendental service with intelligence; vyatitariñyati—surpasses; tadä—at that time; gantäsi—you shall go; nirvedam—callousness; çrotavyasya—all that is to be heard; çrutasya—all that is already heard; ca—also.
TRANSLATION
When your intelligence has passed out of the dense forest of delusion, you shall become indifferent to all that has been heard and all that is to be heard.
PURPORT
There are many good examples in the lives of the great devotees of the Lord of those who became indifferent to the rituals of the Vedas simply by devotional service to the Lord. When a person factually understands Kåñëa and his relationship with Kåñëa, he naturally becomes completely indifferent to the rituals of fruitive activities, even though an experienced brähmaëa. Çré Mädhavendra Puré, a great devotee and äcärya in the line of the devotees, says:
sandhyä-vandana bhadram astu bhavato bhoù snäna tubhyaà namo
bho deväù pitaraç ca tarpaëa-vidhau nähaà kñamaù kñamyatäm
yatra kväpi niñadya yädava-kulottamasya kaàsa-dviñaù
smäraà smäram aghaà harämi tad alaà manye kim anyena me.
"O Lord, in my prayers three times a day, all glory to You. Bathing, I offer my obeisances unto You. O demigods! O forefathers! Please excuse me for my inability to offer you my respects. Now wherever I sit, I can remember the great descendant of the Yadu dynasty [Kåñëa], the enemy of Kaàsa, and thereby I can free myself from all sinful bondage. I think this is sufficient for me."
The Vedic rites and rituals are imperative for neophytes: comprehending all kinds of prayer three times a day, taking a bath early in the morning, offering respects to the forefathers, etc. But, when one is fully in Kåñëa consciousness and is engaged in His transcendental loving service, one becomes indifferent to all these regulative principles because he has already attained perfection. If one can reach the platform of understanding by service to the Supreme Lord Kåñëa, he has no longer to execute different types of penances and sacrifices as recommended in revealed scriptures. And, similarly, if one has not understood that the purpose of the Vedas is to reach Kåñëa and simply engages in the rituals, etc., then he is uselessly wasting time in such engagements. Persons in Kåñëa consciousness transcend the limit of çabda-brahma, or the range of the Vedas and Upaniñads.