Chapter 12
Devotional Service
- arjun kahilen:
- ye śūddha bhakta ye kṛṣṇa tomāte satata
- ananya bhaktira dvārā haye thāke yukta
- ār ye avyaktavādī avyakta akṣare
- niṣkāma karam kari sadā cintā kare
- tār madhye kevā uttam yogavit haya
- jānibār icchā mor karaha niścay
Text 1: Arjuna inquired : Which are considered to be more perfect, those who are always properly engaged in Your devotional service or those who worship the impersonal Brahman, the unmanifested?
- śrī-bhagavān kahilen:
- āmāra śvarūpa ei yāra mana sadā
- āviṣṭa haiyā thāke upāsanā hṛdā
- śraddhār sahit kare prāṇa bhaktimay
- uttama yogīra śreṣṭha kahinu niścay
Text 2: The Supreme Personality of Godhead said: Those who fix their minds on My personal form and are always engaged in worshiping Me with great and transcendental faith are considered by Me to be most perfect.
- akṣara avyakta-sakta nirdiṣṭa-bhāv
- indriya saṁyam kari hitaiṣī svabhāv
- sarva-vyāpī acintya ye kūṭastha acal
- dhruva nirviśeṣ sattve thākiyā aṭal
- samabuddhi haye sab kare upāsanā
- se āmāke prāpta hay kariyā sādhanā
Texts 3-4: But those who fully worship the unmanifested, that which lies beyond the perception of the senses, the all-pervading, inconceivable, unchanging, fixed and immovable—the impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth—by controlling the various senses and being equally disposed to everyone, such persons, engaged in the welfare of all, at last achieve me.
- kintu ei-mātra bhed jāna ubhayera madhye
- bhakta pāy ati śighra ār kaṣṭe siddhe
- avyakta āsakta sei vahu kleś tār
- avyakta ye gati duḥkha dehīra apār
Text 5: For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome. To make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied.
- ye āmār sambandhete sab karma kare
- āmāra svarūpa ei nitya dhyāna kare
- jīvana ye more sṅapi āmāte āsakta
- ananya ye bhāv bhakti tāhe anurakta
- se bhaktake mṛtyu-rūp e saṁsāra hate
- uddhār kariba śīghra jāna bhāla mate
Texts 6-7: But those who worship Me, giving up all their activities unto Me and being devoted to Me without deviation, engaged in devotional service and always meditating upon Me, having fixed their minds upon Me, O son of Pṛthā—for them I am the swift deliverer from the ocean of birth and death.
- ataev tumi ei dvibhuja svarūpe
- eman buddhi sthira kara bhagavat svarūpe
- āmāra e nityarūpe nitya-yukta hale
- avaśya pāibe prem sarva-śreṣṭha phale
- ūrdhva-gati sei jāna nā kara saṁśay
- sarvocca phal tāhā kahinu niścay
Text 8: Just fix your mind upon Me, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and engage all your intelligence in Me. Thus you will live in Me always, without a doubt.
- yadi se sahaj bhāve hao asamartha
- abhyāsa yogete kara lābh paramārtha
- vidhi-mārge rāg-mārge yevā more cāy
- acirāt se abhyāse loka more pāy
Text 9: My dear Arjuna, O winner of wealth, if you cannot fix your mind upon Me without deviation, then follow the regulative principles of bhakti-yoga. In this way develop a desire to attain Me.
- abhyāseo asamartha yadi tumi hao
- āmāra lāgiyā karme sadāyukta rao
- āmāra santoṣa janya yevā kārya hay
- jānio sesab more prāptira upāy
Text 10: If you cannot practice the regulations of bhakti-yoga, then just try to work for Me, because by working for Me you will come to the perfect stage.
- tāhāteo yadi taba śaktira abhāv
- bhakti-yog āśrayete viruddha svabhāv
- tabe se vaidika karma tyaji karmaphal
- avaśya sādhive tumi yatnete prabal
Text 11: If, however, you are unable to work in this consciousness of Me, then try to act giving up all results of your work and try to be self-situated.
- bhakti-yoge asamartha yevā abhyās-ibhāla
- tāhāte ye asamartha jñānete suphala
- tāhāteo asamartha ātma-cintā śreya
- tāhāteo asamartha karma-yoga śreya
- kāmya karme sukh nāi tyāg-iuttam
- tyāg-iśāntira mūl tāte nāhi bhram
Text 12: If you cannot take to this practice, then engage yourself in the cultivation of knowledge. Better than knowledge, however, is meditation, and better than meditation is renunciation of the fruits of action, for by such renunciation one can attain peace of mind.
- āmāra ye bhakta sarva-guṇera ādhār
- sakalera mitra hay hiṁsā nāhi tār
- bhakta nahe hiṁsār pātra bhakta se karuṇ
- jīvera durdaśā heri sadā duḥkhī man
- dehe ātma-buddhi bhram bhaktera se nāi
- nirmamonirahaṅkāra duḥkhera bālāi
- sarvata santuṣṭa yogī se dṛḍha niścay
- yatnaśīl nija kārye āmāte vilay
- tār kārya man prāṇ āmāte niyukta
- āmāra se priya bhakta sarbadāi mukta
Texts 13-14: One who is not envious but is a kind friend to all living entities, who does not think himself a proprietor and is free from false ego, who is equal in both happiness and distress, who is tolerant, always satisfied, self-controlled, and engaged in devotional service with determination, his mind and intelligence fixed on Me—such a devotee of Mine is very dear to Me.
- tār dvārā kona lok duḥkha nāhi pāy
- kāhākeo mane prāṇe duḥkha nāhi dyāy
- harṣāmarṣa-bhayodveg e-sabe se mukta
- ataev mora bhakta ati priya-yukta
Text 15: He for whom no one is put into difficulty and who is not disturbed by anyone, who is equipoised in happiness and distress, fear and anxiety, is very dear to Me.
- lok vyavahāre bhakta sadā nirapekṣa
- udāsīn gata-vyatha śuci ār dakṣa
- śuci hay mor bhakta brahma se svabhāve
- jāti buddhi nāhi kara bhakta se vaiṣṇave
Text 16: My devotee who is not dependent on the ordinary course of activities, who is pure, expert, without cares, free from all pains, and not striving for some result is very dear to Me.
- jaḍa kārye haṛṣa duḥkha ye janera nāi
- tyajiyāche ye ākāṅkhā cintā yār nāi
- śubhā-śubha parityāgī yevā bhaktimān
- āmāra se priya bhakta tāhāke sammān
Text 17: One who neither rejoices nor grieves, who neither laments nor desires, and who renounces both auspicious and inauspicious things—such a devotee is very dear to Me.
- śatru mitra apamān kiṁbā nija mān
- jaḍamukta mor bhakta mānaye samān
- śīt, grīṣma, sukh, duḥkha ek yevā māne
- saṅgamukta sei bhakta sthita ātma-jñāne
- tulya nindā stuti ār santuṣṭa gambhīr
- niketana tār nāi mati tār sthir
- sei mor priya bhakta sei bhaktimān
- bhaktera lakṣaṇa yata karinu vyākhyān
Texts 18-19: One who is equal to friends and enemies, who is equipoised in honour and dishonour, heat and cold, happiness and distress, fame and infamy, who is always free from contaminating association, always silent and satisfied with anything, who doesn't care for any residence, who is fixed in knowledge and who is engaged in devotional service—such a person is very dear to Me.
- ei sūddha bhakti yevā karibe sādhanā
- amṛta se dharma jāna jaḍa vilakṣaṇā
- tāhāte ye śraddhā-yukta anukūla prāṇ
- atyanta se priya bhakta āmāra samān
Text 20: Those who follow this imperishable path of devotional service and who completely engage themselves with faith, making Me the supreme goal, are very, very dear to Me.
- bhaktivedānta kahe śrī-gītāra gān
- śune yadi śuddha bhakta kṛṣṇagata-prāṇ
Thus Bhaktivedānta sings the song of Śrī Gītā, with the hope that hearing this, Kṛṣṇa conscious pure devotees will be pleased.