Verse 2.2.212

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.2.212:

तद्-धेतुश् चित्त-शुद्धिर् वा स्व-धर्माचार-भक्तितः ।
बाह्यायास् त्व् अल्पकं भक्तेर् अन्तर्याः सुमहत्-फलम् ॥ २१२ ॥

tad-dhetuś citta-śuddhir vā sva-dharmācāra-bhaktitaḥ |
bāhyāyās tv alpakaṃ bhakter antaryāḥ sumahat-phalam || 212 ||

tat-hetuḥ–the reason for this; citta–a heart; śuddhiḥ–pure; vā–or; sva-dharma-ācāra–for one’s prescribed duties in accordance with varṇāśrama; bhaktitaḥ–through devotion; bāhyāyāḥ–external; tu–however; alpakam–slight; bhakteḥ–of the practices of devotion; āntaryāḥ–internal; su-mahat-phalam–very great result.

The reason is that by executing bhakti by following one’s prescribed occupational or religious duties, one’s consciousness is cleansed, whereupon one achieves the state of self-satisfaction. Thus, the state of self-satisfaction is a most insignificant result of the superficial practice of devotional service that is based on the execution of one’s prescribed duties. However, pure love for the Lord is the exalted result of bhakti that is performed by processes such as hearing and chanting.

Commentary: Dig-darśinī-ṭīkā with Bhāvānuvāda

(By Śrīla Sanātana Gosvāmī himself including a deep purport of that commentary)

Although the principle of the preceding verse is established, some Vaiṣṇavas nevertheless posit that without bhakti, one cannot attain any kind of perfection. In order to protect their assertion, in this verse the personified bhakti-śāstras establish conclusive understanding on this matter. They say, “Self-satisfaction, or ātmā-rāmatā, the result of purity of heart, is of little value because it arises from the performance of prescribed occupational and religious duties, or sva-dharma, which are external devotional practices. In other words, adherence to prescribed social and religious duties is following the orders of Lord, and so it is bhakti, but the result is the inferior state of self-satisfaction.”

Śrī Gopa-kumāra might raise the following objection, “The assertion that the only result of bhakti is this very insignificant state of self-satisfaction is inappropriate; it does not recognize the greatness of bhakti. The proper understanding is that prema, or unalloyed devotion to the Lord, is the result of bhakti.”

The bhakti-śāstras reply, “In this regard, conclusive understanding is that the insignificant state of self-satisfaction is a very minute result of external devotional service in the form of the execution of one’s prescribed occupational duties. Moreover, within this execution of prescribed duties, there is also confidential devotion in the form of hearing (śravaṇa), chanting (kīrtana), and so on. The exalted and supremely excellent result of this confidential devotion is the wealth of pure love for the Lord, prema-sampada. This perspective eliminates all discord.”