Verse 2.46

Sanskrit text, Unicode transliteration, Word-for-word and English translation of verse 2.46:

यावान् अर्थ उदपाने सर्वतः सम्प्लुतोदके ।
तावान् सर्वेषु वेदेषु ब्राह्मणस्य विजानतः ॥ ४६ ॥

yāvān artha udapāne sarvataḥ samplutodake |
tāvān sarveṣu vedeṣu brāhmaṇasya vijānataḥ || 46 ||

yāvān–whatever; arthaḥ–purpose; uda-pāne–by (many) wells; sarvataḥ–in all respects; sampluta-udake–served by a large lake; tāvān–that many (purposes); sarveṣu–within all; vedeṣu–the Vedas; brāhmaṇasya–of the devotee brāhmaṇa; vijānataḥ–who has knowledge (of the Vedas).

The various necessities served by many small wells can easily be served by a large lake. Similarly, whatever results are attained by the worship of various demigods, as described in the Vedas, can easily be attained through the worship of Śrī Bhagavān by a brāhmaṇa endowed with devotion who knows the essence of the Vedas.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Ṭīkā

(By Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura; the innermost intention of the commentary named ‘the shower of essential meanings’)

Śrī Kṛṣṇa continues, “Oh, what more can I say about the glories of that bhakti-yoga, which is free from both material desires and the modes of material nature! Even initial endeavours in bhakti are neither lost nor adverse in their effect.”

Also in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.29.20), Śrī Kṛṣṇa has told Uddhava:

na hy aṅgopakrame dhvaṃso mad-dharmasyoddhavāṇv api
mayā vyavasitaḥ samyaṅ nirguṇatvād anāśiṣaḥ

O Uddhava, because I have personally determined the transcendental nature of this process, even if selfless action performed for pure bhakti in the form of hearing and chanting is improperly performed, there is no possibility of the slightest loss.

However, in this context, resolute intelligence, or vyavasāyātmikā-buddhi, also indicates devotion performed with material desires (sakāma-bhakti-yoga). To prove this, Śrī Bhagavān uses an example when He speaks the verse beginning with yāvān. Since udapāne is a singular noun, it has been used in a similar case. Here, the word udapāne indicates a group of wells. Many purposes are fulfilled by different wells. One well is used for cleaning after evacuation, one for brushing teeth, one for washing cloth, one for cleaning hair, one for bathing and one for drinking water. The different purposes fulfilled by various wells can all be fulfilled by a large reservoir of water. It is laborious to go to different wells for various purposes, but it takes no labour to go to one reservoir. Moreover, a small well often has salty water, but water from a large lake is sweet. One should deliberate on this difference between a well and a lake. Similarly, the different fruits one attains through worshipping various demigods by the procedures described in the Vedas can all be attained simply by worshipping Śrī Bhagavān. The word brāhmaṇasya means ‘those who know brahma (Veda)’. Only a brāhmaṇa knows the Vedas, but beyond Vedic knowledge is the knowledge of the real brāhmaṇas, who specifically know bhakti to be the ultimate meaning of the Vedas.

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.3.2) also states:

brahma-varcasa-kāmas tu yajeta brahmaṇaḥ patim
indram indriya-kāmas tu prajā-kāmaḥ prajāpatīn

A person desiring the brahma effulgence should worship Brahmā, the master of the Vedas. A person desiring satisfaction of the senses should worship Indra. A person desiring progeny should worship the Prajāpatis, while a person desiring wealth should worship Durgā.

After this it is said:

akāmaḥ sarva-kāmo vā mokṣa-kāma udāra-dhīḥ
tīvreṇa bhakti-yogena yajeta puruṣaṃ param

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (2.3.10)

Whether one is free from desires, full of desires or desirous of liberation, one should, having attained a higher intelligence, worship the Supreme Personality Śrī Bhagavān, with intense bhakti-yoga.

Just as the rays of the sun are very intense when the sky is free from clouds, similarly, bhakti-yoga, which is devoid of jñāna and karma, is also very intense. One’s intelligence becomes many-branched by worshipping a number of demigods to fulfil various desires. Only Śrī Bhagavān, however, can fulfil all of one’s desires. When even a particle of such intelligence is engaged in worship, it is considered to be one-pointed because of the superlative nature of the object of worship.

Commentary: Sārārtha-Varṣiṇī Prakāśikā-vṛtti

(By Śrīla Bhaktivedānta Nārāyaṇa Gosvāmī Mahārāja; the explanation that illuminates the commentary named Sārārtha-varṣiṇī)

The various activities that can be performed by the use of separate wells can all be performed by using a large reservoir of water, such as a lake. Similarly, the various desires that can be fulfilled by worshipping many different demigods, according to the Vedic directives, can all be fulfilled simply by worshipping Bhagavān. If the heart is filled with many material desires, various demigods are worshipped to fulfil those desires. The resulting intelligence, which is many-branched, is known as avyavasāyātmikā-buddhi. In contrast to this, the one-pointed worship of Śrī Bhagavān is only achieved by focused, resolute intelligence. For this reason, those who know the Vedas explain bhakti to be the sole essence of the Vedas. Therefore, one’s intelligence is only resolute in bhakti-yoga.