Srimaad Bhagavatam 10.83.41-42 - Always Keeping Krishna in the Center and Having Faith in Krishna (download mp3)
by Adi Keshav Prabhu at ISKCON Chowpatty
www.iskcondesiretree.com
SB 10.83.41-42
na vayam sadhvi samrajyam
svarajyam bhaujyam apy uta
vairajyam paramesthyam ca
anantyam va hareh padam
kamayamaha etasya
srimat-pada-rajah sriyah
kuca-kunkuma-gandhadhyam
murdhna vodhum gada-bhrtah
Translation:
O saintly lady, we do not desire dominion over the earth, the sovereignty of the King of heaven, unlimited facility for enjoyment, mystic power, the position of Lord Brahma, immortality or even attainment of the kingdom of God. We simply desire to carry on our heads the glorious dust of Lord Krsna’s feet, enriched by the fragrance of kunkuma from His consort’s bosom.
Purport:
The verb raj means “to rule,” and from it are derived the words samrajyam, meaning “rulership over the entire earth,” and svarajyam, meaning “rulership over heaven.” Bhaujyam comes from the verb bhuj, “to enjoy,” and thus refers to the capacity of enjoying whatever one desires. Virat is explained by Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti as representing the phrase vividham virajate (“one enjoys many kinds of opulence”) and specifically indicating the eight mystic perfections of anima and so on.
An alternative explanation of these terms is given by Srila Sridhara Svami, who says that according to the Bahv-rca Brahmana, these four terms designate the power of sovereignty over each of the four cardinal directions: samrajya for the East, bhaujya for the South, svarajya for the West, and vairajya for the North.
Lord Krsna’s queens clearly state that they do not desire any of these powers, or even the position of Brahma, liberation or entrance into the kingdom of God. They simply want the dust from Sri Krsna’s feet, which Goddess Sri herself worships. Srila Visvanatha Cakravarti tells us that the goddess of fortune mentioned here is not Laksmi, the consort of Narayana. After all, the acarya explains, Goddess Laksmi could not attain the direct association of Krsna even after performing extended austerities, as Uddhava states: nayam sriyo ’nga u nitanta-rateh prasadah (Bhag. 10.47.60). Rather, the Sri referred to here is the supreme goddess of fortune identified by the Brhad-gautamiya-tantra:
devi krsna-mayi prokta
radhika para-devata
sarva-laksmi-mayi sarva
kantih sammohini para
“The transcendental goddess Srimati Radharani is the direct counterpart of Lord Sri Krsna. She is the central figure for all the goddesses of fortune. She possesses all the attractiveness to attract the all-attractive Personality of Godhead. She is the primeval internal potency of the Lord.”