Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 29
Bhakti as the Supreme Process; Detachment and the Rudiments of Meditation
स्त्रीणां स्त्रीसङ्गिनां सङ्गं त्यक्त्वा दूरत आत्मवान् । क्षेमे विविक्त आसीनश्चिन्तयेन्मामतन्द्रित: ॥ २९ ॥
strīṇāṁ strī-saṅgināṁ saṅgaṁ tyaktvā dūrata ātmavān kṣeme vivikta āsīnaś cintayen mām atandritaḥ
ومن كان واعياً للذات الأبدية فليترك من بعيد صحبة النساء وصحبة من يلازم النساء ملازمةً حميمة. وليجلس بلا خوف في موضعٍ خلوةٍ آمن، وليتفكر فيّ بيقظةٍ تامة دون فتور.
One who has intimate contact with women and becomes attached to them will gradually lose his determination to go back home, back to Godhead. Association with lusty men gives exactly the same result. Therefore, one is advised to be fearless and to sit down in a solitary place, or a place where there are no lusty men and women committing spiritual suicide. Without fear of failure or of unhappiness in life, one should remain with sincere devotees of the Lord. Atandrita means that one should not compromise this principle but should be rigid and cautious. All this is possible only for one who is ātmavān, or fixed in practical understanding of the eternal soul.
FAQs
This verse advises a disciplined seeker to keep distance from association that fuels sense-attachment, and instead cultivate secluded, safe conditions for steady remembrance of Kṛṣṇa.
Kṛṣṇa is instructing Uddhava in practical renunciation and focused bhakti—how to protect the mind from agitation and fix it on the Lord through vigilant meditation.
Limit environments and media that intensify lust and distraction, create a daily quiet space for japa/meditation, and practice consistent remembrance of Kṛṣṇa with alertness.