Shloka 5
Parīkṣit’s Inquiry into Vṛtrāsura’s Bhakti and the Beginning of Citraketu’s Trial
मुक्तानामपि सिद्धानां नारायणपरायण: । सुदुर्लभ: प्रशान्तात्मा कोटिष्वपि महामुने ॥ ५ ॥
muktānām api siddhānāṁ nārāyaṇa-parāyaṇaḥ su-durlabhaḥ praśāntātmā koṭiṣv api mahā-mune
O großer Weiser, selbst unter Millionen Befreiter und Vollkommener ist ein Nārāyaṇa-zugewandter, völlig friedvoller Bhakta äußerst selten.
Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura gives the following purport to this verse. Simply desiring mukti, or liberation, is insufficient; one must become factually liberated. When one understands the futility of the materialistic way of life, one becomes advanced in knowledge, and therefore he situates himself in the vānaprastha order, unattached to family, wife and children. One should then further progress to the platform of sannyāsa, the actual renounced order, never to fall again and be afflicted by materialistic life. Even though one desires to be liberated, this does not mean he is liberated. Only rarely is someone liberated. Indeed, although many men take sannyāsa to become liberated, because of their imperfections they again become attached to women, material activities, social welfare work and so on.
FAQs
This verse states that even among countless liberated and perfected souls, a person exclusively devoted to Nārāyaṇa with a fully peaceful heart is extremely rare.
Because the Bhagavatam teaches that liberation and mystic perfection can exist without loving surrender to the Lord, whereas exclusive devotion to Nārāyaṇa is the highest and rarest attainment.
Cultivate exclusive remembrance and service of Nārāyaṇa; such one-pointed devotion naturally pacifies the mind amid stress and distractions.