Shloka 13
Kardama Muni’s Penance, Viṣṇu’s Darśana, and the Arrangement of Devahūti’s Marriage
ऋषिरुवाच जुष्टं बताद्याखिलसत्त्वराशे: सांसिद्ध्यमक्ष्णोस्तव दर्शनान्न: । यद्दर्शनं जन्मभिरीड्य सद्भि- राशासते योगिनो रूढयोगा: ॥ १३ ॥
ṛṣir uvāca juṣṭaṁ batādyākhila-sattva-rāśeḥ sāṁsiddhyam akṣṇos tava darśanān naḥ yad-darśanaṁ janmabhir īḍya sadbhir āśāsate yogino rūḍha-yogāḥ
ऋषिरुवाच—जुष्टं बत अद्य अखिलसत्त्वराशेः, नः अक्ष्णोः सांसिद्ध्यम् तव दर्शनात्। यत् दर्शनं जन्मभिः ईड्यं सद्भिः, आशासते योगिनः रूढयोगाः॥
The Supreme Personality of Godhead is described here as the reservoir of all goodness and all pleasure. Unless one is situated in the mode of goodness, there is no real pleasure. Therefore when one’s body, mind and activities are situated in the service of the Lord, one is on the highest perfectional stage of goodness. Kardama Muni says, “Your Lordship is the reservoir of all that can be understood by the nomenclature of goodness, and by our experiencing You face to face, the perfection of sight has now been attained.” These statements are the pure devotional situation; for a devotee, the perfection of the senses is to engage in the service of the Lord. The sense of sight, when engaged in seeing the beauty of the Lord, is perfected; the power to hear, when engaged in hearing the glories of the Lord, is perfected; the power to taste, when one enjoys by eating prasāda, is perfected. When all the senses engage in relationship with the Personality of Godhead, one’s perfection is technically called bhakti-yoga, which entails detaching the senses from material indulgence and attaching them to the service of the Lord. When one is freed from all designated conditional life and fully engages in the service of the Lord, one’s service is called bhakti-yoga. Kardama Muni admits that seeing the Lord personally in bhakti-yoga is the perfection of sight. The exalted perfection of seeing the Lord is not exaggerated by Kardama Muni. He gives evidence that those who are actually elevated in yoga aspire in life after life to see this form of the Personality of Godhead. He was not a fictitious yogī. Those who are actually on the advanced path aspire only to see the eternal form of the Lord.
FAQs
This verse says the eyes attain complete perfection (sāṁsiddhyam) by having darśana of the Supreme Lord—an attainment desired even by advanced yogīs.
Because Lord Vishnu personally appeared before Kardama Muni, and Kardama recognizes that such direct vision of the Lord is the rare goal praised by saints and sought by perfected yogīs.
Prioritize practices that cultivate remembrance and “vision” of the Lord—hearing sacred texts, sincere prayer, and devotional worship—so that spiritual progress becomes the central goal rather than temporary achievements.