Srimad Bhagavatam — Ekadasha Skandha, Shloka 10
The Song of the Avantī Brāhmaṇa (Avanti-brāhmaṇa-gītā): Mind as the Root of Suffering and Equanimity Amid Insult
तदवध्यानविस्रस्तपुण्यस्कन्धस्य भूरिद । अर्थोऽप्यगच्छन्निधनं बह्वायासपरिश्रम: ॥ १० ॥
tad-avadhyāna-visrasta- puṇya-skandhasya bhūri-da artho ’py agacchan nidhanaṁ bahv-āyāsa-pariśramaḥ
噢，广大心的乌达婆！由于他怠慢那些天神，他的福德之积衰败；连同一切财物也归于消散。他反复劳苦所积聚的成果，尽皆付诸乌有。
The brāhmaṇa’s stock of piety became like a withered branch that no longer gives fruits or flowers. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī comments that the brāhmaṇa had a trace of piety directed at the Supreme Lord with hopes of liberation. That pure portion of the branch of his piety remained unwithered, eventually giving the fruit of knowledge.
FAQs
This verse explains that when one becomes inattentive and loses spiritual merit (puṇya), even great effort and labor may end in the ruin of wealth.
In the Avadhūta’s instructions to Yadu (narrated by Śukadeva), this point illustrates how material security is unstable and depends on divine arrangement, urging Yadu toward detachment and spiritual focus.
Work responsibly, but cultivate steady remembrance of God and ethical discipline; don’t measure success only by money, since without inner vigilance and virtue, outcomes can collapse despite effort.