Śrīla Bhakti Vinod Ṭhākur’s commentary on the third verse of Śrī Upadeśāmṛta.
The following is a translation of Śrīla Bhakti Vinod Ṭhākur’s poetic Bengali translation, Bhāṣā, and Bengali prose commentary, Pīyūṣa-varṣiṇī-vṛtti, on Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī Prabhu’s Śrī Upadeśāmṛta.
These texts were published in Śrī Gauḍīya Darśan, in Volume 2, Issue 11, 10 June 1957, Volume 2, Issue 12, 12 July 1957, and Volume 3, Issue 1, 12 August 1957. In combination with Śrīla Bhakti Siddhānta Saraswatī Ṭhākur’s Anuvṛtti, they were also published as a book from Śrī Chaitanya Sāraswat Maṭh by Śrīla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswāmī Mahārāj in 1970.
“The Upadeśāmṛta of Śrīla Rūpa Goswāmī is also extremely good for us; we published Upadeśāmṛta before.”
—Śrīla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswāmī Mahārāj,
Affectionate Guidance
Śrī Upadeśāmṛta Verse Three
utsāhān niśchayād dhairyāt tat-tat-karma-pravartanāt
saṅga-tyāgāt sato vṛtteḥ ṣaḍbhir bhaktiḥ prasidhyati [3]
bhaktiḥ–Devotion prasidhyati–is nourished ṣaḍbhiḥ–by these six [qualities]: utsāhāt–enthusiasm, niśchayāt–conviction, dhairyāt–perseverance, tat-tat-karma-pravartanāt–engaging in favourable activities, saṅga-tyāgāt–giving up [bad] association, [and] sataḥ vṛtteḥ–[following] the conduct of the great souls.
“Devotion is nourished by these six qualities: (1) enthusiasm, (2) conviction, (3) perseverance, (4) engaging in favourable activities, (5) giving up bad association, and (6) following the conduct of the great souls.”
Bhāṣā
ānukūlya-saṅkalpera chhaya aṅga sāra
utsāha viśvāsa dhairya tat-tat-karma āra [1]
saṅga-tyāga sādhu-vṛtti karile āśraya
bhakti-yoga-siddhi labhe sarva-śāstre kaya [2]
All the scriptures say that if one takes shelter in the six most important aspects of accepting the favourable—enthusiasm, conviction, perseverance, engaging in favourable activities, abandoning bad association, and following the conduct of the sādhus—one will attain perfection in the practice of devotion.
bhakti-anuṣṭhāne utsāhera prayojana
bhaktite viśvāsa dṛḍha dhariyāvalambana [3]
ye karma karile haya bhaktira ullāsa
ye karma jīvana-yātrā nirvāhe prayāsa [4]
Enthusiasm for devotional practice, firm conviction in devotion, perseverance, activities by which devotion develops, and activities by which one maintains one’s life are all necessary.
asat-saṅga tyāge haya saṅga-vivarjana
sadāchāra sādhu-vṛtti sarvadā pālana [5]
One should give up association by rejecting bad association, and should always follow the conduct and practices of the great souls.
tyāgī bhikṣā-yoge āra gṛhī dharmāśraye
karibe jīvana yātrā sāvadhāna haye [6]
Renunciants should carefully maintain their lives by begging, and householders should do so by following the codes of proper conduct.
Pīyūṣa-varṣiṇī-vṛtti
Maintaining one’s life and practising devotion are both necessary for devotees. In the first half of this verse, activities that are favourable to the practice of devotion are prescribed, and in the second half, the way devotees should maintain their lives is prescribed. Devotion is perfected by enthusiasm, conviction, perseverance, activities that are nourishing to devotion, giving up bad association, and following the conduct of the great souls. Utsāha means enthusiasm for devotional practice. By indifference [its opposite], devotion is lost. Practice filled with adoration is utsāha. Niśchaya means firm conviction. Dhairya means not slackening in one’s engagement in the process even after seeing delays in the attainment of the goal. Activities that are nourishing to devotion are based on either prescriptions or restrictions. Hearing, chanting, and so on, are the prescriptions, and giving up one’s own enjoyment or happiness for Kṛṣṇa’s sake, and other such activities, are the restrictions. Saṅga-tyāga means giving up the association of irreligious persons, women, the condition of being henpecked, men who associate with women, and nondevotees—materialists, illusionists, atheists, and religious hypocrites. Sad-vṛtti means the conduct followed by the sādhus and the means by which they maintain their lives. For renunciants, sad-vṛtti means begging, and for householders, it means acting according to the rules for their social role and function (varṇa and āśram).
Reference
Read Śrīla Bhakti Vinod Ṭhākur’s commentary on Śrī Upadeśāmṛta: verses one and two.