Vedic Literature | Ekamsat | Uddhava-Gita | Concluding Instruction to Uddhava
2. Oh lotus-eyed One! Generally the yogis, who try to obtain mastery over their mind, exhaust themselves in that effort in vain. Having failed in their effort they get frustrated.
3. Therefore, men of true discrimination, instead of going for these difficult ways, seek shelter at Thy nectar-showering feet and are at ease. Oh Lord of All! Those others who, out of pride in their own capacity, take the paths of karma and yoga, are deluded by Thy Maya.
4. Oh Achyuta! Oh Thou, the well-wisher of all! Such is Thy glory that even all the world-lords like Brahma are always making their obeisance to Thee touching Thy feet with their crowns. In spite of this abounding glory, Thou didst condescend to seek the friendship of mere animals in Thy incarnation as Rama and of cattle and lowly men in the present incarnation as Krishna. What wonder is there then in Thy giving Thy own self to Thy devotees, Thy servants who have none but Thee as refuge?
5. Who that is conscious of the invaluable blessings received from Thee will not yearn to serve Thee, the soul of all, the most lovable of all, the bestower of the prayers of all? Who will, in preference to Thy service, seek heaven and other boons, even if bestowed by Thee, as they lead to mere sensuous enjoyment and consequent forgetfulness of Thee? There is nothing that Thy servants cannot get; but a true servant of Thine cares for nothing but the service of Thy feet.
6. Even enlightened beings like Brahma are not able to repay even to a small
extent Thy gracious blessing in spite of serving Thee joyfully for two
paraardhas as Thy agent in creation. That blessing consists in Thy manifesting
as the inner-pervader within and as the guru without, effacing all evil
tendencies of the Jiva and thereby revealing one’s real nature as the Atman.
9. Always remembering Me, having one’s mind, both conscious and sub-conscious, resigned to Me, and having full conviction in, and acceptance of, My Bhagavata dharma, an aspirant should do all actions deliberately as offerings unto Me.
10. He should make pilgrimage to places that have gained sanctity by the stay of My great devotees. He should also try to follow the examples set by My great devotees among different species of beings like Devas, asuras and men.
11. He should, individually or in association with others, observe days especially sacred to Me with grand celebrations attended with music, dance, processions, and display of royal insignia like the ceremonial umbrella.
12. The pure-minded devotee should recognize Me, Lord of All, as the Spirit pervading, within and without, every object including him, like the space pervading everything unobstructed by any barriers.
13-14. Oh Uddhava of mighty intelligence! Know him to be a man of true illumination (pandit) who, with the help of the insight born of knowledge, could have evenness of outlook, and perceive and honour all beings as My manifestations, be they holy men or out-castes, persecutors or adorers of holy men, the sun or a spark of fire, a tranquil person or a ferocious and cruel man.
15. In those who constantly seek to find My Presence in all human beings, there will no longer be any competition with equals, jealousy towards superiors, contempt for inferiors, and too much self-consciousness with regard to oneself.
16. Overlooking the ridicule of friends and relatives, casting aside the sense of high or low on mere physical considerations, and throwing away all shyness and shame based on such ideas, one should fall down in prostration like a stick before all beings – even dogs, outcastes, cattle, asses, etc, seeing all of them as manifestation of the Supreme Being.
17. Until the consciousness that all these beings are My manifestation has been established in the mind, one should seek to commune with Me through external worship, and My presence in all through thought, word and action.
18. By virtue of perceiving the presence of the Atman everywhere, a devotee gains that knowledge by which he perceives everything as the Brahman. He becomes free of all doubts, and he can abandon all karma.
19. Of all means of spiritual disciplines, the best, according to Me, is to realize My presence in everything through the functioning of the three instruments – mind, speech and action.
20. Oh Uddhava! When the dharma propounded by Me (Bhagavata-dharma), in which all actions are done in dedication to Me without an eye on the fruits of action, is accepted and practised, there is no wastage what-so-ever in one’s efforts from the beginning. For, unlike in rites done with desires for fruits, which would end in total failure if done improperly, here in this path whatever is done helps one’s spiritual evolution in this birth or in what follows, and one can continue from where one has left. Its basis is spiritual and not material, and so its effects are imperishable. This is as I, the Supreme One, have ordained.
21. Oh noble one! Even ordinary vain worldly actions like running away and crying owing to fear and sorrow, if done in dedication to Me, will have spiritual potency. There is no need then to speak about the high spiritual efficacy of Bhagavata-dharma consciously practised.
22. The attainment of Me, the True and the Immortal, with the help of even this insignificant mortal body, is the real wisdom of the wise and the skill of the skillful.
23. I have now expounded to you the essence of the doctrine of the Brahman propounded in the Veda (Upanisads), both in summary and in detail. Even the Devas cannot have the benefit of such an exposition.
24. These teachings on spiritual wisdom have been clearly expounded to you again and again in the light of valid reasoning. Hearing this, all doubts will have been cleared and liberation attained.
25. Even a person who reflects on the questions put by you and the answers I have given will attain to that imperishable Brahman whose truth is revealed by the Veda.
26. To that pious person who fully expounds this teaching on the Brahman among My devotees, I gift My own Self out of love for him.
27. He, who every day reads loudly this holy and sanctifying discourse, will be revealing Me to all with he lamp of knowledge. Thereby he sanctifies himself as well as others.
28. A man, who hears it every day diligently in an attitude of supreme devotion to Me, will be free of bondage to karma.
29. Oh Uddhava, my dear friend! Have you fully grasped the Supreme Truth I have explained to you? Is your mind free of grief and delusion?
30. You should not reveal this to a hypocrite having no real faith, to an atheist who accepts neither God nor His revelation, to a crafty man, to one who does not like to hear it, or to one without any trace of devotion.
31. You can impart it to persons who are devoted to holy men and to Me, who are of high moral standard, and who are pure in life. If they have devotion, it can be imparted even to persons of inferior birth.
32. After studying this discourse, there is nothing more for a spiritual aspirant to enquire about and understand, just as, after one takes nectar, there is nothing better to drink.
33. For a highly evolved devotee like you, I am verily the four ultimate values of life, namely dharma obtained through karma; wealth and prosperity obtained through trade, industry and state-craft; siddhis and enjoyment obtained through yoga; and liberation obtained through enlightenment.
34. When a man abandons dependence on all self-centred actions and resigns
himself to Me, he then becomes very dear to Me. Established in the sense that he
is the Immortal Spirit, he becomes one with the Universal Being, the Brahman.
36. With great effort, he controlled his mind that had been overpowered by Divine Love to the point of speechlessness. Conscious of the great blessing that the Lord had bestowed on him, with palms joined in salutation, and his head touching the lotus feet of Krishna, the Lord of the clan of Yadus.
38. Still Thou hast taken the trouble to transmit the light of knowledge to Thy servant through this elaborate exposition. Which grateful man will desert the service of so loving a master and seek any other shelter?
39. That strong bond of love embracing the clans of Vrishnis, Dasarhas, Andhakas, Sattvatas established by Thy Yogamaya for the progress of Thy creative activities has now been cut asunder by Thee with the sword of self-knowledge.
40. Salutations to Thee, Oh master Yogi who confers the fruits of their striving
on yogis! Bless me, Thy refugee, so that I may have constant and unwavering
attachment to Thy sacred feet!
46. With a mind stricken by the thought of separation from his most beloved Lord, he felt extremely distressed and found it impossible to take leave of Him and start for Badari. Then placing on his head the Lord’s sandals presented to him, and prostrating before him again and again, he left the place somehow.
47. Realizing the Lord as lodged in his heart, the great devotee left for Visala (Badaryashrama). Staying there, he practised what the Lord, the universal friend of all, had instructed, and attained to the state of Hari.
48. Thus the Lord Krishna, whose feet are worshipped by the great yogis, collected this cream of knowledge from the ocean of Bliss, the extensive devotional tradition, for the instruction of His devotee Uddhava. He, who imbibes it with pure and powerful faith in its potency, will save himself as also any one who associates with him.
49. In order to rid devotees of the fear of death and old age, the great Being Krishna, from whom the Veda originated, herein gathered, from the extensive garden of Vedic thought, this concentrated honey of knowledge for realization of the Supreme. As He collected the nectar (amrita) from the ocean of milk for distribution among the Devas, so has He placed this teaching before all devotees for all time to come, for their benefit. I salute that Supreme Person Krishna, the greatest of all beings.