Srimad Bhagavatam – 4.28.38 | HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj | Sofia Bulgaria | August 21, 2025 |
jaya rādhā-mādhava kuñja-vihārī
gopījana-vallabha giri-vara-dhārī
yaśodā-nandana vraja-jana-rañjana
yamunā-tīra-vana-cārī
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Jaya Prabhupāda Jaya Prabhupāda
Prabhupāda Jaya Prabhupāda
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya
Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevaya
nama oṁ viṣṇu-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale
śrīmate bhaktivedānta-svāmin iti nāmine
namas te sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe
nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe
jaya śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda
śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda
Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare
Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare
Reading from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Canto 4 Chapter 28 Verse 38
ŚB 4.28.38
tapasā vidyayā pakva-
kaṣāyo niyamair yamaiḥ
yuyuje brahmaṇy ātmānaṁ
vijitākṣānilāśayaḥ
Synonyms
tapasā — by austerity; vidyayā — by education; pakva — burned up; kaṣāyaḥ — all dirty things; niyamaiḥ — by regulative principles; yamaiḥ — by self-control; yuyuje — he fixed; brahmaṇi — in spiritual realization; ātmānam — his self; vijita — completely controlled; akṣa — senses; anila — life; āśayaḥ — consciousness.
Translation
By worshiping, executing austerities and following the regulative principles, King Malayadhvaja conquered his senses, his life and his consciousness. Thus he fixed everything on the central point of the Supreme Brahman [Kṛṣṇa].
Purport
Whenever the word brahman appears, the impersonalists take this to mean the impersonal effulgence, the brahmajyoti. Actually, however, Parabrahman, the Supreme Brahman, is Kṛṣṇa, Vāsudeva. As stated in Bhagavad-gītā (7.19), vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti: Vāsudeva extends everywhere as the impersonal Brahman. One cannot fix one’s mind upon an impersonal “something.” Bhagavad-gītā (12.5) therefore says, kleśo ’dhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta-cetasām: “For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested, impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome.” Consequently, when it is said herein that King Malayadhvaja fixed his mind on Brahman, “Brahman” means the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj:
Yeah, so here we have a description of Malayadhvaja’s actions. The previous verse describes he was doing great austerities. This verse says, of course, tapasā means austerities, but also vidyayā, he was cultivating knowledge. And he followed yamas and niyamas. Then consequently, he destroyed all contamination. And then he was able to concentrate on Brahman. So, he had conquered his senses and his pranas, etc. He had destroyed all contamination. Then he became qualified for meditation. So, this appears to be a combination of jnana and astanga yoga. And the result is, he could control his senses, his mind, his pranas, etc. And then he could meditate.
So, we see in the astanga yoga system, they start out with yamas and niyamas, rules and regulations. So, the yamas are things you should not do. Like no stealing, no hoarding, etc. And then the niyamas are things you should do, like studying the vedas and worshipping the Lord etc. Then you become qualified for asanas. And then you become qualified for pranayama. And after that, then you begin withdrawing your senses and trying to meditate. So, there’s a particular step-by-step process for meditation. Obviously, you cannot meditate, unless the mind is under control. And the mind comes under control by controlling the pranas, that’s pranayama, and controlling the body. So, this is one method of coming to meditation.
In the process of bhakti, we do not emphasize meditation so much. Instead, we emphasize nama sankirtana. And some people will be very critical. Oh, you’re not doing yoga, bhakti yoga, this is not yoga, you should be doing asanas and meditating. So, definitely, bhakti yoga is not the same as astanga yoga. Each yoga system is different. Ultimately, the goal should be the same. But, we cannot say exactly that the goal is exactly the same. Some goals are partial. So, karma yoga, fine, varnasrama fine, you follow the rules. But, the general goal is svargaloka. So, this means enjoyment. But then, how is it a step towards bhakti?
If you want to go to svargaloka, you have to be sattvic. So, the goal of the varnasrama is to reach sattva guna. So, then, what’s the good of sattva guna? What’s the benefit? Of course, for materialists, you can enjoy svargaloka [Laughs]. The other result of sattva is, you develop vidya, or knowledge. And, this knowledge means, you understand about atma. So, in other words, people who come to sattva guna begin to inquire. They understand they’re not the body, they’re something else. Those in sattva guna become qualified to study the jnana scriptures, that is, the upanisads. If you’re in rajoguna or tamoguna, you’re not qualified. So, only brahmanas can study upanisads and practice jnana yoga. Similarly, we see here the yogi also has to control his senses and then he can practice asanas and pranayama. So, he also has to be qualified with sattva. So, karma yoga is one step towards becoming spiritual.
So, the immediate goal of astanga yoga and jnana yoga is understanding atma. We also understand that’s very important for bhakti. So, therefore, the second chapter of Bhagavad-gītā is all about you’re not the body, you’re the soul [Laughs]. And we see in Prabhupada’s lectures and writing, he’s often just emphasizing, you’re not the body, you’re the soul [Laughs]. Thirty percent of the time in his lectures, he says [Laughs], you’re not the body, you’re the soul [Laughs]. Of course, just to come to that stage of not identifying with the body and identifying with the atma, that’s a big step to make for people. So, some jnanis and yogis, they get to that position and they understand they’re not the body, they’re the soul. Then, they think that is the final goal.
However, as we learned from Bhagavatam and Bhagavad-gita and even upanisads, also something spiritual, something else spiritual was there, that is understanding Supreme Lord, Paramatma and the Supreme Lord. So, in that sense, jnana and yoga are one step towards realizing Supreme Lord. Of course, unfortunately, some people get stuck in svargaloka and they don’t get [Laughs] to realize atma. And many of the jnanis and yogis get stuck in atma and they get liberation and they don’t progress to realizing Supreme Lord. So in any case all of these different yogas are steps towards bhakti yoga and realizing Supreme Lord. However, it’s a, say.. long process. They say gradual process that takes many, many lifetimes. And even this process of jnana and astanga yoga may take many lifetimes.
Therefore, to reach bhakti is very, very, very, very rare. One who becomes qualified for bhakti is a very rare person. So, there are many, many scriptures for karma yoga. And that is because most of the people are on that level of staying in the material world and enjoying it. There are less scriptures for the jnanis and yogis. Why because, there are less people qualified for those processes. And if we look at the vedas, the scriptures for bhakti are even rare. So, many people will conclude, oh, the vedas, upanisads, they don’t mention bhakti at all [Laughs]. So, no, it is there, but scriptures for bhakti are rarer, because the people are rare. As Krsna says in Bhagavad-gita, this knowledge is very rare, guhya, secret. And He says, of course, knowledge of Brahman is secret. Knowledge of Paramatma is more secret. And knowledge of Bhagavan is most secret. So, therefore in that one sense it is rare.
And some people will say, oh, this is not mentioned so much in scriptures, so it is not very authorized. However, if we look at other places, not the vedas, puranas, mahabharata, we find that bhakti is often mentioned. And if we look at Bhagavad-gita, there Krsna says, bhakti is for everybody. First He says, very rare, then He says, for everybody [Laughs]. So, it looks a little bit contradictory. But then He again goes back and says, well, preach, but don’t preach to the faithless people, don’t preach to the envious, don’t preach to everybody [Laughs]. So, it looks, again, contradictory. So, of course, Krsna, we know Supreme Lord, so He is not ignorant, and it actually isn’t contradictory. So, how do we explain this? If there is contradiction that is not explainable, it becomes nonsense. So, all contradictions in scriptures should be resolved. So, fortunately, all of this is resolved very nicely. So, yes, bhakti is rare. That means not generally available for everybody. Just like a precious diamond is not available for everybody. Most people will buy imitation diamonds. Or they get real diamonds, they get very very small diamonds [Laughs]. So to get a big, perfect, real diamond is very expensive and rare, not everybody is going to take it. They are not qualified.
Furthermore, within bhakti, there is also something more rare. To accept that, the Lord has a form is rare. And that’s so far in most religions, its not acceptable. And even in India, most people won’t accept a form of God. So they say the form is material form. So, to understand that God has a form, but it is spiritual, that is even rare, even in India. However, so these people are called Vaisnavas, they accept the spiritual form of God, that’s very rare. However, even among Vaisnavas, we have many forms of God. And most will worship Visnu. To worship Krsna is rare. Of course, Krsna is rare. He is also the highest form of the Lord. So, if Bhagavan is like a diamond, so Krsna is like a very, very, very rare diamond [Laughs]. We have regular diamonds, and then we have a diamond that has a slightly bluish tinge to it. That’s the rarest of all [Laughs]. So, it is the rarest of all to worship Krsna. Of course, even Krsna has various forms. So, the rarest form of Krsna is, Krsna in madhurya rasa. So, that is the rarest of all. So, this is the form that Lord Caitanya has chosen, Radha and Krsna. So, that’s the most rare, and it’s also the topmost form in the spiritual world.
So, yeah, generally, the rarest things are most difficult to get. That is why it’s called rare [Laughs]. Or that’s why we say it is most secret. However, the Supreme Lord is also merciful. And though bhakti is rare, Bhagavan is rare, and Krsna is even rarer, the Lord sometimes is merciful, and He likes to make exceptions [Laughs]. So, though we have this whole system of gradually becoming purified, and going up to, through karma yoga, jnana yoga, astanga yoga, to bhakti yoga, the system of bhakti yoga is such, you can bypass the whole system. So, instead of gradually purifying yourself, from tamoguna, and going into rajoguna and getting into sattvaguna, and then getting liberation, you can actually start bhakti in any guna. The process of bhakti itself is nirguna, so it makes you nirguna. So, even if you are in tamoguna, if you are able to start the process of bhakti by having faith, then you can surpass the gunas. So, therefore the process of bhakti yoga is more flexible than other processes. So, you don’t have to go through all the other processes first. You can just start with bhakti yoga from the lowest position.
And, of course, within bhakti yoga we have another special process, nama sankirtana. Bhakti yoga is flexible, but nama sankirtana is the most flexible [Laughs]. And, it’s the most powerful process. So, therefore, this is the process which gets us to the highest position from the lowest position, with no qualification. It is not revealed by the Lord all the time. But, the Lord is merciful to the people of kali yuga, so, therefore, the kali yuga dharma is revealed through the yuga avatara to be nama sankirtana. Of course, the usual nama sankirtana, yuga dharma, is to attain Visnu. So, once in a day of Brahma, in the 28th cycle of yugas, in vaivasvata manvantara, one day of Brahma, one time, Krsna appears. So, when He appears, everyone becomes very knowledgeable of Krsna. Then, He disappears. So, kali yuga comes, everybody forgets [Laughs]. But, Krsna has made an arrangement for Krsna to stay in kali yuga through Srimad Bhagavatam. So, by hearing Srimad Bhagavatam, again, Krsna becomes manifested in kali yuga. But, then we have in kali yuga, the yuga avatara revealing nama sankirtana.
So, in our particular kali yuga, we have a special yuga avatara, Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He’s not the usual yuga avatara. Just as Krsna also is not the usual Dwapara yuga avatara. Krsna is svayam Bhagavan [Laughs]. And, in kali yuga, in order to reveal Krsna, we need somebody of equal status. So, Lord Caitanya is another form of Krsna. He can reveal Krsna. But, He is little different. He comes with the mood of Radha. So, therefore, Lord Caitanya reveals not only Krsna, but Radha. Of course, the people of kali yuga are not very qualified. So, Lord Caitanya uses nama sankirtana to deliver Radha and Krsna to everybody. So, in other words, in this nama sankirtana, we chant the name, not of Visnu, but we chant the name of Krsna. And, not only we chant the name of Krsna, we also chant the name of Radha in Hare. So, this is the method, by which the people of our kali yuga, after the appearance of Lord Caitanya can easily get bhakti and easily realize Radha and Krsna. Though, there are other processes in bhakti, which are also powerful, nama sankirtana, chanting Hare Krsna is the most powerful process. So, if our goal is prema for Radha and Krsna, then we dedicate most of our energy to nama sankirtana of Hare Krsna.
Okay, so, what about sattva-guna, practicing karma yoga to get sattva-guna? So, through the process of bhakti and nama sankirtana we surpass sattva. We surpass being a sudra, vaisya, ksatriya or brahmana. Bhakti is nirguna. The name of Krsna is nirguna. So, by chanting the name of Krsna, we surpass the whole varnasrama system. We surpass all the gunas. So, last night I quoted that verse, that one who chants the name of the Lord, even if he’s a ‘svapakca’ in real tamoguna, suddenly he surpasses the brahmana [Laughs]. So, not only does chanting the holy name is superior to varnasrama and karma yoga, it’s also superior to jnana yoga and astanga yoga. So, in jnana yoga and astanga yoga, we realize atma and Brahman and may be Paramatma.
So, if we perform bhakti yoga, we surpass these realizations. So, how is that? How do we do that? In the process of bhakti yoga, implicit in bhakti yoga, is the fact that we accept that we are a jiva and we are the servant of the Supreme Lord. So, through the process of bhakti yoga, we surpass the material world and we develop a spiritual body in the spiritual world, so automatically we have liberation, we go beyond liberation. Not only do we take atma beyond liberation, but we situate the atma in the spiritual world and it develops a spiritual body. If we are to serve the Lord eternally in the spiritual world, we need a body. So, we aspire to serve the Lord eternally and the Lord supplies us a spiritual body to do that. So, in this way, the bhakti yoga process includes the results of the other processes and surpasses all of them.
Okay, any question there?
Q & A:
1.) We heard now that Krsna is the yuga avatara for Dvapara yuga. Is it so?
Our particular Dvapara yuga. Not for all the Dvapara yugas in the 1000, only one.
Devotee: [Not clear] Then my question is, if He was the yuga avatara for Dvapara yuga, He came at the end of Dvapara. So, how did He establish the process, spiritual process for Dvapara yuga?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: So, this is usually He would not do so. Like Lord Caitanya appears near the beginning of kali yuga, whatever. So, they will appear near the beginning of the particular yuga.
Devotee: [Not clear]
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: So, because Krsna has a very special aim [Laughs]. He appears at the end, so that Lord Caitanya can appear at the beginning of the next yuga, so there is not too much of a period difference there. So, of course, how is the yuga dharma established then, if He appears at the end [Laughs]? So, though He appears at the end, He can also expand and have His other servants do something at the beginning of the yuga as well.
2.) So, we have heard about the glorious effect of chanting the holy name and how the holy name is bringing you immediately above the gunas. At the same time, the Srimad Bhagavatam got appeared there and it is explaining that you have devotional service influenced by different modes. So, how to connect these two?
So, we have pure bhakti and it is pure bhakti which will lead to prema. Then we have something called nama-bhasa, which is not pure bhakti. Of course, that includes the accidental type of bhakti, like Ajamila. But it also includes people who are intentionally doing bhakti, but they do it impurely. Yeah, so they may do it by mixing it with other yoga systems.
So, we do karma-misra yoga, bhakti, or jnana-misra bhakti, or astanga-yoga-misra bhakti, we can do all these. If we don’t contaminate the bhakti with the desires, from karma-yoga, jnana-yoga, astanga-yoga, that is bhukti or mukti, then it remains pure bhakti and it is permissible to do it. But, if we mix the desires as well, then it is not pure bhakti anymore, it is mixed bhakti. And we get different results, not prema. Then, we don’t do any yoga at all. We just do bhakti, but we are doing it in tamoguna, rajoguna or sattvaguna. So, in all these cases, the bhakti itself is like the name. It is pure. It is nirguna. So, how can we say bhakti is tamasic, rajasic or sattvic [Laughs]? Similarly, how we can say the name is impure [Laughs]? So, technically, no. Name remains a name, just like a diamond remains a diamond, even if it is in mud [Laughs], still a diamond. So, when the effects are obstructed by karma, jnana or astanga yoga or by the gunas, then we will say tamoguna, rajoguna or sattvaguna bhakti.
So, the sattva, rajas and tamas is in the individual’s mind and [Laughs] whatever. So, then definitely we will get less effects by doing bhakti from that. So, we can get some material effects from tamoguna bhakti. And similarly for rajoguna bhakti. For tamoguna bhakti, you can destroy your enemies or something like that [Laughs]. Rajoguna bhakti, okay, we do rajoguna bhakti, we can get some material assets. And by sattva guna bhakti, we can improve ourselves and may be go to svargaloka or whatever. So, of course, a person doing rajoguna bhakti, so, or whatever, sattva guna bhakti or doing karma misra bhakti or jnana misra bhakti, they have the opportunity to do pure bhakti by changing, getting influenced by people practicing pure bhakti.
3.) There are two things Krsna doesn’t know. He doesn’t know the love of His devotees to Him. How to find a way to make Radharani happy? that’s the second thing, He doesn’t know. Why the devotees love Krsna? What is the reason for the love of devotees for Krsna?
Okay yeah, so, the first question was that Krsna doesn’t know what the devotees.
Devotee: It’s not a question. First, he did this statement that Krsna doesn’t know two things, and then he has a question.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Okay, so then, then how is it related to?
Devotee: He would like us to help to answer to this question, because he doesn’t know. So now, when you give the answer, then he can help to understand.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Ok, so what was the last question was? The question was?
Devotee: The question was [Laughs]? The question is, why, what is the reason for the love of the devotees for Krsna?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Why they love Krsna? Well, for the devotees, you’re saying?
Devotee: Yes.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Okay. Yeah, so, for the devotees practicing sadhana bhakti, the reason they are trying to love Krsna [Laughs], is that scripture tells them that He is the most beautiful, He has got the most wonderful qualities, and if we do anything to serve Him, He will reciprocate in the most wonderful way, and we’ll be satisfied. So in another words, we’ll be satisfied with His loving relationship. In the perfect stage of prema, then, of course, it becomes the nature of the individual soul to have this love. So we have, in the material world, we have material loving relationships. And they are the goal of most people. They want some loving relationship in the material world. But it is you know, contaminated with our false identity, with the body, and so many other things. So this is a reflection of the atma itself, desiring a loving relationship. So the atma’s object of love, natural object of love, would be another spiritual object. And the natural spiritual object would be perfect object, with perfect beauty with perfect qualities, etc. So at that stage of prema, then, that love is the very nature of the atma itself.
Devotee: Therefore, ragatmika, therefore they say ragatmika.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Yeah, spontaneous attachment. Does that answer the first two questions [Laughs]?
Devotee: The second question is how Krsna will find a way to Radha, to conquer Radha?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: How can He conquer Radha?
Devotee: Yes.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Okay. So, once we reach the spiritual level, that is difficult for us to really comprehend the details of prema. If we are still conditioned by material conceptions, it’s difficult to understand spiritual things. So, scripture can give us the description, but we can’t really realize it properly [Laughs]. Because you know, in spiritual world, everybody’s knowledge is unlimited. Krsna is omniscient, etc [Laughs]. But if everybody’s knows everything, then nothing can happen [Laughs]. There could be no pastimes or anything because everybody already knows what’s going to happen [Laughs]. So we have the energy, internal energy of the Lord, this antaranga sakti or cit sakti, that operates with yogamaya, to create some sort of spiritual ignorance [Laughs].
This is not like the ignorance of the material world, which gives us ignorance of who I am, and I think I’m a body, and I do all sorts of activities in the material world. Yeah, it’s limitation of an individual’s awareness, so that pastimes can take place. So there the individual got some sort of limitation, the cowherd boy thinks of himself as a cowherd boy, like we think of ourselves as a material body, but it’s not the same [Laughs].
So that limitation of the consciousness is there to increase the relationship with Krsna. So in other words, whatever limitation of knowledge is there, the form of spiritual ignorance is there, to produce pastimes in the spiritual world and constantly produce bliss. So, in pursuance of that, we will have perception of time. So, the destructive time of the material world doesn’t exist. But there has to be a sense of time in order for there to be pastimes. And there has to be a sense of, what to say, trying to please Krsna. And of course, Krsna on His part, has a desire to please the devotee. And in doing so, they may also appear to not know certain things [Laughs]. So the devotee or even Radharani will think, is this going to be pleasing to Krsna or not [Laughs]? And the same with Krsna. He will have that same idea [Laughs]. So, this adds a little bit of suspense to the rasa. It provides a little bit of flavor [Laughs].
4.) How can we recognize ourselves, whether we are doing the bhakti in tamo guna or rajo guna? Some symptoms?
So, tamo guna bhakti. Of course, this is described by Kapila deva. Tamo guna bhakti, you do, you worship the Supreme Lord and you desire to destroy and harm people [Laughs]. It’s destructive, tamo guna bhakti [Laughs]. And in rajo guna, you do bhakti in order to make money and enjoy [Laughs]. In sattva guna, you may do bhakti to be peaceful or even to get liberation.
Devotee: And transcendental?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Transcendental is unconditional. We do bhakti simply to please Krsna.
5.) How to do bhakti without binding with the results of the action? First we offer that to Krishna and after that we do the action, but still I feel some binding.
So, of course, we talk about pure bhakti, it means, anyabhilasita-sunya, which means devoid of other desires, but the desire to please Krsna. So this will be perfect if we attain prema. If we are doing sadhana, we are still, we still have anarthas, we still have desires, etc. We are trying to get rid of them, so it will not actually be perfect. So in sadhana bhakti, actually we can say it is not real pure bhakti [Laughs]. But at least in our sadhana we are attempting to be pure [Laughs].
6.) So unless we become prema bhaktas, we cannot go to spiritual world?
Yeah, when you get to prema, then you are qualified for spiritual world. We can’t do sadhana in the spiritual world [Laughs].
7.) Can we achieve this perfection somewhere, somewhere on the way to the spiritual world?
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: You mean on the way to svargaloka?
Devotee: Ah, no like, I heard this statement of Srila Prabhupada after a class, he was explaining in the class that, you should become 100% perfect to go back to spiritual world, but when he was getting off from the vyasasana, he said but then if you are only 90% perfect, again you will go back to the spiritual world and then he went one step lower and then he said, even if you are perfect 80% again, and he went like this 2,3 times. So the way how devotees explain it is that even if you are not 100% perfect, Prabhupada will give you the rest, whatever you need, so that you can enter the spiritual world.
HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj: Perhaps we can give the example of the gopis in the rasa-lila. So some gopis could not go, they were locked up by their parents, whatever, houses. Then it’s described, they gave up their bodies. Then they attained pure spiritual bodies, and in those bodies they could go to Krsna. So it’s described that some of the gopis were slightly impure, but they were allowed to go to, in the material world at least, they could go to Vrndavana, but they could not really participate, because they were not really qualified. But by that separation from Krsna being locked in their houses, they burned up the last impurities. And then they attained pure spiritual bodies, then they were allowed to enter into the rasa-lila. So, people who are almost perfect get to [Laughs] sit on the edge, and when they become perfect, they enter into spiritual world.
8.) So my question, somebody remembers Krsna in death, so he doesn’t have prema. Is this possible to say?
Yeah, of course, what he remembered? Krsna [Laughs]. What he remembered Krsna, if he is not really pure. Because if you are not pure, then the possibility is that you will remember something material when we are dying [Laughs]. Of course, if a person is still not 100% pure and remembers Krsna, at least, he will continue with the process in next life.
9.) Maharaj, you mentioned the definition of anyabhilasita sunyam jnana karmadi anavrtam. So, if the first line says, all the desires, anya, other, other. Other, yes, so, other desires. And then the next line says, jnana karmadi anavrtam. So, why there has to be… Another. Specification of those already in the, Yeah, every, all the desires. Specifically those, why?
So, that phrase, jnana karmadi anavrtam means, not obstructed by jnana, karma, etc.
But it does not say jnana karmadaya sunya, so, it means you could do it, as long as it does not obstruct. So, karma yoga could be done along with your bhakti as long as there is no contradictory elements there. Obviously, we cannot have other desires there [Laughs]. So desire for svargaloka or brahmaloka cannot be there. And the elements of karma yoga, which are unfavorable to bhakti, also have to be excluded. So, there is no independent worship of devatas or pitras. Yeah. So, therefore, one could do it as long as one does make some favourable elements and has no material desires attached to it.
So then they ask a question, why do it at all? So one answer is, one would do it, simply to set an example for people who do not have faith in bhakti. Then you would continue to do some karma yoga. Or, one way do the, follow the rules of karma yoga, that is, act as a brahmana or ksatriya or vaisya or sudra, to support one’s material body. In any case, one is not attached to it, thinking that I will do karma yoga, and if I don’t do it, I’m sinful. That idea is not proper.
Hare Krsna!
Devotees: Grantharaj Srimad Bhāgavatam ki jai!!! Srila Prabhupada ki jai!!! HH Bhanu Swami Maharaj ki jai!!!