Śrī-Śrī-Prema-Bhakti-Candrikā, verse 7

baiṣṇaba-caraṇa-reṇu, bhūṣaṇa kariyā tanu,

yāhā haite anubhaba haya |
mārjana haya bhajana, sādhu-saṅge anukṣaṇa,
ajñāna abidyā parājaya || 7 ||
By ornamenting one’s body with dust from the lotus feet of Vaiṣṇavas, one gains spiritual
realization. Continuously performing bhajana in the association of advanced devotees, one becomes
purified and conquers illusion and ignorance.
Dust from the Bhakta’s Feet and Sādhu-Saṅga
Sudhā-Kaṇikā-Vyākhyā: In this verse, Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya first of all glorifies the dust from
the lotus feet of Vaiṣṇavas. baiṣṇaba-caraṇa-reṇu, bhūṣaṇa kariyā tanu, yāhā haite anubhaba
haya. In the matter of obtaining bhakti or fruition of one’s bhajana, all the śāstras have with one
voice proclaimed the extraordinary power of the dust from the Vaiṣṇavas’ lotus feet. In verse
5.12.12 of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the essence of all vedānta, the great sage Jaḍabharata says to
Mahārāja Rahūgaṇa,
rahūgaṇaitat tapasā na yāti na cejyayā nirvapaṇād gṛhād vā |
na cchandasā naiva jalāgni-sūryair vinā mahat-pāda-rajo’bhiṣekam ||
“O Mahārāja Rahūgaṇa! If one is never anointed with the foot-dust of a great soul, even though he
may perform austerities or Vedic rituals, give food and other goods in charity or build houses for the
benefit of others, study the Vedas, worship the gods of water, fire or the sun, or perform any other
type of sādhana, he will not be able to acquire true knowledge of God.”
In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.5.32, Śrīla Prahlāda Mahāśaya says to his father Hiraṇyakaśipu,
naiṣāṁ matis tāvad urukramāṅghriṁ spṛśaty anarthāpagamo yad-arthaḥ |
mahīyasāṁ pāda-rajo’bhiṣekaṁ niṣkiñcanānāṁ na vṛṇīta yāvat ||
“So long as a worldly man has not been sprinkled with the foot-dust of the great souls, who are
devoid of materialistic egotism, his thoughts are unable to touch the lotus feet of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. When
the intellect is firmly fixed at Śrī Kṛṣṇa’s feet, all of one’s anarthas spontaneously disappear.”
When Bhṛgu Muni kicked Śrī Nārāyaṇa’s chest to test his true nature (Bhāg. 10.89.11-12), Śrī
Nārāyaṇa replied,
punīhi saha-lokaṁ māṁ loka-pālāṁś ca mad-gatān | pādodakena bhavatas tīrthānāṁ tīrtha-
kāriṇā ||
adyāhaṁ bhagavan lakṣmyā āsam ekānta-bhājanam | vatsyaty urasi me bhūtir bhavat-pāda-
hatāṁhasaḥ ||
In his Śrī Caitanya-Bhāgavata, Śrīla Vṛndāvana Dāsa Ṭhākura has given a very beautiful Bengali
translation of these verses:
ei ye tomāra pādodaka puṇya-jala | tīrthere karaye tīrtha hena sunirmala ||
yateka brahmāṇḍa baise āmāra dehete | yata loka-pāla saba āmāra sahite ||
pādodaka diyā āji karilā pabitra | akṣaya haiyā raha tomāra caritra ||
ei ye tomāra śrī-caraṇa-cihna-dhūli | bakṣe rākhilāma āmi hai kutūhalī ||
lakṣmī-saṅge nija-bakṣe dila āmi sthāna | bede yena śrībatsa-lāñchana bale nāma ||
“The water from your feet is so sacred and pure that it sanctifies even the holy places. All the
universes and their presiding deities reside within my body, and today you have purified us with the
water from your feet. Your good name will be known forever. Having your footprints upon my chest
delights me so much that I keep them alongside Lakṣmīdevī, who resides there as the curl of hair
known in the Vedas as śrīvatsa.”
Svayaṁ Bhagavān Śrī Kṛṣṇa said to Uddhava, anuvrajāmy ahaṁ nityaṁ pūyeyety aṅghri-reṇubhiḥ
(Bhāg. 11.14.16). “O Uddhava! I shall purify the whole universe with the dust from the feet of
the bhaktas, to whom I’m forever devoted, thus blessing everyone with the gift of bhakti” (Śrīdhara
Svāmī’s commentary). In this current kali-yuga, Śrīman Mahāprabhu, the combined form of Śrī
Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, eager for the taste of bhakti-rasa, has himself taken the dust from the Vaiṣṇavas’ lotus
feet. sabāra caraṇa-dhūli laya biśvambhara (Caitanya-Bhāgavata). “Viśvambhara has taken
everyone’s foot-dust.” Śrīla Kṛṣṇadāsa Kavirāja Gosvāmipāda has written,
bhakta-pada-dhūli āra bhakta-pada-jala | bhakta-bhukta-abaśeṣa—tina mahābala ||
ei tina sebā haite kṛṣṇa-premā haya | punaḥ punaḥ sarbaśāstre phukāriyā kaya ||
“These three substances are very powerful: the dust from the bhakta’s feet, the water from his feet,
and the remnants from his meal. By accepting them, one develops kṛṣṇa-prema. This is repeatedly
proclaimed in every śāstra.” (CC. Ant. 16.60-61)
About adorning one’s body with the Vaiṣṇavas’ foot-dust, Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya says, baiṣṇaba-
caraṇa-reṇu bhūṣaṇa kariyā tanu. Just as men and women of the world very meticulously adorn
themselves with ornaments for decorating their bodies, in the same way, for beautifying one’s own
soul, one must very carefully and lovingly serve the foot-dust of Vaiṣṇavas. By this, we are being
advised to have the highest regard for the Vaiṣṇavas. vaiṣṇavānāṁ parā bhaktiḥ (Nārada-
Pañcarātra). “The highest reverence shall be shown toward the Vaiṣṇavas.” The Vaiṣṇavas are to be
honored by the sādhakas of the bhakti-mārga just as they honor Śrī Viṣṇu. vaiṣṇavā viṣṇuvat
pūjyāḥ. If a bhakta-sādhaka doesn’t show respect for the Vaiṣṇavas, Śrī Bhagavān is never pleased
by that person’s sādhana-bhajana.
ye me bhakta-janāḥ pārtha na me bhaktāś ca te janāḥ |
mad-bhaktānāṁ ca ye bhaktās te me bhaktatamā matāḥ || (Ādi-Purāṇa)
tasmād viṣṇu-prasādāya vaiṣṇavān paritoṣayet |
prasāda-sumukho viṣṇus tenaiva syān na saṁśayaḥ || (Itihāsa-Samuccaya)
Śrī Bhagavān said to Arjuna, “O Pārtha! Those who worship me alone are not my true bhaktas; I
consider those who are the bhaktas of my bhaktas to be the highest of all. Therefore, for the
satisfaction of Viṣṇu, all arrangements must be made to satisfy the Vaiṣṇavas. If the Vaiṣṇavas are
pleased, then Viṣṇu is also pleased. Of this there is no doubt.” On the other hand, if the Vaiṣṇavas
are disrespected even a little, though one may worship the soul of the universe Śrī Viṣṇu hundreds
of times, the Lord will not be satisfied: prasīdati na viśvātmā vaiṣṇave cāpamānite. Therefore, Śrī
Bhagavān eloquently said to Śrī Uddhava, mad-bhakta-pūjābhyadhikā (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
11.19.21). abhyadhikā-mat-pūjāto’pi tatra mama santoṣa-viśeṣāt (from Śrī Jīva’s commentary).
“Seeing my bhakta being worshipped gives me more satisfaction than receiving worship myself.
Therefore, great honor shall be given to the bhaktas.” In the matter of obtaining bhakti, the service
of great souls has certainly been mentioned in many śāstras and in the writings of the mahājanas.
Consequently, it has been said, yāhā haite anubhaba haya, meaning that if the sādhaka’s body is
adorned with dust from the feet of Vaiṣṇavas, he will acquire realization concerning
his sambandha, abhidheya and prayojana.
After this, Śrīla Ṭhākura Mahāśaya says, mārjana haya bhajana, sādhu-saṅge anukṣaṇa, ajñāna
abidyā parājaya. If one decorates his body with the Vaiṣṇava’s foot-dust, or places that dust upon
his head, with great devotion and faith, and with the understanding that it can fulfill all desires, one
obtains the good fortune of constant sādhu-saṅga. In that continual sādhu-saṅga,
one’s bhajana becomes purified, and as a secondary result, ignorance and illusion are also
destroyed. Concerning the importance of sādhu-saṅga, in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.26.31 we
find yathopaśrayamāṇasya bhagavantaṁ vibhāvasum, śītaṁ bhayaṁ tamo’py eti sādhūn
saṁsevatas tathā. “Just as under the shelter of Bhagavān Agnideva, cold, fear and darkness are
destroyed, in the same way, under the shelter of the sādhus, the stupefying effect of the jīva’s
karma, his fear of worldly life and the ignorance born of worldly life are all destroyed.” In his
commentary on this verse, Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartipāda has written, svīyaudana-siddhy-artham
upāśrayamāṇasya apy eti naśyati. tathaiva bhajana-siddhy-arthaṁ sādhūn saṁsevyamānasya
karmādi-jāḍyaṁ saṁsāra-bhayaṁ bhajana-vighnaś ca. “When one lights a fire in the stove for
cooking rice and vegetables, besides the food being cooked, a natural consequence is that cold, fear
and darkness are also dispelled. In the same way, for attaining success in bhajana, if one associates
with and serves the sādhus, a concomitant result of this bhajana-siddhi is the destruction of the
stifling effect of karma, the fear of worldly life, illusion, ignorance and any other impediment
to bhajana.” And why is that satsaṅga direct bhakti? Because it has the power to captivate Śrī
Bhagavān.
athaitat paramaṁ guhyaṁ śṛṇvato yadunandana |
sugopyam api vakṣyāmi tvaṁ me bhṛtyaḥ suhṛt-sakhā || (Bhāg. 11.11.49)
na rodhayati māṁ yogo na sāṅkhyaṁ dharma eva ca |
na svādhyāyas tapas tyāgo neṣṭā-pūrtaṁ na dakṣiṇā ||
vratāni yajñaś chandāṁsi tīrthāni niyamā yamāḥ |
yathāvarundhe sat-saṅgaḥ sarva-saṅgāpaho hi mām || (Bhāg. 11.12.1-2)
Śrī Bhagavān said to Śrī Uddhava, “O Yadunandana! You are my best friend, servant and ally.
Therefore, I’m telling you a very confidential secret; please listen. Aṣṭāṅga-yoga, truth-
discerning sāṅkhya, varṇāśrama-dharma or other dharmas such as nonviolence, reciting the Vedas,
performing austerities, renunciation, doing public welfare work such as performing the agniṣṭoma-
yāga and constructing wells and gardens, giving charity, making vows, worshipping the gods,
chanting mantras, going on pilgrimages, self-restraint, fire sacrifices and so on—none of these
have the power to capture me. Only sādhu-saṅga can remove all other attachments and bring me
under its control.” Therefore, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 12.10.7 says, ayaṁ hi paramo lābho nṛṇāṁ
sādhu-samāgamaḥ. “This sādhu-saṅga is indeed the greatest attainment for everyone.” The
indescribable importance of such sādhu-saṅga has been repeatedly extolled in all the
spiritual śāstras. sādhu-saṅga sādhu-saṅga sarba-śāstre kaya, laba-mātra sādhu-saṅge sarba-
siddhi haya. “In all the śāstras it said that only a moment’s association with a sādhu can bring about
all success.” (CC. Mad. 22.54)