“After attaining bhakti, then what happens to that person?” Giving a particular case of the general rule, the Lord speaks this verse. By bhakti alone one knows Me truly as either “that” or as “Me”. Thus, the jñānī knows Me as tat (Brahman) and the various devotees know Me as mām (Bhagavān). Since I have said that only by pure bhakti am I known (bhakyāham ekayā grahyaḥ), then the jñānī under discussion, after that (tad-anantaram), by that bhakti alone which functions after the cessation of vidyā, knowing Me, enters Me. He realizes the happiness of merging with Me (sāyujya). The meaning is that since I am beyond māyā and vidyā is part of māyā, I (even in the form of Brahman) cannot be known by vidyā. But there may be objection, for in the Nārada Pañcarātra it is said: sāṅkhya-yogau ca vairāgyaṁ tapo bhaktiś ca keśave pañca-parvaiva vidyā Oh Keśava, there are five types of knowledge: sāṅkhya, yoga, vairāgya, tapas and bhakti. Bhakti is thus said to be a function of vidyā in this verse. However, this actually means that some small portion of the hlādinī-śakti of bhakti enters into vidyā in order to give vidyā its results, just as bhakti also enters into karma-yoga in order give results of karma. This can be said because there are many statements saying that karma, jñāna, yoga and other processes are just useless labor without bhakti. Since nirguṇa bhakti is not a function of vidyā filled with sattva-guṇa, though vidyā is the cause of extinguishing avidyā, the cause of knowledge of tat is bhakti alone. Moreover, the smṛti says sattvam sañjayate jñānam: sattva gives rise to jñāna. (BG 14.17) Knowledge, which arises from sattva, is called sattva. Just as the word sattva indicates vidyā, so knowledge arising from bhakti is often called bhakti. Sometimes it is called bhakti and other times it is called jñāna. Therefore, one should see that there are two types of knowledge. Giving up the first type of knowledge (sattva), by the second type of knowledge (bhakti), one will attains brahma-sāyujya. This can be understood by consulting the Bhāgavatam 11, twenty-fifth chapter. Now, those who presume to be jñānīs, desiring sāyujya, by executing jñāna alone without bhakti at all, obtain only suffering as their fruit. They are the most heavily condemned. There are others also who, knowing that one cannot attain liberation by jñāna alone without bhakti, practice jñāna mixed with bhakti. But they consider the form of bhagavan as a falsity (upādhi) created by māyā, and consider that the body of the Lord is made of the guṇas. Reaching the state of yogārūḍha, they think themselves liberated. They too are condemned. It is said: mukha-bāhūru-pādebhyaḥ puruṣasyāśramaiḥ saha catvāro jajñire varṇā guṇair viprādayaḥ pṛthak Each of the four social orders, headed by the brāhmaṇas, was born through different combinations of the modes of nature, from the face, arms, thighs and feet of the Supreme Lord in His universal form. Thus the four spiritual orders were also generated. SB 11.5.2 ya evaṁ puruṣaṁ sākṣād ātma-prabhavam īśvaram na bhajanty avajānanti sthānād bhraṣṭāḥ patanty adhaḥ If any of the members of the four varṇas and four āśramas fail to worship or intentionally disrespect the Personality of Godhead, who is the source of their own creation, they will fall down from their position into a hellish state of life. SB 11.5.3 The meaning is that both those who do not worship Me and as well those who do worship Me but also disrespect Me, even if they are sannyāsīs, have all their knowledge destroyed and fall. It is also said: ye ’nye ’ravindākṣa vimukta-māninas tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho ’nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ O lotus-eyed Lord, although non-devotees who accept severe austerities and penances to achieve the highest position may think themselves liberated, their intelligence is impure. They fall down from their position of imagined superiority because they have no regard for Your lotus feet. SB 10.2.32 The word “foot” (aṅghri) should be taken to indicate “with bhakti.” Thus the phrase would mean “those who do not accept Your feet with devotion.” They accept the Lord, but in the wrong way. The phrase anādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghraya means that they disrespect the Lord by thinking that the Lord’s body is material. It is also said: avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam The fools do not know Me. They think I have taken the body of a material human. BG 9.11 Actually His form is human, but it is also sat-cid-ānanda. That form can be seen only by the influence of the Lord’s inconceivable kṛpā-śakti. It is said in the Nārāyaṇa Adhyātma: nityāvyakto’pi bhagavān īkṣ(y)ate nija-śaktitaḥ tām ṛte paramānandaṁ kaḥ paśyet tam imaṁ prabhum The Lord who is eternal and invisible can be seen through His own śakti. Other than by that means, who can see that Lord of the highest bliss? That the Lord has a sat-cid-ānanda body is confirmed in the Gopāla Tāpanī Upaniṣad (1.33) with sat-cid-ānanda-vigraham śrī-vṛndāvana-sura-bhūruha-talāsīnam: that form of the Lord which is eternity knowledge and bliss was seated at the base of a desire tree in Vṛndāvana. darśayām āsa taṁ kṣattaḥ śābdaṁ brahma dadhad vapuḥ The Lord showed Himself to that Kardama Muni and displayed His transcendental form, which can be understood only through the Vedas. SB 3.21.8 Thus in the śrutis and smṛtis there are thousands of such authoritative statements indicating the Lord’s transcendental body. However, by such statements as the following, these jñānīs think that the Lord, Bhagavān, is a false creation of māyā (upādhi).

māyāṁ tu prakṛtiṁ vidyān māyinaṁ tu maheśvaram Know this nature to be māyā. The great lord is also made of this māyā. Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 4.2 However, this statement means that the Lord is endowed with an eternal śakti called māyā arising from His own svarūpa. Madhvācārya quotes śruti to explain this statement. ato māya-mayaṁ viṣṇuṁ pravadanti sanātanam Thus they call the eternal Viṣṇu māyamayam. Thus the word māyām in the Śvetāśvatara verse refers to the cit-śakti arising from the svarūpa of the Lord, not to the śakti of the three guṇas, which does not arise from His svarūpa. (The meaning would then be: Know this cit-śakti and the great lord who is the master of this śakti.)They do not consider this meaning of the śruti statement. Nor do they consider that the statement could mean “Durgā is māyā and Śiva is the possessor of māyā”. Thus, though these jñānīs attain the status of jīvan-mukta, they fall down because of aparādha to the Lord. It is said in the Pariśiṣṭa Vacana of the Vāsanā Bhāṣya: jīvan-muktā api punar yānti saṁsāra-vāsanām yady acintya-mahā-śaktau bhagavaty aparādhinaḥ The jīvan-muktas, if they are offenders to the Lord of inconceivable great śakti, again enter the illusions of saṁsāra. Attaining their goal, they think sādhana is no longer proper, and thus at the time of rejecting jñāna, they reject not only jñāna, but also guṇī bhūtā bhakti, [Note: The small amount of bhakti they perform along with jñāna sādhana.] thinking that tangible realization (of form and qualities) is false. After bhakti disappears along with jñāna, because of offense to the form of the Lord, it cannot be again attained. Because they cannot realize tat without bhakti, they are therefore known only as persons who think they are liberated, having only false samādhi. This is stated in the verse ye ’nye ’ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. But those who practice jñāna mixed with bhakti, and at the same time respect the sat-cid-ānanda form of Bhagavān, gradually, with the cessation of vidyā and avidyā, attain parā bhakti. Those liberated souls are of two types. One type, performing bhakti for obtaining sāyujya, attains sāyujya in the Lord’s form, realizing tat. These persons are praiseworthy. The other type of person, such as Śukadeva, being greatly fortunate, gives up the desire for liberation by the influence of unpredicted association with kind, elevated devotees, and submerges himself completely in the taste of the sweetness of bhakti rasa. This is the most praiseworthy type. It is said: ātmārāmāś ca munayo nirgranthā apy urukrame kurvanty ahaitukīṁ bhaktim itthambhūta-guṇo hariḥ All different varieties of ātmārāma, those who take pleasure in ātmā, or spirit self], especially those established on the path of self-realization, though freed from all kinds of material bondage, bondage; desire to render unalloyed devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead. This means that the Lord possesses transcendental qualities and therefore can attract everyone, including liberated souls. SB 1.7.10 Thus there are four types of jñānīs: two, reproachable, fall; and two, praiseworthy, cross saṁsāra.

This verse further explains the condition. By supreme, pure bhakti to Me, he realizes (abhijānāti) Me, to what extent (yāvān) I exist (yaḥ āsmi) with My svarūpa, qualities and powers (tattvataḥ). Then (tataḥ), having realized (mām jñātvā) Me in terms of form, qualities and powers, as I am (tattvataḥ), by means of the process of supreme bhakti, he is united with Me (viśate) because of having that realization (tad anantaram). When a person enters a city, it is perceived that he merges into the city. However, he does not become the city. This is the usage of the word viśate, to enter. It should be understood that what is stated here is that bhakti alone is the cause of both realizing the Lord in truth, and joining Him. This is understood from the previous statement bhaktyā tv ananyayā śakyaḥ. (BG 11.54) Tad anantaram means “after that.” Therefore the sentence means “Having truly realizing My form, qualities and vibhūtis, only after that (tad anantaram), he joins Me.” Or tad anantaram can mean “taking that bhakti alone.” By the rule lyab-lope karmaṇi pañcamī, (from Vartikā on Pāṇini 3.2.28) an ablative case can be used to indicate an omitted verb participle ending in ya. In this sentence tad anantaram, ablative meaning “from that” is a substitute for “tāṁ bhaktim ādāya.” The omitted verb form is ādāya, and its substitution is tad anantaram. The whole sentence would then mean “Then (tataḥ) understanding Me in truth by pure bhakti ((māṁ tatavato jñātvā), taking that bhakti alone (tad anantaram), he joins Me (viśate).”

It is stated by the author of Vedānta that even in liberation bhakti still exists: āprāyaṇāt tatrāpi hi dṛṣṭam: it is seen in the scriptures that after liberation (āprāyaṇāt), even then (tatrāpi), in liberation, bhakti continues to exist, because this is seen from scriptural statemens (hi dṛṣṭam). (Vedānta Sūtra 4.1.12) For those who have destroyed ignorance through bhakti, the taste for bhakti increases, just as for those who take sugar candy and destroy jaundice, sugar candy becomes sweet. This is the conclusion of those who know the most secret knowledge. In this way, the method of practice (sādhana) and attainment (sādhya) has been stated for the sa niṣṭḥa bhaktas. [Note: The niṣṭhā bhaktas are those situated in the varṇāśrāma system.]

By devotion and devotion only, when one is pure, one can actually enter into the Kingdom of God ‑ that is called pure devotional service. Here we have heard how to go from the platform of niskama karma, through complete detachment, to knowledge to Brahman, and then on the Brahman platform, render devotional service. What will make one stop at Brahman or go up to devotional service? ‑ The answer is: one's desire. If one is acting and performing jnana‑yoga to simply achieve the Brahman platform (sahujya mukti), to merge into the effulgence of the Lord, one will not come to the platform of devotional service. But if one is acting in such a way, performing Krsna conscious activities, attempting to achieve the lotus feet of the Lord, one will come to the Brahman platform and will understand that Krsna is the source of that Brahman ‑ and his devotional service will begin on that platform. All depends on one's desire. If one desires Krsna, Krsna will not force that devotee to merge into Brahman. And on the other hand if one is desiring to merge into Brahman, Krsna will not force that 'brahmajyoti walla' to render service unto Him. In his Purport, Srila Prabhupada explains: "After attainment of the brahma‑bhuta stage of freedom from material conceptions, devotional service begins by one's hearing about the Lord. When one hears about the Supreme Lord, automatically the brahma‑bhuta stage develops, and material contamination‑‑greediness and lust for sense enjoyment‑‑disappears. As lust and desires disappear from the heart of a devotee, he becomes more attached to the service of the Lord, and by such attachment he becomes free from material contamination. In that state of life he can understand the Supreme Lord. This is the statement of Srimad‑Bhagavatam also. After liberation the process of bhakti, or transcendental service, continues. The Vedanta‑sutra (4.1.12) confirms this: a‑ prayanat tatrapi hi drstam. This means that after liberation the process of devotional service continues. In the Srimad‑Bhagavatam, real devotional liberation is defined as the reinstatement of the living entity in his own identity, his own constitutional position. The constitutional position is already explained: every living entity is a part‑and‑parcel fragmental portion of the Supreme Lord. Therefore his constitutional position is to serve. After liberation, this service is never stopped. Actual liberation is getting free from misconceptions of life." Now, after describing this yoga‑ladder, Krsna is going to describe in the next section, working in devotional service on this level and then He gives Arjuna a choice.

[F. WORKING IN PURE DEVOTIONAL SERVICE (18. 56‑60) One surrendering to Krsna by working under Krsna's protection, depending upon Krsna, and being fully conscious of Krsna overcomes all obstacles by the Lord's grace. If, however, one avoids acting under Krsna's directions, the particular modes of nature that dominate one will compel him to act. ]