FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.19.39

नूनं भगवतो ब्रह्मन् गृहेषु गृहमेधिनाम् । न लक्ष्यते ह्यवस्थानमपि गोदोहनं क्‍वचित् ॥ ३९ ॥
nūnaṁ bhagavato brahman
[noonam bhagavato brahman]
gṛheṣu gṛha-medhinām
[griheshu griha-medhinaam]
na lakṣyate hy avasthānam
[na lakshyate hy avasthaanam]
api go-dohanaṁ kvacit
[api go-dohanam kvachit]
nūnam — because bhagavataḥ — of you, who are powerful brahman — O brāhmaṇa gṛheṣu — in the houses gṛha-medhinām — of the householders na — not lakṣyate — are seen hi — exactly avasthānam — staying in api — even go-dohanam — milking the cow kvacit — rarely.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
nūnaṁ bhagavato brahman
nūnam
because
bhagavataḥ
of you, who are powerful
brahman
O brāhmaṇa
gṛheṣu gṛha-medhinām
gṛheṣu
in the houses
gṛha-medhinām
of the householders
na
not
na lakṣyate hy avasthānam
lakṣyate
are seen
hi
exactly
avasthānam
staying in
api go-dohanaṁ kvacit
api
even
go-dohanam
milking the cow
kvacit
rarely.
O powerful brāhmaṇa, it is said that you hardly stay in the houses of men long enough to milk a cow.

Saints and sages in the renounced order of life go to the houses of the householders at the time they milk the cows, early in the morning, and ask some quantity of milk for subsistence. A pound of milk fresh from the milk bag of a cow is sufficient to feed an adult with all vitamin values, and therefore saints and sages live only on milk. Even the poorest of the householders keep at least ten cows, each delivering twelve to twenty quarts of milk, and therefore no one hesitates to spare a few pounds of milk for the mendicants. It is the duty of householders to maintain the saints and sages, like the children. So a saint like Śukadeva Gosvāmī would hardly stay at the house of a householder for more than five minutes in the morning. In other words, such saints are very rarely seen in the houses of householders, and Mahārāja Parīkṣit therefore prayed to him to instruct him as soon as possible. The householders also should be intelligent enough to get some transcendental information from visiting sages. The householder should not foolishly ask a saint to deliver what is available in the market. That should be the reciprocal relation between the saints and the householders.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
O brāhmaṇa! You do not stay in the houses of attached householders even for the time it takes to milk a cow.
Commentary

Since it will be very rare to see you again, you should tell me everything now. You stay not even for the time it takes to milk a cow (go-dohanam).

It is said you hardly stay in the houses of men long enough to milk a cow. The fleeting visit of the great teacher means we use the time well. Don't waste the rare meeting.
Reflection Questions
  • When did I last meet someone briefly and use the time well?
  • Where am I wasting brief windows because I assume more time?
📝 My note

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