FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 10.51.46

लब्ध्वा जनो दुर्लभमत्र मानुषं कथञ्चिदव्यङ्गमयत्नतोऽनघ । पादारविन्दं न भजत्यसन्मति- र्गृहान्धकूपे पतितो यथा पशु: ॥ ४६ ॥
labdhvā jano durlabham atra mānuṣaṁ
[labdhvaa jano durlabham atra maanusham]
kathañcid avyaṅgam ayatnato ’nagha
[kathanchid avyangam ayatnato ’nagha]
pādāravindaṁ na bhajaty asan-matir
[paadaaravindam na bhajaty asan-matir]
gṛhāndha-kūpe patito yathā paśuḥ
[grihaandha-koope patito yathaa pashuh]
Word-for-word
labdhvā — attaining janaḥ — a person durlabham — rarely obtained atra — in this world mānuṣam — the human form of life kathañcit — somehow or other avyaṅgam — with undistorted limbs (unlike the various animal forms) ayatnataḥ — without endeavor anagha — O sinless one pāda — Your feet aravindam — lotuslike na bhajati — he does not worship asat — impure matiḥ — his mentality gṛha — of home andha — blind kūpe — in the well patitaḥ — fallen yathā — as paśuḥ — an animal .
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
labdhvā jano durlabham atra mānuṣaṁ
labdhvā
attaining
janaḥ
a person
durlabham
rarely obtained
atra
in this world
mānuṣam
the human form of life
kathañcid avyaṅgam ayatnato ’nagha
kathañcit
somehow or other
avyaṅgam
with undistorted limbs (unlike the various animal forms)
ayatnataḥ
without endeavor
pādāravindaṁ na bhajaty asan-matir
anagha
O sinless one
gṛhāndha-kūpe patito yathā paśuḥ
pāda
Your feet
aravindam
lotuslike
na bhajati
he does not worship
asat
impure
matiḥ
his mentality
gṛha
of home
andha
blind
kūpe
in the well
patitaḥ
fallen
yathā
as
paśuḥ
an animal .
Important Words
  • durlabham — rarely obtained
    From dur (difficult) + √labh — hard to attain. Human birth is durlabha — Bhāgavatam's standard refrain (cf. SB 11.9.29, 11.20.17). Gauḍīyas read this as Bhagavān's gift of opportunity; squandering it is the deepest tragedy.
  • mānuṣam — the human form
    From manu — descended from Manu, possessing intelligence (manas). The body capable of bhakti-sādhana. Animals cannot perform sādhana-bhakti; humans can. The verse's whole rhetorical force depends on this asymmetry.
  • pāda-aravindam — lotus feet
    Compound: pāda + aravindam (lotus). The first object of Vaiṣṇava worship. Mucukunda's verse 27 noticed those feet; now he urges all humans to worship them. The image runs through the whole chapter.
  • asat-matiḥ — of impure mentality
    Compound: asat (impure, unreal) + matiḥ (intellect). The diagnostic — not 'evil heart' but 'wrong-pointing intellect.' Buddhi turned to asat rather than sat. The fix is to redirect, not to repress.
  • gṛha-andha-kūpe — in the blind well of home
    Compound: gṛha (home) + andha (blind) + kūpe (well). The vivid Bhāgavata image — household as andha-kūpa. Not 'home is evil,' but 'home-as-blind-well is evil' — clinging to it as ultimate is the fall. Gauḍīyas live in homes; they do not live for them.
That person has an impure mind who, despite having somehow or other automatically obtained the rare and highly evolved human form of life, does not worship Your lotus feet. Like an animal that has fallen into a blind well, such a person has fallen into the darkness of a material home.
Purport

Our real home is in the kingdom of God. Despite our tenacious determination to remain in our material home, death will rudely eject us from the theater of material affairs. To stay at home is not bad, nor is it bad to devote ourselves to our loved ones. But we must understand that our real home is eternal, in the spiritual kingdom. The word ayatnataḥ indicates that human life has been automatically awarded to us. We have not constructed our human bodies, and therefore we should not foolishly claim, “This body is mine.” The human form is a gift of God and should be used to achieve the perfection of God consciousness. One who does not understand this is asan-mati, possessed of dull, mundane understanding.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Gauḍīya Ācāryas
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
That person has an impure mind who, despite having somehow or other automatically obtained the rare and highly evolved human form of life, does not worship Your lotus feet. Like an animal that has fallen into a blind well, such a person has fallen into the darkness of a material home.
Commentary

The ignorant man, for a few pennies sells the cintamani jewel. That is the essence of this verse. After attaining a rare human birth in the land of Bharata (iha) with no deformity, falling into the well of household life like an animal, the materialist fails to worship you.

Jīva Gosvāmī Gauḍīya
Commentary

Mānuṣaṁ should be mānuṣyam (human form of life). O Lord who destroys all suffering (anagha) for the person worships you a little! By karma (kathañcit), having attained a human form, he does not worship lotus feet. He does not mention “your” feet since it is understood from the context. He does not worship with reverence or inattentively. This is because he is without discrimination (asan-matiḥ) like an animal. Thus he falls into the dark well of household life.

Related values & verses
Related values
Anahankarah (Freedom from False Ego)Kshama (Forgiveness / Patience)Udyama (Industriousness / Effort)Aparigraha (Non-possessiveness)
Related verses
BG 15.9 BG 12.13 BG 17.14 BG 18.64 BG 4.34 BG 2.62 BG 3.11 BG 12.3 SB 4.29.2 BG 9.11 BG 7.8 BG 10.3 BG 13.1 BG 5.18 BG 6.1
Related lectures
Personal Guidance
Impure-minded is one who, having obtained the rare human form, doesn't worship Your feet — like an animal fallen into a blind well. Time will rudely eject us from our material 'homes'; only worship makes that ejection meaningful.
Reflection Questions
  • Where are you treating the human form as a routine starting point rather than a rare attainment?
  • What worship would render the inevitable ejection a graduation?
Analogy

An animal falling into a blind well — once down, it cannot climb out. So is the person who, having received human birth (the rare ascent), still does not worship Bhagavān's lotus feet. The verse's force: human birth is the ladder; refusing to climb is the fall.

📝 My note

Source: vedabase.io

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