FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.17.36

एवं बृहद्‍व्रतधरो ब्राह्मणोऽग्निरिव ज्वलन् । मद्भ‍क्तस्तीव्रतपसा दग्धकर्माशयोऽमल: ॥ ३६ ॥
evaṁ bṛhad-vrata-dharo
[evam brihad-vrata-dharo]
brāhmaṇo ’gnir iva jvalan
[braahmano ’gnir iva jvalan]
mad-bhaktas tīvra-tapasā
[mad-bhaktas teevra-tapasaa]
dagdha-karmāśayo ’malaḥ
[dagdha-karmaashayo ’malah]
evam — thus bṛhat-vrata — that great vow of perpetual celibacy dharaḥ — maintaining brāhmaṇaḥ — a brāhmaṇa agniḥ — fire iva — like jvalan — becoming bright mat-bhaktaḥ — My devotee tīvra-tapasā — by intense austerities dagdha — burned karma — of fruitive activities āśayaḥ — the propensity or mentality amalaḥ — without contamination of material desire.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
evaṁ bṛhad-vrata-dharo
evam
thus
bṛhat-vrata
that great vow of perpetual celibacy
dharaḥ
maintaining
brāhmaṇo ’gnir iva jvalan
brāhmaṇaḥ
a brāhmaṇa
mad-bhaktas tīvra-tapasā
dagdha-karmāśayo ’malaḥ
agniḥ
fire
iva
like
jvalan
becoming bright
mat-bhaktaḥ
My devotee
tīvra-tapasā
by intense austerities
dagdha
burned
karma
of fruitive activities
āśayaḥ
the propensity or mentality
amalaḥ
without contamination of material desire.
A brāhmaṇa observing the great vow of celibacy becomes brilliant like fire and by serious austerity burns to ashes the propensity to perform material activities. Free from the contamination of material desire, he becomes My devotee.

The process of liberation is described in this verse. Once when Śrīla Prabhupāda was traveling by airplane, a fellow passenger, who happened to be a priest, told him that he had seen his disciples and found them “bright-faced.” Śrīla Prabhupāda was fond of relating this incident. The spirit soul is more brilliant than the sun, and as the process of spiritual purification gradually takes effect, even the external form of a devotee becomes effulgent. The glowing fire of spiritual knowledge burns to ashes the mentality of sense gratification, and one naturally becomes austere and disinterested in mundane enjoyment. Among all austerities, the best is celibacy, by which the shackles of material life immediately become slackened. One who is amala, free from material desire, is known as a pure devotee of the Lord. On the paths of jñāna, karma and yoga the mind retains the concept of personal interest, but on the path of pure devotion the mind is trained to see only the interests of the Personality of Godhead. Thus a pure devotee of the Lord is amala, completely pure.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
A brāhmaṇa observing the great vow of celibacy, brilliant like fire, burns to ashes the karmas in his heart. This person, worshipping me, becomes free from all karmas. The process of becoming free of karma by the life-long celibate brāhmaṇa is described.
A brāhmaṇa observing the great vow becomes brilliant like fire, burning material propensity to ash by serious austerity, becoming His devotee. The vow is not arbitrary — it has a furnace function.
Reflection Questions
  • What 'great vow' would actually purify me, not just discipline me?
  • What austerity have I been avoiding because it would really burn?
📝 My note

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