FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.39

सङ्गं न कुर्यात्प्रमदासु जातु योगस्य पारं परमारुरुक्षु: । मत्सेवया प्रतिलब्धात्मलाभो वदन्ति या निरयद्वारमस्य ॥ ३९ ॥
saṅgaṁ na kuryāt pramadāsu jātu
[sangam na kuryaat pramadaasu jaatu]
yogasya pāraṁ param ārurukṣuḥ
[yogasya paaram param aarurukshuh]
mat-sevayā pratilabdhātma-lābho
[mat-sevayaa pratilabdhaatma-laabho]
vadanti yā niraya-dvāram asya
[vadanti yaa niraya-dvaaram asya]
saṅgam — association na — not kuryāt — one should make pramadāsu — with women jātu — ever yogasya — of yoga pāram — culmination param — topmost ārurukṣuḥ — one who aspires to reach mat-sevayā — by rendering service unto Me pratilabdha — obtained ātma-lābhaḥ — self-realization vadanti — they say yāḥ — which women niraya — to hell dvāram — the gateway asya — of the advancing devotee.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
saṅgaṁ na kuryāt pramadāsu jātu
saṅgam
association
na
not
kuryāt
one should make
pramadāsu
with women
jātu
ever
yogasya pāraṁ param ārurukṣuḥ
yogasya
of yoga
pāram
culmination
param
topmost
ārurukṣuḥ
one who aspires to reach
mat-sevayā pratilabdhātma-lābho
mat-sevayā
by rendering service unto Me
pratilabdha
obtained
ātma-lābhaḥ
self-realization
vadanti yā niraya-dvāram asya
vadanti
they say
yāḥ
which women
niraya
to hell
dvāram
the gateway
asya
of the advancing devotee.
One who aspires to reach the culmination of yoga and has realized his self by rendering service unto Me should never associate with an attractive woman, for such a woman is declared in the scripture to be the gateway to hell for the advancing devotee.

The culmination of yoga is full Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is affirmed in Bhagavad-gītā: a person who is always thinking of Kṛṣṇa in devotion is the topmost of all yogīs. And in the Second Chapter of the First Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is also stated that when one becomes freed from material contamination by rendering devotional service unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he can at that time understand the science of God.

Here the word pratilabdhātma-lābhaḥ occurs. Ātmā means “self,” and lābha means “gain.” Generally, conditioned souls have lost their ātmā, or self, but those who are transcendentalists have realized the self. It is directed that such a self-realized soul who aspires to the topmost platform of yogic perfection should not associate with young women. In the modern age, however, there are so many rascals who recommend that while one has genitals he should enjoy women as much as he likes, and at the same time he can become a yogī. In no standard yoga system is the association of women accepted. It is clearly stated here that the association of women is the gateway to hellish life. The association of woman is very much restricted in the Vedic civilization. Out of the four social divisions, the brahmacārī, vānaprastha and the sannyāsī — three orders — are strictly prohibited from the association of women; only the gṛhasthas, or householders, are given license to have an intimate relationship with a woman, and that relationship is also restricted for begetting nice children. If, however, one wants to stick to continued existence in the material world, he may indulge in female association unrestrictedly.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Neither the jñānī striving for the perfection of yoga, nor the devotee who has attained realization of ātmā by service to me should be attached to women, whom the wise say, are the door to hell for any man. Because of this, neither the jñānī aspiring to attain liberation (pāram param) nor the devotee who has realized ātmā should have attachment to women (pramadāsu). According to the logic of “the person lying down cannot fall any further” [Note: Na śayāna pataty adhaḥ.] if one is a karmī, then it is not a fault to associate with women. The word asya means “any man.”
Real devotion is steady, not theatrical. The verse treats bhakti as the work the soul was made for — every other career is a temporary detour from this primary employment. The verse anchors this in Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Reflection Questions
  • What ordinary activity could you re-aim today so it becomes an offering rather than a transaction?
  • Whom in your life would notice if your devotional service deepened, and what would they see?
📝 My note

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