FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.11.22

पुंसां किलैकान्तधियां स्वकानां या: सम्पदो दिवि भूमौ रसायाम् । न राति यद्‌द्वेष उद्वेग आधि- र्मद: कलिर्व्यसनं सम्प्रयास: ॥ २२ ॥
puṁsāṁ kilaikānta-dhiyāṁ svakānāṁ
[pumsaam kilaikaanta-dhiyaam svakaanaam]
yāḥ sampado divi bhūmau rasāyām
[yaah sampado divi bhoomau rasaayaam]
na rāti yad dveṣa udvega ādhir
[na raati yad dvesha udvega aadhir]
madaḥ kalir vyasanaṁ samprayāsaḥ
[madah kalir vyasanam samprayaasah]
puṁsām — unto persons kila — certainly ekānta-dhiyām — who are advanced in spiritual consciousness svakānām — who are recognized by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as His own yāḥ — which sampadaḥ — opulences divi — in the upper planetary systems bhūmau — in the middle planetary systems rasāyām — and in the lower planetary systems na — not rāti — bestows yat — from which dveṣaḥ — envy udvegaḥ — anxiety ādhiḥ — mental agitation madaḥ — pride kaliḥ — quarrel vyasanam — distress due to loss samprayāsaḥ — great endeavor.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
puṁsāṁ kilaikānta-dhiyāṁ svakānāṁ
puṁsām
unto persons
kila
certainly
ekānta-dhiyām
who are advanced in spiritual consciousness
svakānām
who are recognized by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as His own
yāḥ sampado divi bhūmau rasāyām
yāḥ
which
sampadaḥ
opulences
divi
in the upper planetary systems
bhūmau
in the middle planetary systems
rasāyām
and in the lower planetary systems
na rāti yad dveṣa udvega ādhir
na
not
rāti
bestows
yat
from which
dveṣaḥ
envy
udvegaḥ
anxiety
ādhiḥ
mental agitation
madaḥ kalir vyasanaṁ samprayāsaḥ
madaḥ
pride
kaliḥ
quarrel
vyasanam
distress due to loss
samprayāsaḥ
great endeavor.
Persons who fully surrender at the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and always think of His lotus feet are accepted and recognized by the Lord as His own personal assistants or servants. The Lord never bestows upon such servants the brilliant opulences of the upper, lower and middle planetary systems of this material world. When one possesses material opulence in any of these three divisions of the universe, his possessions naturally increase his enmity, anxiety, mental agitation, pride and belligerence. Thus one goes through much endeavor to increase and maintain his possessions, and he suffers great unhappiness when he loses them.

In Bhagavad-gītā (4.11) the Lord says:

ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ

“As devotees surrender unto Me, I reward them accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pṛthā.” Both Indra and Vṛtrāsura were certainly devotees of the Lord, although Indra took instructions from Viṣṇu to kill Vṛtrāsura. The Lord was actually more favorable to Vṛtrāsura because after being killed by Indra’s thunderbolt, Vṛtrāsura would go back to Godhead, whereas the victorious Indra would rot in this material world. Because both of them were devotees, the Lord awarded them the respective benedictions they wanted. Vṛtrāsura never wanted material possessions, for he knew very well the nature of such possessions. To accumulate material possessions, one must labor very hard, and when he gets them he creates many enemies because this material world is always full of rivalry. If one becomes rich, his friends or relatives are envious. For ekānta-bhaktas, unalloyed devotees, Kṛṣṇa therefore never provides material possessions. A devotee sometimes needs some material possessions for preaching, but the possessions of a preacher are not like those of a karmī. A karmī’s possessions are achieved as a result of karma, but those of a devotee are arranged by the Supreme Personality of Godhead just to facilitate his devotional activities. Because a devotee never uses material possessions for any purpose other than the service of the Lord, the possessions of a devotee are not to be compared to those of a karmī.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
My Lord does not give the wealth of heaven, earth or lower planets to his devotees who are dedicated only to him, because that wealth becomes the cause of hatred, agitation, anxiety, pride, quarrel, calamity and endeavor. Do not say “Satisfied with your devotion Saṅkarṣaṇa will give you the wealth and enjoyment of Svarga.” Listen, Indra! You and I are both devotees of the same Lord. He will give you enjoyment and wealth, but will not give me enjoyment and wealth. Here is the reason. Hear about the nature of my Lord. He does not give that wealth to persons who are dedicated completely to him. Why? From wealth come hatred and other bad qualities which weakened the joy of bhakti.
Those who surrender at the Lord's feet and always think of Him are accepted as His personal servants; the Lord doesn't bestow opulence on such ones because it would distract. Surrender deflects upgrades from the wrong direction.
Reflection Questions
  • Have I prayed for opulences the Lord wisely withheld?
  • Where is His refusal actually His acceptance of me as a servant?
📝 My note

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