FolioCorpusŚrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.16.29

तत: कतिपयाहोभिर्विद्ययेद्धमनोगति: । जगाम देवदेवस्य शेषस्य चरणान्तिकम् ॥ २९ ॥
tataḥ katipayāhobhir
[tatah katipayaahobhir]
vidyayeddha-mano-gatiḥ
[vidyayeddha-mano-gatih]
jagāma deva-devasya
[jagaama deva-devasya]
śeṣasya caraṇāntikam
[sheshasya charanaantikam]
tataḥ — thereafter katipaya-ahobhiḥ — within a few days vidyayā — by the spiritual mantra iddha-manaḥ-gatiḥ — the course of his mind being enlightened jagāma — went deva-devasya — of the master of all other lords or demigods śeṣasya — Lord Śeṣa caraṇa-antikam — to the shelter of the lotus feet.
Blended reading (Sanskrit + English inline)
tataḥ katipayāhobhir
tataḥ
thereafter
katipaya-ahobhiḥ
within a few days
vidyayeddha-mano-gatiḥ
vidyayā
by the spiritual mantra
iddha-manaḥ-gatiḥ
the course of his mind being enlightened
jagāma deva-devasya
jagāma
went
deva-devasya
of the master of all other lords or demigods
śeṣasya caraṇāntikam
śeṣasya
Lord Śeṣa
caraṇa-antikam
to the shelter of the lotus feet.
Thereafter, within a very few days, by the influence of the mantra that Citraketu had practiced, his mind became increasingly enlightened in spiritual progress, and he attained shelter at the lotus feet of Anantadeva.

A devotee’s ultimate achievement is to take shelter of the lotus feet of the Lord in any one of the planets in the spiritual sky. As a result of rigid execution of devotional service, a devotee receives all material opulences if these are required; otherwise, the devotee is not interested in material opulences, nor does the Supreme Lord award them. When a devotee is actually engaged in the devotional service of the Lord, his apparently material opulences are not material; they are all spiritual. For example, if a devotee spends money to construct a beautiful and costly temple, the construction is not material but spiritual ( nirbandhaḥ kṛṣṇa-sambandhe yuktaṁ vairāgyam ucyate ). A devotee’s mind is never diverted to the material side of the temple. The bricks, stone and wood used in the construction of the temple are spiritual, just as the Deity, although made of stone, is not stone but the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself. The more one advances in spiritual consciousness, the more he can understand the elements of devotional service. Nothing in devotional service is material; everything is spiritual. Consequently a devotee is awarded so-called material opulence for spiritual advancement. This opulence is an aid to help the devotee advance toward the spiritual kingdom. Thus Mahārāja Citraketu remained in material opulence as a vidyādhara-pati, master of the Vidyādharas, and by executing devotional service he became perfect within a very few days and returned home, back to Godhead, taking shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Śeṣa, Ananta.

A karmī’s material opulence and a devotee’s material opulence are not on the same level. Śrīla Madhvācārya comments in this way:

anyāntaryāmiṇaṁ viṣṇum upāsyānya-samīpagaḥ bhaved yogyatayā tasya padaṁ vā prāpnuyān naraḥ

By worshiping Lord Viṣṇu one can get whatever he desires, but a pure devotee never asks Lord Viṣṇu for any material profit. Instead he serves Lord Viṣṇu without material desires and is therefore ultimately transferred to the spiritual kingdom. In this regard, Śrīla Vīrarāghava Ācārya comments, yatheṣṭa-gatir ity arthaḥ: by worshiping Viṣṇu, a devotee can get whatever he likes. Mahārāja Citraketu wanted only to return home, back to Godhead, and therefore he achieved success in that way.

— A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda
Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura Gauḍīya
Translation
Within a few days, Citraketu, whose mind was blazing with knowledge, attained the shelter at the lotus feet of Anantadeva. This verse describes the primary result.
Within a few more days the mantra increased his enlightenment, and he attained shelter at Anantadeva's lotus feet. Spiritual progress can accelerate quickly once direction is set.
Reflection Questions
  • Have I expected the early plateau to last forever, missing the acceleration that comes later?
  • What would committing to direction-without-results do for me?
📝 My note

← Read full Chapter 16