तस्मिन्निर्मनुजेऽरण्ये पिप्पलोपस्थ आश्रितः ।
आत्मनात्मानमात्मस्थं यथाश्रुतमचिन्तयम् ॥१५॥

tasmin nirmanuje 'raṇye
pippalopastha ÄÅ›ritaḥ
ÄtmanÄtmÄnam Ätmasthaá¹
yathÄ-Å›rutam acintayam

 tasmin - in that; nirmanuje - without human habitation; araṇye - in the forest; pippala - banyan tree; upasthe - sitting under it; ÄÅ›ritaḥ - taking shelter of; ÄtmanÄ - by intelligence; ÄtmÄnam - the Supersoul; Ätma-stham - situated within myself; yathÄ-Å›rutam - as I had heard it from the liberated souls; acintayam - thought over.


Text

After that, under the shadow of a banyan tree in an uninhabited forest I began to meditate upon the Supersoul situated within, using my intelligence, as I had learned from liberated souls.

Purport

One should not meditate according to one’s personal whims. One should know perfectly well from the authoritative sources of scriptures through the transparent medium of a bona fide spiritual master and by proper use of one’s trained intelligence for meditating upon the Supersoul dwelling within every living being. This consciousness is firmly developed by a devotee who has rendered loving service unto the Lord by carrying out the orders of the spiritual master. ÅšrÄ« NÄradajÄ« contacted bona fide spiritual masters, served them sincerely and got enlightenment rightly. Thus he began to meditate.