rÄya kahe, — Ämi śūdra, viá¹£ayÄ«, adhama
tabu tumi sparÅ›a, — ei Ä«Å›vara-laká¹£aṇa

 rÄya kahe - BhavÄnanda RÄya replied; Ämi śūdra - I belong to the fourth class of the social divisions; viá¹£ayÄ« - engaged in mundane affairs; adhama - very fallen; tabu - still; tumi - You; sparÅ›a - touch; ei - this; Ä«Å›vara-laká¹£aṇa - sign of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.


Text

After hearing ÅšrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu’s praise, BhavÄnanda RÄya submitted, “I am in the fourth class of the social order, and I engage in mundane affairs. Although I am very fallen, You have still touched me. This is proof that You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead.â€

Purport

As stated in the Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ (5.18):

vidyÄ-vinaya-sampanne brÄhmaṇe gavi hastini
Å›uni caiva Å›va-pÄke ca paṇá¸itÄḥ sama-darÅ›inaḥ

“The humble sages, by virtue of true knowledge, see with equal vision a learned and gentle brÄhmaṇa, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].â€

Those who are highly advanced in spiritual understanding do not care about a person’s material condition. A spiritually advanced person sees the spiritual identity of every living being, and consequently he makes no distinction between a learned brÄhmaṇa, a dog, a caṇá¸Äla or anyone else. He is not influenced by the material body but sees a person’s spiritual identity. Consequently BhavÄnanda RÄya appreciated ÅšrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu’s statement, which showed that the Lord did not consider the social position of BhavÄnanda RÄya, who belonged to the śūdra caste engaged in mundane activities. Rather, the Lord considered the spiritual position of BhavÄnanda RÄya, along with that of RÄmÄnanda RÄya and his brothers. The servant of the Lord is also similarly inclined. He gives shelter to any person — any living entity — regardless of whether he belongs to a brÄhmaṇa family or a caṇá¸Äla family. The spiritual master reclaims all people and encourages everyone in spiritual life. By taking shelter of such a devotee, one can make his life successful. As confirmed in ÅšrÄ«mad-BhÄgavatam (2.4.18):

kirÄta-hūṇÄndhra-pulinda-pulkaÅ›Ä
 ÄbhÄ«ra-Å›umbhÄ yavanÄḥ khasÄdayaḥ
ye ’nye ca pÄpÄ yad-apÄÅ›rayÄÅ›rayÄḥ
 Å›udhyanti tasmai prabhaviṣṇave namaḥ

“KirÄtas, Hūṇas, Ä€ndhras, Pulindas, PulkaÅ›as, Ä€bhÄ«ras, Åšumbhas, Yavanas and members of the KhaÅ›a races, and even others who are addicted to sinful acts, can be purified by taking shelter of the devotees of the Lord, due to His being the supreme power. I beg to offer my respectful obeisances unto Him.â€

Whoever takes shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead or His pure devotee is elevated to the spiritual order and purified from material contamination. This is also confirmed by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gÄ«tÄ (9.32):

mÄá¹ hi pÄrtha vyapÄÅ›ritya ye ’pi syuḥ pÄpa-yonayaḥ
striyo vaiÅ›yÄs tathÄ Å›Å«drÄs te ’pi yÄnti parÄá¹ gatim

“O son of Pá¹›thÄ, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth — women, vaiÅ›yas [merchants] and śūdras [workers] — can attain the supreme destination.â€