प्राप्ता नृजातिं त्विह ये च जन्तवो
ज्ञानक्रियाद्रव्यकलापसम्भृताम् ।
न वै यतेरन्नपुनर्भवाय ते
भूयो वनौका इव यान्ति बन्धनम् ॥२५॥

prÄptÄ ná¹›-jÄtiá¹ tv iha ye ca jantavo
jñÄna-kriyÄ-dravya-kalÄpa-sambhá¹›tÄm
na vai yaterann apunar-bhavÄya te
bhÅ«yo vanaukÄ iva yÄnti bandhanam

 prÄptÄḥ - who have obtained; ná¹›-jÄtim - a birth in human society; tu - certainly; iha - in this land of BhÄrata-vará¹£a; ye - those who; ca - also; jantavaḥ - the living beings; jñÄna - with knowledge; kriyÄ - with activities; dravya - of ingredients; kalÄpa - with a collection; sambhá¹›tÄm - full; na - not; vai - certainly; yateran - endeavor; apunaḥ-bhavÄya - for the position of immortality; te - such persons; bhÅ«yaḥ - again; vanaukÄḥ - birds; iva - like; yÄnti - go; bandhanam - to bondage.


Text

BhÄrata-vará¹£a offers the proper land and circumstances in which to execute devotional service, which can free one from the results of jñÄna and karma. If one obtains a human body in the land of BhÄrata-vará¹£a, with clear sensory organs with which to execute the saá¹…kÄ«rtana-yajña, but in spite of this opportunity he does not take to devotional service, he is certainly like liberated forest animals and birds that are careless and are therefore again bound by a hunter.

Purport

In the land of BhÄrata-vará¹£a one can very easily perform the saá¹…kÄ«rtana-yajña, which consists of Å›ravaṇaá¹ kÄ«rtanaá¹ viṣṇoḥ, or one can perform other methods of devotional service, such as smaraṇaá¹ vandanaá¹ arcanaá¹ dÄsyaá¹ sakhyam and Ätma-nivedanam. In BhÄrata-vará¹£a one has the opportunity to visit many holy places, especially Lord Caitanya’s birthsite and Lord Kṛṣṇa’s birthsite — NavadvÄ«pa and Vá¹›ndÄvana — where there are many pure devotees who have no desire other than to execute devotional service (anyÄbhilÄá¹£itÄ-śūnyaá¹ jñÄna-karmÄdy-anÄvá¹›tam), and one may thus become free from the bondage of material conditions. Other paths, such as the path of jñÄna and the path of karma, are not very profitable. Pious activities can elevate one to the higher planetary systems, and by speculative knowledge one can merge into the Brahman existence, but that is not real profit, for one has to come down again even from the liberated condition of being merged in Brahman, and certainly one must come down from the heavenly kingdom. One should endeavor to go back home, back to Godhead (yÄnti mad-yÄjino ’pi mÄm). Otherwise there is no difference between human life and the lives of jungle animals and birds. Animals and birds also have freedom, but because of their lower birth, they cannot use it. Taking advantage of all the facilities offered him, a human being who has taken birth in the land of BhÄrata-vará¹£a should become a fully enlightened devotee and go back home, back to Godhead. This is the subject matter of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. The inhabitants of places other than BhÄrata-vará¹£a have facilities for material enjoyment, but they do not have the same facility to take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Therefore ÅšrÄ« Caitanya MahÄprabhu has advised that one who has taken birth as a human being in BhÄrata-vará¹£a must first realize himself as a part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, and after taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he must distribute this knowledge all over the world.