तेनेह निर्वर्तितसाधुसत्क्रियः ।
कथं विगर्ह्यं नु करोम्यधीश्वराः
पौरोधसं हृष्यति येन दुर्मतिः ॥३६॥
akiñcanÄnÄá¹ hi dhanaá¹ Å›iloñchanaá¹
teneha nirvartita-sÄdhu-satkriyaḥ
kathaá¹ vigarhyaá¹ nu karomy adhÄ«Å›varÄḥ
paurodhasaṠhṛṣyati yena durmatiḥ
akiñcanÄnÄm - of persons who have taken to austerities and penances to become detached from worldly possessions; hi - certainly; dhanam - the wealth; Å›ila - the collecting of grains left in the field; uñchanam - and the collecting of grains left in the wholesale marketplace; tena - by that means; iha - here; nirvartita - accomplishing; sÄdhu - of the exalted devotees; sat-kriyaḥ - all the pious activities; katham - how; vigarhyam - reproachable; nu - indeed; karomi - I shall execute; adhÄ«Å›varÄḥ - O great governors of the planetary systems; paurodhasam - the duty of priesthood; hṛṣyati - is pleased; yena - by which; durmatiḥ - one who is less intelligent.
O exalted governors of various planets, the true brÄhmaṇa, who has no material possessions, maintains himself by the profession of accepting Å›iloñchana. In other words, he picks up grains left in the field and on the ground in the wholesale marketplace. By this means, householder brÄhmaṇas who actually abide by the principles of austerity and penance maintain themselves and their families and perform all necessary pious activities. A brÄhmaṇa who desires to achieve happiness by gaining wealth through professional priesthood must certainly have a very low mind. How shall I accept such priesthood?
A first-class brÄhmaṇa does not accept any rewards from his disciples or yajamÄnas. Practicing austerities and penances, he instead goes to the agricultural field and collects food grains left by the agriculturalists to be collected by brÄhmaṇas. Similarly, such brÄhmaṇas go to marketplaces where grains are purchased and sold wholesale, and there they collect grains left by the merchants. In this way, such exalted brÄhmaṇas maintain their bodies and families. Such priests never demand anything from their disciples to live in opulence, imitating ká¹£atriyas or vaiÅ›yas. In other words, a pure brÄhmaṇa voluntarily accepts a life of poverty and lives in complete dependence on the mercy of the Lord. Not very many years ago, a brÄhmaṇa in Kṛṣṇanagara, near NavadvÄ«pa, was offered some help from the local Zamindar, RÄjÄ Kṛṣṇacandra. The brÄhmaṇa refused to accept the help. He said that since he was very happy in his householder life, taking rice given by his disciples and cooking vegetables of tamarind leaves, there was no question of taking help from the Zamindar. The conclusion is that although a brÄhmaṇa may receive much opulence from his disciples, he should not utilize the rewards of his priesthood for his personal benefit; he must use them for the service of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
