kiḿ vidyayā kiḿ tapasā
kiḿ tyāgena śrutena vā
kiḿ viviktena maunena
strībhir yasya mano hṛtam
kim -- what is the use; vidyaya -- of knowledge; kim -- what; tapasa -- of austerities; kim -- what; tyagena -- of renunciation; srutena -- of having studied the scriptures; va -- or; kim -- what; viviktena -- of solitude; maunena -- of silence; stribhih -- by women; yasya -- whose; manah -- the mind; hritam -- taken away.
What is the use of a big education or the practice of austerities and renunciation, and what is the use of studying religious scriptures, of living in solitude and silence, if, after all that, one's mind is stolen by a woman?
All of the above-mentioned processes are useless if one's heart and mind are stolen by an insignificant woman. One who hankers after a woman's association certainly spoils his spiritual progress. Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura states that if one worships the example of the liberated gopis of Vrindavana, who accepted Lord Sri Krishna as their paramour, one can free one's mental activities from the contamination of lust.
