śrī-śuka uvāca
ity ādiṣṭo bhagavatā
mahā-bhāgavato nṛpa
uddhavaḥ praṇipatyāha
tattvaḿ jijñāsur acyutam
sri-sukah uvaca -- Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; iti -- thus; adishtah -- instructed; bhagavata -- by the Supreme Lord; maha-bhagavatah -- the exalted devotee of the Lord; nripa -- O King; uddhavah -- Uddhava; pranipatya -- after bowing down to offer respects; aha -- spoke; tattvam -- the scientific truth; jijnasuh -- being eager to learn; acyutam -- unto the infallible Personality of Godhead.
Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said: O King, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Lord Krishna, thus instructed His pure devotee Uddhava, who was eager to receive knowledge from the Lord. Uddhava then offered obeisances to the Lord and spoke as follows.
Uddhava is described here as tattvam jijnasuh, or desiring to know the truth. It is clear from previous verses that Sri Uddhava is a pure devotee of Lord Krishna and that he considers devotional service to Lord Krishna to be the perfection of life. Thus the words tattvam jijnasuh indicate that since Lord Krishna is about to leave the earth, Uddhava is most anxious to deepen his understanding of the Lord so that he may further advance in loving service at the Lord's lotus feet. Unlike an ordinary philosopher or scholar, a pure devotee is not eager to acquire knowledge for personal gratification.
