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Library » Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (Bhāgavata Purāṇa) » Canto 11: General History » CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

ŚB 11.26.34

Devanagari

सन्तो दिशन्ति चक्षूंषि बहिरर्क: समुत्थित: ।
देवता बान्धवा: सन्त: सन्त आत्माहमेव च ॥ ३४ ॥

Text

santo diśanti cakṣūṁṣi
bahir arkaḥ samutthitaḥ
devatā bāndhavāḥ santaḥ
santa ātmāham eva ca

Synonyms

santaḥ — the devotees; diśanti — bestow; cakṣūṁṣi — eyes; bahiḥ — external; arkaḥ — the sun; samutthitaḥ — when it is fully risen; devatāḥ — worshipable deities; bāndhavāḥ — relatives; santaḥ — the devotees; santaḥ — the devotees; ātmā — one’s very soul; aham — Myself; eva ca — as well.

Translation

My devotees bestow divine eyes, whereas the sun allows only external sight, and that only when it is risen in the sky. My devotees are one’s real worshipable deities and real family; they are one’s own self, and ultimately they are nondifferent from Me.

Purport

Foolishness is the wealth of the impious, who place great value on their treasure and firmly make up their minds to remain in the darkness of ignorance. Saintly devotees of the Lord are just like the sun. By the light of their words, the living entities’ eyes of knowledge are opened and the darkness of ignorance is destroyed. Thus the saintly devotees are one’s real friends and relatives. They are the proper recipients of service — not the gross material body, which merely clamors for sense gratification.