Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam · Texts 11.19.40-45
Who is speaking and story frame
भगो म ऐश्वरो भावो लाभो मद्भक्तिरुत्तम: ।
विद्यात्मनि भिदाबाधो जुगुप्सा ह्रीरकर्मसु ॥ ४० ॥
श्रीर्गुणा नैरपेक्ष्याद्या: सुखं दु:खसुखात्यय: ।
दु:खं कामसुखापेक्षा पण्डितो बन्धमोक्षवित् ॥ ४१ ॥
मूर्खो देहाद्यहंबुद्धि: पन्था मन्निगम: स्मृत: ।
उत्पथश्चित्तविक्षेप: स्वर्ग: सत्त्वगुणोदय: ॥ ४२ ॥
नरकस्तमउन्नाहो बन्धुर्गुरुरहं सखे ।
गृहं शरीरं मानुष्यं गुणाढ्यो ह्याढ्य उच्यते ॥ ४३ ॥
दरिद्रो यस्त्वसन्तुष्ट: कृपणो योऽजितेन्द्रिय: ।
गुणेष्वसक्तधीरीशो गुणसङ्गो विपर्यय: ॥ ४४ ॥
एत उद्धव ते प्रश्ना: सर्वे साधु निरूपिता: ।
किं वर्णितेन बहुना लक्षणं गुणदोषयो: ।
गुणदोषदृशिर्दोषो गुणस्तूभयवर्जित: ॥ ४५ ॥
bhago ma aiśvaro bhāvo
lābho mad-bhaktir uttamaḥ
vidyātmani bhidā-bādho
jugupsā hrīr akarmasu
śrīr guṇā nairapekṣyādyāḥ
sukhaṁ duḥkha-sukhātyayaḥ
duḥkhaṁ kāma-sukhāpekṣā
paṇḍito bandha-mokṣa-vit
mūrkho dehādy-ahaṁ-buddhiḥ
panthā man-nigamaḥ smṛtaḥ
utpathaś citta-vikṣepaḥ
svargaḥ sattva-guṇodayaḥ
narakas tama-unnāho
bandhur gurur ahaṁ sakhe
gṛhaṁ śarīraṁ mānuṣyaṁ
guṇāḍhyo hy āḍhya ucyate
daridro yas tv asantuṣṭaḥ
kṛpaṇo yo ’jitendriyaḥ
guṇeṣv asakta-dhīr īśo
guṇa-saṅgo viparyayaḥ
eta uddhava te praśnāḥ
sarve sādhu nirūpitāḥ
kiṁ varṇitena bahunā
lakṣaṇaṁ guṇa-doṣayoḥ
guṇa-doṣa-dṛśir doṣo
guṇas tūbhaya-varjitaḥ
Actual opulence is My own nature as the Personality of Godhead, through which I exhibit the six unlimited opulences. The supreme gain in life is devotional service to Me, and actual education is nullifying the false perception of duality within the soul. Real modesty is to be disgusted with improper activities, and beauty is to possess good qualities such as detachment. Real happiness is to transcend material happiness and unhappiness, and real misery is to be implicated in searching for sex pleasure. A wise man is one who knows the process of freedom from bondage, and a fool is one who identifies with his material body and mind. The real path in life is that which leads to Me, and the wrong path is sense gratification, by which consciousness is bewildered. Actual heaven is the predominance of the mode of goodness, whereas hell is the predominance of ignorance. I am everyone’s true friend, acting as the spiritual master of the entire universe, and one’s home is the human body. My dear friend Uddhava, one who is enriched with good qualities is actually said to be rich, and one who is unsatisfied in life is actually poor. A wretched person is one who cannot control his senses, whereas one who is not attached to sense gratification is a real controller. One who attaches himself to sense gratification is the opposite, a slave. Thus, Uddhava, I have elucidated all of the matters about which you inquired. There is no need for a more elaborate description of these good and bad qualities, since to constantly see good and bad is itself a bad quality. The best quality is to transcend material good and evil.
Read the purport on Vedabase.ioFrom Canto 10, chapter 14 onward, the translation and purports were completed by Śrīla Prabhupāda's disciples after his departure, and published by the Bhaktivedanta Book Trust.