Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrīmad Bhāgavatam 4.25.26

kā tvaḿ kañja-palāśākṣi

kasyāsīha kutaḥ sati

imām upa purīḿ bhīru

kiḿ cikīrṣasi śaḿsa me

SYNONYMS

kā — who; tvam — you; kañja-palāśa — like the petals of the lotus; akṣi — eyes; kasya — whose; asi — you are; iha — here; kutaḥ — wherefrom; sati — O chaste one; imām — this; upa — near; purīm — city; bhīru — O timid one; kim — what; cikīrṣasi — you are trying to do; śaḿsa — kindly explain; me — unto me.

TRANSLATION

My dear lotus-eyed, kindly explain to me where you are coming from, who you are, and whose daughter you are. You appear very chaste. What is the purpose of your coming here? What are you trying to do? Please explain all these things to me.

PURPORT

The first aphorism in the Vedānta-sūtra is athāto brahma jijñāsā. In the human form of life one should put many questions to himself and to his intelligence. In the various forms of life lower than human life the intelligence does not go beyond the range of life's primary necessities — namely eating, sleeping, mating and defending. Dogs, cats and tigers are always busy trying to find something to eat or a place to sleep, trying to defend and have sexual intercourse successfully. In the human form of life, however, one should be intelligent enough to ask what he is, why he has come into the world, what his duty is, who is the supreme controller, what is the difference between dull matter and the living entity, etc. There are so many questions, and the person who is actually intelligent should simply inquire about the supreme source of everything: athāto brahma jijñāsā. A living entity is always connected with a certain amount of intelligence, but in the human form of life the living entity must inquire about his spiritual identity. This is real human intelligence. It is said that one who is simply conscious of the body is no better than an animal, even though he be in the human form. In Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) Śrī Kṛṣṇa says, sarvasya cāhaḿ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaḿ ca: "I am seated in everyone's heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness." In the animal form the living entity is completely forgetful of his relationship with God. This is called apohanam, or forgetfulness. In the human form of life, however, consciousness is more greatly developed, and consequently the human being has a chance to understand his relationship with God. In the human form one should utilize his intelligence by asking all these questions, just as Purañjana, the living entity, is asking the unknown girl where she has come from, what her business is, why she is present, etc. These are inquiries about ātma-tattva — self-realization. The conclusion is that unless a living entity is inquisitive about self-realization he is nothing but an animal.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness