Text 41
paribhūta imāṁ gāthām
agāyata narādhamaiḥ
pātayadbhiḥ sva dharma-stho
dhṛtim āsthāya sāttvikīm
paribhūtaḥ — insulted; imām — this; gāthām — song; agāyata — he sang; nara-adhamaiḥ — by low-class men; pātayadbhiḥ — who were trying to make him fall down; sva-dharma — in his own duty; sthaḥ — remaining firm; dhṛtim — his resolution; āsthāya — fixing; sāttvikīm — in the mode of goodness.
Even while being insulted by these low-class men who were trying to effect his downfall, he remained steady in his spiritual duties. Fixing his resolution in the mode of goodness, he began to chant the following song.
Resolution in the mode of goodness is described in Bhagavad-gītā (18.33):
dhṛtyā yayā dhārayate
manaḥ-prāṇendriya-kriyāḥ
yogenāvyabhicāriṇyā
dhṛtiḥ sā pārtha sāttvikī
“O son of Pṛthā, that determination which is unbreakable, which is sustained with steadfastness by yoga practice, and thus controls the mind, life and the acts of the senses, is in the mode of goodness.”
Atheists who are envious of the devotees of the Supreme Lord are called narādhamas, or the lowest of men, and undoubtedly are enroute to hell. By all means at their disposal they disturb the devotional service of the Lord, sometimes by direct attack and sometimes by mockery. The devotees, however, remain tolerant, fixing their determination in the mode of goodness. As described by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī in Śrī Upadeśāmṛta (1):
vāco vegaṁ manasaḥ krodha-vegaṁ
jihvā-vegam udaropastha-vegam
etān vegān yo viṣaheta dhīraḥ
sarvām apīmāṁ pṛthivīṁ sa śiṣyāt
“A sober person who can tolerate the urge to speak, the mind’s demands, the actions of anger and the urges of the tongue, belly and genitals is qualified to make disciples all over the world.”