Text 10
tasyānuraktasya muner mukundaḥ
pramoda-bhāvānata-kandharasya
āśṛṇvato mām anurāga-hāsa-
samīkṣayā viśramayann uvāca
tasya — his (Maitreya’s); anuraktasya — although attached; muneḥ — of the sage; mukundaḥ — the Lord who awards salvation; pramoda-bhāva — in a pleasing attitude; ānata — lowered; kandharasya — of the shoulder; āśṛṇvataḥ — while thus hearing; mām — unto me; anurāga-hāsa — with kind smiling; samīkṣayā — particularly seeing me; viśra-mayan — allowing me complete rest; uvāca — said.
Maitreya Muni was greatly attached to Him [the Lord], and he was listening in a pleasing attitude, with his shoulder lowered. With a smile and a particular glance upon me, having allowed me to rest, the Lord spoke as follows.
Although both Uddhava and Maitreya were great souls, the Lord’s attention was more on Uddhava because he was a spotlessly pure devotee. A jñāna-bhakta, or one whose devotion is mixed with the monistic viewpoint, is not a pure devotee. Although Maitreya was a devotee, his devotion was mixed. The Lord reciprocates with His devotees on the basis of transcendental love and not on the basis of philosophical knowledge or fruitive activities. In the transcendental loving service of the Lord, there is no place for monistic knowledge or fruitive activities. The gopīs in Vṛndāvana were neither highly learned scholars nor mystic yogīs. They had spontaneous love for the Lord, and thus He became their heart and soul, and the gopīs also became the heart and soul of the Lord. Lord Caitanya approved the relationship of the gopīs with the Lord as supreme. Herein the Lord’s attitude towards Uddhava was more intimate than with Maitreya Muni.