Text 25
adyeśa no vasatayaḥ khalu bhūri-bhāgā
yaḥ sarva-deva-pitṛ-bhūta-nṛ-deva-mūrtiḥ
yat-pāda-śauca-salilaṁ tri-jagat punāti
sa tvaṁ jagad-gurur adhokṣaja yāḥ praviṣṭaḥ
adya — today; īśa — O Lord; naḥ — our; vasatayaḥ — residence; khalu — indeed; bhūri — extremely; bhāgāḥ — fortunate; yaḥ — who; sarva-deva — the Supreme Lord; pitṛ — the forefathers; bhūta — all living creatures; nṛ — human beings; deva — and the demigods; mūrtiḥ — who embody; yat — whose; pāda — feet; śauca — which has washed; salilam — the water (of the river Ganges); tri-jagat — the three worlds; punāti — purifies; saḥ — He; tvam — You; jagat — of the universe; guruḥ — the spiritual master; adhokṣaja — O You who are beyond the purview of the material senses; yāḥ — which; praviṣṭaḥ — having entered.
Today, O Lord, my home has become most fortunate because You have entered it. As the Supreme Truth, You embody the forefathers, ordinary creatures, human beings and demigods, and the water that has washed Your feet purifies the three worlds. Indeed, O transcendent one, You are the spiritual master of the universe.
Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī has nicely interpreted Akrūra’s feelings as follows:
Akrūra said, “My Lord, although I am a householder, today my home has become more pious than the forests where sages perform austerities. Why? Simply because You have entered my home. Indeed, You are the personification of the deities who preside over the five sacrifices a householder must perform daily to atone for unavoidable violence committed to living beings in the home. You are the spiritual truth behind all these creations, and now You have entered my home.”
The five daily sacrifices enjoined for a householder are (1) sacrifice to Brahman by studying the Vedas, (2) sacrifice to the forefathers by making offerings to them, (3) sacrifice to all creatures by putting aside a portion of one’s meals, (4) sacrifice to human beings by extending hospitality and (5) sacrifice to the demigods by performing fire sacrifices and so on.