150 Srimad-Bhagavatam [Canto 6, Ch. 9

TEXT 49

TA HM: MT MAN TA |
TRAPS Tos ale ASH TMATT Hes

na veda krpanah sreya
dtmano guna-vastu-drk

tasya tan icchato yacched
yadi so pi tathd-vidhah

na—not; veda—knows; krpanah—a miserly living entity; sreyah—
the ultimate necessity; dtmanah—of the soul; guna-vastu-drk—who is
attracted by the creation of the modes of material nature; tasya—of him;
tan—things created by the material energy; icchatah—desiring; yac-
chet—one bestows; yadi—if; sah api—he also; tathd-vidhah—of the
kind (a foolish krpana who does not know his real self-interest).

TRANSLATION

Those who think material assets to be everything or to be the
ultimate goal of life are called misers [krpanas]. They do not know
the ultimate necessity of the soul. Moreover, if one awards that
which is desired by such fools, he must also be considered foolish.

PURPORT

There are two classes of men—namely the krpana and the brahmana.
A brahmana is one who knows Brahman, the Absolute Truth, and who
thus knows his real interest. A krpana, however, is one who has a ma-
terial, bodily concept of life. Not knowing how to utilize his human or
demigod life, a krpana is attracted by things created by the material
modes of nature. The krpanas, who always desire material benefits, are
foolish, whereas brahmanas, who always desire spiritual benefits, are in-
telligent. If a krpana, not knowing his self-interest, foolishly asks for
something material, one who awards it to him is also foolish. Krsna,
however, is not a foolish person; He is supremely intelligent. If someone
comes to Krsna asking for material benefits, Krsna does not award him
the material things he desires. Instead, the Lord gives him intelligence so
that he will forget his material desires and become attached to the Lord’s
