श्रुतं च दृष्टवद् दुष्टं स्पर्धासूयात्ययव्ययै: । बह्वन्तरायकामत्वात् कृषिवच्चापि निष्फलम् ॥ २१ ॥
śrutaṁ ca dṛṣṭa-vad duṣṭaṁ spardhāsūyātyaya-vyayaiḥ bahv-antarāya-kāmatvāt kṛṣi-vac cāpi niṣphalam
- śrutam
- material happiness which is heard of
- ca
- also
- dṛṣṭa-vat
- just like that which we have already seen
- duṣṭam
- is contaminated
- spardhā
- by jealousy
- asūyā
- by envy
- atyaya
- by death
- vyayaiḥ
- and by decay
- bahu
- many
- antarāya
- obstacles
- kāmatvāt
- because of accepting happiness with such characteristics
- kṛṣi-vat
- like agriculture
- ca
- also
- api
- even
- niṣphalam
- fruitless
That material happiness of which we hear, such as promotion to heavenly planets for celestial enjoyment, is just like that material happiness we have already experienced. Both are polluted by jealousy, envy, decay and death. Therefore, just as an attempt to raise crops becomes fruitless if there are many problems like crop disease, insect plague or drought, similarly, the attempt to attain material happiness, either on earth or on the heavenly planets, is always fruitless because of innumerable obstacles.