यमानभीक्ष्णं सेवेत नियमान् मत्पर: क्वचित् । मदभिज्ञं गुरुं शान्तमुपासीत मदात्मकम् ॥ ५ ॥
yamān abhīkṣṇaṁ seveta niyamān mat-paraḥ kvacit mad-abhijñaṁ guruṁ śāntam upāsīta mad-ātmakam
- yamān
- major regulative principles, such as not to kill
- abhīkṣṇam
- always
- seveta
- one should observe
- niyamān
- minor regulations, such as cleansing the body
- mat-paraḥ
- one who is devoted to Me
- kvacit
- as far as possible
- mat-abhijñam
- one who knows Me as I am in My personal form
- gurum
- the spiritual master
- śāntam
- peaceful
- upāsīta
- one should serve
- mat-ātmakam
- who is not different from Me
One who has accepted Me as the supreme goal of life should strictly observe the scriptural injunctions forbidding sinful activities and, as far as possible, should execute the injunctions prescribing minor regulative duties such as cleanliness. Ultimately, however, one should approach a bona fide spiritual master who is full in knowledge of Me as I am, who is peaceful, and who by spiritual elevation is not different from Me.