Whatever Kuntī said, that was accepted by Kṛṣṇa. So He remained silent and simply smiled, that "A devotee is glorifying the Lord in chosen words." Here it is said that kala-padaiḥ. Means God is to be worshiped . . . He is to be offered the best selected words, not that like the atheist fools, they worship, or rather, insult. That very word . . . it gives us very much pain when God is called "daridra-nārāyaṇa." Why? Why Nārāyaṇa should be daridra? That means no conception of Nārāyaṇa. Therefore they add these insulting words. But that is not the way of worship. Uttama-śloka. Kṛṣṇa's or God's another name is Uttama-śloka, "Who is worshiped by the best, selected words." Uttama-śloka-guṇānuvarṇanam. Yad uttama-śloka-guṇānuvarṇanam.
- idaṁ hi puṁsas tapasaḥ śrutasya vā
- sviṣṭasya sūktasya ca buddhi-dattayoḥ
- avicyuto 'rthaḥ kavibhir nirūpito
- yad uttama-śloka-guṇānuvarṇanam
- (SB 1.5.22)
This is the injunction of the śāstra. Idaṁ hi puṁsas tapasaḥ śrutasya vā. In the material world, everyone, at least the higher class, higher section of the society, they are engaged in so many research work. That is called tapasya. How to find out the best thing for the human, benefit of the human society, scientific research, that is also tapasya. When a scientist invents something, that is result of tapasya. It is not very easily obtained. Therefore tapa . . . so many people are engaged in tapasya. Idaṁ hi puṁsas tapasaḥ śrutasya. So many people are engaged in education. Śrutasya. Śrutasya means "of education." The Vedic process of getting education is by hearing. Therefore it is called śruti. The Vedas are called śruti. Formerly . . . just like we are reading books. The books were not needed because the memory was so sharp—simply by hearing from the teacher, they'll remember. That is . . . that is called tradition by hearing. Therefore education means śruti. Śrutibhir pratipannam. Anything, if you want to prove, then you have to give evidence from the śruti. Then it is . . .
So anyone who is being educated, anyone who is engaged in research work for the benefit of the whole human society . . . idaṁ hi puṁsas tapasaḥ śrutasya vā ca buddhi-dattayoḥ. Or somebody is giving in charity, opening hospital, schools, or other good, good purposes, ca buddhi-dattayoḥ. So why they are doing that? What is the purpose? The purpose is avicyutaḥ arthaḥ. Avicyuta means infallible, and artha means purpose. Avicyutaḥ arthaḥ kavibhir nirūpitaḥ. It is ascertained, the purpose. Why one should be engaged in research work? Why one should be engaged in getting good education? Why one should perform charity, or why one should be intelligent? This is higher-class activities. So what is the purpose? The purpose, it is said, kavibhir nirūpitaḥ: "By high-class scholars, they have ascertained." What is it? Yad uttama-śloka-guṇānuvarṇanam: "God is to be worshiped simply by glorifying Him by the best words, uttama-śloka." Not that, "My dear God, You have no eyes. You have no leg. You have no hand. You have no mouth." What is this? It is the indirect way of insulting God.
If one man has no eyes, then what he is called? He is called blind. So if one man has no legs, he is called lame. So similarly, if we worship God that, "You are blind. You are lame. You are headless. You are brainless," what is this worship? Similarly, this kind of worship—daridra-nārāyaṇa, "Nārāyaṇa is daridra"—is just like that. No. Here Kuntī says that kala-padaiḥ, kala-padaiḥ, "by chosen words." Just like if you worship some superior, when you give foodstuff to your spiritual master, superior, you find out the best, selected foodstuff, not that anything, worst: "You eat it. If you don't like, don't eat. I don't mind." No. This is the way of worship. When you worship superior, and who can be more superior than Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead? He's the Supreme, Absolute Truth. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13).
So Kuntī has all along . . . very selected words she used. That we should learn. That is the injunction of the śāstras, uttama-śloka. Therefore Kṛṣṇa's another name is bhagavaty uttama-śloke bhaktir bhavati naiṣṭhikī (SB 1.2.18). The best words. Actually, if you love somebody, out of love you cannot use anything, means any word, which is not very much appreciated. So . . . and they are all applicable. It is not like the logic, kāṇa-chelera nāma padma-locana: one man has got a child who is blind, but he has given the name Padma-locana, "Lotus-eyed." Not like that. The selected words which Kuntī has used, it is not improper. They are properly used. Just like here is one word used, Vaikuṇṭha. Kṛṣṇa's another name is Vaikuṇṭha, or God's another name is Vaikuṇṭha. Vaikuṇṭha means vigata-kuṇṭha hy asmāt. Therefore spiritual world is called Vaikuṇṭha. And the material world is duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). It is not Vaikuṇṭha. You cannot even walk without anxiety. Just like we were walking on the street, and the leg slipped. So we should be very much careful even in walking. Beginning from your morning walk, you are full of anxiety. But Vaikuṇṭha means no anxiety. No anxiety. That is spiritual world. We must understand what is Vaikuṇṭhaloka and what is Jaḍaloka.