बोध्यमानस्य ऋषिभिरात्मनस्तज्जिघृक्षतः कर्णौ च निरभिद्येतां दिशः श्रोत्रं गुणग्रहः
bodhyamānasya ṛṣibhir ātmanas taj jighṛkṣataḥ karṇau ca nirabhidyetāṁ diśaḥ śrotraṁ guṇa-grahaḥ
Synonyms
bodhyamānasya—desiring to understand; ṛṣibhiḥ—by the authorities; ātmanaḥ—of the Supreme Being; tat—that; jighṛkṣataḥ—when he desired to take up; karṇau—the ears; ca—also; nirabhidyetām—became manifested; diśaḥ—the direction or the god of air; śrotram—the power of hearing; guṇa-grahaḥ—and the objects of hearing..
Translation
By development of the desire of the great sages to know, the ears, the power of hearing, the controlling deity of hearing, and the objects of hearing became manifested. The great sages desired to hear about the Self.
Purport
As is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, one should try to know by advancement of knowledge about the Supreme Lord, the summum bonum of everything. Knowledge does not mean to know the laws of nature or of physical knowledge that are working by the direction of the Lord. The scientists are eager to hear about the physical laws that are working in the material nature. They are eager to hear through the medium of radio and television about the things which are taking place far away from them in other planets, but they should know that the power of hearing and the instruments for hearing were given to them by the Lord for hearing about the Self, or about the Lord. Unfortunately the power of hearing is misused in hearing the vibrations of mundane affairs. The great sages were interested to hear about the Lord through Vedic knowledge and nothing more. And that is the beginning of aural reception of knowledge.