sri ramanuja seva

गुणाधिकान् मुदम् लिप्सेत्,
अनुक्रोशम् गुणाधमात् ।
मैत्रीम् समानाद् अन्विच्छेत्,
न तापैर् अभिभूयते ॥

Above verse is spoken by Sri Narada to little Dhruva, in Srimad Bhagavatam (Canto 4). Naradar tells Dhruva a nice formula by which we can lead a happy, peaceful, serene life. We come across various people in our daily interactions. How to properly deal with them? Naradar answers that question.

गुण-अधिकात् मुदम् लिप्सेत्
When we come across those who are more qualified or more advanced than us, we should be happy and pleased to receive them.
(That is, one should not feel envy or animosity towards those more advanced than us.)

अनुक्रोशम् गुण-अधमात्
To those who are less qualified than us, we should feel compassion.
(That is, we should not have a condescending or deriding attitude towards them.)

मैत्रीम् समानाद् अन्विच्छेत्
Towards those who are equal to us, we should seek friendship.
(That is, we should not get into a competitive mood of rivalry, and try to outdo them.)

न तापैः अभिभूयते
If one follows the above formula for dealing with various people, then one will not become overcome by the miseries of life, or by distress.

(In this context, Dhruva was in a very miserable, angry, distressed state having been insulted by a relative. Naradar tries to pacify him and give him a devotional and spiritual outlook to things.)

By one’s past karma, one gets to obtain different kinds of happiness and distress. One should remain serene in all such situations. Should not get disturbed. This is also the teaching given in Bhagavad Gita.

More such teachings from Srimad Bhagavatam: What qualities please Sri Bhagavan?