TLC 12 (1968)
CHAPTER TWELVE
The Devotee
A person in Krishna Consciousness, fully devoted in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, develops many good qualities, or godly qualities—pertaining to the demigods. There are many such qualities, but Lord Chaitanya described only some of them to Sanatan Goswami: A devotee of the Lord is always kind to everyone. He does not pick a quarrel with anyone. He takes the essence of life, spiritual life. He is equal to everyone. Nobody can find fault in a devotee. His magnanimous mind is always fresh and clean and without any material obsessions. He is a benefactor to all living entities. He is peaceful and always surrendered to Krishna. He has no material desire. He is very humble and is fixed in his direction. He is victorious over the six material qualities such as lust and anger. He does not eat more than what he needs. He is always sane. He is respectful to others; but for himself he does not require any respect. He is grave. He is merciful. He is friendly. He is a poet. He is an expert. And he is silent.
In the Srimad Bhagwatam, Third Canto, Twenty-fifth Chapter, the person in Krishna Consciousness, devoted to the loving service of the Lord, is also described: Such a devotee or person in Krishna Consciousness is always tolerant and merciful. He is a friend to all living entities. He has no enemies. He is peaceful, and he is decorated with all good qualities. These are the symptoms of the person in Krishna Consciousness.
It is also said in the Bhagwatam that if one gets the opportunity to serve a great soul—a Mahatma—then his path to liberation is open. Those who are, however, attached to persons in the materialistic conception of life are on the path of darkness. Those who are actually holy are transcendentalists, equipoised, very peaceful, without any anger, and friendly to all living entities. Therefore becoming Krishna conscious, or a devotee of the Lord, is caused simply by association with such holy men. And to develop love of Godhead, the association of holy devotees is also needed. For anyone who comes in contact with a holy man, as mentioned above, the path of advancement in spiritual life is now opening. And, by following that path, he is sure to develop Krishna Consciousness in full devotional service.
In the Srimad Bhagwatam, Eleventh Canto, Second Chapter, Vasudeva, the father of Krishna, asks Narada Muni about the welfare of life. In reply, Narada Muni quotes a passage from the discussion of the nine sages with King Nimi: "O holy sages, I am just trying to ask what the paths of well-being for every living entity are. And, a moment of association with holy men is the most valuable thing in life. That moment will open the path of advancement in spiritual life." This is also confirmed in the Srimad Bhagwatam, Third Canto, Twenty-fifth Chapter.
Association with holy persons. and the discussion of transcendental subject matters with them convinces one about the purposeful course. Very soon, hearing of Krishna becomes pleasing to the ear, and satisfactory to one's heart. After reception of such messages from holy persons or pure devotees, if one tries to apply them in his own life, then naturally the path of Krishna Consciousness becomes developed in faith, attachment, and devotional service—one after another.
The Lord then informed Sanatan Goswami about the behavior of a devotee. The sum and substance of such behavior enunciated by the Lord is that one should always be aloof from unholy association. That is the sum and substance of the behavior of a devotee. And what is unholy association? It is association with one who is too attached to women, and one who is not a devotee of Lord Krishna. These are unholy persons. The purport is that, as one is advised to associate with holy devotees of the Lord, so one has to be careful to avoid the association of unholy non-devotees of the Lord. Those who are pure devotees of Krishna are very careful to keep aloof from these two kinds of unholy non-devotees.
The result of unholy association with non-devotees is described in the Srimad Bhagwatam, Third Canto, Thirty-first Chapter. It is said there that one should simply give up association with a person who is a playmate for women; because, in association with such an unholy person, one becomes bereft of all good qualities, such as truthfulness, cleanliness, mercifulness, gravity, intelligence, shyness, beauty, fame, forgiveness, control of the mind, control of the senses, and all opulences that are automatically achieved by the devotee. A man is never so degraded as when he is degraded by association with persons who are too attached to women.
Regarding this matter of disassociation from unholy persons, Lord Chaitanya quoted a verse from Katyayani Samhita: "One should rather tolerate the miseries of being locked in a cage full of fire than tolerate the miseries of associating with those who are not devotees of the Lord." It is also advised that one should not see the faces of persons who are irreligious, or without any devotion for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is recommended by the Lord that one should scrupulously renounce the association of unwanted persons, and completely take shelter of the Supreme Lord Krishna. The same instruction is also given to Arjuna by Krishna in the last pages of Bhagavad Gita: "You give up everything and just surrender unto Me, and I shall take care of you, and protect you from all the reactions to sinful activities."
The Lord is very kind to His devotees. He is very grateful. He is able and magnanimous. Therefore, it is our duty to believe in the words of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And if we are intelligent enough and educated enough, we shall follow this principle without any hesitation. As said by Aukrur in addressing Krishna, in the Srimad Bhagwatam, Tenth Canto, Eighty-fourth Chapter: "Who can become a surrendered soul to any other than Yourself? Who is so dear, Who is so truthful, Who is so friendly, and Who is so grateful? You are so perfect and complete that even though You give Yourself to Your devotee, still You are full and perfect. You can therefore satisfy all the desires of the devotee, even to delivering Yourself to Your devotee."
A person who is intelligent and able to understand the philosophy of Krishna Consciousness, therefore, naturally gives up everything and takes to the shelter of Krishna only. In this connection, Lord Chaitanya recited a verse spoken by Uddhava in the Srimad Bhagwatam, Third Canto, Second Chapter: "How can one take shelter of anyone else but Krishna, Who is so kind? Even though Bakasur's sister planned to kill Him when He was an infant, by applying poison to her breast and offering it to Him to suck and thus to die—still that heinous woman received salvation, and was elevated to the same post as His own mother." The verse refers to the time Putana planned to kill Krishna when He was a child, by poisoning her breast and offering it to Him to suck. Krishna accepted it and sucked the milk from the breast of that demoniac woman, and at the same time sucked out her life also. But the result was that Putana was raised to the same post as His own mother.
There is no essential difference between a fully surrendered soul and a man in the renounced order of life. The only difference is that a fully surrendered soul has the distinguishing symptom of being completely dependent upon Krishna. This surrendering process can be characterized by six different qualities: The first quality is that one should accept everything that is favorable to the discharge of Krishna duties or devotional service. One should be determined to accept the process. The second is that he should give up everything which is unfavorable to the discharge of devotional service; and one should be so determined to give it all up. Thirdly, one should be convinced that nobody else can protect him except Krishna, and therefore he has full faith that he will be protected by the Lord. It should be mentioned here that the impersonalists think that being One with Krishna, or One with the Supreme Lord, is their actual identity. A devotee, however, does not destroy his identity, but he lives with full faith that Krishna will kindly protect him in every respect.
Fourthly, a devotee should always accept Krishna as his Maintainer. Fruitive performers generally expect protection from demigods; but a devotee does not expect any protection from any demigod. He is fully convinced that Krishna will protect him from all kinds of unfavorable conditions. Fifth, a devotee is always conscious that his desires are not independent. Unless Krishna fulfills them, his desires cannot be fulfilled. Lastly, one should always think of himself as the most fallen, so that Krishna may take care of him.
Such a surrendered soul should take shelter in a holy place like Vrindaban, Mathura, Dwarka, Mayapur, and should surrender himself to the Lord, saying, "My Lord, from today I am Yours. You can protect me or kill me as You like." The devotee takes shelter of Krishna in such a way. Krishna is grateful and accepts him and gives him all kinds of protection. This is confirmed in the Srimad Bhagwatam, Eleventh Canto, Twenty-ninth Chapter. It is said there that if a person who is about to die takes full shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and offers himself fully under His care, he actually attains immortality at that time, and is eligible to become in association with the Supreme Lord, and to enjoy transcendental bliss.
The Lord then explained to Sanatan Goswami about the various types and symptoms of practical devotional service. When devotional service becomes practical—to be performed with our present senses—at that time it is called practical devotional service. Actually, devotional service is the eternal life of the living entity, and is lying dormant in everyone's heart. The practice which invokes that dormant devotional service is called practical devotional service. The purport is that a living entity is constitutionally part and parcel of the Supreme Lord. The Lord is compared to the Sun, and the living entities are compared to the molecules of sunshine. Under the spell of illusory energy, that spiritual spark is almost extinct. But, by practical devotional service, one is again revived to his natural constitutional position. When one is practicing such devotional service, it means that he is going back to his original normal position of liberation. Such devotional service can be practiced with one's senses, under the direction of a bona fide Spiritual Master.
The beginning of such spiritual activities for making advancement in Krishna Consciousness, or devotional service, is to hear. Hearing is the most important subject matter for advancement in Krishna Consciousness. One should be very eager to hear favorably about Krishna. One should give up speculative knowledge or fruitive activities, and simply worship and desire to achieve love of Godhead. That love of Godhead is eternally existent within oneself. One has to simply practice the process of hearing. Hearing and chanting are the principal processes of devotional service.
Such devotional service may be regulative or affectionate. One who has not developed transcendental affection for Krishna should conduct his life under the direction of Scriptural injunction, and the guidance of the Spiritual Master. In the Srimad Bhagwatam, Second Canto, First Chapter, Sukadeva Goswami advises Maharaj Parikshit as follows:
"O best amongst the Bharatas, it is the prime duty of persons who want to become fearless to hear about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari, and to chant about Him, and always remember Him. Lord Vishnu is always to be remembered, and not to be forgotten for even a moment. He is the sum and substance of all regulative principles."
The purport is that there are so many rules and regulations in the revealed Scriptures: so many recommended activities, and so many prohibited activities—but when all of them are taken together, it appears that remembrance of the Supreme Lord is always the essence of everything. Remembrance of the Supreme Personality of Godhead always within one's heart is the practical action of devotional service. In that performance of devotional service there is no regulative principle. There are no do's and don't's.
Generally, in devotional service, one should accept the following principles: 1. One is to take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master. 2. It is necessary to be initiated by the spiritual master; 3. to serve the spiritual master; 4. to inquire and to learn love from the Spiritual Master; 5. to follow in the footsteps of holy persons devoted to the transcendental loving service of the Lord. 6. For the satisfaction of Krishna one should be prepared to give up all kinds of enjoyment and miseries. 7. One should live in a place where Krishna had His Pastimes. 8. One should be satisfied with whatever is sent by Krishna for maintenance of his body and should not be anxious to receive more than that. 9. One should observe fasting on Ekadasee day, the eleventh day after the full moon and the eleventh day after the new moon, when no grains, cereals or beans are eaten. Simple vegetables and milk are taken in moderate amounts, and chanting of Hare Krishna, reading Scripture, etc. is increased. 10. One should show respect to devotees, the cow and trees such as the banyan tree.
These ten items are essential for a neophyte devotee who is beginning to follow the path of devotional service. The next stage is as follows: 11. One should try to avoid offenses in the service to the Lord, and in chanting the Holy Names of the Lord. There are ten kinds of offenses in chanting the Holy Name and they should be avoided. The offenses are: 1. Blaspheming a devotee of the Lord; 2. Considering the Lord and the demigods on the same level, or to think that there are many Gods; 3. To neglect the orders of the spiritual master; 4. To minimize the authority of Scriptures (the Vedas); 5. To interpret the Holy Names of God; 6. To commit sin on the strength of chanting; 7. To instruct the Glories of the Lord's Name to the unfaithful; 8. To compare the Holy Name with material piety; 9. To be inattentive while chanting the Holy Name; 10. To remain attached to material things in spite of chanting the Holy Names. 12. One should avoid the association of unholy non-devotees. 13. One should not attempt to have many disciples. 14. One should not take the trouble of understanding various books or to understand partially any particular book, and one should avoid discussing different doctrines. 15. One should be equipoised both in gain and loss. 16. One should not be subject to any kind of lamentation. 17. One should not disrespect demigods, or other Scriptures. 18. One should not tolerate blaspheming the Supreme Lord and His devotees. 19. One should avoid ordinary topics of novels and fiction, but there is no injunction that one should avoid hearing ordinary news. 20. One should not give any trouble to any living creature, including a small bug.
The first ten items are affirmative, and the second ten are prohibitive. In the Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu complied by Sri Rupa Goswami, it is said that one should be very liberal in behavior and should avoid any undesirable behavior. Out of the twenty regulations mentioned above, the most important are to accept the shelter of a bona fide Spiritual Master, to be initiated by him, and to serve him.
The process of devotional service can be analyzed as follows: 1. Hearing, 2. Chanting, 3. Remembering, 4. Worshipping, 5. Praying, 6. Serving, 7. Engaging as a servitor, 8. Being friendly, 9. Offering everything, 10. Dancing before the deity, 11. Singing, 12. Informing, 13. Offering obeisances, 14. Standing up to show respect to the devotees, 15. When a devotee goes, following him up to the door, 16. Entering into the temple of the Lord, 17. Circumambulating the temple, 18. Reading prayers, 19. Vibrating hymns, 20. Performing Samkirtan, or congregational chanting, 21. Smelling the incense and the flowers offered to the deity, 22. Accepting the Prasadam (food offered to Krishna), 23. Seeing Aritrik or ceremonial performance of receiving the Lord, 24. Seeing the deity, 25. Offering to the Lord His own palatable foodstuff, 26. Meditating, 27. Offering water to the tulsi tree, 28. Offering respect to the Vaishnavas, or advanced devotees, 29. Living in Mathura or Vrindaban, 30. Understanding Srimad Bhagwatam, 31. Trying for Krishna to one's utmost, 32. Expecting the mercy of Krishna, 33. Performing the ceremonial functions of Krishna with devotees, 34. Surrendering in all respects, 35. Observing different ceremonial functions.
To these thirty-five items another four are to be added: 1. Marking the body with sandalwood pulp to show that he is a Vaishnava, 2. Painting the body with the Holy Names of the Lord, 3. Covering the body with the remnants of the cover of the deity, 4. Accepting Charanamrita, or the water washed of the Lord. Adding these four items to the above thirty-five, we have thirty-nine items for devotional service. Out of them, 1. To associate with devotees, 2. To chant the Holy Name of the Lord, 3. To hear Srimad Bhagwatam, 4. To live in a holy place such as Mathura or Vrindaban, 5. With great devotion, to serve the deity—these five items are very important. They are especially mentioned by Rupa Goswami in his book Bhakti Rasamrita Sindhu.
The thirty-nine items above, added with these five items, become forty-four. Add to that 20 preliminary occupations, and the total is sixty-four different items for conducting devotional service. One can adopt these sixty-four items by his body, mind and senses, so that gradually his devotional service becomes pure. Some of the items are completely separate, and some are identical, and others appear to be mixed.
Srila Rupa Goswami has recommended that one should live in association of those of the same mentality. Therefore, it is necessary to form some association of Krishna Consciousness and live together for the cultivation of Krishna knowledge and devotional service. The most important item for living in that association is to understand Srimad Bhagavad Gita and Srimad Bhagwatam mutually. When faith and devotion are developed, they become transformed into the worship of the deity and chanting of the Holy Name, and living in a place like Mathura and Vrindaban.
These five items, mentioned after the thirty-nine, are very important and essential. If one can simply discharge the last mentioned five items, even if they are not done sufficiently, one can be elevated to the highest perfectional stage. One may be able to perform one item or many items, according to one's capacity, but the principle factor of one's complete attachment to devotional service makes him advance on the path. There are many devotees in history who attained the perfection of devotional service simply by discharging the duties in one item. And there are many other devotees, like Maharaj Amburish, who executed all the different items.
Some individual devotees who attained perfection in devotional service by executing only one item are: Maharaj Parikshit, who was liberated in full perfection simply by hearing. Sukadeva Goswami who became liberated and perfect in devotional service simply by chanting. Lakshmi, simply by serving the Lotus Feet of the Lord. King Prithu attained perfection simply by worshipping; Akrura simply by praying; Hanuman only by becoming the servant of Lord Rama. Arjuna attained perfection simply by becoming a friend to Krishna, and Bali Maharaj simply by offering whatever he had in his possession.
So far as Maharaj Amburish is concerned, he practically performed all the items of devotional service: he first of all engaged his mind on the Lotus Feet of Krishna. He engaged his words, his power of speaking, in describing the transcendental qualities of the "Supreme Personality" of Godhead. He engaged his hands in washing the temple of the deity, his ears in hearing the words of Krishna, and he engaged his eyes in beholding the deity of Krishna. He engaged his touch for rendering service to the devotees, and he engaged his sense of smell to accept the fragrance of the flowers offered to Krishna. He engaged his tongue in tasting the tulsi leaves offered to the Lotus Feet of Krishna, his legs in going into the temple of Krishna, and he engaged his head in offering obeisances unto the deity of Krishna. All his desires and ambitions were engaged in the devotional service of the Lord. Therefore, he is the leader in discharging all kinds of devotional service in different ways.
Anyone who engages in the devotional service of the Lord in full Krishna Consciousness becomes freed of all debts to the sages and demigods and forefathers, to whom we are generally indebted. In the Srimad Bhagwatam this is confirmed: "Anyone who fully engages himself in the service of the Lord, without discharging any other duty, O King, is no longer indebted or servant to the demigods, to the sages, to other living entities, to his relatives, to any man, or to the forefathers." The purport is that every man, just after his birth, becomes at once indebted to all the above personalities and one is expected to discharge many kinds of ritualistic functions because of this indebtedness. But for a person who is fully surrendered unto Krishna, there is no obligation. In spite of not discharging such obligations, he is free from all debt to such persons.
It should be carefully noted, however, that when a person gives up all other duties and simply takes to the transcendental service of Krishna, he has no desire, and he is not subjected to, or apt to be performing, sinful activities. If, however, he performs any sinful activities—not wilfully, but by chance—then Krishna gives him all protection. He does not require to purify himself by any other method. This is confirmed in the Srimad Bhagwatam, Eleventh Canto, Fifth Chapter: "A devotee who is fully engaged in the transcendental loving service of the Lord is protected by the Supreme Person. But in case such a devotee unintentionally commits some sinful activity, or may be obliged to act in some sinful activity under certain circumstances, God gives him all protection, being situated within his heart."
The processes of speculative knowledge and renunciation are not practically the chief items for acquiring a higher standard of devotional service. One does not have to take to the principles of nonviolence and sense control, although there are rules and regulations for acquiring these qualities in other processes. Without being engaged in the practice of such processes, a devotee develops such high qualities simply by discharging devotional service to the Lord. In Srimad Bhagwatam, Eleventh Canto, the Lord says that for those who are actually engaged in the devotional service of the Lord there is no necessity for cultivating speculative knowledge of renunciation.