by Caitanya Priya Das
“Person Bhāgavata is the spiritual master And by reading Bhāgavata, you understand what is Bhagavān, what is spiritual master.”
(Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.26.21-Dec.30,1974-Bombay)
“The Bhāgavata says,
nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā: “You have to twenty-four hours engaged in bhāgavata,
in the service of Bhāgavata, the person Bhāgavata or the book bhāgavata.” Bhāgavata, there are two kinds of bhāgavata.
(From minute 41:07 to minute 41:27)
Person Bhāgavata is the spiritual master, and the book Bhāgavata.
(From minute 41:27 to minute 41:32)
So, there is no difference, because the person Bhāgavata advises you read Bhāgavata. And by reading Bhāgavata, you understand what is Bhagavān, what is spiritual master.
(From minute 41:32 to minute 41:42)
So, in this way,
naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu
nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā
bhagavaty uttama-śloke
bhaktir bhavati naiṣṭhikī
[SB 1.2.18]
https://prabhupadabooks.com/sb/1/2/18
This is the process to make the heart cleansed and gradually attain the perfection of complete peacefulness. And that complete peacefulness is the stage for understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Thank you very much.
Devotees: Haribol… [end]
(From minute 41:42 to minute 42:18) (Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.26.21-Dec.30,1974-Bombay)
https://prabhupadavani.org/transcriptions/741230sbbom/
Note:
“Person Bhagavata is the spiritual master.” The spiritual master is only the person Bhagavata.
“Only such a person is eligible to occupy the post of a guru.”
“When one has attained the topmost position of mahā-bhāgavata, he is to be accepted as a guru and worshiped exactly like Hari, the Personality of Godhead. Only such a person is eligible to occupy the post of a guru.”
(CC Madhya lila 24.330)
https://prabhupadabooks.com/cc/madhya/24/330
This is the process:
“Person Bhāgavata is the spiritual master.
You have to twenty-four hours engaged in bhāgavata, in the service of Bhāgavata, the person Bhāgavata (the spiritual master) or the book Bhāgavata.”
This is the process to make the heart cleansed and gradually attain the perfection of complete peacefulness.
And that complete peacefulness is the stage for understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead.”
According to this: IF one serves a so-called spiritual master, a person who is NOT the person Bhagavata, IF one does NOT serve the person Bhagavata, who is the bonafide spiritual master,
the consequences are that:
- the heart does NOT become cleansed,
- one does NOT attain the perfection of complete peacefulness,
- one does NOT understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Accepting a so-called spiritual master who is not the person Bhāgavata is contrary to the teachings of both Bhagavatas: the devotee Bhāgavata (Srila Prabhupada) and the book Bhagavata.
How do we know which particular person is the person Bhagavata and can act as a spiritual master?
We know this because that person receives the order, authorization, from Srila Prabhupada to accept disciples.
How do we know which particular person is a doctor?
We know this because the expert official authority authorizes that person through a certificate to act as a doctor.
This order or authorization from the higher authority is the guarantee that a particular person has the required qualifications to act as a doctor, to act as a spiritual master.
Without this authorization, no one is a bona fide spiritual master, no one is a bona fide doctor.
This authorization is the assurance that a specific person is the devotee Bhāgavata.
Therefore, there are two conditions for being a bona fide spiritual master:
- Qualification, being the devotee Bhāgavata, and
- Srila Prabhupada’s demonstrable and verifiable authorization to a specific person.
Without this authorization, no one can act as a doctor, nor should anyone act as a spiritual master.
“If a man wants to be a high-court judge, he must acquire not only the necessary qualifications but also the consent of the authority who can award the title of high-court judge. The qualifications in themselves are insufficient for one to occupy the post: it must be awarded by some superior authority.”
(Śrī Īśopaniṣad-Mantra Eight-Purport by Srila Prabhupada)
SB 1.2.18
naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu
nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā
bhagavaty uttama-śloke
bhaktir bhavati naiṣṭhikī
SYNONYMS
naṣṭa—destroyed; prāyeṣu—almost to nil; abhadreṣu—all that is inauspicious;
nityam—regularly; bhāgavata—Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, or the pure devotee; sevayā—by serving; bhagavati—unto the Personality of Godhead; uttama—transcendental; śloke—prayers; bhaktiḥ—loving service; bhavati—comes into being; naiṣṭhikī—irrevocable.
TRANSLATION
By regular attendance in classes on the Bhāgavatam and by rendering of service to the pure devotee, all that is troublesome to the heart is almost completely destroyed, and loving service unto the Personality of Godhead, who is praised with transcendental songs, is established as an irrevocable fact.
PURPORT
Here is the remedy for eliminating all inauspicious things within the heart
which are considered to be obstacles in the path of self-realization.
The remedy is the association of the Bhāgavatas.
There are two types of Bhāgavatas, namely the book Bhāgavata and the devotee Bhāgavata.
Both the Bhāgavatas are competent remedies, and both of them or either of them
can be good enough to eliminate the obstacles.
A devotee Bhāgavata is as good as the book Bhāgavata because the devotee Bhāgavata leads his life in terms of the book Bhāgavata and the book Bhāgavata is full of information about the Personality of Godhead and His pure devotees, who are also Bhāgavatas.
Bhāgavata book and person are identical.
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The devotee Bhāgavata is a direct representative of Bhagavān, the Personality of Godhead.
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So by pleasing the devotee Bhāgavata one can receive the benefit of the book Bhāgavata.
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Human reason fails to understand how by serving the devotee Bhāgavata or the book Bhāgavata one gets gradual promotion on the path of devotion.
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But actually, these are facts explained by Śrīla Nāradadeva, who happened to be a maidservant’s son in his previous life.
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The maidservant was engaged in the menial service of the sages, and thus he also came into contact with them.
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And simply by associating with them and accepting the remnants of foodstuff left by the sages, the son of the maidservant got the chance to become the great devotee and personality Śrīla Nāradadeva.
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These are the miraculous effects of the association of Bhagavatas
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And to understand these effects practically, it should be noted that by such sincere association of the bhagavatas. one is sure to receive transcendental knowledge very easily, with the result that he becomes fixed in the devotional service of the Lord
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The more progress is made in devotional service under the guidance of the Bhagavatas, the more one becomes fixed in the transcendental loving service of the Lord.
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The messages of the book Bhāgavata, therefore, have to be received from the devotee Bhagavata and the combination of these two Bhagavatas.
will help the neophyte devotee to make progress on and on.
.