Honouring saints...

Prapanna-Jivanāmṛtam

तृतियोऽध्यायः

CHAPTER III

श्री भक्त वचनामृतम्

Śrī Bhakta-vacanāmṛtam

Soul-tonic:

 Words from the bhaktas
Acceptance of what is Favorable

अनुकुल्यस्य सङ्कल्पः

कार्ष्णानाम् अधिकारानुरूप सेवैव भजनानुकूला

कृष्णेति यस्य गिरि तं मनसाद्रियेत

दीक्षास्ति चेत् प्रणतिभिश् च भजन्तम् ईशम्

शुश्रूषया भजन-विज्ञम् अनन्यम् अन्य-

निन्दादि-शुन्य-हृदम् ईप्सित-सङ्ग-लब्ध्या ।।४।।

श्री-रूपपादानां

kārṣṇānām adhikārānurūpa sevaiva bhajanānukūlā

kṛṣṇeti yasya giri taṁ manasādriyeta

dīkṣāsti cet praṇatibhiś ca bhajantam īśam

śuśrūṣayā bhajana-vijñam ananyam anya-

nindādi-śunya-hṛdam īpsita-saṅga-labdhyā

śrī-rūpapādānāṁ

Honouring and serving devotees according to their qualifications is favourable to devotional practice, according to Rūpa Goswāmī

Honour within the mind those who chant Kṛṣṇa’s Name, honour with obeisance those who are initiated and serve the Lord, and honour with service those who are expert in devotion, who are exclusively devoted, whose hearts are free from the duality of criticising and praising others, and who are the most desirable association.

Śrī Rūpa Goswāmī

Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta SaraswatI Ṭhakura comments: "Those who know Kṛṣṇa and His Name to be nondifferent, follow spiritual practices exclusively, chant the Name, and are initiated—honour them mentally and known them to be members of your own family.  Those who serve Kṛṣṇa by serving the Name and always reside in supramundane Vraja within their heart—know them to be intermediate Vaiṣṇavas and grasp their feet. Be subservient to them mentally and physically.    Those who have realised their true self by serving the Name, do not see anything other than Kṛṣṇa in this world, do not accept any connection with anything in this world that is unrelated to Kṛṣṇa, and consider everyone to be equally engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s service—know such experts in devotion to be most desirable and intently serve them with your body, mind, and words." (From Śrī Gaudiya Darshan) http://www.gaudiyadarshan.com/posts/honour-in-gradation/

Bhaktivedānta Swāmī comments:

कृष्णेति यस्य गिरि तं मनसाद्रियेत

दीक्षास्ति चेत् प्रणतिभिश् च भजन्तम् ईशम्

शुश्रूषया भजन-विज्ञम् अनन्यम् अन्य-

निन्दादि-शून्य-हृदम् ईप्सित-सङ्ग-लब्ध्या

kṛṣṇeti yasya giri taṁ manasādriyeta
dīkṣāsti cet praṇatibhiś ca bhajantam īśam
śuśrūṣayā bhajana-vijñam ananyam anya-
nindādi-śūnya-hṛdam īpsita-saṅga-labdhyā

Word for word: 

kṛṣṇa — the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa; iti — thus; yasya — of whom; giri — in the words or speech; tam — him; manasā — by the mind; ādriyeta — one must honor; dīkṣā — initiation; asti — there is; cet — if; praṇatibhiḥ — by obeisances; ca — also; bhajantam — engaged in devotional service; īśam — unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead; śuśrūṣayā — by practical service; bhajana-vijñam — one who is advanced in devotional service; ananyam— without deviation; anya-nindā-ādi — of blasphemy of others, etc; śūnya — completely devoid; hṛdam — whose heart; īpsita — desirable; saṅga — association; labdhyā — by gaining.

Translation: 

One should mentally honor the devotee who chants the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṇa, one should offer humble obeisances to the devotee who has undergone spiritual initiation [dīkṣā] and is engaged in worshiping the Deity, and one should associate with and faithfully serve that pure devotee who is advanced in undeviated devotional service and whose heart is completely devoid of the propensity to criticize others.

Purport: 

In order to intelligently apply the sixfold loving reciprocations mentioned in the previous verse, one must select proper persons with careful discrimination. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī therefore advises that we should meet with the Vaiṣṇavas in an appropriate way, according to their particular status. In this verse he tells us how to deal with three types of devotees – the kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī and uttama-adhikārī. The kaniṣṭha-adhikārī is a neophyte who has received the hari-nāma initiation from the spiritual master and is trying to chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. One should respect such a person within his mind as a kaniṣṭha Vaiṣṇava. A madhyama-adhikārī has received spiritual initiation from the spiritual master and has been fully engaged by him in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. The madhyama-adhikārī should be considered to be situated midway in devotional service. The uttama-adhikārī, or highest devotee, is one who is very advanced in devotional service. An uttama-adhikārī is not interested in blaspheming others, his heart is completely clean, and he has attained the realized state of unalloyed Kṛṣṇa consciousness. According to Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī, the association and service of such a mahā-bhāgavata, or perfect Vaiṣṇava, are most desirable.

One should not remain a kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, one who is situated on the lowest platform of devotional service and is interested only in worshiping the Deity in the temple. Such a devotee is described in the Eleventh Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.2.47):

arcāyām eva haraye
pūjāṁ yaḥ śraddhayehate
na tad-bhakteṣu cānyeṣu
sa bhaktaḥ prākṛtaḥ smṛtaḥ

“A person who is very faithfully engaged in the worship of the Deity in the temple, but who does not know how to behave toward devotees or people in general is called a prākṛta-bhakta, or kaniṣṭha-adhikāri.”

One therefore has to raise himself from the position of kaniṣṭha-adhikārī to the platform of madhyama-adhikārī. The madhyama-adhikārī is described in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.2.46) in this way:

īśvare tad-adhīneṣu
bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca
prema-maitrī-kṛpopekṣā
yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ

“The madhyama-adhikārī is a devotee who worships the Supreme Personality of Godhead as the highest object of love, makes friends with the Lord’s devotees, is merciful to the ignorant and avoids those who are envious by nature.”

This is the way to cultivate devotional service properly; therefore in this verse Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has advised us how to treat various devotees. We can see from practical experience that there are different types of Vaiṣṇavas. The prākṛta-sahajiyās generally chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, yet they are attached to women, money and intoxication. Although such persons may chant the holy name of the Lord, they are not yet properly purified. Such people should be respected within one’s mind, but their association should be avoided. Those who are innocent but simply carried away by bad association should be shown favor if they are eager to receive proper instructions from pure devotees, but those neophyte devotees who are actually initiated by the bona fide spiritual master and are seriously engaged in carrying out the orders of the spiritual master should be offered respectful obeisances.

In this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement a chance is given to everyone without discrimination of caste, creed or color. Everyone is invited to join this movement, sit with us, take prasāda and hear about Kṛṣṇa. When we see that someone is actually interested in Kṛṣṇa consciousness and wants to be initiated, we accept him as a disciple for the chanting of the holy name of the Lord. When a neophyte devotee is actually initiated and engaged in devotional service by the orders of the spiritual master, he should be accepted immediately as a bona fide Vaiṣṇava, and obeisances should be offered unto him. Out of many such Vaiṣṇavas, one may be found to be very seriously engaged in the service of the Lord and strictly following all the regulative principles, chanting the prescribed number of rounds on japa beads and always thinking of how to expand the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Such a Vaiṣṇava should be accepted as an uttama-adhikārī, a highly advanced devotee, and his association should always be sought.

The process by which a devotee becomes attached to Kṛṣṇa is described in Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Antya 4.192):

dīkṣā-kāle bhakta kare ātma-samarpaṇa
sei-kāle kṛṣṇa tāre kare ātma-sama

“At the time of initiation, when a devotee fully surrenders to the service of the Lord, Kṛṣṇa accepts him to be as good as He Himself.”

Dīkṣā, or spiritual initiation, is explained in the Bhakti-sandarbha (283) by Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī:

divyaṁ jñānaṁ yato dadyāt
kuryāt pāpasya saṅkṣayam
tasmād dīkṣeti sā proktā
deśikais tattva-kovidaiḥ

“By dīkṣā one gradually becomes disinterested in material enjoyment and gradually becomes interested in spiritual life.”

We have seen many practical examples of this, especially in Europe and America. Many students who come to us from rich and respectable families quickly lose all interest in material enjoyment and become very eager to enter into spiritual life. Although they come from very wealthy families, many of them accept living conditions that are not very comfortable. Indeed, for Kṛṣṇa’s sake they are prepared to accept any living condition as long as they can live in the temple and associate with the Vaiṣṇavas. When one becomes so disinterested in material enjoyment, he becomes fit for initiation by the spiritual master. For the advancement of spiritual life Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (6.1.13) prescribes: tapasā brahmacaryeṇa śamena ca damena ca. When a person is serious about accepting dīkṣā, he must be prepared to practice austerity, celibacy and control of the mind and body. If one is so prepared and is desirous of receiving spiritual enlightenment (divyaṁ jñānam), he is fit for being initiated. Divyaṁ jñānam is technically called tad-vijñāna, or knowledge about the Supreme. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet: when one is interested in the transcendental subject matter of the Absolute Truth, he should be initiated. Such a person should approach a spiritual master in order to take dīkṣā. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.3.21) also prescribes: tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam. “When one is actually interested in the transcendental science of the Absolute Truth, he should approach a spiritual master.”

One should not accept a spiritual master without following his instructions. Nor should one accept a spiritual master just to make a fashionable show of spiritual life. One must be jijñāsu, very much inquisitive to learn from the bona fide spiritual master. The inquiries one makes should strictly pertain to transcendental science (jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam). The word uttamam refers to that which is above material knowledge. Tama means “the darkness of this material world,” and ut means “transcendental.” Generally people are very interested in inquiring about mundane subject matters, but when one has lost such interest and is simply interested in transcendental subject matters, he is quite fit for being initiated. When one is actually initiated by the bona fide spiritual master and when he seriously engages in the service of the Lord, he should be accepted as a madhyama-adhikārī.

The chanting of the holy names of Kṛṣṇa is so sublime that if one chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra offenselessly, carefully avoiding the ten offenses, he can certainly be gradually elevated to the point of understanding that there is no difference between the holy name of the Lord and the Lord Himself. One who has reached such an understanding should be very much respected by neophyte devotees. One should know for certain that without chanting the holy name of the Lord offenselessly, one cannot be a proper candidate for advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In ŚrīCaitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 22.69) it is said:

yāhāra komala śraddhā, se ‘kaniṣṭha’ jana
krame krame teṅho bhakta ha-ibe ‘uttama’

“One whose faith is soft and pliable is called a neophyte, but by gradually following the process, he will rise to the platform of a first-class devotee.” Everyone begins his devotional life from the neophyte stage, but if one properly finishes chanting the prescribed number of rounds of hari-nāma, he is elevated step by step to the highest platform, uttama-adhikārī. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement prescribes sixteen rounds daily because people in the Western countries cannot concentrate for long periods while chanting on beads. Therefore the minimum number of rounds is prescribed. However, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura used to say that unless one chants at least sixty-four rounds of japa (one hundred thousand names), he is considered fallen (patita). According to his calculation, practically every one of us is fallen, but because we are trying to serve the Supreme Lord with all seriousness and without duplicity, we can expect the mercy of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who is famous as patita-pāvana, the deliverer of the fallen.

When Śrīla Satyarāja Khān, a great devotee of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, asked the Lord how a Vaiṣṇava could be recognized, the Lord replied:

prabhu kahe, – “yāṅra mukhe śuni eka-bāra
kṛṣṇa-nāma, sei pūjya, – śreṣṭha sabākāra”

“If one hears a person say even once the word ‘Kṛṣṇa,’ that person should be accepted as the best man out of the common group.” (Cc. Madhya 15.106) Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu continued:

“ataeva yāṅra mukhe eka kṛṣṇa-nāma
sei ta ’vaiṣṇava, kariha tāṅhāra sammāna”

“One who is interested in chanting the holy name of Kṛṣṇa or who by practice likes to chant Kṛṣṇa’s names should be accepted as a Vaiṣṇava and offered respects as such, at least within one’s mind.” (Cc. Madhya 15.111) One of our friends, a famous English musician, has become attracted to chanting the holy names of Kṛṣṇa, and even in his records he has several times mentioned the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. At his home he offers respect to pictures of Kṛṣṇa and also to the preachers of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In all regards, he has a very high estimation for Kṛṣṇa’s name and Kṛṣṇa’s activities; therefore we offer respects to him without reservation, for we are actually seeing that this gentleman is advancing gradually in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Such a person should always be shown respect. The conclusion is that anyone who is trying to advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness by regularly chanting the holy name should always be respected by Vaiṣṇavas. On the other hand, we have witnessed that some of our contemporaries who are supposed to be great preachers have gradually fallen into the material conception of life because they have failed to chant the holy name of the Lord.

While giving instructions to Sanātana Gosvāmī, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu divided devotional service into three categories.

śāstra-yukti nāhi jāne dṛḍha, śraddhāvān
‘madhyama-adhikārī’ sei mahā-bhāgyavān

“A person whose conclusive knowledge of the śāstras is not very strong but who has developed firm faith in chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and who is also undeterred in the execution of his prescribed devotional service should be considered a madhyama-adhikārī. Such a person is very fortunate.” (Cc. Madhya 22.67) A madhyama-adhikārī is a śraddhāvān, a staunchly faithful person, and he is actually a candidate for further advancement in devotional service. Therefore in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya 22.64) it is said:

śraddhāvān jana haya bhakti-adhikārī
‘uttama’, ‘madhyama’, ‘kaniṣṭha’ – śraddhā-anusārī

“One becomes qualified as a devotee on the elementary platform, the intermediate platform and the highest platform of devotional service according to the development of his śraddhā [faith].” Again in Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya22.62) it is said:

‘śraddhā’-śabde – viśvāsa kahe sudṛḍha niścaya
kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya

“‘By rendering transcendental service to Kṛṣṇa, one automatically performs all subsidiary activities.’ This confident, firm faith, favorable to the discharge of devotional service, is called śraddhā.” Śraddhā, faith in Kṛṣṇa, is the beginning of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Faith means strong faith. The words of Bhagavad-gītā are authoritative instructions for faithful men, and whatever Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā is to be accepted as it is, without interpretation. This was the way Arjuna accepted Bhagavad-gītā. After hearing Bhagavad-gītā, Arjuna told Kṛṣṇa: sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye yan māṁ vadasi keśava. “O Kṛṣṇa, I totally accept as truth all that You have told me.” (Bg. 10.14)

This is the correct way of understanding Bhagavad-gītā, and this is called śraddhā. It is not that one accepts a portion of Bhagavad-gītā according to his own whimsical interpretations and then rejects another portion. This is not śraddhā. Śraddhā means accepting the instructions of Bhagavad-gītā in their totality, especially the last instruction: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. “Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me.” (Bg. 18.66) When one becomes completely faithful in regard to this instruction, one’s strong faith becomes the basis for advancing in spiritual life.

When one fully engages in chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, he gradually realizes his own spiritual identity. Unless one faithfully chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, Kṛṣṇa does not reveal Himself: sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. (BRS. 1.2.234) We cannot realize the Supreme Personality of Godhead by any artificial means. We must engage faithfully in the service of the Lord. Such service begins with the tongue (sevonmukhe hi jihvādau), which means that we should always chant the holy names of the Lord and accept kṛṣṇa-prasāda. We should not chant or accept anything else. When this process is faithfully followed, the Supreme Lord reveals Himself to the devotee.

When a person realizes himself to be an eternal servitor of Kṛṣṇa, he loses interest in everything but Kṛṣṇa’s service. Always thinking of Kṛṣṇa, devising means by which to spread the holy name of Kṛṣṇa, he understands that his only business is in spreading the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement all over the world. Such a person is to be recognized as an uttama-adhikārī, and his association should be immediately accepted according to the six processes (dadāti pratigṛhṇāti, etc.). Indeed, the advanced uttama-adhikārī Vaiṣṇava devotee should be accepted as a spiritual master. Everything one possesses should be offered to him, for it is enjoined that one should deliver whatever he has to the spiritual master. The brahmacārī in particular is supposed to beg alms from others and offer them to the spiritual master. However, one should not imitate the behavior of an advanced devotee or mahā-bhāgavata without being self-realized, for by such imitation one will eventually become degraded.

In this verse Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī advises the devotee to be intelligent enough to distinguish between the kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī and uttama-adhikārī. The devotee should also know his own position and should not try to imitate a devotee situated on a higher platform. Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has given some practical hints to the effect that an uttama-adhikārī Vaiṣṇava can be recognized by his ability to convert many fallen souls to Vaiṣṇavism. One should not become a spiritual master unless he has attained the platform of uttama-adhikārī. A neophyte Vaiṣṇava or a Vaiṣṇava situated on the intermediate platform can also accept disciples, but such disciples must be on the same platform, and it should be understood that they cannot advance very well toward the ultimate goal of life under his insufficient guidance. Therefore a disciple should be careful to accept an uttama-adhikārī as a spiritual master.

His Divine Grace Bhakti Rakṣaka Śrīdhar Dev Goswāmī comments on the gradations of ācāryas and vaiṣṇavas mentioned above as follows in his book “Sri Guru and His Grace”:

“The Spiritual Master always performs his function from the platform of an intermediate devotee, whether he comes down from the position of a first class devotee to do the work of Guru, or does so as a bona fide intermediate devotee. Because the work of Guru is enacted from the intermediate stage, it is the duty of the madhyam-adhikārī to initiate disciples.

A Spiritual Master may be one of three kinds. The first class Guru extends one foot from the spiritual world into the material world and takes souls from here to there. The Guru in the intermediate stage is situated here, but he has extended one foot there and is taking souls to the spiritual world. The lowest class of Guru has both feet here, but he clearly sees the highest plane and is trying to take the souls from here to that plane. In this way, we may roughly conceive of three kinds of Guru.

These are not three stages of Vaiṣṇava, but three stages of Guru. A first class devotee takes the position of an intermediate devotee when he descends to play the role of an Āchārya, one who teaches by “example. He has one leg there in the spiritual world, and by the order of Kṛṣṇa, he extends another leg here in the material world to do the duty of an Āchārya. The Guru who has one leg here in the material world and extends another leg into the spiritual world is a madhyam-adhikārī, or intermediate devotee. He also discharges the duty of an Āchārya. The lowest class of Āchārya has both legs here in the material world, but his vision is towards the spiritual world. He may also do the duty of Āchārya. These are the gradations of Āchāryas, and “trying to take the souls from here to that plane. In this way, we may roughly conceive of three kinds of Guru.

These are not three stages of Vaiṣṇava, but three stages of Guru. A first class devotee takes the position of an intermediate devotee when he descends to play the role of an Āchārya, one who teaches by example. He has one leg there in the spiritual world, and by the order of Kṛṣṇa, he extends another leg here in the material world to do the duty of an Āchārya. The Guru who has one leg here in the material world and extends another leg into the spiritual world is a madhyam-adhikārī, or intermediate devotee. He also discharges the duty of an Āchārya. The lowest class of Āchārya has both legs here in the material world, but his vision is towards the spiritual world. He may also do the duty of Āchārya. These are the gradations of Āchāryas, and the different stages of Vaiṣṇavas are another thing. They are mentioned in the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (11.2.45-47):

अर्छायाम् एव हरये पूजां यः श्रद्धयेहते

न तद्-भक्तेषु छान्येषु स भक्तः प्राकृतः स्मृतः

archāyām eva haraye pūjāṁ yaḥ śraddhayehate

na tad-bhakteṣu chānyeṣu sa bhaktaḥ prākṛtaḥ smṛtaḥ

“A devotee who faithfully worships the Deity, but does not properly respect the Vaiṣṇavas or the people in general is called a materialistic devotee, and is considered to be in the lowest position of devotional service.” This is the lowest class of Vaiṣṇava. The second class of devotees is given also:

īśvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu cha

prema-maitrī kṛpopekṣā yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ

“The devotee in the intermediate stage of devotional service is called a madhyama-adhikārī. He loves the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is a sincere friend to all the devotees of the Lord, shows mercy to the innocent, and disregards the envious.” The highest stage of Vaiṣṇavism according to the Śrīmad Bhāgavatam is described as follows:”

sarva-bhūteṣu yaḥ paśyed bhagavad-bhāvam ātmanaḥ

bhūtāni bhagavaty ātmany eṣa bhāgavatottamaḥ

The first class devotee sees Kṛṣṇa in everything, and everything within Kṛṣṇa.” These are three stages of devotees. Śrī Chaitanya Mahāprabhu explains these three stages in terms of those devotees who chant the Holy Name of Kṛṣṇa. One who has even once heard or uttered the Holy Name of the Lord may be considered a third class “devotee. One who always chants the Name with faith is an intermediate devotee. And the first class devotee is so powerful that whoever sees him will feel the tendency to chant the Holy Name of Kṛṣṇa. That is the nature of the highest kind of devotee.

The second class devotee may have some mundane touch, but he deprecates this completely and fully attends to his spiritual realisation. He is fully engrossed in spiritual life. His attraction for Godhead is there, but he has not “fully escaped from the influence of māyā, or illusion. Although he is weak, still his attempt to help others is laudable. He has not completely disassociated himself from his mundane nature, but he is conquering it gradually. He is gaining battle after battle and moving towards Kṛṣṇa consciousness. He has good will. He is a preacher. He has reached the stage just before he finally disassociates himself from this world, takes his final leave, and enters the spiritual world.

“The neophyte devotee may go to the temple and worship there, strictly following the rules of the scriptures, but as soon as he is outside the temple, he may do anything and everything. In his relations with others he may not deal in a spiritual way; scriptural dictations have only a partial influence over him. In his dealings with others he may have no spiritual principles at all. But the intermediate devotee applies the principles of the scriptures in his ordinary life. From the point of view of the scriptures he considers who he should make friends with, what sort of trade he should accept for his livelihood, and how he should select his friends.

When a devotee’s social life is also affected and controlled by his spiritual principles, he becomes a second-class devotee. When he adopts such a form of life, he is fit to help others. He won’t be affected by foreign, unfavourable association, and because he has already practised and is settled in that form of life, he knows how to deal with others and “keep up his spiritual vitality. Because he has practised in that way, he can be eligible to initiate disciples. He is qualified to help others because he has already transformed himself in his dealings with the outside environment. He can keep up his standard by fighting with the agents of māyā. He has already proved that he has kept up his spiritual position, so he can be relied upon and entrusted with the power of Āchārya.

There is still another standpoint by “which the qualifications of a devotee have been expressed to us in the revealed scriptures. One whose reliance, regard, and faith is in the śāstra, who attentively observes all the rules and regulations and practices that are found in the scriptures, and whose practices and social activities are coloured by his faith in God is an intermediate devotee. And one who acts according to his faith in Kṛṣṇa in every stage, whatever circumstances there may be, is a first-class devotee. His faith in Kṛṣṇa is his main guidance. In whatever circumstances he may be in—with body, mind, and soul; in thought, word, and deed; in every way—he does everything for the service of Kṛṣṇa. He is the topmost devotee of Kṛṣṇa. So, from these different standpoints the stages of a devotee, a servant of Kṛṣṇa, have been expressed to us in the scriptures.