Bhagavad-gita As It Is[Ch 7 ] Text 16--19

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Bhagavad-gita As It Is[Ch 7 ] Text 16--19

Text 16

 

0 best among the Bharatas [Ariuna]. four kinds of pious men render

devotional service un~to Me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth,

the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the

Absolute.

PURPORT

 

Unlike the miscreants, these are adherents of the regulative

principles of the scriptures, the moral and social laws, and they

are, more or less, devoted to the Supreme Lord. Out of these there

are four classes of men:

(1)those who are sometimes distressed, (2) those in need of money,

(3) those who are sometimes inquisitive and (4) those who are some­

times searching after knowledge of the Absolute Truth. These persons

come to the Supreme Lord for devotional service under different

condi­tions. These are not pure devotees, for they have some

aspiration to fulfill in exchange for devotional service. Pure

devotional service is without aspiration and without desire for

material profit. The Bhakti­rasamrta-sindhu defines pure devotion

thus: "One should render tran­scendental loving service to the Supreme

Lord Krsna favorably and without desire for material profit or gain

through fruitive activities or philosophical speculation. That is

called pure devotional service.

When these four kinds of persons come to the Supreme Lord for

devo­tional service and are completely purified by the association of

a pure devotee, they also become pure devotees. So far as the

miscreants are concerned, for them devotional service is very

difficult because their lives are selfish, irregular and without

spiritual goals. But even some of them, by chance, when they come in

contact with a pure devotee, also be­come pure devotees.

Those who are always busy with fruitive activities come to the Lord

in material distress and at that time associate with pure devotees

and become, in their distress, devotees of the Lord. Those who are

simply frustrated also sometimes come to associate with the pure

devotees and become inquisitive to know about God. Similarly, when

the dry philoso­phers are frustrated in every field of knowledge, they

sometimes want to learn of God, and they come to the Supreme Lord to

render devotional service. Thus they transcend knowledge of the

impersonal Brahman and the localized Paramatm~ and come to the

personal conception of Godhead by the grace of the Supreme Lord or

His pure devotee. On the whole, when the distressed, the inquisitive,

the seeker of knowledge and those who are in need of money are free

from all material desires, and when they fully understand that

material remuneration has no value for spiritual improvement, then

they become pure devotees. So long as such a purified stage is not

attained, devotees in transcendental service to the Lord are tainted

with fruitive activities, seeking after mundane knowl­edge, etc. One

has to transcend all this before one can come to the stage of pure

devotional service.

Text 17

Of these, the wise one who is in full knowledge, in union with Me

through pure devotional service, is the best. For I am very dear to

him, and he is dear to Me.

Text 18

All these devotees are undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is

situated in knowledge of Me I consider verily to dwell in Me. Being

engaged in My transcendental service, he attains Me.

Text 19

After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge sur­

renders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all

that is. Such a great soul is very rare.

 

Hare Krsna- All Translation done by Srila Prabhupada!!As it Is!!

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