Srimad Bhagavatam 1.1.2

[theist]

TRANSLATION SB 1.1.2

Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhāgavata Purāṇa propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhāgavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyāsadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhāgavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.

 

Verse and purport:: http://prabhupadabooks.com/?g=6130

[theist]

In the purport to 1.1.2 we find this opening statement by Srila Prabhupada.

 

 

Religion includes four primary subjects, namely pious activities, economic development, satisfaction of the senses, and finally liberation from material bondage. Irreligious life is a barbarous condition. Indeed, human life begins when religion begins. Eating, sleeping, fearing, and mating are the four principles of animal life. These are common both to animals and to human beings. But religion is the extra function of the human being. Without religion, human life is no better than animal life. Therefore, in human societies there is some form of religion which aims at self-realization and which makes reference to man's eternal relationship with God.

 

All four of the above mention activities are mundane but yet necessary for human life. Religion is meant to be a bridge between the mundane consciousness and transcendental consciousness. The first stage is to separate human life from animal life.

 

If someone has no religious tendencies then he is at the two legged animal stage and is acting only as a polished beast. The details of the religion are not as important at this level as the basic concept of looking beyond oneself and ones basic bodily needs. The giving of respect to a power greater than oneself.

 

So religion is an absolute necessity for all humans, from the primitive stages of worship of nature spirits on up. One progresses from lower to higher and more refined understanding of religion from lifetime to lifetime. They all have their place in the progressive march of the soul back to Godhead and in this way can be respected.

 

But there is a point to where even religion must be abandoned in favor of loving surrender to Krishna. Krishna is not saying to just abandon religion. The simple abandonment of religion alone would only constitute a fall from the human platform to the animal status.

 

Rather we should only abandon our faith in religion in favor of loving surrender to Krishna.This is the topmost stage attained by the very few at any one time.

[theist]

 

In the lower stages of human civilization, there is always competition to lord it over the material nature or, in other words, there is a continuous rivalry to satisfy the senses. Driven by such consciousness, man turns to religion. He thus performs pious activities or religious functions in order to gain something material. But if such material gains are obtainable in other ways, then so-called religion is neglected. This is the situation in modern civilization. Man is thriving economically, so at present he is not very interested in religion. Churches, mosques or temples are now practically vacant. Men are more interested in factories, shops, and cinemas than in religious places which were erected by their forefathers. This practically proves that religion is performed for some economic gains. Economic gains are needed for sense gratification. Often when one is baffled in the pursuit of sense gratification, he takes to salvation and tries to become one with the Supreme Lord. Consequently, all these states are simply different types of sense gratification.

The whole of human society is presently in the "lower stages of human society" with the exceptions dwindling from 3% towards 0%.

 

When the econmy is booming Wall street is worshipped because material senses are being gratified to a larger degree. When the economy turns down towards recession and depression then in many quarters faith goes back to God for bread and rice. Then when the belly is filled again instead of focusing the energy in God's service we increase other avenues for more sense gratification.

 

But the senses never satisfy. Then the frustrated souls who catch on to this problem worship God for salvation. Worshipping the Lord for relief from trying to satisfy the senses is just the flip side of the same coin.

 

We can very easily fool ourselves as to why we are engaging in the worship of the Lord. What is our true motive? Are not most of us chanting Hare Krishna with a subconscious desire for heaven or salvation?

 

It's so easy to read the above words of Srila Prabhupada and assume he is talking about those others out there.

 

It's more difficult and perhaps a lot more honest (to ourselves) to assume he is talking about people like you and me.

 

Srimad Bhagavatam rejects this cycle of madness that holds us back from tasting the sweet fruit of Srimad Bhagavatam.

 

 

TRANSLATION SB 1.1.2

Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhāgavata Purāṇa propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart.The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhāgavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyāsadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhāgavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.

[AncientMariner]

Nice to see you posting again theist. I have always enjoyed your insights and realizations.

[bhaktajan]

 

 

“Religion Defined”

 

 

 

 

Or

 

“Are you not envious of anyone?”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It is written in the Ancient scripture of India:

“Only one who can learn the process of Ignorance, foolishness & Stupidity and that of transcendental knowledge side by side can transcend the influence of repeated birth and death and enjoy the full blessings of immortality.”

...........................................................................................

 

Everyone has been trying to attain a permanent life wanting to conquer cruel death by his material acquisitions and the strength of his nescience, to make one-sided attempts to win the struggle for existence. Everyone is struggling hard for existence, but the laws of material nature are so hard and fast that they do not allow anyone to surpass them.

 

The process by which one goes back to Godhead is a different branch of knowledge, from revealed Vedic scriptures. To attain a blissful life after leaving this material body, one must study transcendental knowledge. The Lord has delivered to remind the forgetful human being that his home is not here in this material world. The living being is a spiritual entity, and he can be happy only by returning to his spiritual home. Godhead sends His bona fide servants and sometimes the Lord comes Himself to do this work.

 

He therefore appears by His own will whenever there is a predominance of irreligiosity and a disappearance of true religion. Principles of religion are laid down in the Vedas, and any discrepancy in the matter of properly executing the rules of the Vedas makes one irreligious. In the Bhägavatam it is stated that such principles are the laws of the Lord.

 

Only the Lord can manufacture a system of religion. The Vedas are also accepted as originally spoken by the Lord Himself to Brahmä, from within his heart. Therefore, the principles of dharma, or religion, are the direct orders of the Supreme Personality of Godhead (dharmaà tu säkñäd bhagavat-praëétam [sB 6.3.19]). These principles are clearly indicated throughout the Bhagavad-gétä.

 

The purpose of the Vedas is to establish such principles under the order of the Supreme Lord, and the Lord directly orders, at the end of the Gétä, that the highest principle of religion is to surrender unto Him only, and nothing more. The Vedic principles push one towards complete surrender unto Him; and whenever such principles are disturbed by the demoniac, the Lord appears.

 

Therefore each and every avatära, or incarnation of the Lord, has a particular mission, and they are all described in the revealed scriptures. No one should be accepted as an avatära unless he is referred to by scriptures. It is not a fact that the Lord appears only on Indian soil.

 

He can manifest Himself anywhere and everywhere, and whenever He desires to appear. In each and every incarnation, He speaks as much about religion as can be understood by the particular people under their particular circumstances. But the mission is the same—to lead people to God consciousness and obedience to the principles of religion.

 

God is more sorry than we ourselves to see the sufferings we are constantly undergoing in this material condition. The miseries of this material world serve to indirectly remind us of our incompatibility with dead matter. Intelligent living entities generally take note of these reminders and engage themselves in the culture of vidyä, or transcendental knowledge. And a human who does not take advantage of this is called a narädhama.

 

Foolish human beings who are grossly absorbed in the culture of avidyä, nescience, do not mind this cruel process. The living entities are not without spiritual senses; every living being in his original, spiritual form has all the senses, which are now materially manifested, being covered by the material body and mind. The activities of the material senses are perverted reflections of the activities of the original, spiritual senses.

 

Real sense enjoyment is possible only when the disease of materialism is removed. In our pure spiritual form, free from all material contamination, real enjoyment of the senses is possible. Aggravation of the material disease is no sign of knowledge, but a sign of avidyä, ignorance. The modern trend of material civilization is to increase the temperature of the feverish material condition.

 

Human activities diseased by a tendency toward sense gratification have been regulated in the Vedas under the principles of salvation. This system employs religion, economic development, sense gratification and salvation, but at the present moment people have no interest in religion or salvation.

 

They have only one aim in life—sense gratification—and in order to achieve this end they make plans for economic development. Misguided men think that religion should be maintained because it contributes to economic development, which is required for sense gratification.

 

Thus in order to guarantee further sense gratification after death, in heaven, there is some system of religious observance. But this is not the purpose of religion. The path of religion is actually meant for self-realization, and economic development is required just to maintain the body in a sound, healthy condition. A man should lead a healthy life with a sound mind just to realize vidyä, true knowledge, which is the aim of human life. This life is not meant for working like an ass or for culturing avidyä for sense gratification.

 

The path of vidyä is most perfectly presented in Çrémad-Bhägavatam, which directs a human being to utilize his life to inquire into the Absolute Truth. The Absolute Truth is realized step by step as Brahman, Paramätmä and finally Bhagavän, the Personality of Godhead. The Absolute Truth is realized by the broadminded man who has attained knowledge and detachment by following the eighteen principles of the Bhagavad-gétä.

[bhaktajan]

As advised in Chapter Thirteen of the Bhagavad-gétä (13.8–12), one should culture knowledge in the following way:

(1) One should become a perfect gentleman and learn to give proper respect to others.

(2) One should not pose himself as a religionist simply for name and fame.

(3) One should not become a source of anxiety to others by the actions of his body, by the thoughts of his mind, or by his words.

(4) One should learn forbearance even in the face of provocation from others.

(5) One should learn to avoid duplicity in his dealings with others.

(6) One should search out a bona fide spiritual master who can lead him gradually to the stage of spiritual realization, and one must submit himself to such a spiritual master, render him service and ask relevant questions.

(7) In order to approach the platform of self-realization, one must follow the regulative principles enjoined in the revealed scriptures.

(8) One must be fixed in the tenets of the revealed scriptures.

(9) One should completely refrain from practices which are detrimental to the interest of self-realization.

(10) One should not accept more than he requires for the maintenance of the body.

(11) One should not falsely identify himself with the gross material body, nor should one consider those who are related to his body to be his own.

(12) One should always remember that as long as he has a material body he must face the miseries of repeated birth, old age, disease and death. There is no use in making plans to get rid of these miseries of the material body. The best course is to find out the means by which one may regain his spiritual identity.

(13) One should not be attached to more than the necessities of life required for spiritual advancement.

(14) One should not be more attached to wife, children and home than the revealed scriptures

ordain.

(15) One should not be happy or distressed over desirables and undesirables, knowing that such feelings are just created by the mind.

(16) One should become an unalloyed devotee of the Personality of Godhead, Çré Kåñëa, and serve Him with rapt attention.

(17) One should develop a liking for residence in a secluded place with a calm and quiet atmosphere favorable for spiritual culture, and one should avoid congested places where nondevotees congregate.

(18) One should become a scientist or philosopher and conduct research into spiritual knowledge, recognizing that spiritual knowledge is permanent whereas material knowledge ends with the death of the body.

These eighteen items combine to form a gradual process by which real knowledge can be developed. Except for these, all other methods are considered to be in the category of nescience.

In the modern society, even a boy thinks himself self-sufficient and pays no respect to elderly men. Due to the wrong type of education being imparted in our universities, boys all over the world are giving their elders headaches. Thus the Vedas very strongly warns that the culture of nescience is different from that of knowledge.

The universities are, so to speak, centers of nescience only; consequently scientists are busy discovering lethal weapons to wipe out the existence of other countries. University students today are not given instructions in the regulative principles of brahmacarya (celibate student life), nor do they have any faith in any scriptural injunctions. Religious principles are taught for the sake of name and fame only and not for the sake of practical action. Thus there is animosity not only in social and political fields but in the field of religion as well.

Thanks to the culture of nescience, befooled men have created their own nations within these planets in order to grasp sense enjoyment more effectively for these few years. Such foolish people draw up various plans to render national demarcations perfectly, a task that is totally impossible. Yet for this purpose each and every nation has become a source of anxiety for others.

More than fifty percent of a nation’s energy is devoted to defense measures and thus spoiled. No one cares for the cultivation of real knowledge, yet people are falsely proud of being advanced in both material and spiritual knowledge.

The instructions of vidyä (knowledge) must be acquired from a dhéra. A dhéra is one who is not disturbed by material illusion. No one can be undisturbed unless he is perfectly spiritually realized, at which time one neither hankers nor laments for anything. A dhéra realizes that the material body and mind he has acquired by chance through material association are but foreign elements; therefore he simply makes the best use of a bad bargain.

The living entity has actual functions in the living, spiritual world, but this material world is dead. As long as the living spiritual sparks manipulate the dead lumps of matter, the dead world appears to be a living world.

The dhéras have come to know all these facts by hearing them from superior authorities and have realized this knowledge by following the regulative principles.

The transcendental message and regulative principles come down from the spiritual master to the disciple. Such knowledge does not come in the hazardous way of nescient education. One can become a dhéra only by submissively hearing from a bona fide spiritual master. Arjuna, for example, became a dhéra by submissively hearing from Lord Kåñëa, the Personality of Godhead Himself. Thus the perfect disciple must be like Arjuna, and the spiritual master must be as good as the Lord Himself. This is the process of learning vidyä (knowledge) from the dhéra (the undisturbed).

[bhaktajan]

The Lord comes here to reestablish the principles of religion, and the basic principle is the development of an attitude of surrender to Him. This is the Lord’s last instruction in the Bhagavad-gétä (18.66): sarva-dharmän parityajya mäm ekaà çaraëaà vraja. “Give up all other processes and just surrender unto Me alone.”

 

Unfortunately, foolish men have misinterpreted this prime teaching and misled the masses of people in diverse ways. People have been urged to open hospitals but not to educate themselves to enter into the spiritual kingdom by devotional service. They have been taught to take interest only in temporary relief work, which can never bring real happiness to the living entity. They start varieties of public and semi-governmental institutions to tackle the devastating power of nature, but they don’t know how to pacify insurmountable nature.

 

Many men are advertised as great scholars of the Bhagavad-gétä, but they overlook the Gétä’s message, by which material nature can be pacified. Powerful nature can be pacified only by the awakening of God consciousness, as clearly pointed out in the Bhagavad-gétä (7.14).

 

The culture of vidyä is summarized in Çrémad-Bhägavatam (1.2.14) in the following words:

“Therefore, with one-pointed attention one should constantly hear about, glorify, remember and worship the Personality of Godhead, who is the protector of the devotees.”

 

Unless religion, economic development and sense gratification aim toward the attainment of devotional service to the Lord, they are all simply different forms of nescience.

 

In the the Gita (2.39), the Lord explained two kinds of procedures—namely säìkhya-yoga and karma-yoga, or buddhi-yoga ---both the yogas are interdependent, as religion and philosophy. Religion without philosophy is sentiment, or sometimes fanaticism, while philosophy without religion is mental speculation. The ultimate goal is Kåñëa, because the philosophers who are also sincerely searching after the Absolute Truth come in the end to Kåñëa consciousness. This is also stated in the Bhagavad-gétä. The whole process is to understand the real position of the self in relation to the Superself.

 

Of these two, the path of Kåñëa consciousness is better because it does not depend on purifying the senses by a philosophical process. Kåñëa consciousness is itself the purifying process, and by the direct method of devotional service it is simultaneously easy and sublime.

 

It is said that one cannot ascertain the ways of religion simply by imperfect experimental knowledge. Actually, the principles of religion can only be laid down by the Lord Himself.

 

One must follow in the footsteps of great authorities.

 

By mental speculation one cannot ascertain what is religion or self-realization.

 

The Vedas, therefore, give us a chance for escape by pointing out the paths of religion, economic comfort, regulated sense gratification and, at last, the means to get out of the miserable condition entirely.

 

The Lord has described various kinds of knowledge and processes of religion—knowledge of the Supreme Brahman, knowledge of the Supersoul, knowledge of the different types of orders and statuses of social life, knowledge of the renounced order of life, knowledge of nonattachment, sense and mind control, meditation, etc. He has described in so many ways different types of religion. Now, in summarizing Bhagavad-gétä, the Lord says that Arjuna should give up all the processes that have been explained to him; he should simply surrender to Kåñëa. That surrender will save him from all kinds of sinful reactions, for the Lord personally promises to protect him.

 

BG 18.32:

That understanding which considers irreligion to be religion and religion to be irreligion, under the spell of illusion and darkness, and strives always in the wrong direction, O Pärtha, is in the mode of ignorance.

PURPORT

Intelligence in the mode of ignorance is always working the opposite of the way it should. It accepts religions which are not actually religions and rejects actual religion. Men in ignorance understand a great soul to be a common man and accept a common man as a great soul. They think truth to be untruth and accept untruth as truth. In all activities they simply take the wrong path; therefore their intelligence is in the mode of ignorance.

 

...............................................................................................

 

There are different processes of religion and purificatory processes by cultivation of knowledge, meditation in the mystic yoga system, etc., but one who surrenders unto Kåñëa does not have to execute so many methods. That simple surrender unto Kåñëa will save him from unnecessarily wasting time. One can thus make all progress at once and be freed from all sinful reactions.

 

The principles of religion, namely austerity, cleanliness, mercy and truthfulness, as we have already discussed, may be followed by the follower of any faith. There is no need to turn from Hindu to Mohammedan to Christian or some other faith and thus become a renegade and not follow the principles of religion. The Bhägavatam religion urges following the principles of religion. The principles of religion are not the dogmas or regulative principles of a certain faith. Such regulative principles may be different in terms of the time and place concerned. One has to see whether the aims of religion have been achieved. Sticking to the dogmas and formulas without attaining the real principles is not good. A secular state may be impartial to any particular type of faith, but the state cannot be indifferent to the principles of religion as above-mentioned. But in the age of Kali, the executive heads of state will be indifferent to such religious principles, and therefore under their patronage the opponents of religious principles, such as greed, falsehood, cheating and pilfery, will naturally follow, and so there will be no meaning to propaganda crying to stop corruption in the state.

 

 

Bhagvata purana 3.12.25:

 

Religion was manifested from the breast of Brahmä, wherein is seated the Supreme Personality of Godhead Näräyaëa, and irreligion appeared from his back, where horrible death takes place for the living entity.

 

...............................................................................................

The next symptom of the age of Kali is that principles of religion, which are all spotlessly white, like the white lotus flower, will be attacked by the uncultured çüdra population of the age. They may be descendants of brähmaëa or kñatriya forefathers, but in the age of Kali, for want of sufficient education and culture of Vedic wisdom, such a çüdra-like population will defy the principles of religion, and persons who are religiously endowed will be terrified by such men. They will declare themselves as adherents of no religious principles, and many “isms” and cults will spring up in Kali-yuga only to kill the spotless bull of religion. The state will be declared to be secular, or without any particular principle of religion, and as a result there will be total indifference to the principles of religion. The citizens will be free to act as they like, without respect for sädhu, çästra and guru.

 

If one is actually Kåñëa conscious, he cannot have any enemies. Since his only engagement is to induce others to surrender to Kåñëa, or God, how can he have enemies? If one advocates the Hindu religion, the Muslim religion, the Christian religion, this religion or that religion, there will be conflicts. History shows that the followers of religious systems without a clear conception of God have fought with one another.

 

There are many instances of this in human history, but systems of religion that do not concentrate upon service to the Supreme are temporary and cannot last for long because they are full of envy. There are many activities directed against such religious systems, and therefore one must give up the idea of “my belief” and “your belief.” Everyone should believe in God and surrender unto Him. That is bhägavata-dharma.

 

Bhägavata-dharma is not a concocted sectarian belief, for it entails research to find how everything is connected with Kåñëa (éçäväsyam idaà sarvam). According to the Vedic injunctions, sarvaà khalv idaà brahma: Brahman, the Supreme, is present in everything. Bhägavata-dharma captures this presence of the Supreme. Bhägavata-dharma does not consider everything in the world to be false. Because everything emanates from the Supreme, nothing can be false; everything has some use in the service of the Supreme.

 

This is the meaning of sarvaà khalv idaà brahma. Everything is Brahman because everything can be used for the service of the Supreme Lord. Nothing is mithyä, false; everything is factual.

Bhägavata-dharma is called sarvotkåñöa, the best of all religious systems, because those who follow bhägavata-dharma are not envious of anyone. Pure bhägavatas, pure devotees, invite everyone, without envy, to join the Kåñëa consciousness movement.

 

Mäyä means disharmony between the living entities and the Supreme Lord, and Vaikuëöha means harmony between them.

 

But foolish creatures, although actually under the control of the supreme living entity, defy His existence, and that state is called mäyä. Sometimes they deny that there is such a being as God. They say, “Everything is void.” And sometimes they deny Him in a different way: “There may be a God, but He has no form.” Both these conceptions arise from the rebellious condition of the living entity. As long as this rebellious condition prevails, the material world will continue in disharmony.

 

Harmony or disharmony is realized because of the law and order of a particular place. Religion is the law and order of the Supreme Lord. In the Çrémad Bhagavad-gétä we find that religion means devotional service, or Kåñëa consciousness. Kåñëa says, “Give up all other religious principles and simply become a soul surrendered unto Me.” This is religion. When one is fully conscious that Kåñëa is the supreme enjoyer and Supreme Lord and one acts accordingly, that is real religion.

 

Anything which goes against this principle is not religion. Kåñëa therefore says: “Just give up all other religious principles.” In the spiritual world this religious principle of Kåñëa consciousness is maintained in harmony, and therefore that world is called Vaikuëöha. If the same principles can be adopted here, wholly or partially, then it is also Vaikuëöha.

 

So it is with any society, such as the International Society for Krishna Consciousness: If the members of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, putting faith in Kåñëa as the center, live in harmony according to the order and principles of Bhagavad-gétä, then they are living in Vaikuëöha, not in this material world.

 

The above was learnt exclusively from A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami and his beloved devote students and his grand-students.

 

Bhaktajan

[theist]

Hare Krishna AMji

[theist]

Thus in order to guarantee further sense gratification after death, in heaven, there is some system of religious observance. But this is not the purpose of religion. The path of religion is actually meant for self-realization, and economic development is required just to maintain the body in a sound, healthy condition. A man should lead a healthy life with a sound mind just to realize vidyä, true knowledge, which is the aim of human life. This life is not meant for working like an ass or for culturing avidyä for sense gratification.

[stonehearted]

theist, you missed this paragraph, which changed my life when I read it 40 years ago:

 

In the Vedas, the above-mentioned four activities are prescribed in the regulative way so that there will not be any undue competition for sense gratification. But Srimad-Bhagavatam is transcendental to all these sense gratificatory activities. It is purely transcendental literature which can be understood only by the pure devotees of the Lord who are transcendental to competitive sense gratification. In the material world there is keen competition between animal and animal, man and man, community and community, nation and nation. But the devotees of the Lord rise above such competitions. They do not compete with the materialist because they are on the path back to Godhead where life is eternal and blissful. Such transcendentalists are nonenvious and pure in heart. In the material world, everyone is envious of everyone else, and therefore there is competition. But the transcendental devotees of the Lord are not only free from material envy, but are well-wishers to everyone, and they strive to establish a competitionless society with God in the center.

[theist]

 

theist, you missed this paragraph, which changed my life when I read it 40 years ago:

 

In the Vedas, the above-mentioned four activities are prescribed in the regulative way so that there will not be any undue competition for sense gratification. But Srimad-Bhagavatam is transcendental to all these sense gratificatory activities. It is purely transcendental literature which can be understood only by the pure devotees of the Lord who are transcendental to competitive sense gratification. In the material world there is keen competition between animal and animal, man and man, community and community, nation and nation. But the devotees of the Lord rise above such competitions. They do not compete with the materialist because they are on the path back to Godhead where life is eternal and blissful. Such transcendentalists are nonenvious and pure in heart. In the material world, everyone is envious of everyone else, and therefore there is competition. But the transcendental devotees of the Lord are not only free from material envy, but are well-wishers to everyone, and they strive to establish a competitionless society with God in the center.

 

Your right. In fact I never really concentrated on this paragraph before. Shows how only the devotee can be a genuine well wisher of all living entities.

[stonehearted]

 

Shows how only the devotee can be a genuine well wisher of all living entities.

Nicely said.

[melvin]

 

TRANSLATION SB 1.1.2

Completely rejecting all religious activities which are materially motivated, this Bhāgavata Purāṇa propounds the highest truth, which is understandable by those devotees who are fully pure in heart. The highest truth is reality distinguished from illusion for the welfare of all. Such truth uproots the threefold miseries. This beautiful Bhāgavatam, compiled by the great sage Vyāsadeva [in his maturity], is sufficient in itself for God realization. What is the need of any other scripture? As soon as one attentively and submissively hears the message of Bhāgavatam, by this culture of knowledge the Supreme Lord is established within his heart.

 

Verse and purport:: http://prabhupadabooks.com/?g=6130

 

 

One of the 12 great devotees(mahajanas) of the Lord is Vysadeva. If one can`t arrived at a happy ending studying Srimad Bhagavatam, then one is advised to follow the steps taken by the 12 disciples, so to speak, of the Lord. They have understood the absolute Truth in full. Although each are independent in their ways and means to reach that Goal( love of God), a student of Srimad Bhagavatam is advised to choose which one of them he will follow. If he choses the path taken by Sankaracarya( Siva), then it`s a choice all Vaishnavas should respect. There`s no sense in attacking Sankaracarya`s teachings with verses taken say, from Narada Pancaratra. This issue has already been resolved by Lord Caitanya himself when he created the philosophy of Acintya-bheda-Abheda( Simultaneous oneness and difference.)