# Devotional Service ## 1. Will whatever we do out of duty destroy nescience? Our sense of duty and gratitude are mental functions, not characteristics of the soul. Actions performed out of duty are based on the mind, intelligence, and false ego, whereas devotional service is an activity of the soul. If we have not acted out of pure love, we cannot call our actions pure devotion. Only what we perform with love and devotion can be called pure devotion. Duty is but regulation. Devotional service is the soul’s constitutional propensity, and to maintain a sense of duty is the mind’s propensity. If we wish to find fortune, we must follow the soul’s constitutional propensity. ## 2. Who is a devotee? One who sacrifices his happiness for Kṛṣṇa’s happiness and who remains always engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s service by renouncing his own enjoyment for Kṛṣṇa’s pleasure is a devotee. He certainly attains auspiciousness. Devotional service is the propensity to give Kṛṣṇa pleasure. The endeavor to make oneself happy is nondevotional service and is the source of misery. A nondevotee says, “I will become Kṛṣṇa and intimately enjoy the association of women.” If one rejects such a mentality and becomes inspired by a Vaiṣṇava’s ideal example, he is guaranteed good fortune. If he does not keep himself engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s service, he will certainly become a material enjoyer or a dry renunciant rather than a Vaiṣṇava. ## 3. Is indulging in worldly talks harmful to devotional service? Śrīman Mahāprabhu told us to neither hear worldly topics nor discuss them. We should neither eat palatable foods nor wear opulent clothing. He gave those instructions for those who had developed faith in and taste for worshiping Lord Hari. Eating palatable foods is harmful, but it does not inconvenience others or create obstacles in their worship of Hari. Wearing opulent clothing, however, is more harmful to others. When we dress attractively, we draw others’ eyes to ourselves. The purpose of gorgeous dress is to distract people’s minds and eyes from Lord Hari’s worship. The tongue’s greed—its urges—harm our devotional service. Śrī Mahāprabhu said, jihvāra lālase yei iti-uti dhāya, śiśnodara-parāyaṇa kṛṣṇa nāhi pāya: “One who is subservient to the tongue and who thus goes here and there, devoted to the genitals and the belly, cannot attain Kṛṣṇa.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Antya 6.227) Hearing worldly topics is more harmful to us than eating palatable foods. Similarly, speaking prajalpa is more harmful to others than our dressing opulently. When we gossip or indulge in worldly topics, we become like prostitutes. Gossip contaminates and disturbs people’s hearts. The more taste one has for useless talks, the less natural taste one has for hari-kathā. Śrīla Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī said, “asad vārtā vesyā visāja mati sarvasyahārinīḥ: “Worldly topics are like prostitutes. They contaminate and disturb one’s mind.” Whenever a few people gather, there is bound to be idle talk. That is why devotees always glorify hari-kathā. If we discuss kṛṣṇa-kathā, no one will have the opportunity to gossip. Those who are serious about worshiping Hari should neither hear nor speak worldly topics, nor should they pay attention to palatable foods or opulent dress. The desire to eat and dress opulently will certainly take us away from our worship of Hari. We cannot worship Hari as long as we desire to eat voraciously and dress attractively. Moreover, if we maintain a taste for hearing and speaking worldly topics, we will become distracted from the path of worshiping Hari. Such talks will misguide us and force us to forever relinquish our worship. Therefore, persons who are interested in Lord Hari’s service must be careful about such things. Otherwise, they will inevitably fall down. ## 4. What is devotional service? Devotional service means trying to please the Lord. It is meant to give Kṛṣṇa happiness, not to give happiness to ourselves. Devotional service is the soul’s eternal constitutional propensity, the living entity’s natural characteristic. The soul has no other constitutional duty than to offer service to the Lord. Temporary material propensities are not the original characteristic of the spirit soul but only the characteristic of the materially conditional living entity. Material propensities are changeable because they are temporary, but devotional service destroys lamentation, illusion, and fear, all of which come from absorption in matter. Absorption in anything other than Kṛṣṇa and His devotees is called material absorption. Devotional service is absolute and meant only for the Lord’s pleasure. Practicing devotional service helps us develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. ## 5. What is the path of auspiciousness? No path in this material world is auspicious except the path of service to the Lord. The mentality that we understand life better than the devotees do leads to hell, and therefore keeping such a mentality is harmful. The secret of success in spiritual life is to follow the path traversed by the Lord’s devotees. We should follow the devotees no matter how difficult the path. If we wish to be successful in our following, we must be humble enough to realize how worthless we are. If we understand our disqualification, we can become qualified to see the beauty of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa’s devotees. Ordinary human beings are always proposing how to get sense gratification. If we consider such topics religious, we can never become religious. Serving the devotees is the best form of auspiciousness. ## 6. What is service? Service is not a function of the body or mind but of the spirit soul. There is no business or trade in service. For the service to be actually devotional, it must be intended simply for Kṛṣṇa’s pleasure. One’s service should contain nothing motivated by a desire for one’s own happiness. Devotional service is unmotivated, causeless, and the uninterrupted propensity of the spirit soul. One cannot understand the ultimate goal of knowledge unless he engages in unalloyed service to guru. Only the Lord’s devotee is eligible to become a spiritual master. This is not an exaggeration but a fact. Lord Kṛṣṇa states, “As they surrender unto me I reward them accordingly.” In the conjugal pastimes, Kṛṣṇa’s devotees serve Him with their entire body. Kṛṣṇa reciprocates by giving Himself to those devotees. He considers Himself indebted to them. The ultimate perfection and goal of service is found in the conjugal mellow. ## 7. How can we enhance our devotional service? Our propensity to serve will increase if we simply serve. If we have no desire at all to serve the spiritual master or Kṛṣṇa, then what is the question of increasing our service? If our mind is fixed at the spiritual master’s lotus feet, then wherever we may be, our propensity to serve will increase. If our mind is fixed otherwise, we will only increase our propensity for sense gratification and material life. By serving the spiritual master continuously, we attain all fortune. If instead we choose to serve Maya or become busy seeking personal happiness, we will experience various disturbances and misfortunes and find ourselves in danger. We cannot enhance our devotional service without Vaiṣṇava association. Therefore we should serve Vaiṣṇavas. If after taking shelter of guru and Kṛṣṇa we do not care for their service, how will we be benefited? If after taking shelter of the devotional path, we do not engage in devotional service, how will we be helped? First, we must take shelter of the guru’s lotus feet and become servants. This is called āśraya. It is the business of a surrendered soul to serve his master. Are we doing that? By offering everything at guru’s feet, we will obtain the Absolute Truth, but instead of making such an offering, we don’t want to give him anything. Yet we want his mercy; we want him to give us the Lord. It is impossible to cheat the Supersoul. Unless we approach a guru, how will we increase our propensity to serve Kṛṣṇa? If after taking shelter at the guru’s lotus feet we maintain our enjoying spirit or increase our propensity for material life, we will again become degraded and will not make spiritual progress. If we actually takes shelter of the spiritual master and serve him with love, we will certainly attain Kṛṣṇa’s service. We will attain transcendental knowledge about Kṛṣṇa and will be merged into Kṛṣṇa’s ecstatic service. We need to engage in activities that diminish our propensity for material enjoyment and worldly life. Then we will no longer consider ourselves enjoyers and will treat the material world along with everything it contains as suitable for Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyment. All objects ## 8. Isn’t it possible to serve Hari by our own endeavor? Service to Hari is possible only if Lord Kṛṣṇa mercifully bestows such an opportunity upon us. Otherwise, it is impossible to engage in Hari’s service even after taking much personal trouble. Service to Hari is not a light engagement. In the hope to serve Hari, high birth is an enemy, opulence is an enemy, vast learning is an enemy, and beauty is an enemy. Unless we engage each of these in the service of the lover of the gopīs, they will captivate us. We have a problem when instead of seeing the material world and everything in it as intended for Kṛṣṇa’s service, we see them as objects for our own enjoyment. Seeking personal happiness makes us want to become masters of the material world rather than servants of the Supreme Lord. In this world, everyone is trying to become masters, enjoyers. This is the basis of non-Vaiṣṇavism. Devotional service is the connection between servant and master. If we continue to see ourselves as due the service of others, what is the question of our learning to serve? Only servants serve. Karmīs and nondevotees think they will see, chant, and remember as doers. Only when they engage all their endeavors in the Lord’s service by renouncing the false pride of controllership will they achieve auspiciousness. We are Kṛṣṇa’s servants. We should serve the Lord twenty-four hours a day in the association of devotees and depend fully on the Supreme Lord’s lotus feet. The solution to all problems or dangers is to depend wholly on the Lord’s arrangements. In this world, we serve one another through four relationships: husband and wife, father and child, friend and friend, and master and servant. Unaware of our relationship with the Lord, we developed temporary relationships. Although these may appear good at first, they always bring disappointment in the end. Life will be auspicious if we can develop any of these relationships with the Supreme Lord. We can return to Vaikuṇṭha from this world if we engage in the Lord’s service. If instead we desire to accept service from others, remaining attached to this world, we will continue to suffer the threefold miseries of material existence. We are not Kṛṣṇa; we are not supreme. We are instead Kṛṣṇa’s servants and Kṛṣṇa alone is our eternal master, the eternal object of our service. We are Kṛṣṇa’s eternal slaves, His sold-out servants. As soon as we forget this and rebel against His service, we are bound to perpetual suffering. Material existence is the gateway to hell; it is a world only of sense gratification and suffering. Forgetting Kṛṣṇa begins our material existence. Therefore Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta states: cāri varṇāśramī yadi kṛṣṇa nāhi bhaja, svakarma karite se raurave paḍi’ maje: “The followers of the varṇāśrama institution accept the regulative principles of the four social orders [brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, and śūdra] and four spiritual orders [brahmacarya, gṛhaṣṭha, vānaprastha, and sannyāsa]. However, if one carries out the regulative principles of these orders but does not render transcendental service to Kṛṣṇa, he falls into a hellish condition of material life.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 22.26) ## 9. What is the highest welfare activity? Let everyone be devoted to Kṛṣṇa. This is the highest benediction for the world’s people. The highest form of welfare is to engage people’s minds at Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet. The topmost charity or altruism is to distribute Kṛṣṇa’s devotional service to everyone. The devotees are always anxious to help others in this way. To know God is supreme knowledge. The Śāstra says that knowledge means to know the Supreme Lord. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu states, prabhu kahe—“kon vidyā vidyā-madhye sāra?” rāya kahe—“kṛṣṇa-bhakti vinā vidyā nāhi āra” The Lord inquired: “Of all types of education, which is the most important?” Rāmānanda Rāya replied: “No education is important other than the transcendental devotional service of Kṛṣṇa.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 8.245) The godless education that is being disseminated does not in any way benefit the general populace. Rather, the people have been harmed by it and will continue to be harmed. Humankind can be benefited instead simply by distributing Śrī Caitanyadeva’s mercy. ## 10. How do we achieve devotional service? Attaining Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet is the living entity’s topmost achievement, but devotional service can be attained only in the association of devotees. Only the most fortunate souls can attain Kṛṣṇa. A living entity becomes fortunate when his desire to wander throughout the universe is extinguished. Then, when by the strength of the guru’s mercy his constitutional propensity is revived, he attains the seed of devotional service. There is no difference between Kṛṣṇa’s and the guru’s mercy. The word prasāda means “the Lord’s mercy.”Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu states, brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva, guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja: “According to their karma, all living entities are wandering throughout the entire universe. Some of them are being elevated to the upper planetary systems, and some are going down into the lower planetary systems. Out of many millions of wandering living entities, one who is very fortunate gets an opportunity to associate with a bona fide spiritual master by the grace of Kṛṣṇa. By the mercy of both Kṛṣṇa and the spiritual master, such a person receives the seed of the creeper of devotional service.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 19.151) Devotional service is defined as a desire to serve the Lord as His menial servant, only for His pleasure. Serving for our own pleasure is not devotion. When the guru plants the seed of devotion in our heart, we have to sow it in the field of the heart and water it with hearing and chanting. “I am a servant and my duty is to serve”: when we become established in this conviction, we are gardeners. If after receiving the bhakti seed from guru—the seed that Lord Kṛṣṇa awarded us out of His causeless mercy in the form of the guru—we fail to engage in Kṛṣṇa’s service but become indifferent to that service, we will find ourselves in trouble. Impediments on the devotional path are removed by the strength of the guru’s mercy. Once they are removed we will make quick progress. Therefore, we should hear about the Lord from the spiritual master and the saints and study the literature under their order. “Hearing” includes studying devotional literature. If we become distracted from our guru’s feet for even a moment, it is inevitable that we will become degraded. Hearing and chanting about the Lord is like water. Persons who have taken complete shelter at the spiritual master’s lotus feet are gardeners. Our only duty is to always serve the guru with love and devotion and to associate with saintly persons. It is essential to nourish and safeguard the devotional creeper by faithfully engaging in the Lord’s service. Otherwise, we will face various difficulties. ## 11. Should we give up material enjoyment [karma] and renunciation [jñāna]? Mahāprabhu instructed us to give up both material enjoyment and dry renunciation. Material enjoyment is defined as accepting mundane form, taste, smell, sound, and touch through our eyes, tongue, nose, ears, and skin as pleasurable. Although there is some apparent momentary happiness in material enjoyment, we later discover that sense gratification comes with more distress than happiness. That’s why renunciation is more glorious than enjoyment. Renunciation or detachment, is good, but if in the process of detachment we also renounce the Supreme Lord, then such renunciation is simply another form of material enjoyment. The conception of those who consider the material world false or as worthless as the stool of a crow is defective, because that conception denies the omnipotent Lord’s energies. The material world is factual, although everything in it is temporary. This is the conclusion of those who are conversant with Vedānta. Just as material enjoyment does not allow one to understand the relationship between the Supreme Lord and the visible objects because he deceitfully sees himself as the enjoyer, renunciation does not give one the opportunity to understand that everything in this world is meant for the Lord’s service. Thus he disrespects objects related to the Supreme Lord. Material objects are this world’s opulence. Objects that have form, taste, and so on, are the goal of the senses led by the eyes. The senses will never become averse to them; they will never retire from pursuing them. Although certain renunciants sometimes dress themselves as if they were controlling their external senses; their mind, the king of senses, remains absorbed in material enjoyment even without their knowledge. Moreover, if in order to become renounced someone tries to destroy his senses, which are the gateways through which he accepts material enjoyment, the affliction he suffers due to separation from his senses will hurt him immensely before he is able to attain true renunciation. Vaiṣṇavas know that material objects are neither to be enjoyed nor rejected. Rather, they are to be used to give the Lord pleasure. That is, they are ingredients for His service. Remaining detached from material enjoyment and accepting only what is required to keep body and soul together, devotees always act as the Lord’s menial servants. Karma and jñāna are not the soul’s constitutional propensity. The souls’ only propensity is devotional service. Liberated souls are fully absorbed in the service of their worshipable Lord in Vaikuṇṭha. If one wishes to become liberated from his own conditioned state, he must not try to engage God in supplying him sense objects for his own pleasure, nor should he reject sense objects simply to be renounced. Rather, we should accept those objects that are favorable for his service and reject only those that are unfavorable. ## 12. How long does the living entity remain conditioned? Until devotional service fully blossoms in the living entities, they cannot understand that they are the Supreme Lord’s servants. Thus, they remain conditioned. Unless one develops transcendental pride, how can he give up material pride? ## 13. Who should live in the Maṭha? Our Maṭha is not meant for wrestlers; nor do aristocrats need to live in the Maṭha. Only Lord Hari’s devotees should live in the Maṭha. If we remove the people in the Maṭha who are fond of eating and enjoying intimate association with women, the Maṭha’s expenditures and problems will diminish. We have to send home those proud and independent people who do not follow the Maṭha’s rules and regulations, and who neither follow the spiritual master’s orders nor display humility. If as a result we have less manpower, we are content. We should not allow those who are not interested in worshiping Hari but who aspire for profit, adoration, distinction, women, and wealth to live in the Maṭha. Such people are opposed to the Maṭha in their hearts. They think, “I have been living in the Maṭha for a long time. I have worked hard for the Maṭha, and therefore can now eat nice foods, dress opulently, demand respect from others, and be given a share in Maṭha administration.” We should never encourage such ideas, because they are opposed to devotional service. Such mentalities develop when living entities indulge in doubt, blasphemy, and idle talk. We should not be proud and think, “I am expert, intelligent, a good speaker, and a good singer.” These thoughts are averse to devotional service. We need to feel ourselves lower than the straw in the street. If anyone attacks or criticizes us, we should tolerate it and simply chant Hari’s holy name. We should think that today the Lord has mercifully awarded us the opportunity to become humbler than a blade of grass. When someone blasphemes us, we should know that the Lord is awarding us a benediction through those whose trouble is inevitable. ## 14. Whom should the Maṭha avoid? The Maṭha does not and cannot have a relationship with anyone who takes shelter of the Maṭha but is under the control of duplicity— someone with the desire to misuse transcendental knowledge. Just as we need a boat and a boatman to cross the river, we need a spiritual master to cross the material ocean. With such a mentality, these people accepted me as their spiritual master. They have never actually seen me, nor did I ever associate with them. I do not wish to associate with such people ever in my life. Although these people may not have been cheating from the beginning, they committed offenses at the feet of guru and the Vaiṣṇavas and have fallen from the path of devotional service to Hari, again taking to material life. As soon as we try to argue with our guru, as soon as we attempt to measure the guru with our mundane knowledge, and as soon as we imitate the guru rather than follow him, we invite inauspiciousness and ruination upon ourselves. We attain benefit only when we give up such a mentality. Mundane wealth, education, expertise, and knowledge are not good assets for devotees because they influence one to disregard guru and Vaiṣṇavas. As a result, one may become bereft of the guru and Kṛṣṇa’s service. ## 15. How do we achieve strength and mercy? Mercy and spiritual strength are invested in the heart when one takes shelter at the lotus feet of guru without deviation. The spiritual master gives strength and mercy. Nourished by devotional service, the spiritual master’s gift of mercy and strength gradually destroy one’s anarthas. If, however, one renounces devotional service or becomes indifferent to it, the anarthas will again become prominent and gradually dim the effect of the Lord’s mercy and strength. When a seed fructifies, a small plant grows from it. By gradually watering this plant, it will eventually grow into a tall tree. It is necessary, however, to protect the plant from external attack until it reaches maturity. In the same way, one must gradually nourish the mercy and strength the guru bestows and enhance it by practicing bhajana. ## 16. How do we become free of lusty desires? Having lusty desires means we want to enjoy sense gratification. It is the living entity’s duty to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Aversion to the Lord’s service drowns us in an ocean of material misery. If we wish to become liberated from that misery, we must serve the nonenvious servants of Kṛṣṇa. That is the only remedy. Kṛṣṇa’s servants alone can protect us from lust. We tend toward lustiness because we are not inclined to serve Kṛṣṇa, the transcendental Cupid. The slightest disturbance in the attempt to satisfy that lust makes us angry. Lusty desire is the mother of all sense gratification. The only occupation of a pure spirit soul is to gratify the transcendental Cupid’s senses. One who acts for this purpose finds the seed of lusty desires destroyed by his service and surrender to Śrī Kṛṣṇa. ## 17. Should one serve the devotees and the Supreme Lord personally? It is not proper to engage others to worship and cook for the Lord. We can, however, make an exception if we are in some predicament or are ill. If out of laziness we do not feed Kṛṣṇa but we ourselves eat nice foods, then our respect for the Lord’s service will diminish. It is not proper to disturb or change the thought flow of devotees who live in the Maṭha or temple. Dravyaḥ mulyena suddhati: “we can purchase food if we are unable, for some reason, to cook. Our paying for it purifies what we purchase.” This is applicable to those who are unable to cook. It is certainly a symptom of laziness if those who are able to cook go to the market to purchase cooked food for offering. We want only to please Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise, our lives become godless. If we love God, we will want to cook for Him and distribute His remnants to devotees. If we do so, we will never become averse to serving the devotees. ## 18. Is it essential to serve the Lord? Our duty is to serve guru and Kṛṣṇa, and we will continue to do so. Let Kṛṣṇa do whatever He pleases. We must accept His arrangements without reservation. The daughter of Vṛṣabhānu does not give up Kṛṣṇa’s service because She is afraid of being criticized. ## 19. How should devotees live at home? How should they live in the Maṭha? Whether they live in the Maṭha or outside as householders, devotees should live externally like materialists while remaining internally fixed in devotional service. Do not dress simply like a devotee externally while internally remaining attached to material enjoyment—house, wealth, and fame. This is duplicity, and duplicity is extremely detrimental to devotional service. Pseudo renunciation, monkey renunciation, is abominable. Those who practice it misguide the living entities from the path of devotional service and lead them to hell. Our only duty is to follow the ideal example and teachings of Mahāprabhu. Just consider what Śrīman Mahāprabhu told Śrī Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī: markaṭa-vairāgya nā kara loka dekhāñā, yathā-yogya viṣaya bhuñja’ anāsakta hañā/ antare niṣṭhā kara, bāhye loka-vyavahāra, acirāt kṛṣṇa tomāya karibe uddhāra: “You should not make yourself a show-bottle devotee and become a false renunciant. For the time being, enjoy the material world in a befitting way, but do not become attached to it. Within your heart, you should keep yourself very faithful, but externally you may behave like an ordinary man. Thus Kṛṣṇa will soon be very pleased and deliver you from the clutches of Maya.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 16.238-39) ## 20. Can a person become liberated from material existence simply by becoming a sannyāsī? Dressing like a sannyāsī and becoming a real sannyāsī are not the same thing. We have to take sannyāsa from material enjoyment and the desire for liberation. One who has made Kṛṣṇa’s devotional service the essence of life by renouncing the desire for religiosity, economic development, sense gratification, and liberation is the real sannyāsī. To become a real sannyāsī means to follow in the footsteps of the mahājanas and to become attached to the transcendental Lord. In addition, dressing like a sannyāsī is nothing but imitation, pretense. Śrī Mahāprabhu states: parātma-niṣṭhā-mātra veṣa-dhāraṇa, mukunda-sevāya haya saṁsāra-tāraṇa: “The real purpose of accepting sannyāsa is to dedicate oneself to the service of Mukunda. By serving Mukunda, one can actually be liberated from the bondage of material existence.” (Caitanya-caritāmṛta Madhya 3.8) If after accepting sannyāsa one lovingly serves Kṛṣṇa with body, mind, speech, wealth, knowledge, intelligence, and his possessions, he can both become liberated from material existence and become a bhakta. It is impossible to attain any benefit without rendering the Supreme Lord service. Whether one lives at home or in the Maṭha, one must engage in the Lord’s service as his life and soul. Then only can he please the Lord. He must give up miserliness and the propensity to cheat. If he can make the Lord’s service the goal of life, he can attain the Lord’s mercy in this lifetime. ## 21. Is it possible to recognize a devotee simply by examining his external activities, education, or degree of wealth? Materialists are fond of sense gratification, dry renunciants are detached from material enjoyment, recognizing it as the source of misery. Both materialists and dry renunciants are full of material desires and therefore nondevotees. That is why they cannot understand the service attitude and spontaneous renunciation of bhaktas. If one tries to recognize a devotee by his external appearance—his high birth, opulence, education, beauty, or other material prosperity, or by his lack of these things—he is bound to be deceived. Even the most intelligent persons are unable to understand a Vaiṣṇava’s activities and behavior. When karmīs and jñānīs, material enjoyers or dry renunciants, look at devotees through their gross, external vision, they do not see the devotee’s true identity. A devotee who serves the Lord lacks no opulence, because the Lord Himself possesses all six opulences. Instead of enjoying their opulence, however, devotees offer it to their worshipable Lord and unlike materialists and renunciants; neither enjoy the opulence nor give it up. Therefore, whether one sees a devotee with opulence or with no apparent opulence, one should not disrespect him because that devotee knows perfectly well how to utilize everything in the Supreme Lord’s service. A devotee is neither a sense enjoyer nor a renunciant. He is something other than either of these because he gratifies his beloved Lord’s senses. It is only possible to develop this conception by the mercy of a devotee. Therefore, if one engages constantly in Śrī Hari’s service, constantly chanting His names, giving up false ego, and taking shelter of the Vaiṣṇava guru’s lotus feet, then one’s improper attempts to measure both the Lord and His devotees, as well as one’s material thirst, will diminish and one will certainly attain eternal auspiciousness. ## 22. What kind of Vaiṣṇava has no possessions? Those who want nothing from this world are actually akiñcana, devoid of possessions. Such Vaiṣṇavas have understood that there is nothing in this world that can give them eternal happiness. The material world is a prison house for conditioned souls. Because we have been averse to Kṛṣṇa, we have been imprisoned here and have suffered the material miseries. Although Prahlāda Mahārāja was an emperor, he had no possessions. Sudāmā Brāhmaṇa was extremely impoverished, and he too was akiñcana. Both devotees were free of material desire. The akiñcana devotees know well that the material world simply contains ingredients for the service of Hari, guru, and the Vaiṣṇavas. They do not see this material world in the spirit of personal enjoyment, nor do they become indifferent to it. Rather, they engage everything in this world in the Supreme Lord’s service. Unless we worship Lord Hari, we have no right to take even a blade of grass from this world. Akiñcana devotees realize this fact. The devotees are convinced that by rendering devotional service to Kṛṣṇa they can attain happiness and auspiciousness. By constantly and offenselessly chanting Kṛṣṇa’s holy name, they realize the essential characteristics of Vaiṣṇavas, devotional service, and the Supreme Lord. We have to hear Kṛṣṇa-kathā from the spiritual master and the Vaiṣṇavas and then preach it to others. This is how we cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If we are not cultivating Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we will certainly cultivate attitudes unrelated to Kṛṣṇa. ## 23. Is working for Kṛṣṇa, devotional service? A devotee has no engagement other than to work for Kṛṣṇa. Whatever the pure devotees do for the Lord’s pleasure is devotional service. A person is subject to enjoy the fruits of his work if he considers himself the doer. Therefore, there is a gulf of difference between karma and bhakti. ## 24. How can we attain Kṛṣṇa’s service? We are souls surrendered to Kṛṣṇa. We are under the shelter of the spiritual master’s lotus feet. It is not possible to see the Lord with our present material eyes. The Lord’s pure devotees always see Him through eyes anointed with devotion. We are conditioned souls. Our conception as servants of the Supreme Lord will be awakened if we can simply carry the shoes of Śrī Caitanyadeva’s servants. By the mercy of devotees, we will receive spiritual eyes anointed with devotion and then, by the spiritual master’s mercy, attain realization of and service to Kṛṣṇa. ## 25. What is service? That which gives pleasure to Lord Hari is service and that which gives pleasure to ourselves is enjoyment. Duplicitous people may worship the Deity with sixteen ingredients in order to get sons and grandsons, but this cannot be called service because the purpose behind their worship is to get something from the Lord. There is so much cheating going on in the name of Deity worship and chanting of the holy name. Actually, serving the Lord and making a show of serving the Lord are two separate things. We should be extremely careful to make sure that we are rendering service to the Deity. Not just anyone can become a servant of the Lord’s Deity. Simply paying twenty rupees does not allow us to hear the Lord’s holy names or a discourse on hari-kathā. Such purchased recitations attract people because of the melodious singing and flowery language, but they have nothing to do with devotional service or Vaiṣṇava dharma. Instead, these recitations are karma-kāṇḍa, material enjoyment. A brāhmaṇa priest who has been hired for ten rupees cannot serve the Lord. Until we are firmly convinced that service to Lord Viṣṇu and the Vaiṣṇavas is the highest attainment, we cannot benefit. ## 26. What is the living entity’s ultimate goal? Material enjoyment or liberation cannot be the living entity’s ultimate goal. The living entities are servants of the Supreme Lord, so their ultimate goal is devotional service. Liberation is the other side of material enjoyment. Both material enjoyment and liberation are witches, because both pull the living entities away from righteousness. This is why God-fearing, pious people never take shelter of witchlike material enjoyment or liberation. The devotees of the Lord are already liberated souls and therefore do not hanker for liberation. We should give up karma and jñāna and take shelter of devotional service. ## 27. Is a kaniṣṭha-adhikārī superior to a karmī or jñānī? A kaniṣṭha-adhikārī is superior because he has adopted the path of devotion, the path of auspiciousness. Karmīs and jñānīs do not have such fortune. Kaniṣṭha-adhikārīs are generally engaged in Deity worship. By serving the Deity, the guru, and the Vaiṣṇavas, and by serving the Lord’s holy name, living entities attain supreme auspiciousness. Śrī Caitanyadeva has said that the tongue of anyone who utters the name of Kṛṣṇa even once is the best of all. A kanisṭha-adhikārī who worships the Deity with mantras consisting of the Lord’s holy names is superior to the best of pious fruitive workers in this world. He is also better than any jñānī; because however great the karmīs and jñānīs may be, they do not have faith in the eternal service of the Absolute Truth, Viṣṇu. Therefore, even though they claim to be Vedic followers, they are actually atheists, whereas the worshipers of Viṣṇu regardless of their level of advancement in the kingdom of bhajana are faithful to the Deity form of the Absolute Truth because they have heard of His glories from the mouth of their spiritual master. The thousands of karmīs who have opened innumerable hospitals, old age homes, centers for the poor, and schools, and the thousands of jñānīs who have engaged in meditation and undergone severe austerities are insignificant compared to a single kaniṣṭha-adhikārī Vaiṣṇava ringing the bell once before the Lord’s Deity. This is not sectarianism but plain truth. Atheists can never understand the confidential purport of my words, so they sometimes openly and other times covertly criticize devotional service. ## 28. Is praying to the Lord for a healthy life detrimental to devotional service? Whatever way Lord Kṛṣṇa is pleased to keep us we should accept without reservation. To desire sound health in order to worship the Lord is favorable for devotional service. To desire sound health in order to engage in sense gratification is not acceptable. Devotees do not wish to follow the path of the nondevotees, who demand that the Lord serve them. Rather, they pray for good health at the lotus feet of Śrī Nṛṣiṁhadeva, who destroys all obstacles, in order to worship Kṛṣṇa, and this is certainly favorable. ## 29. Is the desire for fame an impediment on the devotional path? There is no point accumulating material fame. We should remember that material fame is like the hog stool. It is to be rejected. There are two paths in life, śreyas and preyas. The materialists follow preyas and desire wealth, women, and fame. Travelers on the devotional path follow śreyas and are therefore freed from material desire. That is why association with devotees is most beneficial. ## 30. How can we destroy dissatisfaction? If we are devoted to the Supreme Lord, we have no cause to feel dissatisfied. Because we are averse to the Lord’s service, we are compelled to enjoy the fruits of our karma in this world. As a result of our karma, sometimes we enjoy happiness, sometimes we suffer miseries, and sometimes we become envious of others. If we realize that the Lord’s service is our ultimate goal, then the miseries and desires for material happiness cannot disturb us. We should always engage our mind in the Supreme Lord’s service. If we do so, no harm can come to us. If we become agitated and live in this world by displaying our dissatisfaction before others, we will not remember topics about the Lord’s service. Fighting battles of speech, bodily comforts, and battles in the form of mental dissatisfaction will not allow us to serve Lord Hari. Therefore, become as tolerant as a tree and by the Lord’s will continue to live at Kuruksetra. By doing so, we will attain auspiciousness. We wait for that day when Śrī Gaurahari will send us to some other place. ## 31. Should we have immense faith in God? We are constantly inducing the Lord’s servants to enhance their faith in God. Their success, however, depends on their respective luck. If Kṛṣṇa bestows His mercy, everyone will profit. We should always discuss topics about the Vaiṣṇavas. Then the pride that we are enjoyers will not trouble us. Our mind can help us become bound by different kinds of material enjoyment, but when devotional service, the soul’s constitutional propensity, is awakened, the pure, uncontaminated spirit soul will always cultivate hari-kathā. ## 32. How should we chant and serve? Until we develop firm faith that service to Lord Viṣṇu and the Vaiṣṇavas is topmost, we cannot attain auspiciousness. Therefore, we should first serve the Deity with firm faith and chant the Lord’s holy name simply for His pleasure. If we have some ulterior motive, we will not be able to engage in the Lord’s service. Therefore, we request everyone: O friends! Give up all sinful activities and engage in the Lord’s service for His pleasure. What appears auspicious in this world is not actually auspicious. You do not need to artificially dress as a Nārada as if you were in a drama. Worship the Lord and chant His holy name simply to please Him. This will award you auspiciousness. ## 33. What is universal religion? People in this world currently regard activities such as following religious principles or serving our fellow citizens as the topmost religion, but they are nothing but attempts at sense gratification by the atheistic community through the artificial processes of karma, jñāna, and yoga. Lord Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā that we should give up all varieties of religion and take complete shelter of Him, but by creating concocted religious systems in the name of synthesizing all religions, even as they transgress the Supreme Lord’s instructions, the atheists are themselves cheated, just as they cheat others. Even though the people accept such concocted religious systems as truth, they distance themselves from actual truth. The endeavors of godless people, proud of their material knowledge, can never be accepted as supreme religious principles or sanātana-dharma. The only supreme religion for all humanity is unmotivated and uninterrupted devotional service to the transcendental Lord Hari. Sanātana-dharma is the eternal occupational duty of the spirit soul and gives benefit to all. The Padma Purāṇa states: ārādhanānāṁ sarveṣāṁ, viṣṇor ārādhanaṁ param/ tasmāt parataraṁ devi, tadīyānāṁ samarcanam: “Of all types of worship, worship of Lord Viṣṇu is best, and better than the worship of Lord Viṣṇu is the worship of His devotee, the Vaiṣṇava.” Therefore, better than worship of Kṛṣṇa is the worship of the daughter of Vṛṣabhānu, of Nanda and Yaśodā, of Śrīdāmā and Sudāmā, and of Raktaka and Patraka. ## 34. What is the path of devotional service? Any path that does not deal with service to Kṛṣṇa is a nondevotional path. In pure service to Kṛṣṇa, there is no desire other than the desire to please Kṛṣṇa. Pure devotional service means to favorably cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness. On the path of devotional service, giving Kṛṣṇa happiness is the goal. However, on the path of nondevotional service, there is no question of seeking Kṛṣṇa’s happiness. The nondevotional path means seeking sense gratification. ## 35. How should we serve devotees of various qualifications? We should engage cent percent in the service of the mahābhāgavata, 66.6 percent in the service of the madhyama-bhāgavata, and 33.3 percent in the service of the kaniṣṭha-bhāgavata. ## 36. Why do our hearts change? If we do not always serve Hari with love, our mind will become disturbed. Service to Hari should be constant. If there is the slightest interruption in our service, the illusory energy will take advantage of it and swallow us. ## 37. What is devotional service or the worship of the Lord? Whatever is done for Kṛṣṇa’s pleasure is devotional service. Rendering service to the Lord is called devotional service. Dāsya-, sakhya-, vātsalya-, and mādhurya-rasas are each progressively superior. Favorable cultivation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness without any tinge of anyābhilāsa, karma, jñāna, yoga, tapa, or vrata is called bhajana, worship of the Lord. Nondevotional processes such as haṭha-yoga, rāja-yoga, karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, and vrata-tapasya-yoga cannot be called bhajana. It is not possible to purify the heart completely by practicing karma, jñāna, yoga, tapa, or vrata. Only devotional service or hearing hari-kathā can purify the heart completely. Even the restless mind becomes purified and pacified simply by serving the Supreme Lord. ## 38. Is the occupational duty of Kali-yuga devotional service? What to speak of Kali-yuga, devotional service is the occupational duty for all yugas, for all times, and for all people. Activities like karma, jñāna, and yoga are only temporary duties. They are not the spontaneous duties of living entities. Only devotional service is the eternal occupational duty of liberated souls. The occupational duties of conditioned souls afflicted by anarthas are called karma, jñāna, yoga, tapa, and vrata. ## 39. How will our material desires be vanquished? Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says that Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is the benefactor of devotees, resides in the hearts of devotees who are engaged in hearing His name, form, qualities, etc. He destroys all the lusty desires in their hearts totally. Thus, for one who daily hears or glorifies the most auspicious topics of the Lord, the Lord soon personally appears in his heart. If we can hear kṛṣṇa-kathā from a bona fide spiritual master and chant the Lord’s holy name constantly, then mundane thoughts will be vanquished and remembering Kṛṣṇa will become a constant affair. The influence of chanting makes remembering Kṛṣṇa spontaneous. By regularly hearing and chanting about the Lord with a simple heart, all our obstacles are destroyed and we will achieve auspiciousness. ## 40. What is a devotional service? The path devoid of kṛṣṇa-kathā is a nondevotional path. Devotional service means cultivating Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The word “cultivation” means to serve continuously. When a living entity is fixed in devotional service, he is called a devotee. Devotional service means to please Kṛṣṇa. When practicing devotional service, there is no question of desiring sense gratification. The devotees do not serve Kṛṣṇa for any other purpose than to please Him. The first step in devotional service is to develop faith, because the śāstra states that faithful persons are qualified to execute devotional service. In the beginning, therefore, we should hear scripture in the association of devotees so that our faith in the purport of the scripture will be strengthened. If we have not come to understand our relationship with Kṛṣṇa, it is not possible to engage in devotional service. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 11.2.42 states: bhakti pareśānubhavo viraktir, anyatra caiṣa trika eka-kālaḥ/ prapadyamānasya yathāśnata syus, tuṣṭi puṣṭi kṣud-apāyo ’nu-ghāsam: “Devotion, direct experience of the Supreme Lord, and detachment from other things—these three occur simultaneously for one who has taken shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, in the same way that pleasure, nourishment and relief from hunger come simultaneously and increasingly, with each bite, for a person engaged in eating.” Detachment from material enjoyment and knowledge of the Absolute Truth appear simultaneously in the course of practicing devotional service. We cannot become detached from material enjoyment and come to know the Absolute Truth without practicing devotional service. Devotional service is attained only in the association of devotees. While executing pure devotional service, there is no desire for religiosity, economic development, sense gratification, or liberation. ## 41. How do we attain devotional service? If we wish to attain devotional service, we should first take shelter of a spiritual master. This is the principal limb of the sixty-four limbs of devotional service. Unless we surrender to a spiritual master, we can never become eligible to execute devotional service. Hearing and chanting about the Lord cannot produce good results unless we subordinate ourselves to a guru. If we attempt to practice devotion without submitting to a guru, we will accumulate piety but will not learn to perform pure devotional service. We get a bona fide spiritual master only by good fortune and Kṛṣṇa’s mercy. Those who completely surrender everything to their spiritual master’s lotus feet are initiated into kṛṣṇa-mantras and Lord Kṛṣṇa’s teachings. Partial surrender does not bring a complete result. ## 42. What is the difference between transcendental subject matter (adhokṣaja) and spiritual subject matter (aprākṛta)? We can realize the Supreme Lord only by devotional service. The Supreme Lord, who is transcendental, cannot be known by any other means. We achieve devotion simply by the mercy of the Supreme Lord and His devotees. We cannot understand the science of the Absolute Truth without the Lord’s mercy. Caitanya-caritāmṛta states: īśvarera kāpā-leśa haya ta’ yāhāre, sei ta’ īśvara-tattva jānibāre pare: “If one receives but a tiny bit of the Lord’s favor by dint of devotional service, he can understand the nature of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.” (Madhya 6.83) There is no such thing as devotional service if the Personality of Godhead is ignored, because the Personality of Godhead is the indispensable factor in devotional service. We understand from the following Bhāgavatam verse, beginning, “anartha upasamam saksat bhakti yogam adhoksaje,” that all anarthas are destroyed when we engage in the Supreme Lord’s service. That is why Adhokṣaja has four arms: He destroys the jīva’s anarthas with His weapons. In the adhokṣaja conception, awe and reverence is prominent. From the external viewpoint, the spiritual object appears mundane, but it is not. In the conception of aprākṛta or spiritual object, there is no feeling of awe and reverence; the devotee feels only intimacy. There are no anarthas in the conception of aprākṛta. After our anarthas are completely vanquished, the aprākṛta conception manifests. That aprākṛta or spiritual object is the two-armed form of Kṛṣṇa playing a flute. He is served with love and devotion. According to the understanding of para, vyūha, vaibhava, antaryāmi, and arcā, the para cannot be anyone other than Kṛṣṇa. The word aprākṛta is applicable only to the Absolute Truth Kṛṣṇa. The word adhokṣaja is applicable to vyūha and vaibhava. The word aparokṣa, indirect, is applicable to antaryāmi. Words like parokṣa, direct, and pratyakṣa, face-to-face, are applicable to arcā. ## 43. Are the words “devotional service” applicable only to the Supreme Lord? Lord Viṣṇu is no one’s order supplier but is the master of all order suppliers. Since Lord Viṣṇu is worshipable for everyone, the words “devotional service” can apply only to Him. The words “devotional service” cannot apply to the demigods, even though the demigod worshipers falsely attribute those words to their practices. When we worship the demigods, we want religiosity, economic development, sense gratification, or liberation, but when we worship Viṣṇu we attend only to what Viṣṇu wants. The Supreme Lord, bhakti, and the devotee are sewn with the same thread. Devotional service is the via media between the Lord and His devotees, the Lord is the object of the devotees’ worship, and the devotees are the Lord’s servants. The demigods are not god but jīvas. The Caitanya-caritāmṛta states: ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa, āra saba bhṛtya, yāre yaiche nācāya, se taiche kare nṛtya: “Lord Kṛṣṇa alone is the supreme controller, and all others are His servants. They dance as He makes them do so.” (Ādi 5.142) The Padma Purāṇa states: harir eva sadārādhyaḥ sarva deveśvareśvaraḥ itare brahma rudrādyā nāvajneyāḥ kadācana yas tu nārāyaṇaṁ devaṁ brahma-rudrādi-daivataiḥ samatvenaiva vīkṣeta sa pāṣaṇḍī bhaved dhruvam “Lord Hari alone is the supreme worshipable object. He is the controller of all controllers. Demigods like Brahmā and Śiva are subordinate to Him. Yet they should never be disrespected. A person who considers demigods like Brahmā and Śiva to be on an equal level with Nārāyaṇa is to be considered an offender.” The scriptures declare that service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead Hari is devotion, but at present the word bhakti is being misinterpreted and misused. People have come to think that it means devotion to the father, king, or schoolteacher. If we do not know what devotional service is and through which medium it is to be performed, we will find ourselves in trouble. Serving Lord Hari, the master of all the senses, with our senses is called devotional service. The Nārada-pañcarātra states, sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam/ hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate: “Bhakti, or devotional service, means engaging all our senses in the service of the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all the senses. When the spirit soul renders service unto the Supreme, there are two side effects. One is freedom from all material designations, and the other is that one’s senses are purified simply by being employed in the service of the Lord. Lord Gaurāṅga states in Caitanya-caritāmṛta: “anya-vāñchā, anya-pūjā chāḍi’ ’jñāna’, ’karma’, ānukūlye sarvendriye kṛṣṇānuśīlana/ ei ’śuddha-bhakti’—ihā haite ’premā haya pañcarātre, bhāgavate ei lakṣaṇa kaya”: “A pure devotee must not cherish any desire other than to serve Kṛṣṇa. He should not offer worship to the demigods or to mundane personalities. He should not cultivate artificial knowledge, which is devoid of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and he should not engage himself in anything other than Kṛṣṇa conscious activities. One must engage all one’s purified senses in the service of the Lord. This is the favorable execution of Kṛṣṇa conscious activities. These activities are called śuddha-bhakti, pure devotional service. If one renders such pure devotional service, he develops his original love for Kṛṣṇa in due course of time. These symptoms are described in Vedic literatures like the Pañcarātras and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.” (Madhya 19.168-69) Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.29.11-12 states: mad-guṇa-śruti-mātreṇa mayi sarva-guhāśaye mano-gatir avicchinnā yathā gaṅgāmbhaso ’mbudhau lakṣaṇaṁ bhakti-yogasya nirguṇasya hy udāhṛtam ahaituky avyavahitā yā bhakti puruṣottame “The manifestation of unadulterated devotional service is exhibited when one’s mind is at once attracted to hearing the transcendental name and qualities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is residing in everyone’s heart. Just as the water of the Ganges flows naturally down towards the ocean, such devotional ecstasy, uninterrupted by any material condition, flows towards the Supreme Lord.” ## 44. What is actual happiness? The śāstras declare that all happiness emanates from the Supreme Brahman. Lord Kṛṣṇa is the embodiment of ecstatic love. He is the personification of complete peace. The Brahma-saṁhitā 5.1 states: “īśvara parama kṛṣṇaḥ, sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ/ anādir ādir govinda sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam”“Govinda, Kṛṣṇa, is the cause of all causes. He is the primal cause, and He is the very form of eternity, knowledge and bliss.” Elsewhere, śāstra states: “na alpe sukham asti”“there is no happiness to be found in insignificant objects.” Material happiness brings no satiation because it is incomplete. The Absolute Truth is the only reservoir of happiness. Therefore, only by engaging in the service of blissful Kṛṣṇa can the living entity become completely happy. ## 45. What is enjoyment and what is renunciation? Enjoyment refers to sense activities, and renunciation refers to remaining aloof from material objects for sense gratification. When enjoyment is prominent, renunciation is diminished, and when renunciation is prominent, enjoyment is diminished. Neither enjoyment (material variegatedness) nor renunciation (material impersonalism) are necessary in this world. Actual enjoyment means to serve the Supreme Lord; real renunciation means to reject material enjoyment in order to give Kṛṣṇa pleasure. A devotee’s two primary qualities are attachment to Kṛṣṇa and renunciation of the thirst for material enjoyment. A devotee finds enjoyment in assisting Kṛṣṇa to satisfy His senses. ## 46. How do we attain devotional service to Kṛṣṇa? By attentively hearing kṛṣṇa-kathā with a service attitude from sincere devotees of the Lord who have no business other than to constantly glorify Him, we can attain devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. ## 47. To serve Viṣṇu, do we need to give up our daily activities? Perform all your duties as Vaiṣṇavas. Do not simply engage in day-to-day activities by giving up the principles of Vaiṣṇavism or service to Lord Viṣṇu. Vaiṣṇavas engage in activities that are favorable for devotional service to Hari. ## 48. What is our eternal occupational duty? Our eternal, occupation duty is to render devotional service to the transcendental Personality of Godhead. This duty is both unchangeable and unchallengeable. Nowadays, various so-called eternal occupational duties have been proposed, but they are all unauthorized and non-Vedic. They are nothing but the physical and mental activities of the karma and jñāna-kāṇḍīs. If we consider such concocted religious systems the eternal occupational duty of living entities, we will be cheated and will never attain peace. ## 49. Is anger toward those envious of devotees a limb of devotional service? We should display anger toward those who are envious of devotees. This is a particular limb of devotional service. A lack of anger against blasphemers is unjustified. But we need to understand who is actually envious of devotees. Those who do not serve the Supreme Lord, the Supersoul and most blissful friend of all living entities, do not benefit themselves but instead invite trouble by their envy of Kṛṣṇa and the Vaiṣṇavas. Such people are branded as envious, and we should not show them mercy. These people become intoxicated by worshiping materialists. We should both ignore them and display our anger toward them. But before that, we have to see whether we ourselves are envious of devotees, whether we ourselves are actually serving Kṛṣṇa. Or are we serving something else on the pretext of serving Kṛṣṇa? How much are we attached to Kṛṣṇa? Are we trying to enjoy the objects meant for Kṛṣṇa’s enjoyment? I think my enjoyment-prone material body is fiercely envious of Kṛṣṇa and His devotees, because instead of thinking constantly of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet and happiness, I am busy worrying about my own happiness, blaspheming others, and looking for faults. I do not look at myself at all. I am such an offender at the feet of devotees that I should first learn to display anger toward myself. I am so envious of devotees that I should beat myself with shoes simply to purify myself. Then I can set an example for others and sincerely engage in the service of Hari, guru, and the Vaiṣṇavas. I must remember that everyone is worshiping Hari but me. I am unable to do so. I should also remember that I may die at any moment. So first we should show anger toward our own sinful propensities, such as our desire for profit, adoration, and distinction and our propensity to cheat others. We must correct ourselves first. Otherwise, we cannot correct others. Then we have to correct those who are related to us, who are envious of the spiritual master and Kṛṣṇa and who are pulling us toward material enjoyment by tempting us. This is the secret of success. ## 50. Do the devotees want anything other than devotional service? Religiosity, economic development, sense gratification, and liberation are fit to be kicked out. Materialists aspire for such things, but devotees never want them. Devotees aspire for pure devotional service. We should purify the heart. Otherwise, we will be cheated despite making a show of rendering service. I had many friends and well-wishers, but they are busy in other pursuits. Even though they externally show symptoms of worshiping Hari, they are engaged internally in materialistic activities. ## 51. Is devotional service the only path to be followed? Apart from devotional service to the Lord, all other endeavors, including karma and jñāna, are foolish and sinful. All topics excluding service to Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa are simply attempts to cover the soul’s eternal propensity. It is said that Lord Hari takes everything away, but what does He take? He does not take our skin, our flesh. He wants our soul. By taking shelter of the Supreme Lord, all our responsibilities are fulfilled. ## 52. Is it proper to associate with women? A householder can associate intimately with his wife only at proper times to beget children. It is improper to associate with one’s wife simply to enjoy sense gratification. Sense gratification is an obstacle on the path of devotional service to Hari. ## 53. Do the living entities have any business other than worshiping Kṛṣṇa? Lord Kṛṣṇa says, “It is the duty of all living entities to worship Me alone. All their activities should be executed with Me in the center. They should engage all their senses only in My service.” ## 54. Should we engage in devotional service twenty-four hours a day? We should remain engaged in the Lord’s service twenty-four hours a day. We should not desire anything for ourselves even for a second. This stance is natural to our constitutional position. If we can dovetail all our endeavors in the Lord’s service, we will then be engaged in His service twenty-four hours a day and will not engage in any other activity, even unknowingly. Real Vaiṣṇavas worship Hari twenty-four hours a day, but such Vaiṣṇavas are rare. ## 55. Can we call just anything devotional service? Devotional service means to do what Kṛṣṇa likes. Doing what we like is not devotional service but sense gratification. We should become neither sense enjoyers nor dry renunciants. We should surrender our independent natures and become devotees of the Lord by seeking His complete shelter. In this way, we will work only for His pleasure. ## 56. Kṛṣṇa awards devotional service even to ambitious devotees, but elsewhere in śāstra it is said that “Kṛṣṇa eagerly awards material enjoyment and liberation to His devotees but generally hides His devotional service from them.” How are these two statements reconciled? Sometimes people make a show of worshiping Kṛṣṇa while internally wanting Him to give them religiosity, economic development, sense gratification, and liberation. Śāstra states that “as one surrenders to the Lord, He rewards him accordingly.” This means that the Lord deceives him by bestowing upon him the insignificant objects he desires. He never awards such hypocrites pure devotional service. But if out of ignorance a devotee prays to the Lord for material happiness, then the Lord mercifully awards that ignorant yet sincere person the opportunity to hear hari-kathā from pure devotees or attracts him with His charming sweetness. In this way, He belittles the devotee’s desires. The main point is that Lord Kṛṣṇa never awards hypocrites who only make a show of worshiping Him the rarely achieved loving devotional service. Rather, He deceives them by giving them material enjoyment and liberation. The Lord certainly awards pure devotional service to ignorant but sincere devotees through the via media of the spiritual master. ## 57. What does the Supreme Lord want from us? The Lord does not want anything other than full surrender. We should cultivate God consciousness and help those who are unable to cultivate God consciousness. Otherwise, they will become hostile. We should always remember that serving Maya is not the same as serving Kṛṣṇa. Materialistic or godless people do not have the privilege to serve the Lord. Only those who are alive can serve the Lord, not those who are as good as dead. Persons who are inclined to the Lord’s service are actually alive. Fear, lamentation, and illusion shadow every step. The only way to become free from the clutches of these three plunderers is to engage in devotional service to Adhokṣaja. The Deity of the Lord is also Adhokṣaja. He is not clay, wood, or stone. ## 58. Why do we sometimes consider godless people great? Sinful people, pious people, fruitive workers, mental speculators, and yogis spend their lives in godlessness. We consider them great when we are out of touch with devotional service.