# SB 6.17.40 ## Text > itihāsam imaṁ puṇyaṁ > citraketor mahātmanaḥ > māhātmyaṁ viṣṇu-bhaktānāṁ > śrutvā bandhād vimucyate ## Synonyms *itihāsam*—history; *imam*—this; *puṇyam*—very pious; *citraketoḥ*—of Citraketu; *mahā*-*ātmanaḥ*—the exalted devotee; *māhātmyam*—containing glory; *viṣṇu*-*bhaktānām*—from the devotees of Viṣṇu; *śrutvā*—hearing; *bandhāt*—from bondage or conditional, material life; *vimucyate*—is freed. ## Translation **Citraketu was a great devotee [mahātmā]. If one hears this history of Citraketu from a pure devotee, the listener also is freed from the conditional life of material existence.** ## Purport The historical incidents in the *purāṇas,* such as the history of Citraketu explained in the *Bhāgavata Purāṇa,* are sometimes misunderstood by outsiders, or nondevotees. Therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī advised that the history of Citraketu be heard from a devotee. Anything about devotional service or the characteristics of the Lord and His devotees must be heard from a devotee, not from a professional reciter. This is advised herein. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's secretary also advised that one learn the history of *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* from a devotee: *yāha, bhāgavata pada vaiṣṇavera sthāne.* One should not hear the statements of *Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam* from professional reciters, or else they will not be effective. Quoting *from Padma Purāṇa,* Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī has strictly forbidden us to hear about the activities of the Lord and His devotees from the mouths of nondevotees: > avaiṣṇava-mukhodgīrṇaṁ > pūtaṁ hari-kathāmṛtam > śravaṇaṁ naiva kartavyaṁ > sarpocchiṣṭaṁ yathā payaḥ "One should not hear anything about Kṛṣṇa from a non-Vaiṣṇava. Milk touched by the lips of a serpent has poisonous effects; similarly, talks about Kṛṣṇa given by a non-Vaiṣṇava are also poisonous." One must be a bona fide devotee, and then he can preach and impress devotional service upon his listeners.