four types of men that do

All these devotees are undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of Me I consider verily to dwell in Me. Being engaged in My transcendental service, he attains Me.

It is not that other devotees who are less complete in knowledge are not dear to the Lord. The Lord says that all are magnanimous because anyone who comes to the Lord for any purpose is called a mahatma or great soul. The devotees who want some benefit out of devotional service are accepted by the Lord because there is an exchange of affection. Out of affection they ask the Lord for some material benefit, and when they get it they become so satisfied that they also advance in devotional service. But the devotee in full knowledge is considered to be very dear to the Lord because his only purpose is to serve the Supreme Lord with love and devotion. Such a devotee cannot live a second without contacting or serving the Supreme Lord. Similarly, the Supreme Lord is very fond of His devotee and cannot be separated from him. (More...)

"The devotees are always in My heart, and I am always in the heart of the devotees. The devotee does not know anything beyond Me, and I also cannot forget the devotee. There is a very intimate relationship between Me and the pure devotees. Pure devotees in full knowledge are never out of spiritual touch, and therefore they are very much dear to Me." (More...)

This is the order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. If we follow this order, then we will become godly persons. It does not take much time to become a godly person. If we accept this order then we can become a godly person in one second. And that is our dharma or religious principle. Religion means nothing else. Religion means whatever the Supreme Lord says, we have to accept that-that is religion. And any religion made by Rama-Shyama [Tom, Dick, Harry] is not a religion at all. Just like law, law means rules made by the king. That is law. If a common man, like me, makes a law, who will follow that? That is not the law. Therefore Bhagavatam says, dharmah projjhita-kaitavao'tra, all the cheating religions have been completely rejected. For example Lord Sri Krsna says, "sarva dharman parityajya mama ekam saranam vraja." Similarly Srimad Bhagavatam also says dharmah projjhita-kailavo'tra. (More...)

T full knowledge in union with Me through pure devotional service is the best. For I am very dear to him, and he is dear to Me.

Free from all contaminations of material desires, the distressed, the inquisitive, the penniless, and the seeker after supreme knowledge can all become pure devotees. But out of them, he who is in knowledge of the Absolute Truth and free from all material desires becomes a really pure devotee of the Lord. And of the four orders, the devotee who is in full knowledge and is at the same time engaged in devotional service is, the Lord says, the best. By searching after knowledge one realizes that his self is different from his material body, and when further advanced he comes to the knowledge of impersonal Brahman and Paramatma. When one is fully purified, he realizes that his constitutional position is to be the eternal servant of God. So by association with pure devotees, the inquisitive, the distressed, the seeker after material amelioration and the man in knowledge all become themselves pure. But in the preparatory stage, the man who is in full knowledge of the Supreme Lord and is at the same time executing devotional service is very dear to the Lord. He who is situated in pure knowledge of the transcendence of the Supreme Personality of God is so protected in devotional service that material contaminations cannot touch him. (More...)

Therefore the seventeenth verse says, "Of these, the wise one, who is in full knowledge in union with Me through pure devotional service is the best, for I am very dear to him, and he is very dear to Me." "All these devotees are undoubtedly magnanimous souls, but he who is situated in knowledge of Me I consider verily to dwell in Me. Being engaged in My transcendental service, he attains Me." Here Krsna affirms that all four categories of seekers are great souls, mahatmas. They are great not because they are tinged with material desire, but in spite of it, or, more accurately, because they have come to the right source for the fulfillment of their desire. They have come to Krsna for various reasons, but still they have come to Krsna. That means they have come to the ultimate goal for whatever reasons; therefore they are mahatmas or great souls. But the devotee in full knowledge and in constant service is considered to be very dear to the Lord because his only purpose is to serve the Lord with love and devotion. Such a devotee cannot live a second without contacting or serving the Supreme Lord. Similarly, the Lord is very fond of His devotees and cannot be separated from them. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam, 9.4.57, the Lord says, "The devotees are always in My heart, and I am always in the hearts of the devotees. The devotee does not know anything beyond Me, so I cannot forget the devotee. There is a very intimate relationship between Me and the pure devotees. Pure devotees in pure knowledge are never out of spiritual touch. Therefore they are very much dear to Me." (More...)

There are four classes of men-those who are sometimes distressed, those who are in need of money, those who are sometimes inquisitive, and those who are sometimes searching after knowledge of the Absolute Truth who come to the Supreme Lord for devotional

Unlike the miscreants, these are adherents of the regulative principles of the scriptures, and they are called sukrtina, or those who obey the rules and regulations of scriptures, the moral and social laws, and are, more or less, devoted to the Supreme Lord. Out of these there are four classes of men-those who are sometimes distressed, those who are in need of money, those who are sometimes inquisitive, and those who are sometimes searching after knowledge of the Absolute Truth. These persons come to the Supreme Lord for devotional service under different conditions. These are not pure devotees because they have some aspiration to fulfill in exchange for devotional service. Pure devotional service is without aspiration and without desire for material profit. The Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu [1.1.11] defines pure devotion thus: (More...)

When these four kinds of persons come to the Supreme Lord for devotional service and are completely purified by the association of a pure devotee, they also become pure devotees. As far as the miscreants are concerned, for them devotional service is very difficult because their lives are selfish, irregular and without spiritual goals. But even some of them, by chance, when they come in contact with a pure devotee, also become pure devotees. (More...)

Those who are always busy with fruitive activities come to the Lord in material distress and at that time associate with pure devotees and become, in their distress, devotees of the Lord. Those who are simply frustrated also come sometimes to associate with the pure devotees and become inquisitive to know about God. Similarly, when the dry philosophers are frustrated in every field of knowledge, they sometimes want to learn of God, and they come to the Supreme Lord to render devotional service and thus transcend knowledge of the impersonal Brahman and the localized Paramatma and come to the personal conception of Godhead by the grace of the Supreme Lord or His pure devotee. On the whole, when the distressed, the inquisitive, the seekers of knowledge, and those who are in need of money are free from all material desires, and when they fully understand that material remuneration has nothing to do with spiritual improvement, they become pure devotees. As long as such a purified stage is not attained, devotees in transcendental service to the Lord are tainted with fruitive activities, and they search after mundane knowledge, etc. So one has to transcend all this before one can come to the stage of pure devotional service. (More...)

"Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons, do not surrender unto Me. O best among the Bharatas [Arjuna], four kinds of pious men render devotional service unto Me-the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute." (More...)

In verse sixteen Krsna enumerates four kinds of pious men who render devotional service unto the Supreme: they are the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive and the man in search of the Absolute Truth. These four classes of men come to the Lord to render some devotional service under different conditions, but they are not pure devotees because they have some ambition to fulfill in exchange for devotional service. Pure devotional service is without material calculation or desire for material benefit. The Nectar of Devotion puts it this way: "One should render transcendental loving service to the Supreme Lord Krsna favorably without desire for material profit or gain through fruitive activities or philosophical speculation. That is called pure devotional service." But when these four kinds of persons come to the Supreme Lord for devotional service, they become completely purified by association with the pure devotee, and thus they also become pure devotees. Even a miscreant, for whom devotional service is extremely difficult due to his irregular, nonspiritual life, can also become a pure devotee if by chance he comes in contact with a pure devotee. Actually how we come to Krsna is not so important. Man may be distressed-he may have lost his wife or family, his business may have failed, some love relationship has gone haywire-and in that distress turn to the Supreme Lord. Somehow or other we get an inkling that our happiness is not to be achieved in material goals, but in the Supreme. And in that state, even though it is occasioned by a material event, we have an opportunity to associate with the Supreme Lord or with His devotee. (More...)

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