There are different kinds of mystic yoga systems aiming for different phases of the Absolute Truth. The jnana-yoga system aims at the impersonal Brahman effulgence, and the hatha-yoga system aims at the localized personal aspect, the Paramatma feature of the Absolute Truth, whereas bhakti-yoga, or devotional service, which is executed in nine different ways, headed by hearing and chanting, aims at complete realization of the Supreme Lord. There are different methods of self-realization. But here Devahuti especially refers to the bhakti-yoga system, which has already been primarily explained by the Lord. The different processes of the bhakti-yoga system are hearing, chanting, remembering, offering prayers, worshiping the Lord in the temple, accepting service to Him, carrying out His orders, making friends with Him and ultimately surrendering everything for His service.

The word nirvanatman is very significant in this verse. Unless one accepts the process of devotional service, one cannot end the continuation of material existence. As far as jnanis are concerned, they are interested in jnana-yoga, but even if one elevates oneself, after a great performance of austerity, to the Brahman effulgence, there is a chance of falling down again to the material world. Therefore, jnana-yoga does not actually end material existence. Similarly, regarding the hatha-yoga system, which aims at the localized aspect of the Lord, Paramatma, it has been experienced that many yogis, such as Visvamitra, fall down. But bhakti-yogis, once approaching the Supreme Personality of Godhead, never come back to this material world, as confirmed in the Bhagavad-gita. Yad gatva na nivartante: [Bg. 15.6] upon going, one never comes back. Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti: [Bg. 4.9] after giving up this body, he never comes back again to accept a material body. Nirvana does not finish the existence of the soul. The soul is ever-existing. Therefore nirvana means to end ones material existence, and to end material existence means to go back home, back to Godhead.

Sometimes it is asked how the living entity falls down from the spiritual world to the material world. Here is the answer. Unless one is elevated to the Vaikuntha planets and is directly in touch with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he is prone to fall down, either from the impersonal Brahman realization or from an ecstatic trance of meditation. Another word in this verse, bhagavad-banah, is very significant. Banah means arrow. The bhakti-yoga system is just like an arrow aiming up to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The bhakti-yoga system never urges one toward the impersonal Brahman effulgence or to the point of Paramatma realization. This banah, or arrow, is so sharp and swift that it goes directly to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, penetrating the regions of impersonal Brahman and localized Paramatma.

We must understand the Supreme Person, tattvatah, in truth. Generally people are not interested in knowing about God or their relationship with Him. However, the entire Vedic instruction is for this purpose. First of all we have to know God, then we have to know our relationship with God. The next step is acting on the basis of that relationship. Krsna states that out of many millions of people, one may be interested in knowing the purpose of life. Human life is meant for this end, and if one does not come to this understanding, he is no better than an animal. We not only have to understand God and our relationship with Him but also how to act in that relationship. In this way we can perfect our lives. When one is a siddha, one understands himselfthat is, one understands, aham brahmasmi: I am not this body. This is Brahman realization, the brahma-bhuta platform. When one attains this stage, he becomes very happy. However, we must progress beyond this and come to the platform of bhakti-yoga. On that platform, there is variety and ananda, bliss. As stated previously, we are seeking spiritual variety, and if we do not enter the spiritual world, we will again fall down into the material atmosphere.

The varieties of the spiritual world are mentioned in the Brahma-samhita (5.2930):

I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is adept in playing on His flute, with blooming eyes like lotus petals, with head decked with peacocks feather, with the figure of beauty tinged with the hue of blue clouds, and His unique loveliness charming millions of Cupids.

We should not consider Krsnas form to be imagined by some artist. He is described in the Vedas as venum kvanantam aravinda-dalayataksam [Bs. 5.30]. He plays a flute, and His eyes are like the petals of a lotus flower. He wears a peacock feather, and His complexion is very beautiful, like a dark cloud. He is so beautiful that He attracts many hundreds of thousands of Cupids (kandarpa-koti-kamaniya-visesa-sobham). These are descriptions of Govinda found in the sastras.

In the material world we are simply chewing the chewed, throwing it away, picking it up and then chewing it again. Spiritual variety is not like this. Spiritual variety is anandambudhi-vardhanam: it is constantly increasing. It is even greater than the ocean, because the ocean does not increase. The shores of the ocean are set; they have certain limits. However, the ocean of bliss is constantly increasing. The more we enter into that spiritual bliss, the more we become joyful.

The young people in the Hare Krsna movement chant the Hare Krsna mantra all the time. If this mantra were material, how long would they chant it? It is not possible to chant a material name for very long because the chanting would become hackneyed and very tiresome. No one could be satisfied simply by chanting Hare Krsna unless Hare Krsna itself were spiritual. We may chant, Mr. John, Mr. John, Mr. John, but after an hour we will be fed up. However, the more we become spiritually advanced, the more bliss we will derive from chanting Hare Krsna.

We can experience ananda perfectly in the association of Krsna. We can associate with Krsna as a servant, a friend, a father, a mother or a conjugal lover. There are five basic rasassanta, dasya, sakhya, vatsalya and madhurya. In this material world, we experience the same rasas, or relationships. We are related to someone as a father, a son, a lover, a beloved, a master, a servant or whatever. These are perverted reflections of the relationship with Krsna found in the spiritual world. Today in the material world I may be relishing my love for my son, but tomorrow my son may be my greatest enemy. There is no eternity in this kind of love. Or, if my son does not become my enemy, he may die. Today I may love some man or woman, but tomorrow we may break up. All of this is due to the defects of the material world. However, in the spiritual world these relationships never break up. They simply increase and increase, and this is called perfection.

Krsna is very fond of tending surabhi cows, but the Mayavadis cannot understand this. They say, What is this Krsna? Even Lord Brahma was bewildered. He said, How is it that this Krsna, this boy of Vrndavana, is being worshiped? He is called the Supreme Personality of Godhead. How is that? Lord Indra was also bewildered. Therefore if we do not wish to be bewildered we have to understand Krsna in truth from Krsna Himself or His bona fide representative.

The activities of Krsna are not ordinary but divine. If we can understand this, we immediately become liberated. We need only understand the pastimes of Krsna with the gopis. These pastimes are not ordinary. In the material world, a young man wants to dance with many young girls, but Krsnas dancing with the gopis is different. Because people cannot understand Krsna, when they hear about Krsnas dancing with the gopis, they take this as some kind of concession, and say, Now let us dance with young girls. In this way they go to hell. Therefore we have to learn from the proper person about Krsnas activities. We should not immediately try to understand Krsnas dealings with the gopis, for they are very confidential. These dealings are given in the Tenth Canto of Srimad-Bhagavatam, and this indicates that we have to understand Krsna as He is by first reading the preceding nine cantos. When we have understood these nine cantos, we can go on to the tenth. In this way we can understand that Krsnas activities are not ordinary but divine, and we can immediately become liberated.

We may either hear about Krsna, chant His names, worship Him or offer prayers. In any case, we should work under the directions of our spiritual master or Sri Krsna Himself. For instance, Hanuman simply carried out Lord Ramacandras orders. Hanuman apparently had no education, and he was not capable of teaching Vedanta, but he simply carried out the orders of Lord Ramacandra and attained perfection. Arjuna, on the other hand, took Krsna as his most intimate friend. Arjuna was not a Vedantist but a fighter, a warrior. He had no time to study Vedanta because he had to deal with war and politics, but still he was the greatest devotee. People may say, Oh, Arjuna was not a Vedantist, nor even a brahmana or a sannyasi. How could Krsna accept him as a devotee? Nonetheless, in Bhagavad-gita (4.3), Krsna says that Arjuna is His very dear friend and devotee: bhakto si me sakha ceti. If one becomes a devotee, there is no material impediment.

Actually bhakti should be automatic and spontaneous. There should be no motive in serving Krsna, but even if there is a motive, service rendered unto Krsna is good. Even if one approaches Krsna with some ulterior motive, one is considered pious. For instance, Dhruva Maharaja initially worshiped Krsna with a motive, but after attaining perfection in devotional service, his ulterior motive vanished. When he actually saw Krsna, he said, I do not want anything from You. I dont want any benediction other than Your service. After hearing about the many transcendental qualities of Krsna, if we somehow or other become attracted to Krsna consciousness, our lives will be successful. Tasmat kenapy upayena manah krsne nivesayet: Somehow or other we have to attach our minds to Krsna consciousness. (Bhag. 7.1.32) Then Krsna will help us and give us intelligence from within, as He indicates in Bhagavad-gita ( 10.10):