Bhaktivedanta VedaBase: Śrī Caitanya Caritāmṛta Antya 7.53

bhaṭṭera hṛdaye dṛḍha abhimāna jāni'

bhańgī kari' mahāprabhu kahe eta vāṇī

SYNONYMS

bhaṭṭera hṛdaye — in the heart of Vallabha Bhaṭṭa; dṛḍha — fixed; abhimāna — pride; jāni' — understanding; bhańgī kari' — making a hint; mahāprabhu — Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu; kahe — spoke; eta vāṇī — these words.

TRANSLATION

Knowing that Vallabha Bhaṭṭa's heart was full of pride, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu spoke these words, hinting at how one can learn about devotional service.

PURPORT

Vallabha Bhaṭṭa was greatly proud of his knowledge in devotional service, and therefore he wanted to speak about Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu without understanding the Lord's position. The Lord therefore hinted in many ways that if Vallabha Bhaṭṭa wanted to know what devotional service actually is, he would have to learn from all the devotees He mentioned, beginning with Advaita Ācārya, Lord Nityānanda, Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya and Rāmānanda Rāya. As Svarūpa Dāmodara has said, if one wants to learn the meaning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, one must take lessons from a realized soul. One should not proudly think that one can understand the transcendental loving service of the Lord simply by reading books. One must become a servant of a Vaiṣṇava. As Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has confirmed, chāḍiyā vaiṣṇava-sevā nistāra peyeche kebā: one cannot be in a transcendental position unless one very faithfully serves a pure Vaiṣṇava. One must accept a Vaiṣṇava guru (ādau gurv-āśrayam), and then by questions and answers one should gradually learn what pure devotional service to Kṛṣṇa is. That is called the paramparā system.

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His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda, Founder Ācārya of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness