View source for The devotee should not be a mercantile man: "If You give me something, then I shall give You something." That is business. A devotee is not like that. He understands that he is eternal servant of Krsna, his duty is to serve Krsna

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{{terms|"The devotee should not be a mercantile man:"|"If You give me something, then I shall give You something"|"That is business. A devotee is not like that. He understands that he is eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, his duty is to serve Kṛṣṇa"}}
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{{compiler|Nabakumar}}
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[[Category:Devotees of God Should Not]]
[[Category:Should Not Be]]
[[Category:Mercantile]]
[[Category:If You]]
[[Category:Give Me]]
[[Category:God's Giving]]
[[Category:Something]]
[[Category:Giving of a Devotee of God]]
[[Category:That Is]]
[[Category:Business]]
[[Category:Devotees of God Are Not]]
[[Category:Is Not Like...]]
[[Category:Like That]]
[[Category:Understanding of a Devotee of God]]
[[Category:Devotees of God Are Eternal Servants of God]]
[[Category:We Are Eternal Servants of Krsna]]
[[Category:Duties of a Devotee of God]]
[[Category:Serving Krsna]]
[[Category:Service of a Devotee of God]]
[[Category:Pages Needing Audio - NABAKUMAR]]
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<h2>Lectures</h2>
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<h3>General Lectures</h3>
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You see the five-years-old boy, how he was protected from all kinds of dangers, and he refused to take any benediction. He refused. The devotee should not be a mercantile man: "If You give me something, then I shall give You something." That is business. A devotee is not like that. He understands that he is eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, his duty is to serve Kṛṣṇa. In the material world a servant works when money is paid, wages. A devotee is not like that. A devotee serves Kṛṣṇa out of duty. That is God consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that "It is my duty." And then Kṛṣṇa takes the responsibility, "It is My duty to protect this devotee." This reciprocation is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
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[[Vanisource:750525 - Lecture - Honolulu|750525 - Lecture - Honolulu]]
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There are many yogīs, mystics, but Kṛṣṇa confirms that "Of all the yogīs, of all the mystic, a person who is always thinking of Me," śraddhāvān bhajate yo mām, yoginām api sarveṣāṁ mad-gatenāntarātmanā, "always thinking Me, Kṛṣṇa, within himself:

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:Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare 
:Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare."
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So Kṛṣṇa said, "he is the best yogī." Yoginām api sarveṣāṁ. Sarveṣam means "of all." "Of all kinds of yogīs, the best yogī is who is always thinking of Me."

That is Kṛṣṇa's philosophy. He is teaching in the Bhagavad-gītā, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru ([[Vanisource:BG 18.65 (1972)|BG 18.65]]). Four things. If you sincerely do these four things—always think of Kṛṣṇa, man-manā; just become His devotee, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto; mad-yājī, worship Kṛṣṇa . . . just like we do in the temple room. Man-manā . . . you can do worship anywhere if you are a devotee. A devotee can worship Kṛṣṇa anywhere, underneath a tree, because Kṛṣṇa is in everyone's heart, īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati ([[Vanisource:BG 18.61 (1972)|BG 18.61]]). So if underneath a tree you think of Kṛṣṇa and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, that is sufficient. Kṛṣṇa does not require any big paraphernalia. He only wants how you are a sincere devotee. That's all. And that devotional service can be discharged in any condition. Ahaituky apratihatā ([[Vanisource:SB 1.2.6|SB 1.2.6]]). It cannot be checked by the material circumstances. This is the process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

And you see the five-years-old boy, how he was protected from all kinds of dangers, and he refused to take any benediction. He refused. The devotee should not be a mercantile man: "If You give me something, then I shall give You something." That is business. A devotee is not like that. He understands that he is eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, his duty is to serve Kṛṣṇa. In the material world a servant works when money is paid, wages. A devotee is not like that. A devotee serves Kṛṣṇa out of duty. That is God consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that "It is my duty." And then Kṛṣṇa takes the responsibility, "It is My duty to protect this devotee." This reciprocation is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no question of business transaction. Then he will be protected. Kṛṣṇa is nobody's servant, but everyone is Kṛṣṇa's servant. If everyone becomes Kṛṣṇa's servant, then everyone is protected by Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is protecting. Kṛṣṇa is God, so He is protecting everyone, He is giving food everyone, but especially inclined to the devotees. Samaḥ sarveṣu-bhūteṣu ([[Vanisource:BG 18.54 (1972)|BG 18.54]]).
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