View source for In other words, a Vaisnava who is incessantly thinking of the form of Lord Krsna is to be known as a pure Vaisnava

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[[Category:In Other Words]]
[[Category:Krsna and the Vaisnavas]]
[[Category:Who Is]]
[[Category:Incessant]]
[[Category:Thinking of Krsna]]
[[Category:The Nectar of Devotion Chapters 01 to 51]]
[[category:Thoughts of a Devotee of God]]
[[Category:Krsna's Form]]
[[Category:Krsna Is Known As]]
[[Category:Pure Vaisnava - Devotees of God]]
[[Category:The Nectar of Devotion Chapter 19 - Devotional Service in Love of God]]
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<h2>Other Books by Srila Prabhupada</h2>
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<h3>Nectar of Devotion</h3>
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In the Nārada-pañcarātra pure unalloyed devotional service is explained as being without any motive for personal benefit. If a devotee is continuously in love with Lord Kṛṣṇa and his mind is always fixed upon Him, that devotional attitude will prove to be the only means of attracting the attention of the Lord. In other words, a Vaiṣṇava who is incessantly thinking of the form of Lord Kṛṣṇa is to be known as a pure Vaiṣṇava.
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[[Vanisource:NOD 19 (1970)|Nectar of Devotion, 19]]
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Spontaneous attraction to Kṛṣṇa, which is said to be due to the extraordinary mercy of the Lord, can be placed under two headings: one is profound veneration for the greatness of the Lord, and the other may be one's automatically being attracted to Kṛṣṇa without any extraneous consideration. In the Nārada-pañcarātra it is said that if on account of profound veneration for the greatness of the Supreme Lord, one attains a great affection and steady love for Him, one is certainly assured of attaining the four kinds of Vaiṣṇava liberation—namely, achieving the same bodily features as the Lord, achieving the same opulence as the Lord, dwelling on the planet where the Lord is residing, and attaining eternal association with the Lord. The Vaiṣṇava liberation is completely different from the māyāvāda liberation, which is simply a matter of being merged into the effulgence of the Lord.

In the Nārada-pañcarātra pure unalloyed devotional service is explained as being without any motive for personal benefit. If a devotee is continuously in love with Lord Kṛṣṇa and his mind is always fixed upon Him, that devotional attitude will prove to be the only means of attracting the attention of the Lord. In other words, a Vaiṣṇava who is incessantly thinking of the form of Lord Kṛṣṇa is to be known as a pure Vaiṣṇava.

Generally, a devotee who has achieved the causeless mercy of the Lord on account of following the strict rules and regulations of devotional service becomes attracted by the supreme greatness of the Lord, by the transcendental beauty of the Lord and by the spontaneous execution of devotional service. To be more clear, by executing the regulative principles of devotional service, one can fully appreciate the transcendental beauty of the Lord. In any case, such exalted positions are only possible by the extraordinary mercy of the Lord upon the devotee.

Association with Pure Devotees

Although many different processes for developing love of Godhead have been explained so far, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī now gives us a general description of how one can best achieve such a high position. The beginning of ecstatic love of Godhead is basically faith. There are many societies and associations of pure devotees, and if someone with just a little faith begins to associate with such societies, his advancement to pure devotional service is rapid.

The influence of a pure devotee is such that if someone comes to associate with him with a little faith, he gets the chance of hearing about the Lord from authoritative scriptures like the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Thus, by the mercy of the Lord, who is situated in everyone's heart, one gradually develops his faith in the descriptions of such authoritative scriptures. This is the first stage of association with pure devotees. In the second stage, after one becomes a little advanced and mature, he automatically offers to follow the principles of devotional service under the guidance of the pure devotee and accepts him as the spiritual master. In the next stage, under the guidance of the spiritual master, the devotee executes regulative devotional service, and, as a result of such activities, he becomes freed from all unwanted occupations. When he is freed from unwanted occupations, his faith becomes steadily fixed, and he develops a transcendental taste for devotional service, then attachment, then ecstasies, and in the last stage there is pure love of Godhead. These are the different stages of the development of pure love.
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