Now, Lord Kṛṣṇa has described different types of transcendentalist. The first He has described about the mahātmā—mahātmā, the great soul. And their symptoms have been described that, satataṁ kīrtayanto mām (BG 9.14).
They are engaged twenty-four hours, cent percent, in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ, and trying to serve the Lord very carefully, with vow. So they are first-class transcendentalist, or the great soul.
Then? Second class? Those who are trying to understand the Supreme, the Absolute Truth, by identify himself with the Supreme that, "I am, I am the Supreme." This I have already explained. This "I am Supreme" means "I am part and parcel of the Supreme, of the same quality." So these people, these devotees—not exactly devotees—transcendentalist—they, doing that, when they are little more advanced, and if by chance they get association of another pure devotee, then he can understand that "I am not Supreme, but I am the part and parcel of the Supreme." Then he makes further advance, and the ultimate goal, as I have several times explained before you, ultimate goal is to know Kṛṣṇa, or the Supreme Lord. That is the ultimate goal.
So this is direct method. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness, which we are trying to popularize, this is direct method and just suitable for this age. As Lord Caitanya introduced, kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā (CC Adi 7.76). In this age of Kali, the age of quarrel and hypocrisy—this is called Kali—in this age this is the simplest method and direct, direct action. Just like in military art there is a word "direct action," so this is the spiritual direct action, this Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare / Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.
But because it is very simple, sometimes those who think themselves as very intelligent and advanced, they think, "Oh, what they are doing, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa? We are meditating, we are philosophizing, and we are doing penance and austerities and following the rituals, so many things." So practically they are, according to Bhagavad-gītā, they are not directly in touch with the Supreme Lord, but they have taken different paths as ahaṅgrahopāsanam, thinking himself as one with the Lord, pantheism, thinking everything the symbol of God, and thinking the universal form as the Supreme, in different ways.