Go to Vanipedia | Go to Vanisource | Go to Vanimedia


Vaniquotes - the compiled essence of Vedic knowledge


Parama bhagavata means the highest stage of devotees. Kanistha-adhikari, madhyama-adhikari, and then uttama-adhikari. He is parama-bhagavata. He has no enemy

Expressions researched:
"Parama bhāgavata means the highest stage of devotees. Kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī, and then uttama-adhikārī. He is parama-bhāgavata. He has no enemy"

Lectures

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Parama bhāgavata means the highest stage of devotees. Kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī, and then uttama-adhikārī. He is parama-bhāgavata. He has no enemy. Kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, he worships the Deity, but he does not know how to do good to others, neither he knows who is devotee. In the kaniṣṭha-adhikara, in the lower stage of devotional service, one cannot distinguish. But he should be engaged fully in Deity worship so that gradually he will develop his mahā-bhāgavata stage. And madhyama-adhikārī means he knows how to make others hari-jana, or devotee.

People should know that who is ultimately the proprietor. We are claiming the proprietorship of this land, but we are not proprietor actually. Actually the proprietor is Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He said, sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). Unfortunately we are claiming God's property as our own. That means we are thieves. There is United Nation to formulate peace of the world, but truly speaking, it is an assembly of thieves and rogues. How there can be peace? The people must be trained up to know who is the proprietor. If the United Nation immediately accepts that this whole planet is the property of God and we are simply sons of God—not only human being but also the animals, the trees, the plants . . . There are 8,400,000 different forms of living entities, and Kṛṣṇa claims, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā (BG 14.4): "I am the seed-giving father." And we, all living entities, we are sons of the supreme proprietor. Let us enjoy the father's property without encroaching upon others' share. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). Tena tyaktena bhuñjīthā mā gṛdhaḥ kasya svid dhanam (ISO 1).

But they will not accept it. They will artificially create some assembly of rogues and thief and pass resolution for fifty years, but no peace. They want to be united, but flags are increasing daily. We have seen in New York the flags are increasing. Actually, during Mahārāja Parīkṣit's time there was one flag only, and people were controlled by the Pāṇḍava king all over the world, and they were peaceful. During the Battle of Kurukṣetra, it was a family fight, so all the people of the world, they joined this side or that side. The Bhāratavarṣa means under the name of Bharata Mahārāja, who is mahānubhāvaḥ. He is not ordinary person. Bharataṁ parama-bhāgavatam bhagavat-jana-parāyaṇam. Bhagavat-jana. He is the follower of devotees, bhagavat-jana. Bhagavat-jana and hari-jana, the same thing. Hari means Bhagavān, and here it is stated, bhagavat-jana; and hari-jana, the same thing. But nowadays hari-jana means if somebody comes and presents himself as hari-jana, immediately we understand he must be a cāmāra or bhangi.

So this is the position. Hari-jana means persons like Nārada, Vyāsa, Asita, like that, the personal servant of Kṛṣṇa. By rubber-stamp—"hari-jana . . ." In Bengali it is said, kana chela nama padma locana: "One son is blind, and the father has given the name 'lotus-eyed.'" That you can do out of affection. A blind child you can call lotus-eyed; that is your business. (laughter) But lotus-eyed means something else. Very beautiful eyes, then you can say lotus-eyed. So this is going on. (laughter) I want some political aims, so I stamp the cāmāras and bhangis as hari-jana. That you can call for your political purpose. But hari-jana does not mean that. Here it is, a example of hari-jana, parama bhāgavatan. Parama bhāgavata means the highest stage of devotees. Kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī, and then uttama-adhikārī. He is parama-bhāgavata. He has no enemy. Kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, he worships the Deity, but he does not know how to do good to others, neither he knows who is devotee. In the kaniṣṭha-adhikara, in the lower stage of devotional service, one cannot distinguish. But he should be engaged fully in Deity worship so that gradually he will develop his mahā-bhāgavata stage. And madhyama-adhikārī means he knows how to make others hari-jana, or devotee.

īśvare tad-adhīneṣu
bāliśeṣu dviṣatsu ca
prema-maitrī-kṛpa upekṣā
yaḥ karoti sa madhyamaḥ
(SB 11.2.46)

He not only worships the Deity wholeheartedly . . . That is prema. Īśvare prema. But beyond that, tad adhīneṣu—he knows how to respect the devotees, tad adhīneṣu. Īśvara adhīneṣu, that means other devotees. Then he becomes madhyama-adhikārī. If he simply takes care of the Deity worship and if he does not offer respectful behavior to another devotee, he is kaniṣṭha-adhikārī. He is in the lower stage. So īśvare tad adhīneṣu. He must see that "Here is a devotee." He must have power to see that "Here is a devotee."

So how to deal with devotee? Maitrī: to make friendship with him. Īśvare prema. And to the devotees, friendship; not with others, friendship. Caitanya Mahāprabhu advised. When He was asked by a gṛhastha devotee how to behave like a Vaiṣṇava, what is the behavior of a Vaiṣṇava, He immediately answered that the standard Vaiṣṇavism is asat-saṅga-tyāga,—ei vaiṣṇava-ācāra (CC Madhya 22.87): "He must give up the company of asat, nondevotees." Asato mā sad gamaḥ: don't associate with nondevotee. If you want to make progress, don't associate. Associate does not mean to talk with a nondevotee is association. No. That we have to do. As gentlemen, as devotee, we can. But not intimately. Associate means dadāti pratigṛhṇāti bhuṅkte bhojayate caiva, guhyam ākhyāti pṛcchati ca (Upadeśāmṛta 4). These are intimate relationship, dealing: giving something to your friend, accepting something from your friend, feeding your friend, accept food from him, and disclose your mind to your friend and understand his mind. Ṣaḍ-vidhaṁ prīti-lakṣaṇam (Upadeśāmṛta 4).

So with devotee we should deal in six ways, ṣaḍ-vidhaṁ prīti. Īśvare prema tad-adhīneṣu maitrī. This is friendly behavior. And kṛpa bāliśeṣu: those who are innocent, does not know what is God or what is our relationship with Him, but they are not atheist—they do not know—to such persons, kṛpa, daya. Īṣvare tad-adhīneṣu bāliśeṣu. And there is a class, dviṣat, sura-dviṣat, simply atheist. As soon as they hear the name of God, Kṛṣṇa, they become angry. Just like Hiraṇyakaśipu. Innocent child, five years old, Prahlāda Mahārāja, because he learned from Nārada Muni even from the womb of his mother how to become a devotee, and from the birth he was a devotee, and his father did not like, Hiraṇyakaśipu. Not only he did not like, he was prepared to kill his child in so many ways. That is atheism. Atheists are so much averse, sura-dviṣat. They are envious. So to such person the madhyama-adhikārī cannot preach, because it is useless waste of time. If one is innocent but not envious, we can preach there. That will be, I mean to say, fruitful. If we go to atheist and you go on speaking, he will never accept it. So don't waste your time in that way. That is nāma-aparādha. But because we have not so much power that we can convert an atheist to become theist or devotee of God . . . That requires special power.

Page Title:Parama bhagavata means the highest stage of devotees. Kanistha-adhikari, madhyama-adhikari, and then uttama-adhikari. He is parama-bhagavata. He has no enemy
Compiler:SharmisthaK
Created:2023-06-06, 13:04:44
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:1