Absolute Truths Accepted by Devotees of God

To understand the Absolute Truth requires more than intellectual prowess; it requires the humility to accept the revelation of scripture. Śrīla Prabhupāda consistently emphasizes that the devotee's qualification is their willingness to accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, transcending the doubts that plague the material world.

Acceptance of the Supreme Personality

Śrīla Prabhupāda clarifies that the fundamental difference between a devotee and a materialist is the acceptance of Kṛṣṇa's supremacy. While the "mūḍhas" or foolish rascals deride the Lord's human-like appearance, he explains that the devotee accepts Him as the ultimate source of all energies.

• Although the foolish cannot imagine how Krsna, who appears just like a human being, can control the infinite and the finite, those who are pure devotees accept this, for they know that Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
• The lowest of men (mudhas), because of sinful activities, cannot understand this (Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead), but devotees can accept it without a doubt. Thus the position of a devotee is different from that of a nondevotee.
• You should note it that this Ninth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gita is specially meant for the devotees, especially meant for the devotees, those who have accepted Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Faith in Inconceivable Potencies

The activities of the Lord are often bewildering to the mundane mind. Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches that when the Lord performs wonderful feats, such as lifting Govardhana Hill, the devotee accepts these incidents immediately. He notes that this acceptance of the inconceivable is a sign of spiritual health, protecting the devotee from the illusory energy.

• God's qualities are always inconceivable, and all processes of self-realization inquire into the potencies, energies and qualities of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. However, the devotees of the Lord immediately accept the inconceivable position of the Lord.
• The demigods, the devotees, would immediately accept this incident, knowing that the Lord can lift anything, however heavy it might be.
• The inability (to find God) is due to the illusory energy of the Supreme Lord. Devotees, therefore, accept the Supreme Personality of Godhead as He is and remain happy simply by chanting the glories of the Lord.

Seeing the Hand of God in All Things

A unique characteristic of the devotee, as described by Śrīla Prabhupāda, is the ability to accept all circumstances as the Lord's mercy. Whether facing an uprooted tree or a personal hindrance, he explains that the devotee sees Kṛṣṇa as the root cause and accepts the situation as a benediction, whereas a demon sees only accident and misfortune.

• Tat te 'nukampam (SB 10.14.8) Devotees endure hindrances, accepting them to be caused by Supreme Personality of Godhead and regarding them as benedictions. Demons, being unable to understand the supreme controller, regard such hindrances as accidental.
• The example of an uprooted tree mentioned here by the demon is very significant. Devotees accept that God is the root of everything.
• The conclusion is that the time influence cannot act upon devotees who have accepted the Supreme Personality of Godhead as everything.

Accepting the Lord in Intimacy

Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that as devotion matures, the devotee accepts Kṛṣṇa in more intimate ways. Beyond the awe and reverence of dāsya-rasa, he points out that devotees in the higher stages accept the Lord as a friend or family member, a realization that is the pinnacle of the Gauḍīya-sampradāya.

• They (the devotees) accept the Supreme Personality of Godhead as the dearmost friend, the dearmost relative, the dearmost son, the dearmost preceptor, the dearmost well-wisher or the dearmost Deity.
• The word "friend" is specifically used to indicate intense love. Friendship is better than servitude. In the stage above dasya-rasa, the devotee accepts the Supreme Personality of Godhead as a friend.
• All the cowherd boys used to play with Krsna, who is the Supreme Personality of Godhead for devotees who have accepted eternal servitorship, and who for ordinary persons is but another ordinary child - SB 10.12.7-11.

Conclusion

Ultimately, the perfection of life is found in the acceptance of the Absolute Truth. Śrīla Prabhupāda assures us that those who accept the activities of the Lord as authentic and submit to His supreme will are freed from the cycle of birth and death. By following the path of the mahājanas and accepting Kṛṣṇa as the goal, the devotee returns home, back to Godhead.

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Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Accepted By Devotees of God. We invite you to click this link to study the complete compilation and experience his teachings in their direct, verbatim form.

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