A Devotee is as Good as the Book

The Vedic tradition offers two guides for the conditioned soul: the grantha-bhāgavata (the book) and the bhakta-bhāgavata (the devotee). Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches that these two are identical in quality and purpose. While the book provides the theoretical knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the devotee provides the practical example. This article explores why the devotee is considered equal to the scripture and the necessity of learning from them directly.

Living in Terms of the Book

Why is a human being accorded the same status as a divine scripture? The reason is practical application. The book Bhāgavatam is full of information about the Personality of Godhead and His pure devotees. When a person molds their entire life—actions, words, and thoughts—according to this information, they become a living manifestation of the book. Thus, the devotee is as good as the book.

• A devotee Bhagavata is as good as the book Bhagavata because the devotee Bhagavata leads his life in terms of the book Bhagavata and the book Bhagavata is full of information about the Personality of Godhead and His pure devotees, who are also Bhagavatas.
• Bhagavata-dharma means the relationship between the devotees and the Lord. The Lord is Bhagavan and the devotee is bhagavata, or in relationship with Bhagavan.

Secret of Learning

The science of God cannot be learned through academic study or from professional reciters who seek a livelihood from the scripture. It is a confidential science revealed only to those who surrender. The "Number One" Bhāgavata is the established pure devotee. To understand the message of Godhead, one must hear from this source, avoiding the interpretations of karmīs, jñānīs, and yogīs.

• The number one Bhagavata is the established personality of devotee, and the other Bhagavatam is the message of Godhead.
• One should hear such (about God) discourses from a person Bhagavatam and not from the professional man, or from the karmi, jnani or yogi. That is the secret of learning the science.
• This is book bhagavata, and a devotee is person bhagavata. So according (to) our Caitanya Mahaprabhu's cult, the Bhagavata should be studied from the person bhagavata, not from the professional reciters.

Reality, Not Imagination

Impersonalist philosophers often criticize the devotional path, claiming that devotees "imagine" a personal form of God to facilitate worship. Śrīla Prabhupāda strongly counters this, explaining that the descriptions in the Bhāgavata are factual. The devotee does not create God; they realize the Supreme Person who is eternally existing and described in the revealed scriptures.

• The impersonalist may say that the Bhagavatam devotees create and imagine someone as the Supreme Personality of Godhead and assign qualifications to Him; but actually it is neither imagination nor an imposition of artificial power.

Freedom from Entanglement

The combined mercy of the book and the person is the only way to escape the cycle of birth and death. Those who neglect this path, trusting instead in their own intelligence or austerity, inevitably fall down because their intelligence is not purified by service. Contact with the Bhāgavata is the requisite for liberation.

• If one comes in contact with the book Bhagavatam as well as with the devotee bhagavata, who knows what the Bhagavatam is, then such a fortunate man gets out of the material entanglement.
• The Bhagavatam says that because nondevotees neglect the transcendental loving service of the lotus feet of the Personality of Godhead, their intelligence is not sufficient, and therefore these persons fall down.

Conclusion

The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is not a dead literature; it lives in the hearts of the devotees. To approach the book without the guidance of the devotee is to miss the essence. By honoring the devotee as much as the scripture and molding one's life according to their example, one enters the realm of bhāgavata-dharma, where the Lord and His devotees eternally reciprocate in love.

Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani

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