Devotees of God Are Known As Bhāgavatas
The word Bhāgavata holds a dual significance in spiritual science. It refers to the great scripture Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and also to the pure devotee of the Lord. These two—the book and the person—are the twin pillars of spiritual advancement. The book contains the message of Godhead, but the person is the living embodiment of that message. By taking shelter of both, the conditioned soul can easily overcome the obstacles of material life and make rapid progress on the path of self-realization.
Book and the Person
The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam declares that there are two types of Bhāgavatas. The book Bhāgavata is the literary incarnation of God, providing full information about the Personality of Godhead and His pure devotees. The person Bhāgavata is the devotee who leads their life strictly according to the instructions of the book. Therefore, there is no difference between them; the person is the practical demonstration of the book.
- There are two types of Bhagavatas, namely the book Bhagavata and the devotee Bhagavata. Both the Bhagavatas are competent remedies, and both of them or either of them can be good enough to eliminate the obstacles.
- 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.
Serving the Person Bhāgavata
While the book is available to everyone, its confidential meaning is revealed only to those who please the person Bhāgavata. The devotee is the direct representative of the Lord. By serving the devotee, one receives the mercy to understand the scripture. This combination—hearing the book from the person—is the authorized method for spiritual enlightenment.
- The devotee Bhagavata is a direct representative of Bhagavan, the Personality of Godhead. So by pleasing the devotee Bhagavata one can receive the benefit of the book Bhagavata.
- The messages of the book Bhagavata, therefore, have to be received from the devotee Bhagavata, and the combination of these two Bhagavatas will help the neophyte devotee to make progress on and on.
Miraculous Effects of Association
The power of associating with and serving the Bhāgavatas is illustrated by the history of Nārada Muni. In his previous life, he was merely the son of a maidservant, but by eating the remnants of food left by the sages and serving them, he attained the highest perfection. This proves that promotion in devotional service is not a matter of intellectual prowess but of sincere service to the Lord's devotees.
- Simply by associating with them & accepting the remnants of foodstuff left by the sages, the son of the maidservant got the chance to become the great devotee & personality Naradadeva. These are the miraculous effects of the association of Bhagavatas.
- Human reason fails to understand how by serving the devotee Bhagavata or the book one gets gradual promotion on the path of devotion. But actually these are facts explained by Srila Naradadeva, who happened to be a maidservants son in his previous life.
Conclusion
To become a Bhāgavata oneself, one must serve the two Bhāgavatas. The book provides the theoretical knowledge, and the devotee provides the practical guidance and contagion of devotion. By faithfully following both, the aspiring devotee becomes fixed in transcendental service and attains the ultimate goal of life.
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