Purañjana comes to the path of devotional service (Srimad Bhagavatam #72)

After taking his next birth as a woman, Purañjana finally comes to the path of devotional service. The deeper explanation of the text revealed by Prabhupada.

Aug 16, 2025

Just as in the first part of the allegory, Srila Prabhupada adds a completely new layer of understanding to the passage of Purañjana taking his next birth as a woman.

From verse 4.28.29 to 4.28.34, Prabhupada shows how the allegory describes the spread of the cult of bhakti, and how Vaidarbhī became involved in it as a result of her short devotional practice in her previous life as Purañjana. This meaning was first revealed by Srila Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa in his commentary, and Prabhupada further expanded it to our contemporary context.

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Purañjana comes to the path of devotional service

Purañjana becomes a woman in his next life: the deeper meaning of the passage

Just as in the first part of the allegory, Srila Prabhupada adds a completely new layer of understanding to the passage of Purañjana taking his next birth as a woman.

Srila Sridhāra Swami, on the other hand, is very brief in his commentary to this passage, simply confirming that one's thoughts at the time of death determine one's next birth and a few minor details. This shows how different ācāryas teach according to the time and situation they preach, and thus each new ācārya may reveal new levels of understanding. Both Srila Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa and Srila Prabhupada appeared after Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and thus they had the mission of revealing the deeper meaning of the passage in the context of the Saṅkīrtana movement inaugurated by Him.

According to his explanation, Malayadhvaja was not just a powerful king, but also a great devotee. Text 4.28.29 reads:

upayeme vīrya-paṇāṁ, vaidarbhīṁ malayadhvajaḥ
yudhi nirjitya rājanyān, pāṇḍyaḥ para-purañjayaḥ

Srila Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa reads the word malayadhvajaḥ as the combination of Malaya (the mountain range famous for the sandalwood trees) and dhvaja (war-flag). He thus depicts Malayadhvaja as a mahā-bhāgavata preacher, the learned devotee (pāṇḍyaḥ) who defeats non-devotional doctrines and conquers the transcendental city (Vaikuṇṭha) by the power of his devotional love (vīrya-paṇāṁ). Malayadhvaja is thus the emblem of the supremacy of bhakti over karma and jñana.

Srila Prabhupada translates the verse according to the commentary of Srila Sridhara Swami, but adds the explanation of Srila Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa in his purport:

"The name Malayadhvaja signifies a great devotee who stands as firm as Malaya Hill and, through his propaganda, makes other devotees similarly as firm. Such a mahā-bhāgavata can prevail over the opinions of all others. A strong devotee makes propaganda against all other spiritual conceptions, namely jñāna, karma and yoga. With his devotional flag unfurled, he always stands fast to conquer other conceptions of transcendental realization. Whenever there is an argument between a devotee and a nondevotee, the pure, strong devotee comes out victorious.
The word pāṇḍya comes from the word paṇḍā, meaning “knowledge.” Unless one is highly learned, he cannot conquer nondevotional conceptions. The word para means “transcendental,” and pura means “city.” The para-pura is Vaikuṇṭha, the kingdom of God, and the word jaya refers to one who can conquer. This means that a pure devotee, who is strong in devotional service and who has conquered all nondevotional conceptions, can also conquer the kingdom of God. In other words, one can conquer the kingdom of God, Vaikuṇṭha, only by rendering devotional service. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is called ajita, meaning that no one can conquer Him, but a devotee, by strong devotional service and sincere attachment to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, can easily conquer Him. Lord Kṛṣṇa is fear personified for everyone, but He voluntarily agreed to fear the stick of mother Yaśodā. Kṛṣṇa, God, cannot be conquered by anyone but His devotee. Such a devotee kindly married the daughter of King Vidarbha."

We can see that Prabhupada was able to capture the essence of the commentary of Srila Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, and expand it, adding details and making it easy to understand. That's the same magic he does in other purports. From here, he continues to follow the explanation of Sri Baladeva and further expands it.

Text 30 reads:

tasyāṁ sa janayāṁ cakra, ātmajām asitekṣaṇām
yavīyasaḥ sapta sutān, sapta draviḍa-bhūbhṛtaḥ

The daughter fathered by Malayadhvaja had very black eyes (asitekṣaṇām). This means that her eyes were always fixed on Krsna. Apart from this girl, they had seven very powerful sons (yavīyasaḥ sapta sutān), who represent seven of the nine processes of devotional service (hearing, chanting, remembering, offering worship, offering prayers, rendering transcendental loving service, and serving the lotus feet of the Lord). This indicates that by the association with the king and surrounded by devoted children, Purañjana, now as Vaidarbhī, practiced devotional service. The other two processes (friendship and surrendering everything to the Lord) come later, as one perfects the first seven processes. This also comes from the commentary of Srila Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa, with Prabhupada expanding his explanation.

As we studied, the first part of the allegory can be taken as Purañjana being a pious king who became a princess due to fruitive activities, or as, as revealed by Srila Prabhupada, a devotee who practiced devotional service during part of his life but later forgot Krsna and ended his life as an ordinary materialist. If the first meaning is taken, the second birth indicates a soul being elevated to the platform of devotional service as a result of past piety, and if the second meaning is accepted, the second birth indicate the trajectory of a devotee who has the opportunity of being born in a good family and continuing his devotional service in the next life.

Prabhupada explains all these ideas in detail in his purport:

"King Malayadhvaja was a great devotee, and after he married the daughter of King Vidarbha, he gave her one nice daughter, whose eyes were black. Figuratively this means that the daughter of King Malayadhvaja was also bestowed with devotional service, for her eyes were always fixed on Kṛṣṇa. A devotee has no vision in his life other than Kṛṣṇa. The seven sons are the seven processes of devotional service — hearing, chanting, remembering, offering worship, offering prayers, rendering transcendental loving service and serving the lotus feet of the Lord. Of the nine types of devotional service, only seven were immediately given. The balance — friendship and surrendering everything — were to be developed later. In other words, devotional service is divided into two categories, namely vidhi-mārga and rāga-mārga. The process of becoming friends with the Lord and sacrificing everything for Him belongs to the category of rāga-mārga, the stage of developed devotional service. For the neophyte, the important processes are those of hearing and chanting (śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam), remembering Kṛṣṇa, worshiping the Deity in the temple, offering prayers, always engaging in the service of the Lord, and worshiping the lotus feet of the Lord.
The word yavīyasaḥ indicates that these processes are very powerful. After a devotee engages in the processes of śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam/ arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyam, and is able to secure these processes, he can later become a devotee capable of rendering spontaneous devotional service, namely sakhyam and ātma-nivedanam. Generally the great ācāryas who preach devotional service all over the world belong to the category of sakhyam ātma-nivedanam. A neophyte devotee cannot actually become a preacher. The neophyte is advised to execute devotional service in the seven other fields (śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam, etc.). If one can successfully execute the preliminary seven items, he can in the future be situated on the platform of sakhyam ātma-nivedanam."

The verse also describes that these seven sons became rulers of the Draviḍa province (South India). Prabhupada connects this with the recent history of South India, with the appearance of many great ācāryas, and generations of devotees in many different sampradāyas very strongly practicing the seven preliminary processes of bhakti, paving thus the way for the appearance of Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu, who made available the final two processes.

"The specific mention of Draviḍa-deśa refers to the five Draviḍa-deśas in South India. All are very strong in rendering the preliminary devotional processes (śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam). Some great ācāryas, like Rāmānujācārya and Madhvācārya, also came from Draviḍa-deśa and became great preachers. They were all situated on the platform of sakhyam ātma-nivedanam."

This interpretation is later confirmed by Śukadeva Goswami on SB 11.5.38-40:

"My dear King, the inhabitants of Satya-yuga and other ages eagerly desire to take birth in this Age of Kali, since in this age there will be many devotees of the Supreme Lord, Nārāyaṇa. These devotees will appear in various places but will be especially numerous in South India. O master of men, in the Age of Kali those persons who drink the waters of the holy rivers of Draviḍa-deśa, such as the Tāmraparṇī, Krtamālā, Payasvinī, the extremely pious Kāverī and the Pratīcī Mahānadī, will almost all be purehearted devotees of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Vāsudeva."

And, of course, the appearance of Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu is predicted on 11.5.32, 36, and 37:

"In the Age of Kali, intelligent persons perform congregational chanting to worship the incarnation of Godhead who constantly sings the names of Kṛṣṇa. Although His complexion is not blackish, He is Kṛṣṇa Himself. He is accompanied by His associates, servants, weapons and confidential companions.
Those who are actually advanced in knowledge are able to appreciate the essential value of this Age of Kali. Such enlightened persons worship Kali-yuga because in this fallen age all perfection of life can easily be achieved by the performance of saṅkīrtana.
Indeed, there is no higher possible gain for embodied souls forced to wander throughout the material world than the Supreme Lord’s saṅkīrtana movement, by which one can attain the supreme peace and free oneself from the cycle of repeated birth and death."

Just as this passage from the 11th canto, texts 4.28.29-34 of the allegory of Purañjana predict the spread of Vaiṣṇavism in South India, the appearance of Sri Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the spread of His Saṅkīrtana movement, and the distribution of the fruits of love of Godhead.

This is yet another example of how the verses of the scriptures hide meanings which are revealed only by self-realized ācāryas. The ones who reject these conclusions and want instead to find direct quotes of everything remain stuck in a very primitive understanding of the scriptures.

Text 31 continues the description and predicts the appearance of the International Society for Krsna Consciousness and the spread of the Saṅkīrtana movement in the Western countries:

ekaikasyābhavat teṣāṁ, rājann arbudam arbudam
bhokṣyate yad-vaṁśa-dharair, mahī manvantaraṁ param

Malayadhvaja was a great preacher who enforced the supremacy of bhakti over the processes of fruitive activity and mental speculation. He had seven sons (or disciples) who propagated the process of devotional service in South India. Each of them had millions of other descendants (ekaikasyābhavat teṣāṁ, rājann arbudam arbudam, each one produced ten million descendants), who have been protecting the whole world, or in other words, spreading the process of devotional service up to the end of the manvantara, and beyond (bhokṣyate yad-vaṁśa-dharair, mahī manvantaraṁ param).

Prabhupada connects the mention of the Manus and Manvantaras in the text with the continuous process of devotional service being spread by the Manus and their descendants throughout the universe ("As one Manu follows another, the cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is being imparted"). The seven sons becoming the kings of South India was already connected with our previous ācāryas spreading Vaiṣṇavism and the process of worship of the Lord, and now the spread of the Saṅkīrtana movement out of India, and its continuation, not only on Earth, but in other parts of the cosmos, is predicted. One may think this is too far out, but again, these same details are also described in the 11th canto, and in other scriptures. Prabhupada is thus just making apparent the deeper meaning of the text.

As he explains in his purport to text 31:

"Among Vaiṣṇavas there may be some difference of opinion due to everyone’s personal identity, but despite all personal differences, the cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness must go on. We can see that under the instructions of Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja began preaching the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement in an organized way within the past hundred years. The disciples of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja are all godbrothers, and although there are some differences of opinion, and although we are not acting conjointly, every one of us is spreading this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement according to his own capacity and producing many disciples to spread it all over the world. As far as we are concerned, we have already started the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, and many thousands of Europeans and Americans have joined this movement. Indeed, it is spreading like wildfire. The cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, based on the nine principles of devotional service (śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam/ arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ sakhyam ātma-nivedanam), will never be stopped. It will go on without distinction of caste, creed, color or country. No one can check it.
The word bhokṣyate is very important in this verse. Just as a king gives protection to his citizens, these devotees, following the principles of devotional service, will give protection to all the people of the world. The people of the world are very much harassed by so-called religious-principled svāmīs, yogīs, karmīs and jñānīs, but none of these can show the right way to become elevated to the spiritual platform. There are primarily four parties spreading devotional service all over the universe. These are the Rāmānuja sampradāya, the Madhva sampradāya, the Viṣṇusvāmi sampradāya and the Nimbārka sampradāya. The Madhva-Gauḍīya sampradāya in particular comes from Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. All these devotees are spreading this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement very widely and giving protection to innocent people who are being so much embarrassed by pseudo-avatāras,-svāmīs, -yogīs and others."

Text 32 reads:

agastyaḥ prāg duhitaram, upayeme dhṛta-vratām
yasyāṁ dṛḍhacyuto jāta, idhmavāhātmajo muniḥ

In the allegory, the daughter of Malayadhvaja represents the very plant of bhakti, the bhakti-latā-bīja, which sprouts in the heart of the king, and grows supported by the seven brothers, the seven processes of devotional service practiced by him. The girl married Agastya, who is defined by Baladeva Vidyābhūṣaṇa as the mind, illustrating how devotion conquered the very mind of the king, making him fully fixed in the service of the Lord.

The girl later gave birth to a son called Dṛḍhacyuta, from whom a grandson called Idhmavāha, which means disciples who gather sacrificial wood (idhmavāha) for burning in sacrifices when approaching a spiritual master. This indicates that due to the devotion of Malayadhvaja, all his descendants were also great devotees.

As Prabhupada explains:

"The name Agastya Muni is very significant. Agastya Muni represents the mind. The word agastya indicates that the senses do not act independently, and the word muni means “mind.” The mind is the center of all the senses, and thus the senses cannot work independent of the mind. When the mind takes to the cult of bhakti, it engages in devotional service. The cult of bhakti (bhakti-latā) is the first daughter of Malayadhvaja, and as previously described, her eyes are always upon Kṛṣṇa (asitekṣaṇām). One cannot render bhakti to any demigod. Bhakti can be rendered only to Viṣṇu (śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ). Thinking the Absolute Truth to be without form, the Māyāvādīs say that the word bhakti can apply to any form of worship. If this were the case, a devotee could imagine any demigod or any godly form and worship it. This, however, is not the real fact. The real fact is that bhakti can be applied only to Lord Viṣṇu and His expansions. Therefore bhakti-latā is dṛḍha-vrata, the great vow, for when the mind is completely engaged in devotional service, the mind does not fall down. If one tries to advance by other means — by karma-yoga or jñāna-yoga — one will fall down, but if one is fixed in bhakti, he never falls down.
Thus from bhakti-latā the son Dṛḍhacyuta is born, and from Dṛḍhacyuta the next son, Idhmavāha, is born. The word idhma-vāha refers to one who carries wood for burning in a sacrifice when approaching a spiritual master. The point is that bhakti-latā, the cult of devotion, fixes one in his spiritual position. One so fixed never comes down, and he begets children who are strict followers of the śāstric injunctions. As said in the Vedas:
tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet
samit-pāṇiḥ śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham
In the line of devotional service, those who are initiated are strict followers of the Vedic scriptural injunctions."

Text 33 reads:

vibhajya tanayebhyaḥ kṣmāṁ, rājarṣir malayadhvajaḥ
ārirādhayiṣuḥ kṛṣṇaṁ, sa jagāma kulācalam

This last verse describes the process of retirement of the king, who divided his kingdom amongst his sons (vibhajya tanayebhyaḥ kṣmāṁ) and retired to a secluded place, desiring to worship the Lord in full attention.

This is connected by both Baladeva and Prabhupada with the retirement of the spiritual master when his disciples are mature, and the duty of the disciples in continuing the mission of the spiritual master in spreading Krsna Consciousness, instead of succumbing to an easy life of solitary superficial meditation, devoid of responsibility.

As he wrote in his purport:

"Malayadhvaja, the great king, was certainly a mahā-bhāgavata, topmost devotee. By executing devotional service, he begot many sons and disciples for propagating the bhakti cult (śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ). Actually, the entire world should be divided among such disciples; everyone should be engaged in preaching the cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In other words, when disciples are grown up and are able to preach, the spiritual master should retire and sit down in a solitary place to write and execute nirjana-bhajana. This means sitting silently in a solitary place and executing devotional service. This nirjana-bhajana, which is the silent worship of the Supreme Lord, is not possible for a neophyte devotee. Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura never advised a neophyte devotee to go to a solitary place to engage in devotional service. Indeed, he has written a song in this connection:
duṣṭa mana, tumi kisera vaiṣṇava? pratiṣṭhāra tare, nirjanera ghare, tava hari-nāma kevala kaitava
“My dear mind, what kind of devotee are you? Simply for cheap adoration you sit in a solitary place and pretend to chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, but this is all cheating.” Thus Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura advocated that every devotee, under the guidance of an expert spiritual master, preach the bhakti cult, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all over the world. Only when one is mature can he sit in a solitary place and retire from preaching all over the world. Following this example, the devotees of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness now render service as preachers in various parts of the world. Now they can allow the spiritual master to retire from active preaching work. In the last stage of the spiritual master’s life, the devotees of the spiritual master should take preaching activities into their own hands. In this way the spiritual master can sit down in a solitary place and render nirjana-bhajana."

The passage is concluded on text 34, which reads:

hitvā gṛhān sutān bhogān, vaidarbhī madirekṣaṇā
anvadhāvata pāṇḍyeśaṁ, jyotsneva rajanī-karam

When Malayadhvaja retired to the forest, Vaidarbhī also left home to serve him. The verse describes her as madira-īkṣaṇā (with enchanting eyes). Prabhupada explains that another meaning of madira is "intoxicating", which means that her eyes were enchanting because, due to the association of such an exalted Vaiṣnava, she would become intoxicated in love of Godhead upon seeing the Deity. In other words, by this stage, she had become an exalted devotee, just like her husband. Vaidarbhī thus represents the disciple, who advances by association and service to the spiritual master.

In the previous verse, the seven sons of Malayadhvaja represent the senior disciples who preach, and thus inherit the mission of spreading Krsna Consciousness, after the guru, in his old age, retires to fix his mind on the Lord, while Vaidarbhī represents the disciples who stay with the spiritual master to serve him at the last stage.

As Prabhupada explains: "Just as in the vānaprastha stage the wife follows the husband, similarly when the spiritual master retires for nirjana-bhajana, some of his advanced devotees follow him and engage in his personal service. In other words, those who are very fond of family life should come forward in the service of the spiritual master and abandon so-called happiness afforded by society, friendship and love. A verse by Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura in his Gurv-aṣṭaka is significant in this regard: yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādaḥ. A disciple should always remember that by serving the spiritual master he can easily advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. All the scriptures recommend that it is by pleasing the spiritual master and serving him directly that one can attain the highest perfectional stage of devotional service."

In this way, this passage details the whole master-plan conceived by Srila Prabhupada and the previous ācāryas for taking us out of the material ocean, attracting the mercy of the Lord by participating in His mission of propagating Krsna Consciousness and thus saving more and more souls from the calamity of conditioned existence.

Instructions about the vānaprastha stage

After describing how the disciple is supposed to assist the spiritual master, either by taking up his preaching mission or by directly serving him at the final stages of his life, the narration moves into describing the vānaprastha stage, in which one retires from family life to practice austerities and prepare for returning home, back to Godhead. This is the natural progression for most of us, first learning from the example of the passing away of the spiritual master, and later having to face the same test ourselves.

"In the province of Kulācala, there were rivers named Candravasā, Tāmraparṇī and Vaṭodakā. King Malayadhvaja used to go to those pious rivers regularly and take his bath there. Thus he purified himself externally and internally. He took his bath and ate bulbs, seeds, leaves, flowers, roots, fruits and grasses and drank water. In this way he underwent severe austerities. Eventually he became very skinny.
Through austerity, King Malayadhvaja in body and mind gradually became equal to the dualities of cold and heat, happiness and distress, wind and rain, hunger and thirst, the pleasant and the unpleasant. In this way he conquered all relativities.
By worshiping, executing austerities and following the regulative principles, King Malayadhvaja conquered his senses, his life and his consciousness. Thus he fixed everything on the central point of the Supreme Brahman [Kṛṣṇa]." (SB 4.28.35-38)

Srila Prabhupada starts by declaring that while devotees used to go to practice austerities in forests, high hills, or mountains, such severe austerities are not possible these days. Instead, he brings our attention to something we can do practically: control our eating and reduce our body weight as a way to facilitate our spiritual advancement. As he mentions, "Srīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura severely criticized his fat disciples. The idea is that one who intends to advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness must not eat very much."

He makes the point that overindulgence in food makes one inactive and lazy, apart from increasing our tendency for sensory enjoyment and making us sleep more than necessary. Human form is meant for austerity, and he two main means of austerity are to control the sex drive and food intake. We often think that eating can be used as an escape valve for other restrictions, but Prabhupada alerts for the mistake of this approach.

As he mentioned on his purport to SB 4.26.13, already quoted previously, sometimes it is found that an initiated person, in the name of prasāda, eats very luxurious foodstuffs. Due to his past sinful life, he becomes attracted by Cupid and eats good food voraciously. Instead of being elevated to pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he becomes attracted by Cupid.

There are two principles in terms of eating. The first is to eat only prasāda, avoiding all types of food prepared by non-devotees, which are not offerable to Krsna. A strategy on this stage, used by Prabhupada himself in many situations, is to just eat a lot of prasāda, so one will not have the need or desire to eat anything from outside. This helps one to kickstart one's spiritual life. However, as Prabhupada indicates in this passage, after this first stage is reached, we need to prepare for the long haul, and work for controlling our eating, consuming food to maintain the body, and not as a way of sense enjoyment. This sobriety can go a long way in helping us to advance.

Apart from not eating more than necessary, another form of restriction is to fast on the appropriate days, including on Ekādaśī and the appearance days of Krsna's incarnations and important ācāryas. As Prabhupada explains, "All of these are meant to decrease the fat within the body so that one will not sleep more than desired and will not become inactive and lazy."

Fasting on Ekādaśī is listed in the Nectar of Devotion (chapter six) as one of the ten fundamental principles of the practice of devotional service, together with accepting a spiritual master, being initiated, etc. and the Nectar of Instruction (text two) alerts that eating too much is one of the factors that spoils one's devotional service.

At the same time, we hear that the tongue is the most difficult sense to control, and can remain so even when we finally manage to control all other senses. How then are we supposed to control it? Prabhupada answers on his purport to text 37, stating that "Bhakti-yoga will automatically liberate a person from the dualities of life. In bhakti-yoga, Kṛṣṇa is the center, and Kṛṣṇa is always transcendental. Thus in order to transcend dualities, one must always engage in the service of the Lord".

He supports this by quoting the Gītā (14.26): "One who engages in full devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman."

By practicing devotional service with determination, we can be elevated to the transcendental platform, from where we can control the tongue, as well as all other senses. We can see thus that everything needs to be done simultaneously, creating a virtuous cycle. By controlling our eating as far as possible and fasting on the appropriate days, we nourish our practice of devotional service, and by advancing in devotional service, we have more facility to control the senses, creating a virtuous cycle. If, however, we use prasāda as an excuse to overindulge in food, our advancement can be stopped, bringing us to the opposite result.

"If one is factually engaged in the service of the Lord, bhakti-yoga, he will automatically control his senses, his tongue and so many other things. Once engaged in the bhakti-yoga process with all sincerity, one will have no chance of falling down. Even if one falls down, there is no loss. One’s devotional activities may be stunned or choked for the time being, but as soon as there is another chance, the practitioner begins from the point where he left off."

Text 38 mentions that King Malayadhvaja fixed himself in Brahman realization (yuyuje brahmaṇy ātmānaṁ). However, Prabhupada translated it as "Thus he fixed everything on the central point of the Supreme Brahman [Kṛṣṇa]." One could again argue that he is pushing a meaning that is not in the text, but again, the translation of Prabhupada reveals the deep meaning of the verse. The whole passage speaks about devotional service, and it was already defined since the first canto (SB 1.2.11) that the absolute truth is realized in three stages, being Krsna, the Supreme Person, the ultimate aspect. One who just reads the verse may get stuck in a superficial interpretation, concluding one should meditate on the impersonal aspect, but Prabhupada's translation guides us to the proper understanding. That's the difference between a self-realized soul and an independent thinker who just knows a little Sanskrit.

"In this way he stayed immovable in one place for one hundred years by the calculation of the demigods. After this time, he developed pure devotional attraction for Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and remained fixed in that position.
King Malayadhvaja attained perfect knowledge by being able to distinguish the Supersoul from the individual soul. The individual soul is localized, whereas the Supersoul is all-pervasive. He became perfect in knowledge that the material body is not the soul but that the soul is the witness of the material body.
In this way King Malayadhvaja attained perfect knowledge because in his pure state he was directly instructed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. By means of such enlightening transcendental knowledge, he could understand everything from all angles of vision." (SB 4.28.39-41)

Prācīnabarhi was living in Satya-yuga, and thus Nārada Muni describes Malayadhvaja as also a king living in the same age, who achieved self-realization through the process of aṣṭāṅga-yoga, by meditating for 36,000 years (100 celestial years). The verses, however, make clear that he was not an impersonalist. Verse 38, for example, directly mentions the words vāsudeve bhagavati (he fixed his meditation upon Vāsudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead). Devotees may use different processes, but the goal is always the same: to fix our mind in unbreakable meditation on the Supreme Lord, in devotional trance.

In his meditation, Malayadhvaja realized his transcendental identity, separated from the body, and started to see himself, as the soul, as a mere witness of the body. He also saw himself as being present together with the Supersoul inside the heart, but at the same time distinct from the Lord. In this way, he attained perfect realization, avoiding all traps on the way.

As Prabhupada explains: "The conditioned soul is often frustrated in trying to understand the distinctions between the material body, the Supersoul and the individual soul. There are two types of Māyāvādī philosophers: the followers of the Buddhist philosophy and the followers of the Śaṅkara philosophy. The followers of Buddha do not recognize that there is anything beyond the body. The followers of Śaṅkara conclude that there is no separate existence of the Paramātmā, the Supersoul; they believe that the individual soul is identical with the Paramātmā in the ultimate analysis. But the Vaiṣṇava philosopher, who is perfect in knowledge, knows that the body is made of the external energy and that the Supersoul, the Paramātmā, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is sitting with the individual soul and is distinct from him."

Usually, a soul has to spend many lives going from one philosophic misunderstanding to another, but when we finally find a self-realized soul who can give us the perfect understanding, we are finally situated on a platform of proper knowledge (sambandha) and from there can practice appropriately and attain the ultimate goal. Prabhupada put all the correct conclusions in his books, and even repeated the most essential concepts in many passages to make it impossible to miss them. If we just accept the conclusions he gives, the path becomes open for us.

As he explains in his purport to text 41: "The Lord is the Supersoul seated in everyone’s heart, and He acts as the caitya-guru, the spiritual master within. However, He gives direct instructions only to the advanced, pure devotees. In the beginning, when a devotee is serious and sincere, the Lord gives him directions from within to approach a bona fide spiritual master. When one is trained by the spiritual master according to the regulative principles of devotional service and is situated on the platform of spontaneous attachment for the Lord (rāga-bhakti), the Lord also gives instructions from within (teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam/ dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ tam). This distinct advantage is obtained by a liberated soul. Having attained this stage, King Malayadhvaja was directly in touch with the Supreme Lord and was receiving instructions from Him directly."

The Lord guides us from both the inside, as Paramātmā, the caitya-guru (inner guide), and externally as the spiritual master. The word guru is often used in the plural (gurūn) because different spiritual masters guide us at different stages of life. There should be just one diksa guru, but the instructing spiritual masters can be many. They are, however, one in the sense that they speak the same message. We study the teachings of Prabhupada under the supervision of all these spiritual masters. By this process, we can be elevated to the platform of rāga-bhakti.

Text 42, then reads:

"King Malayadhvaja could thus observe that the Supersoul was sitting by his side, and that he, as the individual soul, was sitting by the side of the Supersoul. Since both were together, there was no need for separate interests; thus he ceased from such activities."

What does it mean? Prabhupada liked to use the word "dovetail", which means to connect in a seamless way. It comes from carpentry, when two wooden boards are chipped on the borders and connected in a very strong and elegant way, acting like one unit, even though clearly distinct. Krsna Consciousness means to dovetail our desires and goals with Krsna's, and thus cease to have separate interests from Him. In other words, it means to discard our selfish and materialistic goals and instead cooperate in the service of the Lord. A harmonious relationship happens when two people have similar goals and interests, and can thus work together in the same direction. To have such a deep relationship with Krsna is the goal of life. We may feel we are very distant from it right now, but this is due to our current material contamination. This dovetailing of one's desires with Krsna is our natural position, and as this original nature is uncovered by the practice of bhakti, we become absorbed in the service of the Lord and cease having any separate interest from Him.

As Prabhupada explains in his purport to text 42:

"In the advanced stage of devotional service, the devotee does not see anything separate between his own interests and those of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Both interests become one, for the devotee does not act for a separate interest. Whatever he does, he does in the interest of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. At that time he sees everything in the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the Supreme Personality of Godhead in everything. Having attained this stage of understanding, he sees no distinction between the spiritual and material worlds. In perfect vision, the material world becomes the spiritual world due to its being the external energy of the Supreme Lord. For the perfect devotee, the energy and the energetic are nondifferent. Thus the so-called material world becomes spiritual (sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma). Everything is intended for the service of the Supreme Lord, and the expert devotee can utilize any so-called material thing for the Lord’s service. One cannot serve the Lord without being situated on the spiritual platform; thus if a so-called material thing is dovetailed in the service of the Lord, it is no longer to be considered material. This is how the pure devotee, in his perfect vision, sees from all angles."

The material creation is only really "material" to the extent we see it as separated by Krsna. He directly explains that on SB 2.9.34, and Prabhupada repeats the idea in several of his purports. A pure devotee sees the so-called material world as the energy of Krsna, and thus no different from the Lord. A materialist questions if there is a God, since he can't see Him, but a pure devotee sees that there is nothing apart from Krsna.