260
Bhagavad-  ળોંગા As It Is
[Ch. 4]
The Lord is the original spiritual master, and a person in the disciplice succession can convey the message of the Lord as it is to his disciple. No one can be spiritually realized by manufacturing his own process, as is the fashion of the foolish pretenders. The  Bhāgavatam  says:  dharmaṁ hi sākṣād-bhagavat-praṇītam —the path of religion is directly enunciated by the Lord. Therefore, mental speculation or dry arguments cannot help one progress in spiritual life. One has to approach a bona fide spiritual master to receive the knowledge. Such a spiritual master should be accepted in full surrender, and one should serve the spiritual master like a menial servant, without false prestige. Satisfaction of the self-realized spiritual master is the secret of advancement in spiritual life. Inquiries and submission constitute the proper combination for spiritual understanding. Unless there is submission and service, inquiries from the learned spiritual master will not be effective. One must be able to pass the test of the spiritual master, and when he sees the genuine desire of the disciple, he automatically blesses the disciple with genuine spiritual understanding. In this verse, both blind following and absurd inquiries are condemned. One should not only hear submissively from the spiritual master, but one must also get a clear understanding from him, in submission and service and inquiries. A bona fide spiritual master is by nature very kind toward the disciple. Therefore when the student is submissive and is always ready to render service, the reciprocation of knowledge and inquiries becomes perfect.
TEXT 35
यज्ञात्वा न पुनर्मोहमेवं यास्यसि पाण्डव । येन भूतान्यशेषाणि द्रक्ष्यस्यात्मन्यथो मयि ॥३५॥
yaj jñātvā na punar moham evaṁ yāsyasi pāṇḍava yena bhūtāny aśeṣāṇi drakṣyasy ātmany atho mayi
yat —which;  jñātvā —knowing;  na —never;  punaḥ —again;  moham —illusion;  evam —like this;  yāsyasi —you shall go;  pāṇḍava —O son of Pāṇḍu;  yena —by which;  bhūtāni —all living entities;  aśesāṇi —totally;  drakṣyasi —you will see;  ātmani —in the Supreme Soul;  atho —or in other words;  mayi —in Me.