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Krṣṇa,  the Supreme Personality of Godhead
of his gratitude, his voice choked up, and he was not able to reply to the words of the Lord. Tears glided from his eyes, and he could not say anything. He simply stood silently before the Lord.
After testing Lord Brahmā, Lord Śiva and Lord Viṣṇu, Bhṛgumuni returned to the assembly of great sages on the bank of the River Sarasvatī and described his experience. After hearing him with great attention, the sages concluded that of all the predominating deities, certainly Viṣṇu is situated in the mode of goodness in the highest degree. In the  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam , these great sages are described as  brahma-vādinām .  Brahma-vādinām  means those who talk about the Absolute Truth but have not yet come to a conclusion. Generally  brahma-vādi  refers to the impersonalists or to those who are students of the  Vedas . It is to be understood, therefore, that all the gathered sages were serious students of Vedic literature, but had not come to definite conclusions as to who is the Supreme Absolute Personality of Godhead.
After hearing of Bhṛgumuni's experience in meeting all three predominating deities, Lord Śiva, Lord Brahmā, and Lord Viṣṇu, the sages concluded that Lord Viṣṇu is the Supreme Truth, the Personality of Godhead. It is said in the  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  that after hearing the details from Bhṛgumuni, the sages were astonished because although Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva were immediately agitated, Lord Viṣṇu, in spite of being kicked by Bhṛgumuni, was not agitated in the least. The example is given that small lamps may become agitated by a little breeze, but the greatest lamp or the greatest illuminating source, the sun, is never moved, even by the greatest hurricane. One's greatness has to be estimated by one's ability to tolerate provoking situations. The sages gathered on the bank of the River Sarasvatī concluded that if anyone wants actual peace and freedom from all fearfulness, he should take shelter of the lotus feet of Viṣṇu. If Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva lost their peaceful attitude upon a slight provocation, how could they maintain the peace and tranquility of their devotees? As for Lord Viṣṇu, however, it is stated in the  Bhagavad-gītā  that anyone who accepts Lord Viṣṇu or Krṣṇa as the supreme friend attains the highest perfection of peaceful life.
The sages thus concluded that by following the principles of  vaiṣṇavadharma , one becomes actually perfect. But if one follows all the religious principles of a particular sect and does not become advanced in understanding the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, all such labor of love is fruitless. To execute religious principles means to come to the platform of perfect knowledge. If one comes to the platform of perfect knowledge, then he will be disinterested in material affairs. Perfect know-