Purity of Devotional Service
47
It is on the basis of his position that anyone can now become a  Gauḍīya Vaiṣṇava , from any part of the world or any part of the universe. Anyone who is a pure  Vaiṣṇava  is situated transcendentally, and therefore the highest qualification in the material world, namely, to be in the modes of goodness, is already achieved by such a person. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement in the Western world is based on the above-mentioned proposition of Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Prabhupāda, our spiritual master. On his authority, we are claiming members from all sections of the Western countries. The so-called  brāhmaṇas  claim that one who is not born into a  brāhmaṇa  family cannot receive the sacred thread and cannot become a high-grade  Vaiṣṇava . But we do not accept such a theory because it is not supported by Rūpa Gosvāmī nor by the strength of the various scriptures.
Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī specifically mentions herein that every man has the birthright to accept devotional service and to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. He has given many evidences from many scriptures, and he has especially quoted one passage from  Padma Purāṇa , wherein sage Vaśiṣṭha tells King Dilīpa: “My dear King, everyone has the right to execute devotional service, just as he has the right to take early bath in the month of  Māgh  [December-January].” There is more evidence in  Padma Purāṇa , in the  Kāśīkhaṇḍa  portion, where it is said: “In the country known as Mayūradhvaja, the lower caste people who are considered less than  śūdras  are also initiated in the  Vaiṣṇava  cult of devotional service. And when they are properly dressed, with  tilaka  on their bodies and beads in their hands and on their necks, they appear to be coming from Vaikuṇṭha. In fact, they look so very beautiful that immediately they surpass the ordinary  brāhmaṇas .”
Thus a  Vaiṣṇava  automatically becomes a  brāhmaṇa . This idea is also supported by Sanātana Gosvāmī in his book  Hari-bhakti-vilāsa , which is the  Vaiṣṇava  guide. Therein he has clearly stated that any person who is properly initiated into the  Vaiṣṇava  cult certainly becomes a  brāhmaṇa , as much as the metal known as  kaṁsa  (bell metal) is turned into gold by the mixture of mercury. A bona fide spiritual master, under the guidance of authorities, can turn anyone to the  Vaiṣṇava  cult so that naturally he may come to the topmost position of a  brāhmaṇa .