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The Nectar of Devotion
from his statement to Rasada: “Just hear me! Please place me so that I may always be engaged in the service of Lord Krṣṇa, who has now become famous as the lifter of the Govardhan Hill.”
The devotees of Krṣṇa engaged in His personal service are always very cautious because they know that becoming personal servitors of Lord Krṣṇa is not an ordinary thing. A person who offers respect even to the ants engaged in the service of the Lord becomes eternally happy, so what is there to say of one who offers Krṣṇa direct service? Raktaka once said within himself, “Not only is Krṣṇa my worshipable and servable Lord, but also the girl friends of Krṣṇa, the  gopīs , are equally worshipable and servable by me. And not only the  gopīs , but anyone who is engaged in the service for the Lord is also worshipable and servable by me. I know that I must be very careful not to become overly proud that I am one of the servitors and devotees of the Lord.” From this statement one can understand that the pure devotees, those who are actually engaged in the service of the Lord, are always very cautious and are never overly proud of their service.
This mentality of the direct servitor of Kṛṣṇa is called  dhurya . According to expert analytical studies of the direct associates of the Lord, Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has divided these into three classes—namely,  dhurya ,  dhīra  and  vīra . Raktaka is classified among the  dhurya , or those who are always attached to serve the most beloved  gopīs .
One  dhīra  associate of Kṛṣṇa is the son of Satyabhāmā’s nurse. Satyabhāmā is one of the queens of Lord Kṛṣṇa in Dvārakā, and when she was married to Kṛṣṇa, the son of her nurse was allowed to go with her because they had lived together from childhood as brother and sister. So this gentleman, the son of Satyabhāmā’s nurse, used to live with Kṛṣṇa as His brother-in-law, and sometimes as brother-in-law he used to play jokes with Kṛṣṇa. He once addressed Kṛṣṇa in this way: “My dear Kṛṣṇa, I never tried to gain the favor of the goddess of fortune, who is married to You, but still I am so fortunate that I am considered one of the members of Your house, the brother of Satyabhāmā.”
This same person once expressed his pride, declaring, “Lord Baladeva may be a great enemy of Pralambāsura, but I have nothing to worry about from Him. And as far as Pradyumna is concerned, I have