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Explanations of the Atmarama verse
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brahminical family and is very expert in performing sacrifices, he cannot be accepted as a  guru  if he is not a strict Vaiṣṇava. A  guru  is a  brāhmaṇa  by qualification, and he can turn others into  brāhmaṇas  according to the śāstric principles and brahminical qualifications. Brahmanism is not a question of heredity. In  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  (7.32.11) Śrī Nārada Muni tells Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira what a  brāhmaṇa  is. He states that if brahminical qualifications are observed in  kṣatriyas ,  vaiśyas  or even  śūdras , one should accept them as  brāhmaṇas . In this regard, Śrīla Śrīdhara Svāmī has commented:  śamādibhir  eva  brāhmaṇādi-vyavahāro mukhyaḥ, na jāti-mātrādīty āha—yasyeti. yad yadi anyatra varṇāntare 'pi dṛśyeta, tad-varṇāntaraṁ tenaiva lakṣana-nimittenaiva varnena vinirdiśet, na tu jāti-nimittenety arthaḥ .
There is a similar statement made by Nilakaṇṭha, the commentator on  Mabābhāraṭa :
śūdro 'pi śamādy-upeto brāhmaṇa eva brāhmaṇo 'pi kāmādy-upetaḥ śūdra eva
“Although one may be born in a  śūdra  family, if he is endowed with the brahminical qualities beginning with  śama  [control of the mind], he is to be accepted as a  brāhmaṇa . Although one may be born in a  brāhmaṇa  family, if he is endowed with the qualities beginning with  kāma  [lust], he is to be considered a  śūdra .” No one should present himself as a  brāhmaṇa  simply on the basis of being born in a brahminical family. One must be qualified by the brahminical qualities mentioned in the  śāstras , particularly  Bhagavad-gītā :
śamo damas tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam eva ca jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam
“Peacefulness, self-control, austerity, purity, tolerance, honesty, wisdom, knowledge and religiousness—these are the qualities by which the  brāhmaṇas  work.” (Bg. 18.42)
Unless one is qualified with all these attributes, he cannot be accepted as a  brāhmaṇa . It is not a question of simply taking birth in a  brāhmaṇa  family. In this regard, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura remarks that Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Gosvāmī, although not born in  brāhmaṇa  families, are accepted as bona fide spiritual masters because they were  brāhmaṇas  by qualification. Personalities like Śrī Gaṅgā-nārāyaṇa, Rāmakṛṣṇa and many others, who were actually born in  brāhmaṇa  families, accepted Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura and Śyāmānanda Gosvāmī as their spiritual masters.
The  mahā-bhāgavata  is one who decorates his body with  tilaka  and whose name indicates him to be a servant of Kṛṣṇa by the word  dāsa . He is also initiated