470
Śrīmad Bhāgavatam
[Canto 2, Ch. 9]
devotional service. One should not, however, think himself on the level of Brahmā to be initiated directly by the Lord from inside because in the present age no one can be accepted to be as pure as Brahmā. The post of Brahmā to officiate in the creation in the universe is offered to the most pure living being, and unless one is so qualified one cannot expect to be treated like Brahmājī directly. But one can have the same facility through unalloyed devotees of the Lord, and scriptural instructions (as revealed in the  Bhagavad-gītā  and  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  especially), and also the bona fide spiritual master available to the sincere soul. The Lord Himself appears as the spiritual master to a person who is sincere in heart to serve the Lord. Therefore the bona fide spiritual master who happens to meet the sincere devotee should be accepted as the most confidential and beloved representative of the Lord. If a person is posted under the guidance of such a bona fide spiritual master, it may be accepted without any doubt that the desiring person has achieved the grace of the Lord.
TEXT 8
दिव्यं सहस्राब्दमोघदर्शनो
जितानिलात्मा विजितोभयेन्द्रियः ।
अतप्यत साखिललोकतापनं
तपस्तपीयांस्तपतां समाहितः ॥ ८ ॥
divyam sahasrābdam amogha-darśano
jitānilātmā vijitobhayendriyaḥ
atapyata smākhila-loka-tāpanam
tapas tapīyāms tapatām samāhitaḥ
divyam —pertaining to the demigods in the higher planets;  sahasra —one thousand;  abdam —years;  amogha —spotless, without a tinge of impurity;  darśanaḥ —one who has such a vision of life;  jita —controlled;  anila —life;  ātmā —mind;  vijita —controlled over;  ubhaya —both;  indriyaḥ —one who has such senses;  atapyata —executed penance;  sma —in the past;  akhila —all;  loka —planet;  tāpanam —enlightening;  tapaḥ —penance;  tapīyān —extremely hard penance;  tapatām —of all the executors of penances;  samāhitaḥ —thus situated.