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Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 5, Ch. 17]
Kṛṣṇa come in contact with a  guru , a bona fide representative of Kṛṣṇa. The Māyāvādīs indulging in mental speculation and the  karmīs  desiring the results of their actions cannot become  gurus . A  guru  must be a direct representative of Kṛṣṇa who distributes the instructions of Kṛṣṇa without any change. Thus only the most fortunate persons come in contact with the  guru . As confirmed in the Vedic literatures,  tad-vijñānārtham sa gurum evābhigacchet : one has to search out a  guru  to understand the affairs of the spiritual world.  Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam  also confirms this point.  Tasmād gurum prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam : one who is very interested in understanding the activities in the spiritual world must search out a  guru — a bona fide representative of Kṛṣṇa. From all angles of vision, therefore, the word  guru  is especially meant for the bona fide representative of Kṛṣṇa and no one else.  Padma Purāṇa  states,  avaiṣṇavo gurur na syāt : one who is not a Vaiṣṇava, or who is not a representative of Kṛṣṇa, cannot be a  guru . Even the most qualified  brāhmaṇa  cannot become a  guru  if he is not a representative of Kṛṣṇa.  Brāhmaṇas  are supposed to acquire six kinds of auspicious qualifications: they become very learned scholars ( paṭhana ) and very qualified teachers ( pāṭhana ); they become expert in worshiping the Lord or the demigods ( yajana ), and they teach others how to execute this worship ( yājana ); they qualify themselves as bona fide persons to receive alms from others ( pratigraha ), and they distribute the wealth in charity ( dāna ). Yet even a  brāhmaṇa  possessing these qualifications cannot become a  guru  unless he is the representative of Kṛṣṇa ( gurur na syāt ).  Vaiṣṇavaḥ śva-paco guruḥ : but a Vaiṣṇava, a bona fide representative of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Viṣṇu, can become a  guru , even if he is  śva-paca , a member of a family of dog-eaters. Of the three divisions of heavenly planets ( svarga-loka ),  bhauma-svarga  is sometimes accepted as the tract of land in Bhārata-varṣa known as Kashmir. In this region there are certainly good facilities for material sense enjoyment, but this is not the business of a pure transcendentalist. Rūpa Gosvāmī describes the engagement of a pure transcendentalist as follows:
anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam ānukulyena kṛṣṇānu- śīlanam bhaktir uttamā