196
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 7, Ch. 9]
aprāṇasyaiva dehasya maṇḍanaṁ loka-rañjanam
“If one is born in a high family like that of a  brāhmaṇa ,  kṣatriya  or  vaiśya  but is not a devotee of the Lord, all his good qualifications as a  brāhmaṇa ,  kṣatriya  or  vaiśya  are null and void. Indeed, they are considered decorations of a dead body.”
In this verse Prahlāda Mahārāja speaks of the  vipras , the learned  brāhmaṇas . The learned  brāhmaṇa  is considered best among the divisions of  brāhmaṇa ,  kṣatriya ,  vaiśya  and  śūdra , but a devotee born in a low  caṇḍāla  family is better than such  brāhmaṇas , not to speak of the  kṣatriyas ,  vaiśyas  and others. A devotee is better than anyone, for he is in the transcendental position on the Brahman platform.
māṁ ca yo vyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena sevate sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate
“One who engages in full devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman.” (Bg. 14.26) The twelve qualities of a first-class  brāhmaṇa , as stated in the book called  Sanat-sujāta , are as follows:
jñānaṁ ca satyaṁ ca damaḥ śrutaṁ ca hy amātsaryaṁ hrīs titikṣānasūyā yajñaś ca dānaṁ ca dhṛtiḥ śamaś ca mahā-vratā dvādaśa brāhmaṇasya
The European and American devotees in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement are sometimes accepted as  brāhmaṇas , but the so-called caste  brāhmaṇas  are very much envious of them. In answer to such envy, Prahlāda Mahārāja says that one who has been born in a  brāhmaṇa  family but is falsely proud of his prestigious position cannot even purify himself, not to speak of his family, whereas if a  caṇḍāla , a lowborn person, is a devotee and has fully surrendered unto the lotus feet of the Lord, he can purify his entire family. We have had actual experience of