232
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam
[Canto 8, Ch. 16]
“O best among the Bhāratas, four kinds of pious men render devotional service unto Me—the distressed, the desirer of wealth, the inquisitive, and he who is searching for knowledge of the Absolute.” Aditi was  ārta , a person in distress. She was very much aggrieved because her sons, the demigods, were bereft of everything. Thus she wanted to take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead under the direction of her husband, Kaśyapa Muni.
TEXT 23
आदिश त्वं द्विजश्रेष्ठ विधिं तदुपधावनम् । आशुतुष्यति मे देवः सीदन्त्याः सह पुत्रकैः ॥२३॥
ādiśa tvaṁ dvija-śreṣṭha vidhiṁ tad-upadhāvanam āśu tuṣyati me devaḥ sīdantyāḥ saha putrakaiḥ
ādiśa —just instruct me;  tvam —O my husband;  dvija-śreṣṭha —O best of the  brāhmaṇas ;  vidhim —the regulative principles;  tat —the Lord;  upadhāvanam —the process of worshiping;  āśu —very soon;  tuṣyati —becomes satisfied;  me —unto me;  devaḥ —the Lord;  sīdantyāḥ —now lamenting;  saha —with;  putrakaiḥ —all my sons, the demigods.
TRANSLATION
O best of the  brāhmaṇas , kindly instruct me in the perfect method of worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead in devotional service, by which the Lord may very soon be pleased with me and save me, along with my sons, from this most dangerous condition.
PURPORT
Sometimes less intelligent men ask whether one has to approach a  guru  to be instructed in devotional service for spiritual advancement. The answer is given here—indeed, not only here, but also in  Bhagavad-gītā , where Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa as his  guru  ( śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ tvāṁ prapannam ). The  Vedas  also instruct,  tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa guruṁ evābhigacchet : one must accept a  guru  for proper direction if one is