6 The Nectar of Devotion

phant who enters into a lake and takes a bath very seriously, cleansing
his body thoroughly. Then as soon as he comes onto shore he
again takes some dust from the earth and throws it over his body.
Similarly, a person who is not trained in Krsna consciousness
cannot become completely free from the desire for sinful activities.
Neither the yoga process, nor philosophical speculations, nor fruitive
activities can save one from the seeds of sinful desires. Only by being
engaged in devotional service can this be done.

There is another evidence in the Fourth Canto of Srimad-
Bhagavatam, 22nd Chapter, 37th verse, wherein Sanat-kumara says,
“My dear King, the false ego of a human being is so strong that it
keeps him in material existence as if tied up by a strong rope. Only
the devotees can cut off the knot of this strong rope very easily,
by engaging themselves in Krsna consciousness. Others, who are not
in Krgna consciousness but are trying to become great mystics or
great ritual-performers,cannot advance like the devotees. Therefore,
it is the duty of everyone to engage himself in the activities of
Krsna consciousness in order to be freed from the tight knot of
false ego and engagement in material activities.”

This tight knot of false ego is due to ignorance. As long as one is
ignorant about his identification, he is sure to act wrongly and
thereby become entangled in material contamination. This ignorance
of factual knowledge can also be dissipated by Krsna consciousness,
as is confirmed in the Padma Purana as follows: “Pure devotional
service in Krsna consciousness is the highest enlightenment, and
when such enlightenment is there, it is just like a blazing forest fire,
killing all the inauspicious snakes of desire.” The example is being
given in this connection that when there is a forest fire the extensive
blazing automatically kills all the snakes in the forest. There are
many, many snakes on the ground of the forest, and when a fire
takes place, it burns the dried foliage, and the snakes are immediately
attacked. Animals who have four legs can flee from the fire or can
at least try to flee, but the snakes are immediately killed. Simi-
larly, the blazing fire of Krsna consciousness is so strong that the
snakes of ignorance are immediately killed.
