Devotional Qualifications 117
effect, and nothing belongs to us. Krgna’s things must be used in the
service of Krsna. That is our vision.

This does not mean, however, that we should give up the principles
of discharging devotional service or neglect abiding by the rules and
regulations prescribed therein. In the neophyte stage of devotion one
must follow all the principles, regulated by the authority of the spiri-
tual master. The acceptance and rejection of things should always be
in pursuance of the devotional principles; not that one can indepen-
dently manufacture some idea of what should be accepted or rejected.
The spiritual master as the visible manifestation of Krsna is necessary,
therefore, to direct the devotee on behalf of the Supreme Personality
of Godhead.

The spiritual master must never be carried away by an accumula-
tion of wealth or a large number of followers. A bona fide spiritual
master will never become like that. But sometimes, if a spiritual mas-
ter is not properly authorized, and only on his own initiative becomes
a spiritual master, he may be carried away by an accumulation of
wealth and large numbers of disciples. His is not a very high grade of
devotional service. If a person is carried away by such achievements,
then his devotional service becomes slackened. One should, therefore,
strictly adhere to the principles of disciplic succession.

A Krsna conscious person, being naturally purified, has no need
of developing any other purificatory process of thought or action.
On account of his being highly elevated in Krsna consciousness, he
has already acquired all the good qualities and is following the rules
and regulations prescribed for the mystic yogic process. Such rules
are automatically practiced by the devotees. A concrete example is
the quality of nonviolence, which is considered a good qualification.
A devotee is naturally nonviolent and therefore doesn’t have to prac-
tice nonviolence separately. Some people seek purification by joining
a vegetarian movement, but a devotee is automatically a vegetarian.
He doesn’t need to practice separately in this matter or to join any
society for vegetarians. He is automatically a vegetarian.

There are many other instances showing that a devotee needn’t
practice anything but Krsna consciousness; all the good qualities of
the demigods automatically develop within him. Those who are in-
