Text 199] Lord Caitanya Meets Raghunatha dasa Gosvami 291

PURPORT

As stated by Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura in his Amrta-pravaha-bhasya, some
people, usually very rich men, dress like Vaisnavas and give charity to brahmanas.
They are also attached to Deity worship, but because of their attachment to ma-
terial enjoyment, they cannot be pure Vaisnavas. Anyabhilasita-sGnyam jhana-
karmady-anavrtam. The pure Vaisnava has no desire for material enjoyment. That
is the basic qualification of a pure Vaisnava. There are men, especially rich men,
who regularly worship the Deity, give charity to brahmanas and are pious in every
respect, but they cannot be pure Vaisnavas. Despite their outward show of
Vaisnavism and charity, their inner desire is to enjoy a higher standard of material
life. Raghunatha dasa’s father, Hiranya dasa, and uncle, Govardhana, were both
very charitable to brahmanas. Indeed, the brahmanas from the Gaudiya district
were practically dependent upon them. Thus they were accepted as very pious
gentlemen. However, they presented themselves as Vaisnavas to the eyes of
people in general, although from a purely spiritual point of view they were ordi-
nary human beings, not pure Vaisnavas. Actual Vaisnavas considered them almost
Vaisnavas, not pure Vaisnavas. In other words, they were kanistha-adhikaris, for
they were ignorant of higher Vaisnava regulative principles. Nevertheless, they
could not be called visayis, or blind materialistic enjoyers.

TEXT 199

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tathdpi visayera svabhava——kare mahda-andha
sei karma kardya, yate haya bhava-bandha

SYNONYMS

tathapi—still; visayera svabhava—the potency of material enjoyment; kare
mahd-andha—makes one completely blind; sei karma karaya—causes one to act
in that way; yate—by which; haya—there is; bhava-bandha—the bondage of
birth and death.

TRANSLATION

“Those who are attached to materialistic life and are blind to spiritual life
must act in such a way that they are bound to repeated birth and death by the
actions and reactions of their activities.

PURPORT

As clearly stated in Bhagavad-gita (3.9), yajfarthat karmano ‘nyatra loko ‘yam
karma-bandhanah: If one does not act as a pure devotee, whatever acts he per-
