194 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta [Madhya-lila, Ch. 16
TRANSLATION

“‘A person who is always chanting the holy name of the Lord is to be con-

sidered a first-class Vaisnava, and your duty is to serve his lotus feet.’’
PURPORT

Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura says that any Vaisnava who is con-
stantly chanting the holy name of the Lord should be considered to have attained
the second platform of Vaisnavism. Such a devotee is superior to a neophyte
Vaisnava who has just learned to chant the holy name of the Lord. A neophyte
devotee simply tries to chant the holy name, whereas the advanced devotee is
accustomed to chanting and takes pleasure in it. Such an advanced devotee is
called madhyama-bhdagavata, which indicates that he has attained the intermedi-
ate stage between the neophyte and the perfect devotee. Generally a devotee in
the intermediate stage becomes a preacher. A neophyte devotee or an ordinary
person should worship the madhyama-bhdagavata, who is a via medium.

In his Upadesamrta Srila Rapa Gosvami says: pranatibhis ca bhajantam isam.
This means that madhyama-adhikari devotees should exchange obeisances be-
tween themselves.

The word nirantara, meaning “without cessation, continuously, constantly,” is
very important in this verse. The word antara means “interval.” If one has desires
other than a desire to perform devotional service—in other words, if one some-
times engages in devotional service and sometimes strives for sense gratifica-
tion—his service will be interrupted. A pure devotee, therefore, should have no
other desire than to serve Krsna. He should be above fruitive activity and specula-
tive knowledge. In his Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu, Srila Rapa Gosvami says:

anyabhilasita-sanyam
jfiana-karmady-anavrtam
Anukdlyena krsnanu-
silanam bhaktir uttama
This is the platform of pure devotional service. One should not be motivated by
fruitive activity or mental speculation but should simply serve Krsna favorably.
That is first-class devotion.

Another meaning of antara is "this body.” The body is an impediment to self-
realization because it is always engaged in sense gratification. Similarly, antara
means “money.” If money is not used in Krsna’s service, it is also an impediment.
Antara also means janatd, ‘people in general.” The association of ordinary persons
may destroy the principles of devotional service. Similarly, antara may mean
“greed,” greed to acquire more money or enjoy more sense gratification. Finally,
the word antara may also mean “atheistic ideas” by which one considers the
