338 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta [Madhya-lila, Ch. 19

PURPORT

In Goloka Vrndavana the devotees have very intimate relationships with the
Supreme Personality of Godhead. The devotee engages in the Lord’s service in
great ecstatic love. Such love was exhibited personally by Sri Caitanya
Mahaprabhu in His teachings to the people of the material world. The fruit of the
devotional creeper is pure desire to serve and please the senses of the Supreme
Personality of Godhead. Krsnendriya-priti-iccha dhare ‘prema’ nama. (Cc.
Adi. 4.165) In the spiritual world one has no desire other than to please the
senses of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The conditioned soul within the
material world can neither understand nor appreciate how the devotee in the ma-
terial world can render confidential service to the Lord out of feelings of ecstatic
love and always engage in pleasing the Supreme Lord's senses. Although seen
within this material world, the pure devotee always engages in the confidential
service of the Lord. An ordinary neophyte devotee cannot realize this; therefore it
is said, vaisnavera kriya-mudra vijhdneha na bujhaya. The activities of a pure
Vaisnava cannot be understood even by a learned scholar in the material world.

Every living entity is wandering within this universe in different species and on
different planetary systems according to his fruitive activities. Out of many
millions of living entities, one may be fortunate enough to receive the seed of
bhakti-lata, the creeper of devotional service. By the grace of the spiritual master
and Krsna, one nourishes the bhakti-lata by regularly sprinkling it with the water
of sravana-kirtana, hearing and chanting. In this way the seed of bhakti-lata
sprouts and grows up and up through the whole universe until it penetrates the
covering of the material universe and reaches the spiritual world. The bhakti-lata
continues to grow until it reaches the topmost planetary system, Goloka
Vrndavana, where Krsna lives. There the creeper takes shelter at the lotus feet of
the Lord, and that is its final destination. At that time the creeper begins to grow
the fruits of ecstatic love of God. It is the duty of the devotee who nourishes the
creeper to be very careful. It is said that the watering of the creeper must con-
tinue: ihan mali sece nitya sravandadi jala. It is not that at a certain stage one can
stop chanting and hearing and become a mature devotee. If one stops, one cer-
tainly falls down from devotional service. Although one may be very exalted in
devotional service, he should not give up the watering process of sravana-kirtana.
If one gives up that process, it is due to an offense. This is described in the follow-
ing verse.

TEXT 156

afe Cagea-wriaie Bed StSy AS 1
Bice ai feos, Sta Qe’ BWA AS tt sewn

yadi vaisnava-aparadha uthe hati mata
updade va chinde, tara sukhi’ yaya pata
