268 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta [Madhya-lila, Ch. 24

assured of the spiritual master’s position. Similarly, the spiritual master can
also be assured of the disciple’s position. The Supreme Personality of
Godhead, Krsna, should be described as the worshipable object, and you
should consider the bija-mantra for the worship of Krsna, Rama or any other
expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

PURPORT

In the Padma Purana, the characteristics of the guru, the bona fide spiritual
master, have been described:

mahd-bhdgavata-srestho
braéhmano vai gurur nrnam
sarvesdm eva lokandm
asau pujyo yathd harih

mahd-kula-prasdto ‘pi
sarva-yajniesu diksitah
sahasra-sakhadhyayi ca
na guruh sydd avaisnavah

The guru must be situated on the topmost platform of devotional service. There
are three classes of devotees, and the guru must be accepted from the topmost
class. The first-class devotee is the spiritual master for all kinds of people. It is said:
gurur nrnaém. The word nrndm means “of all human beings.” The guru is not
limited to a particular group. It is stated in the Upadesamrta of Rapa Gosvami that
a guru is a gosvami, a controller of the senses and the mind. Such a guru can ac-
cept disciples from all over the world. Prthivirn sa sisyat. This is the test of the
guru.

In India there are many so-called gurus, and they are limited to a certain district
or a province. They do not even travel about India, yet they declare themselves to
be jagad-guru, gurus of the whole world. Such cheating gurus should not be ac-
cepted. Anyone can see how the bona fide spiritual master accepts disciples from
all over the world. The guru is a qualified brahmana; therefore he knows Brahman
and Parabrahman. He thus devotes his life for the service of Parabrahman. The
bona fide spiritual master who accepts disciples from all over the world is also
worshiped all over the world because of his qualities. Lokandm asau ptijyo yatha
harih: the people of the world worship him just as they worship the Supreme Per-
sonality of Godhead. All these honors are offered to him because he strictly
follows the brahminical principles and teaches these principles to his disciples.
Such a person is called an dcdrya because he knows the principles of devotional
service, he behaves in that way himself, and he teaches his disciples to follow in
his footsteps. Thus he is an dcarya or jagad-guru. Even though a person is born in a
