Text 24] The Glories of Devotional Service 1029
the pernicious effects of material attachment; harah—counteractors of;
hi—indeed; te—they.

TRANSLATION

O My mother, O virtuous lady, these are the qualities of great devotees
who are free from all attachment. You must seek attachment to such holy
men, for this counteracts the pernicious effects of material attachment.

PURPORT

Kapila Muni herein advises His mother, Devahati, that if she wants to
be free from material attachment then she should increase her attachment
for the sddhus or devotees who are completely freed from all material
attachment. In Bhagavad-gita, Fifteenth Chapter, fifth verse, it is stated
who is qualified to enter into the kingdom of Godhead. It is said there,
nirmana-moha jita-sanga-dosdh. This refers to one who is completely freed
from the puffed-up condition of material possessiveness. A person may be
materially very rich, opulent or respectable, but if he at all wants to
transfer himself to the spiritual kingdom, back home, back to Godhead,
then he has to be freed from the puffed-up condition of material
possessiveness, because that is a false position.

The word moha, used here, means the false understanding that one is
rich or poor. In this material world, the conception that one is very rich
or very poor—or any such consciousness in connection with material
existence—is false, because this body itself is false or temporary. A pure
soul who is prepared to be freed from this material entanglement must first
of all be free from the association of the three modes of nature. Our
consciousness at the present moment is polluted because of association
with the three modes of nature; therefore in Bhagavad-gita the same
principle is stated. It is advised, jita-sanga-dosah: one should be freed from
the contaminated association of the three modes of material nature. Here
also, in the Srimad-Bhdgavatam, this is confirmed: a pure devotee who is
preparing to transfer himself to the spiritual kingdom is also freed from
the association of the three modes of material nature. We have to seek
the association of such devotees. For this reason we have begun the
International Society for Krishna Consciousness. There are many mercan-
tile, scientific and other associations in human society to develop a
particular type of education or consciousness, but there is no association
which helps one to get free from all material association. If anyone has
reached the stage where he must become free from this material contami-
