Attraction of a Devotee of God - The Unstoppable Flow of Pure Bhakti
In the material world, the living entity is constantly pulled by the temporary allurements of wealth, prestige, and sensual pleasure. However, the path of bhakti-yoga offers a radical shift in consciousness. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that when a soul becomes a pure devotee, their natural propensity to be attracted is fully transferred to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṇa. This absolute, transcendental attraction not only frees the devotee from all material desires but flows constantly toward the Lord, completely unimpeded by any worldly condition.
The Continuous Flow of Pure Devotion
True devotion is not a flickering sentiment but a permanent state of consciousness. Śrīla Prabhupāda beautifully compares the attraction of a pure devotee to the mighty Ganges river; once awakened, it flows continuously toward the Supreme Lord without any material hindrance.
- The flow of the Ganges water cannot be stopped by any condition; similarly, a pure devotee's attraction for the transcendental name, form and pastimes of the Supreme Godhead cannot be stopped by any material condition.
- The neophyte devotee becomes practically enriched with the transcendental qualities of the pure devotee, which means attraction for the Personality of Godhead's name, fame, quality, pastimes, etc.
- If our attachment is transferred to the Lord's service, we progress. Srila Rupa Gosvami prayed to the Lord that he would be as naturally attracted to the Lord's service as young men and young women are naturally attracted to each other.
- In the Skanda Purana there is a statement by devotees praying to the Lord, "I am praying at Your lotus feet that my mind may become attracted unto You in the same spontaneous way."
Freedom from Material Allurements
When the heart is captured by the supreme beauty of Kṛṣṇa, inferior objects naturally lose their appeal. Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasizes that a pure devotee is completely uninterested in material wealth, high social positions, or even the spiritual goals of mystic power and impersonal liberation.
- The pure devotee of Lord Vasudeva, enlightened by the transcendental service attitude, has no attraction for such false things as religiosity, economic development, sense gratification, or salvation, the last snare of Maya.
- A pure devotee is never attracted to any exalted position within this material world.
- Because of this surrender, he (a pure devotee) no longer has any attraction for wealth. Even if there is attraction for wealth, it is not for sense enjoyment, but for the service of the Lord.
- Merging in the Absolute or attaining some mystic powers has no attraction for the devotee.
Attraction Through Specific Mellows (Rasas)
The relationship between the Lord and His devotee is highly personal. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that Kṛṣṇa is the reservoir of all relationships, and individual devotees become spontaneously attracted to Him in specific transcendental mellows, such as friendship, parenthood, or conjugal love.
- Krsna is the most attractive feature for every kind of devotee. He is therefore called akhila-rasamrta-murti, the transcendental form of attraction for all kinds of devotees, whether the devotee be in the santa-rasa, dasya-rasa or sakhya-rasa.
- An advanced devotee is attracted by the service rendered by an eternal servitor of the Lord. This attraction is called spontaneous attraction. Technically it is called svarupa-upalabdhi. This stage is not achieved in the beginning.
- Devotees who are attracted to Krsna as parents or as friends should follow in the footsteps of Nanda Maharaj or Subala, respectively.
- By spontaneous nature they (the raganuga devotees) become attracted to some of the eternal devotees such as Nanda or Yasoda, and they try to follow in their footsteps spontaneously.
Exclusive Focus on Kṛṣṇa's Form
The attraction of a pure devotee is so concentrated that they are not interested in anyone else but Kṛṣṇa. As Śrīla Prabhupāda points out, pure devotees completely ignore the demigods, and they are not even attracted to Kṛṣṇa's majestic, four-armed Nārāyaṇa expansions.
- Pure devotees are not even attracted by Krsna's other features, such as the four-armed Maha-Visnu. They are simply attracted by the two-armed form of Krsna.
- Since they (pure devotees) are not attracted to other features of Krsna (what to speak of the demigods), they are not concerned with any form of a demigod or of a human being.
- That is due to the specific attraction of a particular devotee. There are many, many forms of the Lord, but Krsna is still the original form.
- The Deities of Radha and Krsna, Laksmi and Narayana, Rama and Sita are very attractive to devotees, so much so that when they see the statue decorated in the temple of the Lord they become fully absorbed in thought of the Lord. That is the state of liberation.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the spiritual perfection of a pure devotee is defined entirely by the absolute nature of their attraction. Śrīla Prabhupāda masterfully illustrates that when a soul's natural loving propensity is awakened and directed toward the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the spell of the material energy is instantly broken. A pure devotee is completely unbothered by the allurements of wealth, bodily comforts, mystic opulences, or the final snare of impersonal liberation. Instead, their consciousness flows like the mighty Ganges—unconditionally and exclusively toward the beautiful, two-armed form of Śyāmasundara. By cultivating this spontaneous attraction under the guidance of eternal associates like Nanda Mahārāja or the gopīs, a sincere practitioner achieves the ultimate liberation: eternal, ecstatic absorption in the loving service of Śrī Kṛṣṇa.
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Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category Attraction of a Devotee of God. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience the teachings in their direct, verbatim form.