Live Caitanya Caritamrta · CC Antya 13.113
Serve Devotees and Learn From Them
“Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu said to Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa, “When you return home, serve your aged father and mother, who are devotees, and try to study Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from a pure Vaiṣṇava who has realized God.””
What the purport teaches
- Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, instructed Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa to study Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from a pure Vaiṣṇava who has realized God, not from professional men.
- The Lord asked him to serve his aged mother and father specifically because they were Vaiṣṇavas. Their service was service to devotees.
- Anyone wishing to advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness must try to serve Kṛṣṇa’s devotees. The purport emphasizes that serving a self-realized Vaiṣṇava is essential for release from materialistic life.
Try this today
Offer one small, practical service to a devotee today.
Ask yourself
How can I give more attention to serving devotees and learning from a realized Vaiṣṇava?
Carry the question through the day, then answer it in your own words before sleep.
The study points are short summaries drawn from Śrīla Prabhupāda's translation and purport; the practice and question are plain words for trying the verse today.