26 Qualities of A Devotee
26 Qualities of A Devotee
26 Qualities of A Devotee
Hare Krishna! By seriously pursuing the ultimate self-realization pathway of Krishna bhakti (devotion to Lord Krishna) one will automatically develop all saintly qualities. However if one will also consciously strive to develop the saintly qualities of a devotee this will speed up one's spiritual advancement. These twenty-six qualities of a devotee are understood as follows: (1) A devotee is very kind to everyone because he is the well-wisher of all living entities. He is not only a well-wisher of human society, but a well-wisher of animal society as well. The devotee of the Lord is merciful to everyone -- the cats, dogs, trees, etc. He treats all living entities in such a way that they can ultimately get salvation from this material entanglement. (2) A devotee does not consider anyone to be his enemy. If someone treats him in an inimical way he does not blame that person. He simply thinks that whatever mistreatment he may receive is a result of his own past sinful activities and does not become disturbed. (3) A devotee is truthful because he knows that the highest truth is Krishna and dedicates his entire life for spreading the truth of Krishna all over the world. (4) A devotee is equal to everyone because by virtue of his true knowledge he sees that in spite of so many different types of bodies everyone is a spirit-soul in quality one with God. (5) No one can find any fault in a devotee. Even if there are some residual defects still remaining from his past activities before he adopted a life of devotion, these should not be taken seriously because very soon these faults we will completely removed from his heart by the purifying power of devotional service. If someone is the shower scrubbing away we cannot criticize him for being dirty. (6) A devotee is magnanimous, which means "great-souled." When Krishna comes as a devotee in form of Lord Caitanya He displays the supreme magnanimous nature. The Lord's magnanimity is very much eulogized in the following prayer by Srila Rupa Goswami: namo maha-vadanyaya krsna-prema-pradaya te krsnaya krsna-caitanya-namne gaura-tvise namah "My obeisances unto Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, who is the most magnanimous incarnation because He is giving freely what was never distributed before, pure love of God." According to this prayer, Lord Caitanya is the most magnanimous of all benefactors because He is distributing the ultimate gift, of love of God, without any conditions.