Volume 7 - Prabhupada

16 Sri Caitanya-caritamrta [Madhya-lila, Ch. 17TRANSLATIONWhile the Lord was bathing and murmuring the Gayatri mantra, theelephants came before Him. The Lord immediately splashed some water onthe elephants and asked them to chant the name of Krr;a.PURPORTSrT Caitanya Mahaprabhu was the Supreme Personality of Godhead playing thepart of a very great advanced devotee. On the maha-bhagavata platform, thedevotee makes no distinction between friends and enemies. On that platform hesees everyone as a servant of Krr:Ja. As stated in Bhagavad-gita:vidya-vinaya-sampannebrahmaQe gavi hastinisuni caiva svapake capaQc;:lita/:1 sama-darsina/:1"The humble sage, by virtue of true knowledge, sees with equal vision a learnedand gentle brahmaQa, a cow, an elephant, a dog, and a dog-eater [outcaste]."(Bg. 5.18)A maha-bhagavata, being learned and advanced in spiritual consciousness, seesno difference between a tiger, an elephant or a learned scholar. The test of advancedspiritual consciousness is that one becomes fearless. He envies no one,and he is always engaged in the Lord's service. He sees every living entity as aneternal part and parcel of the Lord, rendering service according to his capacity bythe will of the Supreme Lord. As Bhagavad-gita confirms:sarvasya caharh hrdi sannivitomatta/:1 smrtir jfianam apohanarh ca"I am seated in everyone's heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledgeand forgetfulness." (Bg. 15.15)The maha-bhagavata knows that Krr:Ja is in everyone's heart. Krr:Ja is dictating,and the living entity is following His dictations. Krr:Ja is within the heart of thetiger, elephant and boar. Therefore Krr:Ja tells them, "Here is a maha-bhagavata.Please do not disturb him." Why, then, should the animals be envious of such agreat personality? Those who are neophytes or even a little progressed in devotionalservice should not try to imitate the maha-bhagavata. Rather, they shouldonly follow in their footsteps. The word anukara means "imitating," and anusarameans "trying to follow in the footsteps." We should not try to imitate the activitiesof a maha-bhagavata or SrT Caitanya Mahaprabhu. Our best efforts shouldbe exerted in trying to follow them according to our ability. The maha-bhagavata's