19.157
tate mali yatna kari’ kare avarana
aparadha-hastira yaiche na haya udgama
SYNONYMS
tate—therefore; mali—the gardener devotee; yatna kari’-with great attention; kare—makes; avarana—protective fencing; aparadha—of offenses; hastira—of the elephant; yaiche—so that; na—not; haya—there is; udgama—birth "The gardener must defend the creeper by fencing it all around so that the powerful elephant of offenses may not enter.
PURPORT
While the bhakti-lata creeper is growing, the devotee must protect it by fencing it all around.
The neophyte devotee must be protected by being surrounded by pure devotees.
In this way he will not give the maddened elephant a chance to uproot his bhakti-lata creeper.
When one associates with nondevotees, the maddened elephant is set loose.
Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu has said: asat-sanga-tyaga,-ei vaisnava-acara.
The first business of a Vaisnava is to give up the company of nondevotees.
A so-called mature devotee, however, commits a great offense by giving up the company of pure devotees.
The living entity is a social animal, and if one gives up the society of pure devotees, he must associate with nondevotees (asat-sanga).
By contacting nondevotees and engaging in nondevotional activities, a so-called mature devotee will fall victim to the mad elephant offense.
Whatever growth has taken place is quickly uprooted by such an offense.
One should therefore be very careful to defend the creeper by fencing it in-that is, by following the regulative principles and associating with pure devotees.
If one thinks that there are many pseudo devotees or nondevotees in the Krsna Consciousness Society, one can keep direct company with the spiritual master, and if there is any doubt, one should consult the spiritual master.
However, unless one follows the spiritual master’s instructions and the regulative principles governing chanting and hearing the holy name of the Lord, one cannot become a pure devotee.
By one’s mental concoctions, one falls down.
By associating with nondevotees, one breaks the regulative principles and is thereby lost.
In the Upadesamrta of Srila Rupa Gosvami, it is said:
atyaharah prayasas ca
prajalpo niyamagrahah
jana-sangas ca laulyam ca