View source for First thing is, first business, is to accept a bona fide guru. Otherwise there is no devotion. It is simply false imitation. This is the injunction of Rupa Gosvami in Bhakti-rasamrta sindhu

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[[Category:first Thing]]
[[Category:First Business]]
[[Category:Accept a Guru]]
[[Category:Bona Fide Guru]]
[[Category:otherwise]]
[[Category:There Is No]]
[[Category:devotion]]
[[Category:it Is]]
[[Category:simply]]
[[Category:false]]
[[Category:Imitation]]
[[Category:this Is]]
[[Category:injunction]]
[[Category:Rupa Gosvami]]
[[Category:Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu]]
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<div id="Lectures" class="section" sec_index="4" parent="compilation" text="Lectures"><h2>Lectures</h2>
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<div id="General_Lectures" class="sub_section" sec_index="11" parent="Lectures" text="General Lectures"><h3>General Lectures</h3>
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<div id="EveningLectureBhuvanesvaraJanuary231977_0" class="quote" parent="General_Lectures" book="Lec" index="180" link="Evening Lecture -- Bhuvanesvara, January 23, 1977" link_text="Evening Lecture -- Bhuvanesvara, January 23, 1977">
<div class="heading">First thing is, first business, is to accept a bona fide guru. Otherwise there is no devotion. It is simply false imitation. This is the injunction of Rūpa Gosvāmī in Bhakti-rasāmṛta sindhu. Ādau gurvāśrayam: "Your first business is to approach bona fide guru and take his āśraya." Otherwise there is no devotion.
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<span class="link">[[Vanisource:Evening Lecture -- Bhuvanesvara, January 23, 1977|Evening Lecture -- Bhuvanesvara, January 23, 1977]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="text"><p style="display: inline;">Guest (3) (Indian man): ...without taking dīkṣā from the guru also utters the name of Lord Kṛṣṇa with devotion and...</p>
<p>Prabhupāda: There is no devotion unless you go to a guru. Forget it. Ādau gurvāśrayam. First thing is, first business, is to accept a bona fide guru. Otherwise there is no devotion. It is simply false imitation. This is the injunction of Rūpa Gosvāmī in Bhakti-rasāmṛta sindhu. Ādau gurvāśrayam: "Your first business is to approach bona fide guru and take his āśraya." Otherwise there is no devotion. That has been the defect in the modern society. They imagine. This business should be given up. He must follow. Sādhu-mārgānugāmanam, which is prescribed by the sādhu, guru, you have to accept that. You cannot manufacture your own way.</p>
<p>Guest (3): The world is so vast, and people who are living in this world and also wishing to attain God or remember God or say about the God... Also the namaskaram is, Gurudeva said, that, mentioned in the Gītā, that all these are fruitless, the soul which is remembering God either in the form of Kṛṣṇa, but he has not met a guru. Because to get a real guru is a real occasion. It doesn't happen in the case of everyone. One in million get a chance to get a real spiritual guide. There are so many in the name of spiritual guide. And he will false pray because his inner soul hankers and inner soul thinks that "This is my guru, and somehow I will accept whatever he says." And the ultimate aim and objective is to love God or to recite his name or surrender to Him.</p>
<p>Prabhupāda: This question has been answered by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu while He was teaching Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī.</p>
:ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva
:guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpayā pāya bhakti-latā-bīja
:([[Vanisource:CC Madhya 19.151|CC Madhya 19.151]])
<p>The guru word is there. Guru Kṛṣṇa. If you are actually hankering after Kṛṣṇa—Kṛṣṇa is within yourself—He will give you a guru. He will give you a guru. Guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya. But we must be fortunate to get real guru. If I am unfortunate, I'll not get a guru. Otherwise why Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya pāya bhakti-latā-bīja ([[Vanisource:CC Madhya 19.151|CC Madhya 19.151]])? Mālī hañā se bīja kariya āropaṇa. In this way you'll find in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta. So even Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He accepted guru, Īśvara Purī. He is Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa Himself. As Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya said that,</p>
:vairāgya-vidyā-nija-bhakti-yoga-
:śikṣārtham ekaḥ puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ
:śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya śarīra dhārī...
:([[Vanisource:CC Madhya 6.254|CC Madhya 6.254]])
<p>He's the puruṣa Purāṇa, Kṛṣṇa, but now He has appeared as Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. So he also accepted guru, what to speak of our... Kṛṣṇa also accepted guru. So how you will get the ultimate goal of life without accepting guru? Why do you manufacture this idea? There is no need of manufacturing this. You have to follow. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ ([[Vanisource:CC Madhya 17.186|CC Madhya 17.186]]). If you manufacture, then you'll be cheated. Don't do this. That has become a fashion, that you manufacture your own way of service. That is not possible. Therefore Rūpa Gosvāmī stresses, ādau-gurvāśrayam: "The first business is that you must find out a bona fide guru." Then other things.</p>
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