Maharishi Śuka continued, “Some other aspirants develop unflinching devotion towards Vāsudeva and through this burn out their sins just as Sun destroys fog. O emperor! **The purity that an aspirant obtains by surrendering the senses to Srikrishna and thereafter serving his ardent devotees can never be obtained by a sinner by merely performing rigorous austerities and penance”. **

You may perhaps wonder- why can’t a sinner become totally pure through penance? This is because should be vigilant to not commit the same sin again after completion of atonement. He should not behave like the elephant that throws dirt upon its body after bathing. If he once again indulges in sin, then what purpose did the atonement serve? Mahatmas and ardent devotees, who are of good character, surrender completely to Lord Srihari. Their intense devotion towards the Lord allows them to surrender completely unto Him. Such devotion is the best! It is the safest route! In this path there is absolutely no fear!

The person who is filled with absolute devotion, who surrenders totally to Him, who performs meritorious deeds, who strictly abides by the principles of non-violence and who remains humble in all situations is absolutely freed from fear!

O emperor! Can the waters from sacred rivers purify a pot containing liquor? The person who bathes in these rivers gets purified nonetheless the pot of liquor cannot be purified when it is dipped into any sacred river. An empty pot can be purified when waters of Ganga are filled in it, however a pot filled with liquor cannot. Likewise, a person who lacks devotion towards the Lord cannot be absolved of his sins even after innumerable rituals of atonement.

In this world, people who develop total love towards Srihari, who surrender their mind and who fix it at least once upon His lotus feet would have atoned for their sins. Even in dreams they will not see Yama’s attendants approaching them with the noose in their hands”.

Such devotees chant the names of that Lord. ‘Srihari Krishna, Narayana, Guru Datta, Sadguru’- such words come from their lips every moment. They will be immersed in thoughts about their God. Mentally and verbally they chant His name.

Maharishi Śuka continued, “They are detached from these worldly attachments. Considering themselves to be instruments in His hands, they routinely perform all allotted duties in life. I will explain about such devotion at a later stage.

In this connection, there is a very famous story from the Puranas which I shall now narrate. In this story, the debate between Vishnu’s attendants and Yama’s attendants is covered.

In the city called Kanyakubja, there lived a Brahmin by name Ajāmila. He developed friendship with a low-class woman and married her. Due to associating with a low-class woman, his good character was totally destroyed and he was rendered impure. Having fallen into wicked ways, he would waylay the rich and loot them. Gambling and cheating had become part and parcel of his life. His thoughts were eternally centered upon ways of cheating others.

He was least inclined towards divine stories. Drinking, eating meat, abusing others and sleeping were his only goals of life. Simply put, he lived like an animal. Such ignorant men, who lack distinction between night and day, are foolish and dumb. They earn their livelihood through cheating, gambling, uttering falsehood, looting and other abominable sinful deeds. Ajāmila too had no respect for elders. To destroy the person who had offered him food and shelter was his goal.

Such persons have to pass through every single hell described previously. It is inescapable since it is the Lord’s order. There is no one who can come to their rescue. It is undoubtedly true.

Ajāmila, who was a Brahmin by birth, inculcated all lowly sinful qualities and leading a life which was devoid of any inner or outer cleanliness, he earned his livelihood. He had 10 sons. While he lived in this manner with his wife and kids, time flew by quickly and he was eighty-eight years old.