Question: I heard somewhere that without loving all the living beings we cannot love God. So I just wanted to know, what is the best possible way in which I can love and serve all the living beings?
Radhanath Swami: By loving God. When you water the root of the tree, every part of the tree is nourished by that water. So when we learn how to love God, naturally our love extends to every part of God, which is every living being.
The example is also given that if we want to feed the various limbs and organs of the body, we must give food to the stomach. When we give the proper food to the stomach it is naturally distributed to the hands, the eyes, the brain, the feet, and every tissue of the body. When we learn how to love Radha and Krishna, naturally our love will extend to all living beings without discrimination of sex, sect, caste, religion, nationality or even species – panditah sama darshina.
We cannot love God and not love every living entity. The testimony of the authenticity of our love for God is how it extends to everyone. When we love God, we see a part of God in every heart beyond the superficial differences we saw earlier. But also, in order to achieve that love of God—through the chanting of God’s names and the practice of bhakti— it is an elementary practice of bhakti to be amanina mana-dena — to honor and respect others and feel oneself the servant of all beings.
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