Question: Sometimes we see that a devotee is not so good in performing various sevas. He commit some silly mistakes. But he is very kind, sincere, soft spoken and hardworking. He is never rude and tries to perform everything nicely but he isn’t able to do the job perfectly. On the other hand, a devotee does all the services perfectly. He is also very hard working and loves his service. But his nature is rude. He is arrogant, also pushes others to get the job done, doesn’t speak nicely to other devotees and they also find it hard to approach him due to his behavior. So the question is what is more important in devotional service? Personal behavior with others or perfection in various services irrespective of personal behavior.
Answer by Romapada Swami:
I am surprised that you are asking this question. Performing volumes of service, while disrespecting another Vaisnava, is not devotional service, it’s material service. What is important is that Krishna is pleased, not simply that something is accomplished. If a Vaisnava is not respected – or worse, disrespected – that is not devotion at all.
