Sympathy and Humility

In Vaisnavism, one should have sympathy. Sympathy is a form of love and affection. One should have compassion for all living entities. They are all struggling in this material world. Cruelty towards the jivas is against Bhagavad-dharma. Try to think of the welfare of all souls and act so that your every endeavor is for their betterment. Krsna will see your sympathy for His lost souls and bestow His mercy upon you.
Bhaktivinoda Thakura states:
dainya daya anye mana pratistha varjana
cari guna guni haya karaho kirtana
When you have the four qualities of humility, compassion, no desire for respect, and freedom from desire for prestige, then you are truly qualified, and can perform krsna-kirtana.
Kirtana done for your own self-aggrandizement is not krsna-kirtana. It is maya-kirtana. In the name of service and worship of Krsna, you want to accept service and worship like Krsna. This is maya and the cause of your separation from Krsna. As long as this enjoying attitude is there in the heart of the practicing jiva, he will remain far from Krsna.
There are many forms of kirtana. It does not only mean singing. Kirtana is also preaching. When you are preaching, if you are doing it out of a desire to be famous, wealthy, or loved by many followers, this preaching is not a limb of krsna-bhakti, it is karma. It may even be vikarma. Progressing in this way can lead to your downfall and imminent suffering.
To prevent calamity falling upon you, strive to always act humbly under the guidance of higher Vaisnava authorities. Never yearn to be the master. The constitutional nature of the jiva is that he is the eternal servant of Krsna. As long as the jiva is against his true nature of being the servant, he will try to be the master, and will remain circling life after life in samsara. That day that we consider that, life after life, for all time, our greatest fortune will be to be the insignificant servant of Hari, Guru and Vaisnavas, then our good fortune has truly dawned.
Karta-buddhi, or the idea that ‘I am the doer’ is the precursor to pride and false ego. This can come at any moment to the sadhaka. You must always be vigilant that this does not develop in your heart. It is a great obstacle on the path of pure devotion. If you are engaged in the service of kirtana, by preaching the name and fame of the Lord, you should not think that you are the doer, but rather, that Guru and Vaisnavas are acting through you, and you are only their insignificant instrument. Always remembering their lotus feet, you can humbly act as their emissary. When you are a conduit, their mercy can flow through you and nourish the jivas suffering in maya. This is the greatest welfare work that you can perform. But if you think that you are the reservoir, that you can give mercy yourself, by your own strength of devotion, you are on the road to your spiritual demise. Your internal attitude is very important.
Always remember: the jiva is the eternal servant of Krsna. That day we forget and act contrary to this, we become covered by maya. So to escape maya, we must come under guidance of Hari, Guru, and Vaisnavas, and serve under their direction, as a humble instrument. They will then bestow their mercy upon you, because you are a ready vessel to receive it. As long as you are filled up with your pride and false ego, there is no room for the mercy of Guru and Vaisnavas. Therefore, cleansing your heart of this false ego is of prime importance.