What is the duty of an ideal disciple? He should not merely stay with Gurudeva; he should try to give his energy by body, mind, and words, and try to serve him according to his desires. He should not just be present physically, thinking something exciting is going to happen, while remaining unenthusiastic to serve. That is not a sisya, rather something quite opposite. A true disciple always desires, with heart and mind, to better serve Gurudeva.
Not only should we intimately serve our Gurudeva, we should also respect and properly honor our god-brothers and god-sisters. If someone is senior to us, having served our Gurudeva longer, we should show that person great honor. If someone is equal to us, we should give friendly honor to him, and if we encounter someone in an inferior position and who is serious about learning, we should always be merciful. We should try to perform devotional service in a very harmonious way.
April 09, 2000 Mathurā