bhagavat saṅgi sangasya ityanena
na tathāsya bhavet kleśo bandhaś
cānya-prasaṅgataḥ yoṣit-saṅgād yathā
puṁso yathā tat-saṅgi-saṅgataḥ

Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartīpāda here offers an analogy from the Eleventh Canto of Śrīmad Bhāgavatam (Chapter 14, verse 30) to elucidate the nature of sadhusang. He explains that by associating with a woman one is afflicted by bondage. But yathā tatsaṅgisaṅgataḥ: the association of one who associates with women is, in fact more harmful than the direct association of a woman. Why? Because by knowing that the association of women will bind one, a person can at least try to remain aloof from such association. More harmful is the company of a man who associates with women, as greater bondage comes from such a relationship. For this reason, it has similarly been said: viṣayer anna khāile malina haya mana — by eating grains (foodstuffs) given by a worldly person (sense enjoyer), one’s mind becomes polluted, and with such a contaminated mind one cannot perform bhajana of Śrī Kṛṣṇa. In this regard, it is also harmful to accept anything from a person who associates with women. There is a danger in associating with such a person. Associating with women is harmful, but associating with persons addicted to associating with women is more harmful. Similarly, associating with bhaktas of Bhagavān is more powerful than associating with Bhagavān Himself. One attains auspiciousness by associating with Bhagavān, but one attains greater auspiciousness by associating with His bhaktas. This same fact was explained by Dhruva Mahārāja when he attained darśana of Bhagavān. At that time Bhagavān asked him to accept any benediction. Dhruva said, “My only request is that I should always have the association of Your bhaktas. I do not desire anything else.”

Bhagavān replied, “What is this? You have finally attained Me, and now, having achieved this, you again desire the association of My bhaktas?” Dhruva said, “O Prabhu, if I had not attained the association of your bhaktas, then how could I have attained Your association today? I would have deviated from the path of attaining You by committing some offence. And even now, how will it be possible for me to remain in Your company if I am without the association of your bhaktas? At any time I may commit some offence and lose Your association.” Thus, the association of bhaktas is more powerful than the association of Bhagavān Himself. This has been made clear. Since we are unable to understand this, the harmful effect of associating with a woman and with a man who associates with women has been illustrated. Of the two, the latter harm is the greater. But although people may hear this, do they pay any regard? "iti yoṣitsaṅgādapi yoṣitsangināṁ saṅgo yathātinindya ukttaḥ". Just as associating with a man who associates with a woman has been denounced in Śrīmad Bhāgavatam as more condemnable than associating with a woman, so associating with a bhagavad-bhakta has been glorified as more virtuous, advantageous and desirable than associating with Bhagavān directly. Indeed, there is nothing more virtuous and desirable than sadhusang. Through such association all one’s desires are fulfilled.

Real sādhus, however, are extremely rare and therefore difficult to find; and if they are found, it is very difficult to associate with them in the real sense. Although people of this world may attain the association of a bhagavad-bhakta, they remain unable to comprehend his bhāva-dhara, line of thought that is his moods. We may, by the accumulation of previous sukṛti, come close physically to a bhagavad-bhakta; but we then discover that we cannot associate with him in any real sense. If those who have attained the saṅga of bhagavad-bhaktas find themselves unable to benefit from it, what can be said of the predicament of those who have not even attained such saṅga. Why is this so? Why can we not properly associate with bhagavad-bhaktas despite being in their company? Saṅga means “samyak rūpeṇa gamana — to completely follow the bhagavad-bhakta.” It is difficult for us to comply with their instructions. Moreover, the foundation of saṅga is prīti. Without prīti, there can be no saṅga. We go to the market and see, meet and talk with many people, but can this be called saṅga? No. Prīti is the real requirement. What is prīti? Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has written:

dadāti pratigṛhṇāti guhyam ākhyāti pṛcchati
bhuṅkte bhojayate caiva ṣaḍ-vidhaṁ prīti-lakṣaṇam
Śrī Upadeśāmṛta (4)

Offering pure devotees items in accordance with their requirements, accepting remnant items given by pure devotees, revealing to devotees one’s confidential realizations concerning bhajana, inquiring from them about their confidential realizations, eating with great love the prasāda remnants given by devotees and lovingly feeding them prasāda—these are the six symptoms of loving association with pure devotees.

Are we able to deal with bhagavad-bhaktas with these six symptoms of prīti? We can have these six exchanges with worldly people, but not with bhagavad-bhaktas, because māyā does not let us do so. Such is the oppression of māyā that she will not allow us to associate with sādhus. Hence, the saṅga of bhagavad-bhaktas is very rare; we are unable to attain it even after attaining their company. This is our misfortune. Why is this so? Man is the saṅgi (associate) of māyā and likes associating with her. Ordinary people may come close to a bhagavad-bhakta, but they will prefer to discuss worldly topics with him and go away. They are not influenced by his association. It is very difficult for them. Therefore it is said that the result of associating with a bhagavad-bhakta for a single moment cannot be compared to the attainment of Svarga and mokṣa. What a significant matter! What a precious commodity is sadhusang. Is such a highly worshipable and desirable thing attained in the course of everyone’s fate? It is said in Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 22.54):

‘sadhusang’, ‘sadhusang’ sarva-śāstre kaya
lava-mātra sādhu-saṅge sarva-siddhi haya

The verdict of all revealed scriptures is that by even a moment’s association with a sādhu, one can attain all success.

In Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Bharat Mahārāja speaks as follows to King Rahūgaṇa:

rahūgaṇaitat tapasā na yāti
na cejyayā nirvapaṇād gṛhād vā
na cchandasā naiva jalāgni-sūryair
vinā mahat-pāda-rajo-’bhiṣekam
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (5.12.12)

How significant are the words spoken by Bharat Mahārāja to King Rahūgaṇa. “O Rahūgaṇa, you want to know Bhagavān, but He cannot be known by austerity (tapasya), nor by worship, nor by giving up one’s home, nor indeed by living in one’s home. He cannot be known by reciting the Vedas nor by worshiping the demigods such as the Sun-god, Varuṇa and so on. Why? Because vinā mahat-pāda-rajo-’bhiṣekam: as long as one does not smear himself with the foot dust of the mahat, great saintly personalities, one cannot achieve any result by performing all these other activities. So one should first seek the saṅga of a great saintly personality, and only when he can smear himself with the foot dust of this personality, can Bhagavān be known to him.” Prahlāda Mahārāja gave the same instruction to the sons of his guru:

naiṣāṁ matis tāvad urukramāṅghriṁ
spṛśaty anarthāpagamo yad-arthaḥ
mahīyasāṁ pāda-rajo-’bhiṣekaṁ
niṣkiṣcanānāṁ na vṛṇīta yāvat
Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (7.5.32)

Prahlāda Mahārāja told the sons of his teacher that they should give up everything. “What benefit can you derive from your father Śukrācārya, who you consider a great paṇḍita?” he asked. “His consciousness is unable to touch the lotus feet of Bhagavān, who performs uncommon activities. These lotus feet have the effect of removing a person’s anarthas and awarding him complete perfection. They deliver to him his prayojana, or goal. “So how can we attain Bhagavān? Can everyone attain him?

Mahīyaṣāṁ pāda-rajo-’bhiṣekam: one must smear himself with the dust of the lotus feet of mahat, a saintly personality. Who is such a saintly personality?

Niskiṣcanānaṁ na vṛṇīta yāvat: one who possesses no wealth other than Bhagavān. As long as we do not accept and smear upon our bodies the foot dust of a niskiṣcana mahāpuruṣa, we will achieve nothing at all.” The essence of the whole subject, in the language of my gurupāda-padma, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura Prabhupāda, is that the jīva’s supreme auspiciousness comes about by hearing hari-kathā in sadhusang. This is because sādhusaṅga is the sole means to attain kṛṣṇa-bhakti:

kṛṣṇa-bhakti-janma-mūla haya ‘sadhusang’
Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta (Madhya-līlā 22.84)

The root cause of bhakti to Śrī Kṛṣṇa is association with sādhus.