Krsna says in the Bhagavad-Gita that “O son of Kuntī, declare it boldly that My devotee never perishes.” However, we see that devotees go through all kinds of difficulties. Even pure devotees, like the Pandavas and Srila Prabhupada, went through great difficulties. How is that?

To understand how the protection from Krsna works and why devotees sometimes face difficulties, the first point is to better understand the context of this verse. Krsna says: “I envy no one, nor am I partial to anyone. I am equal to all. But whoever renders service unto Me in devotion is a friend, is in Me, and I am also a friend to him. Even if one commits the most abominable action, if he is engaged in devotional service he is to be considered saintly because he is properly situated in his determination. He quickly becomes righteous and attains lasting peace. O son of Kuntī, declare it boldly that My devotee never perishes.”

Here we have an apparent contradiction. Krsna first says He is partial to anyone and equal to all, but then He says that He is partial to His devotees. Srila Prabhupada explains that such special affection to devotees is not a sign of partiality, but just natural. Just like a pious king may be impartial and equal to everyone, he will always give special attention to his children. Such behavior is unavoidable due to their intimate relationship. Similarly, Krsna is impartial to everyone, but He can’t help giving special attention to His devotees.

Next, Krsna says that even if a devotee makes mistakes, he or she is not lost, because the power of his devotional service will bring him eventually back to the proper path. That’s why Krsna says that ” he is to be considered saintly because he is properly situated”. Even while a devotee commits mistakes, his piety still exists in a subtle form and can be easily restored when he comes back to the proper path, just like a diamond can be thrown into the mud and appear to be dirty, although the real form of the diamond is not affected, and as a result, it can be easily cleaned.

Another point is that even if a devotee falls back into illusion and tries to forget Krsna, Krsna never forgets him, and thus his situation is never the same as an ordinary person who didn’t cultivate a relationship with Him. The Lord will continue caring for him, and eventually, this will make him come back to the path. This point is explained in the Srimad Bhagavatam (1.5.9): “My dear Vyāsa, even though a devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa sometimes falls down somehow or other, he certainly does not undergo material existence like others [fruitive workers, etc.] because a person who has once relished the taste of the lotus feet of the Lord can do nothing but remember that ecstasy again and again.”

This shows how although a devotee may face difficulties in the short term, his future is bright because he or she will eventually go back to Godhead. A devotee does not perish in the unending cycle of birth and death like an ordinary person and this is due to Krsna’s personal protection. We may create problems for ourselves by foolishly committing offenses and sinful activities, and this can create unpalatable consequences in the short term, but due to the protection of Krsna, we always have the opportunity to return to the proper path. We are not just under the mechanical workings of the law of Karna like mundane people.

In other words, we may temporarily face difficulties and challenges due to our own mistakes, or due to the influence of other people, but the special attention of Krsna guarantees that all of this is temporary and that we will succeed in the end.

What about pure devotees? It’s easy to understand we face difficulties due to our own mistakes and due to the results of our past Karma, but we see that pure devotees like the Pandavas and Srila Prabhupada faced even more difficulties than we do, although being under the direct care of Krsna. How can it be so?

The point is that pure devotees come to this word precisely to give us example. If Krsna would put a regular devotee through the tribulations the Pandavas passed, or that Srila Prabhupada passed, he would surely break, therefore Krsna has to organize for His personal associates to come and face such challenges to show us how even when a devotee faces challenges He is always with Krsna, and by His grace can eventually surpass all obstacles without being distracted from the ultimate goal.

When Krsna says that His devotee never perishes, He is not speaking about the material body, which will eventually be reduced to dust, but about the devotee’s devotional service, which is never destroyed. Even if a devotee faces great difficulties in his spiritual practice, he will eventually be victorious and go back to Godhead, be it in this life or in the next. A materialistic person on the other hand doesn’t have a very bright future ahead, regardless of how materially successful he may be now.

Ultimately, a devotee may face temporary difficulties, but such difficulties are more or less illusory in the sense that they are temporary. Just like the Pandavas surpassed all difficulties and defeated the Kauravas in the end, a devotee is guaranteed to eventually become triumphant and go back to Godhead, no matter what kind of difficulties he or she may face in the short term.