God’s own people; the good, the Godly. (Glossary for the Vahinis)

Those who sing the story of this Glory, those who listen eagerly to the recital, and those who imbibe and digest the lessons conveyed, these are the real devotees. They are the Bhagavatas, those who follow the path laid down in the Bhagavatam. Bhagavatam binds Bhakta with Bhagavan. That is to say, the story fills you with God, and transmutes you into Divinity. Vyasa has established the truth that bliss can come only in the thought of God and not by any other process. He established that bliss and happiness are simply embodiments of God and that they cannot be found elsewhere. Bliss and happiness can be given only by God and he who thus secures them is called a devotee. The close relationship that exists between a devotee and God has been described in Bhagavatam. Devotees of God have also been called Bhagavatas. (SSB 1978, pp. 4-5)