Krishna is the most merciful master one can ever obtain. Therefore, Yamunacarya, in his heartfelt expression, mentions how he was an orphan before obtaining the Lord of his life. He considers obtaining the shelter of Lord the perfection of his life.

bhavantam evānucaran nirantaraḥ
praśānta-niḥśeṣa-manorathāntaraḥ
kadāham aikāntika-nitya-kiṅkaraḥ
praharṣayiṣyāmi sanātha-jīvitam
“By serving You constantly, one is freed from all material desires and is completely pacified. When shall I engage as Your permanent eternal servant and always feel joyful to have such a fitting master?”

An ordinary master of this world generally hears the plea of his servant. Whether to fulfill or deny the request rests solely on the master, yet, he may choose to fulfill a reasonable request of the servant. And sometimes, if he is kind enough, he may even grant him additional bonuses.

Does the Supreme Lord hear each and every prayer that we offer Him? And does he fulfill all our requests?

The FULLY SURRENDERED DEVOTEE:

Krishna fulfills all requests of his surrendered devotees. In fact, He is eagerly waiting for a desire to arise in the heart of His pure devotee. Madhavendra Puri never expressed any desire to the Supreme Lord. Just once, while in Remuna, he desired to taste the sweet rice offered to Gopinath. And Gopinath stole one pot of sweet rice for him.

Shrila Prabhupada writes about one such desire that arose in his heart, and how Krishna fulfilled that desire. He writes,
“In Vṛndāvana there is a place where there was no temple, but a devotee desired, “Let there be a temple and sevā, devotional service.” Therefore, what was once an empty corner has now become a place of pilgrimage. Such are the desires of a devotee.” SB 10.13.50

The PARTIALLY SURRENDERED DEVOTEE:

Someone may ask, what if someone is not fully surrendered? Will Krishna hear my prayer?
Srila Bhaktivinoda Thakura writes,

ṣaḍ-aṅga śaraṇāgati hoibe jāhāra
tāhāra prārthanā śune śrī-nanda-kumāra
“Śrī Nanda-Kumāra, the youthful son of Nanda Mahārāja, hears the prayers of anyone who takes refuge in Him by this six-fold practice of surrender.”

Then what about us? We may not be fully surrendered yet.

This six-fold practice of surrender comprises of
1] Accepting things favorable for devotional service.
2] Rejecting things unfavorable for devotional service.
3] Faith that Krishna is my maintainer.
4] Faith that Krishna is my Protector.
5] Humility.
6] Full self-surrender.

To the degree we practice these six things in our life, or to the degree we demonstrate these qualities by our actions, to that degree Krishna hears our prayers. Thus, spiritual life is extremely dynamic. At times when we are not so surrendered, Krishna may not take our prayers seriously. When we are exhibiting surrender through our words and actions, then Krishna will intently fulfill our prayers.

What kind of desires or prayers are we talking about here? It is natural that one who is aspiring for surrendering unto Krishna won’t ask for anything detrimental to his or her practice of devotional service. The very first limb of surrender is anukulasya-sankalpa and pratikulasya varjanam. If something is going to hamper the devotional progress of a devotee, and if he or she still asks, then the principle of sad-anga saranagati is overridden.

Will Krishna hear such a devotee?

The DEVOTEE Having MATERIAL DESIRES:

During the process of surrendering, a devotee may possess material desires. What does Krishna do with such a prayer? A classic example is Dhruva Maharaja. He had a material desire, yet he was totally surrendered to the order of his guru, Narada Muni. The Supreme Lord heard his prayer. And he even fulfilled it!!

At the same time, there is Krishna’s special intervention in the course of fulfilling this devotee’s desire. Caitanya Caritamrita mentions,

kṛṣṇa kahe,—’āmā bhaje, māge viṣaya-sukha
amṛta chāḍi’ viṣa māge,—ei baḍa mūrkha
Kṛṣṇa says, “If one engages in My transcendental loving service but at the same time wants the opulence of material enjoyment, he is very, very foolish. Indeed, he is just like a person who gives up ambrosia to drink poison.”

āmi—vijña, ei mūrkhe ’viṣaya’ kene diba?
sva-caraṇāmṛta diyā ’viṣaya’ bhulāiba
“Since I am very intelligent, why should I give this fool material prosperity? Instead I shall induce him to take the nectar of the shelter of My lotus feet and make him forget illusory material enjoyment.” CC Madhya 22.38-39

Thus, the devotee willingly gives up his material desire and becomes a servant of Krishna. It is not that Krishna doesn’t fulfill the material desires of a devotee. He does fulfill, but He also gives the devotee shelter at His lotus feet, which makes him forget all material desires.

satyaṁ diśaty arthitam arthito nṛṇāṁ
naivārtha-do yat punar arthitā yataḥ
svayaṁ vidhatte bhajatām anicchatām
icchā-pidhānaṁ nija-pāda-pallavam
Whenever Kṛṣṇa is requested to fulfill one’s desire, He undoubtedly does so, but He does not award anything which, after being enjoyed, will cause one to petition Him again and again to fulfill further desires. When one has other desires but engages in the Lord’s service, Kṛṣṇa forcibly gives one shelter at His lotus feet, where one will forget all other desires. CC Madhya 22.40

A NON-DEVOTEE with DESIRES:

What about a non-devotee? A non-devotee will generally express material desires to the Lord. If that is in the form of getting wealth, prosperity and fame, the Supreme Lord may fulfill the desires of that person. If he has got the conviction of approaching the Supreme Lord, then by default he falls in the category of “sukrtinah” (pious), as stated by Krishna in BG 7.15.

If the person performs karma-kanda (plain rituals for getting desires fulfilled), he attains the fulfillment of his desire. If he performs sakama-karma-misra-bhakti (selfish desires, but executed through a proper worship of the Supreme Lord, as in case of Dhruva), he may as well attain Salokya (liberation in the same planet of the Lord), due to being engaged in the worship of the Supreme Lord.

Also, if such a person comes in association of a pure devotee, then he can at once ascend to the platform of devotional service. And begin his journey on the path of surrender.

Therefore, whoever one may be, whether a non-devotee, a devotee with material desires, a partially surrendered devotee, or a fully surrendered devotee, Krishna DOES hear our prayers, and He definitely reciprocates with our desires as per our level of advancement. Therefore, at all times, in all circumstances, one must take shelter of the Supreme Lord Krishna, who is famous by the name “Varadaraja”, or the giver of benedictions.