Param means the Supreme. If you want to realize the Supreme, the Absolute, then you must agree to certain type of tapasya. Otherwise it is not possible. The preliminary little tapasya. Just like ekādaśī. That is also item of the tapasya. Actually on the ekādaśī days we shall not take any food, even drink water. But in our society we are not doing so much strictly. We say, "Ekādaśī, you don't take food grains. Take little fruit, milk." This is tapasya. So we cannot execute this tapasya? So if we are not prepared to undertake even this very, very easily executable tapasya, then how we can expect go back to home, back to Godhead? No, that is not possible. Therefore here it is said, tapasaiva, tapasā eva. Eva means certainly. You have to. Now, executing this tapasya, penances, are you loser? You are not loser. Now, anyone who will come from outside, they will see in our society, our members, boys and girls. They say, "bright-faced." Do they not? They see distinction.
Back to Godhead (Lectures, SB cantos 3 - 12)
Expressions researched:
"Back to God"
|"Back to Godhead"
Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
So householder life is not condemned. It is required. If there is no householders, then wherefrom the saintly persons will come? They will not drop from the sky. So everything is required. In our society, we have got householders, we have got brahmacārīs, we have got sannyāsīs. Everything is required. So Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is very scientific movement for the total benefit of human society. If it is properly carried out, then everyone will be satisfied and happy and go back home, back to Godhead.
So when things are mismanaged and people forget the aim of life, at that time the Supreme Lord comes. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati (BG 4.7). So dharmasya glāniḥ means the human society, when missing the aim of life, at that time, when things are very much mismanaged, then out of compassion... Because God is more anxious to get us back to home, back to Godhead, than we are, because we are in ignorance. We do not know what is the kingdom of God, how to go back there, how to become happy. We have all forgotten. Therefore Kṛṣṇa comes at interval. He sends His representative, the devotee. That is going on. So sometimes He comes personally; sometimes He sends His incarnation. The Kapiladeva is an incarnation of the Supreme Person, Kṛṣṇa.
Everything is there. You can have eternal blissful life of knowledge, sac-cid-ānanda. It is not compulsory that you shall rot in this material world. But if you like, you can go there. The easiest process. Easiest process is janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ. You try to understand Kṛṣṇa, why He comes, what are His activities, wherefrom He comes, why He comes in the form of a human being. You try to understand, study. And Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā. So where is your difficulty? God is personally explaining what He is. If you accept Bhagavad-gītā as it is, then, after giving up this body, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9), no more birth and death. You get your spiritual body, sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1), and happily live in the family of Kṛṣṇa. Because He is also providing you here, and there also, He'll provide you with very nice preparation. As we have learned from this, what is that, Nava Bhārata Times, how our people are eating preparations from milk very nicely. So back to home, back to Godhead, and eat, drink and be merry in Kṛṣṇa's company. That is our process.
And what is that tapasya? Tapasya for realization of God. And then we shall be purified. What is meaning of purify, purification? Purification means we are eternal, and if we become purified from this material contaminating, then we get back our eternal life, back to home, back to Godhead. That is required. That is... For that we have to accept little tapasya. Not to become sense gratifier like the dogs and hogs. That is not civilization. Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye (SB 5.5.1). This human life should be regulated in such a way that he hasn't got to satisfy the senses after taking so much hard labor. The modern civilization is like that. Everyone is engaged in hard labor simply for satisfaction of the senses. So they have become mad. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vi... And they are acting without any consideration of the effect. They do not consider whether it is sinful or not. They do not believe in the next life. They do not discriminate what is sinful, what is pious—nothing. Exactly like animals.
When we are in ignorance that we are the part and parcel of the Supreme Being and our duty is to satisfy Him... Hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam (CC Madhya 19.170). This is called bhakti. When we forget it, then we are fallen in this material world, and we are busy in our personal sense gratification and implication. Implication means so long we'll have, we'll continue to have this desire to satisfy our senses, we have to accept another body, according to our desire. Kṛṣṇa is so kind. If we want to become a tiger, Kṛṣṇa will give our next life a tiger's body. And if you want to be a devotee, He will give you the same body. If you want to eat stool, then He'll give you the body of a pig. And if you want to... That requires our own qualification. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). Yānti deva-vratā devān pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vra... (BG 9.25). It is a preparation for the next life, as you want to enjoy your senses. So why not prepare yourself to go back to home, back to Godhead, and prepare your senses like that? That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
And people are doing that. They do not offer to Kṛṣṇa, and they eat whatever they like. The result is that you have misused this opportunity of human life, to understand Kṛṣṇa and go back to home, back to Godhead, so that you'll be happy eternally. You'll be freed from this entanglement of bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). You enjoy one duration of life; again you have to give it up. Then you accept another duration of life. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate. This human life is meant for getting rid of this business, taking birth and dying, taking birth and dying. This is meant. This is... This opportunity's given, but if you do not use it properly, you use it as cats and dogs and hogs, then the..., by nature's law, you will get the body next life cats and dogs and hogs. You eat even stool.
Similarly, the scriptures, the sages, the saintly persons, the devotees, the representative of Kṛṣṇa, God, they're very much anxious to take us back to Godhead, back to home. That is niḥśreyasāya. That is the ultimate benediction. To be repaired(?), enamored by the temporary society, friendship and love. And it has become a thankless task for the saintly persons, devotees of God, to drag them: "Oh, please come here. Please chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Please be Kṛṣṇa conscious. Please be God conscious." Nobody likes it. They think it botheration, "Why Swamiji comes here and bothers us?" But it has become the business. Therefore the qualification of a saintly person is titikṣava, very tolerant, very tolerant. Just like Lord Jesus Christ, he was crucified. Still, he was so tolerant he, at the time of crucification, he's praying to God, "My Lord, these people do not know what they are doing. Please forgive them." Just see how much tolerant. Titikṣava. This is the first qualification of saintly person or God's servant or God's son. Very tolerant. They have to push on their Kṛṣṇa conscious movement or God conscious movement through so many odds. Through so many odds. Because they are just like the child; he's attracted with playthings.
If you want to awaken your dormant love for Kṛṣṇa... There is, because we are part and parcel. Just like father and son. There is natural love. But somehow or other, son is out of home and forgotten. Father, of course, thinks, "My such-and-such son has gone out. If he comes back..." So Kṛṣṇa thinks like that. Because we are sons of Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is more anxious to get us back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore He comes and says, "You rascal, give up all these engagements." Sarva-dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66). "You have manufactured so many dharmas: deva-dharma, samāja-dharma, deśa-dharma, this dharma, that dharma, Hindu dharma, Muslim dharma, this... No! Simply surrender unto Me." That is dharma. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ek... (BG 18.66). Kṛṣṇa comes to teach us. Kṛṣṇa is very, very anxious.
Jñāna means to understand that "I am not this material body. I do not belong to this material body. I am a spirit soul. I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Spirit, and I belong to the spiritual world. Therefore my business is to finish this material world business and go back to home, back to Godhead." This is jñāna, knowledge. Therefore we have to understand Kṛṣṇa. If we have to go somewhere, we must know where we are going. Because we are serving here. Now, another program has to be made to serve Kṛṣṇa and live there in the spiritual world. So we have to understand Kṛṣṇa very nicely. That... And if you can understand Kṛṣṇa... Janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ (BG 4.9). To understand Kṛṣṇa in truth, that is not very easy task. That is very, very difficult task. Even the muktas cannot understand Kṛṣṇa. Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye (BG 7.3). Siddhi means mukti, liberation. Kaścid yatati. Who is trying for liberation? Nobody's trying. But still, there are somebodies who are trying for liberation. So Kṛṣṇa says, yatatām api siddhānām (BG 7.3). After being liberated, those who are trying to understand Kṛṣṇa, some of them can understand Kṛṣṇa in truth, tattvataḥ. Therefore you have to understand Kṛṣṇa tattvataḥ, what is Kṛṣṇa.
That is done by Kṛṣṇa personally. For whom? Teṣām evānukampārtham (BG 10.11). Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam. Those who are engaged twenty-four hours with love and faith in devotional service. Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam, dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ tam. The buddhi-yogam. He directs, "Do like this, do like that." Then... What for buddhi? Yena mām upayānti te. Then, gradually, you come to Kṛṣṇa, back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore it is recommended here, na yujyamānayā bhaktyā bhagavaty akhilātmani, sadṛśo 'sti śivaḥ panthā. Śiva means auspicious. Śiva means auspiciousness. So if you actually interested for self-realization, if you want to become perfect in this life, śivaḥ panthā, the most auspicious, most perfect panthā is... What is that? Now, bhaktyā bhagavati. You just become a devotee and engage yourself in devotional service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Not the so-called rascal Bhagavān, but bhagavaty akhilātman. One, the..., that Bhagavān who is present everywhere. That Bhagavān. Not this false bhagavān. Akhilātmani. These are the shastric injunction. So that Bhagavān... "I don't find that Bhagavān." No. That Bhagavān is within your heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānām (BG 18.61). That is real Bhagavān. So as soon... Tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye. That Bhagavān is always acting. He instructed Brahmā. Brahmā, the lord of the universe, he got instruction from Kṛṣṇa, and he created the whole universe, and what to speak of you? He'll also give instruction to you, provided you take to the devotional service, bhaktyā. Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti (BG 18.55).
So tyakta-karma. Sannyāsī means tyakta-karmāṇas tyakta-svajana-bāndhavāḥ. You cannot give up karma if you live with your relatives, svajana, and bāndhavāḥ, society, friendship and love. If you live, then you cannot give up karma. You have to do, either karma or vikarma. But if you become sannyāsī, then you become akarma. Whatever you do, it is for Kṛṣṇa, and there is no reaction. Yajñārthe karmaṇo 'nyatra karma-bandhanaḥ. Karma is bandhanaḥ. Vikarma is bandhanaḥ, but akarma is not bandhanaḥ. Bandhanaḥ means bondage. So we have to act for Kṛṣṇa. Yajñārthe. Yajña means Kṛṣṇa. Yajña means Viṣṇu. But people... Prahlāda Mahārāja said, na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum: (SB 7.5.31) "These ordinary men, they do not know that their ultimate destination of life is to go back to Viṣṇu, go back to home, back to Godhead." Na te viduḥ. Why they do not know? Durāśayā. Their hope is dur, very, I mean to say, what is called?
So we have to... We, we cannot simply give up. As it is said that tyakta-karmāṇaḥ, give up everyone, engagement, and tyakta-svajana-bāndhavāḥ,... You'll become mad if you give up all these things, unless you have got staunch faith in Kṛṣṇa. Then you cannot give up. It is not possible. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate (BG 2.59). If you find Kṛṣṇa's association is so nice, then you can very easily give up your opulent position, svajana, bāndhavāḥ, family, business and everything. If you... That requires sādhu-saṅga, sādhu-saṅga (CC Madhya 22.83), to associate with sādhu, devotees. Then you can develop such thing when day will come you'll be able to give up everything and you become liberated person, quite fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. Unless you are completely free... If you have got a tinge of attachment for material enjoyment, Kṛṣṇa will give you chance: "All right, you enjoy. You enjoy, to the fullest extent." Because we have come to this material world for enjoying sense gratification. Kṛṣṇa bhuliyā jīva... That is called māyā, illusory. It is not enjoyment. It is simply struggle. But one who comes to the senses, that "This is simply struggle. Life after life, there is no enjoyment," then he can become a devotee of Kṛṣṇa. So that requires knowledge, association of sādhu, devotee. That is being explained by Kapiladeva.
You give Kṛṣṇa nice foodstuff. Then you will forget, "Oh, I will have to satisfy my tongue in this way and that way, by chop, by cutlet, by going to restaurant." You will forget. Therefore it is called bhaktyā pumāñ jāta-virāga aindriyāt. The materialistic persons, they are simply busy for satisfying the senses. Go to the hotel; satisfy the tongue. Go to the cinema; hear the cinema song, see nice girls, and so on, so on. But these devotees, they are not interested at all. The cinema is here, a few steps away, but you will never see a student or a disciple of Kṛṣṇa consciousness will go to that nonsense place. Practical you can see. Why it has become possible? Bhaktyā pumāñ jāta-virāga aindriyāt. It is practical. The more you engage yourself in devotional service, the more you will forget your sense gratification process. And as soon as you become completely detestful for sense gratification, then you are liberated person, fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. This is the process.
So we also become like Kṛṣṇa. In the Vaikuṇṭhaloka, the inhabitants, they are also living entities. Just like in this, within this universe, this material universe, there are living entities—there are also living entities, but they are in spiritual body, the same form of body as Kṛṣṇa. You have read in the Sixth Canto of Bhāgavata, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the Ajāmila, the vaikuṇṭha-dūta came for Ajāmila to take Ajāmila. They are also four-handed, very beautiful. That is Vaikuṇṭhaloka. But in Kṛṣṇaloka they are two-handed. So in the spiritual world there are so many varieties—four-handed, two-handed living entity. They're all nitya-mukta. They're all everlastingly liberated. So we have been just like a prisoner is. Although he's a prisoner, he can be also good citizen. There is no hopelessness. Similarly, we are now prisoner in this material world, and we have got this material body. Therefore we are changing: sometimes young, sometimes old, sometimes these boys, some... But tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9), if you become Kṛṣṇa conscious, then, after leaving this body, you're not any more getting this material body. That is stated. tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9). Then what happens? Mām eti. He comes to back to home, back to Godhead. And as soon as you go, you get your original, spiritual body, same beautiful body as Kṛṣṇa has, as Nārāyaṇa has. This is the opportunity.
So after submitting the list, Śukadeva Gosvāmī says, kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ: "My dear King Parīkṣit, I have described all the faults of this Kali-yuga. But there is a special advantage in this age. That is," he said, kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet (SB 12.3.51), "people can become liberated and go back to home, back to Godhead, simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra."
- harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam
- kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā
- (CC Adi 17.21)
So this easy process, sukhaṁ jihvādau, that begins from the jihvā, tongue. If you kindly train your tongue to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and if possible without offense... There are ten kinds of offenses. If we avoid the offenses and you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, you become liberated. And it is very easy. Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet (SB 12.3.51). Mukta. Anyone who is chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, if he is chanting sincerely... Sincerely or not sincerely, if he chants, then he will become sincere and purified. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaṁ bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam (CC Antya 20.12).
Kṛṣṇa says that He is the father. He has created for enjoyment, not for distressing the children and Himself. But we children of Kṛṣṇa, we have given up the supreme father. We wanted to enjoy independently; therefore we are suffering. Just like if a big man's, very rich man's son, he gives up his home and he want to live and enjoy life independently, it is not possible. Therefore our duty is to go back to home, back to Godhead, again return to our original father, Kṛṣṇa. That will give us happiness. Kṛṣṇa is full of opulences, and He has got enough money, enough strength, enough beauty, everything enough, unlimitedly. So if we go to our original father, back to home, back to Godhead, then we can also enjoy with Him unlimitedly. That is the philosophy, not that... You cannot enjoy... Father has given you birth. You are separate entity from the father. And if you are suffering, if you say father, "My dear father, I am very much suffering. You make me again one with you," is it very good proposal? Father says, "I have begotten you separately to enjoy. You remain separate, I remain separate, and we enjoy. And you are now asking to become one with me? What is this nonsense?"
So this Māyāvādī philosophy, to become one with the supreme father, is like that. They are suffering here. Kṛṣṇa has created. Kṛṣṇa created him to enjoy with his company, but he did not like that. He suffered in this material world. Now he's thinking of becoming one with the father. What is this? So this is... Therefore here it is said, naikātmatāṁ me spṛhayanti kecit. No pure devotee will desire like that. It is foolish proposal. Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ. They are called aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ, whose intelligence is not yet clear or purified. Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. They are thinking, "Now we have become spiritually realized, vimukta, liberated from material bondage." Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Patanty adhaḥ. Now, they are thinking, "Now we are liberated. We have become Nārāyaṇa." Vimukta-māninaḥ. They are thinking like that. Actually, they are not liberated. That is another, the last snare of māyā, that "You are God." Māyā is still talking that to bewilder him. Māyā's business is to bewilder the living entity. So this is the last snare, that to become one with the Supreme. Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-mā...tvayy asta-bhāvāt. Because they have no information that they can go back to home, back to Godhead, and enjoy the company of the Supreme Lord, they think that to become one with the Supreme, that is the highest perfection.
You surrender to Him, but don't talk things which does not please Him. You don't say that "God is formless. God has no eyes, no leg, no head." These things are there. Just like in the Vedas it is said, apāṇi-pādo javano grahītā, that "He has no hand, but He can accept your offerings." But if He has no hand, then how He can offer your offerings, er, how He can accept your offerings? He has His hand, but not like our hand. He can extend His hand millions of miles. Just like Kṛṣṇa leaves His Goloka, Goloka Vṛndāvana. That planet is many millions and trillions of miles away. But He can accept what you offer. That is Kṛṣṇa's hand, not like Your hand, three feet, no. Therefore sometimes in the Vedas it is said that "God has no hand." That means He has no this material hand. But He can accept your offerings. That means He has got hand, but that is a different type. That is explained, sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1).
So in this way we have to study the science of God, the science of Kṛṣṇa. Then our life will be successful. And tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9). And if we can understand Kṛṣṇa's activities, Kṛṣṇa's form, Kṛṣṇa's quality, then we become fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām e... (BG 4.9).
Thank you very much. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (end)
You can fly in the air. You can go from one planet to another by flying. You can go to the moon planet or sun planet by capturing the beams. That is called mahimā-siddhi. There are so many siddhis. You can create even one universe. Not this magic, little gold, but you can create not universe, one planet. These are said. But a devotee is not anxious to do these things, this jugglery and magic. He wants the one juggler, Kṛṣṇa. That's all. Because he know that "If I gain Kṛṣṇa, I can achieve the favor of Kṛṣṇa, then all juggleries and magic are under my control. He will do that. Why shall I use?" Just like a rich man's son. He does not endeavor to get money. He knows, "My father is so rich, I can spend it as I like. If I am good son, father will give me money." This is the position of devotee. Therefore he is not after any vibhūti, nor even he is aspiring going back to home, back to Godhead. That is also aspiration. A devotee does not... Because his home is... He can create Vaikuṇṭha here.
If you engage yourself in the devotional service of Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, Vāsudeva, oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya, if you enter, then vāsudeve bhagavati. Vāsudeva means the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ (SB 1.2.7). If you apply yourself, engage yourself in bhakti-yoga, then janayaty āśu vairāgyam, cause and effect. As soon as you engage yourself in devotional service of Vāsudeva under the direction of śāstra and spiritual master, then janayaty āśu vairāgyam. As you are practically experiencing that since you have come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement you have no more interest material activities no more interest, that is vairāgya. You are simply meant for service of Kṛṣṇa. That is jñāna. In this way, if you want actually to be fearless and enter into the spiritual life, or spiritual kingdom, back to home, back to Godhead, then you have to accept this bhakti-yoga process, and it is very easy, and then you become fearless, and your life is successful.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to do that, and it is easier because in the śāstra it is said by Śukadeva Gosvāmī that there is one opportunity. "My dear King, Parīkṣit, I've described to you about the faulty nature of this Kali-yuga, but there is a very good opportunity for the people, fallen conditioned souls, of this Kali-yuga." "What is that?" Kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ: "The, in the Kali-yuga, it is like the ocean of fault. But still there is one very good opportunity." "What is that?" Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet: (SB 12.3.51) "You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and become liberated and go to back to home, back to Godhead."
So we have come to this material world. Kṛṣṇa is always anxious to get us back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore He comes. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati (BG 4.7). What is that dharma? That dharma is not this dharma, Hindu dharma, Mussulman dharma. No. That dharma is sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). That's... So in this way, our position, although we are both in this material world, one is the controller; one is the controlled. And the one who is controlled by the prakṛti, by the material nature, if he accepts to be controlled by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then his controlling by the material nature upon him, that is finished, no more control.
So avaiṣṇava, who is not devotee of Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, gurur na sa syāt, he cannot become guru. That is not possible. And vaiṣṇavaḥ śva-paco guruḥ. Śva-paca. Śva-paca means the dog-eaters, the lowest of the mankind, dog-eaters, caṇḍāla. Caṇḍālo 'pi dvija-śreṣṭho hari-bhakti-parāyaṇaḥ. If somehow or other he has become Vaiṣṇava, then he can become guru, not this brāhmaṇa, ṣaṭ-karma-nipuṇo vipro mantra-tantra-viśāradaḥ. Because that one disqualification is there, that he is not a Vaiṣṇava, he cannot become guru. But a person born in the lowest of the human society, pāpa-yoni, which is called pāpa-yoni... Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Kṛṣṇa says that "Anyone who takes shelter of Me, even he belongs to the pāpa-yoni..." Pāpa-yoni means the caṇḍālas, less than the śūdras. Striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrāḥ... Again He mentions. Te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim. So they are eligible to go back to home, back to Godhead. There are so many instances. Kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ khasādayaḥ, ye 'nye ca pāpāḥ: (SB 2.4.18) "Lower than them, still more sinful," śudhyanti, "they can be purified," prabhaviṣṇave namaḥ, "if he becomes a Vaiṣṇava."
So saṁśayātmā vinaśyati. So it is our business to be very, very careful from understanding spiritual life or devotional life from nondevotee class of men. Nondevotee means one who does not accept Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is nondevotee. Kṛṣṇa abhakta āra. Caitanya Mahāprabhu was asked by His one devotee, gṛhastha devotee, that "What is the primary function of a devotee?" So Caitanya Mahāprabhu said in two lines: asat-saṅga-tyāga, ei vaiṣṇava-ācāra (CC Madhya 22.87). Asat. Asat means those who are nondevotees. They are asat. They are asat. Why asat? Because they will remain in this material world. Therefore they are asat. And those who will go to the spiritual, who will be promoted to the spiritual world, back to home, back to Godhead, they are sat, oṁ tat sat, because they are being promoted to the eternal kingdom. That is sat. This is the distinction between asat and sat. Those who will perpetually remain within this material world, they are called asat. The karmīs, jñānīs, and yogis. Yogis, they... Just like... What is that big yogis? That ṛṣi, great ṛṣi?
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is at least trying to give the people what is the aim of life, how he can be happy, how he can regain his eternal position of blissful life. These are the things. And they are authorized. What we are presenting, that is nothing manufactured by concoction of the brain. No. It is all authorized, all authorized. So if we take advantage of this movement, then we become happy, we become in the perfect knowledge, blissful life, even in this life, and next life you go back to home, back to Godhead.
So these, one after an..., change, one body after another, that is going on simply... Similarly, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ, after this body is finished, I must get another body. So I am transformed to one body to another by mind, intelligence and ego. That has to be trained, mind. If you train up your mind where to go... We decide even in this life. We first of all decide in the mind, "Where I shall go?" We purchase ticket. We make arrangement. Similarly, the mind should be trained up how to go back to home, back to Godhead. This is called bhajana-sādhana, to train up the mind. If the mind becomes disturbed at the time of death, then... Even Bharata Mahārāja, such an exalted person, he became very much affectionate with a deer calf, and he had to take birth as a deer. Such an exalted person, so much advanced in spiritual life, but at the time... Yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvam (BG 8.6). He was absorbed in the thought of the small deer whom he loved very much, so he had to take the body of a deer.
So the yoga system is meant for that purpose, that you practice yoga, and when you are mature, you can select an auspicious time and transfer yourself to certain planet, as you like. Yānti deva-vratā devān (BG 9.25). If you want to go to the demigod's planet, so you can transfer there. And if you want to transfer yourself to Kṛṣṇaloka—mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām—that is the best way. Because here, even if you transfer yourself to the Brahmaloka, the topmost planet, where duration of life is millions and millions of years... You can transfer in that planet, but that is not very good bargain. Kṛṣṇa says, ābrahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino 'rjuna: (BG 8.16) "Even if you transfer yourself to the Brahmaloka, where the duration of life is very, very long, still, you have to come back again." Kṣīṇe puṇye punaḥ martya-lokaṁ viśanti. So long your pious balance is there, you can stay there. But after that, you have to come back again in this material world. So śāstra says, "So if you have to prepare yourself, then why don't you prepare for going back to home, back to Godhead?" Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). Kṛṣṇa says, "If you go to the spiritual planet, Vaikuṇṭhaloka or Goloka Vṛndāvana, then you haven't got to return. That is eternal."
Saṁsiddhim, that is the highest perfection, paramam. Therefore we should try, we should endeavor, for that purpose, how to go back to home, back to Godhead.
So simply you have to train your mind. Man-manā bhava..., this, the prescription. Mām evaiṣyasi asaṁśaya. Kṛṣṇa says that "You, this practice," mām evaiṣyasi, "you will come to Me." Asaṁśaya. Kṛṣṇa says, "There is no doubt about it." So why don't you do that? Train your mind, always Kṛṣṇa conscious, and the method is simple. You do not require much education or university degree—nothing of the sort. Simply man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ: you just become devotee of Kṛṣṇa and always think of Him. Where is the difficulty? You can walk on the street and remember Kṛṣṇa. Is there any tax? No, the government will not ask you for any income tax, sales tax, that "You are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa." They may do so.
They see only the spirit soul, part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Their sympathy is for the spirit soul, that "Here is a spirit soul, and he is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. He is now bound up by this material bondage. Let me try to rescue him." Prahlāda Mahārāja said, śoce tato vimukha-cetasa, māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43). They have become foolish. They are thinking that in material bondage he will be happy. That is not possible. Therefore Vaiṣṇavas like Prahlāda Mahārāja and his followers, they very seriously think of these fallen conditioned souls and try to rescue them, and in this Kali-yuga it is very easy. As I have already explained, kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ: "In this Kali-yuga it is a ocean of fault. So many faults are there, one after another, one after another. But there is one benefit," doṣa-nidhe asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ, "very great quality." What is that? Now, kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet: "He hasn't got to do anything else. If he simply chants the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra," kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya (SB 12.3.51), "then he becomes free from this material bondage and goes back to home, back to Godhead."
So ultimate profit of life is to go back to home, back to Godhead. Because we are suffering on account of separation from God. This is our cause of suffering. Instead of becoming servant of God we have become the servant of senses. That is the cause of our suffering. Therefore three things, if we can understand thoroughly, that Kṛṣṇa, or God, is the proprietor and enjoyer of the whole universe or creation and... Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). He is the proprietor of all universal planets, and suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānām, and He is the real friend of everyone. Jñātvā, "One who knows," Kṛṣṇa says, mām, "Me, then he gets śānti." Otherwise, there cannot be any śānti. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta also it is confirmed that
kṛṣṇa-bhakta—niṣkāma, ataeva 'śānta'
- bhukti-mukti-siddhi-kāmī—sakali 'aśānta'
- (CC Madhya 19.149)
Kṛṣṇa-bhakta, one who is fully Kṛṣṇa conscious, he is śānta. He is fully confident. Kṛṣṇa consciousness or God consciousness, he is fully confident that "Kṛṣṇa, I have surrendered to Kṛṣṇa. I have taken shelter of Kṛṣṇa, and He has promised, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (BG 18.66). Then where is the cause of my anxiety?" Therefore he can become... He has understood Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality, almighty, all-powerful, full of all opulences. "So if he has taken my charge, then where is my anxiety?" That is śānti. That is śānti.
It was spoken by Yamarāja to the servants who went to take Ajāmila to hellish condition of life and he was saved by the Viṣṇudūta. Because at the end of his life he chanted "Nārāyaṇa." Actually, Nārāyaṇa was his youngest son, and he was very much attached to the little boy. So when Yamadūta in ferocious feature came to take him, he became too much afraid, and because he was accustomed to his son, Nārāyaṇa, so out of fear he chanted very loudly, "Nārāyaṇa, please come. Who are these men?" So simply by chanting "Nārāyaṇa," immediately from Vaikuṇṭha the servants of Nārāyaṇa came, and they saved him from the hands of Yamadūta. That will be explained in the Sixth Canto how simply by chanting the name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead at the end of life, ante nārāyaṇa smṛtiḥ (SB 2.1.6), that is the perfection of life. If at the end of life you can remember Nārāyaṇa, then life is successful. You go back to home, back to Godhead.
The first step is given there, that sva-dharmācaraṇam. Sva-dharmācaraṇaṁ śaktyā. As far as possible, be situated in your natural life. Natural life means there are three modes of material nature. So somebody is affected or infected by some modes of material nature—sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa. So the śāstra has made the path so clear that in either of these infection, either sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, you can make progress spiritual life. Because we must be in either of these. Just like a train is going on: there is first class, second class, third class. So because the train is going, either you place yourself in the first-class compartment or second class, you will go. You will go. It is not that because you are situated in the third-class compartment the your train is not going. No, you can go. Similarly, Bhagavad-gītā has taught that one can go back to home, back to Godhead, in any position, provided he knows how to tackle the situation.
So we are prakṛti. Prakṛti puruṣa. So Kṛṣṇa is the puruṣa. He is the protector of all living entities. Yesterday, bhṛtyānugraha-kātaram. Just like a father is always anxious to see his children are well protected, similarly, Kṛṣṇa is also always anxious to give protection to His subordinates. But if the subordinate denounce Kṛṣṇa, "I don't want Your protection," then suffer your karma. That you are doing. Those who are in the material world, they are suffering. Why? They have given up the protection of Kṛṣṇa. They are thinking that "We can protect ourself. What is the use of Kṛṣṇa?" So this is called dharmasya glāniḥ. This is deviation from the natural way of life, when you give up the protection. So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is: again go back to that protection, go back to home, back to Godhead.
So if remaining little balance of our pious activities, instead of going anywhere, let us take birth in India." They desire like that. Just like Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says, janmāobi more iccha yadi tora kīṭa-janma ha-u..., dāsa tuara, like that. He is praying, "My Lord, I do not know whether I am sufficiently fit to go back to home, to back to Godhead, but my only prayer is that if You think that I have to take birth again, so kindly give me this opportunity that I may take birth in a place..." Kīṭa janma hau yathā dāsa tuyā: "Let me become an insignificant ant in the house of a devotee. If I am going to take birth at all, so give me this concession, that let me take birth as an ant even in the house of a devotee." So Bhāratvarṣa, the devatās, the demigods, they desire to take birth in India because here is the opportunity. Still, so much broken, you will find, you have seen, that when we hold this Hare Kṛṣṇa festival, twenty thousand, fifty thousand men come automatically. You will find never in any other country. Still in India you will find that. Why? Because they have taken birth in India the facility is there. So it is very unfortunate that Indians are trying to forget Kṛṣṇa. Very unfortunate. Kṛpaṇa. If you have got money, if you don't utilize is properly, that is your misfortune. Similarly, in India, those who have taken birth, they have got the opportunity. Bhagavad-gītā was spoken in India, but they are reluctant. They're reluctant. This is their misfortune.
So those who have no information of the spiritual world, they stick to this material world as everything is here. But those who have got knowledge, mahātmā, whose ātmā is very great, who can understand the greatness of God and His great knowledge and take knowledge from Him, he is perfect. So here is the knowledge. Everything is there. He is giving... We... Not that back to home, back to Godhead, is our imagination. No, not imagination. Just like if somebody gives you information of America, that "America is very rich city. There are so many big, big bridges and road and motor cars." So naturally you become inclined: "Why not see once America, how it is?" So similarly, here is the information about the spiritual world, and why don't you try to go back to home, back to Godhead?
So because we are trying by Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we are trying to approach Kṛṣṇa... Just like if you want to approach the sun, the same example can be given. Everything is there in the nature. If you study minutely, you become learned philosopher. But if we want to enter the sun planet, then you must equip yourself. Just like you are trying to go to the moon planet by artificially dressing, but still, you cannot stay there more than a few hours—if we suppose that somebody has gone there. So this is the position. If you want to enter into the sun planet also... That is also a planet. That is also possible. If it is possible to enter into the moon planet, then it is also possible to enter into the sun planet. Why not? And there are living entities. We get information from Vedic literature. But you have to raise your temperature so that you can exist there. Similarly, God is Supreme Pure. If you want to go back home, back to home, back to Godhead, then you have to become pure, without any contamination of this material world.
I was a child, you were a child, everyone, but that child body is no more existing. I am existing in a different body, and I have to pass through many different bodies. So this is also dehāntara-prāptiḥ, changing the body. So similarly after death we shall change the body. Dehāntara-prāptiḥ means to accept another body. Now as I have already said, there are 8,400,000 forms of bodies. So we have to accept one of them at the time of death on the basis of our mental condition. So if we are accustomed to the beastly mentality like dogs and hog, then naturally we are going to get such body. But if we practice during this life, human form of life, while we are intelligent enough, godly life, then you are going back to home, back to Godhead. It is up to us to decide whether we are going to the dogly life or Godly life, that is our choice. According to the instruction of Ṛṣabhadeva, he says that this human form of life is a chance to practice Godly life and go back to home, back to Godhead. (aside:) What is the time now?
So we are in the juncture. Now it is up to us to decide whether we are going back again to the cycle of birth and death, from one body to another, or go back to home, back to Godhead, attain eternal body, blissful life. So the path is described very distinctly, mahat-sevaṁ dvāram āhur vimuktes. If you want to get out of this entanglement, then we must associate with saintly personalities. (break) ...to go back in the cycle of birth and death, then we may associate with person who are addicted to sense gratification. So now there are description, very long description, who is saintly person, who is not saintly persons, so it will take much time.
So, nature's way will work. You cannot stop them. But because they cannot give up attachment for these material activities, they put some manifesto, that "We are not working for this. After finishing this task, then we shall take to the consideration of spiritual life." So this is called will o' the wisp. What is that, will o' the wisp? There is a fire, and the fire goes ahead, and the man follows. It is something like that. They cannot do anything. Actually, they have got attachment for these material activities, and they put forward different types of manifesto. But if one is serious about going back to home, back to Godhead... First of all, they have no such information that there is a place where God lives. They think it is all fictitious. (So) why it is fictitious? If you accept there is God, why, what is the objection to accept a place for Him? We have got our place, we have got our residential quarter, and God has provided us all these facilities, and He has no facility? He is impersonal? He has no place? Just see.
Therefore one should be anxious to give some service to the saintly persons. Mahat-sevā dvāram. If you engage yourself how to serve a saintly person, then your door for going back to Godhead will gradually become open. Mahat-sevāṁ dvāram āhur vimuktes. This human body is a junction. You can go this way or you can go that way. This way means mahat-sevā, liberation. But people do not understand what is liberation. They are so dull. They have been... Their education system is so rubbish that they do not know what is liberation. Just like cats and dogs, they do not know what is liberation. Liberation means to get out of this false conditional life. I'm thinking I'm this body, which I'm not, and therefore I'm acting on the bodily concept of life and becoming entangled more and more so that I have to accept another body, another body, another body. This is my conditional state of life, and there is so much risk to accept another body.
A nice beautiful woman or man which attracts, a nice foodstuff which attracts my tongue, rūpa, rasa, śabda, nice singing which attracts my ear... Rūpa, rasa, śabda, gandha, smelling, which attracts my nostril. Rūpa, rasa, gandha, śabda, sparśa, touching. So these are all subject matter for my enjoyment, objectives. So tamo-dvāraṁ yoṣitāṁ saṅgi-saṅgam. Those who are attached only, the general public, they are attached to all these things. They are going to cinema, they are drinking wine, they are going to restaurant for satisfaction of the tongue, clubs, and talking, so many things. So those who are attached to all these things for sense gratification, if we associate with such persons, then our door for going to hell is open. Two doors. You have to make selection. Whether this door for becoming liberated from this entanglement of repetition of birth and death and go back to home, back to Godhead, this is one door. Another door, for sense gratification. Adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisram (SB 7.5.30). The more we indulge in sense gratification, then more, more, more... Just like a drunkard. From the very beginning he's not a big drunkard. He takes little, then big, big bottles, big, big bottles. It is simply... Smoking, when the child learns from bad association to smoke, then he become a chain smoker, one after another, one after another, one after another.
Prabhupāda: Because it is Kṛṣṇa's movement. He is the topmost. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7). Kṛṣṇa says, "There is no more superior truth than Me." Therefore Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the supreme truth. There is no more superior truth than Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Acyutānanda: "When a person dies, his soul will take another body? Then why is the population today increasing?"
Prabhupāda: Because they are blocked-up, bottle-necked. They are not going back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore it is crowded. (laughter)
Acyutānanda: "Why does Kṛṣṇa allow us to commit mistakes and later punishes us?"
Prabhupāda: That is His mercy. You want to do something bad, Kṛṣṇa says, "Don't do it," but if you want to do it at your risk, Kṛṣṇa allows, "All right, do it, and suffer yourself." Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). He does not say anything. But if you want to do something else, do it at your risk. That's all right. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. (end)
You may not be, but others are. They do not like to be old man and suffer the old man's position. (break) He says that,
- māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya
- ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ
- striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās
- te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatiṁ
- (BG 9.32)
Striya means woman. So there is no restriction for going back to home, back to Godhead, for anyone, and what to speak of man, woman, anyone. If he wants to go back, there is no restriction. Te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ. This is the difference. For God there is no discrimination. Women, men have equal rights to become godly and back to home, back to Godhead.
So here, it is suggested that in this human form of life, you have got two choices. Either you again go to hell or you go back to home, back to Godhead. Two choices, that in, by evolutionary process, you come to the human form of life after going through eight million forms of lower-grade life. Then you come to this human form of life, when your consciousness is developed. You are not exactly like animals. The animal propensities are there, but it is decent. Because you have got good, advanced consciousness. The animals eat; we also eat. But our eating process is more decent than the animals. We have got nice kitchen. We can prepare varieties of foodstuff by mixing so many eatables. Because we have got intelligence, we can do. The animals cannot do. So similarly, sleeping. There are animals. There are animals. They also sleep. We also sleep, but our apartment is very nice, we have got nice bed—in a improved way.
Very good result. He is lamenting, that He doesn't want this good result that everyone will become Kṛṣṇa consciousness? Eh? There is a story in this connection, that there was a haṭṭa, a fair or market. So many people came there, and one old lady began to cry. "Where shall I give them place? So many people have come here." She began to cry. Then her son said, "My mother, see in the evening. You don't worry about giving them place." So in the evening she saw everyone has gone. Similarly, in due course of nature's activities, prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27), everything will go nicely. You haven't got to be worried. You better be worried how to develop your Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Other things will go on. And what is the harm there? If all people become Kṛṣṇa conscious, and go back to home, back to Godhead, what is the harm there? Do you mean to say, to remain here in this material existence and suffer three-fold miseries, is that very good business? That will not happen. Don't be worried. Kṛṣṇa Consciousness is not so cheap. Only a few fortunate people will take it. Others will remain. Don't worry. (laughter)
So the recommendation is that if you want to go back home, back to Godhead, divyam, so you have to practice austerities, penance. That austerity and penance is according to the age, deśa, kāla, patra. Not that... Just like in the common law also, if a grown-up man commits some theft, he is punished more. And if a child or a boy commits theft, he is not so much punished. So there is consideration of deśa kāla patra. In the Kali-yuga people cannot undergo very severe austerities. That is impossible for them, because mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ (SB 1.1.10). They are already very much suppressed and suffering because they are all unfortunate, manda-bhāgyā. Mostly people, they have no provision for eating either today or tomorrow. Manda-bhāgyā. There is no sufficient grains.
So anyway, mahāntas, these are the symptoms. Sama-cittāḥ: they have no such thing, "Oh, here is Hindu, here is Muslim, here is rich man, here is poor man." No. He's kind to everyone. That is godly qualification. Kṛṣṇa says, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Sama-cittāḥ. This is explanation. Anyone who takes shelter of Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet, he is te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim. He's eligible to go back home, back to Godhead. So Kṛṣṇa gives this liberty, open to everyone. Now who will act it? Who will induce people, even though he's born in low-grade family... Māṁ hi pārtha..., ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yoni. Pāpa-yoni means one who is born in pāpa-yoni, in low-grade family. They say caṇḍāla yavana mleccha in the, there... But Kṛṣṇa is giving liberty to everyone. Ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ. Ye 'nye ca pāpa, Śukadeva Gosvāmī said. Then who will do it? You are a big sādhu, very learned sādhu, and if you sit down, "No, no. I shall not go out of India. As soon as I cross the sea, immediately I'll become fallen." Then who will do this business? Kṛṣṇa wants that te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim, ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ. Then who will deliver these pāpa-yoni? If "I am a big sannyāsī and big devotee, I do not go out side Vṛndāvana, I do not go outside India. I am jagat-guru..." "Have you seen jagat?" "No. I'm self-made jagat-guru." This is going on. Cheating. This cheating is going on. What is mahātmā they do not know; still, they are posing themselves mahātmā. Mahātmāji he (Hindi).
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is very easy. If it cannot be introduced, I mean to say, in large scale, collectively, individually anyone can learn and take the Vedic wisdom. Anyone, even a child. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakta. And what is the result? The result is mām evaiṣyasi asaṁśayaḥ (BG 18.68). Anyone who is doing this, asaṁśaya, "Without any doubt, you are coming to Me." That is the aim of life, how to go back to home, back to Godhead. Not to join here in the dog's race. That is not aim of life. It will not make me happy, anyone happy.
So if you do not take Kṛṣṇa consciousness seriously in this human form of life, then you must know that you are drinking poison knowingly. Don't neglect it. Try to understand. It is based on science, philosophy, śāstra, knowledge. It is not a blind faith. And we are prepared to answer you in any way. The method is very simple; even a child can take advantage of it. Not that we are manufacturing. It is sanctioned in the śāstra. Kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṇaḥ. This is the statement by Śukadeva Gosvāmī to Mahārāja Parīkṣit. He describes the faults of this Kali-yuga. It is just like the ocean. Kaler doṣa-nidhe rājann hy asti eka mahān... But there is one very great advantage. He said What is that? Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṇasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet (SB 12.3.51). If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, then you become free from all contamination and go back to home, back to Godhead.
So it doesn't matter whether one is rich, one is poor, the material condition, both of them will have to suffer. The material condition. So karmātmakam. If you continue to absorb your mind in fruitive activities, that "I shall work and I shall get the result and I shall enjoy," this is called karmātmakam. So if you do not fulfill your desire, then nature will give you next life another body to fulfill that desire. This is going on. So therefore it is parābhava. Your business is that to know that you are not this body, you are spirit soul, part and parcel of God, Kṛṣṇa. So your real business is to become Kṛṣṇa conscious fully and go back to home, back to Godhead, finish this business of repetition of birth and death. But who will understand this? Therefore it is said, kṛṣṇa yei bhaje, sei baḍa catura. One who has understood what is the meaning of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, he must be very intelligent man. Without being intelligent man, nobody can understand what is the purport, what is the basic principle of this movement. The basic principle of this movement is to understand Kṛṣṇa. Janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ (BG 4.9). And the result will be, if you understand Kṛṣṇa, what is Kṛṣṇa, then the result will be that after giving up this body, you go to Kṛṣṇa.
This devotional service, the worshiping Kṛṣṇa in the temple, to dress Him, as I explained another... Śrī-vigrahārādhana-nitya-nānā-śṛṅgāra-tan-mandira-mārjanādau **, all these occupational duties will help you to understand Kṛṣṇa. Although it is very difficult to understand Kṛṣṇa, but if you engage yourself in Kṛṣṇa's service, then Kṛṣṇa reveals to you what He is. And that is wanted. That is the perfection of your life. As soon as you understand Kṛṣṇa, then you become fit to go back to home, back to Godhead, and finish this business of repeated birth and death. Mām upetya kaunteya duḥkhālayam aśāśvataṁ nāpnuvanti (BG 8.15). This secret of success, people do not know, neither they can understand. They are not fortunate enough. But it is our duty to push on this movement by superior order. Anyone who will take advantage of this movement, he'll be saved from this repetition, birth and death.
So without consulting śāstra, without consulting guru, without consulting Kṛṣṇa... Kṛṣṇa is so kind, He has given. He has come to help you because you are being misled by the so-called leaders. Kṛṣṇa says, yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati (BG 4.7). These rascals, these leaders, they will simply mislead you. Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās (SB 7.5.31). They are blind. They do not know how to live. They do not know. Therefore Kṛṣṇa personally comes: "All right. I shall lead you. Take My advice, take My instruction, and ultimately surrender unto Me. Then I'll lead you back to home, back to Godhead."
So bhakta means there must be Bhagavān. Sevya, sevaka, and sevā. Sevya sevaka sevā, three things. Sevya means who is to be served, the master, sevya. And sevaka means the servant. If there is master and servant then there is sevā. This sevā is called bhakti. So, here mano-hṛdaya-granthir asya karmānubaddho dṛḍha āślatheta. When he decides no more these things. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho 'yam. When we understand that I am becoming more and more implicated, puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etam (SB 5.5.8), by this sex desire I am becoming more and more implicated. This implication is engaging me more and more in karma, karmānubaddha. When we understand this, and try to get free from this business, then we become eligible for going back home back to Godhead. Tadā janaḥ samparivartate 'smād. Samparivartate, returns to his original position, asmāt. And when he turns back towards back home, back to Godhead, then he is mukta. That is liberation.
Pradyumna: "If one is serious about going back to home, back to Godhead, he must consider the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead the summum bonum and chief aim of life. If he is a father instructing his sons, a spiritual master instructing his disciples, or a king instructing his citizens, he must instruct them as I have advised. Without being angry, he should continue giving instructions, even if his disciple, son or citizen is sometimes unable to follow his order. Ignorant people who engage in pious and impious activities should be engaged in devotional service by all means. They should always avoid fruitive activity. If one puts into the bondage of karmic activity his disciple, son or citizen who is bereft of transcendental vision, how will one profit? It is like leading a blind man to a dark well and causing him to fall in."
Prabhupāda:
- putrāṁś ca śiṣyāṁś ca nṛpo gurur vā
- mal-loka-kāmo mad-anugrahārthaḥ
- itthaṁ vimanyur anuśiṣyād ataj-jñān
- na yojayet karmasu karma-mūḍhān
- kaṁ yogayan manujo 'rthaṁ labheta
- nipātayan naṣṭa-dṛśaṁ hi garte
- (SB 5.5.15)
So there are two kinds of ruler or controller. One is the government, and the other is the teacher. Or guru means spiritual master. Spiritual master can control. The disciples obey the order of the spiritual master out of love. Guror-hitam. This is brahmacārī. Brahmacārī guru-gṛhe vasan dānto guror hitam. What guru wants, the brahmacārī has to do, not for his hitam. Just like Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa: śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ prapannam (BG 2.7). So Arjuna, for his personal benefit he did not want to fight, but for Kṛṣṇa's sahitam, hitam, for benefit of Kṛṣṇa, he fought. This is the example. He did not like to kill his kinsmen for his hitam. "Oh, if I kill my kinsmen I'll go to hell, I'll be responsible, this, that..." So many arguments he put forward. That means he was considering his hitam, not Kṛṣṇa's hitam. But Kṛṣṇa wanted that fight, and when Arjuna agreed, "No, no more my hitam. Your hitam," oh, that is wanted. That is wanted. Guror-hitam.
So the aim of life is to go back home, back to Godhead. And we do not know what is the aim of life, why we are suffering. Ke āmi', 'kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya'. This was the question of Sanātana Gosvāmī. But people have become so animalistic, they cannot understand that they are suffering. They cannot un... The brain has become so dull, rascal, that they do not understand even that they are suffering. The suffering, tri-tāpa-yantraṇā... Now, just like this fan. We don't require it now. Now running of the fan is suffering. But in the summer season it is required. It is pleasing. That means either in the summer or in the winter we are always suffering, this way or that way. The same water, it is pleasing during summer and it is suffering during winter. The water is the same, but it is sometimes suffering, sometimes pleasing. So these things will go on. You cannot stop. That means suffering will go on. You cannot stop it. Mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ (BG 2.14).
The whole purpose is therefore how to get out of this suffering. Vindate tāpān mūḍha. So the aim of life is how to stop this suffering. The guru or the government should rule over the dependents with this point, with this aim in view. Mal-loka-kāmo mad-anugrahārthaḥ. These two things required: how to get the pleasure or the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and how to go back home, back to Godhead. This is the aim, not that we are making plan to be happy. Unless we go back home, back to Godhead, there is no question of peace or happiness. This place... We are trying to be happy within this material world by material adjustment. That is not possible. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). Ābrahma-bhuvanāl lokān punar āvartino 'rjuna. These things they do not... They say it is brainwash, brainwash. We are enforcing something by controlling the mind, some ideas, "There is God, and we have to go to back home, back to Godhead." They are accusing us of brainwash, "mental control." But this is the fact. We are not brainwashing; we are clearing the brain. The rascal brain is full with cow dung. We are clearing. You see? That is our movement. But these rascals are understanding that we are enforcing some idea. What to speak of others, even in our country they do not believe that there is God. Nowadays, not formerly. We have become so rascal: "There is no God," "There is no...," "These are all," what is called, "mythology." "These are mythology ideas—there is God and there is sin, there is pious activities." Big, big sannyāsīs, they are asking that "Don't care for all this, 'There is God, there is sinful, there is pious.' You can do whatever you like because you are yourself God. This is... There is no pāpa-puṇya. You are immune from pāpa-puṇya because you are God."
So to become fit for going back to home, back to Godhead, it is not so easy. It is not so easily... We have to make our material life almost zero. Not almost zero—practically zero. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). That is wanted, practice. Therefore this, our Kṛṣṇa consciousness center, is meant for practicing this śamo damo titikṣa. Therefore we want to see how far he is eligible to practice the śamo damo titikṣa. So some new boy come, and as soon as they are given some work, not very good for sense gratification, they go away. That means they are not prepared. It is better they may go away. In Bengal it is said, dusta gorute sunya goaloa(?): "If there is troublesome cows, better keep the cowshed zero, without cow. Don't allow." So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for elevating the animal class of men to the platform of brāhmaṇa. Therefore the sacred thread ceremony is given as second initiation, that "He has practiced now śamo damo titikṣa ārjava, and he has learned what is Kṛṣṇa, what he is, what is his relationship with Kṛṣṇa, now how to act for satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa." These are brahminical qualification. If one is elevated to this platform This platform is called sattva-guṇa. Sattva-guṇa.
Our, this temple worship... Mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru. And "Always think of Me." This class, this kīrtana, this prasāda distribution and offering obeisances, worshiping, so many—śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam (SB 7.5.23)—take any one of them or all of them. Be perfect in that particular process. Try to become, at least. Kṛṣṇa will help you. Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam (BG 10.10). If you try your best, Kṛṣṇa will give you strength. Kṛṣṇa is always ready to help you, provided you want to take his help. He is ready. He has come to help you. Otherwise what is the use of Kṛṣṇa's coming here and canvassing, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam (BG 18.66)? That is for our interest. You surrender to Kṛṣṇa or not surrender, it doesn't matter to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa does not depend on your service. He is completely perfect. He can create millions of servants like you in a moment. So why does He require your service? Why He should canvass for your service? His service is not suffering for want of you. But it is your interest to surrender to Him. It is your interest. This Kṛṣṇa wants to see, that you surrender to Him and become perfect and go back to home, back to Godhead. That is Kṛṣṇa's mission.
Therefore tā'ra madhye jihvā ati. Simply for the tongue we are committing so much sinful activities and becoming implicated because implication means there is no God consciousness, no Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Two things are there: one is God, and one is the repetition of birth and death. There is no third way. Either you take God... This chance... This is a chance. This human form of life is a chance. Either you go back to home, back to Godhead, or go to hell. I think Christians also, they say. Two things are there. And in our śāstra, Kṛṣṇa says, Bhagavad-gītā, mām aprāpya nivartante mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani (BG 9.3). Two things are there. Either go this way or that way. Either go to hell or go to heaven. This is the general, yes. Asat-saṅga-tyaga,-ei vaiṣṇava-ācāra (CC Madhya 22.87).
So if you are serious about going back to home, back to Godhead, we must be educated how to control the senses, how to control the senses. Therefore while eating, we are reminded that this eating is... If you do not take it as prasādam, then eating is sense enjoyment.
Sometimes bhakti is observed as similar to the activities of the karmīs, but there is difference. One is bhakti, one is going back to home, back to Godhead; and the other is going forward to the hellish condition of life by the same activities. This is the technique. How it is possible? It is possible. By practical example, it is said in the śāstras... Just like if you take more quantity of milk preparation, you get diarrhea. But the same milk preparation, yogurt, is there. It will stop diarrhea. Both of them are milk preparation. One has created the disease diarrhea, and another is stopping diarrhea. So why? Cikirsitam. One is by medical process and the other is without any medical process. The medical process is to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. Here the building is being constructed to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. To satisfy Kṛṣṇa. And in other places the building is constructed to satisfy senses. This is the difference, material and spiritual.
That we see at night, many, many. But spiritual process is so made... Kṛṣṇa says, mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). Māyā, the material nature, is very, very strict, but if one becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious, fully surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, he surpasses the laws of material nature. That is possible. Māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). How? Just like we are trying to go to this planet or that planet, but we have been unsuccessful. But if you become Kṛṣṇa conscious, then immediately after death you immediately go to the Kṛṣṇa planet, immediately. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). So we Kṛṣṇa conscious people, we believe in the statement of Kṛṣṇa and act accordingly. So we have no difficulty, because we are under the direction of Kṛṣṇa. So we are assured, if we actually act according to the instruction of Kṛṣṇa, then we are sure to go back to Kṛṣṇa, back to Godhead, without any difficulty.
Yes, because you are foolish. Kṛṣṇa, God, is coming to you to take you back to home, back to Godhead. If you reject, that is your foolishness. Mūḍha. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhaḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). One who does not surrender to Kṛṣṇa, or God—when we speak of Kṛṣṇa, it is God—then what class of man he is? That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā. Duṣkṛtinaḥ, mūḍhaḥ, narādhamāḥ, māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ, āsuri bhāvam āśr... Immediately you come to these categories. What is that? Duṣkṛtinaḥ, most sinful. Unless you are most sinful, you cannot reject Kṛṣṇa's offer. Or unless you are rascal number one, you cannot reject Kṛṣṇa's offer. Duṣkṛtino mūḍhaḥ. So as soon as you reject Kṛṣṇa's offer, that means you are most sinful, you are rascal number one, you are lowest of the mankind, and your knowledge has been taken by māyā. That's all. Thank you very much. (end)
We are eternal, we are simply changing the body, one body to another. In this way, material life means you can live for one minute or one hour or hundred years or millions of years. You get a particular type of body, and according to that body, you live. And therefore you have to die. Kṛṣṇa says that ābrahma-bhuvanāl lokān punar āvartino 'rjuna. Even if you go to the topmost planet, you can live for long, long years, but you will have to die and again come to this earthly planet and again begin your life. This is going on. So how it is going on? Pravṛtti-mārga. "I want to enjoy sense gratification." This is the basic principle. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means that back to home, back to Godhead, not to make proceed or progress towards birth, death, old age, and disease, but make progress towards no birth, no death, no old age, no disease. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is called nivṛtti-mārga. Nivṛtti-mārga. Nivṛtti means stop this type of progress.
I have seen one ad in a paper that in America there is a hospital where especially the priestly class drunkard, they are treated. (laughter) And five thousand patients are there. (laughter) So if the physician says, "No, no, you give up your drinking habit," then he will be angry. Then how he will be treated? That is the only medicine, that "You give up." It is not very difficult thing. Nobody learns drinking from the birth. Now, even one has learned drinking, now, all our students, you see practically. They are young men. They are not old men. Their senses are still strong. But they have given up. They have given up. They have given up illicit sex. They have given up intoxication. They do not take even tea, do not smoke cigarette. Neither they go to cinema, what to speak of going to other places. It is possible. But if we give up all these things, then our beginning to the nivṛtti-mārga, our progress towards back to home, back to Godhead, that is beginning.
So if we accept the process, it is not difficult. So our life should be trained up in this way, nivṛtti-mārga. Then we can make process for going back to home, back to Godhead. First of all we should understand that we are part and parcel of God. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, and actually it is fact. What is God? God means what we are doing, He is also doing, because we are part and parcel. Just like your son, your daughter. They are your part and parcel of your body. So what is the difference? They are also acting, you are also acting. Similarly, God, Kṛṣṇa, is the supreme father. So so far the activities are concerned, the same. But the difference is that God is great; we are small. That is the difference. God can create the so many planets. Just like the sun globe, it is... There are other globes also. They are bigger than sun. Anyway, the sun is very big. So God has created this big globe, means fourteen hundred thousand times bigger than this earth—or even this earth—floating in the air. You can float a big 747 airplane also floating in the air, but you cannot make a globe like sun and floating in the air.
Madhudvīṣa: His question was "Is there a time when the subtle body ceases to exist?"
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is liberation. When... So long you are encircled by the subtle body, there is no question of liberation because the subtle body will take you to another gross body. When we are free from the subtle body, then we are liberated. We go back to home, back to Godhead. Yes?
Devotee (2): What's the subtle body like?
Prabhupāda: I have already explained. Mind, intelligence, and ego—this is subtle body. Everyone has got his mind, everyone knows. But we cannot see. The intelligence... Everyone has got intelligence, but we cannot see. Similarly, subtle body is invisible. Ghost means when the living entity remains in the subtle body, do not get another gross body—they are very sinful—they create disturbance. But we cannot see. That is ghost. Ghost means that those who are too much sinful, they do not get this gross body. They are punished with the position, to remain in the subtle body, at least for some time. That is ghostly life. Therefore you will see, ghostly-haunted places, something is being done, but how it is being done, you do not see because you cannot see the subtle body. But you will see something is being carried in the air. It is not something being carried. It is being carried by the subtle body. But I have no eyes to see the subtle body. That is practical. I do not see your mind, but you have got your mind. You do not see my mind. You can see my mind by the action. That's all. The subtle body is there. Gross body, subtle body. Death means finishing of this gross body, and liberation means no more association with the subtle body, only spiritual. That is called liberation.
Madhudvīṣa: ...reach Godhead in the end, why do we have to speed up the process? Why not we just let things take their natural course of events if everyone's going back to Godhead ultimately?
Prabhupāda: Hmm. That is a good suggestion, but you rot for the time being. Suppose you are going somewhere, walking, and somebody gives you opportunity, "Come in my car," why don't you take advantage of it? You are... You will reach the destination by walking in six thousand years, (laughter) but if you get the opportunity... In your country there is good. There is staircase and there is elevator. So if you want to go, that "I shall go by the staircase and reach the upstair at the end of the day when office will be finished," (laughter) then you can do that. But if you are intelligent, you shall take the advantage of the elevator. Within a minute you go there. That is intelligence. "I am going. I shall reach at the end of the day when every office will be closed. Then I will come down again." If you see that, that you can do—not very good intelligence. That is not intelligence. We have to take the speediest process. That is intelligence. Yes?
Therefore, if you actually always remain in spiritual understanding, that means to understand Kṛṣṇa, or God. Then Kṛṣṇa says, if you have understood what is God, that makes you qualified to go back to home, back to Godhead. Janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo janati tattvataḥ (BG 4.9). If you know what is God factually, then that is your qualification to go back to home, back to Godhead. But if you do not know, then your spiritual life has not begun. You must know what is God. That is knowledge.
- bahūnāṁ janmanām ante
- jñānavān māṁ prapadyate
- vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti
- sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ
- (BG 7.19)
The spiritual life means to understand yourself and understand God and understand your relationship with God and act accordingly. That is spiritual life. It is not difficult. How to understand God? You can understand just like you understand so many things from books. So there is book, God is explaining Himself, "I am like this." So you understand Him. Then you become qualified.
Saṁsṛtiḥ means the cycle of birth and death. This is called saṁsṛtiḥ. Saṁsṛtiḥ. And asaṁsṛtiḥ means to stop the cycle of birth and death and go back to home, back to Godhead. Then, if you want to go back to home, back to Godhead, then you have to follow the nivṛtti-mārga. Pravrtti is there, my inclination is there, but if you practice nivṛtti-mārga, then you overcome the cycle of birth and death, saṁsṛtiḥ. So this human form of life is meant for nivṛtti-mārga, not to indulge the sense gratification but minimize sense gratification as far as possible. Try to make it zero. Then that is called nivṛtti-mārga. We are. We require this eating, sleeping, mating and defending. But if we try, if we practice, that is called austerity. Tapo divyaṁ putrakā yena śuddhyet sattvaḥ (SB 5.5.1). Śuddha. Śuddha means purification, existence, purifying the existence. We are eternal, we are existing, and on account of impurity, we have got this material body, and it is subjected to the laws of material nature, and we have to change one after another. This is pravṛtti-mārga. But in the human form of life if we come to senses that "Why I shall accept repetition of birth, death, old age, disease, and so many miserable conditions?" so that is called sense. That is intelligence. That intelligence can be developed in human form of life, and if we do not do, then the same example: just you use the sandalwood for burning purpose.
So try to understand Kṛṣṇa in this way. And if you actually understand Kṛṣṇa, you are liberated immediately. Janma karma ca divyaṁ me yo jānāti tattvataḥ. How Kṛṣṇa eats, how Kṛṣṇa thinks, how Kṛṣṇa works, if you understand all these things, then immediately you become liberated. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). You immediately become. The only thing is we are rotting in this material world because we do not know Kṛṣṇa. That is the... You'll not be admitted in the spiritual kingdom unless you know Kṛṣṇa, what He is. And as soon as you understand Kṛṣṇa, you are fit—"Come on." Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). And as soon as you go, yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). Everything is explained. And therefore Kṛṣṇa comes. We have got pravṛtti to enjoy this material world. Kṛṣṇa comes personally, that "This will not help you." He comes personally: "You give up this habit. You simply surrender to Me. I will take you back to home, back to Godhead." This is... Pravṛttir eṣāṁ bhūtānāṁ nivṛttes tu mahā-phalam. We are inclined to enjoy this material world, but if we stop this material enjoyment, we are fit for spiritual life. That is the philosophy.
So if one is neglectful, does not like this proposal, then what is the result? Aprāpya mām: "He'll never get Me." Aprāpya mām nivartante mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani. Then he will have to continue this process, mṛtyu-saṁsāra vartmani. He'll take birth, again die, again take birth, again die. That will continue. Mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani. So,
- pravṛtti-lakṣaṇaś caiva
- traiguṇya-viṣayo mune
- yo 'sāv alīna-prakṛter
- guṇa-sargaḥ punaḥ punaḥ
So we have to give up this habit that "I am master. I can enjoy, and I can do. I am independent." You have to give up this habit. Then you will be eligible for going back to home, back to Godhead.
So our process of knowledge—you should take from the supreme authority. Then we save time for research work. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We take perfect knowledge from Kṛṣṇa. I may be imperfect. Just like child is imperfect, so I may be imperfect, you may be imperfect, but if you take the perfect knowledge from the supreme perfect, then your knowledge is perfect. That is the process. This is called avaroha-panthā, knowledge coming, deductive knowledge. So everything is there, and if you like to take advantage of this movement and make your life perfect, go back to home, back to Godhead, then fully utilize this center, our Melbourne center. Come here, read our books, and argue. Try to understand with your full knowledge, no blindly acceptance. There is reason. There is argument. There is philosophy. There is science. Everything is there. And if you accept that "Simply by chanting, I shall realize," that is also allowed. Both ways: if you accept this simple process, that "Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and realize God," that is also fact, and if you think, "What is this nonsense, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa?" then you read books. Both ways we are prepared. Come and take advantage of this movement.
But if you remain eternally in the instruction... And if you fall from the instruction, how you can remain eternal? You have to stay on the platform. Then eternally you are safe. If you fall down from the platform, then it is your fault. Just like we are all in the Vaikuṇṭha planet. Now, we wanted to enjoy this material world. We have fallen down, just like Jaya-Vijaya. Now we are trying to go back again. Therefore we say, "Go back to home, back to Godhead." So everything is... There is process. If you follow the process, then you go back. If you fall down, that is our fault. Therefore the life is meant for tapasya, that Ṛṣabhadeva's instruction, that our life should not be wasted like dogs and hogs and pigs. It should be utilized for tapasya, for understanding our position. Tapo putrakā yena śuddhyed sattva. This is the aim of life. We have to purify our existence. At the present moment our existence is impurified. Therefore we are subjected to birth, death, old age, and disease. And as soon as we purify ourself, then we are not subjected to these four material laws. Thank you very much. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (end)
"Anyone who does not follow the instruction of the śāstras and live whimsically as very free to act, such person never gets perfection of life, no happiness, and what to speak of going back to home, back to Godhead." Especially in India, who are born as Indians, they have got a special facility to get this transcendental knowledge from śāstras. Caitanya Mahāprabhu advised or ordered to every Indian that "You make your life perfect by going through the śāstras and distribute this knowledge throughout the whole world for welfare activities." The exact words in Bengali is like this,
- bhārata bhūmite manuṣya-janma haila yāra
- janma sārthaka kari' kara para-upakāra
- (CC Adi 9.41)
Means anyone who has taken birth in this holy land of Bhāratavarṣa must make his life successful by going through the śāstras and distribute the knowledge throughout the whole world. Therefore I am appealing to my Indian brothers to take up this missionary work as ordered by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, especially my appeal is to the people of South India.
So if you want to maintain yourself within this Bhurloka... There are above this Bhūrloka, Bhuvarloka, Janaloka, Tapoloka, Maharloka. There are so many planetary system. And down also, Tala, Atala, Vitala, Pātāla, Talātala, like that. If you want to go down, you can go down. If you want to go up, you can go. Ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva... Everything is there; you can do that. Ordinary, anyone can understand that in the human society if you want to become high-court judge, you can become. And if you want to become a criminal in the prisonhouse, you can become. Everything is open. Not that government says that you become a criminal and he prefers somebody, "You become a high-court..." No. Everything is in your hand. If you like, you can become so. Similarly, if you like, you can go back to home, back to Godhead. That is perfection of life. And if you don't like, then remain here.
Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, aprāpya māṁ nivartante mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani (BG 9.3). Kṛṣṇa has come to you to give you nice instruction how you can go back to home, back to Godhead. Back to home, back to Godhead. That is Kṛṣṇa's mission. Paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtam (BG 4.8). He comes Himself, Kṛṣṇa, and He comes as Caitanya Mahāprabhu, as devotee of Kṛṣṇa. Caitanya Mahāprabhu is Kṛṣṇa, but because people misunderstood that Kṛṣṇa is asking sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja... (BG 18.66). These rascals thought that "It is too much. Why I shall surrender to Kṛṣṇa? I am also as good as Kṛṣṇa. Why shall I surrender?" That is our mentality. If somebody says, good man, that "You surrender. I shall give you good instruction," "Oh, why shall I surrender to you?" That is material life. But our, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement begins when you are ready to surrender. That is beginning. Tad viddhi praṇipātena (BG 4.34). Praṇipāt means surrender. Prakṛṣṭa-rūpeṇa nipāta. "Yes, I surrender to you."
Devotee: How do you feel about self-expression, art, as a path back to Godhead?
Prabhupāda: Back to Godhead means God is a person, a person like you and me. Just like your father is a person. That is a practical knowledge. Your father's father is also a person. His father is also a person. His father is also a person. Immediately you can understand. Therefore the supreme father must be a person. It is very difficult to understand? Any one of you can say it is very difficult to understand? God is called supreme father, not only in your Bible, but in the Vedas also. In all literature. And actually He's father, because the Vedānta says the Absolute Truth is the original father, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1), from whom everything has taken birth or emanated. So the supreme father cannot be impersonal. He's a person. And in the Vedas, it is confirmed: nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). He is the supreme eternal amongst all eternals. We are all eternal, living entities, and He's the supreme eternal. And we are all living entities, cetana, life symptoms. We have got everything, all desires. So similarly the supreme father has got all desires. Our desires are born because He has got desires. Just like we like to love, young boy, young girl. They're in love. Wherefrom this idea of love comes? It comes from there, Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa. Because we are part and parcel of God, we have got all the instincts of God in minute quantity. But because here we are in this material world, material world means where God is forgotten. That is called material world. In this temple we are not in the material world.
That is called material world. In this temple we are not in the material world. We are not in New York. We are in Vaikuṇṭha. Because we have not forgotten Kṛṣṇa. Yes. That is the definition given by the Vedic literature. Transcendental. Anyone who's living within this temple... I'll give you one example. Just like if a ship comes from foreign country, that ship may be within the border of your country, or within your country—that ship is not within the law of your country. The ambassadors, the embassies, they are not within the law of USA. I give you some practical example. Similarly, anyone who is engaged in Kṛṣṇa's service, anyplace it may be, that spot is not within the material world. That is transcendentally situated. So for practical going back to Godhead, you come to our temple. That's all. You'll never forget Kṛṣṇa. You'll be engaged in the service of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore you'll live in Vaikuṇṭha or Vṛndāvana. This is the easiest process of going back to Godhead. And then, after death, surely you're going to Vaikuṇṭha or Kṛṣṇaloka. Hare Kṛṣṇa.
So people are neglecting. Any religious system—it doesn't matter—forbids, "Don't commit sinful life, you will suffer." So people have made a civilization that "There is no life, and you can go on irresponsibly, as you like, enjoy life, and never mind if I become a dog. What is the wrong there?" That's all. This kind of civilization must be stopped if we want to remain a human being. And if we don't want, if we want to remain as cats and dogs, that is a different thing. But if you want to remain as human being, you must live regulative principle. And that we are teaching. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is teaching regulative life for next spiritual life, back to home, back to Godhead. This is our mission. So regulative life means... Sinful life, if we become sinful, irresponsible, then another material body. That is the advice. Na sādhu manye yata ātmano 'yam asann api kleśada. As soon as you get another material body, it is suffering. So try to realize these things. Therefore, punar-janma-jayāya. The whole aim should be how to conquer over again material... This is intelligence. This is intelligence.
In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta you'll find this verse, anādi bahirmukha jīva kṛṣṇa bhuli gela, ataeva kṛṣṇa veda-purāṇa karilā. The purport is that our disease is that we have forgotten God. The more we are forgetful about God, the more we are animals. And the more we become advanced in understanding God, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then we are human being. And if we are more advanced, then you are devatā, demigods. And when you more make advance, then you become fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. This is the process.
So real civilization is how to go back to home, back to Godhead. But that they do not know. Na te viduḥ. The materialistic persons, they do not know. Therefore there must be organization, institution, to teach the human society how to go back to home, back to... That is real civilization. Otherwise cats and dogs, they are also eating, sleeping, mating, getting children, and dying. That is not human civilization. In the next verse we'll find that human civilization can be attained. The first thing is, thirteeth verse, tapasa, "by austerity."
The practical example is here in our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, that our students, simply by executing devotional service to Vasudeva, they have become free from so many sinful activities. That is the particular. So this should be introduced, this system, so that people at the present moment, they may become purified and make their advance in progress to the ultimate goal. The ultimate goal is back to home, back to Godhead. That is wanted. So na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). They do not know what is their self-interest, ultimate goal of... Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ. They are thinking by adjusting the external material things, they will be happy. No, that is not possible. Durāśayā. It is called durāśayā, hopeless hope. It is not possible. Dur means it will be very difficult to fulfill the āśayā, the hope, that "We shall be very happy in this world and enjoy senses without any interruption. Now let us make some United Nations' program and we will be happy." It will never be happy. Be sure.
So in the human form of life we can rectify this. This is the process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that if we rectify our constant association with different material modes of nature... And as the result of this association, we are accepting one body and again dying, and again accepting another body, again dying. This business will be stopped. Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). Somehow or other, if you become fit to go back to home, back to Godhead, yad gatvā, then you haven't got to come back again. But they do not understand that this material conditional life is always miserable. They have accepted, "It is very nice." Animals. Animals Just like in the slaughterhouse, livestock godown, there are so many animals, and they are going to be slaughtered. Everyone knows. They also know, the animals. But on account of their animal quality, they cannot do anything. Similarly, we are also put into the slaughterhouse of this material world. It is called mṛtyu-loka. Everyone knows that he will be slaughtered.
So if we keep ourself in the right way of executing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then it will be possible—even in this very life we shall be perfect. Perfection means tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). This body, this material body, we have to give up. Everyone knows. But those who are not becoming perfect, they will have to come back again to accept another body. But those who are developed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, this is the final giving up material body, go back to home, back to Godhead. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. And try to execute it very carefully, lovingly. Then your life is successful. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9).
So one who becomes fit for going to the spiritual world, Kṛṣṇaloka, Vaikuṇṭhaloka, where is the question of his sinful reaction? Aghaṁ dhunvanti. No sinful man can go back to home, back to Godhead. So if one is actually, somehow or other, becomes fit for going back to home, back..., that means automatically his sinful reaction of life... One may question how it is. If a man is sinful for many, many lives, how simply by becoming Kṛṣṇa conscious he becomes free from the reaction? Yes. Kṛṣṇa says. You haven't got to take proof from anyone else.
So before we get next life, we must be free from all sinful lifes. Otherwise we are not going to have better life. Especially going back to home, back to Godhead, one has to finish the resultant action of his sinful life in this life. In the Bhagavad-gītā you will find,
- yeṣām tv anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ
- janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇāṁ
- te dvandva-moha-nirmuktā
- bhajante māṁ dṛḍha-vratāḥ
- (BG 7.28)
To become a staunch devotee of Kṛṣṇa, perfect devotee of Kṛṣṇa, means one has become freed from all reaction of sinful life. Yeṣām anta-gataṁ pāpam. No more committing any sinful activities. And whatever sinful activities he had done in his previous life, that is also negated. That is also made negation. There is no more reaction. Yeṣām tu anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. So people are engaged either in sinful activities or in pious activities.
So Kṛṣṇa says that "If you are working so hard to become happy in this material world, the same labor, if you worship Me, Kṛṣṇa, then you come to Me." Mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām. What is the benefit especially? Mām upetya kaunteya duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam nāpnuvanti: (BG 8.15) "Anyone who comes to Me, he hasn't got to come back again to this material world." So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is teaching people how to go back to home, back to Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. That will make the people happy eternally. So in this life also, Kṛṣṇa conscious people, they are not unhappy. You can see practically. We are sitting in a very nice room and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and taking prasādam. Where is unhappiness? There is no unhappiness. And other processes, they have to undergo so many unhappy processes. Here, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there is nothing unhappiness. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: susukham kartum avyayam (BG 9.2). Susukham. When you execute devotional service, it is not only sukham—sukham means happiness—but another word is added, susukham, "very comfortable, very happy." Kartum, to execute devotional service, is great pleasure, great happiness. And avyayam. Avyayam means whatever you do, that is your permanent asset. Other things, that is finishable. Suppose you are very much advanced educated person. You have passed M.A., Ph.D., and something, something. But it is not avyayam; it is vyayam. Vyayam means it is finishable. As soon as your body is finished, your so-called degrees all finished. Then again next life if you become a human being, of course again there is chance of becoming M.A., Ph.D., but the first M.A., Ph.D. in this life, that is finished.
So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is simply giving chance to people without any discrimination, "Please come. Become Nārāyaṇa-parāyaṇa, devotee, and automatically you'll become suśīla and sādhu." As soon as—that is the test—you become a devotee, nārāyaṇa-para, then automatically you become suṣīla and sādhava. And if you become well behaved and sādhava, committing no sinful activities, sādhava, and simply serving Nārāyaṇa, or Kṛṣṇa, then for our elevation or salvation, that is the panthāḥ kṣemo akuto-bhayaḥ. Akuto-bhayam. Now we are fearless. If on the devotional path, then you have no fear. Why? Now, Kṛṣṇa takes charge of you. Kṛṣṇa says, kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ pranaśyati: (BG 9.31) "Kaunteya, Arjuna, you can declare throughout the whole world that one who has become My devotee, he will never be vanquished." Kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ pranaśyati. You get immediately Kṛṣṇa's help. So if we depend completely on Kṛṣṇa, Nārāyaṇa, Nārāyaṇa-para, then automatically we become sādhu, automatically we become well behaved, and automatically we are protected. Therefore this path is the best way of advancing in our life and go back to home, back to Godhead.
So we have to understand that what is the aim of life. Aim of life is go back to home, back to Godhead. Unless we understand this, our life is in darkness. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ (SB 7.5.31). We are trying to be happy in this place of miserable condition, manufacturing so many ways of life. In the modern age they are thinking that "If we have got a very nice car and nice residential quarter and nice wife..." Oh, people also do not care now for wife and children. They want car, of course. (laughter) That is essential, although at any moment he can meet accident and finish. So this is not the aim of life. The aim of life is described that how to go back to home, back to Godhead. That should be. So if that is our aim of life, then we must engage ourself in devotional service, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then our life is successful. Otherwise we shall continue and drag the miserable condition of life, means we shall change in different ways, but it will never be successful.
So we have forgotten. There is no education. So anyway, nature gives us the chance. So either you take the Biblical truth or Vedic truth... So this is... The human form is given to us. Now you make your choice: whether you are going to hell or you are going to heaven. That's a fact. If you want, you can go to back to home, back to Godhead, or if you want to remain in this material world and go under the rules and regulation of birth and death, then make your choice. That is also explained in the Bhagavad-gītā.
- yānti deva-vratā devān
- pitṛn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ
- bhūtejyā yānti bhūtāni
- mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām
- (BG 9.25)
So generally the karmīs, they want happiness in this life, and if he is intelligent enough, if he believes in the next life, then he makes some provision for next life. Next life is there. Only the rascals, they cannot understand. It is very simple. Next life is there. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). There is no doubt about it. So next life you can prepare in this life, where you want to go. If you go, want to go to the higher planetary systems, you can go. Yānti deva-vratā devān pitṛn yānti... (BG 9.25).
It takes you to another body. The subtle body with the semina of the father, it is injected in the mother's womb, and then again you will develop another body. This is the process of transmigration. So this body, how you'll be transferred to another body, that will be judged by the Yamarāja. Daiva-netreṇa. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). By our activities we shall be judged. Those who are criminal, they will be judged, not that everyone will be judged. So, and because those who are devotees, they are... Mad-yajino 'pi yānti mām (BG 9.25). Those who have devoted their life, dedicated their life only in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they are sure. Kṛṣṇa says, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). That is sure. They are going back to home, back to Godhead. And those who are not dedicated or taken to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they are criminals. They will be taken to the Yamarāja's court, and Yamarāja will decide what kind of body. There are 8,400,000 different forms of body, and he will be given a certain type of body. This is called transmigration of the soul.
So Śukadeva Gosvāmī, therefore, he remained within the womb of his mother for sixteen years. And as soon as he got out from the mother's womb, immediately he left home. You will read in Bhāgavatam. So father was going after. After all, father, that "This boy, going out. My dear son, come back. Where you are going? Where you are going?" He didn't care. He didn't care. He went away. There are persons like that. They don't want to be attached to this material affection. Māyāra vaibhava. These are expansion of the illusory energy. That is sense. That is first-class understanding. Actually, there is no need of this material world. Just like somebody says that "If all the prisoners become free, how the prisonhouse will go on?" And is it a very good proposal? The prisonhouse, as soon as it is stopped, as soon as it is closed, that is good for the society. Why there should be prisonhouse at all? But they want to maintain the prisonhouse and very anxious, "If people all are set free, then who will fill up this prisonhouse?" They question that, that "If all people go to back to home, back to Godhead, then how this world will go on?" (laughter) That is their anxiety. But we say the sooner you close this business and all of you go back to home, back to Godhead, then everything is very nice.
So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is that why we shall accept this material body, which is limited? Maybe one hundred years or one thousand years or one hundred second or millions of... The our advice is that take, revive your original, permanent life, eternal life, and go back to home, back to Godhead. That is our program. Don't die like Ajāmila and others. This is our program. Those who are intelligent, they will take advantage of this movement, and... Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). So take advantage of this movement intelligently, and there is no difficulty. You can see practically. We are not in any kind of difficulty. Very easily... Susukhaṁ kartum avyayam (BG 9.2). Those who are devotees executing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, susukham, they are happy. Susukhaṁ kartum... To execute this Kṛṣṇa conscious atmosphere, susukham, what is that? Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and dance and take prasādam. That's all.
So everyone is engaged in so-called duties but forget the real duty. This is called māyā. By the spell of māyā we forget what is the objective of life, what is the aim of life. This is called māyā. We are thinking this is our duty. No. Real duty in the human form of life is here is a chance whether you want to go to home to back to Godhead or again you want to go to hell, the repetition of birth and death. That is your choice. Otherwise why there are so many scriptures, religious system, all over the world? It is not only in India. According to the capacity of understanding, in every civilized human society there is a system called religion. It may be Hindu religion, Christian religion or Buddha religion—these are major religious systems—but the aim is how to make a solution of the problems of life. That... But because they do not seriously discuss nowadays the religious propensity, tendency of the human society decrease. It has become a also money-making business. The priestly order, they think that "As others make some money by working hard, by professional or by doing some business or working, so we shall also earn some money by showing the church or temple or the mosque." They have taken it like that.
So actually, that is the position of all living entities within this material world. Encaged by māyā, illusion, they have forgotten what is the self-interest. The self-interest is: go back to home, back to Godhead. That is real-self interest. So every intelligent man should first of all see to his self-interest, how to become free from this repetition of birth and death and go back to home, back to God. That is self-interest. And if we do not know, we do not execute in that way—that means Kṛṣṇa consciousness—then however we may be philanthropist, affectionate, very good economist, very good philosopher, everything is nonsense, mūḍha. That is the statement, that we should not remain mūḍha; we should become intelligent and see to our self-interest, and that is the success of life.
Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Therefore we have to learn, we have to be educated, we have to receive knowledge from the perfect. And Kṛṣṇa personally, the Supreme Perfect Person, is giving you knowledge. And if we are so unfortunate that we do not take the perfect knowledge—we concoct, we speculate, we create our own idea—then it is to be understood that durāśayā. We are thinking, "I shall be happy in this way. I shall be happy in this..." Nothing. You shall never be happy—this is perfect instruction—unless you go back to home, back to Godhead. Just like a mad boy, he has forsaken his father. His father is rich man, everything is there, but he has become hippie. So similarly, we are also like that. Our father is Kṛṣṇa. We can live there very comfortably without any botheration, without endeavor for earning money, but we have decided that we shall live here in this material world. This is called ass. This is the... Therefore mūḍha. We do not know what is our self-interest. And we are hoping against hope, "I shall be happy in this way. I shall be happy in this way."
So we should utilize this time to make solution of the life that we are repeatedly dying and again accepting another body. So how they will understand unless they come to the proper guru? Therefore śāstra, says tad-vijñānārtham: "If you want to know the real problem of your life and if you want to be enlightened how to become Kṛṣṇa conscious, how to become eternal, go back to home, back to Godhead, then you must approach the guru." And who is guru? That is explained, very simple thing. Guru never manufactures idea that "You do this and give me money and you become happy." That is not guru. That is another process of earning money. So here it is said, mūḍha, everyone who is simply living in the fool's paradise, manufacturing his own ideas like Ajāmila... Somebody has taken, "This is my duty," somebody has... He is a fool. You must know what is your duty from guru. You are singing every day, guru-mukha-padma-vākya, cittete koriyā aikya, ār nā koriho mane āśā **. This is life. This is life. Guru-mukha-pad... You accept the bona fide guru, and what he orders you, carry out. Then your life is successful. Ār nā koriho mane āśā. You rascal, you do not desire anything else. Are you not singing daily? But do you understand the meaning? Or you are singing only? What is the meaning? Who will explain? Nobody knows? Yes, what is the meaning?
This is the system of varṇāśrama-dharma—four kinds of varṇas and four kinds of āśrama. It is very scientific. The whole idea of human civilization should be how to fix one to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, to Viṣṇu. Because they do not know na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). The real interest is to approach Viṣṇu, to go back to home, go back to Godhead. That he does not know. He is entangled with these material affairs. Anartha. They are called anartha. They are not required. When you get a human form of body you must know that your food and shelter is already ordained. You don't require to try for this. Even the birds and beasts, they do not try for their food and shelter. They are certain that "Somewhere we have got our shelter and there is somewhere my food." Eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān. Kṛṣṇa, the supreme patron, He is supplying food to everyone. He is supplying food to the elephant, who eats one time one hundred pounds, and He is supplying a grain of sugar to the ant also. So why should bother about my food? That is śaraṇāgati.
Ah. Avidyā vināśa jāte, kṛṣṇa-prāpti haya... So these are the things. Avidyā vināśa jāte. Avidyā means ignorance. We are full of ignorance. So guru's duty is to open the eyes, and by opening your eyes he will give you Kṛṣṇa. So this is the process. So you should be very much careful not to cheat Kṛṣṇa, not to cheat guru, and become very sincere and follow. Then it is guaranteed. Guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya pāya bhakti-latā-bīja (CC Madhya 19.151). Two things required. You cannot jump over Kṛṣṇa, neglecting guru. Then it is finished. If you want to jump over Kṛṣṇa without favor of the guru, Kṛṣṇa is not so easy. So these things should be very carefully observed, no offense. Sincerely follow. Then Kṛṣṇa will protect, and your progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, to go back to home, back to Godhead, will be assured, insured.
So that is our mistake. Our mistake is that we have got advanced or developed consciousness. We should utilize it for going back to home, back to Godhead. Why should we misuse it unnecessarily? And you are not perfect. Suppose you are studying the machine throughout the whole life. What you will get that? Can you make the machine to your favor that this machine will not be lost, there will be no death? You all scientists, you are studying the machine. Have you found out any means that there will be no death? Where is that knowledge. Death will be there. You study the machine or do not study the machine, in due course, time, the death will come and will take you. The machine will stay. So this is intelligence. Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānu... (BG 13.9). You cannot cure even one disease. You are embarrassed with the cancer disease. You find out how the cells are working, how it can be changed, and there will be no cancer.
So we should be very careful. This is... This human form of life is a chance to make your choice, whether you are to go on being punished like this in different forms of life or whether you shall go back to home, back to Godhead. Here is the chance. Manuṣyānāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye (BG 7.3). Out of many millions and millions of persons, one is intelligent enough, he can inquire that "Why I am suffering?" Everyone is suffering. That's a fact. Only the rascals, they think, "We're enjoying." Everyone is suffering. This is a place for suffering. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15), Kṛṣṇa says, who has created this place. It is a place of suffering. Every moment you are suffering due to this body, due to the mind, due to the suffering imposed by other living entities. The mosquito will bite, the flies will disturb you, the bugs are there, and then the dogs will bark unnecessarily. You are passing, and his business is barking. Ha? "Bow! Bow! Bow!" (laughter) So this is also suffering. You don't like the next door the dog is barking. So in this way, if you are sober man, you don't want all this suffering, but it is imposed upon you. How do you think that you are living very happy? This is foolishness.
So many things, these are important things. Kṛṣṇa says that "Always think of Me." So we are saying the same thing. "My dear friend, my dear student, my dear son, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa." Then you'll think of Kṛṣṇa. Man-manā. And, who will chant Hare Kṛṣṇa? Mad-bhakto. Unless one agrees to become a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, why he'll chant? Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī: "You worship Me." So we have created this temple. Come on, worship Kṛṣṇa. And māṁ namaskuru—and whoever comes to the temple, he offers obeisances. We teach how to offer obeisances as soon as we enter. That is our business. Where is the difficulty? There is no difficulty. Either you are learned or a fool or rich or poor or black or white or American or Indian, Hindu, Muslim, never mind—take this lesson, you become perfect. So human society should take advantage of this movement and do these four things only—man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru. Then what is the... Mām evaiṣyasi asaṁśayaḥ: (BG 18.68) "I guarantee you come back to home, back to Godhead, by this process."
Of course, I cannot quote from where, but it is the system that a merchant, highest profit he can take for exchanging—not more than twenty-five percent. That is the highest. If one merchant takes more than twenty-five percent profit, then he is punishable. This was the system. So the kāriṇaḥ... So we are all workers. So somebody is working for his personal profit, and somebody is working for the profit of Kṛṣṇa. It appears almost similar. A ordinary man is selling some newspaper, and our man selling the magazine. It looks the similar thing, but it is not similar; it is different. Therefore, if a newspaper seller creates some disturbance on the street, the police can punish, but when one is selling Back to Godhead, he is not punishable. (laughter) This is the difference. But nowadays these rascals, they do not know whom to punish, whom not to punish. They take, "All right, you are selling Back to Godhead. You must come police custody." So our are not punishable although doing the same thing. This is judgment.
So many godless persons, they have no family, no affection, no position, no home, nothing. But still he keeps a dog to serve. This is the characteristic. Because he has nothing to serve, he has no wife, no children, no (indistinct), nothing, so he must have somebody, keep a dog. Just see practically. He cannot avoid service. That is your characteristic. If you don't serve God, then you have to serve dog. Now make your choice, whether you shall spoil your life by serving dog and become next life a dog, or by serving God, you, next life you become a god. Make your choice. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. If you want to become a dog next life, that is must. Yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ tyajaty ante kalevaram (BG 8.6). At the time of death, if you are affectionate to the dog, naturally you'll think of dog, and your soul will be transferred in the womb of a dog. This is nature's way. And, similarly, if you practice to love God in this life, at the time of death, naturally you'll think of God. Then next life, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). It is explained in the... Tyaktvā deham, everyone has to give up this body, but if, at the time of quitting this body, you think of Kṛṣṇa, immediately you go back to home, back to Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. This is opportunity. If you ask, of course, anyone who is desirous of going back to home, back to Godhead, he knows everything about Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise, why he should be eager?
So they may ask that "If God is everywhere, why you are worshiping an idol?" He's not idol, He is God, but he is seeing idol. Unless he has developed love for God, he cannot see. But it is, God is there. But because our eyes cannot see the spirit, at the present moment, our dull material eyes... Just like you are spirit soul, I am spirit soul, your father is spirit soul, your mother is spirit soul—but are you seeing the spirit soul? When the spirit soul goes away, you're crying, "My father is gone, my father is gone." Why father is gone? He's lying on the bed. You have seen the coat, pants, hands, legs, that is there. Why you say gone? "No, he's gone." So we cannot see the spirit soul even of our father and mother; how can you see God, the Supreme Spirit? Therefore God comes before you just like stone, which you can see. It is to favor you. God is everything. So, in this way, we have to understand God, Kṛṣṇa. And if anyone understands, then he becomes immediately fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya. Janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo tattvataḥ (BG 4.9).
How Kṛṣṇa is anxious, that "This rascal has been given the nice human form of body to understand Me, My relationship with him." Durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam. Prahlāda Mahārāja said that this human form of body is durlabhaṁ. Labham means "obtainable," and duḥ, "when you have(?) difficulty." So many species of life we had to go through by evolution. Jalajā nava-lakṣāni sthāvarā lakṣa-viṁśati. In this way we have got this human form, durlabhaṁ, with great difficulty. So Prahlāda Mahārāja, durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma. So mānuṣaṁ janma, durlabhaṁ: "very, very difficult to obtain it." So somebody says, "What is the benefit? Everyone dies, and man also dies." But Prahlāda Mahārāja says, "Yes, that is fact." Durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam: "Although it is temporary, but you can achieve the great success of life." That is int Arthadam, arthadam. Artha means some meaningful. If we don't use it as meaningful life, then we are punished, again go to Either go to back to home, back to Godhead, or go to dog's and cat's life. We have to select now. Jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ (BG 14.18). If you practice only tamo-guṇa, then you go to hell again.
If I do not know what is the destination and try to drive my car in full speed, then what will be the result? The result will be disaster. We must know why we are running. Running means just like the river is running in great tide, flowing, but the destination is the sea. When the river comes to the sea, then its destination gone. So similarly, we must know what is the destination. The destination is Viṣṇu, God. We are part and parcel of God. We are... Somehow or other, we are fallen in this material world. Therefore our destination of life will be to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is our destination. There is no other destination. So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is teaching that "You fix up your goal of life." And what is that goal of life? "Back to home, back to Godhead. You are going this side, opposite side, toward the side of hell. That is not your destination. You go this side, back to Godhead." That is our propaganda.
So similarly, we cannot imitate Kṛṣṇa. That is pāpa, adharma. Dharma is to abide by the orders of Kṛṣṇa. That is very simple. And if we do that then we become qualified to go back to home, back to Godhead. Very simple thing. It doesn't require much education. Simply it requires a purified mind, that "I shall execute it honestly." That much qualification is sufficient. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). This is Kṛṣṇa's law and order. Kṛṣṇa does not say anything which is very difficult to execute, because we cannot do it. Kṛṣṇa asks from you very simple thing. Not that Kṛṣṇa is asking from you very things which we cannot supply. No. We can supply. Anyone, any poor man, any illiterate man, any poor man or any rich man. Everyone, it is open to everyone. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not forbidden to anyone, even pāpa-yoni.
So here it is said that it is anumīyate. As here we find varieties, similarly, in other planet or in next life there are varieties. This is intelligence, human intelligence. Why you should say there is no next life or there is no life in other planet? Therefore we have to refer to the śāstras, śāstra-vidhi. Yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma... (BG 16.23). If you unnecessarily becomes too much intelligent and theorize, then he is never successful, he is never sukhi. Na sukhaṁ na... Na siddhiṁ sa avāpnoti na sukhaṁ na parāṁ gatim. Such a rascal, who does not consult the śāstras and thinks whimsically according to his mad conception, such person, na siddhim avāpnoti. That is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. He will never get success. He will simply speculate. There is no, definite knowledge. Na sukham, and he is not happy. And what to speak of going back to home, back to Godhead. He is a rascal. There is no hope. So do not conclude in your foolish way anything. Just refer to the śāstra, authority, śruti. Therefore it is called śruti. We cannot imagine that there is possibility of living entity in the sun planet or moon planet, but śruti... Just like Kṛṣṇa says that "I spoke to sun-god." So by hearing this śruti, we understand that there is also life and there is also system, the government, the chief executive. Everything is there. And that is by śruti anumīyate. Anumīyate means you can imagine it is a fact.
So here the Yamadūtas are analyzing whether Ajāmila is pious or impious. The Viṣṇudūtas asked them to explain what is dharma and what is adharma. "You have come here to arrest this person, to take away with to the yama... So you are servant of Dharmarāja. Now explain what is dharma and adharma." Dharma means which will bring me again to my original, constitutional position, and adharma means which will take me down and down from my original, constitutional position. This is the test of dharma and adharma. I am eternal part and parcel of God, so my dharma is to render service to God and go back to home, back to Godhead. This is my real business. So adharma means I forget my relationship with the Supreme Lord and I go down and down just to become up to the worm in the stool. This is called adharma. There are so many varieties of life. Why? This is due to difference of dharma and adharma. Those who are trying to take the principles of dharma, they are being elevated to the higher, higher, higher, higher, higher, up to back to home, back to Godhead. And those who are not accepting... Jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ (BG 14.18). Jaghanya, they do not know how to live, just like animal, less than animal. Animal has got also sense. The modern civilization is less than animal. Animal does not kill its own son. The human being is killing his own son.
So, so far the Kali-yuga is concerned, the future is very dark. There, everything is described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The future of this Kali-yuga, as it will advance, Kali-yuga... We have only passed five thousand years out of thirty-two hundred thousands of years. We have only passed five thousand years, and the miserable condition, situation, will degrade more and more, more and more. So if you have to take again birth in this material world, then we'll have to suffer more and more. Best thing is that let us finish our business of Kṛṣṇa consciousness and go back to home, back to Godhead, so that we haven't got to come again to this nonsense material world. That is wanted. Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). This should be the aim of life, that we are not going to take advantage of this so-called advance of material civilization. We have no business. Āra nare vaka (indistinct). We should make it a determination that we have enough of this material civilization; we are not any more concerned about it. We are interested in Kṛṣṇa, how to go back to home, back to Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. This should be the determination. And if we think, "Let me taste this also and taste that also..." In Bengal it is said durakhai tanakakai (indistinct). Not like that.
For a person who is going back to home, back to Godhead, he should be niṣkiñcana. Niṣkiñcana means no more any material necessities. Niṣkiñcana. Niṣkiñcanasya bhagavad-bhajanomukhasya. One side, this is nirvāṇa, finished. And the other side positive. Negative side, no more material, and positive side, Kṛṣṇa. Bhagavad-bhajanonmukhasya. How to go back to home, back to Godhead to serve Kṛṣṇa—this is one side. And one side—nil, we don't want any more anything. Niṣkiñcana. For such a person, viṣayiṇāṁ sandarśanam atha yoṣitāṁ ca (CC Madhya 11.8). For such a person, if he has become captivated by the material attraction, means money and material comforts... Woman and material comforts. This is material civilization. Everyone is after woman. Woman or men, the... It is not that woman means the form of woman and man is the form of man. Woman means enjoyable and man means enjoyer. So here in this material world everyone is enjoyer. Everyone is enjoyer. Not only the man thinks "I shall enjoy the woman," the woman thinks, "I shall enjoy the man." The spirit is now to become enjoyer, Therefore sometimes the living entity is described as puruṣa. Actually every living entity is prakṛti. Prakṛti means enjoyable. So everyone is to be enjoyable by Kṛṣṇa. But thinking, "I am enjoyer." That is māyā. So everyone is thinking of enjoying this material world. Viṣayiṇāṁ atha yoṣitāṁ ca. Viṣayiṇāṁ sandarśanam atha yoṣitām. So for any person who is serious about going back to home, back to..., for them these things are abominable, more than drinking poison. This is the verdict of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
This is the idea. So we must be serious. It is not that in one day we, all of us, we become paramahaṁsa. That is not possible. Don't try to imitate, but follow the rules and regulation with vow that "This life I shall go back to home, back to Godhead, with determination." Then Kṛṣṇa will give you intelligence. That is promised by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā. Teṣāṁ nityābhiyuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prītiḥ, satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakaṁ dadāmi... If you are serious, then Kṛṣṇa is within everyone's heart, He'll give you intelligence. But we must be very serious. Then past, present, future will be clear before us, and because Kṛṣṇa is personally directing, buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi. So what knowledge is wanting there when Kṛṣṇa...? In another place Kṛṣṇa says,
- teṣām evānukampārtham
- aham ajñāna-jaṁ tamaḥ
- nāśayāmy ātma-bhāvastho
- jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā
- (BG 10.11)
For a sincere devotee, Kṛṣṇa says: "To show him special favor, even though he is rascal, I'll make him intelligent."
So how to keep oneself always with Kṛṣṇa, that is the aim of human life. And if we do not do that, that is sinful. Then we become punishable, that "You were given the chance to understand yourself, Kṛṣṇa and your relationship with Kṛṣṇa. You did not take this chance." Oh, he is punished: "All right, you become again animal, again in the cycle of birth and death." So we should be very, very careful. Do not think that "We are independent, and we can do whatever nonsense I like." That is very risky life. Do not think like that, foolishly. There is a regular... There is Yamarāja. Because we are sons of Kṛṣṇa, when Kṛṣṇa wants that "These My sons, rascals, are suffering in this material world. Let them come back home," therefore He comes personally. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata, tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmyaham (BG 4.7). He desires that, that "These rascals, they are rotting in this material world, birth after birth. Let them come back." Because He is more affectionate. So... And if he does not utilize this human form of life to take the advantage of going back to home, back to Godhead, that is sinful. Then he is punished.
Therefore the living entities, means human beings, they have been described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam as manda. Manda means all bad. Manda, there are two meanings, "slow" or "bad." Slow means bad. Slow, if you take the meaning of slow, that will be like this, that this human form of life is meant for spiritual realization. That is the advantage. In the cycle of birth and death, we are rotating. Once a chance is given to decide whether we shall rotate in the cycle of birth and death or we shall go back to home, back to Godhead. That decision rests on this life. It is a very responsible life. Labdhvā sudurlabhaṁ idaṁ bahu-sambhavānte (SB 11.9.29). Prahlāda Mahārāja says, durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam: "Don't spoil this human form of life like animals." This is the special prerogative, to realize one's spiritual identity and engage oneself in spiritual activities. That is human life. And if we do not take care of it and give(?) us washed away by the waves of material nature, as Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura sings, māyār bośe, yāccho bhese khaccha hābuḍubu bhai... The ocean of nescience, if we place ourselves to be carried away by the waves of nescience, then our life is spoiled. If we want to save our life from this being carried away by the waves of material nature, then we must take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Jīv kṛṣṇa dās ei viśvās korle to' ār duḥkha nai. This is Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura's song, that if we simply accept this truth, that "I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa," then we are immediately free.
So to come to this understanding in the material world... In other ages, they voluntarily used to take up how to make life perfect, but in this Kali-yuga, everyone is manda. Manda means very, very slow. They do not care that there is next life, and we have to take care of it and make our next life spiritual or go back to home, back to Godhead. These things we do not... Perhaps this message is being distributed by this movement only. Otherwise, people are in darkness, very slow, and most of them very bad, mandāḥ sumanda-matayo (SB 1.1.10). And if one is a little interested, then he's captured by some party. Sumanda-matayo. Mata means cult. So many cults there are. They'll mislead. So people are attracted by such cults. Mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyāḥ. And everyone is unfortunate. They have no fixed, I mean to say, arrangement, even for the bare necessities of life. What the animals, birds and beasts, they have got arrangement, they believe in that, but our human society, because we are so advanced, there are so many hundreds and thousands of men, there is no fixed purpose of life. Even in your rich country we see such men without any purpose, without any aim of life. So they are called manda-bhāgyāḥ, most unfortunate. Most unfortunate. Manda-bhāgyāḥ and upadrutāḥ. Over and above that, they are always disturbed. This is the condition of life.
So those who are devotees of Kṛṣṇa, they should take charge, that "These rascals are suffering. Let them have some idea about Kṛṣṇa." That is wanted. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. So I am very glad that you are seriously interested, and Kṛṣṇa is pleased upon you. And that you are sincerely trying, I can understand from these tulasī plants. Yes. This is the practical demonstration. Unless there is bhakti, this tulasī plant will not grow. We must be very much thankful to our Govinda dāsī. She first of all cultivated the tulasī plant in Hawaii. And now our tulasī plants are distributed. So she has done a great service. I think I gave her the seeds, and she very nicely done it. Now everywhere we see tulasī plant. It is very pleasing. So the same thing—Deity worship and watering the tulasī plants, chanting sixteen rounds at least, and observing the rules and regulation, regulative principle... Then your life is successful. Don't neglect. Very seriously continue. And in this one life you are going back to home, back to Godhead. It is sure. I am not flattering you. Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru, mām evaiṣyasi asaṁśayaḥ (BG 18.68). Asaṁśayaḥ, "Without any doubt, simply following these rules and regulation," mām evaiṣyasi, "you come back to Me."
All these boys and girls, four or five years ago they did not know who is Kṛṣṇa. That is surprising to everyone. The whole world is praising this movement because they see practically that how these European-American boys and girls are so much absorbed in the thought of Kṛṣṇa. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's gift. Namo mahā-vadānyāya kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te, kṛṣṇāya kṛṣṇa-caitanya-nāmne (CC Madhya 19.53). So very simple thing. Don't think I have played something wonder. No, it is not my wonder. The process is wonderful, the process itself. You have to simply accept; then your life will be successful. It is not that "Bhaktivedanta Swami has brought this." They say. They give me the credit. That is my good fortune also. But actually I am just like a peon. I have brought, but I am delivering it without any adulteration. That may be my credit. And if you take it without any adulteration and practice it, then your life is successful. This is the secret of success. Chant, dance, take prasādam, live very happily, and look very brilliant, and next life go to home, back to Godhead.
Therefore our business is... "Artificially, I shall not see anything." Now how it is possible? You'll see in the mind. Suppose you close your eyes, but there are so many impressions, they will come within the mind. Even if you close your eyes. The so-called meditation means he has closed his eyes but he's thinking of his beloved or his business or something like, something like that. So is not possible. First of all, you have to fix up your mind in Kṛṣṇa. Always think of Kṛṣṇa. That is advised by Kṛṣṇa. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru. These four principles guarantees, Kṛṣṇa says. Mām evaiṣyasi asaṁśayaḥ (BG 18.68). If you simply execute these four things, then Kṛṣṇa guarantees, asaṁśaya, without any doubt you are coming back to me, back to home, back to Godhead. It is so nice. So mind engaged in Kṛṣṇa. Always think of Kṛṣṇa. We are seeing Kṛṣṇa here so nicely dressed, decorated, and immediately there is impression with the mind and you can think the whole day.
So we have to follow this. If we are actually serious about Kṛṣṇa consciousness and going back to home, back to Godhead, make our lives successful in this very life, then... Life successful means mukti, to be not entangled again with this material body. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). That is success. That after giving up this body... This body means the combination of the so many, twenty-four elements. So long we'll be entangled within this network of twenty-four elements, it is called conditioned life. And mukti, liberated, means no more entanglement. Muktir hitvā anyathā rūpam. We are now entangled in these twenty-four elements, and mukti means we are not entangled. Muktir hitvā anyathā rūpam. Because we are entangled, we are thinking otherwise. "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am this," "I am that," "I am that," "I have got so many duties." These things. But when one understands that these so-called duties and entanglement of these twenty-four elements of matter, "I do not belong this. I am aloof, I aloof," this understanding is called brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54). At least theoretically if we understand, then our duty changes. Prasannātmā, fixed up. That whatever I am doing now, I am doing with this material, for the benefit of this material, not for my personal benefit. I am not these twenty-four elements. This is called mukti.
So if we want to avoid the tiresome, troublesome, miserable condition of this material world, then we have to accept the direction given in the śāstras. But we are so dull, we cannot even understand what is the miserable condition of our life. (break) ...dead stone life or animal life. The animal cannot understand. But there is possibility. Sometimes when the miserable condition is very acute, we feel: "How to get out of it?" That is intelligence. But if we take the direction of the śāstras-sādhu guru śāstra vākya; guru mukha padma vākya, cittete kariyā aikya, āra nā kariya mane āśā **, then there is possibility of getting out of these clutches, entanglement, and become free again and go back to home, back to Godhead.
So it is dangerous. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām. So our motive of life should be how to get out of this dangerous position of life. How to get out of it, that should be the aim, not that to become more and more implicated in with this dangerous situation of life. That is not intelligence. The intelligence is how to get out of it. That is this movement, Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, how to get out of this dangerous position and go back to home, back to Godhead—this is the mission. It is not that by spiritual advancement one gets material facilities to increase the income and increase the standard of sense enjoyment. This is karma-kāṇḍīya-vicāra karma, to get the resultant action of our fruitive activities. And that is not very... They are called mūḍha. Those who are engaged in karma-kāṇḍīya entanglement, they are called mūḍha. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has commented on the word mūḍha described in the Śrīmad Bhagavad-gītā. The mūḍha means karmīs. Karmīs, they work day, day and night, very hard. What is their aim? The aim is sense gratification. That is done by animals like dogs and hogs and asses. Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye (SB 5.5.1). This is the recommendation, that this life, human life, ayaṁ deha, nṛloke, in this Everyone has got a material body, but one who has got a material body in the human society, nṛloke Kaṣṭān kāmān na arhati. To work so hard simply to satisfy the senses is not desirable.
So without obeying the instruction of the śāstra, he has fallen down. Although he was born in the brāhmaṇa family and educated nicely, but on account of bad association he fell down from the standard of human ideal life. Therefore he is punishable. Not only he, every one of us. The human fom of life is specially meant for going back to home, back to Godhead. The animal life... By progressive evolution, they come to the human form of life, and when one is, the living entity is on the platform of human form of life, he has got his responsibility.
Real religion is bhāgavata-dharma. In any other religion there is para-hiṁsa. Para-hiṁsa. In the history you will find many instances. In our country I have seen fight between Hindus and Muslims. And in the history you will find Europe, the Prostestants, and the Roman Catholics, and the Crusades. So this kind of religion has no value. Religion means when one understands Kṛṣṇa, or God, he understands automatically that all living entities are Kṛṣṇa's part and parcels. Some way or other, they have been put into this māyā. Anādi bahirmukha jīva kṛṣṇa bhuli gela. They have forgotten. Therefore a devotee tries to bring them back to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, back to home, back to Godhead. This is vision. He has no discrimination that "Here is a Hindu. Here is a Muslim. Here is a Christian. Here is an African. Here is a white. Here is a black." No. "Everyone is Kṛṣṇa's part and parcel. Let them revive their Kṛṣṇa consciousness and be happy." That is religion. All others cheating.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement we are pushing on. We have no such distinction. Samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu. Not that "They are Europeans. They cannot take to this religion." This is in the andha-kūpa, andha. Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās te 'pīśa-tantrya uru-dāmni baddhāḥ (SB 7.5.31). Such class of men are subjected to the punishment by the Yamaduta. Otherwise, paṇḍitaḥ sama-darśinaḥ (BG 5.18). Paṇḍita, they should be equal.
Everyone has got the right to go back to home, back to Godhead. Kṛṣṇa says, ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ: "Never mind he is born in the sinful family. That's all right, but he has got the right to go back to home, back to Godhead." And who will take up the work? If everyone has got the right to go back to home, back to Godhead, and by taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya. Kṛṣṇa says, "Everyone has got the right." Then who will teach them how to go back to home, back to Godhead? Who is the man? If you say, "No, no, they are untouchable, pāpa-yoni. They are untouchable. They cannot," so that is not the duty.
Nobody can check. Law is there—"The father's property must be inherited by the son." Similarly, those who are strictly in Kṛṣṇa consciousness despite all kinds of hindrances, his liberation is guaranteed. His liberation is guaranteed. And if he becomes little, immediately disturbed with little inconvenience, and "What is this nonsense, Kṛṣṇa con...? Give it up. Let me enjoy," then he is again in the clutches of māyā. But if one sticks to Kṛṣṇa consciousness in spite of all difficulties, then his liberation, going back to home, back to Godhead, is guaranteed. Mukti-pade sa dāya-bhāk. This is the statement of the śāstra. Dāya-bhāk means nobody can check him.
So we should be very careful to stick to Kṛṣṇa consciousness without being agitated or deviated in any circumstances of life. Then we will not be liable to the punishment of Yamadāta. That is the incident happening here. Slightly he became Kṛṣṇa conscious at the end of life and chanted "Nārāyaṇa"—immediately the Viṣṇu, Bhagavad-dūta came: "Oh, he has chanted Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. That's all right. Let him take back home, back to Godhead."
So it is our misfortune that we become doubtful about Kṛṣṇa. This is our misfortune. Otherwise, to become liberated, to go back to home, back to Godhead, very easy thing—provided we accept the Kṛṣṇa's version as it is, without any change. It is very easy. Kṛṣṇa, when He comes personally, He comes to bestow the mercy to the fallen souls, and He speaks very clearly that mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: (BG 7.7) "There is no more better positive truth than Myself." But we don't believe. That is the misfortune. But this man, although he did not know what he is doing, but very faithfully he chanted, vivaśaḥ, vivaśaḥ, without any hesitation. Vivaśaḥ. Vivaśaḥ means being forced. He was forced to chant. So yena tena prakāreṇa. If you chant without any committing any offense the holy name of the Lord, then you become liberated. This is the purpose of this Ajāmila upākhyāna. Ayaṁ hi kṛta-nirveṣaḥ. Nirveṣa means atonement. If you commit some sin, then you should atone for it. Otherwise you have to carry the reaction of your sinful life to the next life. Therefore, according to the Vedic system, there is prāyaścitta. So prāyaścitta, that is also very heavy task. In this age nobody can perform prāyaścitta. And even one is able to perform prāyaścitta, then he..., there is possibility of again falling down unless one is clear consciousness, and that, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Unless one is Kṛṣṇa conscious, there is every chance of falling down.
So the bhakti-mārga, it is clearly said, it is, that you cannot be purified simply by performing the Vedic ritualistic ceremony. Na niskrtaiḥ. Na niṣkṛtair uditair brahma-vādibhiḥ. Brahma-vādī means... Brahma means śabda-brahma, Vedic injunction. So there are many brahmavādīs. Just like Manu-saṁhitā. Parāśara, he has made viṁśati dharma-śāstras. So they are authorized things. But still, if you follow the ritualistic ceremonies, if you make atonement according to the Vedic direction, you cannot be fully purified, fully purified, because unless you are detestful of this material existence, unless you are determined to go back to home, back to Godhead. If you want to adjust in this material world to be happy, then you have to commit sinful activities. There is no doubt about it. Therefore it is said that you cannot be purified. Na niṣkṛtair uditair brahma-vādibhis tathā viśuddhyaty aghavān vratādibhiḥ. Aghavān. Aghavān means sinful. Every one of us who is in this material world, he is sinful. So he has to be purified. So this best purification process is devotional service. And the purification process begins—anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam: (Brs. 1.1.11) when you have no more any material desires. Then you..., the purification begins.
There are so many persons following their own principles of religious, ritualistic performances, but... (break) ...by remaining in the same standard. They are not improving. The spiritual life or religious life means that one should make advance towards back to home, back to Godhead, not that religious life should be followed to make some material improvement. That is not religious life. Dharma-artha-kāma-mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, Cc. Ādi 1.90). These are the principles for elevating a living entity to the highest platform. But they have taken it, generally... They perform religious ritualistic performances for getting some more money, artha. Of course, we require some money for our maintenance. That is necessary. But if we simply perform religious performances to acquire money only, that is misguided. Generally people do so. They give in charity so that they may get more money. They open dharmaśālā so that they can get more houses. That is their purpose. Or they may be elevated to the heavenly kingdom. Because they do not know what is his actual interest. The actual interest is to go back to home, go back to Godhead. This idea, perhaps not even one percent men know that the ultimate end of, ultimate goal of life is to go back to home, back to Godhead. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31)—Viṣṇu, God, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They do not know that the real interest is to go back home, go back to Godhead. Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ. They have accepted that "We shall be happy by adjusting this material world." Therefore they cannot make any progress.
Here it is said, yad asau bhagavan-nāma mriyamāṇaḥ samagrahīt. Sama means samak, "perfectly." "Now he is quite fit for going back to home, back to Godhead. So you do not touch him. He is completely free." So if we are serious about our life, the method is very easy. The prescription is man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Where is the difficulty? We are now serious. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and hear Hare Kṛṣṇa. Then mind is fixed up. Sa vai manaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayoḥ (SB 9.4.18). Our business is to fix up my mind on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. So this Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa chanting, will help us. As soon as we chant, we hear. It is not that simply by seeing Kṛṣṇa you become perfect. By hearing Kṛṣṇa also. This is also another sense. We gather knowledge from different senses. Suppose there is a good mango. So when you say, "Let me see how the mango is," but you are seeing. No, this seeing is imperfect. You take little portion of the mango and taste it; then you can understand. So experience is gathered from different senses.
So Kṛṣṇa comes. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata, tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham (BG 4.7). This is the process. Every living entity is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. He belongs to the Kṛṣṇa's family. Kṛṣṇa's family. This is our original position. Vṛndāvana means whole Kṛṣṇa's family. Even the birds, beast, trees, plants, water—all belong to the Kṛṣṇa's family. Advaya-jñāna. Therefore anything in Vṛndāvana is as good as Kṛṣṇa. Even the dust of Vṛndāvana is as good as Kṛṣṇa. This is the philosophy, Absolute Truth. So Kṛṣṇa, out of His causeless mercy, He comes. At a certain interval during one day of Brahma, He comes. He exhibits His līlā, that "Anyone who desires to go back to home, back to Godhead, they can enjoy with Me like this." This is Kṛṣṇa's mission. "Come on. Why you are playing here and suffering this māyā's play? Come to the real play." This is Kṛṣṇa's mission. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). Kṛṣṇa comes: "Just try to understand Me, why I come."
We are part and parcel of God, just like sons are part and parcel of father. If the father is rich man, all-powerful, he does not like to see that his sons are loitering in the street without any food, without any shelter. He doesn't like. Father entreats, "My dear son, why you are rotting in this way? Come home. You'll be comfortable. You'll be happy." But these rascal sons will not go. They are thinking, "We shall make plan here and live peacefully." That is going on. And God is coming, Kṛṣṇa is coming, canvassing, that "Come back to home, back to Godhead," and we are not interested. We are making plan here. This is our misfortune. But this plan will be frustrated. That is the nature's law. Daivi hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). Whatever plan you make, it will be frustrated. It will never be successful. Therefore śāstra says, bahir-artha-maninaḥ. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). Where is the destination of life, they do not know it. Na te viduḥ. These rascals, those who have come to this material world, they do not know where is the goal of life because they are rascals, mūḍha, narādhama. Kṛṣṇa is canvassing that "Give up all this nonsense business." Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Nobody will hear. He will manufacture his own way. This is the disease. Why? Because under the spell of māyā.
So to forget Kṛṣṇa and to become subjected to the condition of material nature, that is called material life. Material life means to give up the idea of going back to home, back to Godhead, but making plan here to be happy. This is called māyā, or material life. So here it is said that,
- gurūṇāṁ ca laghūnāṁ ca
- gurūṇi ca laghūni ca
- prāyaścittāni pāpānāṁ
- jñātvoktāni maharṣibhiḥ
Maharṣibhi. Great learned scholars, realized soul, liberated soul, they have given us Vedic literature. There are different types of explanation, just like main is the Manu-saṁhitā. In the Manu-saṁhitā it is said that if a man kills, then he should be also killed. No excuse. From Manu-saṁhitā the hanging or killing of a murderer, that is enjoined. That is there. Maharṣibhiḥ. A killer of other animals or other living entities, he must be killed. This is Manu-saṁhitā. This is showing the mercy.
On the whole, the conclusion is that anyone who is in this material world, he is a sinful man. Anyone. Otherwise he would not have gotten this material body. Just like anyone who is in the prison house, you can conclude that he is a sinful, criminal man. You do not require to study one after another. Because he is in the prison house you can conclude that "Here is a criminal." Similarly, anyone who is in the material world, he is a criminal. But not the superintendent of jail. You cannot conclude, "Because everyone is in the jail, criminal, therefore the superintendent of jail, he is also criminal." Then you are mistaken. Those who are conducting these sinful men to take them back to home, back to Godhead, he is not criminal. His business is how to release this rascal from this prison house and take him back to home, back to Godhead.
If you say, "No, how you can say they are in ignorance? There are so many universities. They are passing M.A.C., D.A.C., doctor, Ph.D., and still they are ignorant?" "Yes." "How?" Māyayāpahṛta-jñānā: "The so-called knowledge is taken away by māyā." Otherwise why they are sticking to this material world? If you become enlightened, then you must know that this material world is not for our habitation. We must go back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is preaching that "This is not your home. Don't try to be happy here." Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ. Bahir-artha-māninaḥ. Bahir, the external energy. They are thinking that "Materially, if we make some arrangement..." Some of them are trying to be happy by scientific improvement or some of them are trying to go to the heavenly planet, and some of them are trying to become this, that, but they do not know that real happiness is to go back to home, back to Godhead. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). They do not know that. So this is very important movement, that we are giving them hint and education how to go back to home, back to Godhead.
So here, na adharmajaṁ tad-dhṛdayam. Adharmajam. So long our heart is compact with material desires, we have to take birth after birth to fulfill that desire. It is automatic. So how to become desireless? Not desireless but no material desires. There is desire to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is natural. To become a devotee, to desire like that, that is wanted. We cannot stop our desires. But desires have to be purified. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170). So this is the process of bhakti. Therefore even one is infected with these lusty desires, kāma-lobhadayas ca ye, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa... Rajo-guṇa, and tamo-guṇa means lusty desires and greediness. Kāma-lobha. So, so long we are influenced by the two material modes of nature, rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa, then we will be pushed for fulfilling our lusty desires and greediness. And that will help us to become implicated in sinful activities. The people are becoming implicated in sinful activities only for this kāma-lobha. He is never satisfied, and his greediness increases and we create sinful life.
Sometimes we feel like that. So there is a planet. So sinful persons are arrested and taken to Yamadūtas. Similarly, Viṣṇudūtas are there. Bhūtāni viṣṇoḥ sura-pūjitāni. Sura means demigod. The residents of the higher planets, they also respect, show their obeisances, respectful obeisances, to these assistants of..., Viṣṇudūtas, sura-pūjitāni. Durdarśa-liṅgāni. Durdarśa, very rarely seen. Because the Ajāmila was practically the only case who was taken from the clutches of the Yamadūta. Otherwise there is no need of their coming. But there are still devotees. Just like Kṛṣṇa says, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti: (BG 4.9) "After leaving this body they do not come again to take birth in this material world, but they come to Me." So those who are eligible to go back to Godhead, they are taken by Viṣṇudūta as guides. But durdarśa-liṅgāni, they are very rarely to be seen because directly going to Vaikuṇṭha after leaving this body, such persons are also very rare. Durdarśa-liṅgāni mahādbhutāni. Adbhuta, wonderful. Certainly they must be wonderful because they are spiritual body—four hands, with different weapons, just like Viṣṇu.
Yes. Just see how much good exercise it is. Huh? Just like I fall down in this way, flat. Then I make a line. And I stand again in that line; again fall down. Make a line. Again that line. In this way, round. Tapasya. This is called tapasya, austerity. We should not take very leniently that we are going back to Godhead. Of course, there is so many concession for the... But at the same time, we should be very much aware of the responsibility that we have decided to go back to Godhead after leaving this body, so we have to perform some austerities. The austerity in our Gauḍīya-sampradāya is very simple: following the four principles, restriction, avoiding the offenses, and chanting regular beads. That's all. And hearing. Chanting and hearing, both things. Not only chanting; we have to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. In this way we should engage twenty-four hours' business. Hear and chanting... When you speak, when you go to a lecture for preaching, that is also chanting, when you speak. And automatically there is hearing. If you chant, there is hearing also. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇam (SB 7.5.23). There is memorizing also.
So this chanting of the holy name of Kṛṣṇa, or God, is authorized. And actually the effect is being felt, because we are advised to execute this kind of religious principles according to the law, offenseless, and avoiding these four regulative principles. Simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and observing these rules and regulations, one is sure to go to home, go to back to Godhead. There is no doubt about it.
- nāmoccāraṇa-māhātmyaṁ
- hareḥ paśyata putrakāḥ
- ajāmilo 'pi yenaiva
- mṛtyu-pāśād amucyata
Then he says the assistants, "My dear boys, just see how much powerful is the chanting of the holy name of God is that this Ajāmila, he did not directly mean to chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa, Nārāyaṇa, but indirectly, because he chanted the name of Nārāyaṇa, although this Nārāyaṇa was not the original Nārāyaṇa, his son, but it is so effective that he also became delivered." Nāmoccāraṇa-māhātmyaṁ hareḥ paśyata putrakāḥ, ajāmilo 'pi yenaiva mṛtyu-pāśāt: "He was saved from the imminent danger of death and being carried away by the Yamadūtas." I think we have covered. Na tatra pramāṇaṁ vaktavyam:(?) "How powerful is the holy name of Kṛṣṇa, or God, there is no need of evidences. Just see practically how it is being done." And Śrīdhara Svāmī says that na tatra pramāṇam vaktavyaṁ dṛṣṭaḥ syād ity āha nāmoccāraṇeti yenaiva kevalena sakṛd uccaritena.(?) Once he uttered, simply, "Nārāyaṇa..." That's a fact. Once uttered, the holy name of God, without any offense, without any motive, immediately makes one free from this material world.
That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā: Daivī hy eṣa guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). It is not possible to overcome the stringent laws of material nature. It is not possible. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā: "It is My energy. I am controlling." Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te: (BG 7.14) "But if somebody surrenders unto Me..." The whole process, whole material activities, the cosmic manifestation, situation, is going on just to bring these rebelled souls to come back to Godhead. That is the situation. The māyā, the stringent laws, are there. Just like what is the purpose of this police force or material force or military force? The purpose is to keep the citizens obedient to the state. That is the purpose. So long... At any time, if a citizen becomes disobedient to the state laws, he is immediately put into the police custody. And if he is more powerful, then under military custody. Similarly, anyone who has rebelled against the superiority of God, he is put into the stringent laws of material nature and he is suffering. That is the position. Therefore his self-interest is to seek out the Supreme Personality of Godhead and surrender unto Him. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). That will make you happy. Otherwise, if you simply try to adjust material things and become happy, that is not possible. This is the explanation of Prahlāda Mahārāja.
Therefore I am thinking, "You are my enemy; I am your enemy," and we fight like cats and dogs. But as soon as we come to the Viṣṇu understanding, Kṛṣṇa understanding, these cities, these nice cities, this nice civilization, can be maintained very nicely. You be happy. Yajña-śiṣṭāśino santaḥ. You eat nicely, dance nicely, live nicely, and go back to home, back to Godhead. Enjoy this life and next life. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is so nice. Everyone should take seriously, try to understand it seriously. It is authorized on the Vedic principles. It is nothing something manufactured, unauthorized. So that is our request. So we are opening centers in different parts of the world to give opportunity to the people to understand his real interest: Viṣṇu, his real interest. That is our mission. So kindly help us and join us.
So it is his duty to know that "I have committed this criminal activity; therefore I have been put into this jail or prison life. Some way or other, complete it, and let me decide not to commit again any criminal acts so that I may be put again into prison life." This is intelligent. Similarly, we should be educated how we have been put into this material conditional life and how we can get out of it and then again in our spiritual life we can go back to home, back to Godhead. That should be the aim of life. But na te viduḥ: "They do not know." Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatim. The progress should be towards Viṣṇu, Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, back to home, back to Godhead. They do not know. Why? Because durāśayā. They are thinking that "We shall make adjustment in this material life, and we shall be happy."
Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ. Bahiḥ. Bahiḥ means external. This material world is the external energy of God, and the spiritual world is the internal energy of God. So we are in the external energy of God. The external energy of God means although we are eternal, we have to accept different types of body according to our desire, according to our tendency to enjoy this material world, and therefore that facility is given in this material world. In the spiritual world there is only one aim—they are all eternal servitors of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
So, yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ (BG 16.23). If you do not follow the instruction of the śāstra-śāstra means the instruction of God—then na siddhiṁ sa, such civilization will never be perfect, na siddhiṁ sa avāpnoti, na sukham, neither they will be happy, na parāṁ gatim, neither they will be elevated back to home, back to Godhead. This is the defect. Therefore we should try to understand what is the goal of life. But that we do not know. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇu. By their own blind intelligence they are trying to adjust things within this material word, and they are being failure repeatedly. Still, they have no sense. So those who are actually leaders of the society, they should be sensible. They should take advice, instruction from the most perfect personality, Kṛṣṇa, and adjust things. Then they will be happy.
So karma, the karma, the law of karma is there. Everyone is subjected to law of karma, and he has to enjoy or suffer according to law of karma. So we cannot interfere. We can simply teach everybody that sometimes you are becoming in the point of starvation, and sometimes you are becoming extravagant in opulence. But this is changing. Your life, this material existence, is always changing. Sometimes I am very rich man. Sometimes I am very poor man. Sometimes I am human being. Sometimes I am cats and dogs. We shall stop this business of changing. Bhagavad-gītā says, mad-dhāma gatvā punar janma na vidyate. If we try this life to go back to Godhead, go back to home, that is our success. We should not bother about the condition of life. Whatever condition of life we are put in, we may be satisfied.
Sarva-bhūtānāṁ priya ātmeśvaraḥ suhṛt. He is the proprietor of my self. He is Superself. Just like I love this body. Why? Because I am the spirit self, or soul is within this body. Therefore just like I love this apartment. Why? Because I live here. Similarly, I love this body because I am spirit soul, I am living within this body. Therefore I try to protect it. Real love is to myself. So naturally, if you love yourself, then this self is the part and parcel of the Superself. Therefore you love indirectly the Superself. And suhṛt, and He is your actually intimate friend. Suhṛt. Suhṛt means who is always wishing your good. The Vedic information says that the Supreme Lord as Supersoul is sitting with you in the same tree. The individual soul and the Supersoul is sitting in the heart and this body is considered as tree, and He is seeing your, my activities. He is trying to get me back to Godhead. So in whichever form of life I am transmigrating He is also going with me.
The whole Vedas are divided into three states. Sambandha, what is our connection God. That is called sambandha. And then abhidheya. According to that relationship we have to act. That is called abhidheya. And why do we act? Because we have got the goal of life, to achieve the goal of life. So what is the goal of life? The goal of life is that, to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is goal of life. We are part and parcel of God. God is sanātana and He has His own abode, sanātana. Paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20). There is a place ever-existing. This material world, it will not exist forever. It is bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). It is manifested at a certain date. Just like your body and my body, it is manifested on a certain date. It will stay for some time. It will grow. It will give some by-product. Then we become old, dwindling, and then finished. This is called ṣaḍ-vikāra. of anything which is material. But there is another nature where there is no ṣaḍ-vikāra. That is eternal. So that is called sanātana-dharma. And the jīvas, we living entities, we are also described as eternal. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). And the Lord is also addressed as sanātana. So our real situation is that we are sanātana, Kṛṣṇa is sanātana, and Kṛṣṇa has His abode, sanātana. When we go back to that sanātana-dhāma and live with the supreme sanātana, Kṛṣṇa... And we are also sanātana. The process by which we can achieve this highest goal of life, that is called sanātana-dharma. We are executing here sanātana-dharma.
Durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma. This body, human form of body, is obtained after many, many millions of years through evolutionary process. Jalajā nava-lakṣāṇi sthāvarā lakṣa-viṁśati, 8,400,000 species of life we had to come through. Then we have got this body, human form of life, and civilized. Civilized, according to our Vedic conception, a civilized means ārya, ārya. When Arjuna was declining to fight, Kṛṣṇa condemned him, anārya-juṣṭam: "You are just like..., speaking like an anārya, not an ārya. It is your duty. You must do it." Anārya-juṣṭam akīrtiṁ karam arjuna. "You'll be defied by others. Don't do it." So an ārya... Aryan means who accepts this varṇāśrama-dharma, four varṇas, four āśrama. Varnāśramācāravatā puruṣeṇa paraḥ pumān viṣṇur ārādhyate (CC Madhya 8.58).
The real aim is to go back to home, back to Godhead, Viṣṇu. So this is the process. If we execute this varṇāśrama-dharma rightly, then we gradually make progress towards spiritual realization. It is so arranged in that way, brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, not by birth but by qualification. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭam (BG 4.13). If these qualifications are found anywhere else, you should accept that.
So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that everyone from the very childhood, that means when education begins, this bhāgavata-dharma. Otherwise, we are missing the point. We are missing the opportunity of this human form of life. We are simply living like cats and dogs and dying like cats and dogs. And if we maintain that mentality like cats and dogs, then next life... Because we are given the opportunity by nature to utilize our consciousness, to utilize our intelligence, to understand God. But if we do not utilize, if we live like cats and dogs, then next life we have to accept, by nature's law, the body of cats and dog. This is bhāgavata-dharma. This is an opportunity. Here is the opportunity to make your choice whether again you are going to be cats and dogs or whether you are going to be elevated to the highest position, back to home, back to Godhead.
Harikeśa: ...tam, Seventh Canto, Sixth Chapter, verse number two. "In this human form of life there is chance to go back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore every living entity, especially in this human form of life must be engaged in devotional service. This devotional service is natural because Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of the soul, the Supersoul, is the most beloved being of all other living beings."
Prabhupāda: When the Deity door is open?
Akṣayānanda: We are waiting, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Prabhupāda: Why? Why you... No waiting.
Akṣayānanda: It's scheduled to open right now.
Prabhupāda: So why waiting?
Akṣayānanda: We're going to wait for your convenience.
Prabhupāda: Huh?
Akṣayānanda: For your convenience.
Prabhupāda: No, no. My convenience is not there. We can see later on.
He is the supreme father, and as the father and the sons are related eternally, you cannot be separated. There may be misunderstanding between the father and the son, but the son is always the son, and the father is always the father. That cannot be separated. So our present material condition of life means that we are forgotten of our relationship with God. This is our position. Therefore people are... Some of them are agnostics. Some of them are atheist. Some of them are this, that, so many. They want to forget God. They have already forgotten, and on account of their forgetfulness they are conditioned by nature. The father wants the sons may come back, and the sons have forgotten the father. Therefore the father comes as incarnation. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati bhārata, tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham (BG 4.7). Why Kṛṣṇa comes? Not only He comes, He sends His so many incarnation. Some of them are svāṁśa. Some of them are vibhinnāṁśa. Everyone is coming here to canvass, to get back the sons back to home, back to Godhead. In different countries, in different atmosphere the business is going on to reestablish the lost or forgotten relationship with God. This is going on.
So here Prahlāda Mahārāja recommended in the first verse, kaumāra ācaret prājño dharmān bhāgavatān iha: (SB 7.6.1) "From the very beginning of childhood one should be trained up to act according to the bhāgavata-dharma." That is real life. But instead of bhāgavata-dharma, they have created so many false dharmas. So many. So that is our mistake. Real dharma is bhāgavata-dharma, relationship with God. You may call it bhāgavata-dharma or the occupational duty in relationship with God. That is compulsory. You cannot say that "I do not need it." No. That is compulsory. If you are not in bhāgavata-dharma, then you are misled. That is described, dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo atra (SB 1.1.2). Where there is no question of to understand the relationship with God, that kind of religious system is bogus and cheating. Dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītaṁ (SB 6.3.19). This is the purport. Therefore it is said that why bhāgavata-dharma should be learned or one should be trained up in bhāgavata-dharma. Because yathā hi puruṣasya: "Of all living entities..." Puruṣasya iha viṣṇoḥ pādopasarpaṇam. Viṣṇoḥ pādopasarpaṇa means the same thing, as you say, "back to home, back to Godhead."
Pradyumna: "Translation: The human form of life affords one a chance to return home, back to Godhead. Therefore every living entity, especially in the human form of life, must engage in devotional service to the lotus feet of Lord Viṣṇu. This devotional service is natural because Lord Viṣṇu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the most beloved, the master of the soul, and the well-wisher of all other living beings."
Prabhupāda:
- yathā hi puruṣasyeha
- viṣṇoḥ pādopasarpaṇam
- yadā eṣa sarva-bhūtānāṁ
- priya ātmeśvaraḥ suhṛt
- (SB 7.6.2)
Jayādvaita: Could all the ladies please take their children outside, outside of earshot.
Prabhupāda: Bhāgavata-dharma, yesterday we discussed, dharmān bhāgavatān iha. Kaumāra ācaret prājño dharmān bhāgavatān iha (SB 7.6.1). From the beginning of life, from childhood, they should be given lessons on bhāgavata-dharma. The bhāgavata-dharma is very clearly indicated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Therefore Bhagavad-gītā should be read very carefully, attentively, from the beginning of life, childhood. Not that Bhagavad-gītā should be read in old age. No. From the very beginning of life. And whole Bhagavad-gītā is bhāgavata-dharma. And when one is well conversant with the Bhagavad-gītā or the lessons of Bhagavad-gītā, then the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam begins.
Bhāgavata-dharma means, as we have discussed yesterday morning, that Kṛṣṇa Himself is explaining bhāgavata-dharma. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru mām evaiṣyasi (BG 18.65). The real aim of life is how to go back to home, back to Godhead. They do not know it. Na te viduḥ. Generally, people do not know what is the aim of life. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuḥ. All the Vedic mantra says. The Ṛg Veda mantra says, om tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padam. That is the... Everyone must meditate upon Lord Viṣṇu. Meditation means to think of Lord Viṣṇu within the heart. I think we have seen many pictures that īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61), the Supreme Lord is sitting in everyone's heart, and that Lord's mūrti form is Viṣṇu-mūrti. So dhyāna, yoga, all this means to concentrate the mind in Viṣṇu-mūrti. Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ (SB 12.13.1). Yogi, what is their business? Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā. Concentrating the mind, meditating upon the Viṣṇu-mūrti. Nowadays, they have invented some system of yoga, some light, something like that. But that is not the sastric injunction. Sastric injunction is to think of Lord Viṣṇu within the heart. He's already there, and we have to search out. That is called meditation. That is called dhyāna.
So human life... Of course, this should be restricted or as much as possible, as it is available without any extraneous endeavor. Just like we allow our students, "Get yourself married. So by grace of Kṛṣṇa the wife or the husband which you have, just live peacefully. But don't try to encroach upon other's wife or other's husband." That should be restrained. That is humanity. So we have to live very peacefully so that we may not be disturbed in our material existence. But our ultimate aim should be spiritual realization. Sukham aindriyakaṁ daityā deha-yogena dehinām, sarvatra labhyate. If you are after sense enjoyment... Sarvatra means in all species of life. Suppose you happen to get a body, next body, as a hog, as a dog, or even lower than that. That sense enjoyment will be there. But this opportunity will not be there. This opportunity, to make yourself Kṛṣṇa conscious and just to leave this condemned place and go back to Godhead, that opportunity will not be there. That opportunity is for the human being. Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja said, tat-prayāso na kartavyo yata āyur-vyayaḥ param: "Therefore we should not simply waste our time for improving the paraphernalia of sense enjoyment."
So Prahlāda Mahārāja advises very nicely, "My dear friend," tat-prayāso na kartavyo yata āyur-vyayaḥ param, "don't exert yourself for increasing the paraphernalia of sense enjoyment. That is simply wasting your valuable time, your valuable duration of life." Because, we must know, the duration of life is limited. That will finish. "As sure as death." And before death comes again, we must prepare in such a nice way—no more death, no more birth. That is education. Therefore Bhāgavata says that "He is not a spiritual master. He is not a father. He is not a mother. He is not a friend." In this way. "He is not a husband." Who? "Who cannot protect his ward from the impending death." That means the father, the spiritual master, the husband or the protector should be so spiritually advanced that he will teach, he will protect his ward in such a nice way that no more birth, no more death. In this life Kṛṣṇa consciousness education is finished so that after leaving this body, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9), after quitting this body, no more birth again. Then what is that? Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti ma eti kaunteya: (BG 4.9) he goes back to Godhead. This should be the, I mean to say, objective of human life: how to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness and how to get away from this uncongenial atmosphere of material existence.
Śāradīyā: Swamijī? When we go to Kṛṣṇaloka to be with Kṛṣṇa...
Prabhupāda: Just see this girl, little girl, is aiming for going back to Kṛṣṇaloka. Just see. (laughter) I am giving an example. They don't care for this material senses. They are always thinking "When I shall go there, home, back to home, back to Godhead?" This is the psychology. Yes?
Śāradīyā: When we serve Kṛṣṇa, even though we don't have a material body...?
Prabhupāda: No. Material body you have to finish here. You are finishing your material body so many times even during this bodily existence. So material body cannot go into spiritual world. You have your material body here. Similarly, as soon as you enter in the spiritual world you have spiritual body.
Śāradīyā: We have a spiritual body to serve Kṛṣṇa?
Prabhupāda: As good as Kṛṣṇa's body. Kṛṣṇa has got spiritual body, similarly you will have spiritual body. Is that clear?
Śāradīyā: I want to know, when we serve Kṛṣṇa, we have spiritual senses, then that satisfies our spiritual senses when we serve Kṛṣṇa in Kṛṣṇaloka?
Prabhupāda: Yes. You dance with Kṛṣṇa, you eat with Kṛṣṇa, talk with Kṛṣṇa, you enjoy with Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa will kiss you also. (laughter) Kṛṣṇa is very kind to everyone, either you love Him as a lover, either you love Him as your son, either you love Him as your friend, or you love Him as your master. In whichever way you like you can love, and Kṛṣṇa will respond. Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham (BG 4.11). In the Bhagavad-gītā you will see Kṛṣṇa says, "Anyone who loves Me in different ways or different type," so Kṛṣṇa also loves reciprocating that way. If somebody Kṛṣṇa..., loves Kṛṣṇa as enemy, Kṛṣṇa also gives him salvation in that way also. Kṛṣṇa is so kind. Yes.
In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that this body is just like a machine, motorcar. Suppose you have got now a very nice motorcar, Rolls Royce car. So somehow or other, your car is lost. The next car, is it any guarantee that you will get Rolls Royce car? No. You'll get a car as you pay for. That's all. If you can pay for a Rolls Royce car, then you can get. Or any dress. Suppose you have got now very costly dress. Now your dress is torn, you have to change the dress, but is there any guarantee that you'll get the same type of dress? No. You'll get a dress as you pay for it. It's a common sense. Similarly, if you act like a demigod, you will get the body of a demigod. If we act like ordinary human being, then you get the body of a human being. If you act like a dog, then you get the body of a dog. And if you act like a devotee, you go back to home, back to Godhead. This is the process.
Arthadam means the purpose of life. So those who are not taking part of bhāgavata-dharma from the beginning of life, their artham is different, and whereas a person taking to bhāgavata-dharma, artham is different. The bhāgavata-dharma artham, bhāgavata-dharma artham is to go back to home, back to Godhead. And the material life artham: sense gratification. This is the difference. They do not know that there is life after death and there is eternal life, there is eternal happiness. They do not know. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa saṅgo 'sya.
That is also, Prahlāda Mahārāja says in another place, na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇoḥ durāśayā ye bahir-arthah-māninaḥ. People, general, people in general, they do not know what is the aim of life. The aim of life is this: back to home, back to Godhead. This is aim of life. There is no other aim. Oṁ tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sūraya. That is the aim of life: how to reach Viṣṇu-pada. And here it is also said, mukunda-caraṇāmbujam. This is aim of life. Without attempting how to regain the shelter of mukunda-caraṇāmbujam, if you simply waste your time for economic development or improving the standard of your living, it is simply waste of time. This is the law of nature. Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja says, tat-prayāso na kartavyo. Tat-prayāso means in the previous verse it is said that sukham aindriyakaṁ daityā. Everyone is trying. Why they are working so hard? Sukham aindriyakam. Just to get some sense gratification. That's all. This is the only aim.
So this should be the human activity, that śarīraṁ pauruṣaṁ yāvan na vipadyeta puṣkalam. So long we are stout and strong and we can work very nicely, the health is quite all right, take advantage of it. It is not Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is for the lazy fellow. No. It is meant for the strong man: strong in body, strong in mind, strong in determination—everything strong-strong in brain. It is meant for them. Because we have to execute the highest goal of life. Unfortunately, they do not know what is the highest goal of life. The modern... Not modern, always. Now it is very conspicuous: people do not know what is the aim of life. Anyone who is in this material world, he is in māyā, means he does not know what is the goal of life. Na te viduḥ, they do not know, svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇu. Svārtha-gati. Everyone is supposed to be self-interested. Self-interest is the first law of nature, they say. But they do not know what is self-interest. He, instead of going back to home, back to Godhead—that is his real self-interest-he's going to become a dog in the next life. Is that self-interest? But they do not know it. How nature's law is working, they do not know it. Na te viduḥ. Adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisram. Matir na kṛṣṇe parataḥ svato vā.
I do not know why people are reluctant to do this simple act when the result is so great. To go home, back to home, back to Godhead is not easy thing. To get out of the clutches of māyā and go back to home, back to Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, it is not so easy thing for ordinarily... But Kṛṣṇa is personally coming and teaching so that people may take advantage of it and go back to home, back to Godhead. Still, people could not understand. Therefore Kṛṣṇa came as devotee, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu, teaching the same thing. Teaching the same thing. He, although He's Kṛṣṇa, He never invented anything. That is called paramparā system. Although He's God Himself, God also does not invent anything. Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, brahma-sūtra-padaiś caiva hetumadbhir viniścitaiḥ (BG 13.5). He's giving reference to the Brahma-sūtra, Vedānta-sūtra.
So there are so many items to understand this vairāgya-vidyā or to practice. The first practice is brahmacarya, celibacy. Tapasā brahmacaryeṇa (SB 6.1.13). So many items, but if one takes to vāsudeva bhakti... Vāsudeve bhagavati, kecit kevalayā bhaktyā (SB 6.1.15). Kevalayā means only by bhakti process one can attain all success, jñāna-vairāgya. So you are situated, you are at least being trained up in bhakti-yoga, and if you strictly follow, dṛḍha-vratāḥ... Dṛḍha-vratāḥ, that is the word, dṛḍha-vratāḥ, with firm determination, then in one life we can learn this vairāgya-vidyā nija-bhakti-yogam (CC Madhya 6.254) and go back to home, back to Godhead. That is possible. It is not impossible. But ordinarily it is very, very difficult. Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja giving so many description, in detail, how we are becoming attached. But our real business is how to become detached. Unless we give up, paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate (BG 2.59), unless we have got the taste for the better thing, the inferior things we cannot give up. By cultivation of bhakti-yoga, by this process, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ (SB 7.5.23), we can get the taste of bhakti-yoga, then it is possible to give up this attachment for the material world. This is possible.
So more we become implicated in this material world, the more we suffer from the threefold miseries, adhyātmika, adhibhautika, adhidaivika. But by the grace of māyā we forget them on account of our pleasing atmosphere in the family—kuṭumbha-rāmaḥ. Therefore it is said ramante yoginaḥ anante (CC Madhya 9.29). Those who are yogis... There are many different types of yogis. Of all of them, bhakta-yogis, ramante yoginaḥ anante. The difference between yogi and bhogī—there are two classes. Bhogī means those who are trying to enjoy this material world, they are called bhogī. And there is another word, rogī. Rogī means diseased. Neither yogi nor a bhogī. Yogi means transcendentalist, trying to go back to home, back to Godhead, they are called yogi. And those who are only interested with this material happiness, they are called bhogī. And those who are neither of them, they are called rogi. So those who are yogis, they are first class.
So therefore our mission of life is how to get out of this tāpa-traya, and Prahlāda Mahārāja is giving description how we remain involved in tāpa-traya. Sarvatra tāpa-traya-duḥkhitātmā. Repeatedly, tāpa-traya, na nirvidyate sva-kuṭumba-rāmaḥ. Especially those who are family men, it is very difficult. Therefore according to Vedic civilization, after fiftieth year, one should give up the family responsibility, vānaprastha. From vana, vana means forest. And from vana the word vana has come. Prastha means "who has gone." Pañcaśordhvaṁ vanaṁ vrajet. Vanaṁ vrajet means to free from all family responsibility and prepare for going back to home, back to Godhead. But those who are too much attached to family life, na nirvidyate, being repeatedly frustrated, repeatedly they are put into trouble. Still. But if one wants regular advancement of spiritual life, he must retire at the age of fifty. That is Vedic civilization. Not that unless one is killed, he's not going to retire.
So the back to home back to Godhead, we are trying. That is our ambition. But if we have got a little propensity for material enjoyment, then... We may get very better position in the material world, in the Svargaloka, heavenly planet. The description of heavenly planet is given also in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Very, very opulent, we cannot imagine even how they are opulent. The roads are made of pearls, diamonds, coral, the roads are made of like that. And at the same time, no sinful man is admitted there. Everyone highly elevated, pious, there is no crookedness. There is no enviousness. So many... You'll find this description in the Eighth Canto, of Svargaloka. There are... Everything we cannot imagine even. But that is also within this material world. Within this material world. Yānti deva-vratā devān (BG 9.25).
So if we can... Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau (Brs. 1.2.234), the sevā, the service, begins from the tongue, service. Not with the hand but with the tongue. If you simply chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, this is sevā, and if you take prasādam, then your business begins immediately. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. And if you simply continue this sevā, then Kṛṣṇa will reveal Himself and gradually He will give you intelligence how you can make advance to go back to home, back to Godhead. Na hy acyutaṁ prīṇayato. Acyutam, Kṛṣṇa is acyuta. Acyuta means who never falls down, or never withdraws his promise. That is acyuta. Just like we promise something, but sometimes we do not keep. This is material world. But Kṛṣṇa is not like that. Kṛṣṇa says... His name is acyuta, means never fall down. Just like Arjuna asked Kṛṣṇa, rathaṁ sthāpaya me 'cyuta. He's ordering Kṛṣṇa to drive the chariot. He knew that "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is my duty to serve Him, but He has agreed to become my chariot driver, so now I have to order Him. He has agreed to become my chariot driver." Therefore he is reminding, "Kṛṣṇa, do not take it otherwise because I am ordering You. You are not to be ordered, but You order everyone. Now I am ordering You, but You are acyuta, You are never fallible. You never withdraw Your word." So Kṛṣṇa also carried his order. He's so nice friend of Arjuna that He promised, "I shall become your chariot driver." And the master is ordering. Therefore He used this word, acyuta.
It does not mean that because one is mahā-bhāgavata he should not be put into trials. He can be put into trials, because the material world is like that. The western country, they, Lord Jesus Christ, he was put into trials but he never forgot Kṛṣṇa. This is sign of mahā-bhāgavata, nitya-siddha.
- gaurāṅgera saṅgi-gaṇe nitya-siddha kori 'māne
- se jāy brajenda-nandana pāś
If one can understand nitya-siddha bhāgavata, then he immediately becomes eligible to go back to home, to back to godhead. This is the privilege of associating with mahā-bhāgavata. So our system is, (child crying—aside:) try and maintain (?). Evaṁ paramparā, to associate with the mahā-bhāgavata by words or by physical exposition (?). So mahā-bhāgavata arbhakaḥ. One may argue, arbhakaḥ means foolish child, who has no knowledge, he is called arbhakaḥ. How we can say mahā-bhāgavata? Arbhakaḥ, he has no knowledge. No. It is possible. Ahaituky apratihatā. Bhakti does not depend on age, or on advanced knowledge, or richness, or so many other things. Janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrī (SB 1.8.26). To take birth in high family, aristocracy, and to become rich, to become beautiful, to become very learned scholar. These things are material assets, but spiritual life does not depend on these things. One can become spiritually very advanced even though he is poor, he is born in a low, low-grade family.
So, sva-pāda-mule patitaṁ, Lord Brahmā, as soon as asked Prahlāda Mahārāja to pacify the Lord, he immediately fell down at His lotus feet, sva-pāda-mule patitaṁ tam arbhakaṁ. Just like we are sometime extraordinarily happy, pleased when a small child offers his obedience. So naturally, when Prahlāda Mahārāja, a small boy five years old, and he fell down at the lotus feet of the Lord, He became very much pleased. So, not only for Prahlāda Mahārāja, anyone in this material world who offers his obeisances before the Deity, don't think it is useless. It is taken into account. Therefore Kṛṣṇa advises, if you cannot do anything, you do four things, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). At least come before Me, just like we do. We come in the temple, and offer our obeisances. It is so easy to go back to home back to Godhead. It is not very difficult task at all. If you cannot do anything, if you cannot read books, if you cannot understand philosophy, if your behavior is not on the standard, still if you simply offer your obeisances before the Deity you make progress. You make progress. Undoubtedly.
So ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthāḥ (BG 14.18). You have seen in the Bhagavad-gītā: "Those who are situated in sattva-guṇa, they are promoted to the higher planetary system after death." Madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasaḥ: "And those who are in the rajo-guṇa, they remain in the middle planetary system." Jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ: "And those who are in tamasika, in the darkness, ignorance modes of material nature, they go down to the, down planetary system or animal life." So this is an opportunity, this human form of life, to decide where you want to go. Are you going to hell or heaven or back to home, or back to Godhead? That you have to decide. This is human intelligence, not like working like cats and dogs and dying like cats and dogs. That is not human life. Human life is meant for to decide where you want to go next. By the evolutionary process you have come to this human form of life. Jalajā nava-lakṣāni sthāvarā lakṣa-viṁśati. By going through so many, 8,400,000 species of life, you have got this human form of life. Now you decide where you'll go. So where I have to go, how to go, there is that information in the śāstra. Śāstra-cakṣuṣaḥ. See through the śāstra where you can go.
These informations are there. Why you are missing this opportunity? If you like, you can go to the higher planetary system. If you like, you can go back to home, back to Godhead. Mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām. These informations are there.
So without sattva-guṇa, if you keep people in the rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, then your, their future is lost. Rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, means people will become more greedy and lusty, that's all. And greedy and lusty means cats and dogs, animal life. Animal life. They're trying to eat—no discrimination of eating. So that is hog's life. The hog has no discrimination of eating. It can eat even stool. So the... If you eat, become like hog—no discrimination of eating, whatever you..., just like so many swamis, they say, "Oh, why there is restriction of eating? You can eat anything you like," so nature will give you: "All right, you want to eat anything you like? All right, you become a hog. You eat even stool." Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantor dehopapatti (SB 3.31.1). You have to change your body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muḥ... (BG 2.13). You may say that there is no life after, but that is foolishness. You are under the control of material nature.
In the Bhagavad-gītā you'll find this word, buddhi-yoga. What is that buddhi-yoga? Buddhi-yoga means yena mām upayānti te, dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ tam. That is buddhi-yoga. Intelligence means to know how to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is intelligence, not that intelligence how to cheat you, how to get some money, hook and crook. That is not intelligence. That intelligence I see I was... Hari-śauri, I was explaining that, that even ant, a small ant, as soon as there is a drop of sugar juice, immediately, within a second, hundreds of ants will come: "Here is a drop of sugar juice." This is nature's study. This kind of buddhi-yoga or buddhi, intelligence, how to eat, how to sleep, how to have sex and how to defend, even in the ant there, this buddhi-yoga is there. That is not buddhi-yoga. To endeavor too much for the āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca, that is not considered buddhi. That buddhi, intelligence, is there even in the ant, a small ant. The real buddhi-yoga is how to be engaged in devotional service of the Lord. That is buddhi-yoga. How to become first-class devotee of Kṛṣṇa. That is called buddhi-yoga. Buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi taṁ yena mām upayānti te. That is buddhi-yoga. How to go back to home, back to Godhead, that is buddhi.
He leaves behind Him the books like Bhagavad-gītā or Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam or many other such literatures. Why? To reclaim these obstinate, bewildered sons of God. They have forgotten God, and they are, instead of loving God, they are now loving dog. Therefore God is very anxious. It is natural. If a father is very rich man and he has got many sons, he wants to see the sons very happy. But if the sons go away from home and becomes crazy, do not come back home, the father is more anxious than the son. The son does not understand that what is his precarious condition of life in this material world, but God understands that how much in miserable condition he's living. Threefold miserable condition of this material existence. He's always disturbed, but still, he does not wish to go back to Godhead. Therefore there is a constant endeavor on the part of God to reclaim these conditioned souls.
So anyone who takes up this endeavor on behalf of God to reclaim these conditioned souls back to Godhead, back to home, he is considered the most intimate devotee, dear devotee of the Lord. It is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, na ca tasmān manuṣyeṣu kaścid me priya-kṛttamaḥ. If you want to become very dear to Kṛṣṇa or God, then try to take up these missionary activities. What is that? Spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa will be very much pleased. If you want to live in a solitary place and perform yoga system for your personal elevation of self-realization, that is very good, undoubtedly. But if you try to convert others to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness platform, it is far better. Prahlāda Mahārāja, you'll find in his prayer, he'll say to the Lord Nṛsiṁha-deva, "My dear Lord," naivodvije para duratyaya-vaitaraṇyās, "this world is full of anxieties.
Mālatī: When they go back to Godhead, some people can remember their past lives.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Mālatī: In the mind.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Mālatī: I thought the mind was left behind.
Prabhupāda: No. Actually mind carries you to the next body. So mind goes with you. The material mind, material ego, material intelligence become nil when you are completely liberated. But at that time your spiritual mind acts. It is not very difficult to understand. Somebody is acting under the impression... Just like one of our students, he was acting under the impression that he is Frenchman and doing something subversive, and now he is thinking that "I am Kṛṣṇa's." (chuckles) He has stopped all those nonsense. (break) When he was thinking that he's a Frenchman, that mind was there. And now he's thinking that "I am Kṛṣṇa's," the mind is there. So where is the chance of losing the mind? You want to question anything? (break) This boy?
Haṁsadūta: She. It's a girl.
That is for the benefit of the devotee, not for His personal benefit. Just like Lord Rāmacandra. He... His one wife Sītādeva was kidnapped by Rāvaṇa. Of course, Rāvaṇa cannot kidnap. It was externally, Māyā Sītā. Still, taking for exception Sītā was kidnapped, so Lord Rāmacandra could have possessed many millions of Sītā by His will, but for one Sītā He had to fight with Rāvaṇa and finish the whole dynasty, because Rāmacandra is the ideal king. It is the king's business to chastise such rogues and ruffians. That is king's business. That is for the benefit of Rāvaṇa. Rāvaṇa means the same Hiraṇyakaśipu. Kumbhakarṇa-Rāvaṇa. First they became Hiraṇyakṣa and Hiraṇyakaśipu, the next, Kumbhakarṇa and Rāvaṇa, and the next, they became Śiśupāla and Dantavakra. In this way, because Kṛṣṇa wanted to give them liberation again back to home, back to Godhead, so this killing of Rāvaṇa, killing of Hiraṇyakaśipu, killing of Śiśupāla, is for the benefit of the persons, not for Kṛṣṇa's benefit. He killed them for their benefit.
But actually your position is not to die. You are eternal. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Destruction of this body does not mean your destruction. This is saṁsāra-cakra. I am getting different opportunities, different bodies, to fulfill my material desires. This is going on. This is called saṁsāra-cakra-kadanāt. Prahlāda Mahārāja, a devotee, is afraid, very, very afraid. He is not afraid of the lion or the elephant or the tiger or the snake. No. He's not afraid of these. But he's afraid of this repetition of birth and death. That is called saṁsāra-cakra. Is it not botheration? Any sane man will understand how much botheration it is. Just like I am now old man. There are so many inconveniences. And in this way every old man will die, and if he's fortunate enough, if he has done something, he may be promoted to the higher planetary system, or if he has tried for Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he may go back to home, back to Godhead. So why one should bother here in this material world, changing body, one after another? This is called saṁsāra-cakra-kada...
So Prahlāda Mahārāja expecting, "When the Lord will call me?" That is real mercy. You cannot call God, or Kṛṣṇa, "Please come to me and save me." Kṛṣṇa is not your servant; He does not agree to be your servant. But when He's pleased, He says, He calls you, "Please come and surrender unto Me." Therefore we must expect, "When the master will call me?" Don't try to see God, but act in such a way that God will call you, "Please come here." That is wanted. That is bhakti, not that "O God, please come. I will see you." Why God will come to see you? He is very busy. What you have done that you want to see God? If you say, "O Indira Gandhi, please come here. I'll see you," she will come? Be qualified, and she will see you. Similarly, don't try... This is not bhakti. Nacia nacia aire gopāla.(?) No. Gopāla is not anyone's servant that He'll come dancing and dancing. You be qualified, and He'll see you. He'll call you, "Yes, come back. Come back home, back to home, back to Godhead." Be qualified. (aside:) Why you are standing? Stand. Yes.
So this is Prahlāda Mahārāja's instruction. Everyone should be anxious how Kṛṣṇa will call him back to home, back to Godhead. And that is done, that is possible, when you are engaged in service. Otherwise it is not po... Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ (Brs. 1.2.234). You cannot ask God to come and He will see you. No. When you are sevonmukha, fully in service, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau... That service begins from jihvā, from the tongue. Tā'ra madhye jihvā ati, lobhamoy sudurmati, tā'ke jetā koṭhina saṁsāre. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says, "It is very, very difficult to control the tongue." Therefore the tongue should be engaged in service of the Lord, beginning from the tongue. If you can control the tongue, then you can control your belly, then you can control your genital, and then you become jitendriya. So we have to become jitendriya. Indriya means the senses. They are given to us for material enjoyment, just like the hog is also given the tongue to taste stool. Not your tongue. Your tongue is meant for tasting prasādam, not stool. Your tongue is meant for chanting, not eating stool. So you have to control this. Then there will be possibility of getting the shelter of apavarga-śaraṇaṁ. The repetition of birth and death Everyone should be afraid of the saṁsāra-cakra-kadanāt.
So if we have to become father and mother, we shall have to teach our children in such a way that next life, no more material life. He goes back to home, back to Godhead. That is real father and mother. Therefore it is said, balasya neha śaraṇaṁ nṛsiṁha pitarau. If the father, mother do not know how to give protection to the children, then what is the use of taking shelter? Huh? In Prema-vivarta it is said, janame janame sabe pitā mātā pāya, kṛṣṇa guru nahe mile bhaja hari ei. Every... Cats and dogs, they also get father and mother. Without father, mother, who can take birth? So to become the father, mother, like cats and dogs, that is not human civilization. The father, mother's duty is to train the children in such a way that they will be interested in Kṛṣṇa and guru. That is father, mother.
So the whole Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is how to become dhīra, selflessness. Then life is successful. And anyway, don't be involved, entangled, with these material things. There are... This morning we were calculating that there are... As many atoms, so many living entities are also there. Sāṅkhya, saṅkhyatanam, the word. Sāṅkhya. Sāṅkhya means number. As many numbers of atoms are there, so many number of living entities are there, and there is struggle here. So in this human life the chance is how to get out of this material atomic combination and go back to home, back to Godhead. This is the chance. So we have to follow the examples of Prahlāda Mahārāja, and there are... He's mahājana. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). Let us try to follow Prahlāda Mahārāja's instruction and make our life successful.
This is the conviction of a (person) perfectly convinced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. The preacher who are preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they must be convinced that without accepting Kṛṣṇa consciousness, nobody has any means of escaping these stringent laws of material nature. It is everywhere stated. In the Bhagavad-gītā also it is stated, mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti. Unfortunately, the conditioned souls, although they are very, very much afflicted with the pressure of material nature, they have become callous. Every moment, every second, they are being controlled, and still they are thinking they can do anything and everything independently. So in this way they are suffering. But a learned, saintly person... Prahlāda Mahārāja, he thinks that "Without delivering these fallen souls, alone I am not prepared to go back to home, back to God." Naitān vihāya kṛpaṇān.
So if you want to approach the platform of bhakti, the platform of gentleman, say, bhadra, then guru and kṛṣṇa-kṛpā wanted. So what Kṛṣṇa says, that is confirmed by the devotee, Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Kṛṣṇa says, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ: (BG 9.32) "Never mind he is born in a low grade family, dog-eaters' family. It doesn't matter. But because he has taken shelter of Me," te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim, "they'll go back to home, back to Godhead." You cannot check. You so-called gentlemen of this material world, you cannot check them. You may think otherwise, but they'll go back to home, back to Godhead. Who cares for you?
So if you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, divyam, divine nature... Simply you understand that Kṛṣṇa is not like us: Kṛṣṇa has no material body, Kṛṣṇa is not unhappy, Kṛṣṇa is always happy—simply a few things, if you become convinced that Kṛṣṇa's nature..., immediately you become eligible to be transferred back to home, back to Godhead. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, so nice. Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself, and if you become convinced, "Yes, what Kṛṣṇa says, it is all right..." Just like Arjuna said, sarvam etam ṛtaṁ manye yad vadasi keśava: (BG 10.14) "Whatever you have said I accept in total. No reduction, no..." Sarvam etam ṛtaṁ manye: "Whatever You have said, I believe. I have taken. I have..." That is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says something, and I understand something. That you go on with your millions of years; it will never be possible. You have to understand Kṛṣṇa as He says. Therefore we are presenting Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. That is real understanding. Arjuna says, sarvam etam ṛtaṁ manye. Ṛtam means fact. "Everything, whatever You have said..." Not that "I cut this side and that side..."
So nīca means just like the washerman or the barber or the cobbler. They are less than the domestic servant at home. They are śūdras, and they are considered less than the śūdras, pañcama. So a disciple is expected to live in gurukula or... Gurukula means at the shelter of guru; nicavat, menial servant. Menial servant. Nīcavat. Ācaran dāsavan nīco gurau sudṛdha sauhṛdaḥ. This can be possible when one is very thickly related with the guru. Otherwise ordinary relationship will not do. One who has got actually the conviction, yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādo... **. One who is convinced that "If I can please my guru, then Kṛṣṇa will be pleased..." This is called sudṛdha, full faith. Yasya prasādān na gatiḥ kuto 'pi. "And if I displease my guru, then I have no place." In this way... Of course, guru cannot be a false guru. False guru has no such thing. If one guru is genuine and the disciple is genuine, then both of them are benefited and they go back to home, back to Godhead.
This chance is there in the human form of life. If you want to be elevated to the higher planetary system, you can do that. Yānti deva-vratā devān. Why you are jumping with a jet plane to go to the moon planet? If you prepare yourself... There are methods; otherwise, why Kṛṣṇa says, yānti deva-vratā? "If you want to go to the higher planetary system, you prepare yourself in this life. You'll be next life..." Tyaktvā deham: "You shall go there. Or if you want to remain, go to the planets of Pitrloka, you can go there. And if you prepare yourself to come to Me, back to home, back to God, you can do that." So what should be our aim of life? We shall go to the higher planetary system or back to home, back to Godhead? "Back," we say, because we have come from God. Just like one man is put in the prison house. He has come from his free home. By his work he is criminal; therefore he is put into the prison house. Similarly, we are all part and parcel of God. Our real home is Vaikuṇṭha. But we have come here. How we have come, that is a very mysterious thing; but we are part and parcel. Somehow or other... Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has sung, anādi karama phale, padi 'bhavārṇava-jale. Somehow or other we have fallen this. Therefore the real aim of life, how to get out of this bhavārṇava, nescience, that is the aim of life. If we remain again like the monkeys and cats and dogs, eating, sleeping, mating, and dancing, that is not very responsible life. Every man should be responsible. That is Vedic culture, to create responsible man, not varṇa-saṅkara. Therefore Arjuna was very much afraid that "After war the women will be widows, they will be polluted, and varṇa-saṅkara population will come out." Actually that is the fact. After the last war the hippies have come out all over the world. This is the fact.
The first proposal is brahmacārī, how to create brahmacārī. Brahmacārī guru-gṛhe vasan dānto guror hitam. What is that? So what is the duty of the brahmacārī, it is now said. The first duty is that sāyaṁ prātar upāsīta: "They should be taught how to worship the Supreme Lord at least twice in a day," sāyaṁ prātaḥ, "in the morning and in the evening." Tri-sandhya. The prescription is for tri-sandhya. One should take bath three times. In India there is no difficulty. Even in Western countries you have got very good arrangement, hot water and cold water. You can arrange and can take bath. This is essential. Not that sleeping up to ten o'clock. This kind of civilization will not help you. This asuric civilization will degrade the human society. He got the opportunity of elevating himself, even going back to home, back to Godhead. But for want of real civilization they are going again back to monkey and cats and dogs. This is a fact. So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to save them from going back to become cats and dogs.
Dakṣa śraddadhānaḥ: faithful. Faithful to whom? To the spiritual master. Whatever he says, the brahmacārī should take it: "Yes, it is my life and soul." That is the explanation given by Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura. He is explaining with reference to the verse vyavasāyātmikā buddhir ekeha kuru-nandana (BG 2.41). He very nicely explains. You have perhaps read it, Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura's... Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura has taught very, very nicely about guru. Therefore he has written in Gurvaṣṭaka, yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādaḥ **. He is example, practical example of guru-bhakti, Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura. He accepted his guru, Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura. So he said that "I am not interested for my salvation or going back to Godhead. I am not interested." Interested means it may come; it may not come. "That I don't mind. But I am interested only with the words of my guru." Viśvanātha Cakravartī said. "That is my life. Whether I will be successful or not successful, it doesn't matter. I must take the words of my Guru Mahārāja as my life and soul."
Parāṁ gatim. Parāṁ gatim means to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is our real home, the spiritual world. And live there eternally, blissfully, with full knowledge. That is our real position. So here we have come in this material world for material enjoyment. And the more we are making plan for material enjoyment, the more we are becoming entangled. That we do not know. They are thinking that material sense enjoyment is the aim of life. No, that is not the aim of life. That is the way to become more and more entangled. For sense enjoyment I have got this now body, Indian body, you have got this Australian or American or European body. But you have to change this body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). We are eternal. Na jāyate na mriyate vā kadācit. The soul does not take birth; neither it dies. We simply change body.
| Page Title: | Back to Godhead (Lectures, SB cantos 3 - 12) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, Mayapur |
| Created: | 04 of Mar, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=188, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 188 |