Everyone is trying to become the master

Expressions researched:
"everyone is trying to become master" |"everyone is trying to become the master"

SB Canto 7

SB 7.3.12, Purport:

Taking some water from his waterpot, he sprinkled it upon Subuddhi Rāya and declared that Subuddhi Rāya had now become a Mohammedan. The point is that this Nawab had been an ordinary menial servant of Subuddhi Rāya but was somehow or other able to occupy the supreme post of Nawab of Bengal. This is the material world. Everyone is trying to become master through various devices, although everyone is servant of his senses. Following this system, a living entity, although servant of his senses, tries to become master of the whole universe. Hiraṇyakaśipu was a typical example of this, and Brahmā was informed by the demigods of his intentions.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 2.23 -- Hyderabad, November 27, 1972:

So unless you are prepared to surrender... That is a great difficult job for the materialistic person. Nobody wants to surrender. He wants to compete. Individually, person to person, family to family, nation to nation, everyone is trying to become the master. Where is the question of surrendering? There is no question of surrendering. So this is the disease. Therefore Kṛṣṇa demands that to cure this rascaldom, or most chronic disease, you surrender. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). "Then? If I surrender, then whole thing will be failure? My business, my plans, my, so many things...?" No. "I take charge of you. I take charge of you." Ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ. "Don't be worried." So much assurance is there. Still, we are not prepared to surrender, This is our material disease. Therefore Kṛṣṇa came again as a devotee just to show how to surrender to Kṛṣṇa. Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam (SB 11.5.32).

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 7.9.24 -- Mayapur, March 2, 1976:

Why he is in this material world? Because he has got some desire that "I shall be the master of a brahmāṇḍa." Just like everyone is trying to become the master of his house or the society or the community or the country. Just like in your country so many people are trying to become the President. Everywhere, everyone is trying to become master. It doesn't matter it is a small circle or big circle. This is material disease. So Brahmā is also trying to become the master of this universe. The same mentality is there. Hiraṇyakaśipu underwent severe penances. Why? To become the master of the world. This is the material disease. Kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga-vāñchā kare. So this bhoga-vāñchā are different degrees. One man is satisfied having a family, three, four men. He thinks, "I have become master." But other is not satisfied. Other wants, "No, no. Why a family? I must be master of a society or a community or a nation." So Brahmā is also the same thing, same degree—not same degree; different degree—but the desire is how to become master. That disease is there.

Lecture on SB 7.9.40 -- Mayapur, March 18, 1976:

The karmīs, they're working so hard day and night. Everywhere you see, they are working day and night. But the purpose is how to become master. They cannot become master, but the ambition is how to become master, how to become the richest man like such and such big man. This is going... This is called struggle for existence. Everyone is trying to become the master. Nobody is trying to become a servant. Ask anyone that "Why you are working so hard?" "No, I shall get so much money, I shall become very wealthy, I shall have so many servants, so many workers, and I shall control over them." That is trying to become master. Therefore the jihvā, in the very beginning, jihvā, the tongue, should be controlled. If we can control the tongue, then other senses will be automatically controlled.

Festival Lectures

Janmastami Lord Sri Krsna's Appearance Day -- Bhagavad-gita 7.5 Lecture -- Vrndavana, August 11, 1974:

So out of that independence we have come to this material world, to enjoy freely. So Kṛṣṇa has given us freedom, "You can enjoy freely." And we are trying to do that. But the result is that we are becoming entangled. We are given the freedom to work in this material world. Everyone is trying to become the master of the material world. Nobody is trying to become the servant. Only we, the Vaiṣṇavas, we are trying to become servant. The karmīs and jñānīs, they do not like to become servant. They criticize us that "You Vaiṣṇavas, you have got slave mentality." Yes, we have got the slave menta... Caitanya Mahāprabhu has taught, gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ (CC Madhya 13.80). That is our position. What is the use of claiming artificially, "I am master"? If I had been master, then why the fan is required? I am servant of this influence of summer season. Similarly, I shall be servant in the winter season, too much cold.

General Lectures

Lecture at St. Pascal's Franciscan Seminary -- Melbourne, June 28, 1974:

When he forgets this relationship, that he is eternal servant of God, that means his material existence. In the material existence, nobody is prepared to become servant. Everyone is prepared to become the master. That is struggle for existence. Everyone is trying to become master. Even in the cats' and dogs' society you will find one dog is trying to predominate by barking that "I am better than you." So this is called struggle for existence. Everyone, individual to individual, nation to nation, society to society, religion to religion, so-called religion—everyone is trying to become the master. Nobody is trying to become the servant. But real position is we living entities, we are eternal servant of God. As soon as we forget this formula, we are in the material existence. And as soon as we revive this, our original consciousness, that is called spiritual platform.

Departure Talks

Conversation -- Hawaii, June 20, 1975:

"Now I am meant for service, I have rendered service, but nobody has become happy, either the master or myself. Therefore now I have got intelligence: why not serve You? You are the supreme master. So I have come to You. Please engage me in Your service." This is full surrender. Kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśāḥ. By serving this material objective, there is no peace. Everyone is unhappy although they are rendering service and taking service. This is going on, but nobody is happy because this is artificial. Real service... Unless the thing comes to the real point, there is no peace. Here everyone is trying to become master, and everyone wants to avoid service. But by the nature's law, one has to become servant and render service. Going on. Conglomeration. Kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśās teṣāṁ mayi na karuṇā jātā na trapā nopaśāntiḥ. (break) (end)

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversations -- September 10, 1974, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: (Sanskrit) He is not poet. Poet means he must have full knowledge. Then if he writes poetry, that will be beneficial. The rascal's poetry, just like in your country, one line, three lines, one line. This is rascaldom; it is not poetry. (aside:) You should not show your feet before the Deity. That is possible only in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We teach our men to address his fellow man as prabhu: "You are master, I am servant." In the material world, everyone is trying to become master; nobody is trying to become servant. And we are teaching that you try to become servant. Just the opposite. Nobody will agree. Therefore, they say the Vaiṣṇava religion is slave mentality. They say. They do not know that it is success of life to become slave of Kṛṣṇa. They do not know. Who has become happy trying to become master? (indistinct)

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Garden Conversation -- June 22, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: This is not wanted. He is spirit. He has nothing to do with this material world, but he wanted it. Or the real thing is that he wanted to enjoy by becoming the master. He is servant... Sometimes servants desire it that "Why I become servant? Why not master?" That is natural. But the natural position is he is servant. If he remains servant of Kṛṣṇa, then he's happy always. But because he desired to become master, so he cannot become master in the spiritual world, because in the spiritual world the master is one. So he is given the chance, "All right, go to the material world and become a master." But that is a falldown. So he's trying struggle for existence, and everyone is trying to become master. Even one is in this spiritual knowledge that "I am spirit soul," still he's trying to become master. That is Māyāvāda. They have understood that "I am not this body, ahaṁ brahmāsmi, but I am the supreme Brahman." The same disease is there—master. Therefore they are condemned, arūhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padam tataḥ (SB 10.2.32). Because the mentality to remain master is continuing, even they are in the Brahman, merge into the Brahman, the mastership mentality is there; therefore he falls down again. Because mastership exhibition can be done in this material world.