Unless one is awakened to this position, that "Why I am suffering? I do not want all these sufferings. I have tried to make a solution of all these sufferings, but I have failed," unless one is in that position, he is not to be considered a perfect human being. Humanity begins when this sort of inquiries are awakened in one's mind. In the Brahma-sūtra this inquiry is called brahma-jijñāsā. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. And every activity of the human being is to be considered a failure without having this inquiry in his mind. So persons who have awakened this inquiry into his mind as to "What I am, why I am suffering, wherefrom I have come or where I shall go after death," when these inquiries come, are awakened in the mind of a sane human being, then he is practically the right student for understanding Bhagavad-gītā. And he must be śraddhāvān. Śraddhāvān. He must have respect, a fond respect in the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Such a person, as the ideal person was Arjuna.
Failure (Lectures, BG)
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Therefore this is a stage arrangement.
So pratikāram and apratikāram. Whatever we have manufactured, pratikāram, counteraction, that will be also failure if Kṛṣṇa does not sanction it. That is realized by Prahlāda Mahārāja. He says "My dear Lord," Hiraṇyakaśipu, that "people have manufactured so many pratikāram, counteraction." But tanu-bhṛtām, "Those who have accepted this material body, they are simply manufacturing things to counteract dangers. But even though they have all this counteracting machine or counteracting agents, still, without Your sanction, this counteracting machine or agent will not be fruitful." So similarly, Arjuna is being protected by Kṛṣṇa. So even though Arjuna is not well-equipped, apratikāram, still he will be saved. Because Kṛṣṇa is there.
Devotion to God is considered to be the great practical value, as much as it forms a part of practice of yoga. Those who are practicing yoga, they must be devotee of God. Otherwise, yoga will be a failure. You see? So inasmuch as it forms a part of practice of yoga and is one of the means for the final attainment of samādhi-yoga or the restraint of the mind... That yoga, citta-niruddha. The whole purpose of practicing yoga is to control the mind, control the mind. Now, here Patañjali system, that unless you, I mean, conduct devotional service of Lord, or bhakti, there is no success of yoga.
Not that, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa will do everything. Therefore we shall not try for a storefront or we shall not go to see this man or... Kṛṣṇa..." No! That is lethargy. You have to do your own duty. But result, depend on Kṛṣṇa. This is Kṛṣṇa conscious. You don't be sorry if there is failure, you don't be unhappy if there is success, uh, you don't be too much, I mean to say, jubilant if there is success. Everything is done by Kṛṣṇa. This is the attitude of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They have to do their own duty. Never mind whether it is suffering or happiness. It doesn't matter.
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).
How there can be harmony when everyone wants to become God? Do you think it is all right? There must be chaos. Here is the position. Everyone in the material world, first of all, they want to become big man, big businessman, big, big this, big that, minister, president, and when everything is failure, then he wants to become God. That is the last snare of māyā. So this is going on. How you can expect peace and prosperity here? That is not possible. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). It is stated by Kṛṣṇa Himself that this is a place only for misery, but under the influence of māyā, we are accepting all miserable conditions of life as happiness. This is called māyā.
That is not brāhmaṇa's business. But in modern civilization, everyone should go to factory. Never mind whether you are brāhmaṇa or śūdra or a... This is the mistake. Therefore, if I am not fit for a certain thing and if I am engaged in that business, that will be failure. That will be failure. For a particular type of business, occupation, one must have particular type of brain. So therefore this is division. Not that everyone is of the same type. You cannot find. There is not... Because the world is being conducted by the three modes of nature, you cannot find all men of the same category. There must be intelligent class of men, there must be martial spirit, administrative class of men, there must be business minded men.
Yoga-bhraṣṭa: falling down from devotional service, he gets next chance again. He gets birth in very good family, rich family, and pure family, brāhmaṇa family, so that again he'll be given chance. "Now, you begin again." These are explained, you'll find. Therefore, Nārada Muni says that even if he is, for the time being, failure, then there is no loss. But on the other hand, ko vā artha āptaḥ abhajatāṁ sva-dharmataḥ. Suppose one is very nicely executing his occupational duty, he's a businessman, very routine work, doing business, making profit and everyone appreciates his routine work. Even if he does so, or he is a very nice brāhmaṇa, nice kṣatriya, so he has done his duty very nicely, but he has not taken to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Śāstra says, what he has gained?
Just like in a machine. In a machine some part is wear and tear. It is not working, stopped. You can replace that part into new part, and the machine will work. But this is not like that. If you think that something has deteriorated in this body, therefore it has become dead. Say, for example, that they say generally, due to heart failure. Now, heart... Medical practitioners they know it that heart is always pumping like this, pumping like this. Now, can you produce heart action by artificial pumping? No. It is not possible. They give respiratory oxygen gas and so many things, but it cannot be revived.
That, how he can do, that is the technique. This technique is explained herewith, the siddhy-asiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā, siddhy-asiddhyoḥ samo bhūtvā, that "You do not be anxious for the success and failure of the attempt you are making." Success and failure. A common example can be cited in this connection. Suppose you are working for your master. You are working in a firm for selling something. The master says that "You go and find out some customers for this particular thing." You go out. You go out. Now, you sincerely work for it. Suppose you get business worth 100,000 dollars or something like that. And suppose one day you don't get any business. Now, the day in which you got some business and on the day in which you did not get any business, it doesn't matter. Your connection with the master is there, so you get your salary.
So our work is also not stopped, and at the same time I am situated in the spiritual platform. That technique is taught by Lord Kṛṣṇa. Yoga-sthaḥ kuru karmāṇi tyaktvā saṅgaṁ dhanañjaya: "You do not be attached with the profit and loss of anything, but you simply do your duty. You don't care for the success or failure. And if you are, I mean to say, steady either in success of failure, that is called yoga. That is called yoga." Don't mind for the success or failure. Do act on behalf of the Supreme Lord. And if you are steady in that position, then your working in spiritual platform is successful. Saṅgaṁ tyaktvā. Saṅgaṁ tyaktvā means "Don't be associated with the result of the work. Let the result come, whatever it may be, but you have to do your duty nicely and for the sake of God." Saṅgaṁ tyaktvā. Kartṛtvā abhiniveṣam ca tyaktvā yoga-sthas taṁ karmāṇi kuru yuddhadi.(?) Kartṛtvā. Kartṛtvā means that you are the doer.
Formerly, in Medical College of Calcutta the students who failed in the final examination, they were given some title, L.M.S., "License in Medical, Medicine and Surgery," L.M.S. And those who passed, they were given the title M.D. or M.D., just like that way. So even by failure, they would get some title and allowed to practice as medical man. But that does not mean that we may try to fail also. No. The aim should be to become successful, not to fail, not to fail. Even though we are in failure, still, there is profit undoubtedly, but we should not aim to that objective. We should, we should be determined that in this very life we must have a spiritual realization perfectly so that, as you'll find in the Bhagavad-gītā, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam affirms this. If somebody takes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, even though he may not follow the prescribed duties in the śāstras or execute the devotional service properly, or even if he falls down from the standard, there is no loss or evil for him. And even though he carries out all the injunctions for purification in the śāstras, what does it avail him if he is not Kṛṣṇa conscious? So the purifying process is necessary for reaching this point. Sannyāsa or any purifying process is meant for helping one to reach the ultimate goal of becoming Kṛṣṇa conscious without which everything is considered a failure."
Prabhupāda: That's all. So any question? (devotees offer obeisances) Any question?
Jaya-gopāla: So many people who stop performing prescribed duty to engage in so-called meditation, actually they are committing sinful activity? Is this actually sinful activity to attempt such meditation like that?
Prabhupāda: Meditation? That you can see from the result. You'll find so many persons meditating, but see their life. Phalena paricīyate. One has to be judged by the result. You have worked very hard and supposed to be very rich man, but if I see that you have no nice apartment, neither any car, neither any opulence, so what kind of businessman you have earned? That can be understood immediately. So if one by practice of meditation is actually advancing in spiritual life, why he's materially affected? What is the difference between a person materially affected and spiritually advanced?
That will make our life successful. Practically we have to apply this, have to apply the principle. Otherwise the whole attempt will be failure.
- That is explained in the next verse.
- utsīdeyur ime lokā
- na kuryāṁ karma ced aham
- saṅkarasya ca kartā syām
- upahanyām imāḥ prajāḥ
- (BG 3.24)
"If I do not place idea before the living entities, praja..." Praja means those who have taken birth, they are called praja. Ja means birth. Janma, janma. And praja, prakṛṣṭa-rūpeṇa ja. Anyone, praja... Just like in a state it is called praja, or citizens, who have taken the birth in that particular place. So similarly, Lord Kṛṣṇa says that "If I do not set example in My life, then there will be unwanted population." Unwanted population. And actually that has become now in the present world. By not following the principles of God consciousness or Kṛṣṇa consciousness we have got now unwanted population. Unwanted population. Here it is plainly written, saṅkarasya ca kartā syām. Saṅkarasya ca means cross-breeding, saṅkarasya.
Yes. In the beginning there may be some failures. That is quite natural. Just a child is trying to stand, he may fall down. But that does not mean he should give up the idea. Go on. A time will come come when he will be perfect. So we should not give up this business, to try to serve the Supreme. May be imperfect in the beginning, but stick to it, and a time will come when you'll be perfect, Kṛṣṇa conscious.
Therefore, if we try to understand God by our limited knowledge, it will be a failure. We have to understand God from God. Then that will be perfect knowledge. So this Bhagavad-gītā is the science of God where God is speaking about Himself. And it is accepted by all great scholars, philosophers, and, I mean to say, religionists, everyone. Go on.
Why? Durāśayā. Durāśayā means ill-conceived plan. They are thinking that they will be happy by planning in this material world. This is called durāśā. It will never be fulfilled. It will never be fulfilled. Durāśā. Dur means it is impossible. But they will not accept this. They will not accept. They are being knocked so many times—failure, failure, failure, failure. Still, they will not accept. Dur. Bahir-artha-māninaḥ: "They are captivated by the glamour of this external energy." Bahir-artha-māninaḥ.
Adānta-gobhiḥ: "And the main disease is uncontrolled senses." Adānta. Adānta means uncontrolled, unbridled senses. Because the senses, being unbridled, they will not allow you to understand in cool head what is the problem. Adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisram. Just like if you are sitting on a car where the horses are unbridled and it is running on in great speed without your control, you do not know where, when you will be in danger.
Devotee: "He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady both in success and failure, who is never entangled although performing actions."
Prabhupāda: Yes. Now if I think that I am poor man. Oh, the bank proprietor and directors they have got so much money. The theory of the communist theory. They have tried to attack others that they have snatched our money. Actually one should be satisfied. Just like a bank clerk or a bank cashier should be satisfied with his post and the wages he gets. He should be satisfied. If God pleases he will be elevated to higher position. That is God's grace.
Pradyumna: (leads chanting) Translation: "He who is satisfied with gain which comes of its own accord, who is free from duality and does not envy, who is steady both in success and failure, is never entangled, although performing actions."
Prabhupāda:
- yadṛcchā-lābha-santuṣṭo
- dvandvātīto vimatsaraḥ
- samaḥ siddhāv asiddhau ca
- kṛtvāpi na nibadhyate
So Kṛṣṇa is teaching in this Fourth Chapter how to work. Yadṛcchā-lābha. Don't be greedy, so "This man is millionaire, so I have to become a millionaire." Competition. That is material disease. Now there is competition in between the capitalist and the communist. Now the communist or the laborer class men, they are thinking that "Why the capitalist should gain? We must gain. The industry is being conducted by us. The profits shall be divided between us. Why to the capitalist?" So that is not the solution. That is from frying pan to the fire.
So when he was informed by the master, "Oh, you have got this money," he at once failed his heart and died. So he thought, "Oh, so much money I have got." So thinking that, there was heart failure and died. (laughter) Yes. All of a sudden this happened. You see. It is a shock. Just like you get some horrible shock, so this is pleasure shock. This is pleasure shock. Shock it was really... Poor man, ordinary man, when he understood that "I have got ten millions of dollars in my bank now," oh, he became shocked and at once died.
When you apply your senses for satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, then it is called bhakti. And when your senses are engaged in the service of Kṛṣṇa it cannot be engaged otherwise. Otherwise the sense will be engaged in the sense objects. Therefore there is failure. Those who are not engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, simply artificially trying, they fail. Viśvāmitra Muni, Durvāsā Muni, there are many great instances. These are artificial. But that is a process recommended. We may be successful to a certain extent but in this age it is very difficult to practice such things. Nobody can practice how to control the senses from the sense object.
The mind, I am spirit soul, part and parcel of the Supreme Lord. As soon as the mind is contaminated, I rebel, because I have got little independence. "Why shall I serve Kṛṣṇa or God? I am God." It is simply a dictation from the mind. And the whole situation turns. He's under false impression, illusion, and the whole life is spoiled. And who has failed to do so, if we fail to conquer the mind, we are trying to conquer so many things, empire, but if we fail to conquer our mind, then even you conquer an empire, that is a failure. His very mind will be the greatest enemy. Go on.
So he's supposed to be an ordinary man. So for ordinary men who are engaged in these worldly activities for earning livelihood, family life, children, wife, so many problems, it is not practical. That is the point here. It is practical for one who has already renounced everything completely. In a secluded sacred place, just like in the hill or in the cave of the hill, alone, no public disturbance. So where is the opportunity for ordinary man, for us, especially in this age? Therefore this yoga system is not practical. It is admitted by Arjuna, who was a great warrior. And he was so advanced, he belonged to the royal family and very expert in so many things. He said that it is impractical. Just try to understand. And what we are in comparison to Arjuna? If we try this system, it is not possible. Failure is sure. Go on reading the purport.
Now, supposing that I practice yoga, real yoga I mean to say, not this pseudo yoga. And if I cannot do it properly, I fail. Then what is the result? Suppose if I give up my business, I give up my ordinary occupation and I begin to practice yoga. But somehow or other it is not completed, it is failure. Then what is the result? That is being questioned by Arjuna. That will be answered by Kṛṣṇa. What is that? Go on. "Arjuna said..."
When we accept any self-realization process, it is practically declaring war against the illusory energy, māyā. So when there's a question of māyā or a question of fight or war there will be so many difficulty imposed by māyā, that is certain. Therefore there is a chance of failure. but one has to become very steady. Go on.
She showed that "Oh, you have got such a nice girl, such beautiful girl, and you are going away? No, no. You should take care." So there is a picture, very nice. That is a very famous picture. That Menakā is showing Viśvāmitra Muni the girl, and the muni is like that, "No more show me." Yes. There is a picture. That is... Then he went away. So there are chances of failure. There are chances of failure. Just like a great sage like Viśvāmitra Muni, he also failed, failed for the time being. But Kṛṣṇa says that this failure is not, I mean to say, unsuccessful. As we have sometimes the proverb, that "Failure is the pillar of success," so especially in the spiritual life, this failure is not discouraging. This failure is not discouraging.
He says that this failure yogi... One who is successful, he enters into the kingdom of God. That is a different thing. But one who is a failed student, what happens to him? Now, prāpya puṇya-kṛtāṁ lokān: (BG 6.41) "He enters into the planets where pious living entities are allowed to enter." That means he gets into the higher planets. There are many planets within the universe, and the higher planets, there are more comforts, more duration of life, persons are more pious, religious, godly. As you make progress to the higher planets, these facilities are there, thousand times better than this planet. So Kṛṣṇa says that "Even if he is failure, still, he goes to such planets where pious men are elevated."
Now, in the heavenly kingdom, it is said that our six months is... Six months are equal to their one day. And similarly, they live there for ten thousand years. This description we get from Vedic literatures. Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā you have got the duration of life of Brahmā. That is the highest planet. So Kṛṣṇa says that "After... Even if he is a failure, he gets promotion to the higher planets." But in the higher planets you cannot remain for all the time. Kṣīṇe puṇye punaḥ martya-lokaṁ viśanti: "When your pious balance is finished, then you are again fallen in this earth." Kṣīṇe puṇye punaḥ martya-lokaṁ viśanti. Martya-lokam means, this martya-lokam, this earth. Now, even when he comes back here, He says, Lord Kṛṣṇa says, that "He gets his birth..." Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate (BG 6.41). He takes his birth in a family, two kinds of families. One family, śrīmatām. Śrīmatām means very rich family, very rich family.
We are presenting Bhagavad-gītā as it is, without any interpretation. And the result is that thousands of the foreign country youths, they are becoming Kṛṣṇa conscious. The proof is there. The proof is there. And all over the world, in Europe, America, Canada, Australia and Japan, even in Moscow and Africa, everywhere, we are not failure. That is Kṛṣṇa's grace. Because we are presenting Kṛṣṇa as it is, Bhagavad-gītā as it is, it is being accepted. Before me, many swamis went to the Western countries. They also talked about Bhagavad-gītā and other Vedic literature. But not a single person could be converted to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, not a single person throughout the whole history, background. But since 1967, we are presenting Bhagavad-gītā as it is; thousands of young generation, they are taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is the result.
So what is that siddhi? Siddhi, to understand one's constitutional position, "What I am." I am trying to lord if over the material nature in so many ways. Is that my position? But I am failure. I am trying to lord it over the material nature as big man, as the minister or as the zamindar, as the big business magnate, and when I am failure, then I want to become God. That is another ambition. That is another ambition. So this is not self-realization. The self-realization is that "I am trying to lord it over the material nature in so many ways, but it is becoming baffled. Why? Why it is becoming baffled? And with great endeavor, by political movements, I become the head of the political institution of the state, but I do not wish to die. Death comes and he takes away everything, my political position, my wealth, my everything, family and anything." Mṛtyuḥ sarva-haraś cāham (BG 10.34). "Who is taking that? That is Kṛṣṇa."
So actually, our material life, existing, is society, friendship and love. If there are nice, beautiful women at home, children and friends, we are taking, "This is our life." But that is not life. Real life is to understand what I am, ātma-tattvam. Ātma-tattvam. Without understanding ātma-tattvam, the life is failure. Therefore Vidyāpati sings, tātala saikate vāri-bindu-sama, suta-mita-ramaṇī-samāje. We have created this society, friendship and love in this material world for becoming happy. Everyone wants to be happy, because that is his natural inclination. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). As Kṛṣṇa is happy always... You will see. Kṛṣṇa is enjoying His life with Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī and the gopīs or the cowherds boys or His father, mother. That is spiritual, everything. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhiḥ (Bs. 5.37). That is ānanda-cinmaya. A similar imitation here in this material world.
Because that small particle is there within this body, therefore it is so beautiful, it is nicely working, the brain is working. Everything is there. Scientists, they are finding out, trying to find out what is the living force. Sometimes they are catching the blood; sometimes they are catching the cells, or this, or that... But failure. Because they could not capture the ātmā. But ātmā is so small. It is not possible. Even you cannot see where it is. But it is perceived that there is something within this body, living force generally they call it. Therefore the body's working. So... And the... It is spread all over the body. Yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. Avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. That thing which is sarvam idaṁ tatam, spread all over the body as light, illumination...
That is bona fide ācārya. If somebody claims that "I am God," then he is fool number one. At once reject him. One who teaches about the message of God, he is ācārya.
So the Vedic literature teaches us that tarko 'pratiṣṭhaḥ: "In the spiritual matter, you cannot argue." Your argument will be failure because you may be very good arguer, but I may come. I can cut all your arguments. And somebody else comes—he cuts all my arguments. It is a question of logic. So there are many logical experts. So by arguments we cannot reach the Supreme Truth. Tarko 'pratiṣṭhaḥ śrutayo vibhinnāḥ. Not by purchasing books from the market and reading it. No. That also will not help you. Tarko 'pratiṣṭhaḥ śrutayo vibhinnāḥ. If you purchase Bhagavad-gītā, you purchase Bible, you purchase Koran, or... So many, there are, literatures. They are also authorized. That's all right.
You may have tractors, you may have very good arrangement for producing food, machinery, but still, if the land or earth does not produce food, your, this tractor or all other arrangements will be failure. So after all, we should know the supply of things are in the hands of the material nature. And material nature works under the direction of God. That is stated in Bhagavad-gītā, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). Prakṛti means this material nature.
You don't think material nature is blind. Material nature has got her intelligence, and she is taking intelligence from the Supreme Lord. And according to that she is supplying food or grains and everything, because you get everything from the earth.
I am imperfect, I can be mistaken. But Kṛṣṇa cannot be mistaken. Therefore, if we act according to the direction of Kṛṣṇa, then our life is successful. And to give you direction, Kṛṣṇa is sitting within your heart, side by side. As I am sitting, you are sitting within this heart, the soul is within the heart.
Therefore when the soul goes away, these rascals says, "heart failure." Not heart failure, the soul has gone from the heart. Heart is also mechanical thing, but the sitting place of the soul is there. So heart failure means the soul has gone from the heart. Sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi—hṛdi means heart. The location also being specified—here is soul and Supersoul. Find out, if you have got such scientific method. But they cannot find it out. Therefore, the rascals say there is no God, there is no soul, simply this lump of matter, that's all.
Big, big asuras like Rāvaṇa, he also wanted to be happy himself and others by material adjustment. He proposed that "There is no need of acting piously to go to the heavenly planet. I shall construct a staircase so anyone can go." Rāvaṇera svargeśvari. So that was failure. Just like we are now trying, the modern scientists. We are trying to go to the moon planet. It is failure. They will never be able to go there. I have discussed this point. We are conditioned. We cannot live one place to another without being proficient or without being eligible. Just like even in this planet you cannot go to the other country. Suppose from India if we want to go to America, it requires arrangement, not that all of a sudden you can go to America or the Americans come here. There is international arrangement, visa, passport, immigration, so many things.
We have to give up this body, but we should not give up this body like cats and dogs. That is human civilization. The cats and dogs, they also give up their body. And if we also give up our body like cats and dog that is not success of life. That is failure of life. Prahlāda Mahārāja has said that durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam. Durlabham. This human form of life is durlabham. Durlabha... Duḥ means difficult, and labha means gained. After many, many millions of years of evolution process we get this human form of life. That is the nature's. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). We are being carried by the laws of nature. So this human form of life is very durlabha, very rarely gotten. Durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma.
| Page Title: | Failure (Lectures, BG) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, RupaManjari |
| Created: | 05 of Dec, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=37, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 37 |