Just like a child. It does not think of anyone's happiness. Whatever he takes, he wants to eat. So you, as we grow, we expand our happiness little more: "My happiness, my brother's happiness, my family's happiness, my community's happiness, or my nation's happiness." So you can go on expanding the scope of happiness, but there is no happiness. There is no happiness. These foolish persons, they do not know. So Arjuna also is playing like an ordinary foolish person. Nimittāni viparītāni. "Where is my happiness? I came here to fight, to get happiness, and I have to kill my own kinsmen. Then where is my happiness? I cannot enjoy the property or the kingdom alone. There must be relatives, brothers. I will be very proud: 'Just see how I have become king.' So if they are dying, then who, whom I shall show my opulence?" This is the psychology. Nimittāni ca viparītāni paśyāmi. Just the opposite. This is illusion. This is illusion.
Foolish person (Lectures)
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
All right. At the time of death, are you God? Are you God at the time of death? God means controller. Can you control your death? Then how you are God? God, īśvara... Īśvara means controller. Are you īśvara? Are you controller? Can you control birth? Can you control death? Can you control disease? Can you control old age? Then what kind of God you are? The foolish, foolish person, mūḍha. They are called mūḍha. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhāḥ (BG 9.11). "The rascals only, avajānanti, defy Me."
Just like the government affairs are going on automatically. A child can say that everything is going on automatically, but a person who knows the government, the constitution, he knows how departmental managements are going on. That is the difference between the so-called foolish person and one who knows the things. One who knows the things, he knows that everything is controlled by a person. That person is called demigod.
We can float one sputnik in the sky, and we take so much credit that we have become very, very great scientists. We don't care for God. This is foolishness. Foolish person will say like that. But one who is intelligent, he knows that God is floating millions and trillions of planets in the sky, and what we have done in that comparison? This is intelligence. So we have become very much proud of our scientific knowledge, and therefore, at the present moment, we defy the existence of God. Sometimes we say that "I have become God now." These are foolish statements.
In the Bhagavad-gītā you'll find Kṛṣṇa says that the four divisions of society: brāhmaṇas, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra... That is natural. Somebody is inclined for spiritual advancement, oh, they should be picked up as brāhmaṇas. Now, we are training boys who are spiritually inclined, and now unnecessarily we are being called for military service. Just see, how discrepancy! The foolish person has no knowledge that "This boy is being trained up in higher science. Why he should be disturbed?" But they have no idea. Therefore imperfect.
Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate, vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā.. (BG 7.19). This is siddhi, to know Kṛṣṇa, to know Kṛṣṇa, what is Kṛṣṇa. And Kṛṣṇa is describing Himself, what He is. The foolish person, they do not take to Kṛṣṇa's instruction. They manufacture their own way of explanation. He thinks that he has become Kṛṣṇa. This is foolishness. This is foolishness.
We think, "Kṛṣṇa and myself, on the same level." But Kṛṣṇa here says, "No. I am not there. Although these energies are coming through Me or being emanated from Me, still, I am not influenced by them." That is Kṛṣṇa's position.
We should not, therefore, accept Kṛṣṇa as ordinary man. If you take that, then Kṛṣṇa says that mūḍha. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhāḥ (BG 9.11). Then you become foolish person.
Just like foolish person suffering from some disease, he wants to kill himself, sometimes commit suicide, because he does not know that after suicide, the policy, there is no stoppage; he will have to become a ghost because you have disobeyed. God has given you certain type of body. You have to stay in that body for certain period. That is obedience to God. If you untimely kill this body, then it is sinful.
Don't be foolish person by false egotism that "I am free, I can do whatever I like." Then you'll suffer and remain in the path of repetition of birth and death. And there are 8,400,000 species of life. We have to go through this process, we fall down. So this human form of life is obtained, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante (BG 7.19), after many many births, evolutional process we have got it. Now it is the time to understand our position. What is that position? The position is that we are eternal part and parcel of God.
We present: "Yes, Kṛṣṇa is the cause of all material cosmic manifestation." This is our program. So our only request is those who are intelligent persons, let them understand this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. It is not meant for the foolish person. Because foolish person cannot understand. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). The foolish person, after endeavoring many thousands of births, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante, if he's actually inquisitive, jñānī,... Catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna ārto arthārthī jñānī jijñāsuḥ ca bharatarṣabha. Four classes of men, they become inquisitive to understand Kṛṣṇa or God.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Because if one understands Kṛṣṇa, then gradually he understands other things. But in the beginning if it is said... Similarly, in Bible also, I have seen that "Through me." Because they were so fool, if they are allowed to go elsewhere, they will commit mistake. Therefore that was nice. To the foolish person such stress required to be given. Mām ekam. But still, the foolish person misunderstood Kṛṣṇa, misinterpreted Bhagavad-gītā. Therefore Māyāvādīs. Therefore same Kṛṣṇa came as Lord Caitanya, as devotee. This time not as the Supreme Personality of Godhead but as devotee, to teach us how to approach Kṛṣṇa. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
Just like every night we die. The gross body remains inactive on the bed, and the subtle body takes me away. I dream, I go in the dreamland. I have gone to some friend, I am talking with somebody, I am working in a different way. That is our daily experience. This means that we have got two kinds of body. One body is this gross body, and the other body is subtle body, made of mind, intelligence, and ego. So foolish person, they do not see the subtle body, but the subtle body is there. Everyone will accept. I am working with my mind, intelligence and ego. Everyone knows.
Kṛṣṇa does not go away from Vṛndāvana. But when He has got other business to do, He does it as Vāsudeva. Vāsudeva is in Mathurā. Vāsudeva is in Dvārakā. But original Kṛṣṇa is in Vṛndāvana. But that does not mean that this Vāsudeva is different from Kṛṣṇa. The foolish person, who cannot study, who does not know what is Vāsudeva, what is Aniruddha, what is Pradyumna, the, the Saṅkarṣaṇa... These are all expansions of Kṛṣṇa. They are not different from Kṛṣṇa.
So therefore, how to understand Kṛṣṇa? That is stated by Kṛṣṇa Himself:. after many, many births struggling to understand Kṛṣṇa. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān (BG 7.19). Not foolish person. Foolish person cannot understand. But even jñānavān, who is wise, perfectly wise, learned scholar, such person, even after many, many births struggling to understand Kṛṣṇa... So that is mahātmā, one who has understood Kṛṣṇa. He is mahātmā. One who does not understand Kṛṣṇa or verifies himself as Kṛṣṇa, he's durātmā.
But after death—dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13)—you do not know, we do not know what kind of body we are going to get. It may not be as comfortable. So karmīs, they, those who are little advanced than the ordinary foolish persons... There are... First of all, ordinary foolish person means animals. They are just like animals. And little above that, they are karmīs, and little above that, there are jñānīs. And little above that, there is yogis. And above all them is the bhakta. Therefore bhakta life is the summum bonum of life.
So this is the position. Upadeśo hi mūrkhāṇāṁ prakopāya na śāntaye. If one is a foolish person, if you give him good instruction, he will be angry. He will not take it. Upadeśo hi mūrkhāṇāṁ prakopāya na śāntaye payaḥ-pānaṁ bhujaṅgānāṁ kevalaṁ viṣa-vardhanam. A snake, if you kindly give him foodstuff, there is no... Snake is very fond of drinking milk. They are very much fond. So sometimes a snake charmer, they mix milk with banana and give them to eat for their satisfaction. But the result? What is the result? Result is as soon as he becomes strong by eating, the poison teeth becomes filled with poison.
Actually, everybody is being carried by the laws of material nature, but a foolish person is thinking that he is doing himself. So here it is said that prāyeṇa etad bhagavata īśvarasya viceṣṭitam. We cannot do anything without the will of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Just like in state you cannot do anything without the sanction of the government, similarly the supreme state, the supreme order-giver, Kṛṣṇa or God, without His sanction we cannot do anything.
You may try to keep in possession whatever you have got, but at the time of death you have to give it up. By force it will be taken away. Everyone should think like that. That is soberness. One who is thinking that "My family, my nation, my society, my bank balance, my skyscraper building, my motorcars—these will save me," that is not possible. That is not possible. That is the conclusion of the foolish person. Pramatto nidhanaṁ paśyann api na paśyati. Those who are mad, they do not see that everything they possess will be vanished. It will not stay. He'll be vanished, his body will be vanished, everything.
In India, the same thing, "Keep to the left." And many other countries also. So here, because all these laws are made by rascals, in some country you keep to the left, some country you keep to the right. And which is correct, that is unknown. That is unknown. Therefore for the foolish person, "This is Hindu religion,' " "This is Christian religion," and "This is Muhammadan religion." Religion is one. How it can be Hindu religion, Christian religion? No. Religion is one. God is one. Therefore religion is one. Because religion means the law or the order given by God.
Śukadeva Gosvāmī said, "My dear King, I have explained to you what is to be done now, at the time of death." So we should take example or instruction from the behavior of Parīkṣit Mahārāja that on the threshold of death...Everyone is on the threshold of death, but the foolish persons, they do not know. Foolish person thinks that "I shall live forever." That is foolishness.
So bhakti means when one has attained real jñānam. Without real jñānam, nobody can become bhakta. The foolish person says that bhakti's meant for ajñānī, or less intelligent. No. Bhakti is meant for the most intelligent person. Because bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). You become experienced, very, very experienced, after many, many years. So it is not many, many years, but many, many births, one actually becomes jñānī. And what is that jñāna? Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti (BG 7.19). That is jñānam. So long you cannot understand Kṛṣṇa, or Vāsudeva, you should understand yourself that you are still fool.
Bhakti begins there, where jñāna-vairāgya is complete. Not that foolish person... But one can say that "In our society there are not many very learned scholars." No, there are learned scholars. But even there are fool... Just like the children. A child, he also chants and dances, so he will attain this jñāna and vairāgya. The other day I was asking the boy. He's not very learned scholar. So I asked him, "What is Kṛṣṇa?" He immediately said, "The Supreme Personality of Godhead." That is jñāna-vairāgya result.
Then Kṛṣṇa says that "Anyone who is engaged in My devotional service with love and faith, buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi tam." This is buddhi-yoga. Buddhi-yoga means bhakti-yoga. Buddhi-yoga means, bhakti-yoga is not for the foolish person. Bhakti-yoga means buddhi-yoga, one who is highly intelligent. Or somehow or other he has become intelligent, that "I shall take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness." Then his life is perfect immediately, and gradually he will realize Kṛṣṇa, tattvataḥ.
We are creating so many nonsense who do not believe in the Bhagavad-gītā, and they become commentator and scholar and so many things. Mūḍha. We are not in favor of this business. We are preaching all over the world that if you read Bhagavad-gītā, you read it as it is and accept it as it is. Otherwise don't create foolish anymore. We have produced many foolish person but misguiding them by misinterpreting this Bhagavad-gītā. Stop this business. And if you believe, you have to believe like this. You cannot interpret, that is not possible.
So Kṛṣṇa is always nirguṇa in any condition, any circumstances. But those who are mūḍhas, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). But because Kṛṣṇa incarnates or comes, tadātmānaṁ sṛjāmy aham, He comes, we think, because we are foolish person, mūḍha, we think that "Kṛṣṇa is also one of us." That is not the fact. Saguṇa Brahman, nirguṇa Brahman, we should distinguish, that Kṛṣṇa is always nirguṇa Brahman, but we are saguṇa Brahman. We are Brahman, but because we are not Parabrahman or Supreme Brahman, we are subjected, we are prone to be covered by these material qualities.
They have got machine even for shaving, even for tooth brushing. So everything machine. The idea is sense gratification. This is karmī. And jñānīs, they have also demand: "I shall become one with God." Ekatvena. But the bhaktas, they don't want ekatvam. That is jñānī. And yogis, they want mystic powers. Because if they can manifest some mystic power, immediately so many foolish person will be followers, and they will get some material reputation, position. So there is demand.
Where is your independence? You are kicked out by the laws of nature. Daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). You are not free. You are under supreme control. Nature, they will accept nature's control but not God's control. But the foolish person does not know that nature is also controlled by God. This you will have to learn from Vedic literature.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead declares clearly that "I am the proprietor." Śāstra says, Veda says, īśāvāsyam idam sarvam: (ISO 1) it is God's property, everything. We are claiming, our country, "This is my country," but as soon as you go on the beach of the sea, your country finishes, the land. Then whose, the water, whose water that is? But the foolish person: "No, it is in my throne(?), it is mine."
So this is moha, illusion. We have heard so many times about illusion, this is illusion.
Pradyumna: Translation: "Due to ignorance, the materialistic person does not know anything about his real self-interest, the auspicious path in life. He is simply bound to material enjoyment by lusty desires, and all his plans are made for this purpose. For temporary sense gratification, such a person creates a society of envy, and due to this mentality, he plunges into the ocean of suffering. Such a foolish person does not even know about this."
Prabhupāda:
- lokaḥ svayaṁ śreyasi naṣṭa-dṛṣṭir
- yo 'rthān samīheta nikāma-kāmaḥ
- anyonya-vairaḥ sukha-leṣa-hetor
- ananta-duḥkhaṁ ca na veda mūḍhaḥ
- (SB 5.5.16)
This is the description of the material world. Anyonya-vairaḥ: simply envious of one another.
Tato vimukha-cetasa. "Without Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they are working so hard day and night like asses and pigs and dogs." They are very much anxious for this, "How to stop this foolish person from this unnecessary trouble?" Unnecessary trouble. That Ṛṣabhādeva has already instructed us in the beginning, that "Don't spoil your life working so hard like hogs and dogs. No, this is not good." Na sādhu manye. "This is not good." But they are thinking... Now it is advertised that "Work hard. Work hard." And the people have come to the stage of pulling thela and rickshaw, and still, they have to work hard. This is the position.
But the actual fact is Kṛṣṇa can see you from any distant place. Sarvata pāṇi pādas... sarvato. He has got eyes everywhere. That eyes is not exactly your eyes. Therefore it is called apāṇi acakṣur. Acakṣur means his eyes are not like your eyes. So as soon as we consider "Kṛṣṇa like me, Kṛṣṇa like me," that is natural for a foolish person. That is the first consideration. Because they cannot adjust that God can have eyes different from me, therefore they take nirviśeṣa, nirākāra.
Guest: That is something within Kṛṣṇa?
Prabhupāda: That is his idea, foolish idea. Because he is nirviśeṣavādi, he cannot accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Person, therefore how he can avoid the version of Kṛṣṇa unless he pushes something extra out of his foolishness? And there are foolish persons, they'll say, "Oh, here is Dr. Radhakrishnan says." The intelligent person will see why this foolish person introduces something else? Here is the clear... Kṛṣṇa says, "Just become My devotee." And why he introduces somebody else? But less intelligent persons cannot.
In the beginning the Bhagavad-gītā says, Kṛṣṇa says, that asmin dehe, "Within this body, the soul is there." "No, no. I don't believe." Dull brain cannot understand. But after death, he sees, "Yes. The body's not my son. The body's not my husband." So that is foolishness. The foolish person understands late, and the intelligent person understands very quickly. That is the difference. So I love my body. I love my husband's body, my wife's body. Why? The real husband, wife or son is within the body. Therefore we love. Then the conclusion is that the soul is important more than the body.
You can use it, all the facilities. The microphone should be used for spreading Kṛṣṇa consciousness, not talking nonsense. This should be this... Everything is good, provided it is used for good purpose. Nirbandhe kṛṣṇa sambandhe yukta vairāgyam ucyate. We are not such foolish person that "This is material, this microphone. We shall not touch it." No, we are not so fool. We are intelligent enough how to use it.
As we respect a temple or a church, similarly, we should give respect to all living entities. Harīḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu bhagavān ananta īśvaraḥ. Bhagavān ananta. If some foolish person says how God can be in every..., within everybody? No, He is ananta, He is unlimited, He can be, that is His omnipotency. Bhagavān ananta īśvaraḥ, iti bhūtāni manasā kāmais taiḥ sādhu mānayet. In this way, we should offer respect to everyone. Caitanya Mahāprabhu also says, amāninā mānadena, give respect to everyone and for yourself don't expect any respect. One may insult you, don't mind, but you give respect to others. Just see how bhakti-yoga is perfect.
Not that it is going futile. No. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that is bhakti-mārga, sv-alpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. Simply by playing on the cymbal, on the khol, taking little caraṇāmṛta, everything in detail there is in the Nectar of Devotion, you have read. So the foolish person, they do not take care. They think they are very much advanced, they have no need to attend ārati, or to play on the mṛdaṅga or cymbal, but that is not fact. So many items are there given by the ācāryas. If not this, you do this, you do that, you do that, hundreds of items. Take any one of them and you'll be benefited. This is arcana-mārga. There are many foolish person, they make propaganda, "There is no need of going to the temple." That is another rascaldom.
So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that "I am born of a father so greatly passionate. How I can satisfy the Lord, where great personalities and sages and demigods have failed?" He is presenting himself so humbly. But he's intelligent. Without becoming intelligent, nobody can worship God. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is said, kṛṣṇa yei bhaje sei baḍa catura. Catur means very intelligent. Unless one is first-class intelligent, he cannot worship God. It is not possible. Foolish person cannot worship God.
Siddhānta, what is Kṛṣṇa, if you study from the śāstras, then siddhānta boliyā citte, don't be lazy in understanding Kṛṣṇa, because if you try to understand Kṛṣṇa sādhu-śāstra-guru-vākyaṁ cittete kariya aikya-through the sādhu, śāstra and guru—then you understand Kṛṣṇa, what He is. Then you'll not take Him as ordinary human being, as foolish person taking. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritaḥ (BG 9.11). Mūḍhās, rascals, they think Kṛṣṇa as one of us. Then you'll not be a mūḍha. You'll be intelligent.
So this is our material condition of life. Prahlāda Mahārāja is describing one after another. So sometimes foolish person accuse God that "Why He has put us into this miserable condition, different status of life? Somebody is rich, somebody is poor, somebody is diseased, somebody is healthy, and so many varieties." Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has said, keśava tuyā jagata vicitra. Vicitra means varieties. "So if God is kind, why He has made so many varieties?" This is not the common question you meet? You are preaching. They inquire like this: "Why God is not kind to everyone? Why He has made this distinction?"
"My dear father, I have learned this best thing," that tyaktva... Gṛham andha-kūpam. "This world, material world, which is just like a dark well..., if a man is thrown into this dark well as he is in this precarious condition of life, similarly, anyone who is in the material world, he is put in the dark well. Therefore, somehow or other, we have to get out of this and," vanaṁ gato yad dharim āśrayeta (SB 7.5.5), "we shall accept the shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Hari." The father became very much angry. Mūrkhāya upadeśa hi prakopāya na śāntaye, if you give good instruction to a mūrkha, to a foolish person, he will be angry. He will not rectify himself, but he will be angry
So sometimes devotees are so gentle. If such foolish person comes to talk, unnecessarily waste of time, "All right, you take in writing that I am not a learned. Go away." You see? This is another bhadra. Instead of wasting time with a rascal, better give him a paper: "Go away, sir." (laughter) And therefore Lord Śiva is called Āśutoṣa. So many demons go to bother him: "Give me this. Give me that." And his name is Āśutoṣa.. He gives him immediately: "All right, you take it. Go away. Don't bother." (laughter)
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
Similarly, accepting that chunk, the total material energy, it is agitated by the glance of Mahā-Viṣṇu. Then it explodes and things are coming out. We can accept that in that way, but not that automatically there was explosion. That is not fact. Therefore to the foolish person, the power behind the explosion is not visible. Nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yoga-māyā-samāvṛtaḥ (BG 7.25). Therefore Kṛṣṇa says that "I am not visible to everyone, they being covered by the curtain of yoga-māyā." Mūḍhāḥ nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam. Tribhir guṇamayir bhavair mohitaḥ.
"So, because he found Me a foolish person, therefore he has chastised Me." Why? What is that? "He said mūrkha tumi: 'You are foolish. You have no education. You are illiterate.' " Tomāra nāhika vedāntādhikāra: " 'It is not possible for You to understand Vedānta.' " 'Kṛṣṇa-mantra' japa sadā—ei mantra-sāra: " 'Therefore, You simply chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare. That will make You all right.' " Now here is the point, that was Caitanya Mahāprabhu a foolish person? No. He was not a foolish person. In His childhood He was known as Nimāi Pandit, the greatest learned man.
In the Bhagavad-gītā also you'll find, when Arjuna is recognizing Kṛṣṇa, he said, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān puruṣam (BG 10.12). Again puruṣam. So God is never woman. The foolish person who says that God is, can be worshiped as woman, as mother... No. That is not according to Vedic literature. God is always father. Therefore Bible is all right-conception of father, not mother. Not that "I worship Kali, goddess mother, and become God." These are all nonsense. He's always father, puruṣa.
One who is thinking of this body as identified with the self, he is animal. Anyone, it doesn't matter. We do not speak of any particular man, but any person who does not know his real identification... As Sanātana Gosvāmī inquired, ke āmi. He was the prime minister, but still, he did not know what he is. That will be explained. Grāmya-vyavahāre kahaye paṇḍita satya kare māni āpanāra hitāhita kichui nā jāni. "Some foolish person, they say that I am very learned scholar." Because he was brāhmaṇa. Brāhmaṇa is always supposed to be very learned; therefore he is called paṇḍita, paṇḍitajī.
So if you want to supply foodstuff within your body, that is the one way: this is the mouth. There is no other way. You cannot push the foodstuff through ears or eyes or genital. No. That is not possible. Therefore, similarly, if you want God, then the one way, bhaktyā aham ekayā... Ekayā. The foolish person says that "Whatever path you may adopt, you will go to God." There are certain rascals. They say like that. But this is misleading, completely misleading.
Foolish creatures, they think that everything has come out of nothing, and it is being managed by nature. No. Behind nature there is God. In the Bhagavad-gītā you have learned, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram: (BG 9.10) "Under My superintendence the material nature is working." Material nature is not blind. Just like foolish person, because he cannot see President Johnson and the governmental personalities, they think, "It is going on. Nobody is there behind this government, and it is going on."
So Lord Caitanya says, "Just like the time calculation of the sun is always present in the orbit of this earthly planet, similarly, in the orbit of Kṛṣṇa-līlā, everything is happening in some universe." That is called nitya-līlā. Because it is happening eternally and continually, in either of innumerable planets, which we cannot calculate, therefore His pastimes, appearance and disappearance are all eternal. We are not worshiper of a dead thing. Just like if a foolish person says at night, "Oh, sun is finished." How? "I cannot see. Because I don't see in the sky, it is finished." Similarly, the foolish person thinks, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa is..., I cannot see; therefore He's finished." This is foolish calculation.
Sri Isopanisad Lectures
Why India is fallen down? Because the so-called rascals, they are claiming that "I am brāhmaṇa." But what is our occupation, sir? "Oh, I am serving as a coolie." Is that brāhmaṇa's business? Actually I have seen, India, a person, telawalaji (?), born of a brāhmaṇa family, and he's pulling hand cart with great labor. And some foolish person also offering respect, and he is offering blessings while drawing the cart. (laughter) I have seen it. You see? These things are going on. He does not know that "Now I am fallen. Why should I claim as brāhmaṇa? I am cheating."
Festival Lectures
So when Kṛṣṇa forces somebody to surrender, that is a great favor. But generally, He does not do so. But He does so to a person who is very sincere to Kṛṣṇa's service but at the same time he has got slight desire for material enjoyment. In that case He does, that "This foolish person does not know that material facility will never make him happy, and he is sincerely seeking My favor. So he is foolish. Therefore whatever resource, little resource he has got for material enjoyment, break it. Then he will have no other alternative than to surrender unto Me."
So in this way Prahlāda Mahārāja talked with his father, and the father became more angry. Instead of taking the lesson ... Mūrkhāya upadeśa hi prakopāya na śāntaye. If you teach lesson to a foolish person, he'll be simply angry. He'll not take your lesson. How it is so? Payaḥ-pānaṁ bhujaṅgānāṁ kevalaṁ viṣa-vardhanam. If you keep a snake and if you want to make friendly behavior with him, that, "My dear snake, don't bite any more. I'll give you milk and banana. You eat here and stay here nicely," he'll not... His poison will increase, and one day he will...
Only few persons, the five brothers of the Pāṇḍavas and the damsels of Vṛndāvana, only in the fingers' count, say, out of the whole population, say, hundred or two hundred men knew Him that He was the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Otherwise everyone thought that "He is an ordinary man just like one of us, but most powerful. That's all." Similarly, the demigods in other planets, they also thought, "Oh, he's a foolish person. They are thinking of a cowherd boy as God," sophisticated, like that. And especially Indra, the heavenly kingdom...,
Initiation Lectures
So Kṛṣṇa is always ready to help us provided we are eager to take His help. Then jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā. When Kṛṣṇa takes charge of making you enlightened in knowledge, who can be better person of knowledge, man of knowledge, or wise, than a devotee? A devotee, they say a devotee... Only the foolish person who has no knowledge, he becomes a devotee. That is a wrong conception. Without full knowledge, nobody can become devotee.
General Lectures
This is the defect of the modern civilization. And so long we are unaware of the presence of the spirit soul in the body, so long we do not inquire what is the spirit soul, so long our all activities are simply wasting our time. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said that parābhavas tāvad abhodha-jātaḥ. The foolish person or the foolish living entity... Anyone who has accepted this temporary body is understood to be foolish. So every one of us is born foolish because we identify with this temporary body as myself.
In the higher sense there is no existence of matter; it is only illusion. Just like this morning I was giving the instance of the sun and the fog. The fog was there; the sun could not be seen. The foolish person will say that "There is no sun. It is simply fog." But intelligent person will say that "Sun is there, but the fog has covered our eyes. We cannot see the sun." Similarly, actually, everything being energy of Kṛṣṇa, there is nothing material. Simply our, this mentality that we want to lord it over, that is false, illusion. That is covering our relationship with Kṛṣṇa.
Because the Māyāvādī philosophers, they interpret Vedic mantras by grammatical jugglery, therefore Śaṅkarācārya has warned that "Your grammatical jugglery, this dukṛn-pratyaya, karaṇe, will not save you." Mūḍha-mate: "You foolish person, you kindly take shelter of Govinda." Bhaja govinda. So this is the verdict of all ācāryas. So our point is that this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is nothing like manufactured religious principle. No. It is authorized.
Philosophy Discussions
Śyāmasundara: For example, the idea of the bird flying on the limb and the fruit. Either the bird caused the fruit to fall, or it fell, but the cause is still there.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Either you accept this cause or that cause, that is a different thing, but cause must be there. So this example is given that they are fighting unnecessarily to find out the cause. But cause is there. Just like some foolish person enquired when the living entity became fallen. What is the use of this question? Simply take it is fallen.
Hayagrīva: Sometimes Bergson sounds like a Sophist in his contention. He says, "Man might be considered the reason for the existence of the entire organization of life on our planet." Is man the end of evolution on this planet, or is he just simply the highest form of life now present on the planet?
Prabhupāda: He is not highest form of life.
Hayagrīva: On this planet, he is speaking.
Prabhupāda: On this planet also there are different types of men. Not all men are the same position, same as there are intelligent person, there is a foolish person, there is a rich person, there is...
Prabhupāda: Occult, what is that?
Hayagrīva: Occult, something obscure. The...
Prabhupāda: It is not obscure. It is, everything is obscure to the foolish person. So he is a foolish person. He does not know what is God. How he will know what is religion? Our definition of religion is "the order given by God." But if I do not know what is God, then how can I take His order? That is the defect.
Prabhupāda: He said everything is finished. Why everything should be finished? The body is finished, but the mind is not finished. So the soul is carried by mind, intelligence. That is subtle body. And it is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). He is not finished, he is there. He is being carried by mind and intelligence. But these foolish person they cannot see. But even in lifetime they cannot see what is mind. They cannot see what is intelligence.
Prabhupāda: What... In which way differs? Because he accepts...
Hayagrīva: Accepted in..., the soul living in animals and also in plants.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the fact. He is right. That is Vedic conclusion. Sarva-yoniṣu, all different forms of life, there is soul, part and parcel of God. How some foolish person can think of animal has no soul? What is the reason? There is no very strong argument. The animals may be less intelligent. A child may be less intelligent than the father; that does not mean there is no soul.
| Page Title: | Foolish person (Lectures) |
| Compiler: | Alakananda, Parthasarathi, Labangalatika, Matea |
| Created: | 17 of Mar, 2010 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=61, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 61 |