There are three kinds of miserable conditions of life, bhūtātma-hetav aḥ. The cause... They are caused by three principles: adhyātmika, adhibhautika, adhidaivika. Daiva-bhūtātma-hetavaḥ. These are all described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Daiva means controlled by the higher demigods. Just like famine or earthquake. This is not under your control. At any time the earthquake, there may be. There may be famine. There may be pestilence. There may be natural disturbance, flood. This is called daiva, controlled by higher demigods. Just like Indra wanted to overflood Vṛndāvana being angry upon the residents of the... Kṛṣṇa saved, Giridhārī. He became Giridhārī. So these disturbances are there. Adhyātmika, adhibhautika. But the king or the dictator should be so perfect and he will guide the citizens in such a way that they will not feel all these disturbances. That kind of dictatorship wanted.
Natural disturbances (Lectures)
Expressions researched:
"natural catastrophes"
|"natural catastrophes"
|"natural disasters"
|"natural disturbance"
|"natural disturbances"
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
There are three kinds of distresses—adhyātmika, adhibhautika, and adhidaivika: distresses due to this body and mind; distresses due to the other living entities; and distresses which is beyond our power, distresses, natural distresses, adhidaivika, distresses offered by the supernatural power. So three kinds of distresses we are suffering always. There is no, I mean to say, rescue either from the three, or at least from one or two. There is always... It is going on. So one who is situated in this pure consciousness platform, his symptoms will be like this, that duḥkheṣv anudvigna-manāḥ: "He is not disturbed by all these three kinds of miseries," miseries pertaining to the body and the mind, miseries due to other living entities, and miseries due to the natural disturbances, natural disturbance. Now, nature's disturbance: all of a sudden, there is flood; all of a sudden, there is heavy snowfall; all of a sudden, there is famine; all of a sudden, there is so many things which we have no control. We have no control. This is called supernatural disturbances. And disturbances offered by other living entities.
Just the other day we discussed the śloka, that tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya: (BG 4.9) "Now, one who becomes Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then the result will be that just after quitting this body, he comes to Me, no more coming to this material world." So long you'll be in the material world... Material world means so long we'll have this material body, we'll have to face so many disturbances. War is one of them. Suppose there is, perpetually, there is no war. Do you mean to say there will be perpetual peace? No. There are so many other things. At once, if there is some upheaval in the Atlantic Ocean, the whole thing is swallowed up, your beautiful New York City will be no more there. There are so many natural disturbances.
So all these facilities should be utilized for becoming a mahātmā, or becoming eligible to enter into the kingdom of Kṛṣṇa. Because if we can do that, then there is no more birth in this material world, which is full of threefold miseries. We have several times discussed what are these threefold miseries, but every one of you know that, some way or other, we in miserable condition, either pertaining to the mind, or to this body, or natural disturbance, or from other friends or other animals. So there is always some kind of misery inflicted upon us. That is the situation of this material world. So Kṛṣṇa says that this is a place—you cannot avoid these miseries. They are meant for that. Unless the miseries are there, you cannot come to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is an impetus and help to elevate you to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. An intelligent person, he can think that "I do not want miseries, but the miseries are inflicted upon me by force." Nobody wants. Then he should question that "Why these miseries are inflicted upon me by force?" Unfortunately, the modern civilization, they set aside: "Oh, let me suffer. Let me cover it by some intoxication. That's all." You see? But as soon as the intoxication is over, again I am in the same point.
So if you have got perfect knowledge, that is described here that jñānaṁ vijñāna-sahitam, if you have got perfect knowledge, then the result will be yaj jñātvā. If you possess that perfect knowledge, then mokṣyase aśubhāt. These conditions we don't want. That is the real fact. We don't want any miserable condition due to my mind, due to my body, or due to other living entities or natural disturbances, birth, death, old age, disease. We don't want. These are inauspicities of life. But if you have got perfect knowledge, then Kṛṣṇa says that you become liberated from all these inauspicities. That is the subject matter of this chapter.
Who is interested? They are dying like cats and dogs. They have accepted, "Oh, death is..." That's all. But there is a solution of death, but they are not interested. They are prepared to die like cats and dogs. That's all. The human life is meant for making solution of birth, death, old age and disease, but they will not take it. "Oh, that's all right. Let us die." "You are going to accept a next life as a tree." "Never mind." They say like that. "I'll forget." "No, you'll have to stand up seven thousand years in one place." "That's all right." They have become so dull. This is called Kali-yuga. Mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ (SB 1.1.10). Very slow, very bad. Manda means very bad. Sumanda-matayo, and if one has got some path or some sect, that is also adulterated, nuisance. Manda-matayoḥ. Manda-bhāgyaḥ, unfortunate. Even people have no idea what he's going to eat tomorrow. Actually, these things are coming. Manda-bhāgya, most unfortunate. Upadrutāḥ, always disturbed by so many natural disturbances, health disturbances, political disturbances. This is the position.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
How nature can be controlled? Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). This is the law of nature. If you become disobedient to God, then prakṛti or nature will give you trouble in so many ways. And as soon as you become submissive, surrender to Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there will be no more natural disturbances. I have heard in 1900, 1898—I was born in 1896—so I have heard, I have seen also, I remember, in Calcutta there was a very virulent type of plague epidemic in 1898. So Calcutta became devastated. All people practically left Calcutta. Daily hundreds and hundreds of people were dying. I was one year old or one and a half year old. I have seen what was happening, but there was plague epidemic. That I did not know. I, later on, I heard from my parents. So one bābājī, he organized saṅkīrtana, Hare Kṛṣṇa saṅkīrtana. When there was no other way, so he organized saṅkīrtana all over Calcutta. And in the, in saṅkīrtana, all people, Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Parsi, everyone joined. And they were coming, they were going road to road, street to street, entering in every house
So Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira's time, the cooperation was so complete that everyone was free from anxiety, disease, calamities, natural disturbance.
In this material nature, or material world, we have got three kinds of sufferings, tri-tāpa-yantana. Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī inquired, "Why these three kinds of miseries inflict pains upon me?" Ke āmi kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya. Tāpa-traya. Tāpa means painful condition, tāpa. Just like if you touch fire, it creates a painful condition by burning the part, similarly, this world is also a blazing fire, saṁsāra-dāvānala. The rascals, they do not know. They are always out of the three kinds of miserable condition. Everyone is in some way or other under these conditions. These conditions means it is... These kleśāḥ, painful conditions, they are created by three causes. What are those causes? Daiva-bhūtātma-hetavaḥ. Daiva means created by the demigods. Daiva. Devatā. Just like this rain department, water department, is under the control of Indra.
You can do your duties very nicely, very good, dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ, but if you do not develop your, I mean to say, attachment for Kṛṣṇa... Vāsudeva-kathā ruciḥ (SB 1.2.16). "Oh, here kṛṣṇa-kathā is going on. Topics on Kṛṣṇa is going on. Let me hear it." Just like here. We are talking of Kṛṣṇa; nobody is coming. Nobody is coming. Only few selected. Vāsudeva-kathā ruciḥ. There is no taste for hearing kṛṣṇa-kathā. So such kind of education, advancement of civilization, is śrama eva hi kevalam, simply wasting time. And if you waste your time in such foolish activity, then there will be anxiety, there will be disease, there will be enemies, there will be disturbance—everything, one after another, one after another. Natural disturbance, disturbance by other living creatures, disturbance by your body. So this world will become hell. This is the position.
So just compare the present governmental situation and the time... A king is supposed to be responsible for the citizen's peaceful life, no anxiety, no disease. Ādhayo vyādhayaḥ. That is king. Just like one brāhmaṇa approached Lord Rāmacandra that "In the presence of father the son has died. You are responsible. There must be something wrong in Your kingdom." His son died. That is natural, that son lives, father dies. This is natural death. "And what is this? The father is living and son is dying?" So king was so much responsible, even the death must be systematic. There should be no anxiety. There should be no disease. There should be no scarcity, no famine, no natural disturbance. This is government. This is government. Just try to understand the ideal government during Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira's time. Not only Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, all the kings.
So there are other disturbances also. This is called natural disturbance. Then other disturbance is... Your body is the source of so many disturbances. Even you don't feel nature's disturbances, then your body friend, which you have taken so friendly, that "My body is everything. Exercise, keep this body very perfect to eat, eat meat and drink." But this body will give you trouble. The mind will give you trouble. This is called adhyātmika. Everything is analyzed. Adhyātmika and adhibhautika. You do not create any enemy, but your neighbor will be enemy, unnecessarily. Your friend will be enemy. Your brother will be enemy. Your son will be enemy. There are so many instance. This is called adhibhautika. Just like your, somebody's dog. Unnecessarily... We have seen. You are passing the road, and this dog is so faithful, he become your enemy. "Gow! Gow! Gow! Why you are passing here? Why you are passing?" You see? The mosquito will be enemy. The bugs will be enemy. The insects will be enemy. You go on killing. Go on killing with spray.
So martyānām ṛtam icchatām. Martyānām. They should be conscious that "I do not wish to die. Why death is forced upon me?" This is intelligent question. This is the most intelligent man's question. "I do not want death." Just like if there is immediately some natural disturbance... I have got experience. Sometimes there was little trembling in the front house. People were crying, especially ladies, screaming. And that I have seen many times. As soon as there is a big trembling, everyone becomes afraid, "Now we are going to die. We have to die." So everyone is afraid of death, but nobody thinks how to make a solution of this problem. But there is solution. Therefore here it is said, martyānām. Martyānām means those who are destined to die. Ṛtam icchatām. If they are willing to live, if they want to stop calling the Yamarāja... Yamarāja means he will take you or take me, every one of us, after this body is finished, according to our karma. Yamarāja is there when we are sinful. Yamarāja is not for the devotees.
Therefore Sanātana Gosvāmī, he was minister of the then Muhammadan government. So he presented himself to Caitanya Mahāprabhu that: ke āmi, kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya. This is the intelligence, that "I am undergoing constantly some sort of distresses due to this body, due to this mind, due to distresses inflicted by other living entities, and due to natural disturbances. A combination of distresses. But I don't want all these distresses." Everyone is aware. He doesn't want distresses, but it is enforced. This should be the question, to... When one accepts the spiritual master... Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Sanātana Gosvāmī, he is by his practical example, he said that one should go and inquire from the spiritual master that "Why I am in this condition of life, always suffering?" Tri-tāpa yātanā. But we have become so dull, like the animals. The animals, they cannot question. They are suffering. Everyone knows animal life is full of suffering, but they cannot realize. But a human being can realize. And when the question comes, when he becomes intelligent enough that "Why I am suffering?" then his human life begins. Otherwise, he is animal.
And what are the miserable condition? There are three types: adhyātmika, adhibhautika, adhidaivika. Adhyātmika means pertaining to the body, mind. Everyone is experienced that "I'm not feeling today well due to some sickness of my body or some mental disturbance." This is called adhyātmika. And there are other miseries inflicted by other living entities, my enemies, some animal, some mosquito or some bug. There are so many living entities, they are also try to give me some trouble. This is called adhibhautika. And there is another type of misery, which is called adhidaivika. That is natural disturbance—severe cold, severe heat, some famine, some earthquake, some disaster, some hurricanes. There are so many things, natural disturbance. So in either of these three types of miserable condition we are. But those who are foolish, they do not see to it. Under illusion of māyā they think, "Oh, we are very happy." This is called māyā. One is not happy, but he's thinking, "I am happy." And they are trying to become happy in so many other ways.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
This is required. If anyone becomes disciple of a bona fide guru, then his duty is to ask from the guru what he can do to help guru. That is required. So Sanātana Gosvāmī is giving us the example. Āpana-kṛpāte kaha 'kartavya' āmāra. Kartavya means duty. "Now what is my duty? I have left my so-called duty, ministership. Now I am interested in my real duty, so kindly speak to me what is my duty." Another question was... First question was that "What is my duty?" Then next question is, ke āmi: "Actually what I am?" Ke āmi kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya: "I do not want sufferings, but sufferings are forced upon me, three kinds of suffering: adhyātmika, adhibhautika and adhidaivika." This is knowledge. So adhyātmika means sufferings pertaining to the body and mind, and adhibhautika means sufferings offered by other living entities. Adhibhautika. And adhidaivika, sufferings offered by natural disturbances. There are three kinds of sufferings. Just like the firework is going on, the heavy sound. It is intolerable by somebody. But still, he has to tolerate, that "This firework is going on by other persons." This is called adhibhautika. Similarly, there are so many sufferings which we do not want. Still, they are forced upon us. Therefore he said, kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya: "These three kinds of miseries are always giving me trouble, and at the same time, I do not know what I am." Everyone is thinking, "I am this, I am that," but he is suffering. These are very plain questions. So these questions should be put before the spiritual master, and he should get proper answer and act accordingly. Then spiritual life will be successful. Unless we are interested in such questions, there is no need of wasting time to accept any guru or spiritual master.
So Sanātana Gosvāmī's first question was, ke āmi, kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya āpani kaha prabhu kisera hita haya. Tāpa-traya, we have explained several times that there are three kinds of miserable conditions: pertaining to the body; pertaining to the mind; on account of harassment by other living entities and by natural disturbances. There are three kinds of miserable conditions within this material world. But when one takes shelter of spiritual master and seriously engages himself in devotional service, he has no more any miserable condition. The miserable condition means... It is a question of understanding. The beginning of spiritual life is to understand that "I am not this body." That is the beginning. So if I am properly trained up to understand that "I am not this body," then where is my tāpa-traya, miserable condition? Because miserable condition is due to this body.
Festival Lectures
The ultimate goal of life is to attain eternal life, full of knowledge and bliss, sac-cid-ānanda vigraha (Bs. 5.1). Sat means eternal, ānanda means bliss and cit means knowledge. This body is just the opposite. It is not sat. This body is temporary. It is not eternal. This body is full of ignorance. There is practically no knowledge. We do not know, after closing our eyes, we do not know what is happening before our eyes. So our knowledge is always imperfect. And this life is also miserable. It is not at all blissful. Every step, there are three kinds of miserable condition: ādhyātmika, adhibautika, adhidaivika. Ādhyātmika means miseries pertaining to the body and the mind. Adhibautika means miserable condition offered by other living entities. And adhidaivika, natural disturbances. So either of these three, or at least one or two, there must be always present. This is the material condition of life. But as spirit soul, we are sac-cid-ānanda vigraha, part and parcel of sac-cid-ānanda vigraha (Bs. 5.1). Sat means eternal, cit means knowledge and bliss, and ānanda means blissfulness.
Arrival Addresses and Talks
So this materialistic way of life is full of enviousness, rivalry, competition, then birth, death, old age, disease, threefold miseries-ādhyātmic ādhibhautic, miseries from the mind, from the body, from other living entities, natural disturbance. And we are trying to be happy here. This is called foolishness. It is not possible. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). The creator of this world says that this place is for suffering, duḥkhālayam. And aśāśvatam. That is also temporary. You may think, "Never mind. I am American. We have got big, big buildings and big, big roads and cars. Never mind it is duḥkhālayam, I shall remain here." No, sir, you cannot remain." Aśāśvatam: you have to leave this place. Even if you make compromise that "Never mind. I am happy now to my estimation," the answer is duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). You cannot make permanent settlement. That is not possible.
General Lectures
Sometimes the living entity suffers bodily and sometimes he is distressed mentality. Both are ādhyātmika miseries. We experience these miseries even in the womb of our mother. There are many forms of miseries that take advantage of our delicate body and give us pain. Miseries inflicted by other living entities are called ādhibhautika. There are many living entities such as bugs born of eggs that cause us miseries while we are sleeping in bed. There are many living entities like cockroaches that sometimes give us pain. And there are other living entities born on different kinds of planets, and they also cause us miseries. So far as ādhidaivic miseries are concerned, they originate with the demigods from the higher planets. For instance, sometimes we suffer from serious cold weather, sometimes we suffer from the thunderbolt, sometimes from earthquake, tornadoes, droughts, and other natural disasters. So we are always suffering one or another of three kinds of miseries. Sanātana's inquiry was 'What is the position of the living entities? Why are they always undergoing these three kinds of miseries?' Sanātana has admitted his weakness.
Although we cannot be absolutely independent as God, but the tendency is there that "I shall become independent." So the living entities, we—we are part and parcel of God—when we want to live independently of God, that is our conditional stage. Conditional stage means we accept a body, material body, which is conditioned in so many ways. Just like the body undergoes six kinds of changes. It is born, the body is born, not the living entity. It is born at a certain date, it remains for some time, it grows, it gives some by-products, then the body dwindles and at last it vanishes. The six kind of changes. Not only these six kind of changes, but also there are many tribulations. They are called threefold miseries: pertaining to the body, pertaining to the mind, miseries offered by other living entities, miseries happening by natural disturbances. And after all, the whole thing is summarized into four principles, namely birth, death, old age and disease. These are our conditional life.
Philosophy Discussions
Devotee: Even if you commit sinful activities all your life, if he is there at your deathbed then you can be saved from your sins.
Prabhupāda: That is quite possible, you see, because he can remind you. But at the time of death, when everything is stopped, the functions of the body, kapha, pitta, vāyu, therefore Kulaśekhara says that "Let me die immediately." Actually, natural death means I will be encumbered with so many things, natural disturbance of this body, the disturbance, they'll be choked up, and cough, mucus, so many things. So unless one is practiced, it is not possible. Therefore practice is required from the very beginning-austerity, penance, brahmacārī, celibacy, like that. These things have to be practiced.
That hopelessness is already there, that's a fact. That is the same logic, that we are finding difficulties in this materialistic way of life. Threefold miseries-miserable condition of this body, this mind, miseries offered by other living entities, and the natural disturbances. So how can you say there is very smooth life? That is not possible. And above these, there is old age, birth, death. So hopelessness is already there. But if one is very rascal, he is hoping against hope and planning that "We shall overcome all these difficulties by this plan, that plan, that plan." That, that is not possible. The nature is so strong, whatever plan you imagine, that will smash into pieces by simply kicking over your face. So you are hopeless but you are so shameless, inspite of becoming hopeless in every step, you are hoping against hope to make adjustment with these material things. You are so rascal and foolish. Hopelessness is always there in every step, and still, out of insanity, you are trying to adjust with another hopeless plan.
| Page Title: | Natural disturbances (Lectures) |
| Compiler: | Matea |
| Created: | 17 of Sep, 2009 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=22, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 22 |