Real Brahman

Expressions researched:
"real Brahman"

CC Madhya-lila

There are many jñānīs or sannyāsīs who, after taking sannyāsa and giving up the world as false, return to the world to engage in politics or philanthropy or to open schools and hospitals. This means that they could not attain the real Brahman (brahma satyam)

CC Madhya 19.149, Purport: Although karmīs, jñānīs and yogīs fulfill their desires by performing various activities, they are never satisfied. A karmī may work very hard to acquire a million dollars, but as soon as he gets a million dollars he desires another million. For the karmīs, there is no end of desire. The more the karmī gets, the more he desires. The jñānīs cannot be desireless because their intelligence is unsound. They want to merge into the Brahman effulgence, but even though they may be raised to that platform, they cannot be satisfied there. There are many jñānīs or sannyāsīs who, after taking sannyāsa and giving up the world as false, return to the world to engage in politics or philanthropy or to open schools and hospitals. This means that they could not attain the real Brahman (brahma satyam). They have to come down to the material platform to engage in philanthropic activity. Thus they again cultivate desires, and when these desires are exhausted, they desire something different. Therefore the jñānī cannot be niṣkāma, desireless. Nor can the yogīs be desireless, for they desire yogic perfections in order to exhibit some magical feats and gain popularity. People gather around these yogīs, and the yogīs desire more and more adulation. Because they misuse their mystic power, they fall down again to the material platform. It is not possible for them to become niṣkāma, desireless.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

When your anarthas will be finished and you will see every living entity as part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, that is called real Brahman realization

Lecture on SB 1.7.6 -- Vrndavana, April 18, 1975: The bhakti-yoga begins from the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. So how you can say the legs of Kṛṣṇa are inferior than the heads of Kṛṣṇa? This is called anartha. So if we enter into the process of bhakti-yogam, these anarthas will go out. Therefore it is recommended here in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that anartha upaśamaṁ sākṣād bhakti-yogam adhokṣaje. If you engage yourself in transcendental loving service of the adhokṣaja... Adhokṣaja means the Supreme Person who is beyond your sense perception. That is called adhokṣaja. So you have to engage yourself in the service of Adhokṣaja, bhakti-yoga. Then this anartha, this misunderstanding that "He is such and such. I am such and such," this will be finished, no more. That is called paṇḍita. Paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ [Bg. 5.18]. Vidyā-vinaya-sampanne brāhmaṇe gavi hastini, śuni caiva śva-pāke [Bg. 5.18]. When your anarthas will be finished and you will see every living entity as part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, that is called real Brahman realization. Part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa every one of us. So we shall not only engage ourself as part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa in His service, but also we shall try to engage others because they are also part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Why should we eliminate them? That is Vaiṣṇavism. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And that is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission.

He is thinking. He is thinking like that. But real Brahman, Parabrahman, Kṛṣṇa, is not impersonal. He does not say that "I am impersonal." But these rascals say that "God is impersonal."

Lecture on SB 1.16.8 -- Los Angeles, January 5, 1974: The Māyāvādī philosophers, they think like that, something different. Because this is not Brahman. This is asat. Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā. "This world is false. Therefore Brahman realization means that something opposite must be there. In the māyā, everything is variety. So Brahman must be without variety." This is also material conception, because he is thinking like that. But my thinking, if I am in māyā, so whatever I am thinking, that is also māyā. But these rascals they do not understand that. They do not understand that. I am thinking that "Brahman must be opposite of this variety. Therefore Brahman must be impersonal." But what is their conclusion? The conclusion... He is thinking. He is thinking like that. But real Brahman, Parabrahman, Kṛṣṇa, is not impersonal. He does not say that "I am impersonal." But these rascals say that "God is impersonal." So this kind of thinking by the person who is in māyā, that is also māyā. Therefore they are called Māyāvādī. Māyāvādī means all their philosophy is also māyā. It has no meaning. Therefore they are Māyāvādī. They are handling something in the māyā. Therefore they are called Māyāvādī.

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

Because they could not catch up real Brahman, therefore they come again to his material existence

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, January 2, 1973: And when we are frustrated in enjoying this material world, then we try to become mokṣa, merge into the existence of Brahman. Brahmā satyaṁ jagan mithyā, when you are frustrated. So that kind of mokṣa... Of course, it is nice. But bhakti is beyond mokṣa. Mokṣa means brahma-bhūtaḥ, to understand that "I am Brahman." That is mokṣa. That is mukti. "I'm not this matter. I'm not this body." That is called mokṣa.

brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā

na śocati na kāṅkṣati

samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu

mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām

[Bg. 18.54]

After being liberated from this material contamination, that ahaṁ brahmāsmi, "I am not this matter; I am Brahman..." That is called brahma-bhūtaḥ stage. In the brahma-bhūtaḥ stage, one is joyful, prasannātmā. That is the symptoms of brahma-bhūtaḥ. Prasannātmā [Bg. 18.54]. Na śocati na kāṅkṣati. Because he has nothing to do with material world, therefore sometimes it is said, "It is mithyā," because I have nothing to do. It may be very important thing, but unless you realize Kṛṣṇa, mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām [Bg. 18.54], by devotional service, even by lifting yourself to that stage, transcendental stage of Brahman realization, there is chance of falling down. That is the verdict of, I mean to, Śrīmad Bhāgavatam: āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ anādṛtaḥ-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ [SB 10.2.32]. Because they could not search out the shelter of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, they have to come down again to this material existence, which they left as mithyā. But their..., because there is no shelter on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, this brahma-bhūtaḥ stage also not secure. One has to fall down. We have seen many big, big sannyāsīs, very learned scholars, sannyāsīs, they take part in politics, sociology. Because they could not catch up real Brahman, therefore they come again to his material existence. So Śrīdhara Swami, the great commentator on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, he says, in connection with the second verse, First Chapter, First Canto: dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo atra paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satāṁ vāstava vastu vedyam atra [SB 1.1.2]. So Śrīdhara Swami says, atra mokṣavisandi api nirastam. To desire for mokṣa is also not ultimate goal of life. Ultimate goal of life is to accept the shelter of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate [Bg. 7.19]. Actually who is jñānavān, he'll take shelter of Kṛṣṇa. If not is this life, he'll have to come to this status. Therefore nirviśeṣa vadi, impersonalists... Kṛṣṇa says, kleṣaḥ adhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta cetasām. Avyakta. Kṛṣṇa is vyakta. But one who is not after this vyakta, he's after impersonal Brahman, their labor is still more hard than the bhaktas.

That is not real Brahman happiness. Brahman happiness means that there must be a distinction. The distinction means Kṛṣṇa is predominator and everyone is predominated

The Nectar of Devotion -- Vrndavana, November 9, 1972: Pradyumna: "There is no preventing one's falling down from material happiness, and there is every chance of falling down from the spiritual happiness derived out of identifying oneself with the impersonal Brahman." Prabhupāda: Every chance of falling down from the spiritual happiness. That spiritual happiness, nirbheda-brahmānu-sandhana. Nirbheda, without any distinction. That is not real Brahman happiness. Brahman happiness means that there must be a distinction. The distinction means Kṛṣṇa is predominator and everyone is predominated. Just like the gopīs. Kṛṣṇa is the predominator, and the gopīs and all the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana-Nanda Mahārāja, Yaśodā and the cowherd boys, servant, trees, plants, flowers, water, animals, cows—everyone is predominated. Kṛṣṇa is only predominator. That is real happiness. Whenever there is any trouble in Vṛndāvana, they approach the predominator and immediately the predominator takes care and they're happy. This is Vṛndāvana life.

General Lectures

No more attraction for material engagement. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. Viṣṇu means the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So your hearing, your chanting, your remembering, your acting—everything will be in connection with Viṣṇu. That is real Brahman realization stage, active stage

Lecture "Nobody Wants to Die" -- Boston, May 7, 1968: So long as you are inactive, your Brahman realization is not perfect. I have several times given this example, that if a diseased man is cured, the temperature is no more coming. That is the stage of cure. But that is not perfect stage of cure. When you actually work without any fever, without any disease, that is your perfect stage. Similarly, simply by understanding theoretically that you are not this body, you are soul, that is not perfect realization. Perfect realization is to work in Brahman stage.

Now, how is that working? That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ

smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam

arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ

sakhyam ātma-nivedanam

[SB 7.5.23]

That means the same thing. Just like here, in this jīva-bhūta stage, false identification stage, we are also anxious to hear something. We are reading daily in the morning some newspaper, "This, this thing has happened there. This thing has happened here. Here is something available." But as soon you become brahma-bhūta [SB 4.30.20], you lose all interest in such nonsense things. You'll be interested to hear about Kṛṣṇa, not about the newspaper. This is called liberation. No more attraction for material engagement. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. Viṣṇu means the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So your hearing, your chanting, your remembering, your acting—everything will be in connection with Viṣṇu. That is real Brahman realization stage, active stage.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

That is real Brahman, when he is above these three guṇas. Otherwise, if you think, "Now I have become liberated," maybe by your liberation liberated, but it will not stay. You'll fall down again

Morning Walk -- November 4, 1975, Bombay: Prabhupāda: Now, simply their point is that you realize or I realize Brahman. That is not the end. You realize fully. They think to Brahman means to stop all activities. Now you become dull, without any activities. So that is not the end. The Bhagavad-gītā says if you are brahma-bhutaḥ, then come to this point: mad-bhaktiṁ labhate param [Bg. 18.54]. Then you will stay. And if you simply stay on brahma-bhutaḥ stage, then you'll again fall down. That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavata, that ye 'nye 'ravindakṣa vimukta-maninaḥ. They are thinking, "Now I am relieved from the conditional life." But actually he's not. Ye 'nye 'ravindakṣa vimukta-maninaḥ. They are thinking like that, "Now I am liberated." He's not liberated. Why? Tvayy aṣṭa-bhavat. Aṣṭa-bhavat: "He has no still information of You." If he is actually brahma-bhutaḥ, then he knows the Supreme Brahman, Parabrahman, and then he engages himself in His service. And when he is engaged in that service there is no question of material, tri-gunātmākam. Sa-guṇan samatityaitan brahma-bhuyaya... [Bg. 14.26]. That is real Brahman, when he is above these three guṇas. Otherwise, if you think, "Now I have become liberated," maybe by your liberation liberated, but it will not stay. You'll fall down again. Just like this land. You can take it-here is land—but at night it will be water. Is it not?