I came here to fight for some useful purpose, but now I see that viparītāni, just opposite. It will be useless." Why useless? Because one tries to become rich man, opulent—this is material nature—just to show to his relatives, to his friends, to his family members, "Just see how I have become rich, opulent." This is the psychology. A man works very hard day and night to become rich just to make a show that "My dear friends, my dear relatives, you see that how I have become now rich." This is the only purpose. Nobody is working hard for serving Kṛṣṇa. This is māyā. And Kṛṣṇa consciousness means, the same hardship we shall take, but take for Kṛṣṇa. Just like our Mrs. Sharma. She was working in the family, but now she has come to work for Kṛṣṇa. And this is salvation. This is mukti. Not that we have to stop our working capacity. Simply we have to change the position. In the family life we work uselessly for so-called relatives, but the same labor, when we employ for the service of Kṛṣṇa, every inch of it is utilized.
That is maya (Lectures)
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
We are ordinary living entities. His knowledge, His power of remembrance, His power of knowing everything perfectly is different from our knowing. But unfortunately we think, "God may be little greater than me." That is that Dr. Frog philosophy. We have explained several times. Kūpa-maṇḍūka-nyāya. The frog within the well, he is calculating the dimension of Pacific Ocean. So by this dog, frog philosophical way, we can, we cannot understand what is God. We must receive the knowledge from God Himself, or from a person who knows God. Otherwise, there is no possibility. Now, according to māyā..., Māyāvāda philosophy, they say that there is no duality. It is a kind of illusion that we see difference between God and ourself. That is māyā. Then Kṛṣṇa is not advocating herewith about the impersonal feature of the Lord. He says, ah, He represents... He is God himself. He says "I, I was existing as I am existing now, and in future also, I shall exist like this." So He was speaking as individual person. So in the past He says that "I was individual person." And in the present He's individual person. So why these Māyāvādī philosophy, philosophers, do not understand this direct version from the Supreme Personality of Godhead? Because āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ (BG 7.15).
Nature will not provide the demons. You'll find in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Fourth Canto, nature is quite prepared to supply all the foods, but as soon as there are number of demons, because the whole plan is to correct. Just like the criminals are sent to the prison house for being corrected so that they may not again commit criminals. That is the purpose of... Similarly, we are all criminals who are in this material world. The purpose is to be corrected. We wanted to imitate Kṛṣṇa, to become Kṛṣṇa, and therefore we violated the orders of Kṛṣṇa, and that criminality means material life.
- kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare
- nikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
- (Prema-vivarta)
This is māyā, this material world, māyā. This body is false, māyā. So we have to accept this body because we wanted to enjoy. So enjoy, you enjoy with this body, particular body. Either human's body, or dog's body, or cat's body, or demigod's body, you get as you desire. You get a material body and enjoy. This is material life.
So this is called illusion. I am not master. I am servant. But I am trying to become master artificially. That is struggle for existence. And mukti means, liberation means, when you give up this wrong idea that "I am master," and try to become the servant of the Supreme. That is called liberation. Liberation does not mean that after liberation we'll have a big, gigantic form or so many hands, so many legs. Liberation means to become liberated from the wrong consciousness. That is liberation. The wrong consciousness is that "I am master." So we have to change this consciousness. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. One has to understand thoroughly that he's not master. He's servant. He's completely dependent on the supreme will. If we do not surrender unto the supreme will, then we have to surrender unto the will of māyā. We have to remain a servant. If we don't..., reject service, or servitude of the Supreme Lord, then we have to become the servant of the senses. That is māyā. Actually, that is going on. The whole world is serving different types of senses. Senses are one, the same, but they have got different desires. So they are servant of different desires.
We may manufacture very wonderful machine and weapon, but after all, we are subjected to the rules of māyā: janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). You cannot get out of these four principles of māyā's machinery janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi. Therefore the sane man, who is actually learned, he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). Actually when one becomes wise, he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa. Jñānavān māṁ prapadyate. Otherwise, who is Kṛṣṇa? "I am as good as Kṛṣṇa. I am God." That is māyā. That is not actually knowledge. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said, ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. They are thinking that they have become liberated, become Nārāyaṇa, or God. Māninaḥ, they are thinking like that. Actually, they are not, because they're subjected to the rules of the material nature. They cannot get out of these clutches.
These rascals they cannot understand. If you want to become happy, then you must come to Kṛṣṇa. Mām upetya tu kaunteya duḥkhālayam aśāśvataṁ nāpnuvanti (BG 8.15). Kṛṣṇa says, "If somebody comes to Me, then he does not again get this place which is full of miseries," duḥkhālayam. This material world is explained by Kṛṣṇa as duḥkhālayam. Ālayam means place, and duḥkha means distress. Everything is distressful here, but fools being illusioned, covered by the illusory māyā, that distress he accepts as happiness. That is māyā. It is not at all happiness. A man is working whole day and night, and because he's getting some paper where it is written, "We trust in God. Take this paper, hundred dollars. I cheat you." Is it not? "We trust in God. I promise to pay you. Take this paper now. Not even one cent worth. It is written there hundred dollars." So I am thinking I am very happy: "Now I have got this paper." That's all. Cheaters and cheated. This is going on.
So anyway, Kṛṣṇa appears in four colors—red, black, yellow, and white—in different ages. So in this age, Kali Yuga, Kṛṣṇa appears as Caitanya Mahāprabhu, yellow color. Kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣā akṛṣṇam. Akṛṣṇa may be red. Akṛṣṇa may be white. But this akṛṣṇa means pīta, yellow. Because other akṛṣṇa, red and white, was in the Satya-yuga and Tretā-yuga. Therefore here akṛṣṇa means the yellow. Kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam (SB 11.5.32). He's always surrounded by His intimate devotees. He's surrounded by many devotees. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, wherever He was going, thousands and thousands of people were following His saṅkīrtana, but especially He, He was always surrounded by five special devotees: śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda, śrī-advaita gadādhara, śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda. He's Himself, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya; His expansion, Nityānanda; His incarnation, Śrī Advaita Prabhu; His internal energy, Gadādhara; and His external, marginal energy, Advaita Prabhu, er, Śrīvāsa. But He has got another energy, which is called external energy. External energy cannot come in front of God, Kṛṣṇa. This is māyā. Just like darkness cannot come in front of the sun.
Don't take ice cream. (music continues louder in background) (laughs) This is māyā. (laughter) "Come on, come on, enjoy me. Come on, come on, enjoy me." (laughs) As soon as you enjoy, you become entrapped. That's all. Just like fishing tackle. They throw the tackle and invite the fish, "Come on, come on, enjoy me. Come on, come on, enjoy me." As soon as—Ap! (laughter) Finished. Then, (sound imitating fish) "Where you go now? Come on in my bag. Yes, I'll fry you nicely." You see? So these are all explained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The fish is losing his life by eating, by tongue. He cannot check the dictation of the tongue; therefore he is losing his life. You see? Similarly the animals, deer, in the jungle, the hunter, they play very nice flute and all of them assemble to hear how he's nice, and then he keeps him in the trap, loses his life. That means hearing. Tasting, hearing. And the elephant is caught by sexual... Do you know how elephant is captured? Yes. A she-elephant is trained, goes to the male elephant, and it follows, and the male elephant is dropped into a, what is called, big pot, pit. Yes. Then he remains there for some time. Then he's shackled and he's taken away. In this way there are different examples of senses. The, what is called? That black, what is called, bhramara? English? That black big fly? (makes buzzing sound) Onnnhhh.
Now, under the influence of nature, I am thinking, "I am the servant of my wife," "I am servant of the society," "I am servant of my nation," "I am servant of my cat," "I am servant of my dog." And we are doing that, actually. Everyone is working under this impression. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho 'yam ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8). This is illusion. You have to come to the platform of sanātana. What is that eternal? "I am eternally servant of Kṛṣṇa." That is sanātana-dharma. I am not servant of this or that or that. No. I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that every living entity is, in his original position of Kṛṣṇa consciousness... At the present moment we have got different consciousness. That is māyā. This is mental concoction. I am thinking that "I'll be happy in this way." That is a mental concoction. You cannot be happy unless you surrender to Kṛṣṇa.
So whole Kṛṣṇa consciousness process is again transferring the loving propensity from māyā to Kṛṣṇa. This is the simple method. We have got love for Kṛṣṇa, but being illusioned, being falsely positioned, we are trying to love something which is not Kṛṣṇa. māyā, Kṛṣṇa's māyā, illusion. Mama māyā. Kṛṣṇa says, "Māyā is also Mine." Just like the cloud. What is this cloud? This is also made by the sun. Everyone, you know. The cloud means the sun evaporates water from the ocean, and it becomes cloud, and the business of the cloud is to cover our eyes to see the sun. Actually, the cloud has no existence, separate existence, and as soon as the sun is bright, the cloud disappears. This is bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). It comes into existence and again it disappears. This is māyā. But the sky remains there; the sun remains there. Similarly, māyā, illusion, is sometimes is generated. This is the creation of the material world, mahat-tattva-māyā. So this is not permanent. It comes and goes. Similarly, māyā is simply covering our eyes. Just the... Just like this cloud, it is not possible for the cloud to cover the sun. Sun is ninety-three millions, or at least, fourteen, fourteen hundred thousand times bigger than this earth. So how a cloud, spreading over, say, a few miles, ten miles, it can cover the sun? No. The cloud cannot cover the sun, but the cloud can cover my eyesight. This is the position. Similarly māyā cannot touch Kṛṣṇa. The Māyāvādī philosophy is that māyā also covers Kṛṣṇa. When Kṛṣṇa comes here, He comes covered by this māyā. No. This is not. Māyā cannot touch.
That means those who are not voluntarily surrendering to Kṛṣṇa, they are put into the prison house. They are forced to surrender. Forced to surrender. They'll be forced. Just like you cannot become... You are not free, either outside the prison house or inside the prison house. But when you think that you have become free... Vimukta-māninaḥ. Vimukta-māninaḥ, falsely thinking that "I have now become liberated." Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). But the intelligence is not very clear. This is last snare of māyā. When one thinks that "I am God. I have become God," that is the last snare of māyā. That is also māyā. How you can become God? What capacity you have got? God has created so many things. What you have created? God has shown so many things. What you have done? But still, falsely they are thinking, "I am God." This is māyā, last snare of māyā. Because the real disease as we have already explained, is to lord it over the material nature. Everyone is trying: "I am the lord of all I survey. I want to become lord of this universe. I want to become minister. I want to become president. I want to become business magnitude." And everything fails. Then he wants to become God. That is also māyā. That is not possible.
So the living entity's business is to serve the whole. Just like this finger. This finger is the part of my body. Its business is to carry out my order, to serve the whole. I want the finger to come here. Immediately... Similarly, our business is to serve Kṛṣṇa, but when we want to become lord, independent of Kṛṣṇa, that is called māyā. Kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare, nikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare. This is a statement in the Prema-vivarta. As soon as we desire to imitate Kṛṣṇa, that is māyā. Māyā is nothing. We create that situation of māyā. What is that? "I want to become Kṛṣṇa. I want to become God. I want to become the Lord." This is māyā. This is not possible. So Kṛṣṇa is sanātana. We are also sanātana. But when we forget to serve Kṛṣṇa, that is our asanātana. And when we are engaged again in the service of Kṛṣṇa, that is sanātana-dharma. So sanātana-dharma means eternally serving Kṛṣṇa. Another example, dharma... What is dharma? Dhṛ-dhātu. Characteristic. You cannot change it. You cannot change it. Just like sugar. Sugar characteristic means sweetness. And chili characteristic means pungent. So everything has got characteristic.
So this is the position. One is actually serving, not master. But he's thinking that he's master. This is māyā. So when we give up this false prestigious position that I am master, then you are liberated. Hitvā anyathā rūpam. Mukti, the definition of mukti is hitvā anyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa avasthitiḥ. Anyathā rūpam. Now we are struggling hard within this material world, under the influence of māyā, changing different types of body. Sometimes I am going to the heavenly planets. Sometimes I am going to the hellish planets. Sometimes I am rich man. Sometimes I am poor man. Sometimes brāhmaṇa, sometimes śūdra. Sometimes tiger, sometimes tree. In this way, sarva-gata. Everywhere within this universe, the living entities are struggling for existence. Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhāni indriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati. Mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūta (BG 15.7). Kṛṣṇa says, "All these living entities, they are My part and parcel, but foolishly, being carried by the mental concoction, prakṛti-sthāni, within this material world, karṣati, struggling to become master." This is the disease. Prakṛti-sthāni karṣati.
These rascals, they are pulled by the ear by prakṛti. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni. "You do this"—I have to do this. One who has associated with the tamo-guṇa of prakṛti, prakṛti has given a body just like hog, and the prakṛti is obliging, "You come here. Eat the stool." And he's eating. "Oh, so nice." This is māyā. Stool is very nice thing? But prakṛti has given this hog a certain type of body and he is relishing: "Oh, stool is so nice." This is going on. Similarly, human form of body also. They're eating so many nonsense things in the restaurant, in the hotel, and they're relishing: "Oh, it is so nice." This is māyā. This is going on. So our business is to serve, but because we have taken this attitude, that "I don't like to serve Kṛṣṇa" or, "I am Kṛṣṇa," then we are under the clutches of māyā. Immediately. And under the illusion of māyā... Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi... (BG 3.27). Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgaḥ asya sad-asad-janma-yoniṣu. Because we are associating with the different modes of material nature, therefore we have to take birth, sad-asad-janma-yoniṣu.
So at the end of this Kali-yuga they will be so much degraded that it will be impossible for them to understand God. At the present moment, although it is Kali-yuga, there are some persons who are trying to understand God. At least, there is attempt. But, at the end of Kali-yuga, say, about 400,000's of years, then people... Because they're becoming animals, more and more. The more we become animals, we cannot understand God. So our modern civilization is to make the people animal. That is advancement of civilization. Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca sāmānyam etat paśubhiḥ narāṇām. The modern civilization is how we can eat very nicely, how we can sleep nicely, how we can have sexual intercourse nicely, how we can defend nicely. Only these four principles are being taught. They have no idea what is soul, what is God, what is the relationship with the soul. So this is, this type of civilization is increasing. So just imagine how much it will be increased after four hundred thousands of years. The Kali-yuga has begun only five thousand years. Within this five thousand years, we have so much degraded, illusioned by the māyā as advancement of civilization. This is māyā. So the more days go, we shall be more illusioned. So there will be no capacity to understand about God. At that time, God will come to destroy all this population by cutting their throat. That is kalki-avatāra. (end)
So the situation of the world, due to ignorance of the soul they are creating so many sinful activities and becoming entangled. But they have no knowledge how they are becoming entangled. This is māyā's, prakṣepātmika-śakti, āvaraṇātmika. Although he is being entangled, but he's thinking that he's advancing, advancing in scientific knowledge. This is their knowledge. The gentleman was talking that he's a mining engineer. So mining engineer, his business is to make the atmosphere within the mine very comfortable. Just imagine, he has gone down within the earth just like the mousehole, and he's improving that mousehole. After being educated, after getting degrees, his position is to enter into the dark, dark, I mean to say, hole of the earth, and he's trying to scientific advancement by cleansing the air within the mine. He's condemned that he has been forced to give up the outer, outer space, free air. He has been condemned to go within the earth, and he's proud of scientific advancement. This is going on. This is scientific advancement.
So what your machine, this sputnik or these planes, will help you? You have to come down again. Rather, you shall fall down in some Atlantic Ocean, or Pacific Ocean, and somebody will go and pick you up. You see? This is your position. So voidism means to fly in the sky and be puffed up, "I have come so high, I have come so high, so high." (laughs) That foolish man does not know how long he'll keep in that high position. You see? He will come down. This is māyā's attraction. He'll have to come down. There is a verse,
- ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninas
- tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ
- āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ
- patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ
- (SB 10.2.32)
This is the prayer by Prahlāda Mahārāja. He says, "My dear Lord, lotus-eyed, Aravindākṣa," ye anye. "Some third-class men, they are very much proud of ending this material life, these nirvāṇa or these impersonalists." Vimukta-māninaḥ. Vimukta-māninaḥ means they are simply falsely thinking that they have surpassed the clutches of māyā. Falsely.
Just like according to Vedic system, begging is allowed. Begging allowed for whom? For the brāhmaṇas, for the sannyāsīs, for the brahmacārīs, because they collect money, beg from door to door for their benefit. Suppose a brahmacārī is going to a householder's place or a storekeeper's place, "Give us some contribution." He is not collecting that money for his livelihood. He's quite competent to work. But that one dollar which he contributes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, it is good for him. At least, some portion of his energy goes to Kṛṣṇa. That is the philosophy. Not that "Some way or other, I may collect some money and live very comfortably." No. We cannot do that. But you can accept Kṛṣṇa's prasāda. That is a different thing. But for personal comfort you have to work.
If you are a karmī, then you have to work. If you are a devotee, if you are completely... Devotee means hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate (CC Madhya 19.170). Devotee means one who has engaged his senses cent percent for the service of the Lord, he is devotee, pure devotee.
So one who cannot become cent percent, all right, become fifty percent, twenty-five percent, one percent. Give something for Kṛṣṇa. Don't be miser. Because whatever you have got, it is Kṛṣṇa's. So long you catch it up, "It is mine," that is māyā. You just let loose it for (chuckling) Kṛṣṇa. Then it is freedom for you. You see.
Woman devotee: What is māyā? I know that it's attractive...
Prabhupāda: Māyā means which drags you from Kṛṣṇa. That is māyā.
Woman devotee: Is it a spiritual form?
Prabhupāda: Whatever form may be, (it is) force. We shall see form later on. You just... Just like a police sends a warrant, arrest. You do not ask what is the form of the police, but here is warrant, you have to go. Force, that's all. Similarly, don't try to understand what is māyā's form, but you just feel her force, how she is acting. How she is putting you in difficulty. You see? There are so many things. Māyā puts into this difficulty and you are encumbered. That we have to understand, how I have become encumbered. In my childhood I was free. There was no encumbrances. Now I am encumbered. I am harassed. This is māyā's action. So if you want to get out of this māyā's influence, then you have to become Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no other alternative. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. (kīrtana) (end)
The Caitanya-caritāmṛta says, therefore, "The master is only Kṛṣṇa." Ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa āra saba bhṛtya: (CC Adi 5.142) "Only Kṛṣṇa, or God, is master, and everyone is servant." Yāre yaiche nācāya se taiche kare nṛtya: "Each servant is dancing according to the order of the Supreme." That's all. Nobody is master. So this false conception of becoming master is called māyā, illusion. Nobody is master. Therefore one who disagrees to become servant of God, he is befooled. It is said, "But those who, out of envy..." He is constitutionally servant, but he is envious: "Why shall I become God's servant? I shall become God." You see? Everyone is claiming, "Oh, everyone is God. Why? What is the use of becoming servant of God? I am God." This is enviousness. So if one refuses to serve God and become envious, "disregard these teachings and do not practice them regularly are to be considered bereft of all knowledge." Because he is servant, but he is thinking, "I am master. I am not serving anyone." This is māyā, bereft of all knowledge. Go on.
Then Lord Caitanya was sleeping, and, say, after half and hour, when He got, He saw, "Govinda, you have not taken your prasādam as yet?" "No, sir." "Why?" "I cannot cross You. You are lying down here." "Then how you came?" "I came across." "How you first of all came across, why not again crossing?" "That I came to serve You. And now I cannot cross You to take my prasādam. That is not my duty. That is for myself. And it is for You." So for Kṛṣṇa's pleasure you can become His enemy, you can become His friend, you can become anything. That is bhakti-yoga. Because your aim is how to please Kṛṣṇa. And as soon as the point comes, to please your senses, then you come to material world, immediately.
- kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare
- nikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
- (Prema-vivarta)
As soon as we forget Kṛṣṇa and we want to do things for our sense gratification, that is māyā. And as soon as we give up this process of sense gratification and do everything for Kṛṣṇa, that is liberation.
Now, so far the employment is concerned, so here, here the employer and employee, both are serving and both are thinking that "I am the master." That is māyā. Suppose I employ somebody. I give $25 per day. So the man who is employed, he thinks that "I am not your servant. I am servant of these $25." So there is no question of service. So similarly, the master also, he thinks, "I am giving you $25 because I am exacting some service from you." So here there is no question of... The service is there, but it is perverted, perverted, in a different way. That is not real service. Service is there. Because I cannot live without service. That is my nature. Just exactly the same way: the water is always liquid, either it is designated black, or designated white. That doesn't matter. But water is there.
Pradyumna: In the first and the second chapter, also, about dharma in the second chapter. It says ahaituki and another... So that devotional service has to be causeless in order to be the perfect conductor?
Prabhupāda: Yes. All right. Let us have kīrtana. Yes, you want to ask? Yes.
Devotee: Man has forgotten and is serving māyā, he's actually serving Kṛṣṇa anyway then why is he miserable?
Prabhupāda: That is māyā. When you serve māyā then you get miseries. Just like a man who is serving in the prisonhouse, he is also serving the government, but he is in misery. That is called māyā. He's also serving. That is explained by Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). When he's serving favorably, he is happy. When he is serving unfavorably or being forced, that is not bhakti, that is māyā. He has to serve. That is his constitutional position. Either outside or inside, but he cannot but serve Kṛṣṇa. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu said jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa. He's eternally servant. Either he understands or not understands, he is servant. But when he's serving consciousness, conscientiously, then he's deriving the real profit. And that is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Now chant. (kīrtana) (end)
This is called māyā. Māyā means what is not. Māyā. Mā means not. Not. Yā means this. This is māyā. He is thinking... The modern human society, they are thinking that advancing. But māyā. It is not. You are not advancing. What advancement you have made? Your problem is, the primary problem is, eating, sleeping, mating and defending. Oh, that is not solved. Our problem is birth, death, old age and disease. And that is not solved. Then what nuisance you are doing in the name of progress? There is no progress. The real progress is to understand the laws of nature, how it is being conducted under the direction of the Supreme Lord. That is real progress.
So Bhāgavata indicates tasyaiva hetoḥ prayateta kovidaḥ. Kovida means one who is actually intelligent, not the mūḍhāḥ, rascals, actually one who is intelligent. He should try to solve the problems which is not possible to be done even if you travel over all the spaces up to the highest planet. Upary adhaḥ. Upary adhaḥ means upside all planets and downside all planets. There are millions of planets. If you travel... But these problems... Just like your fortune will go with you in your head. You may go to moon planet, but this head will go with you. Yadi yao bhaṅge kaphala yabe saṅge.(?) You cannot change. If you have to attempt anything for real progress, then this is real progress. What is that? To know the Supreme Absolute Truth, which is manipulating all activities. That is real progress.
Mām upetya tu kaunteya duḥkhālayam... And this material existence is duḥkhālayam, it is a place of misery. This is māyā. We are living in this condition, conditional life of material existence, which is full of miseries, but by the spell of māyā, illusion, we are thinking, we are planning that we are happy. This is called māyā. Māyā means... I have several times explained what is meant by māyā. Māyā means "what is not." I am thinking I am making progress, I am thinking that I am happy, I am thinking I am civilized, I am advanced. But the māyā means this thinking, in the positive way, is no. No, you are not advanced. You are not civilized. You are not actually wise because you do not know what you are. You are thinking that you are this body. Therefore everything, whatever you are thinking, that is all null and void. Māyā. This is called māyā. So this māyā is very strong.
It appears to be horri... Because we are so much absorbed in māyā. As soon as you ask anybody that "You cannot eat meat," he'll think it, "Oh, it is horrible." As soon as you say, "You cannot drink, you cannot have any intoxication," he thinks, "This is horrible." But actually it is not... This is māyā. It is not horrible, but we are thinking horrible. We are not eating meat. Are you dying? No. We have got so many nice foodstuffs. Why shall I eat meat? So paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate (BG 2.59). So our philosophy, our Vaiṣṇava philosophy, we do not say only that "Don't eat this," but "Eat this." We do not enjoy this, but enjoy this.
We give one alternative. We are not simply zero. The Māyāvādī philosophy is zero. We say that "Make this side zero, and take this positive side."
There is also Viṣṇu. But this Viṣṇu and the Vaiṣṇava conception of Viṣṇu is different. This Viṣṇu is imagination, and Vaiṣṇava conception of Viṣṇu is reality. Kṛṣṇa is reality. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). Those are mūḍhas, the same mūḍhas, because He has come in the form of a human being, they say, "This is māyā. This Kṛṣṇa has come.... The impersonal Brahman has assumed a body, accepting this body given by māyā." This is the Māyāvāda philosophy. But actually Kṛṣṇa does not come. Because Kṛṣṇa says, daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā (BG 7.14). Māyā is controlled by Him. How He can accept subordinance of māyā? No.
So Vaiṣṇava philosophy is very perfect philosophy according to the śāstra and Vedas. All the ācāryas confirm. So we have to follow this. Then our life will be successful.
Even one is.... Just like a pig is living in a very filthy condition, eating stool, and still, he is thinking very happy, and therefore he is getting fat. When one feels happy, "I am very happy," he becomes fatty. So you will find these pigs, they are very much fatty, but what they eat? They eat stool and live in a filthy place. But they think that "We are very happy." So that is māyā's illusion. Anyone who is living in a very abominable condition of life, māyā, by illusion, he is thinking that he is all right, he is living very perfectly. But a person who is on the higher stage, he sees that he is living in a very abominable condition.
So this illusion is there, but by knowledge, by good association, by taking instruction from the śāstra, from guru, from saintly persons, one should understand what is the value of life and live like that. So this is instructed by Kṛṣṇa, that nirāśīḥ, one should be unnecessarily desireful, more than his necessities of life. This is called nirāśīḥ. Nirāśīḥ. Another meaning is that not very much fond of material enjoyment. And that is possible when he is in full knowledge that "I am not this body. I am spirit soul. My necessity is how to advance in spiritual knowledge." Then he can become nirāśīḥ. These are the items for tapasya, austerity, penance.
People have forgotten now. They do not know what is the austerities. But the human life is meant for that purpose. Tapo divyaṁ putrakā yena śuddhyet sattvaṁ yena brahma-saukhyam anantam (SB 5.5.1). These are the instruction of the śāstra. The human life is meant for tapasya.
So similarly, when Kṛṣṇa says, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā, that all these elements, gross and subtle, earth, water, air, fire, and these are gross elements, and the mind, intelligence and ego, subtle elements.... Then Kṛṣṇa says, apareyam: "These elements are inferior prakṛti." Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām. There is another prakṛti. What is that? Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). Jīva-bhūta, the living entity. The living entity is also prakṛti. We are not puruṣa. But we forget this.
Prakṛti means to be used by the puruṣa. Therefore our position is, real position is, we should be used be the Supreme Personality of Godhead, puruṣa, Puruṣottama. This is our position. But artificially we are trying to become the puruṣa. That is māyā. Instead of being utilized be the puruṣa, we are trying to become the puruṣa, to utilize the material nature. Yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat. The world is going on, the material world, because the living entities in the attitude of becoming puruṣa, they are trying to exploit the resources of this material nature. This is going on.
So one who has seen, one who is in trance of self-realization, he cannot sit idly. He must come out. He, just like Rāmānujācārya. He declared the mantra publicly. His spiritual master said that this mantra, just like that Maharishi came in your country. He wanted to give some private mantra. If that mantra has any power, why it should be private? If at all the mantra has any, why not it should be publicly declared so that everyone can take advantage of that mantra? That is real. It is cheating, you see? So here is no cheating process. We say that this mahā-mantra can save you, we are distributing publicly, no. Free, without any charge. But people are so fools, they are not prepared to take this. They'll hanker after that mantra, after Maharishi. Pay thirty-five dollars and take some private mantra, you see? So people want to be cheated. And here, Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, these people are preaching without any charge, declaring in the street, park, everywhere, "Come on, take it." "Oh, this is not good." This is māyā, this is called illusion. This is spell of māyā. And if you charge something, if you bluff, if you cheat, oh, people will follow.
Śrīdhara Swami has commented that mokṣa-vañcapa yajñaṁ nirastam. Then what it is for? It is for simply developing your lost consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Because originally we are Kṛṣṇa conscious. Because we are all sons of Kṛṣṇa or part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa; therefore Kṛṣṇa and our relationship cannot be, I mean, eliminated. It is eternal. But that, at the present moment, we have forgot. That is our present position, māyā. By the pressure of māyā we have forgotten our relationship.
That is also explained in Caitanya-caritāmṛta:
- kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vañcha kare
- pāśate māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
When we forget, when you become other than Kṛṣṇa conscious, at that time māyā captures. That is māyā. When they put off Kṛṣṇa means māyā—forgetting Kṛṣṇa and trying to become here a big businessman or big minister, big this, that, or so many things. Ultimately I am trying to become God. When I fail with all these things, then I try to become God. So all these things are māyā.
Similarly, to remain with Kṛṣṇa, that is our natural position, constitutional position. Remain with Kṛṣṇa as cowherd boy, as gopī, as Kṛṣṇa's father, Kṛṣṇa's mother, Kṛṣṇa's servant, Kṛṣṇa's trees, Kṛṣṇa's Yamunā, Kṛṣṇa's flower, Kṛṣṇa's Vṛndāvana land—remain with Kṛṣṇa in any form you like. Śānta dāsya sākhya vātsalya mādhurya. In any mellow, humor, you can remain with Kṛṣṇa. That is our natural position. But when we try to imitate Kṛṣṇa, to become a imitation Kṛṣṇa... Just like there are so many persons, they say, "I am Kṛṣṇa." This is māyā. Immediately... Because we trying to forget Kṛṣṇa, our relationship with Kṛṣṇa, immediately māyā captures.
- kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare
- nikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
- (Prema-vivarta)
As soon as we desire to forget Kṛṣṇa, or to rebel against Kṛṣṇa, that "Why I shall serve Kṛṣṇa? I am Kṛṣṇa," immediately māyā is there, side by side. Kṛṣṇa is there. Apaśyat puruṣaṁ pūrṇaṁ māyāṁ ca tad-apāśrayam. When Vyāsadeva, after getting instruction from Nārada, he wanted to write Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, so he first of all meditated. Bhakti-yogena manasi, apaśyat puruṣaṁ pūrṇaṁ māyāṁ ca tad-apāśrayam (SB 1.7.4). He saw both Kṛṣṇa and His illusory energy, apāśrayam, on the back side.
So we have to increase the attachment. Kṛṣṇa is already attractive, but we are trying to go away from Kṛṣṇa. This is our business. "Kṛṣṇa may not touch me." We are so clever that "Kṛṣṇa may not touch me." This is māyā. Big, big scholars, big, big politicians, they are writing comments on Kṛṣṇa's book, Bhagavad-gītā, but their aim is very acute, that "Kṛṣṇa may not touch me." This is going on. And then why they are writing on Kṛṣṇa's book? Now, that is their business. Because this book, Gītā, is very famous, so if they can distribute their nonsense philosophy through Gītā, it will be taken very easily. Otherwise they do not know Kṛṣṇa; they do not know what is Bhagavad-gītā. But they take advantage of the popularity of Bhagavad-gītā and push their nonsense philosophy through Bhagavad-gītā. The purpose is to kill Kṛṣṇa, Kaṁsa philosophy. So, then, that way, they'll never get Kṛṣṇa. They'll never understand Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says that "If you want to know Me," asaṁśayaṁ samagram, "if you want to know Me in full, completely, without any doubt, then you have to follow this yoga system," mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. Otherwise it is not possible.
So our this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means not bodily consciousness. The material world means bodily consciousness: how to keep the body in comfortable. But that is not possible. Body means misery. You cannot keep it comfortable. That is māyā. It will never be comfortable, but they are all trying to make it comfortable. This is called māyā. Kleśada āsa dehaḥ. So long you'll have a material body you'll have to suffer. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not on the bodily platform. It is on the spiritual platform. To come to the spiritual platform, it is necessary that you reduce or make nil sex life. So if one remains brahmacārī throughout the whole life it becomes very easy for him to go back to home, back to Godhead. This is the secret. Therefore the whole Vedic civilization is based on first of all brahmacārī, no sex life. Gṛhastha, that is also very regulated. Only for begetting child one can have sex life, father, mother, man and woman. So dharmāviruddho kāmo 'smi. In the Bhagavad-gītā you will find Kṛṣṇa says that "Sex life which is prescribed by the religious system, that is, I am." Otherwise it is illicit sex. So illicit sex, there is punishment. These things are there. So tapasya means tapasā brahmacaryeṇa śamena damena vā (SB 6.1.13). You have to control.
That method is called yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. "You have to practice this yoga system under My shelter or My representative's shelter. Then you can understand samagram, fully, completely; asaṁśayam, without any doubt." That you have to practice. And that is, that practice is also not very difficult. Simply one should be serious that "I want to see God." Everyone is seeing God, but he does not know that he's seeing God. That is māyā. There are so many examples. Just like you can... Although you are in this room, you can know that sun is not yet set because you can see your watch and you can understand the sunset time is not yet there. So you can understand perfectly that there is sun in the sky. It is a method. Similarly, you can understand God is there. You have to accept the method. If you accept... That method is recommended here: yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. "You have to practice this yoga system under the shelter of Me." "Me" means... Just like the same example, a business firm signs "We." "We agree to this point." The manager signs, the proprietor signs, he says "We," means "We, the company, any one of us." Similarly, when Kṛṣṇa says mad-āśrayaḥ, "under My shelter," it means that taking shelter of Kṛṣṇa or anyone in the disciplic succession of Kṛṣṇa. The same example: anyone attached to that business transaction, he's as good as the proprietor or the manager.
Kṛṣṇa has not extended māyā. You wanted māyā, therefore He has given the facility to enjoy māyā. Just like the government creates the prison department. It is not the government's desire that "There must be some prisoners." But you are criminal, therefore there must be prisonhouse. So you create the prisonhouse, not the government. Government creates university. "Come there, take education." Māyā is created by you. As soon as you forget Kṛṣṇa, the māyā is there. Just like there is sunshine and darkness, side by side. If you want to keep yourself in the sunshine, there is no darkness. But if you voluntarily come to the darkness, what the sun will do? Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). "You surrender to Kṛṣṇa." But why don't you do it? That is māyā. It is up to you. Therefore you create māyā. Kṛṣṇa does not create. A man is hanged. Does it mean that the high-court judge who orders that "This man should be hanged," the high-court judge is enemy of that man he's hanging? No. He has created his situation that he should be hanged. God is very kind to everyone, but we have created situation so that we suffer. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1)—by our own work and under the supervision of the Supreme. Just like in the state you create some criminal activity. Under the supervision of the government you are punished. All right.
There is no duality. There is one, Kṛṣṇa. But you have created duality. That is māyā. When you forget Kṛṣṇa, that is duality. When you think that there is something else other than Kṛṣṇa, that is duality. So people are not coming to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that is duality. They are thinking that "We can be happy without Kṛṣṇa." That is duality. If they know it perfectly well that "Kṛṣṇa is one, and therefore my interest is with Kṛṣṇa. My interest should not be different from Kṛṣṇa's interest," that is oneness. Just like in a family the head is the father. So if anyone acts according to the head of the family, there is no duality. If some of the members says, "No. I'll act like this," there is duality. So if every one acts according to the desire of Kṛṣṇa, there is no duality. There is oneness. But we don't act; therefore there is duality. Therefore duality is māyā. So you have question? All right.
In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām, jīva-bhūtām. Every living entity is woman. Those who are thinking of becoming man, they are in illusion. Prakṛti, puruṣa. Puruṣa means the bhoktā, the enjoyer, and prakṛti, strī, means enjoyed. Every living entity is described as prakṛti. No living entity is puruṣa. Puruṣa is only Kṛṣṇa. So when we are thinking, "I have become a puruṣa, enjoyer," that is māyā. That is māyā. (break) ...as woman or man, but actually, every one of us, woman, prakṛti. Every one of us. And every one of us are thinking as man. Even the woman. Man means enjoyer. So everyone is thinking enjoyer, "I am enjoyer." And this is called māyā. And about the gopīs, it is better not to speculate. The speculator's writing has no value. Gopīs, they are pleasure potency expansion of Kṛṣṇa. Ānanda-cinmaya-sad-ujjvala-vigrahasya (Bs. 5.32).
So māyā is controlled by Kṛṣṇa; Kṛṣṇa is never controlled by māyā. Kṛṣṇa is never controlled by māyā. That is not very good theory. That is due to poor fund of knowledge. Kṛṣṇa cannot be covered. Just like Vyāsadeva, by his bhakti-yoga meditation he saw Kṛṣṇa and māyā. Māyā apāśrayam, just on the background. Background, just like you find the shadow of the man. Not in the front. Similarly, māyā cannot cover Kṛṣṇa. That is wrong philosophy. Māyā can cover the individual soul. Therefore because the individual soul is apt to fall down sometimes under the clutches of māyā, it is called taṭastha-śakti. Taṭastha-śakti. Just like in the seaside the shore, the beach, sometimes you see it is covered by water and sometimes it is land; similarly, when we are covered by māyā, that is our jīva-bhūta stage, and when there is no more covering, that is brahma-bhūta stage. When we are Kṛṣṇa conscious, then we are brahma-bhūta (SB 4.30.20), and when we are not Kṛṣṇa conscious, we are materially conscious, that is māyā.
Prakṛti means to remain dependent on the supreme husband or on the supreme father. You can accept Kṛṣṇa as father. You can love Kṛṣṇa as father, as husband, as master. Dependent. Remain dependent. And Kṛṣṇa has come to teach us that natural position of the living entities. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). This is our position, not to be puffed up, that "I am God, I am Kṛṣṇa, everyone is Kṛṣṇa." This is māyā, the last snare of māyā. Māyā dictates that "You become the biggest man of the world. You become the biggest, richest man of the world." And you are struggling. And there is struggle. Just like there is struggle is going on in Pakistan. The Bangladesh is trying that "We shall be leading Pakistan." And the Western Pakistan is trying that "We shall be leading." Nobody is leader. Actually, Kṛṣṇa is leader. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām, eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). This is the Vedic injunction. Kṛṣṇa also says clearly: bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). Bhoktā aham. Kṛṣṇa does not say that "You are also bhoktā, you living entities." He never said Arjuna that "You are bhoktā, I am bhoktā." So you have to accept that position, prakṛti, all dependent on Kṛṣṇa. Then Kṛṣṇa takes charge. Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (BG 18.66). He will give us protection. Kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati (BG 9.31). These are the statements of Bhagavad-gītā.
German Devotee (4): I know so many people, young people, that when they see us chanting on the street, I can see their eyes, that they really want to chant also, but something is stopping them.
Prabhupāda: That is māyā. Māyā is there. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, "The māyā is very strong." But if you capture Kṛṣṇa very, more strongly, then māyā cannot do anything. If something is opposing your chanting, then you'll have to chant more loudly: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. So you defeat māyā. The medicine is the same. At least, I do so. When I am in some danger, I chant Hare Kṛṣṇa loudly. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ (laughter) Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. That's all. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura... There is song: jāy sakal bipod bhaktivinod bole jakhon o-nām gāi. He says, "As soon as I chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa, I become immediately free from all dangers."
So tattva-darśī, one who has seen the truth, you have to accept him as guru. Tattva-darśī. Darśī means who has practical experience. Take, for example, just like Arjuna. Arjuna is directly receiving the knowledge from Kṛṣṇa. He's guru. What he said, we accept that. But if you accept somebody who wants to kill Kṛṣṇa and become himself Kṛṣṇa, he's a rascal. He's not guru. Because his policy is to accept the place of Kṛṣṇa, not to serve Him. That is māyā. And Kṛṣṇa has said very freely that
- na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ
- prapadyante narādhamāḥ
- māyayāpahṛta-jñānā
- āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ
- (BG 7.15)
A person who is imbibed with asuric tendency... Asuric tendency means to refute the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All the asuras... Just like Rāvaṇa. Rāvaṇa is described as rākṣasa, asura. What was his fault? His fault was that he did not care for Rāma. "What is this Rāma? Kidnap his wife, bring him(her), I shall enjoy." This is rākṣasa. So he could not enjoy Sītā, but the result was, with his whole family, state, and himself, everything, he was ruined. This is asura. So those who are āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ, followers of Rāvaṇa, Hiraṇyakaśipu, Kaṁsa, they do not surrender to Kṛṣṇa.
So we are accepting similar bodies, 8,400,000 forms of bodies are there, and one after another we are entering and leaving and entering and leaving. This is called mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani. But we have no such brain that how to get out this mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani. We can get out. That is, that will be, that is explained, mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti. This is māyā. Māyā means actually I am not under this mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani. Ātma māyām ṛte rājan. It is māyā. Just like in dream, I enter some kind of body. At night, every night we can experience, that when you sleep we dream that "I have taken another body. I have gone to another place. I am working in a different way, forgetting this body." This is daily experience. And when that dream is over, then again I come to this body. I remember, "Oh, I have to go there, I have to do this," another action, other activity. This is going on. I am accepting this gross dream and this subtle dream, but what is my actual position? That I do not know. This is called ignorance.
Every rascal is trying to become enjoyer. This is the material world. Everyone is after sense. Even the so-called prakṛti, woman, the propensity is to enjoy. Puruṣa. Therefore here in this material world, even though a woman is dressed like a woman, his mind is puruṣa. He wants, she wants to enjoy. Here the woman wants a man. Although superficially it is supposed that man is the enjoyer, the woman is enjoyed. but actually the woman also wants to enjoy the man. That is māyā. A prakṛti cannot enjoy, become puruṣa. So in the Bhagavad-gītā, the living entities are described as prakṛti.
- apareyam itas tv (anyāṁ)
- prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parām
- jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho
- yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat
- (BG 7.5)
So the Māyāvādī philosophers, they do not know the secret; they wants to become God, enjoy. Our philosophy is different. We do not wish to become enjoyer. We want to be enjoyed. That is our real position. We want to serve Kṛṣṇa. We want to offer everything to Kṛṣṇa. We do not want to enjoy anything ourself. That is Vaiṣṇavism. So here there are in the material world, there are so many universities and economic development plans, but all these rascals, they do not who will enjoy. Who is enjoyer, and who is enjoyed, they do not know. They think that: "We are enjoyer." Every nation, every community, every man is struggling: "I am enjoyer." This is called māyā.
Caitanya Mahāprabhu also accepted this. Sthāne sthitaḥ śruti-gataṁ tanu-vāṅ-manobhiḥ. Jñāne prayāsam udapāsya namanta eva. We have to be submissive. Not a speculator, that "Now I have become Brahman." Brahman, everyone is Brahman. There is no question of becoming Brahman. We have now forgotten. We have forgotten that we are Brahman. We are misidentifying with this body. This is māyā. Otherwise...
Therefore Bhagavad-gītā says, brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54). It is not that by some process I become Brahman. I am Brahman, but on account of māyā, my knowledge is covered. I am thinking, "I am product of this material world," "I am American," "I am Indian," in terms of the soil where we have taken birth. Yasyātmā-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke sva-dhīḥ kalatrādiṣu bhauma ijya-dhīḥ (SB 10.84.13). Bhauma ijya-dhīḥ. The whole world is mad after this process of bhauma ijya-dhīḥ. They are... Instead of worshiping Kṛṣṇa, they are worshiping the land in which one is born. That is called under the name of, going on, so many isms. So this is described as bhauma ijya-dhīḥ.
Similarly, this material world is avyaya, eternal energy, but it is not false, as the Māyāvādī philosophers say, jagan mithyā. No. Jagat is not mithyā, but it is fact, but it is temporary. That is Vaiṣṇava philosophy. We don't say that this world is false. Why it should be false? If has come from the truth, actually truth, how it can be? Pūrṇam idaṁ pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇam idam, pūrṇāt pūrṇam udacyate (Īśopaniṣad, Invocation). It is perfect. But it is being misused. That is māyā. How it is being misused? Kṛṣṇa says that He is the enjoyer. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). He is the proprietor of all the lokas, all the brahmāṇḍas, but unfortunately, we are dismissing Kṛṣṇa. We are trying to be the enjoyer of this material world. That is māyā. The world is not māyā, but the intention of the living entities to enjoy this material world, to satisfy his senses, that is māyā. He is becoming entangled. Just to try to enjoy this material world... That the so-called scientists and philanthropists and politicians, they are trying to enjoy this material world to their best capacity, and they are inventing devices how to enjoy it... This is māyā. That is answered in the Bhagavad-gītā: daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). They are allured by this māyā, "Try to enjoy me," and these conditioned souls are after that, how to enjoy.
Renunciation means you must first stop your sense gratification. That is renunciation. If you engage in your sense gratification, how you can satisfy Kṛṣṇa's senses? So you have to stop this nonsense sense gratification, you have to adopt the real sense gratification. That is renunciation. Renunciation does not mean you become idle. Renunciation means you have to stop nonsense things and then begin real thing. That is renunciation. The Māyāvādī philosophy is stop everything. Stop everything, what is the gain? Stop nonsense, do something sensible, that is wanted. Just like Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66), give up everything. Does He say, "And then stop"? No. Mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja, "Come here." That is wanted. Just like the dictaphone. Stop recording cinema songs, record kṛṣṇa-kathā, discussion of Kṛṣṇa. That is utilization properly. So everything has got utility. When it is used for Kṛṣṇa, that is proper utility. When it is used for other purpose, that is māyā.
Self-realization does not mean something humbug. Self-realization means to understand his real constitutional position, what I am. Just like Sanātana Gosvāmī approached Śrīla Gaurasundara, Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He asked, ke āmi: "Who I am?" Ke āmi... Ke āmi, kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya: "What is my constitutional position? Why I am suffering the three-fold miseries of this material existence?" This is the enquiry. Everyone is suffering. Somebody is in ignorance. Although he is suffering, he is thinking that he is very well. This is called māyā. Māyā means you are accepting something which is not. This is called māyā. Mā yā: "What you are accepting, that is false." This is called māyā. So we are accepting, "I am this body," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am Christian," "I am Hindu," "I am black," "I am white," "I am thin," "I am fat." So this is māyā. So when we give up this māyā conception of life, that is mukti. You may remain in the same body, but if you are not under māyā, bodily concept of life, that is called mukti, liberation.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Ah, breaking stone. He doesn't want. But there is jail superintendent—"All right, you must break so many." And there is stick. "If you don't break, then..." So it is going on. Māyā. Māyā is kicking always, "You must do it." Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi (BG 3.27). "You wanted to eat anything and everything. All right, you take this body of hog and eat stool." That's all. This is māyā, prakṛti. He has given you a body. You have to suffer according to the body. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya sad-asad-janma-yoniṣu (BG 13.22). Why there are different types of bodies, different types of enjoyment? Everyone is in the material world. Why one has become hog, one has become dog, and one has become very rich man, and demigod? Why? Who is making arrangement? Who wants to become cat and dog? Who does not want to become king? But why this is arrangement? Who is doing this? This rascal cannot understand.
So therefore in the spiritual world, all the living entities... There are many more times living entities in the spiritual world than in this material world. In the material world we see so many living entities, conditioned, 8,400,000 species, and in each species, millions and millions are... And there are millions and millions of planets and universes. All these taken together, they are conditioned soul. Similarly, many more times... This is called one-fourth creation, and the three-fourth creation is the spiritual world. Just imagine how many living entities are there. They're all mukta. They're liberated. Because they do not think that "I am enjoyer." Kṛṣṇa is only enjoyer. Here everyone is thinking that "I am enjoyer." I am enjoyer, therefore fight. You are enjoyer, I am enjoyer. So you are enjoying most... "Oh, you have taken more food." Just like cats and dogs, they fight. Because the disease is that "I am enjoyer." Prasāda means that whatever by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa I get, that is called prasāda. And when we fight, oh that is not prasāda. Then immediately it becomes ordinary ḍāl wal.(?) So this is the center of devotion, that Kṛṣṇa is enjoyer. And as soon as we think that "Why Kṛṣṇa should be enjoyer alone? I am also enjoyer," that is māyā.
What is that question? There must be question. If one is actually seeking after spiritual realization, there must be intelligent question. The first intelligent question was put forward by Sanātana Gosvāmī, that ke āmi kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya: "Sir, please let me know what is my identification, why I am put into this miserable condition of material life." People do not know it. Just like cats and dogs. The cat or the dog does not know that his life is very abominable. No, he is happy. This is māyā. Even the hog, he is also thinking, "I am very happy." This is called māyā, moha. Jīvasya moha, ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8). So when human life is there, at least, one must be awakened to this consciousness, that actually "I am not happy." That is the beginning of human life, not to remain in darkness like cats and dog. He is unhappy in every respect, in every step, and still, he is thinking, "I am happy." Cats, dogs, hogs, their whole day working, day and night, and for some food, and sense gratification. This is the modern life. And that is happiness, become very busy whole day and night for getting some food for eating and something for sense gratification. This is happiness.
So original proprietor is Kṛṣṇa. He says, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca. Bhinnaṁ me prakṛtir aṣṭa... (BG 7.4). Me, "My." The earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence... Even your intelligence is Kṛṣṇa's. With your intelligence, with ingredients of Kṛṣṇa, if you manufacture something, the proprietor is Kṛṣṇa. Because the... Just like a carpenter. You give the wood, the instrument, these labor charges. So when he manufactures a nice closet, who, to whom it will belong? It will belong to the man who has supplied you all these things. Similarly, you may be changing the form of the material elements, but you are not proprietor. The proprietor is Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa conscious. If we understand this philosophy, that "Everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa..." That is the fact. And if you do not understand that, that is māyā. Māyā means not fact, mā-yā.
So this is called māyā. Prakṣepātmikā-śakti, covering. Āvaraṇātmikā-śakti, prakṣepātmikā-śakti. There are two kinds of energy of material, māyā. One is āvaraṇātmi..., ignorance. One is living very condemned life; still, he's thinking, "I am very happy." Or "We are all right." So that is called āvaraṇātmikā, covered. Real knowledge is covered. And another śakti is prakṣepātmikā. Prakṣepātmikā means if anyone tries to get out of this... Suppose our students are coming to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, somebody is coming to us, māyā will dictate, "Oh, why you are coming here? There are so many restrictions and so rules and regulations. Better give it up." "Why, yes, what is this nonsense? Give it up." This is called prakṣepātmikā. Māyā is dragging. Because the more one is sinful, the more one is miscreant, the more one is the lowest of the mankind, he, māyā will not allow: "Oh, why this rascal is here? He must suffer under me for more..., sometimes more; then he may be allowed." That is māyā's business. Thankless business. Just like police. Police is nobody's enemy, but when criminal, they punish like that, put him in the jail and beats him with a rod. That is the business of māyā, thankless. Nobody will thank police. When police beats, nobody will, "Thank you very much." No. Nobody is happy. Similarly, māyā's business is very thankless task, but she is engaged by the supreme authority to punish.
So Kṛṣṇa is vibhu; we are aṇu. Never consider that we are equal to Kṛṣṇa. That is a great offense. That is called māyā. That is the last snare of māyā. Actually, we have come to this material world to become one with Kṛṣṇa. We thought that we shall become like Kṛṣṇa.
- kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare
- nikaṭa-stha māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
- (Prema-vivarta)
Because we wanted to become one with Kṛṣṇa, to compete with Kṛṣṇa, therefore we are put into this material world. Māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare. And here, in this material world, it is going on. Everyone is trying to become Kṛṣṇa. That is māyā. Everyone. "First of all, let me become a big, big man; then let me become the minister, let me become the president." In this way, when everything fails, then "Let me merge into the existence of God." That means, "Let me become God." This is going on. This is material struggle for existence. Everyone is trying to become Kṛṣṇa.
This is the Vaiṣṇava philosophy. We are trying to be servant. We don't identify with anything material. As soon as we identify with anything material, we become under the clutches of māyā. Kṛṣṇa-bhuliyā. Because, as soon as I forget my relationship with Kṛṣṇa... I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). That is the eternal identification of the living entity, to remain servant of Kṛṣṇa. As soon as we forget this, that is māyā. As soon as I think that "I am Kṛṣṇa," that is māyā. That māyā means this māyā, illusion, can be rejected by advancement of knowledge. That is jñānī. Jñānī means this is real knowledge, to understand his real position. This is not knowledge, that "I am equal to God. I am God." This is not knowledge. I am God, but I am sample of God. But the Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa like that: paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). Paraṁ brahma. We may become Brahman... We are Brahman. There is no question of becoming. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. This is not very difficult to understand. Because I am spirit soul, so I am Brahman. That's all right. But I am not Paraṁ Brahman. That is ignorance. I am not Paraṁ Brahman. If one, anyone thinks that he is Paraṁ Brahman, then it must be understood that he's under the clutches of māyā. That is the last snare of māyā. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says that when one actually becomes knowledgeable, cognizant, he surrenders. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). That is real knowledge.
Why you claim this is your property? Why you claim? Everything is belonging to Kṛṣṇa. That is your fault. So you must suffer. You are a thief. Stena eva sa ucyate (BG 3.12). Anyone who does not offer things to Kṛṣṇa before using, he's a thief. That is prasādam. That is Vaiṣṇava philosophy. The whole process is to accept the Supreme. So long we do not accept the Supreme, that is māyā. That is māyā. That is going on. Nobody wants to accept the Supreme everyone wants to become Supreme. Even after performing severe austerities, penances, still, they want to become one with the Supreme. This is also māyā.
Therefore Bhāgavata says, vimukta-māninaḥ. They are thinking that after undergoing such severe austerities and penances, now he has become God. That is māyā. He does not know. He's not God. But he claims like that, falsely. This is the cause of his suffering. Nobody can be..., can become God or equal to God. That is not possible. The same quotation: ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa, āra saba bhṛtya (CC Adi 5.142). Only the Supreme God, Supreme Person, Īśvara, supreme controller, is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). You are, why you are, rascal, trying to become Bhagavān, God? This is māyā. He does not know. He's thinking that "I have become God." This is māyā. Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ means his intelligence is not yet cleansed. It's still dirty. Although he has undergone good austerities, penances or taken sannyāsa, but the mind is dirty. Mind is dirty. So that will not help. The whole process is ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam. We have to cleanse our heart. We have to understand our position.
So, ātmānaṁ sarvato rakṣet tato dharmaṁ tato dhanam.(?) First of all you try to protect yourself, then take to real religion, natural function of the ātmā. Then try to... Because we are in this material condition, we require economic development also. So that is very easy also. Kṛṣṇa has given you enough land—you just little work. The animals are there. The cows will give you milk. If you till a little land, you get some grains. That is sufficient. Economic development. You don't require big factories, big workshop, and whole day and night with motorcar going this way and that way. No. There is no necessity for economic development. This is māyā. Simply at the end he will eat some grains or some this or that, little. And by whole day... Therefore they are called mūḍha. According to Bhagavad-gītā, they are rascals, mūḍha, ass. Just like ass, the beast of burden. He takes washerman's load, three tons, four tons. Whole day working, but eating a morsel of grass, that's all. He has no knowledge that "I take a morsel of grass only, I live. And why whole day I bear these so much tons of clothing of the washerman?" You have no experience of the ass, ass's business. In India the washerman loads the ass three tons and he goes to the waterside and the washerman washes all these clothings in some bank of river or reservoir of water. Again evening, the ass brings back the clothing.
So ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8), this is the disease. And Kṛṣṇa consciousness is to cure the disease, this cure diseases, to cure this illusion. What is that? When I understand that "I have no existence without Kṛṣṇa. I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. In that sense, I am Kṛṣṇa's," then my... That means to understand one's identification. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). Because I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, then what is my duty? To serve Kṛṣṇa. There is no other duty. Any other duty I manufacture, that is illusion. That is māyā, any duty I manufacture. So under illusion, I am manufacturing duties. This is called conditional life. So Vyāsadeva is advised that akhila-bandha-muktaye:"People are under illusion, 'I' and 'mine.' So, just try to get them liberated from this illusion." This is Vaiṣṇava's duty. Just like Nārada is advising Vyāsadeva, Vyāsadeva is advising his disciple Madhvācārya. He is advising his disciple. This is Vaiṣṇavism. They are not concerned for personal self. Akhila-bandha-muktaye: "Just try to liberate all these conditioned souls." Just like Lord Jesus Christ. For himself... He was son of God. He had nothing to do. God consciousness, he was. He's perfectly... He knows everything. But why he was crucified? Because he wanted to work for others. That is Vaiṣṇavism.
Embrace? Yes. So as soon as one, kṛṣṇa-bhuliyā, forgets Kṛṣṇa... Forgetting Kṛṣṇa means sense enjoyment. Two things are there. One, the materialistic persons, they are engaged in the activities of sense enjoyment, forgetting Kṛṣṇa; and the transcendentalists, the devotees, they are, even though they are not forgotten, but they are not interested in sense enjoyment. They are interested in Kṛṣṇa. That is the difference. This is māyā and Kṛṣṇa.
So māyā is always strong. As soon as we little slack in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, māyā will capture us in the same process. So here it is said, bhajann apakvo 'tha. If one is not very strong, not very much advanced, not mature, and falls down under the clutches of māyā again, so, Nārada Muni says, yatra kva vābhadram abhūt: "There is no," I mean to say, "loss." Abhadra means great loss, or inauspicity. There is no... "It is still good, even if he falls down." Why? Yatra kva vā abhadram amuṣya kiṁ ko vārtha āpto 'bha...: "In comparison to the person who is simply sticking to the formalities of religious principles without any development of love of Godhead, simply following the routine work, in comparison to that person, this person who came to surrender to Kṛṣṇa, either by sentiment or some way or other but falls down, this man is better. This man is better. There is no," I mean to say, "any great loss. Rather it is a great gain."
So our main business is how to improve Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We should not divert our attention in any other material condition of improvement. That is actually not improvement. It is simply illusion, that "I am making improvement." What improvement? Suppose you are earning now, say, five hundred dollars per month. If you earn, say, five million dollars, so then what? Will you eat more than four cāpāṭis? (laughter) You'll eat the same four cāpāṭis. And you'll occupy the same six feet bed. You may acquire the whole property of West Virginia, (laughter) but you'll have to lie down on six feet. (laughter) That's all. And you'll have to eat four cāpāṭis. So this is māyā. This is māyā, "I am improving." What you are improving? You'll not be taller. You'll not be great eater, nothing of the sort. Whatever you have already, you'll have so the same thing. You see?
If we fix up our mind... Mām eva ye prapadyante. If we fix up our śaraṇāgati, surrender to the Supreme, then there is no question of falling down. Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). Just like Haridāsa Ṭhākura was tested once by Māyā, and in another time he was tested by a prostitute to allure him... He was young man. Haridāsa Ṭhākura was very beautiful young man. So under diplomacy of Rāmacandra Khān he was to be entrapped. You know the story. That is stated in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta. But Haridāsa Ṭhākura was not entrapped, because he was strong, strong enough. Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti. Māyā could not do anything. Although Māyā came there at dead of night, very beautiful, attractive dress, attractive feature, attractive words—this is māyā—so he was not allured. The... Rather, the veśyā, or the prostitute, became converted into a Vaiṣṇavī.
Dog friend? Hm. So Nārada Muni, by the grace of the mahātmās, he could understand that this material position is very dangerous, and... Dangerous means duḥkhālayam, always miserable condition. But one cannot understand. Unless he's Kṛṣṇa conscious, he cannot understand what is the miserable condition of this material world. He cannot understand. This is māyā. He's suffering, but he's thinking, "I am happy." This is called māyā.
So when one becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious by the grace of the Supreme Personality, guru-kṛṣṇa, by the grace of guru and Kṛṣṇa, then he understands that this place, this material world, is full of miseries. Then brahma-jijñāsā. But foolishly people do not understand that it is a miserable condition. Sanātana Gosvāmī, he was minister. By contact with Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu he could understand that "Although I am minister, although I am holding very high, exalted position, I am learned scholar in Sanskrit, Urdu, Parsi, but I am not happy." Therefore he approached Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Ke āmi kene āmāya jāre tāpa... He understands that "I am in the suffering." Suffering, everyone can understand. Why you are moving the fan? I am in suffering. But foolish people cannot understand. They think that I am enjoying. (laughter) Just see the example. Why I am moving the fan? Because I am suffering. Every step. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām (SB 10.14.58). Every step danger, every step suffering.
So Vyāsadeva, he is also living entity, although he is empowered, so apaśyat puruṣaṁ pūrṇam, he saw the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And māyāṁ ca tad-apāśrayam, and the back side is māyā. Māyā means the external energy. Just like if you stand facing the sun, the back side of your, there is a big shadow, that is māyā. So both things are there, the puruṣam, the Kṛṣṇa, and the māyā also. Both things he saw. But He is not affected by māyā. This is the special significance of Kṛṣṇa. Although māyā is there, he says, māyāṁ ca tad-apāśrayam. Māyā is there, but Kṛṣṇa is not influenced by māyā, but He is controller of māyā. Therefore He is described, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Īśvara means controller. We are controlled by māyā, but Kṛṣṇa is the controller of māyā. That is the difference. We are not controller; we are controlled. In the next verse, it is described, therefore, yayā sammohito jīva (SB 1.7.5). This māyā is illusion, is illusion to the jīva, to the living entities, not to Kṛṣṇa. One who thinks Kṛṣṇa as like us, they are mistaken. Mūḍha. They have been described in the Bhagavad-gītā, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam: (BG 9.11) "Because I am come just like a human being, these rascals, mūḍhas, asses..." Mūḍha means asses. The example of mūḍha, just like in our vernacular language, we condemn some person who is useless, gādhā. So gādhā, that is mūḍha. Gādhā, why he is condemned? Because he does not know his interest. He works under one washerman and loads tons of cloth on the back, and the washerman gives a morsel of grass.
Vyāsadeva saw three things: the jīvātmā, and the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and māyā. Māyā means what is not. Mā-yā. So that māyā begins from what is not. I am not this body, but I am thinking I am this body. This is māyā. I am not this body. That's a fact. But I am thinking, "I am this body." This is māyā. This is the beginning of māyā. This is the conception of the animals, less than human beings. Nowadays even a human being, he's also thinking like that. This is anartha. That is the beginning of Bhagavad-gītā lesson, to impress, "Arjuna, you are not this body." Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). So many ways. So this is anartha. To accept this body and in bodily relationship everything, ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8), this is māyā. So this is anartha. Anartha means meaningless. No artha. Artha means meaning.
The animal has no information, neither he has got capacity to understand what he is, what is his relationship with God, what he has to do. Sambandha, abhidheya, prayojana. The whole Vedic principles are based on these three principles. Sambandha. Sambandha means relationship. Everyone says there is God, but what is God and what is our relationship with God, that is to be understood. Sambandha. Then as soon as relationship is understood, then our real activity begins. That real activities is called bhakti, and the material activities, which is not bhakti, that is māyā. Therefore in the Bhāgavata it is said,
- dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ
- viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ
- notpādayed yadi ratiṁ
- śrama eva hi kevalam
- (SB 1.2.8)
You may be a very religious person, executing the ritualistic ceremonies very nicely, very expertly, but if you do not know Adhokṣaja, Viṣvaksena... Viṣvaksena is another name of Kṛṣṇa. If you do not become anxious to understand, athāto brahma jijñāsā, then all these ritualistic ceremony of religion, of different types of religion, śrama eva hi kevalam. Simply waste of time. The jñānīs, they are simply trying to understand. No. You can go on understanding, but if you do not come to the understanding abhidheya... No. Abhidheya is acting actually. Sambandha is understanding. So if you do not come to the platform of acting, abhidheya, then simply understanding will not help you. And acting also with the aim to achieve.
Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is also māyā, yoga-māyā, and Durgā is also māyā, expansion of Rādhārāṇī. But Durgā's business is different than Rādhārāṇī's business. Durgā's business is yayā sammohito jīvaḥ, to keep the living entities covered not to become awakened to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is māyā's duty. So Vyāsadeva saw this māyā, this mahā-māyā, who is keeping the living entities under the cover of illusion. So it is said, "This māyā." "He saw the Supreme Person, and back of that Supreme Person he saw this māyā." Which māyā? Yayā sammohito jīva: "that māyā which is keeping the living entities in illusion." What is that illusion? That is also here: yayā sammohito jīva ātmānaṁ tri-guṇātmakam (SB 1.7.5). Tri-guṇa, tri-guṇa means the sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa. So, under the influence of māyā, we are identifying with the different guṇas or qualities of this material world. So sattva-guṇa, yes, sattva-guṇa is the brahminical qualification. So one is thinking that "I am brāhmaṇa." One is thinking, who is under the control of rajo-guṇa, "I am kṣatriya." Or in other words, this is, this identification, is all over the world. Now you may not think, "I am brāhmaṇa," but you may think, "I am American." Or I may think, "I am Indian." There is some sort of identification.
But we are so rascal that we do not take advice of Kṛṣṇa, we manufacture our own ways, the suffering goes on. Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti. This is māyā. He's thinking that he'll make his own plan and be happy. That will never be possible. The only plan you have to accept—what is that? Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇam (BG 18.66). That is the only plan. You have to get yourself relieved from all other engagements. Simply engage yourself... Not immediately. First of all, you must ready: "Kṛṣṇa, from this day, I am now ready. Whatever You'll say, I'll do." That's... Immediately you become liberated. Liberated. How liberated? Liberation is achieved after so many years tapasya? No. Immediately. As soon as you surrender to Kṛṣṇa. How? Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi. If we are sincerely surrendering to Kṛṣṇa, immediately... Our, this material sufferings, why? Due to our sinful activities. Sinful activities mean anything you do without any purpose to serve to Kṛṣṇa, that is sinful. That is sinful. Not that "In the material calculation this is very good work, the opening of hospital or this or that, very good work. And Deity worship and going to the temple is bogus." You may think like that. But that, your opening of hospital is sinful.
So that is our bondage. We are mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ (BG 15.7). We are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Why you are conditioned? The condition is because māyā-mohita-cetasaḥ. Māyā-mohita. They are bewildered by māyā. Māyā means "what is not." Mā-yā. So because we are under the clutches of māyā, this material world, therefore we have been conditioned. And what is that māyā? That māyā is forgetfulness of our relationship with God. That is māyā. Kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare. This jīva, when we forget Kṛṣṇa, our relationship with Kṛṣṇa... What is that relationship? Caitanya Mahāprabhu says jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). That is our relationship. We are eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. When we forget this, and we want to be master of all I survey... "I am the monarch of all I survey." I think, "I shall become independent and I shall enjoy. I shall improve my economic condition, and I shall be very happy." This is called māyā-mohita-cetasaḥ. He'll never be. Because he is conditioned. You cannot improve. That is not possible. That is called destiny. So the Western peoples, they say, "Why should we..." (break) ...any animal, take. You cannot improve the condition. Suppose the pig, he is conditioned to live in a very filthy place and eat stool, urine. You cannot improve that condition. By philanthropic mentality, if you want to improve his condition, not to live in filthy place, not to eat stool, if you try to give them halavā instead of stool, they cannot. That is not possible. This is called conditioned.
So... Because every one of us are māyā-mohita-ceta... Māyā-mohita-cetasaḥ. Prahlāda Mahārāja has described, vimukha-cetasaḥ. Māyā-mohita-cetasaḥ means averse to Kṛṣṇa. I want everything except Kṛṣṇa. That is māyā-mohita-cetasaḥ. I want everything, but except Kṛṣṇa. That is my missing point. Because we are rascals, fools, we do not know what we should want. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). He does not know that his actual want is Kṛṣṇa. Just like a small child crying, and we are trying to pacify him, giving this, giving that. But he's crying, crying. Because his actual want is his mother. And as soon the mother comes, takes the child on the lap, immediately he stops. Similarly, we want Kṛṣṇa because we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. That we want. Just like a part and parcel of a machine, if it is taken away from the machine, it has no... One screw. Suppose your typewriter machine, one screw is missing, and the machine is not working nicely. So without the machine that one screw has no value. If it is lying somewhere, one does not know what is the screw, nobody cares for it. It is no worth. But if you want to complete the machine, if you want to go to purchase in a mechanical shop, that very screw which has no value, you have to purchase at ten rupees. Because it is to be fit up. In this way, we are parcel and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa.
So following the mahājanas, the principles, as Arjuna is doing, we must follow the instructions of Kṛṣṇa. That is fully explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. And surrender unto Him. And then our life will be successful. There will be no disturbances. Otherwise, if we declare independence, that is troublesome. It will create simply trouble. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). That is māyā. To think oneself independent is māyā. We are not independent. We are completely under the control. So, so long we declare independence we suffer. And if we remain fully dependent on the will of Kṛṣṇa, Vāsudeva, then we are happy.
But if I simply try to become ahaṁ brahmāsmi without knowing the full philosophy, then I shall be fallen again, that "I am equal to God." Ahaṁ brahmāsmi means "I am the Supreme God," as the Māyāvādīs, they think that liberation means "I become one with God." No. That is not your position. You cannot become... That is another māyā. That is the last dictation of māyā: "Why you shall become the servant of gopī-bhartuḥ? You become God." That is māyā. That is the last snare of māyā. Therefore they fall down. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Anādṛta. With great austerity, penances and vairāgya, they can go up to the paraṁ padam. Paraṁ padam means Brahman. Nirviśeṣa-brahman. Not in the material existence, but in the spiritual existence. Āruhya. They can rise up to that. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi: to understand that "I am not this matter, I am Brahman." But unless one takes shelter of the gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa, he'll fall down. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Why? Anādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ. Because one does not know, as Caitanya Mahāprabhu teaches, that gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ (CC Madhya 13.80). He falls down. He has no shelter. Anādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ.
So we must always remember that if we want to be recognized by Kṛṣṇa, if we want to become inhabitants of Vṛndāvana, then we must take this lesson given by Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ. So to endeavor to become gopīs, that is also Māyāvādī, that "I shall become gopīs." No. You have to become the servant of the servant of the servant of gopīs. That is... Otherwise, the same ahaṅkāra. Ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate (BG 3.27). Then again we'll be misled. This is material disease. Everyone is full of some ahaṅkāra: "I am this," "I am this," "I am brāhmaṇa," "I am a sannyāsī," "I am lord," "I am this." So many things. So long this mentality will continue, then that is māyā. Ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate (BG 3.27). Actually, he is not that position. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu teaches from the very beginning, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). Unless you come to that point, that "I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa,"... That is real knowledge. This knowledge is achieved bahūnāṁ janmanām ante (BG 7.19). Ante. Ante means at the end of many, many births' endeavor. Jñānavān. Not foolish rascals, but jñānavān. Then bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate. This gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ (CC Madhya 13.80). After many, many births.
So in the beginning, if you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there will be so many disturbances by the māyā. Māyā will test you how far you are fixed up. She will test you. She is also agent of Kṛṣṇa. She does not allow anyone who is meant for disturbing Kṛṣṇa. Therefore she tests very rigidly whether you are..., you have taken Kṛṣṇa consciousness to disturb Kṛṣṇa, or you are actually serious. That is māyā's business. So there will be in the beginning test by māyā, and you will feel so much disturbances in making progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. But if you remain steady... Steady means if you follow the rules and regulations and chant sixteen rounds, then you will remain steady. And if you neglect, then māyā will capture you, immediately. Māyā is always ready. We are in the ocean. At any moment, we will be disturbed. So therefore one who is not disturbed at all, he is called paramahaṁsa.
So when, when the senses are utilized for Kṛṣṇa's service, that is perfection of life. And so long it is utilized for my sense gratification, it is māyā. Therefore bhakti means hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate (CC Madhya 19.170). Hṛṣīkeṇa by the senses, this hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam, when you serve Hṛṣīkeśa, really master of the senses, that is called bhakti. Very simple description, definition of bhakti. Hṛṣīkeṇa..., hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam (CC Madhya 19.170). Hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam. Not hṛṣīka-sevanam. Hṛṣīka means senses. So when senses are used for sense gratification, that is māyā. And when senses are used for the gratification of the master of the senses, that is called bhakti. A very simple definition. Anyone can understand.
So generally, in this material world, everyone is using the senses for sense gratification. That's all. That is their bondage. That is māyā, illusion. And when he comes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, purified, when he understands that actually these senses are meant for satisfying Kṛṣṇa, then he's liberated person, mukta. Mukta-puruṣa. Liberated person. Īhā yasya harer dāsye karmaṇā manasā vācā. When one comes to this position, that "My senses are meant for serving the master of the senses, Hṛṣīkeśa..." The master of the senses are, is sitting within your heart. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭaḥ: "I am seated in everyone's heart." Mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca: (BG 15.15) "From Me remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness is coming." So why that? Because Kṛṣṇa is so merciful, if I want to use my senses in a certain way, not my senses... It is Kṛṣṇa's, given. So Kṛṣṇa gives the chance: "All right, utilize it." Suppose I have got tongue. If I want, "Kṛṣṇa, I want to eat stool. I want to taste stool," "Yes," Kṛṣṇa will say. "Yes, you take this body of hog, and eat stool." The master is there, Kṛṣṇa.
So this is the beginning of material life, to become envious of Kṛṣṇa."Why Kṛṣṇa shall be enjoyer? I shall be enjoyer. Why Kṛṣṇa shall enjoy the gopīs? I shall become Kṛṣṇa and enjoy, make a society of gopīs and enjoy." This is māyā. Nobody can be enjoyer. Kṛṣṇa therefore says, bhoktāraṁ yajña... Śrī Kṛṣṇa is the only enjoyer. And if we supply ingredients for His enjoyment, that is our perfection of life. And if we want to imitate Kṛṣṇa, that "I shall becoming God. I shall become an imitator enjoyer," then you are in the māyā. Simply our business is... Just like the gopīs' life. Kṛṣṇa is enjoying, and they're supplying the ingredients of enjoyment. Yes. This is bhakti. We are meant for... Kṛṣṇa is supplying... The servant and master. The servant is being supplied all the necessities by the master, but the servant's duty is to serve the master. That's all. Eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām... (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). These are the Vedic inform... Kṛṣṇa is supplying you immense..., all the necessities of life. There is no scarcity. There is no economic problem. You simply try to serve Kṛṣṇa. Then everything is complete. Because He's Hṛṣīkeśa. And so much... If Kṛṣṇa desires, there may be ample supplies.
Just like one of our Godbrothers, he's thinking that "This institution was started by me and Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī as partners. Now the senior partner is dead. Therefore I am the sole proprietor. Who are these Godbrothers? Let them go away." So this is māyā, the same māyā Dhṛtarāṣṭra was thinking. And his brother-in-law, Śakuni, was very expert in conspiracy. So he was advising him, "Yes, you are the proprietor. At least your sons should be..." This is natural. Every... Everyone has got some affection for the family. So this is the beginning of the conspiracy. Otherwise, he was taking care of the children very nicely. But māyā was dictating that "You are taking care of the children of your brother. What about your own children?" "Yes, why not my children?"
So asat-sabhāyāḥ. Then again, vana-vāsa. Next betting was vana-vāsa, that "If this time you lose, then twelve years, for twelve years you'll have to go to live in the forest. And one year, incognito. If you are caught up within that one year, then again twelve years." Just see. So vana-vāsa-kṛcchrataḥ. There were so many dangers. So just imagine that the Pāṇḍavas, they had their wife, Draupadī... She is incarnation of goddess of fortune. And friend, Kṛṣṇa, who is always protecting them... But still, there are so many dangers. This is the instruction, that because Kṛṣṇa is protecting you, you cannot expect that you'll be out of danger. Danger you must meet, because..., then you'll know that this material existence is full of dangers. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām (SB 10.14.58). This we always remember. We should not be so fool that "I am living very now comfortably." No, sir. You are in danger. That is said by Kṛṣṇa. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). You do not take this material existence as comfortable at any moment. Then you'll not be able to make progress in spiritual life. As soon as you think that "I am very comfortable here," then you are spiritually fall down. That is māyā.
So this is māyā. Janasya moho 'yam ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8). We gather exactly like the straws, and on account of māyā's influence, we become very much attached: "Oh, here is my son. Here is my wife. Here is my family. Here is my..." And this is the, what is called, entanglement. Our main business is in the human form of life how to get out of this material world. They do not know. They not only create family but also society, community, nation, In this way we are embarrassed. The so-called nationalism, socialism and communism—simply moha, moha, exactly the same way as the small, that insects, under some illusion, moha, they come to the light and sacrifice their life. I have told you many times. We have seen in 1947, partition days, Hindu-Muslim fighting. One party was Hindu, other party was Muslim. They fought and so many died. And after death, there was no distinction who is Hindu or who is Muslim. The municipal men, they gathered together in piles and to throw them somewhere. Exactly the same way, the same insects, they come to the light and die in the morning, and we gather them together and throw in the street.
Māyā means absence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is māyā, absence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. When you forget Kṛṣṇa, this is māyā. When we remember Kṛṣṇa, know Kṛṣṇa, there is no māyā. Just like you have experience that you go through the cloud and then come to the sunshine, there is no more cloud. So below the cloud there is darkness, there is... We cannot see the sun. So the sunshine is profuse sunshine. Not that cloud can cover the sunshine. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa is all-pervading. Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). Kṛṣṇa is within the universe, within the atoms, everywhere. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Every heart, there is Kṛṣṇa. But we cannot see Kṛṣṇa. Simply, somehow or other, we have been covered by the illusion of māyā. That's it. So as soon as we come to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness atmosphere, shining atmosphere, then there is no māyā. Māyā is illusion.
As soon as... Our business is to serve Kṛṣṇa. We are constitutionally made like that. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). So these rascals, nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa, eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, when he forgets Kṛṣṇa, "Why shall I serve Kṛṣṇa? I shall become Kṛṣṇa," that is māyā. As soon as you forget the service of the Lord... That is your business, because we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Just like this finger is part and parcel of my body. The finger's business is to carry out my order. I say, "Finger, come here." It comes immediately. I say, "Finger come here," it comes immediately. That is the business of the part and parcel of the body. I desire the leg now should go upstairs: the leg immediately goes. Similarly, we being part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, our only duty is to carry out the order of Kṛṣṇa. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66).
So everything... And what to speak of ourselves, we want to become independent. What is the meaning of independence? Even the sun, moon, or the sea, ocean, nobody is independent. And how we can be independent? We are teeny, very small. There is no question of independence. The so-called independence, as we fight for independence, that is māyā. There is no question of independence. When I first met my Guru Mahārāja, on the first meeting, he said that "You go to preach in the Western countries." I was surprised. There was no acquaintance. So "Caitanya Mahāprabhu's message, you are all educated young men, you should go and preach." I replied that "We are dependent nation, Indians. Who will hear us? Nobody will hear." So at that time he explained dependence and independence—temporary, it has no meaning. Actually, at that time I could not realize the independence. We were waiting for independence. What independence we have got? Independence means you go for one kilo of rice and stand there for two hours. (laughter) This is our independence. Everything is controlled.
In every religion, it is accepted. Just like in Christian religion also it is said: "Oh God, give us our daily bread." Bread, we cannot manufacture. It must come from God. That is Vedic version also nityo nityānāṁ cetanaṣ cetanānām eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). God, or Kṛṣṇa, He gives everything, necessities of life, as you like, but if you accept your enjoyable things as you like, then you'll become entangled. But if you accept things to be enjoyed by you, tena tyaktena bhuñjīthā (ISO 1), as Kṛṣṇa offers you, then you'll become happy. If you make, just like a diseased patient, if he wants to enjoy life in his own whimsical way, he'll continue his disease. But if he accepts the modes of life according to the directions of the physician, then he becomes free from So there are two methods, pravṛtti and nivṛtti. Pravṛtti means "I have got inclination to eat this or to enjoy this. Why not? I shall do it. I have got my freedom." "But you have no freedom sir, you are simply..." That is māyā. You have no freedom. We get experience, suppose there is very nice palatable food. If I think, let me eat as much as possible, then next day I'll have to starve. Immediately dysentery or indigestion.
So, and we are thinking that we have got so many soldiers, so many atomic bombs, and so many aeroplanes, we shall come out victorious. Similarly, each and everyone of us, we are thinking, "I am independent, and my wife, my children, my society, they are my soldiers. If I am in danger, they will help me." This is going on. This is called māyā. Pramattaḥ teṣāṁ nidhanaṁ paśyann api na paśyati, because we have become mad after this so-called independence, independence of God, we are thinking these things will help us, will protect us, but that is māyā. Teṣāṁ nidhanam, everyone will be destroyed. Nobody will be able to give us protection. If real protection is wanted, he will have to take protection of Kṛṣṇa. That is the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). You rascal, you are thinking that so many things will give you protection. That will not be possible. You will be finished, and your so-called protector, and friends, and soldiers, they will be finished. You don't depend on them. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇam... (BG 18.66), you just surrender unto Me, I'll give you protection, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ. This is real protection.
We are suffering always within the heart. As Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura says, that viṣaya viṣānale, divā-niśi hiyā jvale. Viṣaya. Viṣaya means this material enjoyment. So it is just like poison. The more we are entangled in material enjoyment... There is no enjoyment. It is suffering. But we are taking suffering as enjoyment. Just like in this winter season, we cover ourself very nicely with gloves, with overcoat. It is simply counteracting the suffering. But a man who has got a nice overcoat and gloves, he is thinking he is enjoying. This is māyā. He forgets that he is simply trying to counteract the suffering. Actually, he is suffering. But having a nice coat or nice place, he is thinking that he is enjoying. That is foolishness. That is called māyā. There is no enjoyment in this material world. Simply we are trying to counteract the suffering. This counteraction of suffering, we are accepting as enjoyment. So this material world means you must suffer. That is the position of the material world. Otherwise why you have come to material world? Just like in the prison life, how you can expect enjoyment there? But a man... Suppose a big politician is put into the jail and he is given a very nice, comfortable bungalow and everything, but he is in the jail. But he is thinking that "I am enjoying." He forgets that he is in the jail. He is in the jail. That is called ignorance, māyā. He is suffering and he is accepting. Just like the pig. He is eating stool, but he is thinking he is enjoying. This is going on.
So it is a factual thing that if people are saved, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, all these false identification will stop. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). The United Nation, if you simply understand that "Why you are talking of unity? You're already unity, in unity, because this property belongs to Kṛṣṇa. So why you are claiming that this is mine?" We have created disunity. This is a fact. Otherwise, if the whole... They have now created United Nation. They can govern the whole world under United Nation; let it be accepted that the whole property belongs to the human society. Then what is the trouble? But that thing they will not accept. This is foolishness. This is māyā. Actually it is the property of God. We come here as guests, fifty years or sixty years or hundred years, then we are kicked out: "Get out!" That we do not understand. Because we are allowed to live here for a certain number of years we think it is my property. This is ignorance.
This is the law of nature. Then again fights with American as soon as he gets the Russian body. Then he becomes again American. This is going on. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). Sometime Russian, sometime American, go on fighting. That's all. So this is called māyā. (laughter) This is māyā. Everyone is doing that. Everyone is doing that. Therefore Lord Caitanya said, ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva (CC Madhya 19.151). The living entities are loitering like this, sometimes that body, sometimes this way, sometimes that way. He is simply loitering. He is not getting where to take shelter. Where permanent life, permanent happiness, he does not know. He does not know. He does not know. Simply changing. In the material world also, they are simply changing some form of government, electing one rascal, again rejecting, another rascal, another rascal. Because they are all rascals, they have no other alternative than to elect more rascal. But they are thinking that "By rejecting this rascal, we shall be happy." He does not know how to elect. He does not know how to elect. Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāḥ (SB 7.5.31). They are themselves blind, and they are accepting a leader who is also blind. So what will be the profit? If you are led by... You are blind, and if you are led by another blind man, then what will be the profit? Both of you will fall down in the ditch. That is going on.
Therefore svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. If you have taken to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, try to execute it very seriously, means to follow the rules and regulation and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. That's all. Five things. No illicit sex, no gambling, no meat-eating... We don't prohibit sex, but illicit sex is most sinful. Most sinful. Unfortunately, they are so rascals, one sex to another, another sex to another, another sex... That is māyā's illusion, influence. But if you stick to Kṛṣṇa... Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). If you catch up Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet very tightly, then you will not fall down. But if you make a show of so-called brahmacārī, so-called gṛhastha, or so-called sannyāsī, then you will fall down. We are experiencing that. Then you must fall down. Kṛṣṇa will not tolerate a defaulter, a pseudo devotee. Māyā is very strong. Immediately capture him: "Come on. Why you are here? Why you are in this society? Get out." That is Yamarāja's duty. But if you remain in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, Yamarāja will not touch you. Your death is stopped from the point where you begin Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Your death is stopped. Nobody is prepared to die. That is a fact. You may say, I may say, "No, I am not afraid of death." That is another rascaldom. Everyone is afraid of death, and nobody wants to die. That is a fact. But if you are serious about that thing, that "I shall stop my process of death, dying process," then it is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So in order to save the world to become hellish, the king was so alert. That is also bhakti. Because the whole natural plan is to come back to home, back to Godhead. This is nature's plan. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). Just like the police department. What is the meaning of police department? Why government spends so much money for police department? Just to keep law and order. There must be. As soon as there is disobedience of law and order, immediately police department must go and punish and arrest. We can experience these things. Similarly, by God's side, there is such department, police department. That is māyā, Durgādevī. Durgādevī, you have seen. Most of you might not have seen Durgādevī's picture, with trident, trident in the hand. The asura is being attacked by the trident. So this trident means threefold miseries. You have seen the picture, mother, Goddess Durgā is piercing the trident just here on the heart. This trident means threefold miseries: adhyātmika, adhibhautika, adhidaivika. I have several times explained: pertaining to the body and mind, pertaining to the other living entities, adhibhautika, adhidaivika, pertaining to the nature's disturbance.
They cannot understand, although it is stated that vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15). Through the studies of Vedas, what knowledge one should achieve? When one achieves the knowledge that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord, that is, I mean to say, perfection of Vedic study. But these so-called jñānīs, they are simply bookworms, simply reading Vedas, four Vedas. And they say, "We are concerned with Vedas. We are not concerned with Kṛṣṇa." So... Just like the yājñika-brāhmaṇa. Yājñika-brāhmaṇa, they were interested in the Vedas, but their wives were interested with Kṛṣṇa. So they got perfection. So in this way, jñānīs... Karmīs are rejected. Karmīs are useless. And jñānīs, when they cultivate knowledge, not in one life... Because immediately they will not accept that Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate goal. They are surprised, "How Kṛṣṇa? He was a cowherd boy, playing with the cows and calves. He can be...? This is māyā." Therefore they are called Māyāvādī. They cannot understand. They cannot understand what is the position of Kṛṣṇa, although they are studying Vedas.
There is the Supreme Person, the supreme controller-apaśyat puruṣaṁ pūrṇaṁ māyāṁ ca tad-apāśrayam—and there is also māyā, which is on the back side. Just like if you stand before the sun or light, your shadow will be on the back side. You have got, all, experience. You stand up; you'll see a long shadow on your back side. So that is māyā. The māyā is the back side. That means if you stand before the sun, in the front, you can see in the sunlight very nicely. But if somebody stands on your back side, he cannot see you. This is the position. Apaśyat puruṣaṁ pūrṇaṁ māyāṁ ca tad-apāśrayam.
What is this māyā? Why this māyā? That is also explained. What is that? Yayā sammohito jīva: "These conditioned souls, they're bewildered by māyā, illusion." That is māyā. Yayā sammohito jīva ātmānaṁ tri-guṇātmakam: (SB 1.7.5) "Being bewildered by this māyā, this soul, who is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, or God, he's thinking that 'I am a material product. I am made of these material things.' " Just like the so-called rascal scientists, they'll never accept that within this body there is the soul because they're always thinking there is no such thing as soul. Only the material, that's all. This is illusion.
So in due course of time, everything happens. That is the nature's law. When I was also a child, I was looking very beautiful, but kālena, in due course of time, I'm now old man, a ugly man. Nobody likes. (laughter) So this is the influence of time, influence of time. So influence of time will act. You cannot check it. Influence of time, that is nature's law. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā (BG 7.14). That is māyā's strength. How you can check? It is not in your power.
So this is another question by Dharmarāja to mother earth, "Whether you are now in tribulation by the influence of time?" Surārcitaṁ kiṁ hṛtam amba saubhagam. So we should remember saubhagam, opulence, can be taken away, in due course of time. You cannot check it. Suppose in America you are all fortunate. You have got very nice roads, very nice cars, very nice skyscraper building, government, food, everything very nice. But in due course of time everything can be taken away. You cannot check it. Śāstra says therefore, tasyaiva hetoḥ prayateta kovidaḥ. Everything will be taken away, or ultimately, destruction. That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. You can find out, somebody, the verse. Mṛtyuḥ sarva-haraś cāham, mṛtyuḥ sarva-haraś ca aham. In due course of time, death will come, and it will take everything, what you possess. Mṛtyuḥ sarva-haraś cāham. That death is Kṛṣṇa.
So today some of you are going to be initiated. This is the beginning of your spiritual life. But if you don't take care for farther development, then that is up to you. You may fall down. Because māyā is very strong. Māyā will place so many impediments. She does not like that so easily you go back to home, back to Godhead. That is māyā's business. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī (BG 7.14). Just like police. Police business is to see the criminal that is actually, he is in his original consciousness to become law-abiding citizen. Otherwise police will go on punishing him. That is police affair. Similarly, this māyā is the police agent. Her business is to chastise you. Every moment this is going on. Ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa brahmite kona bhāgyavān jīva.
So this material life means within the jurisdiction of māyā, and she's always punishing us. Anādi-bahirmukha jīva kṛṣṇa bhuli gela ataeva māyā tare (indistinct). Because we have tried to forget Kṛṣṇa, that is not good for us.
So as soon as one becomes gṛhamedhī, he becomes blind to see what is self-realization. So Śukadeva Gosvāmī says that those who are blind, those who have been encaged in the materialistic way of life, for them, there are thousands and thousands of topics to hear and to chant. But those who are seeing to the self... Self is one. Ekaṁ brahma dvitīyaṁ nāsti. For them, one talk only about Kṛṣṇa. So I'll request you, all my beloved disciples present here, that don't turn to that point, gṛheṣu gṛha-medhinām. Stick to this point, Kṛṣṇa. Then you'll be happy. Don't talk, create. Thousand... As soon as we go out of the scope of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there will be so many talks. And that will mislead you. That is māyā. And if you stick to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there is no secrecy, there is no duplicity, there is no diplomacy. One talk, Kṛṣṇa: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma... That will make you satisfied. Yayātmā suprasīdati. If you want actually happiness then you stick to these Kṛṣṇa consciousness topics. Don't bring in anything other, else. Then that will become gṛheṣu gṛha-medhinām, apaśyatām ātma-tattvam (SB 2.1.2).
So I am especially talking to my sannyāsī disciples, who are going out today on a great mission. Please stick to this principle-one-Kṛṣṇa. You will be benefited, and the persons to whom you'll talk, they will be benefited, the world will be benefited. So you have got a very great responsibility. Don't turn into the talks of the gṛhamedhī and break it. That is my request.
This is māyā. Gandhi was thinking like that. He agitated his political movement against the British rule. So Britishers went away. I requested him that "Now you have got sva-rājya, and you are so respectable in the world. You take this propaganda, to preach Bhagavad-gītā." No. He'll still stick to these politics. Unless he was killed. He was killed, you know. So this is the propensity, sarva-kāmaḥ. There is no end of their desire, no end. They are called sarva-kāmaḥ. So here it is recommended: akāmaḥ... Just the opposite. Akāmaḥ, niṣkiñcana. They have finished all these nonsense, material desires. Vaiṣṇava. Just like you have taken sannyāsa. It is supposed that you have finished all your material desires. This is called akāmaḥ, just the opposite. And the other side: sarva-kāmaḥ. There is no end of desire, material desire. So Vyāsadeva recommends, "All right, you may be sakāmaḥ..." Sakāmaḥ means without end of any desires. Full of desires... (break in tape)... and between this there is another... (break in tape)... mokṣa-kāmaḥ. So sakāmaḥ, sarva-kāmaḥ-karmīs, those who are working very hard, just like animals.
So this is an actual fact, that Mahārāja Pratāparudra ... He was the King of Orissa, and in the fifteenth century, India was conquered by the Muhammadans, Pathans, but they could not conquer that portion of the country, Orissa. Because Mahārāja Pratāparudra was very strong king. But his strength was on the basis of his devotion to Lord Jagannātha. So even if we want to enjoy material world ... The devotee does not want to enjoy, but Kṛṣṇa keeps his devotee in all comfortable situation. There is no question about it. So we should not desire separately for material comfort. We should simply depend on Kṛṣṇa and be satisfied; in whatever condition He keeps, be satisfied. Then He will look after whether you are comfortable or uncomfortable. If you try, yourself, independently, to become comfortable, that is māyā. You cannot become so. Otherwise, you see everyone is trying to be comfortable in this material world. Do you think that everyone is comfortable?
As soon as birth is taken, the māyā is there; we forget. Immediately, father, mother, other relatives, they take up the child and pats very nice. So in this way we forget that we were in such a precarious condition, almost suffocating. Almost, it is suffocating. After coming out from the womb of the mother, if you are packed up again in such airtight bag, within three seconds you will die. We live under the protection of the Supreme Lord; otherwise that is not a living condition. Just imagine within the womb. So this we forget, and being taken care of, affectionate father and mother, on the lap, we think life is very nice, this life. But this is māyā, this is illusion. Actually, this bhava, to take birth, is very, very unpleasant task. It is blazing fire, bhava-mahā-dāvāgni.
So that means the, according to the body, the material happiness and... Just like you are. You have got this American body. So automatically your country's facilities... You are more comfortable than other countries because you have no scarcity, enough production. Everything is enough. So according to the body, you are getting comforts of life. And in another country, deserted country, very hard living, cannot get nice foodstuffs, only living on animals. That is also very rarely. So these are different. Just like in Greenland. It is filled up with ice. They cannot get any nice food. Still they live there. This is māyā. They will not think, "Oh, here the life is very difficult. Let me go away from here. Let me go to some other, better place." No. He'll not go. Janani janma-bhūmiś ca svargād api garīyasī. Our birthplace, even it is hell, it is better than heaven. That is māyā. Just like hog. Hog is living most abominable condition of life, with stools and filthy water, but still, he is thinking he's living in heaven. Janani janma-bhūmiś ca svargād api garīyasī. So therefore, the conclusion is that so far material comforts are concerned, you cannot get more. Or less. You will get. It is already fixed up. Deha-yogena dehinām. Sukham aindriyakaṁ daityā deha-yogena dehinām, sarvatra labhyate... eh? Yathā duḥkham ayatnataḥ. Prahlāda Mahārāja says. Sarvatra labhyate. So far material comfort is concerned, what you are destined to get, you'll get it, in wherever you may live. It doesn't matter. Your allotment is already there. That is your body.
This māyā is very much manifest in sex life. They accept the sex life is very nice, but after that, there is so many distresses. Legal or illegal, it doesn't matter. Legal distresses or illegal distresses, but it is distress. Every one of us, we know. Therefore everything—to make the best use of a bad bargain. We have got this material body. The cause was there. The cause was there that because we wanted to enjoy and did not like to serve Kṛṣṇa. This is the cause. Kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare. We are serving Kṛṣṇa. That is our, I mean to say, place, constitutional position, to serve Kṛṣṇa, but sometimes we desire: "Why shall I serve Kṛṣṇa? Why shall I serve the spiritual master? I shall enjoy. I shall enjoy." But that enjoyment was there by serving Kṛṣṇa, but he wanted to become enjoyer independent of Kṛṣṇa. That is the cause of falldown. With Kṛṣṇa, you can enjoy very nicely. You have seen the picture, how with Kṛṣṇa the gopīs are nicely dancing, enjoying; the cowherd boys are playing. Enjoy with Kṛṣṇa, that is your real enjoyment. But without Kṛṣṇa, when you want to enjoy, that is māyā. That is māyā.
Māyā's three guṇas, modes. So somebody is in passion, somebody is in ignorance, somebody is in goodness. Even one is in goodness, goodness is also another. It may be higher quality, but that is māyā quality. One has to go above goodness. Here there are many persons, they are very clean. That is a brahminical quality, sattva ṣama śauca, very clean, truthful, controlled, so many qualifications, but still, that is māyā. Still that is māyā. To become on the platform of brahminical, satya śama dama titikṣa ārjava, jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyam brahma-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.42). So even This is the platform of goodness, brahminical qualification. So even in brahminical qualification, it's still māyayā. He is thinking, "I am brāhmaṇa. I am so pure. I am better than him." But he does not know that he is identifying himself with māyā. "I am not brāhmaṇa, I am not śūdra, I am not kṣatriya, I am not vaiśya, I am not a sannyāsī, I am not a brahmacārī, I am not a gṛhastha. Nothing of the sort." Then what you are? Gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ (CC Madhya 13.80). I am the's qualities. So this identification also will not help. Today I may be brāhmaṇa, and tomorrow I shall become a bhangi.
So Māyāvādī philosophers, when they come to know that this is māyā's place, so therefore they want to make it varietyless, formless. This is their theory. So, but that is not the solution. This is māyā. This form or no form, this is māyā. When we develop our real spiritual form and enjoy in company and association of the Supreme Lord varieties, just like Vṛndāvana, variety... In Vṛndāvana the cows, the trees, the water, they are also spiritual. Some devotee wants to serve Kṛṣṇa becoming a cow. Some devotee wants to serve Kṛṣṇa becoming a bird, becoming a monkey. And somebody is serving as gopī or as cowherd boy, as father, as mother. But they are all spiritual. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhiḥ. They are all expansion. Just like when Brahmā took away all the friends and cows of Kṛṣṇa, immediately expanded Himself in the same way. So all the cows and all the cowherd boys, in every case, they were all expansion of Kṛṣṇa, pleasure potency. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhis tābhir ya eva nija-rūpatayā kalābhiḥ (Bs. 5.37). Nija-rūpa. So the varieties are there also, but here the variety is māyā. Māyayā bahu-rūpayā. The same example, the mirage. It appears like water, but that is not real water. Similarly, here māyayā, because it is false. They appear like that varieties but they are false. Māyayā bahu-rūpaya. Ramante. This ramante, this pleasure, is material pleasure because guṇeṣu. Ramamāṇa guṇeṣu asyā. They are trying to take pleasure in the material modes of nature. Mamāham iti manyate.
Yes. So these varieties, they have created a sense of personal property, mama, "mine." Therefore they are fighting. "Oh, this is our country, Japanese country. This is this country. You have come here. Show me your visa," immigration. So māyayā, by māyā. Why you ask for visa? It is your property? No. They are thinking, "It is my property. It is my property." Just like in Australia and other countries, colonization. They usurped others' property, and now they are thinking, "It is our property." You see? Before their usurping, the property was there. So before their usurping when the property was there, whose property it is? So we come here with different forms and claim something, "This is my property." Another man claims, "It is my property." Actually this is māyā, false. Everything Kṛṣṇa's property. Īśāvasyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). "Oh, this is..." But māyā, they have created this false idea, "It is my property. It is my property." Mamāham iti manyate. The same thing explained in Bhagavad-gītā. Ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā. By false ego they have become befooled. Kartāham iti manyate. Kartā. Kartā means the proprietor or the master. He is not actually master, but under the influence of different modes of material nature he is feeling, "I am master. I am enjoyer. I am bhokta." This is the trouble.
In the Kali-yuga this memory is declining, and they are proud, "We are advanced." There is no question of advancement. It is simply degraded. But this is māyā. Falsely they are thinking, "We are advanced." In this age, memory will be reduced, duration of life will be reduced, people's merciful tendency will be reduced, strength of the body will be reduced. In this way everything will be reduced. Now we do not find very strong men, very strong memory, living for a long time, bodily strength. No. These are reducing. Now people are not merciful. One man is being killed before you in the street; nobody takes care. This is the sign of Kali-yuga. Everything will be reduced. Memory also being reduced. There are eight kinds of things reducing. One of them, these four, five, I have already mentioned. Important things. The duration of life is reducing, no sympathy, no sympathy. One is suffering from some disease; nobody is taking care. This is the sign of Kali-yuga. "Oh, let him die. Let me live." These are the signs of Kali-yuga: no memory, no sympathy, no long duration of life, no bodily strength, no education. This is the symptoms of Kali-yuga. Therefore the only means is harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma (CC Adi 17.21). They cannot in the ordinary way it is impossible to make advancement.
Bahu-rūpa ivābhāti māyayā bahu-rūpayā. Actually this is māyā, but bahu-rūpayā, by the interaction of the three modes of material nature there are varieties. Similarly in the spiritual world, although the spirit is one, there are also varieties, saṁvit... There are... These three qualities, there it is known... What is that called? Now, just now I forget. Saṁvit sandinī. Sandinī saṁvit. That is described in Caitanya-caritāmṛta, there also, varieties. So the Māyāvādī philosophers, they have no information of the spiritual world. Therefore they are thinking that spirit means something void of all these varieties. They cannot conceive that in the variety there can be enjoyment. Here they have got very bad experience of varieties. Therefore they want to make... Buddha theory is like that, varieties, varieties—the earth, water, air, fire. So if this body is made of all these varieties, so you make it nirvāṇa; you kill it or dismantle it to the varieties. Just like when anything in this material world, when it is annihilated, it goes. This, our body... Just like when we leave this body, the matter remains there, lump of matter. Gradually it becomes decomposed, and some water comes out. The water goes to the water, the earthly part goes to the earth, the fiery part goes to the fiery. In this way, this combination of matter becomes dismantled. That is called nirvāṇa, finished.
So, "Yes, I can tell you." And then he said that "You have labored so much for writing all these nonsense books, but you have not said anything of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore you are unhappy. Therefore I advise you that now you write one book which is simply the transaction of the Supreme Personality, nothing else, nothing of this material world, sacrificing, this religious, and this unreligious, 'this is good, this is bad,' nothing of the sort. Simply write about the pastimes of the Supreme Lord. Then you will be happy." Then he wrote Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. And when he wrote, began writing Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, he writes in the beginning, dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra: (SB 1.1.2) "All these cheating type of religious system, I kick it out, this ism, that ism. I kick out all them. It is this book, especially meant for paramo nirmatsarāṇāṁ satām, those who are simply paramahaṁsas. It is meant for them. It is not for the ordinary men. I have kicked out all the so-called religious system, dharma artha kāma." People are very much Nowadays they are not even for dharma or artha. They are simply kāma, sense gratification. Sense gratification because every one of us, we come here for sense gratification. The spirit soul is originally spiritual spark." Why he has come here?"—this question is sometimes raised. That is answered. We are reading. Ātma-māyām ṛte rājan. It is a māyā. We cannot enjoy. It is māyā. We have created. "Can I not enjoy like Kṛṣṇa? Can I not become God?" This is māyā. This is māyā.
Then that is māyā. When we are in ignorance that we are the part and parcel of the Supreme Being and our duty is to satisfy Him... Hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam (CC Madhya 19.170). This is called bhakti. When we forget it, then we are fallen in this material world, and we are busy in our personal sense gratification and implication. Implication means so long we'll have, we'll continue to have this desire to satisfy our senses, we have to accept another body, according to our desire. Kṛṣṇa is so kind. If we want to become a tiger, Kṛṣṇa will give our next life a tiger's body. And if you want to be a devotee, He will give you the same body. If you want to eat stool, then He'll give you the body of a pig. And if you want to... That requires our own qualification. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). Yānti deva-vratā devān pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vra... (BG 9.25). It is a preparation for the next life, as you want to enjoy your senses. So why not prepare yourself to go back to home, back to Godhead, and prepare your senses like that? That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to keep the mind and consciousness always in Kṛṣṇa, puṁsi. Puṁsi. Puṁsi. Puṁsi means the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He's a person. He's a male, not female. Puṁsi. Puruṣaḥ. Puruṣaḥ, not strī. When Kṛṣṇa was realized by Arjuna, he addressed Him, puruṣaṁ śāśvatam. Paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān, puruṣam (BG 10.12). God is brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān, puruṣam. God is puruṣa, not female. Puruṣa means enjoyer, and prakṛti means enjoyed. Everything is enjoyed by the Supreme Puruṣa. We are also prakṛti. That is also stated. We are not puruṣa. This dress may be... That is māyā, illusion. Actually, we are puruṣa, and prakṛti means... Here the so-called woman is also puruṣa. Puruṣa means enjoyer. The women, they are also thinking how to enjoy. And man is also thinking how to enjoy. Therefore imitation puruṣa. But actually, they're prakṛti. It is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām. The living entities, they are prakṛti. And they are trying to be puruṣa, enjoyer. This is material world. Therefore they are attached to the three guṇas because they want to enjoy this material world, artificially trying to become puruṣa. Puruṣa means enjoyer. As such, they are attached to this material world. And material world means guṇa, tri-guṇa. And according to attachment, they're getting different types of bodies.
Therefore we are engaged in the service of māyā in so many phases and different names. Somebody's serving country, somebody's serving society, somebody's serving family, office, this, that, so many. This is māyā's service. Now, when we come to our senses, that "I am..., so long I was engaged in māyā's service. Now I have to engage myself in Kṛṣṇa's service," that is self-realization. That is described here that jñāna-vairāgya-yuktena. (SB 3.25.18) Jñāna-vairāgya. This is knowledge, that "I am servant of Kṛṣṇa. I am nobody's servant." This is jñāna. Because I am in illusion, I am, for nothing, without any benefit, I am serving so many... Kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśāḥ. Kāma-lobha. I am serving this kāma, lobha, moha, mātsarya, but without any benefit, without any pleasure. So when we come to this stage, to know, that is called jñānam. And as soon as you become jñānī, actually in knowledge, then what is the next step? Vairāgya. "No more I am serving anyone. I shall serve only Kṛṣṇa. That's all." This is called vairāgya. Jñāna-vairāgya.
In the Bhagavad-gītā: prakṛteḥ. You have been put under the clutches of māyā. He's giving you as you are desiring because you are desiring, bhoga vāñchā kare. Sometimes I used to enjoy like this, enjoy like... Everyone is trying to enjoy. But enjoy means we are becoming entangled. Yajñārthe karmaṇo 'nyatra loko yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ (BG 3.9). If you want to enjoy with Kṛṣṇa, that is your natural propensity, and if you en..., want to enjoy life without Kṛṣṇa, that is māyā. That is māyā.
So one has to visṛjya... As it is said by Kapiladeva, visṛjya sarvān anyāṁś ca mām evaṁ viśvato-mukham, bhajanty ananyayā. We have to forget all these so-called sources of happiness. This is misleading. Māyā. So who can, I mean to say, understand that this is illusion, māyā? Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). When one becomes a devotee, then he can understand that "The position which I am now taking for granted, that 'It is very happy,' that is mistake. That is māyā." Kṛṣṇa says that it is duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). Kṛṣṇa says. How you can take it as very nice place? Kṛṣṇa says, the supreme authority says, duḥkhālayam: "It is the place of suffering." And that is the fact. We are simply suffering. On account of this body, we are simply suffering.
So we are planning, one after another, various plans to be very happy in this material world. But they will not make us happy—that's a fact—because this place is certified by the Supreme Personality of Godhead as duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam: (BG 8.15) "This is a place for misery." This material world is a place for misery. This body is meant for suffering miseries, and the land is meant for suffering miseries. That we do not understand. But we are placed in a miserable condition all round. That is material life. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). But we have got attachment for this material happiness, even it is duḥkhālayam, it is very much painful, miserable, and we are making plans how to become happy here. This is called struggle for existence. It is going on perpetually. We are making some plan to be happy, and it is dismantled by the laws of nature. You study the whole history of the world: it is simply struggling. We are making some plan to be out of miserable condition, but it is causing another miserable condition. Therefore it is called daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). This is māyā. We are simply planning to overcome some problem, some difficulties, but it is becoming more difficult. This is the fact.
These are the nine different processes of bhakti-yoga, of which the most important thing is śravaṇam, hearing. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. And about whom? About Viṣṇu, not for anyone else. That is śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. Everything bhakti means devotional service, loving devotional service, for Viṣṇu or Kṛṣṇa. That is not any other service. That is not bhakti. Bhakti, the word, can be used only in relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It cannot be... If you say, "I am deśa-bhakta. I am very devotee of my country, and of my society, of my family, of my cat, of my dog," that is not applicable. Bhakti is not applicable anywhere except in relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is bhakti. Therefore śāstra particularly says, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ, not any other śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam. If you say that "I am hearing about my country's welfare, about my society's welfare, about humanity's welfare, and I am preaching this," that is not bhakti. That is māyā. It is very difficult to understand.
We want to declare independence, not under the protection of Kṛṣṇa, or God. This is our position in this material world. Therefore the mentality is not to become prakṛti but to become puruṣa, the mentality. In the material world constitutionally the living entity is prakṛti. It is described in the Bhagavad-gītā, apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām, jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho (BG 7.5). The jīva-bhūta, mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ (BG 15.7), prakṛti. But artificially, we are trying to become puruṣa. Ultimately, the same spirit is going on. As puruṣa is the enjoyer, we try to become independent enjoyer of this material world and baffled one after another, one after another, one after another, baffled, and at last, finally baffled still, he wants to become the supreme puruṣa, "I am God." This is māyā. Those who are claiming to become "I am God," they're still in māyā. Because he is prakṛti by nature, but he is still trying in the, first in the karma field as karmī, working day and night hard. But the purpose is that "I shall become the enjoyer. I shall become the Supreme."
We have taken inauspicious thing as auspicious. This is called māyā. We accept something māyā, or illusion, or vivarta. We accept something for something. The example is given: there is a rope, and due to my ignorance or insufficient knowledge, I take it as a snake. This is my insufficient knowledge. The snake is fact, and the rope is fact. But when we take the rope as snake, that is ignorance, or the snake as rope, that is ignorance. The Māyāvādī philosopher says that "We are accepting snake..., er, rope as a snake. But there is no snake." But we, Vaiṣṇava philosopher, we say, "No, there is snake, and there is rope. But when we accept the rope as snake, that is māyā." Similarly, there is spiritual world and there is material world. But when we accept the material world as everything, that is māyā. That is illusion.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to know that no more greater than Kṛṣṇa. Nobody is greater than Kṛṣṇa. Nobody is equal to Kṛṣṇa. If we understand this much perfectly... We cannot understand perfectly because that is not possible. Kṛṣṇa is unlimited. But as far as we have got our knowledge, if we understand this fact, that "I can never become equal with Kṛṣṇa; neither I can become greater than Kṛṣṇa. That is not possible. I have to remain always subordinate to Kṛṣṇa," this is called mukti, liberation. We are entrapped in this material bondage by illusory understanding. So when we come to the right understanding, that "My position is always subordinate to Kṛṣṇa," that is called mukti. Anyone can become a mukta, liberated person, as soon as he agrees to this philosophy that he is always subordinate to Kṛṣṇa, or God; he is never equal to Him nor greater than Him. Asama-ūrdhva. And those who are thinking that they are equal with Kṛṣṇa, that is māyā. Māyā mohitaṁ nābhijānāti. They do not know their actual... But when he comes to the knowledge, vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ... (BG 7.19). That is required.
If you see Kṛṣṇa daily in the temple, if you worship, you offer your obeisances—man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65)—naturally you will think of Kṛṣṇa twenty-four hours, and that will make you more pious, because without being pious, nobody can think of Kṛṣṇa. Yeṣāṁ anta-gataṁ pāpam. Pious means there is no reaction of sinful life. It is all squared up. That you can do at any moment. Kṛṣṇa takes charge. Kṛṣṇa says, buddhiḥ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi. He can do that. He can nullify the destiny. Karmṇnirdahati kintu ca bhakti-bhājāṁ. Everyone is bound up by the laws of karma. Yas tv indragopam athavendram aho sva-karma-bandhānurūpa-phala-bhājanam ātanoti (Bs. 5.54). Everyone, beginning from that small microbe, indragopa, and up to the king of heaven—his name is also Indra. So from this Indra to that Indra, all different types of living entities, they are suffering, not enjoying; suffering the resultant action of their past sinful life. This is material existence. Everyone is suffering, but māyā is so kind that he (she) misleads the sufferer to understand the suffering is enjoying. This is māyā. Actually everyone is suffering, but he is misled to think that he is enjoying.
So you are searching after pleasure, that is your prerogative. That is your right. You must be. But you are searching in this sense gratificatory platform, you'll never get it. If you purify your this existence, then you get unlimited pleasure in your spiritual existence. Unlimited pleasure. Brahma-saukhyam anantam (SB 5.5.1). Anantam means unlimited. So this life we should utilize for purifying, not for extravagancy in sense gratification. You'll not suffer at... You'll... This is māyā. Actually, just like a child, a boy, wants to play, and the father prescribes him, "My dear boy, do not play so long. Please read." So he's thinking that "My father is prescribing something which is very troublesome." But actually this tapasya, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness regulated life, is not for trouble. It is for your progress of life to the spiritual understanding, where you get unlimited eternal life, sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1). God is sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha. Sat, cit, ānanda. Sat means eternal, cit means full of knowledge, and ānanda, full of pleasure. So as soon as you become purified from this material existence, then you enter into the spiritual kingdom, and you get your body sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha and live there eternally in full knowledge and full bliss.
Bums. Yes. The bums. Just see how nasty they are. They were lying down on the street, and as soon as get some money, immediately go to the wine shop, purchase one bottle, and not eating nicely, no dress, nothing of the... Many of them. The Bowery Street is famous for that purpose. So they are not happy, but they are thinking they are happy. This is māyā. (laughter) This is māyā. The materialistic persons, by engaging themselves in sinful activities, they are not happy, but they are thinking that "We are happy." In this European portion of the world, they are... We have experienced two big wars, and still, the war cloud is always there. Not only here, everywhere. So this materialistic civilization, actually people are not very happy. And as I have told you that people are going to live underground next hundred years. That means they'll lose this freedom of living in the free air for fear of this atomic attack. That is predicted in the World Almanac. We have seen, that people are going to live under. They'll... Sometimes they will come out to have fresh air in the surface. Otherwise, they will have to live underground.
This is the difference between devotees and nondevotees. But both the devotees and nondevotees, they must obey the laws of Kṛṣṇa. There is no exception. There is no exception. This is māyā. He is being forced, the nondevotee is being forced to act. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). He's under the spell of the modes of material nature, and he's being forced to act under the spell of material nature, but he is thinking, "I am free. I don't care for God." This is called māyā. He is being kicked by māyā, but he'll not agree to abide by the orders of Kṛṣṇa. He'll agree to be kicked by māyā. That is his business. That he will agree. "Yes, let me be kicked by māyā." So nobody is free. By constitutional position nobody is free from the laws of God. But those who are voluntarily accepting, they are devotees. And those who are not accepting, falsely declaring themselves independent, they are nondevotees. This is the difference. Any question? Uttamaśloka, you were not here? I did not see you.
So actually, spirit soul has nothing to do for livelihood. They are working so hard. That is māyā. Because everyone is working for economic development, this is māyā. Just like the newspaper reporter asked me, "the crisis." They created a situation that ultimately it has come to a crisis. The big, big oil tankers are now standing without any work, and they're feeling scarcity. Actually, we haven't got to work for our livelihood. There are 8,400,000 species of living entities. Out of that, only 400,000 species of life are human form. Other 8,000,000, they are bird, beast, trees, insect, aquatics, so many varieties. So they have no economic problem. The bird, beast, aquatic, they have no economic problem. They have sufficient... Our material necessities are to eat, to sleep, to have sex life, and to have protection from danger. These are our problems. So living entities less intelligent than the human being, they have no problem of this field of activities. They are eating. They have no problem for eating. They have no problem for sleeping. They have no problem for sex life. And neither they have problem for any defense. That is already there. A bird, early in the morning, chirps very nicely.
Now, why human society has created this problem? If 8,000,000 living entities can have no problem, why the 400,000 group, the human society, they will have problem? That is māyā. Actually, there is no problem. They have created problem. By their advanced intelligence they have created problem. Why? Because (the) advanced intelligence is not being properly used. They are being used for these lower-grade activities: eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. The human being, being advanced in consciousness, they should have used the advanced intelligence for self-realization. But that, they are... There is no such education in the universities. That... I raised this question in the Massachusetts Technical Institution when I was asked to speak, that "Where is your technical department where a man after death can be alive again, injecting some...?" Just like motor stops, so a mechanical technologist go and makes the, I mean to say, machine correctly. Then it again runs.
If you get nice cake, you have to put it to the stomach; then you'll get energy. And if you want... This finger caught the cake and want to utilize themself, that is not possible. It must give it here. And then the energy will be distributed. This is the difference. The materialistic persons, they are simply taking things for enjoying themselves. That is māyā. They cannot enjoy them. But if you take through Kṛṣṇa, then it is spiritual life. That is the difference between material and spiritual.
- ātmendriya-prīti-vāñchā—-tāre bali 'kāma'
- kṛṣṇendriya-prīti-icchā dhare 'prema' nāma
- (CC Adi 4.165)
When you try to satisfy your own senses, that is lust. And when you satisfy..., when you try to satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa, or God, that is called love. Here in this material world so-called love is personal sense gratification. A girl loves a boy, she has got the intention for personal sense gratification. Or the boy loves the girl, he has also the same, personal sense gratification. But the gopīs' love for Kṛṣṇa is not for personal sense gratification, but for Kṛṣṇa's sense gratification. That is the difference between gopī's love and people's lust.
So sometimes this kind of tribulation are there. Jesus Christ, what was his fault? He was preaching about God, or Kṛṣṇa. That was his fault and he was crucified. So this is the world. This is the world. As soon as you become... This is māyā's arrangement. Māyā, as soon as she sees that "This man is going out of my hand," she'll put so many tribulations, and we have to tolerate them.
- tṛṇād api sunīcena
- taror api sahiṣṇunā
- amāninā mānadena
- kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ
- (CC Adi 17.31)
But you cannot stop kīrtana. That is not possible.
That information we have got from the śāstra. So the human life means responsible life, not extravagance, "Whatever I like, I do like cats and dogs." That is not good. And in another place Ṛṣabhadeva has said also..., several times we have repeated, na sādhu manye yata ātmano 'yam, kleśada āsa dehaḥ. This world is going on not now. So long the material world is there, the living entities are after sense enjoyment like a madman. This is the position. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma (SB 5.5.4). They are acting very irresponsibly, and all kinds of sinful activities they are committing like a madman, without any responsibility of life. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma (SB 5.5.4). And what for they are doing? Yad indriya-prītaye, simply for sense gratification, that's all. So Ṛṣabhadeva says, na sādhu manye: "This is not good." "Why it is not good? I am enjoying life." No, you are not enjoying. Because you have got this material body, there is no question of enjoyment. It is simply suffering. And you are thinking it is enjoyment. That is illusion. That is māyā. You are accepting something which is not.
Just like I'm claiming something within this world as my property. That is false. But this is someone's property—that is fact. That is God's property. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). Not that the property is false. Just like this house, this building, this nice room, it is so nicely decorated; there is electric light. If somebody says: "It is false," how it is false? It is not false. Why I shall say false? Why I shall discourage the persons who are using this room as for their devotional service, they're making progress...? How we can say it is false? It is not false. The false is when I claim that "This is my house." That is false. That is false. That is my false puffed-up consciousness, that "I am the proprietor, I am the master, I am God." This is false. Just like first of all we want to become a proprietor, then master, then minister, then president, then God. When everything fails, then "I am God." Same tendency is there—that I want to become the greatest. But how you can be the greatest? God is greatest. You are always smallest. That is... That smallest is thinking greatest that is false. The smallness is not false. The greatness is not false. But when the small thinks as great, that is false. That is māyā.
The whole idea is that we are in this material world. That is miserable. Under the spell of illusion, we are thinking we are very happy. They do not know is actually happiness. What is happiness? But there is no argument for these rascals. They are thinking they are very happy. That is māyā's prakṣepātmika-śakti, covering energy. Just like you are seeing a hog eating stool, but he is thinking that he's very happy. But you are seeing, "Oh, what abominable life. He's eating stool." So this is the position. Those who are advanced in civilization, for them eating of stool is unthinkable. But for the hogs and dogs, it is very palatable. This is the difference. Just like we are recommending, "No illicit sex, no meat-eating, no intoxication, no gambling." So somebody is thinking, "Then what remains to enjoy? Everything is finished. Life is finished."
Māyā has got two things: āvaraṇātmika and prakṣepātmika. Āvaraṇātmika means just like a dog or a hog, he is in a, encaged in a body, eating stool, living in a very filthy place, but still, the hog is feeling himself that he is happy, he's happy. This is called āvaraṇātmika-śakti. Any abominable condition we may live, but māyā will cover our intelligence and we will think that we are living very nice. This is called āvaraṇātmika-śakti. Otherwise he cannot live. If an animal or a dog or hog thinks that he's in most abominable condition of life, then he cannot live. But he enjoys. A dog is chained up by the master, but he thinks that he's very happy. He does not think that "I am completely dependent and I am chained up. I have no independence, I cannot freely move." Even his chain is taken away, he wants to be chained. This is māyā. In any condition of life, everyone thinks that he's happy. But actually he does not know what is happiness. This is called māyā.
Of course, nowadays it is very fashionable to have coat, pant, like the... So that is not very, liked very much. It is artificial. So anything artificial we do, that is sinful. This is the description of sin. What is sin? You, if you act naturally, that is good; but if you act artificially, that is sinful. This is the distinction between sinful activities and pious activities. So our natural function is, as described by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, jīvera 'svarūpa' haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). This is our constitutional position, that we are eternally servant of Kṛṣṇa, or maidservant of Kṛṣṇa, as you say. But we are trying to become master. So that is sinful. So we are creating so many positions, situations, "How I can become the master." Kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vāñchā kare, pasate māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare. The living entity, forgetting his real position as maidservant of God or servant of God, when he wants to enjoy this material world, that is māyā. Māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare. Immediately. That is sinful.
This is material civilization. Everyone is after woman. Woman or men, the... It is not that woman means the form of woman and man is the form of man. Woman means enjoyable and man means enjoyer. So here in this material world everyone is enjoyer. Everyone is enjoyer. Not only the man thinks "I shall enjoy the woman," the woman thinks, "I shall enjoy the man." The spirit is now to become enjoyer, Therefore sometimes the living entity is described as puruṣa. Actually every living entity is prakṛti. Prakṛti means enjoyable. So everyone is to be enjoyable by Kṛṣṇa. But thinking, "I am enjoyer." That is māyā. So everyone is thinking of enjoying this material world. Viṣayiṇāṁ atha yoṣitāṁ ca. Viṣayiṇāṁ sandarśanam atha yoṣitām. So for any person who is serious about going back to home, back to..., for them these things are abominable, more than drinking poison. This is the verdict of Caitanya Mahāprabhu.
He can give us varieties of order, and our position is that we shall simply carry out the order. That is life. Otherwise we are under the clutches of māyā, or material nature. Prakteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ. We are thinking that "I am the lord of everything." That is not the fact. The fact is that we have to work under somebody. That is our real position. Jīvera 'svarūpa' haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). We are workers. We are not enjoyer. But unfortunately we are trying to take the position of enjoyer. That is māyā. That is māyā. And if we agree to work under the direction of Kṛṣṇa, then our original life is revived. That is wanted. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means that we are trying to educate people to change the consciousness. We have got so many desires under different consciousness. So one desire, that "I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa," this is called mukti, as soon as Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). This is mukti. If we give up all other desires and agree to accept Kṛṣṇa's desires, that mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja, "You surrender unto Me," that is mukti; that is liberation. Otherwise, under the influence of these twenty-four elements and the material nature and the three guṇas, infection, dhatte anusaṁsṛtiṁ puṁsi harṣa-śoka-bhayārtidām, you go on changing any body. The subject matter is very difficult, but we have to learn it from śāstra what is our position. Otherwise, to realize these things, it is not very easy.
Just like a male and female. That movement is very strong now in America. The female wants to become male, or equal rights. This is māyā. How woman can become in equal with man? Of course, we are not going to study the social welfare activities or something like that, but puruṣa and prakṛti, they are different. Purusa means enjoyer, and prakṛti means enjoyed. So here the prakṛti, this material nature—earth, water, air, fire, sky, mind, intelligence, and ego, egotism—these are eight material things. So in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca, bhinnā prakṛtiṁ me aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4). These are eight kinds of material energy. Material energy is one, mahat-tattva, but they have been divided. Mahat-tattva, when it is separated... Just like some philosopher says, "There was a chunk, and it became broken, and the creation took place." This can be applicable... The mahat-tattva, the total material energy, by, when the three guṇas break them, they become twenty-four elements, five material, and three material, subtle, and the ten senses, and the ten object of senses. In this way twenty-four elements is become.
So we are making different plans but it will not be successful. That much I explained last night, that we are thinking independent and we are planning so many things independently to become happy. It is not possible. That is not possible. That is māyā's illusory play. Daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā. You cannot surpass. Then what is the ultimate solution? Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). If we surrender to Kṛṣṇa, then we revive our original position. That is... Kṛṣṇa consciousness means instead of keeping so many things in consciousness... They are all polluted consciousness. The real... We have got consciousness, that is a fact, but our consciousness is polluted. So we have to purify the consciousness.
Then what is that? Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti ma eti kaunteya: (BG 4.9) he goes back to Godhead. This should be the, I mean to say, objective of human life: how to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness and how to get away from this uncongenial atmosphere of material existence. Unless we understand that...
But people, they think that they are very happy. This is illusion. This is māyā.
- tat-prayāso na kartavyo
- yata āyur-vyayaḥ param
- na tathā vindate kṣemaṁ
- mukunda-caraṇāmbujam
(aside:) Yes? So Prahlāda Mahārāja says, na tathā vindate kṣemam. Kṣemam means auspicity. The highest auspicity of life is to reconnect his lost relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, or Kṛṣṇa. This is called yoga.
So servant we are, but we are thinking, "I am master." This is māyā. This is māyā. Actually I am servant. I am serving this, that, that—so many. Even President Johnson, he is also servant of the nation. So nobody is master. Similarly, if you take president, if you go higher, if you go up to Brahmā, if you go still more, more—everyone is servant. Therefore in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is very nicely said that ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa āra saba bhṛtya: (CC Adi 5.142) "The only one master is Kṛṣṇa, and everyone is servant." The only one master is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and all other living entities, they are all servant. He may be a Brahmā, he may be a president, he may be a minister, or he may be a cat, or he may be a dog, or whatever he may be, everyone is servant. And to understand this philosophy is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is not very difficult. It is not very difficult. If we understand our position, that māyā's spell is so nice that everyone is thinking, "I am master," "I am president," "I am minister," "I am teacher," "I am philosopher," "I am scientist," "I am this," "I am that," at last, "I am God." (laughter)
So, why should we waste our time? Just see practically. We are asking people that "Don't waste your time. We are opening hundreds of centers. You come with us. Little prasādam you require. We shall supply. You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa." "No. No. I shall do the same thing, prayāsa, trying for this, trying for that, trying for something else, something else. No." Nobody is satisfied that "My life is meant for Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Here is a chance to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let me live here peacefully and let me eat the prasādam and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa." You'll will find no customer. This is māyā.
- daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī
- mama māyā duratyayā
- mām eva ye prapadyante
- māyām etāṁ taranti te
- (BG 7.14)
It is very, very difficult. But still, Vaiṣṇava, he will advise. A moralist who knows śāstra, he will also advise, just like Cāṇakya Paṇḍita. I was saying, Cāṇakya Paṇḍita said, āyuṣaḥ kṣaṇa eko 'pi na labhyaḥ svarṇa-koṭibhiḥ.
This family life, gṛheṣu, gṛha-medhinām, who are very much attached, this is māyā. Prahlāda Mahārāja, from the age of five years he condemned, hitvātma-pātaṁ gṛham andha-kūpam: "The gṛha, this so-called family life, is a dark well." We are thinking we are very happily living with nice wife and children and working very hard, getting money. But śāstra says, "You are fallen in the dark well." Gṛham andha-kūpam. And "All right, let me remain here." "No." Ātma-pātam. If you remain in this way, then you will kill your soul. Ātma-pātam. Therefore in the Vedic civilization there is compulsory: "Get out." Pañcaśordhvaṁ vanaṁ vrajet. "Now you are fifty years old past. Immediately get out." "No, I have got so many duties. I have got this." "No, no." Vrajet, "compulsory."
So instead of becoming intelligent, by material education one becomes more and more first-class ass. jaḍa-vidyā saba māyāra vaibhava tomāra bhajane bādhā, because the more you become advanced in so-called material civilization, you'll forget God. Māyāra vaibhava. Māyā's business is to keep you always sleeping, forgetting God. This is māyā's business. Daivī hi eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). This is māyā's business. The more you forget Kṛṣṇa, the more you are under the influence of māyā. Jaḍa-vidyā saba māyāra vaibhava. If you increase your volume of material civilization, then more and more you'll forget God and you'll be attached to this material world, māyāra vaibhava.
So people are increasing more and more and becoming under the clutches of māyā. That is janma-mṛtyu-jāra-vyādhi (BG 13.9). Clutches of māyā means birth, death, old age, and disease. This is māyā's shackles, or ropes. But they do not care for it. They do not take into account that "I am eternal, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). I do not die even after the destruction of this body, so why shall I suffer in this way repeatedly birth and death?" And that is also not only inconvenient, but very much painful. Today you are American or something, or Indian, but tomorrow if you become a tree in the American land, then what is your position? But they do not care for it, do not understand it, therefore it is māyāra vaibhava.
Just like qualitatively the sunshine and the sun is hot, warm, similarly, you are also the same spiritual energy, or this whole world is spiritual energy, nothing but... There is nothing but spiritual... Sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. Everything is Brahman. But how to realize it? If everything is Brahman, then why we are separating, "This is material, this is spiritual"? This is māyā. This is called māyā. Māyā means illusion or forgetfulness. How it happens? It happens just like the sunshine is covered by cloud. Sunshine is covered by cloud—not all the sunshine. An insignificant part of the sunshine is sometimes covered by the cloud. And when it is covered by the cloud, there are so many inconveniences. Just like you say in New York when you find a sunshine in the sky, you say, "Oh, today is very nice." Why nice? Because the pure sky is open. Therefore it is very nice. And so long it is over, covered by cloud, you don't find so happy. Similarly, if you can, I mean to say, drive away the cloud of ignorance, then you actually becoming Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Cloud of ignorance. And what is that cloud of ignorance? The cloud of ignorance is that "I am the enjoyer." The first beginning of cloud of ignorance... (end)
So let me become renounced of all this worldly relationship and try to be one with the Brahman." That is Māyāvāda philosophy. We don't say that. We say that because Brahman is satya, truth, and because the world is created by Brahman, so this is also truth. This is also truth. Pūrṇam idaṁ pūrṇam adaḥ pūrṇāt pūrṇam udacyate (Īśopaniṣad, Invocation). That is the version of Upaniṣad. The thing is, difference between Māyāvādī and Vaiṣṇava, they do not know the proprietorship. We know the proprietorship. We don't accept anything as "I am the proprietor." This is mistake. This is māyā. Actually... If I take, "It is Kṛṣṇa's," then I am liberated. Just try to understand. You are sitting here. You know that this apartment or this loft belongs to somebody. So there is no harm sitting here, hearing here. But if you think that "This is mine," and if you want you take something out of this, then there is trouble. Similarly, this world belongs to Kṛṣṇa. If you have always that consciousness that it belongs to Kṛṣṇa... Just like a bank cashier. He knows that millions of dollars is coming to him, but he knows that "This is belonging to the bank. I am simply cashier.
So one has to get out of this entanglement, material entanglement. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170). And how one can become purified? Tat-paratvena, when he identifies himself, ahaṁ brahmāsmi, "I am servant of Kṛṣṇa. I am Brahman, I am pure self. I'm not matter. I'm not this body." This is the stage of purification. And when one is purified, then hṛṣīkena hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate. Hṛṣīka means senses. So mind is also one of the senses. There are eleven senses. Five senses gathering knowledge and five senses working, and mind is the center. So mind is also accepted as sense. So hṛṣīkena hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam (CC Madhya 19.170). When your purified senses are applied in the service of the master of the senses, Hṛṣīkeśa, that is called bhakti. This is the definition of bhakti. So mind required there. You are thinking that "I shall decorate Kṛṣṇa in such a way." That is a function of mind. And as soon as you think that "I shall decorate my such and such person in this way," that is māyā. So mind is there. Sometimes it is acting for māyā, and when it is acting for Kṛṣṇa then it is purified. So in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness nothing has to be eradicated. Everything has to be purified. This is the Kṛṣṇa consciousness process. Yes?
So we should simply pray, "Kindly engage me in Your service in whatever capacity You like." I have got my own desire, so Kṛṣṇa gives us freedom: "In whichever capacity you want to serve Me, I shall accept, either as servant, either as friend, either as father, mother, or either as conjugal lover." Any way, Kṛṣṇa is ready to accept our service. And He does not require any service, but if we render service, that is our benefit. That is required. And this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement it teaching that "Try to serve Kṛṣṇa." That is the beginning of teaching of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Jivera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). They are trying to be master. That is māyā. It is not possible to become māyā, er, master. You cannot become master. If you think that you are going to be master, that is māyā.
- prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
- guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
- ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
- kartāham iti manyate
- (BG 3.27)
They think like that, but nobody can be master. But the fools, rascals, they want to become master, and when they fail, then they want to become one with the God, the supreme master. This is going on. They are all māyā, illusion. The real life is to remain eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa and offer service to Him to the best capacity. That is perfection of life.
So when we imitate Kṛṣṇa—we want to be complete in ourself without the help of Kṛṣṇa—this is called māyā. Māyā means that we want to imitate Kṛṣṇa. That is going on, material world. Therefore you'll find these Māyāvādīs... (aside:) Who is that? Take him out. The Māyāvādīs, they persist on this point, that "I am God." The māyā is working there. Māyā is working there still, although he is thinking that "I am now liberated. I have become Nārāyaṇa." Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. He is thinking that "I am God." That means he is in the darkest region of māyā, and still, he is thinking that he's liberated. He is thinking what he's not. At the present moment, you'll find, the whole world is filled up with these rascals. They are in the deepest region of māyā and concocting that he is God, he is God. This is māyā. Therefore it is said, māyā manaḥ. The māyā manaḥ is so strong that māyā manaḥ sṛjati karmamayaṁ balīyaḥ. Very strong. His material existence began from this point, that "Why shall I serve Kṛṣṇa? I shall remain independent." But the rascal does not know that he cannot become independent. That is not possible. But this is the beginning of material life. "Why shall I accept God? I am God." So the same thing is continuing in different phases.
The same thing is repeatedly reminded. Māyā... We are niṣpīḍyamānam. We are being crushed by the wheel of time with sixteen spokes. We are being crushed. At the same time, we are thinking that we are very happy. This is called māyā. This is māyā's grace, that in any condition of life, the suffering is very, very acute, but the living entity who is suffering, he thinks, "I am enjoying." This is called māyā. You have seen that the pig eats stool. And when we see, we say, "Ah! What is that? Oh! He is eating stool." But he's thinking that he's enjoying. He is thinking he's enjoying. This is the covering influence of māyā, prakṣepātmika-śakti. Otherwise how one can suffer? The worm in the stool is enjoying. If you take one worm from the stool and keep it aside, he'll again go to the stool. This is māyā, prakṣepātmika-śak..., āvaraṇātmika-śakti, covering. Māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43).
That there is no such thing to become master. It is useless. You cannot become master. Ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate (BG 3.27). You cannot become master. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). Either man or woman, everyone is servant of Kṛṣṇa. We have to be trained up in that platform, how to become the best servant, not only servant directly, but servants, of the servant. This is called paramparā servant. My spiritual master is the servant of his spiritual master, and I am also servant of my spiritual master. Similarly, we think "servant of the servant." There is no question of becoming... This is material disease (CC Madhya 13.80).
- kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vāñchā kāre
- pāsate māyā tāre jāpatīyā dhāre
As soon as we become puffed up—"Now I shall become master. I shall be simply giving order. I shall not follow anyone"—that is māyā.
You can milk morning and evening to a certain extent, but there the cows are surabhī. Surabhī means you can milk as many times as you like, and as much milk as you want, you can take it. But these things are there. But we have no information. We are struggling here. Manaḥ-ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati (BG 15.7). Because we are fools and rascals, we are trying to make some adjustment here. That is not possible. It is duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). This is māyā. We are trying to be happy in this material... It will never be possible. But these fools and rascals, they do not know. They are making big, big plans how to become happy, how to become, "In our country, in our home, in our society, in our family," and so on, so on, so on. This means we are simply becoming entangled. Ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittair janasya moho 'yam, ahaṁ moha (SB 5.5.8), illusion. It will never be possible. Therefore, the conclusion is, we should fully surrender, cent percent to Kṛṣṇa, and then we become happy. Saṁsevayā surataror iva te prasādaḥ.
So we living entities, we are eternal. This is māyā, that I am thinking, "I am this body." This is our ignorance. So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to deliver the human society from this ignorance, temporary things: "I am this body. This is my country. This is my wife. This is my children. This is... This is mine. This is—ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8). I am this body, and anything in reference with the body is mine." But actually there is no such thing. This is called māyā. Real thing is, the reality is, Kṛṣṇa, Brahman, Para-brahman. All other things... Therefore Vedic injunction is, "Don't try to remain in this temporary situation." Asato mā sad gamaḥ: "Don't remain this..." But we are so ignorant, our present civilization is so foolish, that they do not know what is sat and what is asat. They want to stay in the asat. They want to make arrangement to stay in this asat, temporary things, forgetting that however nicely you make arrangement in this temporary material world, you'll not be allowed to stay. This is our ignorance. Mūḍha nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam. Kṛṣṇa says, "These rascals, mūḍha, they do not know what is the permanent stage, sanātana." That is wanted. That is human knowledge. One should know the permanent, not be bewildered by the temporary things. That is ignorance.
So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that "Everything, variety, is there, but..." Tvaṁ vā idaṁ sad-asad bhavān: "Except Yourself, to conceive anything else, that 'Beyond Kṛṣṇa there is anything,' that is māyā." That is māyā, illusion. There is nothing except Kṛṣṇa. Therefore those who are advanced devotees, they do not see anything, simply Kṛṣṇa in everywhere. Sthāvara-jaṅgama dekhe nā dekhe tāra mūrti, sarvatra sphūraya tāñra iṣṭa-deva mūrti (CC Madhya 8.274). A devotee sees a tree, but he does not see the tree. He sees: "It is Kṛṣṇa's energy." Immediately he remembers Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. When every step you'll simple see Kṛṣṇa, that is Kṛṣṇa... That is possible, provided you follow the footstep of Prahlāda Mahārāja. That will be possible. Or devotees. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). That is the way. If you speculate nonsensically, it will be not possible. If you follow the devotees, mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ, then you'll be successful.
We are prakṛti. Prakṛti means under the control of the puruṣa. That is natural. We cannot conceive equal rights of puruṣa and prakṛti. That is not Vedic conception. Vedic conception is puruṣa, the superior, Supreme, and prakṛti means subordinate. Puruṣa is predominator, and prakṛti is predominated. So we living entities, we are prakṛti. Falsely if we try to become puruṣa, that is māyā. We should remain prakṛti, subservient, predominated. That is this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Because generally the people are misled, thinking himself as puruṣa, "I am the enjoyer." But that is not the fact. That false ego, that "I am enjoyer," that is false ego. And real ego is "I am servant of Kṛṣṇa." So there is no necessity of giving up egotism or egoism, but it must be real. At the present moment we are falsely thinking, "I am this body," every one of us. There is no argument. The whole material world is going on on the basis of this false conception that "I am this body." And because I am this body, therefore "I am American," "I am Indian." So this is false ego.
It is a very good example. In the previous verse Prahlāda Mahārāja explained, naitan manas tava kathāsu vikuṇṭha-nātha samprīyate durita-duṣṭam asādhu tīvram. So Kṛṣṇa-kathā is not palatable. This is māyā's influence. So we cannot engage our senses for Kṛṣṇa. This is the disturbing condition of material world. Senses are there, I am there, and how the senses should be utilized, the subject matter is also there, but it is misled. This is called māyā. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). We are eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. So what is the business of the servant? The business of the servant is to carry out the order of the master. So the senses are... I am the body—taking for the time being—and my senses, hands, legs, eyes, ears, tongue, genital, so many, ten senses, they are working senses and knowledge-gathering senses. There are so many senses. So if I am servant of Kṛṣṇa, then my senses should be always ready to serve Kṛṣṇa. This is real position. But we are not doing that. We shall wait, that "If I serve Kṛṣṇa, then where is the opportunity for my living condition?" No. There is good opportunity. Just like we want to eat. That is the first problem.
Prahlāda Mahārāja, śoce tato vimukha-cetasa māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān: (SB 7.9.43) "My Lord, I am thinking that these rascals, simply for flimsy happiness, temporary happiness, they are making so gorgeous arrangement." Big, big road, big, big building, big, big car, congested. If you want to go one mile it will take two hours. Māyā-sukhāya. We have seen in your country. You'll go two miles in a car in three hours. So what is the use of this car? In London I have seen. I was going. It was about two miles, and it was so congested that it took two hours. Paris is always congested. So in India also they are becoming like that. So this is māyā-sukhāya. They are thinking that "Getting a car, we shall be very, very happy," but there is no place to drive car. (laughter) Therefore it is called māyā-sukhāya. And for manufacturing this car there are three thousand parts. So many factories are going on for that. Who was telling me that within a few minutes a car is prepared in the Ford's factory? Somebody was telling. They bring the different parts of the car and mix and assemble them within half an hour. That means each half hour they are manufacturing car.
The Lord is puruṣa, the male. The Lord, the Supreme Truth, absolute cannot be female. Just like so many others, Māyāvādī philosophers, they think that the Supreme Absolute Truth can be female. No. He can be female, but the real form is puṁsaḥ. Just like Arjuna accepts the Absolute, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān, puruṣaṁ śāśvataṁ (BG 10.12). The Lord is puruṣa, He is not female. Here also puṁsaḥ. Another meaning of puruṣa means "enjoyer." Just like we have got experience that the male is considered to be the enjoyer and the female is considered to be the enjoyed; although in this material world everyone is under illusion, everyone is thinking that he is the enjoyer or she is the enjoyer. So long we have got this false identification that "I am enjoyer," that is māyā. We are not enjoyer. We are enjoyed. That is real philosophy. Therefore, it is said parasya puṁsaḥ, predominated. We are not predominator. That is liberation.
So this spiritual life means to come to the original position where everything will be tasty, everything will be tasty. Rādhā kṛṣṇa-praṇaya-vikṛtir hlādinī śaktir asmād ekātmānāv api deha-bhedaṁ gatau tau (CC Adi 1.5). Then we can understand what is spiritual life, what is spiritual love. So... But the material things cannot help us. That is the statement of..., nārādhanāya hi bhavanti parasya puṁso. Parasya puṁsaḥ. Not this material person—parasya. He is transcendental puruṣa, not puruṣa like us. Today this life I have got a dress of a puruṣa, next life I can get a dress of a female. Because here all are living entities, they are prakṛti. Actually they are prakṛti, but they are falsely dressed as puruṣa. Falsely dressed. Jīva-bhūtaṁ mahā-bāho (BG 7.5). They are superior, superior energy, superior prakṛti, but they are not puruṣa. So the Māyāvādī theory that by salvation means he becomes one with the Supreme. One with the Supreme, how it is possible? The Supreme is puruṣa and I am prakṛti. There must be difference between puruṣa and prakṛti. The prakṛti cannot..., a female cannot artificially become a male. That is not possible. And because we are trying artificially to become the supreme male, therefore, that is māyā. That is māyā. Māyā means which is not fact. Mā-yā, it is false. So falsely we are trying to be puruṣa, enjoyer. This whole world is struggling to become puruṣa, enjoyer, everyone. Nation-wide, society-wide, they are trying to be puruṣa.
Nectar of Devotion Lectures
Please come, sit down and hear. But in the hearing process, there is so many impediments, māyā. Just like people are coming here to hear, but there has been impediment: "Oh, sir, our lift if being to much used. The electric supply will cut off." Māyā is always there. They will, I mean to say, spend electric energy in so many ways, that is not loss. But people were coming for half an hour and one hour, gentlemen, "No. Electricity will be spoiled." This is māyā. Māyā is always after this checking process. So we have to fight against the māyā, then we come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That fighting determination must be there. Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). One must be determined. So māyā may check my progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but I must fight māyā. This determination wanted. Dṛḍha-vratāḥ. Bhajante māṁ dṛḍha-vratāḥ. That is wanted. "All right let me do. All right, not. That's all right. Let me do my business." No. One must be very serious. Dṛḍha-vratāḥ. Dṛḍha-vratāḥ and firmly convinced. These things are required to revive your Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Otherwise it is very easy.
So this world, however faithfully you give service, it will be never recognized—because it is hallucination, illusion. You are serving your senses. You are not serving any person. You are serving your senses. So when one comes to this position, he understands that "I am actually servant, but I am posing myself falsely as master." That is real sense. Then whose servant I am? I am Kṛṣṇa's servant. Therefore Kṛṣṇa comes and demands: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). We have forgotten that. We have forgotten Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's service. That is māyā. Therefore Kṛṣṇa comes again and again as Himself, as a devotee, or he sends His servitors, His Vaiṣṇava, to preach this cult, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that "Educate people to serve Kṛṣṇa, to serve Me." Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. We are also preaching this cult, that "You serve Kṛṣṇa." Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). We are preaching this cult. So we are not manufacture anything. This Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is nothing concocted. It is fact. Everyone is servant, but at the present moment he's serving māyā. So, instead of serving māyā, let him serve Kṛṣṇa, the original Personality of Godhead. This is the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
Kṛṣṇa says that "You simply try to serve Me. Offer Me little water, little flower, little leaf." Anyone. Universal. Anyone can collect little water, little flower or little leaf and offer to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is prepared to accept your service in that way. What ms the difficulty to serve Kṛṣṇa? But they will not do. This is māyā.
So one has to make his determination. Ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-śīlanam (CC Madhya 19.167). This bhakti... Ānukūlyena means Kṛṣṇa wants. You serve. You supply. This is ānukūla. Now He says, Kṛṣṇa: man-manā bhava mad-bhakta. Now you become always engaged in thinking of Kṛṣṇa. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare... That is man-manā, always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. Because thinking of Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa, there is no difference. Kṛṣṇa is absolute. As soon as you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, as soon as you remember Kṛṣṇa, that means Kṛṣṇa is on your tongue, dancing. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa...
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
Bingo. (laughter) Yes. So this is māyā. And our declaration of war with māyā—no intoxication, no meat-eating, no bingo—(laughter) these are our declaration of war. So we have to fight in that way because nobody can understand Kṛṣṇa without being free from all sinful activities. These are sinful activities. Therefore it is ācārya's business to stop these nonsense activities. Otherwise they'll not be able to understand, especially the meat-eaters. They cannot understand.
- nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānād
- bhavauṣadhi chrotra-mano 'bhirāmāt
- ka uttamaśloka-guṇānuvādāt
- pumān virajyeta vinā paśughnāt
- (SB 10.1.4)
Unless one is very expert in killing animals, he's not bereft from Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That means one who is very expert in killing, he cannot understand. Therefore Christ also said, "Thou shall not kill," the first business. Nobody will be able if one is a killer of animal, small or big, ultimately killer of his own children, killer of his own self. The killing process is so nice that it goes up to the point of killing one's children. That is now happening. Killing business has so expanded that they are killing their own children. Just see the influence of Kali-yuga. The children, they take shelter of the father and mother, thinking very safe. Now, in this Kali-yuga, even there is no safety under the care of father and mother. Just see how this material civilization is progressing. Very, very dangerous. Kalau naṣṭa-dṛśām.
o māyā is very strong. Although it is necessary, māyā is always dictating that it is not necessary. The real necessity is materialistic way of life, this is māyā's dictation. Māyā... We are now given a chance of māyā's jurisdiction. So māyā wants to punish us more and more, because we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa. Great punishment.
- kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vāñchā kare
- pāsate māyā tāre jāpaṭīyā dhare
Māyā means to give sufficient punishment to the living entities who have forgotten Kṛṣṇa and wants to enjoy material life independently. They are called conditioned soul. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). This conditioned life means we accept one type of body, we suffer sufficiently. It is simply suffering. There is no enjoyment. Where is enjoyment? To remain in the womb of the mother for ten months, is that enjoyment? Packed up in airtight bag? Just imagine, if you were put in airtight bag at the present moment, within three seconds you will die. You cannot live without air, even for three seconds. This is our position.
That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or God consciousness. God is one. You are also one because you are part and parcel. But you have created your struggle for existence because you are thinking otherwise without Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati (BG 15.7). Because you have created different types of mind, different types of desires, and you are trying to fulfill it, that is called struggle for existence. Otherwise you are existing eternally, and your consciousness is one: think of Kṛṣṇa. But because you are doing not, not doing that, therefore there is struggle. That is māyā. That is māyā. Otherwise there is no question of struggling. Everything is there, plain and simple.
So that is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We are preaching that God is one and to think of God is also one and to become obedient servant of God, that is also one. Not that you have to become a different servant, I have to become different ser... Everyone is servant originally. So we accept to serve God. Then our religion is there; our fulfillment of desires are there. Therefore the author said, mat-sarvasva-padāmbhojau: "That is my everything. To take shelter of Rādhā-Madana-mohana, that is my everything. I have no other desire." This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
That is sambandha. Sambandha, abhidheya, prayojana. At the present moment, in our conditioned stage of life, we have forgotten our relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is our conditional life. Just like a son has forgotten his father, rich father, opulent father, and loitering in the street, that is our condition. We are all sons of Kṛṣṇa, part and parcel, and Kṛṣṇa is full of six opulences. Richness, strength, influence, beauty, knowledge, renunciation—Kṛṣṇa is complete. If my father is complete, and I am his son, beloved son, why shall I loiter in the street? This is māyā. We are thinking that we are made of something of these material elements: "I am this body. The body is made of this material element," bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). So this is our manda-mati. Manda means bad. This conception, bodily conception of life, is the cause of our conditional life, subjected to the stringent laws of material nature. This is our position.
Just like a diseased man. He is always drinking bitter medicine, lying on the bed and passing stool in the bed. Very miserable condition. So he wants to commit suicide. So he cannot understand that after being cured from the disease, he will eat very nicely, he will lie down on the bed very nicely, he will no..., have no miserable condition of life. He cannot understand. He says, "Again lying down on the bed and again eating? Oh, this is māyā." They do not know that. Therefore they are called poor fund of knowledge. They think that by avoiding this līlā, making minus, making void, making zero, we become liberated. No, that is not liberated. That is a disgusted negation only. And as soon as I am disgusted with something, I want to make it "No." Just like sometimes a man commits suicide. He thinks that "This life is simply disgusting. So finish this life." So Māyāvādī philosophy is like that. They want to finish this. But finishing, then what you are accepting? That they do not know. Therefore they are Śūnyavādī, Nirviśeṣavādī. If there is life... Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Simply by committing suicide, how you'll be happy? Because tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). You'll have to accept another body. Either you commit suicide or die naturally, you have to accept. But if you accept natural death and natural body, then your karma kṣaya, you annihilate your karma, but if you commit suicide, then you become ghost. Because nature's punishment. You got a body and you neglected it, so you now you become, remain without body. That is ghost. Ghost means who does not possess this material body, but he has got the subtle body. That is ghost.
Whenever there is sun, oh, the molecules of sunshine is also there. Similarly, we are molecules of the Supreme. Therefore whenever the Supreme is there, we are also there. Therefore we are also Purāṇa. And puruṣa. Puruṣa means the tendency of becoming enjoyer. So that tendency we have also got. But we do not know that we can enjoy in cooperation with the Supreme because we are subordinate. Differently, we cannot enjoy. As soon as we make our plan to enjoy life differently with Kṛṣṇa, then we fall under the clutches of māyā. We cannot do that. Therefore we have to revive our consciousness that we agree to cooperate with Kṛṣṇa. That will give us ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt. Just like if you want to enjoy your life, some way or other, if you can secure a very nice service in the government, oh, your life is fulfilled. But if you want to enjoy your life separately... The government is all-powerful. If you become a departmental secretary, oh, immediately you get five thousand dollars and everything is all right. Similarly, some way or other, if you can become a secretary of Kṛṣṇa, then your all problems solved. Don't try to enjoy independently. That is māyā. That is māyā.
Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). That is the real identity of jīva. He's eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. So as soon as you accept that position, you are liberated. That is your natural position. You are constitutionally a servant. Artificially, you are thinking, "I am master." That is māyā.
- kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vāñchā kare
- pāsate māyā tare japatīyā dhare
Why you are..., we have come in contact with māyā? Because artificially we're thinking that "I am the lord." Everyone is trying to be lord here in this material world. And when he's frustrated, he says, "Oh, it is false." Nobody is master. Everyone is servant. Try to understand this fact. Who is not a servant here? Is anyone, that "I am not servant, anyone's servant"? Everyone is servant. If anyone has nothing to serve, he keeps a dog and cat and becomes servant of the dog and cat. I have seen in America. He has no family responsibility; still, he keeps a dog and serves whole day, and he says, "The dog is the best friend." Because you want to serve. That is your attitude. That is your constitutional position. You want to serve; you want to love somebody. And if is misplaced, that is māyā. When it is properly done, that is liberation.
Now I have become servant of dog and māyā. So if I give up this service and again become servant of God, that is mukti. That is mukti. Muktir hitvānyathā rūpam. We are trying to become... Here māyā means "which is not." Ma-ya. We are every one of us, we are thinking, "I am master." "I am the monarch of all I survey." Here is a poetry. Everyone is thinking. I made my plan, I make my survey, and I become king. But that is māyā. You cannot become. You are already servant of māyā.
- prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
- guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
- ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
- kartāham iti manyate
- (BG 3.27)
Everyone is under the clutches of these material laws. You cannot violate even an inch. And still the rascal, ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā, by false prestige, he's thinking that "I am the master." I was asking this morning that what is this independence meaning? Actually, where is independence? This independence, has it meaning? If you are completely under the rules and regulations of the material nature, what is the meaning of this independence? So those who are paṇḍita, they do not take it as independence. They do not take it.
So anyway, this Sanātana Gosvāmī, he is approaching Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu very humbly and tolerantly, putting himself that he is fool number one. Yes. Grāmya-vyavahāre kahaye paṇḍita: "These general people, they do not know what is a paṇḍita, but they call Me paṇḍitajī, but actually I know what kind of paṇḍita I am. I do not know what I am." Grāmya-vyavahāre paṇḍita satya kari māni. So his first proposal is, ke āmi kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya: "What is my position? What I am? I do not want to suffer, but in this material world, three kinds of suffering are always there, and they are giving me trouble." This consciousness is not there. People have become so dull-headed that they are always suffering by three kinds of suffering: adhyātmika, adhibhautika and adhidaivika; still, they are thinking they are very happy. This is called māyā. This morning we were discussing. Āvaraṇātmikā-śakti. Māyā has got a covering power so that everyone, even he's a cat and dog, he's thinking that he is very happy. This is māyā. Nobody can be happy in this material world. That is the fact. Why? Kṛṣṇa says. The creator of this world, He says, duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam: (BG 8.15) "It is the place for suffering.
So this is māyā. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayi mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). We are under the rulings of the māyā. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). Why? Because we are declaring master. Servant is declaring to become master; therefore suffering. And as soon as we accept that "I am not master; I am servant," then there is no suffering. Very simple philosophy. That is mukti. Mukti means just come to the right platform. That is mukti. Mukti is defined in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, muktir hitvā anyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ (SB 2.10.6). Mukti means to give up this nonsense business, anyathā. He is servant, but he's thinking master. That is ankatha (?), just the opposite. So when he gives up this opposite conception of life that he is master, then he is mukti; he's liberated immediately. Mukti does not take so much time that you have to undergo so much severe austerities and go to the jungle and go to the Himalaya and meditate and press your nose and so many things. It doesn't require so many things.
Bhakti means to understand that "I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa." This conviction is possible when one is brahma-bhūtaḥ. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati. Brahma-bhūta means "I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa," as it is said, sūryāṁśa-kiraṇa, yaiche agni-jvālā-caya, svābhāvika kṛṣṇera... Oh... When one understands this, that "I am... My position is eternal servant," that is brahma-bhūta (SB 4.30.20). Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54). Then undoubtedly he becomes immediately jubilant, that "Now I have got my real master to serve. I am serving so many, I mean, items, in the family, in the society, in the community, in the nation. But I could not be satisfied. Neither I am..., persons to whom I have given my service, they are also not satisfied." This is wrong service. Nobody is satisfied. The so-called master is not satisfied, and the so-called servant is not satisfied. The so-called servant means that "Unless you pay me, I am not going to serve you." Strike. "I am your master. You pay me. Then I shall serve you." So nobody is servant actually. Everyone wants to become master, either collectively or individually. That is māyā. This is material world. And when one understands that he is not a master—he is servant—and the real master is Kṛṣṇa, that is liberation.
So these are facts. These are not stories. But foolish people, they have no knowledge or Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Be in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. All your material necessities will be... But don't be extravagant. Take only whatever you need to maintain your body and soul together and execute this... Make this primary and other things secondary. Kṛṣṇa will supply you. But if you want to make your sense gratification, if you want to accept more than what you need, then you'll be in trouble. That is māyā. So Kṛṣṇa has provided for everyone, everything. There is no need of being anxious. But that does not mean that I shall feel, "Oh, I shall do everything and anything." No.
This is mukti. "You surrender unto Me, and immediately I save you." Sarva-pāpebhyo... Because we become entangled by our sinful activities... There are all sinful activities, that "I am independent. I can do whatever I like. I am as good as God. I am God," or "I am God. Where is the difference for me? I can do anything. There is no question of sinful activities." Some of the big, big swamis, they lecture like that, that "Why you are thinking of sinful activities? You are God. There is no sin for you." They are preaching like that, that "You have no sin." And it is very easy to think. That is māyā. Na māṁ prapadyante mūḍhāḥ (BG 7.15). Therefore these sinful persons who are thinking like that, that "I am God. I have no sinful activities. I am independent. I can do whatever I like," they have been described in the Bhagavad-gītā as duṣkṛtina, duṣkṛtina. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15).
So here it is said, vilajjamānayā yasya sthātum īkṣā-pathe 'muyā. Why? Vimohitā vikatthante. And illusioned by that māyā, vikatthante, talks like a madman. What is that? Mamāham iti durdhiyaḥ. The foolish conditioned souls are absorbed in two things: "I am," and "mine." "It is my, it is I am." "I am the lord of all I survey," or "This is my country, this is my society, this is my body, this is my son, this is my children, this is my home." This is..., this is the absorption. Although nothing belongs to him—in a moment's notice everything finished—but still he's so much vikatthante. "O my society, my country, my father, my mother." So many, "Mine, mine." Nothing belongs to him, but he says always, "Mine, mine." "My" and "I." This is māyā.
If somebody gives up the path of devotional service, kliśyanti ye kevala-bodha-labdhaye, and wastes time simply for understanding that "This is not Brahman, this is not Brahman..." That is the way of Māyāvādī philosophers. They scrutinize that "This is māyā and this is Brahman"; therefore they are called Māyāvādīs. Simply, what is not Brahman... They say it is one, but simply they distinguish, "This is māyā, this is Brahman." Why this is māyā? They say, wherefrom the māyā comes? Then it becomes dualism actually. Although they say that "We are monists, one," but they explain that this māyā is illusion. Māyā is temporary, and actually, everything is one. Eko brahma dvitīya nāsti. But the Vaiṣṇava philosophy is that "Yes... It is..." It is called viśiṣṭādvaitavāda. We also say, "Yes, one," but one in variety. There are varieties. We don't say that māyā is something external. Māyā is there. Māyā is there. It is not external. It may be inferior, as it is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā that material energy, the material nature is inferior. That does not mean infer... Some part of my body is inferior. That does not mean it has no existence. It is not mithyā. They say everything mithyā. Mithyā means false. So inferior part of my body there may be, but it is not false. Similarly, the māyā, māyā is not false. It is temporary.
So the Bhāgavata says, simply to understand "This is not Brahman, this is māyā, this is not Brahman," if you go on speculating and without any interest for devotional service or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then teṣām eṣa kleśala eva śiṣyate. So their advancement in self-realization is simply troublesome. Troublesome. They simply take the trouble of discriminating that "This is māyā, this is Brahman. This is false, this is reality." Because they have no other engagement. For a devotee there are so many engagements, but the Māyāvādī philosopher takes it for granted that these devotees' activities... "They are cooking for Kṛṣṇa or they are offering prasādam to Kṛṣṇa, they are decorating Kṛṣṇa, or they are singing for Kṛṣṇa, glorifying Kṛṣṇa—these are all mayic activities," they say. Because this bhakti-mārga is not appealing to them. They simply want to... Similarly, the bhaktas also say that "You are simply wasting time. Real thing is Kṛṣṇa. Just engage yourself in the service of Kṛṣṇa." They also say, "Kṛṣṇa is also māyā." According to them, Kṛṣṇa is also māyā. And Kṛṣṇa in Bhagavad-gītā says that they are fools.
Sri Isopanisad Lectures
So I also came for that purpose, because our modern India has rejected spiritual knowledge. They are thinking that if they can imitate Westernized technology, then they will be happy. This is māyā. They do not see that those who are advanced three hundred times more than us in technology, what they have got? They do not see that. India cannot advance in technology like America or Europe at least for three hundred years more, because in these Western countries they have taken this business since a very long time, but Indian culture, beginning from the creation, is spiritual culture. Vyāsadeva... Just see Vyāsadeva. He is the original guru, spiritual master, of Vedic knowledge. How he was living? In a cottage in Badarikāśrama. But just see his knowledge. He has written so many Purāṇas, and Bhāgavata-Purāṇa is one of them. The Vedānta philosophy, Mahābhārata, each and every verse if you study, you can study for the whole life. Similarly, in some book he has written 100,000's of verses, not less than 20,000, 25,000 verses. And each verse is so full of meaning that one has to learn it throughout his whole life. This is Vedic culture.
Sri Brahma-samhita Lectures
So people sometimes envy us. Gargamuni was telling in Los Angeles that this, some dealers, neighboring dealers, they were asking, "How you get money? You are living in such a nice place and you are eating so nice. Where you get money?" They are envious. So I told Gargamuni that why don't you ask them to come and join? You also eat and dance. Why you are working so hard? That will, they'll not do. This is māyā. This is māyā. My Guru Mahārāja used to say that "The whole country or the city, whole men, let them in, let them come here. I shall provide them with food." But they will not do.
Festival Lectures
āma means the ramanīyā, the beautiful, or the enjoyer, rāmākhyam. And jagad-īśvaram. And He is the master or the proprietor of the whole universes. Sura-gurum. Sura means the demigods and gurum is spiritual master. Sura-gurum. Just like Arjuna is sura, and his guru is Kṛṣṇa. Vyāsadeva, his guru, Nārada; Nārada's guru is Brahmā; Brahmā's guru is Kṛṣṇa. So sura-gurum. māyā-manusyam. And when He appears as human being, that is māyā. māyā means actually He is not an ordinary man. He is the Supreme Personality of God, but the rascals they think that "Because Rāma and Kṛṣṇa has appeared like one of us, He is a man, He's an ordinary man." This is the version of the rascals. That Rāma, especially there is a class who are known as Ārya-samājīs. They do not agree that the Supreme Person can, Supreme God can appear as Rāma and Kṛṣṇa. They do not know that although He appeared as one of us in the form of human body, He is not a human being. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore it is called rāmākhya, māyā mānuṣya hari. He is the Hari... Hari means the Supreme Personality of Godhead who can give you all pleasure, taking all your miserable condition. He is Hari.
So "Forgotten Kṛṣṇa, we fallen souls, pay most heavy the illusion's toll." Because we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa we are paying heavy, heavy toll, tax, taxation. What is that taxation? The taxation is nivartante mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani (BG 9.3). This human life is meant for understanding Kṛṣṇa, but instead of understanding Kṛṣṇa, we are understanding the so-called material science for sense gratification. This is our position. The energy which was given by nature to understand Kṛṣṇa, that is being utilized how to manufacture something for sense gratification. This is going on. This is māyā, illusion. Therefore it is, "Pay most heavy the illusion's toll." Toll tax. That we are paying because we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa; therefore now we have manufactured the nuclear weapon—Russia, America—and you will have to pay heavily. They are already paying heavily. The armament preparation is going on. More than fifty percent of the income of the state are now being spent for this arm..., heavily. Instead of other purposes, it is being spent for military strength, every state. So that heavy toll we are paying. And when there is war there is no limit how much we are spending for this devastation. So why? Because we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa. This is a fact.
So we have to give up this renouncement or enjoyment. We have to take the real position, that "Everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa, or God. We have simply to serve Kṛṣṇa." That is bhakti-yoga. That will give you actual peace. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ. Kṛṣṇa is the supreme enjoyer. You simply supply ingredients of His enjoyment; then you'll be happy. Because He is enjoyer. And bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). And He is the proprietor. So this attitude... Of course, they may criticize that "The bhaktas, the Vaiṣṇavas, they have got slave mentality." Some so-called philosopher remarked like that. But that is not slave mentality. That is the actual position. That we get information from Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). We are eternally servant of Kṛṣṇa. And mukti means svarūpenāvasthitiḥ. When you are situated as servant of Kṛṣṇa, that is mukti. And so long you are falsely claiming that "I am enjoyer, I am proprietor," that is māyā. That is our philosophy. And Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for that.
Arrival Addresses and Talks
This Hare Kṛṣṇa means "O the energy of Kṛṣṇa, O Kṛṣṇa, please engage me in Your service. I have given service to this material world so much, but I could not satisfy the master, neither I am satisfied." Everyone is serving society, friendship, love, family, country, but none of them are satisfied. None of them sat... Even your President, he could not satisfy you. You had to drag him down. Neither he could satisfy himself. Even Gandhi could not satisfy his countrymen. Although he gave so much service, he was shot dead. So this is the material world. You cannot satisfy anyone, neither you become satisfied, materially engaged. This is called material world. We may show some artificial satisfaction, but there cannot be satisfaction in the material world. First of all, you have to take it as axiomatic truth that there is no happiness and there cannot be any satisfaction in this material world. Then you'll make, spiritually advance. If you have got little faith still that "I can be satisfied; I can be happy materially," then that is māyā's influence. That is māyā's influence. There is no possibility.
Initiation Lectures
So you have to engage yourself, brahma-karma, means Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And exhibit your quality, that you are truthful, you are controlling control over the senses, control over the mind, and you are simple, and you are tolerant. Because as soon as you take up spiritual life, the whole class conducted by māyā, they will be against you. That is māyā's influence. Somebody will criticize. Somebody will do this, somebody will do that, but we shall... We have to become tolerant. This is the disease of this material world. If anyone becomes spiritually advanced, the agents of māyā will criticize. So therefore you have to become tolerant. And simple, simplicity. Ārjavam, titikṣa ārjavam, and jñāna, and you must be fully equipped with knowledge. The Bhagavad-gītā is there, the Śrīmad-Bhāgavata is there. Now we are publishing other books also, Teachings of Lord Caitanya. So read them. These three or four books, if you read, you become fully qualified with knowledge. And vijñānam, and apply them in your practical life. And āstikyam, in full faith of the procedures and in Kṛṣṇa. That will make you successful. All right. Get up. (japa) (break) Come forward. Now you keep your mālikā, mālā, down. You have to offer it.(?) (knocking noises) Take little, this. Nama.
This hand is supplying sweetballs to the stomach. So this hand is satisfied; this hand also satisfied. And this head is also satisfied; the leg is also satisfied. You see? Similarly, anyone who serves Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, being satisfied... Tasmin tuṣṭe jagat tuṣṭam. Just (like) I pour water on the root. The branches, the leaves, the flowers, the fruits and everything, they will immediately... Pay tax to the government, central government. The tax is distributed—the education department, municipal department, this department, that department. Therefore the people are missing the center. They are trying to satisfy one another, but nobody is satisfied. And by illusion they cannot understand this mistake. Everyone is very much proud: "Oh, I am serving my country." And he does not know what somebody, his countrymen, will come and kill him. You see? He does not know that. This is māyā. So one should be intelligent to serve Kṛṣṇa. This prayer Hare Kṛṣṇa means "Kṛṣṇa, I am so much harassed by this service of this māyā. Now please engage me in Your service." This is our prayer. And as soon as I am engaged in Kṛṣṇa's service, then I will be satisfied, Kṛṣṇa will be satisfied, and the whole world will be satisfied. So nobody should interpret any other way. This is direct meaning. Nāmna artha-vādaḥ. Or to imagine some meaning. No imagination. It is all direct interpretation or direct meaning.
So this is the opportunity to... You are part and parcel of God. Don't try to become artificially like God. That is not possible. That will be simply waste of energy. This is māyā. Everyone under the spell of māyā, they are working very hard. Why? Everyone is trying to become God: "I shall be the great man of this country," or "My country shall be the greatest country in the world." That means God is great, and everyone is trying to be great like that. That is competition. So you are trying, I am trying, he is trying, everyone is trying. This is called māyā. But our Bhāgavata philosophy says that "Don't try artificially in that way. Better remain what you are. Better remain..." Just like the same example: If you want to be the greatest man in your country, just like President Nixon, so you have to work very hard. And that is also for temporary. It will be finished within five years. Then you are ordinary man again. So better remain and in your own capacity, and try to become Kṛṣṇa conscious or God conscious. Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends this process, that you don't try artificially to become God the great. It is not possible. Simply waste of time. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that jñāne prayāsam udapāsya namanta eva. It is not the statement of Caitanya Mahāprabhu; it is the statement of Bhāgavata, but He quoted this.
This is going on. Kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vāñchā kare pāśate māyā... This is māyā. This disease has to be cured. That requires knowledge and religious (indistinct). That's required. So, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means to train people to come to the original constitutional position. What is that? Every living entity is part and parcel of God; therefore the duty of the part and parcel is to serve the whole. The part and parcel cannot enjoy individually or independent—that is not possible. Just like this finger is part and parcel of my body. It has to enjoy at a certain cost. Not that a finger will catch up some rasagullā and enjoy it—that is not possible. It must go through the stomach. The rasagullā will be caught and put into the mouth—it must go to the stomach, and the stomach will digest it, and the energy will be distributed, not only to this finger but other fingers, other parts of the body. This has to be learned. That is called yato bhaktir adhokṣaje. We are discussing that point. And this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is so nice that immediately everyone comes into ecstasy, and he wants to serve Kṛṣṇa.
General Lectures
So the original platform, that I am not this body, then every relationship becomes false, illusion. This is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, how this illusion develops. The illusion develops because it is the kingdom of māyā. Māyā is attracting us. What is that attracting force? That attracting force is for man, woman; and for woman, man. This is attractive. This whole world is going on, not only in the human society, but in dog society, cat society, hog society, bird society—everywhere—the woman is attractive for man, and man is attractive for woman. This is māyā. This is māyā. So Śrīmad-Bhāgavata says that this attractive feature is pulling on this material existence. Therefore the training is how to detract. In the beginning the brahmacārī training is given because to know that this body, woman body, is actually not attractive. What is this attractive? This is made of flesh and blood. Similarly for woman, if I analyze the man's body, or woman's, what is there? Flesh and blood. But that flesh and blood is very attractive? That story, perhaps I have enunciated, that beauty was kept in a pot? Do you remember? Huh? I may repeat that story again, that one girl was very beautiful, and one boy was after him (her). But in India the boys and girls are not allowed to mix freely unless they are husband and wife.
As soon as our original consciousness becomes polluted with the consciousness of material enjoyment, that "I want to lord it over the resources of matter..." As soon as we turn our consciousness in this way, then our troubles begin. Immediately māyā. This very consciousness, that "I can enjoy this material world to my best capacity..." Everyone is trying to do that. Every one of us, beginning from the ant up to the highest living creature, Brahmā, everyone is trying to become one of the lords. Just like recently in your country there were so many canvassing for becoming the president. Why? The same idea. Everyone is after becoming some kind of lord. This is māyā. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is completely opposite. We are just trying to become the servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of Kṛṣṇa. Just opposite. Instead of becoming the lord, we want to be the servant of the servant of Kṛṣṇa. Gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ (CC Madhya 13.80).
He's the servant of his senses, that's all. Just try to understand. Servant he must be, but he's servant of his lust, he's servant of his avarice, he's servant of his greediness, servant of his anger, servant of so many things. Kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśāḥ. In higher state, somebody has become the servant of humanity, somebody has become the servant of the society, somebody has become the servant of the country, but actual purpose is that "I shall become the master." That disease is there. The candidates for presidency, they are presenting their different manifestations..., no, manifesto, that "I shall serve the country very nicely. Please give me your vote." But the real idea is that "Some way or other, I shall become the master of the country." So this is māyā. So if we understand this small philosophy, that constitutionally I am servant... There is no doubt. Nobody can say that "I am free, I am master." Nobody can say. If he thinks like that, that is māyā. It is false. Can anybody say in this meeting that he's not servant of anybody or anything? He must be, because that is his constitutional position. But the difficulty is that by serving our senses, there is no solution of the problem, of the miseries. For the time being, I may satisfy myself that I have taken this intoxication, and under the spell of this intoxication I may think that "I am nobody's servant. I am free," but that is artificial. As soon as the hallucination is gone, he comes to the point, again servant. Again servant.
So "I am lower than the worm in the stool. Anyone who takes my name, all his pious activities immediately becomes lost." In this way he is presenting himself. That does not mean that he's actually so, but that is the attitude of a devotee. He's always very meek and humble. And the opposite side is, "I am God. Now finish all business." You see? So this māyā is very strong. He's (She's) always enticing me, "Oh, you are so great, so big, so... You have nothing to learn. Finish all..." This is māyā's instruction. But we should always be very humble, meek, and we should know always that "What I know? I do not know anything." The knowledge is unlimited. God is unlimited. And my position is very minute, fractional, infinitesimal. What I can accommodate? I shall go on. I shall go on. Remain. Gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ (CC Madhya 13.80). We shall always try to remain servant of the servant of the servant of the servant of the... Hundred times servant. Then it will be all right. The more you become humble, meek, the more you advance. That is real advancement.
So, so we are thinking at the present moment that "I am God. I am independent." That is māyā. Māyā means which is not actual fact. Plain philosophy. If you are God, then you must know what is God. God is never dependent. That is the definition given in Vedānta-sūtra: svarāṭ. Svarāṭ means fully independent. That is one of the quality of God. Janmādyasya yataḥ 'nvayād itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ svarāṭ. Svarāṭ means fully independent and fully conscious. So your consciousness is not full. Your independence is not full. That you cannot have. Now you belong to a independent country, but you are not fully independent. As soon as the state laws want you for some particular purpose, in spite of your unwillingness, you have to act. That means you are not fully independent, even in the state relationship. And how you are fully independent in God's relationship? So your claim that "I am God" is not fullfilled there, because God is independent. You are not independent. How you can claim that you are God? Can you answer this question? Because in your school it is taught that "I am God." I say God is fully independent. Are you fully independent? Then how can you claim you are God? Can anyone answer this? Because this philosophy is going on. Everyone is thinking, "I am God." So if you are not fully independent, you are, if you are not fully conscious, everything, you are simply a minute part. Minute part means because you are part and parcel of the Supreme. So everything is there in you in minute parts but not in full.
So these answers are there in the Bhagavad-gītā. The problems of life is that how to stop these changes of body. Because it has been spoken that that thing which is not changing, unchangeable, that is soul and eternal. Avināśi tu tad viddhi. That is eternal. Now, if there is any possibility of getting eternal body also? Yes, there is possibility. That is answered in the Bhagavad-gītā, how you can get eternal, blissful, all-knowledge body, sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1). This body is not eternal, neither it is blissful, neither it is full of knowledge. It is full of ignorance, it is temporary, and always miserable. And if you say, "Now we are very happily living," that is māyā, that is illusion. Lord Buddha's teaching is that he was prince and there was no want in his life. He was luxuriously living. But he left home for meditation. Therefore he understood that "I am not living comfortably." This understanding, when we can understand that this life, this material life, is not at all comfortable, it is full of misery, that is called buddha life, intelligent. Buddha means intelligent. And if we are thinking that "I am living very comfortably. I am very happy," that is called māyā, illusion. Actually, we are always in miserable condition. In the Vedic language the miserable conditions have been described in three ways: adhyātmika, adhibhautika, and adhidaivika, miseries due to the condition of this body and due to the condition of the mind. Sometimes you feel headache. This is due to the body, gross body. And sometimes you feel morose.
Therefore, Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). All these prakṛtis different wives of Kṛṣṇa or energies, they are struggling, unnecessarily they are struggling to become predominator. In this material world, everyone is trying to be predominator. One nation is trying to become predominator of other nations. One man is trying to be predominator of other men. One brother is trying to be predominator of other brothers. This is māyā. So everyone should give up the spirit of predominating. They should be willingly surrendered for becoming predominated by the Supreme Lord. Then you will be in peace (?). The whole world is suffering on this false predominating position. The human form different parties, this party and that party. But if you have got the same disease, same disease means spirit of predominating. At the present moment, it is going on. Take for example the Communist Party or Jana Sangha Party or this party or that party. They have formed different parties but the disease is there that "I shall predominate." So this party forming with the diseased condition that "I shall be enjoyer," there cannot be any peace.
So actually we are trying to be free, but we surrender to some rascal, that's all. Instead of surrendering to Kṛṣṇa we prefer to surrender to some rascal or fool. That is māyā. We have to surrender. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). Our real identification is eternal servant of God, or Kṛṣṇa. That is our real identification. But unfortunately, artificially we are trying to lord it over Kṛṣṇa or over the material nature. This is struggle. Daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). This struggle you cannot overcome. Kṛṣṇa says duratyayā. It is very difficult to surmount the influence of material nature. Mama māyā duratyayā. Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te: "If anyone surrenders unto Me, then he can get rid of this influence of the material nature." This is the law. You cannot artificially change it. If you do not become Kṛṣṇa conscious, if you do not surrender to Kṛṣṇa, God, then the māyā, or the material energy, will always give you trouble.
When we forget Kṛṣṇa and want to lord it over the material nature, this is called māyā. Māyā means which has no factual existence. So this idea that I shall lord it over the material nature, this is māyā.
- kṛṣṇa bhuliya jīva bhoga vañcha kare
- pāśate māyā tāre jāpaṭiyā dhare
As soon as we think of becoming the Lord and lording it over the Lord's creation, that is called māyā. And Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is just an attempt to revive the original consciousness that "I am not the lord, but I am the servant of the Lord." This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So actually we are still servant although we have rejected servitude of Kṛṣṇa. That is our rebellious condition. Every one of us, all living entities within this material world, they are more or less rebellious condition. We don't want to serve Kṛṣṇa. I want to become Kṛṣṇa. That is māyā. That is the last snare of māyā. First of all, in our karmī life we want to become master of the world. I want to lord it over the material nature. That is our struggle. Everyone is trying, "I shall become the master." Nobody wants to become servant. That is māyā. But actually he is serving. That is our position. Try to understand. We are serving our senses whimsically. I want to become this. I want to become that. First of all I want to become a big businessman, or I want to become a prime minister. I want to become the president. And when I am frustrated, then I want to become God. That want—"I want to become master"—is going on. So this is also māyā. How one can become God? Kṛṣṇa says, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7). Nobody can become equal to God or greater than God. Asamaurdha. In the Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa is described as asama urdha. "Nobody is equal to God, and nobody is greater than God." Asama urdha.
So people go as a place of pilgrimage. So you cannot interpret Kurukṣetra otherwise. Kurukṣetra should be accepted as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre (BG 1.1). Then you'll understand Bhagavad-gītā. Everything is there. Our request is—you are all respectable gentlemen, ladies, present here—that kindly try to read Bhagavad-gītā as it is. Then you will understand the problems of your life, the solution also there. The solution is there, and the ultimate end of Bhagavad-gītā speaking: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). That is the ultimate solution, that we have to surrender unto the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is our... Because every one of us, in this material condition, we are trying to become master, ultimately to become God. That is māyā. That is illusion. We cannot become master. We are servant by constitution. Every one of us sitting here is a servant to somebody. Nobody can deny it. Either he may be servant of his family or his community or his country or... So many things... If one has no master, then he keeps a dog to become his servant. That is the nature. We are all servants. The, our thinking that "I shall become master," that is māyā.
So we are praying both to the energy and to the Lord: "Please engage me in Your service. I am serving māyā. I am not happy. Therefore, please engage me in Your..." My, my constitutional position is to serve. Just like you're all sitting here. Every one of you are servant. If you consider that you are master, that is a mistake. That is māyā. Every one of you are servant. So "I am serving, but now I am serving māyā. I'm not happy. Let me serve You." This is the meaning of Hare Kṛṣṇa. So if it means that, there is no objection. It is a question of language. It does mean (indistinct). Of course, Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis tatrārpitā niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says the, the person whose name we chant, holy name, in each, in each holy Allah, or something like that, that is not objected if it is actually meaning the Supreme. If it is meaning something else, that is another thing. This question... Just like water or jala. It (is) the same thing. It is simply a different name. If I ask water, you'll give me the water actually, and if I say, jala, you'll give me the same. So if the meaning is all right, then there is no objection. If the meaning is different, then there is objection. We are not fighting with the language. We are not concerned with the language.
We collect some day one thousand dollars, and we are collecting all over the world about thirty thousand dollars. Yes. But not a single paisa for personal use. Everything is utilized for propagating God consciousness. So in this way everything can be utilized. After all, it is God's property. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). Sarvam, whatever you see, that property belongs to God. We are falsely claiming, "It is my property." And that is māyā, illusion. Just like some portion of land, I am saying, "That is India," you are saying, "This is Australia," and they are saying, "It is England," but it is neither England nor Australia. It is all property of God. We have created man-made designation. So we have to give up this idea. The United Nations is there for the last twenty or thirty years. Before that, there was League of Nation. To unite. But how unity? "This portion is, sir, mine. This portion is mine." Why do they not agree that every part of this universe or this planet belongs to God? What is the difficulty? Actually it belongs to God, but they will not agree. They will fight, 'No, it is mine."
Yes. But still there is specific differences. That is called viśiṣṭa. One with specific difference. And the Māyāvādī philosophers, they say, "No, there is no specific difference. This is māyā." But we Vaiṣṇava, we don't say that. That sunshine is sunshine, sun globe is sun globe, and Sun-god is Sun-god. But taken together, they are all one. Diversity in unity. That is viśiṣṭa-advaitavāda. So actually, all the Vaiṣṇava ācāryas, Madhvācārya, Rāmānujācārya, Nimbārka, and Viṣṇu Svāmī, there is no difference of opinion, but they have explained the Absolute Truth more vividly in their own angle of vision. Otherwise there is no difference. They never say that God and the living being are one. They will never say that. That is not Vaiṣṇava philosophy. That is Māyāvāda philosophy. So the propounder of Māyāvāda philosophy is Śaṅkarācārya and other Vaiṣṇava ācāryas, Madhvācārya, Rāmānujācārya, Nimbārka, Viṣṇu Svāmī, practically they are all one opinion. There is no, they differ from Śaṅkarācārya.
Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So not only now, always. Long, long, millions of years ago there was Hiraṇyakaśipu. There was Vena Mahārāja and... Hiraṇyakaśipu was against his son. And Kaṁsa was against Kṛṣṇa. Śiśupāla was against Kṛṣṇa also. So against Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement in this age, there will be many, undoubtedly. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu has given us instruction, tṛṇād api sunīcena. You should always expect some obstruction by the demonic party. That is not very astonishing. But still, we have to do our business and... (break) ...be tolerant. Be humble. Be tolerant. Don't be agitated. Then your business will suffer. This is māyā's kingdom. The test is always there. Combating is always there, and māyā's party is very strong.
So māyāvādī-bhāṣya śunile haya sarva... (CC Madhya 6.169). For kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, to avoid this Māyāvādī philosophy that "Everyone is God. I am God. You are God..." This is atheism. It is cheating atheism. One class of atheism is Śūnyavādī: "There is no God." That we can understand, that he is atheist. "There is no God." He publicly declares, "We don't believe in God." But the Māyāvādīs are dangerous because they say that there is God, but without any form—no head, no leg. If you make "no, no, no," then where is...? It becomes zero ultimately. Go on making "no, no"—"No head, no tail, no hand, no..." So what remains? So this is another trick for saying there is no God. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said that this class, who gives the negative definition of God—"Not this, not this, not this, not this"—the Māyāvādī, Māyā... They say, "Not this. This is māyā." So this Māyāvādī, they are greater atheist.
- veda nā māniyā bauddha haya ta nāstika
- vedāśraya nāstikya-vāda bauddhake adhika
So it is very dangerous to associate with Māyāvādīs. Of course, those who are kaniṣṭha... Who are fixed up in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they can mix with anyone. Nobody can influence. They are protected. If one has become pure devotee, for preaching work he can go anywhere. (break) (end)
So what is that verse? Divya-jñāna hṛde prakāśito. Just recite that. (Indians repeat) Before that. (prema-bhakti yāhā hoite, avidyā vināśa yāte) So the necessity is prema-bhakti. Prema-bhakti yāhā hoite, avidyā vināśa yāte, divya-jñāna. So what is that divya-jñāna? Divya means transcendental, not material. Tapo divyam (SB 5.5.1). Divyam means we are combination of matter and spirit. That spirit is divya, transcendental. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parā (BG 7.5). That is parā prakṛti, superior. If there is the superior identity... And for understanding that superior identity we require superior knowledge, not ordinary knowledge. Divya-jñāna hṛde prakāśito. So this is the duty of the guru, to awaken that divya-jñāna. Divya-jñāna. And because guru enlightens that divya-jñāna, he is worshiped. That is required. The modern... Modern or always; this is māyā. That divya-jñāna is never, I mean to say, manifested. They are kept in the darkness of adivya-jñāna. Adivya-jñāna means "I am this body." "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," this is adivya-jñāna. Dehātma-buddhiḥ. Yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri. I am not this body.
Philosophy Discussions
Śyāmasundara: But he says that there are two types of truth. There's innate truth...
Prabhupāda: This is innate truth: as three angles of a triangle are equal to 180 degrees, similarly snow is white. Snow is white, water is liquid, stone is hard, chili is hot, sugar is sweet. These are eternal truths, fundamental truths. Similarly, a living entity is eternal servant of God. This is eternal truth. It cannot be changed. Water is liquid. That is the natural position, but when water becomes hard, it is due to temperature, under certain conditions, but as soon as the temperature reduces, the water becomes liquid. So liquidity of water is truth. Similarly, whiteness of snow is truth. Similarly, servitude of the living entity is truth. But he is serving māyā. That is untruth. If we take that there are two types of truth, there cannot be two kinds of truth. Truth is one. What we take as truth, that is māyā.
Śyāmasundara: Oh, there's only one truth.
Prabhupāda: Yes. There can't be two truths.
Śyāmasundara: He says that these two types of truth are governed by two different principles: the truth of reason or the logically necessary proof, like the triangle...
Prabhupāda: This is reason, that truth is one. When we find another competitor truth, that is māyā. Truth cannot be two.
Śyāmasundara: This is what he says, that these innate truths are governed by the principle of contradiction. That is, the opposite of the truth is impossible to conceive. If something is true, the opposite of that truth is impossible to conceive.
Prabhupāda: The opposite is māyā. Opposite to truth is māyā.
Śyāmasundara: Just like the sum of the angles of a triangle must equal 180 degrees. It is impossible to conceive of the opposite.
Prabhupāda: Similarly, the other example that snow is white. To think of snow not white, that cannot be conceived.
Śyāmasundara: But I can explain by sufficient reasons why that snow is red.
Prabhupāda: Just like a living entity is trying to become master—"I am the monarch of all I survey." That is untruth. The truth is that he is eternal servant. You cannot say that because one is trying to be imitation God, that that is another truth. You cannot say that. That is māyā. There cannot be a second God. God is one. That is truth, absolute truth. Our point is that we do not accept this proposition, that there are two types of truth. That is not at all acceptable. Truth is one.
Śyāmasundara: Supposing you saw some ice, and you said, "Due to there being cold, this water has turned hard and become ice."
Prabhupāda: That is another proposition. Water is liquid, but when water becomes hard, that is artificial. But that hardness... Snow is white, that is truth. Otherwise nothing is truth except Kṛṣṇa. Relative truth. Kṛṣṇa is absolute truth. There are relative truths. So this is relative truth. Kṛṣṇa is substance. Now, from Kṛṣṇa everything is emanating by His energy. Water is also one of the energies, but that energy is not absolute truth, that water. But in that relativeness, the water's liquidity is truth. But it is relative truth.
Śyāmasundara: He says that God is an absolute necessity because we cannot conceive not-God. But man, individual men, are relative truths because they are not absolutely necessary. Because I can conceive that I am not here, that I may die. So he says that we are conditioned, that men are conditioned. They are governed by the principle of sufficient (indistinct).
Prabhupāda: That we can see. There are so many politicians, they are very busy. They think that "If I do not remain in the state, everything will collapse." But when he dies, everything goes on nicely without him. That is māyā. So many politicians work so hard, up to the last point of his death he is thinking that "Without me, everything will be topsy turvy." But he dies in spite of his not willing to die. He dies, but things go on without depending on him. Therefore God's will is working, the Supreme Will. You may think so many ways—that is a different thing. Actually God's will is working.
Śyāmasundara: He says that men are all dependent upon another being for their existence. They are contingent.
Prabhupāda: They are dependent... (break—continues next day)
Śyāmasundara: He says that the world could have been otherwise if God desired, but that He chose this particular arrangement, and from the standpoint of its ingredients, this is the best possible world.
Prabhupāda: Yes. God can do anything He likes, but this world is planned not by God; it is given to the living entities who wanted to imitate God. So actually, the plan is according to the desire of the living entities who wanted to lord it over the material nature. God's plan is not this. It is exactly like the prison house is planned by the government because there are criminals. God's plan is "Come back home, giving everything up." Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar iti mām eti. His plan is to invite all the conditioned souls back to home, back to Godhead. He doesn't like the living entities to live here. But because they wanted to lord it over the material nature, they have been given that facility.
Śyāmasundara: So that much is predictable, that for...
Prabhupāda: You can see it is not predictable, it is actually happening. Everyone is trying to be happy, but he is being frustrated. Everyone can see. They are manufacturing different ways of material happiness but becoming frustrated. This is māyā's kicking. There is no question of prediction. Any man who has got a little intelligence, he can see.
Śyāmasundara: So someone can understand, someone can know what the life force is going to do in the future, how it will manifest itself in the future?
Prabhupāda: The future, because he is eternally servant of God, so now he has forgotten. He wants to become master, and the material nature is kicking him, life after life. So one day he'll come to his senses and become again, renovate himself to become servant of God.
Śyāmasundara: I don't know.
Prabhupāda: Yes. I can measure it is about 3000 miles by 3000 miles. And whereas India is 1000 miles. What is the area of India? Maybe 1000 miles by 800 miles, whereas in America 3000 miles by 3000 miles. And the population is one quarter of India's. The land is four times than India, but the population is one quarter of India. So they can produce enough. Actually they are producing enough. And that can be distributed to the portion where the food is a scarcity. And that is arrangement of God. The land and the water given by God is sufficient for the whole population. Not only human beings—all beasts, birds... Sufficient food. But we are, I mean to say, mismanaging the whole thing. Therefore we find that India is poverty-stricken and America is throwing grains in the water. So actually, if we take the perfection made by God, that "This planet belongs to us, we human beings, and it is God's property, so let us live peacefully..." But..., but no. That is māyā. So therefore the whole solution of the problem is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If people will understand that "We are all sons of Kṛṣṇa's. This land belongs to Kṛṣṇa, so let us enjoy our father's property without fighting..." That they will not do. And they will accuse that God has made incomplete. That is māyā. Otherwise from God's side everything is complete.
Prabhupāda: This is not striving. By nature's way the lower animals, they come to the platform of man. Jīva-jātiṣu paryayaḥ, it is called. Paryayaḥ means one after another. There is nature's help. Up to the human being, that law works. And human being, being developed conscious, so he has got the power of discrimination. Because originally the soul is given independence. Just like Kṛṣṇa is asking Arjuna, yathecchasi tathā kuru (BG 18.63). "Whatever you like, you do." That is the original connection. God is the Supersoul; we are soul, under Him, subordinate. So we are called taṭastha, means marginal. Marginal means we can remain either way. Either on God's side or māyā's side. That is my choice. So when we don't want to serve God, then we are sent to the māyā, to serve māyā. Māyā means his position as servant remains the same, but he thinks "I am master." That is māyā. He is Just like a child trying to do something father does not like. But when he cries, he's given that. "All right. Do this." But "All right, do this" or "Do that," he is under the father. He is under the control of the father. But when he is given such chance, "Oh, I am independent now. I am independent." So this is called māyā. He's never independent, but he thinks, "I am independent." Similarly, here also Just like we Indians, we have got independence. So what kind of independence? In British period there was not so much dependence. These rascal laws, that you have to go So many things. You cannot move now. In British period the Indians had independence to move all over the world by expenditure. Now we cannot go. So we have got independence, but we have become dependent in so many ways. This is called māyā. So whole world, they are thinking that "I am independent. My nation is independent." Nobody is independent. Everyone is dependent under the laws of material nature. When death comes, nobody is independent. Either American, Indian, or There is no question of independence. But when we think that "I am independent," although I am dependent in so many respects, that is māyā. That is māyā. Māyā means what he is thinking, that is not fact. That is called māyā. Mā-yā. What you are thinking, that is not a fact. So daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). So he is continually serving the māyā, life after life, but still he is thinking, "I am independent." So the right intelligence is, actual independence is, mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti. When you surrender to Kṛṣṇa, that is your real independence.
Śyāmasundara: This urge to become something more is bad.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is māyā. That is māyā. He cannot be happy in any position. He cannot be happy. But he thinks that "I'll be happy. If I go to that place, or that position." Just like the modern scientists, they have finished their all happiness here. Now they are, they are trying, "If we go to Candraloka, then we shall be happy."
Śyāmasundara: But isn't this urge to advance... He says this urge to advance is the desire to become godly.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Śyāmasundara: Everyone wants to become godly...
Prabhupāda: No, no. The desire, desire means that he has lost his real happiness. His real happiness is with God, dancing with God. Just like gopīs, they are dancing with God. That is real happiness. That is his nature. Ānandamayaḥ abhyāsāt. Vedānta-sūtra says that "By nature he wants ānanda, ānanda." But because he is seeking ānanda in a perverted way, he is being confused and frustrated. Therefore he is thinking "Not this stage, that stage will give me happiness." So when he goes to that stage, he again finds unhappiness. Because he is wrongly selecting, that "This is the stage of my happiness."
Hayagrīva: Plato states that every object in the universe is made with some purpose, and its ideal goal is to move toward the ideal in which it's archetype or essence resides. So according to the Vedic version, Kṛṣṇa is the all-attractive object of the universe; therefore all things must be moving toward Him. How is it the jīva apparently turns from Kṛṣṇa to participate in the world of birth and death?
Prabhupāda: That is māyā. That is māyā, illusion. He should not have deviated, but out of the influence of māyā he is doing that and he is suffering. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam (BG 18.66). "You stop this plan-making. You simply surrender unto Me and do what I say, then you are happy." That is practical.
Hayagrīva: Here is a famous quotation from Plato. He says, "God put intelligence in the soul and the soul in the body that He," that is God, "might be the creator of a work which was by nature best."
Prabhupāda: We say that the living entity is part and parcel of God, mamaivāṁśa. Under the circumstances he has got almost all the qualities of God, but partially, because God is great and we are minute. So even though we have got all the qualities of God—not all, certain percentage, say seventy-eight percent—in minute quantity. Just like God has creative power, we have got also creative power. We have created the 747 flying machine. All right, get credit for that, but you cannot create a flying ball like sun floating in the sky. That is difference between God and me. You can take credit that you are keeping suspension in the air a big machine, 747, but it is not in your power that you can float millions and millions of planets floating in the air. That is not possible. Therefore God is great; I am small. That is real Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And as soon as he says, "I am as good or as great as God," then He is a rascal.
Hayagrīva: Well, one last point is that neither Socrates, Plato or Aristotle ever mentions service to God; rather, they always speak of contemplation of God's reality or the Supreme Splendor. It's always contemplation, meditation. Is this typical of the jñānī? Or... There's no mention of service.
Prabhupāda: No, this is the process of knowing God. They are partially helpful to know God as He is, but when he actually comes to know God, he sees that "He is the great and I am the small." So the business of the small is to serve the great. That is nature's way. We practically see in our daily life, because you are small you are going to serve a big factory. Otherwise you have no other way. So everyone is serving, but when he realizes that "I am serving. I am not the master," that is the position actually. Ask anybody in this world whether he is master or serving, the conclusion will be that he is serving. His natural position is to serve. So if one hasn't got a family to serve, he keeps a dozen of dog to serve. That is going on, and especially in the Western countries we see that at the old age, when he has no children, so he keeps a dog or two or three pets to serve. So the serving position is already there, and when the servant wants to become master, that is māyā. Because this word māyā means actually he is serving and he is thinking that he is master. That is māyā. Māyā means what is not fact. So by meditation, when he actually becomes a realized soul, he will understand that "Oh, I am servant. So why I am serving māyā? Let me serve Kṛṣṇa." That is perfection. So if his guide, spiritual master, engages him from the very beginning to serve God, then he becomes quickly perfect, because he is servant and he has to serve Kṛṣṇa. That is his perfection. He is falsely thinking that he is master. That is māyā. Here also they are simply serving. Just like President Nixon. He thought himself, "I am the master of America." But actually he is not. The master is the public. As soon as the public wanted "You come down immediately," he had to do that. So if the president of big state, he is under the false impression that although he is serving he is thinking master, then what to speak of others? Everyone is serving, but he is thinking master. So perfect knowledge is there that when he comes to the platform that "God is the supreme master, He is great, and we are servant." That is perfection of life.
Hayagrīva: Some people have been said to have remembered events in their previous lives. How are these reminiscences or ideas different from innate ideas? How is it possible for one to recall events?
Prabhupāda: Innate idea is in everyone, that is, "God is great, and I am," what is called, "controlled." That innate idea is everywhere. But sometimes, out of ignorance one tries to become God. That is not possible. That is māyā, and he suffers from this. Artificially trying to become God, that is simply waste of time. It will never become possible. That is called māyā. Otherwise, innate idea is that he is servant and God is great. That is innate idea.
Hayagrīva: He writes, "The knowledge of our own being we have by intuition. The existence of a God, reason dearly makes known to us. We have a more certain knowledge of the existence of a God than of anything our senses can discover." Now how is this? If this is the case, how is it that some men have no conception of God?
Prabhupāda: He has conception of God, practically, but because under the spell of māyā he has become foolish, he tries to cover that conception, that somebody is there. How any sane man can deny that some superior power is there who has created this vast ocean, vast land, vast sky? How one sane man can avoid this conception? Nobody can avoid, but artificially, foolishly, he tries to avoid. Atheism. But that will not endure, that will not stay. His foolishness will be exposed. So this is innate idea, but the atheist class, demon class, they want to cover this innate idea artificially.
| Page Title: | That is maya (Lectures) |
| Compiler: | Mayapur |
| Created: | 05 of Oct, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=209, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 209 |