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The king's duty is, as representative of Krsna, to make every citizen Krsna conscious. Then he is doing nice duty. And because the monarchs did not do so, therefore now monarchy is abolished everywhere

Expressions researched:
"the king's duty is, as representative of Krsna, to make every citizen Krsna conscious. Then he is doing nice duty. And because the monarchs did not do so, therefore now monarchy is abolished everywhere"

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

The king's duty is, as representative of Kṛṣṇa, to make every citizen Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then he is doing nice duty. And because the monarchs did not do so, therefore now monarchy is abolished everywhere. So again the monarchs, where there is monarchy, little, at least show of monarchy, just like here in England there is, actually if the monarch becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious, actually becomes representative of Kṛṣṇa, then the whole face of the kingdom will change.
Lecture on BG 1.31 -- London, July 24, 1973:

Catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtina. Sukṛtina means pious. Kṛtī means very expert in acting worldly activities. So one who are engaged in pious activities, they are called sukṛtī. There are two kinds of activities: impious activities, sinful activities; and pious activities. So one who goes to pray in the church or in the temple, "O God, give us our daily bread," or "God, give me some money," or "God, give me relief from this distress," they are also pious. They are not impious. The impious people, they will never surrender to God, Kṛṣṇa. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ, prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). These class of men, sinful men, rascal, lowest of the mankind, whose knowledge has been taken away by māyā, and demon—these classes of men will never surrender to God. Therefore they are duṣkṛtina, impious. So Kṛṣṇa is pious, but still he wants the family benefit. This is his defect. Er, Arjuna. Family prosperity. He wants to be happy with society, friendship and love. Therefore he says that na kāṅkṣe vijayam... This is called vairāgya. Śmaśāna-vairāgya. It is called śmaśāna-vairāgya. Śmaśāna-vairāgya means that in India, the Hindus, they burn the dead body. So relatives take the dead body for burning to the burning ghāṭa, and when the body is burned, everyone present there, for the time being, they become little renounced: "Oh, this is the body. We are working for this body. Now it is finished. It is burnt into ashes. So what is the benefit?" This kind of vairāgya, renouncement, is there. But as soon as he comes from the burning ghāṭa, he again begins his activities. In the śmaśāna, in the burning ghāṭa, he becomes renounced. And as soon as comes home, again he is vigorous, vigorous, how to earn, how to get money, how to get money, how to get money. So this kind of vairāgya is called śmaśāna-vairāgya, temporary. He cannot become vairāgī. And he said, na kāṅkṣe vijayam: (BG 1.31) "I don't want victory. I don't want this." This is temporary sentiment. Temporary sentiment. These people, they attach to family life. They may say like that, that "I don't want this happiness, don't want this very nice position, victory. I don't want." But he wants everything. He wants everything. Because he does not know what is the śreyas. Śreyas is Kṛṣṇa. Actually, when one gets Kṛṣṇa, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then he can say that "I don't want this." They will not say that. Why they will say, "Don't want this"? Here what we have got? Suppose I have got a kingdom. So that is my kingdom? No. That is Kṛṣṇa's kingdom. Because Kṛṣṇa says bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). He is the proprietor. I may be His representative. Kṛṣṇa wants that everyone should be Kṛṣṇa conscious.

So the king's duty is, as representative of Kṛṣṇa, to make every citizen Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then he is doing nice duty. And because the monarchs did not do so, therefore now monarchy is abolished everywhere. So again the monarchs, where there is monarchy, little, at least show of monarchy, just like here in England there is, actually if the monarch becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious, actually becomes representative of Kṛṣṇa, then the whole face of the kingdom will change. That is required. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is for that purpose. We don't very much like this so-called democracy. What is the value of this democracy? All fools and rascals. They vote another fool and rascal, and he becomes prime minister, or this or that. Just like... In so many cases. That is not good for the people. We are not for this so-called democracy because they are not trained. If the king is trained... That was the system of monarchy. Just like Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja or Arjuna or anyone. All the kings. Rājarṣi. They were called rājarṣi.

imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ
proktavān aham avyayam
vivasvān manave prāha
manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt
(BG 4.1)

Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). Rājarṣayaḥ. Rāja, king means, he is not only king. He is a great ṛṣi, saintly person, just like Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira or Arjuna. They're saintly persons. They are not ordinary, this drunkard king, that "I have got so much money. Let me drink and let there be dancing of the prostitute." Not like that. They were ṛṣi. Although they were king, they were ṛṣis. That kind of king wanted, rājarṣi. Then people will be happy. In Bengali there is a proverb, rājara pāpe rāja naṣṭa gṛhiṇī doṣe gṛhastha bhraṣṭa (?). In gṛhastha life, in household life, if the wife is not good, then nobody will be happy in that home, gṛhastha life, household life. Similarly, in a kingdom, if the king is impious, then everything, everyone will suffer. This is the problem.

So Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna is thinking of the śreyas and preyas. Actual śreyas means to achieve Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is wanting in Arjuna. He is showing that feature of life, that he wants better the society, friendship and love. He does not want to kill them. Then everything will be finished. But actually the fact is that even after killing the so-called kinsmen, if he can satisfy Kṛṣṇa, that is his śreyas. That is his śreyas. That he does not know. And because he does not know, therefore this Bhagavad-gītā is there. He is playing the part that he does not know that Kṛṣṇa is the ultimate goal of life, not this so-called society, friendship and love. He is playing that part, that he does not know. He is thinking that "Kṛṣṇa is not important." Kṛṣṇa has already asked him to fight, but he is considering that "Kṛṣṇa, You are asking me to fight, and I have to kill my own kinsmen. Then where is my victory?" So therefore he said... Here in the previous verse, he has said, paśyāmi viparītāni keśava: (BG 1.30) "You are asking me to fight, for my victory, for my happiness, but I see it will be just the opposite." Paśyāmi viparītāni. This is his problem. And to solve this problem, Arjuna became the disciple of Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa advised him this Bhagavad-gītā, and that is the prelude. Unless Arjuna plays like that, ordinary man...

Anyone, everyone wants to be happy with this Gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittaiḥ (SB 5.5.8), household life, and having some land. In those days there was no industry. Therefore industry is not meant. Land. If you get land, then you can produce your food. But actually that is our life. Here in this village we find so much land lying vacant, but they are not producing their food. They make their food the cows, poor cows, to kill them and eat them. This is not Gṛha-kṣetra. You become gṛhastha, but you produce your food from the land, Gṛha-kṣetra. And when you produce food, then beget children, Gṛha-kṣetra-suta-āpta-vitta. In India in village, there is, still the system is amongst the poor men, the cultivators, that if the cultivator cannot provide to keep a cow, he will not marry. Jaru and garu. Jaru means wife, and garu means cow. So one should keep a wife if he is able to keep a cow also. Jaru and garu. Because if you keep a wife, immediately there will be children. But if you cannot give them cows' milk, the children will be rickety, not very healthy. They must drink sufficient milk. So cow is therefore considered mother. Because one mother has given birth to the child, the another mother is supplying milk. So everyone should be obliged to mother cow, because she is supplying milk. So according to our śāstra there are seven mothers. Ādau mātā, real mother, from whose body I have taken my birth. Ādau mātā, she is mother. Guru-patnī, the wife of teacher. She is also mother. Ādau mātā guru-patnī, brāhmaṇī. The wife of a brāhmaṇa, she is also mother. Ādau mātā guru-patnī brāhmaṇī rāja-patnikā, the queen is mother. So how many? Ādau mātā guru-patnī brāhmaṇī rāja-patnikā, then dhenu. Dhenu means cow. She is also mother. And dhātrī. Dhātrī means nurse. Dhenu dhātrī tathā pṛthvī, also the earth. Earth is also mother. The people are taking care of mother land, where he is born. That is good. But by the by they should take care of mother cow also. But they are not taking care of mother. Therefore they are sinful. They must suffer. They must have, there must be war, pestilence, famine. As soon as people become sinful, immediately nature's punishment will come automatically. You cannot avoid it.

Page Title:The king's duty is, as representative of Krsna, to make every citizen Krsna conscious. Then he is doing nice duty. And because the monarchs did not do so, therefore now monarchy is abolished everywhere
Compiler:Krsnadas
Created:09 of Oct, 2012
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:1