So we have to use our intelligence. That is described by Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī: prāpañcikatayā buddhyā hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ, mumukṣubhiḥ parityāgaḥ. Mumukṣu, especially the Māyāvādīs, who are after liberation, to merge into the existence of the Supreme, mumukṣu, mokṣa, they, Māyāvāda, they say, "Everything is māyā." Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā: "This world is false; only Brahman is reality." But we say that why the jagat, the world should be false if it is coming from the reality? We do not agree with them. We do not accept that this world is false. No. We can say, "It is temporary manifestation." But it is not false. Why it is false? We are living in this house. If somebody, some rascal, says, "It is false," why false? We are utilizing this house. We are utilizing this microphone. We are utilizing the dictaphone. Why it is false? There is sambandha. There is relationship with Kṛṣṇa. Anything material, made of earth, water, fire, air, they are Kṛṣṇa's energies. Therefore there is direct relationship with Kṛṣṇa. And if Kṛṣṇa is reality, why His energy should be false? No.
The world is... (Lectures, BG)
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Āśrama, when the word is added, āśrama, that means it has got reference with cultivation of spiritual life. So gṛhastha-āśrama. One can live at home with wife and children, but the business should be Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We don't accept the Māyāvādī sannyāsī because there is no Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Simply by becoming sannyāsī... Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā: "This world is false. Brahman is truth. So I give up this world." That kind of sannyāsī we do not accept. Either you become gṛhastha or sannyāsī or brahmacārī, there must be Kṛṣṇa. Then it will be called āśrama. Gṛhastha-āśrama, sannyāsa-āśrama, brahmacārī-āśrama. Therefore this word is added, āśrama.
Therefore, the social order is... Just like Arjuna is describing here, saṅkaro narakāyaiva kula-ghnānāṁ kulasya ca (BG 1.41). Who knows this? Who knows this science, that saṅkaro narakāyaiva, if you produce unwanted hellish condition? Who is caring for that? The world is in hellish condition, we can perceive, but they are trying in a different way. They want to remain demons; at the same time, they want to become leaders. So at the present moment, comparing the social status 5000 years ago... According to Darwin's theory, 5000 years ago, men were uncivilized, uncivilized. Now this literature is written by uncivilized men. Just see. So highly intellectual writings, they were uncivilized. Now they have become civilized. That is Darwin's theory. We are now making progress. So Arjuna said that patanti pitaro hy eṣāṁ lupta-piṇḍodaka-kriyāḥ (BG 1.41). Piṇḍodaka.
Koṭi. Koṭi means unlimited. Jagad-aṇḍa. Jagad-aṇḍa means universe. Brahmāṇḍa or jagad-aṇḍa. Aṇḍa. Aṇḍa means it is egg-shaped, round, egg-shaped. Therefore it is called aṇḍa, brahmāṇḍa. Bhū-gola. Gola means round. I have heard that before the science, the people were under the impression that this world is square. Is it not?
Devotees: Flat.
Prabhupāda: Flat. Flat, yes. But in the Vedic śāstra, millions of years ago it is mentioned: bhū-gola. Gola means round. Just see. And these rascals say that formerly people were not so intelligent. They are intelligent because they are thinking that this world is flat. And those who have spoken millions of years ago, "It is round," they will have less intelligence. Just see. Bhū, gola. Gola means round. Bhū-gola. Similarly, jagad-aṇḍa. Abda means round, just like egg. Aṇḍa means egg.
Divyam, transcendental. And Śrīpāda Śaṅkarācārya also, who especially preached impersonalism, he also admits that nārāyaṇaḥ paraḥ avyaktāt: "Nārāyaṇa, the form of Nārāyaṇa, is beyond the range of this avyakta." Avyakta and...
This world is creation... Avyaktād anya-sambhavaḥ. This world is creation of this avyakta. And beyond this avyakta, there is another nature. That is spiritual nature. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā: paras tasmāt tu bhāvaḥ anyaḥ avyaktaḥ avyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20). So this situation... Kṛṣṇa is advising... No. I mean to say, Arjuna advising, rathaṁ sthāpaya me acyuta. Acyuta. Kṛṣṇa is not cyuta. Kṛṣṇa is acyuta. Cyuta means those who are fallen in the material world. They are cyuta. We are fallen in the material world. Therefore we have accepted this material body. Icchā-dveṣa-samutthena sarge yānti parantapa (BG 7.27). Icchā. Icchā means desire. And dveṣa means envy, enviousness. Icchā-dveṣa-samutthena.
Illusioned means accepting something as fact which is not. Something... Just like in dream we see sometimes I am attacked with a tiger; my head is being cut off. So many things. So actually there is no tiger, my head is not being cut off, but still, I am crying: "Oh, here is a tiger, here is a tiger!" So our attachment for this world is like that. It is illusion. I am thinking that "Without me, everything will be spoiled. My presence is required." And so on, so on. Just like sometimes our political leaders. Each and every one of them thinks that without him, the whole situation will be spoiled. Even Mahatma Gandhi, he was so attached that he would not retire from political life—unless he was killed. The attachment was so strong. But after passing away of Mahatma Gandhi or Jawaharlal Nehru or so many big, big leaders, the world is going on. There is a Bengali proverb that "When the king dies, it does not mean the kingdom stops." The kingdom goes on.
So we have already discussed. This is same point is being discussed nicely in Bhagavad-gītā, that we are not this body. Our material identification is wrong. So we have come to that point, come to that stage, you see, that I am not this body. And because I am not this body, therefore I have no connection with this world—because my connection with this world is due to my body, is due to my body. I consider one woman my wife because I have got bodily connection. I, I consider somebody my son because bodily connection. I consider this town, this country my country because my body has grown up from this land. So in this way, as soon as one become free from the conception of identification of this body, he becomes a liberated soul. Therefore you'll find in Bhagavad-gītā in the later chapters that as soon as one emerges out from this conception, he is prasannātmā: "Oh, I have no responsibility. I have no responsibility." Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati (BG 18.54). As soon as he is liberated...
That is real contraceptive method, that "I should not produce cats and dogs. I should produce a child who will never come back again to another mother. He will be liberated. He will go back to home, back to Godhead." That is the duty of the father and mother. Not that produce cats and dogs. And therefore, the world is in trouble. They are fighting like cats and dogs, because cats and dogs have been produced and they have not been trained up. No brahmacārī system, no gṛhastha system, no vānaprastha system. Therefore, the Vedic conception of civilization is the perfect for human society. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). You will find everything in the Bhagavad-gītā.
So when one comes to that knowledge, brahma-bhūtaḥ... Now we are not brahma-bhūtaḥ, prākṛta-bhūtaḥ, jīva-bhūtaḥ, the exact word. Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). The world is being maintained by this jīva-bhūtaḥ, by the living entities. Just like this city of Manila is very important so long the living entities are there. If there are no living entities, nobody will be prepared to purchase the whole land even for (indistinct). What he will do with the dead matter? The dead matter has no value. It is valuable so long we utilize it in different purposes. Otherwise, it has no value. A nice motorcar with nice machine, first class, it has value so long it is driven by a living entity. Otherwise, who cares for it? Nobody cares for it. Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedam (BG 7.5). Therefore matter, however valuable it may be, it is inferior to the spirit. The spirit is superior energy of God.
Hanumān: How is that, that this world is unreal? Why do we say that there is good thing and bad thing in the world?
Prabhupāda: We don't say unreal. It is temporary. But "good and bad," that is our creation. There is nothing good here. Because there is death, then where is good? If, after all your attempts, you die, then where is the good? So "good and bad," that is imagination. There is nothing good; everything is bad here. (end)
Simply you sit down, all family members. Where is the difficulty? Husband, wife, children, friends. Sit down together. There is no need of instrument. Simply clap and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Then you'll see the face of the world is changed. That is recommended... But we have no faith. We do not believe. Although there is no expenditure, there is no loss, still, we shall not do. We shall make plan by raising fund. So after raising fund, what is done, we know everything. So that will not relieve. Take this yajña process. Yajñād bhavati parjanyaḥ (BG 3.14). If you are in scarcity of rain, perform yajña, the saṅkīrtana-yajña. There will be regular rain, and if there is regular rain, there is ample food production. There is no question of overpopulation. God can supply you more than you want, provided you become God conscious, Kṛṣṇa conscious. That is the way.
"All right, you play like that. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa does not want that we should come in this material world and be attracted by the earth, water, air, fire, and become great scientist and make combination of these five elements. Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimaya. What is this world? This world is a mixture of fire, earth, water, air. That's all. What is this? Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ tri-sargo 'mṛṣā. It is a false thing. Actually it is a combination of these five elements. And we are accepting... This body's also like that. Body's also combination of five elements. And we are attracted to this. "Oh, I have got so, such a, such a nice, beautiful body, strong body, American body," "Indian body," "Brāhmaṇa body," "This body," "That body." All māyā. You'll never be happy by this bodily concept of life. Because you are...
This is the mistake. Therefore, if I am not fit for a certain thing and if I am engaged in that business, that will be failure. That will be failure. For a particular type of business, occupation, one must have particular type of brain. So therefore this is division. Not that everyone is of the same type. You cannot find. There is not... Because the world is being conducted by the three modes of nature, you cannot find all men of the same category. There must be intelligent class of men, there must be martial spirit, administrative class of men, there must be business minded men. There must be śūdras, they do not know anything, they want to serve only, master. So therefore, scientifically it is divided. Mukha bahu rupadebhyo(?). Just like in your body you find scientifically it is designed by God or Lord Brahmā: "This is brain department, this is arms department, this is belly department, this is leg department." All of them required. You cannot avoid any one of them. This is called sva-dharma. One must be fixed up to his own position.
Yes. As soon as we are... This world is of duality. Duality means you cannot understand one thing without understanding the other. Just like light. You have no conception of light without the conception of darkness. This is called duality. Good—unless you have experienced bad, you cannot understand good. Father—unless there is a son, there is no meaning of father. Husband—unless there is wife, there is no meaning of husband. This is called duality. This world is duality. So we have to rise above this dual world and enter into the absolute world. Then there will be happiness. That's all right. Thank you. So any questions?
"There is always some upheaval in the material world which may be good or evil. One who is not agitated by such material upheavals, who is without affection for the good or evil, is to be understood as fixed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. As long as one is in the material world, there is always the possibility of good and evil because this world is full of duality. But one who is fixed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not affected by good and evil because he is simply concerned with Kṛṣṇa, who is all-good absolute. Such consciousness in Kṛṣṇa situates one in the perfect transcendental position called, technically, samādhi." 58: "One who is able to withdraw his senses from sense objects as the tortoise draws his limbs within the shell is to be understood as truly situated in knowledge (BG 2.58)." 59: "The embodied soul may be restricted from sense enjoyment though the taste for sense objects remains, but ceasing such engagements by experiencing a higher taste, he is fixed in consciousness (BG 2.59)." 60:
In the former verse it has been already explained that "You have right to work but not for the result. Don't be cause of the effect of your result. Then you will be bound up." We are being bound up by reaction of every work. It is just like this world is so situated... Just you know that a sound vibration... Practically, nowadays everyone knows it, that any sound vibrated, it, within a second it takes round all over the world seven times. It is so... The arrangement is so. Just like in a pond if you drop a stone, the circle, the circle begins to enlarge, enlarge, enlarge, enlarge, enlarge, and so similarly, we catch the radio vibration. You know there is numbers. Under such and such vibration, you can catch the sound. So the whole arrangement is like that. Now, if we work even in that arrangement, yoga-sthaḥ, being situated in my spiritual plane, then that will reach to the spiritual sky by enlargement of the circle, enlargement of the circle. I can do work here. You will find in the Bhagavad-gītā that the Lord says that patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati: (BG 9.26)
This is the history of the world.
And another class, they are thinking "Oh, there are so much trouble simply for sense gratification. Let us control our senses." Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā, just like Māyāvādī philosophers, Śaṅkarācārya. They say this world is useless. This world is useless. Only Brahman, the Supreme Brahman, impersonal Brahman, that is truth. That is also another sense gratification. That is bigger sense gratification. Why? These Māyāvādī philosophers, they want to merge into the existence of the Supreme One. That means by becoming Hitler, Churchill or Roosevelt, their senses were not very much satisfied. "Now," they say, "this world is false. Now let me become the Supreme." That is another sense gratification.
"Watch, watch, watch," no, my purpose of watch—seeing will not serve. I want the actual substance, which is watch. If I am thirsty, if I simply speak of "Water, water, water," my thirst will not be quenched. I want actual water. If we want something else for my enjoyment, the name will not do, because nothing in this... This is dual world. This world is of duality. But in the absolute world there is no such duality. Everything is everything. One plus one equal to one; one minus one equal to one. Pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam evāvaśiṣyate (Īśo Invocation). These are Vedic injunction, that "If you take the whole thing from the whole, still, the balance is whole. The balance is whole."
Then you get your life, complete perfection of your life. That is the whole literature. So here the Lord says, yas tu ātma-ratir eva syāt. Ātma-rati, one whose focus of life is simply for self-understanding... Ātma-ratiḥ, syād ātma-tṛptaś ca mānavaḥ. He is simply satisfied with his self-understanding, that "I am pure consciousness. My relation with Kṛṣṇa is such and such. My relation with this world is temporary. My real relation with Kṛṣṇa because Kṛṣṇa is permanent and I am permanent. I am His part and parcel," these simple things. So one who has understood these things nicely and he is satisfied in himself...
Just like Śukadeva Gosvāmī. He didn't care for anything, who is naked dancing, or naked bathing. No. He has no care. He is going on in the street. Yas tu ātma-ratir eva syād ātma-tṛptaś ca mānavaḥ ātmany eva ca santuṣṭaḥ. He is satisfied in himself and with Kṛṣṇa. Tasya kāryaṁ na vidyate: "He has nothing to do." Bas.
Everyone is envious. This world is envious. They have declared that God is dead. You see. (laughs) (Bengali) There is a proverb in Bengali that one person wanted to see how many thieves are there in this village, and when he began to scrutinize, he saw that everyone is a thief. (laughter) Similarly, envious, you begin from President Johnson and go to anyone, they are all envious of God consciousness. You see? Otherwise in Los Angeles city, there are millions and trillions of people, and only a dozen people are coming here. You see? Why? They are envious. "What is this nonsense God consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness?" You see?
And he is friend. A sādhu is friend of all living entities. He is not only friend of the human kind. He is friend of the animals. He is friend of the trees. He is friend of the ants, worms, reptiles, serpents—everyone. Titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ suhṛdaḥ sarva-dehinām. And ajāta-śatru. And because he is friend of everyone, he has no enemy. But unfortunately the world is so infidel, even to such a sādhu there is enemy. Just like Lord Jesus Christ had some enemies, and Mahatma Gandhi had also some enemies who killed him. So the world is such treacherous. Even a sādhu, he has some enemies. You see? But sādhu, from his side, he has no enemy. He is friend of everyone. Titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ suhṛdaḥ sarva-dehinām (SB 3.25.21). And ajāta-śatravaḥ śāntāḥ, always peaceful. These are the qualities of sādhu, saintly persons.
It is not possible. If we want to cut off our relationship with the Supreme Lord, or God, by artificial means, then the result will be that we shall be more and more unhappy.
Therefore the principle business of the human civilization is to establish, reestablish the lost relationship. The world is suffering by this lost relationship, godless civilization. That should not be tolerated. People should be taught, they should revive their God consciousness, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, by all means and then they will be happy.
It appears, it manifests. Just like you prepare a pot from clay, and some day the pot will be annihilated, but it will go to the clay again, and again you can prepare from clay, pot. Just like the garbages. You are throwing daily, and again you are getting material from earth to manufacture so many things. So this is going on. This karma-yoga... This world is so made that the matter is there. You simply take it and transform the shape. That is your activity. Avidyā-karma-saṁjñānyā tṛtīyā śaktir iṣyate. (CC Madhya 6.154) In the Viṣṇu Purāṇa it is said that this material world is full of ignorance. Just like children, they make so many playthings from earth or clay and again break it. And this practice is very prominent in your country. I see in big cities like New York, Boston, very nice buildings, well-built with stone and iron, breaking it. And again some skyscraper. And it is suggested in your Almanac, World Almanac, that next hundred years they will break all these buildings and they will go underground. Yes.
Quantity, God's quantity, God's power, God's opulence, God's riches, God's beauty, God's wisdom, they are very, very, very, very great than ours. That is the difference between God and us. Now try to understand your constitutional position. Don't think that after this body is finished, or we meet death, then everything is finished, as it is going on. The greatest mistake, the world is going on, on the mistaken platform. They do not know what is going to happen after death. There is no education. There is no department of knowledge in the universities, what is going to happen after death. They are simply taking account of this body, which exists, say for twenty years or fifty years, or utmost hundred years. And they have no knowledge what is after this body.
This is fact, because they not know beyond this body. So you cannot expect any peace and prosperity in the animal society. That is not possible. The animals, by nature they can not live in peace. They are always in fighting. Just like children. Although they live together, but they will fight. They will fight. So the world is trying to have peace and prosperity, but they want to keep themself as animal. So, therefore it is, conclusion is, that there cannot be any peace and prosperity in this status of social constitution.
You have to become real human being. That is wanted. And what is the human being? That is explained in the Vedānta-sūtra. Vedānta-sūtra, you have heard the name, if you have not studied, that is the greatest philosophical presentation of Indian culture, Vedānta. Vedānta means, veda means knowledge, anta means end. Just like we have accumulating knowledge from university education, but everything remains imperfect. The scientists, they give some theory, but that is imperfect.
If you become leader, so-called leader, rascal leader, and you are addicted to illicit sex and intoxication and meat-eating, you must be si... If you are sinful, how you can lead persons? Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāḥ (SB 7.5.31). Blind man is leading other blind men. Therefore there is no solution. Why the world is in chaos? Because the leaders are all sinful. These are the sinful definitions. Striya-sūnā-pāna-dyūta yatra pāpaś catur-vidhāḥ (SB 1.17.38).
So God seeing is not very difficult, provided you are purified, you are pure. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a purificatory process. Purificatory process. The first condition... We do not accept any rascal who is addicted to these four principles. We do not make cheap disciples. Our condition is first of all you must give up these things: illicit sex and meat-eating and intoxication, up to the drinking of tea and cigarette. You have to give up. And gambling. So these nice boys, they have given up.
That is going on, generally. "Kṛṣṇa has no existence." "Kṛṣṇa, there was no Kṛṣṇa. It is story." "There was no battlefield of Kurukṣetra." These things are going on by, spoken by so-called political leaders and scholars. But that is not the fact. They do not understand Kṛṣṇa, simply mislead people. Therefore the world is in chaotic condition.
Try to understand Kṛṣṇa. Then your life will be successful. Kṛṣṇa is explaining. Kṛṣṇa is so kind that... Yadā yadā hi dharmasya (BG 4.7). He'll explain that, why He comes. Ajo 'pi sann avyayātmā bhūtānām īśvaro 'pi san sambhavāmi yuge yuge, why? Just to remind us, what is Kṛṣṇa. Just to teach us. Because we misunderstand. We are so fools and rascals. We misunderstand Kṛṣṇa. We cannot understand. If we simply understand Kṛṣṇa, then our life is successful. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). The simple thing. Just try to understand Kṛṣṇa. This simple, one thing will make your life successful.
That is bhāgavata-dharma. Śrīmad-Bhāgavata says, sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje: (SB 1.2.6) "That is first-class religion." What is that? "Where love of God is enthused." That is first-class religion. And if you follow ritualistic processes and your love of Godhead is gone to hell—your love of materialistic life or love of this world is increasing, love of sense gratification is increasing—that is not religion. That is not religion. Test of religion is how much you are increasing your love of God.
So here it is said, "Whenever and wherever there is decline in religious practice..." What is that religion practice? That religion practice is whenever there is decline of love of God. That's all. When people become lover of mammon, matter, that means decline of religion. And when people increase love of Godhead, that means real religion. So Kṛṣṇa comes, or Kṛṣṇa's servant or representative comes, to adjust things. When people forget love of Godhead, somebody, either Kṛṣṇa, God Himself or His representative comes to adjust things.
That is the beauty of Bhagavad-gītā.
Just like in some dictionary the word is explained in one word. In some dictionary it is explained that "The history of this world is like this. This word can be explained like this, like that, like that," some pages like that. Similarly, so far dictionary, the small pocket dictionary is also dictionary, and that Webster's International big dictionary, that is also dictionary. The difference is that international dictionary, you get details of one word. Similarly, any scripture is perfectly giving direction towards understanding what is God. But actually how God is great, how He is working, how His laws are working, all these things you can find in the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. (end)
He cannot be īśvara constitutionally. Any one of us. This is called illusion. Actually, we are servant but we are trying to become īśvara. This is called māyā. So this position of the living entity is called dharmasya glāniḥ, discrepancy of the constitutional position. Actually, I am servant but I am trying to become master. This is called dharmasya glāniḥ. So when the world is full...
Of course, there are devotees who are trying to become servant. They are trying. The devotional service means, Kṛṣṇa consciousness means to train people how to become servant of God. That is all.
Because everyone is under the impression that I am God, I am master, I am proprietor. This illusion. To dissipate this illusion and to put him into the right position, that "you are not master, you are not enjoyer, you are simply eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa." If you remain in that position, then you are happy. If you artificially try to become Kṛṣṇa, that is your unhappiness.
Therefore it is stated here that "My appearance, disappearance and activity and glories, they are divyam." Divyam means transcendental. They do not belong to this world of duality. This world is of duality. But transcendental means that it is above, above this dualism. It is the absolute world. So anyone who understands this fact, that Kṛṣṇa is not different from this sound Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is not different from this Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa is not different from anything which is connected with Kṛṣṇa... These things are to be understood.
And it has been described. There are two kinds of energies: the lower energy and the higher energy. And the higher energy is the living entities. Just like we are. We living entities, we belong to the higher nature of the Supreme Lord. Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). This world is moving, this world is made of lower nature, material, and the higher nature is the living entity. So anything which is connected with Kṛṣṇa, it becomes to the higher nature. Even in this material things, if it is dovetailed with Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then it turns into higher nature.
The example I have several times repeated: just like you put an iron rod in the fire. It becomes warm, warmer, and gradually it becomes red hot. When it is red hot, it is transformed into the nature of fire. It is no longer iron. Similarly, if you constantly remain in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, you at once transfer yourself to the higher nature of Kṛṣṇa, and that is your liberation.
Unless there is a real snake, how you can see that it is a snake? That rope is false. That's all right. That rope is not snake, but there is real snake. Otherwise, how you get the conception of the snake? Just try to follow it. Without having the real snake, you cannot get this conception of snake.
Similarly, we say that this world is false, or shadow. The shadow, without being the reality, how there can be possibility of shadow? If there is no reality of my hand, how the shadow of the hand can be there? So this world is temporary shadow. That is accepted. But there is the real world which has no destruction. This world is destructive. It will be dissolved. Just like our body is temporary, but it will be dissolved. Anything material that has got a birth, a stay for some time, a byproduct, a growth, a dwindling, and then vanish. That is the nature, anything.
Because they do not get any shelter, the shelter of lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, from this impersonal conception of philosophy, they again come to this material world.
Therefore you'll find there are so many big, big swamis. First of all they give up this world. Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā. "This world is mithyā. Let us take to Brahman. Let us become Brahman." But after keeping in, some days in so-called Brahman, they again come back to open hospital, school. Because there they could not get anything. Therefore something must be done, profession. So open hospital and raise fund. That's all.
So unless you get shelter on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, you'll be attracted by these material activities. But when you are attracted by the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, then vīta-rāga-bhaya-śoka... Then, as we... Vīta-rāga-bhaya-krodhā man-mayā mām upāśritāḥ (BG 4.10). Mām upāśritāḥ.
There is no question of retire. Retire means to retire from all foolish activities and engage yourself in real activities. Retire is the negative side. But unless you have got positive side you cannot retire. You'll have come back again.
There are so many yogis and jñānīs. They say that this world is false. Let me retire from it." But after some time he again falls down again to the sense gratification this material world. So what is retirement? Retirement is not required. But what is required that purify your activities. Not to stop your activity but to purify it. Just like when you are diseased it is not required that you should be killed. No. Your disease should be, I mean, cured, then you can work in healthy life. So that is required. Retirement means to become cured from the diseased activities but to place yourself in healthy activities. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Go on.
Kṛṣṇa consciousness is lost. How? By these six processes. What are the six processes? Atyāhāra. Atyāhāra means to eat more than you require, and atyāhāra means to accumulate wealth more than what you require.
The whole trouble of the world is that nobody is satisfied. If he's a poor man, if he thinks, "Oh, my income is $100. If I get $400 per month, then I will be very happy." But when he gets $400, he expects, "Oh, if I get $1,000, then I shall be happy." In this way it is going on. Nobody is satisfied. But here it is said, yadṛcchā-lābha-santuṣṭaḥ. That automatically comes, as we make progress in the matter of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then our demand for more enjoyment, more accumulation of wealth, diminishes. That is the symptom of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Yadṛcchā-lābha-santuṣṭaḥ.
Now the communist or the laborer class men, they are thinking that "Why the capitalist should gain? We must gain. The industry is being conducted by us. The profits shall be divided between us. Why to the capitalist?" So that is not the solution. That is from frying pan to the fire.
Either the world is run on the principle of communistic philosophy or capitalistic philosophy, it will never be happy. Here is the formula, that everyone should be satisfied with the profit that he can easily make. That's all. Yadṛcchā-lābha. Not that everyone will have the same profit.
In material world everyone is working. Somebody is getting per hour thousands of rupees, and somebody is getting not even morsel of food. But still, one has to be satisfied. "Because one is getting thousands of rupees per hour, I will have to get also." No. Then you will never be happy. You be happy what you are gaining.
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.
(aside:) You sit down, you people, on the chair.
So this is our material disease. And how we are trying to be master or enjoyer of this material world? By the senses, by the mind. Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhāni prakṛti-sthāni karṣati. Manaḥ.... Mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ (BG 15.7). "The living entities," Kṛṣṇa says, "they are My part and parcel." So instead of serving Kṛṣṇa, they are trying to utilizing, they are trying to utilize the material nature for their sense gratification.
This perverted reflection I have tried to explain many times. Just like if there is a tree on the bank of a lake you'll find that tree is perverted, reflected, pervertedly reflected within the water. That means the top has gone to the down and the root has come up. And in the Fifteenth Chapter it is described in that way. So this world is a perverted reflection. And because it is reflection of the reality, therefore it appears so nicely that we take it as actual fact. That is called illusion. But if we understand that, "It is temporary, I should not be attached. It is temporary. My attachment should be to the reality not to the unreality,"... So reality is Kṛṣṇa. This is also reality, but temporary. So we have to get ourself from the temporary to the reality. Therefore Rūpa Gosvāmī says that prāpañcikatayā buddhyā hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ.
"This can be utilized very nicely for Kṛṣṇa's service," that is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is God consciousness, everything to see in connection with Kṛṣṇa. The Gosvāmīs, they give us this formula. Prāpañcikatayā buddhyā hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ. The Māyāvādī philosopher, they say that "This world is false. This world is false." Some philosophers, they are meditating to the voidness, that "These things are all nonsense. Voidness is best." This is frustration. But we know that everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa and it can be used for Kṛṣṇa. Why void? Why false? Reality. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, to accept everything in reality, not false. This tape recorder machine, it is material. The Māyāvāda philosophers, they will say it is false. We say,"It is not false. It is temporary, but it can be used for Kṛṣṇa." That is the best use of a bad bargain. Similarly, this body is not false, but it is temporary. How can I say false? If I give you a nice, I mean to say, what is called?
"No, I am not enjoyer." So my sense gratification, my anger, my lust, all finished. All finished at once, at stroke, if I understand that "Nothing belongs to me; everything belongs to God." If I want to enjoy it, that is illegal, and if I neglect it, that is also illegal. If I say, "Oh, let... Jagan mithyā, this world is false. I don't want it. Let me go to the Himalaya in the jungle," oh, that is also not good. You must try to utilize the whole thing for the purpose of Kṛṣṇa because everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa. That is your duty. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Because He is the proprietor.
Now, this tape recorder is advancement now of material science. We should think, "Oh, this is the property of Kṛṣṇa." Let it be utilized in the propaganda work for Kṛṣṇa's service. That is proper utilization. So everything. Sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). Suppose if somebody says that "I am the proprietor everything of this room.
So you are at liberty to make its use. You can take as much as you like. But if you claim proprietorship, then you make fault and you have to suffer. You can use them. There is no harm using. Kṛṣṇa has given, God has given us enough things. Now, why you are suffering? Why the world is suffering? Because we are trying to occupy it. "Oh, this is my country." He said, "This is my country. Oh, this is my property. You cannot come here. You cannot enjoy it." This is the trouble. But if we think, "Oh, it is all Kṛṣṇa's property. Let us enjoy it and be Kṛṣṇa conscious and be happy," then there is no disturbance. Automatically, peace is there.
A sannyāsī's body is not burned because it is considered spiritual. So how it becomes spiritual? The same example: When the body has no more any material activities, simply spiritual activity in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that body is spiritual.
So if this world is become full in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, nobody is working for sense gratification, only for satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, this world becomes spiritual world immediately. This requires little time to understand. Anything used for Kṛṣṇa, simply for Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction, it is spiritual. Just like we are using this microphone for talking about Kṛṣṇa, then it is spiritual. Otherwise what is the difference between this prasādam and ordinary food? We are distributing prasādam, people will say, "Why is prasādam? The same fruit we eat, and you have simply cut into pieces it has become prasādam?" They can say that. How it is prasādam? But it is prasādam.
We cannot understand what is honor if there is no dishonor. If I am not insulted, I cannot understand what is honor. So mānāpamānayoḥ. Similarly, I cannot understand what is misery if I have not tasted happiness. Or I cannot understand what is happiness if I have not understood misery. So similarly... I cannot understand what is cold if I have not tasted hot. This world is, world is of duality. So one has to transcend. So long this body is there, this duality feeling will continue.
So because I am trying to get out of this body, bodily conception—not exactly out of the body, but bodily conception—so I will have to practice to tolerate these dualities. As in the Second Chapter we have, Kṛṣṇa has advised Arjuna, mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ (BG 2.14). This duality of distress and happiness, this is due to the skin. This is skin disease. Just like itching, itching of the skin.
So our duration of life is smaller, and at the same time, we are disturbed, and we are not intelligent, and we are unfortunate at the same time. At the present moment, you will find, 80% people, they are unfortunate. If we compare what is fortune or misfortune, then we'll find, in every country, 80% people, they are unfortunate, and therefore this world is getting to Communism because they are fighting. They are fighting. So this is the condition of the present day.
How can you perform this such difficult process of yoga which was refused by Arjuna? That is my proposal. It is not possible. If you are attempting such difficult process in a pseudo way, then you can be satisfied in your own way, but you will never achieve success of the yoga system. You must know it clearly. So yoga system is not possible in this age. If you want to prosecute any yoga system, this bhakti-yoga, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa...
Mām upetya tu kaunteya, duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam. This world is recommended by the Creator of this world as duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam. It is the place for miseries. And that also temporary. If you make, want to make compromise, "All right, it may be miserable life. I will stay here." Oh, that also you'll not be allowed. You'll be kicked out after some days. You may try to become very comfortable, good income, good bank balance, or nice wife, nice car, but one day it will come you'll be kicked out. "Please get out." Finished. Mṛtyuḥ sarva-haraś cāham (BG 10.34). Kṛṣṇa says that "I am mṛtyu. I take away everything. At that time, finished, everything."
We are therefore presenting these books, eighty books, four hundred pages each, and just to explain what is God. So it is a great science. Any intelligent man will appreciate. And we are getting good response. Especially in America, big, big university, college, professors, they are now purchasing. We have proposed to publish Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in sixty volumes, but we have published only fourteen. But still, the big, big professors, they are giving us order, forward order, for all the sixty volumes. As soon as scholarly people, they read these books, they'll welcome this movement all over the world. Is that all right, or any more? Any more questions?
We should prepare in that way. That is the solution of problem. Otherwise, if you want to live in this material world, this nature is like that. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). It is manifested at a certain period, again it is destroyed. And there is destroying, I mean to say, process. So Kṛṣṇa comes, He sets right everything. But the nature of this world is like that. It becomes again deteriorated. Deteriorated. So? Let us have saṅkīrtana. Govinda jaya jaya gopāla jaya jaya. Let that girl come here. Come on, come on. (end)
"I shall get you relieved from all sinful reaction." This means that a person like Arjuna, who can talk face to face with Kṛṣṇa, is supposed to have sinful activities of life. Otherwise why Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo: "I shall get you relieved from all sinful reaction"?
That means even Arjuna was subjected to sinful activities. This world is so made that even if we do not want to be sinful, the circumstances is so made that we'll be obliged to commit sins. It is such a place. Therefore in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is stated that this place is padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām. This material world is full of danger in every step. There is a very nice verse:
This para-upakāra business, welfare activities to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world, is the most important business at the present moment. It will unite everyone politically, socially, culturally, religiously, in every way. Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the center. That's a fact. It is making progress. And if we endeavor more and more, it will make more and more progress.
How these are, we do not know. But it is actually happening. Anvayād itarataḥ. I know that I am eating, but itarataḥ, how this eating substance are transformed into bones, marrow, stool, I do not know. Therefore I am not abhijña. But about Kṛṣṇa it is said, abhijña. "He knows everything." How this world is going on? How these planets are rotating? How seasons are changing? Yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakraḥ. Actually, it is happening due to the rotation of the sun; every scientist knows. But how the rotation of sun is going on, that they do not know. That we know. How? It is said in the Brahma-saṁhitā, yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakraḥ. "The sun is moving by His order." Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram: (BG 9.10) "Under My supervision, everything is going on." That is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is not ordinary thing.
So the real understanding of Kṛṣṇa, that this material world is also Kṛṣṇa... But we do not know how to use it for Kṛṣṇa. If we take to that process... Kṛṣṇa's energy should be for Kṛṣṇa's purpose. That is Vaiṣṇava philosophy. Vaiṣṇava philosophy never says that this world is false. Why it is false? It is not false. As the Māyāvādī philosopher says that brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā. No. Why jagan mithyā? Just like this temple is constructed. If somebody says, "Yes, it is very nicely constructed, but it is all false," shall I be happy? No. And actually, why it is false? It is not false. It is Kṛṣṇa's energy, the bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ. What is this temple? This temple is combination of this bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4). Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ. This brick, what is this brick? Brick means you take earth, mix with water and put into the fire—it becomes brick. And there is air. So it is Kṛṣṇa's energy. It is not material.
You cannot manufacture life by combination of material chemicals. That is not possible. Here it is said that aparā. The material ingredients—chemical is also material ingredient—you cannot produce. It is a different thing, jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho. How it is superior? Yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). Because the spiritual energy is there, therefore this world is important, otherwise it has no value.
In Africa because the Europeans or Indians, they came here, they are spiritual energy. The Africans also spiritual energy. This is an example. But the advanced nation, they know how to utilize things, the matter. Therefore it is superior. The spiritual energy, living soul, knows how to utilize this matter. Yayā idaṁ dhāryate jagat. Jagat, this world, is made of material energy, but the spiritual energy, the living entity, he knows how to utilize this material energy. He knows how to utilize earth by making brick and making lime, and then they can construct a nice house.
"This factory belongs to such-and-such person." As this is possible to have always a consciousness of the proprietor of the factory by the worker, similarly, it is possible for everyone to become Kṛṣṇa conscious in every activity. That is the philosophy we are trying to preach all over the world. The Bhagavad-gītā philosophy is like that. Yudhyasva mām anusmara (BG 8.7). You have to... This world is so made that one has to work. Without working, nobody can even maintain his body and soul together. That you cannot avoid. But at the same time, we can remember Kṛṣṇa. That is... That depends only on practice and understanding, pure understanding.
This Bhagavad-gītā, the people of the world are reading. Very, very learned scholar, wise men, they are reading. They are trying to understand, giving different interpretation. And there are thousands of edition, commentaries. But Arjuna was intelligent; he understood it within half an hour.
So it requires relative intelligence. Everything... This world is relative. Law of relativity. That is scientific. Professor Einstein's theory? Law of relativity? So it is relatively. One can become immediately Kṛṣṇa conscious within a second, and one cannot become Kṛṣṇa conscious after many, many births. So it is relative. If you have got sufficient intelligence, you can accept it immediately. If there is less intelligence, then it will take time. You cannot say that "It will be possible after so many years." That cannot be said. It is relative. Everything is relative. For a human being, from here to here, one step; and for a small microbe, it is ten miles from here to here, ten miles for him. So everything is relative. This world is relative world.
Yes. Difficulty is there always. Even you go to a school there are so many difficulties. But if you practice with vow and rigidity, you become successful. Difficulties may be there. In every field of our activities there are difficulties. You cannot say... This world is full of difficulties. So difficulties may be there, but you have to struggle against the difficulties and you have to adopt the process. Then your difficulties will be over. It is not that "Because there is difficulty I shall refrain from it." No. Ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu-saṅgo 'tha bhajana-kriyā tato 'nartha... (Cc. Madhya 23.14-15). These are process. Just like you have come here with some śraddhā, with some faith: "Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let me sit down. Let me hear." This is the preliminary stage. If you become little serious, then you come daily and try to understand what is this. This is called sādhu-saṅga (CC Madhya 22.83).
In every step of our life there are difficulties. The material life is like that. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām (SB 10.14.58). In every step there is danger. It is a place like that. Even if you are comfortable in a nice car, you are going, oh, there may be any moment accident. Even you are sitting here, there may be accident. So difficulties, this world is full of difficulties. One who does not understand this difficult position, he's a fool. If one thinks that "I am very comfortable," then he's a fool. This is animal life, just as animal thinks, "Oh, I am very comfortable. I am very nice." And dissatisfaction is human life. He's not happy unless he gets the greatest happiness. That is human life. And if he thinks, "Yes, I am well off. I am very happy," then he is animal. Because there is no happiness here. Full of distress. Full of miseries. How he says that "I am happy"? That means he is ignorant. So difficulties are there. You have to work out. That is the problem.
Then you'll feel uncomfortable. And for want of pleasure, you'll accept any kind of pleasure: "All right, material pleasure." That's all. That is the risk.
Therefore this Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, you'll have full pleasure, full pleasure, the same pleasure. Not the same pleasure. Just like here the highest pleasure of this world is sex life. That is also perverted, so diseased. So even in the spiritual world there is sex pleasure in Kṛṣṇa, but that's not... We should not think that this is something like this. No. But janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Unless that sex life is there, it cannot be reflected here. It is simply perverted reflection. The actual life is there, in Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is full of pleasure. So best thing is to train ourself, train ourself in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and then it will be possible in this life at the time of death to transfer ourself into the spiritual world and enter into the Kṛṣṇaloka, or the Kṛṣṇa planet, and enjoy with the association of Kṛṣṇa.
You, you have heard seven wonderful things in the world. So Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja said: ahany ahani lokāni gacchanti yama-mandiram. Yama-mandira means "the temple of death." Every minute, every second, we are experiencing that living entities are going to the temple of death, either man, animal, ant, so many. This world is called therefore mṛtyu-loka, "the planet for death." "The planet for death." So Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja said, ahany ahani lokāni gacchanti yama-mandiram. Ahani, ahany ahani means daily, every day, every moment. At least every day we see so many death list. If you go to the crematorium ground, you can see. So ahany ahani lokāni gacchanti yama-mandiram, śeṣaḥ sthitam icchanti. But those who are still alive, they think, "Oh, death will not take place. I'll live. I'll live." He does not think that he... You are also subjected to this principle of dying. But he does not take it seriously. This is called illusion, māyā. He thinks, oh, that "I shall live forever. Therefore let me do whatever I like.
We are eternal. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). By destruction of this body, maybe after two hours or four minutes... There are many, many living entities, they live for some minutes, some second, some years. The human in this material world, in this planetary system, we live, say, utmost, hundred years. But in other planetary system they live for millions of years. It is a ques... This world is relative. According to your position the relative condition is there. My past and present and future is not the same past, present, future of an ant. The ant's past, future, may be three hours or four hours. Our past, present, means hundred hours, and Brahmā's past, present, millions of years. Everything is relative, according to the position.
Sometimes at the time of death, they cry, that "I could not finish my business."
So that is the way of nature. That you may try to become very happy in this material world, nature will kick you out, will not allow you to stay here. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). This world is duḥkhālayam. You make so many imagination, try to fulfill it, that's a very troublesome job. To get money and to make material arrangement, that is not very easy. After you've undergone severe hardship, then you can get some money and build big, big buildings or purchase car. So before possessing big, big buildings and cars you had to work so hard. And to keep them intact, that is also very difficult. So, and again there is no guarantee that you shall be able to enjoy it. Today you may be proprietor of a big house, big motor car, but after death you don't know, you have to accept a body, and it may be you become a cockroach in the car or in the house. That is not in your hands.
Prabhupāda: So if you want to get relief from the punishment of this māyā, then you surrender to Kṛṣṇa. Your position is to surrender, either this side or that side.
Guest (2): What can you do to still two voices inside yourself? One voice tells me that the mystics' view on the world is correct and it has its own logic and it's consistent. And this, when I'm in a meditative mood I can comprehend. But when I walk in the daylight and the illusions are around one, then the other voice talks and says, my so-called logical voice, my daily, logical voice, says, "That a fantasy, a dream you're chasing. You're only putting your logic to it. Maybe it doesn't exist." How can one get over this doubt?
Now one may think that "Such a huge manifestation of the material world, it is once created and again annihilated. Then God must be very much concerned about this creation and annihilation." But the Lord says, "No." Na ca māṁ tāni karmāṇi nibadhnanti dhanañjaya: "My dear Arjuna, all this world is going on automatically. There is no concern about it." Just like a big man, big rich man in your city. Oh, he is dismantling so many big, big houses and again constructing skyscraper. Oh, his agents are doing. He has got money, spending. He is sitting nicely. He has no concern. Similarly, parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate. The material nature and so many other agents, they are, I mean to say, performing this creation automatically. Parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate svābhāvikī jñāna-bala-kriyā ca (Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport).
They are called rākṣasas. No shame. "My sense gratification should be satisfied. Never mind. You go to hell." So this is the age. So we, we create a machine that everyone comes and becomes smashed in that machine, and my sense satisfaction is there. Although I'll never be happy by that sense satisfaction. This is going on. You can know this world is now managed by the rākṣasas. Rākṣasa. They don't mind what is happening. They are prepared to sacrifice everything for fulfilling their whimsical nonsense. They are called rākṣasa. Rākṣasīm āsurīṁ caiva prakṛtiṁ mohinīṁ śritāḥ. Why they are? Now, they are very much enamored by this material beauty. Not beauty. The material civilization. So they cannot. They cannot understand. It is very difficult for them. They cannot understand. And they'll never try to understand because they are rākṣasas.
Then who will understand God? Mahātmā.
Now how to decide it? Can you suggest any way how to decide it, how, who is crazy? Who will decide it? Everyone, two parties, when there is something disagreement, the two parties will say that, "You are in wrong," the other party will say, "You are..." Now who will decide it? That who is wrong? Can you suggest any one of you who'll decide? The world is going on in partyism and each opposite party is thinking that the other party is crazy. Now who will decide who is actually crazy? The actual... Then you have come to the point of reason, who is crazy?
Now just see. Take any common man. Not yourself, not myself. Any common man. If you ask him that, "What you are?", he'll say... His conception is that I am this body. Everyone will say. He'll give you some description that, "I am Christian." "I am Hindu." "I am Mr. Such and Such." "I am Mrs. Such and Such." Everything, whatever he or she will say, that is all due to this body. All due to this body. Everyone.
If every home, every person, takes to this principle of understanding Kṛṣṇa, it will become... The whole world will become Vaikuṇṭha. Vaikuṇṭha means where there is no anxiety. Vaikuṇṭha. Vai means without, and kuṇṭha means anxiety. This world is full of anxiety. Sadā samudvigna-dhiyām asad-grahāt (SB 7.5.5). Because we have accepted this temporary existence of material life, therefore we are always encumbered with anxiety. Just the opposite thing is there in the spiritual world, where the planets are called Vaikuṇṭha. Vaikuṇṭha means without anxiety.
We want to be free from anxieties. Everyone is trying to get himself free from anxieties, but he does not know how to get out of this anxiety. This taking shelter of intoxication is no use to get oneself free from anxieties. It is a drug. It is oblivion.
Ajita jito 'py asi. Although the Lord is unknowable, the Lord is unconquerable, still, He is conquered. How? Sthāne sthitāḥ.
Persons... Let them remain in their own position but adopt this principle. What is that? The principle is that jñāne prayāsam udapāsya. Give up this nonsense speculation, volumes of books. The world is producing every year volumes of books, and they're useless. After six months that is useless, thrown. So don't take to that speculative process, this way and that way, this way and that way, because our senses are limited. How you can have the Supreme Truth known by these imperfect blunt senses?
So my senses, my speculative power may be greater than you, and another person's speculative power may be greater than me, but nobody can... Here it is clearly stated, na me sura-gaṇāḥ viduḥ. What you are? You are human being. Even the sura-gaṇāḥ and the great sages, they cannot.
"Those who are fools, rascals, they think of Me as ordinary man." Yes. But He is not ordinary man. Exactly this word is used, you will find in the Bhagavad-gītā, mūḍha. Mūḍha means the fools, rascals. They think of Kṛṣṇa just like ordinary man. But He is different. He is different from everything of this world because everything of this world is born. You will trace out the history, the birthdate. But you cannot.
Therefore, ajam anādi. Anādi, you cannot find out any date. Adyasya sapariṇāmena asya deha-janmasu janma-stha anādim ity anena viśeṣataḥ mukta-cid-vargāc ca veda.(?) Anādi. Now, anādi, this word, should be very nicely analyzed. Anādi means without any cause. Now, Kṛṣṇa may be spiritual, but there are other spiritual bodies also. There are many spiritual bodies, and we are also having spiritual body, but it is now covered. But our spiritual body is also due to Kṛṣṇa.
There are field of activities in so many ways. Not only of this body; body, mind, intelligence. They are all kṣetra. I am living entity, I am working with them. Similarly, I am working outside also. Not within, not outside.
I am running my ca... That is also kṣetra. The world is kṣetra. The car is kṣetra. But the doer, the driver, is kṣetrajñam. That knowledge is lacking. A child may think that the airplane, big airplane, 747 is running. No, it is not running automatically. There is a pilot—kṣetrajñam. He knows the machine, how to work on it. Everywhere. You study. There is kṣetra and kṣetrajñam. So Kṛṣṇa says kṣetra-kṣetrajñayor jñānam. One who knows how this kṣetra and kṣetrajñam is working... Not only in individual body, in gigantic body, in everything.
There are many instances that the devotees are all qualified.
Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja, he was only five years old boy and his father was always chastising him because his only fault was he was chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. So the world is so made, full of demons, that simply for your fault of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra you'll have so many enemies, even your father. This is the position. Simply for this fault, that because we are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, we have got so many enemies. This is the world. Sura and asura. Because the more asuras... They'll never tolerate. The glorifying the Lord, they cannot tolerate. It is very difficult for them. So there are two classes of men, suras and asuras. Sura means viṣṇu-bhakto bhaved daivaḥ. Sura means devatā, or the demigods; and asura means, viṣṇu-bhakto bhaved daiva asuras tad-viparyayaḥ. And asuras means just the opposite number of viṣṇu-bhakta. They are asuras.
What is the rate of rice? No, not for this inquiry. Jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam. To inquire about the Absolute Truth, uttamam, beyond this material nature. Udgata tamam. This material nature is called tama. Tamaso mā jyotir gama. These are the Vedic injunctions.
You have to enter, you have to understand the world of light. This world is the world of darkness. It is simply... We require, therefore, sunlight, moonlight, electric light. Otherwise it is dark. It is called tamaḥ. But there is another world which is full of light. It is so full of light that you do not require the sunlight, moonlight or electric light there.
As the Māyāvādī philosopher says, "It is mithyā," jagan mithyā, we don't say. Why it is mithyā? It is fact. Because Kṛṣṇa says that bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4). Kṛṣṇa says, "It is My prakṛti, My energy." If Kṛṣṇa is fact, why His energy should be mithyā? This is nonsense. The jagat is not mithyā. We don't say. If Kṛṣṇa is truth, then this world is also truth. But the fact that Kṛṣṇa is the enjoyer, we are trying to be enjoyer, that is not true. That is mithyā. The jagat is not mithyā, but the propensity to enjoy this world, that is mithyā because we cannot be enjoyer.
So therefore, unless you come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, whatever you are acting in your daily life, it is sinful. And you are becoming complicated, involved. This is the... Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām (SB 10.14.58). This world is so made that in every step you are creating some dangerous position. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām. This material world is like that.
Bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpā ye pacanty ātma-kāraṇāt (BG 3.13). Generally, people, they cook for themselves nice, palatable foodstuffs for eating and enjoying. But they do not know that they are eating all sinful reactions. Bhuñjate te tv aghaṁ pāpā ye pacanty ātma-kāraṇāt. What is the difference between this house and the next house? Here we cook for Kṛṣṇa, not for ourselves. Therefore we are being saved.
Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Why? Now anādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ. One who has not realized the lotus feet of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa, he falls down.
We have seen many big, big sannyāsīs in India, very learned scholar, and very nicely they can describe śāstra also, but they are entangled in politics. Why? If this world is mithyā, jagan mithyā, you have rejected it, then why you are again coming to politics? Why you are coming in the mithyā world? Because there is no realization. Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ. Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. They are thinking that "We have now become liberated," māninaḥ. Actually, they are not liberated. Because aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ, their intelligence is not yet clear, therefore, even after severe austerities, penances, they come to the point of Brahman realization, because they have no realization of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, they fall down.
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...
Because He is so perfect, we do not perceive. But it is moving.
Everyone knows that the morning, there is sunrise, and in twelve hours after covering twelve thousand miles, the evening is there. Again twelve thousand miles moving—you are sleeping—in the morning you see again the sun. The sun is there. Sun is not moving. But the world is moving. It is moving so nicely. Not only this earthly planet, but there are millions and trillions of planets within the sky. They are all moving. Seasonal changes, day and night, everything is going on. This is perfection. So those who are in divine nature, they can understand all these things. That is called daivī sampat.
They say that "Chemical evolution, by combination of chemicals, everything has come out, but there is no creator." They will deny this. This is the symptom of the asura. So from this instruction you can understand who is a rascal and asura. As soon as they say that "There is no God. The world is created by chance. By chance..." Aparaspara-bhūtam. Aparaspara: "One thing mixed with another thing..."
How the example? The example is kim anyat kāma-haitukam. Just like a man and woman, by chance they become lusty and have sex, and the woman becomes pregnant, and the child is coming, just like this is a creation, accidentally, accident. The man or woman becomes lusty accidentally, and there is sex and therefore the creation of the child.
Just like in our country there are many. The beginning we see that... Vivekananda Swami, he took sannyāsa and meditation. Later on, after his touring in the Western countries, he came to India to open hospitals, schools, like that. But if the world is false, then why you are coming to open school and hospitals? Because they could not get... And some other sannyāsī also, he is now taking part in politics. If jagat is mithyā, why you are taking part in politics? These question are there.
Actually they do not know what is what, what is the adjustment. But our philosophy, Vaiṣṇava philosophy, we don't say that "There is no God" or "This world is created by accident or combination of matter." We don't say that. We say that God is the creator. Not we say, but the Vedānta says. The essence of Vedic knowledge, Vedānta philosophy, Vyāsadeva, he says that janmādy asya yataḥ: (SB 1.1.1) "
Nitāi: "They say that this world is unreal, that there is no foundation and that there is no God in control. It is produced of sex desire, and has no cause other than lust."
Prabhupāda:
- asatyam apratiṣṭhaṁ te
- jagad āhur anīśvaram
- aparaspara-sambhūtaṁ
- kim anyat kāma-haitukam
- (BG 16.8)
This is the atheistic theory, asatyam. They say that this material world is false. Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā. Jagat, jagat means this cosmic manifestation which is gacchati, going. In the material world, everything is going. Just like in your city you see the cars, motor cars. They are going here and there, gacchati, very busy. Every man is going here and there. Similarly, the whole planetary system also, beginning from its birth up to the annihilation it is going, moving, orbit. It is going. Everything is going, moving. Even the sun, it has got its orbit.
Nitāi: "The demoniac conclude that the world is a phantasmagoria. There is no cause, no effect, no controller, no purpose: everything is unreal. They say that this cosmic manifestation arises due to chance material actions and reactions. They do not think that the world was created by God for a certain purpose. They have their own theory: that the world has come about in its own way and that there is no reason to believe that there is a God behind it. For them there is no difference between spirit and matter, and they do not accept the Supreme Spirit. Everything is matter only, and the whole cosmos is supposed to be a mass of ignorance."
Prabhupāda: Therefore they say chemical evolution. They cannot think of spirit. Go on.
Nitāi: "According to them, everything is void, and whatever manifestation exists is due to our ignorance in perception. They take it for granted that all manifestation of diversity is a display of ignorance. Just as in a dream we may create so many things which actually have no existence, so when we are awake we shall see that everything is simply a dream. But factually, although the demons say that life is a dream, they are very expert in enjoying this dream.
And so, instead of acquiring knowledge, they become more and more implicated in their dreamland. They conclude that as a child is simply the result of sexual intercourse between man and woman, this world is born without any soul. For them it is only a combination of matter that has produced the living entities, and there is no question of the existence of the soul. As many living creatures come out from the perspiration and from a dead body without any cause, similarly, the whole living world has come out from the material combinations of the cosmic manifestation. Therefore material nature is the cause of this manifestation, and there is no other cause. They do not believe in the words of Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram: (BG 9.10) 'Under My direction the whole material world is moving.' In other words, amongst the demons there is no perfect knowledge of the creation of this world; every one of them has a particular theory of his own.
Nitāi: "They say that this world is unreal, that there is no foundation and that there is no God in control. It is produced of sex desire and has no cause other than lust."
Prabhupāda:
- asatyam apratiṣṭhaṁ te
- jagad āhur anīśvaram
- aparaspara-sambhūtaṁ
- kim anyat kāma-haitukam
- (BG 16.8)
This is the verdict of the asuras. We have discussed the characteristics of asuras for the last two days. Now, gradually, Kṛṣṇa is explaining the demonic characteristic. He has explained the divine characteristic extensively before this. Now He is explaining what are the demonic characteristics. So, nāpi cācāraḥ. They even do not know how to live nicely. That verse we have already discussed last night.
Now, the next characteristic is asatyam: "This world is simply phenomenal; it has no foundation." The Māyāvādīs, they directly say, brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā. So Māyāvādī, at least they say that "There is Brahman. He is truth, but this phenomenal world is not truth. Manifestation of material energy, that is not true." So, according to our philosophy, Vaiṣṇava philosophy, we don't say that this māyā, or the... Māyā means this temporary manifestation. This material world is fact, but it is temporary, not false. We cannot say it is false. Just like I am sitting on the seat or you are sitting on the floor. We are sitting on something. It is not false; it is fact. I am not sitting on the air. You are not sitting on the air. So how we can say it is false? No. Therefore our philosophy is... That is fact. One may consider. One who is philosophically inclined, he can judge the statement, of Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī.
These demons, further description... Yesterday we discussed that "The world is untruth, this material world is untruth," asatyam apratiṣṭham, "and there is no background." This is the conclusion of the atheist demons. We have explained that this world is not untrue. That is our Vaiṣṇava philosophy. Untruth... If it is coming from the truth, it is true. How you can say untrue? The example: if cotton is truth, then thread is true. So if you say that thread is untruth, then cotton is also untruth, the cause. But they do not accept... (aside:) This child... Some sound is coming.
There are so many different forms of life. That is in our presence. Before us there are so many examples. If you get a life of a tree, naked... Tree is naked. He's not ashamed to remain naked. And for ten thousand years you stand up. Wherefrom this life comes? It requires thought. Why the world is not full of one kind of forms of life? Why there are different types of life? Because different desires and nature's law. Nature's law, there is no excuse, the same thing, that if a child even touches fire, nature is not very merciful. It will burn. Similarly, at the time of death we have to think very rightly. That is required. That is human life. You have to train yourself in such a way that at the time of death you think of Kṛṣṇa.
Desire must be there. Because I am living there, living being, I must have desires. That is the symptom. A stone has no desire, but a living being, however small, insignificant ant, it has got desire. The insignificant ant gets information that in the other corner of the room, which is one hundred miles for the ant... Because the world is relative, relative world, so this length of the room, from this corner to the other corner, for an ant it is hundred miles, yes, because the world is relative according to the size, atomic size, the distance. Now we have got speedy aeroplane. The distance has reduced. Distance from Honolulu to India, if you go by land it will be ten thousand miles, but... It is ten thousand miles, but the speedy aeroplane has reduced. So relatively... Everything is relative. This is called relative world. Dar... What is...? Professor Einstein, he has proved the law of relativity. So the ant, he has to go, to pick up one grain of sugar, by going hundred miles in his capacity, but it will go. That is desire. You have got experience. You put little sugar here.
There are so many going on. So what is the result of such activities?" This is very important question because there are so many pseudo so-called gurus. They do not know what is śāstra, neither they follow the principle. Still, they gather some people, and the world is full with such not bona fide gathering. So but they have faith in their—so-called guru that some way or other, so-called meditation... These things are going on.
So what is the result of this? It is very important question. Ye śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya yajante śraddhayānvitāḥ. But they have got faith. Faith is there but misguided. Teṣāṁ niṣṭhā tu kā kṛṣṇa: "Kṛṣṇa, that, then faith, that blind faith, how it is to be defined? Why? What will be the result?" Teṣāṁ niṣṭhā tu kā kṛṣṇa. Now, "Whether it is faith in sattva-guṇa or faith in rajo-guṇa or faith in tamo-guṇa?" Because without coming to the platform of sattva-guṇa, nobody can advance in spiritual life. That is a fact.
| Page Title: | The world is... (Lectures, BG) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, RupaManjari |
| Created: | 23 of May, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=87, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 87 |