So we can also have Kṛṣṇa like that. That is Kṛṣṇa's pastime, that . . . you are thinking of God as nirākāra, without any form, "He cannot be touched. He cannot be embraced. He cannot be talked." No. Kṛṣṇa, personally being present, He was talking with His devotees, dealing just like ordinary human being. But the devotees knew Him, that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Only the nondevotees . . . avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). Those who are nondevotees, still now . . . just like we are worshiping here Kṛṣṇa in this temple. The others, nondevotees, rascals, they will think that, "These fools are worshiping a stone statue." They will think like that. They are very learned scholar, so they think that "These are fools. They have accepted a stone statue. Everyone knows that here Kṛṣṇa is made of stone, so why these fools are spending so much money, lakhs and crores, for having a temple for this stone statue? This is their foolishness." Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam.
So people are unaware of Kṛṣṇa and His position. Therefore one should go to the guru—tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12)—eva, "must," in order to learn Kṛṣṇa. That is . . . the example is being shown by Sanātana Gosvāmī, the minister. He is not ordinary man. He is trying to know from guru what is his actual position. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu knew Sanātana Gosvāmī, intelligent, advanced. So he doesn't require to be educated by teaching Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā is the A-B-C-D of spiritual life, preliminary study. Bhagavad-gītā is not meant for persons who are advanced. They know Kṛṣṇa. One who does not know Kṛṣṇa, for them, first reading book is Bhagavad-gītā, so that he can know what is Kṛṣṇa. But here Sanātana Gosvāmī is advanced; therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu is teaching him from the point where Bhagavad-gītā was ended.
That Bhagavad-gītā ended . . . Kṛṣṇa, after teaching Arjuna different kinds of knowledge—karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga, haṭha-yoga, dhyāna-yoga, so many, bhakti-yoga—ultimately He said: "Arjuna, because you are My very confidential friend, so I am giving you the confidential knowledge." Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66): "You surrender unto Me, and whatever I say, you do. That is your duty." So from that point, when one surrenders to Kṛṣṇa . . . why one should surrender to Kṛṣṇa? Everyone is puffed up that, "I am as good as Kṛṣṇa. Why shall I surrender to Kṛṣṇa?" Many, many scholars, they comment on this verse, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. "Why? This is sophistry. Everyone should give up everything, simply surrender to Kṛṣṇa?" Still they say that "Why you are after Kṛṣṇa? Why not other gods or demigods?" That is their . . . sometimes they question. But one who knows Kṛṣṇa, they cannot be . . . he cannot be deviated from this path, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). Bhagavān means Kṛṣṇa.
- īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
- sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
- anādir ādir govindaḥ
- sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam
- (Bs. 5.1)
This is understanding. So our relationship with Kṛṣṇa . . . Sanātana Gosvāmī inquired from Caitanya Mahāprabhu, ke āmi, "What I am? What is my position? Why I am put into this miserable condition of material existence?" This should be the inquiry. Simply they are trying to mitigate the material distresses, but nobody inquires that, "Why I am put into this condition?" That is real intelligence. When the disease is there, you go to the doctor, take medicine, try to become cured from the disease. But nobody inquires that, "Why I am subjected to this disease?" That is intelligence. "Precaution is better than cure." If you know how to protect yourself from disease, then that is better position than to become diseased and cured. That is not very good intelligence. Rather, don't be diseased. Not that you become diseased repeatedly and go to the medical man and be cured. Punaḥ punaś carvita-carvaṇānām (SB 7.5.30). They have been described as chewing the chewed again and again.