741127 - Lecture SB 03.25.27 - Bombay
Nitāi: "Thus by not engaging in the service of the modes of material nature, but by developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, knowledge and renunciation, and by practicing yoga in which the mind is always fixed in devotional service under the Supreme Personality of Godhead, one achieves My association in this very life. For I am the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth."
Prabhupāda:
asevayāyaṁ prakṛter guṇānāṁ
jñānena vairāgya-vijṛmbhitena
yogena mayy arpitayā ca bhaktyā
māṁ pratyag-ātmānam ihāvarundhe
So asevayā ayam. What is our business at the present moment? We are serving māyā in different varieties. So māyā has got three modes— sattva, rajas, tamas or mixed. Just like the color displayer, very expert in mixing colors. Actually there are three colors: blue, red and yellow. This blue, red, yellow, the color display of the mix-three into three equal to nine; nine into nine, it becomes eighty-one. So in this material world we, living entities, we are colored in this way. Three into three— sattva, rajas, tamo-guṇa. Three into three equal to nine, and nine multiplied by nine, eighty-one. So there eighty-one colorful living entities are there. Somebody's human being; somebody's demigod; somebody's cat; somebody's dog; somebody's servant; somebody's tree; somebody's plant... There are 8,400,000's of forms of life. And that is our service. Just like the dog is barking. He's thinking that he's dog. So his business is barking. That means serving the laws of material nature. Similarly, somebody's serving, somebody's serving in some way someone-variety.
Because we are not meant for this service. We are, as Caitanya Mahāprabhu teaches, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa CC Madhya 20.108-109 . Our main business is to serve Kṛṣṇa. In Vṛndāvana, in Goloka Vṛndāvana, somebody's serving Kṛṣṇa as His friend, cowherd boy. Somebody's serving Kṛṣṇa as gopī, as lover. Somebody's serving Kṛṣṇa as father and mother, mother Yaśodā, Nanda Mahārāja. Somebody's Kṛṣṇa's friend as servant, as tree, as water, as flower, as land, as cow's, as calf. So many ways. This is our business. But somehow or other we did not like to serve Kṛṣṇa. Therefore we have been put into the service of māyā in three modes of nature. Just like criminal. A criminal does not like to obey the laws of the state; therefore a criminal is put into the prison house and he's forced to abide by the law of the state. The state laws are there—either outside the prisonhouse or inside the prisonhouse. But one who does not obey ordinarily outside the jail the orders or the laws of the state is put into the prisonhouse. But he cannot avoid the laws of the state. That is not possible. Because a citizen means he must abide by the laws of the state.
Similarly, we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ BG 15.7 . I have explained many times. So as soon as we deny to render service to Kṛṣṇa, immediately the māyā is there, captures, "All right. You come here. You serve me." This is the position. Artificially you cannot become master. That is not our nature, and that will not be happy service for us-artificial. Artificial... I have given this example. Suppose with this finger I capture some very nice foodstuff, rasagullā, and if the finger thinks that "I have captured the rasagullā. I shall eat." No. You cannot eat. You must put here. And then you get the benefit. And if you spoil the rasagullā in your hand and don't put into the mouth, then everything is spoiled. Similarly, we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Our business is to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. Ekaṁ bahu syām. The Vedas, we understand God has become many. Many... In many ways we are also part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. There are two kinds of manys. One many is called svāṁśa. Svāṁśa means personal expansions. And another expansion is differential expansion. The differential expansion are we, the living entities. We are also expansion of Kṛṣṇa, and the viṣṇu-tattva, They're personal expansions. But all of them are meant for serving Kṛṣṇa. That is explained in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa āra saba bhṛtya BG 15.7 . Kṛṣṇa has expanded. The demigods, they are also living entities like us, but they have got better position. Just like here also in the government. Ordinary living... Everyone is citizen, but somebody has got better position as the minister, as the president or some big officer. Similarly, the demigods, they are also living entities. The same thing as we are but different body. Different... The dog has got the dog's body. He's hungry or there is some company, barking. And somebody has got minister body, he's ordering. He's in better position. And better than him somebody else, better than him somebody else, better than him somebody else. In this way you go up to Brahmā, Lord Brahmā. He also servant of Kṛṣṇa. That is the position.
So we, living entities, we are servant of Kṛṣṇa. That is our nature. That is our nature. Simply we are trying to avoid Kṛṣṇa's service. Therefore we are engaged in this māyā's service, or material nature's, under different bodies.
prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
kartāham iti manyate
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 we are trying to enjoy. Enjoyment is our business. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt ( Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12) . Ānanda, Kṛṣṇa is ānandamaya, and we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. We are also ānandamaya. But we are seeking ānanda in different atmosphere. Just like any man can become very honest citizen, do business honestly, earn money and live very honorably. But no, somebody has learned how to steal. The government does not say that you becomes thief and go to the prison house. The government does not say. But you have selected to become a thief. That is it because we have got little independence, part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is fully independent; therefore we have got the quality of independence. But because we are very small, minute particle we have got minute particle of independence. Minute... Just like you take a drop of water from the sea. That is also salt, but very minute particle. The salt is there because it is part and parcel of the big sea. It must be salty. Similarly, Brahman, Parabrahman, Kṛṣṇa, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramam... BG 10.12. So here we have got all the qualities. We are Brahman, we are pure. But Kṛṣṇa's paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramam BG 10.12 . He's the supreme, nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām ( Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13) . He's the chief, chief pavitra, chief brahma. We are also brahma, but small brahma. We are also pure. Because we are small pure, therefore we sometimes become impure. Otherwise by nature we are pure spirit soul. asaṅgo 'yaṁ puruṣaḥ . This is the Vedic information. The puruṣa... Puruṣa means the living entity who has come here to enjoy. Asaṅga, he has no connection with this material world, but somehow or other he's thinking that "I am this matter. I have to enjoy this material world." "I am this Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am man," "I am woman," "I am cat," "I am dog," "I am tree," "I am hog..." In this way he's identifying with this material nature and enjoying or serving. You cannot enjoy. You can simply serve.
So this is the philosophy to understand. That asevayāyaṁ prakṛter guṇānām. We have to learn how to forget to serve this material nature. That is bhakti-mārga. It is forced because we have kṛṣṇa-bahirmukha hañā bhoga vāñchā kare. Somehow or other we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa and trying to enjoy this material world under different position. That we have to forget. This is not my business. When we understand this position, that is called self-realization, that "I am not servant of anyone. I am not servant of my country, of my society, of my friend, of my dress, of my cat, of my dog. I am nobody's servant. I am servant of Kṛṣṇa." That is self-realization. That is self-realization. Asevayāyaṁ prakṛter guṇānāṁ jñānena. When one comes to this understanding, not by sentiment, but by real knowledge, jñānena.
So when one becomes devotee, he's not a fool. Pure devotee is full knowledge. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate BG 7.19 . After many, many births, when one is actually jñānavān, actually wise, he surrenders to Kṛṣṇa. How? Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ BG 7.19 . He surrenders to Kṛṣṇa. "Kṛṣṇa, I forgot You so long. Now I understand that You are everything." That is knowledge. That is real knowledge. Therefore it is said, jñānena vairāgya-vijṛmbhitena. This jñāna means vairāgya— no more attachment for serving the so-called society, friendship, love, country. These are all foolishly engagement. But people do not understand it. They'll think that "This is my first service. This is my first..." How long you'll serve, my dear sir? But if you serve Kṛṣṇa, this service automatically becomes possible. Just like we are giving prasādam every week on Sunday, distributing prasādam. That is the bhakti-yoga. Bhakti-yoga means that sympathetic to persons who are not devotee of Kṛṣṇa. Devotee or not devotee, by eating kṛṣṇa-prasādam, he'll gradually become devotee. As yesterday I explained that kṛṣṇa-bhakti begins from the tongue, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ [Brs . 1.2.234] . If you engage your tongue in the service of the Lord, then Lord manifests. He reveals Himself. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau. How it is possible that jihvādau, beginning from the tongue? This is chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. Jihvādau, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. Very easy. You can begin Kṛṣṇa consciousness simply by chanting. And as soon as you chant, go on chanting, then ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam BG 7.19 . Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam means cleansing the heart. Because all congestion or dirty things within your heart—"I am this. I am that. I am this. I am that"—that if you chant, then gradually you'll understand that you are spirit soul. You're not Indian, not American, not this, not that, not that. This is self-realization.
But this whole world is going on under this misunderstanding. I am thinking "I am Indian and you are American. Why you have come in our country? You must be CIA. You must be CIA. Why you have come to our country? Formerly the Britishers also sent missionaries and then gradually conquered, got hold of the government. Similarly, these Americans, they have also come as devotee, as CIA, and therefore their business is how to capture the government. So get out." Why this misunderstanding? Because there is no Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Because there is no Kṛṣṇa consciousness any gentleman, any sane man can understand that if these people are CIA, they have taken this Vaiṣṇava religion. They're practically having no comfort and everything is denied and no meat-eating, no illicit sex, no drinking, no intoxication, no gam... All no's, and accepting all no's, and they have come here as CIA? They have got no intelligence, common intelligence. And they are trying to put all impediments: "Oh, they cannot construct this temple. They must be refused." All planning. It was raised in the Parliament that "What is these people, Hare Kṛṣṇa movement? Why... Wherefrom they are getting money and what... They are understood to be CIA. What government is going to take action against them?" So the reply was there by the home member that "We have no information that they are CIA people. Therefore there is no question of action." "And their money, they are selling literature, books. They're getting money and some public contribution for foreign exchange." So the reply was that still people will accuse us in this way. So why this is possible? Because there is no Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Because they're servant of this māyā they're thinking like this. Therefore the first condition is asevayāyaṁ prakṛter guṇānām. They are dictated by the tamo-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, modes of material nature and thinking like that. Everyone is that. This whole world is like that. They're servant of māyā, this tamo-guṇa and rajo-guṇa, and manufacturing their own way of enjoyment.
So Kṛṣṇa consciousness means completely become purified from the infection of māyā, sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate BG 14.26 . That is stated by Kṛṣṇa. One who is a devotee fully engaged in Kṛṣṇa's service... So what is his position? The position is sa guṇān... sa guṇān etān, this prakṛter guṇān. Here it is said, prakṛter guṇānām. There are three guṇas—sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa... So if one is engaged in devotional service, immediately he becomes transcendental to all these guṇas. Sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate BG 14.26 . Then he becomes again in his transcendental position, Brahman. Brahma-jñāna, ahaṁ brahmāsmi. This is... This position he comes. And as soon as one comes to this position, brahma-jñāna, brahma-bhūta... BG 14.26. Now we are māyā-bhūta, identifying with ourself with this māyā, this prakṛti-guṇa, the modes of material nature: "I am this," "I am that," "I am this," "I am that." But when he becomes brahma-bhūta— "I don't belong to these prakṛti-guṇān, these nature's..., these modes of material nature. I belong to the spirit soul, Supreme. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi "—this brahma-jñāna will immediately make him happy. That is the symptom of a person who has attained brahma-jñāna.
brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā
na śocati na kāṅkṣati
samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu
mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām
That is the basic principle of bhakti. So here the same thing is explained, jñānena vairāgya-vijṛmbhitena. Jñānena. Therefore this class is held to awaken jñāna. Either you read these books, you hear from realized soul—that will awaken your jñāna, knowledge. Or otherwise if you cannot do this... Both things should be done. You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Very simply.
So in the previous verse we have discussed ṛjubhir yoga-mārgaiḥ SB 3.25.26 . Ṛju, very simple method. Ṛju means very simple. Everyone can perform it. Susukhaṁ kartum avyayam SB 3.25.26 . In the Bhagavad-gītā, very happy. If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and dance, it is very happy thing. And by dancing, dancing, as soon as you become hungry, take prasādam, ready. So where is the trouble? Therefore it is ṛjubhir yoga-mārgaiḥ. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is so nice there is no trouble only. And another thing is that that is great hope. Everything you are doing under the spell of māyā we do not know where you are going, what is the ultimate aim. We do not know. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni. We are under the spell of māyā given by the guṇas. You must accept. If you don't take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and give it ourselves on the waves of māyā, then we do not know where we are going. The Caitanya Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says māyār bośe, jāccho bhese', Khāccho hābuḍubu bhāi . Just like a straw in the waves of the ocean or the river. It is fully under the control of the waves. Sometimes diving, sometimes coming out, sometimes going this way, going that. Our position is like that. We do not know that, prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni SB 3.25.26 . Under the material nature we are being carried by the waves of material nature, and you do not know where you are going because you have no control.
So if you want controlling the material nature, then you have to surrender to Kṛṣṇa. That is stated mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te BG 7.14 . Otherwise you're carried by māyā. You may be very big prime minister or anything, but as soon as māyā will dictate, "Please vacate your post and go away," you become a dog. You have to become. How you can challenge prakṛti? That is not possible. Because karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa BG 7.14 , your next body will be offered to you. Therefore the atheist class man (indistinct). That is next life. Because his life is sinful he'll get his next life, he'll be punished. He'll be put into abominable condition of life. He does not like to think like that, but that does not mean that he escapes. There is a Bengali proverb that (Bengali). One body, one person, he thought that "I've done so much sinful activity that Yamarāja will come and capture me and punish me. So what is the way to avoid?" So he thought that "Let me smear over my body stool so he'll not touch me." (laughing)
So that is not possible, sir. You are under the control of māyā, material nature. You try to avoid it somehow or other, but it is not possible. It is not possible. According to the infection... Just like if you have infected some disease, artificial means will not save you. You must develop that disease and must suffer. There is no way out. Simply the way out is that if you take precaution, some vaccine, some injection, then you may avoid. Similarly, cannot... It is clearly stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā BG 7.14 . You cannot avoid the hands of māyā upon you, or material nature. We call "māyā," and the modern scientific word is "material nature." Completely under. You cannot avoid it. But mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te BG 7.14 . If you surrender to Kṛṣṇa... When Kṛṣṇa will save me? I am so much sinful. Yes. Kṛṣṇa can do that. Kṛṣṇa says
sarva-dharmān parityajya
mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja
ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo
mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ
So why don't you do that? Why you are so much eager to serve the modes of material nature? Why not serve Kṛṣṇa. Here is Kṛṣṇa. Where is the difficulty? No difficulty at all. Just there's Kṛṣṇa. Just give Kṛṣṇa nice foodstuff. Just chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Eat sumptuously and keep your health very good, nicely. Where is the difficulty? Mām eva ye... This very difficult? The only difficulty is that I cannot give up all these sinful activities. I cannot give up smoking. I cannot give up drinking. I cannot give up meat-eating. I cannot give up gambling. I cannot give up illicit sex. That is difficulty. Otherwise to serve Kṛṣṇa is not at all difficult. There is no difficulty. But I cannot give up the service of my sinful activities.
Therefore here it is said asevayāyaṁ prakṛter guṇānām. That you have to learn. That you can learn very easily if you turn your attention to the service... Therefore this bhakti-yoga service. We are simply insisting get up early in the morning, do this service. In this way, if we engage ourselves in the service of Kṛṣṇa, gradually we shall forget the service of māyā. The service of māyā means sinful activities. That's all. So, so long we are in the service of māyā, duṣkṛtinām, engaged in sinful activities, it is not possible. But if you engage the positive and the negative... The Māyāvādī, they are simply trying to be negative. There is no positive engagement. But here in the bhakti-yoga the negative is there and positive is there. Therefore there is electric light bulb, negative and positive. Therefore there is enlightenment. Simply negative will not help you. And if you don't care of the negative sides, simply positive also will not. But bhakti-yoga is so strong, if you take to the positive side of service of Kṛṣṇa, the material service or māyā's service will automatically become negative. Bhaktiḥ pareśānubhavo viraktir anyatra syāt SB 11.2.42 . That is called vairāgya. The bhakti-yoga means vairāgya-yoga. Vairāgya-vidyā-nija-bhakti-yogam.
This was composed by Sarvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya about Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. When he understood Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu he wrote this verse, vairāgya-vidyā-nija-bhakti-yoga-śikṣārtham ekaḥ puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ CC Madhya 6.254 . Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu is that Purāṇa-puruṣa, Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the original. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravar.. CC Madhya 6.254 . Everything has come from Kṛṣṇa; therefore He's Purāṇa, the oldest. Oldest. Nobody can be older than Kṛṣṇa, but He's always young. That is Bhagavān. Advaitam acyutam anādi. Anādi. He has no ādi. He's ādi. Ādi means the original.
īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ
sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ
anādir ādir govindaḥ
sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam
He's the cause of all causes. So this Purāṇa-puruṣa, Kṛṣṇa, He's the oldest. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca [Bs. 5.33] . That is Kṛṣṇa. You'll never see Kṛṣṇa's picture as old man. No. Has anyone seen Kṛṣṇa as old man? No. Nava-yauvanam, always fresh youthful life. The same. You have seen the picture of Kurukṣetra battle. Kṛṣṇa was sitting... At that time He was great-grandfather, but He was looking twenty years old, young... That is Kṛṣṇa.
So we also become like Kṛṣṇa. In the Vaikuṇṭhaloka, the inhabitants, they are also living entities. Just like in this, within this universe, this material universe, there are living entities—there are also living entities, but they are in spiritual body, the same form of body as Kṛṣṇa. You have read in the Sixth Canto of Bhāgavata, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the Ajāmila, the vaikuṇṭha-dūta came for Ajāmila to take Ajāmila. They are also four-handed, very beautiful. That is Vaikuṇṭhaloka. But in Kṛṣṇaloka they are two-handed. So in the spiritual world there are so many varieties—four-handed, two-handed living entity. They're all nitya-mukta. They're all everlastingly liberated. So we have been just like a prisoner is. Although he's a prisoner, he can be also good citizen. There is no hopelessness. Similarly, we are now prisoner in this material world, and we have got this material body. Therefore we are changing: sometimes young, sometimes old, sometimes these boys, some But tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti BG 4.9 , if you become Kṛṣṇa conscious, then, after leaving this body, you're not any more getting this material body. That is stated. tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti BG 4.9 . Then what happens? Mām eti. He comes to back to home, back to Godhead. And as soon as you go, you get your original, spiritual body, same beautiful body as Kṛṣṇa has, as Nārāyaṇa has. This is the opportunity.
So why should we not take this opportunity of human life, take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and become devotee of Kṛṣṇa and make our life? Therefore it is said here, pratyag-ātmānam ihāvarundhe. In this life you can get this opportunity simply by following the bhakti-yoga process. Yogena mayy arpitayā ca bhaktyā SB 3.25.27 . That is required. You learn how to become a bhakta. Simply practicing śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam, arcanam... SB 3.25.27 any of them. Either this nine processes or eight or seven or six or five or four. Take at least one and make your life successful. Everyone can... Caitanya Mahāprabhu therefore prescribes the most important one- śravaṇam, simply hear. That's all. That will make your life successful.
Thank you very much. (end)