710203 - Lecture SB 06.03.12 - Gorakhpur

Lectures by Date, 1971

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

710203SB-GORAKPHUR - February 3, 1971 - 55:52 Minutes

Devotee: (introducing recording) On arrival in Gorakhpur, on the morning of the 3rd January (sic) '71, Śrīla Prabhupāda gives Bhāgavatam lecture.

Prabhupāda:

... uvāca

paro mad-anyo jagatas tasthuṣaś ca

otaṁ protaṁ paṭavad yatra viśvam

yad-aṁśato 'sya sthiti-janma-nāśā

nasy otavad yasya vaśe ca lokaḥ

(SB 6.3.12)

Yamarāja is describing about his superior, master. First qualification is that Yamarāja is the controller of an insignificant portion of the universal affairs. Just like there are departmental director, but the master of Yamarāja, He is controller of creation, maintenance and annihilation.

Otaṁ protaṁ paṭavad yatra viśvam—this cosmic manifestation is just like thread woven this side and that side. Both sides there are threads, just as cloth there are two sides; both sides length and width, both sides there are the threads. Similarly, the whole cosmic manifestation, lengthwise and widthwise, the energy of the supreme master is working.

In the Bhagavad-gītā also it is said, sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva (BG 7.7). Just like in one thread there are beads or pearls woven, so Kṛṣṇa, or the Absolute Truth, is just like the thread, and everything, all planets or all globes, all universes, they are woven in a thread, and that thread is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa also says, ekāṁśena sthito jagat (BG 10.42): in one-fourth energy, the whole material creation is resting.

Similarly, there is another statement in the Bhagavad-gītā:

aham sarvaṁ idaṁ tatam

jagad avyakta-mūrtinā

(BG 9.4)

"I am spread by My energy, which is taken as impersonal Brahman." Aham sarvaṁ idaṁ tatam. Tatam means "spread." Whatever we are seeing, that is spreading of the energy of the Supreme Lord. Just like this heat He is spreading. Heat expands. There are waves of heat and light, as you know, but the original source of the wave, I think we have given the picture, the wave of light is coming from the Vṛndāvana, Goloka Vṛndāvana. That is an idea. There are different waves.

So that wave is spreading all over. And that is confirmed in the Vedic literature: sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma (Chāndogya Upaniṣad 3.14.1). Īśāvāsyam idam sarvaṁ (ISO 1). His energy is spread everywhere, parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktih sarvedam akhilaṁ jagat (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 1.22.52). That is in Viṣṇu Purāṇa. That is impersonal. The energy which is emanating from the Supreme Person, that is impersonal Brahman. Not that there is no more, I mean, superior than the Brahman. That is a mistake of the Māyāvādī school. They take that expansion of the brahmajyoti is final. But that is not final.

We get information from Bhagavad-gītā that brahmaṇo hi pratiṣṭhāham (BG 14.27). This impersonal Brahman effulgence, which is spread everywhere, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ (BG 9.4)—although Kṛṣṇa says mayā, "by Me," "by Me" does not mean that..., brahmajyoti means that Kṛṣṇa has become vanquished; there is no more Kṛṣṇa. The Māyāvādī philosophy is based on this understanding, that if the Absolute Truth is spread everywhere, so there is no question of the Absolute Truth becoming a person. They cannot adjust like that, although Kṛṣṇa personally says that brahmaṇo aham pratiṣṭhāham (BG 14.27): "I am the source, or the strength, or the platform from which the brahmajyoti is emanating."

It is not very difficult to understand. This fire is here, localized, but the heat is expanding, expands—parasya brāhmaṇaḥ śakti (Viṣṇu Purāṇa). So although Kṛṣṇa's energies are spread everywhere, this does not mean Kṛṣṇa has become imperson. Why He should be imperson? We can see exactly in our daily experience that from sun globe immense light and heat is coming, and that is maintaining this universe.

This is only a portion of the illuminating energy of Kṛṣṇa, the sūryayoḥ. In Bhagavad-gītā it is said, prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ (BG 7.8). Prabhāsmi. Prabhā means the effulgence, the light. Śaśi-sūryayoḥ. It is not that... So śaśi means moon, and sūryayoḥ means the sun. They are not independently spreading this heat and light. They are simply reflection, reflection of the original of brahmajyoti.

Therefore Yamarāja says that otaṁ protaṁ paṭavad yatra viśvam. Viśvam. What is this viśvam? The whole cosmic manifestation. There are living entities, and there are inert matter. Just like we are sitting here, so we are living entities, and this house is inert matter. So combined together we have created this city or this home, the creation of two energies. One energy is matter; another energy, living force. But both of them are energies of the Supreme Lord.

That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā also: bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ buddhir mano eva ca prakṛtir me aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4), prakṛtir me bhinnā aṣṭadhā. These five elements—mind, intelligence and ego, gross and subtle matter—they are ingredients. But beyond this material energy there is another energy, Kṛṣṇa says:

jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho

yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat

(BG 7.5)

The jīva-bhūtāṁ, the living entities, they are utilizing this energy, but both of them energy. One of the energy appears to be creative, creating, and another energy is ingredient. You cannot create anything without ingredient. The material energies are ingredient, upādāna, upādāna. Upādāna-kāraṇa nimitta-kāraṇa (CC Adi 6.16).

So both these energies are working. The example is given here just like in a cloth there are set up of two kinds of thread, one lengthwise and widthwise. Similarly, these two energies—material energy and the spiritual energy—are working the whole creation, otaṁ protaṁ. The one side, the lengthwise one thread, and widthwise one thread. So these two energies, they are working: otaṁ protaṁ paṭavad yatra viśvam. And Kṛṣṇa also confirms this:

mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ

jagad avyakta-mūrtinā

(BG 9.4)

Yad-aṁśato 'sya sthiti-janma-nāśā (SB 6.3.12). Sthiti-janma-nāśā. Just like there are different departments of government on the whole—the legislative department and the executive department, so similarly, in the kingdom of God, or Kṛṣṇa, there are different departments, and there are different departmental directors also. Here it is said that yad-aṁśato 'sya sthiti-janma-nāśā. Sthiti means maintenance, and janma means production. Sthiti-janma. And nāśā means annihilation.

Everything in this material world, these three things are visible. Anything is produced, anything we take, it is produced at a certain time, then it is maintained for a certain time, and then it becomes annihilated again. Your body, my body, this world, this material world, this house—anything we take material. But there are controller or director for these department. The director and controller of creation, production, is Brahmā, and the director of maintenance is Viṣṇu, and the annihilator is Lord Śiva—Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśa.

But these directors, they are not absolute; they are part and parcel. Just as we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, similarly the controller of material affairs, or the demigods, they are also part and parcel. They are not absolute. Yad-aṁśatah (SB 6.3.12). They are simply... You can become Brahmā if you are so qualified. You can be posted as Brahmā, you can be posted as Śiva, but you cannot be posted as Viṣṇu. But you can derive power from Viṣṇu, and that is called śaktyāveśa-avatāra—dedicated power.

So Yamarāja says that yad-aṁśata asya. Asya means these big shots of this universe, Brahmā, Viṣṇu and Maheśvara. So they are different directors of three departments. And nasy otavad yasya vaśe ca lokaḥ. Nasy otavad—just like the bulls, there is a rope within their nose, and the cart-man simply moves his finger with that rope, and the bull turns this way, that way, goes straight, stops. Nasy otavad.

Similarly, we are also nasy otavad yasya vaśe ca lokaḥ. Lokaḥ means all these universes, planets or living entities, they are simply moving under the indication by the Supreme Lord. So, "Go this way," we have to go this way. He says, "This way," you have to go this way. Not directly, but as... He has nothing to do, but under His direction, na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate (Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8).

A very rich man, he is sitting down in one place, but by his direction big, big factories are going on. The manager of the factory, the workers in the factory, they are all working day and night under the direction of that proprietor. If it is possible in a small scale, so similarly the whole universal affairs are going on under the direction of the Supreme Lord—not that they are independently working.

Nothing can do independently. And His direction is so perfect that it is admitted in the Vedas:

parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate

svābhāvikī jñāna-bala-kriyā ca

(Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad 6.8)

I have several times explained that His direction is so perfect, and the energy by which He is working is so perfect, that it looks automatically being done. The so-called scientists with poor fund of knowledge, they are giving importance to the energy by saying these things are appearing automatically. But they do not enquire that behind the energy there is energetic.

Just like this electric current, but behind all these electric activities, there is a powerhouse and there is an executive engineer. He is producing the electric energy from the powerhouse and diffusing it all over the city. But one who does not know, he thinks the light is powered automatically, the fan is going automatically. No.

That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ (BG 9.10). The materialistic scientists are giving importance to the movements, wonderful movements, of this material nature. Vairangha-śakti(?). The material nature is going on, but there must be one śakti-mana who is possession of this, who is possessing this energy.

So it is foolish to know that things are going on automatically by natural activities. But that is not a fact. Here it is said that yasya vaśe ca lokaḥ. The example is given just like a bull. With the rope the cart-man drives according to his own wish. This is also explained in the Bhagavad-gītā:

mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca

sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo

(BG 15.15)

The Lord is as Paramātmā. He is sitting in everyone's heart, and as you wanted to do, you forget.

Suppose a person, in his previous life, he wanted to be as powerful as a tiger. According to Muslim philosophy, they want strength like tiger. (indistinct) People think like that: "If I become so powerful as a tiger, then I can attack any less powerful animal and I feed on it." But nature is so cruel, the tiger, the most of the days he will starve. Although he has got strength, he cannot get daily a prey. No. This is not possible. When he is too hungry, Kṛṣṇa gives a chance to prey.

So He gives. "I wanted to be such and such," He gives me intelligence, He is so merciful. If you want to be as powerful as tiger, if you want to be a predominant businessman, He gives, ye yathā māṁ prapadyante (BG 4.11). He gives opportunity, and He gives also chance to His devotee to go back to home, back to Godhead. He is giving chance to everyone. If you want to remain here, yānti bhūtejyā bhūtāni (BG 9.25). If you want to remain in this material world and do hard work for sense gratification, that chance will be given to you. But if you want to go back to home, back to Godhead, that chance also will be given to you.

Now, it is my selection. When they are entangled in this material activities, they accuse Kṛṣṇa: "Why God has created somebody this, somebody that?" No. God has not created; we have created. We wanted to become like this, so God has given us. Kṛṣṇa has given us this chance, "All right, you become this." So it is my desire. He is called kalpataru—desire tree. Therefore we have to change our desire or purify our desire. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The desire is mine.

So the Māyāvādī philosopher says that "You become desireless," vāsanā-śūnyaṁ. That is not possible. You cannot be desireless, because you are living entity. If your desire is finished, then you are also finished. How you can live? So this desire must be there, but you have to desire..., you have to purify your desire. That's all. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

The materialist, or the conditioned soul, is desiring every moment—desiring for sense gratification. The same desire will continue; you have to change the course only, that you have to desire to gratify the sense of Kṛṣṇa. In our conditioned stage we desire to fulfill our senses, and in liberated stage we desire to fulfill..., to satisfy Kṛṣṇa's senses. The sense gratification is there. Desiring of sense gratification is there. In the material stage we simply desire to gratify our senses, and the liberated stage we try to..., we desire to fulfill the sense gratification of Kṛṣṇa.

That is the instruction from Bhagavad-gītā. Arjuna wanted in the beginning to fulfill his sense gratification. He thought that "I shall be happy if my relatives are not killed." That is natural. If somebody comes, "I would just like to kill your son immediately," would you like to abide by this order? "Oh, why should I kill?"

But Arjuna, he desired, or he agreed, to fulfill the sense gratification of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says that "I am desiring this fight. If you don't fight, then still all these men who have assembled here, they will be killed. That plan is already made." That is Kṛṣṇa's desire.

In the Eleventh Chapter He says that, " I have come, I have appeared to destroy all this." The destruction,

paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ

vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām

(BG 4.8)

So he wanted to kill all the duṣkṛtām, and the Kurukṣetra fight was planned by Him. He wanted actually to destroy, because that was His business, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām. And Arjuna, because he was His very, I mean to say, sincere friend and devotee, Kṛṣṇa wanted to give him the credit, that "You fight, because personally I am not fighting. You fight, and the plan is already there that these people who have assembled in this battlefield, they will be all killed, and you will get the credit." That's all.

Just like this preaching is going on in the Western countries, all over the world. This is desire of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. That is planned already by Him. So we are simply a little helping, that's all. So our devotional service means that whatever Kṛṣṇa, or God, desires, we should try to co-operate with Him. That is our perfection. You cannot do anything. He is doing everything. But if you simply co-operate with your desire, that is called devotional service.

So there is no question of becoming desireless. That is not possible also. That is another fault. By force you cannot stop. Just like a child, you cannot forcibly stop him, his activity, but if he is naughty, then you have to train him for being educated, and when he is educated he comes out a very nice scholar. Similarly, the people who have become nationalized, if proper chance is given to them, they will come out very nice devotees. That is the technology of spiritual science.

So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for that purpose, that people are desiring in so many ways for sense gratification—that desire has to be purified and employed in the matter of gratifying the senses of Kṛṣṇa. The Māyāvādī philosophers, they cannot understand this, because they think of the Absolute Truth without any senses. As soon as there is sensual activities, they think of, "It is māyā." But they do not..., they cannot conceive that in the Absolute Truth there are senses and sense gratification. No. That they do not know.

Thank you very much. Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Prabhupāda, you said that if the Naxalites are turned, they can become very nice devotees. So what qualification do they particularly have, which would make them good devotees?

Prabhupāda: Simply they have to come and hear us, that's all. If they kindly come and hear us, and follow just like you have done, everything will be saved. We have to implore that "Please come and sit down for some time and have some nice kīrtana, and hear some philosophical talks, and take Kṛṣṇa's prasādam, and go home." And then, in this way the whole world. (laughs) If they agree to come, then their whole thing is changed: no more destruction; only construction. That we have to do; that we have to implore. Dante nidhāya tṛṇakam—that is the teaching.

dante nidhāya tṛṇakaṁ padayor nipatya

kāku-śatam kṛtvā ca ahaṁ bravīmi

he sādhavaḥ sakalam eva vihāya dūrād

caitanya-candra-caraṇe kurutānurāgam

(Caitanya-candrāmṛta)

This is written by Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī. "Taking a blade of grass in my mouth," dante nidhāya tṛṇakaṁ, padayor nipatya, "and falling down on your feet, and with folded hands," dante nidhāya tṛṇakaṁ, padayor nipatya kāku-śatam, "and flattering you like anything, 'You are so nice, you are so great, you are so...,' " kāku-śatam kṛtvā, " 'I am just submitting one thing.' "

What is that? He sādhavaḥ, " 'You are very nice, you are very honest gentleman, sādhavaḥ,' " sakalam eva vihāya, " 'Whatever you have learned, please set aside for a moment.' " Caitanya-candra-caraṇe kurutānurāgam, " 'Just turn your mind to the teachings of Lord Caitanya.' "

This is our process. We don't say, "Whatever you are doing, this is all nonsense, this is all..." Simply try to make him hear, and give them the right knowledge. (indistinct) Because the medicine and the diet..., if there is disease, sickness, if you give him the proper medicine and proper diet, he will be cured. That's all. There is no doubt. The medicine is the harināma, and diet is kṛṣṇa-prasādam.

So you arrange for these two things, and the whole world will change. That is our movement. Give them this medicine, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and give them diet, nice kṛṣṇa-prasādam—the same method by which you were captured. (laughs) (laughter) Is it not? What I did? I did not give you any bribe or any money taken from the Indian exchequer, but I gave you this little prasādam, one capātī, and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. (laughs) That is all.

Revatīnandana: Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Revatīnandana: You talked about the material nature, the inferior energy of the Lord, and we have become contaminated or entangled with this māyā, and then by devotional service we can purify ourselves from that entanglement. What is the process by which devotional service...?

Prabhupāda: It is the same process that we are following: chanting.

Revatīnandana: Is materialism destroyed, or converted to ...

Prabhupāda: No. Material energy is created by God.

Revatīnandana: But in our devotional service, what happens to the material energy?

Prabhupāda: Material energy, if you become a devotee, there is no more material energy—spiritual energy.

Revatīnandana: But supposing...

Prabhupāda: Just like I told you that "Chant." People are singing. They are chanting so many things. Somebody is singing janda uncha rahe hamara. That is also singing, you see. But the same singing propensity, if you turn into "Hare Kṛṣṇa," that is spiritual. There are so many slogans, "jindabad jindabad jindabad," going on. You see? This is material. And soon as chant, the same energy turns into spiritual.

Actually, viṣṇu-śakti parā proktaḥ: whatever energy is emanating, coming... Just like the energy from the sun globe, it is simply heat and light. Similarly, the energy, flow of energy, which is emanating from God, that is all spiritual. In the same way, just like when the sun shines, there is generation of clouds. The cloud is also manufactured by the sunshine, but the effect is that when there is cloud, you cannot see the sun. Similarly, material energy is also creation of God, but when you are in the material energy, you cannot understand God. That's all.

Material energy is also creation of God, just exactly the cloud is creation of sunshine. But one who is within the cloud, the cloud cannot cover the sun. The Māyāvādī philosopher, they say that māyā has covered the Supreme. No. The Supreme cannot be covered. The particles of the Supreme, the living entities, who are small particles of the..., they are covered. Just exactly like the sun: the cloud cannot cover the sun, but cloud can cover my eyes.

So if you remove this covering, then you see God immediately. And that is the process of religion.

bhaktyā mām abhijānāti

yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ

(BG 18.55)

That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Simply by devotional service one can understand what is the nature of God. So you have to practice it, and our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for that purpose. We are engaging people to practice how this cloud will be moved, and you will be able to see the Supreme.

premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena

santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti

(Bs. 5.38)

Those who have developed that love of God by this devotional service, they always see Kṛṣṇa. Not a single moment is without seeing Kṛṣṇa. But those who are in the material darkness, they are doubting. They say that "God is dead," "There is no God," "Can you show me God?" This is all.

So this is a diseased condition. Just like a man haunted with ghost, he cannot see his father face to face. He sometimes rebukes his father. He will attack. "Who are you? When are you coming, my son? If you are a madman or some such thing?" You see? So this is the condition of madness. When one cannot understand God, then one should know this is condition of madness, ghostly-haunted.

piśācī pāile yena mati-cchanna haya

māyā-grasta jīvera haya se bhāva udaya

(Prema-vivarta)

That so long we are godless, we are without Kṛṣṇa consciousness, we should know that this is not our healthy condition; this is diseased condition. So we have to cure the disease. That is this movement, Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We have to cure the disease of godlessness.

Revatīnandana: (indistinct) talking about the disease; then we can give an injection, and that will cure the disease. And we know that injection will cure the disease by destroying the germs that are causing the disease.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So this is injection, peaceful injection.

Revatīnandana: But by devotional service are we destroying material nature?

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is our program.

Guest (Indian man): Why at all God has created the material energy?

Prabhupāda: Because you wanted it.

Guest: Just you were talking that (indistinct).

Prabhupāda: No. Why government creates the prison house? What is the reason? Can you not answer it? Why the government constructs a prison house? Why?

Guest: Some men are (indistinct).

Prabhupāda: Yes. So does it means that government has created this prison house to make somebody criminal? Does the government desire like that? So why you become criminal and go to the prison house? Does government says, the university says, that you become criminal and go to the prison house? Why you go? So because you want to go, therefore the prison house is created. Similarly, because you want to enjoy, because you want to enjoy your senses, therefore this material world.

Because in the spiritual world there is no enjoyment of your senses, there is simply Kṛṣṇa's senses. You cannot do that. Therefore, "You want? All right." Kṛṣṇa says, "All right, you enjoy your senses here. You become Brahmā, and a stool worm also, according to your karma."

So this is Kṛṣṇa's kindness. You wanted to enjoy, and don't you see in the material world, all the people are simply fighting one another simply for sense enjoyment? Everyone wants wife. What is this Naxalite movement? "This big men, this rich men, they are enjoying so much. Why? Kill them; we shall enjoy." The enjoying spirit is there, not serving spirit. Both the capitalists and the laborer, the spirit is enjoyment. Only thing is, I am saying, "Why you shall enjoy?" and you are saying "Why you shall enjoy?" That is our fight.

Guest (2): But in this country we are at a place...

Prabhupāda: In this country or that country, no—we are talking of generally, not this country or that country. This is the spirit of material existence, that you want to enjoy, I want to enjoy—there must be fight. And as soon as we know that we are not enjoyer—our constitutional position is to serve Kṛṣṇa for His enjoyment—then is enjoyment. And so long you think, "I shall be enjoyer," and I think, "I shall be enjoyer," you may be some party, I may be a party, there will be fight. The fight is on the platform of personal sense enjoyment, which is not meant.

We are... Now suppose you are nationalized party and I am some other party. So you are also serving your leader, and I am also serving. Just like when two nations fight, they fight under the leadership of some gentleman. They consider it very nice. Both the leaders—that Churchill accusing Gandhi, and Gandhi accusing Churchill, and the followers of Churchill and followers of Gandhi fight. But they do not know why you are fighting. In the estimation of Englishmen, Churchill is very great, and estimation of Indians, Gandhi is very great. And the estimation of Churchill, Gandhi is the rascal, and estimation of Gandhi, Churchill is rascal.

So now we have to decide who is actually great and who is actually rascal. This fighting is going on. Everyone will say, "My leader is very nice; the other leader is rascal." But actually who is rascal and who is nice? So our śāstra says,

harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇā

manorathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ

(SB 5.18.12)

Harāv abhaktasya. The one who is not devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he has no good qualification. Why? Because they are moving on mental platform: "I shall enjoy." But he is not enjoyer. Any one of us, are we enjoyer actually? We are not enjoyer; we are servant. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu's philosophy is jīvera 'svarūpa' haya—'nitya kṛṣṇa -dāsa' (CC Madhya 20.108). The actual constitutional position of all living entities are that they are eternal servants of God, and when one realizes this actual fact, there is self-realization.

Actually you are all serving. Even if you become member of a certain type, we are serving the orders of the leader. The service position is the honor, but because the service is misplaced, all of them, all of us are fighting and becoming unhappy. The service is continuing, either you serve your country or a certain type of leader or certain type of ideology, the service—you have to render service. That you do not know. That I am trying to be master by serving something, so where I am master?

So one who has got sense, he agrees, "Ah, why not serve God? I am not become happy by serving."

kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśās

teṣāṁ mayi na karuṇā jātā na trapā nopaśāntiḥ

(Brs. 3.2.35 quoted in CC Madhya 22.16)

Just like Gandhi served his country so nicely, and the result was that he was killed by his countrymen. Where is the perfection of the service? Even Gandhi could not do it. The most sincere person, mahātmā, but he was killed. Is it not a fact? So who can give perfection in this country than Mahatma Gandhi, and why he was killed? What is the answer of this question?

That means in this material world there cannot be any perfect service. Perfect service can be done only when you serve God, Kṛṣṇa. That is perfect service. Without Kṛṣṇa, any service, any welfare activities you do, that is imperfect. That is imperfect. That is māyā. As soon as..., as long as... I am imperfect, but still I am attached to such kind of envious men. That is called māyā. Māyā means you are thinking that you will be happy in this way, but you will never be. You will never be.

Andhā yathāndhair... Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ. They do not know where is their self-interest lies. Na te viduḥ, they do not know. Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ. They are thinking durāśayā. Durāśayā means hopeless, hope against hope. They are trying to be materially happy, and they will never be. Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ—attracted by the external energy.

andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās

te 'pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ

(SB 7.5.31)

Just like one leader is leading many others. One leader, a blind leader, is leading many other blind men. So what will be the result? Is it possible for a blind man to lead? No. He is himself blind; how he can lead other blind men? 'Pīśa-tantryām baddhāḥ, both of them are conditioned by the laws of nature. And Kṛṣṇa says that,

mām eva ye prapadyante

māyām etāṁ taranti te

(BG 7.14)

"Anyone who surrenders unto Me, he becomes freed from the influence of this māyā, illusion." Illusion means I am servant, but I am serving a wrong person or a wrong cause. I will never be happy. To serve the right cause, right person, then you will be happy. Is that clear now? (laughs) Hare Kṛṣṇa. So long we are here, you come; we shall discuss all these points.

(break) (conversation after lecture) They have got some opinion. They have some great gathering, some follower. Why not this maṭha? Nor they are behaving, Vivekananda's head. So why they condemn it? Why not... This is also maṭha, another maṭha.

Guest: (indistinct) (break)

Prabhupāda: ...the maṭha is Kṛṣṇa's maṭha—sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁśaraṇam (BG 18.66). That is maṭha. All maṭha are bogus. So we are spreading this Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world, and they are being accepted. They did not know what Kṛṣṇa, so we had to go. That was (indistinct) real maṭha, which is accepted by everyone. (Hindi)

Devotee: (indistinct comment to tape) (end)