750310 - Lecture BG 07.02 - London

Lectures by Date, 1975

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Listen to a 'Nectar Drop' created from this Lecture

750310BG-LONDON - March 10, 1975 - 42:01 Minutes

Nitāi: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. (devotees repeat) (leads chanting of verse, etc.)

jñānaṁ te 'haṁ sa-vijñānam

idaṁ vakṣyāmy aśeṣataḥ

yaj jñātvā neha bhūyo 'nyaj

jñātavyam avaśiṣyate

(BG 7.2)

(break) (00:46)

"I shall now declare unto you in full this knowledge, both phenomenal and noumenal, by knowing which there shall remain nothing further to be known."

Prabhupāda:

jñānaṁ te 'haṁ sa-vijñānam

idaṁ vakṣyāmy aśeṣataḥ

yaj jñātvā neha bhūyo 'nyaj

jñātavyam avaśiṣyate

(BG 7.2)

So Kṛṣṇa is personally speaking about Himself as we understood in the previous verse, that asaṁśayaṁ samagraṁ māṁ yathā jñāsyasi tac chṛṇu (BG 7.1). Asaṁśayam, without any doubt. If we speculate about God, that will never be sufficient. Not even we can touch the precincts of the knowledge. If we want knowledge without any doubt, asaṁśayam, samagram, and complete, then we must hear from God Himself. This is very easy to understand. By hypothesis, by speculation, you cannot understand anything. It must be known scientifically, and this science can be understood if a person knows the science. So who can know God better than God Himself?

Therefore our process is—we have repeatedly explained this—that we do not speculate about God. Just like there are so many others, theosophists and theologists, they're speculating what is God. They don't accept . . . God personally explaining, they would not accept. They would simply speculate. This is their disease. When God is explaining Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā . . . rather, they will mislead the readings of the Bhagavad-gītā in different interpretation, but they will not accept what is being taught by God Himself. This is their misfortune. "Why shall I accept Kṛṣṇa as God?" Although He has proved Himself when He was present by the qualification which God needs . . .

To become God is not easy thing. There are some qualification, yesterday we discussed, that He must be the richest, He must be the most powerful, He must be the most famous, He must be the most learned, He must be the most beautiful, and He must be the most renounced. This is the definition of God. A poor man, begging from door to door, he cannot become God, as it is misconceived, daridra-nārāyaṇa. Why Nārāyaṇa can be daridra? What is this nonsense? He is the richest. He is the richest. And why He can . . . we can . . . He will be daridra? The argument is forwarded that "God is everyone's heart; therefore everyone is God." What is this argument? Everyone's heart, God is there. God said, īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Where God says that because īśvara, the Supreme Being, is situated in everyone's heart, therefore everyone is God? What is this argument? Where Kṛṣṇa says that because īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati, therefore everyone is God? Is that a very sound argument?

So this is going on. They do not know what is God, and still, there are so many incarnations of God. And foolish people accept that "Here is an incarnation of God." He does not know what is God, and he accepts, "Here is incarnation." We do not do so. If there is incarnation of God . . . that is mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Their activities are mentioned, wonderful activities. We accept Lord Rāmacandra as God, Lord Kṛṣṇa as God, Caitanya Mahāprabhu as God, because They are mentioned in the śāstras, all the incarnations, even this age. One may say that "Lord Rāmacandra is accepted God, Lord Kṛṣṇa is also accepted, but Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He is the greatest devotee of God, but . . ." There are some persons in the Nimbārka-sampradāya, they put this argument. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu's name is there in the śāstra, many Upaniṣads, especially in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that in the Kali-yuga this incarnation of God should be worshiped. What is that description?

kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ

sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam

yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair

yajanti hi sumedhasaḥ

(SB 11.5.32)

Clearly Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣā akṛṣṇam. He is Kṛṣṇa. Or kṛṣṇaṁ varṇayati, iti kṛṣṇa-varṇam. Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, the most authoritative ācārya of our sampradāya, he has explained like this. Kṛṣṇa-varṇam means always chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇaṁ varṇayati, describing Kṛṣṇa, "Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa." This is description of Kṛṣṇa, addressing Kṛṣṇa. So therefore kṛṣṇa-varṇam, or varṇam means category, just like brāhmaṇa-varṇa, kṣatriya-varṇa. So in that way kṛṣṇa-varṇa means He is Kṛṣṇa, in the category of Kṛṣṇa. Either you take this meaning or that meaning, kṛṣṇa-varṇam. But Kṛṣṇa is black, and He is tviṣā, by the complexion, akṛṣṇa. Akṛṣṇa means not Kṛṣṇa. Now, there are so many colors. So everything is akṛṣṇa. That color, all the colors are mixed together, it becomes black. Otherwise there are many different colors. So akṛṣṇa means different color, "not kṛṣṇa," not black. So what is the actual? That we have to refer to śāstra again, that Kṛṣṇa, in how many categories of color He appears? That is stated in the Bhāgavatam. When Kṛṣṇa was born, then Gargamuni was calculating about His horoscope, and he said to Nanda Mahārāja that "This your child . . ." Idānīṁ kṛṣṇatāṁ gataḥ. Śuklo raktas tathā pīta idānīṁ kṛṣṇatāṁ gataḥ (SB 10.8.13): "Your child had formerly white color." White color . . . sometimes some critics criticize us that "Kṛṣṇa everywhere, He is black. Why in your temple white?" But it is said that śukla, śuklo raktas tathā pīta idānīṁ kṛṣṇatāṁ gataḥ: "Your son had other colors also, white and red and yellow, and now He has assumed blackish color."

So Caitanya Mahāprabhu, tviṣā akṛṣṇam. He is not blackish. Then He must be other form—śukla, rakta or pīta. So He assumed the pīta, yellowish color. Therefore tviṣā akṛṣṇam. Tviṣā means by complexion. So kṛṣṇa-varṇam, kṛṣṇaṁ varṇayati, iti kṛṣṇa-varṇam, or kṛṣṇa iti kṛṣṇa-varṇam, and tviṣā, by complexion, akṛṣṇa, pīta, idānīṁ pīta-varṇam. Pīta-varṇa gaura, golden avatāra. And sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam: He is always surrounded by associates, specially by Śrī Advaita, Gadādhara, Śrīvāsādi. Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, He is Kṛṣṇa, then Nityānanda, then Advaita, then Gadādhara, then Śrīvāsa, and many other devotees always followed. That is the life of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Wherever He went, many followers chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, plus these principal associates were with Him. Therefore sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣa . . . and these sāṅga upāṅga were His astra. Astra. Astra means weapon.

God advents for two purposes. What are the two purposes? Paritrāṇāya sādhūnām (BG 4.8): just to give relief and deliver the devotees. The devotees are always anxious to see God, so God comes down to give relief to the devotee, being present before them. Paritrāṇāya sā . . . another: vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām, to annihilate the demons. So there . . . for annihilating, for killing, you require weapons. Kṛṣṇa had His weapon, sudarśana-cakra. Lord Rāmacandra has His weapon, bow and arrow. What is the weapon of Śrī Caitanya Mahā . . .? Sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam. His associates are His weapons. This is astra. Because in the Kali-yuga they are so fallen, even they are demons, they are third-class, fourth-class demons. (laughter) (laughs) They need not be killed. They are already killed. Their mode of life, their atmosphere, they are always dead. Just like we see so many demons. So what is there to kill them? They are already killed. They have no life. So this killing process in Kali-yuga is to kill their demonic propensities. And how to kill that demonic propensities? By spreading Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. This is astra. Otherwise to kill them is not . . . by life, it is not difficult. One slap is sufficient. You don't require other weapon. But real Kṛṣṇa comes to kill or to give protection—because He is Absolute, it is the same thing. If He is killing some demons, He is giving him protection. He stops his demonic activities further, to implicate himself in more trouble. Therefore when Kṛṣṇa kills one demon, that means He saves him. He saves him. The Absolute; this is Absolute. Either He give . . . protects His devotee or kills the demon, the result is the same. Therefore He is called Absolute.

So in this age, Kali-yuga, to kill the demons means to stop their demonic activities by the astra, kīrtana, hari-saṅkīrtana, which is spread by His associates. Nityānanda Prabhu, Advaita Prabhu, Śrīvāsa ādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda, they are going door to door, country to country, city to city, and saving the demons from being implicated more and more in material existence. Therefore this is the astra. Astra means the killing. Real purpose . . . the living entity is eternal. How he can be killed? Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). So to kill means to kill his demonic nature. Otherwise how he can be killed? Ya imam . . . there is a verse that anyone who knows that the living entity is never killed and . . . a living entity does not kill anyone; neither a living entity is ever killed. One who knows this, he knows. So that is the position. So killing does not mean that killing the living entity. That is not possible. Na jāyate na mriyate vā. Killing means to kill his demonic activities. Stop. Killing means stop acting.

So sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam. This is the description of the God, Kṛṣṇa, in this age. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam (SB 11.5.32). And how to worship Him? What is the process? Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtanaiḥ. That's all. You keep Caitanya Mahāprabhu's Deity and chant and dance—your life is successful. So easy. We are worshiping Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa. That is very difficult. But if we keep Caitanya Mahāprabhu with His associates, this Pañca-tattva, Gaura-Nitāi, Gaura-Gadādhara, or Pañca-tattva, and worship Him according to the śāstra description . . . the śāstra description is yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtanaiḥ. This is yajña. Life is meant for performing yajña. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, yajñārthe karma. You are very busy. Yes, you should be busy always, twenty-four hours. For what purpose? Yajñārthe, not for your sense gratification. That is devotional life. Yajñārthe karma. Karma. We are not dull matter. We have got our flexible hands and legs to work. People think that "These Kṛṣṇa conscious men, Hare Kṛṣṇa people, they are escaping." What is that, escaping?

Devotee: Escapist.

Prabhupāda: We are not escaping. We are practically taking the real activities. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate (BG 2.59). Although people see that we do not work, we do not go to the factory, we do not to the mine, we do not go to the so many, so many things, or professional. We do not become lawyer, engineer. They say that we are escaping. No. You see we are always busy, twenty-four hours busy. I am old man of eighty years; still, I am busy. I am traveling all over the world, writing book at night, talking with visitors, and so many things. You can see. So where we are escaping? We are the most responsible worker. So the . . . what is the difference? The difference is all people are engaged for sense gratification; we are engaged for satisfying Kṛṣṇa. But activities are there.

So when you engage yourself for satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa . . . yajña means satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, or Viṣṇu. Viṣṇur ārādhyate puṁsa nānyat-tat-toṣa-kāraṇam (CC Madhya 8.58). This is called yajña. Viṣṇu . . . yajña means worshiping Lord Viṣṇu. Tat-toṣa-kāraṇam, acting for His satisfaction. Toṣa means satisfaction. And in another place it is also said, ataḥ pumbhir dvija-śreṣṭhā varṇāśrama-vibhāgaśaḥ, svanuṣṭhitasya puṁsasya, svanuṣṭhitasya puṁsasya . . . huh?

Puṣṭa-kṛṣṇa: Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya.

Prabhupāda: Ah. Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam (SB 1.2.13). Everyone has got different type of activities. Formerly it was divided into four: the brāhmaṇa activity, the kṣatriya activity, the vaiśya activity and the śūdra activity. Now it has been developed at the present moment, so many. But if you again connect all of them, they will come to the same categories or divisions. Some intelligent class of men, they are working day and night about understanding the Absolute Truth or the truth. Just like the theosophists, the philosophers, the theologists, the scientists, so many brain worker, they are working to discover better way of life, how to . . . how the human society should be more and more happy. So this is the work of the brāhmaṇas. But nowadays the brain is not utilized for understanding Brahman, but for understanding the ways of higher standard of life, sense gratification. Anyway, that is intelligent work. Next the administrative work. Next the productive work. And next the worker, general worker. The same brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra.

So Bhagavad-gītā recommends that you work for Kṛṣṇa. If you are engineer, so you use your talent how to construct a very wonderful temple for Kṛṣṇa. That will be success of your learning engineering. Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya. Anyone has got a particular talent. So how to make that talent successful? Now, svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam (SB 1.2.13). If you are very first class engineer, you construct such an wonderful temple for Kṛṣṇa that people from all the world will come to see it. Then you are successful. So any line of education, you cannot take it, but use it for Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction. Then your education is perfect. Otherwise, śrama eva hi kevalam (SB 1.2.8), simply working uselessly and waste of time. What is this?

So yajña, that is yajña. When you work for Kṛṣṇa to satisfy Kṛṣṇa, that is yajña. Yajña does not mean that simply by performing fire sacrifices and offering little ghee upon it. No, that is yajña . . . that is ordinary yajña, agnihotra-yajña. But the real purpose of yajña is . . . the same purpose: in the fire sacrifice we offer the food grains. That means the Supreme Lord is eating through fire. So eating is satisfaction. So Kṛṣṇa is not satisfied only by eating. He has got other senses also. Kṛṣṇa is not nirākāra. And Kṛṣṇa, you satisfy any sense of Kṛṣṇa, you are successful. And He can satisfy anything through any sense. Aṅgāni yasya sakalendriya-vṛttimanti. So this is the . . . called yajña, yajña.

So yajña has to be performed. Saha-yajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā (BG 3.10), in the Bhagavad-gītā you will find. All the living entities were, especially the human being, the demigods . . . demigods were first created. The seven ṛṣis, they created later on. Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān . . . vivasvān manave prāha (BG 4.1). The sun-god was created, then from him, Manu came; from Manu, Ikṣvāku came; Ikṣvāku . . . in this way. So all these prajās, progeny, was created for performing yajña. That is stated in the Bhagavad . . . so everyone is meant for performing yajña. Yajñārthe karma. Everyone should work for performing yajña. That is human life. Work very hard. You have got tendency to work from morning, six, to night, ten o'clock, eleven o'clock. We see. Early in the morning the road is congested. They are going to work. But they do not know why they are working. They know, "I am working for filling up this belly." That they know. No, that is not the purpose of working. For filling up the belly the animals, the ants, the cats, dogs, birds, they are also working. And you shall also work for filling up the belly only? Then what is the value of your life? You should work for yajña. That is human life. Yajñārthe karma.

"I don't like yajña." Then karma-bandhanaḥ, they are becoming entrapped, working under the influence of certain material modes of nature. Therefore you are infecting that material mode of nature, and according to the infection, you will develop the next body. Just like according to infection you develop the disease, so this material body is disease. That we do not understand. We are soaping this material body, keeping it fit, but we do not know that this is disease. Anyone, does anyone want to keep the disease and say, "My dear disease, please live with me forever"? (laughter) Is there any intelligent man say like that? Disease is to be cured, is to be driven away. In Hindi they say, jara ar para okhane kha na baviya ar. Means "Unwanted guest and disease, you do not give him to eat, and he will go away." He will go away. So any disease, you starve for few days, two days, three days, it will go. And any unwanted guest, you don't supply him food, he will automatically go away. So disease should not be maintained. Disease should be cured.

So that curing medicine we have to take not to maintain this material body. Na sādhu manye yata ātmano 'yam asann api kleśada āsa dehaḥ (SB 5.5.4). This is real intelligence. Everyone is trying to keep this body, this disease, maintaining. This time, next time, next time, next time, going on. Janma-mṛtyu-maran malam. This is not your . . . disease should be cured. Therefore śāstra says,

nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma

yad indriya-prītaya āpṛṇoti

na sādhu manye yata ātmano 'yam

kleśada āsa dehaḥ asann api

(SB 5.5.4)

People are mad, and they are doing anything mischievous, sinful. And what is the purpose? Now, just to satisfy the senses. You see? There are so many nice foodstuff Kṛṣṇa has given—fruits, flowers, grains, milk, butter, sugar. And you can prepare hundreds and thousands of preparation out of it and offer to Kṛṣṇa and eat it very nicely. "No. We must have meat." This is vikarma. Vikarma means sinful activities. Karma, vikarma and . . . tena tyaktena bhuñjīthā (ISO 1). God has given you so many nice foodstuff. Why should you kill an animal? Therefore Jesus Christ says, "Thou shall not kill." "Then shall I die?" No. There are so many things. You eat, tena tyaktena, "whatever is ordained by You," by God, Kṛṣṇa. The same thing is said. Kṛṣṇa should have said, "Give me . . ." mamsam din mam. No. He says, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26).

So this is yajña, to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. So if you offer Kṛṣṇa these things, what He wants, you will satisfy. Yo me bhaktyā prayacchati. Bhaktyā, with bhakti, Kṛṣṇa said. So why don't you do this? That is yajña. Everyone can perform yajña at home, because they are eating. Who is there who is not eating? Everyone is eating. But if you prepare within these items, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam, and prepare nice varieties of foodstuff and offer to Kṛṣṇa, that is yajña. That is yajña. And yajña-śiṣṭāśinaḥ santo mucyante sarva-kilbiṣaiḥ (BG 3.13). If you take prasādam, Kṛṣṇa will not eat everything. He will eat, and He will leave for you also. So don't be afraid that "If I offer Kṛṣṇa, He will take away." (laughter) Kṛṣṇa is not so hungry. Even if He is hungry, He can eat the whole universe. So just satisfy Kṛṣṇa. "Sir, it is all given by You, the food grains, these fruits, flowers. It is Your gift. So You first of all taste or eat. Then I shall eat." Kṛṣṇa is very satisfied. So we want Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction. Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam (SB 1.2.13). You have cooked very nicely, and if Kṛṣṇa says, "Yes, it is very nice," then your cooking is perfection. Saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam.

So do anything. If Kṛṣṇa is satisfied, that is yajña. That is yajña. And one should live for that purpose. Yajñārthe karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yam. Work very hard, but yajñārthe. And if you work so hard like ass and cats and dog simply for satisfying your tongue or belly or the genital, a straight line, then you are going to hell. Yajñārthe karmaṇaḥ anyatra karma-bandhanaḥ. Then you are becoming bound up by the laws of nature. If you eat and sleep and act like dog, then become dog next life. And if you act like god, then you'll get god, very easy thing. So whatever you like, you can do. But the śāstra gives you direction, yajñārthe. "Act, work, work hard for pleasing the Supreme Lord." Yajñārthe. Otherwise you will be bound up in the cycle of birth and death. Don't do it.

So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is teaching this education, that perform . . . you cannot escape it. You cannot say that "You are interested. You can do. We are not interested." If you are not interested, then you are living a very risky life, because you have to change your body. Dehāntaram. You can see. There are examples of so many types of body. Now, suppose if you live at the risk of your life and next life you become a tree, stand up for five thousand years in the snow, scorching heat, scorching, blasting, and so many disturbances, and you cannot move an inch, and people may cut down you, your leaves, your trunk, or you; they are cutting so many . . . what is that life? And if you think, "No, I am living for five thousand years," what is the use of living such five thousand years? No. Don't risk life. Karma-bandhanaḥ. If you don't perform yajña, if you don't try to satisfy the Supreme Lord . . . just like if you don't try to satisfy the government, then it is your risky life. You cannot say that "I am living very happily." Because you are cheating government or do not following the laws of the government, that is very risky life. Similarly, if you do not perform yajña, you cannot avoid it. Saha-yajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛṣṭvā (BG 3.10). You are . . . you have got this human form of life for performing yajña.

So in this age, in Kali-yuga, it is very difficult to perform other yajña. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Kṛṣṇa, has appeared to accept your yajña, to deliver you, and the yajña process is very easy: yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtanaiḥ. That's all. Simply perform. Wherever you live, at home or outside home, just keep a picture of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra before Him. Then your life will be successful.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda. (end)