750312 - Lecture Departure - London

Lectures by Date, 1975

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 Listen to a 'Nectar Drop' created from this lecture

750312DP-LONDON - March 12, 1975 - 39:31 Minutes

Prabhupāda: . . . where he is?

Devotee: . . . (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: Oh, you have dressed? Very nice. Thank you. Hmm.

śrī-vigrahārādhana-nitya-nānā-

śṛṅgāra-tan-mandira-mārjanādau

yuktasya bhaktāṁś ca niyuñjato 'pi

vande guroḥ śrī-caraṇāravindam

So this is one of the items, to learn how to decorate the Deity, śrī-vigraha. Śrī means goddess of fortune, Lakṣmī. Kṛṣṇa is always associated with Lakṣmī. Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is the original goddess of fortune, and as all other Viṣṇu-mūrti, Nara . . . rāmādi-mūrtiṣu kalā-niyamena tiṣṭhan (Bs. 5.39). Kṛṣṇa is always existing—tiṣṭhan means existing—with many other forms simultaneously: Rāma, Nṛsiṁha, Varāha and Nārāyaṇa, Viṣṇu. So Viṣṇu and Nārāyaṇa is . . . there are many expansion. You have seen on the cover of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, there are different planets, and each and every planet there is the predominating Deity, Nārāyaṇa, Viṣṇu. They have got different names. So He is always associated with His eternal consort as well as devotees, many thousand, millions, in the spiritual world.

In the material world . . . the creation of the material world is one-fourth demonstration of the whole creation, and this is one of the universes. In the material world there are innumerable universes. Yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi (Bs. 5.40). When Caitanya Mahāprabhu was requested by one of His devotee that "Sir, You have come. You just liberate all the residents of this universe, and that will make me very happy. And if You think they are so impious they cannot be liberated, then I am ready to take up their sinful activities. But You take them away," at that time Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that "Even one universe is liberated, still there are so many universes. This universe is just like one mustard seed in the bag of a mustard seed." So just imagine how many universes are there. All these together, that is one-fourth energy demonstration of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is said in the Bhagavad-gītā, ekāṁśena sthito jagat (BG 10.42). It is only one-fourth of the demon . . . manifestation. The three-fourth manifestation—in the spiritual world.

So just imagine God's creation. It is inconceivable by us, but we can learn it by śravaṇam. That is the only way. We, even in this material world, in this universe, we have heard of so many planets, but it is not possible to go and see. They cannot go even in the moon planet, and still, they are very much proud of their advancement of knowledge. So we cannot understand even. But if we patiently hear from the right source, then we can . . . may have some . . . we may have some conception. Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa says, paras tasmāt tu bhāvaḥ anyaḥ (BG 8.20). Bhāvaḥ, or svabhāvaḥ, or nature, there is another nature. So we have to hear. By hearing . . . this is the beginning of bhakti, śravaṇam. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. We have to hear, and after hearing, we have to repeat. That is called kīrtanam.

So in this way there are nine different processes, you know. Navadhā bhakti.

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ

smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam

arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ

sakhyam ātma-nivedanam

(SB 7.5.23)

So because these activities, devotional activities, are on the spiritual platform, all of them are Absolute. It is not that if you are hearing but you are not chanting, then your result will be little less than the other who is hearing and chanting. No. It is Absolute Truth. Just like if you taste a sugar candy, lump of sugar candy, from any side you taste, the sweetness is there. There is no difference that if you taste this side, then it is more sweet than the other side. Kṛṣṇa is complete, Absolute Truth. So any side. If you become expert in hearing, that is as good as one is engaged in other eight processes or nine processes. That is stated in the śāstra. Just like Parīkṣit Mahārāja. He simply listened. He did not do any other process. Śrī-viṣṇu-śravaṇe parīkṣit. They got liberation simply by executing one of the nine different processes. So śrī-viṣṇoḥ śravaṇe parīkṣid abhavad vaiyāsakiḥ kīrtane (Brs. 1.2.265). Parīkṣit Mahārāja got liberation simply by hearing. And Śukadeva Gosvāmī, he got liberation simply by chanting. And similarly, Prahlāda Mahārāja, he got liberation simply by memorizing, smaraṇe; Lakṣmījī, simply by serving the lotus feet of Nārāyaṇa.

So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is in the absolute platform. There is no relativity. In the temple worship, as there are so many different duties—one is worshiping directly the Deity, decorating the Deity, and the other is washing the temple—it does not mean that the one who is cleansing the Deity, he is less important than the person who is in the temple room, Deity room. No. Because it is absolute. The Deity . . . as the Deity is important, similarly, the floor of the temple is also important, same importance, because absolute. So in executing our devotional service we are engaged in different duties. Somebody is cooking. Somebody is decorating the Deity. Somebody is cleansing the floor. Somebody is going to sell books. Somebody is doing something. Everything—nirbandhe kṛṣṇa sambandhe (Brs. 1.2.255)—in relationship with Kṛṣṇa. Because the relationship is there with Kṛṣṇa, then every activity which you are doing, that is complete. There is no such material distinction. Just like here in the material world somebody is sitting in the office chair and somebody is cleansing the office, so the cleaner is supposed to be lower than the officer. But in the spiritual world there is no such distinction. The officer and the cleaner, they are of the same importance.

That is . . . even Kṛṣṇa, with Kṛṣṇa. That is spiritual world. In Vṛndāvana the cowherds boys, they are playing with Kṛṣṇa on equal terms. They do not know Kṛṣṇa is God. They simply know how to love Kṛṣṇa, that's all. There is no need of thinking that "Kṛṣṇa is greater than the other cowherds boy. They are living entities." There is no such sense. Kṛṣṇa wants that. That is Goloka Vṛndāvana worship. Simply the center is Kṛṣṇa, and all the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana, they love Kṛṣṇa, and they do not know anything except Kṛṣṇa. This is Vṛndāvana life. Everyone knows that "Kṛṣṇa is my very intimate friend." Somebody knows, "Kṛṣṇa is my son," somebody knows that "Kṛṣṇa is my master," and somebody is thinking, "Kṛṣṇa is my lover." But center is Kṛṣṇa. The cows; the calves; the friends; the gopīs and the cowherds boy; Kṛṣṇa's father, Nanda Mahārāja; Kṛṣṇa's mother, Yaśomatī; and . . . everyone's center is Kṛṣṇa: "How Kṛṣṇa will be happy?" This is Vṛndāvana life. If we try to follow the footsteps of the residents of Vṛndāvana, how to love Kṛṣṇa, then our life is successful.

That is the recommendation of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Premā pum-artho mahān. Pum-artho means puruṣārtha, or the goal of life. The goal of life in the material world, generally, not for the animals but for the human being, the goal of life, generally: religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and liberation. Dharma, artha, kāma, mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, CC Ādi 1.90). Some people are interested to become pious, religious, because by becoming pious and religious their economic development will be automatically there. And some of them are interested in simply in economic development for satisfaction of the senses. And some of them—they are considered to be the topmost—interested in liberation. But a Kṛṣṇa conscious devotee, he is not interested in either of these four items. He is interested how to love Kṛṣṇa. That is pure devotion. That is pañcama-puruṣārtha (CC Madhya 23.101).

So people do not know it. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). People do not know it generally. If one is very pious man, he wants to be religious, moralist, religious. And others, karmīs, they are interested how to develop economic position. And others, they are simply interested in sense gratification. This is material world. And when these materialistic persons are disgusted, then they want liberation. Their liberation means to become one, merge into the existence of the Supreme. That is not very difficult. They give the example that the water mixes with the vast mass of water, and they become one. But that is not the fact. You can make an experiment that you take a little red water and put it in the ocean. The ocean does not become red. So chemically also, the water, they are composition of molecules of water. But it is mixed with water. That is a fact. But there is another process which evaporates the water. Suppose you are mixed with the water. The Māyāvādī philosophy, that "We . . . let us mix with the big water. Then I become big." Because here in the material world he tried to become big in so many ways, but he could not become big; therefore he wants to merge into the biggest, Brahman, so that he thinks that he will become. He is already Brahman. So the Brahman effulgence is combination of so many sparks of living entities.

So this philosophy, to merge into the big Brahman, Supreme Brahman, or effulgence, brahma-jyotir, that is not very secure position. It is said in the śāstra that āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ (SB 10.2.32): they fall down. We have seen that many Māyāvādī philosophers or sannyāsīs, they give up this world as mithyā, false, but after some time, they again come to this false material world for some philanthropic work, humanitarian work, because they could not get Kṛṣṇa. If you have left this world as false, then why you are coming again to give service to the world? No. They could not get. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padam (SB 10.2.32). Paraṁ padam means Brahman. Patanty adhaḥ: "They fall down." Why? Anādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ: "Because they neglected the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa." They . . . they did not get any shelter. Just like if you go very high in the sky but if you don't get a shelter, then again you come back. Just like these moon planet–goers, they attempted many times jumping, but they could not get any shelter. They have come back again. Now they have, I think, left off. What is that? "Grapes are sour." After jumping, jumping, the jackal, when he could not get the grapes, then he says "the grapes are sour." That is . . . (laughter) "No need." So these so-called scientists, after jumping like the jackal, could not get any place in the moon planet, and they have come down again. It is not possible. You cannot go to any of the planets, although they are material. You cannot . . . just like you cannot go to any country without getting the visa permit, similarly . . . there are many planets. They are open for your entrance, but not in that way, that by force you will go. That is not possible.

Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, yānti deva-vratā devān (BG 9.25). You have to qualify yourself to enter into such planets. They are called heavenly planets. You cannot enter by force. Therefore we are conditioned. We are not free. We are conditioned. We should always remember that we are conditioned by the material nature. We cannot . . . we are not free. We are not independent. That we are forgetting. At the present moment the trained-up civilization is that everyone is thinking that he is independent, he can do whatever he likes, he can manufacture his own process of religious principles. These, I mean to say, maddened ideas are there. No. Religious principle you cannot manufacture. Just like law. You cannot say that "I will manufacture my own law." No. That is not possible. Law means state's law, and you have to abide by that. That is law. You cannot avoid it. You cannot say that "I won't accept the state laws. I will make my own laws." That is not possible. Dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam (SB 6.3.19). Dharma means the laws and the regulation given by God. That is dharma. Therefore Kṛṣṇa said, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). This is real dharma. And Bhāgavata says, dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavaḥ atra: "In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam all cheating types of religious principle is rejected."

The real dharma is to surrender to Kṛṣṇa. That is real dharma. And any religion which does not teach this principle, to surrender to God, Kṛṣṇa, and love Him . . . that is real religion. Therefore Bhāgavata teaches that real religion, Bhāgavata-dharma. And Bhāgavata declares in the beginning that "All cheating type of religious system is rejected, kicked out." Projjhita. Projjhita means just like you wash your floor or sweep your floor and collect the dust and throw it away, similarly, in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam the unwanted so-called religious system, they have been collected and thrown away. Here in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there is only one religious system, which is spoken in the Bhagavad-gītā in the last chapter, Eighteenth Chapter, that sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). If we accept this principle, then we enter into the Bhāgavata-dharma. Otherwise there is no entrance in the Bhāgavata-dharma.

For the Māyāvādī who wants to become one with the Supreme . . . you can become one. One means the same thing: a small portion of the water. But our philosophy is not to mix up with the water superficially but enter into the water and live there like fish, big, big fish. That is our philosophy. What is the use of becoming one with the water? Go within the water and live there like a whale fish, perpetually. That is our philosophy. So that is secure philosophy, because as soon as actually you become a big fish within the water, there is no question of evaporation. But if you live . . . remain superficially on the water, then you will be evaporated again and again thrown outside, then again come as river. So your coming and going, repetition of birth and death, will not stop. But one should become a big fish, there is no evaporation. These things are explained in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu by Rūpa Gosvāmī.

So don't be misled by this Māyāvāda philosophy, that you fall into the water. Tohe janame punaḥ tohe visarata. They say that "Enter into the Supreme." You can enter, but what is the benefit? You will be again evaporated. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Because living entity by nature is ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12), by nature they want pleasure, every one of us. Every one of us, we are struggling so hard. Why? To get some pleasure. Nobody is trying so hard to making suicide. Is anybody there in this material world who is working so hard for ultimately making suicide? No. Everyone is trying to become happy. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). Because he wants. That is his nature, sat-cit-ānanda: eternal life, full of knowledge and full of bliss. This is real life. So if we simply accept eternity like the Māyāvādīs, then what about the other two items? Or if we simply live in knowledge . . . suppose theoretically I know so many things to prepare—rasagullā, sandeśa, halavā, kachorī—but if I do not practically taste what is halavā, what is kachorī, then what is the use of simply having knowledge?

So the Māyāvādī philosophy like that—jñāna, simply knowledge. That knowledge is there in the Bhagavad-gītā in the beginning, the first lesson, dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanam (BG 2.13): "Within the body there is the soul. That soul is eternal." Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Na jāyate na mriya . . . this is the first lesson, that "I am Brahman. I am spirit soul. I am eternal. I do not die even after the annihilation . . ." This is the first lesson. It doesn't require much time, that we have to devote our whole life to understand that "I am Brahman." It can be understood even by a child. It is not very difficult. But how to engage myself as Brahman, that requires education. That is,

śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ

smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam

arcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁ

sakhyam ātma-nivedanam

(SB 7.5.23)

So these things begin after self-realization. Otherwise, why one should be interested about Viṣṇu, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ? One is interested, "What is the report of the share market?" That's all. He should hear that? No. The śāstra says, "No. You should hear about Viṣṇu only." That is our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, that "You hear about Viṣṇu, Kṛṣṇa, and not anybody else."

There are so many politicians, big, big other materialistic person. We can hear about him. Just like people are reading the biography of big, big politicians and spoiling their time. We are not interested. We are not inter . . . we are interested only to hear about Viṣṇu. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We are not inter . . . so many biographies are there. People are interested. But our literature . . . we have published so many, about fifty books—only on Kṛṣṇa, that's all. Nothing else. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ. These three processes is going on. The publication means śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ (SB 7.5.23). Or smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam. They are of Viṣṇu. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Stick to this principle. Don't try to hear anything else. Tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavaḥ.

tad-vāg-visargo janatāgha-viplavo

yasmin prati-ślokam abaddhavaty api

nāmāny viṣṇu-yaśo 'ṅkitaṇi

śṛṇvanti gāyanti gṛṇanti sādhavaḥ

(SB 1.5.11)

And, on the other hand, na tad vacaś citra-padaṁ harer yaśo pragṛṇīta kar . . . na pragṛṇīta karhicit, tad vāyasaṁ tīrtham (SB 1.5.10). To the devotees, a literature, a so-called literature, very nicely written, with decorated words, metaphorism and these things . . . tad-vāg-visargo, na tad vacaś citra-padam, very nicely, literally very nicely decorated, na tad vacaś citra-padaṁ harer yaśo na pragṛṇīta karhicit, but there is no mention about Kṛṣṇa and His glories . . . just like especially in the Western countries you have got newspaper, big, big bunch of newspaper, but not a single line is there about Kṛṣṇa. Not a single. So for the devotees this kind of literature is compared with the garbage. Tad vāyasaṁ tīrtham. Just like vāyasam, crows. The crows gather together where? Where everything nuisance thrown away, they gather together. You will find. That is the nature amongst the class of bird. Where all nasty things are thrown away, the crows will gather. The another bird, swans, they will not go there. The swans will gather in a very nice garden with clear water, lotus flower, and birds and singing. They will gather there. As there are . . . by nature, there are different classes of animals, even in the birds, beasts. "The birds of the same feather flock together." So where the crows go, the swans do not go. And where the swans go, the crows have no access.

Similarly, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for the swans, not for the crows. So try to remain swans, rāja-haṁsa, or paramahaṁsa. Haṁsa means swan. Even if we have got this little place, don't go to the place of the crows, the so-called clubs, restaurant, brothel, dancing club and . . . people are . . . especially in the Western countries, they are very much busy with these places. But don't remain crow. Become swans simply by this process, chanting and hearing about Kṛṣṇa. This is the process, to remain paramahaṁsa. Dharma-projjhita-kaitava atra nirmatsarāṇām. Dharma-projjhita-kaitava atra paramo nirmatsarāṇām (SB 1.1.2). This Bhāgavata-dharma, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is meant for paramo nirmatsarāṇām. Matsara, matsarata. Matsara means envy. I am envious of you; you are envious of me. This is material world. Just like so many envious persons are there in this quarter, simply lodging complaint against us. We have got good experience of this. So the Bhāgavata-dharma is meant for paramo nirmatsarāṇām. Matsarata means one who cannot endure or can't tolerate others' advancement. That is called matsarata. That is the nature of everyone. Everyone is trying to advance more. The neighbor is envious: "Oh, this man is going ahead. I could not." This is . . . even if he is brother, even if he is son, this is the nature of the . . .

So therefore this Bhāgavata-dharma is not meant for such persons who are envious. It is meant for the paramo nirmatsarāṇām, who has given up this envy or envious attitude ultimately. Now, how it is possible? It is possible only when you have learned how to love Kṛṣṇa. Then it is possible. Then you will see that "Everyone is Kṛṣṇa's part and parcel. So he is suffering for want of his Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let me speak something about Him, about Kṛṣṇa. Let me give some literature to him about Kṛṣṇa so that one day he will come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and become happy." This is śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ smaraṇam process. We should ourself also continuously hear from authoritative literature, person, and continuously go on chanting the same thing, repetition. That's all. Then everything will be happy atmosphere. Otherwise the crows' assembly in the garbage will continue, and nobody will be happy.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda! (end)