670320 - Lecture SB 07.07.40-44 - San Francisco

Lectures by Date, 1967

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

670320SB-SAN FRANCISCO - March 20, 1967 - 15:03 Minutes

Prabhupāda: (indistinct) . . . of life. So Prahlāda Mahārāja is recommending that either material prosperity within this planet or in other planet, they are all destructible. They're not permanent. Therefore nirmala, not free from the contamination of material nature. That is also recommended in the Bhagavad-gītā: ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino 'rjuna (BG 8.16), that even if you go to the highest planet, that is also perishable. So we are not interested in perishable things. Unfortunately, people have no knowledge that what is that unperishable. They are accustomed in the association of perishable things for many, many lives.

(aside) Is not working? Yes.

Therefore they have no information what is the . . . if we say that "You work for nonperishable things," he'll be astonished, because he has no idea that there can be anything which is not . . . which is not perishable.

So Prahlāda Mahārāja recommends that, "Don't try for nonperishable things . . . don't try for perishable things. Try for nonperishable things." And that is bhaktyā uktayeṣaṁ bhajatātma-labdhaye (SB 7.7.40). As the devotees recommend to worship the Supreme Lord, and the Supreme Lord also confirms it: yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6), that supreme abode, where going, nobody returns . . .

Prahlāda Mahārāja recommends that, "My dear friends, you just worship that Supreme Personality of Godhead, where going, nobody comes back."

yad-artha iha karmāṇi

vidvan-māny asakṛn naraḥ

karoty ato viparyāsam

amoghaṁ vindate phalaṁ

(SB 7.7.41)

In this material world we are making so many plans for permanent settlement, but unfortunately, we are meeting with just the opposite result. That is in our experience. There is very nice song sung by a Vaiṣṇava poet. He says, sukhere lagiya e baro bhaginu anale puria gelā: "I constructed this house for living happily. Unfortunately, it was set in fire, so everything is finished." That is going on. In the material world we are making so many plans for living very comfortably, peacefully, eternally—but that is not possible.

People do not understand it. They are seeing, experiencing, from śāstra; from scripture we are getting instruction that nothing is imperishable. Everything is perishable in the material world. And we are actually seeing also that perishable agents are always ready.

Just like the fire. In New York City, at least, within twenty-four hours, there are at least ten or fifteen places where fire is going on. And your fire brigade is running on just trying to protect you from fire. The house regulation is all for fire, "How we are protected from fire." Then it will be allowed, certificate of occupation, "You can live."

In other words, that fire is always ready to vanish everything, but artificially, somehow or other, we are trying to protect ourself from fire. But we do not take it for granted that this material nature is so made that it will set in fire everything, however we may be strong in protecting ourself. That is the nature.

So however we may make plans to live very happily, the nature's law is that it will destroy.

daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī

mama māyā duratyayā

mām eva ye prapadyante

māyām etāṁ taranti te

(BG 7.14)

So this material nature is very powerful. You cannot protect from the onslaught of material nature. Therefore Prahlāda Mahārāja advising us that you try to achieve the permanent. The permanent is the soul. God is permanent. And there is a world, a sky, which is also permanent. So why not transfer yourself to that permanent sky, permanent association, permanent life, permanent supreme knowledge? What we are seeking here in imperfectness?

But people have no information. Some of them, they do not believe in it. Some of them are callous. This is our unfortunate condition. But it is neither false nor it is fiction. It is actual fact, truth, real truth, Absolute Truth. Paraṁ satyaṁ dhīmahi (SB 1.1.1). Śrīmad-Bhāgavata presents the objective as the Supreme Truth, paraṁ satyam. Paraṁ satyaṁ dhīmahi: "I offer my obeisances to the Absolute Truth, paraṁ satyam." And what is that paraṁ satyam? Nirasta-kuhakam. Nirasta-kuhakam means "which is devoid of all illusion." Here everything is full of illusion. I am thinking, planning something, and at any moment, oh, it is all vanished, all finished.

So we do not understand that this is illusion, and there is a permanent life. So:

sukhāya duḥkha-mokṣāya

saṅkalpa iha karmiṇaḥ

sadāpnotīhayā duḥkham

anīhāyāḥ sukhāvṛtaḥ

(SB 7.7.42)

Now everything we are planning, sukhāya, for matter of happiness, and duḥkha-mokṣāya, and to get rid of all miseries. This is our plan. Sukhāya duḥkha-mokṣāya saṅkalpaḥ, our determination; iha, in this world; karmiṇaḥ, those who are working. That determination is to make life happy and avoid distress. That is the plan. Sadāpnotīhayā. But that is simply plan-making within our mind. Actually, it is never achieved. It is never achieved.

kāmān kāmayate kāmyair

yad-artham iha puruṣaḥ

sa vai dehas tu pārakyo

bhaṅguro yāty upaiti ca

(SB 7.7.43)

Now we are desiring so many things, kāmān kāmyair kāmayate. Kāmān means desirable, and kāmayate, we hanker after such desirables, kāmyaiḥ, being too much eager, greedy, for fulfilling those objects. Yad-artham iha puruṣaḥ sa vai dehas tu. And what is that kāma? What are those desirables?

The desirables are simply for making this body perfect. Not perfect—comfortable. Perfect it cannot be, but as far as possible . . . we are manufacturing nice cushions for sitting comfortably, nice bedroom, buy nice motorcars, and . . . everything for this body. The ultimate aim is to make this body comfortable. That's all.

But Prahlāda Mahārāja says that the body itself, dehaḥ . . . sa vai dehas tu pārakyo bhaṅguro. Either you make your position secure and comfortable in this life or next life. Next life means there are many religious rituals which assures in your next life very comfortable life, very, I mean to say, long duration of life in other planets.

So either you make arrangement in this life or in the next life, in the material world. If you make your next life in the spiritual world, then that is a different question. But so far we are materially concerned, either we make comfortable life in this life or in the next. But the body itself is kṣaṇa-bhaṅguraḥ, it is perishable. It is perishable. Sa vai dehas tu pārakyo bhaṅguro yāty upaiti.

kim u vyavahitāpatya-

dārāgāra-dhanādayaḥ

rājya-kośa-gajāmātya-

bhṛtyāptā mamatāspadāḥ

(SB 7.7.44)

They were all sons of big chieftains and ministers, and he was himself the son of the king, Hiraṇyakaśipu. Therefore he was speaking from his own standard. He says that kim u vyavahitāpatya-dārāgāra-dhanādayaḥ. Apatya means we are expanding. We are single—now we are expanding, expanding by our children, apatya.

And dāra means wife. The Sanskrit word strī . . . strī means woman, and the root meaning of strī means "which expands." As soon as you have got wife, you expand yourself. You are one, and as soon as you get your wife, you become three, four, five. So strī means that helps me expanding. That is the root meaning.

So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that what is the use by expanding your attachment to this material world by children? Apatya-dāra. Dārāgāra. Dāra means wife, and āgāra means house. Dārāgāra-dhanadayaḥ. Dhanādayaḥ means riches. These are our expanding processes.

And rājya, kingdom. Rājya. Kośa. Kośa means treasury. These are concerned with government. Government wants to expand. Rājya, kośa, and gaja. Gaja means elephant. The royal orders, they keep elephants. Especially in India, those who are princely order, they must keep at least dozens of elephants, and many thousands of horses.

That is royal opulence. So rājya-kośa-gajāmātya (SB 7.7.44). Amātya means minister, and bhṛtya, bhṛtya means servants, and āptā mean friend. That means, in other words, Prahlāda Mahārāja says that there is no necessity of expanding these material opulences. (break) (end)