710407 - Lecture BG 07.16 - Bombay

Lectures by Date, 1971

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

710407BG.BOMBAY - April 07, 1971 - 29:01 Minutes

Prabhupāda:

. . . śrī-gurave namaḥ

śrī-caitanya-mano-'bhīṣṭaṁ sthāpitaṁ yena bhū-tale

svayaṁ rūpaḥ kadā mahyaṁ dadāti sva-padāntikam

vande 'haṁ śrī-guroḥ śrī-yuta-pada-kamalaṁ śrī-gurūn vaiṣṇavāṁś ca

śrī-rūpaṁ sāgrajātaṁ saha-gaṇa-raghunāthānvitaṁ taṁ sa-jīvam

sādvaitaṁ sāvadhūtaṁ parijana-sahitaṁ kṛṣṇa-caitanya-devaṁ

śrī-rādhā-kṛṣṇa-pādān saha-gaṇa-lalitā-śrī-viśākhānvitāṁś ca

he kṛṣṇa karuṇā-sindho dīna-bandho jagat-pate

gopeśa gopikā-kānta rādhā-kānta namo 'stu te

tapta-kāñcana-gaurāṅgi rādhe vṛndāvaneśvari

vṛṣabhānu-sute devi praṇamāmi hari-priye

vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaś ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca

patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ

śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda

śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda

hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare

hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare

Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you very much for your coming here and participating in this great movement of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

So we have been discussing yesterday that na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). So miscreant, sinful life, cannot help us in making progress. That we have repeatedly discussed, that we have to refrain from sinful activities. As we have stated several times, yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ pāpam.

So the pillars of sinful life are four. They are, according to śāstra, that striya-sūnā-pāna-dyūta yatra pāpāś catur-vidhā (SB 1.17.38). Four kinds of sinful activities, they are considered the pillars of sinful life. What is that? Illicit sex life. In the human society, every . . . anywhere, everywhere, there is a system, civilized method of system, of sex life, which is called married life. This married life is just like a license for sex life.

In the śāstra it is said, loke vyavāyāmiṣa-madya-sevā nityā hi jantor na hi tatra codanā (SB 11.5.11). Those who are conditioned souls, this eating, sleeping, mating, these are the necessities of the body. In the spiritual world, these three things . . . four things, are conspicuous by absence. There is no necessity of eating there, no sleeping, no mating, no defense. That is spiritual life.

So in order to advance in spiritual life, we have to voluntarily decrease these demands of the body. That is called tapasya. In our country especially, many great saintly persons, sages, even kings, voluntarily they would give up these demands of the body, not that artificially increasing these demands of the body. That will not help us in spiritual life.

So this strī-saṅga, or association with woman, that is a demand of the body. Loke vyavāyāmiṣa-madya-sevā. Āmiṣa means nonvegetarian food. Eating flesh, fish, eggs, these are called āmiṣa. And madya means wine, liquor. So all the conditioned souls, they have got a natural inclination for sex life, intoxication, and eating fish, eat . . . they have got a natural inclination. Even ants, they have got all these inclinations. Expert psychologists and medical men, they have studied that even the ant, it has got also the same propensities. Loke vyavāyāmiṣa-madya-sevā.

So when there is legalized, or marriage under religious principle, it is to be understood a sort of concession. In the Purāṇas . . . there are tāmasika-purāṇas where it is recommended that if you want to eat flesh, then you can get a goat and sacrifice before Goddess Kālī, and you can eat that. The purpose is that if a conditioned soul has got the natural tendencies, then why they are mentioned in the śāstras?

The idea is . . . just like Lord Buddha. Lord Buddha, his mission was to stop animal killing. Ahiṁsā paramo dharmaḥ. Lord Buddha appeared, being compassionate with the poor animals. Sadaya-hṛdaya darśita-paśu-ghātam. There is a description of Lord Buddha's activities by a Vaiṣṇava poet, Jayadeva Gosvāmī. He says, praying to Lord Buddha:

nindasi yajña-vidher ahaha śruti-jātaṁ

sadaya-hṛdaya darśita-paśu-ghātam

keśava dhṛta-buddha-śarīra jaya jagadīśa hare

(Śrī Daśāvatāra-stotra 9)

Lord Buddha appeared to stop this animal killing. But because in the Purāṇas there are sometimes regulative principle of killing animal, therefore he had to deny the authority of Vedas, because those who are after killing animals, they will find some clue that, "Here in the Vedas the animal killing is sometimes recommended." But that animal killing is not a, I mean to say, instigation that "You go on killing animals."

You can understand by a nice example, just like the government opens liquor shop. It does not mean the government is encouraging to drink liquor. It is not like that. The idea is that if government does not allow some drunkards to drink, they will create havoc. They will distill illicit distillation of liquor. To check them, the government opens liquor shop with very, very great, high price. The cost . . . if the cost is one rupee, government excise department charges sixty rupees.

So the idea is not to encourage, but to restrict. The idea is prohibition, at least in our country. Similarly, when there is allowance for sex life or meat-eating or drinking in the śāstras, they are not meant for instigating that, "You go on with this business as much as you can." No. Actually they are meant for restriction.

Therefore, for spiritual advancement of life, one has to know these basical knowledge, how we have to lead our life in order to make advancement in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We have therefore these restrictions, that nobody can have illicit sex life—nobody can eat meat and fish or eggs, like that—nobody can touch any kinds of intoxication, including smoking cigarettes and drinking tea—they are also intoxicants, and nobody can indulge in gambling. So these things are necessary.

Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna (BG 7.16). Sukṛti. Sukṛti means those who are living pious life, and these are the basic principles of living pious life: no illicit sex life . . . sex life is required, but there is already in the śāstra a license: "You can have sex life with your religiously married wife. Not otherwise." Actually, married sex life is not required, but it is a just like license. The same thing, that there is no necessity of drinking wine, but those who are habituated, those who want to drink, for them, government opens, under so many restrictions, a liquor shop. The śāstra also gives us this license.

The Gosvāmīs of Vṛndāvana, they were ideal saintly persons. About them it is said, nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau. They conquered over the necessities of this body, which is called viṣaya. Conquering over sleeping, conquering over sex life and conquering over eating, these things are required. Pious life means gradually decreasing the unnecessarily bodily demands. That is pious life. That is the sum and substance. Because Kṛṣṇa says here that catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtinaḥ: "Those who are living pious life." And those who are not living pious lives, they are called duṣkṛtina, sinful life.

So by indulging in sex . . . sinful life it is not possible to understand Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa also says in various places in the Bhagavad-gītā. I have repeatedly informed you, yeṣām anta-gataṁ pāpam. One who is completely freed from all sinful life . . . janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. This is puṇya-karma, not to indulge in sex . . . illicit sex life, not to indulge in nonvegetarian diet, not to indulge in gambling and not to indulge in intoxicants.

So catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna ārto arthārthī jñānī jijñāsuḥ. Four kinds of men who are actually leading pious life, such persons . . . (applause) Hare Kṛṣṇa. Such persons, when they are distressed . . . ārta means distressed. We have got so many distresses in this material life—tri-tāpa—three kinds of distresses—pertaining to the body, pertaining to the mind, distresses offered by other living entities. Adhibhautika, adhyātmika, adhidaivika. We are always in distress; that is a fact. But there is a covering influence of māyā that even in distressed condition, we think that we are happy. That is covering influence of māyā.

So ārto arthārthī. Arthārthī. Ārta and arthārthī, these two qualities are alleged to belong to the gṛhasthas. And jñānī or jijñāsuḥ, the . . . these qualities are supposed to be belonging to the tyāgīs. The bhogīs . . . the gṛhasthas are called bhogīs, and the tyāgīs are brahmacārīs and sannyāsīs.

So jñānī, when he makes searching after God, there is no question of being put into distressed condition or in need of money. They are searching after God for God's sake, what is the nature of God. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. They are inquiring, inquisitive about Brahman, what is the nature of Brahman. They are called jñānī. And jijñāsuḥ, they are also within the category of the jñānīs.

So the jñānīs and the jijñāsuḥ, inquisitive, they are better than the ārta and the arthārthī. Ārta means distress, and arthārthī means those who are in need of money. So even being ārta or even being distressed and in need of money, we approach Kṛṣṇa . . . Kṛṣṇa says mām. Not any other demigods. Catur-vidhā bhajante mām. Mām means, Kṛṣṇa says, mām means Kṛṣṇa.

So four kinds of men, those who are leading pious life, sukṛtino 'rjuna . . . because they have no other alternative than to approach God for mitigating their distress. Actually, our inventions for so many distressed mitigating instruments . . . just like medicine, take for example. When a man is diseased, generally the counterpart is physician and good medicine. But śāstra says that actually they are not counteracting agents, because it is found that a man suffering from certain type of disease, although attended by the first-class physician and although offered first-class medicine, he dies. Why? Because there is no sanction of the Supreme Lord.

So our counteracting method, even though they are very efficient, still, unless it is sanctioned by Kṛṣṇa and God, they will not be effective. There are many such examples. Some years ago, perhaps you know, they . . . in America, they started one very strong and stout ship. It is known . . . I think it was named Titanic. So it was guaranteed that it will never be drowned; it is so well-looking. And all the important men of America started in that ship for the first time, and after few miles immediately it was drowned. So in spite of all scientific protection, in spite of all good brains behind the manufacture of this Titanic ship, it was drowned.

So in this way we have to study that this ārta and arthārthī, because they are . . . their background is sukṛtina, pious activities, they know that without God's help we cannot mitigate any of our distressed condition or needy condition. Therefore the ārta and arthārthī whose background is pious life, they approach God: "Kṛṣṇa, please help me," although it is not pure devotion.

Pure devotion is without any desire for material benefits. Just like it is enjoined in the śāstras, samyak śubha-kriyā matiḥ pramāṇam. The chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra should not be taken as a mitigating agent for our distressed condition. No pure devotee will desire for any material benefit by worshiping Kṛṣṇa or chanting His holy name. That is also considered as one er, one of the offenses of ten kinds of offense. Nāmno balād yasya hi pāpa-buddhiḥ (Padma Purāṇa, Brahma-kaṇḍha 25.16).

But in spite . . . even though they are not pure devotees . . . purity of, purity of devotion, it takes time. But still, in the śāstra it is recommended that even if you have some material desires . . . akāmaḥ sarva-kāmo vā mokṣa-kāma udāra-dhīḥ (SB 2.3.10). Akāma and sarva-kāma. Sarva-kāma, those who are ārtas, always in distressed condition, or mokṣa-kāma . . . mokṣa-kāma means who are . . . those who are desiring after liberation. They are also demanding something. Those who are mokṣa-kāmī, they are also demanding something. The siddhi-kāmīs, they are also demanding something. But pure devotee does not demand anything. That is purity.

anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ

jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam

ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu-

śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā

(Brs. 1.1.11)

That sample of pure devotion is found in Vṛndāvana amongst the inhabitants of Vṛndāvana. And Kṛṣṇa was present, He was demonstrating His transcendental pastimes of Vṛndāvana. These gopīs and the cowherds boys, they were the best examples of becoming pure devotees.

So Kṛṣṇa says that catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna. So Arjuna also said, paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān. Paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). When Arjuna understood the Bhagavad-gītā, he understood Kṛṣṇa also. And he said: "Kṛṣṇa, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma. "You are the supreme shelter," paraṁ dhāma. Pavitram. This word is there, pavitra.

So without being pavitra, without being pious, without being free from contamination of material activities, nobody can approach Kṛṣṇa. That's a fact. But Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He orders that, "Even if you have got some kāmanam, some desire, material desire, if still, you can take shelter upon Me." Sarva-dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66). "You do not take shelter of anything else. Simply depend on Me." Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. "You haven't got to depend on anything else. I will give you protection."

So we have to take faith in the words of Kṛṣṇa and pinch our complete faith and devotion at the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. That will make us happy and make progress in Kṛṣṇa consciousness in order to achieve the highest goal of life, back to Godhead, back to home. Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6).

So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement purely based on the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā. It is not a manufactured thing. As you are hearing for so many days, our basic principle is the Bhagavad-gītā. It is not that we have manufactured something, as there are so many manufactured processes. So if we actually take Kṛṣṇa consciousness seriously, as it is assured in the Bhagavad-gītā by the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, we are sure to achieve the result, without any doubt. Kṛṣṇa assures, mā śucaḥ: "Don't be doubtful. Simply surrender unto Me. I shall take care of you."

The whole Bhagavad-gītā is taught in that way. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14). Ahaṁ eva sarva-yajñānāṁ bhoktā ca prabhur eva ca (BG 9.24). In this way, in Bhagavad-gītā we'll find Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord; Kṛṣṇa is the Absolute Personality of Godhead. So His instructions are there.

So our request from . . . on behalf of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, that from . . . of course, as far as possible, we have tried to convince you during this eight-days' function, but if you also cooperate with us, taj-joṣaṇād āśv apavarga-vartmani (SB 3.25.25), then the result will be very quick. Simply if you go back home, hearing all these instructions of Kṛṣṇa, that will not help.

Of course, any sane man will think over this. That is recommended in the śāstras. Through good association, by hearing from the devotees, one becomes purified, one becomes thoughtful about Kṛṣṇa. But he practically applies in his life the instruction of Kṛṣṇa, then he makes progress in spiritual life or towards the ultimate goal of life, to go back to home, back to Godhead.

It is not a fiction, that there is no planet as Kṛṣṇaloka. No. There is. From Bhagavad-gītā you have understood. There is another nature. Besides this material nature, there is another nature, which is called sanātana-dhāma. Paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyaḥ (BG 8.20). And there are innumerable planets, they are called Vaikuṇṭhalokas, as much as there are innumerable planets within this material world.

So these are all facts. If you believe śāstra, if you have got faith in the śāstra, then you have to take this path of Kṛṣṇa consciousness in order to transfer yourself to the spiritual world. There is a spiritual world. Because we are spirit soul, without being transferred to the spiritual world we cannot have real happiness or real enjoyment. That is a fact.

All these informations are there very explicitly. You do not try to understand Bhagavad-gītā by malinterpretation or mal, I mean to say, commentary. Try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is, and you will benefit. That is our request. Of course, we are finishing this ceremony today here, but if opportunity is there, we can continue the study of Bhagavad-gītā as it is, and if Kṛṣṇa gives us opportunity, we shall try to serve you again, more and more.

Thank you very much. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (applause) (end)