"Clutches Of Birth And Death" 73/10/06 Bombay, Bhagavad-gita 13.13

Pradyumna: (leads synonyms)

jneyam yat tat pravaksyami
yaj jnatva 'mrtam asnute
anadimat param brahma
na sat tan nasad ucyate

"I shall now explain the knowable, knowing which you will taste the eternal. This is beginningless, and it is subordinate to Me. It is called Brahman, the spirit, and it lies beyond the cause and effect of this material world."

Prabhupada: So this chapter is explanation of the knower and knowledge... The knowledge, the chapter has already explained, in order to make progress in the line of knowledge there were about twenty items: amanitvam adambhitvam ahimsa ksantir arjavam. These are the process, not to become falsely proud of possessing knowledge. There are symptoms that who is actually in knowledge and those symptoms have been explained. Amanitvam adambhitvam ahimsa ksantir arjavam. The most important... Of course, all the items are very important. Still, approaching the acarya... [break] ...portion of Krsna. Racayitum jagad-anda-kotim. One portion, Paramatma. That Paramatma portion is the Maha-Visnu, Maha-Visnu lying on the Karanarnava, the Causal Ocean.

yasyaika-nisvasita-kalam athavalambya
jivanti loma-vilaja jagad-anda-nathah
visnur mahan sa iha yasya kala-viseso
govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami
[Bs. 5.48]

That Maha-Visnu is lying on the Causal Ocean beyond this universe, on the border, there is a big ocean which is called Causal Ocean, karanodaka-jala. And there is Maha-Visnu lying, and from His breathing process, yasyaika-nisvasita-kalam athavalambya jivanti loma-vilaja jagad-anda-nathah [Bs. 5.48]. Jagad-anda-natha means Brahma. So that portion, eko 'py asau racayitum, He is the origin of universal, this material creation. Karanarnavasayi Visnu. From Him, the Garbhodakasayi Visnu comes out, and He enters in each and every universes. Garbhodakasayi Visnu. That Garbhodakasayi Visnu again expands as Ksirodakasayi Visnu. That Ksirodakasayi Visnu is within this universe. In each and every universe there is Visnu, Svetadvipa-loka where Ksirodakasayi Visnu is there, and that Ksirodakasayi Visnu enters within the heart of all living entities, Paramatma, Antaryami.

That is explained in the Bhagavad-gita, eko 'py asau racayitum jagad-anda-kotim yac-chaktir asti jagad-anda-caya yad-antah andantara-stha... [Bs. 5.35]. He is not only within this universe, but He is also within the atom. Andantara-stha-paramanu-cayantara... Paramanu means atom. In this way Lord Visnu is expanded, and He is jneyam, He is to be understood. Jnana, knowledge, simply material knowledge, is not perfection of knowledge. Real knowledge is to understand the Supreme Absolute Truth, Visnu. That is real knowledge. That is explained here. Jneyam yat tat pravaksyami: "I shall now explain to you what is the ultimate goal of knowledge." In other place, in the Fifteenth Chapter also, Krsna said,

sarvasya caham hrdi sannivisto
mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca
vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyah...
[Bg. 15.15]

Krsna is within everyone's heart, sarvasya ca aham hrdi. This place, the particular place is also mentioned there. Hrdi, in the heart, He's there. Sannivistah. And from Him, mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca. From Him, our remembrance, smrtir jnanam, knowledge, and forgetfulness -- everything is coming from Him. Mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca. Therefore, vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyah [Bg. 15.15]. One has to understand Krsna by studying Vedic literature. If he's missing Krsna, then srama eva hi kevalam, he's missing Krsna. That is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam,

dharmah svanusthitah pumsam
visvaksena-kathasu yah
notpadayed yadi ratim
srama eva hi kevalam
[SB 1.2.8]

Everyone has got particular type of occupational duty. That is called dharma. Dharma is not a faith. The particular duty... Just like you are a medical practitioner. So your dharma is to treat patients. That is your dharma. So everyone has got particular occupational duty. [break] Actually, what is going on as Hindu dharma... Actually, Hindu dharma this word is not there in the sastras. In the sastra it is called varnasrama-dharma. Four varnas: brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sudra; and four asramas: brahmacari, grhastha, vanaprastha, and sannyasa. These are called varnasrama-dharma. So in every varna, brahmana, his qualification is described in the sastra. Samo damas titiksa arjavam ksantir jnanam vijnanam astikyam brahma-karma svabhava-jam. Similarly, ksatriya, vaisya. So by discharging one's occupational duty according to varna and asrama, if one does not understand Krsna, the Bhagavata says, srama eva hi kevalam. Then he's simply spoiling his time and wasting his labor. That's all.

dharmah svanusthitah pumsam
visvaksena-kathasu yah
notpadayed yadi ratim
srama eva hi kevalam
[SB 1.2.8]

This is the verdict of Vedic literature. He's simply laboring for nothing. One must know Krsna -- visvaksena-kathasu yah. Visvaksena, another name of Krsna, or Visnu, is visvaksena-katha. Just like we are speaking about Krsna, nobody is interested to come here. Nobody is interested. Visvaksena-kathasu notpadayed ratim. They will say, "Oh, I am busy with my occupational duty." But the human form of life is meant for increasing your interest in the matter of visvaksena-kathasu yah. This means krsna-katha.

This is the mission of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Lord Caitanya. Lord Caitanya, His mission is this: He said,

yare dekha tare kaha ‘krsna'-upadesa
amara ajnaya guru hana tara' ei desa
[Cc. Madhya 7.128]

Krsna-upadesa. He says, Caitanya Mahaprabhu, that "On My order, every one of My devotees, become a spiritual master." Amara ajnaya guru hana tara' ei desa [Cc. Madhya 7.128]. "You become a spiritual master and deliver all the people." By krsna-upadesa, you can deliver. People are suffering. Here also, the same thing is said. Jneyam yat tat pravaksyami yaj jnatva 'mrtam asnute. Amrtam. People are suffering. They do not know what is amrtatva. So 'mrtatvaya kalpate. This is the aim of life, to become immortal. That is wanted. One has to come to that platform of knowledge when one can achieve the perfection of life, amrtatva, immortality.

So Krsna says here that jneyam yat tat pravaksyami: "The ultimate goal of knowledge I will explain to you. Yaj jnatva: "If you can understand that knowledge, then," amrtam asnute, "if anyone can understand that knowledge, he becomes immortal." That is the problem. The process of knowledge... In that chapter it is already said that janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duhkha-dosanudarsanam. The subject matter should be how to understand or how to get relief from the repetition of birth and death, old age and disease. This is knowledge. And here also Krsna says again, anyone who comes to the ultimate goal of knowledge, then he becomes immortal.

Anadimat param brahma. Brahma, brahma-jnana. The brahma-jnana without knowledge of Krsna is not perfect knowledge. Generally, people are interested... (aside:) Give me water. In the impersonal Brahman, but without knowledge of Krsna that impersonal feature of Krsna, brahma-jnana, is also insufficient. They do not... That is not sufficient knowledge. Tattva-jnanartha-darsanam. Philosophical speculation or discussion should be to reach the ultimate goal of life. Tattva-jnanartha-darsanam. That is already explained. And what is that tattva? That is explained in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, what is tattva. Vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam [SB 1.2.11]. Tattva-vid, one who knows tattva, he can speak about tattva. Tattva means the Absolute Truth. So vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam. That thing is spoken as tattva, as the truth, by persons who are tattva-vid. Tattva-vid means one who knows the tattva. Unless one knows the thing, how he can explain? Therefore we have to understand the Absolute Truth from a person who knows it. Vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam yaj jnanam advayam [SB 1.2.11]. That knowledge is absolute, advayam, no relativity, absolute.

vadanti tat tattva-vidas
tattvam yaj jnanam advayam
brahmeti paramatmeti
bhagavan iti sabdyate
[SB 1.2.11]

That truth is explained as Brahman, as Paramatma, or as Bhagavan. The same thing. Just like we see the sun. The sun is a planet and there is a sun-god. Just like we have got also in each and every planet one chief person. Here we have got president. Formerly there was one president or king on this planet. Now they have now so many presidents. But according to God's plan, there is one president or king in each and every planet. So in the sun planet there is also one king or one chief person. His name is also given in the Bhagavad-gita, Vivasvan. If you accept Bhagavad-gita, then you have to accept all these things. You cannot make minus anything. That is not knowledge of Bhagavad-gita.

Therefore we are presenting Bhagavad-gita as it is. We cannot use the ardha-kukkuti-nyaya -- half. I take half of the hen. I take the rear part, and the front part I reject. This kind of logic, argument, will not be very successful. You have to take as it is, in toto, and you have to understand That is understanding of Bhagavad-gita. If you take something to your choice, that is useless, useless waste of time. Just like Mahatma Gandhi, he wanted to prove from Bhagavad-gita nonviolence. How it is possible? Bhagavad-gita is spoken in the battlefield. So in this way, if we try to understand Bhagavad-gita, it will be not Bhagavad-gita, it will be something else. We must understand Bhagavad-gita as it is. That is our preaching method. We are presenting Bhagavad-gita as it is all over the world. So we accept.

The modern theory, scientific theory, is that "The sun planet is only blazing fire. There cannot be any living entity." No, we don't believe that. Because sastra says that "The living entity is never burned." Acchedyo 'yam adahyo 'yam. Adahyah. Just like we sterilize by putting into the fire, but that does not mean the living entity is dead. No. Adahyo 'yam: "It cannot be burned into fire." Acchedyo 'yam: "It cannot be cut into pieces." This information we get from Bhagavad-gita. So in the sun planet, although it is blazing fire, there are living entities. They have got a particular type of body. That particular type of body is fiery. Just like you have got living entities in the sea. There are hundreds and thousands. Jalaja nava-laksani. There are nine lakhs, species of aquatic animals. But they are living in the water. They have got particular type of body. You cannot say, because you cannot live within the water, you cannot say, "No, no, there cannot be any living entity." This is nonsense. The living entities, another name is sarva-ga. He can live everywhere. It is not a fact that living entities live only in certain particular place. No. Sarva-ga, anywhere in God's creation there are living entities. This is shastric vision.

So in the sun planet also, there are living entities, cities, just like here. Otherwise how Krsna can say, imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham avyayam [Bg. 4.1]. Krsna is telling lie, that "I spoke this science of Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god?" Now, according to our calculation nobody can go to the sun planet, and where is the scope of speaking there, and to whom speaking? But Krsna says, "Yes." Imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham [Bg. 4.1], "I said," avyayam, "imperishable knowledge." Vivasvan manave praha. So from this version we can understand, in the sun planet there are living entities, and the chief man, or chief demigod, is the sun-god, whose name is Vivasvan. So his body must be fiery; otherwise how he can live there? And the inhabitants there also. So we are thinking from here that nobody can live there, but that's not the fact. We are calculating via our own experience. Therefore we cannot have perfect knowledge by speculating our experience. It is not possible. We must go to a person whose experience is beyond our experience. That is called guru. Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum evabhigacchet [MU 1.2.12]. Guru means heavy. If guru is as good as I am, then what is the use of taking knowledge from him? Guru must be heavier.

So who can become more heavier than Krsna? Mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya [Bg. 7.7]. There is nobody heavier. And Krsna proved it when He was a child. When He was a boy of seven years old He proved how heavy, that He lifted the Govardhana Hill, and it rested on Krsna's finger continually for seven days. Just imagine how heavy He is. So in this way we have to understand Krsna. And if we understand Krsna from that spirit, from that angle of vision, then we become perfect. As it is said here, jneyam yat tat pravaksyami yaj jnatva 'mrtam asnute. You become immortal. This is confirmed in the Fourth Chapter. Janma karma me divyam yo janati tattvatah. If you simply understand Krsna in truth, not superficially, but in fact, then what is the result? The result is tyaktva deham punar janma naiti [Bg. 4.9]. Punar janma, punar janma, next, again if I take a material body, then again I'll have to die. Anyone who has got this material body, he has to die. Janma-mrtyu. One who is born, he must die. But here Krsna says, punar janma naiti. "No more birth." Then there is no more death. Because if there is birth, there is death, and if there is no birth, there is no death. That is immortality, amrta. That is amrtatva. So amrtatvaya kalpate. In another place Krsna says,

yam hi na vyathayanty ete
purusam purusarsabha
sama-duhkha-sukham dhiram
so 'mrtatvaya kalpate

We are disturbed by the bodily concepts of life, every one of us. Everyone is busy how to relieve the bodily pains and pleasures. That's all. The real pains and pleasure: that the living entity who has accepted this material body, he has to continue these pains and pleasure. That is explained in the Bhagavad, janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi. So you there is no science to give relief from janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi. How can expect relief? It is temporary relief. So Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, we should not be disturbed by the temporary pains and pleasure.

matra-sparsas tu kaunteya
sitosna-sukha-duhkha-dah
agamapayino 'nityas
tams titiksasva bharata

We should not be disturbed by these so-called bodily pains and pleasure. We can try, we can get as much... But this is not our business. Our business is how to get out of these clutches of birth and death. That is real business. That they do not know. Because they have no knowledge. All fools and rascals, they are busy for the temporary pains and pleasure. That's all.

So here it is said, jneyam yat tat pravaksyami yaj jnatva 'mrtam asnute. That is knowledge. "I shall speak to you about that supreme knowledge." That supreme knowledge means if you simply try to understand Krsna, janma karma me divyam, why Krsna appears, janma karma, why He works like an ordinary human being... He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Why he takes part in these ordinary activities? Just like Krsna took part in the Battle of Kuruksetra. He's Supreme Personality of Godhead; why should He take part in the battleground? Yes this is..., somebody, some section of people, they question like this. But He has his business. Because He comes, He has got His business. He says, dharma-samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge: "I come. My business is to reestablish the principle of life, religion."

Human life means religion. Dharmena hinah pasubhih samanah. The cats and dogs, they have no religion. But if the human being has no religion, then he is no better than the cat and dog. Therefore all over the world, either he's a European or American or Indian or Canadian or Russian, everyone has got some religion. It doesn't matter whether it is Hinduism, Muslimism or Christianism. Because human society without religious conception -- religious conception means to understand God -- he's animal. Dharmena hinah pasubhih samanah. So gradually, the whole world is becoming animal because they are rejecting religion. They are rejecting religion. Therefore Krsna says, dharma-samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge. Because these rascals, they give up religion and become animals and fight between themselves and make the whole world a confusion and chaos, therefore it is required that Krsna comes. Dharma-samsthapanarthaya. This is His duty. He has no duty, but it is His mercy that He comes. Dharma-samsthapanarthaya.

And what is that dharma? In the Bhagavata it is explained, dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]. You cannot manufacture a religious sect. That is rascaldom. Just like if you think, "I shall manufacture law at my home," is it possible? Who will care for your law? If the law is enacted by the state, that is accepted. The government says, "Keep to the left." You have to accept it. You cannot say, "No, why not to the right?" Then you'll be criminal. Similarly, laws means given by the government, and dharma means which is the codes given by God. That is dharma. Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]. That is religion. And Krsna says, dharma-samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge: "I come to reestablish. When people become cats and dogs without any religion, then I come down to establish religion." Because we are Krsna's sons, we are all sons of Krsna, He is very much anxious to see us happy. Just like father wants to see his sons, bewildered sons, to see that he is happy. Paritranaya sadhunam vinasaya ca duskrtam [Bg. 4.8]. That is also the same thing. To deliver the righteous person and to kill the demons, the same thing, because Krsna is absolute. His maintaining the devotee and killing the demon, both of them are same thing.

Just like father. Father is giving some child, some son, nice sweetmeat, and the other son comes, "No you cannot take it." Does it mean that father is partial? No, father is kind both the child. He knows that he cannot eat. So similarly, two things are going on parallel. Some are punishments, some are maintenance by the laws of God, but he knows how to do it. We have to accept His law. That is... Tat te 'nukampam su-samiksamanah. Therefore a devotee is never disturbed by the so-called pains and pleasure of this world. He is never disturbed. He knows his duty, how to execute Krsna consciousness. That is real devotee. Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam [Bg. 18.66].

So Krsna said that dharma-samsthapanarthaya sambhavami yuge yuge. Then what is that dharma? He did not come here to reestablish Hinduism or Muslimism or Christianism. No. He came to give you real dharma. What is that? Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg. 18.66]. That is dharma, to surrender unto Krsna: "Krsna, I am eternally Your servant. I forgot You. Now I come to my senses. I surrender unto You." This is dharma. Bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyate [Bg. 7.19]. This sense, real sense, comes when after struggling, struggling for many, many births, one becomes wise. Bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan. Jnanavan means wise. Not fools and rascals. Jnanavan mam prapadyate: "He surrenders unto Me." So anyone who is surrendering to Krsna, taking to Krsna or devotional service fully, he is the most intelligent man. He's not cats and dogs or rascals. Because Krsna says, jnanavan. This is real knowledge. That will be explained.

Krsna says, jneyam yat tat pravaksyami "I shall speak to you what is the object of knowledge, ultimate objective of knowledge." Yaj jnatva 'mrtam asnute. If one can understand Krsna he gets eternal life. That is our aim of life. Not to remain within this material world, bhutva bhutva praliyate, take birth once and again die. This is done by the cats and dogs. Any animal, they do not know anything. They take birth and again die. Dehino 'smin yatha dehe kaumaram yauvanam jara, tatha dehantara-praptih [Bg. 2.13]. You have to accept. So if in ignorance I take birth and again die, what is this life? Bhutva bhutva praliyate. That is no knowledge. Spoiling. This human form of life is the boon where you can make a solution simply by understanding Krsna. Janma karma me divyam yo janati tattvatah, tyaktva deham punar janma naiti [Bg. 4.9]. This is knowledge, how to become immortal, how to understand Krsna, how to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is the mission of Krsna consciousness. Thank you very much. Hare Krsna. (end)

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Bhagavad-gita 13.13 -- Bombay, October 6, 1973