Demons And Devotees 75/12/22 Bombay, Bhagavad-gita 16.7

Demons And Devotees

75/12/22 Bombay, Bhagavad-gita 16.7



Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada



Prabhupada:

pravrttim ca nivrttim ca
jana na vidur asurah
na saucam napi cacaro
na satyam tesu vidyate

Na saucam napi cacaro na satyam tesu vidyate. This is a verse from the Sixteenth Chapter of Bhagavad-gita, where the Lord is describing the symptoms of the demons. Pravrttim ca nivrttim ca. Pravrtti means inclination, inclined. And nivrtti means disinclined. So there are two things within this material world. Our inclination is to enjoy the senses. This is general. Everyone within this material world, even the animals, birds, beasts, human being or more elevated than human beings, the demigods, kinnaras, or the, many other higher types of living entities... There are different grades of living entities -- 8,400,000 different bodies. So what is their pravrtti, inclination? The inclination is attraction of man and woman. This is the central point of attraction. Pumsam striyah maithuni-bhavam etad: the whole material world is existing on this point -- sex, man and woman. So this is pravrtti-marga, and nivrtti-marga: just to stop it. This is called nivrtti-marga.

We are within this material world on account of this pravrtti, sense enjoyment. Those who are inclined to sense enjoyment and do not care to know what is the aim of life, they are called asuras. And those who are trying to avoid the entanglement of this material life and revive the whole original life... Whole original life means Krsna conscious life. Because we are part and parcel of Krsna, our original consciousness is that "I have got intimate relationship with Krsna as His part and parcel." That is Krsna consciousness. And the, my conception is the bodily conception, that "I am this body. I am born in this country; therefore I belong to this nation, I belong to this community, I belong to this family, I belong to this species," this is called pravrtti-marga. This is scientific division, pravrtti-marga and nivrtti-marga. Why the scientific? Because it is the fact. Science means fact. I am not this body. I am spirit soul. That is, just like a man suffering from some disease, so that is not his normal life to suffer from some disease. Normal life is to keep healthy life, no disease. That is normal life. So in order to keep to the normal life, we must know how to cure the disease. Just like when you have got fever, you go to the doctor, he says, advises "You do this" and "You do not do this." The "do not do this" means nivrtti-marga, and "do this," pravrtti-marga. If you are serious to cure your disease, then you must know what you should do and what you should not do. But just like a man, a very foolish man, he is suffering from disease but he does not know how to cure the disease, what to do and what not to do, similarly an animal-like man, a two-legged man, he does not know what to do and what not to do. This is explained here.

Pravrttim ca nivrttim ca, jana, pravrttim ca nivrttim ca, jana na vidur asurah. Jana, there are two kinds of men, asura and daiva. Daiva asura eva ca. There are two all throughout the whole universe, there are two classes of men: one is called daiva, and one is called asura. One who knows his relationship with God, he is called daiva, and one who does not know, just like animal, they are called asura. There is no particular caste or creed, that here is a caste of asura, caste of daiva. No. Anyone who knows what is God and his relationship with God, sambandha, and then works according to that relation, and achieve the goal of life, he is called daiva, or devata. And one who does not know this, what is the goal of life, what is God, what is my relationship with God, he is asura.

So, Krsna has described everything, in the Bhagavad-gita, and today, this night, we are trying to explain the mission of Krsna, because the same mission is being carried out by us beginning from Brahma, and today is a special day, the disappearance day of my Guru Maharaja, Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Goswami. So these acaryas, they come and they go, that is not like ordinary birth and death. It is called prakata, aprakata, avirbhava, tirobhava. So even ordinarily nobody takes birth and nobody dies, na jayate na mriyate va kadacit, so what to speak of the acaryas, or Bhagavan. Nobody, a living entity, a living being... God is the supreme living being, and we are subordinate living beings. Both of us, we are living beings, so what is the difference between the two kinds of living beings? The difference is that the one, God, or Krsna, He maintains all the other living beings. And we are being maintained. This is the difference. Eko yo bahunam vidadhati kaman. The plural number living entities, we are plural number, in different species of life, but we are maintained by the Supreme Being.

So this is our relationship. If we understand this relationship, eko bahunam yo vidadhati kaman, that is our real understanding. Just like in your office or in a factory, there is a proprietor, he is maintaining so many workers, so many clerks. And what is your duty? To serve him. So similarly, if the Supreme Being, the supreme proprietor, as Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita,

bhoktaram yajna-tapasam
sarva-loka-mahesvaram
suhrdam sarva-bhutanam
jnatva mam santim rcchati
[Bg. 5.29]

If the factory man knows that he is not the proprietor, he is not the enjoyer of the profit -- the enjoyer of the profit is the proprietor of the factory, and we are worker -- then there is peace. And if the workers fight amongst themselves, that "I am the proprietor," falsely, then there is chaos. There is no production, chaos. Similarly, if we fight ourselves, amongst ourselves, that "I am proprietor of India; you are proprietor of America; you are proprietor of Germany," this is false conception of life. Real proprietor is Krsna. If we know this, bhoktaram yajna-tapasam... Krsna says that "Bhokta, I am bhokta, I am the enjoyer." Bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-mahesvaram, "I am the final proprietor, or the supreme proprietor," that's a fact; then there is peace. This is our relationship, that we are part and parcel. We are not non-important: the factory is going on, or the whole world is going on, on account of the living entities. Apareyam itas tu vidhi me prakrtim para. Krsna says that "Beyond this material energy," bhumir apo' nalo vayuh kham mano buddhir eva ca bhinna me prakrtir astadha, "these eight kinds of prakrti, they are my separated energy. But there is another kind of superior energy," yayedam dharyate jagat. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakrtim. Just like same example: in the factory there are ingredients and there are workers. So the ingredients are compared with the material energy, bhumir apo' nalo vayuh. They are also the property of the workers, because they are living being, jiva bhutah maha-baho yayedam dharyate jagat, those who are working for development of this material world. The same example.

So this is knowledge. We should understand that everything belonging to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, nothing is manufactured by us, so He is the proprietor; but because we are His sons, we have got the legal right to enjoy the property of the father. That is all right; that is real communism. This is actual understanding of communism: everything belongs to God. Just like the Communists, they are thinking everything belongs to the state, and the citizens must work and enjoy. So our philosophy is the same. Only difference is that they are, what is called, ignorantly accepting the state is the proprietor. No. If they accept God is the proprietor, Krsna is the proprietor, then Communism is very perfect. That is missing. That is missing. Actually, God is the proprietor. What is the state? That is artificial. This state, American state, or African state, Russian state, these are artificial. Actually the land belongs to God. We are demark: this is India, this is Russia, this is America. That is the beginning of spiritual education, to understand this fact:

isavasyam idam sarvam
yat kincid jagatyam jagat
tena tyaktena bhunjitha
ma grdha kasyasvid dhanam

This is the real understanding. Everything belongs to God -- isavasyam idam sarvam -- everything, and tena tyaktena bhunjitha, whatever He gives you as prasadam... Just like our principle is that we are working for Krsna, this is real philosophy. Every one of us, one who is offering arati, he is also working for Krsna, and one who is building this construction, temple, he is also working for Krsna. So as worker for Krsna there is no distinction. Variety. Variety of service.

So the Krsna consciousness movement means variety of service to the Supreme. The example is just like, the varieties of different parts of the body: the head is there, the hand is there, the brain is there, the leg is there. The head cannot work like the leg, neither the leg can work like the brain. The hand cannot work the belly, or belly cannot work like the hand. Varieties. Similarly, there are varieties of service to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and if we serve Krsna with our varieties, sa karmana manasa vaca, then it is everything peaceful. That is Krsna consciousness movement. We do not want to stop the varieties. Varieties must be there. We are not nirvesesa-vadi, impersonalist. No. We are completely personalist. Krsna is person, Radharani is person, the devotees are person, the demigods are person, the cats person, the dogs person, the cows person, the calves person. But what is the meaning of Vrndavana? Vrndavana means everyone -- the father and mother of Krsna, Nanda Maharaja, Yasodamayi, the gopis, the girlfriends of Krsna, Radharani and others, and the cowherd boys, and the cows, the calfs, the trees, the flowers, the fruits, the water. Everyone is for serving Krsna. This is Vrndavana. Vrndavana means there is variety, and varieties of service and everything for Krsna. That is Vrndavana.

So our this Krsna consciousness movement is educating that the varieties of service should be concentrated for the satisfaction of Krsna. That is pravrtti, and what is not satisfying Krsna, against the... [break]

Anukulyasya sankalpah pratikulyasya varjanam. This is called surrender. Surrender means that Krsna is asking sarva-dharman parityayja mam ekam saranam vraja. What is the surrender means? Surrender means "Krsna, I am surrendering unto You. I was acting whimsically, by the dictation of my different senses." Kama, krodha, lobha, moha, matsarya, like that. Na kamadinam katidha na katidha palita durnidesa. The sastra says, you should not steal -- an example. But I am stealing. Why? Na kamadinam katidha na katidha palita durnidesa. I know I should not steal; therefore I go to somebody's house very secretly, or push my hand very secretly in one's pocket. I know that I should not do this, but I am forced to do it. Why? I am dictated by my lusty desire. So I am become servant of my six senses. Manah sasthanindriyani prakrti-sthani karsati [Bg. 15.7]. This is our position. Na manina kulya... Everyone knows. A thief knows if he commits theft he'll be punished, either by the police or by the laws of God. Everyone knows, but he still commits theft. Why? He is dictated by the lusty desires.

So pravrtti means we are dictated by our kama, krodha, lobha, moha, matsarya, and we should agree to be dictated by Krsna, that's all. That is intelligent. Pravrtti, nivrtti. Our pravrtti is to abide by the dictation of the senses, and when we learn not to abide by the dictation of the senses but to abide by the orders of Krsna or His representative, then your life is successful. This teaching, this learning, means Krsna consciousness. It is not difficult. Everyone can do it. Simply he has to change: instead of being dictated by the senses, one should be dictated by Krsna. That requires qualification. Krsna is there, in everyone's heart. Isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese 'rjuna tisthati [Bg. 18.61]. Krsna is not far away, but you have to search out where is Krsna within your heart. That is called yoga. Dhyanavasthita-tad-gatena manasa pasyanti yam yoginah [SB 12.13.1]. Yoginah, those who are trying to understand Krsna by the yoga process... The yoga means controlling the senses. Without controlling the senses you cannot practice any yoga. Nowadays it has become a fashion, meditation yoga, but that is not bona fide. That is not only (not) bona-fide; that is farce. Real yoga is controlling the senses and concentrating the mind to the Supreme Person. Dhyanavasthita-tad-gatena manasa pasyanti yam yoginah [SB 12.13.1]. That is the... And farce yogi is going like that. And Krsna says also in the Bhagavad-gita,

yoginam api sarvesam
mad-gatenantaratmana
sraddhavan bhajate yo mam
sa me yuktatamo matah
[Bg. 6.47]

He is first class yogi. Who? "Always thinking of Me.

Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare
Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare

He is first-class yogi." So we are teaching our students to become the first-class yogi. Not these yogis to reduce fat. No. That is not required. Yogi means who is always seeing Krsna within the heart. Man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru [Bg. 18.65]. This is first-class yogi, bhakta-yogi. Twenty-four hours, satatam kirtayanto mam yatantas ca drdha-vratah [Bg. 9.14]. Satatam kirtayanto mam: you have to fix up your mind in Krsna by the process of chanting His glories, satatam kirtayanto mam [Bg. 9.14], not otherwise. Mam, Krsna.

So people do not understand this, what he should do, what he should not do. Pravrtti, nivrtti. Because he cannot distinguish, therefore he is asura. Asura -- demons, or atheist. So if you analyze the modern... [break] This Krsna consciousness movement is so nice that it is invented..., not invented; it is there in the Vedic literatures. Krsna Caitanya Mahaprabhu, He has given us this process of realizing Krsna and becoming expert in understanding what we should do and what we should not do, pravrtti nivrtti. And therefore if we know that we should not do this, we should do this, then we become immediately devata. And if you do not know what we should do and what we should not do, then we remain asura. It is not that because one is asura, he cannot become a devata. The asura can become devata, provided he knows these two things: pravrtti and nivrtti.

So pravrtti we have got, just like we have got tendency -- cent percent person has it at the present moment -- to smoke. This is pravrtti. But we say don't smoke, nivrtti. And if we drink, that is pravrtti. Everyone, even the ant, he is also drunkard. They have scientifically studied, the ants are very much fond of intoxication; therefore they eat sugar. In sugar there is liquor, so the... Loke bhavaya nisamadhya seva nityasta yanto. Every living entity has got this tendency, bhavaya. Bhavaya means sex life; amisa, meat-eating; and mada, liquor. Natural tendency. Therefore the country where these things are indulged without any restriction, that is asura, the country of the asura. So especially in the Western countries, and now we have also learned. In India, either Hindus or Musselman, drinking was a sin. Now we have got very easily available liquor. Every door there is shop, and every door there is meat shop. So India, there was time that they were all devatas; now we are imitating the asuras. On the other hand, the boys and girls from the asuric country, they are becoming the devotee, devata. So there is no exclusive right for a country to become devata or demon. A demon can be turned into the devata and devata can be turned into demon, provided he does not follow this pravrtti and nivrtti, what is pravrtti-marga. Pravrtti-sambhutanam nivrtti tu mahabalam. That is life. "I want to smoke; I have got tendency to smoke," pravrtti. This is pravrtti; everyone has got. But if you can stop it, then your life is successful. Nivrtti.

Therefore this nivrtti means tapasya. If I am habituated to smoke, if I am habituated to illicit sex life, if I am habituated to intoxication and gambling, etc., this is my pravrtti. But if we can stop it by practice, that is called tapasya. And human life is meant for tapasya. Tapo divyam putraka yena suddyeta satyam. Rsabhadeva's instruction: "My dear sons, you practice tapasya." The human life is meant for tapasya. "I have got tendency to do this, but that will not help me, that will degraded me." So tapasya means instead of being degraded, be elevated. This is called tapasya. Tapo divyam. This human life is meant for this purpose, to practice tapasya, or to practice nivrtti. Then our life is successful. Tapo divyam. Why tapasya, why nivrtti? Yena suddhyena sattva. Sattva means here existence is impure. Impure means that you are eternal, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20], you do not die after the annihilation of this body, but I am subjected to repetition of birth and death, in different species of life. This is my disease. It is not pure condition of life. Pure condition of life as it is stated in Bhagavad-gita, yad gatva na nirvartante tad dhama paramam mama.

mam upetya (tu) kaunteya
duhkhalayam asasvatam
napnuvanti mahatmanah
samsiddhim paramam gatah
[Bg. 8.15]

[break] ...Vaikunthaloka, Krsna's loka, then you get your original, eternal sac-cid-ananda-vigrahah [Bs. 5.1], live there eternally. Just like in Vrndavana they are always with Krsna enjoying life. This is nivrtti-marga. So there is a life, eternal life, very blissful life, full of knowledge. If you want to go back to that life, back to home, back to Godhead, then you must practice this pravrtti, nivrtti-marga.

So our Krsna consciousness movement is teaching this pravrtti-marga, nivrtti-marga, both. "You do not do this" or "You do this." "Do this" means rise early in the morning, mangala-aratrika. Of course, you must sleep, but not sleep like cats and dogs, animals. Simply sleeping means waste of time. The more you reduce sleeping, then you become perfect. Nidrahara-viharakadi-vijitau. All the gosvamis in Vrndavana, they conquered over these things. What is these things? Nidra, sleeping; ahara, eating; and vihara, and sense pleasure. This is called sannyasa life, reducing sleeping, reducing eating. This is pravrtti-marga. We think "If I can eat voraciously like an elephant, then my life is successful." No. That is not success of life. If you can do without any food, that is successful. That is success. This is called nivrtti-marga, but that is not practical; therefore if we promise that we shall not eat anything which is not offered to Krsna, that is tapasya. If you don't go to the restaurant and eat anything nonsense, that is pravrtti. But if you want to stop that restaurant-going, then you take Krsna prasadam; krsna bora daya moy kori bare jihva joy sva-prasada-anna dilo bhai. Krsna is ready, so many nice, palatable dishes; you take and stop this restaurant-going. This is Krsna's mercy. Patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati. Krsna does not say "Bring something from the restaurant" or this or that. He says, patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati: anything, little leaf, little flower, little water. Krsna is not hungry, but Krsna is so kind that He has come to you, so that you can touch Him, you can dress Him, you can decorate Him, you can offer Him, you can live with Him as servant, as friend, as son, as lover. In so many ways, Krsna is giving you chance.

So the kanistha-adhikari, in the beginning... It is not that kanistha, beginning, if anyone immediately becomes so advanced. It is not advancement; it is foolishness. Just like somebody, they declare that "Krsna is everywhere. Why should we go to the temple?" Then if Krsna is everywhere, He is not in the temple? Huh? What is this argument? If Krsna is everywhere, He is also in the temple. But in the temple I worship directly, and what is the utility? Krsna is everywhere. I am not so advanced that I can see everywhere Krsna. Who can see Krsna everywhere? That is very advanced stage. Premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilokayanti [Bs. 5.38]. If you become so advanced that you cannot live without Krsna for a moment, then Krsna is everywhere. Where is that training? Where is that advancement? Even if I advise, try to meditate, I meditate upon my wife, upon my children, on my business. This is not the stage of seeing Krsna everywhere. That requires training. That requires advanced knowledge. Prema. Krsna is so kind, ye yatha mam prapadyante. If a devotee cannot live for a moment without seeing Krsna, he is visible... A devotee... Not for the neophyte devotee. So there are different stages.

So this is not fact that Krsna is within your mind; therefore you should not got to the temple, you have become so advanced. No. Better... [break] ...sila-dhir. Do not consider that "Here is a stone Krsna." Krsna is everything. Stone is also Krsna; simply you have to be qualified how to talk with stone Krsna. That is your qualification. You have to qualify yourself; otherwise Krsna is stone, Krsna is water, Krsna is sky, Krsna is everything. So this is the philosophy. Krsna says bhumir apo' nalo vayuh kham mano buddhir eva ca: "I am everything." That's a fact. So why do you say there is stone Krsna? Krsna is everything, if you have got the eyes to see, you can see Krsna everywhere and everything.

So this is the beginning. Therefore you require pravrtti and nivrtti to understand how you should think, how you should live, how you should eat, how you should sleep. This training is required. Why it is required? Because to get out of this material bondage, where the birth, death, old age and disease is compulsory. If you want to avoid this, because you are eternal, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20], why don't you think that "If I am eternal, why am I accepting birth, death, old age, and disease?" This is intelligence. Athato brahma jijnasa. This is Vedanta-sutra. Now we should enquire how we can get out of this material entanglement.

So my Guru Maharaja, in the parampara system, Krsna comes also, that yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata [Bg. 4.7]. This is dharmasya glanir. One does not know what is his duty, aim of life -- everyone. Ninety-nine point nine percent, this is dharmasya glanir, dharmasya glanir. Tadatmanam srjamy aham: to teach the rascal people to understand what is his duty, what is his aim of life. So not only Krsna comes, but also His representatives also come. Krsna is so kind, He leaves book, He leaves representative, and He comes Himself. In so many ways He is trying to give us the benefit. Asura: we do not take the advantage, and continually suffer, mudha janmani janmani [Bg. 16.20], birth after birth we suffer. So this Krsna consciousness movement is so beneficial that He wants to benefit the whole human society how to stop this process of repetition of birth, death, old age and disease. So my Guru Maharaja also came for this purpose, and we are also trying to follow his footsteps, and we are teaching our disciple to do the same thing. Evam parampara praptam imam rajarsayo vidhuh. So this is not a new movement, or some invented "ism". It is old, at least four, five thousand years. What Krsna spoke, the other followers also spoke the same thing, and we are also speaking the same thing. It is up to you to take advantage of it or not.
Thank you very much.

Devotee: Jaya, Srila Prabhupada. Jaya. (end)

>>> Ref. VedaBase => His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Disappearance Day, Lecture -- Bombay, December 22, 1975