"Through The Modes Of Nature" 73/10/20 Bombay, Bhagavad-gita 13.22

Prabhupada:

purusah prakrti-stho hi
bhunkte prakrti-jan gunan
karanam guna-sango 'sya
sad-asad-yoni-janmasu
[Bg. 13.22]

(reads synonyms responsively, and then the translation:)

"The living entity in material nature thus follows the ways of life, enjoying the three modes of nature. This is due to his association with that material nature. Thus he meets with good and evil amongst various species of life." Purusa. Purusa means enjoyer, the living entity. (aside in Hindi) Hare Krsna. So that day I have already explained purusa. Purusa means the enjoyer. And prakrti means enjoyed. So purusah prakrti-sthah. The living entity, although... Prakrti-sthah means this material world. The living entity, although part and parcel of God, spiritual entity, but he has come to this material world to enjoy. Anyone who is in this material world, his original cause of coming down from the spiritual platform to this material platform means he wanted to enjoy.

In the spiritual world the only enjoyer is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All others are enjoyed. But here in this material world everyone is trying to become the Supreme, and others, to be enjoyed. Everyone is trying to become God, and the last snare of maya is that one is claiming that "I am God." When he tries to become big businessman, big zamindar, big minister, big president, or in the society, big rich man, big, big always. And when he fails to become all kinds of "bigs," he wants to become one with God. By mixing, by merging into God, he will be the biggest. That is the philosophy. So basic principle is how to become big. Otherwise... Because unless I become very big, I cannot enjoy.

So what is the field of these enjoying activities? This body. That we have discussed. Ksetra-ksetra-jna. Idam sariram ksetram ity abhidhiyate: "This body is the field of activities." So purusa, the living entities, has been entrapped by this material energy. That is called purusah prakrti-sthah. He is not required to stay in this material world, but he has decided to enjoy this material world. Therefore he is here.

But he can give up. That is called liberty. That is called salvation. He can give up. Mukti. Mukti means... That is also described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam. Hitva anyatha-rupam svarupena vyavasthitih. That is called mukti. Muktir hitva anyatha-rupam. Here every living entity is situated anyatha-rupam. Anyatha-rupam means otherwise, which is not his nature. His nature is to serve, but he is staying here not as servant but as master. (aside in Hindi)

So purusah prakrti-stho hi bhunkte [Bg. 13.22]. Bhunkte means "enjoys." Prakrti-jan gunan. Prakrti... He has come here to enjoy, but he is enjoying not the prakrti, but prakrti-jan gunan, means the qualities of the prakrti. There are three qualities of the prakrti: goodness, passion and ignorance. Prakrti-jan gunan. These, these are products of material world. It is therefore described in another place, daivi hy esa gunamayi [Bg. 7.14]. Gunamayi mama maya duratyaya. This illusory energy is... There are three qualities, qualitative. Some of them... Therefore we find different types of species of life.

Every living entity has associated with a particular type of guna. There are three gunas, namely, goodness, passion, and ignorance, and if you mix them up, then it becomes nine. Three into three equal to nine. And again if you mix up, nine into nine, then it becomes eighty-one. Therefore there are eight million four hundred thousand species of life. Jalaja nava-laksani sthavara laksa-vimsati. Nine hundred thousand species in the water. Similarly, birds, beasts, trees, insects, animals. Then we come to the human form of life. These different types of bodies are meant for enjoying in a different spirit.

Everyone is trying to enjoy. But he is enjoying... He is not enjoying the prakrti, but he is enjoying the association of the guna. Purusah prakrti-stho hi bhunkte prakrti-jan gunan, karanam guna-sango 'sya [Bg. 13.22]. So every living entity is suffering or enjoying. There is no enjoyment. Everyone is suffering, but he... That is called maya. He is suffering but he takes it as enjoying. Even the hog, the pig, he is eating stool, but he is thinking that he is enjoying. He is enjoying. He enjoys a certain type of food according to his quality.

Nowadays, because people are becoming more and more in the modes of darkness, they are eating so many abominable things. And prakrti also, I mean to say, minimizing the supply of sattvika food. Just like nowadays it has become scarcity of grains, of milk, of sugar. It is practical experience. Because people are becoming more and more in the modes of ignorance, therefore the foodstuffs... These foodstuffs are in the modes of goodness. Just like Krsna wants, patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati. Krsna does not say, "Give me meat and drinking wine." Krsna can eat everything. He is omnipotent. But He does not say that "You give me anything and everything." No. He specifically mentions, patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati. These things are the foodstuffs in goodness: rice, dal, wheat, that means grains. Then sugar, fruits, vegetables, milk products. These foods are in the goodness. Similarly there are foods, very chili, very hot, these are in the passion. And similarly in ignorance also, there are many foods, stale food, meat, these are in the ignorance.

So our business is, this human form of life, to get out of this cycle of birth and death and wandering in different species of life. This is the mission of human life. Human life, advanced consciousness, it is meant for getting out of the cycle of birth and death. And wandering in different species of life. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu says,

ei rupe brahmanda bhramite kona bhagyavan jiva
guru-krsna-krpaya paya bhakti-lata-bija
[Cc. Madhya 19.151]

In this way the living entities, purusah prakrti-sthah, within this material world, he is wandering in different species of life, in different planets.

But the disease is birth and death. Even if you take birth in the Brahmaloka, Krsna says, abrahma-bhuvanal lokah punar avartino 'rjuna [Bg. 8.16]. Even if you promoted to the Brahmaloka, the highest planet, there is also death. You cannot avoid. Janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duhkha-dosanudarsanam. That is real knowledge, that "I don't want to die, but I am forced to die. I don't want to become old man, but I am forced to become old man. I don't want any disease, but disease is forced upon me." So these are the real problems.

So Krsna says that abrahma lo... If... You may get very long duration of life, very comfortable life, in higher planetary system. Just like people are engaged in doing, I mean to, pious activities. The result of pious activities is that you get your birth in a very good family, in a rich family, you get beauty, you become educated, janmaisvarya-sruta-sribhih. Janma means birth, high-class birth. And aisvarya means opulence, riches. And sruta means education, and sri means beauty. So by pious activities you can get all these things. And impious activities, the opposite number: in a family, abominable, papa-yoni, lower-grade family, not very beautiful, not educated, suffering in so many ways. So either you get this life or that life, the janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi is there. It is not that because you have got very beautiful body and born in very high-class family and highly educated, you will avoid janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi. That is not possible. The real problem is janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi.

So karanam guna-sango 'sya sad-asad... Sad-yoni, high-class life, and asad-yoni, papa-yoni... So why one is born in lower grade family? Why one is born in high-grade family? Karanam guna-sango 'sya. The cause is as he has associated with different types of qualities. So unfortunately, this science, that there is birth after death, and there is, actually, we are experience, we are seeing, but they do not inquire. They think that one can improve. That is not possible. Unless he changes the quality, he cannot improve. That is not possible. They do not know it. They are falsely trying to improve the position. Nobody is trying to become poor. Everyone is trying to become rich. But it is not possible. Because he has got a particular type of body, and that body is already destined, and he has to achieve happiness or suffer distresses according to the body.

Therefore sastra says, tasyaiva hetoh prayateta kovido na labhyate yad bhramatam upary adhah: "You should try for that thing which you did not receive in your past lives." Past life, by our pious activities or impious activities, we have got a different type of body, here or in higher planetary system. That's all right. But that is not solution of my problem. The real problem is janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi. So we should try, we should save time and utilize it, how to get out of this janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi. That is the whole Vedic civilization.

Therefore it is said, tasyaiva hetoh prayateta kovidah. If you are intelligent, then you should try, you should engage your life, how to get out of this cycle of birth and death. Tapo divyam putraka yena suddhyet sattvam. We have to purify our existence so that we can revive our original position of eternal life, blissful life, full of knowledge. That is our requirement.

So modern civilization, they have no such information. Everyone is trying to improve his condition according to the quality. But that is not improvement. Real improvement is how to get out of this cycle of birth and death. That is real improvement. Janma-mrtyu-jara-vyadhi-duhkha-dosanudarsanam. Thank you very much. So I will have to go with Mr. Ganatra. You can have your arati. (end)

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Bhagavad-gita 13.22 -- Bombay, October 20, 1973