Dogs' Philosophy Revealed

Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.4
May 28, 1974, Rome



Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Nitai: Translation: "Before reciting this Srimad-Bhagavatam, which is our very means of conquest, I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Personality of Godhead Narayana, unto Nara-narayana Rsi, the supermost human being, unto mother Sarasvati, the goddess of learning, and unto Srila Vyasadeva, the author."

Prabhupada: This is the parampara system. As you get knowledge, step by step... Krsna is the original spiritual master, and then from Krsna, Lord Brahma learned the Vedic knowledge. Tene brahma hrda adi-kavaye. In the Bhagavata it is said that "Wherefrom Brahma got his knowledge?" Because whenever we want to get knowledge, we must approach a superior person to get knowledge. Tad-vijnanartham sa gurum eva abhigacchet [MU 1.2.12]. Guru means superior. So who was the superior person when Brahma got knowledge? Because there was no other creature. He is the first creature. Therefore it is said, "The superior person was Krsna, but He was not present." We see, Krsna was present before Arjuna, but nobody was present before Brahma. Therefore it is said, tene brahma hrda adi-kavaye, hrda: "through the heart." Because Krsna is situated in everyone's heart. Actually, He is the spiritual master, caitya-guru. So in order to help us, He comes out as physical spiritual master. And therefore saksad-dharitvena sama... Spiritual master is representative of Krsna. Krsna sends some sincere devotee to act on His behalf, and therefore he is spiritual master.

So this is the parampara system. As you receive knowledge step by step... Narayana, Krsna, instructed Vyasadeva. Brahma, Brahma instructed Narada. Narada instructed Vyasadeva. Vyasadeva instructed his disciple Madhvacarya. In this way we have to go through also, in the same way. First of all, offer respect to the spiritual master, as he has done to Sukadeva Gosvami. Tam vyasa-sunum upayami gurum muninam. So then his spiritual master, then his spiritual master, then his spiritual master, then his spiritual master. Just like you have got the pictures. First of all, your spiritual master, then his spiritual master, then his spiritual master, his spiritual master, his spiritual master -- ultimately Krsna. This is the process. Don't try to approach Krsna directly, jump over. That is useless. As you receive knowledge through the steps, parampara system, similarly, we should approach Krsna through these step.

narayanam namaskrtya
naram caiva narottamam
devim sarasvatim vyasam
tato jayam udirayet
[SB 1.2.4]

In this way you become glorified.

(reads from the purport) "All the Vedic literatures and the Puranas are meant for conquering the darkest region." Tamo 'ndham. We have already discussed. Atititirsatam. Samsarinam karunayaha. Samsarinam karunayaha purana-guhyam. Adhyatma-dipam atititirsatam tamo 'ndham. Atititirsatam. That is human civilization, how to get out of this darkness of ignorance. Not the dogs and cats jumping in very jubilant, "I am a big dog. Let me jump over." This is not civilization. That is animal civilization. They are jumping naked, we are jumping dressed. That's all. That is the difference. Otherwise, where is the difference? So long we have got this bodily concept of life, "Let me enjoy this body, senses..." Body means the senses. Indriyani parany ahuh. So long one is in the darkness, his predominant feature of enjoyment is the senses. That's all. "Let me enjoy. I have got this tongue. Let me whole day go to the restaurant, cut throat of this animal, that animal, and enjoy, and let him go to hell. Let me enjoy." This is jihva-lobha.

Ta'ra madhye jihva ati lobhamoy sudurmati ta'ke jeta kathina samsare. Bhaktivinoda Thakura says, "Amongst the senses, the most powerful sense is the tongue." Most powerful sense. You see? They are smoking, chain smoker, going on, going on. What is this? There is some sensation. And if we smoke cigarette or drink, it is simply the tongue. The tongue is dictating, "Do this, do that. Take this, take coffee, take tea, smoke, take flesh, take chicken, take this, take this, take..." That means that out of the all senses, the tongue is most formidable. Therefore Bhaktivinoda Thakura says, ta'ra madhye jihva ati lobhamoy sudurmati ta'ke jeta kathina samsare. It is very difficult to conquer over the tongue. And if you can conquer over the tongue, then you can conquer over the belly, and then you can conquer over the genital. The straight line, one after another. Ta'ra madhye jihva ati.

So you know the story, that one dog was crossing over a small rivulet, and he saw the picture of another dog in the water. And actually, there was no dog. He was carrying some food in his mouth, and he saw another dog within the water. So he thought, "Let me take his foodstuff from the mouth," and as he opened the mouth, he wanted to take the other dog's foodstuff, so whatever he had, gone. You see? This is dog philosophy, "Take away." Take other's meal; he loses his own. This is called illusion, maya. You did not read this, Aesop's Fable story? It is very instructive story. This is dog's philosophy. This is dog's philosophy. All these so-called empire... This Roman Empire was expanded. The British Empire was expanded. Now they have lost everything. Finished. Finished. The dog's business was finished.

So this kind of expansion, unnecessarily... Therefore our philosophy is "Be satisfied whatever God has given you." Tena tyaktena bhunjitha ma grdhah kasya svid dhanam. You be satisfied whatever is given to you by God, allotted to you. Don't try to encroach upon other's property. This is civilization. But man is transgressing this law, nature. They are not satisfied to become localized. They want to expand. If you want to expand, but expand something which will be beneficial to the human society. Just like we are expanding Krsna consciousness. That is required to be expanded. Because the cats and dog civilization will be controlled. But to expand the cats and dog civilization to compete with another dog is the same story, Aesop's Fable story, to capture the other dog and take his foodstuff, and then lose everything. This is very instructive.

So the real business is samsarinam, samsarinam, adhyatma-dipam atititirsatam. One should come to senses, that "I am eternal. I hear from Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that na hanyate sarire, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20], I am not finished after my body's finished. Then, if I am not finished, where do I go? Where I remain?" This is intelligence. But they have no information that the eternal soul, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20]. They are thinking, "All of a sudden my this body has developed, and we have got good senses. Let us enjoy the senses. There is no life. It is finished." Big, big professor in Russia, that Professor Kotofsky, he told me, "Swamiji, after finishing this body, there is anything... Everything is finished." That is the basic principle of modern civilization, that "There is no life after death, and whatever senses we have got, let us enjoy it." Then bhasmi-bhutasya dehasya... That it is a new thing. This atheistic philosophy was there long, long ago. They have not discovered anything new. It is already there. In India, the atheistic philosophy was already there. Carvaka Muni, he used to say, "Enjoy life, senses. Gratify your senses some way or other." "No, I have no sufficient money." Rnam krtva: "Take. Beg, borrow, steal. Bring money." There are three methods of getting money. If one hasn't got money, then beg. Just like we are beginning, professional beggar, sannyasi. They beg, borrow. And those who are not beggar, they borrow from friend, or steal, by hook and crook. So that is Carvaka theory. "Bring money some way or other. Beg, borrow or steal." Rnam krtva. Rnam krtva, the very word is used. "If you have no money, then take loan from your friends." Rnam krtva ghrtam pibet yavaj jivet sukham jivet. "Now, I have to pay back. How can I take loan? If I don't pay, then I shall remain debtor, and I will have to pay in my next life." "No, no, don't bother about next life." Bhasmi-bhutasya dehasya kutah punar agamano bhavet: "When your body, when it is finished, it will be burnt into ashes. Then the ashes will be lost. No more you are coming."

So this is going on. Because people have no knowledge about the next life, they are not interested with the spiritual education. That is the difficulty. They are not at all interested. Why people do not come here? They think that "These people will say that there is life after death, and if you do not do nicely, you will have to suffer. All this nonsense we have to hear, utopian." They are not interested. They are so dull. The facts... Krsna is giving example. Dehino 'smin yatha dehe kaumaram... [Bg. 2.13]. As you are changing your body... We have changed, every one of us, we have changed body. I was a baby. I was a child. I was a boy. I was young man. Now I have got a different body. Where have those bodies gone? They have no brain to think. I had all these bodies -- that's a fact. And they are not existing now, that's a fact. And still I say, "There is no other body after death." What is the reason? What is the logic? How simple logic is given by... Not ordinary person, Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, says that "As you have changed so many bodies, passed through so many bodies..." Every... Medical science says every minute we are changing body. That's a fact.

Just like the other day, Dr. P. Bannerjee came. That girl I saw changing from ten, twelve years ago. In 1955 I saw that girl, 1955. How many years ago?

Dhananjaya: Nineteen years.

Prabhupada: So that girl has grown up now nineteen years. At that time she was on the lap of her mother. So I said, "Oh, your daughter has grown up so much." She has changed so many bodies. But that body which I saw in 1955, that does not exist. Where is the illogical? That body is not existing, but the girl is there, and mother, father, "Yes, yes, she is my daughter, that daughter which you saw so little." The body has changed so many times.

So similarly, when I shall give up this body, I must have another body. And Krsna says tatha dehantara-praptih. This is called samsara. The samsara means repetition of different bodies. That is called samsara. Here, samsarinam karunaya. Therefore this Krsna consciousness movement is to be compassionate to these rascals who are in the cycle of changing body after body. It is a great movement. Everyone, all over the world, they are thinking there is no life after death. But that is not the fact. The fact is as you have changed so many bodies in this life, you have to change this body, you have to accept another body. It is a great dangerous position. That they do not think. If I accept another body of a tree, then I will have to stand in one place for thousands of years. This is the science. Now I cannot stay for five minutes in the Bhagavad-gita class, but if I am given the body by nature... Prakrteh kriyamanani. You are under the grip of nature. You cannot say... You cannot stop your death. When nature asks you, "Now you must die," your science cannot stop this. So you are under the grip of the nature. Prakrteh kriyamanani gunaih karmani sarvasah. So if the nature gives you, now you take this body of banyan tree and stand here for five thousand years, how can you stop it? Will your scientific knowledge can stop it? Is it possible? Then what is your science? If you are under the grip of the material nature,

prakrteh kriyamanani
gunaih karmani sarvasah
ahankara-vimudhatma
kartaham iti manyate
[Bg. 3.27]

Although he is pulled by the ear, by the material nature, he is thinking he is free, he is freedom. They are struggling for freedom. What is this nonsense, freedom? You are under the grip of the material nature. Where is your freedom? Now you have got, nature has given you this human form of body. Next you may get another body, next you may... That is completely under the control of material nature.

So they do not know. They do not know, completely in darkness. Tamo 'ndham. Therefore those who are eager to cross over the ocean of ignorance, for them, these instructions are there. Narayanam namaskrtya naram caiva narottamam [SB 1.2.4]. You have to go in the parampara system, submission, tapasya, jnana. Bahavo jnana-tapasa puta mad-bhavam agatah. So by jnana, by knowledge, by tapasya, you have to make progress. This is Krsna consciousness movement.

Thank you very much. (end)

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.4 -- Rome, May 28, 1974