Developing Taste

Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.16
October 27, 1972, Vrndavana


Srila A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Pradyumna: (leads chanting, etc.)

susrusoh sraddadhanasya
vasudeva-katha-rucih
syan mahat-sevaya viprah
punya-tirtha-nisevanat

Translation: "O twice-born sages, by serving those devotees who are completely freed from all vice, great service is done. By such service, one gains affinity for hearing the messages of Vasudeva."

Prabhupada:

susrusoh sraddadhanasya
vasudeva-katha-rucih
syan mahat-sevaya viprah
punya-tirtha-nisevanat

So our purpose is, as described in the previous verses, how to become Krsna conscious. Our present consciousness is absorbed in so many external subject matters. One is self-centered, bodily conscious; some of them are family-wise, family conscious. Some of them, community conscious, society conscious, nation conscious, or international conscious. Utmost. No more, finish their business. But still, you have to extend more and more. "International" means within this u..., within this planet. But what is this planet? It is only insignificant spot within the universe. So if you increase your consciousness more and more, then it may be interplanetary consciousness. But what is this interplanetary? This universe contains millions of planets. That's all right. But there are millions of universes also. Yasya prabha prabhavato jagad-anda-koti [Bs. 5.40]. Not only one universe. This universe which we are seeing, this is only one of them. Caitanya Mahaprabhu compared this universe... One devotee, he requested Caitanya Mahaprabhu, "My Lord, You have come. Please liberate all the people of this universe. And if they are sinful, so all their sins, I may take, but they may be delivered." This is Vaisnava philosophy. "Others may be delivered by the grace of the Lord. I may rot in the hell. That doesn't matter." Not that, "First of all I go to the heaven, and others will rot." This is not Vaisnava philosophy. Vaisnava philosophy is, "I may rot in hell, but others may be delivered." Patitanam pavanebhyo vaisnavebhyo namo namah.

Vaisnava is meant for all the fallen souls. Just like a very good example: Lord Jesus Christ. According to the Christian idea, he took all the sins of all people and he sacrificed his life. Very good example. Similarly, Haridasa Thakura also. There... Nityananda Prabhu. The Vaisnava is always eager how to deliver all these fallen souls rotting in the hell of maya. Therefore it is recommended, syan mahat-sevaya. You have to take shelter of a mahat. Mahat means mahatma or Vaisnava. Sa mahatma sudurlabhah. That mahatma, simply by dressing like me with a saffron cloth, does not become a mahatma. The mahatma is described in the Bhagavad-gita:

bahunam janmanam ante
jnanavan mam prapadyate
vasudevah sarvam iti
sa mahatma sudurlabhah
[Bg. 7.19]

There are many mahatmas, but one who has understood Vasudeva, Krsna, is the cause of all causes...

isvarah paramah krsnah
sac-cid-ananda-vigrahah
anadir adir govindah
sarva-karana-karanam
[Bs. 5.1]

He's mahatma. One who knows that Krsna, Vasudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the origin of everything... Krsna also says in the Bhagavad-gita,

aham sarvasya prabhavo
mattah sarvam pravartate
iti matva bhajante mam
budha bhava-samanvitah
[Bg. 10.8]

Actually, one who knows things as they are, they understand, vasudevah sarvam iti [Bg. 7.19], "Vasudeva, Krsna, is the root of everything." Here also it is stated that susrusoh sraddadhanasya vasudeve, vasudeva-katha-rucih. To know, to become inquisitive about Krsna, to know about him, this is required. This is Krsna consciousness.

In Caitanya-caritamrta it is said,

siddhanta baliya citte na kara alasa
iha ha-ite krsne lage sudrdha manasa

Siddhanta, to become a pure devotee, a staunch devotee of Krsna, one has to learn about Krsna. Krsna is, therefore, coming personally to teach us what He is. That is required. Vasudeva-katha-ruci. Our life is meant for becoming Krsna conscious. Ruci. This ruci is very important thing. Ruci means... Just like we like to eat some favorable food. That is called ruci. Somebody is interested in eating some salty food, somebody's interested some sweet food, spicy food... Just like we have got taste for different types of food, similarly, when we shall increase our taste, propensity for Krsna, that is the beginning of our perfection. Before that, we are in the material consciousness. When we increase the taste for Krsna, for understanding Krsna... This ruci comes when one is actually liberated. This ruci. Tato 'nartha-nivrttih syat. First of all, sraddadhanasya. As it is stated here, sraddha, faith. Krsna is... Krsna says that mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya [Bg. 7.7], "There is no more superior authority than Me." Mattah parataram na anyat. Na, "Nobody else. I am the Supreme." So when we have faith in this explanation of Krsna...

As Arjuna said... Arjuna, after hearing Bhagavad-gita, he said, sarvam etad rtam manye yad vadasi kesava [Bg. 10.14], "My dear Krsna, whatever You are saying, I accept them in toto, word for word." This is required. Not that I give up this portion, I give up that portion, whatever is to my purpose... Just like sometimes the politicians, scholars, they also try to understand Bhagavad-gita. Because Bhagavad-gita is very authoritative book, they want to exploit. They do not understand what is Bhagavad-gita. Otherwise they would have preached Krsna. Because what is Bhagavad-gita? Bhagavad-gita is Krsna, Krsna, the supreme. That is to be taught. That is to be understood. That is Bhagavad-gita. Not that keeping Bhagavad-gita in front, a scapegoat, I become great politician and great scholar and give my own opinion: "In my opinion, it is like this." This is nonsense. What you are? Your opinion? We don't care, we don't care for all these nonsense who gives his own opinion as if Krsna left something to be opined by another rascal. This is their business. He becomes greater than Krsna, to interpret Krsna's words. This is rascaldom. We don't accept.

We accept yad vadasi kesava, following the footsteps of Arjuna, who directly understood Bhagavad-gita. He said, "My dear Krsna, whatever You say, I accept them as it is." Then others may say, "Well, Arjuna was Krsna's friend. So just to flatter Him, he might have said like that." No. Arjuna gave immediately evidences that "I..., not only I accept You, but great personalities like Vyasa, Narada, Devala, Asita, and many others." Authorities. Just like when you speak something in the legal court, you give evidences from other judgement, authorities. That is a good case. Similarly, Arjuna accepted Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Param brahma param dhama pavitram paramam bhavan [Bg. 10.12]. "My dear Krsna, I accept You. You are the Supreme Brahman." Brahmeti bhagavan, paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate. Brahmeti bhagavan, paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate. Therefore Bhagavan is param brahma. Simply impersonal Brahman-realization is not finishing the business. You have to go further, further, further. In the Isopanisad, it is said, "My dear Lord, kindly wind up Your blazing effulgence so that I can see You actually." That is stated in the Isopanisad.

So one should not be, I mean to say, amazed simply by realization of impersonal Brahman. There is further business. Brahmeti paramatmeti. Just like we are experiencing daily the sunshine. So if we become satisfied with the sunshine only -- "Now we have come to the light" -- that is not perfection. You go to the sun planet. Because from there, from the sun planet, the sunshine is coming out. So the source of sunshine is the sun planet. But unfortunately, it is very difficult to enter into the sun planet. And if you enter into the sun planet, you'll find there is a predominating deity whose name is Vivasvan, god, sun-god. These are the statements. As Bhagava..., Bhagavad-gita says,

imam vivasvate yogam
proktavan aham avyayam
vivasvan manave praha
manur iksvakave 'bravit
[Bg. 4.1]

So formerly people used to go to the sun planet. It requires such yogic mystic power. Just like Durvasa Muni. He used to travel all over the universe, and beyond the universe. He reached to the Vaikuntha planets also by yogic power, and he returned within one year. So it is possible. You can go. The yogis, the perfect yogis, they can transfer them to any planet they desire. Any planet they desire. These are stated in the sastras, in the Bhagava..., Srimad-Bhagavatam.

So to become Krsna conscious, that is the highest perfection of life. Param Brahman. Param Brahman. Brahman, impersonal effulgence. Just like the sunshine. Then localized sun, the sun globe. Then further, if you able to enter the sun globe, you'll find there is a predominating deity. There are also cities and palaces -- everything, just like this planet. But this planet is made prominently of earth, and that planet is one of the elements, material elements, earth, water, fire, air. So if this planet is made of earth, why not other planet made of fire? What is the scientific reason to deny it? Because I cannot live in the fire, it does not mean other living entities cannot live there. There are different kinds of living entities. Just like you cannot live within the water, within the ocean, but there are other living entities... Just like fish. They live very comfortably within the water. So why should we conclude that there is no life in the sun planet or moon planet? This is not perfect knowledge. From Vedic books we can understand that this moon planet is one of the heavenly planets and people live there. They are demigods. Their duration of life is very long. And one can go to that planet by performing the rituals. They are described. In the Bhagavad-gita also it is said, yanti deva-vrata devan. If you are serious to go to the planets where demigods live, you can go. There are rules and regulations, rituals. Just like if you want to pass law examination, you prepare for that examination, and you pass, you become a lawyer. You become an engineer. Similarly, any planet you want to go, you prepare in this life. Don't degrade yourself to become again cats and dogs, but you prepare yourself to be promoted to the other, higher planetary system... As it is stated in the Bhagavad-gita, urdhvam gacchanti sattva-sthah. You can go there.

Krsna says,

yanti deva-vrata devan
pitrn yanti pitr-vratah
bhutani yanti bhutejya
yanti mad-yajino 'pi mam
[Bg. 9.25]

So there is another planet... Not another planet, another nature, sanatana. Paras tasmat tu bhavo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktat sanatanah [Bg. 8.20]. There is another nature, eternal nature. That is called Vaikunthaloka. Yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama [Bg. 15.6]. Every dhama, every place, is Krsna's. He's the supreme proprietor. Sarva-loka-mahesvaram. "I am the proprietor." But there are differentiation, param dhama and aparam dhama. This is aparam dhama. This material world is aparam dhama, inferior nature. These are stated in the Bhagavad-gita. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakrtim param. Itas tu viddhi me prakrtim param. There is another prakrti, another nature. There is Vaikunthaloka. Not one, two, but millions, unlimited. And the topmost planet is called Goloka Vrndavana. That is mad-dhama, Krsna says, or tad-dhama.

So all these informations are there. Simply we have to know. Unfortunately, because we are too much materially absorbed, we cannot understand. We cannot understand. Neither we are very much interested to know. So vasudeva-katha-rucih. There is no ruci because they are conditioned by the material nature, by the three modes of material nature: sattva-guna, rajo-guna... Tamo-guna is the lowest, rajo-guna is the via media, and one who is the sattva-guna, he can understand. Therefore the whole Vedic civilization is meant for making people brahmana. Not to keep him in ignorance, not to keep him in the position of a sudra. The whole Vedic scheme is that from the lowest grade of li..., existence, one can be elevated to the highest grade. Sudhyanti. Sudhyanti, purification. That is purification. In ordinary life also, there are purificatory methods, dasa-vidha-samskara. That purificatory method begins before the birth, which is called garbhadhana-samskara. Not that a man, a high-caste brahmana or ksatriya or even vaisya... Especially brahmana and ksatriya. Especially brahmana. He's not meant for giving birth to a child like cats and dogs. He has to observe the garbhadhana-samskara. In the sastra it is said in a brahmana family, if the garbhadhana-samskara is not observed, he immediately falls down to the sudra class.

Kalau sudra-sambhavah. Because this garbhadhana-samskara is not observed, therefore it is to be taken, accepted, everyone is a sudra. But the Krsna consciousness movement is to again elevate the sudra to the standard of brahmana. This is the Krsna consciousness movement. Because without brahmana... Just like without head, what is the value of your body? Brahmana means the head.

mukha-bahuru-padebhyah
purusasyasramaih saha
catvaro jajnire varna
gunair vipradayah prthak

Brahmana means the head. Therefore brahmana is offered so much respect. Because head, without head, in the head, in the brain, you conceive something, and the hands and legs, they execute the order. Similarly, the head of the society, they should be the brahmanas. They are not interested in capturing political power. No. Brahmana is to give instruction. We find from Vedic literature. There were committees, privy council committees of great sages and brahmanas. They would give the king advice that "You rule in this way." And if the king is disobedient, sometimes the brahmanas would dethrone them. Or kill them. That was the Vedic system. We find from the life and ruling of Maharaja Prthu, how he was ruling over the world, how he was observing that every community, either brahmana or ksatriya or vaisya or sudra, they were properly employed. There was no unemployment question. It was the duty of the king to see that not a single man is unemployed. He must be engaged. So they made arrangement like that.

So what is the idea? The idea is to elevate everyone gradually to the position of brahmana and Vaisnava and thus make their life perfect. That is the scheme of Vedic civilization. Catur-varnyam maya srstam guna-karma-vibhagasah [Bg. 4.13]. Not that "Keep the sudras or the mlecchas in the downtrodden position, and let me advance." No. Everyone should cooperate. Why the sudras or mlecchas and yavanas should remain as such? Actually, India's falldown is meant by that process. Nobody cared. So many Muslims, they converted, but the higher caste, they did not care. "Oh, they have become Muslims. Reject them." Why reject? Krsna says,

mam hi partha vyapasritya
ye pi syuh papa-yonayah
striyo vaisyas tatha sudras
te 'pi yanti param gatim
[Bg. 9.32]

Why these Muslims were neglected? Why they were not turned into Vaisnavas, just like we are doing? This is the fault of the leaders. Therefore India is now divided, Pakistan and Hindustan.

So if we actually try to understand Krsna and Krsna consciousness, there is solution for all the problems of society, of government, and everything. It is not a sentimental movement. Vasudeva-katha-rucih. One must increase the taste for understanding Krsna. Just like Krsna came. He came not only to dance with the gopis. He took part in politics. He killed so many demons. He established good government. He showed how householders' life. Krsna It is all in our Krsna book, Srimad-Bhagavatam. He was lying with His beautiful queens, and as soon as there is cock crow, immediately He would rise, early in the morning, three o'clock. The queens will be disgusted: "Now it is early in the morning. Krsna will go away." But Krsna immediately gave up the company of the wife and immediately rise and immediately take bath and do the needful as it is enjoined in the Vedic performances. He's ideal grhastha. He will give in charity every day thirteen thousands of cows to the brahmanas. Read all these things. Don't think that Krsna consciousness movement is simply dugdughi.(?) Not dugdughi. It includes everything, all-pervasive. Krsna is aham sarvasya prabhavah, Krsna is the root of everything. Therefore anything you conceive of, politics, sociology, philosophy, religion, anything, there is adjustment if you become Krsna conscious. That is the Krsna consciousness movement.

Yad yad acarati sresthas tat tad evetaro janah. Therefore we want some leading personalities to become Krsna conscious so that others will follow. So that others will follow. But if we go some leading personality, minister or prime minister, "Oh, we are secular. We have rejected Krsna." That's all. Nonsense. What is your value, rejecting your Krsna? Harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-gunah. You are rejected. You have no good qualification. You have rejected Krsna. Therefore we reject you. Harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-gunah. Anyone who is not Krsna conscious, he has no value. We don't give any value, however he may pose himself as a very great man. No. We say, harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-gunah. Mano-rathenasati dhavato bahih. "Because you are not Krsna conscious, you are hovering on the mental plane. Therefore you must fall down." This is the conclusion of sastra.

So here it is, susrusoh sraddadhanasya. Just like you all people have gathered. There is sraddha, that "Let us hear something about Krsna, what Swamiji's spoke, speaking." This is called sraddha. This sraddha has to be increased. Then when you come to the point of ruci, vasudeva-katha-rucih, that is the beginning of our perfection. At the present moment, there is no ruci, no taste. Vasudeva-katha-rucih. There are so many exalted persons, but they have no taste. They have lost all taste. Vasudeva-katha-rucih. There are two faults. Either people could not preach properly so that they could not create taste of the people in general... It is not the fault of the people in general. It is the fault of the so-called preachers also. Because they could not create taste, they wanted to take the place of Krsna. That was their purpose. Imitation of Krsna. Imitation of God. That will not do. You have to create taste. Just like Caitanya Mahaprabhu did. Namo maha-vadanyaya krsna-prema-pradaya te [Madhya 19.53]. Srila Rupa Gosvami, when he first met Caitanya Mahaprabhu, he offered this prayer: namo maha-vadanyaya, "You are the most munificent incarnation because you are giving Krsna. You are giving Krsna. You are, You are greater than Krsna." Maha-vadanyaya. Because Krsna asked everybody to surrender. He did not give himself immediately. But Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He's also Krsna, in the form of devotee, He's giving Himself, "Take me," without any price.

So vasudeva-katha-rucih. People should be educated how to increase the taste for understanding Krsna. This is Krsna consciousness movement. Everyone should come forward. Apani acari prabhu jivere siksaya. One should behave himself as Krsna conscious. Then he will be able to make others Krsna conscious -- not by theoretical knowledge, but by behavior. Apani acari prabhu jivere siksaya. So this is required. It is a very, very, very important movement. Any leader of the society, any political leader, any social leader, they should study. Our only request is that "Please try to understand this Krsna consciousness movement." Just like in the Caitanya-caritamrta karaca says that caitanyera dayara katha karaha vicara. It is not blindly accepting. Vicara. Just judge yourself how great important this movement is. Caitanyera dayara katha karaha vicara. Vicara karile citte pabe camatkara. If you are sober, thoughtful, you'll find it is sublime. It is sublime.

So that is our request. The people who are leaders of the society, they should take this Krsna conscious movement very seriously, study, and then give their judgment. And people will be happy.

Thank you very much. (end)

>>> Ref. VedaBase => Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.16 -- Vrndavana, October 27, 1972