Nitai: "Of course, it is bewildering, O soul of the universe, that You work, though You are inactive, that You take birth, though You are the vital force and the unborn. You Yourself descend amongst the animals, men, sages and aquatics. Verily, this is bewildering."
Prabhupada:
janma karma ca visvatmann
ajasyakartur atmanah
tiryan-nrsisu yadahsu
tat atyanta-vidambanam
This vidambanam word, the English translation is almost similar -- "bewildering." Vidambanam, "bewildering."
So this is to be understood, what is Krsna, because He descends out of His causeless mercy as human being for reestablishing the principles of religious system.
yada yada hi dharmasya
glanir bhavati bharata
abhyutthanam adharmasya
tadatmanam srjamy aham
[Bg. 4.7]
(aside:) That's all right. So this is to be understood. Superficially understanding Krsna... Of course, even not understanding. Simply by uttering the word "Krsna" in love and affection, one becomes delivered. It is said: eka krsna name yata papa hare, papi haya tata papa karibare nare(?). Krsna-nama is so powerful... It is said, if you chant thousand times Lord Visnu's name, then the result is equal to once chanting Lord Rama's name... I forget that, to recite that verse. But the purpose is this that... Visnu-sahasra-nama is recommended to be chanted by common man. But sastra says that after chanting one thousand of Lord Visnu's name -- there are hundreds and thousands of names -- it is equal to if you chant once Lord Rama's name. Similarly, if you chant three times Lord Rama's name, then it is equal to once chanting Krsna's name. So we understand or not understand, if we chant Hare Krsna, the result is there. Without any offense, if we chant, then the result is... Once chanting of Krsna's name is so powerful that immediately the chanting makes you free from all kinds of reaction of sinful activities. Eka krsna-name yata papa hare, papi haya tata papa kari bare nare(?). The papis, they are very much expert in committing sinful activities, but Krsna, this holy name, once chanted, is so powerful that this expert sinful man cannot commit so many sinful activities. This is there. So some way or other, if we offenselessly chant Hare Krsna name, it is so powerful.
So here Kunti says, janma karma ca visvatmann ajasya. Aja means who never takes birth. Ajasya. Aja, the living entities, they are also aja, but sometimes the living entity, being attracted by the material energy, they come to this material world. Then their quality of aja, or not to take birth, becomes vanquished, because in the material world one has to take birth. But actually spirit soul, or the Supreme Spirit, Krsna, they are aja. Ajo nityah sasvato 'yam. In the Bhagavad-gita it is said clearly that living entity is aja, nitya, sasvata, ayam. "Then how he is dying?" one may question. That is also replied: na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20]. Don't think... That dying means he's changing body, not dying. Therefore... Because Krsna says the living entity is aja, everyone can question that "If he's aja, he does not take birth, then why he's taking birth? Why he's dying?" The answer is immediately there: na hanyate: "Don't think that he's dying." Na hanyate. "No, I see his body's being burned." No, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20]. That body is being burned. That...
Suppose if your cloth is burned... In my childhood, when I was three, four years old, I was saved. My all cloth burned, and there is a scar. You have seen. I would have died that day, but fortunately I was saved. The cloth was burning. That, what is that called, matches color? So I was trying to burn, and it caught my cloth. So the cloth burned, but I did not burn. Similarly, this body also burns, but the soul... Nainam chindanti sastrani na dahati pavakah. The soul is never cut into pieces by any weapon, neither it is burned by the fire, soul. That is eternity. Anything material, it will burn, it will be cut into pieces, it can be dried up, it can be moistened. Because we cannot see the soul, so Krsna has explained in a negative definition what is the characteristic of the soul. Nainam chindanti sastrani nainam dahati pavakah, na sosayati marutah. Like that.
So aja... We are also aja because we are part and parcel of Krsna. And nitya. Nityah sasva... Ajo nityah. Nitya... The Mayavada philosophy is that we are aja, and Supreme Brahman is aja. So when we are uncovered by this material body, we mix with the aja. That is their theory, monist. We merge into the existence of aja. But that is not fact. You merge. That is like merging a green bird into a green tree. When a green bird enters a green tree it appears that the green bird is now merged and he, it has no more existence. No. That is not... One can understand. The bird enters into the green tree does not mean the bird has lost his existence. His individuality is still there. Similarly, when we merge, even in Brahman effulgence, we do not lose our individuality. Although it appears that we have lost our identity, individuality, but actually that is not the fact. And because it is not fact, therefore our another quality is anandamayo 'bhyasat: we want ananda.
As Krsna is anandamaya... We see Krsna is always engaged in pastimes, either with the cowherd boys or with the gopis or with His father, mother, or in the fight of battlefield, Kuruksetra, or in killing some demon. But His pastimes are always there. He's never inactive. He's never inactive. There it is said, visvatmann ajasya akartuh. He has nothing to do, but still He is acting. Akartuh. Akartuh means He has nothing to do. Here, so far we are concerned, we have to do something in the material world. We are destined. Sarira-yatrapi ca te na prasiddhyed akarmanah. Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita that "If you do not work, you cannot maintain even your body. You have to work." You see therefore all living entities... At night, millions and trillions of living entities, they come, fly and work. The work has no meaning. The work is death. Still, they are working. So what to speak of others? The birds, the sparrows, they are working, from here to there, here... And we are also working. So that is the nature of material existence.
But Krsna has nothing to do. Akartuh. He has nothing to do. Na mam karmani limpanti na me karma-phale sprha [Bg. 4.14]. He has not... But He comes as a human being just to teach us how to work, how to work. That He explains in the Bhagavad-gita, how to work and be happy. But not to work, Krsna has never... And neither this place is like that, that you will not work, and everything will come automatically. Things are coming automatically, but you have to pick up the things by working. That is the nature. Just like you have got gold mine under your feet. So you have to take it by working, by digging. You cannot say, "Now I have got the gold mine. Now sit down tightly." No. That is not material nature. But Krsna has nothing to do. Na tasya karyam karanam ca vidyate. That is the Vedic instruction. That is akartuh. He has nothing to do. Why He has nothing to do? Now, because He has got many energies. Just like nowadays, by electronics, one man is sitting... We have seen the pilot. He's sitting in his place. He's simply pushing on the button, and the whole, big gigantic 747 is flying in the sky. We see the pilot is sitting there. He's doing nothing, but he's doing everything. But the electronic arrangement is so perfect. But sitting in one place he is working the big gigantic machine. As it is possible for a small material man, how much it is possible for Krsna. Although He does not do anything, still, He's visvatman: He is controlling the whole universe, visvatman. He's the vital force, visvat... This is Krsna.
So we have to understand Krsna. Kunti is helping us. Every devotee, Vaisnava, they voluntarily takes this business just to satisfy Krsna, to explain Krsna, just like Kunti is explaining, because if we understand Krsna thoroughly, then we are liberated. Therefore Krsna..., Kunti's trying that "Krsna has nothing to do. Don't think that Krsna is helping Arjuna in the Battlefield of Kuruksetra, it is His duty." No, it is not His duty. He's doing it voluntarily, but He has nothing to do with it. That is Krsna. Na me karma-phale sprha. He has nothing to do. We are forced to do. According to our karma-phala, we are forced to do. Tasyaiva hetoh prayateta kovidah. Tal labhyate duhkhavad anyatah sukham. Here we have to, we are forced to accept happiness or distress according to destiny. You cannot deny, that "I'll not take this distressed condition of life. I'll simply take the happiness portion." That you cannot do. You must. Krsna is not like that. That is understanding of Krsna. (aside:) Why you are standing? You can sit down. Krsna is not like that. Krsna is akartuh. Atmanah..., although He is the vital force of everything.
So if we simply understand Krsna, as explained in the sastras, sadhu-sastra, or saintly persons, devotees, if we try to understand, then we become liberated. Janma karma me divyam. As it is said, janma karma ca visvatmann ajasya akartur atmanah, vidambanam. Vidambanam. They are all bewildering, bewildering. Therefore, if one understands properly, then the result is that he becomes liberated. That means he gets full knowledge. Bahunam janmanam ante [Bg. 7.19]. Then he understands that Krsna is everything. He's the origin of everything. Visvatman. This is to be understood. He's the vital force of the whole universe. The whole universe is moving not automatically, but under the guidance and superintendency of Krsna. Mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10]. Krsna says, "Under My superintendence" So Krsna is active, but He has nothing to do. This is acintya, inconceivable. He is very active because He is supervising the whole activities of the universe, but still, He has nothing to do. That is Krsna. We have to understand that. Pasyaty acaksuh. "He is seeing, but acaksuh. Acaksuh means... You may say, "Not seeing." Acaksuh. He does not place His eyesight, but still, He's seeing. How it is? Now, He can see from any part of His body. Just like I close my eyes -- I cannot see you. My seeing activities stop. But because, although I am, I have closed my eyes, but my hands are there. So Krsna can see by hands, by nails. That is Krsna. Angani yasya sakalendriya-vrttimanti pasyanti... This very word is used, pasyanti. The limbs of the body of Krsna, any part, He can see. Although He may close His eyes, but because other parts of the body are open, therefore He can see. Angani yasya sakalendriya-vrttimanti.
In this way, Krsna is explained in so many sastras, and He explains Himself. If we simply try to understand the constitution of Krsna, then we become liberated. And if we try to understand, Krsna will help. Krsna says, srnvatam sva-kathah krsnah punya-sravana-kirtanah [SB 1.2.17]. The more we hear about Krsna, we become purified. We cannot understand Krsna because we are not purified. But the, simply if you hear the Krsna name -- Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare -- if you chant and hear, you become purified. So why should we not this, take this simple method and as it is recommended in the sastra, harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam [Adi 17.21], simply chant Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, twenty-four hours? Kirtaniyah sada harih [Cc. adi 17.31]. You become perfect. Why we are losing this opportunity? That is our misfortune. That is explained by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, etadrsi tava krpa bhagavan mamapi: "My Lord, You have shown Your mercy so liberally that name, chanting of Your name, is sufficient." Namnam akari bahudha nija-sarva-saktih. This chanting of the name, abhinnatvan nama-naminoh..., there is all potency of Him. Namnam akari bahudha nija-sarva-saktis tatrarpita. There is all potencies. Namnam akari... And there are many names, not only one name. If you don't like to chant Krsna's name, then there are other names also, any name. Must be name of harer nama, nama, the name of Hari, not others, harer nama. Then you get all the potencies. Namnam akari bahudha nija-sarva-saktis tatrarpita. And niyamitah smarane na kalah. And there is no, I mean to, consideration whether you shall chant in the morning or in the evening or while you are, mean, purified or not purified. Any circumstances, you can chant. Niyamitah smarane na kalah. There is no such consideration.
So Krsna is available so cheaply for the people, especially kalau, in this age of Kali. Still, we are reluctant to chant the holy name. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu regrets, etadrsi tava krpa bhagavan mamapi: "Although You are so liberal and kind upon this fallen soul, still, unfortunate as I am, I am not inclined to chant this holy name." This is our position, obstinacy, dog's obstinacy. But if we do it, then we become purified. Nasta-prayesv abhadresu nityam bhagavata-sevaya [SB 1.2.18]. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu's recommendation is to read Srimad-Bhagavatam either yourself, being purified, or without being purified, you can read, chant. This is our Vaisnava regulation, duty. As much as possible, we should read Bhagavad-gita and Srimad-Bhagavatam. And any such literature -- Caitanya-caritamrta, Brahma-samhita. Any one of them or all of them, it doesn't matter. And chant twenty-four hours Hare Krsna. This is our business.
So we are giving this chance to everyone. We have constructed this big building, or constructing more and more -- why? To give this chance to everyone. Please come here. Chant, join Hare Krsna kirtana, take prasadam and do your best, whatever talent you have got, easily, not very overburdened. If you know something to do, do it for Krsna. Everyone knows. Everyone has got some talent. So that talent should be utilized for Krsna. And if you think that "No, I shall chant simply," all right, you chant. But don't sleep in the name of chanting. That... Don't cheat. That cheating is not good. If you think that you can chant like Haridasa Thakura, then you simply chant. We shall supply you food. There is no anxiety. But don't try to cheat. You must be engaged. Yat karosi yaj juhosi yad asnasi, kurusva tad mad-arpanam. Of course, if we can chant twenty-four hours, that is very good. But that is not possible. We are not so highly elevated. We must do something for Krsna.
So this is... This institution, Krsna consciousness movement, is giving chance to everyone. And we are opening centers all over the world for this purpose, that you come, chant Hare Krsna mantra, hear about Krsna, Bhagavatam, Bhagavad-gita, and whatever you can do, just do it for Krsna. Then your life is successful.
Thank you very much. (end)
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.8.30 -- Mayapura, October 10, 1974
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