Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.15.47-48
Los Angeles, December 25, 1973
download flash player
Take a testLos Angeles, December 25, 1973
download flash player
Pradyumna: "Thus by pure
consciousness due to constant devotional remembrance, they attained the
spiritual sky, which is ruled by the Supreme Narayana, Lord Krsna. This is
attained only by those who meditate upon the one Supreme Lord without deviation.
This abode of the Lord Sri Krsna, known as Goloka Vrndavana, cannot be attained
by persons who are absorbed in the material conception of life. But the
Pandavas, being completely washed of all material contamination, attained that
abode in their very same bodies."
Prabhupada: Tad-dhyana udriktaya. Dhyana means meditation. So the Pandavas, always they were thinking of Krsna. While they were eating, they were sitting, they were sleeping, they were talking, they were fighting -- Krsna. This is Krsna consciousness. When Arjuna was fighting, so there was also Krsna. When they were dealing in politics with Duryodhana, there was Krsna. Krsna is his friend, always talking with him, staying with him, sleeping with him, eating with him.
So anyone can do that. Krsna consciousness is so nice. If in our ordinary life we deal with Krsna as Arjuna did and the Pandavas did, so where is the difficulty for us? There is no difficulty. Simply we have to practice it. And that practice is bhaktya. This is only possible through devotional service. Krsna was so near to the Pandavas on account of their devotion. Narada Muni eulogized the Pandavas that "Jnanis and yogis, they cannot reach even, but by your devotion, He is living with you as friend. Not only as friend, but sometimes as your order-carrier." Pandavas sometimes, during their negotiation with Duryodhana, sometimes asked Krsna, "Krsna, You take this letter and deliver to Duryodhana." Agreed, "Yes, I will go." So ordinary peon. Then ordinary chariot driver, Partha-sarathi.
So this is possible. If you become devotee of Krsna, then you can live with Krsna, even in this life. Even in this life. Because Krsna is omnipotent, if you are really devotee of Krsna, He will talk with you, He will dance with you, He will eat with you, everything. Premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-
How one can see sadaiva? Krsna is already there. Isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese 'rjuna tisthati [Bg. 18.61]. The location is given here in the Bhagavad-gita, that you can see God, not you have to go far away from your place. Wherever you are, you can see, because God is within your heart. Isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese [Bg. 18.61]. Sarva-bhutanam. Not only for human being, but also animals, beasts, trees, plants, aquatics, insects -- everyone, beginning from Brahma down to the ant. God is everywhere. Andantara-stha-paramanu-
Visuddha. Visuddha means purified. Our consciousness is not purified at the present moment, but if we purify it... That purification also is possible by becoming in touch with Krsna always. And this touch is very easily made possible. Srnvatam. This is the chance, srnvatam. Srnvatam means by hearing, by aural reception. Simply those who are coming here, even they do not know anything about it, but God has given this ear, and let him hear about Krsna. We are therefore discussing so many... We have written so many books simply about Krsna. Not all books published -- we have published about twenty books -- but we have to finish it. It cannot be finished, but at least, to some extent it will be finished by sixty books. And what is that subject matter? Krsna. That's all. People cannot imagine that about God, sixty books can be written. There is no, I mean to say, system of religion where you can find... Not only... Sixty is the minimum. Sixty books of four hundred pages can be written simply on God. So there is possible... If we divert our attention to Krsna consciousness, we can chant Krsna -- Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare. Kirtanad eva krsnasya. We can read about Krsna whole life, such big literature. Whole life. If you read twenty-four hours daily -- that you cannot -- still, you have to devote your whole life to finish this literature.
So we have got enough material to become Krsna conscious. My Guru Maharaja was questioned by one big politician. He came to see him. So my Guru Maharaja... He was asking, "What are your activities?" So at that time he was publishing one paper. I think it is still published in Mayapura. It is called... What is called, Dainik? Daily news, it was a daily newspaper, small. Navadvipa Prakash, like that. Nadiya Prakash. Nadiya Prakash. So daily. So this politician inquired from Guru Maharaja, "You are publishing a daily paper about God consciousness?" "Yes." "No, what you are writing?" He was surprised. The politicians think that newspaper can be filled up with rubbish political news only. That's all. They cannot think that newspaper can be filled up by news from spiritual world. Yes. They have no idea. They have no idea there is spiritual world. So my Guru Maharaja explained that "Why you are thinking of only one small newspaper? You do not know what is spiritual world. This material world is one-fourth portion of the whole creation of the Lord. And the three-fourths' portion is the spiritual world. And in this one fourth portion there are innumerable universes. And in one of the universes... This is one of the universe. And in each universe there are millions of planets. And this planet, earthly planets, is only a small planet in that universe. And on this earthly planet, there are so many cities. And in each city, there are so many newspapers. And each newspaper has got so many editions. This is the position of the material world. Now, think over the spiritual world. It is... The spiritual world is three fourths, three times bigger than this material... And there are so many planets, so many universes, and so many activities. So we can produce not one newspaper daily, but every minute a newspaper. We can produce. Unfortunately, there is no customer. You see? This is the difficulty. For material news, there are so many customers, but when we put something, spiritual news, no customer. This is the difficulty. Otherwise... You are thinking of one newspaper daily. We could issue every second a newspaper about spiritual news." So this sixty books is not sufficient. It is simply an introduction to the spiritual activities of the spiritual world. People have no interest. They do not know. We are simply trying to introduce it.
So this can be understood by visuddha-dhisanah, purified meditation. That requires practice, how to purify. Visuddha-dhisanah tasmin narayana-pade. And it can be achieved by persons, ekanta-matayo gatim. A person who has decided, "Now, in this life, I must go back to home, back to Godhead," for him, it is possible. This decision. So that is called... In Bhagavad-gita it is described,
vyavasayatmika buddhir
ekeha kuru-nandana
bahu-sakha hy anantas ca
buddhayo 'vyavasayinam
One how has decided that "This life, it is not ordinary life like the cats and dogs. It is human life. I have got advanced intelligence. And it is possible in this life to back to home, back to Godhead, athato brahma jijnasa, simply by cultivating spiritual knowledge. So why shall I waste my time like cats and dogs?" This determination required. "The cats and dogs are busy in eating, sleeping, sex life, and one day it dies. So why shall I waste my time in that way? I have got good intelligence. Krsna has provided me better standard of life. I can lie in nice room, not like the cats and dogs on the street. Krsna has provided for me so nice foodstuff which I can offer to Krsna, patram puspam phalam toyam, so nice fruits, grains, milk. So let us utilize these things given by Krsna."
Krsna has given different foodstuff for different animals and human beings. Krsna has given stool for the pigs and so nice foodstuff, fruits and grains and milk, for the human being. Not that every food is for everyone. No. What is called? "One man's food, another man's poison." So the stool is also a kind of food. Everything is a kind of food. Even the stone is also food. You know? The pigeons, they eat the stones particles. They can digest. For them, the hardest peas are supplied. So they can digest. Payara-matara. It is called in India, payara-matara. Payara means pigeon. Pigeon's peas. They require such thing. Just like the gorilla. The gorilla animal, where they live in the African jungles... We have read book. There are trees, the fruits of that tree are so hard, harder than the iron bullet. You can hammer on the bullet; it may bend. But that fruit will not bend. So those fruits are taken by the gorillas, and they chew it just like you chew peanuts or something like that, yes. (laughter)
So Krsna has given different foodstuff for different animals. So for human being who is determined to go back to home, back to Godhead, they have got their food. For them, no meat-eating. For them, fine kacuri, rasagulla, puri, for them. As you are... I think Dr. Benard Shaw, he wrote one book, You Are What You Eat. If you eat stool, then you are stool. Because after all, this body will be stool. Because after death, the result is either the body becomes stool or ash or earth. Those who are burying on the ground, in due course the body will turn into earth. That's all. And those who are burning, like in India, Hindus do, this will turn into ash. And those who are throwing for being eaten by the animals and birds... Just like Parsees do in India... They throw, and vultures come, and they eat it, within a second. So after eating, it will be stool of the vulture. That's all. So this beautiful body will be resulted in three things: either stool, earth or ash. And we are taking so much care -- for stool, earth, and ashes. And the occupier of the body? Forgotten. And we are advanced scientists. This is our position.
Therefore it is said, visuddha-dhisanah pare. Those who are purified in their thinking process... Those who are thinking, "I am this body," they are third-class rascals. The present world is simply full with third-class rascals. Because everyone is thinking, "I am American," "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am white," "I am black," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am Christian." So "I am this body." That's all. But they cannot. They cannot. Therefore it is said, virajena atmanaiva. Virajena. Virajena means one who has become completely washed, cleansed, viraja. Raja. Raja means this material world, and vi means vigata, without. Virajenaiva. And it is very difficult to come to this position. Therefore it is said, avapur duravapam. It is very difficult to come to this stage of life, but the Pandavas, avapuh, they got it. And for whom it is very difficult? That is also: asadbhih. Asadbhir visayatmabhih.
Who is asat? Asat means that does not exist, or that will not exist. There are two things: one thing will exist permanently, and one thing will not exist. It may exist for few minutes, or few hours or years. So this material world is asat, because it will not exist. Just like your this material body, it will not exist. Everyone knows. Everyone knows that it is born at a certain date, it will continue for certain years, it will produce some by-products, it will change into different forms, and then it will become old and then dwindle and one day finish. This is called sad-vikara, six kinds of changes. It is not progress. If one is progressing in his age, it is not progress. It means he is going to death. Suppose I am seventy-eight years old. So I have... Seventy-eight years I have already died. Only, say two or five years, or something like remaining balance. So people say "advanced age." No. Advanced in death, not advanced in age. So this is asat. It will not stay. It has begun to die from the very moment of his birth. If you ask a newly born child how old it is, the mother says, "It is one month old." So one month means he has already died one month. And balance months and years he has to die. Simply he has to wait for that death. So this kind of duration of life is called asat. And this kind of existence, the material existence, it also asat. Narottama dasa Thakura therefore sings, sat-sanga chadi' kainu asate vilasa, te-karane lagila ye karma-bandha-phansa. "I gave up sat-sanga, om tat sat, spiritual society. I associated myself with the material society. Therefore I am now entangled by karma by karma, one after another, one after another."
So spiritual realization is difficult for persons, asadbhih. Why it is difficult? Visayatmabhih. Because they are simply attracted by the four principles of material life: eating, sleeping, sex life and, one day, death. They cannot. One must be above this interest. One must be very sane man, that "These kinds of interests are there in the animals. So if I am also interested in only these things, then where is the difference between this dog and me?" Something more.
That information is given in the Bhagavad-gita. Avinasi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idam tatam. Yena sarvam idam. This body is perishable, asat. But there is another sat, means permanent thing. What is that? Avinasi tu tad viddhi. You try to understand that thing, which is eternal. What is that? Yena sarvam idam tatam, that which is spreading all over your body. You pinch your body. You feel pain. Why? Because there is consciousness. The consciousness is permanent. And as soon as the consciousness is gone, you chopped up your hand, no response. So take... It is a very nice statement. Tat, that consciousness, is avinasi, is eternal. Where is the difficulty?
So those who are not interested to understand this consciousness and the origin of consciousness, they are asat. They cannot understand what is spiritual life. Therefore the beginning of spiritual life... In the Bhagavad-gita, it is said that dehino 'smin yatha dehe [Bg. 2.13]. In this body, in this asat, this temporary body, there is the proprietor of the body. Dehino 'smin yatha dehe. The proprietor of the body. So that is to be understood. So how it can be understood? Vidhuta-kalmasah. Those who are washed off of the sinful act... Therefore we prescribe that "Don't be associated with sinful activities." What is that? Illicit sex, meat-eating, intoxication and gambling. One who is washed off of these, vidhuta-kalmasa sthanam, that sthanam, that place, is virajena atmanaiva vidhuta-kalmasah... Those who are washed of... Otherwise it is not possible. If you think that "I shall do this and do that," then do this, not that. That is finished. You go on doing this life after life, and remain in this material world. That is the point.
Thank you very much. (end)
© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.
No comments:
Post a Comment