Devotional Desire
Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.1.9
Nellore, January 7, 1976
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Prabhupada:
drsta-srutabhyam yat papam
janann apy atmano 'hitam
karoti bhuyo vivasah
prayascittam atho katham
[SB 6.1.9]
"Maharaja Pariksit said: One may know that sinful activity is injurious for him because he actually sees that a criminal is punished by the government and rebuked by the people in general, and because he hears from the scriptures and learned scholars that one is thrown into hellish condition in the next life for committing sinful acts. Nevertheless, in spite of such knowledge one is forced to commit sins again and again, even after performing acts of atonement. Therefore what is the value of such atonement?"
kvacin nivartate 'bhadrat
kvacic carati tat punah
prayascittam atho 'partham
manye kunjara-saucavat
[SB 6.1.10]
"Maharaja Pariksit said: Sometimes one who is very alert so as not to commit sinful acts is victimized by sinful life again. I therefore consider this process of repeated sinning and atoning to be useless. It is like the bathing of an elephant, for an elephant cleanses itself by taking a full bath but then throws dust over its head and body as soon as it returns to the land."
In every religious system there is a process of atonement. In Christian religion there is a process of atonement called confession. The Pariksit Maharaja is practical politician. He said that... He had also experience that a criminal is punished and again he commits the criminal act. Nowadays we practically see also that government has enacted so many laws against criminality, but criminality is going on without any stoppage. We have got practical experience, as we have explained last night, that in the airport the security checking is going on for everyone, which means that after so much education, every one of us, we are dishonest. This answer is there in the sastra: yasyasti bhaktir bhagavaty akincana sarvair gunais tatra samasate surah. This means that if one is turned to be a pure devotee, then all the good qualities automatically become manifest in him. Harav abhaktasya kuto mahad-guna manorathenasato dhavato bahih [SB 5.18.12]. Whereas a nondevotee, he has no good qualification because he is acting on the mental platform, as such, he will be always attracted by material things.
In this connection I shall recite one historical incident from the Puranas. There was a hunter in Prayag. Prayag you know, in Allahabad. So he was hunting in the forest indiscriminately. So Narada Muni was passing through the jungle and he was very compassionate to see the animals being half-dead and half-killed by the hunter. Narada Muni, being Vaisnava, he was very kind to all living entities, so he went to the hunter whose name was Mrgari. So the Mrgari thought that "This saintly person is coming to me for some deerskin," so he said, "Sir, don't disturb in my business. If you want deerskin I shall give you. Please get out of my activities for the present." Narada Muni said that "I have not come here to ask for deerskin, but I simply ask you that if you want to kill the animals, you kill them total. Why you are killing half?" The hunter said, "What is the difference between killing whole and killing half?"
Actually he had no idea about papa and punya. Actually, those who are animal-hunter, they cannot understand what is spiritual life, what is God, what is sinful life, what is pious life. There is a verse in the Srimad-Bhagavatam quoted by Maharaja Pariksit,
nivrtta-tarsair upagiyamanad
bhavausadhac chrotra-mano-'bhiramat
ka uttamasloka gunanuvadat
puman virajyeta vina pasughnat
[SB 10.1.4]
Unless one is animal hunter, he cannot be away from chanting this Hare Krsna mantra. So Narada Muni said that "If you kill the animal totally it is less sinful than you kill them half." Narada Muni said, "No, if you kill the animal half, it is more sinful than you kill them whole." The hunter said that "From my childhood I have been taught like this by my father. I do not know which is sinful, which is pious." Narada Muni, as Vaisnava, advised him that "You stop this hunting business and I will give you your livelihood." So hunter, having seen a Vaisnava, was little convinced about spiritual life. Then he said that "Sir, if you give me my livelihood, then I can give up my, this business." Then Narada Muni suggested that "You and your wife may come with me. I shall arrange for your livelihood. You give up this business."
So they followed the instruction of Narada Muni, the spiritual master, and they came with Narada Muni and sat down in a place on the bank of the Ganges at Prayag. Narada Muni gave them one tulasi plant, and they sat down near the tulasi plant, and he advised that "Go on chanting Hare Krsna mantra." In the meantime, in the village it was advertised that "The hunter has become a Vaisnava. Let us go and see." So people who were coming to visit, they were bringing... It is the custom still now, India, that when you go to see some Deity or a Vaisnava, sadhu, you bring some..., one must give rice or attar; you give them as contribution. So he thought that Narada Muni was sending the attar, rice, dahl, and everything. So he became confident that he would not die because he is chanting Hare Krsna mantra. In this way he gradually became a perfect Vaisnava because he was chanting under the instruction of the spiritual master and committing no sinful activities. So we being in the disciplic succession of Narada Muni, this Krsna consciousness movement, we are advising the same principle, that "Don't commit sinful activities, and chant Hare Krsna mantra."
So one day Narada Muni asked his friend, Parvata Muni, "I have got a disciple. Let us go and see him." (to translator:) Parvata Muni, his friend. Yes. So when Narada Muni and Parvata Muni was coming to the same hunter who had become now a Vaisnava, so he was going to receive his spiritual master by going forward. So while he was going forward towards his spiritual master to receive him, on the way he was jumping in so many places. So Parvata Muni asked him that "Why you are jumping on your way while coming to us?" The hunter, the Vaisnava, he replied, "Sir, there were so many ants on the ground. Therefore I was trying to avoid trampling them." So Parvata Muni was surprised, that "This man was hunting and killing animal half. Now, because he has become a Vaisnava, he is not prepared to kill even an ant."
So this is the practical instance that if one becomes devotee of the Lord, all the good qualities manifest in his body. Therefore Sukadeva Gosvami replied to Pariksit Maharaja that "You are saying right that simply by atonement, simply by punishment, one cannot become honest." Practically speaking, if you simply enact laws to make people honest, it is impossible to do that. So Sukadeva Gosvami said,
karmana karma-nirharo
na hy atyantika isyate
avidvad adhikaritvat
prayascittam vimarsanam
The Sukadeva Gosvami said, "O son of Vedavyasa..." The Sukadeva Gosvami, the son of Vedavyasa... Sukadeva Gosvami is the son of Vyasadeva. He answered, "My dear king, since acts meant to neutralize impious action are also fruitive, they will not relieve one from the tendency to act fruitively. Persons who subject themselves to the rules and regulation of atonement are not at all intelligent. Indeed, they are in the mode of darkness. Unless is freed from the mode of ignorance, trying to counteract one action through another is useless because this will not uproot one's desire. Thus, even though one may superficially seem pious, he will undoubtedly be prone to act impiously. Therefore real atonement is enlightenment in perfect knowledge, Vedanta, by which one understands the Supreme Absolute Truth." In this verse there is one particular word, vimarsanam. The meaning of this vimarsanam: "full knowledge of Vedanta."
Then Sukadeva Gosvami continued to speak, "My dear king, if a diseased person eats the pure, uncontaminated food prescribed by a physician, he is gradually cured and the infection of disease can no longer touch him. If one follows the regulative principles of knowledge, he gradually progresses toward liberation from material contamination." Therefore in the Vedanta-sutra it is said that athato brahma jijnasa: "Now this life, human form of life, is simply meant for inquiring about Brahman." At the present moment, especially in this Kali-yuga, nobody is interested in brahma-jijnasa. Therefore he prescribes from scripture,
tapasa brahmacaryena
samena ca damena ca
tyagena satya-saucabhyam
yamena niyamena va
[SB 6.1.13]
One should make his life successful by tapasya, austerity, penance. So brahmacarya is one of the item. Tapasya means beginning with brahmacarya, celibacy. Here we have given the meaning of tapasya: "by austerity or voluntary rejection of material enjoyment." Tapasa bramacaryena. So tapasya. I do not like something to do because it is pleasing to me, but for the sake of my advancement of spiritual life I must have it. This is called tapasya. We prescribe four kinds of regulative principle: no illicit sex, no meat-eating, no gambling, no intoxication. In the Western countries these four things are very ordinary means of life. In the Western countries practically cent percent population, they are addicted to these sinful activities. So in our society, anyone who joins, he has to accept these four principles of regulative life.
So brahmacarya, celibacy, sex, prohibition of sex life, especially illicit sex life... Unless one is married, no sex life is allowed. That is called brahmacarya. Tapasya begins with brahmacarya, life of celibacy, or accepting one wife only. That's all. Then samena. Samena, controlling the senses, controlling the mind. Samena damena ca, these two things required. We should not become the servant of the mind; we should become master of the mind. And tyagena. Tyagena. Therefore in the sastra the process of charity is recommended. In the Bhagavad-gita it is also recommended that yajna-dana-tapah-kriya na tyajyam karyam eva tat. Because I have renounced this world, it does not mean I shall give up the process of performing yajna, dana, and tapasya. It is further stressed, yajna-dana-tapah-kriya pavanani manisinah. Even if you think that you are very advanced, still, you should not give up these three processes, means performing yajna, giving in charity, and performing tapasya. "One must then control the mind and senses, give charity, be truthful, clean, and nonviolent, follow the regulative principle, and regularly chant the holy name of the Lord. Thus a sober and faithful person who knows the religious principle is temporarily purified of all sins performed with his body, words, and mind." In the Bhagavad-gita it is also recommended,
yuktahara-viharasya
yukta-cestasya karmana
yukta-svapna..., yukta
yogo bhavati duhkha-ha
In this way, if we practice yoga, bhakti-yoga, then gradually we are elevated to the perfectional stage.
Now, one may say that "If I give up all these thing which is habituated to me, there will be some painful condition." So therefore Bhagavad-gita has recommended to tolerate. Matra sparsas tu kaunteya. We have to tolerate. This is called tapasya. Even though it is painful for me -- it is not at all painful, but those who are trying to practice in the beginning, it may be painful -- so Bhagavan, Krsna, is advising that even it is painful, you must do it and tolerate it. So matra-sparsas tu kaunteya sitosna-sukha-duhkha-dah [Bg. 2.14]. The example is given just like we suffer sometimes in scorching heat and very pinching or chilly cold. But we tolerate and do our business. Sometimes to cure our disease, say, for example, fever, we have to swallow very bitter quinine pills. But Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, considering the people in general of this age, Kali-yuga, He knew that people will not be able to even tolerate such little pain for advancing in spiritual life. So Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu therefore recommended that,
harer nama harer nama harer nama iva kevalam
kalau nasty eva nasty eva nasty eva gatir anyatha
[Cc. Adi 17.21]
It is very difficult in this age to follow the principles of brahmacarya, as it is recommended, tapasa brahmacaryena samena damena va [SB 6.1.13]. (to translator:) Yes, go on. Therefore Narada Muni also... Sukadeva Gosvami also advising that "If one is unable to follow the regulative principles, then," he says,
kecit kevalaya bhaktya
vasudeva-parayanah
agham dhunvanti kartsnyena
niharam iva bhaskarah
[SB 6.1.15]
The translation is, "Only a rare person who has adopted complete unalloyed devotional service to Krsna can uproot the weeds of sinful action with no possibility that they will revive." Kevalaya bhaktya. "Simply... He can do the simply by discharging devotional service, just as the sun can immediately dissipate fog by its rays." So by other processes temporarily it can be ceased, but actually from the root of the cause it is not possible to get it out.
In the previous verse Sukadeva Gosvami gave the example that "The dried leaves of creepers beneath a bamboo tree may be completely burned to ashes by a fire, although the creepers may sprout again because the root is still in the ground." You have seen practically. On the field the grass is dried up, and sometimes fire is set and it becomes all burned into ashes. But as soon as there is rainy season, again they sprout and become green. The idea is that you may perform the religious, ritualistic ceremonies, but if you heart is not cleansed, simply by performing these ritualistic ceremonies you'll not be purified. So we have got two desires: pious desire or impious desires. So either you become desirous of doing pious thing or you desirous of doing impious things, the sufferings of this material world will continue.
It is said in the Bhagavad-gita,
urdhvam gacchanti sattva-stha
madhye tisthanti rajasah
jaghanya-guna-vrtti-stha
adho gacchanti tamasah
[Bg. 14.18]
So by pious activities you can be elevated to the higher planetary system in the heavenly planet, but that does not mean completion of your suffering of the material world. Krsna has said, therefore, abrahma-bhuvanal lokan punar avartino 'rjuna. Even you are promoted to the Brahmaloka, where the standard of living, duration of life, is very, very big, still, you cannot avoid there these material pains and pleasure, because after finishing your resultant action of pious activities you'll come..., you'll have to come back again in this lower planetary system. Ksine punye punar martya-lokam visanti. After the resultant action of pious activity is finished, you are again dragged within this lower planetary system. Therefore, unless you take to the devotional path, bhakti, because Krsna says, bhaktya mam abhijanati yavan yas casmi tattvatah [Bg. 18.55], if you want to understand God, Krsna, then you have to take the only path, bhaktya, bhakti, or devotional service.
So we shall discuss further tomorrow about this bhakti-yoga and today let us end here. Thank you very much. (end)
© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.
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