"Time and Tide Wait for No Man"
Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.1.23
Chicago, July 7, 1975
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Nitai: "My dear King, Ajamila, while
maintaining his large family of many sons by abominable activities, passed
eighty-eight years of his life."
Prabhupada:
evam nivasatas tasya
lalayanasya tat-sutan
kalo 'tyagan mahan rajann
astasityayusah samah
[SB 6.1.23]
So his living condition was cheating and stealing and forcing others to snatch away some money. This was his living condition. So he was thinking, "I am very happy. I am begetting children..." Lalayanasya tat-sutan. Every year, one children, and getting money by cheating others, and living very peacefully. But the time factor was waiting, according to one's duration of life. So when astasiti, eighty-eight years reached, his death was imminent. Kala. Kala means death. So he did not know that time and tide waits for no man. When time will come, death, then all this my paraphernalia will be taken away. I am very proud of my wealth, prestigious position, family, society. Everything is all right. But what about your death? Do you think that any day death will come and it will take everything, what you possess?
In the Bhagavad-gita it is said that mrtyuh sarva-haras caham [Bg. 10.34]. We are accumulating so many things, big, big buildings, big, big estate, big, big bank balance, big, big family. That's all right, but what is the guarantee that we will be able to enjoy this? That they are not thinking. And it is a fact that death may come at any moment. Especially nowadays. So you... There is no guarantee. Even in your ordinary life you are going by the car, there may be accident. "Maybe" not. They are taking place. So many people are dying. He does not expect that "I am going to office. I shall be killed." In aeroplane crash... So there is no guarantee. Any moment we can die. But we are not thinking..., because they have made this theory, "There is no life after death. So enjoy. Enjoy life as far as possible." But that is not the fact. After death, we will have to accept another body. Tatha dehantara-praptih [Bg. 2.13]. But they try to forget it. And the argument they put forward, that "Even I get one body next life, I shall forget this life. So what is the wrong? Let us enjoy." This is called life of ignorance, passion. But this is not the proper life.
So yesterday we discussed the different grades of life: first class, second class, third class, fourth class, fifth class, sixth class. So this kind of life, without any responsibility and carried away by the waves of time, is the tenth-class life. This is tenth-class life, ignorance. So Bhaktivinoda Thakura, he sings one song, miche mayar bose, jaccho bhese', Khaccho habudubu bhai: "By the waves of maya you are being carried away, and habudubu, sometimes being drowned within the, under the water, and sometimes rising, floating on the water." This is our life, material life. We are being carried away by the waves of nature. Prakrteh kriyamanani gunaih karmani sarvasah [Bg. 3.27]. And sometimes... Just like in the waves of water you will find many straws and vegetables and leaves, they gather together. You will find. And again, by another toss, they are separated. One straw goes this way, another straw, leaf, goes this way, no combination. Similarly, we are, gathering together: society, friendship, love, community, society, and so on, so on, nationality, family, sons, daughters, wife. The same thing: the waves of water gathering together the straws, leaves, and other, and another wave, finished. All society, friendship, love, children, wife, everything, national -- finished. This is going on. Bhutva bhutva praliyate [Bg. 8.19].
In the Bhagavad-gita it is said, bhutva. Bhutva means taking shape in some particular type of body. The living soul is there within this body, but the outward dress... Just like we are sitting, so many persons -- we have got different dresses -- similarly, all these 8,400,000's different forms of life, they are coming into existence and again changing. This is called material world. Bhutva bhutva praliyate [Bg. 8.19]. But we are hearing from authorities like Lord Krsna. He says, na jayate na mriyate va kadacit: "My dear Arjuna, a living entity does not take birth. There is no birth, death, old age, disease of the spirit soul." Na jayate na mriyate va kadacin nityah sasvato 'yam na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bg. 2.20]. That is understanding, that we, aham brahmasmi, we, all of us, we are particle of Brahman. Therefore we are eternal. There is no birth, death, old age, and disease. So actually, we do not like to die. Why? Because I am eternal, you are eternal, so I want to live forever. But we are put under certain condition of this material world, that we have to die.
Die means in this body we are creating some situation for the next life, and in order to accept... Just like one person -- especially this Ajamila upakhyana -- his ways of life was not ordinary; most abominable. So abominable, good, or bad, in this life we are creating some situation so that we will get next life another body. Therefore there is death. That is material world. And as soon as there is death, there is birth. Death means we enter into the womb of a mother for, say, ten months. That ten months is considered as death. Not ten months, because the child within the womb of the mother returns his consciousness when the child is seven months old. This is human body. At that time he feels inconvenience within the womb of mother. Before that, he is unconscious, sleeping. Now, when the body grows within the mother womb and it is seven months, then he returns consciousness. He feels inconvenient. And he is very eager to come out. Those who are advanced, they pray to God, "My Lord, somehow or other get me release from this condition. This life I shall devote for rendering You service so that I may be free from this condition." So similarly, at ten months, ten days, he comes out and..., but forgets. Svajanera kole. Many relatives, mother, father, takes care, and he forgets that "I promised I shall become Krsna conscious this time." But on account of illusory energy, he thought that "I am very comfortably situated. My father is taking care. My mother is taking care. My relatives are taking care. So very happy life." This is called forgetfulness.
So Sukadeva Gosvami, therefore, he remained within the womb of his mother for sixteen years. And as soon as he got out from the mother's womb, immediately he left home. You will read in Bhagavatam. So father was going after. After all, father, that "This boy, going out. My dear son, come back. Where you are going? Where you are going?" He didn't care. He didn't care. He went away. There are persons like that. They don't want to be attached to this material affection. Mayara vaibhava. These are expansion of the illusory energy. That is sense. That is first-class understanding. Actually, there is no need of this material world. Just like somebody says that "If all the prisoners become free, how the prisonhouse will go on?" And is it a very good proposal? The prisonhouse, as soon as it is stopped, as soon as it is closed, that is good for the society. Why there should be prisonhouse at all? But they want to maintain the prisonhouse and very anxious, "If people all are set free, then who will fill up this prisonhouse?" They question that, that "If all people go to back to home, back to Godhead, then how this world will go on?" (laughter) That is their anxiety. But we say the sooner you close this business and all of you go back to home, back to Godhead, then everything is very nice.
Devotees: Jaya! Jaya, Prabhupada!
Prabhupada: So kala, as it is said. Kalah atyagat mahan. Mahan means very powerful, great. You may be a very big scientist and very powerful politician, you don't care for anything, but you cannot conquer over the mahan, the great powerful time. Oh, that is not possible. You are independent. You don't care for God. But God will come. You will see. Kalo 'smi. When Krsna showed the gigantic form, virad-murti, Arjuna enquired, "Who are You, Sir?" Because he was dealing with Krsna as friend, but after seeing the virad-rupa, the gigantic universal form, so he enquired, "Who are You, Sir?" He replied, kalo 'smi: "I am kala, kala. I have appeared to take away all these sinful demons." So Krsna appears still in form of war, big gigantic war, and takes away so many millions of people by one stroke. This is going on. So we should have sense that "We hear from the sastras that we are eternal. Why we are subjugated to these laws of nature, kala? I do not wish to die, I do not wish to suffer, I do not wish to be old man, I do not wish to be diseased, and these things are forced upon me. I have to accept, and still, I am so fool, I am thinking I am independent." This is called foolishness, rascaldom.
So our Krsna consciousness movement is trying to remove this rascaldom, foolishness. That is the purpose of this movement, that "Sir, you are not independent. You are completely under the grip of material nature, and after death, your all independence finished. You are under the control of material nature, and you have to accept. A type of body will be forced upon you." Karmana daiva-netrena jantur deha upapattaye [SB 3.31.1]. So how the next body is formed? Karmana, by your activities. You are forming your next body. You are responsible for your next body. Therefore you should not become a tenth-class man like Ajamila. Of course, Ajamila is better than anyone. That will come. But we are creating this tenth class... No. Everyone has the chance to become first-class man and come to the understanding, the value of life, and mold our life so that we can, next life we can get better chance. The so-called Darwin's evolutionary theory... Some way or other, he brings to the human body, but he has not discussed what is after human body. He has avoided. But after this, that depends on your work. Because your consciousness is developed than the animal, than the cats and dogs. And the sastra is giving you information, how you can get the other body, next body.
In the Bhagavad-gita you will find,
yanti deva-vrata devan
pitrn yanti pitr-vratah
bhutani yanti bhutejya
yanti mad-yajino 'pi mam
[Bg. 9.25]
Now make your choice. There are different planets. These rascals say that only living entities are in this planet, and all planets are vacant. Just see their scientific knowledge. What the other planets have done? It is made of the same ingredient, five elements, earth, water, air, fire, and we find innumerable living entities within this planet, and why other planets made of the same ingredient and there is vacant? Why? This is not scientific knowledge. The other planets are also filled up with living entities. Even in the sun planet. We cannot think... The sun planet is made of fire. How living entities can live there? Yes. Why not? You have to little consider about your rascal senses. What is the fault in the sun planet that there shall be no life? The five elements means earth, water, fire, air, ether. So fire is as good as the earth, one of the elements. Earth, water, fire, air, ether or sky. So we are experiencing that on earth, on the land, there are so many lives. And in the water there are so many lives. In the air there are so many lives. And why not in the fire? What is the reason? You have got some concocted ideas that in fire, nobody can live there. But Bhagavad-gita says, "No, you can live there." There is a verse -- I now forget -- that "Fire cannot burn it." Can anyone recite that verse?
Nitai: Adahyo 'yam?
Prabhupada: Adahyo 'yam. Adahyo 'yam. This is the nature of the soul, adahya. Asosyo 'yam, asosyo 'yam. The, that is the distinction between the soul and the matter. Matter, any matter you take, earth, earthly matter, even the hardest matter, namely the iron, it can be melted, it can be burned. But the soul is distinct from this matter. Therefore it is described, adahyo 'yam. Any material thing can be dried up by the air. But soul, asosyo 'yam: "It is not dried up." Any material thing can be moistened. So the soul cannot be. In this way every particular there is. So in the fire the soul cannot be adahyo 'yam, it cannot be burned. And we get information, as there are worms in everything, earth, water, fire... In the fire there are worms. They are called agni-po(?). Where is the scientist? But we get this information from the sastra. Agni-po(?), worms within the fire. And Krsna says, above all -- this is also Krsna's statement -- imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham avyayam [Bg. 4.1]. There is kingdom. There is city. There is population. Otherwise, how Krsna went there long, long ago, forty millions of years, and He instructed this Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god? Vivasvan, his name, is also there. Not fictitious. This is the parampara system. Imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham avyayam [Bg. 4.1].
So we have got picture in our Bhagavad-gita. The sun-god is listening. The sun-god, there is sun-god. Just like here we have got a god, Ford or Nixon, similarly, in every planet there is a god. Therefore it is described, yanti deva-vrata devan [Bg. 9.25]. All these gods, they are demigods. They are not God. God is one. So deva. That... If you try to go to the sun planet, moon planet, or any other planet, millions and trillions of planet, you can go. Higher planetary system, lower planetary system, that you can go. That is... The description is there in the sastras. They are going to the moon. Of course, I have several times... They have never gone, but anyway... You can go to the moon planet. How you can go, the description is there. So moon planet is not vacant. That is counted amongst the heavenly planets. If anyone can go there, he can live there for ten thousands of years. Ten thousand of years means according to the demigods' years. Their duration and our duration is: our one day, our six months, their one day. That is admitted by scientists that you go higher, the relative time is different. Just like when the Russians first of all sent that sputnik, in one hour, twenty-five minutes, they surrounded all over the world. Now it is relative. You have got a speedy vehicle. So generally, the 25,000 miles, this earth, it takes long, long time, even you go by aeroplane But when you have got a better machine, it is finished within one hour, twenty-five minutes. So as you go higher, higher, the time duration becomes different. This is called relativity. We hear from the Bhagavad-gita the duration of life of Brahma, sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmano viduh [Bg. 8.17]. Our some millions of years is equal to twelve hours of Brahma.
So in this way, if you like to go to the other, higher planetary system, there is system, how to go there. As we have got system here in this world... If anyone wants to come to America, he has to arrange for visa and passport and so many things. Without going through the system, you cannot enter by force. So these foolish people are thinking that "There is no living entity. It is lying vacant, and by force, we can go there." And after spending millions of dollars, we come back with some dust, that's all. (laughter) And become proud that we have gone to moon planet. So the Vedic sastra does not say so. But you can go there. You can live there, a higher standard of comfortable life, higher duration of life. Yanti deva-vrata devan [Bg. 9.25]. You can go there. But anywhere you go within this material world, either the moon planet or sun planet or Brahmaloka, Krsna says, abrahma-bhuvanal lokah punar avartino 'rjuna [Bg. 8.16]. Even if you go to the Brahmaloka, that is also not permanent settlement. After many, many years, you have to come... Ksine punye punah martya-lokam visanti. When your resultant action of pious life will be finished, you will come back again.
So our Krsna consciousness movement is that why we shall accept this material body, which is limited? Maybe one hundred years or one thousand years or one hundred second or millions of... The our advice is that take, revive your original, permanent life, eternal life, and go back to home, back to Godhead. That is our program. Don't die like Ajamila and others. This is our program. Those who are intelligent, they will take advantage of this movement, and... Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti kaunteya [Bg. 4.9]. So take advantage of this movement intelligently, and there is no difficulty. You can see practically. We are not in any kind of difficulty. Very easily... Susukham kartum avyayam [Bg. 9.2]. Those who are devotees executing Krsna consciousness, susukham, they are happy. Susukham kartum... To execute this Krsna conscious atmosphere, susukham, what is that? Chant Hare Krsna and dance and take prasadam. That's all. Where is the difficulty? So our request is take advantage of this movement and push it on. Those who are in ignorance, they do not know what is the value of life, what is next life. Just enlighten them. That is a good business. Krsna will recognize. Anyone who is pushing on this movement, he is immediately recognized. Because Krsna wants... We are all sons of Krsna. He wants us back to home, live with Him comfortably, without any disadvantage of conditional life, freedom. Krsna wants. Therefore he comes: yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata, tadatmanam srjamy aham [Bg. 4.7]. That dharmasya glanih means... Dharma means religious. Glani means pollution. What is that? We are manufacturing so many rascal type of religion. This is dharmasya glanih. But real religion is as Krsna says. What is that? Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg. 18.66]. This is religion. Religion means the order of Krsna. Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]. You cannot manufacture religion. Religion means you carry out the order of God. That is religion. That is religion. So you do not know what is God, what is the order of God, or even if you know, you do not carry out -- then what is the meaning of your religion? It has no meaning. Therefore Srimad-Bhagavatam directly takes it, dharmah projjhita-kaitavah atra paramah nirmatsaranam vastavam vastu vedyam atra.
So this Bhagavata religion is not a cheating religion. This is real religion. Don't be carried away by cheating type of religion; you do not understand what is the value of life, what is the goal of life, how we can revive our eternal life. These things are to be known, and then your life, human life, is successful. And that chance is present before you in this form of Krsna consciousness movement. Take advantage of it and be happy.
Thank you very much. (end)
© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.
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