Prabhupada:
gurunam ca laghunam ca
guruni ca laghuni ca
prayascittani papanam
jnatvoktani maharsibhih
[SB 6.2.16]
So sinful activities, it is punishable. You cannot violate the laws of nature. Prakrti is very strong. Daivi hy esa gunamayi mama maya duratyaya [Bg. 7.14]. Just like the government has police department, military department, law courts. Why? Because not all the citizens were good citizens. There are many outlaws. So more or less, whoever is in this material world, they are outlaws. Outlaw means they do not abide by the laws of nature, and therefore they are punishable.
The first punishment is that we have got this material body. This is the first punishment.
krsna bhuliya jiva bhoga vancha kare
pasate maya tare japatiya dhare
The first criminal action is that when we forget Krsna and our relationship with Him Our relationship with Krsna is that Krsna is the enjoyer; we are eternal servant. This is our relationship. Just like a big man, rich man: he is the enjoyer and he has got many servants. That we practically see. The capitalist, he starts some business, big factory. Ten thousand men are working, but the capitalist is not working. It is our practical experience. He is aloof from the factory. In a nice place, in a nice bungalow, garden house, he is enjoying. Similarly, God, Krsna, He is the enjoyer. You will find, therefore, Krsna here in this temple, He is enjoying. He is standing with His elder brother, enjoying in the forest, sporting with His cowherd boy friends, His cows, calves -- enjoying in the forest. The description is there in the Srimad Bhagavatam. And those who are playing with Him, those who are associates of Krsna in Vrndavana, they are also not ordinary persons.
ittham brahma-sukhanubhutya
dasyam gatanam para-daivatena
mayasritanam nara-darakena
sarddham vijahruh krta-punya-punjah
[SB 10.12.11]
Sukadeva Gosvami said that "These boys who are playing with Krsna, they are not ordinary boys." Krta-punya-punjah: "After many, many births' accumulation of pious activities they have not got this position, the chance of playing with Krsna." Similarly, everyone in Vrndavana when Krsna was present, all the gopis, all the cowherds boys...
So Krsna comes. Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata, tadatmanam srjamy aham [Bg. 4.7]. This is the process. Every living entity is part and parcel of Krsna. He belongs to the Krsna's family. Krsna's family. This is our original position. Vrndavana means whole Krsna's family. Even the birds, beast, trees, plants, water -- all belong to the Krsna's family. Advaya-jnana. Therefore anything in Vrndavana is as good as Krsna. Even the dust of Vrndavana is as good as Krsna. This is the philosophy, Absolute Truth. So Krsna, out of His causeless mercy, He comes. At a certain interval during one day of Brahma, He comes. He exhibits His lila, that "Anyone who desires to go back to home, back to Godhead, they can enjoy with Me like this." This is Krsna's mission. "Come on. Why you are playing here and suffering this maya's play? Come to the real play." This is Krsna's mission. Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti mam eti kaunteya [Bg. 4.9]. Krsna comes: "Just try to understand Me, why I come."
The certain section, they say that "Why God will come? God has no business to come here." So these rascals, they do not know. Why God will not come? Is He your father's servant, that you think God cannot come, therefore God cannot come? You can think in your way, but God is fully independent. Whenever He likes, He can come. Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata. Just to show the example. Why God should be restrained not to come? He is not God. If God is restrained by us, by our speculation, by our imagination, that is not God. That is dog. A dog can be restrained: "Don't come here." Why God can be restrained? So there is no reason. He says freely that yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati [Bg. 4.7]. He wants. We are part and parcel of God, just like sons are part and parcel of father. If the father is rich man, all-powerful, he does not like to see that his sons are loitering in the street without any food, without any shelter. He doesn't like. Father entreats, "My dear son, why you are rotting in this way? Come home. You'll be comfortable. You'll be happy." But these rascal sons will not go. They are thinking, "We shall make plan here and live peacefully." That is going on. And God is coming, Krsna is coming, canvassing, that "Come back to home, back to Godhead," and we are not interested. We are making plan here. This is our misfortune. But this plan will be frustrated. That is the nature's law. Daivi hy esa gunamayi mama maya duratyaya [Bg. 7.14]. Whatever plan you make, it will be frustrated. It will never be successful. Therefore sastra says, bahir-artha-maninah. Na te viduh svartha-gatim hi visnum [SB 7.5.31]. Where is the destination of life, they do not know it. Na te viduh. These rascals, those who have come to this material world, they do not know where is the goal of life because they are rascals, mudha, naradhama. Krsna is canvassing that "Give up all this nonsense business." Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg. 18.66]. Nobody will hear. He will manufacture his own way. This is the disease. Why? Because under the spell of maya.
So to forget Krsna and to become subjected to the condition of material nature, that is called material life. Material life means to give up the idea of going back to home, back to Godhead, but making plan here to be happy. This is called maya, or material life. So here it is said that,
gurunam ca laghunam ca
guruni ca laghuni ca
prayascittani papanam
jnatvoktani maharsibhih
Maharsibhi. Great learned scholars, realized soul, liberated soul, they have given us Vedic literature. There are different types of explanation, just like main is the Manu-samhita. In the Manu-samhita it is said that if a man kills, then he should be also killed. No excuse. From Manu-samhita the hanging or killing of a murderer, that is enjoined. That is there. Maharsibhih. A killer of other animals or other living entities, he must be killed. This is Manu-samhita. This is showing the mercy. When a king orders a murderer to be hanged, that is king's mercy. It is said in the Manu-samhita. He is not to be excused. Life for life. Now imagine how many lives we are killing every day. We have now become very civilized. We are maintaining slaughterhouses, thousands and thousands, up-to-date machine, how to kill the animals. This is our advancement of civilization, and they are all sinful activities, papani. And not only killing. There are so many institution how to cheat, how to take your money by tricks, how to kidnap others' wife, how..., so many things, simply sinful activities. Simply. Of course, there are different grades of sinful activities. Therefore it is said, gurunam ca laghunam ca. Just like disease. You are suffering from some headache, and that is also disease. And you are suffering from cancer, and that is also disease. But when you are suffering from headache the doctors may give you a tablet, Anacin, and the headache is cured. And this is laghu, very insignificant disease. But if you are suffering from cancer, that tablet will not help you. Therefore gurunam ca laghunam ca. As there are different types of diseases -- some of them are very, very acute and severe, and some of them are very insignificant -- similarly, the grades of sinful activities are there. Some of them are not very serious and some of them are very, very serious. So as the physician prescribes costly medicine for serious disease, similarly, maharsibhih, big, big saintly persons, liberated persons, they have prescribed prayascitta, atonement, for severe types of sinful activities and insignificant types of sinful activities.
But sinful activities must be there. We are put into certain condition; therefore it is called conditional life. Suppose you are very pious man. You are not killing any man or any cow -- we are very careful -- but still you have to kill. What is that? Because we are walking on the street. You have seen. You are killing so many ants. The position is like that. Even if you do not wish to kill, even if you are very pious man, still you have to kill, unconsciously or consciously. The world situation is like that. Anyone who has come here, he must commit sinful activities. As soon as you get this material body, then you must have to commit sinful activities, even if you are very careful. It is not possible. Therefore sastra says, padam padam yad vipadam: [SB 10.14.58] "Every step there is vipada." You cannot be excused. Because you are killing one ant unconsciously while walking, your name is noted. Your ticket is immediately there: "Oh, you have killed so many ants." The law is so nice. Prakrteh kriyamanani gunaih karmani [Bg. 3.27]. Automatically it is recorded, automatically, and you have to suffer.
So then what to do? If the situation is like that, how to save? Therefore Krsna says, yajnarthe karmananyatra karma-bandhanah. If you dedicate your life for yajna... Yajna means for Visnu. Yajnarthe karma means Yajna-purusa is Visnu. If you work for Visnu, then you are safe. Otherwise you are becoming complicated. Yajnarthe. Krsna says yajnarthe karma anyatra karma-bandhanah. If you are going to office to earn your bread, very hurriedly to attend the office, and you are killing so many ants, you are becoming entangled. You think, "I am going to office to do my duty very hurriedly," but you are becoming implicated. But if you go out for receiving some help for worshiping Visnu, then you are free. Then you are free. Exactly like that: soldier who is fighting in the battlefield and killing so many men and he is given gold medal, "Oh, you have killed so many. So many lives you have killed of the opposite party, enemy. You take this Victoria Cross." He becomes recognized by the government. The same man, when he comes home, if he kills somebody for his sense gratification, he will be hanged. The same man. The same soldier, when he is fighting for king's service, government service, government is supplying him food, everything -- "So fight very chivalrously" -- and offering him gold medal. And the same men, when he comes home, for his sense gratification if he kills a man, he will be hanged. He may say in the court, "Sir, I have killed so many men in the battlefield and I was never hanged. I was given gold medal. And now I have killed only one man and I am going to be killed? Why? What is this?" "Yes." For your sense gratification, as soon as you do anything, that is sinful, whatever you do. It may be so-called pious activities in your calculation, but in this material world there is no such thing as pious activities or impious. Everything impious.
The Caitanya-caritamrta kaj has said, dvaite bhadrabhadra sakali samana. In this material world... The material world means world of duality. And the absolute world means the world of one. Eka brahma dvitiya nasti. That is absolute, spiritual world. There is one only, spirit. There is nothing, although there are varieties of spiritual manifestation. So, so long you are in this material world of duality, then you have to commit sinful activities. Therefore the whole Vedic literature is meant for taking you to the spiritual world. Tamasi ma jyotir gama: "Don't remain in this material world of darkness. Come to the spiritual world." Tamasi ma jyotir gama. This is instruction. And jyotir means that spiritual world. First appreciation of the jyotirman, Brahman, Brahmaloka, Brahman effulgence, that is the first entrance. Brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti [SB 1.2.11]. Just like you see the sunshine: it is impersonal, only light. But if you have got power, strength, if you can go to the sun planet, that is another. This is also... Sun planet is also shining. The heat and light is there. And in the sunshine there is heat and light and shining. But the temperature in the sun globe is different from this temperature. And if you have got strength, then you can see who is reigning over that sun planet. In the Vedic literature you will find his name. Imam vivasvate yogam proktavan aham avyayam [Bg. 4.1]. The name of the predominating deity, or the president of the sun globe, is Vivasvan. His name is also there. His address is also there. The God is there. God's name is there. God's address is there. Now if you have got power to go there, you can go. Just like Indira Gandhi or the President's name is there, address is there, but if you are fit to see him or her, that depends on you. Not that because you cannot see the President or Indira Gandhi, she is nirakara. This is foolishness. This is foolishness. Why God should be nirakara?
Sastra says that brahmeti paramatmeti bhagavan iti sabdyate.
vadanti tat tattva-vidas
tattvam yaj jnanam advayam
brahmeti paramatmeti
bhagavan iti sabdyate
[SB 1.2.11]
The Absolute Truth, advaya jnana. There is no duality. He is absolute in three features: Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan. So Brahman realization means sac-cid-ananda, simply realization of the sat proportion, eternity. That is Brahman realization. And Paramatma realization means eternity and knowledge. And Bhagavan realization means eternity, knowledge, and ananda. Anandamayo 'bhyasat (Vedanta-sutra 1.1.12). There are three things, if you can reach. But foolish persons, although they are advanced in spiritual knowledge, they do not get the information that behind this Brahman effulgence, behind this Paramatma realization there is the Personality of Godhead, Krsna. They cannot understand it on account of poor fund of knowledge. Therefore Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita,
na mam duskrtino mudhah
prapadyante naradhamah
mayayapahrta-jnana
asuri-bhavam asritah
[Bg. 7.15]
Why an impersonalist, although very advanced in knowledge, in Vedic knowledge, still he does not know what is Krsna? He inquires, "What is God?" Just see. God is canvassing, "Here I am," and he is inquiring, "What is God?" So this is our misfortune. Why they cannot realize? Duskrtina. Duskrtina means acting sinfully. Specifically denying the existence of God. That is the greatest offense. Suppose you are a gentleman, and if I say, "You are blind. You are lame. You are handless. You are armless. You have no head. You are...," will you be sat..., happy? Will anybody be happy? Similarly, those persons who are describing the Absolute Personality of Godhead, "He has no eyes..." In other words, he is blind. "He has no hand" mean armless. "He has no leg," then he is lame man. "He has no tongue." In this way it is the definition by negation, and after all, make it zero. If you cut my hand, leg, my head, my eyes, ears, then what I remain?
So the atheist class men, they say openly they don't believe in God. That is honest. And those who have taken the shelter of Vedas and talking of God as armless, legless, and headless, and earless, they are saying the same thing. Vedasraya nastika-vada bauddha ke adhika. Caitanya Mahaprabhu has said that veda na maniya bauddha haila nastika: "Persons who do not agree with the Vedic authority..." He called them nastika. As the Mussulman, they say one who does not believe in the Koran, he is kafir, and Christian, one who do not believe in the Bible, they are called heathens, similarly, according to our Vedic civilization, anyone who does not accept the authority of Vedas, he is called atheist. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu says that veda na maniya bauddha haila nastika. Buddha philosophy, they do not accept the authority of Vedas, although Lord Buddha is accepted as incarnation of Krsna. Kesava dhrta-buddha-sarira jaya jagadisa hare. But for the time being, he did not accept the authority of Veda. Nindasi yajna-vidher ahaha sruti-jatam. Lord Buddha was preaching ahimsa, so according to Vedic rituals there is prescription sometimes -- not always -- killing of animals. So when Lord Buddha was preaching ahimsa, "No more animal killing," the so-called Vedantists and Vedic followers, they said, "Why you are preaching in that way? We have got in the Vedas many animal sacrifice is prescribed there, pasu-bali." So Lord Buddha, what he will reply to these foolish persons what was his mission? He said, "I don't care for your Vedas." Therefore nindasi. Nindasi yajna-vidher ahaha sruti-jatam: "Although it is Vedic injunction, my Lord, you have decried." Means there is no way. Why? Sadaya-hrdaya-darsita-pasu-
So these things can be understood by the devotees. Although he decried Vedic authority, still, he is worshiped. Kesava dhrta-buddha-sarira jaya jagadisa. This is the understanding of the devotees. They know everything perfectly well, what is what. They know Sankaracarya, what he is. Sankaracarya is the incarnation of Lord Sankara, Lord Siva. Lord Siva. Vaisnavanam yatha sambhuh. He is the topmost Vaisnava. So the devotees know that Sankaracarya was at heart a Vaisnava, but he had to preach like avaisnava because he had to drive away Buddhism from India. That was the mission. So therefore he made something, compromise, with the Buddhist philosophies. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu said He wanted to accept Vedas against Buddhism, who did not accept the Vedas, but He preached this atheism under the shadow of Vedas. He said therefore that veda na maniya buddha haila nastika, vedasraye vada nastika ke adhika. So these are the discussion. One has to learn very cautiously how, what is the purpose of, why Lord Buddha came, why Lord Siva and Sankaracarya came, why other acaryas came, why Caitanya Mahaprabhu came. It requires thorough study under able guidance. Then one can understand.
On the whole, the conclusion is that anyone who is in this material world, he is a sinful man. Anyone. Otherwise he would not have gotten this material body. Just like anyone who is in the prison house, you can conclude that he is a sinful, criminal man. You do not require to study one after another. Because he is in the prison house you can conclude that "Here is a criminal." Similarly, anyone who is in the material world, he is a criminal. But not the superintendent of jail. You cannot conclude, "Because everyone is in the jail, criminal, therefore the superintendent of jail, he is also criminal." Then you are mistaken. Those who are conducting these sinful men to take them back to home, back to Godhead, he is not criminal. His business is how to release this rascal from this prison house and take him back to home, back to Godhead.
So mahad-vicalanam nrnam grhinam dina-cetasam. Grhinam. Grhi means anyone who is living within this body or anyone who is living within this material world. It is a compact thing. So they are very poor-hearted. They do not know what is the value of life. Na te viduh svartha-gatim hi visnum [SB 7.5.31]. So instead of enlightening them, if mahat or mahatma, they keep them in the darkness, that is a great disservice. They must be enlightened. Their business is to preach that "Don't keep yourself within this material world. Come to the spiritual world." This is the business of mahatma. Mahad-vicalanam nrnam grhinam dina-cetasam. They are very poor knowledge, mudha. They have been described as mudha, duskrtina. All these men are engaged in sinful activities on account of their ignorance. If you say, "No, how you can say they are in ignorance? There are so many universities. They are passing M.A.C., D.A.C., doctor, Ph.D., and still they are ignorant?" "Yes." "How?" Mayayapahrta-jnana: "The so-called knowledge is taken away by maya." Otherwise why they are sticking to this material world? If you become enlightened, then you must know that this material world is not for our habitation. We must go back to home, back to Godhead. Therefore this Krsna consciousness movement is preaching that "This is not your home. Don't try to be happy here." Durasaya ye bahir-artha-maninah. Bahir-artha-maninah. Bahir, the external energy. They are thinking that "Materially, if we make some arrangement..." Some of them are trying to be happy by scientific improvement or some of them are trying to go to the heavenly planet, and some of them are trying to become this, that, but they do not know that real happiness is to go back to home, back to Godhead. Na te viduh svartha-gatim hi visnum [SB 7.5.31]. They do not know that. So this is very important movement, that we are giving them hint and education how to go back to home, back to Godhead.
Thank you very much. (end)
>>> Ref. VedaBase =>
Srimad-Bhagavatam 6.2.16 -- Vrndavana, September 19,
1975
© 2001 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International.
No comments:
Post a Comment