660330 - Lecture Purport to Bhajahu Re Mana - New York

Lectures by Date, 1966

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

660330PU.NY - March 30, 1966

Prabhupāda: Hear carefully. Just try to hear, then . . .

(sings Bhajahū Re Mana, accompanied by karatālas)

bhajahū re mana śrī-nanda-nandana

abhaya-caraṇāravinda re

durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge

taroho e bhava-sindhu re

(O mind, just worship the lotus feet of the son of Nanda, which make one fearless. Having obtained this rare human birth, cross over this ocean of worldly existence by associating with saintly persons.)

śīta ātapa bāta bariṣaṇa

e dina jāminī jāgi re

biphale sevinu kṛpaṇa durajana

capala sukha-laba lāgi' re

(Day and night I remain sleepless, suffering heat and cold, wind and rain. For a bit of flickering happiness I have vainly served wicked and miserly men.)

e dhana, yaubana, putra, parijana

ithe ki āche paratīti re

kamala-dala-jala, jīvana ṭalamala

bhajahū hari-pada nīti re

(What assurance of real happiness is there in all one’s wealth, youth, sons, and relatives? This life totters like a drop of water on a lotus petal, therefore you should always worship the lotus feet of Lord Hari.)

śravaṇa, kīrtana, smaraṇa, vandana,

pāda-sevana, dāsya re

pūjana, sakhī-jana, ātma-nivedana

govinda-dāsa-abhilāṣa re

(Govinda Dāsa longs to hear the glories of Lord Hari, chant His glories, constantly remember Him, offer Him prayers, serve His lotus feet, become His servant, worship Him, serve Him as a friend, and completely offer Him his very self.)

This is a song which a devotee is praying and asking his mind, bhajahū re mana. Mana means mind. Because, at the present moment, our mind is the driver, and this body is just like a car. In the Bhagavad-gītā also it is stated, bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni māyayā (BG 18.61), this body is a car made of this material nature.

The living entity, what is said "I," I am now seated on this car prepared by the nature, material nature. And the driver is the mind. And the driver is not in my control. The driver is taking me anywhere he likes. You see? I am . . . personally, I am not able to drive. I have engaged one driver, which is called the mind, and this body is the car, and the mind is carrying me . . .

Woman: Like driver.

Prabhupāda: . . . like driver, anywhere it likes. So therefore the proprietor, I, I am, I am requesting the driver . . . when I am helpless, so I am requesting, "My dear mind," bhajahū re mana, "my dear mind . . ." Mana means mind. "You kindly worship Lord Kṛṣṇa." Śrī-nanda-nandana. Śrī-nanda-nandana means Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Lord Kṛṣṇa appeared as the son of Vasudeva, and He was accepted by Nanda Mahārāja as his . . . what is called? Son who is accepted from others? So he, he was His foster father. So he's reques . . . "I am requesting that you worship Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is abhaya-caraṇa." Abhaya-caraṇa means He's the fearless shelter. If we take shelter of Kṛṣṇa, then we become free from all anxieties. Just like a helpless child, when he's taken care of by his parents, he becomes careless . . . carefree, not careless. Carefree. "Similarly, I am requesting, my dear mind, 'You do not drive in this way, dangerously. Please worship Lord Kṛṣṇa, who is fearless shelter.' " Bhajahū re mana śrī-nanda-nandana-abhaya-caraṇāravinda re: "His lotus feet is fearless shelter."

One who takes shelter . . . as the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Now, either you say Kṛṣṇa or you say superconsciousness . . . superconsciousness is impersonal conception of Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa is personal conception of superconsciousness. Because Kṛṣṇa means He's not only superconscious, but He's supreme bliss and supreme knowledge—supreme knowledge means superconsciousness—and eternal, supreme consciousness, supreme bliss. That is the definition of Kṛṣṇa.

Now, then the devotee says that durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge taroho e bhava-sindhu re. Now, this body, this human body, is durlabha. Durlabha means very valuable. It is obtained with . . . after a great struggle of existence. We have to come through so many species of life: aquatics, birds, then trees, then reptiles, then beasts . . . there are so many. So many. There are eighty-four lakhs, means 8,400,000 species of life, and we had to pass through by gradual evolution. This theory is accepted by Darwin also, evolutionary theory. So this human body is very valuable.

So he requests, "My dear mind . . ." Mind, of course, the . . . in the lower animal life the mind is there also. Also mind is not developed, but they have got mind. It is a . . . in the very lower animal living condition, the mind is not at all developed, but at least, in animal life, there is mind. Now, the devotee requesting that, "This life, this human form of life, is very valuable. Don't waste it. Don't waste it, but you just to make your life successful in the association of saints and sages."

Woman: What?

Prabhupāda: Saints. Saints. S-a-i-n-t-s. Saints and sages.

Woman: No, no.

Prabhupāda: You have no saint?

Girl: Saints and sages, s-a-i . . .

Woman: Saints?

Prabhupāda: Saints.

Woman: Oh, saints and sages.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Saints and sages. You see? "So you should not make association with anybody else, but you make your association only with saints and sages and make your this valuable human form of life successful. Don't waste your time. You worship Lord Kṛṣṇa with the help of the saints and sages and make your life successful." That he is requesting. "Don't drive in this irresponsible way to put me into the ocean."

And it is also requested that, "We are just like in the ocean of birth and death." This material cosmic situation is sometimes explained as the ocean, and these planets, they are explained as islands. And actually, they are islands in the air. Just like we have got islands in the sea and ocean, similarly, these planets are islands in the air, air islands, so many planets.

So he says that durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge tara e bhava-sindhu re. Bhava-sindhu. Bhava-sindhu means this cosmic situation where birth and death is going on continually, one after another. "So you stop this business of repeated birth and death. You make your this human form of life successful and get release from this disease of birth and death." Birth and death is a sort of disease for the living entity. It is not the normal condition. Due to our this abnormal encagement in the material body, we are put into the birth and death. Otherwise, I am not subjected to birth and death. I am eternal. I am eternal.

So he is requested that, "Don't waste your time, my dear mind." Because mind is taking me here and there. So he's requesting mind. It is very philosophical. This is concentration, requesting the mind, "Don't put me into the ocean of birth and death. Please save me, and just make your life successful in the association of saints and sages. That is my request."

Bhajahū re mana śrī-nanda-nandana. So worship, worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa or the Supreme Lord and, at the same time, association of saints and sages, that makes our life successful. Association of good persons and, at the same time, simultaneously, devotional service to the Lord. These two things combinedly can make our life successful.

Woman: How do you call devotion to the Lord?

Prabhupāda: Eh? Yes. Lord . . . we worship Kṛṣṇa, the symbol of supreme consciousness. Because in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that kleśa adhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta-cetasām (BG 12.5).

If you take up impersonal, simply consciousness, then you have to pass through difficult process. But if you accept the symbol, Kṛṣṇa, the symbol of supreme consciousness, that will be easier for you. Yes. It is said. So Kṛṣṇa . . . I can concentrate my mind. I can focus my mental activities in the service of the Lord, Kṛṣṇa. Because He is supreme consciousness, therefore automatically I concentrate on the supreme consciousness. So:

bhajahū re mana śrī-nanda-nandana-

abhaya-caraṇāravinda re

durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge

taroho e bhava-sindhu re

Then he says that, "What I am doing? What is my present occupation?" The present occupation is:

śīta ātapa bāta bariṣaṇa

e dina jāminī jāgi re

biphale sevinu kṛpaṇa durajana

capala sukha-laba lāgi' re

He says that, "I am working hard, day and night. And there is no question of winter or summer or rainy season. I have to work hard, day and night. If there is night duty in the winter season, I have to join my office at twelve o'clock at night. So I must go. There is snowfall. If I don't go, then I'll be absent. So I am working so hard, very hard. Śīta ātapa bāta bariṣaṇa, jāminī jāgi re.

"And what for I am working? Now, biphale sevinu kṛpaṇa durajana: "Just to serve persons who cannot protect me." "Who cannot protect me." We think that my wife or my husband or my children or my relatives or my friends and, oh, so many we have got, relationship with this material world . . . and everyone is working to satisfy his relatives. A family man is working so hard because he has to satisfy his wife, children, friends and so many other person. But one should be conscious that "These friends and relatives, they cannot protect me ultimately. They are . . . neither I can protect them, nor they can protect me. You see?

Everyone responsible. Everyone is responsible for his own activity. Besides that . . . now, suppose if I am constructing a high building, skyscrapers—just like you have got very good experience in this country—if somebody asks me that, "Why you are building so high building? What is the reason?" and if I answer, "Just to set fire in it, then the . . . the man will laugh, "You, simply for setting fire, you are spending so much money and building this high building for setting fire? "Yes."

So this sort of answer is just like in our present activities. Now, of course, you take the dead bodies to the crematorium and, I mean to say, put into the grave. But India . . . in India, of course, there is graveyard for the Muhammadans and the Christians, but the Hindus, they burn the dead body. They burn the dead body. You see? In the Bhāgavata also, these three system are recorded, that the ultimate transformation of this body will be either ashes, stool or earth.

Woman: Earth . . .

Prabhupāda: Earth . . .

Woman: . . . stool . . .

Prabhupāda: . . . stool or ashes. How it is? Now, because after death, persons who burn the dead body, that is turned into ashes. This body, this beautiful body, will be turned into ashes. And those who bury in the graveyard, that will turn into . . .

(aside) Oh, that is air. Don't disturb yourself. That is the air.

If we bury in the ground, gradually the body will turn into earth. And according to Iranian system, the body is thrown to the vultures. They eat it. So that will be turned into animal stool. You see? So that is the last stage of this body.

So everyone knows that everyone will die. Still, we are working so hard. We are making our bank balance, we are just making will and papers just to give protection to our family or to our children, and there is no time. Everyone is very busy in this. But he does not see that, "All these, what I am doing, all these body ultimately become either ash or animal stool or turn into earth. So why I am taking so much trouble?"

Therefore the revealed scripture advises that, "You have to maintain your body. That's all right. But for simply material comforts you should not devote time more than it is absolutely required." That means don't increase your bodily necessities. Don't increase your bodily necessities.

That was the standard of Indian civilization. They did not, the sages and saints, they did not advise to increase the necessities of the body. They, I mean to say, planned the social system in such a way that people should be satisfied only for . . . by the bare necessities of life. We require some eating, we require some sleeping, or shelter place, and we require some sense gratification and we require some protection from enemies.

(aside) Yes? Come. Ah-hah! Ah, ah-hah, ah-hah! . . . (indistinct) . . . come in. Come in. (end)