730910 - Lecture SB 05.05.05 - Stockholm

Lectures by Date, 1973

His Divine Grace
A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

 Listen to a 'Nectar Drop' created from this lecture

730910SB-STOCKHOLM - September 10, 1973 - 45:43 Minutes

Pradyumna: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. (Prabhupāda and devotees repeat) (break)

Prabhupāda: So:

parābhavas tāvad abodha-jāto

yāvan na jijñāsata ātma-tattvam

yāvat kriyās tāvad idaṁ mano vai

karmātmakaṁ yena śarīra-bandhaḥ

(SB 5.5.5)

So in the previous verse Ṛṣabhadeva has said that this madness after sense gratification, nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute, and doing all kinds of sinful activities, this is not good. And actually we can see . . .

(aside) No, I daily say that during talking you should not cut, cut.

So one may argue, especially those who are atheist that, "Suppose we get a material body and little miserable. What is the wrong there? It will be finished. Then there will be no more pains and pleasure." That is the Buddhist theory, that the body is combination of matter, and there is pains and pleasure, so make this body zero. Then there will be no more pains and pleasure." So Ṛṣabhadeva answers this point, "No, this body will be finished, and you will have to accept another body. And so long you shall continue to accept one body after another, the miserable condition of material existence will continue." Therefore in the beginning it was said that "This body, human body, is not to be misused simply for sense gratification like the dogs and hogs." That was the beginning.

So therefore, again He says, parābhavas tāvad abodha-jāto yāvan na jijñāsata ātma-tattvam. These rascals, they do not know that for want of knowledge of the soul, ātma-tattvam, on the bodily concept of life, whatever they are doing, that is defeat. They are thinking, "Now, by scientific advancement, we are able to go to the moon planet." Of course, I do not know whether they can go. Till now they are not successful. Or at least attempting. So this is our achievement. But Ṛṣabhadeva says: "That is not your achievement. That is your defeat. It is your defeat." Why defeat? Because you cannot come to the moon planet or sun planet or any other planet like that. You are simply wasting your time. Just try to understand. Suppose you want to go to some foreign country, and if you think that by force . . . just like in England some Indians, they come by some, what is called? Smuggling method.

Haṁsadūta: Some underground, smuggling.

Prabhupāda: Ah. So that is not allowed. You cannot go. The moon planet, from the śāstra we understand that nobody can go there unless he is fit. Not only the moon planet, any other planet. It is said in the Bhagavad-gītā, yānti deva-vratā devān (BG 9.25). These are higher planetary systems. The demigods live there. So unless you are fit to live with the demigods, you cannot go there. Just like Kṛṣṇaloka. Unless you make yourself fit to enter into the Kṛṣṇaloka, you cannot go by force. That is not possible. Just like to enter into some foreign country, you have to take visa, you have to take passport, immigration. Then you will be allowed. So such attempt to go there . . . and even if you go there, you will be driven away. So what is the use of such attempt?

Therefore this so-called, what is called, excursion, to attempt to go to some planet, you cannot stay there, neither you'll be allowed to enter. So this endeavor to go there by so-called scientific advancement is simply defeat, because you will not be allowed, neither you can go there. And actually it is happening so. What they have achieved so far? Nothing. No tangible action made. But they have spent millions of dollars, Russia and America, to go to the moon planet. And even you go there, but after all, you will have to die, you have to give up this body, and after death, you do not know where you'll be placed. That is under the nature's hand. You cannot dictate that, "After death, I shall go to that planet or this planet." No.

You are completely under the nature's control. Prakṛteḥ kriyāmāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). Unless you are qualified. Everyone is ambitious, but does it mean simply by becoming ambitious, one can become very rich man or very respectable man? That is not possible. One must qualify himself. So these are futile attempts. You have to act according to the . . . but they do not believe that there is higher authority, there is judgment, everything . . . they think that it is blind, "Whatever we like, we can do." That is not good. Parābhavaḥ. This is called defeat. Parābhavas tāvad abodha-jāto yāvan na jijñāsata.

So long one is not inquisitive to understand what he is, without understanding his identification, whatever he does, it is defeat. This is the condition. Nobody is interested to know his identity. This is the instruction we get from Sanātana Gosvāmī. Sanātana Gosvāmī, when he first approached Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, his question was that ke āmi kene āmāya jāre tāpa-traya (CC Madhya 20.102). This is very nice question that, "Kindly tell me what I am, what I am, and why I am subjected to the threefold miseries of material existence. I do not want all these miserable condition of life, but I am forced to accept them. Therefore what is my position? Why I am forced to accept?" This should be the question. This is called ātma-tattva-jijñāsā inquiry. "What I am?" Nobody knows what he is.

Everyone thinks that, "I am this body." Therefore he is abodha-jāta. From the very birth, he is a rascal. He does not know his identity. Somebody is thinking, "I am American," somebody is thinking, "I am Englishman," somebody is thinking, "I am an Indian." All these identification are doggish identification. Just like a dog is thinking, "I am this body," the cat is thinking, "I am this body," similarly, if a human being thinks like that, that "I am this body," then he remains in ignorance, abodha-jāta. And if you remain in ignorance, whatever you are acting as your credit, but you are acting in ignorance. Therefore the achievement is not achievement; it is defeat. This is to be understood.

Parābhavas tāvad abodha-jāto yāvan na . . . one should be inquisitive. Just like Sanātana Gosvāmī went to Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He asked, "Sir, let me know what I am." Grāmya-vyavahāre kahe paṇḍita (CC Madhya 20.100): "In ordinary behavior, people say that I am very learned man. They say paṇḍitjī.' " The brāhmaṇa is addressed in India as "paṇḍitjī." Paṇḍitjī means very learned. So Sanātana Gosvāmī submitted that "The general people, they say that I am very learned, but actually I do not know what I am." He admitted. So ask anybody, so-called scholar, doctors, Ph.D., D.H.C. Just like that Professor Kotovsky said: "After finishing this body, everything is finished." He does not know what he is. This is the position. Therefore the so-called scholars, learned men, whatever they are doing, they are being defeated because he does not know his identity. Unless you know your identity, then how can you work for the goal of your life? If your identity is mistaken, then whatever you are doing, that is your defeat.

Yāvat kriyās tāvad idaṁ mano vai karmātmakaṁ yena śarīra-bandhaḥ. Everyone has got different types of mentality. So karmātmakam means . . . that is general mentality that, "I shall work very nice and I shall get money and I shall enjoy life." This is called karmātmakam. Not only in this life, next life also they are trying, those who are followers of Vedic ritualistic ceremony, by puṇya-kārya. Puṇya-kārya means pious activities. Pious activities, that is also activity. So according to our philosophy, we are not impressed even in pious activity. We are not interested in impious activities. We are not interested even in pious activities. This is our position.

Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has sung:

karma-kāṇḍa jñāna-kāṇḍa

sakhale viṣera bhāṇḍa

amṛta baliyā jebā khāya

nānā joni brahman-kare,

kadarya bhakṣaṇa kare

(Prema-bhakti-candrikā)

By pious activities, you can get very nice birth. Janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrīḥ (SB 1.8.26), four kinds of material gain: to get birth in a very aristocratic family or rich family, janma, aiśvarya; to become very learned scholar, śruta; and śrī, very beautiful. Just like you American people or Western people, you are supposed to be very learned, advanced in material science, also good-looking and richer than other countries, janma aiśvarya, or birth in a very powerful nation or family. This can be accepted due to your past pious activities. But suppose you have taken this opportunities for your pious activities and somebody has taken birth in Greenland . . . what is that? Greenland?

Haṁsadūta: Greenland.

Prabhupāda: . . . always with snow, and there are so many inconveniences. Or take your birth in Africa. There, there is no such facilities, they are not very good-looking, not very learned scholars, not birth is very nice, not aristocratic, not riches, poor.

So from spiritual point of view, both of these kinds of facilities or inconvenience are one, because when you take your birth, you have to enter within the womb of a mother, and to stay ten months in a packed-up condition. Not only ten months—nowadays it is going on, killing the child within the womb. Even you cannot come out. Before your coming out from the womb of your mother, you might be killed by your very mother or father. Because that movement is going on, abortion. So either you are in the womb of a very rich mother or a poor mother or in the womb of a black mother or white mother or a learned mother or foolish mother, the pains of staying within the mother is the same. It is not that because you are in the womb of a rich mother, therefore there will be no pain of living within the womb. The same pain. So janma. Then again, as soon as you accept some material body, you will have to suffer the bodily pains and pleasure. Then, at the time of death, the same painful condition. So it doesn't matter whether one is rich, one is poor, the material condition, both of them we'll have to suffer. The material condition.

So karmātmakam. If you continue to absorb your mind in fruitive activities that, "I shall work, and I shall get the result, and I shall enjoy," this is called karmātmakam. So if you do not fulfill your desire, then nature will give you next life another body to fulfill that desire. This is going on. So therefore it is parābhava. Your business is that to know that you are not this body, you are spirit soul, part and parcel of God, Kṛṣṇa. So your real business is to become Kṛṣṇa conscious fully and go back to home, back to Godhead, finish this business of repetition of birth and death. But who will understand this?

Therefore it is said, kṛṣṇa yei bhaje, sei baḍa catura. One who has understood what is the meaning of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, he must be very intelligent man. Without being intelligent man, nobody can understand what is the purport, what is the basic principle of this movement. The basic principle of this movement is to understand Kṛṣṇa. Janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ (BG 4.9). And the result will be, if you understand Kṛṣṇa, what is Kṛṣṇa, then the result will be that after giving up this body, you go to Kṛṣṇa. Yānti mad-yājino 'pi mām (BG 9.25).

This devotional service, the worshiping Kṛṣṇa in the temple, to dress Him, as I explained another . . .

Śrī-vigrahārādhana-nitya-nānā-śṛṅgāra-tan-mandira-mārjanādau, all these occupational duties will help you to understand Kṛṣṇa. Although it is very difficult to understand Kṛṣṇa, but if you engage yourself in Kṛṣṇa's service, as they are prescribed by the śāstras or by the spiritual master, then Kṛṣṇa reveals to you what He is. And that is wanted. That is the perfection of your life. As soon as you understand Kṛṣṇa, then you become fit to go back to home, back to Godhead, and finish this business of repeated birth and death. Mām upetya kaunteya duḥkhālayam aśāśvataṁ nāpnuvanti (BG 8.15). This secret of success people do not know, neither they can understand. They are not fortunate enough. But it is our duty to push on this movement by superior order. Anyone who will take advantage of this movement, he'll be saved from this repetition, birth and death.

So Ṛṣabhadeva says that, "So long one's mind is absorbed in the conception that, 'I shall work,' " as people are doing here, industry, trade, or so many things . . . the real purpose is to gratify senses. So in this way, if people are engaged, then he is parābhava, he is being defeated. Without understanding Kṛṣṇa consciousness, without being Kṛṣṇa conscious, if simply one wastes his time for these fruitive activities, then he is defeated. Parābhavas tāvad abodha-jātaḥ.

evaṁ manaḥ karma-vaśaṁ prayuṅkte

avidyayātmany upadhīyamāne

prītir na yāvan mayi vāsudeve

na mucyate deha-yogena tāvat

(SB 5.5.6)

So everyone is under this impression, wrong conception of life. But he can be saved if he somehow or other becomes a devotee of Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa. Prītir na yāvan mayi vāsudeve. Vāsudeve bhagavati. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said:

vāsudeve bhagavati

bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ

janayaty āśu vairāgyaṁ

jñānaṁ ca yad ahaitukam

(SB 1.2.7)

Vāsudeva. Here are the same thing, mayi vāsudeve. Ṛṣabhadeva is incarnation of Vāsudeva. So in this entanglement of birth and death, if someone comes in contact with devotee, guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya pāya bhakti-latā-bīja (CC Madhya 19.151), and gets the seed of devotional service, then that is the beginning of being saved from this repetition of birth and death.

Just like we are giving opportunities to the people in general. We are opening centers in different parts of the world. What is the purpose? The purpose is to give chance to every man how to become devotee of Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa. Then he will be saved. Yāvan na prītir mayi vāsudeve. Because people are struggling hard in this way, by working hard and getting the result for sense gratification and repetition of birth and death. In this struggle for existence, if somehow or other one gets the seed of devotional service to Vāsudeva, then he is saved. Yāvan na prītir mayi vāsudeve.

evaṁ manaḥ karma-vaśaṁ prayuṅkte

avidyayātmany upadhīyamāne

prītir na yāvan mayi vāsudeve

na mucyate deha-yogena tāvat

Unless one becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious, his repetition of birth and death and contacting another body from one body to another, that will continue. This is the basic principle of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Do not misunderstand Kṛṣṇa consciousness as a kind of religious faith. It is a science, how to get release from this repetition of birth and death. This is the science. It is not that as people accept a system of religion and another system of religion. Because a human being is supposed to accept some type of religion. Somebody is a Hindu, somebody is Mussulman, somebody is Christian. It is not that. It is a science. It is a science. We are teaching that somehow or other you enhance your love for God, then you are saved. This is a science.

And how to enhance that love of Godhead? That is our activities: to rise early in the morning, to offer maṅgala-ārātrika, to dress the Deity, to offer Him nice foodstuff, to observe festivals, writing books, distributing them. These are activities in devotional service that will save us from this repetition of birth and death. Otherwise we are doomed. We have to continue this repetition of birth and death. Avidyayā eva manuṣyadau. This is avidyā. By avidyā, by misunderstanding, without knowledge, being in ignorance, manuṣyadau, sometimes we are human being, sometimes cat, sometimes dog, sometimes demigod. This is going on. Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona (CC Madhya 19.151): "We are wandering throughout the whole universe, from one body to another, one planet to another, but somehow or other, if we are fortunate . . ." This fortune is made in this way. "Man is the architect of his own fortune." If somebody comes to our contact, if he tries to understand what is this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he is fortunate. He is fortunate. Because he'll be saved from the repetition of birth and death.

Vīrarāghavācārya says therefore, deva-manusvadau paradika deva vasiṣṭha tena aha ahaṅkāra mama upādhīyamāne that, "I am now American," "I am now Englishman," this is ahaṅkāra, upādhīyamāne. karma-vaśana mulaya samsitamane satyatani mana karma-vaśaṁ prayuṅkte vyaparayati puruṣam iti śeṣa, atha yāvad vāsudeve mayi prītir, prīti rūpa bhakti na syāt tāvad deha-yogena na mucyate. Unless we become devotee of Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa . . . therefore Kṛṣṇa personally comes and He says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). That is for your interest. Kṛṣṇa says that, "You surrender unto Me," it is not Kṛṣṇa's interest. If you surrender, not interest, Kṛṣṇa does not lose anything. He is omnipotent. He can create millions of devotees like you by His desire. He doesn't canvass. He is not canvassing that, "You become My devotee and I shall be very rich." No. Not the purpose.

It is for your interest. The same thing—if you become a devotee of Vāsudeva, then you are saved from this repetition of birth and death. It is not Kṛṣṇa's interest. It is Kṛṣṇa's interest in this way, that because you are part and parcel, you are son of Kṛṣṇa . . . Kṛṣṇa is the ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā (BG 14.4). As the father, rich father, He does not like to see that His son will become a crazy, mad fellow and loiter in the street. He doesn't want it. But if you do not come back to home, there is no loss of the father. But if you go back to home of a rich father, then it is your interest. It is your interest.

So Kṛṣṇa is canvassing, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66), it is for our interest. So those who are fortunate, they will accept this offer of Kṛṣṇa and . . . atha yāvad vāsudeve mayi prītir prīti rūpa bhakti. Prīti means bhakti. Prīti means love. So there is Prīti-sandarbha by Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, how one can become lover of Kṛṣṇa. Ṣaṭ-sandarbha. He has written six theses. One of them is the Prīti-sandarbha, Kṛṣṇa-sandarbha, Bhāgavata-sandarbha, six sandarbha, very highly philosophical books. So this prīti means bhakti. Bhakti is not official transaction. Bhakti means prīti, real love. When I actually love Kṛṣṇa, that is called prīti. Just like we love our beloved, our child or husband or wife. That is also not love. That is a temporary sentiment. Actual love is possible with Kṛṣṇa. That is actual love. Once you love Kṛṣṇa, it cannot be broken at any time. It cannot be broken, any, any circumstances. So therefore somehow or other we have to . . . yena tena prakāreṇa manaḥ kṛṣṇe niveśayet (Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu 1.2.4). Somehow or other you just engage yourself in loving Kṛṣṇa. That is the success of life.

Na kevalam deha-yoga-matram api tu anartham tora chityaha yadeti svārthe sasya puruṣārtha bhute svātmā paramātmā deha-sambandha-prayukte vipaścit vivekisan yadā sahasā na paśyati yadā supavan gataḥ smṛti. This is very important. Ṛṣabhadeva says, yadā na paśyaty ayathā guṇehāṁ svārthe pramattaḥ sahasā vipaścit. So we have to become intelligent that guṇehā . . . guṇa, guṇa means these three guṇas, goodness, three modes of material nature. Everyone is trying to love one of these three guṇas: goodness, passion and ignorance. That is material existence. Somebody is trying to become brāhmaṇa; that is goodness. And somebody is trying to become a kṣatriya. Brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, these are under the influence of different modes of material nature. So even one is brāhmaṇa, he is also under the grip of material nature. And what to speak of one who is a śūdra or less than a śūdra. Everyone is trying to improve himself under the influence of certain modes of material nature.

So when one becomes vipaścit, viveki . . . vipaścit means enlightened. These my activities under the influence of different modes of material nature, this is waste of time. Even if I become a brāhmaṇa, that is also waste of time, and what to speak of if I become a kṣatriya, passionate. Passionate . . . this vaiśya, this mercantile class of men, they are passionate and ignorance mixture. They are very active: "I am very running. I am very busy," but running here and there in ignorance. Just like you will see the monkey. Monkey is always very busy, but what is the meaning of his busy-ness? He is in ignorance. As soon as a monkey comes . . . you have so such disturbance. In India, as soon as a monkey comes, everyone wants to drive him away. Because he has come to become business and to make some loss. That's all. That is his business. Wherever he sits, he will move like this. (makes sounds moving arms back and forth) He is not at all silent. He is always active. But because he is monkey, monkey is a symbol of . . . ass, they are symbol of ignorance. Therefore such kind of business is useless. It is simply harmful.

So when one comes to understand that, "This is my business, this my goodness, everything, it is all useless. Unless I become attached, I am a devotee of Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa, all these attempts are simply futile attempts," that is enlightenment. When one understands, "Yes, my only business is to surrender to Kṛṣṇa, to love Kṛṣṇa," then he is to be understood, he is enlightened, educated. Ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān (CC Madhya 19.151). That is fortune. Yadā na paśyaty ayathā guṇehāṁ svārthe pramattaḥ. He does not know his interest. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). They do not know that "My svārtha, my interest, my goal of life, is to love, to find out God and to love Him. That is my real interest."

So, so long one is not enlightened to that standard of life, then he is defeated. Then how he is defeated? Gata-smṛtir . . . gata-smṛtir vindati tatra tāpān āsādya maithunyam agāram ajñaḥ. He remains a ajñaḥ, foolish. And what is his happiness? His happiness is sex life. That's all. That is his happiness. Maithunyam agāram. He is in the prison house of this material nature, but he does not know that, "I am in prison." He is simply enjoying the three things, udāram varitha, udāram varitha: the tongue, the belly and the genital. That is stated here. Gata-smṛtir vindati. And to enjoy this material, he has to undergo so much tribulation. Tāpān vindati. Therefore Govinda dāsa sings:

śīta ātapa bāta bariṣaṇa

e dina jāminī jāgi re

biphale sevinu kṛpaṇa durajana

capala sukha-laba lāgi' re

(Bhajahū Re Mana, 2)

In this country, there is snowfall. Still, people will have to go to work very hard, day and night. But why? Why they are accepting such hard labor? Somebody is coming from India in this country. The climate is not very suitable in comparison to India, but they have come here to work hard. Why? Sex pleasure. That's all. He will get money and he will have home and sex pleasure or tongue pleasure. So therefore it is said, gata-smṛtiḥ, actual. Actually, he has forgotten. His own business, he has forgotten, but he is entrapped by a process of sense gratification. Although it is very great hardship and miserable condition, but he is satisfied because this sense gratification is there. Gata-smṛtiḥ tatra tāpān āsādya maithunyam agāram ajñaḥ. Because he is foolish, therefore he likes to be imprisoned simply for sense gratification.

You know the elephant is captured for sense gratification. You know that? Elephant is captured. A big elephant, to capture, it is very difficult. But a female elephant goes there, and he comes for sex, and the female elephant goes forward. Then she brings in a place where there is a big pit, and he falls down, the male elephant. Then he becomes captured. Yes. These are the nature's example, how for . . . and not only sex. Just like the bees. They enter into the lotus flower for eating honey, and they are enjoying. In the meantime, the lotus flower petals become closed. So he becomes entrapped, cannot come out, dies. The fish—the fish, how they tackle? You know? You have seen the, what is called, tackle?

Haṁsadūta: Fishermen. Fishermen. Tackle, yes.

Prabhupāda: Tackle, yes. What is that? There is a small attractive foodstuff, and the fish comes, and as soon as it swallows, bās (then), he is captured. Similarly, the deers, they are also captured by the hunter. He plays nice flute, and the deers stand up. They are very much fond of music. So as soon as they stand up, entrapped. So one animal or lower than human being, they have got one sense very strong. Someone's the ear, someone's the nose, someone's the tongue, someone's the genital, in this way. But they have got one sense strong. And we, so-called civilized man, our six senses are all strong. So what is the position?

So unless one becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious, he is doomed. So many senses. Tongue is taking him to the hotel, ear is taking to the musical, and eyes is taking, the beautiful things to see. In this way we are embarrassed in so many ways. That is called maithunyam agāram ajñaḥ. He has forgotten his real business, but he is entrapped in a pot or in a place where sense gratification is going on. Puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etaṁ tayor mitho hṛdaya-granthim āhuḥ, ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittaiḥ (SB 5.5.8). So this mithunī-bhāva, the sense enjoyment, is very strong. So there are two sexes: male and female. And each one of them are attracted by sense gratification, and when they are united, that . . . (break) In this way, ato gṛha-kṣetra-sutāpta-vittaiḥ, then they become attached to gṛha. Because they must live in an apartment, they must have some land, gṛha-kṣetra. Everywhere that is going on. In this way they become entrapped.

And Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means . . . but those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious, for them, it is not . . . they are vigilant that, "My real business is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but it is a license given to me for sense gratification, for gṛhastha. But we should not forget our real business and entrapped in this material nature." That should be our business.

Thank you very much. (end)