Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 1.8.25

Nitāi: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [devotees repeat] [leads chanting of verse, etc.]

vipadaḥ santu tāḥ śaśvat tatra tatra jagad-guro bhavato darśanaṁ yat syād apunar bhava-darśanam [SB 1.8.25]

[break] [01:05]

Translation: "I wish that all those calamities would happen again and again so that we could see You again and again, for seeing You means that we will no longer see repeated births and deaths."

Prabhupāda:

vipadaḥ santu tāḥ śaśvat tatra tatra jagad-guro bhavato darśanaṁ yat syād apunar bhava-darśanam [SB 1.8.25]

So the people do not know this philosophy: apunar bhava-darśanam. Punar bhava. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate [Bg 8.19]. The rascals, they cannot understand that what is our real difficulty or suffering. Mūḍha. Therefore the mūḍhas, they do not know it, that what is our actual suffering.

We understand from Bhagavad-gītā, na jāyate na mriyate, that "This living entity is never born, never dies." This information we get, very simple information. We are taking information from whom? Kṛṣṅa, jagad-guru, the supreme guru, the original guru. Guru means Kṛṣṅa's representative. A guru cannot be manufactured. Guru means... Kṛṣṅa is jagad-guru, and one who speaks on behalf of Kṛṣṅa or one who speaks as Kṛṣṅa says, he is guru. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, āmāra ājñāya guru hañā [Cc Madhya 7.128]:

[Instruct everyone to follow the orders of Lord Śrī Kṛṣṅa as they are given in the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. In this way become a spiritual master and try to liberate everyone in this land.]

"You just become guru on My order." You cannot become guru automatically, without following the order of jagad-guru. The government servant... Who is government servant? Who is strictly following the government order, that is government servant. Anyone can say, "I am government servant." No. How you can be? Similarly, guru means who is following the principles given by the jagad-guru. The... He's guru.

So the principle... What is that principle? Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṅaṁ vraja [Bg 18.66].

[Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.]

This is principle. "You give up all these nonsense activities. Simply surrender." So one who has surrendered to Kṛṣṅa fully, no other business, he is guru. This is the definition of guru. There is no difficult to understand who is guru. One who follows strictly the principles laid down by jagad-guru, he is guru. So the jagad-guru says... Because we have to learn everything, especially spiritual subject matter, from guru. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum eva abhigacchet [Muṅḍaka Upaniṣad 1.2.12].

[To understand these things properly, one must humbly approach, with firewood in hand, a spiritual master who is learned in the Vedas and firmly devoted to the Absolute Truth.]

This is the injunction of the Vedas. If you want to understand Brahman, athāto brahma jijñāsā... This life, human life, is meant for inquiring about the Absolute Truth: athāto brahma jijñāsā. This is not meant for any other purpose. This life, any life, there is no question of inquiring about "Where shall I eat? Where shall I sleep? Where shall I have sex? How shall I be saved from fear?" There is no such question. This is already arranged. These things are already arranged even for the birds and beast. They are also living. They are also eating. They are also sleeping. They are also having sex life. They also defend them from danger. So by nature the arrangement is already there. So only thing is, difference than in other life... There are 8,400,000... So eighty-million, 8,000,000 lives, they do not know except these things. And out of the four millions, eight million, four..., 400,000 human species, so mostly they are like animals. So unless one comes to the Vedic civilization, he's not human being. He's not human being.

So when one comes to the Vedic principle, then the question is athāto brahma jijñāsā. Vedānta-sūtra says, "Now you have come to the real platform. You inquire about Brahman." Jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam. Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ [SB 11.3.21].

[Therefore any person who seriously desires real happiness must seek a bona fide spiritual master and take shelter of him by initiation. The qualification of the bona fide guru is that he has realized the conclusions of the scriptures by deliberation and is able to convince others of these conclusions. Such great personalities, who have taken shelter of the Supreme Godhead, leaving aside all material considerations, should be understood to be bona fide spiritual masters.]

When one is inquisitive to inquire about the higher-level questions, brahma-jijñāsā, then he requires a guru. Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta: "You are now inquisitive about understanding higher-level knowledge, so you must go to a guru." Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta. Who? Jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam. Uttamam. Uttamam means that which is above this darkness. This whole world is darkness. So one who wants to go above darkness... Tamasi mā jyotir gama. The Vedic injunction is: "Don't keep yourself in darkness. Go to the light." That light is Brahman, brahma-jijñāsā.

So one who is inquisitive... The uttama... Udgata-tama yasmāt. Udgata-tama. Tama means ignorance. So in the spiritual world, there is no ignorance. Jñāna. The Māyāvādī philosophers, they simply say jñāna, jñānavān. But jñāna is not stereotyped. There is varieties of jñāna. Just like in Vṛndāvana there is jñāna, but there is varieties: sSomebody wants to love Kṛṣṅa as servant; somebody wants to love Kṛṣṅa as friend; somebody wants to appreciate Kṛṣṅa's opulence; somebody wants to love Kṛṣṅa as father and mother; somebody wants to love Kṛṣṅa as conjugal lover, as paramour—never mind. So somebody wants to love Kṛṣṅa as enemy, just like Kaṁsa. That is also vṛndāvana-līlā. He is always thinking of Kṛṣṅa in a different way, how to kill Kṛṣṅa. Pūtanā, she also apparently came as lover of Kṛṣṅa, to offer her breast for sucking; but the internal desire was how to kill Kṛṣṅa. But that is also taken indirect love. Indirect love. Anvayāt.

So Kṛṣṅa is jagad-guru. He is the original teacher. That teacher is teaching personally in the Bhagavad-gītā, and we rascals, we do not take the lesson. Just see. Therefore we are mūḍhas. Anyone who is unfit to take the lessons given by the jagad-guru, he is mūḍha. Therefore our test tube is: if one does not know Kṛṣṅa, if one does not know how to follow Bhagavad-gītā, we immediately take him as a rascal. That's all. Never mind he... He may be prime minister, he may be high-court judge, or... No. "No, he is prime minister. He is high-court judge. Still mūḍhaḥ?" Yes. "How?" Māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ [Bg 7.15]:

[Those miscreants who are grossly foolish, lowest among mankind, whose knowledge is stolen by illusion, and who partake of the atheistic nature of demons, do not surrender unto Me.]

"He has no knowledge of Kṛṣṅa. He is covered by māyā." Māyayāpahṛta-jñānā āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ. Therefore he's mūḍha. So straightly preach. Of course, you may say all these things in soft language just to..., not to make any agitation, but anyone who does not accept Kṛṣṅa as the jagad-guru and does not take His lessons, he is a rascal. Just like this mūḍha in Jagannātha Purī. He says that "You take next birth. Then you can..." That mūḍha, take him as rascal. Why? He is jagad-guru; he is also says, "I am jagad-guru." But he is not jagad-guru. He has not even seen what is jagat. He is a frog, and he is claiming jagad-guru. So he's mūḍha. Kṛṣṅa says. He is mūḍha because he has not taken the lessons given by Kṛṣṅa.

Kṛṣṅa personally says, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ [Bg 9.32].

[O son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth—women, vaiśyas [merchants], as well as śūdras [workers]—can approach the supreme destination.]

Pāpa-yoni... Those who are born in the family of mlecchas, yavanas or the śvapacas, they are called pāpa-yoni. But Kṛṣṅa says, "Even they, the born in the pāpa-yoni..." Yathā bījaṁ yathā..., yathā bījaṁ yathā yoni. The father is the bījam. He gives the semina, and mother is the source of birth. So combination of father, mother... So pāpa-yoni. Therefore yoni. Yoni means source of birth. So Kṛṣṅa says pāpa-yonayaḥ, plural number, yonayaḥ. Yoni, this word, śabda, so the plural number, yonayaḥ. There are many different types... That is also mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. What are that? Kirāta-hūṅāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ khasādayaḥ ye 'nye ca pāpāḥ [SB 2.4.18]. These are mentioned, pāpa-yoni. And less than them, if there are still pāpa-yoni, śudhyanti yad-apāśrayāśrayāḥ: if such persons take shelter of a pure devotee, he's śudhyanti. This is the śāstric injunction. He becomes purified, because the pure devotee knows how to purify the pāpa-yoni. He knows. That rascal is not a pure devotee. He does not know. Therefore he thinks, "Unless the birth is changed, how one can be purified?" He does not know the process.

Therefore śāstra says that the Māyāvādīs, rascals, they should not become guru because they do not know how to purify the disciple. The Māyāvādī rascals, they do not know. They think after changing this body, one becomes purified. No. Therefore śāstra says that ṣaṭ-karma-nipuṅo vipro mantra-tantra-viśāradaḥ [Padma Purāṅa]. A person, vipra, brāhmaṅa, he is expert in six kinds of brahminical business, ṣaṭ-karma. Ṣaṭ means six, and karma means activities. Ṣaṭ-karma-nipuṅo vipraḥ. Nipuṅa. Nipuṅa, very expert. He knows all the brahminical activities. What is that? Paṭhana-pāṭhana yajana-yājana dāna-pratigraha. He knows, he is educated. Brāhmaṅa means paṅḍita. He's personally educated, and he educates others. That is brāhmaṅa. Brāhmaṅa does not keep himself educated. That education, that means he is brāhmaṅa, he makes others also brāhmaṅa. That is brāhmaṅa. Not that "I remain brāhmaṅa, I remain Vaiṣṅava, and others may suffer." No. Paṭhana-pāṭhana. He must educate others. That is the business of brāhmaṅa. Para-duḥkha-duhkhī. That is Vaiṣṅava. Vaiṣṅava means who is unhappy by seeing others unhappy.

Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja. Śoce tato vimukha-cetasa māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān [SB 7.9.43]: "My Lord, so far I am concerned, I have no problem." Naivod..., udvije para duratyaya-vaitaraṅyāḥ. "This vaitaraṅya, this ocean of nescience..." What is explained here as punar bhava, this is nescience ocean, again and again swimming. If you perpetually remain in the ocean, and if you have to perpetually struggle for swimming... Because in the ocean you have no shelter. Land is your place. But if you are placed in the ocean, however expert..., you may be very expert swimmer, but that does not mean that you are happy. You can go on struggling, swimming, very expert swimming, but that does not mean happiness. Similarly, here, in the ocean of nescience, all these rascals are swimming. They are making plans to become happy, but they are not happy. That's a fact. They can try to become happy. That is natural. Everyone unhappy, he wants to become happy. That is called struggle for existence. But they do not know except this. The Darwin's theory, because he's a rascal, he thinks that the struggle is the only business. His only observation is that the struggle is the only business: "Survival of the fittest." But he does not know how to become fit. He does not know. That is mentioned here, apunar bhava-darśanam [SB 1.8.25]. That is fitness: no more struggling; struggling stopped. So that process is not known.

So this is the lack of knowledge at the present moment. We do not take instruction from the jagad-guru, Kṛṣṅa, and still, we are M.A., Ph.D., "Doctor Frog." So this will not help. This will not help. He must know that this māyā... Just like a police. Police business is to give trouble to the criminal so that he can understand that "Government is most powerful. I cannot violate the rules and regulation of the government." This is police business. If you follow, if you obey the government's rules and regulation, then police has nothing to do with you. Police may be. Police department may be. Similarly, mām eva ye prapadyante, if you surrender to Kṛṣṅa, māyām etāṁ taranti te [Bg 7.14],

[This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it.]

this māyā has nothing to do with you. There may be māyā, hundreds of māyā, thousands of māyā; that doesn't mean that māyā will bother you.

Therefore one who is Kṛṣṅa conscious, advanced in Kṛṣṅa conscious, he is not bothered with sex life. That is the prime factor of disturbing. So,

yad-avadhi mama cetaḥ kṛṣṅa-padāravinde nava-nava-rasa-dhāmany udyataṁ rantum āsīt tad-avadhi bata nārī-saṅgame smaryamān ebhavati mukha-vikāraḥ suṣṭhu niṣṭhīvanaṁ ca [Śrī Yāmunācārya]

[Since my mind has been engaged in the transcendental loving service of Kṛṣṅa, realizing ever-new pleasure in Him, whenever I think of sex pleasure, I spit at the thought and my lips curl with distaste.]

The Yāmunācārya said that "Since I have dedicated my life to Kṛṣṅa and I am getting more and more happiness by serving Him, since then, whenever I think of sex life, oh, I spit on it." Because māyā cannot touch him. This is the test. Yad-avadhi mama cetaḥ kṛṣṅa-padāravinde. You haven't got to ask anybody, "Whether I am advanced in Kṛṣṅa consciousness? Will you give me certificate?" You can have your certificate by yourself, whether you have no more any desire for sex life. That's all. Not that he has become impotent. If required, he can give birth to hundreds of children, but he does not like it. That is. That is the certificate. And so long we'll have any such material desire, then Kṛṣṅa is so kind, He will give you chance to take birth again.

Therefore the aim should be... Real happiness is apunar bhava-darśanam. Apunar bhava. This is going on. The jagad-guru is teaching, na jāyate mriyate vā [Bg 2.20]. It requires little intelligence, that "Kṛṣṅa, the jagad-guru, is teaching that living entity is never born and never dies. So why I am taking birth and I am dying?" This much intelligence they haven't got, because they do not take the instruction of the jagad-guru. He is describing, na jāyate na mriyate vā kadācit. Kadācit: at any time. Not that in the past he was dying. Kṛṣṅa says again, in the Second Chapter, that "All these soldiers and kings who have assembled there, so also you and Me, we existed in the past, we are existing now, and we shall continue to exist in the future." Therefore kadācit. Kadācit means "at any time." "Any time" means past, present and future. Time has got three factors. So at any time. Kadācit means at any time the living entity is never born, never dies. The... If this is the fact, why you do not think, "Then why I am dying? I must have to die. Death is as sure as anything."

So they have no even sense. They are so animalistic. Just like animal: he does not know that death can be avoided. So the animal civilization. This very question... In the Bhagavad-gītā, jagad-guru is teaching that try to understand this fact first of all. This is the beginning of Bhagavad-gītā, tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati [Bg 2.13].

[As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.]

So there is no death, but you change your body just like you change your garment, you change your shirt and coat. Similarly, you change your body, but the thing is that this changing of body is not very happy task. Tomorrow... Today I am American, very happy, but tomorrow, if I change my body—I become a dog or even cow in America, I'll be sent to slaughterhouse. So changing of body is very risky. You American human being or Indian human being, any way you have got protection. But as soon as you change your body, American cow, then you are for slaughterhouse. Is it not a fact?

So change of body is very risky. Therefore Kuntī says, apunar bhava-darśanam: "Kṛṣṅa, by seeing You I can stop this again and again birth and death. Therefore let all the dangers remain so that we always seek to see You, because we have no other shelter. Whenever we are in danger, we simply ask Your favor. That is our business." So Kṛṣṅa was taking farewell from Kuntī to go back to Dvārakā. So that was the lamentation of Kuntī, that "Kṛṣṅa, You did so much for us. You saved us so many..., from so many dangers. Now, because we are situated in our position—we have got the throne, we have got the kingdom—but You are going away? No, no, no. I don't want." Vipadaḥ santu: "Let us remain in danger always. Don't go. Please don't go. I prefer to remain in vipada." This is Kuntī's prayer. "I prefer, because... Let there be all kinds of dangers in this life, but I, if, when I see You again and again, I advance. I advance in what?" Apunar bhava-darśanam [SB 1.8.25], "That I'll not have to take birth again. So let there be dangers always so that I can see You again and again so that this business of taking birth and death again and again will be finished."

Just like you have got a dangerous boil: you are applying so many medicines, but it is not curable. The doctor says, "You have to go, surgical operation. So that will be very troublesome, vipada. But a intelligent person will say, "Yes, you do it so that this trouble may be finished." So Kuntī wants that "Again and again, all these dangers may be repeated so that we can think of You, we can see You, so that no more this life of repetition..." But these people, they do not know. This is the real unhappiness. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate [Bg 8.19]. This rascal civilization, they do not know. They are taking risk of again and again taking birth.

nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma yad indriya-prītaya āpṛṅoti na sādhu manye yata ātmano 'yam asann api kleśada āsa dehaḥ [SB 5.5.4]

So long you'll get this material body, you have to suffer. It is meant for suffering. As soon as you get this material body—this body or that body—you have to suffer tri-tāpa. So people do not know... [break] [end]