Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.1.15

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

kecit kevalayā bhaktyā vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ aghaṁ dhunvanti kārtsnyena nīhāram iva bhāskaraḥ [SB 6.1.15]

[break] [01:29]

Translation: "The rare person who has completely adopted unalloyed devotional service can uproot all the weeds of sinful activities simply by discharging that service, and there is no possibility that the weeds will grow again. His devotional service is just like the sun, which can immediately dissipate fog simply by its rays."

Prabhupāda:

kecit kevalayā bhaktyā vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ aghaṁ dhunvanti kārtsnyena nīhāram iva bhāskaraḥ [SB 6.1.15]

So we have been discussing for the last few days how to become free from the reaction of our sinful life. That is real problem. But people, they have no knowledge what is life, what is sinful life, what is pious life, why we are put into this condition that "We have to do this; we haven't got to do that." This is real philosophy of life. The āsuras, as we were discussing in this morning walk, they do not know it. Āsurās... Pravṛttiṁ ca nivṛttiṁ ca na vidur āsurāḥ janāḥ [Bg 16.7]. We are living... In the ordinary life also, we live a little carefully so that we may not fall sick. For that purpose there is very vigilance in the immigration department, that in Australia we had some nice mangoes brought from Bombay, and they did not allow to take it. They thought this mango is more dangerous than the dry meat.

They will allow importation of dry meat, three hundred years old, [laughter] put into the refrigerator, and that is imported. That is not infectious. But mango, very nice mango, fresh mango—we started in Bombay at night, and we came in the morning—it has become poisonous. So we are so much precautious that not any germs, infectious disease, may enter. That is there. But what is that infection which has caused me to accept this material body again and again? That they do not know. That they do not know. They do not believe in the next life, and therefore āsurāḥ janāḥ. This is the symptom or characteristic of the āsurāḥ janāḥ. You should be precautious. That is natural. We become precautious, that "We should not do this so that I may not fall sick." But we do not know what is our real sickness. That we do not know.

That is being presented by Kṛṣṅa in the Bhagavad-gītā, that "This is your sickness, real sickness." What is that? Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam [Bg 13.9].

[Humility, pridelessness, nonviolence, tolerance, simplicity, approaching a bona fide spiritual master, cleanliness, steadiness and self-control; renunciation of the objects of sense gratification, absence of false ego, the perception of the evil of birth, death, old age and disease; nonattachment to children, wife, home and the rest, and evenmindedness amid pleasant and unpleasant events; constant and unalloyed devotion to Me, resorting to solitary places, detachment from the general mass of people; accepting the importance of self-realization, and philosophical search for the Absolute Truth—all these I thus declare to be knowledge, and what is contrary to these is ignorance.]

You are trying to be unaffected by all kinds of sickness, but your real sickness is this material disease: you take birth, you die, you become old and you suffer from diseases. This is your real sickness. But who is caring for this? Where is the scientist who are investigating how to stop death, how to stop birth? They are, of course, investigating how to stop birth, but still, birth is going on. This sort of stopping birthdays, by killing the body, is not stopping, because the body is not the person. The real person is within the body. Within the body. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe [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.]

We have explained. That they do not know. They are taking... No. By killing the body or by protecting the body, that is not the solution. The solution is that the living entity has infected itself with the material disease. It has to be cured. That is the whole purpose of Vedic civilization, how to cure your material disease.

So this cure of material disease have been described—we are discussing—first by atonement. So Parīkṣit Mahārāja did not like it very much because he saw, the atonement is like bathing of the elephant. By atonement we may be free from the infection, but again we do it. Karmaṅā. Then again... That is called karma-kāṅḍa, fruitive activities. Because the bīja, the seed of my sinful desires, that is not cured. For the time being... Just like go to the doctor. You are suffering from a severe disease, and he gives some medicine, takes his fees. That is my atonement, prāyaścitta. But it is no guarantee that I will not fall disease again. So this atonement like that. Many patients, they are suffering from some chronic disease, some venereal disease. They go to the doctor and they give injection, very costly medicine and so much suffering, but as soon as he cured, again he does the same thing so that he is attacked with venereal disease. So this is not very effective way of becoming...

Then it was suggested that people, because they are in darkness, āsuras, they do not know how to become immune from all diseases, therefore prāyaścittaṁ vimarśanam, he suggested, Śukadeva. Vimarśanam: he must be sober, that "I am suffering from some disease, and I am heavily paying the penalty to the doctor, and still I am doing the same thing?" So therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī suggested, prāyaścittaṁ vimarśanam. Vimarśanam means to become sober and think that "Why I cannot check my desire to do sinful activities?" Then he suggested to come to that understanding he requires good brain. Ordinary brain, they cannot understand that "Why I am forced to act sinfully, although after doing that I suffer? I have committed theft. I am suffer..., I go to jail. Again I come out." So therefore it is called vimarśanam. So for vimarśanam—means to become sober—you require practicing the tapasya. That is also, we have discussed.

tapasā brahmacaryeṅa śamena ca damena ca tyāgena satya-śaucābhyāṁ yamena niyamena vā [SB 6.1.13]

[To concentrate the mind, one must observe a life of celibacy and not fall down. One must undergo the austerity of voluntarily giving up sense enjoyment. One must then control the mind and senses, give charity, be truthful, clean and nonviolent, follow the regulative principles and regularly chant the holy name of the Lord. Thus a sober and faithful person who knows the religious principles is temporarily purified of all sins performed with his body, words and mind. These sins are like the dried leaves of creepers beneath a bamboo tree, which may be burned by fire although their roots remain to grow again at the first opportunity.]

A series of practice. Then the brain will be clear. So this process also, not very safe. The example has been given that kṣipanty aghaṁ mahad api veṅu-gulmam ivānalaḥ [SB 6.1.14]. It is something like burning, setting fire into the dry grass. And superficially it appears that all the grasses are now burned into ashes; there is no possibility of coming out. No. Therefore this very word is there, iva analaḥ. Although superficially, outside, it appears that everything is burned, but the root remains there. The root remains there, and as soon as there will be facility or there will be rainy season, the same grasses and twigs and other things will come out again, new growth. That is... Even after so much tapasya... There are many instances. Just like Viśvāmitra Muni. Viśvāmitra Muni was a king. He wanted to become a brāhmaṅa, and he practiced mystic yoga for many years. Still, he became a victim of a woman, Menakā. He was meditating, closing eyes, and Indra sent this woman, Menakā. And simply by hearing the sound of the bangles, ching-ching-ching, "Oh, there is woman. Yes, very nice," [laughter] all mystic yoga finished. Then he begot one daughter. That..., her name is Śakuntalā, the famous beautiful daughter. So that history is there.

So the root of our material enjoyment cannot be taken away, cannot be uprooted by... The first process is called karma, and the second process is called jñāna, and the next, it is suggested, bhakti. So he is suggesting that kecit. People are more inclined to take to the... Those who are absolutely in the rotten condition of life, not for them, but those who are little above the rotten condition... Animals. Rotten condition of, means like animals, cats and dogs. Above them, human life, they take to pious activities or meditation or mystic yoga process, just to purify. So these processes are not sufficient. Therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī is suggesting next, kecit. That kecit word is very significant. Kecit means somebody. Somebody. Who are the somebody? Kecit kevalayā bhaktyā [SB 6.1.15], pure devotional service. And how they become? Vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ. They become Kṛṣṅa conscious.

Kṛṣṅa conscious person or vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ, the same thing. Vāsudeva means Kṛṣṅa, that "Simply I shall worship Kṛṣṅa," kevalayā, "nothing else." This firm conviction and steadiness will save you, without any doubt, this conviction, vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ. Then what is that vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ? That is also not very easy thing. Kṛṣṅa, Vasudeva, says, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate [Bg 7.19].

[After many births and deaths, he who is actually in knowledge surrenders unto Me, knowing Me to be the cause of all causes and all that is. Such a great soul is very rare.]

Vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ and jñānavān mām..., the same thing. When one is fully in awareness what is what, then... That awareness also comes—bahūnāṁ janmanām ante, after many, many thousands of births, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante, jñān..., when he is actually jñānavān, that "What I am, what is my duty," that is actually jñānavān māṁ prapadyate. So vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ [Bg 7.19]. After many, many births, when he comes to this understand, that "Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṅa, is everything. So let me. Kṛṣṅa also asking me to surrender. Let me do it immediately," that is called vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ. In another place, Bhāgavata, it is said that,

vāsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ janayaty āśu vairāgyaṁ jñānaṁ ca yad ahaitukam [SB 1.2.7]

[By rendering devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṅa, one immediately acquires causeless knowledge and detachment from the world.]

Those who have become vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ and engages himself in the service, for them, janayaty āśu vairāgyam, very soon they become detestful to all this material way of life. That is the test. How much one has advanced in Kṛṣṅa consciousness one can test himself, that "How much I have become detestful, all this material way of life?" Everyone can test himself. If he has got still some inclination, then he is not fully Kṛṣṅa conscious. He has to work very hard, how to become fully Kṛṣṅa conscious, chant Hare Kṛṣṅa. Then it is possible. So that is called vāsudeva-parā. Vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ is not so easy. Therefore it is said, kecit. Kecit means "maybe somebody." It is not for all. And Kṛṣṅa also says in the Bhagavad-gītā... Who is vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ? Who knows Vāsudeva, who knows Kṛṣṅa. So He says, manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu [Bg 7.3]:

[Out of many thousands among men, one may endeavor for perfection, and of those who have achieved perfection, hardly one knows Me in truth.]

"Out of millions of persons," manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye, "somebody is trying to make his life perfect."

Everyone is being carried away by the waves of this material nature: "Eat, drink, be merry and enjoy." But that is not siddhi. That is imperfection. If you are carried away by the waves of these material necessities, then it is not siddhi. One has to become siddha. Siddha means one who understand that "What I am and what is my duty." That is siddha, perfect. Not... That is the beginning of perfection. So manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhate [Bg 7.3]. That siddha, perfection of life, is also not for everyone. Somebody out of millions. And Kṛṣṅa said, yatatām api siddhānām: "Those who are siddhas, those who have attained perfection, if they are trying to understand Me, maybe one or two may understand." Yatatām api siddhānāṁ kaścit vetti māṁ tattvataḥ [Bg 7.3]. Therefore it is said that to become vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ, that is very, very rare. Therefore it is said kecit, "somebody out of many millions."

So one may ask, "If it is so difficult to become Kṛṣṅa conscious, so how so many people are becoming Kṛṣṅa conscious? They are not genuine? They are all false, if it is said kecit?" No, they are not false. They are amongst these kecit, amongst those rare persons, those who have become Kṛṣṅa conscious. How? It is due to Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has descended to distribute Kṛṣṅa. That is His mercy. So by the mercy of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, so many people are becoming vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ. But otherwise, it is not possible. Therefore we first offer our obeisances to Guru-Gaurāṅga, by whose mercy we get Kṛṣṅa. This is the system. Adau gurvāśrayam. Now, Caitanya Mahāprabhu is so kind. Rūpa Gosvāmī could understand, could understand.

namo mahā-vadānyāya kṛṣṅa-prema-pradāya te kṛṣṅāya kṛṣṅa-caitanya nāmne gaura-tviṣe namaḥ [Cc Madhya 19.53]

[O most munificent incarnation! You are Kṛṣṅa Himself appearing as Śrī Kṛṣṅa Caitanya Mahāprabhu. You have assumed the golden color of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṅī, and You are widely distributing pure love of Kṛṣṅa. We offer our respectful obeisances unto You.]

He understood, confidential devotee, Rūpa Gosvāmī. So, "My Lord, You are the same Kṛṣṅa. Now You have appeared as Kṛṣṅa-Caitanya, and Your business is to distribute love of Kṛṣṅa—not only Kṛṣṅa, but love of Kṛṣṅa."

So this is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mercy that you are becoming Kṛṣṅa conscious. Otherwise, it is not so easy thing; very, very difficult. Kecit kevalayā bhaktyā [SB 6.1.15]. So stick to this principle. Chant śrī-kṛṣṅa-caitanya prabhu nityānanda śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda. By their favor, by their mercy, we can chant Hare Kṛṣṅa. And as soon as we chant Hare Kṛṣṅa, we are vāsudeva-parāyaṅāḥ. There is no more fear. That is required. So you stick to this principle; do not forget. We have already given our ways and instruction. So don't deviate from it. Then everything is perfect and your life is successful.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda. [end]