Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam

Engagement at Birla House, Talk on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.6.1

Prabhupāda: Hmm.

Lady: kaumāram... [indistinct]

Prabhupāda: Hmm?

kaumāram ācaret prājño?

Harikesa: Sixth Chapter, First verse.

Prabhupāda: Hmm? I shall speak in English? Hmm.

śrī-prahrāda uvāca kaumāram ācaret prājño dharmān bhāgavatān iha...

[aside:] You can give some stand. How long he will stand?

durlabhaṁ mānuṣaṁ janma tad apy adhruvam arthadam [SB 7.6.1]

This is the instruction of Prahlāda Mahārāja to his class friend. Prahlāda Mahārāja was born of Hiraṅyakaśipu, great demon. He is described as demon because he was interested only in material comforts. Hiraṅya means gold, gold and very comfortable situation of material life. He was interested in that, and he wanted to teach his son about this economic development. But Prahlāda Mahārāja, when he was in the womb of his mother... There was fight between the demons and the demigods, so the demons... Sometimes when there is fight, sometimes one party is victorious, sometimes the other party is victorious. So the demigods' party became victorious, and they were harassing the demons like anything.

So Hiraṅyakaśipu's wife, she was pregnant, she was captured by Indra, the king of heaven, and she was being dragged to take her in the house of Indra. In the way, Nārada Muni met them; he chastised Indra. Nārada Muni was devarṣi, ṛṣi amongst the demigods. So he said, "Why you are giving trouble to this woman? This is not good." So the demons replied..., demigods replied that "This woman is pregnant, and there is Hiraṅyakaśipu's son. So we want to kill that son also, because he is demon. So we are taking this woman to our place just to wait for the time of her delivering the child." At that time Nārada Muni said, "No, no. This child is not a demon child. This child who is within the womb of this woman, he is a great devotee, so don't try to kill him. Neither you can kill him; that is not possible." So they are demigods; they accepted Nārada Muni's proposal. So they offered respect to the woman, that "Here is, within the womb of this woman, a great devotee." So they circumambulated and offered respect to the wife of Hiraṅyakaśipu, and they went away.

So Nārada Muni took the wife of Hiraṅyakaśipu to his āśrama: "My dear girl, my dear daughter, you please come with me, remain with me till your husband comes back." So she agreed, and woman's natural propensity is to serve, so she was very nicely serving Nārada Muni, and Nārada Muni became very much pleased, and he instructed about transcendental knowledge. Although to the wife of Hiraṅyakaśipu, but still the Hiraṅyakaśipu's son Prahlāda Mahārāja was within the womb, he also heard the instruction and he learned everything. Later on he will explain that "My mother, on account of being woman, she has forgotten the instruction of Nārada, but I heard it even from within the womb; I remember it." So this Prahlāda Mahārāja is repeating the same instruction which he heard from Nārada Muni when he was packed up within the womb.

So this is one of the instruction, that spiritual instruction does not depend on any material condition. In any position one can understand spiritual instruction. Ahaituky apratihatā yenātmā samprasīdati.

sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje ahaituky apratihatā yenātmā samprasīdati [SB 1.2.6]

[The supreme occupation [dharma] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self.]

That is first-class religion, sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo. Parā means supreme. There are different types of religion, but the supreme religion is parā dharma, that is yato bhaktir adhokṣaje, that religious system which instructs the followers how to become a perfect devotee of the Supreme Lord. That is first-class religion. We are fighting in this material world. "You are Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am Sikh," "I am Jain," "I am this," "I am that," but this is not paro dharma; this is aparo dharma. Parā and aparā, there are two qualities, just like material and spiritual. Material is called aparā, and spiritual means parā, as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, apareyam. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā [Bg 7.4].

[Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—altogether these eight comprise My separated material energies.]

These material elements—earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence and false ego—these are eight material elements, out of which five are gross—bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyu—and three are very subtle. Just like everyone... I know you think with your mind; you know also I think with my mind. But mind is subtle. I cannot see your mind, neither you can see my mind, neither I can see my mind or you can see your mind. This is subtle. And the finer than the mind is intelligence, and finer than the intelligence is egoism, or egotism, and finer than egotism is the soul.

So our Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement is little difficult for ordinary persons who are interested with the material gross and subtle elements. For them it is little difficult. But Kṛṣṅa says apareyam, "This is inferior, these energies." They are energies, prakṛtir me aṣṭadhā. Prakṛti means energy. Just like prakṛti means woman, naturally a woman is under the control of the man. That is our Vedic system, and natural system also. However the woman may claim equal rights, they are under the control of the man. That is natural. So similarly, prakṛti means which is under the control of the Supreme Lord. That is prakṛti. In another place, Bhagavad-gītā, it is said,

mayādhyakṣeṅa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram hetunānena kaunteya jagad viparivarate [Bg 9.10]

[This material nature is working under My direction, O son of Kuntī, and it is producing all moving and unmoving beings. By its rule this manifestation is created and annihilated again and again.]

Kṛṣṅa says mayādhyakṣeṅa: "Under My control the material nature is working." Mayādhyakṣeṅa prakṛtiḥ.

In another place in Brahma-saṁhitā it is said how prakṛti is under the control of the Supreme Lord: sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya-sādhana-śaktir ekā chāyeva yasya bhuvanāni bibharti durgā [Bs 5.44]. Durgā is the material nature. It is very powerful. Sṛṣṭi-sthiti, creation, maintenance and annihilation, is going on under her control, Durgā-devī. We have seen the picture of Durgā, ten hands with ten kinds of weapons. So she is very powerful, but still she is under the control of Govinda.

sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya-sādhana-śaktir ekā chāyeva yasya bhuvanāni bibharti durgā icchānurūpam api yasya ca ceṣṭate sā govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi [Bs 5.44]

[The external potency Māyā who is of the nature of the shadow of the cit potency, is worshiped by all people as Durgā, the creating, preserving and destroying agency of this mundane world. I adore the primeval Lord Govinda in accordance with whose will Durgā conducts herself.]

The mūla prakṛti, the original prakṛti, is fully under the control. Control means she acts according to the direction of Govinda. Yasya ajñayā, she is acting. So this prakṛti is inferior prakṛti, and there is another, superior prakṛti. That superior prakṛti is represented by Śrīmatī Rādhārāṅī. Rādhārāṅī and Durgā, both of them are prakṛtis of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, but one prakṛti is meant for controlling this material world, and the other prakṛti is meant for blessing the spiritual world. Two prakṛtis are Kṛṣṅa's prakṛti. Therefore Kṛṣṅa says,

apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parā jīva-bhūtaṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat [Bg 7.5]

[Besides this inferior nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is a superior energy of Mine, which are all living entities who are struggling with material nature and are sustaining the universe.]

So this jīva-bhūta, living entities, we, we are living entities, we also belong to the spiritual prakṛti, we are expansion of spiritual prakṛti. Just like Śrīmatī Rādhārāṅī is always engaged in the service of the Lord, anārādhyate. Ārādhyate, it is Rādhārāṅī. The Rādhārāṅī, the name has come from the word ārādhyate. Ārādhana. Ārādhana means worshiping. So everyone is meant, beginning from Rādhārāṅī and her expansion, Lakṣmī, in Vaikuṅṭha, lakṣmī-sahasra-śata-sambhrama-sevyamānam govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi [Bs 5.29]... Here we worship mother Lakṣmīji, goddess of fortune, to receive some favor. But in the Vaikuṅṭha world there are many hundred thousands of Lakṣmī, lakṣmī-sahasra-śata, and they are sambhrama-sevyamānam: with great respect, they are engaged in serving the Supreme Lord. So we being expansion of the spiritual Lakṣmī, or Rādhārāṅī, our duty is to serve Rādhārāṅī, and through Rādhārāṅī to serve Kṛṣṅa. This is Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement. We are missing this point, that instead of learning from Rādhārāṅī how to serve Kṛṣṅa, we are being controlled by the another prakṛti, material energy, Durgā, with weapons in her ten hands. This is our position. Therefore we are missing the point, and it is said in Brahma-saṁhitā..., no, in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam... This is also spoken by Prahlāda Mahārāja:

na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṅuṁ durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās te 'pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ [SB 7.5.31]

[Persons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Viṣṅu. As blind men guided by another blind man miss the right path and fall into a ditch, materially attached men led by another materially attached man are bound by the ropes of fruitive labor, which are made of very strong cords, and they continue again and again in materialistic life, suffering the threefold miseries.]

So in this material world they do not know what is the aim of life. Na te viduḥ. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatim. Everyone is very much expert to see his interest. Two businessmen, they are agreeing, but everyone is trying to see his personal interest first. This is called svārtha-gatim. That is natural. But Prahlāda Mahārāja says, na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṅu.

Unfortunately, these materialistic persons, they do not know what is his real interest. The real interest is Viṣṅu, how to serve Viṣṅu. That is explained by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu in the beginning. Sanātana Gosvāmī, a great minister of Nawab Hussain Shah's government, he retired from his ministerial activities and became a servant of Caitanya Mahāprabhu to preach this Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement. The six Gosvāmīs of Vṛndāvana:

śrī-rūpa sanātana bhaṭṭa-raguṅath śrī-jīva gopāla-bhaṭṭa dāsa-raguṅatha

So there are many description about their activities in Vṛndāvana. Some of them are described by Śrīnivāsa Ācārya. The prime duty was, these Gosvāmīs, they were ministers, big, big zamindars. Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī was the only one son of his father and uncle, and in those days, five hundred years ago, their paternal income was twelve lakhs of rupees. So such person joined Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Rūpa sanātana bhaṭṭa-raguṅatha. Either they were very, very learned scholar or coming from very, very rich family, big post, all the six Gosvāmīs.

śrī-rūpa sanātana bhaṭṭa-raghunātha śrī-jīva gopāla-bhaṭṭa dāsa-raghunātha

So their business was, these Gosvāmīs, kṛṣṅotkīrtana-gāna-nartana-parau [Śrīnivāsa Ācārya]: they were always engaged in chanting "Kṛṣṅa."

[I offer my respectful obeisances unto the Six Gosvāmīs, namely Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī, Śrī Sanātana Gosvāmī, Śrī Raghunātha Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī, Śrī Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, Śrī Jīva Gosvāmī, and Śrī Gopāla Bhaṭṭa Gosvāmī, who are always engaged in chanting the holy name of Kṛṣṅa and dancing. They are just like the ocean of love of God, and they are popular both with the gentle and with the ruffians, because they are not envious of anyone. Whatever they do, they are all-pleasing to everyone, and they are fully blessed by Lord Caitanya. Thus they are engaged in missionary activities meant to deliver all the conditioned souls in the material universe.]

That is the real purpose of human life, especially in this age. It is stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam to Parīkṣit Mahārāja by Śukadeva Goswami, he described the symptoms of Kali-yuga: it is very, very faulty. But he concluded that kalau doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṅaḥ. In this Age of Kali it is very fallen age, mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ [SB 1.1.10].

[O learned one, in this iron Age of Kali men almost always have but short lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and, above all, always disturbed.]

The population in this age, they are, almost all of them, are manda—manda means bad or very slow—so they do not understand what is the aim of life, or very slow to understand; therefore they are called manda. And because they do not understand their real interest of life, they can be called very bad, manda. So these are the symptoms: mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ.

So in this age, although it is so fallen, the śāstra says, doṣa-nidhe rājann. Kalau doṣa-nidhe rājann asti hy eko mahān guṅaḥ. There is one great opportunity. What is that great opportunity? Kīrtanād eva kṛṣṅasya mukta-saṅgaḥ paraṁ vrajet [SB 12.3.51]:

[My dear King, although Kali-yuga is an ocean of faults, there is still one good quality about this age: Simply by chanting the Hare Kṛṣṅa mahā-mantra, one can become free from material bondage and be promoted to the transcendental kingdom.]

if one takes to chanting this Hare Kṛṣṅa mantra, then he becomes relieved or freed from the all contamination of this age, and paraṁ mukta-saṅgaḥ, he becomes liberated and he goes back to home, back to Godhead, simply by chanting. That is mukti. Mukti means, we are now under the influence of this material energy, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ [Bg 7.4].

[Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—altogether these eight comprise My separated material energies.]

This is aparā prakṛti. So aparā prakṛti, we have to give up the association of the aparā prakṛti, and we have to take shelter of parā prakṛti. This is our aim of life. The subject matter was how to become successful in life. That we are trying to explain. The success is that we have to give up the control, we have to become freed from the control of the aparā prakṛti, and we shall voluntarily submit to be favored by parā prakṛti. This is our business, aim of life. Then our life will be successful. If we miss this opportunity to give up the shelter of aparā prakṛti and do not take shelter of the parā prakṛti, then we are missing the opportunity. It is very subtle thing, there is no education, but the information and the enlightenment is there in our śāstra. In Bhagavad-gītā everything is explained, how one can give up the control of the aparā prakṛti and be under the shelter of parā prakṛti.

daivī hi eṣā guṅamayī mama māyā duratyayā mām eva ye prapadyante 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.]

It is not very difficult. Kṛṣṅa comes to instruct this simple truth, that "You are being controlled by the material energy. You give up this business; you be controlled by the spiritual energy, and your life is successful." This is the method. Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te.

So we are..., our Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement is for this purpose, that simply we are trying to educate people how to give up the control of the material energy, and under the control... Not to control the material energy. That we cannot do; that is not possible. But not to become under the control. That is very simple method: mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te. Just like if you become honest, if you are not criminal, then there is no police control—police may be there. But as soon as you become criminal, you come under the control of police. Similarly our business is, as Caitanya Mahāprabhu has explained, and everywhere in the śāstra, and actually we are so, we are eternal servant of God, or Kṛṣṅa. This is our real position. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṅa dāsa [Cc Madhya 20.108-109]. But our disease is instead of becoming dāsa, we are trying to become the master of the prakṛti. This is called materialistic way of life. So that will not make us happy at any stage of our life. This is very dangerous. We are missing the point.

na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṅuṁ durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās te 'pīśa tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥ [SB 7.5.31]

We are forgetting that we are absolutely under the control of the material nature.

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṅāni guṅaiḥ karmāṅi sarvaśaḥ ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā kartāham iti manyate [Bg 3.27]

[The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature.]

We are fully under the control of material nature, and foolishly, ahaṅkāra, on account of being bewildered by false egotism, we are thinking that "I am independent." This is called material illusion.

So our first business is to understand what is this material world, what is the spiritual world, what is God, what is my relationship with Him, and how to execute the business of my life, to become successful in this human form of life. The success of human form of life is to understand this thing: our relationship with God. And we should act in relationship with God. Then our success of life will be achieved. This is the main purpose of Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement. It is a very prolonged subject matter to understand, but everything is explained. Our only request is that you read Bhagavad-gītā as it is; don't try to interpret. That is useless. Otherwise, why people have lost in India their own culture? Because they have interpreted wrongly. Every śāstra has been interpreted wrongly, and therefore people are misguided. They could not take advantage of the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā because all through, the Bhagavad-gītā has been misinterpreted. So many so-called politicians, scholars, but it is maybe for the first time—not first time; it is there—but to make it broad propaganda-wide, that "Try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is, without any interpretation." That is our mission.

That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission. Don't try to interpret and spoil it. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa [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.]

Ei deśa means... He was born in Bengal, India—it may be Bengal or in India—He..., He was interested with every man all over the world:

pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma sarvatra pracāra haibe mora nāma [CB Antya-khaṅḍa 4.126]

[In every town and village of the world, the chanting of My name will be heard.]

So He was interested in all the parts of the world, how they can be delivered from the clutches of this material energy. So He wished especially the Indians to take this job preaching the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā all over the world. He wanted it.

bhārata-bhūmite manuṣya janma hoila yāra janma sārthaka kari' karo para-upakāra [Cc Ādi 9.41]

[One who has taken his birth as a human being in the land of India [Bhārata-varṣa] should make his life successful and work for the benefit of all other people.]

This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission, para-upakāra. It is not the business of the Indian people to exploit others. The mission is they must be very, very merciful to all outsiders, born in..., out of India. That is India's mission. Because they are in darkness; they do not know. So instead of... Enlighten them, giving them jyotir gamaḥ-tamasi mā: "Don't remain in darkness." So we are imitating them. This is not India's good fortune. We should not imitate. That is not very good civilization. That is..., this has been described as asuric civilization in the Bhagavad-gītā. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṅu, they do not know. Anyway, although they do not know, they are accepting now. The Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement is so potential that they are accepting. That is upakāra. Caitanya Mahāprabhu wanted this, para upakāra. They are in darkness, tamasi. Bring them in the light: tamasi mā jyotir gamaḥ.

So this attempt has been done by us individually, with teeny effort, but it is becoming successful. But if we take up seriously this movement, every one of us become completely aware of this movement and take this mission as Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa [Cc Madhya 7.128]:

"Every one of you, you become a guru," by the order of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. So "I shall become guru? What shall I do? I do not know anything." No, you haven't got to know anything. You simply, yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṅa upadeśa. You simply repeat the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā. Whomever you meet, you try to convince him; then you are guru. So our mission is this, Caitanya Mahāprabhu's. We are trying to execute the order of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. We don't say anything else except what is described in the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā says, Kṛṣṅa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru [Bg 18.65].

[Always think of Me and become My devotee. Worship Me and offer your homage unto Me. Thus you will come to Me without fail. I promise you this because you are My very dear friend.]

Simple thing. It is not very difficult thing. Kṛṣṅa says, "Always think of Me." Is it very difficult task? No. You chant Hare Kṛṣṅa, you remember Kṛṣṅa immediately. Hare Kṛṣṅa, Hare Kṛṣṅa, Kṛṣṅa Kṛṣṅa, Hare Hare / Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma...

So always remember Kṛṣṅa. This is Kṛṣṅa's instruction, man-manā, "Always think of Me," mad-bhakta, and naturally you become bhakta. As soon as go on chanting Hare Kṛṣṅa... Just like these European and American boys, they have been instructed to chant Hare Kṛṣṅa mantra. Nothing that I showed them any magic, how to manufacture gold, or how to become this or that. No. Simply I have asked them to chant Hare Kṛṣṅa, and they have joined me because they have chanted Hare Kṛṣṅa. Why? Ceto-darpaṅa-mārjanam [Cc Antya 20.12].

[Let there be all victory for the chanting of the holy name of Lord Kṛṣṅa, which can cleanse the mirror of the heart and stop the miseries of the blazing fire of material existence. That chanting is the waxing moon that spreads the white lotus of good fortune for all living entities. It is the life and soul of all education. The chanting of the holy name of Kṛṣṅa expands the blissful ocean of transcendental life. It gives a cooling effect to everyone and enables one to taste full nectar at every step.]

By chanting this Hare Kṛṣṅa mahā-mantra, the dirty things within the heart will be cleansed. They you will understand, "What is my position. What to do."

So this is the mission of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, yāre dekha tāre kaha. Kṛṣṅa said that man-manā bhava mad-bhakta: "You just think of Me, you just become My devotee, mad-yājī, you just offer a little flower and water to Me." Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati [Bg 9.26].

[If one offers Me with love and devotion a leaf, a flower, fruit or water, I will accept it.]

[conch sounds] If you think that "We have got money. The money is for my enjoyment, and Kṛṣṅa may be offered a little water and flower," that is cheating; that is not good. According to your position you must worship. This is wanted. Otherwise, vita sakṣat[?]. If you have got money and if you don't serve Kṛṣṅa, and you serve Kṛṣṅa with a little water and flower, Kṛṣṅa can understand this kind of cheating business. No. Everyone should worship Kṛṣṅa according to his position. That is wanted. Kuruṣva tad mad-arpaṅam. Yat karoṣi yaj juhoṣi yad aśnāsi yat tapasyasi kuruṣva tad mad-arpaṅam [Bg 9.27]. To become very big businessman is not ordinary thing; it requires tapasya, very great labor, brain, yat tapasyasi. But the result, Kṛṣṅa says, kuruṣva tad mad-arpaṅam. He's asking, "Give it to Me."

So there is no harm to become very big businessman, earning money—that is all right—but you give it to Kṛṣṅa. Then in any position you can remain Kṛṣṅa consciousness. And if you remain Kṛṣṅa conscious, then you will understand Kṛṣṅa. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā:

mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjaṁ mad-āśrayaḥ asaṁśayaṁ samagraṁ māṁ yathā jñāsyasi tac chṛṅu [Bg 7.1]

Kṛṣṅa is explaining that everyone is trying to understand God, but by speculation you cannot understand. By service only you can understand, by attachment. You cannot serve Kṛṣṅa without being attached. Therefore Kṛṣṅa says in the Seventh Chapter, mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ: "Taking shelter of Me or My devotee, if you practice this yoga system, bhakti-yoga system, increasing your attachment for Me, this is wanted." Kṛṣṅa consciousness means we have got attachment so many things, but that attachment has to be transferred to Kṛṣṅa. Then you'll become Kṛṣṅa conscious. Mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ asaṁśayam. Then asaṁśayam, without any doubt. To understand God there are three features: brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate [SB 1.2.11].

[Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramātmā or Bhagavān.]

So the ordinary person, they can be able to understand Brahman; a little advanced than them, they can understand Paramātmā; but to understand Kṛṣṅa is very difficult. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante [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.]

Manuṣyāṅāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati siddhaye [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 many millions of person, one tries to become siddha, perfect. What is that siddha? Brahma-jña. Yatatām api siddhānāṁ kaścid vetti māṁ tattvataḥ [Bg 7.3]. And out of the siddhas, those who are actually self-realized, ahaṁ brahmāsmi, out of many of them maybe one is able to understand Kṛṣṅa.

So Kṛṣṅa can be understood only by devotion. Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ [Bg 18.55].

[One can understand the Supreme Personality as He is only by devotional service. And when one is in full consciousness of the Supreme Lord by such devotion, he can enter into the kingdom of God.]

So we have to take this process, śravaṅaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṅu. So our only request is that to understand Kṛṣṅa is not very difficult if we read Bhagavad-gītā perfectly, seriously. Then Kṛṣṅa is understood. And as soon as you understand Kṛṣṅa... Because Kṛṣṅa is explaining Himself, what is the difficulty to understand Kṛṣṅa? Hmm? If you, Mr. Birla, you explain that "I am like this. I have got so much money, I have got so many business, so many factories," if you explain, then where is my difficulty? But if I speculate, "Mr. Birla may be..., so much [indistinct] may be had," that is always imperfect. But if you understand directly from Mr. Birla, then it is clear. So Kṛṣṅa, God, is explaining Himself, "I am like..." Asaṁśayaṁ samagraṁ māṁ yathā jñāsyasi tac chṛṅu [Bg 7.1]. So there is not very difficult to understand Kṛṣṅa if we simply... But if we interpret foolishly, and try to understand Kṛṣṅa by misinterpretation, then the business is finished. Don't do that. Simply try to understand Kṛṣṅa as He is explaining Himself, then your life is successful.

How it is successful?

janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti... [Bg 4.99]

[One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.]

That is success. If one can understand Kṛṣṅa, about His activities, why He comes, He explains, yadā yadā hi dharmasya [Bg 4.7]. [break] ... you have to change this body. But we do not know what kind of body I am going to get. These information are there. But any kind of body you get, even in the higher planetary system as demigod, ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino 'rjuna [Bg 8.16], that is not good.

[From the highest planet in the material world down to the lowest, all are places of misery wherein repeated birth and death take place. But one who attains to My abode, O son of Kuntī, never takes birth again.]

The best thing is you get a body, a spiritual body, like Kṛṣṅa, sat-cit-ānanda-vigraha. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti... [Bg 4.9]. Then you haven't got to accept any more this material body. Then what happens to me? Mām eti, you come to Kṛṣṅa and enjoy with Him. That is success of life.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda. Haribol.

Prabhupāda: Any questions? Any question?

Girirāja: Any questions?

[long silence]

Prabhupāda: Boliya mātājī. Prāśna boliya? There should be question.

[another long silence]

Girirāja: The process of hearing and then asking questions is the way to clarify our understanding, just like Kṛṣṅa and Arjuna. So actually we must have some questions in our mind; otherwise we would all immediately surrender to Kṛṣṅa.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Either you surrender to Kṛṣṅa or clear it by question. Hmm... [chuckles] from today... Hmm. [end]