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7/31/2019 Search Sri Krishna

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ALL GLORIES TO R^GURU AND GAURGA

The Search

Forr KrishnaReality The Beautiful

ll prem priydhikyamdhurya veu-rpayoity asdhraa proktagovindasya catuayam

Krishna has four superexcellent qualities: His won-derful pastimes, His wonderful associates like the

gops, who are very dear to Him, His sweet beauty, andthe sweet vibration of His flute.

(Chaitanya-caritmta Madhya-ll 23.84)


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The SearchForr Krishna

Reality The BeautifulThrough His holy name, transcendental soundpreached and practiced by r Chaitanyadeva,who is none other than Rdh and Govinda

combined and propagated byrla Bhaktisiddhnta Saraswat hkur

HIS DIVINE GRACE

SRILA BHAKTI RAKSAKSRIDHAR DEV-GOSWAMIMAHARAJ

r Chaitanya Sraswat Mah


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1989 Sri Chaitanya Sarawat MathAll rights reserved by the Successor President-Acharya

Sri Chaitanya Saraswat Math, Kolegranj,P.O. Box Nabadwip, Dist. Nadia, W. Bengal Pin 741302,

India

First Printing 1983 5,000 copiesSecond Printing 1983 5.000 copiesThird Printing 1986 3,000 copiesFourth Printing 1988 5,000 copies

published byGuardian of Devotion Press

Fifth Printing 2000 2,500 copiesPublished by

Ananta Printing & Publishing2827 S. Rodeo Gulch Rd. #3, Soquel, California 95073

(831) 464-9045 email: [email protected]

Special thanks to the following devotees for their help with

this current edition: Swami B.P. Janardan, Swami B.C.Parvat, Navadwip Prabhu, Sarvabhavana Prabhu, AnantaKrishna Prabhu, Tilak devi dasi, Dayal Dulal Prabhu.


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ContentsForeword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Preface . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Krishna Consciousness: Love and Beauty . . . . . . . 25Saints, Scriptures, and Gurus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 41

Fossilism vs. Subjective Evolution . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

Origin of the Soul . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65

Knowledge above Mortality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 71Six Philosophies of India . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 87

Beyond Christianity . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 91

Levels of God Realization . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 113

The Krishna Conception . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 127

The Hare Krishna Mantra . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

Service of the Holy Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 149

Nectar of the Holy Name . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 159

Reality the Beautiful . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 175

Explanation of Math Logo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 203Address List of Centers Worldwide . . . . . . . . . . . 205

Publications Available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .209


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President-chrya r Chaitanya Sraswat Mahrla Bhakti Sundar Govinda Dev-Goswm Mahrj


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Founder-chrya r Chaitanya Sraswat Mahrla Bhakti Rakak rdhar Dev-Goswm Mahrj


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rla Bhaktisiddhnta Saraswat hkur


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rla Gaura Kiora Dsa Bbj Mahrj


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rla Bhaktivinoda hkur


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FOREWORDbyrla Bhaktivinoda hkur

Nineteenth Century Founder of the KrishnaConsciousness Movement

'

We love to read a book which we have never readbefore. We are anxious to gather whatever infor-

mation is contained in it, and with such acquirementour curiosity stops. This mode of study prevails amongst

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Party spiritthat great enemy of truthwill always baffle the

attempt of the inquirer who tries to gather truth from the religiousworks of his nation and will make him believe that the AbsoluteTruth is nowhere except in his old religious book.

rla Bhaktivinoda hkur


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a great number of readers who are great men in their

own estimation as well as in the estimation of those whoare of their own stamp. In fact, most readers are mere re-positories of facts and statements made by other people.But this is not study. The student is to read the factswith a view to create, and not with the object of fruit-less retention. Students, like satellites, should reflect

whatever light they receive from authors, and notimprison the facts and thoughts just as the magistratesimprison the convicts in the jail!

Thought is progressive. The authors thought musthave progress in the reader in the shape of correction ordevelopment. He is the best critic who can show the

further development of an old thought; but a mere de-nouncer is the enemy of progress, and consequently ofnature. Progress certainly is the law of nature, andthere must be corrections and developments with theprogress of time. But progress means going further or ris-ing higher. The shallow critic and the fruitless reader arethe two great enemies of progress. We must shun them.

The true critic, on the other hand, advises us topreserve what we have already obtained, and to adjustour race from that point where we have arrived in theheat of our progress. He will never advise us to go backto the point whence we started, as he fully knows thatin that case there will be a fruitless loss of our valuabletime and labor. He will direct the adjustment of theangle of our race at the point where we are.

12 THE SEARCH FOR SRI KRISHNA


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This is also the characteristic of the useful student.

He will read an old author and will find out his exactposition in the progress of thought. He will never pro-pose to burn a book on the ground that it containsthoughts which are useless. No thought is useless.Thoughts are means by which we attain our objects.The reader who denounces a bad thought does not

know that a bad road is even capable of improvementand conversion into a good one. One thought is a roadleading to another. Thus, the reader will find that onethought, which is the object today, will be the means ofa further object tomorrow. Thoughts will necessarilycontinue to be an endless series of means and objects in

the progress of humanity.The great reformers will always assert that they have

come out not to destroy the old law, but to fulfill it.Valmiki, Vysa, Plato, Jesus, Mohammed, Confucius,and Chaitanya Mahprabhu assert the fact eitherexpressly or by their conduct.

Our critic, however, may nobly tell us that a reformerlike Vysa, unless purely explained, may lead thou-sands of men into great trouble in time to come. Butdear critic! Study the history of ages and countries!Where have you found the philosopher and reformerfully understood by the people? The popular religionis fear of God, and not the pure spiritual love whichPlato, Vysa, Jesus, and Chaitanya taught to their respec-tive peoples! Whether you give the absolute religion

FOREWORD 13


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in figures or simple expressions, or teach them by means

of books or oral speeches, the ignorant and the thought-less must degrade it.It is indeed very easy to tell, and swift to hear, that

Absolute Truth has such an affinity with the humansoul that it comes through as if intuitively, and thatno exertion is necessary to teach the precepts of true

religion, but this is a deceptive idea. It may be true ofethics and of the alphabet of religion, but not of thehighest form of faith, which requires an exalted soul tounderstand. All higher truths, though intuitive, requireprevious education in the simpler ones. That religion isthe purest which gives us the purest idea of God. How

then is it possible that the ignorant will ever obtainthe absolute religion, as long as they are ignorant?

So we are not to scandalize the Savior of Jerusalemor the Savior of Nadia for these subsequent evils.Luthers, instead of critics, are what we want for thecorrection of those evils by the true interpretation of theoriginal precepts.

God gives us truth as He gave it to Vysa, whenwe earnestly seek for it. Truth is eternal and inex-haustable. The soul receives a revelation when it isanxious for it. The souls of the great thinkers of thebygone ages, who now live spiritually, often approachour inquiring spirit and assist it in its development.Thus, Vysa was assisted by Nrada and Brahm. Our



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stras, or in other words, books of thought, do not

contain all that we could get from the infinite Father.No book is without its errors. Gods revelation isAbsolute Truth, but it is scarcely received and pre-served in its natural purity. We have been advised inthe rmad-Bhgavatam (11.14.3) to believe that truthwhen revealed is absolute, but it gets the tincture of the

nature of the receiver in course of time, and is con-verted into error by continual exchange of hands fromage to age. New revelations, therefore, are continu-ally necessary in order to keep truth in its originalpurity. We are thus warned to be careful in our studiesof old authors, however wise they are reputed to be.

Here, we have full liberty to reject the wrong idea,which is not sanctioned by the peace of conscience.

Vysa was not satisfied with what he collected in theVedas, arranged in the Puras, and composed in theMahbhrata. The peace of his conscience did not sanc-tion his labors. It told him from inside, No, Vysa!You cant rest contented with the erroneous picture oftruth which was necessarily presented to you by thesages of bygone days! You must yourself knock at thedoor of the inexhaustible store of truth from whichthe former sages drew their wealth. Go! Go up to thefountainhead of truth, where no pilgrim meets withdisappointment of any kind. Vysa did it and obtainedwhat he wanted. We have all been advised to do so.

FOREWORD 15


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Liberty then, is the principle which we must consider

as the most valuable gift of God. We must not allowourselves to be led by those who lived and thoughtbefore us. We must think for ourselves and try to get fur-ther truths, which are still undiscovered. In the rmadBhgavatam (11.21.23) we have been advised to takethe spirit of the stras, and not the words. The

Bhgavata is therefore a religion of liberty, unmixedtruth, and absolute love.

The other characteristic is progress. Liberty cer-tainly is the father of all progress. Holy liberty is thecause of progress upwards and upwards in eternity andendless activity of love. Liberty misused causes degra-

dation, and the Vaiava must always carefully use thishigh and beautiful gift of God.

The spirit of this text goes far to honor all great re-formers and teachers who lived and will live in othercountries. The Vaiava is ready to honor all men with-out distinction of caste, because they are filled withthe energy of God. See how universal is the religion ofthe Bhgavata. It is not intended for a certain class ofHindus alone, but it is a gift to man at large, in what-ever country he is born, and in whatever society he isbred. In short, Vaiavism is the Absolute Love bindingall men together into the infinite unconditioned andabsolute God. May peace reign forever in the wholeuniverse in the continual development of its purity by



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the exertion of the future heroes, who will be blessed

according to the promise of the Bhgavata with powersfrom the Almighty Father, the Creator, Preserver, andthe Annihilator of all things in Heaven and Earth.

From an English lecture delivered in 1869, atDinajpur, West Bengal.

FOREWORD 17


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rla Bhaktivedanta Swm Prabhupd and rla Srdhar Mahrjsharing the vyssana, the seat of Vysa offered to the bona fidespiritual master. [rla Govinda Mahrj (near the microphone)is speaking.]


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byrla Bhaktivedanta Swm Prabhupd

Founder-chrya of the International Society forKrishna Consciousness

We are very fortunate to hear His Divine Grace,Om Viupda Paramahasa Parivrajak chryaBhakti Rakak rdhar Mahrj. By age and by experi-ence, in both ways, he is senior to me. I was fortunate tohave his association since a long time, since perhaps1930. At that time he had not accepted sannys, but hadjust left home. He went to preach in Allahabad, and onthat auspicious occasion we were connected.

rdhar Mahrj lived in my house for many years, sonaturally we had very intimate talks. He has such highrealizations of Krishna that one would faint to hearthem. He was always my good advisor, and I took hisadvice very seriously because from the very beginning Iknew that he was a pure devotee of Krishna. So, Iwanted to associate with him. Krishna and Prabhupd,rla Bhaktisiddhnta Saraswati hkur, liked him to

prepare me. Our relationship is very intimate.After the breakdown of our spiritual masters institu-tion I wanted to organize another institution making

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PREFACE


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rdhar Mahrj the head. rla Bhaktisiddhnta

Saraswati hkur told me that rdhar Mahrj is oneof the finest preachers of Krishna consciousness in theworld, so I wanted to take him everywhere. This was myearnest desire. But since he could not go around theworld and preach, at least the people of the worldshould come to hear from him.

For spiritual advancement of life we must go tosomeone who is actually practicing spiritual life. So ifone is actually serious to take instructions from a ika

guru, or instructing spiritual master, I can refer him toone who is the most competent of all my Godbrothers.This is B.R. rdhar Mahrj. I consider rdhar

Mahrj to be even my ika guru, so what to speak ofthe benefit that others can have from his association.



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for r Krishna and quench the thirst of your heart.

Rasa jijs, raso vai sa. The things acquired by yourreason wont satisfy you. Jna, knowledge, cannotreally quench your thirst, so instead ofbrahma-jijsaccept Knusandhna and begin the search for rKrishna.

Where is Krishna? Our real want will be satisfied only

by getting the service of Krishna; not by anything else. Wewant to satisfy the innermost demands of our hearts. Wedont care to know where we are or what is controllingeverything, but we really want to quench our thirst forrasa, for mdhurya, for sweetness. We must search neitherfor knowledge nor for the controller of this world; we

must search after rasa, nandam, after beauty and charm.r Chaitanya Mahprabhu and rmad-Bhgavatam

have taught us what to beg for, what to pray for, whatto want. They have taught us, If you beg, beg forKrishna, not for anything else. So, the fate of theVaiavas, the students of the Bhgavata and the fol-lowers of Mahprabhu, is sealed in the search for rKrishna. We want nothing else but Krishna.

The Vedas say, svantu vive amtasya putr: O,you sons of nectar, sons of the nectarine ocean sea:please listen to me. You were born in nectar; you wereborn to taste nectar, and you must not allow yourselvesto be satisfied by anything but nectar. So, however mis-guided you may be for the time being, awake! Arise!Search for that nectar, that satisfaction. The Vedas tell



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us, O! O means a big Yes! What you are search-

ing for, that is! Dont be disappointed. The Vedas saythat the object of our inner search exists. The com-mon search of all your hearts is existing, and your thirstwill be quenched. By your constitution you are meant forthat and you deserve that, so dont be afraid; dont becowed down. It is already given in your being. And you

can never be satisfied with anything else. So prepareyourself, after your long search, to receive that longmissing nectar in its full form and quality. Awake! Arise!Search for your fortune and you cannot but have that.It is your birthright. It is the wealth of your own soul. Itcannot but be within you. You have no other business,

no other engagement but Knusandhna, the Searchfor r Krishna: Reality the Beautiful.

INTRODUCTION 23


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At the beginning of the twentieth century, theBengali poet Hemachandra wrote, There are so

many countries rising in prominence: this land, thatland. Japan is a very small country, but it is rising likethe sun. Only India is under eternal slumber. When hementioned the other part of the world, he said,America is rising forcefully, as if he is coming to swal-low the whole world. Sometimes he is shouting as ifwith a war cry, and the whole world is shivering. Hisenthusiasm is so intense and great that he wants tosnatch the world from the solar system, and give it anew shape, a new molding. America has been men-tioned in this way by Hemachandra. In the same way,Bhaktivedanta Swm Mahrj came to give the worlda new shape through Krishna consciousness. He oncesaid, We must go there and build it in a new waywith Krishna consciousness.

What is Krishna consciousness? Krishna consciousnessmeans real love and beauty. Real love and beauty mustpredominate; not selfishness, or exploitation. Generally,whenever we see beauty, we think that beauty is to be

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KRISHNACONSCIOUSNESS:LOVE AND BEAUTY


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exploited, but actually, beauty is the exploiter, beauty is

the master, and beauty is the controlling principle.And what is love? Love means sacrifice for others.We should not think that sacrifice is to be exploited byus. Who is to be the recipient of sacrifice? Is it ourparty? No. We are in the group of those who sacrificethemselves: the predominated negative party,

Mahbhvas party. The underlying principle of love issacrifice, but sacrifice for whom? And who is the ben-eficiary? Love is the beneficiary. Everyone should con-tribute to the center, but no one should draw energyfrom there. Die to live. With this spirit we shouldcombine and work for real love and beauty.

BANNER OF LOVE

And beauty will be victorious in the world. Lovewill be victorious in the world. We will sacrifice every-thing to see that the banner of divine love will flutter

all over the world, for a particle of that divine lovewill be able to keep peace and distribute peace in alldirections. Just as fighting soldiers dedicate everything,and give their lives so their countrymen will benefit inthe future, we should sacrifice our lives and work tobring real peace for everyone.

In Vndvana, the land of Krishna, the standard ofsacrifice is unlimited. Devotees there are willing to riskeverything for Krishna. If that principle of sacrifice isenthroned, then peace will automatically follow.



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Krishna consciousness should be enthroned above all

other conceptions. All other conceptions are meantto be subservient to Krishna consciousness. The ideal ofVndvana, Krishnas abode, is above all other ideals. Intheistic comparison, the conception of r ChaitanyaMahprabhus ll is above all other conceptions. There,theism reaches its zenith. That is our highest goal, and

step by step, that should be explained, thought out,accepted, and preached.

ATOMIC DEATH

Without this, what sort of benefit are you expectingfrom your present engagement? Only death is awaiting

you. You are so proud of this scientific civilization andare boasting so much, but death is awaiting you whetherit is atomic death or natural death. You cant crossdeath. One English poet has written:

The boast of heraldry, the pomp of power,

And all that beauty, all that wealth eer gaveAwaits alike the inevitable hour:The paths of glory lead but to the grave

Thomas Grays Elegy in a Country Churchyard

You do not care to solve the greatest danger. You saythat you are big thinkers, that you are great men, and

that you should command the respect of society, but thegeneral inevitable problem for every atom here is death.What is your contribution for solving the greatest dan-ger which is waiting to devour everyonescientist,

KRISHNA CONSCIOUSNESS: LOVE AND BEAUTY 27


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will find the key, the clue to the proper world where lifeis worth living.

The solution is there; a hint is given by many mah-

janas, by great saints in every religious sect to someextent, but our claim is that India has given the high-est conception of the spiritual world in the Bhagavad-

gt and rmad-Bhgavatam. So, we challenge all ofyou: we are not imaginationists; we are most practicalthinkers. We dont avoid any great problem by saying,

Oh, it cant be solved. We do not belong to the partythat wants to easily take prestige and fame. We dontwant to classify ourselves with those hoaxing people.Come and see whether the plane of reality can be

A sixteenth century painting of r Chaitanya Mahprabhu andHis associates discussing rmad-Bhgavatam.



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found. You are not required to spend any less energy in

your campaign, so take our program; try it and see.Where are you? Who are you? What is the realnature of the world? In the Koran, in the Bible, and inthe Vedas, and in every other scripture, a hope andhint has been given about the life of reality. Is this alla hoax? What charm have the materialists given? That

charm is only for the self-deceivers, and that is draggingthem into the country of loan and debt, the land whereEvery action has an equal and opposite reaction.So, a divine civilization should be drawn out into thisplane. We have to try the path that has been sug-gested by the great saints and scriptures. It is not unrea-

sonable. It is not madness. Come, reason can also beapplied there.

r Chaitanya Mahprabhu gave a solution to allour problems with an allegorical example. He said,We see that you are poor, but there is a happy solution.Your wealth is underground in your own room: just tryto unearth it. Dont approach it from the southern side,the give-and-take method ofkarma, for then whateveryou do will bring some reaction that will capture anddisturb you, and you will have no time to reach theproper solution. If you approach that hidden wealthfrom the western side, through the yoga system, bymanipulating the subtle forces of nature to attain super-natural mystic power, that will enchant you and takeyour attention away from the desired goal. Your own



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activity in the wrong direction will create obstacles to

your achievement.THE SAMDHI PHANTOM

If you approach the treasure from the north, the sideof that grand brahmsmi, the impersonal conception,with the help of misinterpreted Vedantic logic, then you

will enter into eternal samdhi, that great phantomwill swallow you up, your existence will be nowhere,and who will come to enjoy the peace of getting thewealth? Only if you approach from the eastern side,with the help of devotion, will you get the wealth eas-ily. That is the direction of the sunrise, the light giving

direction. And that light is not prepared by our ownhand; that light is from the source of all light: therevealed truth. It is extended from the quarter which isunknown to us. That light is revealed knowledge, bhakti,the path of devotion.

Adopt that path in your search for the real wealthwithin you, and easily you will find your own self,which is most wonderful (caryavat payati kacid enam).Discovering that your own self is so wonderful, youwill be ashamed, thinking, How could I have beencarried away by the charm of this mundane world? I am

the soul. How was it possible for my to have suchenchanting power over me that my own self, which isso wonderful and so valuable, was drawn into illusion?The peace which is within me has been greatly admired



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by the spiritual stalwarts, but I have come in connection

with mortal and nasty, rotten things. How? It is mostwonderful, but I was deceived.Then from tm to Paramtm, from soul to

Supersoul, then from Vsudeva to Nryaa, and thenfrom Nryaa to Krishna, the progressive under-standing in God realization is not unscientific; it is

really scientific. This is vijna, scientific knowledge:

jna te ha sa-vijnamida vakymy aeatayaj jtv neha bhyo nyajjtavyam avaiyate

In the Bhagavad-gt (7.2) Krishna says, Arjuna,now I shall explain to you scientific knowledge notonly about the soul, but also about its potency. Themind, the senses, and the modes of nature are all non-tm, or material. There is a direct and indirectapproach towards reality which I shall now explain toyou. Please listen attentively to Me:jna te ham sa-vijnam. What is this? There is Myself and My potency,and thejva, the living entity, is the marginal potencywhich is filling up all these material worlds. If the

jva-akti, the spiritual potency, were withdrawn, then

everything would be stone, and who would care forexploitation? All this fighting tendency, this tendencyfor exploitation would stop if the marginal potency,thejva, were withdrawn from matter. Everything would



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be dead. The soul has entered into this material con-

sciousness and has made it a moving thing. Youshould understand this properly, in a scientific way.We are not lacking in our ability to give you a sci-entific explanation.

PLANE OF SELF-DECEPTION

A higher conception of the finer world is here. It isreal, and where you are trying your utmost to make astand, the place that you consider real is unreal.

y ni sarva-bhtntasy jgarti sayamyasy jgrati bhtni

s ni payato muneBhagavad-gt (2.69)

You are asleep to your real self-interest and thereal truth, while you are awake in the plane of self-deception. We must establish ourselves in the plane ofreality, and try our best to extend it to others.

And to preach means this: I sincerely have faith inKrishna consciousness and relish it to the utmost. Ifind that my future prospect is also here. Because Ifeel that it is very tasteful, useful, and wholesome, Ihave come to distribute it to you, my friends. We

should guide our lives according to the principles ofKrishna consciousness as taught by the spiritual mas-ter. Take it, and you will be successful in fulfilling thegoal of your life.



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RASA, HAPPINESS, ECSTASY

In this way, we have to approach everyone withGod consciousness, Krishna consciousness. We mustshow how God consciousness ultimately merges inKrishna consciousness. We have to prove dexterously,step by step, that Krishna is the reservoir of all pleasure(akhila rasmta mrti). What is Krishna conscious-ness? Rpa Goswm has given a scientific definition.Rasa, pleasure, cannot be avoided. We are all afterrasa. Everyone, every unit, even the smallest unit of theworld is always hankering after rasa, happiness, ecstasy,and all possible phases ofrasa are personified in Krishna.

Try to understand how it is. What is rasa? What is itsnature? How can a comparison in rasa be drawn? Inthis way, step by step, you will have to come to theKrishna conception of Godhead. It is not a tale from theancient Indian scriptures. Krishna is not the object ofa tale, but fact. You have to come out and face that

living fact, that reality. We shall try our best to show youhow it can be a fact. Krishna is a fact. He is a reality, andreality is for itself.

You have to pay for the goal. You must Die tolive, and in this way you will feel that it is not ahoax. When you progress on the path, you will feel it

(bhakti parenubhavo viraktir anyatra ca). With everystep forward, you will feel these three things: satis-faction, nourishment, and the eradication of yourhunger. Your hankering in general will be diminished.



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Generally, we feel, I want this, I want that, I want

everything; still I have not satisfied my hunger. Butyou will feel that your hunger is being appeased asyou progress in Krishna consciousness, and what youpreviously thought would give you relief will takeleave from you automatically. Their trade wont con-tinue; they will all withdraw, your natural inclination

for spiritual advancement will automatically increase,and you will find acceleration in your progress. Youwill practically feel these three things, so come andtake what we say. In this way, you have to approachone and all, leaving the result to the Lord.

FRUITS OF ENERGY

We are only agents, and we are working becauseHe has ordered us, so we must remember what is bhakti,what is devotion proper. Whatever I do, the wage Iearn must not come to me; I am only an agent. The

benefit should go to the proprietor, to my master,Krishna. We should move with this idea, and that willbe bhakti proper. Otherwise, we will be engaged inkarma-knda: fruit-hunting. I want to enjoy the result ofkarma for myself, but the result should go to my master.I am His servant, and I am working under His order. I

am His slave; I am not the proprietor. I am not theproper person to be the recipient of the fruits of energy.The master of energy is the Supreme Lord, and all theproducts of energy should go to Him. It must not be



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is required to work for an autocrat, a despot, a liar who

is up to anything? Not only that, His normal positionis such. It is not a temporary temperament, but Hiseternal inner nature. Krishna is an autocrat becauselaw emanates from Him. An autocrat is above law.When there are many, there is a need for law; whenthere is only one, there is no need for law. Krishna is a

despot, but He is absolute good. If there is any check inHis despotism, the world will be the loser. Goodnessmust have its full flow. Is that bad? Can there be anyobjection to this? Goodness must have its freedom toflow anywhere and everywhere. If we say that God isabsolute good, then what do we lose by giving Him

autocracy? Should autocracy be with the ignorant andthe fools? No. The absolute good must have full autoc-racy. Not that law will go to bind His hands. Then wewill be losers. And Krishna is a liar, to entice us, becausewe cannot understand the whole truth. So to entice usto gradually come to the truth, He has become a liar.

The first thing to understand is that He is all good-ness, so everything emanating from Him cannot but begood. Any defect is on our side. We are encroachers. Heis not an encroacher. But He shows this as His play, ll.Everything belongs to Him, so there is no lying. WhenHe says, Let there be light, there was light: Let there

be water, there was water. If He has such potentialpower, can there be any lying there?

We have to sacrifice ourselves for Krishna, becauseHe is the absolute good, beauty, and love. Faith and



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selflessness are required to such a high degree. If we

accept Krishna consciousness as our highest ideal, thenso much sacrifice is necessary, but sacrifice means life:Die to live. There is no loss by sacrifice. We can onlygain by giving ourselves.

So, krtan, or preaching has been accepted as themeans to the end. There are so many ways by which we

can approach the souls of this world with krtan: bydirect approach, through books, and by performingsakrtan, chanting the holy name congregationally.By helping others, we help ourselves: we help our ownfortune and our own faith. Not only will others bene-fit by our performance ofkrtan, but we will also ben-

efit eternally.

ETERNAL VACUUM

Krishna says in Bhagavad-gt (2.47), Never beattached to not doing your duty (m te sago stv

akarmai). Because you are required to work for Me, willyou stop work? Dont subject yourself to that painfulreaction, for then you will be doomed. Dont beattached to stop work and strike. No. That is a dan-gerous vacuum. Dont jump there in that eternal vac-uum, but work for Me, and you will thrive. Krishnasays, Abandon all varieties of duty, and just surrenderunto Me (sarva dharmn parityajya mm eka araavraja). My position is such: I am your guardian, yourfriend, your everything. Your goal of life is to be foundin Me. Believe it Arjuna. At least I must not deceive



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you. You are my friendYou can take it for certain.

man-man bhava mad-bhaktomad-yj m namaskurumm evaiyasi satya te

pratijne priyo si meBhagavad-gt (18.65)

Think of Me always, and become My devotee.Worship Me, and bow down before Me. In this way

As r Chaitanya, Lord Krishna came to preach about Himself.



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you will certainly come to Me. My dear friend, I promise

you on oath, I am speaking the truth. I am everything.Try to come to Me. I am the goal, the fulfillment of lifenot only for you, but for everyone. From the absoluteconsideration My position is such. At least you are Myfriend. I wont deceive you. You can believe Me. Ipromise that I am so.

How shamelessly Krishna is expressing Himselfhere. He has come to plead for Himself so much, forour benefit. And a record is kept in the Bhagavad-gtfor our guidance. And Lord Krishna came as rChaitanya Mahprabhu to preach about Himself. Hecame as His own canvasser with His eternal associates.

He even brought rmatRdhr, devotion per-sonified, along with Him, saying, I will show howcharming Your position in My service is, how beauti-ful and dignified the devotion of My other half can be.So, come along with Me. And Baladeva has come asNitynanda to canvass, and Vndvana has come tocanvass itself in Navadwpa. So we are most indebtedto the canvasser, especially when Krishna Himselfhas come to canvass and to show how beautiful, howmagnanimous, and how sacrificing divine love is.



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The purpose of pilgrimage is to hear from the saintly personsresiding in a holy place. The following is a conversation withrla rdhar Mahrj and three European students searchingIndia for truth.

rdhar Mahrj: Why have you come to India?Student: For pilgrimage. We came to visit the holyplaces like Navadwpa, Vndvana, and JagannthaPur. That was the main reason we came to India.rdhar Mahrj: How have you come to know allthese things? By books?Student: Yes, by the books of rla Prabhupd.rdhar Mahrj: What book?Student: Bhagavad-gt.rdhar Mahrj: Oh. The Bhagavad-gt As It Is byBhaktivedanta Swm Mahrj.Student: Yes.

BHAGAVAD-G^T: CURE THYSELF

rdhar Mahrj: Many years ago, a German scholarexpressed his opinion that Bhagavad-gt is the highestspiritual literature. His point was that Bhagavad-gt

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Our responsibility is never in enjoying the results ofour actions. Because we work for a particular resultand dont obtain it, should we be discouraged? No. Weshould go on doing our own duty. Whatever we contri-bute should be offered to the infinite, and the infinite

will mold the results in His own way. Krishna says,Never aspire after any particular result for your action.At the same time, dont be idle. Dont be worthless. Goon discharging your duty without depending on anyoutside consequence.Student: Will we have to remember Krishna while weare doing this?rdhar Mahrj: Yes. Then we will be able to come inconnection with Krishna and gradually we will come to

Bhagavad-gtthe highest spiritual literature. The Supreme

Lord Krishna instructs Arjuna, Cure thyself.

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realize that our environment is friendly to us. When the

reactions of our previous actions disappear, we will findthat every wave is carrying good news to us. When ouregoistic attitude vanishes, we will find ourself in themidst of sweet waves all around. We should try to doaway with whatever wrong we have done hitherto. Wemust do our duty and never expect any definite result,

but cast it towards the infinite.

DISSOLVING EGO

And then one day will come when our egoistic feel-ing will dissolve and from within, our real self, a mem-

ber of the infinite world, will spring up and awaken, andwe will find ourselves in the sweet waves of thatenvironment. There, everything is sweet. The breeze issweet, the water is sweet, the trees are sweet, what-ever we come in contact with is sweet, sweet, sweet.

Our internal ego is our enemy, and to dissolve that

ego, we must do our duty as we think fit, but neverexpect any response according to our will. If we adopt thiskarma-yoga then in no time we will find that the wrongego, which was always expecting something crooked forits selfish purpose, has vanished; the broad, wide egowithin has come out, and we are in harmony with the

whole universe. The harmonious world will appear beforeus, and the cover of selfish desires will disappear.The cause of our disease is not outside us, but within

us. A paramahasa Vaiava, a saint of the highest



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platform, sees that everything is all right. He finds no-

thing to complain about. When one can see that every-thing is good and sweet to the furthest extreme, hecomes to live in the plane of divinity. Our false ego cre-ates only disturbance, and that ego should be dissolved.We should not think that the environment is our enemy.We must try hard to detect Gods grace in whatever

comes to us, even if it comes as an apparent enemy.Everything is the grace of the Lord, but we cant see it;rather, we see the opposite. The dirt is in our eyes.

Actually, everything is divine. It is all the grace of theLord. The disease is in our eyes. We are diseased, and ifthe disease is cured, we shall find that we are in the

midst of a gracious world. Only the coverings of desiredeceive us from having a real estimation of the world. Abonafide student of the devotional school will acceptsuch an attitude towards the environment and towardsthe Lord. We have to think that Gods will is every-where. Even a blade of grass cannot move without thesanction of the Supreme Authority. Every detail isdetected and controlled by Him. We have to look uponthe environment with optimism. The pessimism iswithin us. Our ego is responsible for all sorts of evil.

INFINITE

BLISSFULNESS

This is Vaiavism. If we can do this, then in notime, our disease will be cured, and well be in the midstof infinite blissfulness. Our tendency at present is to



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cure what we see on the outside. We think, I want

everything to follow my control, my sweet will. Wheneverything obeys me, then I will be happy. But we musttake just the opposite attitude. As Mahprabhu has said:

td api suncenataror api sahiunamnin mnadena

krtanya sad hari

We should create no resistance against our envi-ronment. Still, if some undesirable things come towardsus, we should tolerate that with our utmost patience.And even if someone attacks us we wont become vio-

lent; we must practice forbearance to the extreme. Weshall honor everyone; we will seek no honor.In this way, with the least amount of energy and time

we can attain the highest goal: the plane where KrishnaHimself is living. That is the most fundamental planeof existence. At that time, all the encasements covering

the soul will vanish and die, and the inner soul willawaken and find that he is playing in a sweet wave, danc-ing and merry-making in Vndvana, with Krishna andHis devotees. And what is Vndvana? It is neither afable, nor a concocted story. The broadest and widestplane of the whole universe is beauty, sweetness, and

blissfulness, and that is present in Vndvana in all its full-ness. We have to dive deep into that plane of reality.

Our ego has floated us on the surface of trouble inmy, illusion. Concoction, and the search for selfish



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satisfaction have taken us here, and these must be

dissolved once and for all. And then from within, ourgolden selves will come out, and we will find that we arein the plane of a happy dancing mood, with Krishna inVndvana.

HEGELS SELF-DETERMINATION

In Hegelian language, this is called self-determination. Self-determination means we must dieto live. We must leave our material life and all ourmaterial habits; we have to die as we are if we want tohave a real life. We must give up our false ego. Our

material habits from different births are collected inthe ego in subtle forms, not only from the experience ofhuman birth, but even from animal births, tree births,and so many other births. Krishna consciousness meansthe wholesale dissolution of the false ego. That con-cocted, selfish figure within us is our enemy. The real

self is hopelessly buried beneath the false ego. So greatis the depth of our forgetfulness that we do not evenknow who we are. So, as the German philosopherHegel said, we have to die to live.

Reality is for itself and by itself. The world is not cre-ated for our selfish end; it has a universal end, and we

are part and parcel of that. We must come to an under-standing with the whole. The complete whole isKrishna and he is dancing, playing, and singing in Hisown way. We must enter into that harmonious dance.



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rdhar Mahrj: That is a small thing. There are

three real difficulties: the first is women, the secondis money, and the third, good name and fame. Thesethree are our enemies. Marijuana intoxication is a smallthing. Anyone can give it up easily. But these threethings are the fundamental aspiration of every animal,tree, bird, man, or god. These three are everywhere.

But intoxication and other fleeting habits are very neg-ligible things and can be conquered very easily.

As we have gradually come into the habit ofintoxication, we have to come out; gradually, and notsuddenly. Just after World War Two, we read in thenewspaper that Goering, Hitlers air general, was habit-

uated to taking much intoxication. But when he wasput into jail, no intoxication was supplied to him. Hebecame sick, but treatment went on and he was cured.His disease was cured by the medicine. We also haveseen so many opium-eaters who came here, joined thetemple, and gradually left their habit.

Many so-called sdhus smoke marijuana. It helpsconcentration, but that is the material mind. It dis-turbs faith. It is an enemy to faith. No material intoxi-cation, but only faith can take us to our desired goal.The misguided souls think that marijuana, hashish, andso many other things can help us in our meditation. Itmay do something, but that is mundane and that willfrustrate us in our time of need. These things cannothelp us rise up very high.



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SEX, DOPE, AND GOLD

rmad-Bhgavatam (1.17.38) advises that these fivethings should be rejected: dyta: gambling, or diplo-macy;pna: intoxication, including tea, coffee, betel,and everything else; striya: unlawful, illegal womanlove;sn: butchering; and the transaction of gold. Tradein gold makes one very apathetic towards progress in theline of faith. These five are very tempting.

What to speak of the mania that intoxication willhelp us in our meditation upon the transcendental,Devari Nrada says, yamdibhir yoga-pathai kma-lobha-hato muhu: even what we acquire by meditation

is temporary and has no permanent effect. Only realfaith in the line of pure devotion can help us.

SAINTS: LIVING SCRIPTURES

Student: So, how can we develop our faith in Krishnaconsciousness?

rdhar Mahrj: How have you come to conceive ofKrishna consciousness?Student: By reading Bhagavad-gt.rdhar Mahrj: Bhagavad-gt. From the scriptures.And the scriptures are written by whom? Some saint.So, the association of saints and the advice of scripturesare both necessary. The saint is the living scripture,and the scripture advises us in a passive way. A saint canactively approach us, and passively we may receive



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benefit from the scriptures. The association of the scrip-

tures and the saints can help us achieve the ultimaterealization: sdhu stra kpaya haya. The saints aremore powerful. Those who are living the life of thescriptural advice are scripture personified. In their asso-ciation, and by their grace, we can imbibe such higher,subtle knowledge and faith.

All our experiences are futile in the attempt toattain the ultimate destination; only faith can lead usthere. The spiritual world is far, far beyond the juris-diction of our limited visual, aural, and mental experi-ence. The experience of the eye, ear, and mind is verymeager and limited, but faith can rise up and pierce

through this area, and enter the transcendental realm.Faith should be developed with the help of scriptures

and saints. They will help us understand that the spiritualworld is real and this world is unreal. At that time, thismaterial world will be night to us, and that will be day.Presently, the eternal world is darkness to us, and we areawake in this mortal world. What is night to one is dayto another. A saint is awake in some matter, and a dacoit(thief) is working in another plane. They are living in twoseparate worlds. A scientist is living in one world; arowdy is living in another. Ones day is night to another.The ordinary persons cannot see what Einstein and

Newton have seen, and what the ordinary man sees isignored by a great man. So, we have to awaken our inter-est in that plane, and ignore the interests of this plane.



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rla rdhar Mahrj lecturing at his rama in Nabadwp, India.The association of scriptures and saints can help us achieve theultimate realization.


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WORLD WAR III: LET IT BE

Student: Many people are worried about nuclear war.They think it may come very soon.rdhar Mahrj: That is a point on a line, a line on aplane, a plane in a solid. So many times wars are com-ing and going; so many times the sun, the Earth, andthe solar systems disappear, and again spring up. We arein the midst of such thought in eternity. This nuclearwar is a tiny point; what of that? Individuals are dyingat every moment; the Earth will die, the whole humansection will disappear. Let it be.

We must try to live in eternity; not any particular

span of time or space. We must prepare ourselves for oureternal benefit, not for any temporary remedy. Thesun, the moon, and all the planets appear and vanish:they die, and then again, they are created. Within suchan eternity we have to live. Religion covers that aspectof our existence. We are told to view things from this

standpoint: not only this body, but the human race,the animals, the trees, the entire Earth, and even thesun, will all vanish, and again spring up. Creation, dis-solution, creation, dissolutionit will continue for-ever in the domain of misconception. At the sametime, there is another world which is eternal; we are

requested to enter there, to make our home in thatplane which neither enters into the jaws of death, norsuffers any change.



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In the Bhagavad-gt (8.16) it is stated:

brahma-bhuvanl lokpunar vartino rjunamm upetya tu kaunteyapunar janma na vidyate

Even Lord Brahm, the creator himself, has to die.Up to Brahmloka, the highest planet in the material

world, the whole material energy undergoes suchchanges.

But if we can cross the area of misunderstanding andenter the area of proper understanding, then there is nocreation or dissolution. That is eternal, and we are chil-dren of that soil. Our bodies and minds are children ofthis soil which comes and goes, which is created andthen dies. We have to get out of this world of death.

ZONE OF NECTAR

We are in such an area. What is to be done? Try to

get out. Try your best to get out of this mortal area. Thesaints inform us, Come home dear friend, let us gohome. Why are you suffering so much trouble unnec-essarily in a foreign land? The spiritual world is real; thismaterial world is unreal: springing and vanishing, com-ing and going, it is a farce! From the world of farce

we must come to reality. Here in this material worldthere will be not only one war, but wars after wars,wars after wars.



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There is a zone of nectar, and we are actually chil-

dren of that nectar that does not die (vantu viveamtasya putr). Somehow, we are misguided here,but really we are children of that soil which is eternal,where there is no birth or death. With a wide andbroad heart, we have to approach there. This is declaredby r Chaitanya Mahprabhu, and the Bhagavad-gt,

the Upaniads, and the rmad-Bhgavatam all confirmthe same thing. That is our very sweet, sweet home, andwe must try our best to go back to God, back to home,and take others with us.



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The following chapter is an excerpt from a conversa-tion between rla rdhar Mahrj and neurophysiolo-gist Dr. Daniel Murphey, Ph.D.

Darwin has given the theory of evolutionFossilism. Vednta has given subjective evolution.In Darwins theory of objective evolution, matterevolves consciousness. The object exists first, and by itsdevelopment, life is coming, consciousness is comingfrom stone. That is objective evolution. But an objectis a relative term; without the subject, an object cannotstand. The subject is the primary substance. Whatever

is to be felt is only an idea in the subjective ocean.So, the subject, consciousness is first. The object, thegross, proceeds from the subtle.

When a particular potency is handled by Krishna, inHis form as Maha-Viu, then the material energybegins to move and produce something (maydhyakea

prakti syate sa-carcaram). The first product is a gen-eral ego. Then, gradually so many plural individual egosemanate from the general ego. The experience of thisworld develops from ego. When ego contacts the mode

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of everyone. The scientists believe that everything

moves upward. This is incorrect. It is coming down.This is described in the Bhagavad-gt (15.1):

rdhva-mlam adha-khamavattha prhur avyayamchandsi yasya parniyas ta veda sa veda-vit

The tree of this material world has its roots upward,while its branches extend downward. The leaves ofthis tree are the Vedic hymns. One who understandsthis tree, and its origin, is a true knower of the Vedas.So, according to Vedic knowledge, everything moves

from up to down, not from down to up.Matter does not produce the soul; rather the soulcontains in its one negligible portion the conception ofmatter. Like an eczema, it is a disease. The world existslike an eczema in a wholesome body. This is theVedntic understanding. It would certainly be a won-

derful miracle if stone could produce the soul, but it iseasier and more reasonable for us to think that the soulhas produced the conception of stone. In the soul, thereare many conceptions, and one conception is that ofstone. It is all in the plane of consciousness. But thatstone can produce soul, or consciousness, is difficult,

ridiculous, inconceivable, and unreasonable. Rather, itis the opposite, something like the Berkeley theory thatthe world is in the mind, and not that the mind is in theworld. It is only our deviation from the truth that brings

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us into this mundane world. How and where that devi-

ation begins is to be thought out. But deviation from thetruth has brought us to this false area.So, consciousness is producing everything. Con-

sciousness is eternal; this world is not eternal. This is atemporary production, and the temporary stone can-not produce eternal consciousness. Pure consciousness

is an eternal subject (nitya santana). It is not a product;it isproductive. Ether can produce fire, and earth, but theearth cannot produce ether. The subtle is more effi-cient than the gross. The gross is of secondary impor-tance. The soul, tm, is of principle importance. Theorigin of everything must be conscious; the starting

point must begin with the interested party. The soul isendowed with interest, but a stone has no interest, plan,or project, nothing of the kind. But there is a plan anda purpose pervading everything, and that is the impor-tant thing. According to that consideration, the char-acteristic of the Absolute, the original substance shouldbe calculated. An object of limited attributes and capac-ity cannot be the ultimate cause. Only a thing of unlim-ited quality and capacity should be taken as the cause ofthe whole. That is a more reasonable idea. Scienceshould realize this. So, there are some who think that sci-ence is gradually trying to meet philosophy.

KARMIC BOOMERANG

Material science is only increasing the circumfer-ence of the mortal world. But increasing the tendency



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of exploitation cannot help us. Science is only bor-

rowing, extorting power from nature. According toNewton: For every action there is an equal and oppo-site reaction. We must be conscious of this fact. Allour acquisition here is nothing: like a boomerang, itwill come back to zero again. So scientific progress isno progress. It is progress in the wrong direction.

Actually, the first principle of any living body is tosave himself. That is the first principle, and that shouldbe our starting point.

In the Upaniads it is said:

asato m sad gamya

tmaso m jyotir gamyamtyor m amta gamya

I am mortal; make me eternal. I am ignorant, filledwith nescience; take me to science, knowledge. And Iam threatened with misery; guide me towards bliss.We should begin our research work in these three

phases: how to save ones own self and save the world;how to remove darkness and attain light; and how toremove misery and taste nectar, the sweet life of eter-nity, knowledge, and bliss (sac-cid-nandam, satyamivam sundaram).

SCIENCE DEVOURS ITSELFThis should be the line of our search; all other

inquiries are false. This so-called scientific research is awild goose chase. It is suicidal. The atomic researchers



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will soon prove that this kind of science devours itself;

it sucks its own blood. It will live, feeding on its ownflesh and the flesh of its friends. Material scientificknowledge is no knowledge. We must acquaint our-selves with a vital understanding of pure, real knowl-edge. We must absorb ourselves and others in thatknowledge, remove darkness and bring light, remove

misery and establish eternal peace.Science means not to extend the jurisdiction of

exploitation, knowing full well there will be a reac-tion. By extending the space of exploitation, we willalso surely be exploited. If one knowingly commits anoffense, then he is charged with more punishment. So,

so-called scientific advancement is suicidal. And it isclearly proven: presently the leading countries of theworld are threatening each other with atomic weapons,the highest product of the scientists.

NEUTRON BOMB: DEATH RAY

What is the difference between the atomic bomband the neutron bomb? The neutron bomb is some-thing like a death-ray that will kill the people, but willnot destroy the buildings. The neutron bomb: man willbe killed, the houses, the buildings and everything else

will be left behind. The bed will be there, the furniture,everything else will be there, but only the life will begone, and the bodies will become rotten. That is theeffect of the neutron bomb.



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And those who emerge victorious will come to enjoy

all these things. They will have to remove the deadbodies, and fill the place up with their own men. Thisis action and reaction in the plane of exploitation.

So, this is a suicidal civilization. The whole civi-lization is rotten to the bottom. They are exploitingnature for the apparent good of human society, but it is

incurring a loan from nature that must be paid to thefarthing with interest. Because they do not believethis, they will have no relief. They will be forced to clearthe debt; nature wont forgive them. Nature is there likea computer, calculating. So, this civilization is anti-civilization. The whole thing is rotten, a camouflage, a

treachery to the soul-world. But our policy is differ-ent; plain living and high thinking.

Our policy should be to make the best use of a badbargain. Somehow or other, we have already comehere, so now we have to utilize our time and energy insuch a way that with the least exploitation we can getout of this world.

Editors note: shortly after this meeting, Dr. Murpheybecame an initiated disciple of rla rdhar Mahrj.



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Since time immemorial, man has inquired about the ori-

gin of the soul. In this brief chapter, rla rdhar Mahrjanswers this most vital of all questions: Who am I? Wherehave I come from?

How does the soul first appear in this world? Fromwhat stage of spiritual existence does he fall intothe material world? This is a broad question, whichrequires some background information.

There are two classes of souls,jvas, who come intothis world. One class comes from the spiritualVaikuha planets by the necessity ofnitya-ll, theeternal pastimes of Krishna. Another comes by con-

stitutional necessity.The brahmajyoti, the nondifferentiated marginalplane, is the source of infinitejva souls, atomic spir-itual particles of nondifferentiated character. The raysof the Lords transcendental body are known as thebrahmajyoti, and a pencil of a ray of the brahmajyoti is

thejva. Thejva soul is an atom in that effulgence, andthe brahmajyoti is a product of an infinite number ofjva atoms.

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Generally, souls emanate from the brahmajyoti which

is living and growing. Within the brahmajyoti, theirequilibrium is somehow disturbed and movement be-gins. From nondifferentiation, differentiation begins.From a plain sheet of uniform consciousness, individualconscious units grow. And because thejva is conscious,it is endowed with free will. So, from the marginal

position they choose either the side of exploitation orthe side of dedication.

Ka bhuli sei jva andi bahirmukha.Andi meansthat which has no beginning. When we enter the landof exploitation, we come within the factor of time,space, and thought. And when we come to exploit,

action and reaction begins in the negative land of loan.Although we strive to become masters, really webecome losers.

Goloka and Vaikuha servitors are also seen to bewithin the jurisdiction of the brahmaa, the materialuniverse, but that is only a play, ll. They come fromthat higher plane only to take part in the Lords pas-times and then return. The fallen souls come from themarginal position within the brahmajyoti, and not fromVaikuha.

The first position of a soul in the material worldwill be like that of Brahm, the creator. Then his karmamay take him to the body of a beast like a tiger, wherehe is surrounded with a tigerish mentality, or to thebody of a tree or creeper, where different impressions



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may surround him. In this way, one is involved in

action and reaction. The case is complex; to analyze thedetails of the history of a particular atom is unnecessary.We are concerned with the general thing: how thetransformation of the material conception springs frompure consciousness.

ELECTRONS OF CONSCIOUSNESS

Matter is not independent of spirit. In the brahma-jyoti we are equipoised in the marginal potency as aninfinite number of pinpoints of spiritual rays, electronsof consciousness. Consciousness means endowed withfree will, for without free will no consciousness can be

conceived. An atomic pinpoint of consciousness hasvery meager free will, and by misuse of their free willsome jvas have taken their chance in the materialworld. They refused to submit to the supreme author-ity; they wanted to dominate. So, with this germinalidea of domination, the jva enters into the world of

exploitation. In the Bhagavad-gt (7.27) it is stated:icch-dvea samutthenadvandva-mohena bhratasarva-bhtni sammohasarge ynti parantapa

Two principles in a crude form awaken in thejva:hatred and desire. Then, gradually the soul comes downto mingle with the mundane world. At first, sympathyand apathy develop in a crude form, just as when a

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sprout springs up with two leaves. And gradually these

two things help us to dive deep into this mundane world.Upon retiring from the world of exploitation, thesoul may return to his former position in the brahmajyotias spirit. But, if the soul has gathered the tendency ofdedication through his previous devotional activities, hedoes not stop there; he pierces through the brahmajyoti

and goes towards Vaikuha.Why has the soul come to the world of exploita-

tion, and not the world of dedication? That should beattributed to his innate nature, which is endowed withfree will. It is a free choice. This is substantiated inthe Bhagavad-gt (5. 14):

na karttva na karmilokasya sjati prabhuna karma-phala-sayogasvabhvas tu pravartate

The soul is responsible for his entrance into the

land of exploitation. The responsibility is with thesoul; otherwise, the Lord would be responsible for hisdistressed condition. But Krishna says that the soulsinnate freewill is responsible for his entanglement in thematerial world. The soul is conscious, and consciousnessmeans endowed with freedom. Because the soul is atomic,

his freewill is imperfect and vulnerable. The result ofthat free choice is that some are coming into the mate-rial world, and some are going to the spiritual world.So, the responsibility is with the individual soul.



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THE RIGHT TO WRONG

Once, an Indian political leader, ymasundarChakravart, asked our spiritual master, Prabhupd,Why has the Lord granted such freedom to thejva?Prabhupd told him, You are fighting for freedom.Dont you know the value of freedom? Devoid of free-dom, the soul is only matter. Freedom offers us thealternative to do right or wrong. Once, Gandhi told theBritish authorities, We want freedom. They replied,You are not fit to have self-government. When you arefit, we shall give it to you. But finally, he told them,We want the freedom to do wrong. So, freedom does

not guarantee only acting in the right way; freedom hasits value independent of right and wrong.Freewill is only absolute with the Absolute Truth.

Because we are finite, our freewill is infinitesimal. Thepossibility of committing a mistake is there. Our firstchoice was to dominate, and so, gradually we have en-

tered the world of domination. As a result of this firstaction, everything else has developed. So, in differentranks, the species have been divided, from the demigodsdown to the trees and stones. And watery bodies, gase-ous bodies, anything that we find here has evolved inthat way. The activating principle in any form of em-

bryological development is the soul, and from the soul,everything has evolved.

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sort of true, comprehensive, and non-deceptive knowl-

edge? In the Bhagavad-gt (4.34) Krishna says:tad viddhi praiptenaparipranena sevayupadekyanti te jnajninas tattva-darina

To learn knowledge above mortality you must

approach a self-realized soul, accept him as your spiritualmaster and take initiation from him. Inquire submis-sively, and render service unto him. Self-realized souls canimpart knowledge unto you, for they have seen the truth.

SUPERKNOWLEDGE

We have to approach the domain of knowledge withself-surrender, honest inquiry, and a serving attitude.We have to approach that plane with the mentality ofslavery. Higher knowledge will not serve a person oflower status. If we want perfect knowledge at all, we

will have to serve the Supreme Lord. He will use us forHis own purpose; not that we will use Him. We may besubjects in this mundane world, but we will have tobecome objects to be handled by the superknowledge ofthat plane. If we want to connect with that higherknowledge, we must approach with this attitude.

Praipta means that I have finished my experiencehere; I have no charm or aspiration for anything in thisworld. Then there ispariprana, or honest, submissive,and humble inquiry with sincere eagerness, and not



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with a challenging mood; otherwise perfect knowledge

wont care to descend to us. Krishna is already full inHimself, so we have to enter His domain only to fulfillHis purpose. He cant be subservient to us, for we aretiny persons with meager experience and a conceptionof mean fulfillment. We cannot handle Him; we canapproach Him only if we like to be handled by Him. So,

such a favorable environment should be created wherereal knowledge is to be cultivated. That knowledge issupreme, and cannot be subservient to the mundaneconception, the world of mortality. It is sac-cid-nanda.Sat means unassailable existence, cit means conscious-ness, and nanda means beauty and pleasure.

I must try to relieve myself of my present materialmiseries and inquire after a proper land where I canlive happily. Having come to this conclusion, we willhave to search for a person who is a bonafide agent ofthe higher world and consult with him about how wecan be relieved from this present undesirable environ-ment. In the rmad-Bhgavatam (11.3.21) it is said:

tasmd guru prapadyetajijsu reya uttamambde pare ca nitabrahmay upaamrayam

What is the conception of real good, and who isconsidered to be a bonafide agent of the truth? Onewho has knowledge of the scripture that has descendedfrom the upper domain, who has theoretical as well as

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practical knowledge of higher truth, must be approached

by a bonafide inquirer, for such a qualified spiritual mas-ter can impart proper knowledge to the sincere student.In the Muaka Upaniad (1.2.12) it is also stated:

tad-vijnrtha sa gurum evbhigacchetsamit-pi rotriya brahma-niham

In order to learn transcendental knowledge, onemust approach a genuine spiritual master coming indisciplic succession, who is fixed in the Absolute Truth.

In this verse, the word tata means after this. Whenones calculation is finished, he thinks, Life is not worthliving here in this world of birth, death, old age, and

disease. I must have a better world in which to live,where I can live as a gentleman. At every moment deathis devouring everything. Birth, death, old age, and disease all these troubles prevent me from fulfilling my ambi-tions here. I want something categorically different. Atthat time, taking the responsibility on his own shoul-

ders, without giving any trouble to theguru, and at therisk of poverty, ill-feeding, and so many other hardships,he will approach theguru. It is a free transaction. Not thathe will give something togurudeva, but he will collectwhat is necessary for sacrifice, for education, and at hisown risk he will approach the spiritual master.

KNOWLEDGE THROUGH SOUND

And what will be the position of theguru? He willbe well-versed in the scriptures, the ruti-stra, or that



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knowledge which can only be acquired through the

medium of sound, by attentive earnest hearing(rotriya brahma-niham).Brahm niham means, One who is established in

brahman, spirit, and who is acquainted with the causalposition of the universe. That is described in theUpanisads:

yeto v imni bhtni jyante,yena jtni jvantiyat prayanty abhisaviantitad vijijsasvatad eva brahma

Taittirya Upaniad 3.1

The Supreme Brahman is the origin and shelterof all living beings. When there is a creation, He bringsthem forth from their original state, and at the time ofannihilation, He devours them. After creation, every-thing rests in His omnipotence, and after annihilation,everything again returns to rest in Him. These are

the confirmations of the Vedic hymns.yasmin vijte sarvam eva vijta bhavatiyasmin prpte sarvam ida prptam bhavati

By knowing Him, everything is known; by gettingHim, everything is gained. We have come to inquire

about Brahman, the biggest, the all-accommodatingprinciple by knowing which we can know anythingand everything. And it is possible; it is not impossible.The Upaniads say, If you want to know anything, then



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know the whole. And what is the nature of the whole?

Everything is coming from Him, everything is beingmaintained by Him, and again everything enters intoHim. That is Brahman; so try to know that. If you canknow that, everything will be known to you.

This is also explained in the rmad-Bhgavatam(4.31.14):

yath taror mla-niecanenatpyanti tat-skandha-bhujopakhpropahrc ca yathendriytathaiva sarvrhaam acyutejy

Just as if you pour water onto the root of a tree, thewhole tree is fed, and just as when you supply food to thestomach, the whole body is fed, so if you can gain knowl-edge of the prime cause, Brahman, then you can knowanything and everything. Faith in this is called raddh.

The Vednta-stra, the very gist of the Vedas, says

athto brahm jijsa: Now that you have finished withthe fruitive activities recommended in the karma-kasection of the Vedas by Jaimini, we ask you to inquireabout Brahman.

That is described in the rmad-Bhgavatam (1.1.1)janmdy asya yato nvayd itarata crthev abhija svart:

Friends, let us inquire into the prime cause, whosenature is such that whatever we can see, and whateverwe can conceive of, springs from Him. He is the ulti-mate cause of everything, both directly and indirectly.



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means energy, and sattva means spirit, light, know-ledge. So, by transformation this world has been created.

In His abode, which is illumined by the ray of Hisown knowledge, there is no possibility of deception ormisunderstanding. (dhmn svena sad nirasta-kuhakasatya para dhmahi).


The original Sanskrit text of the Bhagavad-git, the essence of allVedic knowledge, recorded more than fifty centuries ago in theHimalayas by the sage Vysa.


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Here, we are being deceived through misunder-

standing. We have entered a plane of existence wherethe whole world is full of misconception, falsity, andmiscalculation. We are presently living in the worldofmy. My means m-y: What is not. I am see-ing something which is really something else.

REALITY: BY ITSELF ANDFOR ITSELF^vsyam everything is meant for God. That is the

Hegelian theory: reality is by itself and for itself. Hegelis the founder of Ideal Realism, so he says, Reality is byitself and for itself. By itself, means that He is His

own cause; no one has created Him. Otherwise, who-ever had created Him would have primary importance.For itself, means that God exists only to fulfill Hisown purpose. This is the universal truth: everythingis for Him, and nothing is for anyone else. So, when wethink that the things around us are meant for us, or

for our nation, or for the human beings, this is all afalse calculation, and knowledge based on such a mis-calculation has its reaction.

To every action, there is an equal and oppositereaction. I am eating something; it is entitled to eat me.In the Manu Sahit, the word msa is used to indi-

cate meat. M means Me, sa means he. Msameans me-he. What is the meaning? I am eatinghim; and he will eat me afterwards as a reaction. He isentitled to devour me, as I am at present devouring



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him. This is the underlying meaningevery action,

whatever it is, has its reaction. This is confirmed inthe Bhagavad-gt (3.9):

yajrtht karmao nyatraloko ya karma-bandhanatad-artha karma kaunteyamukta-saga samcara

Unless work is done as a sacrifice for Viu, onesown work will be the cause of bondage; thereforework on My behalf, and free yourself from the chain ofaction and reaction. Bhagavad-gt says that any work,no matter what it is, causes a reaction. For example,you may nurse a patient. Apparently, it is a good thing,but you are giving the patient medicine that comesfrom killing so many insects, trees, creepers, and ani-mals. You may think that your nursing is a very pureduty, but you are causing a disturbance in the envi-ronment, and you will have to pay for that. In this way,

whatever we do here cannot be perfectly good. TheGerman philosopher Kant has said, Without goodwill, no action can be perfectly good. But we are ofthe opinion that even good will is impossible here inthis mundane plane. According to Kant, good will isa pure thing, whereas no action here can be perfect,

but we say that even good will is impossible in therelative calculation of the world, because we are plod-ding in the mud of misunderstanding.

Pure knowledge comes only from above, and we



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have to learn to accept that. When that sort of under-

standing comes within us, it is known as raddh, orfaith. Faith is also a great thing. We should have faiththat if we do our duty towards the absolute, then allour duties to the environment in all directions areautomatically done (Ke bhakti kaile sarva karma ktahaya). By satisfying Krishna, the whole universe

becomes satisfied, for one who is dear to Krishna isdear to the whole universe (yasmin tue jagat tuamprite prito jagat). Just as by watering the root ofthe tree all the leaves and branches are automaticallynourished, by fulfilling ones duty towards Lord Krishnaall ones duties are automatically fulfilled.

KRISHNAS TRANSCENDENTAL ABODE

Everything is meant for Krishna. We are also meantfor Him (vsya ida sarva). This is true knowl-edge, and this is the true situation of the world.

Exploitation is an incomplete and reactionary ideafor which we incur a debt that we shall later have topay. We may go to Satyaloka, the highest planet in thematerial universe, but by exploiting nature, we incura debt, become heavy, and go down. And when we godown, others come to exploit and extort us until our

debts are paid. Then the heaviness goes, and webecome light and go upward to the higher planetary sys-tems again. And when we go up, we exploit those whoare in a lower position. In this way, there is continual



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exploitation and clearance of debt. This is confirmed in

the Bhagavad-gt (8.16):-brahma-bhuvanl lokpunar vartino rjunamm upetya tu kaunteyapunar janma na vidyate

All planetary systems within this world of matter are

places of repeated birth and death, but one who attainsMy abode, O son of Kunt, never takes birth again.Upon going there, one never returns to this materialworld (yad gatv na nivartante tad dhma paramamama). Krishnas abode is nirgua, or transcendental toany material quality.

We must firmly establish the conception ofvsya: everything, including ourselves, is meantfor the Supreme Lord. We are all His servants, and weare meant to utilize everything in His service. Anywork we perform will bind us in this environment of

matter, unless we perform yaja, sacrifice (yajrthtkarmao nyatra loko ya karma-bandhana). And theVedas enjoin, yajo vai viu: Sacrifice is meant exclu-sively for Viu, or Krishna. This is confirmed in theBhagavad-gt (9.24), where Krishna says, I am theonly enjoyer of every sacrifice. (aha hi sarva-yajn

bhokt ca prabhur eva ca). Sacrifice is not meant forthe country, or for the society, or for anything else.Sacrifice is meant only for the Supreme Lord. No one lessthan He is worthy of sacrifice. So, only by connecting our



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activities with the infinite can we be freed from the

present environment of action and reaction.When knowledge comes in connection with theabsolute, it loses its filthy characteristic. Then we canhave full knowledge, which will lead us toprema-bhakti,love of God. Everything is meant for Krishna. He isthe only enjoyer of everything. He is the absolute auto-

crat, and He is the absolute good. We are all His ser-vants, and everything is meant for His satisfaction. Wemust come to this understanding. Theguru-kula systemof Vedic education should be conceived in this line.

GURUHEAVIER THAN THE HIMALAYAS

Guru means heavy. Guru means one who dispelsthe darkness, and who is heavy, who cannot bemoved by any proposal. He is so well-established inthe truth that no offer of alternative knowledge, orany other proposal, can move him from his position.

He is firm there. He can help the laghu, the peoplewho are very light; those whom anyone can handlelike dolls of play. But theguru can never be movedfrom his position. He will sit tight there, heavier thanthe Himalayas, and face all fleeting conceptions ofknowledge, breaking them right and left, and estab-

lishing the universal characteristic of absolute knowl-edge. He will impart knowledge of the AbsoluteTruth, Brahman, the supreme whole, dispelling allmisconceptions and establishing knowledge of the



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THE LAND OF DEDICATION

In the Bhagavad-gt (15.6) Krishna says, One whoreaches My abode never returns to this material world(yad gatvna nivartante tad dhma parama mama). Thedissolution will go on in the plane of the materialworld, but if you can secure a visa for that land, if youcan enter into that soil, you will never be mishandled.When the sun, moon, and stars are all dissolved, youreternal self, your devotional ego, will be quite safe in Myplane. The material world is the land of exploitation;the spiritual world is the oppositethe land of dedi-cation. In the middle there is the brahmajyoti: the lineof demarcation between exploitation and dedication.

Here in this material world, every unit is of anexploiting nature; there it is just the opposite.Everything there is wholly dedicated to the service ofKrishna, and there is no want of anything, rather what-ever is necessary to make service to Krishna possible

comes automatically. Here, everything is based onkma, desire, so real service is not possible in this plane.There is no possibility of exploitation existing in

the land of dedication, for every unit there is a dedi-cating one. In the lower portion of the land of dedica-tion there is some calculation, some awe and reverence.

But in the higher sphere, it is all automatic sponta-neous love: a labor of love, with increased intensityand earnestness. And we are only charmed by thebeauty and love that is found in Goloka Vndvana, the



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supreme abode of Krishna. In a nutshell, this is what we

understand by the grace of our spiritual masters. We arevery much attracted by this conception which has beengiven to us by ourgurudeva as he has received it fromthe Vedic scriptures, especially the rmad-Bhgavatam.This has been explained by r Chaitanya MahprabhuHimself, by His teachings and practices, and this con-

ception has been expounded by His followers, the SixGoswms of Vndvana.



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T

here are six ancient philosophical systems of India.

The first is the Vaieika philosophy of Kada i:the atomic theory. According to him, everything ismade of atoms. So many different atoms combine andproduce this world. Kaa means atomic particle. Somany atomic particles have combined and producedthis world by chance, with no necessity of any reason,

rhyme, consciousness, nothing of the kind. And theoutcome of these combinations has produced what wefind here. That is the opinion of Kada: it is anatomic world.

Bhaktivinoda hkur, the nineteenth century foun-der of the Krishna consciousness movement, sings in

one song: keava! tuy jagata vicitra. O my Lord Krishna,I see that everything is available in Your world, whichhas an infinite, variegated nature. Separated from You,however, we are always feeling miseries. A continuousflow of suffering has swallowed us from birth to death,and we cannot tolerate the pain of such misery. And so

many relief agents: Kapila, Patajali, Gautama, Kada,Jaimini, Buddha, are running towards us, offering theirsolutions.

SIX PHILOSOPHIESOF INDIA

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ANALYSIS, YOGA, AND LOGIC

Kapila has come with the Skhya philosophicalsystem of analysis saying, Analyze matter, and youwill be free from all this pain. Patajali has come withyoga, Hey,jvtma! Come to meet Paramtm! Thenall the problems of this world will go away from you.Come in connection with Paramtm, the Supersoul.This is his recommendation .

Gautama comes with logic, nyya stra: There isone Maker, one Creator, but He is indifferent. He hascreated this world, finished, and left it. And you musttry to live with the help of your reason. Develop your

reasoning faculty, and be reasonable in all your conduct.Then only can you help yourself in this world. There isno other remedy. Be a good logician, and then you willbe able to control the environment with the power ofreason, and you will be happy. And Kada: Bychance atoms have been combined, and with the dis-

solution of atoms, nothing will remain. Why do youbother? Dont care. What is fate? It is nothing; ignoreit. And when the body is dissolved, nothing will remain.Why lament?

ATOMIC THEORY AND KARMA

Then, with the philosophy ofkarma-mms,Jaimini says, There may be One who has connectedus with this world and our karma, but karma is all in all.He is an indifferent observer. He has got no hold on us



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any longer. According to our karma we shall thrive or

we shall go down. So, these activities are recom-mended to you. If you go on with your karma you willbe happy. Of course, it cannot be denied; karma phala,the result ofkarma, diminishes and is ended. But stickto karma, good karma; dont go to bad karma. Theresult of good karma will be finished, but that does

not matter; again go on doing good karma, and thegood result will await you in heaven, and you willhave a happy life. If anything is friendly to you, it isyour karma. There is God, but He is indifferent. He isbound to serve you either good or bad, according toyour karma. He has no independence.

DISSOLVE YOUR MINDBUDDHA

Then another class of philosophy is that of Buddha:Only the combination of different things has createdyour mental system. With the dissolution of the men-

tal system, nothing remains. So, somehow, we mustdissolve the mental system. Practice ahis, nonvio-lence, satya, truthfulness, and so on.

It is seen that all these philosophers are talkingeither of renunciation or of exploitation (bhukti, mukti).And by setting different types of enchanting traps, they

arrange to capture thejva soul. Bhaktivinoda hkursays, But I have come to realize that these fellows areall cheaters. And they all have this common stand;they have no touch of Your devotion, Your service.

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There, they are one. They cannot deliver any real good.

They are common to oppose Your devotional serviceand supremacy. And ultimately they leave us in chaos.But from the ultimate standpoint, I see that they are

agents engaged by You to segregate the seriously diseasedpersons to another ward, for the good of the less seri-ously diseased patients. It is Your arrangement to seg-

regate the hopeless persons to another side for thebenefit of the good side. That is Your design, and theyare playing in Your hand like so many dolls. They areYour agents and they are also serving You in some way,because nothing is outside You. Bhaktivinoda hkurconcludes saying, I bid good-bye to them all. I feel in

my heart that I shall show respect to all these so-calledgood agents from a distance, however, my only realcapital is the dust of the holy feet of Your devotees. Irely on that dust as the source

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