The History Of The Gītā

But America is not poverty-stricken; it is rich; there is enough land and enough production, so everyone should be very satisfied and begin to make progress in Krsna consciousness. Americans have no economic problem, and yet they are searching after something. Somehow or other they are not satisfied with the Christian religion. On one hand, no one follows the principles, and on the other, it is not a complete science for modern America. But Krsna consciousness is complete. Bhagavad-gita is a complete science delivered by Krsna 5,000 years ago on this earth, and before that to the sun-god, as is stated at the beginning of the Fourth Chapter: The Blessed Lord said: "I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god Vivasvan, and Vivasvan instructed it to Manu, the father of Mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Iksvaku." Herein we find the history of the Bhagavad-gita traced from a remote time, when it was delivered to the kings of all planets. The royal order is especially dedicated to the protection of the inhabitants, and thus its members should also understand the science of the Bhagavad-gita, in order to rule the citizens and protect them from the onslaught of the material bondage to lust. Human life is meant for cultivation of spiritual knowledge, in eternal relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the executive heads of all states and all planets are obliged to impart this lesson to the citizens, by education, culture, and devotion.

Therefore this science of Bhagavad-gita is not a new presentation. Just from these words we can understand that it was instructed to the sun-god Vivasvan. Just as this country's executive head is called the President, similarly, there is a President or chief executive head also in the sun, and the present President's name is Vivasvan. So everything is in full detail. This is called Vedic literature. Vedic literature is not concerned only with this planet; it deals with all the universal planets. For instance, Krsna says that in the beginning He explained this science of Bhagavad-gita to the predominating Deity of the sun, whose name is Vivasvan. So do you think that Krsna is playing a joke or lying? No, that is not possible. He actually spoke to the god of the sun. Rascals and fools may think of Krsna as an ordinary man, but in India the great acaryas, like Sahkaracarya, Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu, acaryas who are guiding the whole destiny of the Hindu world, all accept Krsna as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So whatever Krsna is speaking is right. Now, if Krsna told this science to the sun-god, and the sun-god told it to his son Manu, then just imagine how old the science of Bhagavad-gita is. Apart from the sun-god's duration of age, if we simply take the present age of the Vaivasvata Manu, which is 71 multiplied by 4,300,000 years, or three hundred and five million, three hundred thousand years, we will see that it is a very long duration of life. Now at the present moment the age of the Vaivasvata Manu is half finished. That means 152,650,000 years since Bhagavad-gita was spoken to Vivasvan.

So Bhagavad-gita is not a new thing; it is not a new adventure. And obviously the Person who spoke Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god did not leave a work which is to be distorted and interpreted by mundane man. He did not leave something that would require their interpolations for understanding. Must such a great Personality, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, tell something which has to be understood through the interpretations of a mundane scholar? Is this reasonable? No. Whatever He spoke is complete and clear. There is no question of interpreting it in a different way. For instance, the Blessed Lord said: "I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god Vivasvan." What is the difficulty there? Is there any word which we cannot understand? Is there anyone who cannot understand these lines? It is clear. The Blessed Lord said: "I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god Vivasvan." Everyone can understand that Krsna instructed this science of Bhagavad-gita or the yoga of Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god, whose name is Vivasvan. It is clear. How can we interpret this? But if I think that Krsna is an ordinary man and therefore would have difficulty speaking to the sun-god Vivasvan, then an interpretation is required. But that sort of thinking is not bona fide; if one wants to study Bhagavad-gita he has to take the words of Bhagavad-gita. "The Blessed Lord." He is Lord. He can speak to the sun-god. The Lord is not like an ordinary man. Do we think that just because we cannot speak to the sun-god, Krsna cannot? That is our foolishness. Why should we calculate Krsna's activities with our activities? Therefore, all the commentators who think that Krsna is an ordinary man are null and void. Their commentaries should not be accepted. All the commentaries in the market are simply presentations of the particular commentator's personal view. That is not Bhagavad-gita. If one wants to understand Bhagavad-gita, then he should understand it as it was spoken and not interpret it in his own way.