Bhagavad-gītā 9.10 – April 26, 1976, Melbourne

760426BG-Melbourne [50:46 Minutes]

Destination-Lord of Destiny

Prabhupada: Text number 10:

[devotees repeat word for word, then line by line]

[01:12]

As Krsna said previously, maya tatam idam sarvam: "By Me, I am spread all over the universe." Everywhere, Krsna is there by His energy. I have explained this. Now about this prakrti, material nature, how it is working? This material nature is just like a machine, big machine. The same example: just like this body, my body, your body, it is also a machine, a lump of matter made into machine. Any machine is lump of matter, but it is working. But working how? Working by the touch of somebody spiritual. Without spiritual touch, matter cannot work. This has to be understood. The same example: your body, it is very wonderful machine. The medical science, when they dissect the body, find so many wonderful arrangements-the nerves, the muscles. They are all matter, but they are so nicely set up that it is working very nicely. This Dictaphone machine, the tape recorder, it is working very nicely, set up with so many electronic parts. But after all, it is matter. If there is no worker, it is useless. The machine is wonderful, undoubtedly, but there is a worker. Just like computer. It is wonderful machine, but there is very expert… The aeroplane, very wonderful machine, flying in the sky-but the pilot is there. Without pilot, it is dangerous. The machine is there, and if the pilot is not in order, then we are in danger.

In this way, we have to study that this material world, the adjustment. There are so many planets, sun, moon, stars, and very, very big arrangement-this is also same process, a big machine. But who is the pilot? Who is the conductor? That is explained here:

The background manipulator is God, is Krsna. The scientist, physist, chemist, they are praising, or they are trying to study, the machine only, but they have no information of the person who is manipulating the machine. That is the defect.

So in the human form only… The cats and dogs, they cannot understand that behind the machine there is a person who is manipulating the machine. The cats and dogs, they cannot understand. Just like a child cannot understand how a electric fan is moving. In my childhood-I have several times told you-I was thinking that within the fan there is a ghost. But I was suggesting. That was intelligence-there must be somebody; otherwise how it is moving? In the gramophone box I was thinking that "There is a man within the box; he is singing." So these are intelligence. There is one story, that there was one drum, and a child was beating; it was sounding very loudly. So he wanted to see who is the person within the drum that is vibrating, so with a knife he cut it. So these are things, research work. It may be childish proclivities, but the tendency to find out who is the ultimate cause of everything, that is intelligence. That is called darsana. In Sanskrit it is called darsana-sastra, or philosophy to find out the ultimate source.

So in the Vedanta-sūtra, that celebrated philosophy, Indian philosophy, Vedanta-sūtra, the beginning of Vedanta-sūtra is athato brahma-jijnasa. Brahma-jijnasa: "Now this human form of life is meant for inquiring about the ultimate truth." In the lower animal forms our inquiry is, "Where is food, where is shelter, where is sex, and where is defense?"Ahara-nidra-bhayam maithunam [Hitopadesa 25]: to eat something, and to sleep somewhere, and to have some sex enjoyment and some defense force. I may feel that I am secure: there is good government, there is good police arrangement-I can sleep very nicely. So these four things, ahara-nidra-bhayam maithunam. Ahara means eating; nidra means sleeping; and bhaya, to take protection from insecurity; and maithuna, sex life. Samanyam etat pasubhir naranam maithunam [Hitopadesa 25]. These things are bodily necessities equally applicable to the lower animals and the human being. Then what is the extra engagement that a human being is superior than the animal? What is that extra qualification? Otherwise what is the difference between a human being and a dog? The dog is after eating, sleeping, mating and defense, and as soon as another dog comes in the vicinity, the dog thinks the another dog has come, he begins to bark: "Why you have come here? Get out!"

So if we simply engage ourself, civilization, for simply economic development-means ahara-nidra-bhayam- and sex pleasure, then where is the difference between the dog's life and the human life? There is no difference. The Vedic civilization does not make any difference between a dog's life and a human being's life, unless in the human form of life there is inquiry about the Absolute Truth. Athato brahma-jijnasa. This is the beginning of philosophy. Now you have got this human form of life, advance intelligence, advance consciousness-now it is your duty to inquire about the Absolute Truth. Because in the beginning of the chapter, we have studied that,

There is no school, college or institution to make research what is mrtyu-samsara-vartmani. We are so fallen that we do not inquire. Just like the same, animal. The animal is being taken to the slaughterhouse, everyone knows. But the animal has no capacity to inquire, "Why I am being taken to the slaughterhouse?" He has no capacity. He has no capacity to make any counteraction against their being taken to the slaughterhouse. Mrtyu-samsara-vartmani. Every one of us, we are going to the slaughterhouse; but the human being, if he is by force he is taken to the slaughterhouse, he will at least make some protest, cry, that "Why this man is taking me to the slaughterhouse?" But the animal has no…, although he feels, he cries, there are tears in the eyes, sometimes we have seen. They know that "We are being taken to the slaughterhouse without any fault. We are doing no harm." Just like the cows. They are eating grass, and in exchange giving you the most nutritious food, milk. But we are so cruel and so ungrateful that we are taking the cows to the slaughterhouse.

The cow, according to Vedic civilization, is considered mother. Why not mother? She is supplying milk. Why mother is respectful? Why we offer our respect to mother? Because when you are helpless, we cannot eat anything, the mother supplies milk from the breast. Mother means who supplies the food. So if the cow is supplying food, milk-milk is so nutritious and full of vitamin-and she is our mother. In the sastra there are seven mothers, according to Vedic civilization. Seven mothers. One mother is real mother, from whose womb we have taken birth. Adau mata. This is the real mother. Guru-patni, the wife of spiritual master or teacher, she is mother. Adau mata guru-patni brahmani. The wife of a brahmana, she is also mother. Actually, a civilized man sees all women except his own wife as mother. Not seven, eight-everyone.

A learned scholar does not mean how many degrees he has got. A learned person means who sees all women as mother. So apart from all women, at least seven we should accept as mother. Adau mata guru-patni brahmani. Brahmani. Raja-patnika, the queen. The queen is mother, raja-patnika. Dhenu, cow. Cow is mother. And dhatri, nurse, she is mother. Dhenur dhatri tatha prthvi. And the earth, she is giving us so many varieties of food. [Niti Sastra]

So this is philosophy. So we should be very much kind, at least to the cows. If one is addicted to meat-eating, he can kill some other minor animals like goats, sheeps, hogs, fish. There are other animals. But in the Bhagavad-gita especially it has been mentioned,

Go-raksya. That is very important thing in the society, to give protection to the cows and to get milk. And varieties of milk preparation, ultimately ghee, is very important thing. In India still, every home requires sufficient quantity of ghee. But they are not meat-eaters. The meat-eaters cannot tolerate ghee. There is a saying that a dog cannot digest ghee [Bengali proverb: Kukkurera pete ghi hajam haya na].

So the subject matter is that to understand the philosophy. So, to athato brahma-jijnasa, in order to be inquisitive to the ultimate truth. What is the ultimate truth? We require a certain type of brain. Not ordinary men, they're inquisitive. The lower grade of brains like the animals, they cannot inquire. That is not possible. Therefore, in the Vedanta-sūtra it is said that athato brahma-jijnasa. Atah, ataḥ. Because you have got this human form of body, now you inquire what is the goal of life, what is the Absolute Truth, what is your relationship with the Absolute Truth, and how you should work, what is the aim of life. This is philosophy. That is possible in the human form of life. Athato brahma-jijnasa. And the reply, the philosophy of Vedanta-sūtra… Sūtra means shortcut, codes. The Vedic, whole Vedic knowledge, is summarized in some code word. So the purpose of Veda is to understand, is to search out Krsna. Vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyam [Bg 15.15]. The purpose of Vedic knowledge is to search out the Absolute Truth, God, or Krsna. That is human form, human being's business, actual occupation. So here the Absolute Truth personally presents Himself, and He says,

You have to make research, philosophical. That is the business of human form of life. "Now, directly see I am present here."Mayadhyaksena prakrtiḥ sūyate. "I am the controller of this universe." Then the next verse, it is said, avajananti mam mūḍha [Bg 9.11]. As soon as Krsna says that "I am the person who is conducting the whole universal affair…" But those who are mūḍha…Mūḍha means asses, no intelligence, mūḍha. The ass, the ass is the animal which is taken as the mūḍha, no intelligence. Why? Because the ass carries tons of load on his back. And especially in India, the washermen, they keep ass, carrying the loads of cloth, and he is given a little morsel of grass. And he stands there always at the door of the washerman; just on his order he has to carry tons of loads. Not a single cloth belongs to him, but he carries. And what is the exchange? A little grass. But this animal, this foolish animal, cannot understand that "I can get grass anywhere. Why I am standing here to carry the loads of the washerman?" Therefore it is ass. Ass means he has no intelligence. "Just simply for little grass in exchange, I am engaged to work whole day and night."

So the karmis…Karmis means the fruitive actors, workers. Practically you will find, every one of us, they are working so hard day and night, going here from the early in the morning, four o'clock. But what they are eating? Say two chapatis, that's all, or three chapatis. So he has no sense that "For two chapatis or three chapatis, why I am working so hard?" That is ass. He has no question. He is working day and night. Don't take this ass, only ass. The so-called hard worker, he is also working like an ass in exchange of. I have seen one big businessman in New York, he was eating only…, drinking a little tea and a morsel of toast, that's all, whole day. But he is busy always, working very, very hard.

So the karmis are considered as ass. But the grass is already there; the ass cannot see. Therefore sastra says, Narada Muni says, that "Why you are so busy about your economic development? That is already ordained. You cannot get more than what you are destined to get; neither you can get less. You will get it."Tasyaiva hetoḥ prayateta kovido [SB 1.5.18]. The human life is meant for not making arrangement, "What I shall eat? Where I shall sleep?" That is already arranged. The human life is meant for, as the Vedanta-sūtra says, athato brahma-jijnasa. But because we do not know the Vedic sastra, therefore we unnecessarily try to make economic development. There are so many hundreds and thousands of men, they are very working hard. But does it mean that everyone is becoming millionaire? No. That is not possible. Even though you work very, very hard, whatever you are destined to get, you'll get it. A child born in a rich family, with his birth he is millionaire. And another person, throughout the whole life he has worked very hard, hardly he has gotten his two times food. Why? There is the cause:

Whatever you are destined, the management is in the hands of the Supreme. So you cannot get more; you cannot get less. It is already destined. This belief… Unless one is firmly believer in the existence of the Supreme Person, God, one cannot believe it. He thinks that "I shall improve my position." That is not possible. When I first came to America, I thought that America is so rich, there is no poor man. But when actually went there, I saw that there are so many persons lying on the street. Why? The country is rich-they have got resources, everything-but why some men are lying on the street and some men are very happy in otherwise?

So destination, destined, order-things are there. That is the Vedic instruction; we get information. Eko yo bahūnam vidadhati kaman [Katha Upanisad 2.2.13]. Everything he will get according to his karma, destiny. The human life is only for inquiring about the aim of life, the sufferings of life, the Absolute Person who is managing the whole affair. These inquiries should be there. Jivasya tattva-jijnasa. Jivasya, the human being, must inquire about these things. That is human life. In many places they have been explained in different way.

This human form of life is not meant for working so hard like the pigs. Whole day and night they are searching after food. This is not human life. Human life must be very sober and must inquire about the Absolute Truth. That is called brahminical civilization. Brahminical civilization means the whole human society is divided into four classes. The first class, intelligent class, they are called brahmana. And the second class, they are the politicians or the government men, ksatriyas. And the third class, the productive class, vaisyas. And the fourth class, the worker, general worker. And less than that, pancamas; they are called canḍalas. This is the… There are,

That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gita. So the human society must be divided into four divisions; then it will be perfect. Just like in your body there are four divisions: the brain division, the arm division, the belly division, and the leg division. That is perfect body. If all these four departments are in order-brain is in order, arms is in order, and the belly is in order, and the legs are in order-then you are healthy. You require all these things. You require brain; otherwise how you will conduct your business? So there must be first-class men, very intelligent class men, who will guide the social activities. And the army, or arm, that the ksatriya government, must be very strong. Just like when somebody is coming to attack you, naturally your arms first of all try to protect you. They are called armies, from "arm." And the ksatriyas, the government, must be there-look to the security of the whole population. And the vaisyas, the productive class, mercantile class, traders, they must see to the food supply of the whole human society. That everything is described in the Bhagavad-gita. Therefore, we are simply insisting that the human society, if you take the instruction from the Bhagavad-gita, then the human life becomes perfect. Otherwise, without any guide, without any instruction from the Supreme Personality of Godhead, if we make our so many plans, it will not be perfect, and ultimately it will fail. And they say, the modern politician, especially the Communist, that we require revolution for change. But if you have right guide, there is no need of change. It will go on very nicely.

So here it is said that the nature…, you can see the working of the nature, how it is nicely working. Just at half-past six, immediately the sun rises, immediately light. The whole night was dark, and six-thirty in the morning, immediately the sun rises: there is light. Then after giving you light whole day, then in the evening again the sun is set, the moon is coming to give you light. In this way, you see how nicely arranged the nature is working. And do you think there is no brain behind it? This is foolishness. Without brain, without good manager, how these things are being managed so nicely, seasonal changes? We require temperature, so the sun from 93 millions miles away giving us temperature. So everything is so nicely arranged, and you think that there is no management, there is no brain? This is foolishness. We can see in our every day life that without nice management, things cannot go so nicely and properly. So why don't you think? So if you cannot think-because we are all asses-therefore Krsna comes and says that "Here. I am the person."

The prakrti, this material nature, is dealing with two kinds of things: cara and acara. Cara means moving-the animals, the living entities-and acara, acara means standing, just like dead matter. So the dead matter is also being managed by the supreme brain, and the living entities, they are also being managed by the Supreme Being.

"On account of My presence," hetuna anena, "on account of this reason, Kaunteya, My dear Arjuna," jagad viparivartate, "the whole world is jagat." Jagat means progressing, going on. The worldly affairs going on, jagat viparivartate. But unfortunately, as Krsna says in the next verse, avajananti mam mūḍha. Those who are asses, have no brain, avajananti-avajananti means "deride"- doesn't care that here is Krsna, the original Supreme Lord, conducting everything. So they cannot understand. Avajananti mam mūḍha. Therefore we should not remain a mūḍha, asses. We must be intelligent animal, or we must become brahmana. Brahmana, then,

Out of many millions of men, one may be very eager to make his life perfect, manusyanam sahasresu.

And out of many such perfect persons, hardly, or maybe one, understand what is the Supreme Lord, Krsna. Therefore Krsna comes personally to teach us, because He is very much affectionate. We are all sons of Krsna. He has no… We have no other father. The Supreme Father. He is the Supreme Father. He is very much affectionate. And because we are part and parcel of Krsna, mamaivamso jiva-bhūtaḥ [Bg 15.7], "All these living entities, they are My part and parcel," without any discrimination. The human being or the animals or the plants, trees, aquatics-every one of us a living being. And we have got different dress only, according to our karma. Just like here we are sitting, hundreds of men, and we have got different dress. Similarly, every living being is part and parcel of Krsna. You cannot mistreat other lower animals; then Krsna will be displeased. Suppose your father has got five sons, and one of them or two of them are useless. If the useful son says, proposes to the father, that "Father, your this son is useless, so why not kill him?" so will the father be pleased and give order? "No, no. You cannot kill. He should be taken more care." This is father. Similarly, every living entity-the aquatics, the birds, the beasts, the insects, the plants, the trees, the animals, and the human beings, civilized, uncivilized-everyone is Krsna's son. That is described:

"I am the seed-giving father, and the mother is material nature." So these things are to be understood. And the person, Supreme Person, is giving lesson, instruction, personally. So why should we miss this opportunity in this human form of life? That is not very good intelligence. It is so simple.

Krsna consciousness movement is very, very simple. You can see practically; what is the difficulty? You worship the Deity, and you take prasadam, and you chant, and you dance-and you become realized. It has been already described in the beginning, susukham kartum avyayam [Bg 9.2]. To execute Krsna consciousness is very, very pleasing. There is no difficulty. Kartum avyayam. And whatever little you do, that is permanent assessment. It will never be lost. So don't neglect. Don't become mūḍhas, as it is said here:

Because Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, comes here with compassion for us, just like human being. He is not human being, not like us. He has got immense power. If you study Krsna's life, from the very beginning of His birth He is God. When He was only three months old, the Pūtana Raksasi came to kill Him, but she was killed by the three-months-old child. So He had to kill so many demons, He had to act so wonderfully, that He has proved that He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. But because we are not intelligent, therefore we take Him as ordinary human being. Avajananti mam mūḍha. By taking Krsna as ordinary human being, we become mūḍha. No. Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Sarva-karana, original cause. So why they are neglecting?

Therefore we have to prepare our eyes to see Krsna. Otherwise, if we keep ourself as ass, even Krsna is present before us we cannot see.

So param bhavam, the absolute secrecy, how to understand Krsna, that is explained in this Bhagavad-gita. If we study carefully… We have tried to explain. People are appreciating all over the world about our, this book. So I wish that in Australia also, you ladies and gentlemen, you take advantage of this movement, you study this Bhagavad-gita, Srimad-Bhagavatam and other literatures, to understand Krsna. And if you understand Krsna, janma karma ca me divyam yo janati tattvataḥ [Bg 4.9], in truth, then your life is successful. What is that success? Tyaktva deham punar janma naiti. The success means-human form of life-success means to stop this birth, death, old age and disease. That is success. Not that if you can construct a skyscraper building or a very big motorcar, that is success. No. That is not success. Because we are under the-prakrteḥ kriyamanani-we are under the clutches of prakrti. Prakrti is giving us according to our association. Karanam guna-sahgo 'sya [Bg 13.22]. We are getting different type of body. In this life, I may be fortunate to construct a very big building. But next life, if I am going to become a dog or cat, then what is the success? That is not success. Success is to understand the whole philosophy and stop the process of birth, death, old age and disease. That is success. That you can do only simply by understanding Krsna.

This is wanted. This is actually the business of human life. Athato brahma-jijnasa. Janmady asya yataḥ. This is the philosophy of life. So our request is you try to understand this philosophy, this movement. Take advantage and spread it. Be happy and make others happy. Thank you very much. [break]

Devotee: Is it possible for a fallen soul to preach the glories of Krsna and Lord Caitanya and the spiritual master to people outside?

Prabhupada: Outside? What do you mean outside?

Devotee: In society. Outside of the movement, outside of the temple.

Devotee (2): He means living out independently, and also…

Prabhupada: Oh, yes. Why not? Why not? It is simply an example how to become Krsna conscious. You can start a similar place in your home, in your village, in your town. You can do that. It is simply an example how to conduct Krsna consciousness business. It is not that the business is limited. It is not limited. Therefore we have written so many books. It is a great science. You can do it anywhere-that is the mission of Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He says, prthivite ache yata nagaradi grama : "All over the world, as many towns and villages are there, this Krsna conciousness movement must be spread." So one must know the science and spread it. That is wanted. People are suffering for want of knowledge. They should be enlightened by this Krsna consciousness movement. That is the business of human life. Especially Caitanya Mahaprabhu ordered the Indians to do it. He said,

His mission is that anyone who has taken birth in India, he first of all make his life successful and spread this knowledge for welfare activities of the whole human society. This is required.

Indian guest: I wish to offer my very sincere gratitude…

Prabhupada: [break] …maya. So this mayacan be avoided. The method is very simple:

So if we actually want to get relief from the maya, that is Krsna's program. He says ultimately that,

If we actually do that, mam ekam saranam vraja, surrender to Krsna, then it is very easy to get out of the clutches of maya, instantly. He says, assures,

Maya is police custody. If one is criminal, then police is dangerous for that person. But if one is honest, the police may remain there. A police has no business with the honest man. Similarly, if we remain honest, then maya has nothing to do with us. Maya may be there. Same example: police has nothing to do with the honest, law-abiding citizen, but as soon as one is criminal, he comes under the custody of police, automatically.

In this connection there is there, Bengali verse,

As soon as we forget Krsna and I think myself, "I am the enjoyer. I am the king of all I survey," that is maya. That is maya. Everyone is thinking like that, that "I am the king of everything…, at least I am trying to be." This endeavor is mayic activities. But as soon as we come to the understanding, isavasyam idam sarvam -everything belongs to Krsna… Krsna also says in the Bhagavad-gita,

Simply we have to understand. At the present moment, materialistic life means every one of us thinking, "I am the proprietor." Either individually or collectively, nationally, that is the disease. Everyone is thinking, "This land belongs to me," "This land belongs to my family," "This land belongs to my state, to my nation." But actually this land belongs to Krsna. That is a fact. So this misconception of life means maya, and as soon as we understand that everything belongs to the Supreme Lord, then whole problem solved. There is United Nations-they are meeting for the last thirty or forty years-but there is no solution, because the different nations, they are meeting, that "I have…, America is our," "Australia is our," "India is our." So all this "our" persons, they are meeting and talking, but that is maya. If they pass a resolution that "This whole earthly planet belongs to Krsna, God," so everything is solved immediately. But that we shall not do. That is,

Their conviction, false conviction, is so strong. But as soon as we turn this plate in this way, that "Everything belongs to Krsna," then the whole solution is there. So it is not very easy to think like that.

But at least we shall begin, learn it. That is Krsna consciousness movement. At least we shall begin to think like that. And that is possible, as recommended by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu, because the real mistake is within the heart. Falsely I am thinking, "I am the proprietor" or "I am the master" or "I am the enjoyer." Falsely. This has to be cleansed. Ceto-darpana-marjanam [Cc Antya 20.12].

Actually if we are sober, if we are actually philosopher, we can very easily understand, then "Why I am claiming, 'This is mine, this is mine'? I am a newcomer. I stay here for a few days or few years." How he becomes a…"Before my birth the land was there, and after my death the land will be there. Then how the land becomes mine?" This simple question, if it is answered, it is also… There is solution to so many problems.

Therefore this human form of life is meant for discussing, considering this question. That is called athato brahma-jijnasa. So this Krsna consciousness movement is brahma-jijnasa, and the answer. We have published so many books-only this two, question and answer, that's all. So, let us begin. It is not a fanatical movement; it is scientifical movement. So our request is that you study this Krsna consciousness movement very soberly, philosophically, and every one of you will be benefited. Thank you very much.

Devotees: Jaya Srila Prabhupada. [end]