First of all, because we have no information of God but practically we see the vast land, the vast water, ocean, the vast sky, then fire, so many things, material things, material things also mind... Mind is also material. And then ego. Everyone is thinking that "I am something. I am..." Kartaham iti manyate. Ahankara-vimudhatma. This false ego. This ego means false ego. And there is pure ego. That pure ego is aham brahmasmi, and the false ego: "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am African," "I am brahmana," "I am ksatriya," "I am this," "I am that." This is false ego, ahankara. So at the present moment... Not at the present, always, we are surrounded by all these things. That is our beginning of philosophy: wherefrom this land came? Wherefrom this water came? Wherefrom the fire came? That is natural inquiry. Wherefrom the sky came? How the stars are situated, so many millions and millions? So these are the inquiries of the intelligent person. That is the beginning of philosophical life. Therefore those who are thoughtful human being, gradually they are inquisitive of understanding the Supreme Lord, Krsna.

So Krsna is there, and Krsna is explaining Himself, "I am like this." But unfortunately we'll not understand Krsna, but we'll try to speculate what is God. This is our disease. Krsna is explaining Himself; God is explaining Himself. We shall not take that statement, but either we shall deny or we shall accept God without any head and leg and so on, so many things. This is our disease. Therefore in the previous verse it has been explained,

Perfection means to understand his real constitutional position, that he is not this material body; he is spirit soul, Brahman. That is perfection, perfection of knowledge, brahma-jnana.

So therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu says that one who has undergone the training by a Mayavadi philosopher, his life is finished. Mayavadi-bhasya sunile haya sarva-nasa [Cc. Madhya 6.169]. He says that he is finished because he'll never be able to advance in devotional service, and that is the ultimate goal of life. Mad-bhaktim labhate param. Brahma-bhutah prasannatma [Bg. 18.54]. After realization of Brahman, when he is actually on the Brahman platform, then the symptom is na socati na kanksati: he has no more lamentation and no more aspiration. Aham brahmasmi. Then he can see everyone one equal level. Samah sarvesu bhutesu. Because he does not see the outward body, he does not see that "Here is a Hindu, here is a Muslim, here is a Christian, here is an Indian, here is American, here is black and here is white." No. He sees within, within, introspection. He sees that within,

So here Krsna says that first of all our material conception of life... We are in the material world. We see everything as stone and wood and earth and water and fire and everything. We have got the capacity to see all these things. Here Krsna says that this bhumi, this earth; apa, this water; anala, this fire; vayu, air; kham, the sky, ether; mana, mind... That is still subtle. Up to ether, you can see, but the mind, which is still finer than the ether, mana, that you cannot see. Mind, everyone knows you have got mind, I have got mind, but you cannot see the mind, neither I can see your mind. Here is the subtle. First gross: bhumir apo 'nalo vayuh, up to ether. Ether also we cannot see, but we can understand here is ether by (claps) sound. As soon as there is sound, this is the understanding of ether. Ether, vayu, you can touch, but you cannot see. Then fire, you can see. And then water, you can see also, and then earthgross. From the finer, we are coming to the gross. Begins from the finer.

So finer than the ether is the mind, and finer than the mind is intelligence, ego. And finer than the intelligence and ego is the soul. So how you can see soul? You cannot see even the material things, as soon it becomes finer. How you can see the soul? They cannot see, but soul is there. Therefore when the soul departs from the body we see the bhumir apo 'nalo vayuh kham mano buddhi-ahankara... [Bg. 7.4]. Buddhi-ahankara The man, the dead man, is lying. The gross thing we are seeing, but the mind, intelligence, ego, which is carrying that soul, that we do not see. How transmigration of the soul takes place, that we have no knowledge, poor fund of knowledge. We can simply think gross. Jada-darsana. It is called jada-darsana. Even there is no suksma-darsana. Although there is mind, but we cannot see. Then how you can see the soul?

So this is the defect of modern education. So what is beyond your perception, sense perception, that you have to hear. There are two kinds of knowledges: by practical experience, direct perception, and by hearing from authority, aitihya. According to Vedic system, there are three kinds of evidences: direct, and pratyaksa... Pratyaksa means direct. And then aitihya and sruti. Sruti. Sruti means hearing from the authority. Just like here we see that there is mind. Everyone knows mind, but it is confirmed by the sastra because we are hearing from Krsna which is called sruti. Similarly, when Krsna says in the Second Chapter,

So the Vedic knowledge is called sruti. You have to learn things beyond your perception simply by hearing from the authorities. So Vedic knowledge is the authority. Why we accept Vedas as authority? Because there is the perfect knowledge. I have discussed so many times the authority of the Vedas, accepting cow dung as pure although animal stool is impure. But Vedas accept that cow dung is pure; we accept it. Cow dung is pure. This is called sruti-pramana. Sruti-pramana means the real knowledge, perfect knowledge, is coming from the supreme perfect, Krsna. That perfect knowledge after creation... Brahma is the first created being, so Brahma was instructed the sruti, perfect knowledge, by Krsna. Krsna is the original spiritual master. Vedanta-vit. He says, Krsna, in the Bhagavad-gita,

It is explained in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, janmady asya: [SB 1.1.1] "The original person from whom everything is born," yatah, anvayad itaratas ca arthesu abhijnah, "He knows everything perfectly, indirectly and directly." Anvayad itaratas ca abhijnah. And wherefrom He got the knowledge? Now, svarat. That is His... God means svarat. He hasn't got to get any knowledge from anyone else. Everyone gets knowledge from Him, but He hasn't got to take knowledge from anyone, svarat, independent. So the Brahma, the first lord, first creature, living creature, so he got knowledge from Krsna. Tene brahma hrda adi-kavaye: [SB 1.1.1] "That Supreme Person gave the knowledge to the adi-kavi." Adi-kavi means Lord Brahma, the first learned man.

So our Vedic conception of life, creation, is not like the Darwin, that his first creation... I do not know what is, but they think that they'll get knowledge from monkey. But we do not take knowledge from monkey. (laughter) Therefore we do not keep ourself in darkness. If you take knowledge from monkey, then you remain always like monkey. You cannot be advanced. But here it is... Bhagavata says, tene brahma hrda adi-kavaye: We got knowledge directly from Krsna, the most perfect. Therefore Brahma is generated from Visnu. So the first living creature, the perfect person within this material world who got instruction there, that is the beginning of creation. Beginning of creation is not crude or ignorance. Beginning of creation is first-class knowledge. That is the Vedic conception.

So Krsna says that how you are thinking of the material. Material scientists, they are studying earth. What is called? Soil expert, they are studying soil: "Where is mine? Where is gold? Where is coal? Where is this, that?" So many thing, they are studying. But they do not know wherefrom these things came. Here is... Krsna explains that bhinna me prakrti: "This is My energy, My energy." How these different chemicals and earthly matters became manifested, everyone is inquisitive, any thoughtful man. Here is the answer. Here is the answer, that

This prakrti, this material world, is composed of these things: bhumir apo 'nalo vayuh kham mano buddhir eva ca [Bg. 7.4]. So wherefrom this came? That Krsna explains, that "They are My energies." Because we have to know, so... To understand Krsna means one must know what is this earth, what is this water, what is this fire, what is this air, what is this sky, what is this mind, what is this ego. These material things, they should know that wherefrom these things came. They only theorize that water is combination of some chemical, hydrogen, oxygen. But wherefrom the chemical came, hydrogen, oxygen? That they cannot answer. So therefore this is called acintya-sakti. Acintya-sakti. If you do not apply, if you refuse, acintya-sakti, in God, acintya-sakti, inconceivable energy, then there is no God. Acintya-sakti-sampannah.

Now you can understand what is that acintya-sakti. Acintya-sakti you have got also, acintya-sakti, everyone, because we are part and parcel of God. Therefore minute... But we are... What is the ratio? The ratio is, it is said in the sastra... What is that? Kesagra-sata-bhagasya satadha kalpitasya ca jiva-bhagah sa vijneyah sa canantyaya kalpate [Cc. Madhya 19.140]. Kesagra-sata-bhagasya. Just giving an idea. What is that? The tip of the hair, just a small full stop, you divide this point into one hundred parts. And that one part again divide into one hundred parts. That is, mean, one ten-thousandth part of the tip of the hair. That is a full-stop-like. That is the magnitude of the jiva, spirit, spiritual spark, molecular parts, atomic parts. So kesagra-sata-bhagasya satadha kalpitasya ca jiva-bhagah sa vijneyah sa canantyaya kalpate [Cc. Madhya 19.140].

So there is magnitude, but because in the material eyes we can see simply the gross thing, the subtle things we cannot understand. But from the sastra you have to understand, from the sruti. Then you'll understand. There is verse in the Bhagavad-gita, indriyani parany ahur indriyebhyah param manah manasas tu para buddhih [Bg. 3.42]. Just like here it is said mano buddhih. Manasas ca para buddhih. Finer or superior than the mind is intelligence. That is... Another place it is also explained that gross thing means these senses. Indriyani parany ahuh. This is gross vision. I see a man means I see his body, his eyes, his ear, his hands and legs and everything. That is gross vision. But finer than these gross senses, there is mind which is controlling the senses. That you do not see. Indriyani parany ahur indriyebhyah param manah [Bg. 3.42]. Then mind is controlled by the intelligence. Manasas ca para buddhih. So you have to study like that. Simply like layman if you dismiss that "There is no God, there is no soul," this is simply rascaldom, simply rascaldom. Don't remain rascals. Here is Bhagavad-gita. Learn everything very particularly, very minutely. And it is open for everyone. Krsna spoke Bhagavad-gita to Arjuna, not for Arjuna. He came for everyone because He loves everyone. Everyone is son.

So because we are learning knowledge from sruti, from the perfect person, we will never be convinced. We shall challenge, "You create, rascal, create first of all. Then talk. Otherwise I shall kick." (laughter) This is our challenge because I know. We know very well that it will not be possible to create living being by combination of chemicals. He is talking nonsense. That is not possible. So we have to study from sruti. Then we become learned. Then we can know what is our constitutional position. Brahma-bhutah prasannatma na socati [Bg. 18.54]. Then he does not lament and neither he aspires everything, because he knows everything is complete there, conducted by the Supreme Being. And the Supreme Being said, mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10].

So this is the understanding of knowledge. So you take it very seriously, study Bhagavad-gita and learn everything nicely, become learned, and jnanavan. Bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyate [Bg. 7.19]. And just try to surrender to Krsna. Then your life is successful.

Thank you very much. [break]