God is one, God cannot be two. It is not that Hindus have got one God and Christians have got another God. No. God cannot be two. Then there cannot be any competition of Gods. "I am God." Just like nowadays it has become a fashion, so many gods, rascals are coming, "I am God." He says, "I am God," "I am God," "I am God." Now how many Gods are there? No, God is one, eko brahma dvitiya nasti, that is the Vedic injunction. Just like the sun. Sun is one. From our practical example. You cannot say that "This is American sun," and "this is Indian sun," or "it is African sun." Sun is one. See, if a creation of God is one and it is so powerful... Sun is one of the creation of God. There are millions of suns. We can see one only. So if one sun created by God can do so much work, can distribute so much heat and light, just imagine how much powerful is the creator of the sun. This is common sense. So we get information from Bhagavad-gita... (aside:) Rupanuga you can come here.

Now this life, this human form of life is especially meant for enquiring about the absolute truth. In animal life we cannot do. There are big, big animals, tigers and lions and elephants and big, big trees also, they are also living entities. Big, big whale fish within the ocean, very gigantic. Big, big mountains, mountains, they have got also life. But they cannot enquire about God, that is not possible. You can enquire about God in this human form of life, that's all. Therefore in any civilized society, there is an enquiry of God, that is called religion. One may be, or in degrees there may be different. Just like in India, they are also making inquiry. Not now, not at the present moment. They have given up. But hundreds and thousands of years ago. Not thousand, even two hundred years ago, India was so inquisitive about enquiring about God. Even one Chinese gentleman, he has written one book, philosophical, that is recommendedI forgot the name, title of the bookthat is studied in New York University in the religion class. In that book he has written that if you want to know about God, if you want to know about religion, then you must go to India. Yes, that's a fact. Because in no other country the great sages and saintly person engaged themselves so seriously about understanding God. Therefore the Vedanta-sutra is there.

So we should know that God is one. God is not different. There cannot be any competition of God. Mattah parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya [Bg. 7.7]. There cannot be any superior truth than God. Therefore God is called the great. God is called the absolute. So Religion means, first-class religion means, how the followers have developed the understanding of God. That is first-class religion. Not that how many animals we can sacrifice or how many times we can... So many rituals and so many other things are there in every religion. But the, we have to test by the result, phalena pariciyate. Everything... Just like we have studied so much, a scientific man, but there is examination. If one passes the examination, then it is understood that he has studied nicely. That is our common sense. In school, colleges, everywhere. If I cannot pass the examination and if I advertise myself, "Oh, I have studied this, I have studied that," then what is the value of that? Suppose a man is doing business. So if we see that by doing business, he has acquired some money, he has become rich, then we can understand that he is successful businessman. But if he, he is a poor man, and he says, "I have done this, I have done that, I have done that," you can say so but we want to know by the result. Phalena pariciyate. That is a Sanskrit version. But we have to understand by the result, phalena, what result you have got. What the value of your examination paper you have, how much mark you have received. Similarly we can declare ourself very religionist, great religionist, follower of great religion, but what is this? What is...? How much you have developed your sense of God consciousness, how much you have learned to love God.

Just like in your western countries, Lord Jesus Christ sacrificed His life for God's. Can... He was charged that He was preaching something blasphemous. But He was a devotee of God. He, He preached to the people that there is kingdom of God, you love God, and go to the kingdom of God. Simple truth. That is the actual business of human life. This human life is meant for understanding God because we are part and parcel of God and we have forgotten. Just like the same thing, I have given several times example, a person, he belongs to a rich father, but somehow or other he has left home and he is loitering. In your country this example is very applicable. So many boys, they have left their rich father, rich family, and lying down on the street. I have seen. Why? Maybe some reason, but he is not expected to lie down on the street because he has got rich father, at least rich nation, your American nation. Similarly when we become puzzled and confused and want to live independently of God, the richest fatherwho can be richer than God? God means the richest. No one can be richer than Him. That is another definition of God.

Therefore God is called great, God is great. Similarly, not only in riches, aisvarya, sa samagrasya, viryasya, in power also. Aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah, in reputation also, in fame. Just like everyone, it may be you belong to some religion, I belong to, but everyone knows that God is great. That is reputation. Aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah, and sri, sri means beauty. God is the most beautiful. Just like, see Krsna here, you have got Krsna's figure here, how beautiful He is. God must be, He is young, always. An old man cannot become beautiful. That is stated in the Brahma-samhita, advaitam acyutam anadim ananta-rupam adyam purana-purusam nava-yauvanam ca [Bs. 5.33]. That is the description of Adyam Purana, He is the original person, the oldest of all but he is nava-yauvanam, just like a beautiful boy, say sixteen or twenty years old. So that is beautiful, the most beautiful. And the most wise, jnana. Nobody can be wiser than God. These are the description given by Parasara Muni, father of Vyasadeva. Aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah sriyah (Visnu Purana 6.5.47), jnana-vairagya and at the same time renounced.

Now God has created this universe, God has created the cosmic manifestation, innumerable universes but He is not interested in it. He is interested because He has created. He has given us facility to live here, but He is not coming here to enjoy this. He has got better. Or He doesn't care for all these opulences. That is another qualification of God. So this human form of life is meant for understanding God and scientifically, with full knowledge. That is described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam. Therefore we are preaching this Bhagavata discourse. In the beginning of Srimad-Bhagavatam what is the nature of God? That has been described, janmady asya yatah anvayad itaratas ca arthesu abhijnah svarat [SB 1.1.1]. God, God is cognizant, He knows everything. He is a sentient being. Not that a dead stone. If God is not sentient being, if God is not a person, how so many powerful persons, sentient persons coming from Him? If the father is not intelligent, how the sons and daughters can become intelligent? A dog cannot give birth to an intelligent person, a person who is intelligent, he can give birth to intelligent children. This our practical experience. Therefore this description of God, aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasah sriyahv, we should try to understand what is God. If you can find out a person who is superior in everything, in wealth, in strength, in beauty, in fame, in knowledge, in renouncement, He is God. Don't capture any fourth-class God. If you are intelligent, try to understand what is the meaning of God and try to understand.

So here in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, it is said that that is first-class religionwhat is that?which gives opportunity to the followers how to love God. Why should we not? If God is great, if our father is so great, why should we not love? We flatter somebody here, having a say, a few millions of dollars, we flatter, and who is the richest of all, we should not love Him? Why? What is the reason? And actually He is supplying everything, eko bahunam vidadhati kaman. He is supplying all necessities of life to all living entities, beginning from the ant to the elephant. So why not to us? We have dedicated our whole life for the service of God, so God is giving food to the ant, to the elephant, why not to us? So don't think that you will starve in God consciousness. You will never starve. You go on with your duty, loving God and preaching love of God. You will always be opulent, be sure. Ordinary man, if you work for him, he gives you salary, good salary. And we are working for God, we don't all get salary? How is that? (laughter) We must get. If you are really lover of God, worker for God, don't think of your economic condition, it will be supported. In the Bhagavad-gita it is said, yoga-ksemam vahamy aham [Bg. 9.22]. He personally supplies whatever necessities are there. Just like a father, (indistinct) child who is completely dependent on the parents, the parents look after the comfort. The child does not ask the parent, because he cannot speak also. So he is simply depending on God, simply depending on parent. Simply, if you simply depend on God, there is no question of your economic problem. Be sure. This is common sense.

So there is scarcity of devotees of God at the present moment. People have rejected God. Somebody is saying, "God is dead." Somebody is accepting a rascal as God. Somebody is declaring himself as God. No, try to understand God scientifically and become a devotee, a lover of God, your life will be successful. That is Krsna consciousness movement. It is not that "My God," "Your God," "This religion," "That religion." God is one and religion is one. What is that religion? Love of God. That's all. There is no other second religion. This is the religion. Therefore God comes and says, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg. 18.66]. This is religion. Don't be after so-called religion. You become a lover of God, you are first-class religionist. That's all. That is taught by God, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam... [Bg. 18.66] This is religion. And if you don't love God, if you simply love dog, and how you can be religious?

So that is taught, sa vai pumsam paro dharmah yato bhaktir adhoksaje. Adhoksaje, this very word is used because God cannot be seen at the present moment with our material eyes. God cannot be touched with our material hand. Therefore his name is Adhoksaja. Adhah krta aksaja jnanam yatra, with our material eyes, material hands, material senses, we cannot understand what is God. Atah sri-krsna-namadi na bhaved grahyam indriyaih [Cc. Madhya 17.136]. (aside:) Don't make sound. Atah sri-krsna-namadi, God's name, God's form, God's quality, God's pastime, God's paraphernalia, and so many things, na bhaved grahyam indriyaih. Indriya means senses. Our present senses are blunt, imperfect. They are defective with so many faults. Everyone can understand that I am very much proud of my eyes, I want to see God, but I cannot see my eyelid. When I block my eyes, I cannot see what is this little fragment of the skin, and still I am proud, I want to see God. Just see. You have to qualify yourself, then you can see God. Just like Caitanya Mahaprabhu, when (He) entered the Jagannatha Temple, He immediately fainted, "Oh, here is My Lord." And other person says, "What is this nonsense. A wooden, not even very beautiful form, and He is..." So because he hasn't got eyes. One who has got eyes to see God, he does not see anything except God. Premanjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santah sadaiva hrdayesu vilokayanti [Bs. 5.38]. You have to anoint your eyes with love of God, then you will see that God is present everywhere. God is present in the tree, God is present in the animal, God is present in you, God is represent in your family, in your You cannot say Actually that is the fact.

So religion means how to get that eyes, how to get that hand, how to get that leg, so that I can appreciate God. That should be the process of human civilization. Not that how I can compete with tiger, how I can compete with cats and dogs. That is not religion. Religion means how you have developed your love of God, how we are seeing God in every state. Everywhere. God is everywhere, that's a fact. Andantara-stha-paramanu cayantara-stham, God is within atom also. These are the description in the Vedic literature.

Vistabhyaham idam krtsnam ekamsena sthito jagat [Bg. 10.42]. So God is the supreme spirit. If you individually study this individual spirit, as you are, I am... We must know because we are sparks, God is the original fire. We are sparks. Qualitatively the spark and the fire the same thing. The spark is very minute small and the big fire is very great. But this... You can study, by studying yourself that because I am spirit soul, I have entered into this lump of matter, therefore this body has developed, this body is moving, the body is working, it is so important, Mr. such-and-such professor's body or scientist's body, but as soon as that spiritual spark is over, it is nothing but a lump of matter, you can kick it out. So God is everywhere, simply we have to make our these blunt eyes... Just like education. I am seeing a motor car but a advanced motor engineer, he sees also the car, the difference of seeing. If there is some defect in the car, I cannot do it. But one engineer, one who knows, a mechanic, he knows, immediately touches and the car runs. Similarly, we should know that by education, by culture, by knowledge we can understand God. Not by fictitious, by concoction, "Oh, I accept this God. I accept that God." So that education can be very quickly done. Otherwise it is very difficult to understand God.

There are so many philosophers in the world, so many scientists, they are declining. Because they could not find what is God, they are denying. Just like, my inefficiency of my eyes, I see that beyond this wall I cannot see. I say, "Oh, there is nothing beyond this wall." (indistinct) That is my lack of education. Not that there is nothing beyond this wall. My imperfect eyes cannot see, my imperfect senses cannot realize, but you can make your senses perfect to see God by a process. What is that? Bhakti-yoga. That is explained by Krsna in the Bhagavad-gita, bhaktya mam abhijanati yavan yas casmi tattvatah [Bg. 18.55]. In one place Krsna has said, manusyanam sahasresu kascid yatati siddhaye [Bg. 7.3]. Out of many millions of persons, one is very much anxious to make his life perfect. Everyone is not. They are simply working like cats and dogs. That's all. Nobody is interested how to make life perfect. Manusyanam sahasresu, out of millions of person, one becomes interested how to make this life perfect. Manusyanam sahasresu kascid yatati siddhaye, yatatam api siddhanam [Bg. 7.3], and out of many such perfect persons, who has made his life perfect, out of many such person, kascid jana, kascit vetti mam tattvatah, knows God. So God-knowing is not very easy job, but it can be made easy by a process, which is called bhakti-yoga. That is explained here

Just like example is Maharaja Pariksit. Maharaja Pariksit, he had only seven days time of his lifethat is the beginning of Srimad-Bhagavatam. He simply heard, he listened carefully about Krsna and he became perfect. He simply listened, he had no other business. Similarly Sukadeva Gosvami, he simply described, chanted about Krsna, he became perfect. Prahlada Maharaja, he was being punished and chastised by his father in so many ways but he was simply remembering Krsna. He became perfect. Hanuman, he was not even a man, he was animal, but his only business was to serve Lord Ramacandra at any risk. He jumped over the ocean. He did not know any Vedanta philosophy, he was an animal. But he dedicated his life to serve Lord Ramacandra. He took the risk of jumping over the sea. So in this way there are nine different process of bhakti-yoga. You can utilize all of them or you can utilize some of them, but if you stick to one only even, then your life will be successful. How life will be successful? That is also stated here, janayaty asu vairagyam jnanam ca yad ahaitukam [SB 1.2.7]. By bhakti-yoga process, your original knowledge will be revived.

What is that original knowledge? Original knowledge is that God is the Supreme Father, I am His eternal son, or eternal servant, as you... Son is always servant because son, real son is obedient and servant is also obedient. And as we have got distinction here, servant and son, in the absolute world there is no such distinction. A son is as good as the servant and servant is as good as the son. That is absolute world. Don't think "Why shall I become a servant?" No, whatever you like, you can become, but in relationship with God, everything is one. There is no such distinction. So janayaty as..., this is jnana, this is knowledge. That God is great, I am very insignificant small, my business is to serve. This is jnana, this is knowledge. This is knowledge. If simply we can understand this little philosophy, that God is great, I am very small. We have got experience here. Just like the government is great and we are small so whatever the order is government, the government wants somebody, "Come and join this draft department," you have to join, do it. Because you are small. So we can see in our practical life, the great puts the little into his service. Nunam mahatam tatra.

Just like we are powerful human being, we are killing so many animals because they are weak. Otherwise it is not possible that you can live at the expense of poor animals, because they are weak. So similarly, in God's relationship, there is no such thing that if you remain subservient to God, He will kill you. No, He will protect you. He is protecting everyone but if you become obedient devotee of God, there is special protection. Kaunteya pratijanihi na me bhaktah pranasyati [Bg. 9.31]. Krsna declares in the Bhagavad-gita, "My devotee will be never be vanquished." He'll give protection. He is giving protection everyone but a protection general, and protection special, for the devotee special protection. Just like a very nice gentleman, he loves everyone but he gives special protection to his own children.

So in this way try to understand the philosophy of God, that is bhagavata. Bhagavata discourse means to understand the philosophy of God. So this process. The religion means first-class religion means one who has learned to love God. That is first-class religion. And how to love God, how to practice that love? That is bhakti-yoga. Vasudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogah prayojitah, janayaty asu vairagyam [SB 1.2.7]. Vairagyam, the word, two things required in human life, knowledge and renunciation. Renunciation-try to understand what is renunciationjust like we, the members of the Krsna society, we have renounced all material activities. That's all. That is renouncement. Our activities are surrounding only about Krsna. We do not do anything except Krsna business. We are publishing magazine, that is Krsna. We are publishing books, that is Krsna. We are going to the press, that is for Krsna. We are going to the market, that is for Krsna. We are cooking, that is for Krsna. We are living, only for Krsna. We are dancing for Krsna. We are chanting for Krsna. So we have renounced... The same things are there in the material life, publishing book or going to the press, typing, or microphone, or dancing, chanting, these are... But they are not for Krsna, that is for sense gratification.

So vairagya means no more working for sense gratification, that is vairagya. That is renouncement. Only for working Krsna, for the satisfaction of Krsna, that is called vairagya. And to attain this vairagya, renouncement, one requires sufficient knowledge. That is called jnana. So this knowledge and renouncement-two things required in human life. Just like in your country, some of the younger generation, they have renounced. That's a good qualification, but they have no knowledge. Renouncement and knowledge must be combined. Then your life is successful. Simply renouncement, you cannot stay. You renounce, again accept. Again accept. So these two things can be achieved very easily, that formula is given here, vasudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogah prayojitah, janayaty asu [SB 1.2.7]. Asu means very quick. Just like these American, European boys, especially I have mentioned. Four years ago they had no knowledge of God. Now they have got knowledge of God and they have renounced all nonsense. They have no illicit sex, no intoxication, no gambling, no meat-eating. This is renouncement. So this renouncement and knowledge can be acquired, simply this method of bhakti-yoga, what is that? Thinking of Krsna, man-mana, to become His devotee, to worship Him, and to offer Him obeisances. Only four things. That is called bhakti-yoga, if you adopt it gradually you will understand God and your life will be successful. Thank you very much. (end)