Lecture in Hindi – April 9, 1976, Vṛndāvana

760409LE-Vrindavan [38:04 Minutes]

Prabhupada:

This is fourteenth chapter of the seventh canto of Srimad Bhagavatam. Yudhisthira Maharaja is asking question to Naradaji that "Maharaja, you have already described about the rules and regulations for the brahmacari, vanaprastha and sannyasa order. You have described the rules and regulation by following which they can become liberated and go back to Godhead. But we, the grhasthas, are foolish for our intelligence is not very sharp. That's because we accept this material world as everything. We do not understand that there is life after death." So he put forth questions in these topics. So "mūḍha-dhiḥ," this word is used here. "Grhastha," we are grhasthas, we have no intelligence at all, therefore kindly tell us how we too can become liberated. He put forward this question.

The mahatmas or the great souls always keep travelling from village to village, country to country just to awaken the grhasthas. This Yudhisthira Maharaja… Yudhisthira Maharaja was not an ordinary person. He had direct contact with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He belonged to the highly glorified Panḍava family, and was known as Dharmaraja. This is not ordinary thing. Yudhisthira Maharaja was not an ordinary personality. Still he submitted himself to Narada Maharaja, Narada Muni as "Mūḍha-dhiḥ," like a fool. Mūḍha means ass. Therefore this word mūḍha has been used in a few places in the Bhagavad-gita.

Another place also;

Actually in the grhastha life, sufficient knowledge about the Supreme Lord is not obtained. Therefore it is the duty of the householders to associate with and serve the devotees, saintly persons. Hear from them the topics of the Supreme Lord. This arrangement that have made is meant for sadhu-sahga. Devotees from all over the world have come to the land of Krsna for His darsana. This is not only in India, though these people are from foreign countries, they are preaching the instructions of your Krsna in each and every corner of the world. Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mission is that "Preach the teachings of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna throughout the whole world. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Krsna Himself. na caitanyat krsnaj jagati para-tattvam The Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna spoke Bhagavad-gita and at the end He instructed everybody

But those who are foolish, they could not understand it. Because we are foolish therefore the Supreme Lord personally comes and teaches us what is God, what is our relationship with God. But foolish people cannot understand it. That's why the Supreme Personality of Godhead again came as a devotee. That is Caitanya Mahaprabhu. The teaching is the same. What the Supreme Lord Krsna explained for the benefit of the people of the whole world, to propagate the same teaching the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna personally appeared as Krsna Caitanya. Therefore when Sri Rūpa Gosvami met Caitanya Mahaprabhu at Prayag, he offered obeisances to Him by reciting this sloka.

Rūpa Gosvami…Rūpa Gosvami lived here in your place. The six Gosvamis, jaya rūpa sanatana bhatta raghunatha sri jiva gopala bhatta dasa raghunatha: Sri Rūpa Gosvami, Sri Sanatana Gosvami, Sri Raghunatha Bhatta Gosvami, Sri Raghunatha Dasa Gosvami, Sri Jiva Gosvami, and Sri Gopala Bhatta Gosvami-they came here on the order of Caitanya Mahaprabhu and to enhance the glories of Vrndavana they composed many literatures.

The purpose, mission and intention of Caitanya Mahaprabhu were preached by these Rūpa Gosvami and Sanatana Gosvami. Following in their footstep we too are preaching the same messege all over the world. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu asks everyone to become guru.

Caitanya Mahaprabhu orders that "All of you become guru", but how we can become guru? We Don't know anything?" Caitanya Mahaprabhu says that it is not difficult. You kindly explain Krsna's instructions to everyone. That's all. Yare dekha tare kaha Krsna upadesa. Then you become a guru. If you have any other motive like, to deny the existence of Krsna or to become Krsna, then with such foolishness you cannot become guru. This is the test of a guru. Who can become a guru? Anyone who repeats as it is what the Supreme Lord has said, he is guru. Evam parampara-praptam imam rajarsayo viduḥ [Bg 4.2] When the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna was speaking Bhagavad-gita, He said that not today, but millions of years ago I spoke Bhagavad-gita to the sun-god.

This knowledge of Bhagavad-gita is not something new. I had previously insturucted it the sun-god. That means about 40 crores of years ago. If we calculate the duration of Manu's lifespan then it is concluded that Bhagavad-gita was spoken about 40 crores of years ago.

Manu…

Vivasvana-the sungod instructed it to Manu. And Manu in turn spoke it to Maharaja Iksvaku. In this way through disciplic succession this knowledge of Bhagavad-gita has descended. Sa kalena yoga nasta parantapa. [Bg 4.2] Due to breakage in the line of disciplic succession the knowledge of Bhagavad-gita has been lost. We should consider that the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself had appeared in our country and revealed what is God and yet we forget Him-this is very pathetic situation. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu's mission is that all Indians should go everywhere and preach the instructions of Krsna. That is the purpose of Krsna Consciousness movement. This is not just an ordinary religion. It is a religion, but not like those man-made dharmas which have nowadays been manufactured. Dharma is one. Dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]

Nobody can create dharma. Only the Supreme Lord can create. So the Supreme Lord is explaining dharma, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja, that 'you surrender to My lotus feet'-this is real dharma. [Bg 18.66] Everything else is pseudo dharma. That is why you will find in the very beginning of Srimad Bhagavatam dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra, [SB 1.1.2] that all types of cheating dharmas that are rampant today should be completely thrown away from here. Projjhita. prakrsta-rūpena ujjhita, Sridhara Svami in his commentary on this verse has said that religiosity, economic development, sense gratification and liberation are external dharma. And the real dharma is bhakti: devotional service. This is real. Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja. So Caitanya Mahaprabhu's order is that all of you become guru. And to become guru is not difficult. If you don't want to cheat others then there is no difficulty in becoming guru. Because…What is the business of guru? What the Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna has spoken in Bhagavad-gita just repeat that to others. What is the difficulty in it? The Supreme Lord declares in the Bhagavad-gita mattaḥ parataram nanyat kincid asti dhananjaya [Bg 7.7]

Krsnas tu bhagavan svayam [SB 1.3.28] Moreover, the Lord Personally comes and reveals, svayam ca…When Arjuna understood Bhagavad-gita, he declared

The Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna is the supreme absolute truth- this is the conclusion of all the scriptures. All the acaryas have accepted it. Even Sahkaracarya has accepted it. Sa bhagavan svayam Krsnaḥ: "Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself."

Also Ramanujacarya, Madhvacarya, Nimbarkacarya, Visnusvami and what to speak of Caitanya Mahaprabhu. He was, krsna-varnam tvisakrsnam, always describing Krsna. [SB 11.5.32] This is the essence of all Vedic literatures. Vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedyo. [Bg 15.15]

What is the purpose of studying Vedic literatures, Vedas, Vedanta? To understand the Supreme Lord, to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna. That is the conclusion of all the sastras. That is exactly what Caitanya Mahaprabhu preaches. Yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa. [Cc Madhya 7.128]

This devotional service to Krsna which is being spread, there is not much difficulty in it. We simply repeat to everyone throughout the world what the Supreme Lord has instructed. The Supreme Lord said that there is no truth superior to Me, and we also repeat that here is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna and there is nobody superior to Him. No greater absolute truth. And these people accept it. This is one advantage in the Western countries that when they are told that krsnas tu bhagavan svayam, that Krsna means Bhagavan and Bhagavan means Krsna, they accept it. They don't argue that here is our God, this is our Bhagavan, why should we accept your God? The cause of India's pathetic condition is because there have been thousands of Bhagavans' here, and they have rejected Krsna and Rama. This is their misfortune.

But actually the general people of India have not forgotten Krsna. Had they forgotten why would so many ladies and gentlemen gather here to hear Krsna-katha? He is not here He is in Mathura! Mathura is the place of the Supreme Lord Krsna. Wherever we arrange a Hare Krsna pandal program…Just recently we had arranged a pandal program in Delhi, in Aligarh also, before that in Calcutta and Bombay as well. But still people have not forgotten Krsna. The path to auspiciousness is that do not forget Krsna. One Bengali vaisnava has written a verse.

When the spirit soul forgets the Supreme Personality of Godhead Sri Krsna and desires material enjoyment immediately maya captures him.

So we are all under the clutches of maya.

All of us. We declare independence. But that is not possible. We are all influenced by the material nature, means under the control of prakrti. Prakrteḥ kriyamanani gunaiḥ karmani sarvasaḥ. And the qualities of the material nature namely sattva-guna, rajo-guna, tamo-guna: the mode of goodness, the mode of passion and the mode of ignorance, as we associate with them we receive a particular type of body accordingly. That the spirit soul changes body birth after birth, this is called samsara cakra: the wheel of repeated birth and death. Bhūtva bhūtva praliyate. [Bg 8.19] Once one gets a body he enjoys and suffers as is destined by the providence. Then again according to his karma he gets another body. In this way he keeps changing body life after life and enjoys whatever happiness and distress he is destined to. There is no happiness at all, only distress. So long we will be accepting material bodies either in Svargaloka, Indraloka, Candraloka or in the lower planets like Patala, Vitala, Atala, Talatala, Rasatala, or anywhere, it is troublesome. Duḥkhalayam asasvatam, this we have forgot. [Bg 8.15] Independently we think that we ourselves will arrange for our happiness, but that's not going to happen.

The Supreme Lord has described everything in the Bhagavad-gita. That we want to be happy in this material world but it will not allow us to. Punishment. For one who has forgotten Krsna, this is the punishment to take birth in the material world. Therefore the Supreme Personality of Godhead descends and teaches us sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja [Bg 18.66] There is no difference between the Supreme Lord and His words. The Supreme Lord is advaya-jnana-tattva: the nondual truth. The holy name of the Supreme Lord and the Supreme Lord Himself are one and the same. The Supreme Lord's instructions and the Supreme Lord are one. So if we daily read the Supreme Lord's instructions as it is, as it is means nowadays there have been many big, big political leaders and scholars who started teaching Bhagavad-gita and their only aim is to kill God. They have no other purpose. Therefore if you read Bhagavad-gita from such persons then you will never relish it. That's why the Supreme Personality of Godhead said,

However, if you hear Bhagavad-gita from a tattva-darsi then your life will be successful. But one who is not a tattva-darsi, who thinks himself to be a learned man, or a leader, and thus speaks all rubbish, by studying that kind of Bhagavad-gita no gain will be achieved. Therefore Caitanya Mahaprabhu's secretary Damodara Gosvami adviced a brahmana, bhagavata paḍa giya bhagavata sthane. [Cc Antya 5.131]

If there is a person-Bhagavata whose life is molded in accordance with the book-Bhagavata, then go to him and hear Bhagavata. Similarly, one who is a devotee of Krsna, to understand Krsna is not an ordinary thing,

Even though Krsna is situated in everyone's heart,

Krsna is sitting within everyone's heart, but one who is a devotee, and is always trying to serve the Supreme Lord, to such a person the Supreme Lord always instructs from within.

The Supreme Personality of Godhead does not speak to everyone. But one who is a lover of God and is always eager to render service unto Him, to such a person the Supreme Lord reveals. Therefore Bhagavad-gita was spoken to Arjuna. In the beginning the Supreme Lord clarified that the disciplic succession, the process has been lost and so the knowledge is lost. Now I am explaining to you again. You understand it. "But why are You instructing me? I am not a yogi, or a sannyasi, or a Vedantist. I am an ordinary householder, and that too a king always dealing with money etc. So why are You explaining to me?" So the Lord replied, bhakto 'si me sakha ceti rahasyam hy etad uttamam [Bg 4.3]

There is no need of these qualifications. The real truth is only that person will understand Bhagavad-gita who is My devotee and dear to Me. So if we are not devotees then we will not be able to understand Bhagavad-gita. Take for example, a bottle of honey. Simply by licking the bottle one cannot relish the honey. By opening the bottle and actually tasting the honey inside one can relish it. Similarly, if a person wants to relish Bhagavad-gita externally, he cannot relish it. He has to dive inside. Bhakti-yoga.

These Europeans and Americans who have come with me, they are all bhaktas: devotees. They follow all the rules and regulations required for becoming a bhakta. It is not easy to become a bhakta. They are ordered "Look, you must give up illicit connection between man and woman." They gave up. Similarly, no intoxication including betel nut, biḍi, cigerrate, coffee. They gave up. And no meat eating. They gave it up. And gambling-these four things I prohibit them. Even before awarding them the first initiation they have to promise that they must give these up. And they give up. The fact is one whose life is sinful, he cannot worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Only he, whose sinful life has stopped, can worship the Supreme Lord with determination. These are the four pillars of sinful life-illicit sex, meat eating, intoxication and gambling. These four things must be given up if you want to realize the Supreme Lord. But despite being fallen in this age of Kali there is a great advantage. This is stated in the sastra. Sukadeva Gosvami has explained to Maharaja Pariksit while describing the pathetic condition of Kali-yuga that it is simply full of sins. Faults. Then at the end he concluded,

"Maharaja, Kali-yuga is full of faults. It is an ocean of faults. But there is one thing very beneficial in it." What is that thing? kirtanad eva krsnasya mukta-sahgaḥ param vrajet. Simply by chanting the glories of Hari one can become freed from all contaminated associations and go back to Godhead. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu also said the same thing. Param vijayate sri-krsna-sahkirtanam

So Krsna is yours. How can an insignificant person like me describe to you about Krsna? We have come to learn from you. So from all the sastras this much we understand that though Kali-yuga is full of faults if we perform Krsna-kirtana together, when Krsna-kirtana is performed together it is called sahkirtana, all together. In Kali-yuga this is the only sacrifice recommended. There is scriptural evidence of this fact.

So worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead through the performance of sahkirtana-yajna. There is no expense in it. All the other yajnas are impossible to perform in Kali-yuga. Neither we have money, nor ingredients, nor qualified brahmanas who can perfom the yajnas properly. Yajnika-brahmana. There are many types of inconveniences. That's why sastra recommended kirtanad eva krsnasya, just chant the holy name of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna.

There is no difficulty in it. Caitanya Mahaprabhu is Krsna Himself and He is showing us the way. That you all become guru. In each and every house become guru. Sit down together in the evening and chant the holy name of the Lord. Read Bhagavad-gita. These are the instructions of Narada muni for the householders.

The process is given here that srnvan bhagavato 'bhiksnam avatara-kathamrtam. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is not impersonal. Impersonal… just like the sun, the sun is not impersonal. But the effulgence of the sun is impersonal. Similarly,

The Absolute truth is renowned as Brahman, Paramatma and Bhagavan. For the jnanis Brahma-jnana, for the yogis Paramatma-jnana, and for the bhaktas Bhagavat-svarūpa, Saksat Brajendranandana Hari, Krsna. These instructions are all there. At least you all read Bhagavad-gita and chant the holy name of the Lord. There is no loss for you in it. Nowadays most people are householders. Our Vedic civilisation is varnasrama. That system is broken now. The four varnas are brahmana, ksatriya, vaisya, sūdra, and the four asramas are brahmacari, grhastha, vanaprastha and sannyasa. This is called Vedic civilisation, varnasrama-dharma: the four social and four spiritual orders of life.

If you want to worship the Supreme Lord Visnu then first of all you have to follow this varnasrama-dharma. That we have all given up now. This is Kali-yuga, everything has fallen apart. But it can be rectified. Even if it not rectified, these instructions of the sastra that yare dekha, tare kaha 'krsna'-upadesa, preach Krsna's instructions to everyone. What is the difficulty? What does Krsna instruct?

Always think of the Supreme Personality of Godhead Krsna, become His devotee, offer Him an obeisances. Therefore this temple... Why did the previous acaryas construct many big, big temples? So that fools like me can at least go to the temple once and offer obeisances to the Supreme Lord. Actually there is no difficulty in this. Now we are abandoning our Indian culture and have fallen down to this pathetic condition. If you like to rise above this hard problem, aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami, the Supreme Lord Himself will deliver you. [Bg 18.66] Simply surrender to the Supreme Lord's lotus feet.

Thank you very much. Hare Krsna.

Devotees: Jaya Prabhupada! [end]