The Lord does not manufacture a new system of yoga. Sometimes it is claimed that someone has become an incarnation of God and is expounding a new theological aspect of the Absolute Truth. But here we find that although Kapila Muni is the Lord Himself and is capable of manufacturing a new doctrine for His mother, He nevertheless says, I shall just explain the ancient system that I once explained to the great sages because they were also anxious to hear about it. When we have a superexcellent process already present in Vedic scriptures, there is no need to concoct a new system, to mislead the innocent public. At present it has become a fashion to reject the standard system and present something bogus in the name of a newly invented process of yoga.

The supreme ancient system of yoga pertains to the soul. Presently, in America especially, hatha-yoga is very popular. It appeals to fat ladies who go to the classes to reduce and keep their digestive systems regular. Many people are interested in this kind of gymnastic yoga, but real yoga is adhyatmika. Adhyatmika means to awaken the soul to his proper position. The soul is purusa, spirit, and his business is to reconnect his lost relationship with Krsna.

Herein Kapiladeva says that He previously delivered this yoga system to the great rsis, the great sages. This is the process of sravana, hearing. One must be very eager to hear, for spiritual life begins with hearing.

Bhagavan Sri Krsna is present in the temple Deity, and even if a child comes to offer his respects, he is counted as a devotee. A small child may not know anything, but simply by seeing the Deity, chanting and dancing, he is benefited. Temples are meant to give everyone a chance to advance in Krsna consciousness one step at a time.

Thus without being a bhakta, a devotee of Krsnas, one cannot actually understand the science of bhakti-yoga. Understanding Bhagavad-gita means understanding Krsna. All this information is explained only in the bhakti-sampradaya, not in any other school. Therefore Krsna says at the conclusion of Bhagavad-gita (18.55), bhaktya mam abhijanati: if one actually wants to understand Krsna and ones relationship with Him, one must take to this process of bhakti-yoga. Bhakti-yoga as explained by Lord Kapiladeva is sankhya-yoga.

Lord Kapiladeva states here:

We have to understand that we receive different bodies due to our sinful actions. Now we are given a chance to execute our duty in the human form. Bahunam janmanam ante [Bg. 7.19]. We have received this body through the evolutionary processes, and this human form is a great opportunity. Narottama dasa Thakura sings: hari hari viphale janama gonainu: My dear Lord Krsna, I have simply wasted my time. Why?

We do not need to be very learned. Our only requirement is that we receive the blessings of the Lord. The Lords blessings will enable us to become learned and follow His instructions. We only need to stick to this Krsna consciousness movement on the basis of Bhagavad-gita. When we are a little further advanced, we can read Srimad-Bhagavatam. Caitanya Mahaprabhu Himself has opened the way with this sankirtana movement. The entire world is in darkness without Krsna consciousness, and in this age people are so dull that they do not even know the difference between mukti (liberation) and bandha (bondage). If a human being does not know this difference, he is no better than an animal.

Presently we are under the sway of the three gunas, the modes of material naturesattva-guna, rajo-guna and tamo-guna. Out of these three gunas, sattva-guna, the mode of goodness, is the best. A brahmana, characterized by the mode of goodness, is truthful and self-controlled. He controls his mind and senses, and he is very tolerant and simple. He has full knowledge, and he knows how to apply knowledge in life. He has full faith in the authority of the Vedas, a quality called astikyam. Caitanya Mahaprabhu has explained the difference between nastikyam and astikyam. According to Vedic understanding, one who does not believe in the Vedas is called nastika. Caitanya Mahaprabhu says: veda na maniya bauddha haya ta nastika (Cc. Madhya 6.168). Lord Buddha defied Vedic authority, but His mission was to stop animal killing. In the Vedas there are recommendations for animal sacrifice, and therefore to prevent the killing of animals, Lord Buddha rejected the Vedas. Such sacrifice is not possible in this age because there is no brahmana qualified to carry it out. Those who are intelligent know that such a sacrifice cannot be successful in this age because no one knows the proper mantras capable of giving an old animal the body of a new animal. When an animal sacrifice is properly conducted, an old animal is sacrificed, and it emerges from the fire in a new body. This is not possible in this age, but what is possible is sankirtana-yajna, the chanting of the Hare Krsna maha-mantra. This is the yajna, or sacrifice, especially intended for this age. We need only chant Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. By performing this yajna, the results will be ceto-darpana-marjanam [Cc. Antya 20.12]the mirror of the mind will be cleansed. When the mirror of the mind is cleansed, one is automatically liberated.

Consciousness is the main principle, either for conditional life or for liberated life. We are therefore proposing Krsna consciousness, which means liberation from the repetition of birth and death. Unfortunately, people are so dull in this age that they have no idea how birth and death can be stopped. They think that birth and death cannot be stopped; even famous scientists admit this. However, in Bhagavad-gita Sri Krsna says that we should always keep in mind the four miserable conditions. These are birth, old age, disease and death. When we are able to put an end to these, we are liberated. This simply requires that we clear our consciousness by thinking of Krsna. The purpose of this Krsna consciousness movement is to keep our minds constantly on Krsna. Krsna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and He is a person. When He was realized by Arjuna, He was addressed as purusam. God is purusa, male, not female. purusa means the enjoyer, and prakrti means the enjoyed. Everything is enjoyed by the supreme purusa. It is also stated that we are actually prakrti, not purusa. The human dress is simply maya, illusion. We are thinking that we are purusa, the enjoyer, but actually we are the enjoyed. A man, thinking of enjoying himself, tries to imitate purusa, but actually he is prakrti. As a consequence, he is cast into this material world. Because the living entity wants to enjoy the material world and is attached to the three gunas, he receives different types of bodies. One who is in the mode of goodness receives the body of a learned brahmana. This is somewhat elevated, for he can gradually understand what is God. In the modes of passion and ignorance, no one can understand God. Also, from the material point of view, if one is situated in the mode of goodness, he can be elevated to higher planetary systems. Nonetheless, even if one goes to Brahmaloka, the highest planet in the material atmosphere, one is not actually perfectly situated. There is really no benefit because even on Brahmaloka the four miseries of material existence are found: birth, old age, disease and death. Lord Brahma also dies and takes birth. From Vedic literatures we understand that Lord Brahma took birth from the lotus flower generated from the navel of Visnu. Thus he had his birth, and when Lord Brahma dies, the entire material cosmic manifestation will be finished. Just as Lord Brahma undergoes birth, old age, disease and death, so also a small ant or insect undergoes the same process. The point is that the living entity has to be free from this bondage because he is by nature eternal. According to Bhagavad-gita, the living entity never actually takes birth, and he never actually dies. Na jayate mriyate va kadacit: For the soul there is never birth nor death. (Bg. 2.20)

It is the body that is destined to die, whether the body be that of Lord Brahma or of a small ant. One should not think that one is liberated because one can live millions and millions of years. The life of Lord Brahma covers millions of earth years, yet he is also subjected to birth and death. That is the way of conditional life. We should take advantage of the perfect knowledge given by Vedic literatures, by the great rsis and Bhagavan Kapiladeva, as well as by Bhagavan Sri Krsna, in order to attain liberation from the cycle of birth and death.

Receiving Krsna consciousness means receiving light. People are exhausted with the materialistic way of life, especially in the West. Now the Krsna consciousness movement is giving new life to Western society. By nature, we living entities are liberated. There is actually no question of birth, death, old age and disease. Since we are part and parcel of Krsna, the Supreme Lord, how can there be a question of these things? Krsna is sac-cid-ananda-vigraha [Bs. 5.1], and being part and parcel of Krsna, we are also of the same nature. We are equal in quality, although not in quantity. Why, then, should we suffer the pangs of death? Therefore in the previous verse Kapiladeva instructed: yoga adhyatmikah pumsam mato nihsreyasaya. The soul is entrapped in the body, and the process of perfect yoga is the process of saving the soul from bodily confinement and the four miseries that plague the body. How can this perfect yoga be attained? That is explained by Lord Kapila in the next verse: ratam va pumsi muktaye. If our consciousness is simply attached to Krsna, we will be liberated.

The great souls are always chanting about Krsna. Hare Krsna, Hare Krsna, Krsna Krsna, Hare Hare/ Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. They are also endeavoring with great determination in their devotional service. For instance, in the Krsna consciousness temples the devotees rise early in the morning, at 4:00 A.M., and they immediately bathe. Then they go to mangala-arati at 4:30, and after mangala-arati they study the Vedic literatures. These are the processes by which we can awaken our dormant love for Krsna. Because we are part and parcel of Krsnajust as a son is part and parcel of his fatherthere is a natural love between us. However, somehow or other the son leaves home and forgets his father. The father, of course, never forgets his son. He thinks, Oh, my son has left. If he would only come back! Krsna thinks in this way. We are all sons of Krsna, and Krsna is more anxious to get us back home, back to Godhead, than we are to go. Therefore Krsna comes and says, You rascal! Give up all this nonsensical material engagement. You have manufactured so many religions and dharmas. Just give them all up and simply surrender unto Me. Krsna comes Himself and leaves behind His words. His words are also Himself because His words are absolute. Presently we do not see Krsna, but if we actually advance, we will see Him. When we see the Deity in the temple, we think, Oh, this is an idol. It is not Krsna. If we think in this way, we have not seen Krsna. Krsna is also present in His words, in Bhagavad-gita. That is krsna-vani, the message of Krsna. The stage of awareness of Krsna can be attained when one is advanced in Krsna consciousness. Then one can understand that Krsna is present in the Deity, in Bhagavad-gita, in the taste of water, in the sunshine, in the moonshine and in all sound. Krsna is present everywhere, but one has to acquire knowledge in order to know how to see Krsna. That is mukti, liberation. That is Krsna consciousness. That is also the process of bhakti-yogasravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam... [SB 7.5.23]. Deity worship is arcanam, chanting is vandanam, and dasyam is working for Krsna and spreading this Krsna consciousness movement.

Generally we experience that people are primarily interested in seeing Krsna, but why is the emphasis on seeing? Let us hear about Him. We must come with a little faith, and as we hear, that faith will increase. One should come to the temple, listen to talks about Krsna, and then, after some time, officially take initiation into the service of the Lord. That is called bhajana-kriya. At that time one has to abandon illicit sex, intoxication, meat-eating and gambling. If one is still attached to all these habits, he should know that he is not making progress. When one is actually advanced in bhajana-kriya, all these anarthas (unwanted things) will be finished. param drstva nivartate. When one appreciates something better, he rejects all kinds of nonsense. Once one gets a taste of Krsna consciousness, he cannot remain without it. A drunkard cannot remain without a drink, but a devotee is drunk with Krsna consciousness. The immunization against all material diseases is this Krsna consciousness. To be immuned to the infection of the gunas, we have to engage in bhakti-yoga. Once we attain the perfectional stage, we attain ecstatic love of Godhead. In that state we cannot remain without Krsna for a moment. That is called bhava, and that bhava may increase to maha-bhava. This is not possible for ordinary human beings, but it was possible for the gopis and Radharani. Indeed, they could not live without Krsna. This is the highest stage of liberation.