Nationalism of Pure Consciousness

When a man enters into the sitting room of a friend, the friend receives the man with all cordiality and offers him the best couches for his comfortable rest. The friend accepts this friendly welcome and sits along with his host in all security. Does this mean that the man who has entered the house of his friend will consider the sitting room his own property? Certainly he will not think like that unless he has turned to be a mad man. His consciousness of the fact that none of the paraphernalias of the friend's sitting room do belong to him does not disturb him in the least to sit down there tightly and securely and with this pure consciousness of his position, he is allowed equal facility along with his friend who is actually the proprietor of the sitting room.
   
But if the man after some time madly thinks that because he was allowed to enter into the parlour of his friend to sit down there comfortably he has thereof become the proprietor of the room and all the furnitures in that room, then what will become the lot of the mad man? The natural consequence of this unlawful desire of the intruding friend will meet with police action by the real proprietor of the room and trouble will begin to disturb the friendly relation.
   
And if the man leaves the room without being able to occupy it as his own property and impertinently tells his friend that he is renouncing the right of proprietorship in disgust, certainly the proprietor friend will laugh at him thinking as to when and how the proprietorship of the room was awarded to him.
   
This is the real position of the conditioned soul who enters a stage of life in the cycle of birth and death. The living entity is unborn and eternal. The living entity simply changes his dress according to the price of the dress he has paid for. In the shop of the material nature there are eighty-four lacs of different dresses and the living entity is allowed to put on any one of them according to the price he is able to pay. Leaving aside all other dresses let us consider about the dress of the human body. Because in the dress of the human body a living entity is more puzzled than in the dress of the beast due to the gorgeousness of the particular garment. The dress of the human body is also exhibited in varieties of four lacs of species. There are different dresses of humanity in the form of Kirata, Huna, Andhro, Pulinda, Pukkasa, Abhira, Sumbha, Yananu, Khasadaya etc. and almost all of them are no more civilized than the jungle beasts. As such they have very little idea of civilized form of national feeling. Out of the eighty-four lacs of different dresses exhibited by the living entities, only the highest civilized human being is conscious of national feeling. This national feeling has created different civilized nations of the world but because almost every one of them is guided by sense of nationalism of impure consciousness, all of them are always busy in making pacts and blocks for security of everyone's national position.
   
The impure consciousness of nationalism has kept all the big heads of world nations always active for an adjustment of everyone's national interest. They have now made a united nation's security council and trying in vain to make a right adjustment. Impure consciousness of every nation has made it impossible to come to the safety point and it is needed therefore to awaken their pure consciousness by the propagation of spiritual education back to Godhead undertaken by the Lord Himself in the form of Shree Chaitanya Mahaprabhu.
   
What is that pure consciousness? The idea of pure consciousness is specifically described in the Ishopanishad and it is said there as follows:-
   
Wordings: Isha, Abasya, Idam, Sarbam, Jat, Kimchit, Jagatyam, Jagat, Tena, Taktena, Bhunjeetha, Ma, Gridha, Kashyachit, Dhanam.
   
Synonyms: Isha-The Lord, Abasya-Domain, Idam-All, Sarbam-These, Jat-Whatever, Kimchit-Anything and everything, Jagatyam-In the world, Jagat-Material things, Tena-By Him, Taktena-By His offer, Bhunjeetha-You can enjoy, Ma-Do not, Gridha-Accept, Kashyachit-Anyone's, Dhanam-Property.
   
Translation
   
Everything that we see in this material world or in the matter, all belong to the domain of the Supreme Lord. You can therefore enjoy what has been offered to you by Him and you must not accept any others property and enjoy it.
   
Purport
   
The living entity in either of the above mentioned eighty varieties of dresses enter into four lacs the domain of the Lord. The agent of the Lord material nature gives him all facilities to live in that domain provided with all comforts of air, light, shelter, food, drink, residence, and all the facilities of acquiring knowledge. The lower grade living beings such as the aquatics, the plants and trees, the reptiles, the birds and beasts and the beastly human beings living in the jungle-do take all the facilities offered by nature and make progressive evolution by a gradual process from the aquatics to the plants, from the plants to the reptiles, from the reptiles to the birds and from the birds to the beasts. The human form of life is evolved out of the life of the beast in the three modes of nature. As guests of the material nature all these non-human living entities do not bother much about conventional civilization to mishandle the products of material nature. But the civilized man, because of his developed consciousness, mishandles the laws of nature, thinks on terms of proprietorship of the particular place of appearance and thus become entangled in the matter of designations. The civilized man thus creates a bungle in the name of advanced civilization.
   
These civilized nations forget completely that the particular places offered to them for residential purpose-all belong to the proprietorship right of the Supreme Lord. The Supreme Lord is the proprietor of all the 'Lokas' or planets. In the Bhagwat Geeta [Bg. 5.29] it is said like this.
   
Wordings: Bhoktaram, Yajna, Tapasam, Sarba, Loka, Moheswaram, Suhridam, Sarbabhutanam, Jnatya, Mam, Shantim, Richhati.
   
Synonyms: Bhoktaram-The beneficiary, Yajna-Sacrifice, Tapasam-Penances, Sarba-All, Loka-Planets, Moheswaram-The Supreme Lord, Suhridam-Benevolent friend, Sarba-Of all, Bhutanam-Living entities, Jnatya-Knowing, Mam-Me, Shantim-Peace, Richhati-Is able to enjoy.
   
Translation
   
I am the beneficiary of all sacrifices and penances and I am the Supreme Lord of all the planets and universes. I am the benevolent friend of all living being and knowing this one can enjoy perfect peace.
 
Purport
   
The so-called civilized nations have forgotten the fact that the place of residences particularly specified for them by the Supreme Lord do not belong to them but it is the property of the Supreme Lord. He has given the nations particular places of residence and comfortable life making progress in the matter of pure consciousness. The Lord has not allowed us to remain in such places of residence to create a hell of it by developing a denching ground for the hooligans, ruffians, demons and unbelievers. He is the Supreme Friend of all living entities and therefore He has made the codes of scriptures like Vedas and Purans to guide the civilized nations so that they are not illusioned by the influence of Maya or impure consciousness and consider the place of their appearance as their property.
   
The particular place of residence allotted to us must be protected from the disturbing forces of demons and non-believers,-not as proprietor of the land but with full consciousness of servitorship of the Supreme Lord.
   
Out of an impure consciousness Shri Arjuna declined to fight in the battlefield of Kurukshetra as a proprietor. He forgot for the time being that he was not the proprietor. The Supreme proprietor is Shri Krishna and Arjuna is a servitor only. This fact was explained in the Bhagwat Geeta from different angles of vision and ultimately when the illusion of proprietorship was dissipated-pure consciousness of Arjuna was awakened by the mercy of the Lord and Arjuna agreed to abide by the order of the Supreme Lord. His attitude of non-violence adulterated with a sense of proprietorship right was condemned by Shri Krishna in the very inception of the idea. It is sheer nonsense to think that devotees of Godhead are so many inertia element of society. Real devotees of the Lord like Shree Bajrangajee Hanuman and that like Arjuna-both of them fought out the two celebrated battles of Ramayana and Mahabharata. The devotees are neither violent nor non-violent on their own account but they are both violent and non-violent on account of the Lord. That is the criterion of pure consciousness.
   
 Nationalism in pure consciousness as it was exemplified by Shree Arjuna or Bajrangaji brings in real peace of the world. Such pure consciousness is aroused by devotional activities. Unbelievers in the Supremacy of the Absolute Lord cannot have pure consciousness. Nationalism, guided by the principles of devotional activities of which Shri Arjuna is the typical example, is the goal of our life.

[Written By A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada for "Back to Godhead Magazine": June 29, 1956]

How to Broadcast the Teachings of Bhagavad-Gita (Part 2)

(Cont'd. from "How to Broadcast The Teachings of The Bhagavad-gita")

The Bhagwat Geeta supports such scientific caste system in the following words viz.

Chatur, Varnya, Maya, Sristam, Guna, Karma, Bivagasha, Tasya, Kartaram, Api, Mam Biddhi, Akartaram, Abyayam. (Bg. 4.13)

Sama, Dama, Soucham, Khanti Arjabam Eba, Cha, Jnanam, Bijnanam, Astikyam, Brahma, Karma, Swabhabajam.(Bg. 18.42)

Sourjam, Teja, Dhriti, Dahkyam, Juddhe, Cha, Apalayanam, Danam, Jswarabham, Cha, Khatra, Karma, Swabhabajam.(Bg. 18.43).

Krishi, Gorakshya, Banijyam, Vaishya, Karma, Swabhabajam, Paricharyya, Atmakam, Karma, Sudrasya, Api, Swabhabajam. (Bg. 18.44)

There are three modes of Nature current all over the world and they are called the mode of goodness, the mode of passion and the mode of ignorance. And every man or every animal is under the influence of either of the above mentioned three modes of Nature. As such it is mistake to calculate that the modes of Nature are working within the boundaries of India only but it is quite reasonable that such natural laws are working in other parts of the world. In the human society there are undoubtedly men of such different qualities namely men under the influence of the mode of goodness called the qualified Brahmins, those who are in the mode of passion called the Kshatriyas, those who are under the influence of the mode of passion cum ignorance are called the Vaisyas and last of all, men under the influence of the mode of ignorance are called the Sudras. The mode of ignorance as it goes down by degrees it produces men of such qualities as are called Javana, Mlechhas, Kirats, Huns, Andhras, Pulindas, Pukkasas, Aviras, Sumbhas, Khasadayas etc. and there are four lakh kinds of men all over the universe.

From Geeta Nagari this universal Truth must be propagated systematically so that real human society may be reestablished for the benefit of all, dividing men according to natural mode by such approved processes as are called practical psychology or anything else. Such social order all over the world will be known as the Institution of quality caste system and every human being will have the right to qualify himself by education and culture to enter into the higher status of life in the same manner as the varsity of different states offers the facility to anyone. Casteless society will never allow of course to place on the same category a High Court judge and a labourer of the mill unless such society has gone into madness. On the contrary by establishment of such casteless society as it is said in the Bhagwat Geeta nobody will be grudging if anyone is recognised as qualified Brahmin on his merit only. Such casteless society is reasonable and acceptable.

E. The Geeta Nagari may properly utilise the huge fund collected to commemorate Mahatma Gandhi in the manner as above mentioned in four principal heads because Gandhi's memory can only be preserved by his exemplary activities and not by simply erecting some big buildings or statues as we see the general tendency. The Bhagwat Geeta asks every big man perfect his life with the teachings of Bhagwat Geeta and then set himself as an example for the benefit of the people in general. It is said there Jat, Jat, Acharati, Shrestha, Sat, Tat, Eba, Itarey, Jana, Sa, Jat, Pramanam, Kurute, Loka, Tat, Anubartate.

It is foolish to follow the proverbial principle of putting a cart before a horse or putting old wine into new bottle. It shall be the duty of Geeta Nagari to agitate against the Gandhi Memorial Fund being utilised otherwise than in the manner befitting the teachings of Bhagwat Geeta and as approved by Mahatma Gandhi.

(To be continued)

How to Broadcast the Teachings of Bhagavad-Gita

[This is the first part of the Gita Nagari series: written by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada for "Back to Godhead Magazine", dated  May 20, 1956]  

1. The Personality of Godhead Sree Krishna appears Himself in this mortal world by dint of his Internal Potency in order to be visible to the conditioned souls and specially to human being, although in essence He is eternally unchangeable Supreme Truth and Absolute Lord of the visible and invisible worlds. He is ever existent prior to the creation of the manifested world. The Vedas are known to be transcendental because they were impregnated in the heart of Brahma by Sree Krishna after creation of the universes and as such Vedic knowledge has descended in a transcendental process of aural reception from Sree Brahma to Narada, from Narada to Vyasa, from Vyasa to Sree Sukhdeva Goswami and Sree Sukhdeva Goswami to other disciples by succession. The Vedic knowledge is famous as Sruti because it has descended in the above process of hearing only. But the original Teacher of such knowledge is nobody else than Sree Krishna Himself.
   
2. Sreemad Bhagwat Geeta and the transcendental knowledge thereof has also descended in the above process of aural reception from Vaivaswata Manu but when the chain of disciplic succession was broken at the beginning of the Kali Yuga by the influence of the External Energy of the Personality of Godhead known as Maya, it was again reincarnated by the Supreme Authority of Sree Krishna Himself at the battlefield of the sacred place of Kurukshetra in the presence of His most beloved friend and devotee Sree Arjuna. He summarised the full text of the Vedas and Upanishads in the teachings of Sree Bhagwat Geeta in order to give facility to the people of the present age, who are mostly affected by the influence of Kali Yuga or the age of quarrel and disagreement.
   
3. The summumbonum teaching of Sreemad Bhagwat Geeta is that RELIGION means the art and science of learning the transcendental process of surrendering unto the Lotus Feet of the Absolute Personality of Godhead Sree Krishna. The purity of such religious knowledge becomes polluted when conditioned souls become too much influenced by the External Energy of Godhead as they forget their eternal relation with Him and thereby become too much addicted to the material process of sense gratification which is the lowest and crude form of human existence. When such irreligious life of the people in general flourished by the influence of External Energy of Godhead, the world at large suffers terribly in all directions in the way of challenging the very existence of Godhead.
   
4. The Personality of Godhead and His transcendental utterances as sounded in the Bhagwat Geeta are identical. Sreemad Bhagwat Geeta is therefore eternally the Personality of Godhead Himself with full potency and therefore when the transcendental knowledge of Bhagwat Geeta is received in the manner as it was received by Sree Arjuna we can be equally enlightened as Arjuna was. When the law-abiding devotees of Godhead become disturbed by the unlawful activities of the Ashuras i.e. those who are averse to acknowledge the Supreme Authority of Godhead, at such critical time either the Personality of Godhead or His counterpart Form of transcendental Sound appears in this mortal world in order to save the faithful and annihilate the unbelievers. As such Bhagwat Geeta descended directly from the utterances of the Personality of Godhead in order to save the faithful and to annihilate the unbelievers at the juncture of disappearance of the Dwapara Yuga and appearance of the Kali Yuga in the battlefield of Kurukshetra, which was fought between two rival political parties namely the Kurus and the Pandavas.
   
At the present age the same fight between two rival parties of politicians without any guidance of the transcendental direction of Godhead is merrily going on at the expense of the innocent poor people of the world and as such Sree Krishna has descended again in the shape of Geeta Nagari with the same purposes of saving the faithful and annihilating the unbelievers as He did in the battlefield of Kurukshetra.
   
5. The Geeta Nagari will therefore be the main preaching centre of the Supreme Authority of Sree Krishna the Personality of Godhead. It shall be proclaimed from that place that Sree Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, is the Absolute Enjoyer of all benefits derived from all kinds of work, sacrifice, cultivation of knowledge; that He is the Absolute Proprietor of all the manifested universes and that He is the unalloyed friend and philosopher of all living entities namely the gods or rulers, the general people, the beasts, the birds, the reptiles, the plants and trees or the aquatic animals residing in every nook and corner of the great universe. When such knowledge will be fostered from the vantage of Sree Geeta Nagari, at that time only, real peace and prosperity will usher in the world so anxiously awaited by all kinds of people. Unfortunately the present trend of human civilization is conducted just on the opposite direction of the above views. The human being has declared himself as the supreme enjoyer of everything and the proprietor of the world. He has declared himself foolishly as the friend and philosopher of the people in general enamoured by material power and wealth, which is bringing in ruination for himself and his followers. Every human being is imagining himself as an independant God (?) and foolishly trying to guide the activities of his so-called followers without knowing the art and science of such leadership business. Such leadership for the actual benefit of the people in general can effectively be conducted when the leaders themselves will know the art and science of surrendering unto the lotus feet of Sree Krishna and shall be able to convince their followers that God alone has the absolute prerogative in the above-mentioned three main functions.
  
On the other hand the natives of India only have the prerogative to understand this position of Godhead from the pages of Bhagwat Geeta and they are alone able to preach this truth throughout the whole world. It is therefore desired that the authorities who shall guide the activities of the Geeta Nagari may make such organised effort as will help this mission of the Geeta Nagari on a permanent basis.
   
The pangs of a demoralised type of civilization designed by the demoniac principled leaders are being felt keenly by the people in general and to save them from that untold miseries of life is to take shelter of the transcendental message of Bhagwat Geeta.
   
A vivid picture of the demoniac principled leader is given in the pages of Bhagwat Geeta in the sixteenth chapter as follows:
   
We can know the real heart of an 'Ashura' in the statement of Bhagwat Geeta. At the present moment practically every man is infected with a sense of false prestige, pride, anger, vanity, cruelty and similar qualities born of poor fund of knowledge. There area always two classes of men of which the one is known as the Devas or the gods and the other is known as the Ashuras or the demons. The Ashuras are unable to realise what should be done or what should not be done in the human form of life. Those who are qualified with godly qualities generally do perform charities, possess controlling power of the sense organs, perform sacrifices, practice penance and non-violence, love, truth, learn toleration, remains peaceful, refrain from speaking ill of others, become kindly in behaviour, eradicate lust and hankering, practice patience and purify habits. These are some of the many godly qualities of men known as gods. But unfortunately these godly qualities are rarely experienced in the character of the present generation and in most cases the qualities of the demons are vivid in all directions. Such men of demoniac principle are generally unclean in habits. They do not believe in the Supreme authority of God and they think without any reason that desire or necessity is the ultimate cause of creations, without knowing that disposal is more important cause than desire. The demoniac observations are always imperfect in fact and practice.
   
People addicted to demoniac principles, devoid of transcendental knowledge, imperfectly educated and inventors of violent work leading to miseries and destruction of the world have greatly developed in this age. Although these people indirectly realise that their mode of activities had already diminished the duration of life of the people in general, yet they consider the advancement of material knowledge as progress of life, dictated by a strong sense of vanity under the cover of unclean habits. The effect of this pernicious type of material civilization is that people have almost forgotten the question of life after death and thus have taken to an irresponsible way of life leading to untold miseries and distress of material existence. The demoniac way of thinking has covered their unsatiated desire for work and enjoyment till the end of material existence. These people are embarrassed with such thousand and one desires enlarging the circle of exploiting habits in greater and greater circumference. They have now become mad so to say for such enlarged activities of material civilization. Such people think unrestrictedly and at all times like this. "I have accumulated so much wealth just now and in the next I am going to accumulate more wealth. I am god (?) and nobody is equal to my position."
   
"I have killed this enemy and I am arranging to kill the other one. I am god and I am the enjoyer of everything. I am happy and I am perfect. I do not think anybody else is richer than me. I can perform all sorts of sacrifices and by doing so I can purchase all virtues." The Ashuras therefore exhibit a feat of their unalloyed foolishness by such contemplations as above mentioned.
   
Saintly politicians of modern age like Mahatma Gandhi and others inspired by the teachings of Bhagwat Geeta, although imperfectly, have tried to lead such politicians of demoniac principle, as they may be influenced by the teachings of Bhagwat Geeta. Mahatma Gandhi's movement in the political field such as non-violence, non-cooperation, truthfulness, sacrifice etc. are some of the brilliant examples for subduing the demoniac tendency of the people in general. Such example in the life of Mahatma Gandhi made him well recognised all over the world in spite of their being temporary measures and it may safely be concluded that Mahatma Gandhi's success in such movements was solely and wholly dependant on the inspiration of Bhagwat Geeta. Leaving aside his all other activities in the political field, the four following principles which he adopted sincerely in his mature old age are in essence derived from the teachings of Bhagwat Geeta for practical application for social and spiritual upliftment in the present order of things. They are as follows:-
   
A. Leaders and politicians may take lessons from the life of Mahatma Gandhi, who was undoubtedly a great and busy politician, in respect of his daily evening prayer meetings and regular recitation of Bhagwat Geeta. He followed this principle of life most faithfully even up to the last moment of his lamented life. People in general and the leaders in particular may follow this footprints of Mahatma Gandhi if they at all want to do some good to their followers. Such regular habit of reciting the readings of Bhagwat Geeta makes one able to get rid of the demoniac way of life and gradually rising up to the plane of pure devotional life of the gods. When such devotional life is enriched by recitation of the readings of Bhagwat Geeta, all the good qualities of the saints and gods automatically overcome the reciter without any extraneous effort on his part. And a person however qualified he may be in the mundane sense of the term, if he is devoid of the principles of devotional life as above mentioned, he shall surely hover in the mental plane of uncertainty and as such will always fail to enter into the noumenon existence of life. Those who have developed such noumenon existence of life generally known as spiritual life are called Mahatmas in the language of Bhagwat Geeta. The definition of real Mahatmas are given below from the reading of Bhagwat Geeta.
   
B. The temple entry movement of Mahatma Gandhi is another attempt to deliver people in general from spiritual degradation and by such movement the mass of people can be saved from gliding down to the lowest status of demoniac life. Even when he was at Noakhali (Pakistan) during the dark hours of the partition days, he never hesitated to reinstall the deities of Sree Sree Radha Govinda Sreemurties there and by such examples he had done immense good for the people in general. Leaders and politicians may take lessons from this particular incidence of his life. It may be said in this connection that there are thousands and thousands of Vishnu temples or other temples all over India. And these temples were originally the centres of spiritual enlightenment which helped subduing the demoniac way of life of the people in general and thereby they would live in peace and prosperity. At the present moment in most cases those spiritual educational centres have been rendered into rendezvous of demoniac dance for want of culture of the teachings Bhagwat Geeta. They have become on the contrary so many plague spots for preaching atheism and advancement of demoniac principles for want of proper and regular spiritual propaganda under able leadership. The mission of Geeta Nagari must have its aim amongst others to rectify the anomalies that have entered into the life of these centres of spiritual education and regenerate them to the sense of spiritual life through the exemplary life of devotees that may be created from the practical life of Sree Geeta Nagari. The Bhagwat Geeta [Bg. 9.25] encourages us in such spiritual culture as follows:-
   
Janti Devabrata Devan,
Pitrin Janti Pitribrata
Bhutani, Janti Bhutejya,
Janti Madjajina, Api, mam.
   
C. Mahatma Gandhi started the Harijan movement in order to raise the status of the fallen people either by social injustice or otherwise. But such movement may not be restricted only amongst the Bhangis and Chamars who are proclaimed as such by social injustice but such movement may be extended amongst those also are passing in the society as Brahmins and Kshatriyas etc. but in practice their mentality is more degraded than the lowest of the Bhangis and Chamars. Harijan means the associate of God himself. Chamars and Bhangis or for the matter of that, people of the mentality of the Chamars and Bhangis, can never be promoted to the position of the Harijan, unless and until such persons are helped to go up to the place of the Harijan by methods approved by the Harijans such as Arjuna, Prahlad, Dhrubamoharaj, Yamaraj, Bhisma, Janaka, Narada, Vyasa etc. There is no bar for anyone to rise up to that position of Harijans as it is stated in the Bhagwat Geeta in the following lines:-[Bg. 9.32]
   
Mam, Hi, Partha, Byapashritya, Jey, Api, Syu, Papa, Yonaya, Striya, Vaishya, Tatha, Sudra, Te, Api, Janti, Param, Gati.
   
Mahatma Gandhi did not approve of the present system of castes as is prevailing in India and there is ample support of this movement of casteless society in the Bhagwat Geeta in its own way. Casteless society does not mean that there will remain no section or subsection of social division because without that no society can exist; but there may not be any caste simply for the sake of birthright accidents. Bhagwat Geeta approves of the caste system in terms of mundane quality acquired but not in terms of accidents of birth. (To be continued.)

Immortality

Prabhupada:. . .Now Krsna is giving a practical way of understanding the presence of soul. He says, yena sarvam idam tatam: "One thing, which is spread all over the body, that is avinasi." That means immortal. So what is that which is spread all over the body? It is not the skin, not the... This is also spread over the body. The skin, the bone, the marrow, the blood—they are also spread over the body, but Krsna is not meaning this material things. The actual active principle within this body is the spirit soul. Now, in medical science, bones are being replaced; flesh also being replaced; blood is also being replaced by injection. So everything can be replaced materially by scientific improvement. But when that things which is immortal, that is gone, it cannot be replaced. Even nowadays the heart is being replaced, but no medical science or any science has ever been able to replace the life. So he's giving the example that that presence of the soul is perceived by consciousness. So the flesh is there, the bone is there, the blood is also there, but when the consciousness is not there, that means it is finished. Because the consciousness is there, therefore any part of the body, if we pinch, we can feel pains and pleasure. And when the consciousness is not there, when the man is dead, the flesh is there, the blood is there and other ingredients are there, but there is no more life because it is useless now.

Therefore Krsna says that avinasi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idam tatam. The tatam means spread. The consciousness is spread. If we pinch in this part, by consciousness you'll feel pain, or this part or any part of the body, because the consciousness is there, you feel pains and pleasure.

So Krsna points out that this consciousness is immortal, avyaya. Avyaya means which is never annihilated, avyaya. Vyaya means there is whole thing, and you can take out part of it, but avyaya means you cannot take a part of it also; it is always wholesome. So this consciousness is avyaya, means never annihilated, and avinasi means immortal. So when this consciousness is transferred from this body to another body, that is called transmigration of the soul. But one thing we must know it, that as there is consciousness in my body, as there is consciousness in your body, similarly, there is consciousness in the whole universe. So long the consciousness is there in my body and the consciousness is there in your body or everyone's body, the body is very nice, very fresh, everything is going nicely. So as soon as the consciousness is gone, immediately this lump of matter begins to decompose.

Similarly, this material cosmic manifestation is working very nicely—the sun is rising; the moon is rising; the seasons have changes; the air is blowing; the light is there; heat is there—why? Because there is big consciousness. And that small consciousness in your body and my body, keeping this body fit, similarly, there is another, greater consciousness which is keeping this material world fit and working order. So what is this consciousness? This consciousness is the spread of the soul. Just like example: you take a small grain of arsenic acid, or potassium cyanide, you put in your tongue, immediately it spreads all over your body and you die. So you can just understand the potency of a small grain of material thing. So how much potency is there of the spiritual thing? Because, we have already discussed, material things are inferior and spiritual identity is superior. So you study these material things, a small grain of poison or the sun, how much powerful they are. A small grain of poison immediately can finish the body, and the small disk, although it is not small... It looks... We can see. The sun globe is spreading the light and heat all over the universe. Similarly, the potency of the soul is so powerful that it is maintaining the whole body. Similarly, the potency of God is maintaining the whole universe. Just like on account of the presence of the soul the body is maintained, similarly, on account of presence of God the whole universe or the cosmic manifestation is maintained. As I am, a small particle of spiritual identity, I am maintaining this body so sound and healthy, similarly, the presence of the Supreme Soul Krsna, or God, is maintaining the whole material cosmic manifestation. Every one of us can perceive the presence of the soul and presence of God.

Another feature is that your consciousness and my consciousness is different. Therefore we are all individual. Similarly, God is also individual. That has been explained in the Second Chapter of Bhagavad-gita. Krsna says that "Arjuna, you, Me, and all these people who have assembled in this battlefield, they were individual in the past, individual at present, and they'll continue, individual, after death also." Now, that individuality... God is great because His consciousness is big. He is maintaining the whole cosmic manifestation. And I am very small. Therefore my consciousness is also limited, and I am spreading all over this body. So any sensible man, intelligent man, can understand the presence of God by seeing this cosmic manifestation in orderly being maintained. It is said in the Visnu Purana, just like fire remaining in one place spreads the heat and light, similarly, the soul also, being present in some part of our body—it is said in the heart—it spreads his heat and light, the consciousness. Similarly, God is also present. He spreads heat and light, and therefore we find so many varieties of manifestation. Just like... This example is very perfect. Just like the light is here, it is localized, but it is spreading its illumination all over this room. The light is situated in one place. Similarly, God is situated in His kingdom or in His place; still, He is present everywhere. He is present within your heart. He is present even within the atom. Andantara-stha-paramanu-ca

yantara-stham govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami [Bs. 5.35] **. He is present in His abode, and He is present everywhere. He is present within the atom. He is present within your heart. This is called parinama-vada, or the presence of the energy of God. Every one of us, we are also energy of God.

There are three kinds of energies. He has got multi-energies—parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate [Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport]—but they have been summarized into three. The one energy is called spiritual energy, the other is called material energy, and the third is called marginal energy. The spiritual and material we can understand. At least we can feel when the, a living man and a dead man... A living man means spirit and matter combined. And a dead man means the matter is there; spirit is gone. So you can distinguish what is spirit and what is matter. So similarly, there is, as this is material world, there is another spiritual world. We living entities, we, by nature, we are spiritual, but because we have got the potency either to live in this material world or in the spiritual world, therefore we are called marginal. The real position is, because we are spiritual, we should live in the spiritual world. At the present moment we have lost our spiritual constitutional position; therefore we are in this material world. Just like a man is generally healthy, but sometimes he falls sick, so at the present moment our condition is sick. It is called bhava-roga. Bhava-roga. Bhava means to become, and roga means disease. What is that bhava-roga? We are appearing, taking birth in the material world. This is called bhava: "You become." And after sometimes you become finished, means death. This is called disease. Bhava-roga. Yes. We have to cure this disease and come to our healthy standard of life. That opportunity is here in this human form of life. If you want to cure this material disease and revive your healthy condition of eternal spiritual life, the opportunity is here. Therefore our only business in this human form of life is to cure this material disease, not to aggravate it. Disease should be cured, not to increase it. But at the present moment we are mad after increasing the disease. We are acting in such a way that we have to accept another body. That means material disease will continue.

So to live irresponsibly like cats and dogs is very risky life. Because so long we shall be engaged in the matter of sense gratification—material life means sense gratification—we shall increase our prolongation of repetition of birth and death. So this irresponsible life of eating, sleeping, sex life and defense like cats and dogs will not help us. Therefore... Because this kind of activities will oblige me to accept another body, and as soon as we accept another material body we become subjected to the stringent laws of material nature. And the material miserable conditions are summarized into four items: birth, death, old age and disease. So those who are not in knowledge of the spirit soul, they are very irresponsibly prolonging his life in material activities. Material science could not find out the spirit soul within the body because the magnitude, the dimension of the spirit soul, is very, very small. That is stated in Padma Purana,
balagra-sata-bhagasya
satadha kalpitasya ca
bhago jivah sa vijseyah
sa canantyaya kalpate

Balagra means the tip of your hair. Divide into ten thousand parts. That one part is the dimension of the soul. That is there within the body. So material science has no such instrument or perfection of study that they can see such a small particle. Therefore these foolish people say there is no soul, but the practical application—the soul is there; therefore the consciousness is there; therefore the body is working in order. The soul is minus, the consciousness is minus—this body is a lump of matter.
So we have to study this very intelligently. Then we'll understand that what is soul, what is the business of the soul, why the soul is entrapped in this bodily, material body, why there are so many varieties, body. This is a great science, and that science is explained in this Bhagavad-gita. Actually, at the present moment there is no education, because education means to understand my identity. The so-called education which is going on, that is called art. Of course, they also say, "B.A., M.A., Bachelor of Art, Master of Art." It is just learning an art only; it is not education. Just like an electrical electrician. He knows the art how to put the negative and positive wire and bring electricity. That is an art. But that electrician does not know what is the science of understanding soul. The modern education, they are simply giving lessons on some art, generally known as technology. So by that advancement of knowledge we can construct high skyscraper building, nice motorcar, nice airplane, nice machine. That is art. But we do not know what is going to happen next life, my soul. That we do not.

So this is the distinction between avidya and vidya. Vidya means knowledge, and avidya means ignorance. Suppose you construct a very nice skyscraper building and next life you become something—you remain a rat in that house—then what is your benefit? The soul has to accept a body according to his karma. If by karma he has to accept the body of a rat, it will not be excused by nature that "You have constructed skyscraper building; therefore you'll again come and live there." No, that is not possible. If by karma you are fit for becoming a rat or cat, nature will give you that body. On account of your high attraction of the skyscraper building you can remain there, a rat and cat, but you cannot enjoy anymore. Therefore every human being should be very intelligent that "What is going to happen, my next life?" and prepare for that because it is said..., avinasi tu tad viddhi: "That small particle is avinasi," means it is not going to die; the body is going to finish. Then if my next life, next body, becomes rat and cat, then what is the benefit I get by this skyscraper building I have constructed with so hard labor and perseverance? This is knowledge. If you simply become interested on this small span of life, say, fifty or sixty or hundred years, utmost, but if you neglect your eternal existence, is that intelligence? We are teaching that science, and the Bhagavad-gita is there. Take advantage of it.
Thank you very much. Hare Krsna.

 

[ SRILA PRABHUPADA, Bhagavad-gita 2.17 -- Mexico, February 17, 1975]

Ultimate Deception

Once upon a time (as in a fairy tale), most of us believed that the food we ate was basically wholesome, nutritious and free from dangerous chemicals, that advertising may have been believable, and that product labels truly described the qualities and contents of what we fed ourselves and our families. Once upon a time, most of the world believed in the integrity of our heads of state, high-ranking political officials and local leaders. Once upon a time, we thought our children were getting a solid education in the public school system. Once upon a time, many of us believed atomic energy had “peacetime uses” that were perfectly safe and completely congruous with a happy and healthy society.

Yet in recent times our illusions have been shattered. Repeated exposes of widespread consumer fraud and grand political collusion and bribery have all but destroyed our former innocence. We now know that through mass marketing and the media, a veil of fantasy and deception can be created with such unprecedented expertise that it can become impossible for us to distinguish between substance and simulation, reality and illusion.

Today many scientists are propagating the doctrine that life originates from matter. However, they cannot provide proof, either experimentally or theoretically. In fact, they hold their stance essentially on faith, in the face of all sorts of scientific objections. Śrīla Prabhupāda points out that this groundless dogma has done great damage to moral and spiritual standards worldwide and has thus caused incalculable suffering.

Though beset by internal doubt and division, modern scientists have somehow managed to present a united front to the nonscientific public. Their behavior brings to mind the worst in political and corporate trickery. For instance, despite the recent outcry over their masking the difficulties of maintaining safety standards at nuclear power plants, the scientists and the government remain committed to nuclear power and even make light of the fact that there is no safe way of dealing with radioactive waste.

In popular works and in textbooks scientists present their account of the material origin of life as the only possible scientific conclusion. They claim that no other theory can be scientifically acceptable. And so everyone is taught that life gradually arose from chemicals, a “primordial soup” consisting of amino acids, proteins and other essential ingredients. Yet in their journals and private discussions, the same scientists acknowledge that their theory has grave, sometimes insuperable difficulties. For example, certain features of the DNA coding mechanism cast serious doubt upon the substance of evolutionary thought. The noted biologist W. H. Thorpe writes, “Thus we may be faced with a possibility that the origin of life, like the origin of the universe, becomes an impenetrable barrier to science and a block which resists all attempts to reduce biology to chemistry and physics.” The highly committed evolutionist Jacques Monod has pointed out these same difficulties. Theodisius Dobzhansky, another prominent advocate of evolution, can only agree: “Our scientific knowledge is, of course, quite insufficient to give anything like satisfactory accounts of these transitions [from no life to life, from no mind to mind]. Biologists as basically different in their... views as W. H. Thorpe and Jacques Monod agree that the origin of life is a difficult and thus far intractable and unsolved problem. I concur.” Dobzhansky goes on to call the origin of life “miraculous.” These admissions by Dobzhansky, Monod and Thorpe are by no means unique. Yet in popular presentations and textbooks one finds little hint of such widespread doubt.

Nobel prize-winning physicist Eugene Wigner has shown that the probability of the existence of a self-duplicating unit is zero. Since the ability to reproduce is one of the fundamental characteristics of all living organisms, Wigner concludes that our present understanding of physics and chemistry does not enable us to explain the phenomenon of life. Herbert Yockey has demonstrated by information theory that even a single informational molecule such as cytochrome c (what to speak of complex organisms) could not have arisen by chance in the estimated lifetime of the earth: “One must conclude that, contrary to the established and current wisdom, a scenario describing the genesis of life on earth by chance and natural causes which can be accepted on the basis of fact and not faith has not yet been written.”

As we can see, on the one hand many scientists have a deep personal commitment to the concept that life comes from matter. On the other hand they admit that they do not have the evidence to corroborate their conviction, and that their theory is beset with intractable problems. They are convinced that life arose from matter and is reducible to matter, yet at the same time they must confess to having scant scientific grounds for their conviction. Thus their theory is a priori: it supersedes the scientific method and science itself. Their fervent, almost messianic hope is that someday, somehow, someone may be able to validate it, and in the meantime their faith is unshakable.

Dazzling technological achievements have given modern scientists an aura of infallibility, and so when the scientists present untested or unprovable theories about life’s origin, people tend to accept with blind faith. In Passages About Earth William Irwin Thompson writes, “Just as once there was no appeal from the power of the churches without risking damnation, so now there is no appeal from the power of science without risking a charge of irrationality or insanity.” And as botanist Garrett Hardin notes, anyone who questions the status of Darwin “inevitably attracts the speculative psychiatric eye to himself.”

The dialogues in Life Comes From Life may seem revolutionary, but then were not Newton, Pasteur and Einstein scientific revolutionaries? Life Comes From Life does not simply criticize those who support the theory that matter is the origin of life. Rather, this book encourages them to rededicate themselves to a more genuine and intense quest for truth and knowledge, and to thereby redirect their valuable intelligence, resources and work toward the true benefit of the world.

[Introduction to Life Comes From Life, By His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada, Founder Acharya for ISKCON]
http://prabhupadabooks.com/g=156405

Spiritual Death

Prabhupada: So it may..., it can be taken figuratively, that when one forgets his position, that is a kind of death also. One forgets himself. But actually soul is eternal, and what Augustine says as spiritual death, that is his forgetfulness. Just like in unconsciousness one forgets his identity, but if he is dead then he cannot revive consciousness. Similarly, it is little difficult for the bodily concept of life persons, but there are many proofs and understanding that soul is eternal. He, of course, until he gets his freedom from this material existence, he is spiritually dead. Even though he is working in this material form, because he has forgotten his real identity, that is also a kind of death. Ya nisa sarva-bhutanam tasyam jagarti samyami. This sloka explains how one is dead and how one is alive. When one is forgetful of his spiritual consciousness, God consciousness, he is supposed to be dead, and when he, one is alive to the spiritual consciousness or God consciousness, he is alive. In this sense, it is a question of two stages, awakening stage and forgetful stage, but actually a soul is eternal. He never dies, even after the annihilation of this body.
 
Hayagriva: But the forgetful stage is never everlasting or eternal, is it?
 
Prabhupada: Yes, it is not. It can be, what is called, revived, his consciousness. That is our Krsna consciousness movement. Just like a man is sleeping, almost unconscious, but if you call him again and again, and the sound enters through the ear into the heart, he becomes awakened. Similarly, by this chanting process he revives his spiritual consciousness, then he is alive in his spiritual life.

[Srila Prabhupada, * Discussions with Hayagriva dasa, St. Augustine]

Kill An Animal Kill A Plant: Same Sin

Girl: Why is it all right to kill any plants? How are they different from animals?

Tamala Krsna: She is asking, "What is the difference between killing a plant and eating it and killing an animal and eating it?"

 
Prabhupada: The same fault. Either you kill animal or plant, the same sin is there just like if you kill an uncivilized and if you kill a big man, the punishment is the same, hanging. You cannot say that "I have killed one uncivilized man." No. That you cannot do. Similarly, you cannot kill even plant. But we have to live. Therefore we can kill plant under the order of the Supreme. Just like I have already explained. Krsna said, patram puspam phalam toyam yo me bhaktya prayacchati [Bg. 9.26]. Patram means plant. So Krsna wants it. So for Krsna's sake we can do that. Just like Arjuna did. Arjuna did not like to kill his brothers, but Krsna said that "This is My desire." "All right, I shall kill." This is Krsna-bhakti. When Krsna says, we can do everything, not for our personal self. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gita it is said, yajna-sistasinah santo mucyante sarva-kilbisaih. That another crude example: just like a soldier. When he is fighting by the order of the state, he is getting gold medal and killing. His business is killing. But the same man, when he comes home, if he kills one person, then he is hanged. Why? He could say that "My business is killing. I am soldier. I have killed this man." "No. This is for your account. On the battlefield you killed for the state's account; therefore you were eulogized. You were given reward." Similarly, we can kill only on the order of the Supreme. Otherwise we cannot kill even a plant. Therefore Bhagavad-gita says, yajna-sistasinah santo mucyante sarva-kilbisaih. Yajna means for the satisfaction of the Supreme Lord, whatever you do, you are not implicated with sinful activities. And bhunjate te tv agham papa ye pacanty atma-karanat [Bg. 3.13]. And a person who is doing on his own capacity, he is simply acquiring sinful resultant action. So the conclusion is: even a plant you cannot kill, what to speak of bigger animals. If one thinks that "I am killing only plants; therefore I am very pious, vegetarian," no. There is no question of vegetarian, nonvegetarian. They are equally sinful. Only those who are taking prasadam [food offered to Krishna], they are free from sinful activities. Yajna-sistasinah santo mucyante sarva-kilbisaih. All right, thank you...

[Conversation with Srila Prabhupada, Sunday Feast Lecture—Atlanta, March 2, 1975]

Guru Nanak: Authorized Teachers Encourage Chanting Gods Name

Guest (2): Srila Prabhupada, in the Sikh-dharma they say to chant the holy names of God,and so far I haven't encountered the name “Krsna” in the scriptures. Ihave encountered “Govinda,” “Mukunda,” “Rama” and…, but the main namethat is chanted is Viduh. And I was wondering if you could commenton…, on the Sikh-dharma.

Prabhupada: It is very good. It is very good. Guru Nanak, he chanted the name, holy name of Rama, the holy name of Krsna, Govinda. So if we follow Guru Nanak, we are fortunate. Anyone who presents a science of God, it doesn't matter whether he is this man or that man; he is our guru.