[final proofreading pending] ¶
Prabhupada: If you want, there is no power in this world that can be an impediment to your engaging in devotional service. ¶
So if someone is engaged in pure devotional service then the soul is very blissful. That is why the Lord says, jṣâna te ‘hasa-vijṣânam, “the knowledge that I am imparting to you, it is not impersonal Brahman realization. This is Bhagavan realization.” Impersonal Brahman realization, that is for liberation. And this knowledge that the Lord is imparting is for the liberated, for those who are already liberated. That is why He says, jṣâna te ‘hasa-vijṣânam, along with scientific knowledge. sa-vijṣânam means [indistinct] practical application or practical knowledge, not just theoretical. Having just theoretical knowledge, Aha brahmâsmi, this is knowledge that, I am not a material substance, I am not this material body, I am Brahman (spirit). Brahma-bhitaprasannâtmâ, if we have this Brahman realization, the soul is definitely blissful because all the miseries are due to our material knowledge. Till we go on accepting a material body we will always be full of anxiety. Prahlada Maharaj has said, ¶
Till we have this material body we will always be, samudvigna, full of anxiety. Once we come into the realm of knowledge this anxiety will be destroyed. If this anxiety is destroyed but we do not advance! Just like if a man is suffering from fever and the fever subsides, but the fact that the fever has subsided does not mean that his body is disease free. Only if he gets out of the bed, walks around, eats properly and feels good only then can we say that he is healthy. Just the fever subsiding is not the goal. Similarly if we just acquire knowledge, Aha brahmâsmi, I am Brahman, I am not this material body, this is not sufficient knowledge. That is why the Lord says, bahûnâ janmanâm ante jṣânavân mâprapadyate, one who is in possession of knowledge, this kind of devotional service is obtained after many many births, bahûnâ janmanâm ante jṣânavân mâprapadyate, to surrender at the lotus feet of the Lord- that is real knowledge. With just knowledge we may be blissful, but till we surrender at the lotus feet of the Lord, the knowledge is not complete, this is according to the scriptures. That is why it is said in the Bhagavad-gītā, ¶
brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā
na śocati na kāṅkṣati
samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu
mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām
[Bg. 18.54]
Those who have acquired knowledge and are joyful, that I am not material, Aha brahmâsmi, So’ham this is all right but if you do not advance, then you will fall down. Then you will fall down from the realm of knowledge. This is an injunction of the scriptures. ¶
O lotus-eyed one (’ravindâk those who think themselves liberated falsely, mâninas, they are not actually liberated, it will take time to be so, but they falsely assume themselves to be liberated- “ I am now liberated”. mukta-mâninas, their intelligence is still not purified. Why? tvayy asta-bhâvâd, because they have not searched out your lotus feet. That is why the Lord says, jṣâna te ‘ha? sa-vijṣânam, sa-vijṣânam, practical application, ¶
jṣâna te ‘ha sa-vijṣânam
idavakaúe
“Now, I shall now speak to you. Arjuna, I shall now tell you about the real knowledge along with the practical knowledge.” yaj jṣâtvâ, if you have this real knowledge, devotional knowledge. It is said in the Vedas also, ¶
yasmin vijṣâte sarvam evavijṣâtabhavati
If you understand God then you automatically have knowledge of everything. We are preaching in the West, where big scientists, psychologists come to meet. But we prove it to them that the knowledge they have is incomplete. Although we are not scientists or psychologists but by the mercy of God, we can do this and we are doing this. I have a disciple Dr. Swarup Damodar. He is a great scientist in chemistry. He has written a book, “Scientific Basis of Krishna consciousness.” What I mean is although he is a recognized scientist but still by acquiring this devotional knowledge he is making himself more competent and he is writing many more books. This is practical knowledge. Devotional knowledge is practical knowledge. ¶
jṣâna te ‘ha sa-vijṣânam
idavakaúe
“I am giving you complete knowledge.” yaj jṣâtvâ, if you are able to understand this then, na iha bhûyaanyat/ jṣâtavyam avaúi There is no need for you to acquire any other knowledge after this. So this practical knowledge (sa-vijṣânam), that is theoretical knowledge along with practical knowledge, this is devotional service. The Lord will explain further on, these are all matters related to devotional service only, as to how to use practical knowledge (sa-vijṣânam) to increase our attachment for the Lord. This is there in the beginning of this chapter. ¶
mayy âsakta-manâpârtha
yogayuṣjan mad-âúraya
So this yoga that is devotional service is the one that includes practical knowledge. Devotional service is not a sentiment. Devotional service is with practical knowledge. ¶
Just like Rupa Goswami has said, ¶
śruti-smṛti-purāṇādi-
pañcarātra-vidhiṁ vinā
aikāntikī harer bhaktir
utpātāyaiva kalpate
[Brs. 1.2.101]
Sruti, the Vedas and sm the Puranas and paṣcarâtriki viddhi- if all these are given up and one is engaged in devotional service, that devotional service is according to Rupa Goswami a disturbance (utpâtâ). You understand, disturbance? It is not pure devotional service, it merely creates a disturbance in the society. So vijṣânam, ?? ¶
brahma-sûtra-padais caiva
hetumadbhir viniscitai
So when the Lord himself is talking about devotional service He gives the example of Vedanta sutra ¶
brahma-sûtra-padais caiva
hetumadbhir viniscitai
So in the path of devotional service, sruti-sm according to the scriptural injunctions we should engage in devotional service. That is why to guide us Srila Rupa Goswami has written the book, Bhakti-rasâm (nectar of devotion). This we have translated into English, Nectar of Devotion. This Nectar of Devotion is a textbook in many of the western universities. So sa-vijṣânam, vijṣânam (scientific) you understand. So this devotional service is not a sentiment it is scientific, saints accept it, âcâryas accept it. âcârya-upâsanâ, without worshipping the âcâryas, it is difficult to understand devotional service. That is why Narottam Das Thakur says, ei chay gosai jar– mui tar das ta-sabara pada-renu mora panca-gras, that, when we follow in the footsteps of the six Goswamis- Sri Rupa, Sanatana, Bhatta Raghunath, Jiva, Gopal Bhatta, Raghunath Das, tadera carana-sebi-bhakta-sane bas, to follow in the footsteps of the they who discovered Vrindavana, the six Goswamis (coughs), we should serve them (coughs) and bhakta-sane bas, we should associate with the devotees, only then can we understand this science. Just like there is a society for the business, similarly for engaging in devotional service we should definitely associate with the saintly persons. âdau úraddhâ tatasâdhu-sa who is a saint? bhajate mâm ananya-bhâk, one who know nothing other than to be engaged in the devotional service of the Lord. He is a saint! So this is called sa-vijṣânam. ¶
Then the Lord says, ¶
manu sahasrekascid yatati siddhaye
yatatâm api siddhânâkaúcin mâvetti tattvata
We need to understand the Lord as He is. Lord means, Lord Úri Kroot, K tu bhagavân svayam, and Lord is everything but the main Lord is govindam âdi-purugovindam âdi-puru. And all the incarnations of the Lord, râmâdi mûrttikalâ-niyamena ti Râma, NVarâha etc. The Lord has many incarnations, they are all the Lord. It is not that Kis âdi-puru so He is the biggest. All the Lords are big. The Lord is not big or small. Just like in the case of tulsi we can see small and big leaves but the work done by all them is the same. You can offer the small tulsi leaf at the lotus feet of the Lord and a big leaf at the lotus feet of the Lord, the work done is the same. Similarly the Lord has many incarnations, Advaitam acyutam anâdim ananta-rûpam. ¶
So the Lord’s potencies are all one, even the holy name is the incarnation of the Lord. This Hare Kname is the “sound” incarnation of the Lord. This has been told by Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Nâmnâm akâri bahudhânija-sarva-saktis. The holy name of the Lord has all the potencies of the Lord in it. This has been told by Caitanya Mahaprabhu. (It is not that), the Hare Knames that we chant, is K?a himself, in the form of His name. That is why Caitanya Mahaprabhu says, ¶
nâmnâm akâri bahudhânija-sarva-úaktis tatrârpitâ niyamitasmarana kâla
This arca-vigraha (deity) of the Lord needs to be worshipped at certain times, certain rules are to be followed, but to chant the names of the Lord there is no rule! niyamitasmarana kâla Everyone can do it, whenever and wherever you want to do it happily, that is the mercy of the Lord in this kaliyuga. ¶
kirtanâd eva k
mukta-sa para vrajet
Sukadeva Goswami says that this kaliyuga is an ocean of faults, ¶
kaler dorâjann
asti hy eko mahân gu
Despite being an ocean of faults there is one great benediction. What is that? kirtanâd eva k when we chant the name Hare Kthe ill effects of this age of kaliyuga are destroyed and we go back to Vaikuntha dhama, mukta-sa para vrajet. So in this kaliyuga the holy name is foremost! ¶
Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.
So the Lord says that this acquiring of knowledge is not for everyone. manuâ sahasre jṣâna,vijṣâna. - what is that? Devotional knowledge. Knowledge means, just like Vedas, Vedas mean knowledge. So the Lord says, ¶
vedais ca sarvair aham eva vedya
After acquiring knowledge of the Vedas and other scriptures if one does not acquire devotional knowledge about the Lord then it is only a wasted effort, srama eva hi kevalam. This is a scriptural injunction. The scriptures say, ¶
dharmasvanuitapu
viya
notpâdayed yadi rati
srama eva hi kevalam
We have rehearsed all the Vedas and the knowledge in it, and read all the scriptures but if we have not acquired devotional knowledge then it is only a wasted effort, hard work for nothing. This is a scriptural injunction. Faith, faith means the faith of a brâhma, k, vaisya–they are all different but the goal is to acquire knowledge about the Lord, engage in devotional service. ¶
svanudharmasya
sahari-to
This is perfection (sa what is that perfection? Perform your respective occupational duties but the motive behind it should be hari-to how to please the Supreme Personality of Godhead. sahari-to So these are scriptural injunctions. So how to please the Lord (hari-to This is disclosed by the Lord himself. ¶
manu sahasrekascid yatati siddhaye
What is that perfection? Not the yogic perfection. Devotees of the Lord do not attempt yogic perfection because the Lord himself is, yogesvara. He is the master of all mystic powers. So those who are surrendered at the lotus feet of the Lord, all these mystic yogic perfections are automatically attained by them. There is no need for any separate endeavors. Those who are under the protection of the Lord and the Lord himself is yogesvara, so all the work done by the mystic yogic perfections is automatically gained (by being under His protection). ¶
tenityâbhiyuktânâ
yoga-k vahâmy aham
This is according to the scriptures. The mystic yogic perfection is achieved by the mercy of the Lord. This is practical, we can see this practically. This hari kirtan,, kirtan movement which is happening all over the world is astonishing because every year all over the world around ten deities are being installed. This is also a kind of yogic perfection. So yogic perfection, we do not know any yogic perfection but the Lord is yogesvara, and it is by His mercy that all this is possible. So the devotees of the Lord do not want yogic perfection but because they are surrendered to yogesvara, they naturally attain yogic perfection. So this yogic perfection comes naturally to them. It is said in the Bhagavad gita, Yatra yogesvara hari, where there is yogesvara, Hari and where there is yogesvara hari, Kand where there is a devotee like Arjuna , there all perfection exists. There is no need for any separate endeavor. ¶
manu sahasre
kascid yatati siddhaye
yatatâm api siddhânâ
kaúcin mâ vetti tattvata
Even if one acquires yogic perfection and all such kinds of other perfections, even then one will not be able to understand the Absolute Truth. The Supreme Absolute Truth can be understood only by a devotee of the Lord and by one who has received the mercy of the Lord. ¶
So this Krishna Consciousness movement that I am preaching all over the world, this is knowledge of the Absolute Truth. That is why it is named “Krishna Consciousness” (Krishna Bhavanamrta). And this Krishna Bhavanamrta is possible if you develop attachment for this deity form of Lord Krishna. That is why these temples are established that you all come, see the Lord, hear His pastimes, then slowly by âdau úraddhâ tatasâdhu-sa by these processes you will get attached to the Lord and that is the perfection of life. ¶
Thank you very much! Hare Krishna! ¶
Jaya Srila Prabhupada ki jaya! Haribol! ¶