19820507 Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.15.48-51

(Disclaimer: The following is a machine-generated transcript and may contain errors or inaccuracies. It will be reviewed and verified against the original audio soon.)

The following is a lecture given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on May 7, 1982 – in New Orleans, USA. The lecture begins with a reading from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 7.15.48-51.

Foreign. Hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare. Actually text 4849 don’t have a purport in this text 5051 just to go quick. Sam.

Sami.

Translation the ritualistic ceremonies and sacrifices known as Agnihotra Yagya, Darsa Yagya, Purnamasa Yagya, Chhatarmasa Yagya, Pasu Yagya and Soma Yajna are all symptomized by the killing of animals and the burning of many valuables, especially food grains, all for the fulfillment of material desires and the creation of anxiety. Performing such sacrifices, worshiping Vaisvadeva and performing the ceremony known as Valiharana, which all supposedly constitute the goal of life, as well as constructing temples for demigods, building resting houses and gardens, digging wells for the distribution of water, establishing booths for the distribution of food, and performing activities for public welfare. These are all symptomized by attachment to material desires. Text 50 to 51.

Translation My dear King Yudhiṣṭhira when oblations of ghee and food grains like barley and sesame are offered in sacrifice, they turn into celestial smoke which carries one to successive higher planetary systems like the kingdoms of Duma, Ratri, Kṛṣṇapaksha, Dakshinam and ultimately the Moon. Then, however, the performance of sacrifice descend again to earth to become herbs, creepers, vegetables and food grains. These are eaten by different living entities and turned to semen which is injected into female bodies. Thus one takes birth again and again. My dear King Eustira when oblations of ghee and food grains like barley and sesame are offered in sacrifice, they turn into celestial smoke which carries one through successively higher planetary systems like the kingdoms of Dhumaratri, Vishnapaksha, Dakshinam and ultimately the Moon. Then, however, the performers of sacrifice descend again to earth to become herbs, creepers, vegetables and food grains.

These are eaten by different living entities and turned into semen which is injected into female bodies. Thus one takes birth again and again purported by Śrīla Prabhupāda. This is explained in Bhagavad Gītā 921. Quote when those who follow the Praviti Marga have enjoyed heavenly sense pleasure, they return to this mortal planet again. Thus through the Vedic principles they achieve only flickering happiness. Unquote. Following the Praviti Marga, the living entity who desires to be promoted to the higher planetary systems, perform sacrifices regularly and how he goes up and comes down as described here in Śrīman Bhāgavatam as well as in Bhagavad Gītā, it is also said Triguna Vishaya Veda. The Vedas deal mainly with the three modes of material nature. The Vedas, especially the three Vedas, namely Sama, the and Rick, vividly describe this process of ascending to the higher planets and returning.

But Kṛṣṇa advises Arjuna, Triguna, Vishaya Veda, Niskayunyo, Bhavarjuna. One has to transcend these three modes of material nature and then one will be released from the cycle of birth and death. Otherwise, although one may be promoted to a higher planetary system such as Chandra Loka, one must again come down. After one’s enjoyment due to pious activities is finished, one must return to this planet in rainfall and first take birth as a planet creeper which is eaten by various animals including human beings, and turn to semen. This semen is injected into the female body and thus a living entity takes birth. Those who return to earth in this way take birth especially in higher families like those of Brahmanas.

It may be remarked in this connection that even the modern so called scientists who are going to the moon are not able to stay there, but are returning to their laboratories. Therefore, whether one goes to the moon by modern mechanical arrangements or by performing pious activities, one must return to earth. That is clearly stated in this verse and explained in Bhagavad Gītā. Even if one goes to the higher planetary systems, once placed there is not secure. One must return to Marty Loka, Brahma Bhuvanaloka. Aside from the moon, even if one goes to Brahmaloka, one must return young Prama. But if one goes back home, back to Godhead, he need not return to this material world. Thus, in the purport of text 50 and 51 by Sigangra Śrī La Vidanta Swami Prabhupāda so.

Here many important subjects are covered dealing with Kriviti Mark Nvidi Marg, the destination of the soul after death and the nature of material bondage. In this material world, everyone is bound by stringent laws. One who is acting for sense gratification is always bound up within the material world, is always subject to the reaction in the material world. Even if one is performing religious ceremonies for the purpose of material welfare, even if that welfare is achieving celestial planets, heavenly planets, still because those are material desires, again one wants to come back down to the earthly planet. There’s no freedom from the material laws as long as one is acting for a material purpose. Whether if one uses these sacrifices, then that makes it easier to achieve one’s material goals.

But because the goals are material Actually, love for Kṛṣṇa, devotion for Kṛṣṇa does not become fixed in the heart. Therefore one has to repeat in the cycle of birth and death. Bhaktivedino Thakur, he prayed. Kita Janmahoi, Tabutvar Das Chathamukha, Bahir Mukha Brahma Janmi Nahoi. As that, I would prefer to be a worm in association with your devotees. But I have no desire even to be a Brahma, the Creator of the Universe, and be a non devotee of your Lordship. That devotee prefers even the most humble position for somehow another to be under the shelter of Kṛṣṇa. In fact, Chaitanya Mahāprabhu, in his prayers, he’s saying the same thing in the Shikastikam. Just as Bhaktavinodagra said that you can beat me, or you can protect me, whatever you like, whatever is your desire.

The same way Asli sha vah paravuta vinastu va. Whatever you want, Kṛṣṇa, you can embrace me or you can trample me under your Lord’s feet. I am simply yours. This is the mood of the pure devotee. So therefore that devotee is always under the shelter of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa, of course, is not one to let someone down. But he may test whether a person is actually imitating a devotee for some material benefit. One may imitate a devotee to get some material benefit. As such, Māyā knows how to test that devotee whether that sincere desire is there or not. Of course, that’s why it’s better to be sincere before Kṛṣṇa. If one even has desire, then one should not put himself in the position of having no desire.

But rather one should be sincere before the spiritual master and Kṛṣṇa, revealing the mind and requesting help for advancement. But if someone tries to imitate being a pure devotee, when actually the mind is filled with desires, then of course it is revealed in so many ways, which is also for the benefit of the devotee to realize his own frailties so that he can further fix his mind in surrendering to Kṛṣṇa. Just as the body, when it gets sick immediately you feel fever, you have various symptoms. These are also to warn you that there’s something wrong. That you should take the necessary actions to rectify it. Not to become just like. For instance, I noticed that when one gets a very high fever, sometimes the lips, they become very sore. The tongue gets fever sores.

And at that time it’s impossible to eat anything, spice or anything very hard. The mouth is so tender, you can only take gruel or some very, you know, some type of cereal or something. And actually at that stage of sickness, that’s what your body needs. Your body couldn’t handle ghee or other heavy type of food stuff because your body was in a sickened, weakened condition. So it has a built in safety features just like your automobile. When you don’t put your seatbelt in, it beeps a few times. Or there’s a light goes on when your generator is not recharging the battery like that your body has built in. Has built in signals when something’s not working correctly.

Similarly, in one’s devotional service there are built in signals that one who is acting according to the three modes of material nature rather than according to the transcendental mode. Then Kṛṣṇa allows some reaction to come so that one can immediately rectify the attitude and remain strictly on devotional platform. Sometimes someone may be going through all the emotions physically, but mentally one is not surrendering. As a result, one is not actually making the maximum progress. So what Kṛṣṇa does is puts one in a position sometime that he allows Māyā, he lives to shelter. Because one is not surrendering, one is not getting the full shelter. Māyā is able to attack. So that is an opportunity for the devotee either to be sincere and then try to actually surrender from the real platform rather than maintain some type of artificial standard and artificial false prestige.

Of course the danger is there that if one doesn’t surrender, then of course Māyā, she will not allow one to remain in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. As long as one is trying to surrender. One may be at a different level of surrender. One is trying to proceed in the process of surrendering to Kṛṣṇa. I think Kṛṣṇa protects one. The spiritual master brings one. But when one develops a separatist attitude, either in a mental platform or even in a physical way, then naturally that shelter is separated from one and therefore Māyā can act. So when Māyā is acting that has a twofold. That gives us an opportunity to take the shelter of other advanced devotees and actually surrender and become pure so that we can enjoy the permanent shelter of Kṛṣṇa. Of course.

And if one doesn’t, then it’s an automatic cleansing process of the society of devotees where the devotee is removed by Māyā, which of course is a very painful thing. But this is to force or to encourage us to establish ourselves in actually nibriti Marga, in the path of renunciation. We were discussing last night in the Bhagavad Gītā that there are different kinds of renunciation in the mode of goodness, passion and ignorance. So someone is renouncing something out of ignorance, out of illusion. You see that is something which simply creates more madness and More difficult if someone renounces some Kṛṣṇa conscious activity, thinking it’s too difficult getting up in the morning or to live with the devotees. Little less privacy than I would have in other places. Or what will the people think? What will people say? What will my relatives say?

All type of selfish, materialistic, very superficial considerations. There’s too much difficulty that is considered to be renunciation and mode of passion, which will also only bring anxiety and difficulty in the future. We shouldn’t give up anything in the mode of passion. We won’t get the desired result. So renunciation, the mode of goodness, means that one actually accepts devotional service and renounces the results of one’s activities to Kṛṣṇa. This is real renunciation in the mode of goodness. So here of course, there are very sacrifices being done. Sacrifices shouldn’t be given up, but the sacrifices for material benefit, those should be given up. So these are practically speaking a list of the sacrifices that could be given up or should be given up. One should simply perform sacrifice for the pleasure of Kṛṣṇa.

If one performs sacrifice for some limited material results, that is considered to be simply another form of bondage in the material world. Because even one achieves these higher planets after some time again one has to come down. Just like yesterday came out in the newspaper that in Illinois one man had won the Missouri. He won the million dollar lottery, $50,000 a month, a year for 20 years. And he was 68 years old when he won it. And now he just died 72 years old. So the point of course was that he was rejoicing that he had won. He gave up his job, everything. But of course you couldn’t live 20 years to enjoy it. And they didn’t know who to give the money to because they couldn’t find any relatives. So people, they’re very anxious to get a million dollars to get their elevation.

But they fail to see that it’s all temporary. He only he had the idea, well, now I am a millionaire, I can take it easy. But of course, the crew handed death did not allow him to cash in. Similarly, when you go to the heavenly planet, you will be thinking, well, this is very nice, but before you know it, your time is up. And again you have to come down. Even people, even the people live for 119 years, 104 years, they still, they’re. They don’t want to die, they want to go on living. Now in modern society they have this, what they call it mercy killing or something. But except in very rare cases of extreme Weak men of people. They don’t want to give up their life. There was. It was here in New Orleans, we read how the. What are the French men called?

The kjus? The kjus, they fight cock. They fight the roosters. The cock. Cock fight. And so I couldn’t resist but to see the article that the people are very sentimental about their cocks, except not sentimental enough not to fight them. So when they’re fighting, sometimes they get their eyes gouged out or they get injured. And so one person gave up the fighting because it was too much to see his birds get finished like that. Then one person said, well, when they get injured, we just have to, you know, kill them. Mercy killing, it’s, you know, we don’t like to see him walking around with one leg. But even then, the point is that the cock doesn’t want to die. I mean, he doesn’t consider it to be mercy. It’s biting. Even if it loses one eye.

It’s fighting right up to the end, trying to keep his last breath. You see, even they. The cock, it gets. It gets so injured, of course, the owner picks it up and blows on it and then throws it back in, cools it off and then lets it fight up to the last kick. So there’s such a desire to live that even. Even they lose an eye, they lose this, they lose. They still. They’re fighting to keep their life. So where’s the question of mercy killing? The point is that everyone wants to live out their full life. In fact, they don’t want to die at all. There was a great movie star in Calcutta who was known as Uttam Kumar. He’s famous. Even he played a few Hindi films. He’s very famous, like the John Wayne or something. You know, the.

The Ronald Reagan of how he could have entered politics if he had kept up. And so he was deathly sick. His doctor told him, you’re about to die. There’s nothing I can do. And he grabbed his doctor’s hand and he told him, the doctor, he said. He said, save me. I want to live. Doctor, doctor, save me, I want to live. He’s the big hero. But then he was shaking and holding out his hand. Then he died holding his doctor’s hand. Then they asked the doctor that, don’t you feel a little embarrassed that you’re patient? You couldn’t save them. And he said, well, many times this happened. And I saved him every other time, which is this one time I failed. So the point of course is that we have to know.

Just like some of the demons india, those who worship the Takti, they say, well, look at Ravana. He was the real hero of the Ramayana, not Ramachandra. The demons, they never. They can never accept the supremacy of God. They’re saying, look at Rahman. He had such a big kingdom, he was building a big staircase. He even stole Rāma’s wife. In so many ways, he was. He was. He was victorious. It was only in the end, just one time, he lost one battle, how many battles he won. So the material is. They can never see that. That one battle is a decisive battle. You may win so many skirmishes, they win the million dollars or they get up to the heavenly planet, but ultimately they have to again come down.

So someone who’s really intelligent can understand that what is the use of all this struggle? And ultimately I learn to simply lose. It’s just an intoxication. It’s just like the cat playing with the mouse, letting it run here and there. The mouse thinks I am getting away, then he grabs him, then he runs and I got away. And the mouse, the cat grabs and brings him back in this way, the mouse is having little play. Then finally, when the mouse gets bored, gobbles him up. So like that time, we’re all under the clusters of time. We should try to get out of the time that is possible by simply engaging ourselves in transcendental activity, by not acting on the material platform, whether it’s in the performance of religion. So many people go to church in South America.

In the church, in holidays, the people crawl up the mountain. They go on top of the mountain, when Mother Mary is there on their knees and knees are bloody, they go up there and they say to Mother Mary, please give me a new house. Although it appears that they have such faith and such love, even for God, but actually, I mean, they love their house. They want a new house. They want their son to pass, you know, to get to be. Maybe the son has pants. They go up to get this. They go to God. Just like during the Second World War in Germany, so many people went and prayed in the churches to return my husband. But of course, they were the ones who started the war. They were attacking other countries.

And when the women went and prayed that their husband should be saved, and then they didn’t come back. Then they thought, well, God didn’t hear our prayer. So now in Germany, there’s a lot of problems of atheism because they think that God is simply going to be my order supplier. And If God doesn’t supply my order, then there is no God. God is there. Or like in America, where people have enough money. So religion is that mainly a social custom where society’s image, one has to worship in the church or something. But people say don’t go to church and pray to become rich. When they get enough money, then that compulsion is not so great. Just right now the Christianity is making greater inroads in the third world countries because they say. All the rich countries in the world are Christians.

You are following your religions, but if you become Christian, you become like America, like France, like England. And so all the poor people, they all go into church and prank. Make us rich like the Americans, oh God of the Americas, make us rich. And of course in America, people are becoming less interested because they have been trained off to pray to God that people are already rich or they already have what they need. Well, why pray to God? So this type of materialistic religion is decried by the Bhāgavatam, decried by the Bhagavad Gītā as not real religion that it is. It is a. It is just a dim reflection. It is a type of feeding religion in a sense that it is a business that one is doing. It’s not actually based upon real love for God.

Actually, he was told the people that you should love the Lord thy God, with all thy heart, with all thy soul, with all thy mind. But the teaching, basically there had to be some compromise because people were not at that level. Ketani Mahāprabhu, he does not compromise. He teaches one how to love God, how to come up to that temple, how to fulfill the objective of actually all the religions. Therefore, this is considered to be the posture as you escape. In material life. One acts in a certain way because he’s very concerned about giving some sinful reaction. Of course, in spiritual life one is saying to not be detached from inauspicious activity and not to be attached to auspicious activity, but to be able to do anything for Kṛṣṇa.

But one has to be careful not to become whimsical in application, to actually do what is desired by Kṛṣṇa. Not to take a blanket that whatever we do, Kṛṣṇa will approve it. But it should be something which is authorized, something which we know that Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise he said that if you do something which is not authorized, then you have to take the result of that I will not be responsible. Therefore, everything we do under the instruction of the third semantic. In the shelter of the scriptures of the Shastras of the Bhagavad. Gītā Bhāgavatam then we can actually feel relief from this fire of material existence. Everyone is burning with his fire. Śrīla Prabhupāda described. It’s like if you see a forest fire. The animals in the forest fire, the little animals like snakes, they can’t get away, so they just all burn.

But the bigger animals like deer, moose, they’re all trying to run out of the forest fire. So they become mad everywhere. They smell smoke and they’re trying to go here and there, trying to find out where is the way out of this heated, hellish condition of being in the middle of a forest fire. So everyone in the material world, the analogy is they’re like that, they’re trying to find out where is the piece, where is that missing thing. Now everyone may think the missing thing is computers. Now if we have our computer, then we will be able to organize our life so nicely that we will be happy, will be fulfilled. You see, you go to Disney World or you go to the, I imagine the same thing in the World Fair. You will see so many exhibits. The better car, the better house, the better video.

How to be, how to be happy, how people will be happier in the future. But whether your video was col. Before there was black and white tv, now there’s color. So now people are happy. You see, it’s the same idiot too. But just a question of now. Instead of seeing it in the in black and white, now you’re seeing it in color. The real satisfaction is not going to come no matter how much you increase the sense gratification. You see, there’s people of course, who can say the modern day Tantric.

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To one’s desire. And there’s a limit to how much this body can satisfy those desires. So once you get out of this forest fire or the rat race or whatever you like to call it, of just trying to satisfy the sense, because there’s no limit in psychology. They like to tell about those experiments that one doctor did where he takes the mouse, cuts off the top of the head and he puts in electric wires at the two spots where they saw that there’s a short circuit every time a mouse has sex. They saw that between this part of the brain and that part there was a little electrical shock, a little electrical that passed. So they hooked up the wire to those two places and then they hooked the wire to a little press bar.

Every time he pressed it, he got the same feeling as if he was having sex. So the mouse would just sit there and push the bar all day, just keep on pushing it and pushing it until he would forget about eating, sleeping, and just push it until he died. So the point is that, I mean of course the materialists, they have their own interpretation, but from a Kṛṣṇa conscious point of view, living astrology, no, you just can’t get any satisfaction even if you’re able to like maybe hundreds of thousands of times, they’re having sense gratification, they’re having whatever, the complete exercise for that living creature, but there’s still no satisfaction. So therefore the Vedas are giving a word of sense that one should regulate the material. You can’t absolutely stop eating, sleeping or mating and defending in every state.

It’s not possible to stop eating, it’s not possible will stop sleeping, and it’s not possible that we should not defend ourselves in time of aggression or something. And of course mating is something that someone may be able to stop or may not be able to stop, that there’s something natural, everyone may not. That depends on various factors. So the point is that these things have to be regulated. Then if you can’t stop them artificially, neither is there any use in simply satisfying them or Manitoba, because you won’t achieve any ultimate satisfaction. So the consciousness is so ideally made. One regulates the life so that there’s a life and gratification that you can survive. Śrī Prabhupāda gave a story how there was one very wealthy man who joined the movement of Gandhi and he gave up everything, all of his wealth.

He was a big family, big everything. And he just started begging door to door in this movement, trying to follow some kind of vairagya. But as A result he died within a year because he hadn’t developed rich technology. It was too big a shock to go from such an opulent position to suddenly to abject type of poverty. So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not something artificially. Immediately one has to accept all type of extreme austerity. What is said when one comes from the beginning he laughs because other sense gratification is being cut off. The error. More prasada. Eat enough prasad. Everyone knows if you eat a little bit more then you can’t even move. So that way at least your senses will be overcome. I know Prabhupāda, when the body would come, he would take a little more.

Take a little more Prasad is very n And other activities should be regulated and simultaneously have to work at chanting, hearing, serving, thinking of Kṛṣṇa. When the mind wanders off and starts thinking of this and that thing, you bring it back to Kṛṣṇa because you know that the mind will always go off and think of so many things. The mind will always flare up and become angry and short hammer. The mind is the nature of the mind to be very flickering. And so the intelligence is a sober intelligence which guides the mind, which brings it back again and again to Kṛṣṇa. And gradually what happens is the mind is purified. Shape of Dharmajana. We develop a taste for spiritual activity. Woman gets a taste. Then we become immune from these material things. Then even someone offers a material thing.

Even sometimes Kṛṣṇa offers his devotee. You can take heavenly happiness, you can take a kingdom. You can I give you mystic power, I will give you liberation. The devotees he does not accept even the five types of liberation are offered. If it’s given even on the devotee doesn’t. Because they’re already satisfied by that relationship of transcendental loving reciprocation with Kṛṣṇa. They already achieved the highest liberation. So other type of things are not attractive anymore. That is the ultimate goal which automatically brings one above the cycle of desiring something better material. As long as we keep in our mind that there’s something in this material world which will satisfy me, that is the ultimate impediment to going back to God. Kṛṣṇa will give us what we desire. The devotee is more merciful. The devotee will tell you that no, you shouldn’t desire. Desire something material.

This is Māyā so many things they will try to encourage what matter if you ask for it? Of course it’s there in the scripture. He’s saying this is not good, this is good. But if someone’s desiring, he will give them their desired satisfaction. Even if it’s material. But the devotee tries to help such neophyte devotees from directing their desires in this misdirected way. So we could try to achieve what is the real satisfaction which is beyond these things. As long as we’re thinking, well, just if I had this, I’d be happy. This is the one thing I need to be happy. This is the illusion. Just like people india, they probably think, many of them, that well, we’re not necessarily happy here because we’re impoverished, but the people in America, they’re happy.

When I bought my servant, one devotee from India last year and he came here and it was a huge shock for him. He had also, I think that he admitted that in the back of his head he had it, that the people in the west were happy materially that he didn’t have in his material life, he couldn’t achieve happiness. But then he thought that, well, maybe people were happy in America. In fact, another disciple, Baba Nandamaraj, was sent over and he was from a very rich family. And in the end he came up to England and he thought, wow, the people here, they’re miserable just like everywhere else. But then he said, when I go to America, they’re the people I have. You know, the streets are paved with gold. And when he landed in America, you’re going to be seeing it.

These people are also miserable, they’re also suffering. So then you see that was an important realization. Surely the devotee I brought us and when I, when were at last, went through customs and we’re in America and already on the airplane. And so what do you think? Well, it wasn’t exactly what I expected. And then after, while we’re leaving, I asked, he said, the people here, he said that they’re very, you know, they have some politeness in that. But apart from the devotees, he said, inside there’s no depth of any spiritual feeling. It just, you know, some superficially they interchange in an organized way. But then when you go deep, there’s nothing spiritual there. They haven’t developed it all spiritually.

So this is the thing, is that people in the material world, if they’re not Kṛṣṇa conscious, if they’re not God conscious, that means that they’re simply serving matter. As we discussed, that means they’re simply serving the dead energy, even their so called living beings, because they are serving only dead matter. They’re only trying to serve the objects of the senses. They want these objects of the senses to give them Their satisfaction, therefore they’re as good as them. Their so called morality, their so called honesty, their so called whatever you have is all simply a holdout for some selfish motive. Ultimate, of course, this is a mode of goodness, passion, ignorance, qualitatively goodness is better.

But just as we see here in the previous verse, even someone digging wells for distribution of water, establishing booths for the distribution of food, performing activities for public welfare, or doing all different types of sacrifices, burning valuables, doing different yagyas for the purpose of fulfillment of material desires, these are all symptomized by attachment to material desire. I am the donor, I am giving, I am helping so many people, I have so many foundations, I am so charitable. This all connected by attachment to their material desire. Oh, those people are suffering. And the one doesn’t like the idea of suffering. So it’s even emotionally and. Mentally, what do you call it? Sentimentally, it’s very distasteful to see anyone suffer on the bodily platform. So therefore let me do something for them, let’s help the poor. But it’s based upon the material desire and about it.

Therefore, a transcendentalist is not very upset to see people suffer. If it’s actually for their benefit, if it actually brings them closer to God, then that’s something they won’t mind, because that will help them to come to an alternate solution. If people are brought into a little difficulty and by that difficulty they are brought close to God, and they are made able to surrender to God, then that little suffering is good for them. The devotee doesn’t want anyone to suffer. But in case the suffering or the difficulty could be used to bring a person closer to God, then it I was talking to one person and the person was sitting, it was a girl with a baby. And she would say, I don’t believe in God, there’s no God, I don’t have anything. All of a sudden there was an earth tremor.

The window started shaking, the house was shaking. Immediately she became completely obsessed by fear and she ran out of the house yelling, God save me. The point is, ultimately, if there’s an earthquake or if we’re in the middle of some situation, who knows? No one who can save us, Neither mother or father or brother or sister or friend. No one. So then suddenly we think of God, if we’re a little pious, so why wait until that time? If we are now in a position that we’re not in so much difficulty, we don’t have any. Just like a person is born in a rich family, born In a pious family, born in a religious family. Kṛṣṇa said that’s a symptom. You see that in previous lifetimes someone performs devotional service. They can be born in this good family.

So some people are born in good families because in their previous life they had spiritual activities which were incompleted, uncomplete. And now they don’t have any economic problem. They can easily practice. But if they take it, why do I have an economic problem? Let me just coast by. Or they go on trying to satisfy their senses. That very dangerous. So if we don’t have an economic problem and practically no one in America does, even those that do, you know, practically speaking could even live off welfare and practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In fact, I think some people are. But the energy should be used to become actually situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness in the transcendental platform to solve this material problem once and for all. To put out the forest fire of material desire. Just like this public welfare.

Just to finalize the public welfare works when the people are performing these works like the Rupanuga Prabhu Balavant. I think I mentioned before, we all went to Thailand to see the Cambodian refugee sites and whether we could set up a Kṛṣṇa conscious camp there with a UN backing. And of course the Buddhist monks, they received us very well. And I was dressed as a monk, I mean one like a Sannyāsī with a shaved head. So they immediately we had our report and there was one Buddhist monk that lived 11 years india, so he knew Hindi and we spoke in Hindi together. They gave a lecture and everything. And actually all the Buddhist refugees there, they all had enough, whatever they needed from the UN because the UN and all these groups had been there for barely a month.

We went very late, or even two, three months. But the volunteer workers, they were completely, so to speak, fried out. They were completely drained. They were doing, they just were completely bored, still doing their welfare work. They couldn’t wait to go home and tell everyone what a great time they had. But there they were completely. They begged us, they begged us to please you set up a vegetarian restaurant here, set up a little Kṛṣṇa conscious center here so that the workers from all over, you know, all these UN and Oxfam and this one and that one and care, they’re all. They were completely, you know, drained because of doing so much welfare work.

But you see devotees, the more they preach, the more that they’re engaged in helping people by giving them Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the more they become enlivened because they’re actually Giving people real help. They’re giving people spiritual life. They’re putting out the fire of material just all these people are doing is just prolonging people’s material situation. They’re not actually doing any type of permanent solution for the problems. So therefore we should take the advice of the scriptures. We should take the advice of the great devotees. We should work to end the cycle of repeated birth and death and to work to end the cycle of material enjoyment and material so called renunciation and become fixed in real nibriti marga, in real renunciation of everything that is temporary.

By using all the temporary things in the service of Kṛṣṇa, regulating our material life, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and working to make ourselves Kṛṣṇa conscious and to make others Kṛṣṇa conscious. Even if it seems a little difficult, even if it seems that it’s something which may be troublesome, we shouldn’t give it up because of that. Because we will be put in unlimited trouble anyway in this material world. Even if we don’t want it better to voluntarily accept a little trouble for the higher purpose. And once a person develops Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it doesn’t matter where he is. Just like how he Rastaka was put into prison, but he chanted how he made all the prisoners chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Bhavananda Maharaj was one time put into prison. When were attacked, there was false charges. He was so many ways he was put inconvenience with other devotees.

Instead it came out in the paper even that the whole prison was chanting hare Kṛṣṇa. The 10 devotees that were there in Kṛṣṇa Magra jail and they’re there for 10 days, all the people were chanting. We were distributing prashad inside the prison. And the whole prison became big kirtans. And even the terrorists who were shackled hand and foot and never let out of their cages, they would always chant Red salam, red salute. And when they saw the devotees, they would say Hare Kṛṣṇa, Salaam Hare Kṛṣṇa salute. So by devoting what actually benefited and all the material programs are simply to prolong our bondage in this material penitentiary. All glories to Śrīla Prabhupāda. All glories to the Assembl devotees. Yes.

Well, if they could perform that devotional service artificially motivated by some desire, fame, distinction, adoration or some other, obviously there was some motivation that was motivating them to come up to that level. And now that they realize that actually they’re not at that level, that actually they were materially motivated, then they should understand that now if they readjust their consciousness and become spiritual. They could do it, they were doing it, but they were motivated wrongly, therefore they weren’t getting the ecstasy, therefore they couldn’t maintain it. Now they should adjust their consciousness to do it for Kṛṣṇa. Now they should take the tapasi that because of their offense of doing it artificially by doing it was still harboring desires in the mind. That’s the 10th offense of the Holy Name.

Now they should do without the offense, and Kṛṣṇa will give them real ecstasy and they will be able to maintain that standard. Why should. Why should they take a step backwards? Of course, if someone really bites off more than he can chew, of course the spiritual master can discuss and one may have to slightly evaluate and. But in general, if one is able to maintain a certain level of in service, for instance, then just by some material motivation, then that shows that one can do it. It’s a question now of doing it with spiritual motivation. Why should we be less enthusiastic to please Kṛṣṇa than were to please some other motivation? Prabhupāda said we should work as hard as the karmī. Why that I could work hard because I was actually acting as a karmic.

But now I realize that, you know, there wasn’t that real devotion. So now I can’t work so hard.

Street,.

We’re working with climate anyway, why don’t we go ahead and whitehead job? Because. The point of course is that when one’s working as a devotee, even he’s doing some other type of activity, they are giving everything that they collect to Kṛṣṇa. So in this way and that they’re not actually associated with the karmis in the Bhagavad Gītā, 18th chapter text 9. You’re reading that. But he who performs his prescribed duty only because it ought to be done, renounces all attachment to the fruit. His renunciation, said, is of the nature of goodness or Arjuna purport. Prescribed duties must be performed. With this mentality one should act without attachment for the result, he should be disassociated from the modes of work.

A man working in Kṛṣṇa, conscious in a factory, does not associate himself with the work of the factory, nor with the workers of the factory. He simply works for Kṛṣṇa. And when he gives up the result for Kṛṣṇa, he is acting transcendentally. And he goes on to say, those who are situated in the mode of goodness, who neither hate in auspicious work nor are attached to auspicious work, have no doubts about work. It is said. Purport. It is said in Bhagavad Gītā that One can never give up work at any time. Therefore, he who works for Kṛṣṇa and does not enjoy the fruits of results, who offers everything to Kṛṣṇa, is actually a renouncer. There are many members of the International Society for Kṛṣṇa conscious who work very hard in their office or in their factory or some other place.

And whatever they earn, they give to the society. Such highly elevated souls are actually sanyasis in a situation renounced order of life. It is clearly outlined here how to renounce the fruits of work. And for what purpose fruit should be renounced. So a person here we can see that even a person may be doing such a thing, selling something another that one actually doesn’t associate himself with those products or with the people in on a material platform. And because they’re giving everything to Kṛṣṇa, because they’re surrendering that independence by serving Kṛṣṇa. Therefore they’re actually situated in a renounced order of life. The basic thing why a person would want to stop doing that would be to somehow another gain more independence. And this independence we have to. We’re never independent anytime.

To be independent from the shelter of Kṛṣṇa means to become more dependent upon Māyā. And the more we’re dependent on Māyā, that means the more we are becoming entangled in Kṛṣṇa’s and in the illusory energy. So therefore we have to be very careful to not depend upon Māyā, but to depend actually on Kṛṣṇa. Sometimes in preaching, a devotee actually takes on the mood of the people he preaches to. He becomes a little materialistic. So sometimes it’s necessary to have an intensive program, a reading, enchanting, or some intensive spiritual association. Rla Prabhupāda said that visiting the pure devotee, visiting the holy Dham, engaging in certain kind of activities. Purify one of this type of material contamination. A preacher has to also see that he’s not getting contaminated with the mentality of the people he’s preaching to. That’s why we attend mangalati.

We have regular classes, we have regular programs of purification. And if a person is lax in that it doesn’t really absorb himself in those activities. Then gradually one can become more and more materialistic. So although the basic system we don’t want to reduce our service at any point. At the same time, to avoid falling in that kind of thing. Where one would actually become so weakened that they would think to leave the society of devotees, to leave the association of devotees. Śrīla Prabhupāda said that if someone thinks that outside of the association devotees he can spiritually advance, he’s hallucinating. So before we get to that point of frustration, we might just take some intensive spiritual rejuvenation program under the guidance of senior devotees and then again with renewed enthusiasm and spiritual strength, take up our service.

One has to ultimately save the self from complete spiritual destruction. It is possible that one could be for a long time without proper association, without really strictly chanting and hearing, following regular principle and become spiritually weak. Then one has to take some necessary action to rebuild up the strength. But that obviously couldn’t be done by reducing this association of devotees or by. Or by. That’s. That will be done by increasing the association devotees, increasing the hearing and chanting, increasing the. The devotional service so that one can actually, when they’re doing this type of unrelated preaching, that they can actually not be associated with the work, not associated with the activity, but associated with Kṛṣṇa and giving the fruits of his activity. Kṛṣṇa. Thus the activity is a real Sanyasdhi activity. Is that all right? Yes.

Yesterday was one of the first times I have been in New Orleans. Back in the last five years I went out and had to go to some stores and do some things. And I went into do and some people made unavailable. And I was on a sign of thinking. On the other back I she developed power so that I should try to control myself. You know, I was thinking things to say to them, you know, like, I am just trying to serve God, you know, whatever you want to do, you know, I am just trying to serve God. It seems to be the best way to say something like that. But anyway, and then. But an equal number of people were nice and respectful and they were assistant, you know, somewhat. So I was always sheep. And you take a million times trembling.

Although it may be necessary very often to make Lakshmi for devotees to go in with karni clothes to do some cadence. But you think it’s time has come when more devotees should go out among the people in dotings to bring this out polarized them a little better. They can see the ones that they would work at because the Catholic priests always wear their collars, you know. And maybe the people should see the devils a lot. They don’t know that they were even asking me, why are you dressed? They’re asking questions now. I never preached.

When I travel. I always travel in dodi and except for, you know, Muhammadan countries. And I find that the people, you know, the various reactions and that a devotee, especially wearing tilak as soon as a person sees immediately he’s reminded of Kṛṣṇa. So when one is reminded of Kṛṣṇa, then naturally the demons immediately oppose Kṛṣṇa and the devotees, immediately they become attractive. But in Chaitani Mahaba’s movement, both the demons and the devotees, he gives his mercy. So even the demons come up sometimes to say something or someone comes with a misconception. Sometimes they’re actually innocent people that have been bewildered by demons. And so they’re acting like that. So then just by their coming up and saying something, there was one stewardess was said, what are you doing there with my beads? And I said, well, I am chanting the name of Kṛṣṇa.

So who is that? I said, it’s God. And then she said, she’s not my God. And she walked away. Then later on, I showed her a who are they Book and said, here’s a picture of me. I was distributing food india and said, what is this? You know, I said this worship the supreme God, the supreme Lord. We’re chanting his name. We’re trying to become God conscious and help other people by giving them this process. So then she said, oh, I believe in the supreme guy. I thought, you’re just worshiping some man or some kind of thing you concocted. And then she took the book and she was very favorable.

But some people, they have all kind of misconceptions because every day in the radio and the television, they have all these things about cult and they think that, well, this is just something, you know, I mean, in the Time magazine someone showed me that recently some guy made a whole book where he studied how many people belong to which religion. And the Hindu religion has 680 million people. It comprises something near 20% of the earth’s population. And Christianity, according to their estimate, has about double, about 13, whatever, 1.3 billion. The point is that still, I mean, that means there’s a lot of people that believe in every Hinduism in Panama, yet these people in the West, I mean, they treat it as if, you know, it’s a little cult.

When we’re actually following the original Vedas, we’re accepted india as true followers of the Vedas. It’s only the modern newspaper writers that sometimes india make jokes. But all the established Hindus, the Vishu Hindu Parishad, all the Hindu Acharyas, they accept Kṛṣṇa conscious. They give their certification, they even accept food in our ashram. And they’re very strict about not eating food. They never take food from a foreigner, but they will take food from us. Even very strict, you know, very orthodox Hindu religious leaders. So the point is that in America, they don’t understand that where our roots are and that we are actually, you know, following a bona fide process of religion even from a materialistic standpoint. So we need people to wear the dhoties and represent Kṛṣṇa consciousness in a very proper way.

Of course, we don’t need people the words of all age and misrepresent. But that’s why our Friends of Lord Kṛṣṇa program, our Navata program is to make an organized way of all the people that a little bit favorable, how to bring them more favorable. It’s a type of expanded public affairs program where you actually engage people in performing favorable activities. For Kṛṣṇa Consciousness, it requires at least some people should gradually work at changing the public opinion. And that will be done best by having hundreds and hundreds of thousands of people in the public themselves speaking favorably about Kṛṣṇa consciousness and knowing it’s not possible that we can convince every envious person. But those that are favorable, we should convince. And then they can further broadcast the message in this way gradually.

It may take some time, it may take several years, but we have to start somewhere. So this may be that Kṛṣṇa is inspiring you to take up more and more responsibility in that way because of your vision. That you can see that some people are favorable and some are unfavorable. So Prabhupāda said it would go through. First people would laugh and not take it seriously. Then they would become unfavorable because they would start to see that, well, we mean we’re going to actually we’re here to stay. I am going to do something to change the people. And some people, out of fear or out of attachment, they may oppose that in the beginning. In the second stage, first they don’t even take it serious. Then when they start taking it serious, then they become frightful or attached and they become inimical.

And then after that, when they actually are able to understand, really not just some superficially fearful understanding, then they will actually appreciate. So there are already people right now ready to appreciate. And when they appreciate, then they can also help us to convert the people that are in fearful condition to come to an appreciative position.