Bhagavad-gétä 9.
13
[Partially Recorded]
—
November 25, 1966, New York
661125BG-NEW YORK [09:26 Minutes]
Audio
Prabhupäda:
mahätmänas tu mäà pärtha
daivéà prakåtim äçritäù
bhajanty ananya-manaso
jïätvä bhütädim avyayam
[Bg 9.13]
[O son of Påthä, those who are not deluded, the great souls, are under the
protection of the divine nature. They are fully engaged in devotional service
because they know Me as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, original and
inexhaustible.]
Now, Lord Kåñëa says that who are the mahätmäs. The symptom of mahätmä is
that he knows that the Supreme Lord, Çré Kåñëa, is the original Personality of
Godhead, and He is the fountainhead and source of all emanation. Janmädy
asya yataù [SB 1.1.1]. In the Vedänta-sütra it is said very nicely, athäto brahma
jijïäsä: "Now this human form of life is meant for inquiring about Brahman,
the greatest."
We are all engaged in studying temporary, small things, problems, small
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problems. What is that problem? Ähära-nidrä-bhaya-maithuna [Hitopadeça 25],
the animal problems:
[Both animals and men share the activities of eating, sleeping, mating and
defending. But the special property of the humans is that they are able to
engage in spiritual life. Therefore without spiritual life, humans are on the
level of animals.]
How to eat, how to sleep, how to defend and how to mate. These four
principles, they are very minor problems. They are not at all problems, because
automatically these problems are solved. Automatically. Viñayaù khalu sarvataù
syät [SB 11.9.29].
[After many, many births and deaths one achieves the rare human form of
life, which, although temporary, affords one the opportunity to attain the
highest perfection. Thus a sober human being should quickly endeavor for the
ultimate perfection of life as long as his body, which is always subject to death,
has not fallen down and died. After all, sense gratification is available even in
the most abominable species of life, whereas Kåñëa consciousness is possible
only for a human being.]
Viñaya means this viñaya, this object of enjoyment, these bodily necessities.
Viñayaù khalu sarvataù syät. Viñaya—means these objects of sense
gratification—you will have in any form of body.
Even a small bird, he has arrangement for eating, he has arrangement for
sleeping, he has arrangement for defending and he has arrangement for
mating. As soon as a bird is born, two eggs are born: one male, one female. That
means from the beginning of his life, the mating problem is solved. There is no
necessity. A bird, they never, the birds or beasts, they never seek, the male is
seeking after female or female after seeking. That is automatically solved.
Similarly, their eatings are already there, and their sleeping accommodation[?]
are already there. So these are not problems, but we have created problems only
for these four demands of the body.
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So Vedänta-sütra says that "Don't be busy about these problems." Viñayaù khalu
sarvataù syät: "These problems are satisfied in any form of life." Why in human
form? They have developed consciousness. They have got better business. Why
they should be engaged only for these four principles of life? Huh? Their
problem is to enquire, "What is the source of all these manifestations?" Athäto
brahma jijïäsä.
The Vedänta-sütra informs, "Now you should enquire. You have got this
developed consciousness of life, human form of life, very intelligent, and you
are simply wasting your time simply for this eating, sleeping and mating? Oh,
this is not your business. This is not your business." Näyaà deho deha-bhäjäà
nåloke kañöän kämän arhate viò-bhujäà ye [SB 5.5.1].
[Lord Åñabhadeva told His sons: My dear boys, of all the living entities who
have accepted material bodies in this world, one who has been awarded this
human form should not work hard day and night simply for sense gratification,
which is available even for dogs and hogs that eat stool. One should engage in
penance and austerity to attain the divine position of devotional service. By
such activity, one's heart is purified, and when one attains this position, he
attains eternal, blissful life, which is transcendental to material happiness and
which continues forever.]
Viò-bhujäm means stool-eaters, hogs. So Åñabhadeva says, näyaà deha, this
body, is very valuable body. Every living entity has got a body, but this human
form of body, especially the civilized form of body, oh, this is very important.
And how to utilize it? Simply for eating, sleeping? No.
Näyaà deho deha-bhäjäà nåloke. In the human society this form of body is not
meant for simply toiling hard only for gaining these four principles of life.
Because these necessities are supplied even to the hog, the stool-eater. The
stool-eater is considered to be the lowest of the animals, the hog. Still, he has
got mating facility, he has got eating facility, he has got sleeping facility and he
has got defending facility. Therefore Åñabhadeva says that "This form of life,
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this human form of life, don't waste in that way." Viñayaù khalu sarvataù... You
will have it. Even if you don't try for it, you will have it.
Just for example, take for example myself. I am a foreigner, Indian. I came here
only with seven dollars with me. Dock, I got down from the ship. I did not
know where to live, where to eat. But I am here, here for the last more than
one year. So I am also eating, I am also sleeping, and I am also well protected by
my friends. So how it is being done? I am not serving here, I did not come with
some money, but there is arrangement. Everyone, you have got arrangement
made. Don't be very anxious for these problems. You should be anxious, athäto
brahma jijïäsä. This is the problem of life.
So that—who enquires about this, athäto brahma jijïäsä? Those who are
actually developed in consciousness, they enquire, athätaù, "What is the source
of myself? I am living entity, this world, this natures, this so many things we
see, and what is the cause of, the cause of all causes? What is that?" That should
be enquiry. Jijïäsuù, inquisitive. Inquisitive. And the answer is given here in
the Vedänta-sütra, next. Athäto brahma jijïäsä: "Now this life is meant for
inquiring about the Supreme Brahman." And what is that Brahman? That
Brahman means that janmädy asya yataù: "Brahman means that source, that
Supreme Absolute Truth from whom or from which everything emanates, the
cause of all causes." That is Brahman.
Now, sages, saints, philosophers and transcendentalists, yogés, jïänés—they are
all searching, "What is the ultimate source?" So they have found out. What is
that? They have found out. In the Brahma-saàhitä, we see, there is a very nice
verse. They say that,
éçvaraù paramaù kåñëaù
sac-cid-änanda-vigrahaù
anädir ädir govindaù
sarva-käraëa-käraëam
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[Bs 5.1]
[Kåñëa who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an
eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and
He is the prime cause of all causes.]
Sarva-käraëa-käraëam. Käraëa means cause. Sarva-käraëa, the cause of all
causes. There are different causes. Just like take for this cotton cloth. What is
the cause? The cotton cloth is made of thread. Thread is the cause of this cloth.
Now, what is the cause of the thread? [break] [end]
