Bhagavad-gétä 9.

2
—
November 11, 1966, New York

661111BG-NEW YORK [29:37 Minutes]

Audio

Prabhupäda:

räja-vidyä räja-guhyaà
pavitram idam uttamam
pratyakñävagamaà dharmyaà
susukhaà kartum avyayam
[Bg 9.2]

[This knowledge is the king of education, the most secret of all secrets. It is
the purest knowledge, and because it gives direct perception of the self by
realization, it is the perfection of religion. It is everlasting, and it is joyfully
performed.]
This is called...
[aside:] Bruce! Come on. Sit down. Yes.
Räja-vidyä. Vidyä means education, and räja means king. So what is the king of
education? Just like we have got a different status of life in the material world,
similarly, in the education also, somebody is M.A., somebody is B.A., somebody
is school-leaving certificate, somebody three years, somebody four years. There
are different grades of education. Now, what is the summum bonum, highest,
topmost education? This topmost education is Kåñëa consciousness, topmost

1
education. Räja-vidyä. Jévätmä yathätmädi-rahasyänäà räjaù. Real knowledge
is: "So what I am." This is real knowledge. Unless we come to this point, that
"What I am," that is not knowledge.
Just like Caitanya Mahäprabhu, when He began His preaching, His first
disciple was Sanätana Gosvämé. He was a finance minister of Nawab Hussain
Shah, but being attracted with Caitanya Mahäprabhu's movement, he retired
from service and he joined Lord Caitanya. So at that time, when he came to
Caitanya for the first time, his enquiry was that "What is education?" "What is
education?"
He was educated. He was highly educated. In those days, Persian language was
being taught in England, er, in India. Just like during British rule English
language was taught to us, similarly, during Pathan rule, Persian language was
state language. Besides that, Sanätana Gosvämé was a great scholar in Sanskrit
also. Still, he inquired that "What is education?" "What is education?" Why he
inquired like that? He placed before the Lord that "People in general, they call
me very educated, and I am also so fool that I accept that I am educated."
So the next question is, "Then why do you think that you are not educated?
You are great scholar in Sanskrit, you are great scholar in Persian language.
Why do you think that you are not educated?" He replied that "I am thinking
'not educated' because I do not know what I am. I do not know what I am. I do
not wish to be a suffering member, but these material miseries is enforced upon
me. I do not know wherefrom I have come, where I have to go, and still people,
they think that I am very much educated, and they designate me that I am a
great scholar, and I am satisfied. But I am such a fool that I do not know what I
am."
Actually, this is the position of our present situation. We are very much proud
of our advancement of education. But if you enquire from various persons that
"What you are?" hardly some will answer what he is. Everyone is under the
conception of this body. But we are not actually this body. This question we

2
have discussed various times, many times. So this, after passing this
examination that "I am not this body," then one who..., one comes into the real
knowledge. That is real knowledge, "What I am." That is the beginning.
So the knowledge about which Lord Kåñëa is now imparting, giving instruction
to Arjuna, He says, "This is räja-vidyä." Räja-vidyä means to know oneself what
he is and act accordingly. That is called räja-vidyä. If I do not know what I am,
what is my position, then if I am in..., mistaken about my situation, then all
activities what I am doing, they are all mistaken; they are all illusion. Therefore
this position, räja-vidyä, means one should know himself what he is, and act
accordingly. Simply by knowing that "I am not this material body," that is not
sufficient. You must act accordingly, that you are not material; you are
spiritual. That spiritual activity is called Kåñ..., act in Kåñëa consciousness, and
that is called räja-vidyä, the king of all education.
Räja-vidyä räja-guhyam. Räja-guhyam. Räja-guhyam means confidential, very
confidential. It is not possible to accept this Kåñëa consciousness very easily,
but by the mercy of Kåñëa and by the mercy of Lord Caitanya, it is very easily
delivered to us through this chanting Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa,
Hare Hare / Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare.
Lord Caitanya has discussed a very analytical study of the living entity. He has
analyzed that the living entities... There are innumerable living entities all
over the universe. If you dig earth, you'll find many living entities. If you make
a study of the air, you'll find many living entities. If you go deep into the water,
you'll find living entities.
So all over the universe there are full of different types of living entities. And
He has divided all these living entities into two classes. Some are moving and
some are not moving. That we can experience. Just like trees, plants, grass, they
cannot move. Stone. Stone has also life, but it is not developed conscious. It is
too much covered, stone life. Similarly, a person, even in human body, if he
does not understand his position, he's almost stonelike.

3
So these are stones, trees, grass and so many others. They are "not-moving"
living entities. And there are moving entities, just like aquatics, beasts, birds,
reptiles, human being, demigods, oh, celestial angels—so many. There are
moving. So out of the moving entities, very small number are human beings.
There are 8,400,000's of species of life. Out of that, only 400,000 species of life
are this human body.
So Lord Caitanya says, "Out of these 400,000 species of life, some of them are
civilized. And out of many civilized person, they are actually devoted to the
scriptures, not all." Some of them, they agree that "I belong to Christian
religion," "I belong to Hindu religion," or "I belong to Muhammadan religion,"
but at the present age, mostly they simply claim that "I belong to this religion"
but do not believe in the scriptures, mostly.
So those who are believing in the scriptures, they are mostly attracted by pious,
philanthropic activities. They, some of them, those who actually believe that
charity is very good thing, and... Religious means these three things:
yajïa-däna-tapaù. Yajïa-däna-tapaù. Yajïa means sacrifice, däna means charity
and tapaù means penance. Just like brahmacäré: it is tapasya. Tapasya. A
sannyäsé, it is tapasya. Tapaù. Tapaù means penance, voluntarily accepting very
rigid principles of life. That is called tapasya. And charity. Charity means
voluntarily giving away his material possessions. That is charity. And yajïa,
sacrifice.
Sacrifice, of course, you have no experience. Not you, but we all. Nowadays, in
the present days, there is no sacrifice. But we get information from such
historical literature as Mahäbhärata. Mahäbhärata is called history in the Vedic
literature. So the kings were performing very big sacrifices. Millions of rupees,
millions of valuable gold and silver, they were distributed. Oh, that is not
possible. That was being done by the kings. Kings used to collect tax from the
citizens, but at the same..., at the time when they performed sacrifice, they are
distributed to all the citizens. Always.

4
So that process is not. Nowadays the state simply collects taxes but never
distributes. So we have no idea what is yajïa. But this yajïa is the performance
of kings or the heads of the state, and däna of the general householders, and
tapasya for brahmacäré, sannyäsé, vänaprastha. So these are different kinds of
rules in religious life.
So those who believe in scriptures, they adopt; not all. Just like I explained that
mostly people, they simply accept a certain faith. Mouth, in mouth only.
Actually, they do not do anything. Do not do anything. So out of that many
millions of people like that, somebody are religious, really religious, who
perform this sacrifice, charity and penance. So Lord Caitanya says, "Out of
many millions of persons who are actually engaged in charity, and," I mean to...,
"penance and sacrifice, some of them become in perfect knowledge what he is."
So this knowledge is... Just see how He's making analytical study of the living
entities. Beginning from eighty-eight, er, eight hundred..., 8,400's millions
species of life, He's selecting only few human civilized life; then addicted to
the, I mean to say, certain kind of faith; then extracting them who are actually
believing; and then those who are actually believing. Out of them, those who
are sacrificing, making charities and adopting penances, out of many millions
of like, persons like that, some of them are actually in knowledge what he is.
You'll find in your country also. There are many foundations, they are making
charities. But hardly you'll find amongst them that he knows that what he is.
So out of many millions of these religious person, some of them know what he
is: "I am not this body." Now, simply theoretically knowing that "I am not this
body; I am spirit soul," that is not perfect. You have to actually become
liberated from the material entanglement. That is called mukti, liberation. So
out of many thousands of persons who are in the knowledge what they are or
what he is, some of them are actually liberated. Liberated. And out of many
thousands of people who are liberated, they can understand what is Kåñëa.
So Kåñëa understanding is not very easy job. But Kåñëa is so kind, because He

5
knows that in this age, in this age of Kali, it will be very difficult for person to
become liberated under the process—first to become civilized, then to become
religious, then to perform this charity, sacrifices, then come to the platform of
knowledge; then, after coming to the platform of knowledge, you come to the
platform of liberation, and after being liberated, you can know what is Kåñëa.
That is stated in Bhagavad-gétä,

brahma-bhütaù prasannätmä
na çocati na käìkñati
samaù sarveñu bhüteñu
mad-bhaktià labhate paräm
[Bg 18.54]

[And of all yogés, he who always abides in Me with great faith, worshiping
Me in transcendental loving service, is most intimately united with Me in yoga
and is the highest of all.]
This is the sign of liberation. A man who is liberated, his signs are explained in
the Bhagavad-gétä, brahma-bhütaù prasannätmä. His first symptom is that he's
very happy. One who is liberated, his first symptom is that you'll never find
him morose. He is happy. Prasannätmä. Na çocati na käìkñati. He has no
anxiety. "Oh, this thing I haven't got. I have to secure this thing. This bill I
have to pay. Oh, this I have to do." So many anxieties. We are full of anxieties.
So he has no anxieties.
And then does it mean, because he has no anxieties, he is very rich man? No.
Not necessarily. He may be the poorest man. He has no anxiety. Then he has
no lamentation. He does not think, "I am poor." Why he should think poor?
Poor, when I think that "I am this material..., some, I am a part of this material
world. I haven't got this possession, material possession," then I think, "I am
poor" or "rich." But one who is liberated from the material conception of life,
then he has nothing to do what he's possessing, what he's not possessing. He

6
has nothing to do. That is liberation.
If one is free from the material conception of life, then factually, either he
possesses or not possesses, he has nothing to do with them. Therefore he's
prasannätmä, he's joyful: "Oh, I have nothing to lose, nothing to gain. I am
completely separate from here." This is liberation.
And samaù sarveñu bhüteñu: and his vision of life is that he does not see
anybody rich, poor, or fool, or educated, or so many dualities there are in the
material world. He has nothing. His vision is completely on the spiritual
platform. He sees that every living entity is a part and parcel of Kåñëa.
Therefore he tries to take them back to Kåñëa consciousness. He has no
distinction that "He is brähmaëa," "He is çüdra," "He is Indian," "He's
American," or "He's black," "He's white," or "He's educated" "He's noneducated."
No. "Everyone should come to Kåñëa consciousness." That is his viewpoint.
Samaù sarveñu bhüteñu. When one is qualified in that way, then mad-bhaktià
labhate paräm. Lord Kåñëa says, "Then he becomes eligible for becoming a pure
devotee of Kåñëa."
So practically this process, under regulative principle, is not very easy,
especially in this age. In this age, the description of the people are that präyeëa
alpäyuñaù: "Their duration of life is very short." And präyeëälpäyuñaù mandäù.
Manda means very slow. Sleeping, out of twenty-four hours, sleeping twelve
hours, and out of twelve hours, they're busy in earning money ten hours. Then
two hours left. What he can do for spiritual understanding? You see? There's no
time.
So mandäù sumanda-matayaù. And if somebody has got some intention to
make spiritual progress, then there are so many pseudo-spiritual, I mean to say,
societies. They're entrapped by some of them. So manda-matayaù...,
sumanda-matayaù, manda-bhägyäù: "And most of them are unfortunate.
Unfortunate." Most of them.
If you count the population, take a statistic, they are so unfortunate that the

7
primary principles of life—eating, sleeping, defending and mating—they
haven't got sufficient arrangement. Oh. These are only primary principles.
They are available even in animal life. So, but in this age even these primary
principle... No one has got shelter, no one has arrangement for eating nicely,
no one has got the mating or wife, and everyone is afraid of "When there will
be war declared, and I'll have to go to the war field?" This is the position.
Mandäù sumanda-matayo manda-bhägyäù [SB 1.1.10].
[O learned one, in this iron Age of Kali men almost always have but short
lives. They are quarrelsome, lazy, misguided, unlucky and, above all, always
disturbed.]
Unfortunate. And upadrutäù: "In spite of all this, he's always disturbed with
diseases and so many other things." This is disturb. This is the position.
Therefore Lord Kåñëa, He thought that if these people are allowed, if they have
to come to the point of liberation under the regulative process, it is impossible.
So out of His causeless mercy, He came as Lord Caitanya, Lord Caitanya, and
distributed this highest perfection of life, ecstasy, spiritual ecstasy, by chanting
this Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare / Hare Räma, Hare
Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare.
This is practical. This is practical. It does not depend whether you are now
liberated or non-liberated, what is your position, what is your condition.
Doesn't matter. Just come and take part in it, and you'll feel spiritual ecstasy.
Therefore it is called räja-vidyä räja-guhyaà pavitram. Pavitram: "It is very
pure." Anyone who takes to this process, he becomes immediately purified. Or
the purification process begins immediately. Immediately. Pavitram. And
uttamam. Uttamam means the highest, or transcendental. Last day we have
already explained uttamam.
So the commentator, he says, aprärabdha...

aprärabdha-phalaà päpaà

8
 kütaà béjaà phalonmukham
krameëaiva praléyante
viñëu-bhakti-ratätmanä
[Padma Puräëa]

[There are different stages of dormant reactions to sinful activities to be

observed in a sinful life. Sinful reactions may be just waiting to take effect
[phalonmukha], reactions may be still further dormant [küöa], or the reactions
may be in a seedlike state [béja]. In any case, all types of sinful reactions are
vanquished one after another if a person engages in the devotional service of
Lord Viñëu.]
Viñëu-bhakti-ratätmanä. That means one who is in this Kåñëa consciousness,
then the, eh, gradually he is the seed of all reaction of his sins, that becomes
vanquished. Just like in the Bhagavad-gétä we have studied. Just like in the fire,
if you put anything... You go on putting everything, it makes into, turns it into
ashes. Similarly, this fire of Kåñëa consciousness, as soon as it is begun, then all
our reactions of sinful activities in our past life...
Mind that. Our suffering is due to sinful activities. And sinful activities are
due to our ignorance. Ignorance. Sinful activities are done by persons who do
not know what is what. Just like a child: A child does not know what is the
result of catching fire, because he is ignorant. But as soon as the child catches
fire, his hand becomes burned immediately. The fire does not allow any
concession for the child. It will act as fire.
Similarly, we do not know how this material world is going on, what are the
laws, who is the controller, how it is being controlled. Due to our ignorance, we
act in some way, but nature is so stringent that it will never excuse you, either
you do it knowingly or unknowingly. Just the same example: the child does not
know that the fire will burn, but if the child catches the fire, the fire will not
excuse because it is child. Therefore ignorance is the cause of suffering.

9
And one should be put into proper knowledge. Proper knowledge means to
know things as they are: "What I am. What is this world. What is God. What is
our relation." These things we should know, not that simply becoming a
technical expert or some departmental expert, we become a man of knowledge.
That is not knowledge. Here is knowledge. You should know what you are and
how you act. And this knowledge can be achieved in this human form of life,
not in the animal form of life.
Therefore, to give you knowledge, to give you proper direction, there are so
many scriptures in all parts of the civilized world. They should not be
neglected. The Caitanya Mahäprabhu says, kåñëa bhuliyä jéva, er,

anädi bahir-mukha jéva kåñëa bhuli' gelä

ataeva kåñëa veda-puräëa karilä
[Cc Madhya 20.117]

[Forgetting Kåñëa, the living entity has been attracted by the external
feature from time immemorial. Therefore the illusory energy [mäyä] gives him
all kinds of misery in his material existence.]
The meaning of this stanza is that people are forgetful since time immemorial
about his relationship with the Supreme Lord. Forgetful. Bhuli' gelä. Bhuli' gelä
means he has forgotten. Ataeva kåñëa veda-puräëa karila. Therefore Lord has
sent so many representative to give them these literatures, these scriptures.
So we should take advantage of these scripture, especially the Bhagavad-gétä,
which is accepted as the prime scripture in the modern world. And you'll find
everything nicely. You can put your arguments, you can try to understand with
your knowledge, with your intelligence. Everything will be clear. So we should
take advantage of this Bhagavad-gétä, and our power of intaking will be
increased if we begin with this transcendental sound vibration, Hare Kåñëa,
Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare / Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma,
Hare Hare.

10
Thank you very much. Any question? [end]

11