Overview of Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.29. Lecture 3
Bhakti Vijnana Goswami · Vrindavan · 2019
Chapters
Invocation prayers and introductory verses
Om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya.
Nārāyaṇaṁ namaskṛtya naraṁ caiva narottamam, devīṁ sarasvatīṁ vyāsaṁ tato jayam udīrayet. Naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā Bhagavat, Phaga bhagavaty uttama-śloke bhaktiḥ bhavati naiṣṭhikī.
Nstiki, Bhakti Bhakti Nstiki, Yamprajan yad anu dhyānasampannaḥ kṛtyaṁ dvaipāyanaḥ purā huvā putra-śīlāya tayor āvineduḥ taṁ sarva-bhūta-hṛdayaṁ munim nato 'smi.
Nama oṁ viṣṇa-pādāya kṛṣṇa-preṣṭhāya bhū-tale, śrīmate bhaktivedanta-svāmin iti nāmine. Namaste sārasvate deve gaura-vāṇī-pracāriṇe, nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādi-pāścātya-deśa-tāriṇe.
Vāñchā-kalpatarubhyaḥ ca kṛpā-sindhubhya eva ca, patitānāṁ pāvanebhyo vaiṣṇavebhyo namo namaḥ. Śrī-kṛṣṇa-caitanya prabhu-nityānanda, śrī-advaita gadādhara śrīvāsādi-gaura-bhakta-vṛnda.
Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.
ājānu-laṁbita-bujau kanaka-sāṅkīrtanaika-piturau kalau karuṇā-karaur vitarantau viśvambharau dvijavarau yuga-dharma-pālau vande jagat-priya-karau karuṇāvatārau.
Yad yaḥ praviśya mama vācam imām prasuptāṁ saṁjīvayaty akhila-śakti-dharaḥ sva-dhāmnā anyāṁś ca hasta-caraṇa-śravaṇa-tvag-ādi-prāṇān namo bhagavate puruṣāya tubhyam.
Overview of devotional service in Srimad-Bhagavatam
saṁsāra-duḥkha-jaladhi-patito 'smi we're reading the 29th chapter of the
third cant of Srimad Bhagavatam, explanation of devotional service, where Lord Kapiladev gives very practical guidelines of how to perform devotional service of bhakti so that it ultimately will bring us to the highest possible platform,
the pure devotional service which is a haituki and Aviavahita which is totally causeless and uh does not have any impediments or uh totally uninterrupted. This flow of devotional service is being produced
by certain practices which constitute Bhagavad Dharma as we learned yesterday, and we studied 14 different items of sadhanas or Bhagavad dharmas which ultimately will develop the consciousness of the living entity.
At this moment our consciousness is covered by Kama. Kama O last is a thick covering over the consciousness. Kamayashakesha Raja Guna Samud Bhava.
So this gyn or consciousness avritam is being covered by this comma of selfish desire, desire to enjoy, desire to enjoy independently. And that basically ignorance.
Because of this ignorance, which is tantamount or synonymous to karma or selfish desire or lust. We don't have love and the love is being exchanged into the envy. And Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is teaching us how to develop love.
And ultimately, all these items which are listed in this chapter of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam which we read yesterday is the aids or hints or practices how to develop love and how to get rid of envy.
But at the same time, even though the pure devotional service is on the platform of Avichinna, it doesn't have any interruption, or avyavahita.
Four stages of offenses and overcoming envy
There is one viavahit.
Vyyavahit means blockage, something which blocks the power of devotional service and that blockage which basically eliminates the power of devotional service or diminishes the power of practices of devotional service as offenses.
And therefore, after explaining the practices which we should do, or the suddenness, Kapiladev starts explaining to us the danger of offenses and how to contract offenses, how to avoid offenses and what we should do to contract offenses.
Because we do have envious nature. This envy is very deeply rooted and we have to do something to uproot this envy otherwise the love will be stunted or will not develop properly.
And we started yesterday learning this or studying this section which starts from the verse 21 and goes on for quite some time because up to the verse number 35 this is all basically the same topic.
And the main point of this topic is that to counteract this envy which is there within our heart, we have to educate ourselves to see that the Lord is present in every living entity.
We more or less have to force ourselves to see this. We have to know it theoretically and then we have to apply it in practice or you know train our eyes to see the Lord in every living entity.
Otherwise, the avagya or contempt, haughtiness towards other living entities. Pride is practically inevitable. This is being explained by Srila Jivagaswam in Bhakti Sandarbha. Tan Mama Avagyaya tasam avajistana
kasyat Mamaiva Vagyam Kritvetiardha So basically what he says that to avoid a vagya we have to see that every living entity is Adishan or the sitting place of the Lord.
It's common practice in human society that the sitting place is being respected as the representative of somebody who sits on this. Like for example, the king sits on the throne.
And if you kick the throne, it's a very you know rude disrespect towards the king. The throne is being respected on the same level as you respect the king.
In Russia when there was this revolution, when all the navies invaded the palace of Russian king.
The first thing which they did, of course the king was not there, but the first thing which they did they sat on his throne. Just to show who is the main here. So and basically that's what Silaju Gaswami explains.
Tadadishthan, you have to look at other living entities as the sitting place of the Lord and deal with them accordingly. Like for example, you know, if we sit in a car and somebody comes to the car and kicks the car.
We will be very offended, right? Why are you kicking me? It's not me, but it's my sitting place. But that's the point which we have to understand.
Ultimately, you know, the sitting place has something to do with somebody who sits inside. And therefore, we have to educate ourselves to see every living entity as the sitting place of the Supreme Lord.
And later we will study this. Silidivigaswami gives a very interesting twist to the whole uh idea and he explains uh the effect of uh this behavior. But anyway, let's go verse by verse. We read yesterday the verse 21,
which is Avadhyaya. It's also very important in this verse. Let's read it again. Aham Sarvashu Bhuteshu, Bhutta sadam, Tadavage Mammartia, Kurute, Rchavidambanam.
So Lord Kapiladev says that I am sitting in everyone's uh in uh every living entity, Ahamsarveshu Bhutishu, uh Butattma Avastita. I am Atma or Paramatma in every living entity, Sada, constantly, Tamavagyaya Mammartyah.
He says, if any martia or mortal human being, it's very important. Please make note of it. He calls here human being as Martia or fallible being, fallible entity.
And he says if this Martya or mortal living entity, living being develops disrespect or avagya. Some neglect to other living entity or haughtiness towards other living entity.
Then Kurutava Archavidambana, then his worship of Artya becomes pretense, becomes hypocritical. It's not really worship. So why does he say Martia? Why does he say mortal living entity? Everyone dies.
Because everyone dies and because everyone has this avagya towards others. And as we said yesterday, this is the lowest and most innocent manifestation of our offensive nature.
We're all offensive, but offensiveness grows as much as cancer has four stages, right? The first stage, second stage, third stage, and fourth stage. So offensiveness also has four stages, according to Lord Kapiladev.
And the first stage, Martia, it makes you mortal. It more or less fixes you in this mortal plane of existence so it's bad, it's bad enough, but still it's quite innocent because I mean everyone is equal in this regard.
It's not so bad. So the next we discussed in detail yesterday this verse.
Ignorance and neglect in worship
So let's read the next verse.
Yamam Sarveshu Bhuteshu, Yamam Sarveshu Bhuteshu, Santamatman Ishwaramatmanamishwaram Hitvarcham Bhajate Modiat Vaj Basmany Vajuhoti Saham Basmany Vaju one who worships the deity of the Godhead in the temples but does not know that the Supreme Lord, as Paramatma is situated in every living entity's heart, must be in ignorance and is compared to one who offers ablations into ashes.
So here the quality of somebody who manifests the next stage.
Second stage of offensiveness is called modhyat. Modhyat means he is a fool. Very ignorant person, very dull person, modhyat. So one is Martiak, which is okay, which is not so bad.
If your ignorance becomes even more pronounced, if you're more covered, if your consciousness is more covered by the mode of ignorance, you become fool, and becoming fool, the next basically the next stage is upeksha.
Visvanatha Cakravarti Thakura indicates that these four stages of offensiveness is Avagya Upeksha, next Dvesha and next is Ninda, O Avamana, Avamaninah, criticism. Means hatred.
So first is avagya, uh some sort of neglect. Upeksha.
It's also neglect, therefore in this book they're grouped together. But in reality it's the next stage of ignorance and it's basically when you ignore other people, when you become so egoistic and so self-centered that basically you can care less about other people. You only exploit other people, you only see when you need to see them, when you need something from them, otherwise you just ignore them. You don't really care about other people at all. And that's a higher stage of offensiveness, therefore, it's called here Modiad. Modian means as I said, fool.
So and Kapiladev says if somebody manifests this sort of attitude towards other living entity, if he's really openly neglectful ignoring other living entities as if they don't exist. You know, sometimes we know somebody, you know, somebody whom we know goes through us or sees through us, doesn't see us. And we feel very offended. Because we feel as if we don't exist. And in reality, it's like this: He looks at us and he doesn't see us because he's so self-centered. It's very offensive sort of attitude. Why, in a civilized human society, when we see somebody we have to at least uh at least not the head, you know, at least not or at least you know say hello, or say something or Hare Krishna or or Hari Bowl or whatever. Better, of course, is to offer the full respect, but at least we have to recognize that he exists. So this second stage of offensiveness is when we don't recognize that somebody else exists. And we only use him as if he is a non-living entity, as if he is some somebody, you know, just one object, not subject.
And Lord says that in this case, in the first case, his worship is pretense, in the second case, his worship is completely useless. What it really means, it means that such a person will worship the Lord,
he will not get any result from his worship of the Lord because the Lord says, Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham. How he relates to me, I relate to him.
He doesn't see me existing in every living entity, so I don't see him. You know, he doesn't exist for me because nobody else exists for him. I don't exist for him, so he doesn't exist for me.
Therefore, the Lord does not reciprocate with his worship whatsoever. And what happens as a result of it, the person loses faith in worship. Because he doesn't get any reciprocation from the Lord. He doesn't get any result.
He worships, worships, worships, and then nothing happens. There was a joke which I read about if you were in Jerusalem, there is this wall of the temple which was destroyed, the second temple
which was destroyed, and Orthodox Jews they come to this wall and they pray the whole day long. They sit there.
If you go to this wall, you see the row of Jews who just go like this and they pray and pray and pray and pray, you know, for hours and hours and hours, because this is something which is very sacred.
So one Jew lived to 120 years and he was worshiping the Lord by this wall you know for hundred plus years, you know, every day he was worshipping, worshipping, worshiping, you know, doing like this, like this, like this.
And ultimately, you know, he was interviewed. A journalist came to him and said, you know, how do you feel, you know, by worshiping the Lord for so long? You know, sitting by this wall.
He said, yeah, I feel like sitting by the wall. The same reciprocation is there as if I'm just sitting by the wall. So that's exactly what Lord Kapillodev says here.
If somebody develops this attitude or this stage of offensiveness, the Lord neglects him because he is neglectful.
He does not want to recognize that the Lord is existing in everyone's heart, and therefore he doesn't get any reciprocation, and therefore, ultimately, he loses his faith.
This is what Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī explains when he explains how the offensiveness or offenses affect our consciousness. He says first is kautilya, first result is kautilya, second result is ashradha. Ashradha means you don't believe in Lord, even if you see the Lord, if if even you see some extraordinary manifestation of supernatural powers
of the Lord, manifested by the Lord Himself or by other devotees, you will not develop faith. And he gives the example of Duryodhana. Krishna showed his universal form to Duryodhana.
And Duryodhana said, hey, some mystic yogi, whatever. No problem for him. So that's Ashradha. And you become dull. You dull from the beginning, you become even more dull as a result of it.
So that's the second stage of offensiveness and the second stage of neglect, and therefore Lord Kapiladev uses the different words for such a person and different descriptions of his behavior.
Śrīla Prabhupāda doesn't make a very clear distinction in his purports, and I was thinking why he does not specify this. But basically, what Srila Prabhupada does in all these purports, he says,
he stresses very much the distribution of prasāda, the mercy towards other living entity. Probably because he knows that we are very gross offensive, all of us. And we have to do something by manifesting some mercy.
Envy and hostility toward other beings
You know, this fine distinction which are there is important for us to understand to avoid offensiveness, but ultimately we have to avoid it altogether in all four stages.
So, anyway, that was the second stage of offensiveness, the third stage of offensiveness is described in the next verse, verse number 23, which is Dvesha. And therefore it's this verse starts with the word Dvisatah,
hateful, very envious person, hateful person. Dvisatah parakayamam. The one who is hating me in other bodies. Mam parakai in the bodies of other people. Manino bhina darshinaha.
Budeshu Badavayrasyan, Budeshu Badavairas, Namanah Santirichati, Namana Shantirichati. So this Dveshi or hateful person is described in this verse by two synonyms. Bhina Darshinaha.
Bhina Darshana, as we know, is somebody who sees the differences between living entities or who is devoid of mercy, who does not really understand the what happened who does not really understand the feelings of other people who is so dull that you know he becomes completely senseless.
Very cruel person. Therefore he is okay, yeah. Therefore he is Bhinna-darśī, he is called Bhinnadarshi. And uh just one second, I just wanted to find something. Okay Okay. Anyway, no, it's not here. Okay.
And the second point, which is the second synonym to this person, which is here: bādha-vairasya.
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī bādha-vairasya means one who is inimical. He has this he is actually bound by his enmity toward other living entities. He cannot do anything. He just looks at others and he feels enmity.
His ignorance is so thick and so pronounced. So Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī gives different very interesting explanation of this bhinna-darśināḥ.
He says, bhinna-darśinaḥ literally means the one who sees every living entity differently from himself.
He says bhinna-darśinaḥ means the somebody who doesn't see the context or somebody who doesn't see the unity between the living entities, that we are all connected.
He doesn't understand that we ultimately are one big unified system. And it's not that all the units of this system are separate. They're all connected with each other. He doesn't see the context.
He doesn't understand this sambandha-jñāna. Sambandha-jñāna means the context, the broader context of the existence. So this is bhinna-darśanaḥ.
The the selfish person who just who just wants to separate himself and it's fine if I'm fine everything else let it go to hell. That's basically, the attitude and uh Lord Kapiladev gives the result.
What happens as a result of such an attitude? Na mānaṁ śāntim ṛcchati. Such a person never has peace in his mind. He always lives in this inimical environment.
And if you live in a very inimical environment, can you be peaceful?
Because you see enemies everywhere. You develop this enmity, this enmity is inside you, but because it's inside you, you project this enmity outside and you see everyone as enemies and everyone becomes inimical to you because the reciprocation works and you live in this very hostile environment.
And can you be peaceful in a hostile environment? You will never be peaceful in a hostile environment. So naturally this result comes. This person becomes very distorted all the time.
You know, I personally know such people, unfortunately. You know, when they explain to me, they happen to be my disciples, when they explain to me their vision of the world, it's really amazing.
You know, they see this is enemy, this is enemy. Everyone is enemy. And they're always disturbed because they see so many enemies and everyone is an image of them. So this is what happens, this is the result.
So Lord Kapiladev, he basically begs us: don't do it. Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says that Lord Kapiladeva he pronounces these verses in very angry mood. Angry mood.
He says, you know, his worship is useless and he's uh he's he doesn't have any peace and this and that. You know, just just to impress upon us. This is a loving anger towards the devotees.
He's just basically warning us: please don't do it, please don't do it. Don't do this foolishness.
So this is the third degree of this disease of envy or this cancer of offensiveness which ultimately is a mortal disease, very dangerous disease.
And Śrīla Prabhupāda in the purport to this verse, he says that we should distribute prasāda to everyone, even to the dogs.
And he quotes the story about the dog of Shivananda Sen, how he was liberated by Śivānanda Sena and ultimately Lord Caitanya. So he says we have to we have to be merciful to everyone.
And he says that jīva-hiṁsā is the most dangerous attitude which we may have. We have to be really merciful towards other living entity.
Verbal criticism as a severe offense
And then the verse number 24. Ahamucha vachary dravya, ahamucha vachai dravya, kriato Nayvatu shircham, naiv tu sérjam, butamamaninah.
So this is the fourth stage, and you may wonder what can be more offensive or more dangerous than this hateful attitude towards other living entities. But there could be something more.
And this more offensive attitude is designated here as avamaninah, of somebody who is very critical.
You know, you may keep your offensiveness inside yourself without manifesting it, and this is still not so bad; you may be hateful, but other living entities living beings, other human beings may not even notice that you are so hateful.
But when the degree of this offensiveness reaches certain level, then you cannot keep it in sight. You have to blurt it out. You have to say it. He's bad and this is bad and this is bad.
And now of course in the internet era you know we have so much facilities for criticism. Everyone is becoming more and more progressively more and more critical.
And it's amazing how this impersonal media of internet more or less evokes this attitude, pushes people to become more and more offensive, outwardly offensive, offensive by critical words.
And Lord Kapiladev here says, My dear mother, he says, Anaghe, oh my sinless mother.
He basically addresses his mother in this verse, saying that this is the greatest form of the sin the human being can perform, when he openly and hatefully criticize others, when he employs his hatred by using very cruel words, he says this is the greatest manifestation of the sin.
The commentators of this verse they all say they quote the verse from eleventh canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, where Lord Krishna Himself says that you may hurt somebody, but this is not so bad.
But if you use uh hateful words against somebody, then this is uh much more this is much more painful because when you physically hurt somebody then the wound will heal after a couple of days. Three days, one month.
But you may remember the hateful words of somebody after 10 or 20 years. Especially if this somebody is your wife or your husband, you know, and they always have some nice words to say to you.
So this is what Lord Krishna himself says when these words are addressed to the most sensitive points of your mind, marmas of your mind, and they hurt you, then it's much more painful.
And therefore, it's a greater extent of violence. And because it's a greater extent of violence, it's a greater extent of offen It's a greater offense.
And therefore, Lord Kapiladev says: My dear mother, even if he worships
with proper rituals and paraphernalia, a person who is ignorant of my presence in all living entities never pleases me by the worship of my deities in the temple.
Basically, what Lord Krishna says here, Lord Kapiladev says here, such a person displeases me. All these critics, you know, there is a beautiful publication called Back to Prabhupada. Beautiful publication.
If you want to know what Lord Kapiladev means in this verse, you just read this magazine.
Just offenses after offenses after offenses, pointing out faults of different devotees, whether they exist or don't exist, doesn't matter. Back to Prabhupada. How is it back to Prabhupada? I don't know.
But unfortunately it's a fact. So here Lord Kapiladeva says, never I'm not satisfied. I will never be satisfied with such a person. I cannot be satisfied. I am displeased with such an attitude.
If they do this sort of offenses. And we should be we should, I mean at least we should keep our hatred inside. The very least, not to let it out in the form of the words. So that's the result.
The displeasure of the Lord is the result of such an attitude, and this is the most dangerous thing which we ever can do. And the example of it is in Mahābhārata. The whole Mahabharata war was because of what?
Because of just a few words of Draupadī. Draupadī said, look at this fool, you know. He's blind. So that was enough. This whole drama was developed because of this just a few words of Draupadī, how dangerous it is.
So we have to be very careful. And better just to be quiet or speak about Krishna. That's the best use. So that's the warning which Kapiladev says. And in the next verse, he gives the solution.
And of course, Prabhupada again says prasāda, prasāda, prasāda, prasāda. Because Kapiladev will say about Prasāda in the upcoming verses in the verse 26 specifically.
But Srila Prabhupada speaks about prasāda in all these verses. Just just instead of being hateful, just invite people and give them prasāda. And Prabhupada he actually makes a very good point here in the verse 24.
Developing humility through distributing prasadam
This gratitude and love for God is can only exhibit gratitude and humility actually. One very important point about this versus is
that if you know that the Lord exists in everyone's heart, then only you can be humble, truly humble. Humility is not possible otherwise.
Only if you understand that the Lord, that everyone is the representative of the Lord. That he is the Lord and He is the Lord and He is the Lord. Only after that you can be humble. Otherwise you will never be humble.
You will always look down another living entities or manifest your offensiveness in some other way.
Therefore, Prabhupada says this gratitude and love of humility for God is exhibited by a pure devotee who knows that the Lord lives in every living entity. As such, listen this is very important.
As such, temple worship necessarily includes distribution of prasāda. It is not that one should create a temple in his private apartment or private room, offer something to the Lord and then eat.
Of course, that is better than simply cooking food stuff and eating without understanding one's relationship with the Supreme Lord. People who act in this manner are just like animals.
But the devotee who wants to elevate himself to a higher level of understanding must know that the Lord is present in every living entity.
And as stated in the previous verse, one should be compassionate to other living entities. A devotee should worship the Supreme Lord, be friendly to persons who are on the same level and be compassionate to the ignorant.
Prabhupada amazingly he says something which Lord Kapiladev will say later in this purport. One should exhibit his compassion for ignorant living entities by distributing Prasāda.
Distributing of Prasāda for the living ignorant masses of people is essential for persons who make offerings to the personality of Godhead. This is a very important point of the whole very culture to give prasadam.
Every sacrifice is not complete without distribution of prasadam. Prabhupāda says: if you do program give prasāda. You may talk about Krishna, it's not complete.
By the way, our program is not complete because we are not distributing prasadam. The sacrifice of Krishna Katha becomes complete only after distributing prasadam, otherwise it's dry.
You know, you have to take prasadam after Krishna Katha. You suffered so long, you have to take anyway uh this is an important item and essential point of Vedic culture you have to feed everyone.
Atiti Bhagawan, householders have to feed other people, you have to invite everyone and feed other people.
And Lord Kapiladeva will say this in in next verses, what we should do, and Śrīla Prabhupāda is explaining here. And why it is so important.
This is also important to understand why feeding others uh others is so important? What do you think why it is so important?
Yeah, it's a compassion it it's almost what I wanted to say the love and food is very closely connected in our mind because our first manifest first encounter with mother's love is in the form of the food which she gives.
What is the milk of mother? It's the physical manifestation of your love. It's nothing else. It's liquid love of the mother.
So, and therefore, when we when we exchange food, when we give somebody food, it's the best way to manifest our love. We can say, you know, I love you, I love you, I like you, but if you don't feed somebody it's not love.
You know, if you love me, give me some pizza. And this is how it is connected. Psychologically, it's very much connected in our mind. Food and love is inseparable.
And therefore, if we want to develop love, what we should do, we should feed. And we want to develop love for God, we should feed everyone because everyone is a representative. He is the Adishan of God.
And therefore Prabhupāda says prasāda prasāda and all these things as as the remedy to this hateful attitude or offensive attitude which we may have. Yes? This keeping header and within. Also it's not good. Of course.
Even to look down on other living entities is not good. Hate inside is not good, it's very bad. It's the third stage of disease, but you can do something worse. So that's the only point.
I don't want to say it's good, but it's better than just speaking it out, spitting it out. Spitting out the poisonous hatred which you manifest. But we have to get rid of all of this.
Even, even the slightest avajñā. What is avajñā, when we say guror avajñā, which is the śodha offense. Śodha offense. Basically when we see Guru as a mortal, ordinary living entity, right?
And avajñā means basically when you see everyone as a faulty, dirty living entity, instead of trying to see his connection with the Supreme Lord. So that's avajñā. Even avajñā is bad.
Avajñā is very bad, but you know progressively you can be, you can go further and further and further, and become more and more offensive with more and more detrimental results to the extent that you will displease the Lord by your worship.
You will worship the Lord, but the result will be totally opposite. You will displease. Better you don't worship him if you're so offensive. So that's, uh, that's what Lord Kapiladeva says.
Of course, Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura, he makes a very, uh, how shall we say it, very hope-producing point. He said that the Lord Himself He has the right to say it.
But when riches, when the wise people warn against this, they say it in a more mild way.
They say, yeah they say if somebody if somebody is worshipping the deity but doesn't respect other devotees, he is a prākṛta-bhakta, which means bhakta in making. He's an immature bhakta.
So some some utility is there in doing this. But Lord Kapiladev wants to stress this point. Please, please don't understand.
So, what are we supposed to do if we don't understand that the Lord is present in every living entity? Should we stop worshiping the Lord? No.
So this is what, uh, Kapiladeva is explaining in the next verse. Oh, one more question. Yes.
Like yes, we mentioned that uh when someone feels that this person's enemies enemies enemies towards me. So he perceived everyone is enemies, right? Because he is an enemy. Yes, yes, yes. Yes, yes.
So on the other hand, first I would remember again, uh, proper life, that in the material world everyone is the base of everyone. So how to understand that?
Yeah, because because as I said, we all have envious nature, matsarya is the deepest manifestation of kama, of desire to enjoy independently. It's there. And therefore we should do something about it.
We should not just, you know, should not just say, yes, I am envious, everyone is envious. Is envious, you know, what's the problem with it? It's a problem, it's a big problem.
Parāṁs tu paramāṁś ca satām. We will only be able to understand God on the pages of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam if we are in nirmatsara-santam. So it's a problem, and therefore Lord Kapiladeva says it's a big problem.
It's a cancerous disease. And you know, as the cancer grows, has the tendency to grow in the same way, the envious nature, if it's not curbed, it also grows inside us. So how to function in such an environment?
How to function in such an environment? Well, you deal with others nicely and they will also not manifest their envious nature with you. That's simple. You be nice to them. You be kind to them.
It's, you know, if somebody is not hopelessly hateful, he will manifest some sort of goodwill towards you. Yes?
But you can also see in śāstras that those who are enemies of you, you should simply neglect them, ignore them. Yeah. But that's a different kind of neglect.
There is a neglect and neglect and uh actually, the same word is used, upeksha. Upeksha is neglect. Upeksha is for the second verse, the verse number 22. But there are two types of upeksha.
Upeksha, which we described is when you don't recognize the existence of other living entity. If you don't see other living entities.
Upeksha, which is recommended in the 11th canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Kripa Prema Maitri Kripa Upeksha, Bhagavatam, Kripa Prema Maitri Kripa Upeksha, is a different kind of upeksha.
Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says that this upeksha is the manifestation of love. You avoid somebody or ignore somebody. Why are you ignoring somebody?
Because you know if you get entangled with an envious person, he will become even more envious.
The nature of envious people when they see the devotees they become even more envious. Their envy grows when they encounter devotees. And therefore neglect is recommended as the as the way
to manifest mercy towards them, not to, you know, so that's a different kind of, but evasion is different. I don't want them to become even more angry.
You know, sometimes you see somebody, he's very angry, and you know that to pacify his anger you just have to ignore him. Not to react in any way. So that's different. Yeah.
It was said that if you worship Krishna but, you don't offer respect to other living beings. Is Krishna actually saying that he's not going to accept your worship? Yes, that's what he says.
But in another place, Krishna says if somebody behaves like that, they're not very intelligent. And Krishna says, but I'm not stupid I'm not unintelligent, I'm very intelligent, and I will help that person.
No no it's a different will help them. Thank you. It's a different point. The verse from the fifth canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which you mean, is about person who worships the Lord and
it's not about the offensive nature here, Lord Kapiladev is specifically dealing with the offenses which one may manifest there. One worships the Lord with ulterior motives.
He worships the Lord with the intention to get something from the Lord. He worships him, you know, it's a Rājasic attitude.
He worships the Lord, but he wants... he doesn't want the Lord, he wants something from the Lord. And the Lord says, yes, he's a fool and sometimes I don't give him what he wants but give him the pure devotion.
That's possible. But here we are dealing specifically with the offensive, with the offenses, with the offensive nature. If somebody is offensive, the Lord will not behave like this.
The Lord, if somebody is offensive, the Lord says here I am displeased with such a person. Then the examples of Lord Chaitanya and the Lord named Nityānanda seem to be Yeah,
but Lord Chaitanya is exceptional manifestation of the Lord. He is not just an ordinary manifestation of the Lord. Yeah, he also says.
Balancing daily duties with devotional service
Well of course Lord Nityānanda is different, but but Lord Chaitanya wanted to chop off the head of Madai Okay,
let's read the verse number twenty-five. Arcayād arcayā tāvad īśvaram sva-karma-kṛt yāvan na veda sva-hṛdi sarva-bhūteṣv avasthitam. tam. So that's the solution.
Actually this and uh and the next verse gives the solution. Although in the next verse the Lord again becomes angry. His anger is not pacified. But here he gives solution.
He says, arcayād, arcā-tāvad, arcayād tāvad. One has to arcayet, this imperative, to worship arcā and do everything else which is connected with this tāvat up to the point īśvaram sva-karma-kṛt to worship me as Īśvara and at the same time to do karma sva-karma-kṛt to perform my own duty, yāvan na veda sva-hṛdi sarva-bhūteṣv avasthitam.
Until the point when one understands that I am present in his own heart and in the hearts of every living entity.
So of course, it doesn't mean that when you understand that the Lord is present in your heart and the heart of every other living entity, you stop worshiping the deity. This is not the intention of the word of this verse.
The intention of this verse is that you perform your devotional service together with sva-karma or svadharma. You perform your own duty according to the system of varṇāśrama, or as Prabhupāda explains here, basically you perform your duty in the society together with your transcendental duties.
So that's a very important point. Basically, what Lord Kapiladeva recommends here is karma-miśrā bhakti. And when we see the recommendation of Lord Krishna in the beginning of Bhagavad- Gita, it's also karma-miśra-bhakti.
Lord Krishna, and when we see the instructions of Narada Muni in this in the sixth chapter of first canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, we see again he recommends karma-miśra-bhakti as the beginning stage of bhakti.
He doesn't recommend the pure devotional service in the beginning. Why? Because karma-miśra-bhakti helps us to control the offenses, offensive tendencies.
If we are in the society, we live in the society, and we follow the rules of the society.
And we can see, you know, when devotees become fanatical or overly enthusiastic, overly zealous in the beginning, and they're not really trained, they not really understand that the Lord is present in every living entity, they start committing offenses.
This is the progression which we can see initially, in the beginning, in the first uh you know days or months of devotional service, everyone is so enthusiastic and so happy and everything because they feel so much bliss about chanting, Bhagavad-gītā, association with devotees.
But then you know offenses take precedence, take over their consciousness, and the bliss vanishes and it becomes just routine sort of engagement.
And because they are overzealous, they tend to commit offenses against other people, especially those people who are near them. I remember once I was speaking with the father of one very young lady devotee.
She became devotee, she became very fanatical as usually.
And the father came to me, and the father was very sad, and he said, she doesn't eat meat, she doesn't eat fish, but she eats me. Better she would eat me than not eat me. So that's what happens.
You know, therefore, svakarma-kṛt, it is said here, you perform your duty in the society, you be normal. Lord Caitanya says this to Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī.
When Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī was not Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī but was just Raghunātha. And when Raghunātha came to him being young Raghunātha who was always trying to run away from home, he said, don't be crazy.
Stay home, do your duties and perform natural detachment, not this artificial detachment which will force you to commit offenses against other living entities.
Yeah, markaṭa-vairāgya. Premature detachment, markaṭa-vairāgya, is actually the driving force behind the offenses which new devotees commit, unfortunately. That's how it works.
Therefore, the stress is given in the beginning on this karma- Mishrabhakti. And if we see Varnashrama society, what is the main point of Varnashrama society?
The main point of our national society is to feed others and to respect others. You know, how the husband should respect the wife, how the wife should respect the husband, how the children should respect their parents, how the you know we should respect Brāhmaṇas, how we should respect cows, how we should respect trees, how we should respect rivers, how we should respect everything.
You know, some people, the other day we had the discussion about varṇāśrama, you know, how to establish varṇāśrama. Varṇāśrama is nothing but establishing respect within our heart. If the respect is established within our heart, the varṇāśrama system is established.
If the respect is not, you know, I see all this sometimes these proponents of varṇāśrama. They're so offensive. They're offensive of everyone. How is that?
They're destroying the very foundation of varṇāśrama. You know, they become, uh, it's completely opposite. Varṇāśrama means respect.
And therefore, varṇāśrama makes one humble, svakarma-kṛt makes one humble, svakarma-kṛt makes one disciplined.
This is two qualities which the you know the performance of one's duty help to develop discipline and respect, humility.
And when the person becomes disciplined and humble, then the devotional service which he performs becomes very effective. Isn't it? Because, you know, that's what it is. That's what we're supposed to do.
Therefore, this provision is there. Therefore, the Lord stresses.
In the beginning, before doing anything else, you worship the deity, you perform your devotional service together with the performing of your own prescribed duties. Yes. Yes.
And Prabhupāda says this: it is not that one who has become a devotee of the Lord, who engages in devotional service, should give up his prescribed duties. No one should be lazy under the plea of devotional service.
Because sometimes under the plea of detachment and devotional service, we just we just hide our laziness, nothing else.
One has to execute devotional service according to his prescribed duties. And basically to develop certain qualities which are conducive for our bhakti. And uh uh otherwise uh the bhakti the power of bhakti will be blocked. Yes.
Are you told that like we should not uh often uh like hurt any living entity. And uh like when we come to devotional service we are very overenthusiastic and then unintentionally we are like displeasing parents, hurting them.
Yes, uh this is true.
But uh another thing that when like we are going we want to dedicate our life for the preaching mission then there is uh with parents and then parents also become so much aggressive also and then sometimes some devotees they run away from home then parents become more aggressive and they you know they go and complain to police, they also come and harass devotees.
These things happen because parents, if we say parent to parents, I want to dedicate my life in preaching mission, they don't agree ever. And they have their own plans, they impose their plans. Yes, yes.
So how to come how to join full time without being offensive. It's almost impossible. But at least be nice to them. Give them, send send them some prasāda regularly.
You know, in the course of time, if you're nice to them, if you are if you really, you know, call them and you know they become somewhat peaceful. In the beginning it may be, but if still you have to behave properly, you have to behave respectfully, but you know not at the cost of betraying your own callings which are there within your heart.
But still we have to be very, you know, polite and grateful to them. And if we behave properly, you know miracles can happen.
I see it again and again and again when people come to me and you know tell their stories I always ask how your parents towards you they said usually what they say uh usually the answer to this question now better So uh and for me it's a good indication that they behave properly, so it's it improves over the course of time.
Sometimes we introduce to other parents, introduce them to other parents, whose son are devotees? Yeah. Yeah. Whose children are devotees? Yeah.
Overcoming discrimination and caring for others
Yeah there are different ways and strategies, but of course, you know, parents can be irrational, that's also true.
Verse number twenty six Atmanas Chapastarasyati Yahkarot Anat Antarodaram Tasyabina Drisomrity Vidate Bayam
Ubanam As a blazing fire of death I cause great fear to whoever makes the least discrimination between himself and other living entities because of a differential outlook. So, very interesting.
The Lord Kapiladev is still angry. He was angry in an angry mood, he gave the solution, but his anger didn't subside yet.
And he gives the final warning to us by saying that Atmanascha Parasya Pi, if you make yakkaroti antar udaram. This word udaram is very important in this word verse uh uh antar the others udaram means
belly so uh that's one uh translation or possible interpretation of this word. Another interpretation is Ut and Aram. Not udaram.
Udaram means belly, but you can also cut or divide this word udaram to ut and aram. Ut means antar is difference
and if you divide this udharam to ut and ram then aram means minute very little, and ut means the list or something like this. Anyway, this is how Prabhupada translates.
If you make even the slightest difference between yourself and others. That's one translation. And another translation of this verse is: if you make the difference between your belly and the belly of other people.
Which basically means if you don't feel what they feel, if you don't, if you're not capable of feeling, if they're hungry, you should feel their hunger. If they see that they are hungry, you should feed them.
So the one interpretation of this verse is that not making difference between your belly and the belly of others is that you you should take care of the belly of others before you take care of the belly of yourself. That's one interpretation.
Another interpretation, you should not to the smallest extent, to the very minute extent, make a difference between yourself and others. Understanding that we are all parts of the complete whole, that we are all part of the Lord.
So but usually this verse is translated as you should feed other people. Like Ranti Dev. The example of Rantidev in the ninth canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is about this: why Ranti Dev is glorified. He was hungry.
He was fasting for how many days? 40 days? 48 days. For 48 days he didn't eat anything. And then a chandala came. And what he did? He gave him food. His food and the food of his family.
And then, you know, the dogs came with the candala, and he fed the dogs. Why? Because he didn't feel the difference. If he's hungry, you know, I give him the food as if I put the food in my own stomach.
And of course it's a very difficult attitude but Lord Kapiladeva uh what he wants to say actually here Tasya Bina Drishom Rityur Vindate Baya mulbanam And he will say this. No, he he will not say this.
No, he will not say this. But basically, Jīva Gosvāmī, he says that somebody who feeds others, he will be free from the fear of death. Here it's an opposite statement or the statement which is derived from the statement.
Here Lord Kapiladeva says if you don't feed others, you will always be afraid of death. You will always be fearful of death. Because you are so much concerned about yourself.
But if you change this attitude and if you start feeding others very generously, then the fear of death will vanish from your consciousness.
We can see that's why I said this is such an important uh item or you know element of Vedic culture.
And uh like in other sampradayas, this feeding of sadhus is even you know most important practice if you see the Ramanandi sadhus. What they do, what is their sadhana? They feed other sadhus?
Like in Govardhana this this rotivalabhaba. Rodivalla Bhaba, he always, you know. That's his sadhana. Then night he only makes rotis and feeds others.
And that's exactly what Lord Kapiladev says: no distinction between your belly and the belly of others. Feed other people. Or as Prabhupada translates, which is also very proper. Don't make any distinctions with others.
Take care of other people and be sensitive to the needs of other people and everything will be okay. So that's Varnashrama. You feed others and you respect others. And uh this is what I wanted to say.
It's very interesting what Jīva Gosvāmī says in Bhakti-sandarbha about this Oh no, sorry. If I find it Yes, must be here. Yes, hmm very interesting what he says.
Pleasing the Lord through proper relationships
Actually it's in in connection with the next verse, so I will read it in connection with the next verse so let's read the next verse if we are ready.
27 verse number 27 Athamam Sarva Buteshu, buteshu, butatmanam kritalayam, kritalayam, archayat dana bhyam, archayatamam, Maitryabhina Chaksusha Maitra Bhina Chaksusha so Kapiladev
makes the conclusion at ha, therefore, Mam Sarva Bhutishu, you have to understand that I am in all living entities, but I am uh that uh therefore though through charitable gifts and attention as well as through friendly behaviour and by viewing all to be alike, one should satisfy me who abide in all creatures as their very self.
But Atmanam, I am the Atma of every living entity in all the living entities. You have to again educate yourself, learn how to see and relate with other living entities as the Adishtan, the sitting place of the Lord.
Archayed, you should worship me and worship them. And here Prabhupada very interestingly, he said he doesn't translate archayat worship.
Before that, he was translating very consistently this archayat you should worship or doing worship. Here he translates you should please me.
How to please me by Dana giving something, manana giving respect dana manabhyam and maitriya by being friendly and abhinea chakshusha by looking a at others with with the samadarshi, with the attitude of uh you know that they're we're all one family, we're all the same, we're all similar to each other, we all have the same nature. So that's how we can please the Lord.
That's the conclusion of this whole section. What to do with our offenses? We have to continue worshiping the Lord by dāna, māna, maitrī, and abhiniveśa-cakṣuṣā. These four items which we have to remember.
Dāna is compassion. We give something. Give the gifts. Dāna we [give to] those who are lower than us. Can we give dāna to guru? Sometimes somebody says, I want to give you donation. Donation means dāna.
Can we give donation to Guru? No. No. You cannot give donation to guru because donation you can only give to somebody who is lower than you. When we give something to Guru, it's called pranami.
Pranami means uh uh yeah pranami it's it's it it's it's not donation it's still charity though it becomes no, but not it's not no, no, you you cannot call it dāna. It's not dāna. Pranami is actually.
Yeah, pranami is the proper word. Pranami means this is pranami you you offer yourself by by doing this. So therefore, for superior, you can only do māna. Respect. For those who are lower than you, you do dāna.
For those who are on the same level, you do what? Maitrī. And then abhiniveśa-cakṣuṣā samadṛṣṭi. You try to feel for others.
Samadṛṣṭi means it's not the samadṛṣṭi, samadarśinā, which is there in Bhagavad-gītā, samadarśinaḥ.
Samadarśinaḥ is different, which will be explained from the next verse onwards, that we see every living being as different but at the same time as equal.
This abhiniveśa-cakṣuṣā is very important because it can be translated maitrī abhiniveśa-cakṣuṣā, it can be divided as maitrī, bhinna-cakṣuṣā and maitrī abhiniveśa-cakṣuṣā. So the two instructions simultaneously is given by Kapiladev in this verse.
One is to look in all living at all living entities as equal, and another one look at all living entities as different. Because they are simultaneously equal and different. Māyāvādīs say everyone is equal.
If we go to America, everyone is equal. But Mr. Trump is not equal, but everyone else is equal. You know, if we go to the West, democratic country, nirviśeṣa śūnyavādi, everyone is equal.
If we go to the uh you know very hierarchical society in the East, which is still there to a certain extent, everyone is different. Vaiṣṇava outlook, everyone is equal and different at the same time.
Both points of view are wrong. Both points of view actually create harm. So we have to create a certain or develop certain kind of vision, which is the vision of love. This bhedābheda-tattva, it's a vision of love.
Bhedābheda darśana, philosophy of acintya-bheda- bheda, is the philosophy of love. And the love is the ability to see everyone is equal and everyone is different simultaneously.
Not just everyone is different, and not just everyone is equal. This is what actually Kapiladev is prescribing here this bhedābheda darśana. Therefore he says abhinnena cakṣuṣā or bhinnena cakṣuṣā at the same time.
So So what else is important about this verse,
very important, and Prabhupāda very beautifully explains māna and dāna, you know, man indicates superior, dan indicates one who gives charity or compassionate towards inferior. So and he says, yeah, anyway.
We give in charity to a person who is inferior in his material or economic condition. Charity is not given to a rich man. You cannot give. So, anyway, Prabhupāda explains this.
Compassion and friendliness do not necessitate falsely elevating someone to exalt the position of the supreme personality of Godhead. Not everyone is equal.
We should not at the same time misunderstand that the Supersoul is situated in the heart of an animal like a hog and the Supersoul situated in the heart of learned brāhmaṇa are different.
The Supersoul of all living entities is the same Supreme Personality of Godhead. By His omnipotence, He can live everywhere and He can create His Vaikuṇṭha situation everywhere.
The Lord is there in Vaikuṇṭha. That is his inconceivable potency. And Śrīla Prabhupāda ends the purport with a very hilarious statement.
Therefore when Nārāyaṇa is living in the heart of a hog, he does not become a hognārāyaṇa. That's you know Prabhupada is referring to Daridra Narayana. So he doesn't become hog narayana. He's always nārāyaṇa.
But he's unaffected by the body of the hog. So this bhedābheda Śrīla Prabhupāda is explaining again in the purport. But one very important point Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī makes in this regard.
He says, Athamam Sarva Butishu Butatmanam Kritalayam. If we learn how to see everyone as the Adistan or sitting place of the Lord, atra tu tad-adhiṣṭhāna- bhagavad-upāsanam eva vidyate.
You uh we relate to others always remembering that that the Lord is seeking there and therefore we offer respect to them. And then he says: Tat ca anyatra. do we do this?
Conquering duality through universal respect
Please listen because this is a very beautiful conclusion of the whole section. Why this should be done? Because by doing this, rāga-dveṣa-viśleṣa- artham.
We're doing this to diminish the innate propensity which is there for rāga and dveṣa, for attachment and hatred.
If we develop respectful attitude toward other living entities, then the tendency for rāga and dveṣa within our heart will diminish.
If there is no respect towards other living entities, we will either relate with other living entities with attachment, rāga, or with dveṣa, with hatred. We will divide. Enemies and friends. That will be our relationship.
But how to get rid of rāga and dveṣa of this duality, which is actually according to Lord Krishna, keeps us in this world. From our birth in this material world, we are in this dual consciousness, rāga and dveṣa.
How to get rid of rāga and dveṣa? There is only one way to develop respect, to understand that the Lord is present in every living entity and to adore and worship every living entity as the sitting place of the Lord.
In this way, we will get rid of the duality and develop non-dual consciousness which will elevate us to the spiritual world. So that's a very important conclusion and very important little statement by Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī.
Raga Dvesha Vishles Artham. To make rāga and dveṣa more slack. Not so prominent and not so strong. Okay, so from the next verse, there will be series of verses which Śrīla Darwin would love because
it's the description of the evolutionary system or evolutionary theory according to the Bhāgavatam, according to Kapilasadeva.
This is the, you know, Kapilasadeva is actually explaining Sāṅkhya and Sāṅkhya is an alternative to the modern science. And the very prominent part of modern science is the evolutionary theory of Charles Darwin.
So the description of Sāṅkhya by Kapilasadeva would not be complete without his version of evolutionary theory.
How the evolution take place in reality, not this imaginary evolution of the bodies, which is by the way not confirmed by but evolution is there and hierarchy is there but that's the evolution of consciousness.
And when we see the evolution of bodies, it's just the gross manifestation of more subtle evolution, which is real, which takes place, the evolution of consciousness.
And that's what Kapilasadeva will speak about in the six and a half verses from the verse number twenty-eight to verse number So there is, yeah, we can we can read verse by verse, or we can read them all.
Let's read verse by verse because it's difficult. Although I mean it's it's very simple, we will just go through this verses very quickly.
Jīva-śreṣṭhā hy ajīvānāṁ sarva-jīva-śreṣṭhā hy ajīvānāṁ jīva-śreṣṭhā hy ajīvānāṁ ta tah sachitah pravaras, tachendri Vritaya Tataschendriva Vritayah So
Jiva or somebody who has life Shrestahya Jiva Nam is better than somebody who doesn't have life. So, and then Tatak, even better than just jiva, prana britah, those who have prana, living force inside.
Tatah sachita, those who have consciousness, they pravaras.
Tatah, even better than those who have consciousness, ca indriya-vṛttayaḥ. Of course, Śrīla Prabhupāda following the commentators, he translates it in a very specific way.
So let's read the translation, which includes the explanation. Living entities are superior to inanimate objects or blessed mother. And among them, living entities who display life symptoms are better.
Animals who develop with developed consciousness are better than them. And better still are those who have developed sense perception.
And Prabhupāda explains that you know that uh there are different grades of living entity and you know basically what it means that this whole section, I didn't mention it, perhaps I should say a few words.
This whole section teaches us how to respect every living entity according to the level of the development of consciousness which they have.
Because in the previous verse, it is said that you have related differently with different living entities.
Those who are inferior, you have to be compassionate to them. Those who are superior, you have to give respect, and those who are equal, you have to be friendly.
So here Kapiladev is explaining the hierarchy of the living entities so that you can understand. Oh, here I am, and everyone mentioned before is below me, and everyone mentioned after that is higher than me.
So this is basically the scale which Kapiladev gives for you to understand here I am and what should be my attitude towards other types of living entities.
So he says that even inanimate objects there is some some respect should be given there.
You know, like we we can see that you know musicians, Vedic musicians, they worship their musical instruments and before starting it. They're not just using it, they're just showing respect.
The warriors they worship their weapons. The taxi drivers they worship their cars. They do puja to the cars. If you go to the field, you will see tractors with garlands. And puja being done to them.
So we have to respect them as well. It's not just matter. It's also energy of the Lord. And we have to train ourselves in this respect for attitude. But of course, those who have living force, they're better.
But Prabhupada very interestingly and uh also humorously describes
he says, Yes, the living—the Supersoul is in everyone's heart. For example, a tiger is a living entity, part and parcel of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
And the Supreme Lord is living in the heart of the tiger as the super soul, but does this mean that we have to treat the tiger in a friendly manner? Oh brother Tiger. Vasudaiva Kutumba Kam, we're all one family.
Prabhupada says be normal. You know, of course everyone is equal, but still don't lose your discrimination. Discrimination should go hand by hand. And you know prasāda is universal. Give prasāda to the tiger. And
Prabhupada explains that at the end of the purport, how the traditional commentators of these verses, they explain these different grades according to Mahābhārata.
Yeah, he says the, uh, the jīva is there even in the stone. Experience shows that some hills and mountains grow. This is due to the presence of the soul within that stone. Please don't say this to the scientists.
They will never be able to appreciate your the depths of your understanding of the evolution. Above that, the next manifestation of living condition is development of consciousness,
and the next manifestation is development of sense perception. And Prabhupāda says that the first living entities who have sense perception is the trees. According to Mahābhārata, trees have sense perception.
They have indriyas. We know by experience that trees can see. Sometimes in its growth, a large tree changes its course of development to avoid some hindrances. This is how the trees manifest their seeing capacity.
This means that the tree can see, and according to Mahābhārata, the tree can smell. And this indicates the development of sense perception. And in the next verse it says, Tatrapi sparsha vededi Bih,
but better than those who have sense perception are those who have sparśa, the sense of touch. And actually, traditional commentator says that the sense of touch is there in the in the plants.
You know, some plants you touch them and they they move. They close the leaves. So not all the trees are equal. Those trees who can do this trick they're higher. They're more intelligent trees.
Other trees they can only see. These trees can have the sense of touch. That's what is said there. Okay, let's read this. Tatrapis parsavedi bhya, tatasparina, pravaras, Te byoganda vidak sresta. Tata Sabdavidovaraha.
Tata Shabdavidvara. So better than just sense perception, those who have sense of touch, develop sense of touch, like these trees, better than them, rasa vedinah, those who can distinguish rasa, the taste.
And Prabhupada says this is the fishes. Fishes they distinguish taste. This is the manifestation of higher development of the consciousness.
Higher than that, Gandha Vidah, those who have the sense of smell, Gandha, they're better than those who only have because fish don't have ganda the Indria of the smell, they only have taste.
But better than those who have smell and And Prabhupada says that uh the snakes uh they uh they are of this uh yeah but snakes are Shabdavida. Uh they have the sense of hearing. They are better.
And he says: snake at night he can find the frog because of the croaking of the frog. So the snakes are more developed. The insects are more developed than fish because insects have the sense of smell.
And reptiles, they are more developed than insects because they have the sense of hearing. The insects they don't have the sense of hearing. So next verse, Rupa Bhade Vidas Tatra Rupa Vid Vidas Tata Cho Bayato tadaha.
Tesam Bahu Padah Sreshtas Chatus Padas Tato Dvipat.
So better than those who have the sense of hearing, Rupa Bhedavidas, those who can distinguish rupa, the forms, they're even better, their consciousness is even better than those who have the hearing capacity.
Better than them, Cho obhaya ubhayatah, those who have jaws or teeth. Because uh yeah, so somehow or other the presence of the T is a sign of higher development of the consciousness on a certain level.
And then better than them is Bahupadah. Bahupadah means many legs. Many legged, those who have many legs. They're better.
And better than many legged, those who have chatukpadha, four legs, and better than those, those who have dvipad. So many legged animals is less, you know, four legs is better.
Monkeys are in between because sometimes they they have two, sometimes they have four. So Darwin is right in this regard. They're intermediate form.
Hierarchy of human consciousness and spiritual realization
But then, uh, there is two-legged, uh, animals, two-legged animals, the animals with two legs, that's us. Congratulations. So every everybody else deserves our compassion.
Everybody else is supposed to be treated by us with compassion, including the inanimate living entities with some sort of respect. That's how we will get rid of this rāga and dveṣa.
Otherwise, the rāga and dveṣa will only be reinforced or developed. Okay, let's go into the evolution of uh two-legged animals.
Tatovarṇāśca catvāraḥ tato varṇāśca catvāraḥ teṣāṁ brāhmaṇa uttamaḥ, brāhmaṇa uttamaḥ, brāhmaṇeṣv api vedajñaḥ, brāhmaṇeṣu hy ajñaḥ, vaiyākaraṇaḥ smṛtaḥ. So among those who are two-legged animals, among
human beings, those who divide themselves into varṇas, or in other words, those who follow the system of varṇāśrama, or those who actually know their nature.
What is the difference between the system of varṇāśrama and the quote-unquote modern civilized society is that people in the modern civilized society, they're completely bewildered about their nature.
They don't know their propensities. They don't know who they are, what they are meant for, and they always do some sort
of chaotic work not according to their— so why varṇāśrama system is better because the consciousness is developed to the point when people understand their nature.
In a modern society, people, the consciousness is so low that they don't understand what they are supposed to do. What they will bring them satisfaction.
They do something else, something which pays more, something which brings some more material benefit. They don't understand how important it is to work according to our abilities and capacities.
So the those who are in the varṇas in the society in a proper society system, they are better. And among teṣām those, teṣāṁ brāhmaṇa uttamaḥ, the highest is who? Brahmana. Brahmana is the highest. Brahmaneshu, Api Vedagio.
Among the Brahmanas, the best is who Veda gyo, those who know Veda. Hyattagyo, but even better than those, those who know the meaning of the Vedas.
You may know Vedas, you may learn by heart, but you don't know the meaning. So that's the next level: how the consciousness is blooming.
This is the metaphor which is used by Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, he says that the consciousness is like the budding flower.
And initially, in the in um uh animal species it's uh muculita cheta cheta yeah then then then mukulita yeah yeah muculita is it it's stars body Anyway, gradually, gradually it's uh unfolds, it starts blooming.
So, this is how it is: you understand your nature. Among those, the nature of the Brahmana is the highest development of consciousness. But not everyone knows the Vedas.
Somebody may have some Brahminical capacity and abilities, but don't know the Vedas. But those who know the Vedas, those who know the meaning, it's very clear. Arthagiat samsha okay, next verse.
Artagyat samsha cheta shreyan Sakwakarmrit, Mukta Sanghastatobujan, Mukta Sangastatobuyan, Adokdha Dharman Atmanaham, Adokdharma. So better than Artagya, samshya chitta. Those who can what? Dispel the doubts. Samsta.
You may know the letter of the scriptures, but at the same time you will not be able to reconcile the contradictions which are there in the scriptures. Because scriptures are so vast and there are so many contradictions.
And you may know the meaning, but at the same time you're not capable of reconciling the contradictory statement or explain the logic behind this.
So you you have the general meaning or the general knowledge of the meaning of the shastras, but don't have the deep knowledge of the shastra. So that's the next stage. Samshaya chitta.
Those who are capable of dispelling the doubts of other people.
But even better than those, Swakarma Krit, those people who strictly follow the Brahminical duties or follow the scriptures basically, because you may know the scriptures, you may explain the scriptures in a many logical way, but not follow the scriptures.
It is there is a saying in the Muslim world that you do what Mullah says to do, but don't do what Mullah does.
So, and Prabhupada says that this is the principle of Acharya. The Acharya knows the meaning, can dispel the doubts, and also follows himself very strictly, Svakarma Creed.
He very diligently follows the scriptures according to them.
And better than them, mukta-saṅgaḥ. Those who are free from material contamination, because by following the scriptures you become free from this material contamination.
But better than them, this is a very beautiful phrase. Atato dharma ātma-naḥ. You may follow, you may know the scriptures, you may follow the scriptures. You may be purified by following the scriptures, but still
you will be basically a dogdha-dharma. Dogdha-dharma means you're milking dharma. In other words, you're using dharma for your own benefit. You are exploiting dharma.
You're basically following Dharma for your selfish ends, for with your selfish interest.
So therefore, those who adopt the dharma ātma-naḥ, they are even better. Those who don't have this tendency to follow Dharma just for some benefit. So it's it's basically what is called niṣkāma karma, yeah.
That's the description of niṣkāma karma. Who executes devotional service without expectation of reward? Yeah, even better than this.
And we come to the final verse of this series, but probably it's better if we do it tomorrow because it's already 12 o'clock, and we did quite okay today. So that's it. Tomorrow we will... Yeah.
Tomorrow we will Yeah, we will hopefully finish the whole chapter because the last section is very simple and not complicated.
So, another one... The Bose Fort, one scientist from India. He... He discovered that the plants are like a... scientists also accept what scientists... They gradually come to understanding that plants have not life.
Life they agree, consciousness. Feelings, yeah. There is a famous experiment, you know, that they put a plant.
One teacher actually brought a plant to class and said to the whole class to start abusing this plant. And all very enthusiastically started abusing this plant.
You're useless, you're so ugly, and this and that. And the plant withered actually. Plant died because of this, you know, energy, negative energy. Because you can feel it. Feelings are there, there's no doubt about it.
And yes, some scientists understand this, but because the consciousness is usually very gross, it's difficult for them to agree to these statements. We all still have consciousness. Huh? Stones? Stones? Yeah.
Well, uh, as far as I remember, Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says some stones have consciousness. Because some stones they produce something and they absorb something.
Like in the mountains, some stones they produce the shilajit, right? Or some other substances. And still to this date scientists don't know what is śilājītu, why śilājītu is being produced.
So, and I think Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura says that only some stones which are you know producing something and absorb something they have life.
Like you know, gem, gemstones, they like this sometimes they're very inauspicious like this, you know, Koh-i-Noor, you know, this famous diamond. It was always bringing some misfortune to whoever to have possessed it.
Okay. Thank you very much. Thank you, Hare Krishna. Śrīla Prabhupāda-kī jaya.