BG.18.63. Free choice of the soul
Bhakti Vijnana Goswami · Israel · 2016
Chapters
Invocation and introductory chanting
Omnamo Bhagavate Vasudevaya Omnamo Bhagavate Vasudevaya, Omnamo Bhagavate Vasudevaya, Omna Bhavate Vasudevaya Narayanskrityan, naramchayva narotam Devim saraswatiasam, devim saraswatiasam, tatojayamudiray, tatojam I'm
very happy to be with all of you this evening. It's a different place. Since the last time I was here, it's completely changed. I'm shocked. I feel like I'm back to Moscow or something. So anyway, I asked Gunavatar
Prabhu what shall I speak about? He he was adamant, he didn't tell me. So I'll speak little bit about this very
interesting verse in the eighteenth chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, towards the end, 63rd verse of the 18th chapter Eti Janam
Akyātam guhyam, Guhyataram, mayā, Vimṛśya etat, Aśeṣeṇa yata icchasi tathā kuru iti te jñānam, vihitam ākhyātam, guhyād guhyataram, guhya-guhyatamam, vimṛśyaitat śiṣyeṇa yathecchasi tathā kuru, iti te jñānam ākhyātam guhyād guhyataram guhyatamam, vimṛśyaitat śiṣyeṇa, yathecchasi tathā kuru.
It thus te unto
Translation and purport of the verse
you gyanam knowledge akyatam described Gyatam then confidential Guhyataram still more confidential, mayyā Maya by me Vimrishya deliberating on this, aśeṣeṇa, fully. Yathā as icchasi you like, tathā that Kuru perform translation.
Thus I have explained to you knowledge still more confidential. Deliberate on this fully and then do what you wish to do. The Lord has already explained to Arjuna the knowledge of Brahma Buddha.
One who is in the Brahma Buddha condition is joyful, he never laments, nor does he desire anything. That is due to confidential knowledge. Krishna also discloses knowledge of the super soul.
This is also Brahman knowledge, knowledge of Brahman, but it is superior.
Here the words Yathechasitathakuru, as you like, you may act, indicate that God does not interfere with the little independence of the little living entity.
In Bhagavad Gita, the Lord has explained in all respects how one can elevate his living condition. The best advice imparted to Arjuna is to surrender unto the super soul seated within the heart.
By right discrimination, one should agree to act according to the order of the super soul. That will help one become situated constantly in Krishna consciousness, the highest perfectional stage of human life.
Arjuna is being directly ordered by the personality of Godhead to fight. Surrender to the supreme personality of Godhead is the best interest of the living entities. It is not for the interest of the supreme.
Before surrendering, one is free to deliberate on this subject as far as the intelligence goes. That is the best way to accept the instruction of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Such instruction comes also through the spiritual master, the bona fide representative of Krishna.
Tityanamakiatam Guhyad Guhyataram Maya Vimrishya Tada Sheshinayatechasitakuru. Thus I have explained to you knowledge still more confidential. Deliberate on this fully and then do what you wish to do.
Namov Vishnu Padaya Krishna Prashta Gutare Srimati Bhaktividanta Swami Nitinamini Namaste Saraswati Devi G,oravani Pracharini, Nirvisha Shunyavadi, Paschatades, Manchakal Patarubescha, Kripa Sindulcha, Patianampavaniby, Vaishnavywam.
Jai Shri Krishna Chaitanya, Prabhunitananda, Shriadwaita Gadathara, Srivasi Guru Bhakta Vrinda Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Ramhare
Free will in relationship with God
Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare Arade Bhagavan Vraja Setanayasta Dhamma Vrindavanam, Ramyaka Chi Dupassanavadu Vargayakul bitam, Sri Madhagavatam Pramana Mamalampremapumartamahan, Sri Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Matamidam Tatra daruna param Ajanu Ambitu Jokana Kavadatu Sam Kirtanaya Ki daroka malaya taksa visam Barod Vija Varu Yuga Dharma Palu Vandhe Jagat Priya Karu Karunavatar, Yandah pravisi, Mahavachimampra Suptam, Sanji Vaya te kila Shakti Darah Swadhanna, Anjam I
thought of speaking a little bit about this verse, because this verse describes the general attitude of God towards living entity. Krishna wants us to surrender, but he doesn't force us to surrender.
That is the difference between God and surrendering to God and surrendering to anyone else. God essentially leaves us free, and this freedom is very essential for the living entity to act.
Once Prabhupada was speaking with one Indian man, and Prabhupada was glorifying Bhagavad Gita, and the Indian man was agreeing with him. He would say that yes, yes, Vamiji, Bhagavad-gītā is my favorite book too.
And I have a favorite verse in Bhagavad-gītā. Śrīla Prabhupāda asked, what is your favorite verse? And he said, do whatever you like. I told you everything, now you do whatever you like.
So for many people this sort of verse, this verse, this particular verse, is essential in Bhagavad-gītā. And it is essential in one sense. It is definitely essential because we are free.
And in reality, the relationship, and Krishna is speaking about relationship. Ultimately, what Krishna wants us to do, he wants us to enter into relationship. And relationship especially if it's loving relationship.
And relationship means loving relationship. There is no relationship if there is no love. Relationship is based on love. So Krishna wants us to enter into this relationship with Him, and the freedom is essential for this.
This is the simple truth which people in this world don't understand, unfortunately. We all, being parts and parcels of Krishna, also want relationship.
Relationship also very essential for our well-being, for our emotional well-being, and everything else. But somehow or other, we miss this very point while we are entering relationship.
Impact of expectations on human relationships
We somehow rather try to impose or force somebody into relationship or we burden people with our expectations. Actually, the single most important reason why relationships break is the expectations.
People, they enter into relationship, and uh of course the typical relationship in this material world is the relationship between young boy and young girl.
And in the beginning, uh expectations are seemingly not there. But they're there in the seed form. And in the beginning of the relationship, everything seems to work only because the expectations are hidden.
In the beginning of the relationship, people say, I'm just for you. I am all yours. I don't expect anything from you. And in this way they deceive each other into the relationship.
But in reality, the seed of expectations is there, and the seed of expectations, even hidden from ourselves. The very good example which I heard somewhere how we hide our own expectations.
We don't even know the expectations when we enter into relationship that we expect something from people. Very good example. Let's imagine that somebody goes on the street and he loses his purse with money.
And you're going behind him and you are being an honest Hare Kṛṣṇa. You pick up this purse and say hello Hare Kṛṣṇa, please take this purse.
And this person, he takes this purse as if nothing happened, puts it back into his pocket and goes away without saying thank you. What would you feel? You would feel totally disturbed.
You would come back home and would say, you know, you know what happened, you know, I did this good thing to him, and he didn't even say thank you. You know, what kind of person he is.
The essence of this example is that when we would come and give this, we would not we didn't know that we expect thank you from him. But it has become revealed to us when he didn't say this.
In the same way, the same sort of game is going on in the beginning of relationship. In the beginning of relationship, usually it seems to be very pure. Like for example, mother with a child.
You know, she seemingly doesn't expect anything from him. And therefore, everything works. Therefore, everything is so nice and the relationship are very you know beautiful. But then the expectations grow and grow and grow.
You know, I being somehow rather a teacher in this movement, you know, people come to me and say, please bless us, we want to get married.
And you know God only knows with such a heavy heart I give these blessings to them. Because I know perfectly well what will happen in a couple of years.
The same, the very same people will come, nice people, both very nice, and they will say, cannot live, you know, now they say can't, I can't live without you. Just within one year they will say, I cannot live with you.
So it just changes completely. Why? The relationship breaks because of this expectations, the seed of expectations grows and grows and grows, and ultimately the relationship becomes prison.
But in reality, the beauty of this verse is that Krishna wants us to enter into relationship, but he at the same time insists that we are free and we will remain free.
Surrender as the natural constitutional state
That the relationship which Krishna expects and Kṛṣṇa expects from us is that the relationship based on complete freedom because this is the only and the very essential condition of love. Therefore, he says to Arjuna, surrender unto me.
And sometimes people cannot understand why God, if Krishna is so proud, he says, surrender unto me.
Like recently I was giving one seminar and I was explaining you know how people cannot be really happy in this world without Krishna. Without relationship with him, without surrendering to him.
And you know, one young man approached me and he said, This is this is ridiculous. Why Krishna made this world like this that we have to surrender? Why did he do this? Why did he not make this world so nice?
I said, because the surrender is natural, because we are so small. We are tiny. We are part.
The nature, the dharma of the part, the very nature of the part is to be surrendered to the whole, is to be harmonious and harmoniously act within the whole.
If we are not surrendered, it means that we are useless basically. That we are not acting within the complete whole. We are trying to artificially prove our own independence.
Whereas in reality we are not independent. We are dependent. We are always dependent. We are dependent by nature. When Krishna says, surrender unto me, he basically means to say just be yourself.
Do what you're supposed to do, not because I want you to do, but because this is your nature. There is nothing wrong with him saying this, surrender unto me. But at the same time, he says, surrender unto me.
But first you think about it. Don't do it blindly. Don't do it with heavy heart. Don't do it unwillingly. I don't want it. Only when you understand it completely.
It's very beautiful verse when Krishna says, I told you everything, now think. Because the very act of thinking is the source of freedom. The freedom comes from our intelligence.
And God gave us intelligence just to make sure that we remain free. The problem of the living entity is that we always try to switch off our intelligence. Sometimes we want to surrender, but we want to surrender blindly.
So Krishna doesn't want blind surrender, and Krishna doesn't want to force us into surrender. He wants us to be completely clear that this is what we want. This is what we need. This is what is essential for us.
And he knows that it's difficult for us to surrender. The whole Bhagavad-gītā is about this.
Bhagavad-gītā starts with this point when Arjuna says, Okay, Krishna, I'm completely bewildered. I'm completely, you know, I don't know what's going on. I'm in a very difficult situation.
I'm a surrendered soul. I don't know what to do. Please tell me what to do. I'm your disciple. Please order me what to do. And then immediately Arjuna says: but please don't ask me to fight. I'm your servant.
I do whatever you will tell me, but not this and not this and not this and not that. Na yotsya iti Govinda. Immediately, immediately he makes this point. And basically it's about us.
It's very difficult for us to surrender in reality.
Yes, when it's when we have a difficult situation, when we're bewildered, when we're perplexed, and Prabhupāda says that in perplexities of life, the perplexities of life, the difficulties of life, they force us into this thing, but still we don't want to surrender.
Or our surrender is conditional. What Krishna wants us to do, he wants unconditional surrender.
Escaping karma through higher intelligence
But after deliberation, after we completely understand that this is what is necessary for us.
The point of this unconditional surrender is very simple because we ourselves having tiny brain, being put into this complex and very difficult world, being completely entangled in this very difficult karmic situation.
Even Krishna Himself says in Bhagavad-gītā that nobody knows the perplexities of karma, nobody knows the difficult laws of karma. Nobody can say why is it happening with me? How is it happening? What is the reason?
Nobody can say this. People go to astrologers, and astrologer looks and he makes very, you know, very serious face and he says Ketu, Ketu in the fifth house, Ketu, Ketu in the fifth house.
And you know you sit there and you don't know what is Keto and what is fifth house and you become completely disturbed. You know Kat and how really Gat in the fifth house.
But you know I'm astrologer myself, so I know I know how to do this. The point is that usually astrologer knows very little. Really, very, very little. It's such a difficult thing.
And even Krishna himself says, nobody understands karma. Nobody can understand completely. You know, can you imagine karma is a mechanism which makes sure that everyone gets what he deserved.
All the you know, at least six billion people in different relationships, you know, not in this life, but in many, many lifetimes. And everyone gets what he's supposed to get. And somehow or other it works.
And everything remains balanced. So when we are in this perplexities of karma, we We imitate surrender. We feel that we we need to surrender. But Krishna explains to us the logic of surrender.
What he says, basically the logic of surrender, why Krishna insists on this? Why Krishna at the end of this book says very strongly, Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. Why does he say this?
The reason why he says this, because if we don't do this, we will never be able to get out of this vicious circle. So many people try it.
You know, you try and try and try, and the more you try, the more entangled you become. You know, it's like people in a quick sand.
If you are in a quicksand, the best policy is not to do anything, because the more you try to do it, the quicker you sink in.
In the same way, the same sort of situation when people try, like Einstein, he very beautifully put it. He said that it's not possible to solve the problem on the same level of intelligence which created the problem.
What people do all the time in this world. They are in a difficult situation.
They themselves created the difficult situation, but with this very mind, and they are in illusion, thinking that with this very mind by which we created the problem, we will solve the problem. It's not possible.
You cannot solve the problem having the same level of intelligence. Because this very intelligence, this very mind created the problem. And you will find a solution, but the solution will be worse than the problem itself.
That's you know that's the reality we're dealing with. All the time, people all the time they find solutions to all the problems.
The problem is only that the solution is usually worse than the problems. And they will have to find the solution for the solution of the previous problem.
And the solution for the new solution and the solution for the new solution. Like most of the medicines in the modern world, it's solution for some problems,
but they create worse problems than they solve. They solve the original problem, but they create bigger problems. But no problem.
We will find another medicine for this problem, which will create another problem, and so on and so forth. It's going on, it's a vicious circle.
So Krishna says that you will never be able to break this vicious circle yourself with your intelligence. Because this vicious circle is the creation of your intelligence.
If you want to break this vicious circle, the only way to do it is to take the higher advice, to bring yourself to the level of the higher intelligence.
And when Krishna says, surrender unto me, this is the name, the beautiful name of a beautiful book by Bhurijana Prabhu, Surrender Unto Me.
And Krishna says, Surrender unto me, he basically says, You know, I will solve your problems. If you want to solve the problem, come to the higher level, and from this higher level,
you will be able to solve your problems easily because I know how to solve the problems. I know how you get into these problems in the first place, and I will help you. It's no problem. I will lift you from this.
And he says it again and again and again. And therefore, he says, please think first. I'm not forcing you into this. I'm not pushing you into this. I want you to remain free. I want you to use the intelligence.
But please, please. And he with the tears in his eyes, he says this verse. He believes us, but at the same time, his heart is bleeding. He wants us to do it for our best interest.
And Prabhupada explains the same point in the purport. He says that we have to understand that this is not his interest. For him, I mean, it really doesn't matter.
Really doesn't matter, you know, because he's he's happy anyway.
Types of surrender in devotional teachings
But it's necessary for us to get out from this problematic situation which we are in. And I want to say a few words about the different types of surrender, which Srila
Jiva Goswami very beautifully explains in Bhakti Sandarbha. Because surrender is a part of bhakti. It's an essential part of, it's an attitude. Without surrender, love will not happen.
Even if we take the ordinary relationship, when the relationship really based on love, even in a material sense so to speak, it always implies surrender.
You know, if there is no surrender, if I don't surrender my will to your will willingly, there will be no relationship. And it's an essential part of relationship.
So Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī explains that there are different types of surrender. First of all, he says that there are two types of surrender.
He says that the first type of surrender is when we completely, totally understand that God is the only shelter. And we won't basically completely give ourselves to him, and he is the only shelter which is there.
So he says this is the first type, but it's very rare. And but and he even says he says this that sometimes people they want to uh uh no sorry, little change.
He says that the first type of surrender which is there is that uh and it's rare, but the first type of surrender which is there is that
when people are completely conscious that they're fighting with the six enemies within the heart. Six enemies within the heart is kāma, krodha, lobha, moha, māda and matsarya. Lust, anger, greed, illusion, pride, and envy.
And when people realize that this is the problem, that this is the root cause of the problem.
And because they want to solve this problem and they understand that they will not be able to solve the problems themselves, they go to God and say, I'm yours,
please take me and take away all this, uh, kāma, krodha, lobha, māda, moha, matsarya. But that's very rare because very rarely people really understand that that's the problem.
You come to an ordinary person on the street and ask him, you know, what do you think, lust is a problem or not? He says, no, the lack of lust is a problem. People don't think that lust is a problem for them.
It's the essence of life. You know, if there is no lust, something is wrong with them.
So and therefore Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says: this first type of surrender is very rare. Very rarely people really understand the root cause of the problem.
Whereas this is the root cause of the problem, the root cause of all the perplexities of our life, of all the difficulties, of all the painful situations, sufferings which are there.
There's six six things. Anger, lust, greed, illusion, envy, pride. This is what it is. But then he gives the second type of surrender, which is very interesting. And much more we can relate to it better.
He says the second type of surrender is that we understand the beauty of bhakti. We at least theoretically understand that this is something very valuable.
Bhakti or love of God, relationship with God is very, very essential. We understand this, but at the same time, we feel that we are indifferent to God within our heart. And we feel this indifference.
Theoretically, we understand. Yes, I have to love God. He created me. I'm supposed to be His lover. I'm basically meant for Him, and He is meant for me. But we are at the same time we feel that our heart is stone-like.
And Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says, and this sort of people, they understand that they're indifferent to God only because they are in love with this world.
And they understand that this kāma, krodha, lobha, moha, mada, mātsarya, the six things, this is the cause of their indifference to God. And then he says with this understanding, they come to Krishna and surrender to him.
So this is something I I would say something which we can relate to. We theoretically understood the beauty of bhakti, that bhakti is essential, that love of God is essential.
But at the same time, we're always fighting with this indifference within the heart. Lack of interest, basically. You know we always feel that there is something better to do. Not always, but sometimes we do feel.
You know, we have this doubt. Do I really have to sit in this nice shabbat evening and listen to this class. Maybe there is something better to do. This lack of interest, lack of taste—there's there... it's a problem.
And if if we come consciously towards this bhakti, at one point we understand that surrender is the means to get rid of this indifference within the heart.
Finding shelter through trial and error
And Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says that's the second type of surrender. And then he takes this second type of surrender and also bifurcates it and says that the second type of surrender also has two varieties.
And again, first variety is very rare, and the second variety is something which is uh which we can relate to, or something which is quite close to our situation.
So he says that the first type when we come to God understanding theoretically the beauty of bhakti but at the same time dealing with this stone-like heart, which is not moving towards God, really.
He says that the first type of this sort of surrender is that when we really understand that only God can solve this particular problem of ours. And again, as I said, it's it's rare.
When people are really very acutely aware of the problems of this world. And the main problem of this world is one. What is it? Death.
If people very acutely and intelligently understand that I have to find a solution for this problem, and only God can solve this problem. The problem of death, the problem of basically that
our existence is, as Prabhupāda beautifully puts it in the introduction to Bhagavad-gītā, our existence is in the very atmosphere of non-existence.
He formulates this problem very beautifully: that the main problem of a living entity is that our existence is taking place in the atmosphere of non-existence. The non-existence always threatens us.
So, Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says when we understand that this is the problem, and we try to find the solution out and come to God, understanding that only He can find a solution to this problem, then we surrender to Him.
But then he says, then there is another situation when people they tried all other means to solve their problems.
They went to all astrologers and they did some yoga, Iyengar yoga, and they were in this trikoṇāsana for many hours. And you know it's very interesting.
When Iyengar he was, I don't remember how many years he was, 92 or something, when he died. You know, we discussed it with one devotee, and this devotee very sincerely said, I thought he will never die. Because he's such a big yogi.
But even he, I angry, you know, greatest yogi. Somehow other he also died. Because of kidney failure. And triangle asana didn't really help. Ultimately didn't help.
So Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says: the second type of surrender is that we tried. We tried to take shelter of this and take shelter of that. Try to take shelter of this yoga, this process, or this or that.
And ultimately we realized yes, there is only one solution to this: to surrender to God. By the mistake and trial, by this process of mistake and trial,
we are coming to our senses and understand that we have to surrender to God. And then we will be able to execute surrender. Because as I said, again, it's not easy.
Overcoming irrational resistance to surrender
It's not really easy. And Prabhupāda also very beautifully puts it. He said our irrational unwillingness to surrender. Rationally, we understand we have to do it.
On a rational level, on the level of intelligence, we understand, yes, it's something good, but there is irrational resistance to this. Irrational resistance on some very deep level of our being,
of our soul, there is some sort of resistance to this. And therefore, Krishna says in this verse, you please think very deeply what I said to you. And basically, that's the order to all of us.
To read Bhagavad-gītā again and again, to come to this logical conclusion, which he puts in the very end of Bhagavad-gītā.
Sarva-dharmān parityajya, mām ekam śaraṇaṁ vraja, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi Masucha, I will protect you. I will protect you from all kinds of fear. And he says, you please do it.
Because when we when we don't do it, when we don't study Bhagavad-gītā and don't think very deeply about Bhagavad-gītā, then what will happen? It will happen, what happened with Arjuna in the beginning of Bhagavad-gītā.
And the end of Bhagavad-gītā, uh Arjuna said, Karishya Vachanam Tava, I will do what you told me to do. Willingly and readily. He said, Yes, I will do it. This very sincere feeling appeared within his heart.
I will do it. I am ready to do it. I will do whatever you tell me. But in the beginning, as I said, he said, yes, I am surrendered soul, but I will not fight and don't ask me too much.
You know, I am surrendered soul, but you know, please don't bother me. You know, uh, give me chanting beads and a name and I will go my way and you go your way, no problem.
So what I want to say is that and in between these two, kariṣye vacanaṁ tava and śiṣyās te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ tvāṁ prapannam, in between these two statements, the whole Bhagavad-gītā is there.
And in the end of Bhagavad-gītā, therefore Krishna says, please think very deeply.
Because to think about Bhagavad-gītā, read the Bhagavad-gītā again and again and again, and try to think. Āśeṣataḥ, he says specifically, he says, think about it so that nothing will remain
uh understandable for you. Āśeṣataḥ means without any śeṣa. Śeṣa means nothing left over, nothing is left without your understanding. Please think very deeply.
And when we think very deeply, then the natural surrender will appear in the heart. Then we will disentangle the notes of this irrational unwillingness to surrender.
If we don't do this, then the hidden doubts will remain within the heart. And then they will basically poison our practice of bhakti. We will practice bhakti. Arjuna is ready to practice bhakti from the very beginning.
And he says, you know, Krishna, I will not fight, but you know, you may tell me something and whatever, I'm your disciple. This is your right.
You please sit on the āsana, chant Hare Krishna, and you know, I will listen to you. But you know, so many times we listened. But uh it's it's a different thing.
One thing is to listen, another thing is to apply it in your own life. Day to day, minute to minute. That's difficult. Because so many good instructions we heard. And therefore, but the way is simple in one sense. To think.
To think about Bhagavad-gītā, to read it again and again and again. And again, to think what it means in my life. Not just theoretically.
Theoretically, we all know, we all have Bhakti-śāstrī diploma and Bhakti-vaibhava and Bhakti-vedānta and Bhakti-sārvabhauma and we have, we learned by heart twenty-five ślokas from Bhagavad-gītā. It's no problem.
It doesn't mean that we understand it.
Like, uh, again in Śrīla Prabhupāda's life and there was one man and very proudly after the lecture he came to Prabhupāda and he said, Prabhupāda, I can recite the whole Bhagavad-gītā within 45 minutes.
Because according to the tradition, it took 45 minutes for Kṛṣṇa to recite the whole Bhagavad-gītā, one muhūrta. So this man, very proudly said, I can recite the whole Bhagavad-gītā within 45 minutes.
And Prabhupāda looked at him and said, can you live Bhagavad-gītā for 45 minutes? It's one thing to recite Bhagavad-gītā for 45 minutes. Another thing is to live Bhagavad-gītā for 45 minutes. It's much more difficult task.
And it requires really requires a very good understanding. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa stresses this point, emphasizes this point. Please think very deeply about it.
Krishna's gradual guidance towards surrender
It's within your interest. I don't need it, you need it. You really need it because I'm speaking for your benefit. I want you to become happy. I'm already happy; it's no problem. Kṛṣṇa always smiles. You know.
Arjuna is sitting there, his tears in his eyes, he's trembling, he's white, he drops his Gāṇḍīva, and Kṛṣṇa is there, he smiles. And it looks very, he's not compassionate. No, but he doesn't come to our level.
He remains on his level where he is completely happy. And only from this level he can help us. He can solve our problems because this is the highest level. And he wants us also to smile all the time.
He doesn't want us to tremble and be bewildered and to completely you know faint. He wants us to smile all the time.
And that's the reason why he tells the Bhagavad-gītā. Why he very gradually, gradually, very carefully, without trying to, without you know, very
tactfully, he explains the Bhagavad-gītā to us. He knows that the Bhagavad-gītā is a very beautiful book. Kṛṣṇa could have said from the very beginning, sarvān dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. Bas. That's it.
I'm the Supreme Personality of Godhead, you're nobody, just surrender unto me. Now he says, no, no, no, Arjuna, yes, this is good, and this is good, and this is also very good. But this is better. Please think about it.
And very carefully, he takes us to this point. And ultimately, he wants us to say, sarvān dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. He wants us to understand that we have to surrender to him and
He wants us to understand that we have to surrender to him and basically means to do what he wants us to do, to accept whatever He sends to us in our lives with gratitude. And to be always grateful.
Because gratefulness and humility are synonyms. Basically, when he says, sarvān dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja, he says, be humble and be grateful.
Whatever he sends to us within our life is his mercy, is His grace, His care about us and His desire to uplift us to the high level of consciousness. But he at the same time, as I said, very much respects our freedom.
And when we enter into relationships we also have to follow the same mood. We also have to respect the freedom of other people. Yes, we have to give them good instructions.
As Krishna says, true instructions, sometimes heavy instructions. Sometimes people don't want to hear these instructions. Most of the time, people don't want to hear these instructions.
But at the same time, this freedom of choice is within them. And we have to really, uh, sometimes people they play this trick, they you know they they want to absolve their responsibility.
So what Krishna says in this verse, he says, responsibility is yours. Responsibility is yours. You make this choice.
But he makes sure that Arjuna makes the right choice. He goes out of his way to help Arjuna to make the right choice. But the choice is ours. We have this freedom to make this choice.
So that's, uh, that's what it is, and, uh, this is just a few things, uh, about this particular verse and the difficulties which we have with surrendering ourselves.
But basically if we understand that everything else fails, that there is no other shelter.
Understanding the true meaning of humility
It's also interesting, as I said, surrender means humility. And Prabhupāda once he gave a very beautiful definition of humility. It's Hari Vilas Prabhu. He remembers this.
He said that once they were walking with Śrīla Prabhupāda in Boulogne's forest, in the park in Paris, I believe, in France. And Hari Vilas Prabhu asked Śrīla Prabhupāda, what is humility?
Śrīla Prabhupāda gave a beautiful definition of humility. He says humility is the understanding
that nobody else, no your guns, no doctors, no police, no armed forces, no lawyers, no your government, nobody else can save you. Nobody else can really help you or give you shelter.
Because the natural psychology is to try to find shelter in something else, in astrologers, psychologist, doctors, whatever. But ultimately the shelter, the ultimate shelter is Kṛṣṇa. And that's humility.
If we understand this, that He's the shelter, He's the only one who can really give us protection, then then we will become heavy, then we will smile.
And if we don't understand this simple point, it will be very difficult for us because we will always try to find shelter in something else. And there is no really shelter in anything else. Anyway thank you very much. Yes.
The word surrender surrender is quite uh heavy confusing uh okay can you define how uh how you define this weather well I will not define that. I will quote Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī, how he defines this.
He takes the definition which is given there in Vaiṣṇava tantra in Ānukūlyasya-saṅkalpaḥ prātikūlyasya varjanam rakṣiṣyatīti viśvāso goptṛtve varaṇaṁ tathā ātma-nikṣepa-kārpaṇye ṣaḍ-vidhā śaraṇāgatiḥ. Karpanyeshadvidhasara Nagati.
Of surrender: to accept whatever is favorable for the mood of surrender. I will explain a little bit.
He says surrender basically that we accept whatever is favorable or whatever Krishna likes, and we do what he likes, and whatever is nourishing this mood of surrender, it's also included into this ānukūlyasya saṅkalpaḥ.
We accept this. Basically, we do what God likes, and we don't do what He doesn't like.
And, yeah, prātikūlyasya varjanam: we reject whatever He doesn't like or whatever is contrary to the mood of surrender. Like for example, you know. Why in every religion it is said, in all monotheistic religions it is said, don't worship anyone else.
Because it's not really, especially here in Judaism or Muslim religion or whatever and they all say you know he's very jealous God or whatever. But it's really contrary to the mood of surrender.
The shelter is only one. It's God. So and then Rakṣitīya did it understanding that God protects us, that in all situations He gives the protection.
And really, if we analyze our life, we will feel that how He protected us in difficult situations. And then Goptritve Varanam to accept God as our maintainer,
who not only protects us, but also maintains us is gives whatever is necessary.
So Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says that the essence of the six limbs, the two others is that ātma-nikṣepa when you give everything to God or surrender completely his whole whole personality and kārpāṇya, you are very humble.
Śrīla Jīva Gosvāmī says: the essence of this six limbs, as this fourth limb, oh yeah, fourth limb, Goptritve Varanam.
That understanding that we are dependent on God in our existence, that He gives us everything, that He gives us the air to breathe, that He gives us the water to drink, and everything is there. He provided. He provides.
So So if we understand what happens, you know, we are being tiny little living entities working in chemical laboratories and biochemical laboratories creating some genetically modified products.
We you know imagine fancy ourselves as being independent on God. And that's the whole gist, the whole essence of modern civilization, to how to become less and less dependent on God.
You know, like you know, I live in Moscow. Every now and then when they have big celebrations, they even, you know, they change the weather even.
They spend a lot of money and they, you know, they shoot some something in the air and you know nice sunny weather is there.
They always try to create some artificial situation but uh to to prove that we're independent on God. But uh surrender basically means we're dependent. We are dependent on everything in all regards.
And if you know, there's so much surrender that you know we breathe out and we may not be able to breathe in. Sometimes it happens, you know, people just cannot breathe. When we are hail and healthy it's not you know we are into this illusion that everything depends on me especially when we have young and strong body.
But in reality it's you know we are dependent on him and this deep understanding how much we are dependent on God and this whole creation and this whole system is surrender. And that means humility also.
And it means also gratitude. I'm grateful. You know, we take so many things for granted. It's so funny. You know, if you ask somebody, you know, people they always complain, I don't have this and I don't have that, you know.
They do I I don't have enough money, I don't have, you know, and they never think how much they have. How much we have? How much God gave us. No, this is this is this is normal.
But if He dares not to give me what I want, you know, He's bad God. No, I don't like him. It's like this, it's pride, human pride.
How surrender changes perception of reality
Surrender means I put aside my pride and I understand Every person has a mind that is dictating some kind of reality to that person.
How is it that when you decide that God exists and God is good and you have a relations with Him and you want to surrender, how is it that this the surrendering changes the reality of of of the mind.
It's an interesting question. Might indeed twist our perception of reality. But uh if we are uh Bold enough to accept the reality of God. See what happens when we just surrender.
First of all, let's let's say like this: surrender is a process. It's not just, you know, it's not you just switch the you know, you just turn the switch and everything just happened.
Surrender is a process and um by following this process, like for example, accepting whatever is favorable and rejecting whatever is against this mood, the mood of surrender or against the will of God.
So by accepting this process, you gradually change your perception also of reality, your mind will change. It's a gradual process of seeing more clearly God. Krishna formulates a very beautiful law, law of reciprocation.
What happens in the beginning? Why people don't believe in God and have so many proofs that God doesn't exist. And in reality, He doesn't exist in their reality.
Because God Himself says if somebody doesn't want to see me, he will never be able to see me. Because how we surrender to him, he reciprocates accordingly.
If you're totally indifferent to God, you will live in reality where there is no God. Moreover, you will live in reality which will prove you again and again and again that there is no God.
And God Himself will prove to you that there is no God. He will make sure that you completely, totally comfortable in this situation. Because that's the law of reciprocation.
And when we live in this situation, definitely we perceive worlds through our mind, and in this world which we perceive through a particular type of mind or attitude, we only see what we want to see.
Even you know, it's it's a very simple you know understanding. We only see what we want to see in this reality. But when somehow or other by the mercy, and usually it's the
mercy which is mercy of God which is coming through somebody, we meet with somebody and we somehow or other we come in contact with his perception of reality and this move, this initial kind of move comes into our heart.
I want to surrender. So when we start this process, then the perception gradually, gradually changes, the mind changes, and we will start to see presence of God everywhere.
And he will show to us his existence and we will we will understand, yes, this is so obvious. So surrender is a process of changing mind and our perception of reality.
And because now you can say if everything is relative, how do we know which perception is more accurate? But obviously, you know the reality with God is more complete than reality without God.
And even just common sense says that, you know, even little common sense says this, you know, this cannot be just by chance. You know, can you imagine that, you know, like scientists they say there was a big bang.
And because of this big bang, all of a sudden the sun is there and the moon is there and the earth is there and the plants is there and we are, you know, as a result of big bang.
Usually after big bang, you know, you're living in Israel, you know what big bang, what is the result of big bang usually? Nothing good comes up. But this is a special big bang.
And you know, it's usually people after big bang they become little crazies so I think that's so the common sense says that it's not just like this, you know.
There are some designs, some beautiful designs, some ideas there. And if you think deeply, and especially if you read Bhagavad-gītā, we understand, yeah, everything makes sense.
But again, the real perception of reality changes gradually according with the changes in our mind. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 3.31.48: dehīnāṃ pramatta-svatantra-tejasāṁ vibhuḥ kāmān-nayaty-adhama-lokam.
Navigating association with materialistic people
Can you translate? Yes, definitely I can translate.
Śrīla Prabhupāda writes in the Third Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that the association with materialistic people is like death for somebody who is trying to pursue the spiritual path of the transcendentalist?
How what do we do if we always associate with materialistic people in our work and even in our families. Well, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura explains that association doesn't mean physical proximity.
The real association of Sangha means dependence on these people. We become influenced by the mentality, by the materialistic or gross, or sinful mentality of other people if we become dependent on them.
If we just associate with people and we're not dependent on them, you know, then there is no harm. The influence becomes very deep when there is this relationship of dependence.
And dependence may be of different kinds, it may be physical dependence, it may be it may be emotional dependence.
When we are emotionally dependent on somebody, then there is a very strong influence which is coming from this sort of association.
And even in this case, if there is some dependence, because we do depend, if we work, we definitely depend on our boss. Some sort of dependencies there.
Then, you know, it's poisonous, but there is an antidote, you know, against any poison you can drink something which will make you poison free.
So association with devotees when you are therefore when we associate with devotees we try to depend on them.
Again, if we want to be protected from the strong association, then the association with devotees has to be of a different sort.
It has to be really association of dependence, emotional dependence or whatever dependence, it's good. Then the influence will be stronger and this influence will protect us from the other influences which are there.
I guess we have to finish. Oh. Thank you very much. Just a right. Shall it or Maharaj we may allow me time. Thank you very much, Maharaja. I mean, can we have more questions? Okay.
Sure you have more qualified people here to answer.