Vedic Kings and the Rule of Law

Western and Vedic concepts of monarchy

0:01His most famous work, Thomas Hobbes, yes, is called Leviathan. And the word Leviathan, it initially referred to a sea monster who was defeated by Yahweh in the Judaic scriptures.

0:22And the word can refer to anything large or formidable, like a great sea monster, Leviathan.

0:32So Hobbes used the word Leviathan to refer to a ruling body or monarch in a state, and he called this Leviathan a mortal God who is under the immortal God.

0:52And this Leviathan or king or monarch would rule the government above the law.

1:03Now you discussed this with Śyāmasundara, but Śyāmasundara didn't point out that Hobbes felt that the Leviathan or ruler need not obey the law.

1:19Now according to the Vedic conception, is the king or the monarch above the law? No. The king is also under the law.

1:37King, as we understand from Bhagavad-gītā, Krishna instructed the law to Sun-god, and he followed the laws; therefore he is to the common man.

2:04He is the supreme, and the king is supposed to be representative of God in the state. So above the law means because king is perfect by abiding the laws of Krishna, he cannot be subjected to any subordinate laws.

2:32But his perfection is there only when he follows Krishna's order. So the monarch, the king's law, king's order is final. There cannot be any... it's like king's mercy.

2:56Even one is condemned to death, but if the king's mercy is there, that he should be rescued, he should be freed, nobody can check.

Divine authority and the supreme controller

3:12So while this king is a representative of Krishna... «imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam». He first of all said the laws, the Bhagavad-gītā, which is so important for the human civilization.

3:38Millions of years, at least forty millions of years, it was spoken to the Sun-god, and Sun-god gave it to his son Manu, and his son Ikṣvāku inherited from Manu this way.

3:57The absolute law is coming by disciplic succession, and formerly India was governed by monarchy. They received the law of God by disciplic succession.

4:13They executed that, for whatever he decides, that is final, and he cannot be subjected to any other law. So the king, if he is following the laws given by God, then he is above all laws, material content.

4:48Hobbes compares man to a machine ultimately made by God, but he does not see this machine as controlled directly by God, but by the Leviathan, by the—by the king, the ruler. No.

5:10Uh, God is situated in everyone's heart, and He is seeing every minute action of the soul: what he is desiring, how he is manipulating the machine.

5:30This is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā: «īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati». Specifically, it is indicated that God is situated in the heart of the living being, and He is observing what he desires.

Material nature and the evolutionary process

5:58So according to his desire, God is so kind, He is supplying a machine. If he wants to enjoy this material world as a human being, God gives him opportunity to become a human being.

6:22And if he wants to enjoy this material as a dog, He gives him the body of a dog. If you want to enjoy as a hawk, He gives the body of the hawk. If you want to enjoy as a demigod, He gives him the body.

6:44So this is God's mercy. So long the individual living being wants to enjoy this material world, so according to his eagerness to enjoy in that way, He gives the facility. And that facility is the particular body.

7:09This body is material. It is supplied by the material nature. «bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni māyayā».

7:23The machine is made by the material ingredients upon the order of Krishna, or God, for the enjoyment of the living entity. So he sits in that machine and travels, just like we have got a car, we can travel.

7:49Similarly, we get a particular machine and we travel, and some species of life in some planet — there are innumerable planets and eight million species of life.

8:10So according to the contact with material nature, the living entity is desiring something, and God is so merciful that He is giving the possibility.

8:25But actually, see, because God is a friend, when he is prepared to understand from God how he'll be happy, He says that: "You give up all this nonsense plan, you just surrender to Me." Then he is perfect.

8:51Otherwise, if he desires, God will supply an unlimited number of machines for going here and there, up and down within this universe. There are two processes: either you go up or come down.

9:10And the down means lower species of life. Up means higher species of life, just like demigod Brahmā. Even one day's life calculation is impossible to do.

9:30There are different grades of life: millions of years living and a few moments living. So every opportunity is given by God because He is the Supreme Controller. We desire. Man proposes, God disposes. This is God's position.

9:55But so long as he'll go on proposing this and that, he'll never be happy. When he agrees to the plan of God, then he'll be better.

Qualifications for saintly leadership and governance

10:13Hobbes says that warfare is perpetual and that the struggle for existence goes on and on, and therefore the Leviathan is necessary.

10:30This he believes in: the divine right of kings, that the Leviathan is like God's representative, God's lieutenant, and he has his sovereignty under God. Yes. Like a Vedic monarch, or that is the perfection of morality.

11:04God, king is called nṛpa-deva, nara-deva. Although he is in a human form of body, he's God. He also said that this could be not only an individual but a group of individuals. Yeah.

11:30A group of individuals can be made, provided they are devotees. But if the group of individuals, if they are all rogues and dushkṛtis, they cannot be representative of God.

11:48But either singular or plural, if all of them are single, very, actually representative of God, abiding by the laws. Laws means, actually, dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam. What God says, that is actual religion or law.

12:22And if we manufacture in our own ways, without reference to the God's program, it will be useless and failure.

12:36He says, some men have pretended, for their disobedience to their sovereign, a new covenant or a new agreement with God, made not with men but with God.

12:53This also is unjust, for there is no covenant or agreement with God but by mediation of somebody that represents God's person, which none does but God's lieutenant, who has this sovereignty under God.

13:13Could a monarch use this argument, which is the argument of divine right, in order to discourage his subjects rebelling under the pretense that they are communing directly with God?

13:32What guidelines are there to assure against this? There was, wasn't there one king, King Vena? King... So, everything depends on the king's accepting the absolute instruction of God.

14:08The king in my Vedic civilization, the king was absolutely following the regulation given by God, and it was confirmed by saintly persons, sages. Then it was not himself; there was an advisory board of the monarchy.

14:46They were not politician-diplomats, but they are all saintly persons, knew very well the Vedas, and they used to guide the monarch. Therefore, the monarchy, the absolute governing body.

15:08The ministers were helping, but the king was educated by God's direct instruction, as Krishna said:

Applying spiritual principles to modern administration

15:23imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān... Vivasvān, the sun-god. There are traditions, two kṣatriya families: one from the sun-god and one from the moon-god, Sūrya-vaṁśa and Candra-vaṁśa.

15:48The kṣatriyas in India, they claim, and that is a fact, because we see that Sūrya, sun-god, is the original kṣatriya. From him came Manu, Vaivasvata Manu. This is the age of Vaivasvata Manu. From him came his son Ikṣvāku.

16:16By the paramparā system, if you take Krishna's instruction— Krishna's instruction is already there. If the governments all over the world take Krishna's instruction, then every government will be perfect.

16:37There will be no disturbance of peace and happiness. That will be perfect to all. Krishna has given instruction in all fields of activities. Simply we have to take it practically. But the people are so foolish.

17:05So instead of taking the standard way of living, they are manufacturing, on account of their demonic tendency.

17:18If the head of the state is degraded, either individually or collectively, how then can there be good government? If they become perfect according to the instruction of God, then everything will be good.

17:46And Hobbes finally gives this definition of God: a most pure, simple, invisible spirit, incorporeal. Incorporeal. Spirit incorporeal. Why invisible? Invisible. Why? He's visible. Invisible?

18:13When Krishna spoke, Krishna was visible and Arjuna was talking with Him, face to face. Mm-hmm. So why is He invisible?

18:27If He likes—that depends on His goodwill— He becomes visible to a competent or perfect person; He is visible. Yes, talking with God.

18:49Not only visible, but talking face to face; you are asking questions and Krishna is answering.

18:57So one has to become qualified like Arjuna, then he'll see Krishna, God, and you talk with Him, you get direct instruction; that is not difficult. So He is not visible to the, uh, imperfect person.

19:20But He is visible to the perfect person. But He is not at all invisible. Well, that's all on Hobbes.