Devotional Service Without Obstacles

А. Ч. Бхактиведанта Свами Прабхупада · Хайдарабад · 1974

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Spiritual equality and devotional service

Prabhupāda: So, "All glories to the assembled devotees" means including the children also.

Kṛṣṇa conscious movement is so nice that even children—without any knowledge of Vedānta and big, big philosophy—simply by attending the performance of devotional service, even a child’s life can be glorious without any education.

That is, we are explaining in this statement of Sūta Gosvāmī = ahaituky apratihatā Apratihatā means you cannot check anyone. It doesn’t matter what he is.

He may be a grown-up man or a small child; he may be educated, not educated; civilized or uncivilized.

Even man or animal, everyone can take part in Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, bhakti-yoga. This word is very important, that ahaituky apratihatā. Apratihatā means "without any obstacle." Because this Kṛṣṇa consciousness is meant for the soul, not for the body.

Material desires and the supersoul

So far body is concerned, there is..., according to our past karma it is destined. SB 7.6.3सुखमैन्द्रियकं दैत्या देहयोगेन देहिनाम् ।सर्वत्र लभ्यते दैवाद्यथा दुःखमयत्नतः ॥३॥sukham aindriyakaṁ daityādeha-yogena dehināmsarvatra labhyate daivādyathā duḥkham ayatnataḥPrahlāda Mahārāja continued: My dear friends born of demoniac families, the happiness perceived with reference to the sense objects by contact with the body can be obtained in any form of life, according to one’s past fruitive activities. Such happiness is automatically obtained without endeavor, just as we obtain distress.

Prahlāda Mahārāja says that here in this material world, we are after sense pleasure, everyone = birds, beasts, animals, aquatics, human beings—even the demigods.

Anyone who is within this material world, he is concerned with the gratification of the senses in different degree; but, in any means, sense gratification. Therefore, we are given, by the laws of nature...

Not..., nature is not independent, but is superior order of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The Supreme Personality of Godhead as Paramātmā is sitting in everyone’s heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe

Specifically mentioned, it is within the heart, hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati. So "I am also there, and the Supersoul is also there." So the Supersoul’s business is to witness, anumantā upadraṣṭā

That is mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā. The Supersoul is simply observing what I am doing.

And He is the supreme witness, upadraṣṭā. And anumantā. As I desire—not according to my desire, but because I desire—I have been given the freedom to desire.

But without the sanction of the Supersoul, I cannot do anything. Just like a child. A child is persistent, crying, "Father I must have it.

Give me." Father does not like to give him that undesirable thing, but because the child persists in crying, making disturbance, sometimes father says, "All right.

You take." That is father’s mercy = "Oh, why this child is crying?

Let him have it, that’s all." We have got practical experience, so I may recite that, in my younger days, when my eldest son was only two years and half, so he was trying to catch the table fan. The table fan was moving.

So I was requesting, "No, don’t touch." But he insisted, as child.

So one of my friends was sitting; he said that "Make it slow and allow him to touch it." So I did it, and the child touched it, and there was in the finger tang! Then I asked him to again touch = "No, no!"

This is the process. Kṛṣṇa bhuliyā jīva bhoga vāñchā kare [Prema-vivarta]. We, all living entities, we have come here within this material world to enjoy, to lord it over the material nature. It is going on.

Everyone can understand, that what is this markets? If you go to [indistinct], very busy quarter, though what is the business there? The business is that everyone wants to enjoy this world to the full satisfaction.

Either you call it industry or trade or business or high court, what is the aim? The aim is that "I want to enjoy." This is individually.

Constitutional position of the soul

To take it nationally, statewide, one state wants that "My men, let me extend that sense gratification." First of all individual sense gratification, then extended = "My family, my son, my grandson, they will enjoy, make such arrangement." This is nature.

And then you extend it, from family-wide to community-wide, from community, national-wide.

Then international also, that we human beings, we should combine together and send all the animals to the slaughterhouse and eat them—the combined effort. What is that? "We shall enjoy." This is going on.

Kṛṣṇa bhuliyā jīva bhoga vāñchā kare, pāsate māyā [Prema-vivarta]. This is māyā. This disease has to be cured. That requires knowledge, and religiousness. That required.

So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means to train people to come to his original constitutional position. What is that? Every living entity is part and parcel of God.

Therefore the duty of the part and parcel is to serve the whole. The part and parcel cannot enjoy individually or independently. That is not possible. Just like this finger is part and parcel of my body.

It has to enjoy at a certain post. Not that a finger will catch up some rasgullā and enjoy it. That is not possible. It must go through the stomach. The rasagullas will be caught and put into the mouth.

It must go to the stomach, and the stomach will digest it, and the energy will be distributed—not only to this finger, but other fingers, other parts of parts of the body. This has to be learned.

That is called yato bhaktir adhokṣaje We are discussing that point. And this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is so nice that immediately everyone comes into ecstasy, and he wants to serve Kṛṣṇa.

Developing spiritual assets and piety

So this temple or Deity worship, arcana, it gives chance to the people to take part in serving Kṛṣṇa. Just like this child is dancing, it is taken into account of his devotional service; it is not in vain.

Anyone who comes here, who hears, who rings some bell or dance or offer obeisances... You’ll find all these descriptions is there in our Nectar of Devotion. Kṛṣṇa is so kind.

Anyone who comes before Him and renders a little service,

SB 7.5.23श्रीप्रह्राद उवाचश्रवणं कीर्तनं विष्णो: स्मरणं पादसेवनम् ।अर्चनं वन्दनं दास्यं सख्यमात्मनिवेदनम् ॥ २३ ॥इति पुंसार्पिता विष्णौ भक्तिश्चेन्नवलक्षणा ।क्रियेत भगवत्यद्धा तन्मन्येऽधीतमुत्तमम् ॥ २४ ॥śrī-prahrāda uvācaśravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥsmaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanamarcanaṁ vandanaṁ dāsyaṁsakhyam ātma-nivedanamiti puṁsārpitā viṣṇaubhaktiś cen nava-lakṣaṇākriyeta bhagavaty addhātan manye ’dhītam uttamamPrahlāda Mahārāja said: Hearing and chanting about the transcendental holy name, form, qualities, paraphernalia and pastimes of Lord Viṣṇu, remembering them, serving the lotus feet of the Lord, offering the Lord respectful worship with sixteen types of paraphernalia, offering prayers to the Lord, becoming His servant, considering the Lord one’s best friend, and surrendering everything unto Him (in other words, serving Him with the body, mind and words) — these nine processes are accepted as pure devotional service. One who has dedicated his life to the service of Kṛṣṇa through these nine methods should be understood to be the most learned person, for he has acquired complete knowledge.

Little service, out of these nine varieties of devotional service. One, two, three, or just one—he is profiting. This is called ajñāta-sukṛti. Without knowledge, some balance of spiritual life is developed.

Just like we collect money, four annas, four annas. Just like home saving. Say you can put it four hundred, five hundred, one rupee—one day you’ll see it is fifty rupees.

So this is called ajñāta-sukṛti. Without sukṛti, without being purified, without being pious, nobody can approach God. That is not possible. Catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ sukṛtino 'rjuna This very word is used by Kṛṣṇa.

Sukṛti means those who are..., whose background is pious. And those who are duṣkṛtinaḥ... Two words are being used = one sukṛti and one duṣkṛti. Kṛti, kṛti, this word is used, one is very expert.

So the "expert" word is there, kṛti, but duṣ and su. There are men who are very expert, but some of them employing their expertness in sinful activities, and some of them employing their expertness in pious activities.

That is the difference. You can apply your brain in two ways = this way or that way.

But those who are applying their brain for pious activities, they can be devotees, and those who are applying their brain for impious activities, they cannot. That is not possible.

So this Deity worship is open for everyone so that, knowingly or unknowingly, anyone who is coming here, he is becoming pious. Kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ

Because Kṛṣṇa worship, or God worship, is not possible for persons who are sinful. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: BG 7.28येषां त्वन्तगतं पापं जनानां पुण्यकर्मणाम् ।ते द्वन्द्वमोहनिर्मुक्ता भजन्ते मां दृढव्रताः ॥२८॥yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ pāpaṁjanānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇāmte dvandva-moha-nirmuktābhajante māṁ dṛḍha-vratāḥPersons who have acted piously in previous lives and in this life and whose sinful actions are completely eradicated are freed from the dualities of delusion, and they engage themselves in My service with determination.

Dṛḍha-vratāḥ: firm determination. That kind of devotional life is possible only when one is completely free from the resultant action of sinful activity. Yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ. Anta-gataṁ: one who has finished.

We are suffering and enjoying, in this life. So what we are enjoying, that is due to our pious activities in the past.

Just like in our daily business, if you have to take some money from somebody, that is your income; and if you have to pay somebody, that is your expenditure. Two things are going on.

You cannot expect here, in this material world, simply income. There must be expenditure.

So two things, they are known as sukha and dukha. Sukha means "happiness" and dukha means "distress." So as Prahlāda Mahārāja says, that this sukha and dukha, happiness and distress, is already destined.

Responsibility and inquiry into truth

As soon as I get a certain type of body, my life’s happiness and distresses are fixed up. That’s all. You cannot change it. That is called destiny.

But the atma, although within, encaged within this body, is always separated, apart from. Just like I can give you so many examples, that a dog, the body is dog’s body; it must live as dog.

But even a dog can be made a devotee. It doesn’t matter. Because he has got the body of a dog it does not mean that he cannot be made a devotee. It can be trained.

As you train the dog how to bite others at night, so you can train the dog also how to become devotee. Therefore this is training. This child is being trained up.

From the beginning of his birth he’s in the association of devotees. So if it is possible for one child, many thousands and millions of children can be taught in the devotion. What is the difficulty? But there is no chance.

There is no chance. The Bhāgavata says that if you cannot train your children to become free from birth and death, don’t beget. Pitā na sa syāj jananī na sā syāt, na mocayed yaḥ samupeta-mṛtyum That is contraceptive.

Don’t beget child or go enjoy sex, sense gratification, and use some contraceptive method. No.

The determination should be that "I am a human being, so I must have a child who must be a human being." What is that human being? To jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā Here it is, I have discussed with you last night.

Tattva-jijñāsā. Everyone should be interested to inquire, athāto brahma jijñāsā, or tattva-jijñāsā: What is the aim of life? What is the Absolute Truth? So children should be educated also from the very beginning.

This little child, he, she can also distinguish what is Kṛṣṇa, what is māyā. If she is offered something which is not interest..., not in connection with our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, she says, "It is māyā," "He is karmī." Like that.

She has learned all these words. Of course, she is child, but if training is there... Fortunately, in our childhood also we got a good father; we were also trained. So this is wanted = jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā

Anyone can be trained. It is not that because one who is born in India and in the family of a brāhmaṇa, therefore he can be trained in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, not others. No. That is not a fact.

Anyone can do, any part of the world. Kṛṣṇa does not say that "Only the Indians are My very beloved living entities," or "The brāhmaṇas are the beloved entities." Kṛṣṇa does not say. Kṛṣṇa says,

BG 14.4सर्वयोनिषु कौन्तेय मूर्तयः संभवन्ति याः ।तासां ब्रह्म महद्योनिरहं बीजप्रदः पिता ॥४॥sarva-yoniṣu kaunteyamūrtayaḥ sambhavanti yāḥtāsāṁ brahma mahad yonirahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitāIt should be understood that all species of life, O son of Kuntī, are made possible by birth in this material nature, and that I am the seed-giving father.

"In all species of life, including animals, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pita: the material nature is the mother, and I am the seed-giving father." Kṛṣṇa claims. So Kṛṣṇa is for everyone.

We have impressed this philosophy to the Westerners, and they have taken it. So that Kṛṣṇa is neither Indian nor Hindu. Kṛṣṇa is God. He is for everyone. God is neither Hindu nor Muslim nor Christian. God is God.

And anyone who wants to approach God, he must also forget himself that he is Hindu, he is Muslim, he is Christian, he is this and that.

CC Madhya 19.170সর্বোপাধিবিনির্মুক্তং তৎপরত্বেন নির্মলম্ ।হৃষীকেণ হৃষীকেশ-সেবনং ভক্তিরুচ্যতে ॥ ১৭০ ॥sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁtat-paratvena nirmalamhṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate“ ‘Bhakti, or devotional service, means engaging all our senses in the service of the Lord, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the master of all the senses. When the spirit soul renders service unto the Supreme, there are two side effects. One is freed from all material designations, and one’s senses are purified simply by being employed in the service of the Lord.’

Purification and satisfaction in devotion

One has to become purified by being freed from all these designations, that "I am this. I am..." These designations are regarding reference with this body. It has nothing to do with Kṛṣṇa consciousness, God consciousness.

Therefore Sūta Gosvāmī says, SB 1.2.6स वै पुंसां परो धर्मो यतो भक्तिरधोक्षजे ।अहैतुक्यप्रतिहता ययाऽत्मा सुप्रसीदति ॥ ६sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmoyato bhaktir adhokṣajeahaituky apratihatāyayātmā suprasīdatiThe supreme occupation [dharma] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self.Samprasīdati. Sama bhuvena prasīdati[?]. Fully satisfied.

If we want full satisfaction, sarvātmā... Just like if you take bath in the river or in the sea, it is very refreshing. You cannot have such refreshing feeling while taking bath in a tub of water.

If you just jump in the river, sarvātma-snapanaṁ. So when you become Kṛṣṇa conscious, then yayātmā samprasīdati. Sam means samba, "fully." Simply by coming to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one becomes fully satisfied.

Yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati And if you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, then you understand everything. Yasmin tuṣṭe jagat tuṣṭam. If you have satisfied Kṛṣṇa, then the whole world is satisfied.

These are the principles. So everyone can train. It is not very difficult thing. At home, everyone can train himself, the family members, the children, to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. What is the difficulty?

We are practically seeing = this child is dancing. You can also teach your children to dance in the presence of Deity. You can also establish Deity like this.

And you can also offer prayer; you can also chant; you can also dance. In the evening, if you perform this sacrifice... Sacrifice means you sacrifice your time without going to the cinema.

If you dance at home with children, wife, then your life becomes successful. What is the difficulty? And anyone can do. Anyone can do. Kṛṣṇa does not say that only Hindus will do, or the Indians will do. Never. Kṛṣṇa says,

BG 9.32मां हि पार्थ व्यपाश्रित्य येऽपि स्युः पापयोनयः ।स्त्रियो वैश्यास्तथा शूद्रास्तेऽपि यान्ति परां गतिम् ॥३२॥māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityaye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥstriyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrāste 'pi yānti parāṁ gatimO son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth – women, vaiśyas [merchants] and śūdras [workers] – can attain the supreme destination.

We may think the others are born in abominable families, low caste. That’s all right, so far society is concerned.

But Kṛṣṇa does not say that those who are born in so-called low-caste families or other families, they cannot worship Him. Kṛṣṇa says,

Pāpa-yoni, the lower caste.

That is in Sanskrit word called pāpa-yonayaḥ. Because when one is pious he gets birth in very rich family, in pious family, and when one is not pious, he gets an impious family, poor family.

That is according to karma. But Kṛṣṇa says that even though one is born in impious family, pāpa-yoni, he can also come to Him.

Kṛṣṇa does not say that "Only persons who are born in pious families, rich families, he will come to Me." No. BG 9.32मां हि पार्थ व्यपाश्रित्य येऽपि स्युः पापयोनयः ।स्त्रियो वैश्यास्तथा शूद्रास्तेऽपि यान्ति परां गतिम् ॥३२॥māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityaye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥstriyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrāste 'pi yānti parāṁ gatimO son of Pṛthā, those who take shelter in Me, though they be of lower birth – women, vaiśyas [merchants] and śūdras [workers] – can attain the supreme destination.

So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is open for everyone; therefore ahaituky apratihatā. So this verse we were discussing yesterday, jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā. Life should be devoted for inquiry about the Absolute Truth = athāto brahma jijñāsā. In the Vedānta-sūtra it is mentioned, brahma jijñāsā: to inquire about the Absolute Truth.

The same thing is expressed here in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam = jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā. Tattva and brahma, there is no difference. Brahma jijñāsā. That should be the life.

Divine energies and free choice

Athāto brahma jijñāsā, jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā. The whole formula is, as it is explained by Sūta Gosvāmī, that we are working hard day and night. That’s a fact; everyone knows. But our aim of life should be fixed up.

There is no question of stopping the work. The aim of life should be... That is the instruction of all the Vedas. The aim of life is missing. In the modern civilization, the aim of life is missing. What is that aim?

Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi... Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum

Svārtha-gati: our aim of life, svārtha-gati. Svārtha means our interest, "self interest," and gati means "progress." So we are advancing, we are making progress, but where the progress will end? That is Viṣṇu.

But people, they do not know. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum They do not know it; but for what they are working so hard? That is also explained, that

SB 7.5.31न ते विदुः स्वार्थगतिं हि विष्णुंदुराशया ये बहिरर्थमानिनः ।अन्धा यथान्धैरुपनीयमानास्तेऽपीशतन्त्र्यामुरुदाम्नि बद्धाः ॥३१॥na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁdurāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥandhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāste 'pīśa-tantryām uru-dāmni baddhāḥPersons who are strongly entrapped by the consciousness of enjoying material life, and who have therefore accepted as their leader or guru a similar blind man attached to external sense objects, cannot understand that the goal of life is to return home, back to Godhead, and engage in the service of Lord Viṣṇu. As blind men guided by another blind man miss the right path and fall into a ditch, materially attached men led by another materially attached man are bound by the ropes of fruitive labor, which are made of very strong cords, and they continue again and again in materialistic life, suffering the threefold miseries.

Bahir-artha, the external. External means...

You can say the material world or this body, these are external, bahir. Bahir means "external." So..., or the material energy, bahiraṅgā śakti; that is called material energy.

Kṛṣṇa has got many energies = parāsya, vividhaiva śaktir. Parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate He has got multi-energies.

They have been divided into three by expert scholars and ācāryas. They are called antaraṅga-śakti, bahiraṅga-śakti and taṭasthā-śakti. So taṭasthā-śakti: we, we living entities.

BG 7.5अपरेयमितस्त्वन्यां प्रकृतिं विद्धि मे पराम् ।जीवभूतां महाबाहो ययेदं धार्यते जगत् ॥५॥apareyam itas tv anyāṁprakṛtiṁ viddhi me parāmjīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāhoyayedaṁ dhāryate jagatBesides these, O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is another, superior energy of Mine, which comprises the living entities who are exploiting the resources of this material, inferior nature.

We are prakṛti; we are energy of Kṛṣṇa. We are not Kṛṣṇa. Although energy and the energetic are not different, still, energy is not the energetic.

This example I give you many times, that there is the sun and the sunshine. Sunshine is the energy of sun, but when the sunshine enters your room, you cannot say that sun has entered.

Neither you can say the sun has not entered. Therefore simultaneously one and different. When the sunshine enters your room, it is to be taken as accepted the sun has entered; but still the sun has a different position.

So the energies, there are mainly three energies of Kṛṣṇa = the material energy, the spiritual energy and the marginal energy. The marginal energy, we are.

We are called marginal because we have to live under the energy, another superior energy. Just like if you work in the office, you have to work under the superintendent, not independently.

Similarly, our marginal position is that we can live under the guidance of the material energy or we can live under the guidance of the spiritual energy. To live under the guidance of spiritual energy is our actual life.

And to live under the guidance of material nature, that is called māyā, false. Therefore we are marginal; we can make our choice. Yathecchasi tathā kuru We can act according to our choice. Kṛṣṇa gives freedom.

When Arjuna was taught Bhagavad-gītā and Kṛṣṇa asked him, "Now what do you want to do?" [break] [end]