Bhagavad-gita 5.25
Бхакти Вигьяна Госвами · South Africa · 2007
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Reading Bhagavad-gita text and purport
Om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya, Om namo bhagavate vāsudevāya naram caiva narottamaṁ naram caiva devīṁ sarasvatīṁ vyāsaṁ tato jayam udīrayet.
read the 25th verse of the fifth chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, which is entitled karma-yoga, Excel and Krishna Consciousness. Labante brahma-nirvāṇam ṛṣayaḥ kṣīṇa-kalmaṣāḥ, chinnandvaitā yatmāno sarva-bhūta-hite ratāḥ.
labante brahma-nirvāṇam sarva-guḥ Titera Tahuta Hitera, Babante Brahmanirvana, Nirva, Visayasinakama Sah, Visayasam Brahmanirvana, ksi nakalma shah, sinadvaidhaya tatmana, sarvabhutehitherata Sarvahit Lavante Brahmanirwanam Lawante Brahmanirwanam Vishashinakalmashaha Vishashinakalmasha Labandramadirwanam, Labandirwanam, Vriyaha China Kalmasha, Kalmasha, Sinaya Tatmanaha, Mana The Vante Rama Nirvana, the Vantirama Nirvana, Nashaya Shina Kalmasha, Vayashinakalmasha, Sinnadvaid Atmana, Sina Dai Dharma, Serva Bhutha Sarva Bhutai.
Why are you missing today? Brahmanirvanam Brahmanirvanam Liberation and the Supreme. Liberation and the Supreme. Rishah Rishayah. Those who are active within. Those who are active within.
Sinakalmashaha Sinakalmasha War devoid of all sins. Who are devoid of all sins? Sinna having torn off Vaidha Duality Yadat Manaha Yyadmanaha Engaged in self-realization for all living entities.
For all living entities In the welfare work. In the welfare work. Rata engaged. Translation.
Those who are beyond the dualities, that arise from doubts, whose minds are engaged within, and who are always busy working for the welfare of all living beings, who are free from all sins achieve liberation in the Supreme.
Only a person who is fully in Krishna consciousness can be said to be engaged in the welfare world for all living entities.
When a person is actually in the knowledge that Krishna is the fountain head of everything, then when he acts in that spirit, he acts for everyone.
The sufferings of humanity are due to forgetfulness of Krishna as the supreme enjoyage, the supreme proprietor, and the supreme friend.
Therefore, to act to revive this consciousness within the entire human society is the highest welfare work. One cannot be engaged in such first class welfare work without being liberated in the supreme.
A Krishna conscious person has no doubt about the supremacy of Krishna. He has no doubt because he is completely freed from all sins. This is the state of divine love.
A person engaged only in ministering to the physical welfare of human society cannot actually help anyone. Temporary relief of the external body and the mind is not satisfactory.
The real cause of one's difficulties and the hard struggle for life may be found in one's forgetfulness of his relationship with the Supreme Lord.
When a man is fully conscious of his relationship with Krishna, he is actually a liberated soul, although he may be in the material tabernacle. Śrīla Prabhupād kī jī!
Invocation prayers before the discourse
Ramanirvanam Rishaya Sina Kamasa, Shina Baidha, Yatakmanaha Thus far beyond all dualities that arise from Taos, whose minds are engaged within, and who are always busy working for the welfare of all living beings, free from all sins, achieved liberation in the Supreme.
Namau Vishnu Padaya Krishna Krishna Bhuta.
Srimmaate teva bak Kiteriri d'un tasmi di nani, na mastra swa di gura vani, prachardi, n richysi, smina vadi, pas chapia de satayni, fan chaca o patarubech, ripa sinducha, patitta nameby, baisna vi biomamon, djri Krishna, Chaitanya, Prabhupunita Nanda, Sri Advaita Badha, Shiva Krishna
Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare, Are Rama Lama Rama Rama Lare Hare, Krishna Hare Krishna Ajannulangitha Bujokana Pavadatosam Kipta Naika Pitarokamalajadaks, Vishwambarod Vijay Varoyu Gudharma palavra priyakaru, karunavatara.
Very happy to be with all of you tonight. I will speak a few words about this verse from Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā is the most important book. If we understand Bhagavad-gītā, we can become happy.
Actually the whole purpose of Bhagavad-gītā is to make us happy. Krishna saw the crisis of Arjuna. Krishna saw his existential crisis when he was about to lose his ego. And Krishna told him what is his mistake.
And this is the common mistake. Every human being makes the same mistake. So Krishna gives the solution for all our problems. It's up to us whether we apply this solution or not. But the solution is there.
And if we don't apply this solution in our life we become happy. There is no doubt about it. Again, his only purpose of speaking Bhagavad-gītā is to make us happy.
And therefore, he starts this verse from saying prāpya brahma-nirvāṇam. The last verse of this chapter, fifth chapter of Bhagavad-gītā is famous formula of peace. Peace formula, as Prabhupada called it.
bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati Śānti-ṛcchati Krishna explains how you can become peaceful.
Threefold miseries and the peace formula
You know we all know that the most famous mantras in Sanskrit are śānti-pāṭha. When people are begging or praying for peace, peace from three miseries, why three times śānti śānti śānti? Because there are three miseries.
Ādhyātmika-kleśa, ādhi-daivika-kleśa and the ādhi-bhautika-kleśa. You know and if you don't have you know, all three of them. At least you have one of them. There is no doubt about it.
Either I'd be bound to place some other living entities like your wife or your children or your boss or somebody else inflicts your uh pain.
Or you have ādhidaivika kleśas and different forces in the universe like climate or earthquake or excessive heat or excessive cold will harass you.
Or if you don't have even this, let's say you have a nice wife for a change as an exceptional case. You have nice children, you have nice situation, you have perfect job. You have perfect location where you live.
Let's say everything is there, but still your body is there and your mind is there.
And they will afflict you miseries. Because in the mind, miseries are already there. From your past life, from your karma, some reflections or impressions are stored which will cause disturbance in your mind.
And therefore when people are asking for peace, they're saying, śānti, śānti, śānti, give me peace from all these troubles. But no matter how much they say this, they will never get it.
However, Krishna here explains in this chapter, how you can get it. What is the practical way of achieving this peace? Prabhupāda used this peace formula in his historical march to the United Nations.
Because, you know, there was a march of peace in front of United Nations. United Nations was created to stop war.
But even though it was created to stop the war, the number of wars only increased after creation of the United Nations. And Prabhupada, in his speech, on this occasion, he said, this is the peace formula.
If you want to have peace, this is the peace formula. You have to recognize God as the supreme proprietor, as the supreme enjoyer and the friend within your heart. The best friend which is there.
Unless you recognize Him, unless you set properly this relationship with the Lord, you will not be able to make sense out of everything else. This is the first step to achieve peace.
And here, Krishna also explains, labhante brahma-nirvāṇam ṛṣayaḥ kṣīṇa-kalmaṣāḥ.
Seeking peace within versus outside
Actually, this is interesting and I wanted to speak a little bit about this. What Krishna is talking about here, he says that you cannot achieve brahma-nirvāṇa. Brahma-nirvāṇa basically means peace.
It's a it's a very fashionable word, and Krishna is using this word, brahma-nirvāṇa. Nobody knows what it is, but he says, you will achieve it. He says, what is the what is the path to this? How can you achieve peace?
How you can achieve this undisturbed state of mind. He explains in the previous verse that basically there are two attitudes in this world. One, people are turned outside, the extroverts.
They are trying to achieve peace, happiness in the outside world. And so many people, majority, 99.9999999999999999999999 nine nine nine I don't know.
You know, maybe there is a little fraction of human society that is looking for peace inside.
The vast majority of people, they are trying to find happiness, they are trying to find fulfilment of their desires in the outside world. They think that this is the happiness. This is where happiness is.
Like there is a nice story in this regard. How people are looking for happiness in the wrong place. Once, there was one rich man, he went on pilgrimage, and he had a big stack of money with him.
And one thief, he noticed that this guy is going on pilgrimage. He said, let me assist him. And I will find out where he, uh, puts his money, and I will steal his money.
So, every night when the rich man would go to bed to sleep, you know, after some time the thief would start searching and searching and searching all his places. He couldn't find where he put his money. He just he just couldn't figure it out.
You know, night after night after night, by day he's using it, at night it's not there. He was really puzzled. Ultimately, he was too much for me. He came to this rich man and he said, I'm a thief.
And I wanted to steal your money, but I know you're a big mystic yogi. Because I couldn't find the money. Where do you hide the money? He said, I hide the money under your pillow.
Because this is the only place where you will not look. So the the purport of this little story is that you try to find happiness everywhere except under your pillow. The happiness is not far away.
The happiness is within your heart. But we're trying to look at there and here and there in Dubai and in so many other places. People are flying all over there trying to find happiness. But happiness is within.
And Krishna speaks about this. He says that those people who are trying to find peace outside, They are called in Sanskrit Bahirmukha.
Literally it means Bahirmukha, those whose face is turned outside. We turn away from Krishna. Because Krishna is inside. Krishna is the dear most part of our living essence, of the essence of our soul.
Krishna is there within, and He is the source of happiness. He can give happiness without any problem.
But we just, you know, we turn away from Him, we don't look at Him, and we are looking, where is happiness? Where is happiness? Just turn your face and you will find it. So there is Bahir Muka and Antarmukha.
Antarmukha are those who are trying to find happiness within. And Bahirmukha, those who are trying to find happiness outside. And Krishna says, just look inside. The happiness is there.
Fulfilling the soul's desire for sat-chit-ananda
The peace is there. In the previous verse he said that there are three things which are inside. He says Yom Tar Suho Antara Ramas Tatantar Jyoti Ryavaya. Inside you can find three things which every one of us is looking.
Every one of us is looking only for three things. Sometimes we're bewildered because we need, you know, car, we need flat, we need wife, we need refrigerator, we need I don't know what. You know, so many things we need.
But Krishna says no, you don't need this. You don't need vital. You don't need refrigerator. You only need three things which is sat-chit-ananda.
Every living entity, because by nature it has these three major qualities: sat, meaning eternity or existence. Meaning stability, meaning peace. When people say about peace, they basically mean stable situation.
You know, because this world is so unstable, you know, so many disturbances, you don't know, you don't have visa,
you have to go somewhere, you know, and something else will happen and you will have to change it and you know something else will happen and the revolution will come and the government will, uh, new government will come or something else will come.
But this is all indications that we're not having the stable situation. The first requirement of happiness is stability. Right?
Can you be happy if if you know if just everything is changing all the time. You don't know what's going to happen tomorrow and you already forgot what happened yesterday and you're just bewildered what is happening now.
You cannot be here. If you are on a ship and the ship is in a storm and the ship is just boom boom boom boom boom boom boom can you be happy? No, but we are we are in the storm of material world constantly.
And therefore, first prerequisite of being fulfilled as a human being is to have this stability. And Krishna says, where do you look for stability? Inside. It's death. It's within your soul.
And then the next thing which we are all looking for is cit, as Krishna says, Jyotish means life. We're all want to have this light of knowledge.
We all want to know, we all want to experience something, we all want to have this clear understanding of what is going on. This is what we need.
We need knowledge, we need stability or eternity, understanding that we are nicely situated in this world, and ananda. We need happiness. We need to be happy. We need to feel that I'm I'm very happy.
This is three things which we are looking for. The problem is that everyone is looking outside. Everyone thinks that this body will bring you these three things. Can the body be eternal? No.
Even if you get everything together, by the end of your life, you know you're trying hard and hard and hard and hard and you're working and working and working and finally when you're ninety years old you have everything that you wanted. Still you will not be happy because you are ninety years old.
I was just in Durban Rathyatra and Bhaktivalabha Tirtha Maharaja was there, he was giving lecture and he told the little story from his life. He said that his son came to me to him and
he said, Oh dad, I have a good news for you. You have become a grandfather. This is the good news which children bring to you when you're old. So he said, Dad, are you happy? He said, No.
He said, Why you're not happy? You have become grandfather. He said, I'm not happy because all the grandfathers, which I know, are already dead.
When I became grandfather, it means that I will die soon, therefore I'm not happy. So the point is that we are trying we are really trying to
find this uh these three things eternity knowledge and bliss within body or through the means of body. We want to make our body happy through the means of material pleasures.
We want to find some kind of material knowledge and think that you know the more material knowledge I have the happier I become.
Like people go to the universities and colleges and they try to get this degree and that degree and this degree. You know, and you may get all the degrees in the world. You will still die.
And you will still not know anything about God. You know, because this is not what degrees are all about. They will not teach you who is God.
And even if they teach, still you will not know God through this material kind of knowledge. Because Krishna says I cannot be known through the senses.
So we are trying to find these three things, sac-cid-ānanda, through the body.
Illusion of bodily identity and delusion
And why? Because we think we are the body. This is uh the sensory definition of bewilderment, or moha, illusion.
In Sanskrit, the definition of moha or illusion is that yatra-vastuni tad-buddhiḥ. Moha, yatra-vastuni tad-buddhiḥ. Basically it means this is the change of consciousness.
Instead of our natural consciousness, instead of knowing that we are the soul, which has nothing to do with body, which is really not connected with body and with matter.
Instead of understanding this, when we come to this material body, or as Śrīla Prabhupāda very poetically describes material tabernacle.
Those who don't know what is tabernacle, tabernacle is the is the case. It's the big wooden case. The case of matter. This is actually the body is just this is just a suit of spacesuit or very clumsy kind of stuff.
But we think I'm the body. And nobody will be able to change our mind. Because it's it sounds good. We heard about this. But next time when we go to the mirror and we look in the mirror, do we think I am not this body? No.
Just look in the mirror. And all the philosophy evaporates from your brain at this point. Yeah, that's me, right? That's me. And this is called delusion. This is called bewilderment. Because we are the soul and we are eternal.
We are full of knowledge and full of bliss by nature. But because uh we projected our consciousness in this body because we think that we we we cannot even have consciousness without being conscious of the body.
You know that's why we're so bewildered and that's why we're trying to find these three things which is the nature of the soul within the body which is not possible. And that's the tragedy. That's the problem.
That's the mistake. By trying to find something in the place where it doesn't exist. In the Bible there's this nice story about one lady, and the lady lost the key or oh no, she lost a golden coin.
And she was looking and looking, there was dark. And she came to a bright place where there was a light. She was looking there. Somebody was passing by and asked her, what are you looking for?
She said, I am looking for my gold coin. And he asked her, you know, where did you lose it? She said, I I lost it there. He asked her, why why why do you're looking here?
She said, because it's light here, that it's dark there. So how can I find it there? It's dark. So in the same way, it's dark within our heart. And it's bright outside. And we think we should find the happiness outside.
But actually the place where we lost the happiness is inside. And we should still try to find it inside because Krishna is inside.
And Krishna is saying this. You know, like people are trying to basically find happiness in this false understanding who they are.
Psychological drive for material self-expansion
And how I wanted now to give you a little psychology, very psychology lesson, explaining how this bewilderment is working within our life.
Because we want to be eternal, because we want to have knowledge and because we want to have an unbounded bliss. And because we want to have these three things through the body, we are doing what we are doing.
Everything which we are doing is because of this mistake. We want to have these three things, but we want to have this by all means through the body. And we know that the body will die.
So how people are trying to find eternity? How people are trying to really, through the body, manifest their eternal nature? They produce children.
The psychology behind this, I will die but I will live in my son. This is me, right? Looks similar, we extend or project our ego. You know it is said when uh when when the first son is born, it's you who is born.
It is said in the Vedic scriptures, you know, you're trying to be born again. Oh now people are so crazy, you know. This is the craziness of the modern world. You know, now they want not even children.
Through the genetic engineering they want to have their how they call it the the counterparts or whatever. They they want to produce their genetic engine clone. Clone. They want to clone themselves.
You know, even if they clone themselves, it will not be them because they will die and the clone will live. But they think that's me. So this is how it how the psychology works.
We want to live eternally, but therefore we were producing children. Why the sexual drive is so strong? Because of this reason. Because there is very strong drive within us to reproduce ourselves.
To somehow or other to make us eternal. Or sometimes people do really perverted things, you know, they they they try to become so famous that their statues are there and you know their you know their movies are there.
Like in Russia the we have this Lenin movie which is entombed in the center of Red Square. He is there, you know, his dead body is there, and people are coming and he is there. Why? Why this strange karma is there?
Because this Lenin, he wanted to be eternal. Now he's eternal, you know, now he's he's sitting in this glass box, his movies there, his telephone is there, and people are you know coming and looking at him.
He achieved eternity through the body. This is ridiculous. All these big Tsars and big kings in in Egypt, they wanted also to remain eternal, so they kind of put different herbs in their bodies.
Again, because of this reason, because they're trying to find eternity in the place where you cannot find it. And uh also because of this, because of our uh
desire to be eternal or to be safe, we are trying to project our ego. Like people, why do they want to become rich? In Russia nowadays there are so many billionaires.
Moscow is the number one city, there's number one the biggest number of billionaires, multi-millionaires, you know, and they have house here and house there and house in Hawaii and house in this country and house in that country.
They have only one, you know, and they have a hundred houses. They cannot use these houses. Or sometimes they have many cars.
I have a friend of mine or some some acquaintance of mine, he has five cars and he is seventy years old and he cannot use any of these cars. But he feels good about it and he is going to buy the sixth one. Why?
Again, because he's projecting his ego: that's me. You know, that's me. My ego has become bigger. I have this, this is this is my car, and this is my car, and this is my car. This is how it works.
People are projecting their ego in their material possessions. That's me, that's me, you know. It... I have become so many. You know, it is said in the Upaniṣads that the Lord, He has psychology too. Eko bahusyām.
One has become many. And we want to be Lord.
And we also think, "I am one, I will become many." There will be many sons and many houses and many cars and many something and many this and many that and in this way we are trying to achieve happiness.
Overcoming sin and dualities through introspection
But as Śrīla Prabhupāda explains here, and this is actually the main point of this verse, yeah. She was also trying to achieve happiness, but
Krishna is saying Labhante rāma nirvāṇam ṛṣayaḥ kṣīna-kalmaṣāḥ. He says ṛṣayaḥ ṛṣayaḥ means literally it means seers, those who can see, who can basically see inside. And if you try to look for happiness inside, then kṣīna-kalmaṣāḥ, you will not create sins.
Because in our hopeless pursuit to find happiness outside, In the meantime we commit so many sins. Because we want to do this and we want to do this and that and this. But ultimately uh this is have become the cause for our sinful activities.
Because I want to you know I have this very strong drive from within. And this drive is so strong, the sexual drive or the drive for you know material pleasure or the drive to you know expand my ego is so strong and I create sinful activities, I commit sinful activities.
So Krishna says if you become Rishi, if you look inside, if you really become uh serious about spiritual life, trying to find happiness within your heart, then kshinakal masha. There will be no sins for you. You will be sinless. You will not have real cause to commit sinful activities.
And China Dvaidva uh Yatmanah China Dvaidva means that uh you are finished with all these dualities. You are not really dependent on this dualities of material life. Your happiness is not dependent from outside causes.
I was once giving a seminar on a book of one of the biggest management guru, Stephen Kali. Very famous. He has the book which is called Seven Habits of Most Effective People. Very famous book.
Everyone reads those who want to be effective, you know, they they really study this book. And he says this, you know, there are seven habits.
And when I read these seven habits, I said, you know, all the seven habits are there in Bhagavad-gītā. Starting with the habit one. His habit one is that you should not you should be proactive.
And when he explains what it means, proactive, I'm not reactive. He basically explains that you should not depend on external things. Because usually we become reactive because we are dependent on external things.
Something is happening outside, something which we think is good or something which we think is bad and our consciousness changes.
And he says, no, if you want to be successful, who want to be successful? Please raise your hand. Those who want to be successful should not be reactive. And this is what Krishna speaks uh in every word practically.
He says you should not be too much elated when something good is happening, you should not be too much morose when something bad is happening.
And basically Stephen Khali uh tells the same thing but he gets money, Krishna didn't get money for money. This is the only difference. But but I need his he says you should not depend on external situation.
You should not because when you're looking for this uh uh for the happiness outside you will be dependent on external situation and because external situation will always be changing, you will never be able to do what you're supposed to do.
You will never be able to manifest the real qualities of a man and uh ultimately achieve success because you will be too much dependent on the situation.
And therefore Krishna says if you look inside, if you become Rishi, if you become seer. If you try to find happiness inside, then Xina Kalmashaha, your sins will be finished, and then Shina Dvaidva.
Shinadvaidva means you will not be dependent on this happiness and distress from outside. You will be independent of the sins.
And then the most important things which he says, Ya tatmana it means that your soul or your ātmā will be controlled. And Sarva Bhuta Hiderataha, only in this case you will be able to bring happiness to others.
You will be happy yourself, but you will be able to do something good for others only in this case.
Again, because when we are looking for happiness outside, when we are trying to find happiness outside, not within, we are really remain selfish. And this selfishness spoils our own life and the lives of everyone else.
No, actually the cause of all the miseries of all the three fold miseries which are there is our selfishness. That's it. And Krishna explains that you will be able to do good for others if you want to do good.
And we all want to do good, right? We want to do good for others, right? We want to bring happiness to people.
Distinguishing selfless love from attachment
We want to make other people happy. He says this is the only reason or condition when you will be able to bring good to other people.
It's interesting that, you know, we want to do good to other people, especially to our near and dear ones. But we don't know how to do it. Why? Because we are attached to them.
Attachment means nothing else but projection of our ego. Again, when we look at this little gentleman and we think he is my son.
But don't look at him as the individual living being. But look at him as my son. And because he is mine, I love him. And only because he's my I love him and because I like him he has to do what I want him to do, right?
Why? You know this people because they're attached, uh they they call attachment love. But there is difference between attachment and love. When you love somebody, you love him as a person.
When you attach to somebody, you want him to do what you want to do. I have a very interesting story to tell in this regard.
I have a friend of mine, and he was complaining to me that when I was a child, my father was an artist, and he was not a very good artist. But because he was not a very good artist, but he wanted to become a good artist and it didn't work, he wanted me to become an artist. And he was pushing and pushing and pushing.
And he said, and I wanted to become a musician. But he was pushing and forcing me to do art and therefore I couldn't learn music and now I'm suffering.
I I hate this art and uh I'm not a good musician because he never taught me. And he said now uh I'm really teaching my son music But the problem is that my son wants to be the artist I don't want him to be enough.
So this is the way of attachment. Attachment means attachment to love is different. When you love somebody, you want to do what he wants to do. You really want to bring welfare.
And Krishna his here speaks that if you look inside, not only you become happy yourself, you achieve the ability to bring happiness to others because you love them without attachment. You bring them good.
Sarva Buddha Hiderata. Krishna says in this particular verse that only such a person will be able to bring happiness or welfare of others. Everything else is just illusory.
You know, sometimes people are engaged in this philanthropic activity or this activity, but it's useless.
You know, th they they're trying to do some material good to people, but it it it doesn't really create anything good. People misuse all these things or whatever. Uh i it it's it's just hopeless pursuit.
Recognizing Krishna as supreme enjoyer and friend
Krishna says everything is within this formula. If you want to find happiness and make others happy, then try to find it within. And how you find it within? Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna.
Krishna explains this is how you find the happiness. Bhaktaram Yagyatapasam Sarva Lokuma Heshwaram Sukhridam Sarva Bhutanam Yatva Maam Sarti Ritvachi.
Those who remember always that I am God who is uh ultimately the enjoyer. People want to enjoy, they want to enjoy, they they engaged in material activities because they want to enjoy.
This Krishna says, fair enough, if you want to engage in material activities, go on with your engagement. But know that it's not you who will enjoy it, I will enjoy it.
No matter what you try, I will enjoy, you will not enjoy. So just know it. And do it consciously. If you do something, do it for me. Do it as a yajna. Do it as an offering for me. Do it as as as an offering for me.
In this way because this is natural disposition. God is one who enjoys and we are one who work for Him and this is we cannot change it. Because because that's the way we are and that's the way He is, you know.
Even if we approach God and say, you know, I don't agree with this with this nature of yours, then that's what we do. We come to God and we say my dear sir, can I become God and you become me? God says no I cannot.
Even if I want it. I'm God and you're not saying no, I want to become God. So God says, you know you, have to remember you're not God. That's that's the only thing which we have to remember.
And for that we have to know who is God. God who the one who enjoys. You know, we're work we best servants by nature. First of all, to become happy we have to know who we are. This is the foundation of Vedic culture.
Vedic culture teaches people who they are. Western culture teaches people who they are not what they should become. And therefore everyone is so crazy.
You know. Everyone wants to become something else. Not what he is, you know. Everyone, you know, they get all these desires and ambitions and everyone is trying to become something really artificial.
Women want to become men, and men want to become women and they even created certain iterations there, you know, it's crazy. So Vedic culture teaches who you are.
And first of all, to become happy you have to understand jīvêr svarūp haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa, as Krishna does. By my very nature I am servant and I cannot change it no matter how much I try. I'm always served.
Even if I am king, I am still a servant. I can only serve. And if I try to enjoy, uh, it I will become a failure. I will become a miserable enjoyer. It's better to become a happy servant than to be a miserable enjoyer.
What is the point? And and therefore Krishna says, know that I am God, and God means by definition, one who enjoys.
Whatever people do they serve and he is enjoying that's his position, you know, he's sitting there and enjoying and best serving and everyone is happy because this is our natural disposition.
And then bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram. If you want to have power, if you want to have this
sense that I am controlling something, we want to become enjoyer and we want to become controllers. This is two very important features of our ego. Krishna says I am the controller. Sarva Loka Maheshwaram.
I am mahā-īśvara of all these lokas. It's not that you know this chief or that chief or this king or that king. I am sarva-loka-maheśvaram. I am everywhere. You have to know this.
And then you know, suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ, and at the same time I am the best friend of everyone. And if you remember this threefold formula, you will always become happy.
Because if you remember this, then when you work, you're not dependent in your work on the sense that I have to derive happiness from this work. You just do it as a service. And the happiness comes.
This is the paradox of material life. You can become happy, but there is only one condition to become happy. You should stop looking for happiness. That's it. The moment you stop looking for happiness you become happy.
When you're looking for happiness you will never become happy. So stop looking for happiness.
Krishna says, you know, you just do what you're supposed to do without this strange mental attitude that this is the way to become happy. I'm enjoying your service. You're doing this and we are happy in this in this formula, so to speak.
And and then you know sarva-loka-maheśvaram, don't try to become a big controller because I'm the controller. I'm controlling everything.
Material drives for pleasure and power
Don't try to find people are see there was an interesting little illustration to this.
There was the Sigmund Freud, the famous uh actually he's the father of material psychology because psychology by definition is the is the science of the soul but the material psychology doesn't know what the soul is.
So Sigmund Freud says that the strongest drive in a human being is the search for happiness through sexual desire. And he explained the whole human life through the sexual drive.
And then his disciple came, his name was Adler. And Adler said, no, my my guru was wrong. He didn't know what he was thinking.
It says that there is more stronger drive in a human being, the desire for power. Why people are so mad of the power? Because of the fear. They think if I obtain more power, I will become fearless.
And Krishna says, This is me, this is not you. Don't try to find power and don't try to try to find enjoyment in this life. You're the servant and know that I am the enjoyer. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasām.
And Sarva-loka-maheśvaram, I am the controller of everything. These two things which you are looking for, you can find in me. And how you can find it in me? Because I am within your heart.
Suḥ-hṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānām. I am the best friend of yours. And the best friend of yours means that you always have to know that Krishna is protecting us. That God, whatever He is doing, He is doing for our good.
You know, you have to, whatever happens with you, you have to know that this is happens why this happens with me. Because Krishna loves you. It may sound strange sometimes, but it is a fact.
And if we know that whatever happens with me is because Krishna loves me, we will become happy. Like sometimes people they get deadly disease, cancer. You can become the happiest man in the world if you get cancer.
And there is a living proof of this, oh not living proof. The vivid example of this.
When Bhakti Tirtha Swami Maharaj, one of the sannyāsīs in our movement, leaders of our movement, when he got cancer, in one of his last days, when he was dying from cancer, and it was I mean it was very you know painful.
He told to Radhanath Swami Maharaj who was at his death bed. He told, you know, this is such a happiness which I feel. Never in my life was I as happy as now. And I will not exchange this disease with anything else. Because this is the best thing which happened to me.
He said that astrologers told me that I will live till 80 years and my fame started 52. Now I'm 52 and I'm dying. And astrologers, they didn't know what they're doing, they didn't tell me right.
But he said I will not exchange my position with anything else because what I realized at this moment and the happiness which I feel now is the greatest happiness I ever felt. Why?
Because this disease gave him the most profound lesson which Krishna is teaching here. him the most profound lesson which Krishna is teaching here. bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
Those who know these three things, that Krishna is the enjoyer, and Krishna is the controller. And ultimately Krishna is the best friend. And those who remember and apply these things in their lives.
Whatever happens with me, I have to remember these three things. Whatever I do, I have to remember. If I remember this formula, then I become happy. No matter what.
And if I don't apply this formula, I will never become happy no matter what. So it's up to you to choose now. You can become happy right now. You don't need anything else. You're just happy because you're happy.
Because because the soul is happy. You just chant the Holy Name and you feel that you are so connected with Krishna. Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama, Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. Hare.
And you don't need anything to chant. You don't need, you don't need even beads, you don't need. You can chant without beats. You don't need even tongue. If you happen not to have tongue, you can chant without tongue.
You can always chant. This is always available to you. The relationship with Krishna is always available to you. And this relationship will bring happiness because this relationship will set you properly in this life.
And this is what Prabhupada explains.
And when you obtain this position, this situation, then you will be able to bring happiness to everyone else. Then you will sarva-bhūta-hite rataḥ, you will give welfare. You will really be the friend of others.
Because before that you will always consider somebody as your enemy or somebody as your friend. But Krishna says if you know that I am the friend of everyone, that you also become the friend
of happiness. You become the real friend of happiness. You bring so much happiness to others. And this is in itself is a source of happiness. If we see that we're making others happy, won't you become happy because of this?
You will become you will become happy just of this mere fact. And Krishna is teaching us how to do this. For that only thing which you have to know is to remember that God is there and you're eternally related with him.
As servant is related to his master. And whatever is happening is happening because of his will. And you're there uh because of his will. And there is no reason to become unhappy. Just be happy.
And chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa. Śrīla Prabhupāda made this slogan as the slogan of Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. And it may sound simplistic. Chant and be happy. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy.
And sometimes people think, you know, how I can become happy, I need this and this, and how can I maybe if I chant I will get what I want. No. You may or may not get, I don't know.
But you can become happy if you understand that. Uh, the chanting is the way to remember that God is there within your heart. And this formula is very, very profound. It's not simplistic at all.
It's very, very—chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be happy. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa. Thank you very much.
Overcoming miseries through prayer and knowledge
Is there any questions? What should we do? Uh sometimes we encounter the material miseries. We are not able to bear that miseries or how to overcome.
See the material miseries not sometimes, all the time we encounter material miseries. Something something very intense. Sometimes when it comes to this intense thing, you know, still you have to pray.
And the way to pray, when you pray, you feel soulless. You will immediately feel soulless. You will immediately feel the presence of Krishna. Because when you feel intense pain your prayer will also be intense.
See what Krishna does, or what Śrīla Prabhupāda teaches us, he says, you learn how to pray when you are okay.
When the misery will come, when the suffering will come, then by that time you already know somewhat how to pray. Then you will be able to pray.
If you didn't learn how to pray when you're okay, you will not be able to pray sincerely when the misery comes.
But if you learn how to do this and you really pray, then you feel that, you know, what's nothing is wrong with me. See why the misery comes. I can tell you why the misery comes.
Misery is just a misunderstanding in reality, misery only comes because we identify ourselves with the body and with some things which belong to our body. This is our ego, right? And why was Arjuna miserable?
Because he had big ego. And he said, now I am going to kill parts of my ego. And they will die, and who will be I? You know what is our ego? When you ask yourself who I am, we know the official answer, the official answer.
I am servant of Krishna. But I don't believe you if you tell me this. If I ask you and you honestly answer who I am, if you honestly try to describe who I am, you will tell.
I am such and such person, I have such and such passport, I was born on such and such date. I am Indian citizen. I am living in Dubai. I have my wife and I have my children and I have my job. This is I, Right?
And I is supposed to be permanent. When you lose anything of this, you suffer. You lose your job. Oh, suffering. Why?
Because this is a part of me, you know, who I am, I don't know. Before I had this situation, now I don't know. But in reality, what happened with you? I don't care. You are what you are. Nothing changed with you.
You know, if anything of this changes, you feel misery. But this misery, the source of misery is misunderstanding because you don't know who you are. But you are eternal servant of Krishna.
If you feel that: "I am eternal servant of Krishna." Something happens with you. You're happy? I'm eternal servant of Krishna. Why should I be?
You know, I I... Nothing is changing with me. The miseries, the source of miseries is this changing situation of this world. Somebody dies. Like for example my father died or my mother died. It's a part of me dies.
Because I was a son before, but now I'm not a son anymore. Because my father is no more and my mother is no more. So I I'm not a son and I'm lost. This is part of my ego.
But in reality, you know you can you can pray for your mother and for your father and not be so much, you know, feeling this bereft. You you can really bring them good and feel that, you know, that something is good
happening to them because they're coming to a new phase of their existence which may be much more bright and happy. So in the same way. But for that you cannot do this when you're too miserable.
You have to learn it when you're okay. And when the suffering comes, then this is the start, this is the test, this is the exam. No, now we are learning. And then in the learning sometimes we're a little relaxed.
They think, yeah, no, I know. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, I know this. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna.
So when the students usually when they study they're just you know they're going to this party and that party and you know have fun.
But when the exam comes so in the same way but in reality good student he is learning when when the study time is there.
So now we are learning how to remember Krishna and when the test comes, and it will come to everyone. This I can guarantee you.
Because you all have charts and horoscopes, and Saturn is there and there, and Ketu is there and somehow or other they're all in the wrong houses. So it will come. At one point it will come to everyone's life.
But at that point you can apply really the lessons of Bhagavad Gita. As Arjuna, Arjuna was miserable before the battlefield and he became happy. He started kidding in a very happy mood. Because he realized something. Hi.
Maharaj, I have one question.
Proper consciousness in charitable acts
Uh, in your speech you said uh the philanthropist activities is not so much useful. Are you referring to the charity or a social service?
Ah, I mean, I I was for some time in my life I was living in Sweden. And Sweden is one of the most social states in the world.
Uh, people there, you know, they you don't have to work at all, you can be lazy for t the rest of your life and you know you can be lazy and crazy and get social welfare and be very happy about this.
And I saw how uh this social work really doesn't help people. First of all, they don't become happy. They don't. You know.
And second of all, even though there is no poverty as such, still it it just you know people become really sometimes really lazy or whatever.
Uh uh it it when I said about this about charity or social work it only brings good if there is proper consciousness behind it.
If you just relate to others as material bodies and try to bring happiness to material bodies, it will not bring happiness to these people in reality. And this is proven in so many examples.
But there can be charity or social work which is done from the spiritual point of view. Like Mother Theresa.
I I recently read an encounter, Radhanath Swami Maharaj in his travels, he actually met with Mother Teresa and she told him that when I'm helping these poor people and she was feeding these poor people in Calcutta, you know, uh this uh and uh she had a hospital and sometimes she would come there
and she would give souls. She says when I'm when I'm helping them, this poor soul, she said, you know, I cannot feed everyone.
But actually the m the hanger which hunger which is there in the world? Uh it's not physical hanger. Everyone is hungry for love of God.
And she says, when I'm helping these people, I'm looking at them as my God who manifests in them. And I'm serving them as Him. He gave me this chance to serve them.
And if we do the social service or charity work with this consciousness, that this is parts and parcel of God, this is actually God. And I'm serving God in the form of these poor people. Then you bring happiness to them.
Then you can bring good to them. Because your consciousness is proper. And if you just look at them as material bodies and you try to improve their material bodies, it's not going to work.
There are so many stories in this regard. If a person is born poor, he will not be able to make a good use of money, even if you give to him. Because he will remain poor. He will not be able to become rich.
It's not within his destiny. And so on so forth. So this is uh the only real attempt to make people happy is to bring them Krishna and then they can become—is it okay? it okay?
Because otherwise charity and social work it may be well intended. There is good intentions but if there is no proper consciousness behind it, it will not make
people happy. If you don't do the social service in charity, they will call you a selfish. No, you should do social service. I am not you should do whatever you're doing. I am not saying that you shouldn't do anything.
I'm saying you should do it, but in proper consciousness. You should do it. And then only you will bring happiness. And if you do it without proper consciousness, you will not bring happiness.
You will be baffled in your attempt to make other people happy. That's the point. You will be frustrated. I I know so many charitable people who are ultimately frustrated.
You know, there are many rich people and I know some rich people and they say I'm doing this but people are so ungrateful. You know, they're giving their money. You know, and people are ungrateful.
Why, why they feel this frustration? Because their consciousness is not proper. They're doing this, no, not because they're serving the Lord, but because they want to do—anyway, whatever. anyway, whatever.
The point is always consciousness. Your consciousness has to be right. Now, everything else will be right. If your consciousness is wrong, everything else will be wrong no matter what you do.
You may be well intended, but still it will be wrong.
But if your consciousness is right, if your consciousness is Krishna consciousness, if you're conscious of Krishna as God, then everything else, whatever you do, will be right.
Developments on the Moscow temple project
Okay. I will tell you a few words about Moscow project. Last year I was here, I was showing my slides of about the development of preaching in Russia. Śrīla Prabhupāda came to Moscow in 71.
He was there for a few days, and in 71 when Russia was totally atheistic, Śrīla Prabhupāda made a very bold prediction. I mean, one has to be Srila Prabhupada to make this prediction.
It said in this city there will be thousands of people who will be chanting Hare Krishna. In seventy one nobody could believe it. Even if you believe in God, especially if you are a young man, you will be put in prison.
When I started practicing Krishna consciousness in nineteen eighty, uh uh in eighty three uh they almost put me in prison. They interrogated me, I was suffering mentally and so on so forth.
But in seventy one Prabhupada said in this city of Moscow, one of the great capitals of the world. There will be thousands of people who will be chanting Hare Krishna.
In nineteen ninety-three in Moscow City there was a concert of Govinda Bhajan Band and there was thirty-three thousand people chanting all together.
Hare Krishna, Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Hare. So this is this is the power of Śrīla Prabhupāda.
He came just for a few days, and now thousands of people are chanting Hare Krishna in Moscow. Last year we had Janmashtimi festival, and for this Janmashtimi festival, ten thousand people came in one day.
And out of this ten thousand people, maybe one thousand were Indians. And the nine thousand were Russians, local people, and they were all chanting.
I remember one one T V crew came and this lady was late. She knew that there was some festival and she she came. She was really in a rush. She said, Oh, I'm late.
What shall I shoot? Show me something, you know, and I'm I'm in I'm in a hurry. So one hour later I see her and I asked her, How come you're still here? She said it's so nice here, I don't want to leave this place.
She didn't know anything about Hare Krishna, she just some TV lady. She came for a few minutes to shoot. But she left till till one o'clock in the n in the morning.
She she stayed there because she said I've never I never experienced anything like this. It's so nice.
So So people are coming and uh perhaps you have heard and I explained last year when I came here that we had a temple, Hare Krishna temple, and then the government took back the temple and demolished it
and cheated us and they said we'll give you in exchange the land and you will build a nice temple. And we were naive Hare Krishnas. We moved out of the building to this nice land.
And then they took back the land and said, no. They took the building, they took the land.
But this time we decided to be clever Hare Krishnas, not naive. And we said, We're not moving from this land until you give us something in exchange. So it was a big fight.
In British Parliament there was some events and you know I I went to India and I met with Manmohan Singh and Manmohan Singh um met
with Mr. Putin and asked Mr. Putin for this and then Sheila Dikshit, Chief Minister of Delhi, came to Russia and she spoke with Mayor of Moscow. There was so many different events.
And as a result of this event just one week back, ten days back, uh the mayor of Moscow gave us the land twice as big than they gave before.
Initially they gave two and a half acres, now they gave five acres and it's further away but it's still okay, very nice place on the bank of the river.
So we're planning to build a big big temple, uh the first proper Hindu temple in Russia, uh in this and it will be a glory of Vedic culture.
We want really because we want ultimately to follow Śrīla Prabhupāda's footsteps. He speaks here that you can only bring good to your people if you give them Krishna consciousness.
And this is our humble attempt to serve Śrīla Prabhupāda and his glorious mission to bring good to the people of Russia. Because people of Russia are very nice. They are very sincere at heart, very kind hearted people.
And we can see that you know so many people are coming to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So we are hopefully we will build this temple within two, three years. By the end of the year they are planning to start the construction.
It's usually very difficult. We made a beautiful design. It's a Rajasthan-style design, very, very beautiful design. Uh and usually it's very difficult to approve the design in a planning committee.
You have to go ten times and they always find faults and say this is proper, this isn't proper, you have to change this or this. Our design was approved from the first hearing immediately. They said this is nice design.
They said we want to have this temple in Moscow. It's beautiful temple.
So let's see, it's still it's still not hundred percent, but at least we got the land, the mayor signed it and uh we're going through the process of approvals and when we start building it will be actually uh already very solid and safe.
We are trying to do this little service for Śrīla Prabhupāda for his pleasure.
And we ask you to support us, to pray for us, to help as much as you can because this is really a glorious project which can which can bring a lot of good things to everyone's life.
This is really the project which which is I'm sure a hundred percent that if Prabhupāda was here, he would give all the resources to this project because he wanted. He knew that there is a lot of potential in this preaching. And uh it was very dear to him.
So this is how we manifest our service attitude. We want to serve Prabhupada and we are doing this. And uh please pray and take part in this project as much as we can. Thank you very much.