Prabhupada:

sri bhagavan uvaca
mayy asakta-manaḥ; partha
yogaṁ yuñjan mad-asrayaḥ;
asaṁsayaṁ samagraṁ maṁ
yatha jñasyasi tac chrṇu
[Bg. 7.1]

The yoga system which is known as bhakti-yoga... Everyone is trying, not everyone, at the present moment, practically nobody wants to understand what is God. Everyone is busy to fulfill the desires and necessities of the body.

yasyatma-buddhiḥ; kuṇape tri-dhatuke
sva-dhiḥ; kalatradiṣu bhauma ijya-dhiḥ;
yat-tirtha-buddhiḥ; salile na karhicij
janeṣv abhijñeṣu sa eva go-kharaḥ;
[SB 10.84.13]

Go-kharaḥ;. Go means cow and kharaḥ; means ass. So according to Vedic culture one who has accepted this material body as self... Atma-buddhiḥ; kuṇape tri-dhatuke. This body is a combination of matter, and the living force within this body is not this combination of matter; it is the spirit soul. That one has to understand before coming to the platform of spiritual life. So long one is attached with this material body it is not possible to understand what is spiritual life. If one continues to be attached to this material body he is no better than go-kharaḥ;, cows and asses, animals.

So our Vedic culture, Vedic culture means that human culture, not animal culture. Animal culture means to satisfy the needs of the body, and Vedic culture or human culture means to satisfy the needs of the soul. That is the beginning of Bhagavad-gita. One who is reading Bhagavad-gita... In India practically everyone reads, but because one does not take the instruction of Bhagavad-gita as it was instructed by Krṣṇa, he cannot take the benefit of Bhagavad-gita's instruction. One tries to understand Bhagavad-gita by erudite scholarship, or good position in the society, political, social, economical, but that is not the way to understand Bhagavad-gita. It is said in the Bhagavad-gita,

tad viddhi praṇipatena
pariprasnena sevaya
updekṣyanti te jñanaṁ
jñaninas tattva-darsinaḥ;
[Bg. 4.34]

Unless you approach a person who is representative of Krṣṇa and tattva-darsi, who has seen the truth, jñani, and full of knowledge, from him you can understand what is Bhagavad-gita, what is Bhagavan. Otherwise you cannot understand. Nahaṁ prakasaḥ; sarvasya yoga-maya-samavrtaḥ; [Bg. 7.25]. If you remain covered by the material energy, then you cannot understand Bhagavad-gita. The purpose of Bhagavad-gita is to understand real religious life. Religion means the order which is given by God to carry out. That is religion. Those who are unknown of this fact, they are not religious. They may be some faith or some blind belief, but religion means dharmaṁ tu sakṣad bhagavat-praṇitam [SB 6.3.19]. Religion means the order or law given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is religion.

So to know God, God, He is personally giving instruction how to know God. Krṣṇa says, bhagavan uvaca. Here it is not, Vyasadeva is not speaking, Krṣṇa says. Because sometimes Krṣṇa is misunderstood; therefore Vyasadeva writes or says in this connection, bhagavan uvaca. Bhagavan means the fully opulent, samagrasya. Aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya: He is the most powerful, the supreme rich, supreme wise, supreme beautiful and at the same time supremely renounced. These qualification makes one Bhagavan. So krṣṇas tu bhagavan svayam [SB 1.3.28]. That is the verdict of Vedic literature. So isvaraḥ; paramaḥ; krṣṇaḥ; [Bs. 5.1]. Bhagavan is also sometimes called Paramesvara. Isvara means the ruling power or the personality who controls. So everyone of us, we have got some controlling power either in the society or family or community or government or international. Everyone has got some capacity to control, but nobody is supreme controller. Supreme controller means that He is no more controlled by anyone. Other controller, they are controllers, but they are controlled by somebody else. But Krṣṇa is not that kind of controller. He is the supreme controller means He controls everyone but nobody has above Him to control. Therefore He is called Paramesvara. Isvaraḥ; means controller.

Isvaraḥ; paramaḥ; krṣṇaḥ; sac-cid-ananda-vigrahaḥ; [Bs. 5.1]. He is not nirakara; vigraha. Vigraha means form, but His form is different from our form. Therefore He is described as sac-cid-ananda. Sat means eternal, cit means full of knowledge, and ananda means full of transcendental bliss, eternal bliss. The beginning is eternal, so eternal life, eternal complete full knowledge and eternal bliss; this is the composition of Krṣṇa's body. But muḍhas, rascals, they think of Krṣṇa as ordinary human being. Avajananti maṁ muḍha manuṣiṁ tanum asritam [Bg. 9.11]. Fools and rascals, muḍhaḥ;—muḍhaḥ; means fools and rascals—because they see that Krṣṇa is incarnation just like ordinary human being: cousin of Arjuna or nephew of Kunti, like that. Paraṁ bhavam ajanantaḥ;, Krṣṇa comes just like ordinary human being, but that does not mean He is ordinary human being. Therefore Vyasadeva says bhagavan uvaca. If you consider Krṣṇa as ordinary human being, then you are missing the point. And I have already given the definition of Bhagavan.

One of the qualification of Bhagavan is aisvaryasya samagrasya viryasya yasasaḥ; sriyaḥ; (Viṣṇu Puraṇa 6.5.47), jñana. He has got full knowledge. He hasn't got to take knowledge from anyone else. Svabhaviki jñana. Bhagavan means svabhaviki jñana-bala-kriya ca. Na tasya karyaṁ karaṇam, this is Vedic injunction,

na tasya karyaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate
na tat-samas cabhyadhikas ca drsyate
parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate
svabhaviki jñana-bala-kriya ca
[Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport]

Svabhaviki jñana, all full knowledge He has got. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavaḥ; [Bg. 10.8], He is the creator of everything. So how He got this knowledge to float these big, big planets in the air? That is knowledge, that is art. Just like when you float a big aeroplane in the sky, it requires knowledge, it requires technology, art. It is not flying automatically; that is a mistake. So if to float an ordinary airship it requires so much knowledge, so much technology, how much knowledge is there when you see that the biggest planet, the sun is floating in the air, and it is lying in one corner of the sky and exactly in time it is rotating, yasyajñaya bhramati sambhrta-kala-cakraḥ;? There is knowledge. There is art who has fixed it. Therefore in the Vedas it is said yasyajñaya bhramati sambhrta-kala-cakraḥ;. He is also rotating in the orbit by the order of Govinda. Govindam adi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajami **.

So there are so many things to learn and to understand what is God and what is Krṣṇa. God means Krṣṇa, Krṣṇas tu bhagavan svayam [SB 1.3.28]. Na tat-samas cabhyadhikas ca drsyate. God means nobody is equal to Him and nobody is greater than Him. That is God. There is no completion that in this quarter there is one God and in another neighborhood there is another God. Just like it has become a fashion, so many Gods, competition is going on. No. There is no competition. God is one. Na tasya karyaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate, na tat-samas cabhyadhikas ca drsyate. That is God. So because God is complete in knowledge, therefore we have to take knowledge from Him, not from the persons who have got incomplete knowledge. That knowledge is not perfect. We must take knowledge from the person, we have to take knowledge from the person:

tad viddhi praṇipatena
pariprasnena sevaya
upadekṣyanti te jñanaṁ
jñaninas tattva-darsinaḥ;
[Bg. 4.34]

We have to approach. Tad-vijñanarthaṁ sa gurum evabhigacchet [MU 1.2.12]. We have to approach a superior person, guru, and take knowledge from him. The most superior person is Krṣṇa. You may doubt others, that may be, but when you come to Krṣṇa, that is perfect knowledge. Krṣṇas tu bhagavan svayam [SB 1.3.28]. Isvaraḥ; paramaḥ; krṣṇaḥ; sac-cid-ananda-vigrahaḥ; [Bs. 5.1].

So Krṣṇa is so kind that he comes, in, once in..., we were calculating yesterday, what is, how many years after? You were there? Aḥ;, some billions of years after. We can calculate from the sastra because He comes once in the day of Brahma. The Brahma's duration of life is there in the Bhagavad-gita, sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmaṇo viduḥ; [Bg. 8.17]. Forty-three lakhs of years multiplied by a thousand becomes twelve hours of Brahma, and similarly twelve hours at night, that is one day and night. Such thirty times makes one month, such twelve times makes a year, and similarly one hundred years is the duration of life of Brahma. So according to sastra we understand, once in the day of Brahma, Krṣṇa appears.

Why does He appear? Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati..., tadatmanaṁ srjamy aham, dharmasya glaniḥ; [Bg. 4.7]. What is that dharmasya glaniḥ;? Disobedience to Krṣṇa's order. That is dharmasya glaniḥ;. Yada yada hi dharmasya. Dharma is one. As God is one, similarly dharma is also one. There cannot be many dharmas. There are many dharmas practically we see: Hindu dharma, Muslim dharma, Christian dharma, Buddha dharma, this dharma, so many dharma. But real dharma is one. That is explained in the Srimad-Bhagavatam: sa vai puṁsaṁ paro dharmaḥ;. Para means transcendental. These are material dharma. "I am Hindu," "You are Muslims," "You are Christian," "You are this," "You are that." These are, means an attempt to raise oneself to the platform of real dharma. But real dharma is one for everyone. What is that? Sa vai puṁsaṁ paro dharmaḥ;. That is transcendental dharma. Yato bhaktir adhokṣaje [SB 1.2.6]. The dharma by following which one becomes a Krṣṇa conscious person or Godly person, one who understands God, his relationship with Him and acting according to that relation, that is real dharma. So our, everyone, all living entities, dharma means to know that we are eternal servant of God. That is explained by Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu: jivera svarupa haya nitya-krṣṇa-dasa [Cc. Madhya 20.108-109]. And in the Bhagavad-gita also Krṣṇa instructs the same dharma, that "You are, the living entities, you are all My part and parcel, and it is your duty to cooperate with Me without any reservation." That is explained in the Bhagavad-gita, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekaṁ saraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66].

So the Bhagavad-gita was spoken by Krṣṇa personally when He was present for the benefit of the human society, for all nations. It is not for the Hindus or the Indians, it is for everyone. God is for everyone. Krṣṇa also says, sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya sambhavanti murtayaḥ;, ahaṁ bija-pradaḥ; pita [Bg. 14.4]. Mamaivaṁso jiva-bhutaḥ; [Bg. 15.7], every living entity is part and parcel and He is the supreme father of everyone. So our Krṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to re-establish the real dharma, not fictitious dharma. That is bhagavata-dharma. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam also the same thing is spoken where Krṣṇa ends Bhagavad-gita: sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekaṁ saraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66]. From the same point Vyasadeva begins Srimad-Bhagavatam, janmady asya yato 'nvayad itaratas cartheṣv abhijñaḥ; svaraṭ [SB 1.1.1], and he describes about dharma: dharmaḥ; projjhita-kaitavo 'tra [SB 1.1.2]. All cheating type of religious system are projjhita. Projjhita means to throw away, kick out.

So our, this Krṣṇa consciousness movement is bhagavata-dharma, to teach throughout the whole world that God is great and we are small particle part and parcel of God, our duty is to serve God, that is bhakti. Anukulyena krṣṇanusilanam [Cc. Madhya 19.167], when you favorably serve Krṣṇa, be ready to get orders from Krṣṇa and serve Him, that is perfection of life. That is sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekaṁ saraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66]. And if we daily manufacture a kind of dharma according to my concoction or we accept everything as real dharma, that is a mistake. Dharma means the order given by God, and if you follow that, or execute that order as Arjuna did, then you are dharmika, you are religious. Just like Arjuna, he followed Krṣṇa's order. Krṣṇa wanted him to fight. Of course, he was a kṣatriya, his duty was to fight, and Krṣṇa wanted him to fight, but he was hesitating because the other party with whom he had to fight, they happened to be his family members, most dear kith and kin, some of them nephews, some of them gurus, teacher, grandfather. So all of them—it was a family fight—so Arjuna was not willing to fight, but Krṣṇa wanted to fight. And after learning from Him the essence of Bhagavad-gita, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekaṁ saraṇaṁ vraja [Bg. 18.66], he agreed to fight. That is bhakti. Even by fighting, you can become a devotee. We have to carry out the order of Krṣṇa. That is bhakti.

So you must be qualified to know Krṣṇa, then you must be qualified, or automatically you become qualified how to receive His order. This is the way. So unless you understand from where the order is coming, how the order-giver is speaking, if you do not know the science, how you can talk with Krṣṇa and receive His order? That is also not very difficult. Krṣṇa says, teṣaṁ satata-yuktanaṁ bhajataṁ priti-purvakam [Bg. 10.10]. Anyone who is twenty-four hours engaged in Krṣṇa service, satata-yuktanam, not sporadic, that two minutes I meditate upon Krṣṇa and twenty-three hours sixty-eight minutes, ah, fifty-eight minutes I remain to satisfy my senses. That is not krṣṇa-bhakti. Krṣṇa-bhakti means satata-yuktanam, twenty-four hours engaged in Krṣṇa consciousness. Just like these boys are being trained up. They have not come to me for some monetary benefit. What monetary benefit I can give to them? They are rather bringing money, and I am constructing big, big temples, their money. So still they are engaged in carrying out my order. There is no payment, no monetary benefit, because they have understood me, that he is representative of Krṣṇa.

That we have to find out the representative of Krṣṇa. That is also not very difficult, who is representative of Krṣṇa. Representative of Krṣṇa is he who simply repeats the instruction of Krṣṇa, does not say anything nonsense. He is representative of Krṣṇa. Krṣṇa says man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji maṁ namaskuru [Bg. 18.65]. He does not say anything big, big, bombastic thing. Very simple thing, that "Always think of Me, become My devotee, worship Me, and offer obeisances." It doesn't require M.A., Ph.D. education to learn these four things. Anyone, even a child can do it. It is very easy. If you daily see the Deity in the temple, or if you have got Deity at home, even a child will be practiced to think of Krṣṇa. It is not at all difficult. And if you chant Hare Krṣṇa maha-mantra: Hare Krṣṇa, Hare Krṣṇa, that is also thinking of Krṣṇa.

So man-manaḥ;, and if you continue this, then mad-bhakta, you become His devotee. Man-mana bhava mad-bhaktaḥ;. Mad-yaji, then if you can, you can offer to Krṣṇa. Is it very expensive? No. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktya prayacchati [Bg. 9.26]. You can offer Krṣṇa a little water or a tulasi leaf. Or if tulasi leaf is not available, any leaf will do. He does not say tulasi leaf. So what is the difficulty to secure a little water, a leaf, or a small flower? Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam. The real thing is bhakti. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam. So, mad-bhakta, if you are poorest of the poor you can become a devotee. Ahaituky apratihata yayatma suprasidati. If you want to become a devotee of Krṣṇa, there is no impediment throughout the three worlds within the universe. You can become a devotee, it is so easy. If you want to be a rich man it requires so much trouble. Rather, so long you do not desire to become a rich man, you are peaceful. And as soon as you desire to become a rich man, it will be all activities: how to acquire money this way or that way, this way... Everyone tries to become rich man because generally one thinks that at old age I'll get some income and I shall sit down very peacefully. So you are already sitting down peacefully. Why you take another means?

Of course these things we are not going to discuss, but bhakti means no desire. Anyabhilaṣita-sunyam [Brs. 1.1.11]. Then bhakti is very easy. Anyabhilaṣita-sunyaṁ jñana-karmady-anavrtam [Cc. Madhya 19.167]. People are very busy for knowledge and fruitive activities. Everyone in Bombay is working so hard day and night to get some result, and the jñanis, when they are disgusted, they try to become jñani. Jñani generally means one who wants liberation, mukti, by merging into the existence. Bhakti is above this jñana-karmady-anavrtam [Cc. Madhya 19.167]. If you want to become a bhakta then you have to disregard the process of fruitive activities and the speculative method of understanding God, jñana-karmady-anavrtam [Cc. Madhya 19.167]. Then what I have to do? Anukulyena krṣṇanusilanaṁ bhaktir uttama. Simply you have to be ready to execute the order of Krṣṇa, Bhagavan. Anukulyena, what Krṣṇa says, you have to do that, just like a servant. Servant faithfulness is, as soon as the master orders something, he is ready. You have to become.

So to become ready to serve Krṣṇa does not require much knowledge or very advanced in fruitive activities. These are material things. Spiritually, when you understand that you are eternal servant of God, Krṣṇa, and if you become fully convinced and do the needful, then you are liberated immediately. Mukti means, it is described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, muktir hitvanyatha rupaṁ svarupeṇa vyavasthitiḥ; [SB 2.10.6]. If you understand that you are eternal servant of Krṣṇa, that is mukti. And so long you are thinking that you are master of something, that is bondage. This is the difference between mukti and bondage. Bondage means to think of becoming master, "I am the lord of this universe," or "I am trying to become a lord or master," this is bondage. And when you fully understand Krṣṇa and become engaged in His service, that is mukti.

So for a devotee, there is no question of mukti. A devotee is already mukta. Why? Krṣṇa says ahaṁ tvaṁ sarva-papebhyo mokṣayiṣyami: [Bg. 18.66] "Immediately as soon as you surrender to Me, immediately I give you protection." You are awaiting some fruitive result of your past karma, that is bondage. You have to take birth and you have to serve according to that karma. Then from that position you are immediately liberated. Ahaṁ tvaṁ sarva-papebhyo mokṣayiṣyami... Then you are mukta. So if you remain in the position to serve Krṣṇa then you are always mukta. Muktiḥ; mukulitañjali sevate asman. A great devotee, Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhakura, he said this muktiḥ; mukulitañjali, "With folded hands she is standing at my door, 'What can I do for you?' " Maidservant. So devotee is not after mukti, because they are already muktas. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam [Cc. Madhya 19.170]. He is already nirmala, without a tinge of material motive. Therefore he is able to serve Krṣṇa. Hrṣikeṇa hrṣikesa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate.

So Krṣṇa is personally instructing Bhagavad-gita to understand Him, so we should take advantage of this, otherwise we are missing this opportunity of this human form of life. Krṣṇa is not teaching Bhagavad-gita to some cats and dogs. He is teaching to the most influential person, imaṁ rajarṣayo viduḥ;. So Bhagavad-gita is meant for the rajarṣi, very rich, opulent, at the same time saintly person. Formerly all the kings were rajarṣi. Raja and rṣi combined together. So the Bhagavad-gita is not meant for the loafer class. It is to be understood by the heads of the society: yad yad acarati sreṣṭhas tat tad evetaro janaḥ; [Bg. 3.21]. So those who are claiming to be the leaders of the society, they must learn Bhagavad-gita, how to become practical and actual leader, and then the society will be benefited. And if we follow the instruction of Bhagavad-gita and Krṣṇa, then all problems will be solved. It is not a sectarian religious sentiment or fanaticism. It is not that. It is a science—social science, political science, cultural science. Everything is there.

So our request is that every one of you become a guru. That is Caitanya Mahaprabhu's order. He wants that everyone must become a guru. How? That He says:

yare dekha tare kaha 'krṣṇa'-upadesa
amara ajñaya guru haña tara' ei desa
[Cc. Madhya 7.128]

This is guru. Suppose you are family member. So many living entities, you sons, your daughters, your daughter-in-law, or children, you can become their guru. Exactly like this you can sit down in the evening and talk about the Bhagavad-gita, yare dekha tare kaha krṣṇa-upadesa [Cc. Madhya 7.128]. You haven't got to manufacture something. The instruction is there; you simply repeat and let them hear—you become guru. It is not difficult at all. So that is our preaching. We do not want to become alone guru, but we want to preach in such a way that every, the chief man, or any man, he can become guru in his surroundings. Anyone can do that. Even a coolie, he can also, he has got family, he has got friends, so even though he is illiterate, he can hear the instruction of Krṣṇa, and he can preach the same. This we want. And we invite all respectable gentlemen, leaders, to learn this, it is very simple: man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji maṁ namaskuru [Bg. 18.65], and by executing this order of Krṣṇa, he assures, mam evaiṣyasi, "You come to Me." Yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramaṁ mama [Bg. 15.6]. Tyaktva dehaṁ punar janma naiti mam eti kaunteya [Bg. 4.9]. Very easy thing.

So our only request is the leaders of the society should take up the teachings of Bhagavad-gita very seriously, learn himself, and teach to others. That is Krṣṇa consciousness movement. It is not at all difficult; it is very easy. Everyone can do it. But the result will be that as soon as you understand, people understand Krṣṇa, janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo janati tattvataḥ; [Bg. 4.9], anyone who understands Krṣṇa, the result is tyaktva dehaṁ punar janma naiti... After giving up this body he does not accept any more material body; he stays in his spiritual identity and enjoys the society of Krṣṇa. That is Vrndavana. Gopijana-vallabha. Krṣṇa... Krṣṇa, Vrndavana means that Krṣṇa is the center. He is the lovable object of everyone. The gopis, the cowherd boys, the calves, the cows, the trees, the fruits, flowers, the father, mother—everyone is attached to Krṣṇa. That is Vrndavana. So this is replica, this Vrndavana, and there is real Vrndavana. This is also real. In the absolute there is no difference. But for our understanding there is original Vrndavana,

cintamaṇi-prakara-sadmasu kalpa-vrkṣa-
lakṣavrteṣu surabhir abhipalayantam
lakṣmi-sahasra-sata-sambhrama-sevyamanaṁ
govindam adi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajami
[Bs. 5.29]

veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalayatakṣaṁ
barhavataṁsam asitambuda-sundaraṅgam
kandarpa-koṭi-kamaniya-viseṣa-sobhaṁ
govindam adi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajami
[Bs. 5.30]

This is the description, Goloka Vrndavana.

So there is dhama, panthas tu koṭi-sata-vatsara, beyond this material world, so if we like, we can go there. Mad-yajino 'pi yanti mam, Krṣṇa says. You can go to the higher planetary system,

yanti deva-vrata devan
pitṝn yanti pitr-vrataḥ;
bhutani yanti bhutejya
yanti mad-yajino 'pi mam
[Bg. 9.25]

If you are preparing to go to some other, better planet, that is the chance in the human being. But if you live like cats and dog, then where is promotion, where is Krṣṇa, and where is Goloka? Everything is spoiled. Our only request is don't spoil your time, valuable time. Be prepared for being transferred to Krṣṇa. And the method is described in the Bhagavad-gita. Take to it and be benefited.

Thank you very much.

Devotees: Haribol. Jaya Srila Prabhupada! (end)

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