Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 6: “Prescribed Duties for Mankind”
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Chapter Five
Narada Muni Cursed by Prajapati Daksa
SB6.5Summary
This chapter relates how all the sons of Daksa were delivered from the clutches of the material energy by following the advice of Narada, who was therefore cursed by Daksa.
Influenced by the external energy of Lord Visnu, Prajapati Daksa begot ten thousand sons in the womb of his wife, Pancajani. These sons, who were all of the same character and mentality, were known as the Haryasvas. Ordered by their father to create more and more population, the Haryasvas went west to the place where the River Sindhu (now the Indus) meets the Arabian Sea. In those days this was the site of a holy lake named Narayana-saras, where there were many saintly persons. The Haryasvas began practicing austerities, penances and meditation, which are the engagements of the highly exalted renounced order of life. However, when Srila Narada Muni saw these boys engaged in such commendable austerities simply for material creation, he thought it better to release them from this tendency. Narada Muni described to the boys their ultimate goal of life and advised them not to become ordinary karmis to beget children. Thus all the sons of Daksa became enlightened and left, never to return.
Prajapati Daksa, who was very sad at the loss of his sons, begot one thousand more sons in the womb of his wife, Pancajani, and ordered them to increase progeny. These sons, who were named the Savalasvas, also engaged in worshiping Lord Visnu to beget children, but Narada Muni convinced them to become mendicants and not beget children. Foiled twice in his attempts to increase population, Prajapati Daksa became most angry at Narada Muni and cursed him, saying that in the future he would not be able to stay anywhere. Since Narada Muni, being fully qualified, was fixed in tolerance, he accepted Daksa’s curse. SB6.5.1 TEXT 1 sri-suka uvaca tasyam sa pancajanyam vai visnu-mayopabrmhitah haryasva-samjnan ayutam putran ajanayad vibhuh SYNONYMS sri-sukah uvaca—Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; tasyam—in her; sah—Prajapati Daksa; pancajanyam—his wife named Pancajani; vai—indeed; visnu-maya-upabrmhitah—being made capable by the illusory energy of Lord Visnu; haryasva-samjnan—named the Haryasvas; ayutam—ten thousand; putran—sons; ajanayat—begot; vibhuh—being powerful. TRANSLATION Srila Sukadeva Gosvami continued: Impelled by the illusory energy of Lord Visnu, Prajapati Daksa begot ten thousand sons in the womb of Pancajani [Asikni]. My dear King, these sons were called the Haryasvas. SB6.5.2 TEXT 2 aprthag-dharma-silas te sarve daksayana nrpa pitra proktah praja-sarge praticim prayayur disam SYNONYMS aprthak—alike in; dharma-silah—good character and behavior; te—they; sarve—all; daksayanah—the sons of Daksa; nrpa—O King; pitra—by their father; proktah—ordered; praja-sarge—to increase the population; praticim—we stern; prayayuh—they went to; disam—the direction. TRANSLATION My dear King, all the sons of Prajapati Daksa were alike in being very gentle and obedient to the orders of their father. When their father ordered them to beget children, they all went in the western direction. SB6.5.3 TEXT 3 tatra narayana-saras tirtham sindhu-samudrayoh sangamo yatra sumahan muni-siddha-nisevitam SYNONYMS tatra—in that direction; narayana-sarah—the lake named Narayana-saras; tirtham—very holy place; sindhu-samudrayoh—of the River Sindhu and the sea; sangamah—confluence; yatra—where; su-mahat—very great; muni—by sages; siddha—and perfected human beings; nisevitam—frequented. TRANSLATION In the west, where the River Sindhu meets the sea, there is a great place of pilgrimage known as Narayana-saras. Many sages and others advanced in spiritual consciousness live there. SB6.5.4-5 TEXTS 4–5 tad-upasparsanad eva vinirdhuta-malasayah dharme paramahamsye ca protpanna-matayo ’py uta tepire tapa evogram pitradesena yantritah praja-vivrddhaye yattan devarsis tan dadarsa ha SYNONYMS tat—of that holy place; upasparsanat—from bathing in that water or touching it; eva—only; vinirdhuta—completely washed away; mala-asayah—whose impure desires; dharme—to the practices; paramahamsye—executed by the topmost class of sannyasis; ca—also; protpanna—highly inclined; matayah—whose minds; api uta—although; tepire—they executed; tapah—penances; eva—certainly; ugram—severe; pitr-adesena—by the order of their father; yantritah—engaged; praja-vivrddhaye—for the purpose of increasing the population; yattan—ready; devarsih—the great sage Narada; tan—them; dadarsa—visited; ha—indeed. TRANSLATION In that holy place, the Haryasvas began regularly touching the lake’s waters and bathing in them. Gradually becoming very much purified, they became inclined toward the activities of paramahamsas. Nevertheless, because their father had ordered them to increase the population, they performed severe austerities to fulfill his desires. One day, when the great sage Narada saw those boys performing such fine austerities to increase the population, Narada approached them. SB6.5.6-8 TEXTS 6–8 uvaca catha haryasvah katham sraksyatha vai prajah adrstvantam bhuvo yuyam balisa bata palakah tathaika-purusam rastram bilam cadrsta-nirgamam bahu-rupam striyam capi pumamsam pumscali-patim nadim ubhayato vaham panca-pancadbhutam grham kvacid dhamsam citra-katham ksaura-pavyam svayam bhrami SYNONYMS uvaca—he said; ca—also; atha—thus; haryasvah—O Haryasvas, sons of Prajapati Daksa; katham—why; sraksyatha—you will beget; vai—indeed; prajah—progeny; adrstva—having not seen; antam—the end; bhuvah—of this earth; yuyam—all of you; balisah—inexperienced; bata—alas; palakah—although ruling princes; tatha—so also; eka—one; purusam—man; rastram—kingdom; bilam—the hole; ca—also; adrsta-nirgamam—from which there is no coming out; bahu-rupam—taking many forms; striyam—the woman; ca—and; api—even; pumamsam—the man; pumscali-patim—the husband of a prostitute; nadim—a river; ubhayatah—in both ways; vaham—which flows; panca-panca—of five multiplied by five (twenty-five); adbhutam—a wonder; grham—the house; kvacit—somewhere; hamsam—a swan; citra-katham—whose story is wonderful; ksaura-pavyam—made of sharp razors and thunderbolts; svayam—itself; bhrami—revolving. TRANSLATION The great sage Narada said: My dear Haryasvas, you have not seen the extremities of the earth. There is a kingdom where only one man lives and where there is a hole from which, having entered, no one emerges. A woman there who is extremely unchaste adorns herself with various attractive dresses, and the man who lives there is her husband. In that kingdom, there is a river flowing in both directions, a wonderful home made of twenty-five materials, a swan that vibrates various sounds, and an automatically revolving object made of sharp razors and thunderbolts. You have not seen all this, and therefore you are inexperienced boys without advanced knowledge. How, then, will you create progeny? PURPORT Narada Muni saw that the boys known as the Haryasvas were already purified because of living in that holy place and were practically ready for liberation. Why then should they be encouraged to become entangled in family life, which is so dark that once having entered it one cannot leave it? Through this analogy, Narada Muni asked them to consider why they should follow their father’s order to be entangled in family life. Indirectly, he asked them to find within the cores of their hearts the situation of the Supersoul, Lord Visnu, for then they would truly be experienced. In other words, one who is too involved in his material environment and does not look within the core of his heart is increasingly entangled in the illusory energy. Narada Muni’s purpose was to get the sons of Prajapati Daksa to divert their attention toward spiritual realization instead of involving themselves in the ordinary but complicated affairs of propagation. The same advice was given by Prahlada Maharaja to his father (Bhag. 7.5.5): tat sadhu manye ’sura-varya dehinam In the dark well of family life, one is always full of anxiety because of having accepted a temporary body. If one wants to free himself from this anxiety, one should immediately leave family life and take shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead in Vrndavana. Narada Muni advised the Haryasvas not to enter household life. Since they were already advanced in spiritual knowledge, why should they be entangled in that way? SB6.5.9 TEXT 9 katham sva-pitur adesam avidvamso vipascitah anurupam avijnaya aho sargam karisyatha SYNONYMS katham—how; sva-pituh—of your own father; adesam—the order; avidvamsah—ignorant; vipascitah—who knows everything; anurupam—suitable for you; avijnaya—without knowing; aho—alas; sargam—the creation; karisyatha—you will perform. TRANSLATION Alas, your father is omniscient, but you do not know his actual order. Without knowing the actual purpose of your father, how will you create progeny? SB6.5.10 TEXT 10 sri-suka uvaca tan nisamyatha haryasva autpattika-manisaya vacah kutam tu devarseh svayam vimamrsur dhiya SYNONYMS sri-sukah uvaca—Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said; tat—that; nisamya—hearing; atha—thereafter; haryasvah—all the sons of Prajapati Daksa; autpattika—naturally awakened; manisaya—by possessing the power to consider; vacah—of the speech; kutam—the enigma; tu—but; devarseh—of Narada Muni; svayam—themselves; vimamrsuh—reflected upon; dhiya—with full intelligence. TRANSLATION Sri Sukadeva Gosvami said: Hearing these enigmatic words of Narada Muni, the Haryasvas considered them with their natural intelligence, without help from others. SB6.5.11 TEXT 11 bhuh ksetram jiva-samjnam yad anadi nija-bandhanam adrstva tasya nirvanam kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS bhuh—the earth; ksetram—the field of activities; jiva-samjnam—the designation of the spiritual living being who is bound by different results of activity; yat—which; anadi—existing since time immemorial; nija-bandhanam—causing his own bondage; adrstva—without seeing; tasya—of this; nirvanam—the cessation; kim—what benefit; asat-karmabhih—with temporary fruitive activities; bhavet—there can be. TRANSLATION [The Haryasvas understood the meaning of Narada’s words as follows.] The word “bhuh” [“the earth”] refers to the field of activities. The material body, which is a result of the living being’s actions, is his field of activities, and it gives him false designations. Since time immemorial, he has received various types of material bodies, which are the roots of bondage to the material world. If one foolishly engages in temporary fruitive activities and does not look toward the cessation of this bondage, what will be the benefit of his actions? PURPORT Narada Muni spoke to the Haryasvas, the sons of Prajapati Daksa, about ten allegorical subjects—the king, the kingdom, the river, the house, the physical elements and so forth. After considering these by themselves, the Haryasvas could understand that the living entity encaged in his body seeks happiness, but takes no interest in how to become free from his encagement. This is a very important verse, since all the living entities in the material world are very active, having obtained their particular types of bodies. A man works all day and night for sense gratification, and animals like hogs and dogs also work for sense gratification all day and night. Birds, beasts and all other conditioned living entities engage in various activities without knowledge of the soul encaged within the body. Especially in the human form of body, one’s duty is to act in such a way that he can release himself from his encagement, but without the instructions of Narada or his representative in the disciplic succession, people blindly engage in bodily activities to enjoy maya-sukha—flickering, temporary happiness. They do not know how to become free from their material encagement. Rsabhadeva therefore said that such activity is not at all good, since it encages the soul again and again in a body subjected to the threefold miseries of the material condition. The Haryasvas, the sons of Prajapati Daksa, could immediately understand the purport of Narada’s instructions. Our Krsna consciousness movement is especially meant for such enlightenment. We are trying to enlighten humanity so that people may come to the understanding that they should work hard in tapasya for self-realization and freedom from the continuous bondage of birth, death, old age and disease in one body after another. Maya, however, is very strong; she is expert in putting impediments in the way of this understanding. Therefore sometimes one comes to the Krsna consciousness movement but again falls into the clutches of maya, not understanding the importance of this movement. SB6.5.12 TEXT 12 eka evesvaras turyo bhagavan svasrayah parah tam adrstvabhavam pumsah kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS ekah—one; eva—indeed; isvarah—supreme controller; turyah—the fourth transcendental category; bhagavan—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; sva-asrayah—independent, being His own shelter; parah—beyond this material creation; tam—Him; adrstva—not seeing; abhavam—who is not born or created; pumsah—of a man; kim—what benefit; asat-karmabhih—with temporary fruitive activities; bhavet—there can be. TRANSLATION [Narada Muni had said that there is a kingdom where there is only one male. The Haryasvas realized the purport of this statement.] The only enjoyer is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who observes everything, everywhere. He is full of six opulences and fully independent of everyone else. He is never subject to the three modes of material nature, for He is always transcendental to this material creation. If the members of human society do not understand Him, the Supreme, through their advancement in knowledge and activities, but simply work very hard like cats and dogs all day and night for temporary happiness, what will be the benefit of their activities? PURPORT Narada Muni had mentioned a kingdom where there is only one king with no competitor. The complete spiritual world, and specifically the cosmic manifestation, has only one proprietor or enjoyer—the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is beyond this material manifestation. The Lord has therefore been described as turya, existing on the fourth platform. He has also been described as abhava. The word bhava, which means “takes birth,” comes from the word bhu, “to be.” As stated in Bhagavad-gita (8.19), bhutva bhutva praliyate: the living entities in the material world must be repeatedly born and destroyed. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, however, is neither bhutva nor praliyate; He is eternal. In other words, He is not obliged to take birth like human beings or animals, which repeatedly take birth and die because of ignorance of the soul. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Krsna, is not subjected to such changes of body, and one who thinks otherwise is considered a fool (avajananti mam mudha manusim tanum asritam [Bg. 9.11]). Narada Muni advises that human beings not waste their time simply jumping like cats and monkeys, without real benefit. The duty of the human being is to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. SB6.5.13 TEXT 13 puman naivaiti yad gatva bila-svargam gato yatha pratyag-dhamavida iha kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS puman—a human being; na—not; eva—indeed; eti—comes back; yat—to which; gatva—having gone; bila-svargam—to the region of the lower planetary system known as Patala; gatah—gone; yatha—like; pratyak-dhama—the effulgent spiritual world; avidah—of the unintelligent man; iha—in this material world; kim—what benefit; asat-karmabhih—with temporary fruitive activities; bhavet—there can be. TRANSLATION [Narada Muni had described that there is a bila, or hole, from which, having entered, one does not return. The Haryasvas understood the meaning of this allegory.] Hardly once has a person who has entered the lower planetary system called Patala been seen to return. Similarly, if one enters the Vaikuntha-dhama [pratyag-dhama], he does not return to this material world. If there is such a place, from which, having gone, one does not return to the miserable material condition of life, what is the use of jumping like monkeys in the temporary material world and not seeing or understanding that place? What will be the profit? PURPORT As stated in Bhagavad-gita (15.6), yad gatva na nivartante tad dhama paramam mama: there is a region from which, having gone, one does not return to the material world. This region has been repeatedly described. Elsewhere in Bhagavad-gita (4.9), Krsna says: janma karma ca me divyam “One who knows the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities does not, upon leaving the body, take his birth again in this material world, but attains My eternal abode, O Arjuna.” If one can properly understand Krsna, who has already been described as the Supreme King, he does not return here after giving up his material body. This fact has been described in this verse of Srimad-Bhagavatam. Puman naivaiti yad gatva: he does not return to this material world, but returns home, back to Godhead, to live an eternally blissful life of knowledge. Why do people not care about this? What will be the benefit of taking birth again in this material world, sometimes as a human being, sometimes a demigod and sometimes a cat or dog? What is the benefit of wasting time in this way? Krsna has very definitely asserted in Bhagavad-gita (8.15): mam upetya punar janma “After attaining Me, the great souls, who are yogis in devotion, never return to this temporary world, which is full of miseries, because they have attained the highest perfection.” One’s real concern should be to free himself from the repetition of birth and death and attain the topmost perfection of life by living with the Supreme King in the spiritual world. In these verses the sons of Daksa repeatedly say, kim asat-karmabhir bhavet: “What is the use of impermanent fruitive activities?” SB6.5.14 TEXT 14 nana-rupatmano buddhih svairiniva gunanvita tan-nistham agatasyeha kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS nana—various; rupa—who has forms or dresses; atmanah—of the living entity; buddhih—the intelligence; svairini—a prostitute who freely decorates herself with different types of cloths and ornaments; iva—like; guna-anvita—endowed with the mode of passion, and so on; tat-nistham—the cessation of that; agatasya—of one who has not obtained; iha—in this material world; kim asat-karmabhih bhavet—what is the use of performing temporary fruitive activities. TRANSLATION [Narada Muni had described a woman who is a professional prostitute. The Haryasvas understood the identity of this woman.] Mixed with the mode of passion, the unsteady intelligence of every living entity is like a prostitute who changes dresses just to attract one’s attention. If one fully engages in temporary fruitive activities, not understanding how this is taking place, what does he actually gain? PURPORT A woman who has no husband declares herself independent, which means that she becomes a prostitute. A prostitute generally dresses herself in various fashions intended to attract a man’s attention to the lower part of her body. Today it has become a much advertised fashion for a woman to go almost naked, covering the lower part of her body only slightly, in order to draw the attention of a man to her private parts for sexual enjoyment. The intelligence engaged to attract a man to the lower part of the body is the intelligence of a professional prostitute. Similarly, the intelligence of a living entity who does not turn his attention toward Krsna or the Krsna consciousness movement simply changes dresses like a prostitute. What is the benefit of such foolish intelligence? One should be intelligently conscious in such a way that he need no longer change from one body to another. Karmis change their professions at any moment, but a Krsna conscious person does not change his profession, for his only profession is to attract the attention of Krsna by chanting the Hare Krsna mantra and living a very simple life, without following daily changes of fashion. In our Krsna consciousness movement, fashionable persons are taught to adopt one fashion—the dress of a Vaisnava with a shaved head and tilaka. They are taught to be always clean in mind, dress and eating in order to be fixed in Krsna consciousness. What is the use of changing one’s dress, sometimes wearing long hair and a long beard and sometimes dressing otherwise? This is not good. One should not waste his time in such frivolous activities. One should always be fixed in Krsna consciousness and take the cure of devotional service with firm determination. SB6.5.15 TEXT 15 tat-sanga-bhramsitaisvaryam samsarantam kubharyavat tad-gatir abudhasyeha kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS tat-sanga—by association with the prostitute of intelligence; bhramsita—taken away; aisvaryam—the opulence of independence; samsarantam—undergoing the material way of life; ku-bharya-vat—exactly like a person who has a polluted wife; tat-gatih—the movements of the polluted intelligence; abudhasya—of one who does not know; iha—in this world; kim asat-karmabhih bhavet—what can be the benefit of performing temporary fruitive activities. TRANSLATION [Narada Muni had also spoken of a man who is the husband of the prostitute. The Haryasvas understood this as follows.] If one becomes the husband of a prostitute, he loses all independence. Similarly, if a living entity has polluted intelligence, he prolongs his materialistic life. Frustrated by material nature, he must follow the movements of the intelligence, which brings various conditions of happiness and distress. If one performs fruitive activities under such conditions, what will be the benefit? PURPORT Polluted intelligence has been compared to a prostitute. One who has not purified his intelligence is said to be controlled by that prostitute. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (2.41), vyavasayatmika buddhir ekeha kuru-nandana: those who are actually serious are conducted by one kind of intelligence, namely, intelligence in Krsna consciousness. Bahu-sakha hy anantas ca buddhayo ’vyavasayinam: one who is not fixed in proper intelligence discovers many modes of life. Thus involved in material activities, he is exposed to the different modes of material nature and subjected to varieties of so-called happiness and distress. If a man becomes the husband of a prostitute, he cannot be happy, and similarly one who follows the dictations of material intelligence and material consciousness will never be happy. One must judiciously understand the activities of material nature. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (3.27): prakrteh kriyamanani “The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature.” Although one follows the dictations of material nature, he happily thinks himself the master or husband of material nature. Scientists, for example, try to be the masters of material nature, life after life, not caring to understand the Supreme Person, under whose direction everything within this material world is moving. Trying to be the masters of material nature, they are imitation gods who declare to the public that scientific advancement will one day be able to avoid the so-called control of God. In fact, however, the living being, unable to control the rulings of God, is forced to associate with the prostitute of polluted intelligence and accept various material bodies. As stated in Bhagavad-gita (13.22): purusah prakrti-stho hi “The living entity in material nature thus follows the ways of life, enjoying the three modes of nature. This is due to his association with that material nature. Thus he meets with good and evil amongst various species.” If one fully engages in temporary fruitive activities and does not solve this real problem, what profit will he gain? SB6.5.16 TEXT 16 srsty-apyaya-karim mayam vela-kulanta-vegitam mattasya tam avijnasya kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS srsti—creation; apyaya—dissolution; karim—one who causes; mayam—the illusory energy; vela-kula-anta—near the banks; vegitam—being very rapid; mattasya—of one who is mad; tam—that material nature; avijnasya—who does not know; kim asat-karmabhih bhavet—what benefit can there be by performing temporary fruitive activities. TRANSLATION [Narada Muni had said that there is a river flowing in both directions. The Haryasvas understood the purport of this statement.] Material nature functions in two ways—by creation and dissolution. Thus the river of material nature flows both ways. A living entity who unknowingly falls in this river is submerged in its waves, and since the current is swifter near the banks of the river, he is unable to get out. What will be the benefit of performing fruitive activities in that river of maya? PURPORT One may be submerged in the waves of the river of maya, but one may also get free from the waves by coming to the banks of knowledge and austerity. Near these banks, however, the waves are very strong. If one does not understand how he is being tossed by the waves, but simply engages in temporary fruitive activities, what benefit will he derive? In the Brahma-samhita (5.44) there is this statement: srsti-sthiti-pralaya-sadhana-saktir eka The maya-sakti, Durga, is in charge of srsti-sthiti-pralaya, creation and dissolution, and she acts under the direction of the Supreme Lord (mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10]). When one falls in the river of nescience, he is always tossed here and there by the waves, but the same maya can also save him when be surrenders to Krsna, or becomes Krsna conscious. Krsna consciousness is knowledge and austerity. A Krsna conscious person takes knowledge from the Vedic literature, and at the same time he must practice austerities. To attain freedom from material life, one must take to Krsna consciousness. Otherwise, if one very busily engages in the so-called advancement of science, what benefit will he derive? If one is carried away by the waves of nature, what is the meaning of being a great scientist or philosopher? Mundane science and philosophy are also material creations. One must understand how maya works and how one can be released from the tossing waves of the river of nescience. That is one’s first duty. SB6.5.17 TEXT 17 panca-vimsati-tattvanam puruso ’dbhuta-darpanah adhyatmam abudhasyeha kim asat-karmabhir bhavet SYNONYMS panca-vimsati—twenty-five; tattvanam—of the elements; purusah—the Supreme Personality of Godhead; adbhuta-darpanah—the wonderful manifester; adhyatmam—the overseer of all causes and effects; abudhasya—of one who does not know; iha—in this world; kim asat-karmabhih bhavet—what can be the benefit of engaging in temporary fruitive activities. TRANSLATION [Narada Muni had said that there is a house made of twenty-five elements. The Haryasvas understood this analogy.] The Supreme Lord is the reservoir of the twenty-five elements, and as the Supreme Being, the conductor of cause and effect, He causes their manifestation. If one engages in temporary fruitive activities, not knowing that Supreme Person, what benefit will he derive? PURPORT Philosophers and scientists conduct scholarly research to find the original cause, but they should do so scientifically, not whimsically or through fantastic theories. The science of the original cause is explained in various Vedic literatures. Athato brahma jijnasa/janmady asya yatah [Bhag. 1.1.1]. The Vedanta-sutra explains that one should inquire about the Supreme Soul. Such inquiry about the Supreme is called brahma jijnasa. The Absolute Truth, tattva, is explained in Srimad-Bhagavatam (1.2.11): vadanti tat tattva-vidas “Learned transcendentalists who know the Absolute Truth call this nondual substance Brahman, Paramatma or Bhagavan.” The Absolute Truth appears to neophytes as impersonal Brahman and to advanced mystic yogis as Paramatma, the Supersoul, but devotees, who are further advanced, understand the Absolute Truth as the Supreme Lord, Visnu. This material cosmic manifestation is an expansion of the energy of Lord Krsna, or Lord Visnu. eka-desa-sthitasyagner “Whatever we see in this world is but an expansion of various energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is like a fire that spreads illumination for a long distance although it is situated in one place.” (Visnu Purana) The entire cosmic manifestation is an expansion of the Supreme Lord. Therefore if one does not conduct research to find the supreme cause, but instead falsely engages in frivolous, temporary activities, what is the use of demanding recognition as an important scientist or philosopher? If one does not know the ultimate cause, what is the use of his scientific and philosophical research? The purusa, the original person—Bhagavan, Visnu—can be understood only by devotional service. Bhaktya mam abhijanati yavan yas casmi tattvatah: [Bg. 18.55] only by devotional service can one understand the Supreme Person, who is behind everything. One must try to understand that the material elements are the separated, inferior energy of the Lord and that the living entity is the Lord’s spiritual energy. Whatever we experience, including matter and the spirit soul, the living force, is but a combination of two energies of Lord Visnu—the inferior energy and the superior energy. One should seriously study the facts concerning creation, maintenance and devastation, as well as the permanent place from which one never need return (yad gatva na nivartante [Bg. 15.6]). Human society should study this, but instead of culturing such knowledge, people are attracted to temporary happiness and sense gratification, culminating in bottomless, topless passion. There is no profit in such activities; one must engage himself in the Krsna consciousness movement.
sada samudvigna-dhiyam asad-grahat
hitvatma-patam grham andha-kupam
vanam gato yad dharim asrayeta
evam yo vetti tattvatah
tyaktva deham punar janma
naiti mam eti so ’rjuna
duhkhalayam asasvatam
napnuvanti mahatmanah
samsiddhim paramam gatah
gunaih karmani sarvasah
ahankara-vimudhatma
kartaham iti manyate
bhunkte prakrti-jan gunan
karanam guna-sango ’sya
sad-asad-yoni-janmasu
chayeva yasya bhuvanani bibharti durga
tattvam yaj jnanam advayam
brahmeti paramatmeti
bhagavan iti sabdyate
jyotsna vistarini yatha
parasya brahmanah saktis
tathedam akhilam jagat