SB 6-01-24 HON 1976-05-24 Trade the Dark Well for VRN Forest
ANNOUNCER: The following is a class on the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam,
6th canto, 1st chapter, text number 24,
given by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda,
recorded on the 24th of May, 1976, in Honolulu, Hawaii.
PRABHUPĀDA: So he was engaged in maintaining the family.
Everyone is engaged like that; cats and dogs also do that.
It is not very extraordinary thing.
Sometimes they say, “It is my duty.”
Yes, it is duty, but the prime duty is to solve the real problems:
how to stop mṛtyu, janma-mṛtyu- jarā-vyādhi, [Bg 13.9] that we forget.
Minor duties we take priority.
That is the present situation.
They do not know that there is life after death,
and according to our karma, we are getting the next life.
This morning we were discussing, Kṛṣṇa is always ready.
Automatically it is going on.
kāraṇaṁ guṇa saṅgo ’sya [Bg 13.22]
As you desire according to the contamination,
of different modes of material nature, immediately the body’s ready.
Immediately after death.
So everyone is engaged in so-called duties, but forget the real duty.
This is called māyā.
By the spell of māyā we forget what is the objective of life, what is the aim of life.
This is called māyā.
We are thinking this is our duty, no.
Real duty in the human form of life, is here is a chance,
whether you want to go to back to home, back to Godhead,
or again you want to go to hell, the repetition of birth and death.
That is your choice.
Otherwise why there are so many scriptures, religious system,
all over the world?
It is not only in India.
According to the capacity of understanding,
in every civilized human society there is a system called religion.
It may be Hindu religion, Christian religion or Buddha religion—
these are major religious systems—
but the aim is how to make a solution of the problems of life, that is all…
But because they do not seriously discuss nowadays,
the religious propensity tendency of the human society decreasing.
It has become a also money-making business.
The priestly order, they think “As others make some money by working hard,
by professional or by doing some business or working,
so we shall also earn some money,
by showing the church or the temple or the mosque.”
They have taken it like that.
Therefore people have lost faith in religion; this is the reason.
Because those who are in charge of the religious department,
the brāhmaṇas, those who are in charge of religion,
the priestly order or the mawlānās [Muslim priests] or the brāhmaṇas,
they’re the same order, their duty is,
to keep people enlightened in the real mission of life; that is their duty.
But if they’re also doing the same thing, sense gratification,
how long they can cheat others?
Therefore people have lost faith in religion; this is the position.
But that is not good.
Because the system of religion has become polluted, we should not give up religion.
That is our prime duty.
karamayi tasya eka bhūṣesya [?]
What is the difference between animal and man?
The animal has no religion.
They have no religion.
Eating, sleeping, sex and defense.
āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca sāmānyam etat. [Hitopadeśa 25]
This is very easy to understand.
The dog is eating; I am eating.
Dog is sleeping; I am sleeping.
Dog is enjoying sex; I am also enjoying sex.
Dog is also afraid; I am also afraid.
So what is the difference between dog and me?
The only difference is that dog has no religion; I have got religion.
So if I give up religion, life of religiosity, then I am equal to,
dharmeṇa hīnāḥ paśubhiḥ samānāḥ [Hitopadeśa 25]
So this Ajāmila, on account of bad association with prostitute,
he lost his character and he became thief, cheater,
somehow or other being punished.
So in this way,
while he was maintaining his children and family, then the time of death came.
That will not wait, that “I have not finished my duty, family duty.
Please wait few years more.”
“Oh, that is not possible.”
So kālo… Atyagāt.
kālo atyagāt mahān rājan aṣṭāśīti āyuṣaḥ samāḥ [SB 6.1.23]
He became very old, eighty- eight years old, aṣṭaśīti.
Aṣṭa means eight, aśīti means eighty-eight.
In this way, aṣṭāśītyā āyuṣaḥ samāḥ. [SB 6.1.23]
So at that time he had ten sons.
tasya pravayasaḥ putrāḥ [SB 6.1.24]
He begot so many children, number is ten.
So putra, how many?
Daśa ten, ten children he had.
teṣāṁ tu yaḥ avamaḥ [SB 6.1.24]
Out of the ten sons, the youngest son, teṣāṁ tu yaḥ avamaḥ bālaḥ, [SB 6.1.24]
the child, nārāyaṇaḥ nāmnā, he kept the name Nārāyaṇa.
Nārāyaṇa dāsa, just like we give name to an initiate.
So this is his great fortune.
He gave the youngest son the name Nārāyaṇa.
Naturally father, mother becomes affectionate to the youngest baby.
So by way of calling the young child, he was chanting “Nārāyaṇa.”
This is very good system, that if you keep the name of your children, Nārāyaṇa,
Govinda, Kṛṣṇa, Rāma, then you will get some chance to chanting this Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Therefore in India still the system is,
they keep some name which is with reference to Kṛṣṇa.
He has got thousands of names, so you can keep one name,
so that you have the opportunity of repeating, chanting,
the holy name of the Lord.
So, bālaḥ nārāyaṇaḥ sakṛt, pitroḥ ca dayitaṁ bhṛśam. [break] [splice]
Nirīkṣamāṇa tat līlām; and the child is walking,
the child is doing something, coming to the mother, capturing.
This līlā, this pastime,
nirīkṣamāṇaḥ tan līlā mumude [SB 6.1.25] it was very, very pleasing.
jaraṭho bhṛśam [SB 6.1.25]
In this way,
bhuñjānaḥ prapiban sa kalam bālakaṁ sneha-yantritaḥ
bhojayan pāyayan mūḍho na vedāgatam antakam [SB 6.1.26]
He was very busy in enjoying the child’s, how you would say, pastimes,
and feeding him and taking him; in this way he was very much pleased,
“My life will go like this.”
But the time of death came.
bhojayan pāyayan mūḍho na vedāgatam antakam [SB 6.1.26]
Antakam means the last day of life.
Antakam means death.
So death is called māyā.
You are thinking,
“Now I have arranged everything, things are going very nicely.
Now I’m very happy.”
But, all of a sudden, the death comes.
That you cannot avoid; all of a sudden.
That is…
Death is described in the Bhagavad-gītā.
What is that death?
That death is Kṛṣṇa, ūrdhva.
That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā:
mṛtyu sarva-haraś ca aham [Bg 10.34]
That means death will come, your all asset, your so-called children, your family,
your bank balance, your friends, your country, your leadership,
your pride and everything will be taken.
That will be taken by Kṛṣṇa.
The atheist class who does not believe in God,
he’ll see God at the end of life when he cannot do anything.
But before that, if he sees God, then his life is saved.
tattva dehaṁ punar janma naiti mam eti so 'rjuna [Bg. 4.9]
But that he’ll not accept, “What is God?
I don’t care for… There is no God.”
“All right, wait, God will come.”
And at that time he said that the Hiraṇyakaśipu,
he always defied the son’s, the small child, five-years-old boy,
his only fault was he was chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.
And even the father, what to speak of others, he became saved.
So don’t think that Kṛṣṇa consciousness,
will go without any difficult; there will be so many difficulties.
Even your father will be angry.
This is the history.
So this father, Hiraṇyakaśipu, he defied God:
“Who is God?
I am God.
You, take my anger.”
The child said, “My dear father, you are not God.”
He would never, never address his father as “father.”
He addressed him “the best of the asuras.”
“My dear best of the asuras,”
tat sādhu manye asura-vārya dehinām [SB 7.5.5]
After all, the relationship is father and son.
So one day the father took him,
“My dear son, what you have learned, the best thing, from your teachers?
Tell me.”
“Yes, I’ll tell you.”
“What is that?”
tat sādhu manye asura-varya [SB 7.5.5]
He never addressed “father.”
“O the best of the asuras.”
Asura-vārya means “the best of the asura.”
Tad sādhu manye: “I think that is very good thing.”
“What is that?”
tad sādhu manye asura-vārya dehināṁ sadā samudvigna-dhiyām asad-grahāt [SB 7.5.5]
“All these people, they’re simply full of anxieties.”
That’s a fact.
Who is not full of anxieties?
Those who are in this material world, who can say, “No, I have no anxiety?”
That is not possible.
Either you become President Nixon or in the street beggar, there is anxiety.
At any moment danger will come.
They're busy.
So the child said, “My dear best of the asuras,
I think that is the best thing,
for the persons who have accepted this material body, asad grahā…”
Why anxiety?
The anxiety is because this material body.
I am thinking of “I may be hot.”
Oh, what’s that hot?
The hot means body.
The soul is never hurt; soul is eternal: na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre [Bg. 2.20].
That they do not know.
They think this body: “I am this body.
So I’ll be hurt, I’ll die, I’ll this,” and so on and so many.
Simply anxiety: “How I shall protect my body?
How I shall protect my bodily relationship?”
Everything in connection with the body.
Everything asat.
The body’s asat, perishable, or temporary.
So whatever you have got in relationship with this body
—my country, my society, my bank balance, my money, my wife, children
—everything in the body, they are also asat, temporary.
So they are very, very anxiety, tat sādhu manye.
So “I want to relieve them from this anxiety.”
What is that?
tad sādhu manye asura-vārya dehināṁ sadā samudvigna-dhiyām asad-grahāt [SB 7.5.5]
Then, what you advise?
hitvātmā-pātaṁ gṛham andha-kūpam [SB 7.5.5]
He’s fallen in this dark region of black well, this family life.
hitvātmā-pātaṁ gṛham andha-kūpam [SB 7.5.5]
Gṛha, we can take this material world, even up to the sky,
that is also another bondage, either in society, or in country,
or in this body, or within this material universe—
wherever you want—that is andha-kūpa, dark well.
So he advises, “Give up this darkness,” hitvātmā-pātam, “because it will kill you.”
In this dark well you’ll be killed.
Just like, the dark well, we are put into the dark well, you’ll be killed.
hitvātmā pātaṁ gṛham andha-kūpaṁ vanaṁ gato yad dharim āśrayeta [SB 7.5.5]
That is the first… You should give up this dark well and go to the forest.
Vanam, come to Vṛndāvana.
Vanam means forest.
We have constructed very nice temple, come there.
And,
vanaṁ gato yad dharim āśrayeta [SB 7.5.5]
Vanaṁ gato means to come to the forest; so what is business?
The business is to take shelter of Kṛṣṇa.
Then, he’ll be free from all these things.
Vanaṁ gato yad, otherwise like monkey, descendants of monkey, if you go…
The monkeys are in the forest, but they do not take shelter of Hari.
So their simply going to the forest is no use.
One has to take shelter of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa.
vanaṁ gato yad dharim āśraya [SB 7.5.5]
Therefore Kṛṣṇa has made this Vṛndāvana.
Anyone goes there, he gets shelter of Kṛṣṇa’s lotus feet,
and his life becomes successful.
Thank you very much.
Subtitles by Gopī Kāntā Dāsa, Causelessmercy.com Edited by Pratyatoṣa Dāsa