Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.10.5
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
London, August 28, 1973

Pradyumna: (leads synonyms, etc.) Translation: “The rivers, oceans, hills, mountains, forest, creepers and active drugs in every season paid their tax quota to the king in profusion.”

Prabhupada: Yesterday we discussed, sarva-kama-dugha mahi. Sarva-dugha mahi. Sarva-kama-dugha mahi. This land, mahi, can give you everything. Actually it is giving. We cannot manufacture anything. The land is there. Bhumir apo ’nalo vayuh. These are the gifts of Krsna. These are the ingredients. In this material world, whatever you see, they are preparation of these five gross ingredients. Nothing more. Bhumir apo ’nalo vayuh kham. Land, water, bhumir apah anala, fire, vayuh, air, and kham means the sky, ether. This is the ingredients of all material civilization, grossly. And subtle: mano buddhir ahankara, mind, intelligence, and egotism. These are the eight gross and subtle elements. Now, by the mixture of these things, we find so many things.

Now, how the bhumi or the land, gives us sufficient supply? Therefore there is arrangement of the river, nadi, nadyah. And the stock of water is there in the ocean. It is practical. Just like you keep some stock of water according to your measurement. The stock of water is the ocean, because we require so much water. In India it is said that “You are spending like water.” India is tropical country. They use profusely water. There are many rivers also. They take bath in the river, especially Ganges River. There are five very sacred rivers: the Ganges, Yamuna, Narmada, Godavari, Krsna. Big, big rivers there are. So tropical country there is sufficient supply of water, and you use it for cleanliness. Natural antiseptic water. Any septic, you simply wash with water, it will be antiseptic, natural. In India even the poorest man who has no sufficient cloth, but he will daily wash the cloth twice. And it is tropical country, there is no difficulty. You wash and within five minutes it is dry. So antiseptic. So arrangement is so nicely made. Purnam adah purnam idam [Isopanisad, Invocation] Krsna’s arrangement is very nice.

So yesterday we discussed about the profuse supply of milk. That is required. Luxury… Actually, luxury means nature’s supply. You can have profuse supply of milk, grains. For dressing you can have profuse supply of silk, cotton. And for eating, profuse supply of grains, fruits, flowers. And for this profuse supply these are the means. The first thing is nadyah, rivers. The stock of water is the ocean, and by evaporation, cloud is formed. Just like you pump water to the topmost floor. So Krsna’s pumping process is this cloud. Pumping process. He is, I mean to say, evaporating water throughout the whole summer season. And they are on the head, on the sky, and then the water is distributed all over the land. Parjanyah. Kamam vavarsa parjanyah [SB 1.10.4]. Because water is required. Just see how nice arrangement. And the water, whatever for the time being in the rainy season, is distributed. And for future supply it is stocked on the head of the hills and mountains. And from that hills and mountains the rivers—they are supposed to be water supply source—throughout the year will supply water. It is stocked on the head. The same principle. We simply imitate. We also keep a very big tank on the head of the house, and through pipe we get water supply. So here nature’s pipe water supply is the big, big rivers, and the water is being supplied from the stock on the head. There are big, big lakes and it is supplied. The same process.

So nadyah, samudrah, and girayah. Full cooperation. The stock is the samudrah and the… Just see that such huge stock of water is salty. Why it is salty? It will never decompose. It will never decompose. But you cannot take the salty water. Therefore it is distilled by the sunshine, distilled. You take the distilled clear water. If you directly collect water from the rain, it is distilled water, without any contamination, without any dirty things, clear, very nice. Those who have, I mean to say, traveled by ship, you’ll see the ocean and sea is so clear water that up to twenty feet you can see clear water. Clear water. The stock, the ocean water, it is very clear. So everything is nicely arranged. Simply they’ll work nicely when you are obedient to God. Just like if you are a good citizen the government cooperation is full with you. But if you are outlaw, if you are rascal, if you are criminal, no supply, you go to jail. That’s all. Try to understand. This is the arrangement.

So whose properties are this, the rivers, mountains, oceans, and the forest? Whose property it is? It is Krsna’s property. Bhoktaram yajna-tapasam sarva-loka-mahesvaram [Bg. 5.29]. Krsna says, “I am the proprietor.” Sarva-loka-mahesvaram. Not only this planet, but sarva-loka, all the planets, all the universes, He is the proprietor. And we are maybe that… Maintained. Actually, we are maintained. And the supply method is there. Nadi, the river is there, the mountain is there. Mountain, it does not stock water only, but from mountain you get so many minerals, huge quantity of minerals, jewels, gems. And from the samudra, or the ocean, and the seas you get large quantity of pearls and… What is called? Mukta. Pearls is mukta. Yes. And corals. Huge quantity. Simply because this material world, the supply is immediate. Just like in our Krsna consciousness you can get one example. Just like in 7 Bury Place we were congested. So we were feeling. Krsna immediately supplied you this, Bhaktivedanta Manor, “Take it.” Huh? You cannot construct this house even in your own life. That is not possible. So we have to depend fully on Krsna. That is called full surrender. Sarva-dharman parityajya [Bg. 18.66]. And serve him. All supplies are there. There is no botheration. It will come automatically. It will come automatically. Because after all, the supplier is Krsna. Eko bahunam yo vidadhati kaman.

What is the difference between us and God, or Krsna? He is also living entity. Just like we see Krsna is playing on flute and He is enjoying the company of Radharani. So you can do also. You can also create one Radharani and get a flute and imitate Krsna. But that does not mean you are Krsna. If you play rascaldom, simply if you imitate Krsna, and you think that you have become Krsna, that is rascaldom. Because there is another business of Krsna. What is that? Eko yo bahunam vidadhati kaman. Krsna can supply the necessities of life to every one of you. You cannot. You cannot provide even your wife. That is the difference. Those who are less intelligent, they cannot understand what is the difference. Krsna can lift the Govardhana mountain on His finger. So you cannot do it. So how you can imitate Krsna? The rascals, they say that “Krsna enjoyed the company of the gopis; so let us create some gopis and enjoy. Then we become Krsna.” There are many rascals, do that. They imitate rasa-lila. In Karachi, there was a rascal. He declared himself that “I am Visnu. I am Lord Visnu. So I’ll play rasa-lila. Send your wives and daughters.” So rascals, they sent their wives and daughters to dance with him. You see? And there was another rascal during Bhaktivinoda Thakura’s time. Perhaps you know the story. So he was also imitating this rasa-lila. Mayavadi rascals, they do that, imitate Krsna. How you can imitate Krsna? You are not Krsna. But by imitating His rasa-lila they become Krsna. No. If you imitate Krsna of His rasa-lila, then you have to imitate to lifting the mountain. You have to kill demons like Kamsa. But you’ll find the so-called artists, they will paint pictures of Krsna only with gopis dancing and the… Not other things, how He’s killing Kamsa, how He’s killing Aghasura, Bakasura. That they’ll not paint. That side is completely blind. But in our Krsna book you’ll find both the pictures.

So here you have to understand that the rivers, the ocean, the mountains, and the trees, and the creepers, they will all serve you very, I mean to say, regularly, provided you are obedient to Krsna. This is the process. Phalanty osadhayah. Nowadays we do not know. As soon as we become sick we go to the doctor or to the drug shop. But in the forest all the medicines are there. All the medicines are there. Simply you have to know which plant is the medicine for what kind of disease. Phalanty osadhayah sarvah, and kamam anvrtu tasya vai. And according to seasonal changes you’ll get fruits, flowers and drugs and everything. During Maharaja Yudhisthira’s time all these things were being supplied by nature because Maharaja Yudhisthira was Krsna conscious, and he maintained his kingdom, all the citizens, Krsna conscious. Even at the time of Maharaja Pariksit, grandson of Maharaja Yudhisthira, so he condemned Kali. He was going to kill Kali because he was trying to kill a cow in the kingdom of Maharaja Pariksit. So he surrendered, “Sir, I am also your subject. This is my business, to act sinfully. So you give me protection. Because you are king, you have to give protection to everyone.” So, of course king has to give. So King Pariksit Maharaja said that “You have to go out.” But he said that “Where is your kingdom? Where is that place where there is no kingdom, where is no supremacy of your majesty? Where shall I go?” So he gave him these four places: illicit sex and intoxication and meat-eating and gambling. “Where these four things are going on, you go there.” That is the place of Kali.

So the Kali had to face so many difficulties to find out such place, because there was no place where illicit sex was going on, there was no place where unnecessarily animals are killed, there was no place where wines and intoxication used. So Kali found it difficult where to go. At the present moment we say the Kali-yuga is strong because everywhere you’ll find these four sinful activities. Everywhere. That has become part and parcel of modern civilization. But up to the time of Maharaja Pariksit, these sinful activities, nobody could trace out where it is. Therefore every nature’s resources were supplied. Because after all, supply is being made by Krsna through the agency of material nature. Material nature is not independent. Independent. Therefore we find… In your country there is no mango. Mango is supposed to be the king of all fruits. So in India there is sufficient supply. But in some year there is so much supply, enormous, and some year there is no supply. Similarly, grains also; in some year there is sufficient supply, and some year there is no… There is scarcity, famine. Then after all, you will have to depend on nature. You cannot produce in your factory these things which are received through these phalanty osadhayah sarvah. That depends on nature’s gift. And the nature is working not independently. Nature is working by the order of Krsna.

That is stated in the Bhagavad-gita. The rascals, fools, they think that nature is working automatically. If nature is working automatically, why sometimes there is profuse supply and sometimes no supply. Why? What is the reason? Nature would work automatically in the same way. But why, in some year, in some season, the supply is profuse, and in some year there is no supply? There must be some control. And the controller is Krsna. That is stated in the Bhagavad… Mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10]. “The prakrti, material nature, is working under My direction.” So nature is working… (aside:) Again the (coughing) same trouble. So do not think that nature is working, producing things, blindly. No. There is no such thing as blind. There is, arrangement. Just like we see the aeroplane is flying in the sky. It is not that the aeroplane is automatically flying. No. There is a pilot. This is intelligence. Similarly, the whole material nature is working, and these are the venues of nature’s work, rivers, ocean, and the mountains, and the vegetables or the plants and creepers, and trees, drugs. Everything will give you sufficient supply if you become Krsna conscious, if you act according to Krsna’s direction.

Where you get the direction? Sadhu-sastra-guru-vakya. You get Krsna’s direction from saintly persons, from authorized scriptures, Vedic literature… Sadhu, sastra, and guru. Guru means who knows how to follow previous saintly persons, who knows what is written there in the book of knowledge, he is guru. Sadhu-sastra-guru. And sastra means that the direction of Krsna; that is called sastra. Therefore Krsna said, yah sastra-vidhim utsrjya vartate kama-karatah, na sa siddhim avapnoti. Therefore you cannot manufacture scripture. That is not possible. Therefore it is said, dharmam tu saksad bhagavat-pranitam [SB 6.3.19]. Sastra, scripture, means the words and the laws given by God. So what is the law? How can I know? Bhagavad-gita is there. Why don’t you take it? Krsna says, man-mana bhava mad-bhakto mad-yaji mam namaskuru [Bg. 18.65]. This is the law. “You simply think of Me,” man-mana bhava mad-bhaktah, “become My devotee,” mad-yaji, “worship Me.” Just like you are doing in the temple. We are worshiping Krsna, we are chanting Hare Krsna mantra, simply remembering Krsna, man-manah. And this Deity worship, temple worship, is done by the bhaktas. So one who is engaged in this service, he’s a devotee. Man-mana bhava mad…, mad-yaji, worship. What is the business of the temple? Simply to worship. Bring flowers for Krsna, bring nice foodstuff for Krsna, cook for Krsna, offer it to Krsna. Then whatever remnants is there you eat, take krsna-prasadam, glorify Krsna. Sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam pada-sevanam [SB 7.5.23]. Sravanam kirtanam. This devotional service only for Krsna. Not that you bring some rascal and make your Krsna. No. Real Krsna, not imitation Krsna. Sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam pada-sevanam arcanam. This temple worship is called arcanam.

So if you take to these principles of devotional service you gradually understand what is Krsna, and Krsna will provide everything. Yoga-ksemam vahamy aham [Bg. 9.22], Krsna says. Tesam satatam yuktanam. If you are actually engaged in the service of Krsna, all your necessities will be supplied by Krsna. How it will be supplied? Krsna says, aham vahami. “I personally carry all the necessities to the house of the devotee. I personally carry.” There is a big history how He personally carries. But He hasn’t got to do personally. Parasya saktir vividhaiva sruyate. His energy is so, I mean to say, acute, that Krsna, if He wants to supply you… It does not appear that Krsna has personally come, but you will understand that supply is so, I mean to say, surprisingly supplied that you will understand how Krsna supplied. You’ll be surprised. When you are in need of something… In London it was so happened. When we established the Bury Place Deity, on the three days before, the Deity which I ordered from India, it did not arrive. Three days before. And I was so much full of anxiety, that “Where to get…? We are arranging, we are issuing invitation card, and there is no Deity. Where is the installation?” But you’ll be surprised to know that some Indian gentleman came just on the three days before: “Sir, we have got a Deity. You can take.” So Mukunda and myself went, immediately brought the Deity. And nobody knew this afterwards, but we got surprisingly.

So Krsna is so kind. If you are actually sincere to the service of Krsna, then He has got agents everywhere. Sarvatah pani-padam tat. He has got hands and legs everywhere. Wherever He will order, the things will come. Simply we have to become sincere; then everything is there. Read the purport.

Pradyumna: “Since Maharaja Yudhisthira was under the protection of the ajita, the infallible Lord, as above mentioned, the property of the Lord, namely the rivers, oceans, hills, forests, etc., were all pleased, and they used to supply their respective quota of taxation to the king.”

Prabhupada: Yes. So Krsna’s another name is Ajita. Ajita means “one who cannot be conquered.” His name is Ajita. Everyone can be conquered, everyone can be vanquished, but not Krsna. Therefore His another name is Ajita. This Ajita, who is never conquered, He can be conquered by the devotee. That is Krsna’s name. Another name of Krsna is Ajita. Ajita means nobody can conquer.

That is Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s mission. This is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam.

jnane prayasam udapasya namanta eva jivanti san-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam sthane sthitah sruti-gatam tanu-van-manobhir ye prayaso ’jita jito ’py asi tais tri-lokyam

This was quoted from Srimad-Bhagavatam by Ramananda Raya about the process of approaching Krsna. So he suggested so many things. Caitanya Mahaprabhu said, “Yes, but better process is there. If you know, just describe.” So he described, varnasrama-dharma, sannyasa, jnana-misra-bhakti, karma-misra-bhakti, in this way, everything Krsna. Caitanya Mahaprabhu rejected. Eho bahya age kaha ara. “This is external. This is not very good. If you know something more better, you speak.” So when at last he said this verse, jnane prayasam udapasya namanta eva… If one becomes submissive and does not endeavor to understand Krsna by his so- called limited knowledge, jnane prayasam udapasya namanta, one has to become sub… The whole devotional department is submissiveness. Because under the influence of maya, everyone is falsely proud. “Oh, I am so intelligent. I can do everything.” This is the disease, material. Everyone is falsely proud.

So if you want to enter into the spiritual kingdom, as Lord Jesus Christ also said, “The kingdom of God is for the meek and the…” Huh? Meek and mild, yes. So that is the qualification. You have to become humble. Therefore the Bhagavata also says the same thing. Jnane prayasam. Don’t be very much proud of your so-called knowledge, that “I can understand everything.” You should become namra, meek and mild. And then how to be…? Jnane prayasam udapasya namanta eva san-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam. You should engage yourself to receive spiritual knowledge from the authority, reliable source. Spiritual knowledge is understood through the ear. Therefore the Vedas are called sruti. San-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam. This is recommended, that Krsna’s katha should be heard from the realized source. San-mukharitam. Sat means devotee. Sat. Om tat sat. San-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam. Then sthane sthitah, you can remain in your place. It doesn’t matter whether you are a brahmana or a sudra or American or Indian or… It doesn’t matter. You keep yourself in your position. Simply go there. Where these things are discussed authoritatively, you hear. Sruti-gatam. Sruti-gatam. Sruti means the ear. You just give the aural reception of the words of realized soul. San-mukharitam bhavadiya-vartam sthane sthitah sruti-gatam. You can keep yourself… It doesn’t require that you have to change your position. Simply you have to hear from the right source.

Then what will be the result? The result is by hearing, hearing, hearing, one day you’ll be able to conquer over the unconquerable, Krsna. Krsna is unconquerable. Nobody can conquer Him. But you hear, you’ll be able to conquer Him, simply by hearing about Him. Therefore this hearing process is so important from the right source. Read.

Pradyumna: “The secret of success is to take refuge under the protection of the Supreme Lord. Without His sanction nothing can be possible. To make economic development by our own endeavors on the strength of tools and machinery is not all.”

Prabhupada: Yes. Tools and machinery are already there. But why there is scarcity? Now there is no petrol, whole world. You have got the drilling machine, tools and machinery, everything. Then why you are in scarcity? Because now Krsna is against you. Therefore in spite of the oil underground, in spite of tools and machine, you’ll starve. This is nature’s process. You have created such a situation. Now, in spite of having everything… Just like it is said by Vaisnava kavi, nire kari vas namre kila peyas (?) Just like you are on the ocean and you are thirsty. You are in the ocean, profuse water, but you cannot touch a drop. Nire kari vas namre kila peyas. Thirsty, you want water, but you are in the water, in the ocean. Now drink it. Similarly, if Krsna does not desire, you may have ample things, everything there, but still the key is in the hand of Krsna. Unless He opens it, you cannot get. Go on.

Pradyumna: “The sanction of the Supreme Lord must be there, otherwise…”

Prabhupada: Yes. Now the sanction is not there; therefore there is scarcity. Nature can supply you anything, as we have already described. But if Krsna says, “Don’t supply,” bas, finished. Then?

Pradyumna: “Otherwise, despite all instrumental arrangements, everything will be unsuccessful. The ultimate cause of success is the daiva, or the Supreme. Kings like Maharaja Yudhisthira…”

Prabhupada: Daiva, daiva means godly. So you may have everything complete, but if the daiva sanction is not there… Just like one may have father and mother. Generally, it is supposed that a child under the protection of father and mother will be happy. But that is not the case. If Krsna does not sanction, in spite of very rich parents, the child is suffering. Why? Because there is no sanction. Similarly, if one is diseased, you can engage first-class physician and you can use first-class medicine; still he dies. Why he dies? You have got so advanced medicine, advanced physician. Why the man dies? Because Krsna wanted. That’s it. Similarly, we have created so many countereffects for all our miserable condition. That is called struggle for existence. But if there is no sanction from Krsna, these counteractions will not be useful. You’ll have to starve. You’ll have to die. All these methods cannot help you. Mayadhyaksena [Bg. 9.10]. Therefore Krsna says mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram. So everything, without Krsna’s sanction… They say, “Not a blade of grass moves without the sanction of God.” This is the position. Go on.

Pradyumna: “Kings like Maharaja Yudhisthira knew perfectly well that the king is the agent of the Supreme Lord to look after the welfare of the mass of people.”

Prabhupada: Yes. That is king. King means he is representative of God. Therefore king is addressed as nara-devata, the god amongst the human beings. Because as agent of God, Krsna, his business is to see that all the citizens, they are happy in their daily necessities of life and they are engaged in Krsna consciousness. This is the duty of the government. Not that “You go to hell; give me tax.” This is not government. Therefore, the king being pious, how nature was supplying everything, and the citizens were very happy, there was no scarcity. And how they were executing Krsna consciousness. It is true, as people say, that if one is hungry, needy, how he can execute? Therefore it is the duty of the government to see that everyone is happy for the material necessities of life and is engaged in Krsna consciousness.

So that is not being done. Everyone is trying to become happy without Krsna consciousness. Just like in your country I heard in a… The Archbishop of Canterbury… There was some meeting. So he said that “You want kingdom of God without God. That is your philosophy.” The modern, so-called politicians, they want to make everything very nicely going on. They have discovered this United Nations so that there may not be any war or any strife or any scarcity. They have medical department, W.H.O. Do you know the W.H.O.? W.H.O. department. W.H.O. means World Health Organization. W means World and H means Health and O means Organization, of the United Nations. So there is a W.H.O. organization but there is no health. (laughter) The W.H.O. organization is there, worldwide, but there is no health. This is their business. Because there is no Krsna.

So this Archbishop of Canterbury said rightly that “You want kingdom of God without God.” That is the disease. Everything we want. Therefore our propaganda is just the opposite. We want everything with center Krsna. Therefore we will have never scarcity. Others will suffer. Go on.

Pradyumna: “Actually, the state belongs to the Supreme Lord. The rivers, the oceans, the forests, the hills, drugs, etc., are not creations of man. They are all creations of the Supreme Lord, and a living being is allowed to make use of the property of the Lord for the service of the Lord.”

Prabhupada: Yes. Yes. You must use… Just like we are using this hall, this hall, very nice hall. What purpose? For satisfying Krsna. We are dancing, we are chanting, we are eating nicely, you are understanding philosophy. What is the purpose? To satisfy Krsna. Then you can use. The whole world you can use very nicely, provided you know how to satisfy Krsna. But if you do not know, then this thing will be fire. In spite of having nice house, nice arrangement, you’ll think that you are in the fire. Go on.

Pradyumna: “Today’s slogan is that ‘Everything is for the people,’ and therefore the government is for the people and by the people. But to produce a new species of humanity at the present moment on the basis of philosophy and religion on the basis of justice and peace, on the basis of God consciousness and perfection of human life, the ideology of godly communism, the world has again to follow in the footsteps of kings like Maharaja Yudhisthira or Pariksit. There is enough of everything by the will of the Lord, and we can make proper use of things to live comfortably without any enmity between men or animal and man and nature. Everywhere, the control of the Lord is there, and if the Lord is pleased, every part of nature will be pleased. The river will flow profusely to fertilize the land, the oceans will supply sufficient quantity of minerals, pearls and jewels, the forest will supply sufficient wood, drugs and vegetables, and the seasonal changes will effectively help produce fruits and flowers in profuse quantity. The artificial way of living depending on factories and tools can render so-called happiness only to a limited number at the cost of millions. Since the energy of the mass of people is engaged in factory production, the natural products are being hampered, and for this the mass is unhappy. Without being educated properly, the mass of people are following in the footsteps of the vested interest by exploiting natural reserve, and therefore there is acute competition between individual and individual, and nation and nation. There is no control by the trained agent of the Lord. We must look into the defects of modern civilization by comparison here and should follow in the footsteps of Maharaja Yudhisthira to cleanse men and wipe out anachronisms.”

Prabhupada: That’s all. Thank you. (end)