Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 6.2.45 Māgha-melā , Prayaga , 1971-01-29

Devotee: [introducing recording] Morning lecture, 29th January, 1971, Māgha-melā, from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. [break]

Prabhupāda: [maṅgalācaraṇa prayers]

["I offer my respectful obeisances unto my spiritual master, who with the torchlight of knowledge has opened my eyes, which were blinded by the darkness of ignorance."]

["When will Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī Prabhupāda, who has established within this material world the mission to fulfill the desire of Lord Caitanya, give me shelter under his lotus feet?"]

["O my dear Kṛṣṇa, ocean of mercy, You are the friend of the distressed and the source of creation. You are the master of the cowherd men and the lover of the gopīs, especially Rādhārāṇī. I offer my respectful obeisances unto You."]

["I offer my respects to Rādhārāṇī, whose bodily complexion is like molten gold and who is the Queen of Vṛndāvana. You are the daughter of King Vṛṣabhānu, and You are very dear to Lord Kṛṣṇa."]

["I offer my respectful obeisances unto all the Vaiṣṇava devotees of the Lord. They can fulfill the desires of everyone, just like desire trees, and they are full of compassion for the fallen souls."]

["I offer my obeisances to Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, Prabhu Nityānanda, Śrī Advaita, Gadādhara, Śrīvāsa and all others in the line of devotion."]

["My dear Lord, and the spiritual energy of the Lord, kindly engage me in Your service. I am now embarrassed with this material service. Please engage me in Your service."]

[Sanskrit] Here Śrīdhara Swami gives his comments that the whole situation of Ajāmila for falling down from the standard of pure brāhmaṇism was due to his becoming a husband of illicit wife, or a prostitute. That is the commentation.

So in the society, prostitution is so dangerous. It is clearly stated here that,

Dāsyāḥ patiḥ means one who is husband of a prostitute or one who keeps a prostitute. And to keep a prostitute means garhya-karma. Garhya means abominance, and karma means activities. As soon as one associates with a prostitute, immediately he becomes addicted to abominable activities, and that is the beginning of falldown.

According to this formula, the system of arranged marriage of the boys and the girls is recommended, although that is not the guarantee; real thing is association. But still, when the boys and girls are grown, up it is a custom in Hindu society to get them married so that they may not fall prey to the prostitute or illicit sex life. That is very dangerous, such falling down. That is clearly stated here. Śrīdhara Swami says, [Sanskrit] Sva-dāra. Sva means calm; dāra means wife. So there is regulative principles how to remain husband and wife peacefully.

So Ajāmila broke those regulative principles; therefore he fell down from the standard of a real brāhmaṇa. But still, sadyo vimukto bhagavan-nāma gṛhṇan. Although he was so much in abominable condition, still offenseless chanting of the holy name of God is so powerful that he also became relieved from the hellish condition of life.

[Sanskrit] The conclusion is that in order to counteract all our sinful activities on account of fruitive activities, karma-nibandha, mumukṣatāṁ tīrtha-padānukīrtanāt.

Actually, those who want to get a relief from the entanglement of fruitive activities, for them there is no other better way than the chanting of the holy name of the Lord. Therefore Lord Caitanya has recommended that,

So long you are in this material world, it is very difficult to avoid karma-nibandha. Willingly or unwillingly, we shall be entangled in karma-nibandha, or the resultant action of our activities, and therefore sometimes we may commit actions which are abominable and become subjected to the resultant action.

So here it is recommended that nātaḥ paraṁ karma-nibandha-kṛntanaṁ mumukṣatāṁ. So mumukṣatāṁ, those who are desirous of getting salvation, or liberation, for them this is the best way. What is that best way? Tīrtha-padānukīrtanāt. Tīrtha-pada. Just like here is tīrtha, Prayāga.

Tīrtha-pada means the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, where thousands of tīrthas are there. Mahat-padam, tīrtha-padam: these are the terms which are used in connection with the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. Another tīrtha-pada means the lotus feet where great saintly persons take shelter. So tīrtha-pada, uttamaśloka—all these terms are applicable to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

So the conclusion is, the best way of getting out of the clutches of material existence is to tīrtha-padānukīrtanāt. Anu. Anu means always; kīrtanaṁ, chanting. That is the best way. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement recommends this process, that you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa always. Then everything will be gradually adjusted. Na yat punaḥ karmasu sajjate mano. The advantage of chanting is… This is the advantage: that the mind is not attracted by material activities.

This is very nice statement. But if you remain engaged in chanting the holy name of the Lord, tīrtha-padānukīrtanāt, always, twenty-four hours, as Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends, kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ [Cc. Ādi 17.31]—sadā; sadā means always—samāne svapane: the practice will be so perfect that when you are sleeping, when you are dreaming, you should not forget this chanting. That is process.

If you practice, it is possible that when you are sleeping you will chant, because mind is not inactive even when you are sleeping. So if you become practiced up to the mind and intelligence platform of your life, then even when you are sleeping, even when you are dreaming, you will be chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare.

And if this perfection is attained, then in the coma stage of life also, even if you cannot speak at the time of death, internally you will be able to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and that will guarantee your transferring from this material world to the spiritual world. That is the process.

And why we are active?

If you keep yourself always on the stage of the modes of goodness, then there is no chance of your being attacked by the other two modes, namely rajas tamaś. There are three qualities, modes of material nature, you know it. Out of these three, if you simply stick to the..., the modes of goodness nature, then there is no possibility of falling down to the other two modes. And material activities means to be attracted by these two qualities.

As it is stated in other places,

When you are attracted by the other two qualities, namely rajaḥ, the modes of passion, and tamaḥ, the modes of ignorance—tadā rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ—the resultant actions of passion and ignorance is lust and greediness.

If you are not attracted by these qualities… To be very greedy, to be lusty; therefore we have to control our propensities for eating more. This is rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ: you can eat, but if you eat more than what you require, that is greediness. That is the result of rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ. So you should be very careful. We should eat whatever...

Atyāhāraḥ. This is the instruction of Rūpa Gosvāmī. Āhāraḥ means eating; ati means great or in greater quantity. That is against bhakti.

Laulyaṁ. Laulyaṁ—greediness.

So our… We should understand how we are making progress by chanting. You can, anyone, can examine himself, "Whether I am being attracted by these two qualities, namely rajas-tamas, the passion of…, the modes of passion and modes of ignorance." Tadā rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ. So because the resultant action of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra without offense is that mind will not be attracted by these two material qualities, that is the test.

In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, pratyakṣāvagamaṁ dharmyaṁ [Bg. 9.2]. In other methods of self-realization, namely karma, jñāna, yoga, you are not able to test whether you are actually making progress. But bhakti-yoga is so perfect that you can practically examine yourself whether you are making progress or not.

Exactly the same example, as I have repeated several times, that if you are hungry, and when you are given eatables, you can understand yourself how far your hunger is subsided and how far you are feeling strength and nourishment. You haven't got to ask anybody else. Similarly, you are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, and the test is whether you are actually making progress is if you know whether you are being attracted by these two lower qualities of material nature, namely the modes of passion and modes of ignorance.

And what, what is the result of this attraction? Kāma-lobha.

Kāma means lust, and lobha means greediness. So if you can protect yourself from these two qualities by the strength of chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, then,

Then your consciousness will be existing without being contaminated by these three qualities: ceta etair anāviddhaṁ.

So there are three qualities. If you are not attracted by these lower-grade qualities, then naturally you are situated in the higher-grade qualities, the sattva-guṇa. As soon as it… The test of sattva-guṇa is also there. Test of sattva-guṇa means you will be always in jolly mood. That is the test of sattva-guṇa. You will never be morose; you will be always jolly. Evaṁ prasanna-manaso.

Prasanna-manaso means your mind is always jolly. That is the test of sattva-guṇa. Whether you are in sattva-guṇa or in rajo-guṇa, you can test yourself. If you are situated in rajo-guṇa and tamo-guṇa, then you will be attracted by lust and greediness. And if you are situated in sattva-guṇa, then you, your mind will be always jolly. That is nearer to the brahma-bhūta stage.

And this is very easily accessible by the method of practicing this bhakti-yoga system. Therefore we shall, we shall be very much, I mean to say, determined to prosecute this system of bhakti-yoga system. The beginning of bhakti-yoga system every day is the maṅgala-ārātrika. Maṅgala means auspicious. If you perform this maṅgala-ārātrika nicely, then your routine work of the day begins very nicely.

So you should be very much careful about it. Not that it has become a hackneyed engagement. If you feel like that, then gradually it will be lost. If you feel like that. But if you feel that "Here is a routine work, duty, so that I keep fit myself in the devotional service..." Therefore these things are introduced. If you cannot take responsibility of these different items of devotional service, that means you are lacking. These are the tests.

Pratyakṣāvagamaṁ dharmyaṁ. Pratyakṣa means directly. There is no question of purity. Purity or not, it is practical.

But it is not very difficult. Su-sukhaṁ, very pleasant. Now, to perform the maṅgala-ārātrika with musical instruments, chanting, dancing before the Deities, nicely dressed—is it not very nice? But one who is in contamination of the other two qualities, passion and ignorance, for them, these things are not attractive.

So these are all practical. We should be very much careful to prosecute. Unless we prosecute the routine work of devotional service… It is called vaidhī-bhakti. Vaidhī… From viddhi, the word comes viddhi—regulative, regular principles. Vaidhī-bhakti. We should not jump over at once rāga-bhakti. There are two stages of bhakti: vaidhī-bhakti and rāga-bhakti. Rāga-bhakti means spontaneous. Spontaneous. There is no question of pushing one, that "You do this. You do this." No. Automatically he becomes so much attached to devotional service that he automatically does. That is rāga-bhakti.

But you cannot have rāga-bhakti immediately unless you perform the vaidhī-bhakti. Vaidhī-bhakti means to follow the rules and regulation as they are prescribed in the scripture. The scripture is our Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu; we have translated into English, Nectar of Devotion. The everything is there.

So if we take care of these regulative principles, the idea is that everyone should be very serious. It is a very serious engagement, forging[?] the whole problem of material existence. So we should not be lacking. Although,

Whatever you have done, it will be never lost. My Guru Mahārāja use to say—he was stressing on this point—that "Do not wait for another birth. Finish this business in this birth." That was his recommendation. Although, whatever you are doing, it will never be lost. Suppose you have to do one hundred points. If you have finished fifty points, sixty points, that will never be lost.

That's a fact. But why should you wait for another thirty or forty points, another life? That is botheration. One…, everyone should be very serious that in this life we shall finish this hundred points or do some service and return back to Kṛṣṇa, back to home, back to Godhead.

Thank you very much. [devotees offer obeisances]

Prabhupāda: [Hindi]

Guest: [indistinct] …the bhakti-yoga.

Prabhupāda: Bhakti-yoga is never finished. It is eternal.

Devotee: [indistinct]

Prabhupāda: It is not material thing, that it begins and finishes. Is it clear? It never finishes.

Devotee: If you say that it…

Prabhupāda: It increases.

Devotee: …attains to the platform of spontaneous.

Prabhupāda: Yes, when it comes to the spontaneous stage, that is perfection, that you..., nobody has to push you or learn you, "Oh, maṅgalācaraṇa. Please come. Please come." When you automatically do it, that is spontaneous. And so long you have to be pushed, you have to be pushed very vigorously.

Just like a child: A child walks. So long the child does not walk freely, the mother, father takes the hand, "Please walk like this, walk like this." But when the child walks spontaneously, there is no need of assistance by the parents.

Similarly, so long you are in the viddhi-mārga, the spiritual master has to ask you, "Do this. Do that. Do that." But when you come to the spontaneous platform, there is no need of pushing. You do automatically, naturally, because the sense is there. The same example: the walking capacity of the child is there, so in the beginning it has to be held little long, that's all.

Education—anything you take—when a child is given education, he is forcibly sent to the school. But when he takes it seriously, that child comes out very successful in examination and passes the M.A. examination, another Ph.D. [indistinct]. The parents or teacher hasn't got to push you. That is spontaneous stage.

So you have to come to the spontaneous stage. Until you come to that, you have to follow strictly the viddhi-viṣaya, the regulative principle. Otherwise, devotional service has no end. It is eternal. The only stage is viddhi and rāga. Rāga means spontaneous attraction.

Devotee (2): Is that stage covered? Is that stage characterized by the mode of goodness?

Prabhupāda: It is above goodness. That is called śuddha-sattva. Goodness means sat, sattva-guṇa. And the transcendental stage is śuddha-sattva. Sattvaṁ viśuddhaṁ, existence completely pure. In the material stage, although you are in the platform of goodness, sometimes you may be attracted with other two qualities; therefore it is not completely pure.

Just like Ajāmila. Ajāmila was a brāhmaṇa by following the regulative principles, but he fell down, attracted by the other two qualities, raja and tama. So in this material world, although we are on the platform of goodness, there is chance of falling down. And when you are in the transcendental stage, which is called śuddha-sattva, that is the stage of devotional service. Then you do not fall down. Your situation is very secure. [break]

Devotee: [aside to tape] The last lecture was recorded at Māgha-melā, the morning of the 29th, 1970, January..., 1971 January. [end]