Link up to Krishna | BG 12 | 04 Dec 2002 | Śrīla Gopāl Kṛṣṇa Goswāmī Maharaja

Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya. Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya. Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya. Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya. So ladies and gentlemen, once again we would like to welcome all of you to our lecture series on the Bhagavad Gita. So today we are going to discuss Chapter 12, which is called Devotional Service. Yesterday we discussed the chapter on the universal form. Just for the benefit of those who were not here yesterday and day before, we'll just give a summary recap of the discussion we had yesterday. We had discussed the chapter on the universal form. In which we saw that Kṛṣṇa had displayed His universal form to Arjuna. And Arjuna, sitting in one place, could see everything. He could see the upper, middle, lower planets, all the demigods, everybody within the body of the Lord. And Arjuna had asked the Lord to reveal His universal form Not because Arjuna was ever in doubt about the supreme position of the Lord, but because Arjuna wanted to establish the position of the Lord so that in future nobody could claim that he is God. And day before yesterday we discussed the opulence of the Absolute in which we saw How Kṛṣṇa is in position of unlimited opulences. Actually, in the 10th chapter, there is only a listing of 72 opulences of the Lord. But actually, the Lord is in position of unlimited opulences. So, with the background of the 11 verses, 11 chapters, we shall now proceed to discuss the 12th chapter. The 12th chapter, which is called Devotional Service, actually— does not have as many verses as the other chapters. It only has 20 verses. But the 12th chapter gives us information as a result of which everyone can be linked up to Kṛṣṇa. No one should think that the path of devotion is so difficult that I can't touch it. Just like you have good, better, best, different gradations in life. You go to a store, you can buy something for different prices. So similarly, in this chapter we will see how Kṛṣṇa is trying to encourage us to come to the path of devotion. And he is suggesting various alternatives. And he's trying to influence us to at least take one of the alternatives. Now the 12th chapter begins with a discussion as to which of the two paths is superior, the personal or the impersonal. Because as we all know, the different types of transcendentalists, some believe that God has a form And some say that God does not have a form. So Arjuna starts the 12th chapter with an enquiry. E vāṁ satātayukta ye bhaktā-svām paripāsate, yā caḥ akiśyaram avyaktam te śāmke yoga-vitām aha. Arjuna says, what is more perfect? Those who are properly engaged in a devotional service or those who worship the unmanifested, which is the impersonal Brahman. So this question comes up very often in our discussions, which is superior. And we often see that people are speculating as to which of the two paths is superior. But there is no need to speculate because every possible inquiry that can arise in our mind has arisen in the mind of Arjuna, and it has been presented by Arjuna to Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa has given satisfactory answers. So we have the Gītā to guide and remove all our doubt. So Arjuna wants to know which of the two paths is better, the path of personalism or the path of impersonalism. The impersonalists do not directly engage in service of Kṛṣṇa, but they meditate on the impersonal Brahman, the unmanifested. The personalists, on the other hand, recognize that God is a person, but He has divine qualities, attributes. We had, we had read about These attributes in the 4th chapter of the Bhāgavad-gītā. If you recall the 4th chapter of the Bhāgavad-gītā, you may remember that Kṛṣṇa specifically states, janma-karma-cāmed-devyaṁ evāṁ aviditāt pataḥ tyaktā deham panaḥ janma-naitimā mṛti-svaro-janaḥ. Kṛṣṇa is clearly stating that My appearance and disappearance are both completely transcendental. So it is not that when God appears on this planet, He becomes like you and me. Like, for example, our spiritual master used to give a simple example to show this point. If the head of state visits the prison house, it doesn't mean that he becomes a prisoner. He remains the head of state, isn't it? So the Lord In all situations, retains His personal form. And His personal form is always transcendental. It is not to be concluded that when the Lord appears on this planet, He becomes like you or me. Like we saw even in our discussion yesterday, Kṛṣṇa showed His universal form. But after Arjuna had seen His universal form, Arjuna requested Kṛṣṇa, "Please now revert to your four-handed form." And after Kṛṣṇa showed his four-handed form, Arjuna said, "Now you please revert to your two-handed form." So Kṛṣṇa, because He's inconceivable, He is capable of appearing in a spiritual body and not be affected by the material energy. The characteristics of the Lord are described in the Brahma-samhita, which we've already discussed. Advaita-macchuta-manadi-ananta-rūpaṁ. There is no difference between His body and Self. He is infallible. He never makes any mistakes. And He manifests Himself in a variety of forms. However, all these manifestations of the Lord are to be obtained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and in the pages of the Vedic scriptures. So there's absolutely no room for somebody to just artificially claim that he is an incarnation of the Lord. Now Kṛṣṇa replies to Arjuna's enquiry. He says, "Those who fix their minds on my personal form and are always engaged in worshipping me with great and transcendental faith are considered by me to be more perfect." So here is the answer. Kṛṣṇa is clearly saying that those who worship me in my transcendental form versus those who don't accept me in my transcendental form, they are considered to be more perfect. So accepting God in his personal form and worshiping the Lord in his personal form is superior to the impersonal process which is unmanifested. Just because you may put your letter In a mailbox. Does not mean that if the mailbox is certified, the letter will not reach its destination, isn't it? If the mailbox is certified, whether you put the letter in the mailbox or in the general post office, the letter is going to be carried to its destination, isn't it? So similarly, when you worship the Deity of the Lord, accepting the Deity to be non-different from the Lord, —then that is worship of God. So because the Lord is the source of everything material and spiritual. Aham sarvasya prabhavo mataḥ prabharṁ taraprabhartate. Kṛṣṇa has already declared that I am the source of everything material and spiritual. So when a form of the Lord is carved according to the description of Vedic scriptures and it is worshiped and installed by the bona fide representative of God, Then that Ācārya-vigraha form of the Lord is non-different from the Lord and it is to be recognized as the form of the Supreme Lord. So worshipping the Lord in His personal form is superior to the impersonal. In the Vedic scriptures, there are many stories to illustrate this point. Of course, we don't have the time to cover all these stories, but we will present one story which will illustrate that the Ārjavigraha mūrtī form of the Lord is the personal form of the Lord and the Lord has sentient feelings and based upon the mentality of the worshipper, the Lord reciprocates. Kṛṣṇa has already declared in the Bhāgavad-gītā, ye yathāmāṁ prapadeyante, all of them as they surrender unto me, I reward them accordingly. So the story briefly is as follows. This is known as the story of Sakshi Gopa. There was once a rich old man who had gone to a place of pilgrimage, and he was helped in the place of pilgrimage by a young Brahmin who happened to be a poor man. The old man became very indebted to the young man for his assistance, and he promised to give his daughter in marriage to this Brahmin. Now, when the old man returned to his village, to his house, and told his family what he had done, committed his daughter's marriage to this poor Brahmin, they were all furious. And when the young Brahmin showed up, everyone attacked him and accused him of forcing the old man to make this commitment. However, the Brahmin boy was honest. He had not forced or asked for, but it— the offer was volunteered by the father. So it was a question of the Brahmin's reputation., and a Brahmin does not want to be dishonored. So finally, it was settled that if the Brahmin could produce a witness to the fact that the father had promised his daughter in marriage and he was not forced into this promise, then the family would agree to the marriage. So the Brahmin remembered that this promise was given by the old man in front of the Deity of Gopal. And Sakshi in Hindi means witness. So the Brahmin ran to the deity and said, my dear Lord, it's a question of my honor. You have to save my honor. And the Lord said, but I cannot walk. The Brahmin wanted the Lord to come and testify, but the Lord said, I can't walk, so how will I go and testify in your favor? But the Brahmin said, "My dear Lord, if you can talk, you can also walk." And so eventually the Brahmin's honor was saved by the Deity Gopal. So the brief history or summary of the story is that the Lord is a sentient being, and based upon the faith of the worshipper, the Lord reciprocates. So samādhi means when we are fixed in our meditation on the Supreme Lord. Samādhi doesn't mean that you artificially just withdraw from the society, but samādhi means when you learn the art of engaging the mind and the senses in service to the Lord. Now Kṛṣṇa has already answered Arjuna's question. But as we have seen in the whole Bhagavad-gītā, that Kṛṣṇa elaborates on the point from many different angles in order to convince the reader that this is the real standard that we should adopt. The second chapter could have been summarized in just 2 or 3 verses, isn't it? Kṛṣṇa could just have said the soul never takes birth nor does it ever die and the whole chapter could have ended. But we saw that Kṛṣṇa presented the characteristics of the soul. From so many inconceivable angles. So also in this chapter we see that Kṛṣṇa will explore the characteristics of the impersonal Brahman and the characteristics of one who takes to the process of devotional service. So in the next verse, in the next two verses, Kṛṣṇa describes the characteristics of the impersonal Brahman. Krishna says, those who worship the unmanifested, that which lies beyond the perception of the senses. To actually just say that God has no form, no form, no form, you can't really visualize the form of the Lord. The all-pervading. One argument that the impersonalists use in presenting their doctrine is that since the Lord is all-pervasive, How is it possible for him to have a form, a spiritual form? Because God is all-pervasive. Since God is all-pervasive and since God is present everywhere, how is it possible for God to have his personal form? Now this argument is refuted in the Vedas. For example, the Vedas state the sun disc, for example, the sun disc, the sun is all-pervasive, isn't it? Doesn't matter where you go, whether you're in Bombay, Delhi, London, New York, Moscow, the sun is all-pervasive. But even though the sun is all-pervasive, nevertheless there is a form, sun disc, which is located in the sun planet, isn't it? So if we can have the sun disc be all-pervasive and still have its original form, Why is it not possible for Kṛṣṇa to be present in a spiritual abode and still be all-pervasive? You understand? The point is, to try and understand God with the limited senses, we can never be successful. Therefore, the Īśopaniṣad says that even if you travel at the speed of the mind for thousands of years— imagine the speed of the mind! Sitting here in Bombay, in one second you can go around the whole world and come back to Bombay. This is the speed of the mind. So even if you were to travel at the speed of the mind for thousands of years, still you can't understand God with your mental senses. But if we take to the path of devotion, which is the underlying, underlining theme of the entire Bhagavad-gītā, then we can understand the Supreme Lord. So just like we had related to all of you the story previously of the cobbler and the brahman. When the cobbler was told that the Lord was passing an elephant through the eye of a needle, he rejoiced in happiness. And when the Brahmin was told that the Lord was passing an elephant through the eye of a needle, he couldn't believe it. So when he takes the path of devotion, because he's on the path of purification of the senses, he builds up faith in the inconceivable potencies and energies of the Almighty Lord. So the Lord, the impersonal Brahman, one of the characteristics is that it's all-pervading, inconceivable, immovable, fixed, and unchangeable. The impersonal conception of the Absolute Truth. So this is very, very difficult to understand, very difficult to approach the Lord through this process. But if as a result of the impersonal process we control the senses, then, and we be engaged in welfare activities for the welfare of all, then at last such an individual can come to the point of understanding Kṛṣṇa. So in other words, there is a shortcut and a long cut. Just like coming up to the fourth floor of this hall today, you have the choice. You can either take the lift and come up, or you could come up with the staircase, isn't it? If you want to touch the tip of your nose, you can either touch it directly, or you can try to stretch your hand behind your face and bring it back in the front. One process is going to be easy and the other is going to be troublesome, isn't it? So that's exactly The difference between the personal path and the impersonal path. The path of personal worship of the Lord is easier, where the path of impersonal realization actually is very, very difficult. So those who take to the impersonal process, if they can completely control their senses and they start working for the welfare of all, then eventually they come to the point where they can understand Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa again in the next verse explains how this path is difficult. And when Kṛṣṇa says difficult, it should leave all of us with absolutely no doubt. Kṛṣṇa says, "For those whose minds are attached to the unmanifested impersonal feature of the Supreme, advancement is very troublesome." So Kṛṣṇa is making it clear that walking on this path is a bumpy path. So there's no point in going on a bumpy path. And to make progress in that discipline is always difficult for those who are embodied. So we are all embodied. We have a personal form. Our soul is entangled in the body. The living entity is an individual soul. So we are used to the concept of a form, isn't it? Even in the Bible it is said, for example, that man is made in God's image. So We are used to a form, and to take to the path where we think that the Lord doesn't have a form, as Kṛṣṇa has explained, is actually very, very difficult. Therefore, our Kṛṣṇa replies to Arjuna's question very clearly by stating that this is actually a very, very difficult path. Whereas, on the other hand, those who worship the Lord through the personal process, for them this path is definitely easier. Now Kṛṣṇa says that how Kṛṣṇa delivers a devotee swiftly from the cycle of birth and death. "For those who worship Me, giving up all their activities unto Me and being devoted to Me without deviation." Now this word "without deviation" appears again and again. Even in the chapter we discussed yesterday, Kṛṣṇa's last instruction was what? Those who worship Me with devotion and without deviation. So those who worship Me with devotion without deviation, they can come to Me. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, we see that Vyāsadeva has presented the doctrine by which the living entity can really be satisfied. And there is emphasis in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam upon taking the path of dharm, pure dharma, parvā-dharma. So in that Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, it is stated as follows. "Tave punsām paro dharmo yato bhakti-advokṣajaye, hai tukī pratyātāya yajñātmā suprasīdati." That is, the self can be satisfied only when engages in devotional service without interruption and motivation. So that is, without interruption is just another meaning for without deviation. So Kṛṣṇa is making this point again and again, those who worship me without deviation, and always meditating upon Me, having their minds fixed upon Me. For them, I'm the swift deliverer from the cycle of birth and death. So one who's on the path of devotion, he has absolutely no— nothing to worry at all. Those who are on the yoga path, they can willfully transfer the soul to any planet that they want by the yoga process. But a bhakti yogi He doesn't even have to make that endeavor. Just like a child who is completely dependent upon the parent, he has absolutely no fear at all, isn't it? Just like if somebody is getting drowned in an ocean, if somebody is getting drowned in an ocean, if somebody jumps in the ocean to rescue you, then you can be saved. But if on the other hand you attempt to come out of the ocean yourself, it's going to be a troublesome path. So those who are on the path of bhakti, Kṛṣṇa declares in the Bhāgavad-gītā to Arjuna, kānteya prati-jānehi nāma-maya-bhakta pranāśyati, "My devotee will never perish." And in this chapter today, when we discuss the qualities of a devotee, you will see that even when a devotee is in difficulty, he has absolutely no fear at all. It's not that the devotee bargains with the Lord. That in exchange for this devotion, I don't want any difficulty at all. But the devotee has the mental strength to tolerate the difficulty because he's fully equipped. Just like a medical doctor when he catches a disease, the medical doctor when he catches a disease, he has medical knowledge how to counteract the disease, isn't it? So similarly, one who has a spiritual understanding, a devotee, he knows how to counteract or how to tolerate the pains or the dualities of material existence that he may have to face. So one who comes on the path of devotion, the Supreme Lord riding on His bird carrier Garuda comes and delivers such a person from the samsara of birth and death. So unalloyed devotion to Kṛṣṇa has been declared in the Bhāgavad-gītā time and again. To be the superior most path of devotion. Now, as I said earlier in our introductory remarks on this chapter, Kṛṣṇa in this chapter is presenting various alternatives that everyone can adopt. So none of you should think, "Swāmi, that I can't become a sannyāsi or a full-time Hare Kṛṣṇa monk, so I have no room for spiritual— there's no spiritual life that I can practice." You can practice, and you will see that being presented by Kṛṣṇa now. Kṛṣṇa says, māmeva manaḍaṭsvā māye buddhim nivēśaya, nivāśiśyāsi māye vā-ātā uddvamā samyasyā. Just fix your mind upon Me, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and engage all your intelligence on Me. Thus you will live in Me without any doubt. So this is The highest path. Where you fix your mind on Kṛṣṇa, your intelligence on Kṛṣṇa, you work for Kṛṣṇa, and you have absolutely no separate interest at all. So this position is the position of pure transcendence. And the devotee in such a position is not separated from the Lord even for a second. Because his intelligence is constantly being used in what? His intelligence is constantly being used in, in serving the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Now, higher than the mind is intelligence. So you can have your mind fixed on Kṛṣṇa only when the intelligence is properly placed, isn't it? Sometimes people find it confusing to distinguish between the mind and the intelligence. I'll give you a simple example to illustrate this point. The mind may say, "There's a very nice item in the shop. No one is watching. Let's keep it in the pocket." But then the intelligence says, "If you do this, you may get caught, and then you'll be dishonored." Isn't it? You may see someone beautiful on the road. You may want to get friendly with that person. You may want to do something nasty, but the intelligence says, "No, no, no, don't do it. You'll get caught." You may get beaten up. So there is a distinction between the mind and the intelligence. So when the intelligence is properly focused, then it is possible to fix the mind. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa says, those whose mind are fixed upon Me and those whose intelligence is also fixed upon Me, they can understand Me. So this refers to the highest level of devotion, huh? When your mind is fixed on Kṛṣṇa. Now, what do you do if you cannot fix your mind on Kṛṣṇa? Because I have to admit to all of you very frankly, we don't want to be spiritual hypocrites, that it is not easy to fix the mind on Kṛṣṇa all the time. Isn't it? There are so many distractions in the material world. Even I get distracted. We all get distracted. So, it is not easy to fix the mind and the intelligence on Kṛṣṇa. So what do we do? If you can't fix your mind and intelligence, does it mean you're sorry, no chance, and no luck at all? No. Kṛṣṇa gives you an easier path then. Kṛṣṇa says, if you cannot fix your mind upon Me without deviation, then follow the regulative principles of bhakti-yoga. In this way, develop a desire to attain Me. So how lucky, isn't it? Aren't we lucky? It's not that Kṛṣṇa is only giving us path that you could practice in satya-yoga. And if you can't come to that standard, get out. No, because Krishna is anxious for us to claim Him, claim us back. Krishna goes out of His way to try and claim us back. Krishna is going to any extent to claim us back. Why? Because He's our ever-well-wisher. Just like the father bringing up a son. The son may be very notorious, very mischievous, but the father goes out of the way to bring the son on the right path. Am I right? Those parents will testify to that. Especially in these age when children tend to be very independent and rebellious. So anyway, so that's a symptom of Kali Yuga. So Krishna is also trying, knowing our rebellious nature, Krishna is going out of His way to give us one path or the other. So now, what is the path of regulative principle? Because the best standard is when you fix your mind on Me and your intelligence on Me. Now, if you cannot fix the mind on Kṛṣṇa, you cannot fix the intelligence on Kṛṣṇa, then Kṛṣṇa says, okay, at least follow regulative principles. Because by following regulative principles, you'll get the desire to come to me. You understand? Just like the mother, as she nurses a child, as the mother is bringing up the child, as the mother brings up the child day by day, the mother's attraction for the child increases. The attraction is not so intense the day the child is born. But then due to the upbringing of the child, the constant association of the mother with the child, the mother's attachment for the child increases. So similarly, by taking to the path of Bhakti Yoga, by following the rules and regulations, our attraction for the Supreme Lord increases. Just like a magnet, a magnet, if you have a metal near a magnet, what happens? The metal gets pulled to the, to the magnet, isn't it? So similarly, when you follow the process of regulated principles, rules and regulations, Then we become like the magnet that gets pulled, then we become like the metal that gets pulled towards the magnet. The magnet of course is Kṛṣṇa and we are the metals. So we have to have that purification. Now, that purification comes by following rules and regulations. So at this point, you may want to demand, "What are the rules and regulations you are talking about?" So basically, the rules and regulations that we are talking about is known in Sanskrit as vaidhi-bhakti. Vaidhi-bhakti means— vaidhi means rules and regulations. Very often we meet people who say, Swamiji, one problem with your process is you have too many rules and regulations. So we say, what to do? It's Krishna presented the rules and regulations. You can't even walk on the street without rules and regulations, isn't it? You may want to walk naked, like in the Western countries they have these nudist colonies where you're allowed to go and be nude, but you're not allowed to walk nude on the road. Because that's against the law. So you can't even walk, commute on the road. So how can you think that you can worship God without following some rules and regulations? So these rules and regulations are things like coming to mangala arati. In the morning we get up, we greet the Deities at 4:30. Then we follow 4 regulative principles. We avoid sinful activities, no illicit sex, intoxication, meat eating, and gambling. And we chant the Hare Krishna mantra 16 rounds. So by following these different rules and regulations, the impure senses become pure. Just like when you have cataract. When you have cataract, you cannot see clearly. But then when the cataract is operated upon, then your vision is restored, isn't it? So similarly, our spiritual vision has to be restored. The, eh, Rūpa Gosvāmī, a great sage, has explained that just like when a child is being brought up, The child has the ability to walk, isn't it? Because there is the ability to walk in the child. The moment the child reaches 10 months, 11 months, the mothers are teaching the child how to crawl, how to walk, isn't it? Because there is the ability to walk. In the piece of wood, there is the propensity of fire, isn't it? So in the piece of wood, because there is the propensity of fire, you light a matchstick And the wood burns. Am I right? So similarly, there is the propensity to love God in every one of us. Don't think that you people don't have the propensity to love God, otherwise all of you would not be here. Basically, there is a loving propensity towards God, but we do not know how to find, place that loving propensity. So that is the business of the spiritualist, to guide the individual so that he can develop his loving propensity for God. So Kṛṣṇa says, if you can't do this, then, then you can take to the process of regulative principles. But then there may be some people who may say, I can't even take to the process of regulative principles. Kṛṣṇa has already said, the highest is if you give your mind and intelligence to Me. So many of you will say, and even I will say, I am in that league also, that it's hard to give the mind and intelligence 24 hours to Kṛṣṇa. So then Kṛṣṇa gives us an easy path. Okay, take the rules and regulations. Now some of you may say, we can't even follow the rules and regulations. So, does it mean that Kṛṣṇa has no place for us? He does. So what is that place? He says, if you cannot practice the regulated principles of Bhakti Yoga, then just try to work for Me. Because by working for Me, you will come to the perfect state. So Kṛṣṇa says, "Okay, you can't do that, then at least you work for Me." Working for Kṛṣṇa is not difficult, isn't it? For example, one way how you can work for Kṛṣṇa, you can be sympathetic to the propagation of Kṛṣṇa's message. So you may be a householder, you may be married, you may be doing business, you may be doing a government job, private job, student, whatever. But you can still work for Kṛṣṇa. Don't people work for social clubs? Lions Club, Rotary Club, this international, that international, don't they work? Don't you work for your clubs, clubs in the colleges or in schools and so on, isn't it? So just work for Kṛṣṇa. Come and give few hours of service to Kṛṣṇa. There's so many aspects of service you can do. You can distribute books for Kṛṣṇa. You can talk about Kṛṣṇa. For example, in the Soviet Union, where we have over 400,000 devotees, believe it or not, most of our propagation or preaching is done by people like you who work. Because in Soviet Union, the right to work is compulsory. If you don't go to job, then they put you in jail. So all our devotees, they do job. They are doctors, engineers and so on. But they also go out and work for Kṛṣṇa. You understand? So Kṛṣṇa says, "At least do, at least work for Me. Because by working for Me, you will come to the perfect stage." But then Kṛṣṇa says, "If you cannot even work for Me, if you are unable to work for Me, then act giving up the results of your work." Giving up the results of your work means renounce the fruits of your work. This is very painful to we people. Renouncing the fruits of your work. We want to be attached to the fruits of our work. But if you want to be attached to the fruits of your work, then unfortunately you'll also have to be attached to the karma. And if you don't want to be attached to the fruits of your work, then you can be free from the karma. Just like in the third chapter, Kṛṣṇa has said, kārmani vādi-kāra ste mā phalēṣu kadācana. Kṛṣṇa says, not only should you work for Me, but you should also renounce mā phalēṣu. What is phalēṣu? Fruits. Give the fruits to Me. Very often we meet people who use the first line, "Ma karmāni evādi-kāraste." But the second line they'll skip over. It's just like a lawyer. You know, you can have the same section of the law being used by the defendant and the accused, isn't it? So there is a statement in English which says, "Different sloks for different folks." That means you can take the same the same shloka and use it with different interpretation. But Kṛṣṇa's viewpoint is very clear. If you don't want it, then of course you can always twist it around. So Kṛṣṇa says, "You must give up the results of your work to Me." Because by giving up the results, there will be detachment. Now you may not be in a position of practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness. For example, there are many people who like to build hospitals and schools, but they want their own name over there, huh? They want their name to be worshipped. So Kṛṣṇa says, okay, chalaga, you at least start with that. At least renounce the fruits of your work in favor of some altruistic, charitable, philanthropic activity. And by doing that charitable activity, you will automatically develop a spirit of detachment, isn't it? Because you're renouncing the fruits of your works, That same money which you could have used to put in your Swiss bank account, now you're putting it to some hospital. That same money which you could use to buy some expensive jewelry for your family, now you're giving it to a school, isn't it? So at least there is some level of detachment. So by having that gradual level of detachment, slowly, slowly you will rise to the point where you will come to Kṛṣṇa. But again, as I said earlier in our discussion, that's a long process. There is a direct process available, but if you don't want to go here to Juhu directly, then you have to go via Central Rathaṇa, Worli, and all that. You can come there also. So Kṛṣṇa gives a direct process and He gives you the indirect process. Then Kṛṣṇa says, if you cannot even give up this, still, then what can you do? Then engage yourself in the cultivation of knowledge. Better than knowledge is meditation. Then better than meditation is Renunciation of the fruits of your actions, and then by renunciation there can be peace of mind. Unless there is the spirit of renunciation, you can never have peace of mind, friends. You may think that Ambani is very happy, but I can assure you that Ambani is neither— not happy. We met many Ambanis and they're all complaining about something that they don't have. So the point is, unless there is the spirit of renunciation You cannot be happy. Just like in the Bhāgavatam, there's a statement by Narada Muni. Narada Muni says, "You can satisfy a hungry man, you can satisfy a thirsty man, you can satisfy an angry man." Isn't an angry man where he shouts and then his anger is finished? But he can't satisfy a greedy man. So we are greedy because basically we don't have the spirit of renunciation. And if you have the spirit of renunciation, then of course your greed will be lost. So Kṛṣṇa is saying that gradually come. He is saying better to cultivate knowledge. But if you cultivate, otherwise this knowledge will help you to understand your real position. So Kṛṣṇa is giving us information by which we can gradually come to Him. There is the stage of knowledge, then the stage of meditation, then to the stage of understanding the Super Soul, and then you come to the stage of understanding the Personality of Godhead. Now, Krishna has explained the different paths of worship, isn't it? Krishna hasn't left anyone on the side. Just to summarize, He has said the highest is if you come to Me with your mind and intelligence. If you cannot do that, then please follow the process of regulative principles. If you cannot do that, then work for Me. If you cannot do that, then renounce the fruits of your work, isn't it? Then He summarizes it by saying how knowledge, from knowledge it comes, you come to meditation. Because if you don't have knowledge, knowledge is the basis beginning point, then you can't proceed, isn't it? And ultimately you will come to the point of worshipping the Lord and then your mind will be peaceful. You cannot be peaceful by just enhancing your material position. A devotee of the Lord may have no bank balance, but he's peaceful because he's fixed in his worship of the Lord. Now Kṛṣṇa describes from text 13 to text 20 the qualities of a devotee. Krishna has already described the characteristic of the impersonal realization. Now He describes the qualities of a devotee. One who is not envious but is a kind friend of all living entities. So a devotee of the Lord cannot be envious of anyone. So naturally in the material world we are envious. The cause of envy is— what is the cause of envy? He possesses something what I don't have. So now let's pull his leg down. But a devotee doesn't have to be envious, you understand? Who does not think himself to be a proprietor of every anything. I have a bank balance, a big house, I think this is my, my. I worked hard, I got it, so I must give all this to my children and nobody else. You go to a rich man, he won't give a penny, but he'll give everything to his family. But a devotee thinks that nothing belongs to me, huh? Everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa, who is the proprietor. And who is free from false ego. I have explained this point in discussing the second chapter. You have a false ego and the real ego. False ego means when you identify with the body. Real ego means when you identify with your dharma, being a servant of the Supreme Lord. Who is equal in both happiness and distress. Certainly you must understand that if you are happy today, that happiness is going to go up and go down. Just like you go in an aeroplane. You go in the aeroplane, you fly high in the sky for some time, then again you have to come down, isn't it? You are not going to stay in the sky permanently. So you should know principle of material existence. Even if you are born in Mr. Birla's family, happiness and distress will both be there. Just because you are born with a silver spoon doesn't mean you will never cry. Because the cruel agents of nature in the form of birth, death, disease, old age will not let you be happy for long. So happiness and distress will both be there. Kṛṣṇa has said in the second chapter, matraśvaśṭhate kāntya-sitaujna-sukha-dukhāda-gāma-paiṇo netya-tam-tathākṣakṣvabhārata. How one must be equipoised in all situations. Who is tolerant? Tolerance is very important. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said, trināḍa-piṣu-ni-cena taror api saiśyuna-māni-namana-dena-ketanādi-sādhāri. One should be even more tolerant than a blade of grass. See how tolerant the blade of grass is? We all walk on the grass, isn't it? But the grass ever bite your feet and say, "Why are you walking on my head?" The tree is so tolerant. Whether it rains or whether the sun shines or whatever, the tree is there to give you shelter always, isn't it? So these are some qualities of entities who practice tolerance. The tea tree and the grass. So we should be more tolerant than even them. And always satisfied. The one who is on the spiritual path, he feels he has the whole world because he is serving the Supreme Lord. Self-controlled and engaged in devotional service, such a devotee is very dear to Him. Now Kṛṣṇa goes on to describe the qualities of a devotee. He, for him no one is put into difficulty. You cannot be a devotee of the Lord and at the same time slaughter the innocent lamb. Just like there are certain, certain religious traditions where, like in America they have Thanksgiving Day in November. So Thanksgiving Day is the day when you thank God for all the gifts He has given you. But you know how they celebrate Thanksgiving Day? Not by going to the church, but by killing turkeys. So you kill turkeys, it's a form of chicken, and that is how you thank God. That's not the way you thank God. You thank God by following His instructions. So a devotee of the Lord does not put anyone into difficulty, and he is not disturbed by anyone. So you may find many of these attributes that we are reading, Kṛṣṇa has already emphasized before, isn't it? And you also saw in the 11th chapter that in the 10th chapter many of the opulences of Kṛṣṇa have already been described before. But this repetition is necessary to drive the point home. And repetition does not exhaust or tire a devotee of the Lord. Halelujah! Lama lama hale hale.