Śrī Īśo 13 Develop clear understanding for Supreme Lord | Rus-Split | 25.5.90 |Gopal Krishna Goswami

Prasad Raaval. So this morning I had done a program at the temple, and I had promised one of the devotees that I would give a lecture this evening on the mind. So today I'm going to give two lectures, one on the Śrī Īśopaniṣad and the other are from the sixth chapter of the Bhāgavad-gītā, talking about the importance of controlling the mind. I don't think there's anybody in this room who can say that he has no problem with the Oma. Of course, in 1 hour I'll know whether I'm leaving tonight or tomorrow night. Even if I'm leaving tonight, I'll be here at least till 7. I'll be here till 6:30, 7. Should I do the Bhagavad Gita first or the Isha Upanishad first? Okay, so the Isha Upanishad verse is already on the board. So the Isha Upanishad, I will be having a short discussion and a longer discussion on the Bhagavad-gītā verse.

Om namo bhagavate vasudevāya. Om namo bhagavate vasudevāya.

Om namo bhagavate vasudevāya.

Om namo bhagavate vasudevāya. Om namo bhagavate vasudevāya. Om namo bhagavate vasudevāya. Om namah maharaj deva sudevaya.

Shri Isha Upanishad, text number 13.

Anyad evaho sambhavan. Anyad ahom sambhavan iti shushrumat. Jai Shri Ram, Jai Shri Ram, Jai Naad, Naad, Naad, Jai Shri Ram, Jai Shri Ram, Anyad Eva Ho Sambhavat, Anyad Eva Ho Sambhavat, Anyad Ahor Asambhavat, Anyad Ahor Asambhavat, Iti Sushramadhi Ram, Iti Sushramadhi Ram, Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Hare Kṛṣṇa! Hare Rāma! Hare Rāma!

Rāma!

Rāma! Hare Kṛṣṇa!

Is there anybody in the room today who was not there for the earlier lectures? Now the reason I'm asking is I'm continuing the lecture series on the Shri Isha Upanishad, so I'm not going to give a background to the Shri Isha Upanishad. I'm assuming that everybody knows about the Isha Upanishad, so I'll just continue with the discussion on text 13. In the verse that we discussed yesterday, Worship of demigods and the impersonal path have both been criticized. And in the earlier verses, the position of the Supreme Lord as the Supreme Creator and being complete in all respects has been established. Now in this verse again, the spiritual aspirant is being directed to worship the Supreme Lord. Sambhavat, Āñāt evohu sambhāvāt. So sambhāvāt means the— by worship of the Supreme Lord, the cause of all causes. And then there's a state word, āñāt ahoḥ asambhāvāt. Asambhāvāt is by worshiping what is not Supreme. So sambhāvāt and asambhāvāt, worshiping the Supreme Lord and worshiping that which is not Supreme, these are The two points that are being mentioned. Now, who is the source of this information? Because just like if I tell you in Shikumi, you cannot drive a car faster than 80 miles an hour. So you will tell me, what is the source of your authority? So that is being stated in the next line. This has been heard from whom? From the undisturbed authorities. Undisturbed authorities mean from the saintly spiritual masters. Dhīrā-nāma. Dhīrā-nāma means undisturbed. And another word is vichākṣir-e. Vichākṣir-e means it has been properly explained. In other words, these self-realized souls have very clearly explained the difference in the result between worship of the Supreme Lord and somebody else who is not Supreme. Just like Now it's daytime, and in the daytime you can see things very, very clearly. So sometimes in English there's a saying, "As clear as black and white." Or so, in other words, the statements about the difference between the results in worship of the Supreme Lord and either the demigods or the impersonal path is so clear that anybody who's studying the Vedic scriptures will know the difference. There's no confusion and nothing is left vague. In the purport to this verse, Prabhupāda brings up many important points in support of the points being made in this verse. First point is being made is how one shall receive knowledge. And according to this verse, one shall receive knowledge from the authorized bona fide disciplic succession. One must hear from a bona fide ācārya who is undisturbed. Not just ācārya, but a bona fide ācārya who is undisturbed. This word undisturbed is very, very important. Undisturbed means who is not agitated in any situation. The bona fide ācārya is not one who gets disturbed the moment there is little agitation. Therefore, Rūpa Gosvāmī has stated vācavegam manasa-krodhavegam jīvavegam udāpasta-vegam. Only such a person can make disciples who is in complete control of the body, mind, and senses. The bona fide spiritual master knows the difference in the results of Supreme Lord and that which is not Supreme because he has heard it from his spiritual master. So this verse completely rejects the argument that regardless of the type of worship we take, the end result is going to be the same. If we worship the Supreme Lord according to His instructions, then certainly we will reach the Supreme Abode. But if we worship different demigods, then we will reach the abode of these demigods. And if we worship Maya, then you will either take your birth on this earthly planet or in the lower species of life. We worship Maya by following Maya. So the Vedic scriptures do not tell us that regardless of what you do, the result is going to be the same. Unfortunately, for the shraskars, they use the Vedic scriptures to just approve their concocted viewpoint. But if we study the scriptures from about— with the help of a bona fide guru, then we can understand that what they are saying, what the Vedic scriptures say, is very clear as black and white. Emaṁ pannam para-praptaṁ emāṁ rājasū vidūḥ sākāleṇa mahātā yogo nāśtapādaṁ tapā. Bhāgavad-gītā states that the Supreme Science was received through the chain of disciplic succession, and the saintly kings understood it in that way. But in course of time, the succession was broken, and therefore the science, as it appears, is to be lost. Bhāgavad-gītā It's not spiritual knowledge which is only 5,000 years old. Bhāgavad-gītā was recorded 5,000 years ago because 5,000 years ago marked the commencement of the age of Kali. But the Bhāgavad-gītā was first spoken to whom? E vām pani-pār-paṭṭham imāṇ rāja-sṛvidū. It was first spoken to the Sun God Vivasvā. So Prabhupāda says that the Bhāgavad-gītā has been on the earthly planet for the last 2 million years. So why did the Lord give this knowledge to Arjuna? Arjuna, if you analyze, was not a big yogi. He was not a sannyasi. He was a grihastha, like most of you probably are. He was in the household or ashram. But why was Arjuna selected to be the recipient of this knowledge? Arjuna was selected to be the recipient of this philosophy because Krishna said, You are my most confidential friend and devotee. Therefore you can understand the transcendental secrets of this great science. So please do not for a minute think that the Vedic science is not science and anyone can understand it in any manner. It has to be understood, understood through the proper sources. Just like if you want to study physics or chemistry or biology or anything, you have to go to an institute where you have a professor who is trained in that branch of science who can train you. Not that you just catch any man on the street and tell him, "Sir, can you please explain to me what the laws of physics are?" So similarly, we also have to obtain the spiritual understanding from the right source. This is what this verse of the Isha Upanishad is very clearly instructing us. Sometimes the people say that the Vedic culture is so broad-minded that anybody can just follow his own path and still get the same result. And you will meet many Hindus who say, "Oh, our religion is so liberal, you can do anything and still get the same moksha, get the same result." No, this is not what it is. Unfortunately, because we want to distort it, we don't want to follow the real path, we— and because we are taking shelter of those who have distorted the real teachings, We seem to think that way. So we have to— so those who say that the Bhagavad-gītā and the Vedic literature gives us complete freedom are those who want to distort the real Vedic message. Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, 14th chapter, vedeṣa-sevareḥ meva veda-yo vidānta-ket veda-vit eva caham. By all the Vedas I am to be known. So Kṛṣṇa is clearly instructing the purpose of the Vedic study. So those who don't want to accept this conclusion, they try and give their own viewpoints. So it should— this should be very clearly understood how we can receive this Vedic knowledge. If we receive this Vedic knowledge from the right source, then there will be no confusion. Just like you may hear any ISKCON devotee lecturing in any corner of the world, But you will never see any confusion. They're all talking the same point. And what is that same point that they are talking? That Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme. You have never read anywhere in Prabhupāda's books or heard anybody lecture that maybe Śiva is Supreme or Brahmā is Supreme. No, Kṛṣṇa is Supreme. And the means to understand Kṛṣṇa is through the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. If you were to go to any of our gurukuls, schools all over the world, and ask the hundreds of children, "Who is God?" They'll all give you one answer, "Krishna." And if you tell them, "Can you draw the form of God?" They'll all draw exactly the same picture. But if you go to some other children all over the— in different schools and say, "Who is God?" They'll say, "I don't know." And, "Can you draw a picture of God?" One man may draw a picture of God as an old man, another may draw a picture of God with a suit and a nice hat. Another may draw a picture of God with, you know, walking with a stick. Everybody is going to speculate. Did you all understand this point? Because you can see the difference between the Vaiṣṇava devotees who have studied Prabhupāda's books and those who have not studied Prabhupāda's books, the difference in their convictions about God. So the truly learned individual is one who accepts Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Lord, not one who may have some degrees and so on. In the 9th chapter of the Bhāgavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa says: na mām duṣkṛtino mūḍaḥ prapadyante nā devataḥ māyāya partha-jñāna-āśram-bhāvan-āśrutaha. He says: "There are four types of people who don't understand My supreme position, Arjuna. Mūḍa." Mūḍa means the hard-working beast. I think in your country the mūḍas are the zoo, the Asses are just in the zoo, but in India you can find the asses on the road also. So y'all may not have much experience with asses, but I have seen asses. They work very hard from morning to night carrying load on their back. Similarly, there are the materialist mūras. They work very, very hard like the ass and they have no time for Kṛṣṇa. So mūra word has two meanings: ass and fool. Na mām darske dā mūra prapadneya yante nādhama. Narādhama means those positions who may be— people may be occupying very important position in society, but they don't understand the goal of life. Just like somebody may be the head of Moscow University or the head of the country or whatever, but, but if you ask him what is the goal of life? "I do not know." Mayāya-pārtha-jñāna. This refers to those who may have academic degrees, educational qualifications, but who are— they don't accept Kṛṣṇa. Just like when I came to your country in '76, I had a very lengthy meeting with one professor at Leningrad University who had published few books on Kṛṣṇa. But during our meetings, it became clear to me that he's written books on Kṛṣṇa, but he doesn't accept Kṛṣṇa as Supreme. Or even God. So mayāyā-pārtha-jñānas, they have very high degrees. Just like yesterday I was telling you about Dr. S. Radhakrishna. He was the first ambassador from India to your country and the ex-president of India, and he's a recognized philosopher and scholar all over the world. But in his translation of the Bhagavad-gītā, he has completely distorted Kṛṣṇa's teaching. Because he's so learned, People are saying, "Oh, if Dr. Radhakrishna says it is like this, then it must be like this." So mayā-pārtha-jñāna refers to those who may have academic learning, but they don't surrender to Kṛṣṇa. And aśrama-bhāvan-āśṛtaha, those who are openly miscreants, those who are openly atheistic. They openly say there is no God. And you ask them, "Oh, if there is no God, then?" Who is creating this nice weather? Who is providing the resources in the earth? Who has created this beautiful nature? You don't know, no answer. So this verse is saying those who are dheera, completely in self-control, only they can give you knowledge of God. Not the half-educated spiritual masters. The half-educated spiritual masters, Compromise on everything. Just like, of course, in your country things are very tight, so you don't have much exposure. But if you go to, go to England or America, there are hundreds of sadhus and swamis who may have gone from India, and in their presentation they're all giving their own distorted versions. So the half-educated spiritual masters, they gave us a distorted version. Instead of pouring water on the root of the tree, pour water on the branches and the leaves. If you pour water on the branches and the leaves, the tree is not going to get any strength. When you are hungry and if you don't put food in the stomach, in the mouth, and just put food in the hand and the leg, the body is not going to become strong. Therefore, we must direct our attention towards the Supreme Lord. The cause of all causes. By worshiping the Supreme Lord, the cause of all causes, one can achieve freedom from the cycle of birth and death. But otherwise, even if you worship the demigods, you may be elevated to higher planets, but unless you again take shelter of the process of devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, you cannot be liberated from the cycle of birth and death. So the process of devotional service is so powerful. That anybody who comes in contact with this process will benefit. Just like fire. Fire is so powerful that whether it is an adult or a child, anybody who places his hand on fire is going to get his hand burnt. So similarly, devotional service is so powerful, knowingly or unknowingly, anybody who comes in contact with this process will get the benefit. Therefore, we must know the science of God. We are having these lectures on the science of God.

Why?

Because once you understand the science of God, then you will develop the determination to reject māḍhī, temptations of the illusory energy. But if you don't understand the science of God, if you don't know the greatness of God, then you think that māyā is sweeter than God. Therefore, we must study these scriptures. Like I gave the example the other day, I said just knowing that God is great is not enough. These other religions may just say God is great. We must know how great God is, then we know how subordinate we are, and then we know the importance of surrendering to that greatest of all personalities. So unless we free ourselves from the influence of passion and ignorance, and eventually also from the influence of goodness, one cannot appreciate the process of pure devotional service, because pure devotional service is even beyond The level of goodness. Therefore, the Īśopaniṣad is again and again reminding us who is the Supreme Lord. In the Bhagavad-gītā, for example, we see that on numerous occasions, Kṛṣṇa is repeating the same point again and again. Why? Because repetition is necessary in order to drive the point home. We are so conditioned to maya that even though we hear every day that we must chant, we must read, we must be attentive, we still get covered by māyā and forget our duties. Therefore, we have to remind ourselves about the greatness of Kṛṣṇa by studying the scriptures. So anyone, regardless of his background, anybody who takes shelter of Kṛṣṇa's path can be freed from the cycle of birth and death. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmaṁ paritajya mām ekaṁ śrī-nām vrajaḥ. "Aṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣāni māsutaḥ." Give up all varieties of religiousness and just surrender to Me. So regardless of whether you are Hindu, Muslim, Christian, what your background may be, anybody who surrenders to Kṛṣṇa through the process of devotional service is guaranteed complete protection by Kṛṣṇa. So it is very important that when we wish to obtain knowledge on dharma, We go to the right source and just not catch anybody on the street and ask him, "What do you think about religion?" Just like when you are sick, when you have to go for major surgery, you don't catch anyone on the street and tell him, "Please do my operation." You catch the qualified doctor and tell him to do your operation. Similarly, for spiritual knowledge, we have to go to the right source in order to understand what is our duty, who is God. So in the purport, Prabhupāda also makes the point that there should be no confusion that Narayana or Kṛṣṇa existed even before Brahmā and Śiva. That is, Brahmā and Śiva are not superior to or equal to the Lord, but they are subordinate to the Lord. So Narayana is in all situations the cause of all causes. Brahmā and Śiva have been given their responsibilities. Because of the tapasya and devotion performed for the pleasure of the Lord. Sometimes the demigods also get puffed up of their position, but eventually, because of the sincerity, they come to the realization who Kṛṣṇa is and who they are. Once the four-headed Brahmā, the creator of this universe, had gone to see Lord Kṛṣṇa in Dvāraka. And just like when you see a big man, "You have to give your card to the secretary." So Kṛṣṇa also has secretaries guarding His palace. So Brahmā went and told the doorkeeper, "Tell Kṛṣṇa that Brahmā has come to meet Him." So, when the doorkeeper came in to Kṛṣṇa, he said, "Brahmā wants to see You." Kṛṣṇa said, "Which Brahmā?" So when the doorkeeper came out and asked Brahmā-jī, "Which Brahmā Kṛṣṇa wants to know?" Then Brahmājī got shocked. He said, "Oh, you mean there are other Brahmas besides me?" He said, "Tell Kṛṣṇa, four-headed Brahmā." So then the doorkeeper came in and told Kṛṣṇa, the four-headed Brahmā. And when Brahmā came in, he saw in Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa was having a meeting, and in His room there were hundreds of other Brahmas. Some had 1,000 heads, 2,000 heads, and so on. And this four-headed Brahmā realized that he is the smallest of all the Brahmas. So Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord in all situations, and the Vedas clearly established He is sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam, the cause of all causes, including the cause of Brahmā and Viṣṇu and Śiva. So to summarize this verse, this verse of the Īśā Upaniṣad is very clearly informing us that we must receive knowledge about worship of the Lord. By approaching a bona fide spiritual master. And we should be under no confusion about the difference in worship of the Lord and worship of some other process. Yes, this verse very clearly explains that if we want to get knowledge about God, we must go to the proper source. And that one result is obtained in worship of the demigods, another result is obtained in any other form of worship that we may follow. Hare Krishna. I'll take on questions for 10 minutes and then go to the Bhagavad-gītā. We are going to discuss one very, very important verse of the Bhagavad-gītā. And after that verse of the Gītā, we'll take on questions for 1 hour, half an hour, 1 hour.

He says that how to convince the man who considers it All paths lead to the same goal. If he is— I don't know, the point is maybe that we have no strength to convince the people.

But if you are convinced, then you can convince others. First you have to be convinced. Very often Prabhupāda would be talking to us, he would call us in, he would discuss with us, he would say, "What do you think?" And then he would say, "Okay, are you convinced?" We would say, "Yes." Then he would say, "Now go and convince others." The point is that those people who has to join to Krishna Consciousness movement to understand the Krishna Consciousness philosophy, as a man need to have some level of consciousness.

And what is the purpose of our movement? To give our philosophy to those men who have such level of consciousness. Or lifted on such a level.

I thought in 5 years by now you should know what the purpose is. The purpose is to lift everyone's consciousness. Because everybody is born in ignorance. Om jnana-timirandasya jnana-jnana-shalakya shakshun-milita-niyena-tasmai shri-gurave namah. I was born in the darkness of ignorance. And then by the mercy of the spiritual master I have received the spiritual knowledge. So, we are— everybody is in darkness. Whether it is somebody who has a PhD degree or somebody who is an uneducated man.

Why is it very easy to believe or to follow Maya and for them very difficult to follow, to believe Kṛṣṇa?

Because we have been living in Maya's kingdom since times immemorial. Why is it easier for all your devotees to speak Russian than English? Why? Because you have been speaking Russian from your birth. So similarly, you've been living with Maya from your birth, therefore it's easy to attend to, like Maya. Nobody has asked me a philosophical question based on the words that I discussed for 1 hour so far. Yes.

It is a little foolish question, but about this verse, why Kṛṣṇa creates such Brahmas with 4 heads? Isn't enough 1 head?

If you only had an idea of how complicated this material world is, one head is not enough. Four. And Kṛṣṇa's creation is so complicated that sometimes you, some parts you need brahmas with 2,000 heads, 1,000 heads. Kṛṣṇa does things which nobody else can do. Otherwise He would not be God.

But demigods are devotees of Kṛṣṇa and Krishna says that who serve My devotees serves Me. And but serving demigods is not, you know.

Krishna Himself says, "Serve Me directly. No need to go to the demigods." Why does He say that? Because if you come to Krishna, and even if you have material desires, but if you keep worshipping Krishna, eventually your material desires will go away. Do you know that story of Dhruva Maharaj? All of you? How Dhruva Maharaj's desires changed? How many people do not know? Gone to the forest to perform austerities because he was insulted by stepmother and she had prevented him from sitting on his father's lap. Then by performing austerities he became so powerful that he was able to have the darshan of the Lord. And then When the Lord offered him unlimited benediction that he may desire, Dhruva Maharaj had become so purified, he said, "I may just be engaged in devotional service at the lotus feet." So initially Dhruva Maharaj wanted a very opulent kingdom because his stepmother had insulted him and he wanted to teach his father a lesson. But then he got so purified that when he had the chance to get that kingdom, He told the Lord, "I don't want anything. I was looking for broken cut glass, but now I found a diamond." When people say, "Why should I accept some guru? The real guru is Bhāgavad-gītā.

What should I say in this case?" Right.

People say, "If the real guru is Bhāgavad-gītā, then Gītā says surrender to a guru." So the Gītā is a guru, do what Gītā says. If Kṛṣṇa is your God, then do what Kṛṣṇa says. In this verse, in the beginning of the lecture, I had pointed out that two words in this verse were very significant. Which were those two words? Tomorrow? Again, what is the meaning of sambhavat?

Near Śrī Viṣṇu.

And sambhavat? Near Śrī Viṣṇu. Near Śrī Viṣṇu.

Okay.