An Example Of How To Escape Ignorance

“He (Vidura) indirectly hinted, ‘A weapon not made of steel or any other material element can be more than sharp to kill an enemy, and he who knows this is never killed.’ That is to say, he hinted that the party of the Pandavas was being sent to Varanavata to be killed, and thus he warned Yudhishthira to be very careful in their new residential palace.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 1.13.8 Purport)

Download this episode (right click and save)

Tamo-guna. The Sanskrit translates to “mode of ignorance.” Mode refers to a material quality, guna. Gunas can also be gradations of living conditions and situations. For example, a person can be living in the mode of goodness. They organize the day in such a way that they are always knowledgeable. They are enlightened as to what is really going on. Whereas living in the mode of ignorance is something like being constantly intoxicated, where reality gets distorted, intentionally for a host of reasons.

Then there is the overall ignorance associated with living in the material world. The Vedas describe an energy called maya. This creates a desired illusion, and though we may have forgotten when the choice was made, maya is a facilitator.

An easy way to understand her effect is to take the situation of watching a film on the big screen in a theater hall. The attendees are well aware that the events depicted on the screen aren’t actually occurring. If I am seated in the front row, I cannot reach forward and grab one of the characters. Neither can they jump out and touch the audience.

There is an unspoken covenant going in. I will intentionally forget that the depiction is a scripted performance. The actors, directors, producers and the like will do their best to convince me that everything is real. This is the only way to derive enjoyment. Otherwise, there is little value to sitting down and observing for so long a time.

Maya creates a veil of ignorance across the entire sphere of material existence. The goal is mistaken. We want to enjoy separate of God, almost becoming Him in a sense. Rising to the top in a field of endeavor, obtaining distinctions and notoriety, considering human effort to be the sole determining factor in outcomes.

प्रकृतेः क्रियमाणानि
गुणैः कर्माणि सर्वशः
अहङ्कार-विमूढात्मा
कर्ताहम् इति मन्यते

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
kartāham iti manyate

“The bewildered spirit soul, under the influence of the three modes of material nature, thinks himself to be the doer of activities, which are in actuality carried out by nature.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 3.27)

From Bhagavad-gita we learn that the living entity is actually not the doer. The actor can do their best when shooting a film, but there is no guarantee that they will be believable in the role. Other factors must cooperate. This means that the outcome is not entirely in the hands of the actor, both in the theatrical sense and the general worker.

Though this ignorance is desired at first, it is ultimately not beneficial. Therefore, an escape needs to be planned. The reference to an attacking force is both intentional and accurate. Maya is as dangerous as any condition a person can think of.

An incident from the historical work known as the Mahabharata beautifully symbolizes the danger. The resolution also shows the way out, to steer clear of impeding forces. The central characters, the Pandava brothers, are advised to take up residence in another city. This is intentional, so that the Pandavas will be burned to death in a house made of lac.

The plot-maker perfectly represents ignorance. He thinks that by getting rid of his rivals he can rule over the kingdom of Hastinapura in peace. Remove competition through cheating and then everything will be fine. But Duryodhana, ignorance-personified, would not be able to attack those who were protected by knowledge-personified.

The Pandavas received help in the form of a well-wisher, their uncle Vidura. In code language he essentially told them to watch out. There would be trouble in the new residence. This is symbolic of the spiritual master coming to the rescue of the soul sincerely desirous of escaping maya for good.

The guru shows the way towards remaining in good association. The Pandavas would turn the tables, escaping the house before it burned down. Duryodhana’s plan failed, though it was seemingly foolproof. In the same way, maya cannot successfully attack the person who is protected by the Supreme Lord.

The Pandavas had their protection, which manifested in a variety of ways. Vidura’s helpful hints protected them from the fire, but this was Krishna acting through a representative. A garment of fixed length suddenly became unending to help protect Draupadi. The words of wisdom directly emanating from Krishna guided Arjuna to victory.

In this age the way to escape ignorance for good is to keep Krishna’s association through His holy names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. The hints from the spiritual master provide further protection from maya’s attacks, which are ceaseless.

In Closing:

Like audience member taking seat,

Good performance hoping to meet.

With unspoken agreement to take,

That understanding depiction fake.

Same interaction with maya to tell,

Spiritual guide’s words to dispel.

Like Vidura with house of lac,

Bhagavan saving from attack.

The One About An Interest From Hearing

“Now hear, O son of Pritha [Arjuna], how by practicing yoga in full consciousness of Me, with mind attached to Me, you can know Me in full, free from doubt.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 7.1)

śrī-bhagavān uvāca

mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha

yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ

asaṁśayaṁ samagraṁ māṁ

yathā jñāsyasi tac chṛṇu

Download this episode (right click and save)

Shri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, advises Arjuna to hear from Him. What is the benefit of that hearing? A person can know Krishna in truth, free from doubts. Is hearing all that is required? It is the first step, but there are requisite conditions. Arjuna should have a mind attached to Krishna. Arjuna should be fully conscious of Krishna.

How will those conditions be created? Actually, the hearing itself can lead to the transformation. It is the first process out of nine mentioned in a famous verse from the Shrimad Bhagavatam spoken by a five-year old boy, the wise son of the king Hiranyakashipu.

Simply hear about Krishna described from authority. Authority is someone who follows in the line of devotion of Arjuna, who accepts the proper information from their teacher, processes it, and then passes it on. After hearing, share with others what you have heard. Don’t speculate. Don’t cheat the innocent. Just tell the truth, that the living entities are spirit soul at the core and due to their nature they are intimately tied to Krishna, who is the Supreme Soul. The existence of that relationship necessitates eternal and selfless service to God, who reciprocates with His causeless mercy.

Jim was discussing these matters one time in an email exchange with his friend. The friend thought that hearing was too simplistic, that for knowing God there should be something more complex involved. He was more sympathetic to the path of mysticism, involving sitting postures, breathing exercises, and strict renunciation. Jim gave an example from his own life to help get the point across.

…

I’m telling you man, hearing is ridiculously powerful, beyond our ability to comprehend. I know people who have accidentally heard the sound of the maha-mantra being sung and had it change their life. They were walking on the street and they heard, “Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare,” and nothing was ever the same for them.

We’re talking about spiritual matters, but hearing has the same effect in other places. Do you remember that year when I was really into the Olympics? I’m sure you do, because I even got tickets and went to some of the events. You were making fun of me, since you thought the sports were kind of silly. You couldn’t understand the appeal of events like ski jump, speed skating, and snowboarding.

What you may not remember is the trigger for my sudden interest. At the time my portable music player was broken. That’s what I usually listened to in the car. While I was in the process of searching for a replacement, I started to turn on the radio in the car. I’m not a big fan of listening to music that I don’t know, so I tended to navigate to the talk radio stations.

Anyway, for a few days in a row one of the stations kept talking about the Olympics. They brought up this athlete and that. They reviewed who the previous winners were. They discussed the major events to watch in the upcoming contests. I was barely paying attention, but the sound was still there.

Anyway, when the games started, I still had no intention of watching. But one night I was flipping through the channels and I saw snowboarding, I think it was. They were interviewing one of the guys I had heard on the radio. This guy was supposed to be awesome; a huge favorite to get the gold medal. Next thing you know I was watching for hours. I ended up watching pretty much all the major events. I got hooked to the games simply from casual hearing.

If that can happen with something mundane like sports, imagine the effect in spiritual life. That’s why hearing is stressed so much. Reading is another form of hearing. It’s a way to penetrate through the fog of ignorance and reach the natural intelligence that each spirit has. The soul is sach-chid-ananda, eternally knowledgeable and blissful. That’s hard to see right now, but through hearing everything can turn around.

In Closing:

Quickly to Olympic games to depart,

By hearing interest suddenly sparked.

 

Even though little attention paying,

Sound within the mind later on staying.

 

If with material life this way so,

Benefit higher with spiritual know.

 

From Shri Krishna just a little hear,

And to perfection of life draw near.

The One With The Changing Ability

“The living entity in the material world carries his different conceptions of life from one body to another as the air carries aromas.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 15.8)

Download this episode (right click and save)

śarīraṁ yad avāpnoti

yac cāpy utkrāmatīśvaraḥ

gṛhītvaitāni saṁyāti

vāyur gandhān ivāśayāt

The body of an adult is different from the body of a child. How so? In the healthy adult, there is the ability to walk. The adult can talk, drive a car, act on choices in travel, and even write down their thoughts. The young child has the potential to do these things, but the ability is not there yet. They need to learn how to crawl first, then walk, and in the process speak a few words. Indeed, the difference between the two bodies is development, which means change.

This development, which occurs over time, proves that there is a constant force within. Since the individual remains the same, the body cannot identify them. Ability has no bearing on who they are. It may change how they live, how much or how little they enjoy, what they do on a daily basis, but it doesn’t define their existence.

The constant force within is the principal subject matter of the spiritual science. The difference between body and spirit is the introductory teaching to what is known as Vedanta. This is the end of knowledge, the conclusion of conclusions. This difference is so important that it is presented at the outset. Before you learn about to whom to surrender, what rituals to practice, where you will go in the afterlife - know this fundamental truth. As a standalone it explains so much.

Rafael was questioned about this one day in an email from his friend. The friend did not understand reincarnation, thinking it to be a myth that could not be proven. After all, if we can’t remember our previous lives, how do we know they happened? In response, Rafael mentioned the changing bodies concept, which is described nicely in the Bhagavad-gita. To help get his point across, he brought up a story from his youth.

…

I understand what you’re saying about the evidence for the past lives thing. I mean how do I know that I lived before? I don’t have any physical evidence. There is no certificate of authenticity. There is no authority to consult who saw the actual movement of the soul. But actually, there is one authority whose word is spotless. He is the origin of the spiritual science since He is the creator of the material world. The spiritual science is only applicable in a world of dichotomy, where there is a difference between matter and spirit. He says that a person carries their conceptions from one lifetime to another, as the air carries aromas.

Even without consulting His authority, you can get evidence of the changing bodies right now. The changing bodies is a better way to understand reincarnation. Past, present and future lives are only relative to time. The individual exists always; we just identify differently based on external features.

You know how much I like to play tennis. I’ll never forget something that happened during my high school playing career. In my freshmen year we were competing against another school and I was pitted against another freshmen. This was out of the ordinary for me, since there usually weren’t many freshmen on the varsity teams. This meant the people I played were typically older than me. Anyway, I had a comfortable victory against this player. Their serve was weak and erratic. They didn’t run very well. I was able to dominate from the baseline.

Fast forward three years and now I’m a senior. We play the same school and I’m pitted against a senior. This guy is pretty good. He’s got a monster serve. He moves around the court like a dancer. He doesn’t miss a shot either; I can’t get a winner past him. At the end of the match we chat for a little bit. I was wondering why I had never seen him before. He then tells me that he has been at the school for four years and remembers playing me three years ago. In fact, this was the same person I had beaten handily the first time. His abilities improved and, of course, through growth his appearance also changed. It was to the point that he was unrecognizable.

The person is the same in both instances. You can say they have gone through reincarnation and you wouldn’t be wrong. Their body has changed. Their ability has as well. This means that ability does not determine the type of spirit, either. This idea of a separate soul for a human being and a separate soul for an animal is preposterous. The soul is the soul. The bodies can be different. Sometimes the individual has control over how the body changes and sometimes they don’t. I can lose or gain weight if I choose, but I can do nothing to stop old age. The animal gets the type of body that does not have a high potential for intelligence; but this doesn’t mean they are less of an individual than a human being.

Anyway, I don’t mean to keep lecturing on and on, but I think the reincarnation thing is very easy to understand. It’s important to know, too. It marks the real entry into spiritual life. Like learning basic addition and subtraction in school is necessary for advancing to algebra, geometry and calculus later on, if you want to know God the person and the purpose for this creation, you have to know the difference between matter and spirit. You have to know the eternality of spirit, how it is the same in quality within all species.

In Closing:

Early in career against opponent played,

Victory coming easy, not much skill displayed.

 

Years later then change coming,

A different player totally becoming.

 

But the person remaining the same,

Just a different type of body to gain.

 

Explanation for reincarnation this way one,

Know this or have advancement none.

The One About The Swapped Hard Drive

“The living entity, thus taking another gross body, obtains a certain type of ear, tongue, and nose and sense of touch, which are grouped about the mind. He thus enjoys a particular set of sense objects.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 15.9)

Download this episode (right click and save)

śrotraṁ cakṣuḥ sparśanaṁ ca

rasanaṁ ghrāṇam eva ca

adhiṣṭhāya manaś cāyaṁ

viṣayān upasevate

Man separates himself from the animal when he takes up religion. The basic definition of religion is spiritual life, that which is distinct from material life. Spirit and matter - they are different. Matter is directly perceptible through the five senses, while spirit is not. At least this is what we think. Air is a gross element of nature, but we can’t really see it. We can only feel it when it blows against us. We see its influence on other objects. In the same way, we can notice the presence of the soul through the actions of an autonomous, living thing.

vidyā-vinaya-sampanne

brāhmaṇe gavi hastini

śuni caiva śva-pāke ca

paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ

“The humble sage, by virtue of true knowledge, sees with equal vision a learned and gentle brahmana, a cow, an elephant, a dog and a dog-eater [outcaste].” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 5.18)

The same type of soul animates each living being. There is no such thing as an animal soul or a human soul. The features of the body have no relation to the nature of the giver of life. A teaspoon of vanilla extract goes into the batch of cookies and also the batter for cake. The cake has a much different shape, aroma and taste than the cookie. Yet there is not a cake vanilla extract or a cookie vanilla extract. The ingredient is the same. Vinny was one time explaining this to his friend in an email exchange. To help get his point across, he relayed a recent story from his own life.

…

As far as the animals having souls thing, it shouldn’t be that difficult for you to understand. I’m obviously coming into it with a different perspective. When I heard that the same type of spirit animates all beings, I accepted the information right away. It seemed logical to me. Then again, I wasn’t taught my whole life that animals don’t have souls. It’s pretty easy to see where that teaching came from. It’s not authorized, for sure. It was concocted in the mind, an excuse for killing animals and eating them.

I had a recent experience with my son that should help to explain. His laptop computer was running real slow. I had told him not to download too many things, but he didn’t listen. He and his sister love watching videos on there, and sometimes they download things illegally. I’m sure there were some viruses on there or whatever. Anyway, one of the hard drives on the computer was pretty good, so I wanted to keep it. So I took that hard drive out and saved it. It had lots of music and videos on there too.

When I bought them a new computer, I put the old hard drive in there. My son was amazed that the computer was so much different. He wondered how the same hard drive could function in both computers. The monitors were different, the speed of loading programs, and even the keyboard had a different orientation. Yet the same data was there. All of the music and movies from before.

I explained to him how the data was stored on the hard drive and how it would function in pretty much any computer. The data was just one aspect. The computer could be different in every other way, but the data would be accessed from the same place.

In the same way, we know that spirit is in all living beings. The difference between the animal and the human is seen in external ability. Heck, even with human beings there are differences. Not everyone is the same. Look at the Olympics. The winners of the marathon tend to have a similar type of body. The same goes for swimmers, gymnasts and basketball players. Yet we wouldn’t say that such and such person has the soul of a basketball player. That would be silly.

All fragments of individual spirit are the same in quality, and they have the same relationship to the origin of spirit. The origin is Supreme; He is the same individual within every living thing. It’s like He stretches His presence, but He doesn’t really. He can expand infinitely and remain a single person.

Beyond feeding an interest in the esoteric, knowing that all souls are of the same kind helps us to understand that we are in this together. We don’t need to compete with each other. We don’t need to needlessly kill. We don’t need to view every person as an enemy, someone getting in the way of our enjoyment. An existence is meant for experiencing the pleasure of communion with God, better known as bhakti-yoga. The animals don’t have the potential to understand God, but it doesn’t mean that their souls are different. The human being has this potential, and one sign of their advancement towards true enlightenment is the way they treat other forms of life.

In Closing:

Like hard drive into new computer swapping,

Same soul into different bodies dropping.

 

One sign of how soon Lord to meet,

How other creatures and people to treat.

 

With compassion, an eye the same,

Or killing through different soul’s name?

 

Fragment of spirit living things all,

Same soul inside, whether large or small.

The One About Being Homesick

“The fallen souls are very eager to receive novel informations every day, and the transcendentalists like Vyasadeva or Narada can supply such eager people in general with unlimited news from the spiritual world.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 1.5.13 Purport)

Download this episode (right click and save)

Shrila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, who was affectionately known as the lion-guru, was at one time publishing a daily newspaper. This publication was unique in its content. It did not feature the latest happenings in the community. The reporters were not running to different locations to gather eyewitness testimony. Instead, the newspaper was exclusively about the science of self-realization.

One could say that it was a religious newspaper, but there wasn’t sole reliance on faith. Moreover, there was still news to report. A person once questioned the famous guru as to how he could find enough content to publish on a daily basis. The response was that the news from the spiritual world is endless and far more important than anything happening in this world.

That news is also pleasing to the heart; the reason being that the spiritual realm is the original home of all creatures. Spirit comes from spirit, and in our present surroundings matter is the dominating force. Though matter is inanimate, the bewildered living beings think it to be more important than spirit. One who regularly hears news from their original home finds great relief from this problem.

Devi was explaining this to her friend one day. She relayed a story from her own life to help get the message across.

…

Ever since I got married, I wanted to visit Paris with my husband. I kept hounding him about it. I am a little ashamed to admit that I pulled the classic move of comparing him to other husbands. Many of my friends had gone to Europe on vacation, so I made sure to mention that to him.

I guess my persistence paid off, since one summer we finally got to go. I was excited. I had our whole trip planned out. I knew which places I wanted to see. We weren’t going to waste any time over there.

Unfortunately, a day after arriving I got sick. I must have eaten something bad, because my stomach hurt so much. I could barely get out of bed. I was like this for a few days. I don’t know how to describe it, but I felt so awful there. It was like I was trapped in a prison or something. Europe was very different; not what I was used to.

I’ll never forget that one night I was flipping channels on the television in the hotel room. I was looking for anything that wasn’t in French. Finally, I stumbled upon a show from home that I really like. They had it in English too, with French subtitles. I can’t tell you how happy this made me. I watched that show for the next four hours. It was like I was back home. That was the turning point. I immediately started to feel better. The rest of the trip carried on, and I tried my best to stay connected to home in any possible way. Just hearing the national news headlines made me feel good. I usually don’t follow the news that much when I’m home, but that changed when I was abroad and homesick.

…

Devi then explained to her friend that the spirit souls in this world have the same kind of homesickness. Sense gratification, chasing after money, competing with their fellow man to the death - these things are not natural. Human beings would rather love and serve. This is the soul’s dharma, or essential characteristic.

Devi explained that just as she felt better by getting news from home while in Paris, the spirit souls can immediately reverse their anxiety by hearing news from the spiritual realm. The planets there are known as Vaikuntha, or the place without anxiety. In the topmost planet, the Supreme Lord, in His original form, is constantly enjoying. He is playing His flute, running on the pristine fields with the cows, and delighting in the association of His friends, male and female, young and old. The news travels to our realm through the via medium of the spiritual master. The news the guru carries is so powerful that simply hearing it puts a person on the path back to home, back to Godhead.

In Closing:

In a foreign place feeling alone,

Sickness from missing your home.

 

Then day brightened by news to hear,

Though far away, to comfort again near.

 

In the same way from Vaikuntha coming,

Through sound of Krishna happy becoming.

 

Spiritual master the via medium from to pass,

Putting countless souls on homeward bound path.

The One About Hearing Through Walls

“Yet there is another nature, which is eternal and is transcendental to this manifested and unmanifested matter. It is supreme and is never annihilated. When all in this world is annihilated, that part remains as it is.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 8.20)

Download this episode (right click and save)

paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo

'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ

yaḥ sa sarveṣu bhūteṣu

naśyatsu na vinaśyati

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada utilized technology when necessary. Though he promoted the age-old motto of “simple living, high thinking,” as a rule he did not automatically prohibit the use of any single object. Everything is evaluated first to see if it can help promote Krishna consciousness, which is the original consciousness. Everyone is originally with the Supreme Lord the person, and because of forgetfulness of Him they fall into the material world, which is a sort of imitation land, a shadow of what’s actually available in the imperishable land.

This concept of using objects while remaining detached from material sense gratification is known as yukta-vairagya. There is yukta in terms of the connection to the Divine, while there is vairagya in terms of detachment from the objects themselves. As an example, if you have a car, you can use it for travelling to different places that will help purify your consciousness. Though you’re using the car, you’re detached from it. You’re not concerned with its design or upgrading to the latest version. You’re using the object to become attached to God the person.

Along these lines, the representatives of the Supreme Lord are not so impressed with the latest technology. Particularly, they don’t consider it to be awe-inspiring. This apathy is due to their intimate knowledge of the Supreme, who can do much more amazing things. Indeed, many of the advancements in the modern age represent abilities already found in other, less intelligent species. Roland was explaining this to his friend one day in an email exchange. His friend wondered why the teachers in the bhakti tradition don’t offer high praise to things like the cell phone or the airplane. Roland replied by relaying a story from his childhood.

...

It’s not that they don’t appreciate these advancements. They know deep down that these things only create artificial needs. It’s like when you’re super bummed about the power being out. If you didn’t rely so much on electricity, then there wouldn’t be a big problem. Remember a few years back when that hurricane led to major delays in shipment of oil? They had to ration gas. I remember because when it was a day that I could purchase it, I would get up early to be the first in line.

As far as the technological advancements, let me tell you a quick story from my childhood. I had a friend over one day after school and we were playing video games. I think it was Legend of Zelda. We were pretty into the game but all of a sudden we heard shouting in the adjacent room. It was my uncle and aunt, who were living with us at the time. We couldn’t tell what was going on, but we knew that both of them were upset.

My friend made a suggestion. He said that we should take a drinking glass and place it up against the wall. With the rim of the glass along the wall and our ear touching the other side, we would be able to hear what was going on. I thought he was crazy. Anyway, we gave it a try. I was amazed. It was like we were in the other room! We could hear everything. We listened for a few minutes, but then the door to their room opened. I think one of them left the room. Anyway, we scrambled to get back to playing video games, not wanting to get caught.

Later that night I told my older brother about it. “You won’t believe what I’m going to tell you,” I said. “If you put a drinking glass up to the wall, you can hear what’s going on in the next room.” He wasn’t surprised. “Yeah, I already knew that,” he said. “Do you know that a telephone already does the same thing? You can call someone living halfway across the globe and hear what they say. More importantly, they can hear you too. So why should I be impressed with your little glass experiment?”

So the teachers in bhakti-yoga have a similar attitude. The airplanes can fly and that’s pretty cool. But the birds already have this ability. After rigorous training a person can increase their speed in running, but a cheetah naturally has this ability. Even the mystic powers acquired by yogis don’t impress them. This is because they know that God manipulates the material elements effortlessly. He holds up all the planets and empowers the sun. He puts time into motion that makes everything change. Birth and death are due to time.

The Vaishnava is more impressed by what Krishna, the all-attractive Lord, can do with His direct intervention. They are more amazed at the potency of the holy names, which can rescue any person. That sound is so powerful and it doesn’t need special conductors to get the job done. Evidence is seen in the reformed souls who always chant the maha-mantra: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. They too were once bewildered by the dualities of like and dislike, heat and cold, and happiness and sadness. Through attachment to the sound that is the holy name, everything changed for them. You should trust their example and follow the same. You’ll see what I’m talking about then.

In Closing:

Fly the birds already can do,

So why humans to imitate too?

 

Remarkable, noteworthy so,

But interest of wise beyond to go.

 

Like how Krishna the planets to hold,

And through His time changes to unfold.

 

How identical is He to the name,

Potency of His bringing the same.

The One With The First World Problems

“The four principal bodily demands - eating, sleeping, mating and defending - can be satisfied under any circumstances, whether one is born in an impious condition or in a pious condition. The problem, however, is how to become free from the four principles of birth, death, old age and disease.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Easy Journey to Other Planets, Ch 2)

Download this episode (right click and save)

An eye-opening teaching presented by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada is that everyone in this world is suffering. Not that a grand revelation suddenly came to the great swami; this viewpoint is shared by any person who is armed with the flawless knowledge that is the Vedas. In this material world everyone is suffering, from high to low. From the highest person that is the creator to the tiny little ant, there are problems.

Juxtapose this truth with the common viewpoint that only those in need should be helped, and you get an interesting topic for discussion. The poor, the hungry, the less privileged – it is agreed that they are suffering more. Yet simply based on an external situation, which is temporary at that, we can’t accurately say that one person is inherently better off than another. As an example, a person can be wealthy but still suffer from seasonal allergies. The itching they feel in their eyes during the spring is the same as what is felt in a person not so well off. The satisfaction from hunger is the same in all people. Indeed, it is true with the animals as well. The dog sleeps on the floor, while the more intelligent human being sleeps on a mattress. But sleep is still sleep.

At the core each individual is a spirit soul. Trapped inside of a material covering, they are subject to the threefold miseries coming from within, nature, and other living entities. These miseries attack everyone; there is no prejudice. Randy was explaining this to his friend one day. His friend was a little skeptical, as he thought it was silly to think that rich people needed any help. He didn’t understand why the work of the devotees of God shouldn’t be focused first on the less fortunate. Randy relayed a recent story from his own life to help get his point across.

…

I finally upgraded my phone. I use the one given to me by work, since it is easier to carry around only one phone. It is a smartphone; the most popular selling one. Actually, it might not have the highest sales numbers anymore, but it is the one that seemingly everyone uses. Anyway, it was time for a change. Some of the buttons were no longer working, and I wanted to use the new feature of the fingerprint reader.

So work approves the upgrade, and I get my new phone. The first thing I noticed was that the software was different. I hadn’t upgraded the software on my old phone precisely because certain things stop working when you update. It gets really annoying, so I intentionally held off. I had no choice with the new phone. The current software was already installed on their.

The most annoying thing about the new phone is that the stock music player app is much more difficult to use. The company that makes this phone got put on the map precisely because of a device they made for playing music. Now it looks like it’s not that important to them. In the updated app, the icons are way bigger, and all the songs are listed for the artist instead of grouped by album. My daily music listening habits were broken as a result. I got so frustrated one day that I punched my hand into a wall. It was a stupid move, one in the mode of ignorance. Shri Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita that unsatisfied lust turns into anger, which then eventually leads to loss of intelligence. I experienced firsthand that He is right.

krodhād bhavati sammohaḥ

sammohāt smṛti-vibhramaḥ

smṛti-bhraṁśād buddhi-nāśo

buddhi-nāśāt praṇaśyati

“From anger, delusion arises, and from delusion bewilderment of memory. When memory is bewildered, intelligence is lost, and when intelligence is lost, one falls down again into the material pool.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.63)

I went online looking for alternative apps. In my research I found this one blog post where a person was complaining about the exact same issue. I then read the comments to see if other people agreed with him. One of the comments said, “First world problem.” That got me to thinking. Obviously a problem with a music app on a smartphone is nothing compared to someone who doesn’t know where their next meal is going to come from. It’s a stupid thing to get angry over. A little perspective would have helped me in this situation.

Yet the pain in my hand was real. The frustration I felt was not fake. I realized that it doesn’t matter where the pain comes from, since the experience is the same. You see people who have it all take to suicide. We can’t understand why they would do it, but the suffering they were going through must have been real. This means that the suffering must be the same in all living entities, regardless of what they look like, what their religion is, or how much money they have in the bank.

It is for this reason that the most valuable knowledge of the science of self-realization is disseminated to everyone. Shri Krishna is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the detail behind the abstract. He is God the person, the person everyone should know. Knowing Him means knowing yourself. If you know yourself, you know why you are suffering. Better still, you can do something about it. You can escape that suffering, whether you live in the first world or the third. You can find the light of transcendence through Krishna and His mercy. He makes Himself easily available to any and all through the sound that represents Him: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

In Closing:

Old phone time now to upgrade,

But of features changing afraid.

 

From that frustration to mount,

Though first world, pain same amount.

 

For this reason bhakti spread to all,

Each person best friend Krishna to call.

 

Whether high or low in this life perfect,

From knowing Lord own identity detect.

The One About Making You Remember

“I wish that all those calamities would happen again and again so that we could see You again and again, for seeing You means that we will no longer see repeated births and deaths.” (Queen Kunti speaking to Lord Krishna, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 1.8.25)

Download this episode (right click and save)

vipadaḥ santu tāḥ śaśvat

tatra tatra jagad-guro

bhavato darśanaṁ yat syād

apunar bhava-darśanam

One of the many names for the Supreme Lord is Adhokshaja. This Sanskrit word means “one who is beyond the perception of blunt instruments.” This makes sense if you think about it. We can get a temperature reading by using a thermometer. We get the weight of something using a scale. Yet weight and temperature both have limits. As God is the unlimited, there is no accurate quantification of His mass. He can make His transcendental form hotter than the hottest also.

premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena

santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti

yaḿ śyāmasundaram acintya-guṇa-svarūpaḿ

govindam ādi-puruṣaḿ tam ahaḿ bhajāmi

“I worship Govinda, the primeval Lord, who is Shyamasundara, Krishna Himself with inconceivable innumerable attributes, whom the pure devotees see in their heart of hearts with the eye of devotion tinged with the salve of love.” (Brahma-samhita, 5.38)

Despite being beyond the measure of any instrument, it is still possible to see God. It is possible to both notice and appreciate His presence. The Brahma-samhita says that the only requirement is a specific kind of vision. Only when the salve of devotion is applied to the eyes is it possible to see God. A famous queen in ancient times saw the Supreme Lord in His all-attractive and original form of Krishna quite frequently. She appreciated this vision, despite the otherwise trying circumstances. Indeed, it seemed as if she only saw Him when things were going bad.

Queen Kunti and her sons survived calamity after calamity. They knew that their survival was due only to the personal protection of Shri Krishna. Therefore when one time Krishna was leaving their company, Kunti famously prayed to have all those calamities happen again. In that way she would see Krishna, who gives protection to His devotees.

Harry was reciting this verse to his friend one day. His friend was having a difficult time understanding why someone would pray for bad things to happen.

“Isn’t God supposed to rescue us? Aren’t we supposed to be happy with the Supreme Lord by our side? To me it sounds like Queen Kunti was praying for rain, when in fact God should be the greatest sunshine.”

These were the questions put forth, and to help explain Harry described a recent incident from his own life.

…

As you know, I practice bhakti-yoga pretty regularly. I would never say that I’m a devotee; I’m aspiring to be one. I believe in the words of Queen Kunti, that Shri Krishna ends the cycle of birth and death through His favor. One of His many names is Mukunda, which means one who grants liberation. I regularly chant the holy names: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare. I also try to avoid the four pillars of sinful life: meat eating, gambling, intoxication and illicit sex.

My life isn’t very stressful. I hold down a job and family, and I practice bhakti side by side. About a week ago, though, I think I had the worst experience of my life. At the company I work for, the file server suddenly went down one morning. You don’t need to know all the ins and outs of the IT business to understand the severity of this issue. Imagine if the bank suddenly lost your account, if they didn’t know how much money you had. Imagine if your car broke down and there was no one around to pick you up.

This is sort of what happened. This file server got corrupted and all of our disaster recovery channels were closed. Backups of files failed and the backup servers were not online. The only option we had was to run this scan to repair the system. The problem was that no one had any idea how long it was going to take. It was running for hours and there was no way to tell the progress. The life of the business hung in the balance. All the pressure was on me; this was my responsibility.

In this helpless state, I prayed so much to the Supreme Lord and His wife, the goddess of fortune. This is a clear example of impure devotion. You’re not supposed to ask things from God for your material benefit. He’s not an order supplier. If you want those things, you can go to other divine figures. You can try your hand at karma in the material world. Yet I had no other recourse. I must have spent hours in prayer, waiting for this scan to finish.

Luckily it finished in a single day and we didn’t lose any data. The business was intact and later on I thought about the lesson of the whole incident. Everything does happen for a reason, and while there was neglect in terms of management of the file server, I couldn’t help but think in terms of my own devotional efforts. Perhaps I was too immersed in other things, forgetful of God. Maybe that is why He forced me to remember Him by putting me in such a difficult situation.

I don’t know that for sure, but the incident certainly brought Kunti Devi to mind. When she asks for the same calamities to happen again, she knows that in those dangerous times she will be forced to remember Krishna. That is the aim of bhakti-yoga; Krishna consciousness. In the Bhagavad-gita, the Lord says that to those who meditate on Him with undivided attention, He carries what they lack and preserves what they have. In the difficult situation, He brings to the devotee the opportunity to remember Him. That remembrance is the ultimate benefit of the calamity, as everything else soon gets forgotten.

In Closing:

In this most trying time,

Troubled with fear is my mind.

 

Perhaps since the Lord I forgot,

This opportunity to me He brought.

 

Like with famous Kunti Devi praying,

In calamities with Krishna staying.

 

Praying for relief showing bhakti impure,

But benefit from that trouble for sure.

The One With The Pop Quiz

“The mistake of modern civilization is that man does not believe in the next life. But whether he believes or not, the next life is there, and one has to suffer if one does not lead a responsible life in terms of the injunctions of authoritative scriptures like the Vedas and puranas.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 3.30.30 Purport)

Download this episode (right click and save)

Maya is that which is not. Therefore it is commonly described as illusion, an energy that tricks an otherwise intelligent person into doing things they shouldn’t. The matching term is Brahman. Brahman is that which is; it is the Absolute Truth. Maya is that which is not Brahman; at least in terms of realization.

The widespread ignorance of the afterlife is one of the signs of maya’s strength.

“After I die, everything is finished. Therefore let me enjoy right now. Why are you fools so concerned with pleasing someone you can’t even see?”

In the Vedic tradition, the aura of mysticism pertaining to the afterlife is removed. The process of dying and going somewhere else is compared to changing clothes. The bodies change, while the individual remains constant. The destination of the individual is determined by their work, which is known as karma.

The transmigration of the soul is a kind of law of the material nature. The spirit soul’s existence is not under any kind of law, but when descending to the material land ruled by maya there is control from a higher nature. Ignorance of the law does not give immunity. If a person drives on the wrong side of the road, the negative reaction will be there regardless of what they know about the rules of driving. Devan was explaining this concept to his friend one day. He related a story from his own life to help get the point across.

…

It was my second semester at college. In the first semester I was pretty responsible. I brought my old habits from high school, where I went to bed pretty early and did my homework on time. I remember my uncle told me that once I went to college things would change. He said I would start going to sleep a lot later. I didn’t believe him.

Sure enough, in my second semester things started to change. Suddenly, an 8 am class was too early. In high school I had to wake up at around 6 am to get ready, but you can only do that if you go to bed on time. In college, with all the friends around I started going to bed well after midnight.

Anyway, so I had this important physics class at 8 am. For some reason, I started skipping it regularly. It was a big class, with several hundred students in it. I figured I would just study on my own when the time called for it. I really don’t know what I was thinking. The plan was quite foolish. I thought there would be no negative consequences to my actions.

Sure enough, I randomly show up to class one day and there’s a pop quiz. The thing is, it was only “pop” to me. The other students knew about it because the teacher had announced it previously. They were prepared. They had studied. They had attended all the classes. They weren’t surprised. I had no idea about the test because of my consistent absence. Of course there was no getting out of it. I couldn’t ask the teacher to excuse me because I hadn’t been attending. I had to sit there and look at questions that I had no idea the answers to. It was a pretty horrible experience.

…

Devan explained that death has similarly been announced. It is guaranteed to happen, with the next destination determined by consciousness. Shri Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, confirms this in the Bhagavad-gita.

yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ

tyajaty ante kalevaram

taṁ tam evaiti kaunteya

sadā tad-bhāva-bhāvitaḥ

“Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 8.6)

The purpose of religion is to make sure the transition at the time of death is seamless. In ideal circumstances, there won’t be rebirth. The ideal is when the individual is no longer under the sway of maya. If they are Brahman realized, they get the association of the spiritual energy in the next life. Going one step better, if they are Krishna conscious they get a spiritual body used for association with God the person in the next life. The future life is guaranteed to come, whether one is aware of it or not. The wise heed the lessons of the teachers of the Vedic tradition and mold their lives in such a way as to get the best destination in the afterlife.

In Closing:

Like when class regularly forsaking,

And then one day pop quiz taking.

 

Failure result guaranteed to come,

Forgiveness for ignorance none.

 

Life after death same way understand,

So proper destination issue at hand.

 

Consciousness measured at time of quitting,

For devoted soul place and body befitting.

Does Convenience Mean Enlightenment

“Human civilization is meant for purifying the senses, and objects of sense satisfaction should be supplied as much as absolutely required, but not for aggravating artificial sensory needs. Food, shelter, defense and sense gratification are all needs in material existence. Otherwise, in his pure, uncontaminated state of original life, the living entity has no such needs. The needs are therefore artificial, and in the pure state of life there are no such needs. As such, increasing the artificial needs, as is the standard of material civilization, or advancing the economic development of human society, is a sort of engagement in darkness, without knowledge.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 2.5.30 Purport)

Download this episode (right click and save)

Which side is correct, science or religion? Are they mutually exclusive? Can you be in both camps? In the authorized science of self-realization passed down since time immemorial, originating with the first guru, the teacher of all teachers, nothing is rejected outright. Consciousness is what really counts, and whichever path brings the individual back to the original consciousness is recommended.

“Does that answer the question about scientific advancements? What about the automobile? How about the television? Are these things good or bad? We’ve heard spiritual leaders criticize these things as the devil’s handiwork. They say that society is headed towards hell precisely because of these things. Look at what’s happened with the smartphone. When you’re at a restaurant, no one is looking at each other. They all have their heads down, checking their phones. How can that be a good thing? Then you have the professional video game players, who are seemingly rewarded for being totally antisocial.”

Material advancement basically means convenience. Instead of heading to the riverbank to clean your clothes every day, you have a machine in your house. Instead of drafting a letter by hand and placing it in the mailbox, you send a text message that gets delivered instantly. Instead of going to the cinema hall to watch the latest release, you download the same on your tablet computer and watch at your leisure. Instead of calling for a horse-drawn carriage, you get in your automobile that has the power equivalent of many horses.

The issue is enlightenment. Does convenience equal enlightenment? The human birth is meant for realization of the self, advancement of the consciousness. Whether a person gets their meal from a fast food restaurant or after cooking in their home really makes no difference. Whether you sleep on a memory foam mattress or on the floor does not matter so much in the morning. The experience is basically forgotten.

Enlightenment is the way to evaluate consciousness. What is your vision like? Do you know who you are? Do you know why you are on this earth? Do you know that there are so many different species? Do you consider one race to be superior? Do you think that women are inherently worse than men or vice versa? Material advancement does not address these issues. It has little value. Convenience does not automatically equal enlightenment.

There is also the saying that for every convenience there is an inconvenience. The recently introduced term of “first world problem” conveys a similar idea. In times past there was no washing machine, but there was also no repair of it. People living twenty years ago did not have to worry about a software update breaking the functionality of their phone. They did not get frustrated over a temporary loss of WIFI signal.

For these reasons spiritual teachers do not put much stock in material advancement. It is not necessary for advancement of the consciousness. At the same time, it needn’t be tossed aside entirely. After all, the intelligence in man comes from God. We know that a baby will eventually learn to crawl, walk and talk. No one programmed the baby; the intelligence was already there.

sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo

mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca

vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyo

vedānta-kṛd veda-vid eva cāham

“I am seated in everyone's heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness. By all the Vedas am I to be known; indeed I am the compiler of Vedanta, and I am the knower of the Vedas.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 15.15)

There is a way to appreciate material advancement from the spiritual perspective. Technology proves that man has at least a portion of the much greater intelligence belonging to the original person. That person’s handiwork is flawless. The sun is one example. There is no software update for the sun. The sun does not stop working for no reason on a given day. Material nature has properties so well-defined that man foolishly thinks it can alter things like the weather through studying those properties.

Religion and science can exist side by side. Religion without philosophy is sentiment, and philosophy without religion is mental speculation. The mind can be the friend of the living entity and its enemy as well. The same goes for that on which the mind contemplates. The invention of the tablet computer can be used to look at disturbing images or it can be used to study the science of self-realization, as taught by the prominent teachers of this age. The petroleum extracted from the ground can be used to race cars on the street or it can be used to travel from village to village to help enlighten others about their true position.

Everyone is spirit soul, transcendental to the matter surrounding them. Science is interested in the material, after all, and the material is not what identifies us. We are spiritual beings, but in ignorance we think otherwise. Enlightenment in this age is found easiest through sound. The sound from the original teacher has been preserved in books, but in the fever of maintaining today’s conveniences even reading is rare. Fortunately, the same potent sound is found within the name of the origin of everything. Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare, may not seem like anything advanced, but it can bring the enlightenment that no scientific discovery can.

In Closing:

Despite science’s most amazing discovery,

No guarantee of spiritual identity’s recovery.

 

Conveniences today many there are,

But enlightenment still in the distance far.

 

Does not mean that all objects to shun,

Put to proper use, for knowing God done.

 

Enlightenment best coming through sound,

Even in darkness Supreme again found.

The One With The Driver’s Music

“One should approach the spiritual master with all humility and offer him all services so that he will be pleased to bestow his blessings upon the disciple. Because a bona fide spiritual master is a representative of Krishna, if he bestows any blessings upon his disciple, that will make the disciple immediately advanced without the disciple's following the regulated principles. Or, the regulated principles will be easier for one who has served the spiritual master without reservation.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Bhagavad-gita, 13.8-12 Purport)

Download this episode (right click and save)

Who is God? Does He exist? Is He merely a figment of the imagination? The Bhagavad-gita advises that one should approach someone who has seen the truth, a tattva-darshi. They received this vision not through some magical touch or deep meditation. They saw the truth because they themselves approached someone who had seen the truth. If you follow the chain all the way up, you reach the origin of everything.

The tattva-darshi in this instance is known as the guru. Though the English word “guru” now applies to an expert in any field of interest, the original meaning refers to a respected personality who carries weight. Their knowledge brings them respect, and that knowledge was acquired through consulting their own guru. With respect to the meaning of life and the proper direction for activities, the guru is known as the spiritual master, and only through approaching a guru can one gain a proper understanding of the difference between matter and spirit. Only the guru can properly teach about the source of everything: God.

tad viddhi praṇipātena

paripraśnena sevayā

upadekṣyanti te jñānaṁ

jñāninas tattva-darśinaḥ

“Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 4.34)

The guru doesn’t ask for much in return. A little respect is all. Established practices show how this respect is given. One of those practices involves eating the remnants of food offered to the guru. Imagine giving someone a plate of food and having them eat only half of what’s there. Then it’s your job to finish the rest. When Karuna’s friend heard about this, he thought it was disgusting. He didn’t understand what good could come from eating leftovers like that. Karuna then tried to explain by telling a story from his own life.

…

I was overseas on a trip for two weeks. When the time came to return home, I was ready. I enjoyed the time spent with my family for sure, but I desperately craved my freedom. I tell you, there is nothing like getting in your own car and deciding where you want to go. I also hate it when I have to depend on others to eat. They always give me too much.

Anyway, in America we don’t like the nuisance involved with air travel, but overseas it’s more troublesome. In order to get home, I first had to drive five hours to the airport. Then I would connect to a different airport, from which I would take my long flight home. If calculating start to finish, from leaving for the airport to walking in the door at home, the travel time is around 36 hours.

Needless to say, relaxation was key on this journey. The family hired a driver to take me to the airport in the morning. Accompanying us on this five hour ride was my uncle. So we head along, and it’s nice and quiet, with the air conditioning on. Here’s where things got interesting. The driver turns on the stereo. He puts on a CD of music that he likes. I was not happy. Shouldn’t my comfort come first? I just wanted some peace and quiet. Shouldn’t he have asked me before? In this thirty-six hours, I wanted at least the first part to be peaceful, as checking in to flights and boarding are hectic moments.

We eventually stopped for some food, at which point I voiced my complaint to my uncle. I told him that the driver was rude to turn on the music like that without asking. Then he explained to me that even if I didn’t like the music, it was important for the driver to be comfortable. If the music helped the driver stay awake and focused, then it actually benefitted me in the end. The goal was to reach the airport, after all. Through this small inconvenience the objective would be accomplished. Therefore I shouldn’t complain.

…

Karuna explained that in serving the guru there are similarly many inconveniences. The guru is bringing the disciple to the best destination, the afterlife full of love and devotion to God. The Ganga river is sacred because it emanates from the lotus feet of Lord Vishnu, the personal God. The bona fide guru is sacred too, since they are always connected to the Supreme Lord in consciousness. Through doing little things like eating their remnants and offering respect, the disciple wins the favor of the guru. The spiritual master then reveals the secrets passed on through the ages. Shri Krishna, the speaker of the Bhagavad-gita, is the original guru, and those who represent Him act like life-saving rafts for the bewildered souls stuck in the ocean of material suffering.

In Closing:

Like sailboat pushed forward by draft,

Guru arriving like life-saving raft.

 

For material world’s drowning souls,

Revealing to them devotion, ultimate goal.

 

Inconvenience little here and there,

Necessary for of identity to become aware.

 

By spiritual master’s pleasure earning,

To Krishna’s abode finally returning.