Bhagavad-gītā As It Is

Bhagavad-gītā 13.3

Nitāi: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [Prabhupāda and devotees repeat] [leads chanting of verse]

kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata kṣetra-kṣetra-jñayor jñānaṁ yat taj jñānaṁ mataṁ mama [Bg 13.3]

[break] [02:59]

Translation: "O scion of Bharata, you should understand that I am also the knower in all bodies, and to understand this body and its owner is called knowledge. That is My opinion."

Prabhupāda:

kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata kṣetra-kṣetra-jñayor jñānaṁ yat taj jñānaṁ mataṁ mama [Bg 13.3]

Jñānam, knowledge. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṅa, is explaining about knowledge. People are being educated all over the world for advancement of knowledge. Knowledge is meant for the human being, not for the cats and dogs. Therefore, for human being there are so many universities, schools, colleges, institutions, laws. There are so many things to advance knowledge. But what is the advancement of knowledge? The basic principle of knowledge is to understand, "Who am I?" If I do not know who am I, then what is the meaning of my advancement of knowledge? Generally, despite so many universities all over the world, people are going on in the concept of this body: "I am this body." "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim." So everyone is identifying himself with this material body. Then where is the advancement of knowledge?

Here Kṛṣṅa says, kṣetra-kṣetra-jñayor jñānaṁ yad jñānam..., taj jñānaṁ mataṁ mama. The kṣetra, this body, and the owner of the body. I am not this body, I am the owner of this body. This is jñānam. That is being explained in this chapter of Bhagavad-gītā by Kṛṣṅa. This is the Thirteenth Chapter, and Arjuna's question was,

prakṛtiṁ puruṣaṁ caiva kṣetraṁ kṣetra-jñam eva ca etad veditum icchāmi jñānaṁ jñeyaṁ ca keśava [Bg 13.1]

This was the question in this chapter. "My dear Kṛṣṅa, I want to know what is the prakṛti, what is puruṣa, what is kṣetra, what is kṣetra-jña, what is jñāna." These are the items inquired by Arjuna. Arjuna is disciple, and Kṛṣṅa is the teacher. The disciple submissively inquired from the teacher about knowledge. That is the Vedic injunction. You cannot have knowledge, I cannot have knowledge without teacher. By speculative advancement one cannot come to the real platform of knowledge. At the present moment, so many philosophers, scientists, they are trying to advance in knowledge by speculation: "I think," "In my opinion," "Perhaps," like this. These things are going on. Big, big philosophers, scientists, they give their opinion: "I think like this." Everybody is thinking, "I think..." And it is being supported. Knowledge means anyone can think in any way, and at the present moment that is being accepted as knowledge.

Just like at the present moment, amongst the scientists the knowledge is going on that life is made of matter, from matter, chemical evolution theory. And such person also being awarded with Nobel Prize. He is going on on the wrong field of knowledge, that life is product of matter; by combination of matter, life is produced. It is not knowledge. It is ignorance. But by speculative process, one is writing a big volume of books and he is getting Nobel Prize. Where is the proof that by combination of matter life comes out? This was discussed by a big professor in California University. He was touring, lecturing all over the world. So when I was in Los Angeles he also came there. So in the Los Angeles University there is one Dr. Svarūpa Dāmodara. He is Ph.D. in chemistry. He is my student. He challenged the professor that "If you say that life is combination of some chemicals, suppose I give you the chemicals. Can you produce life?" The professor said, "That I cannot say."

So this is going on. What you do not know exactly—simply theoretically you put some theories and speculate—that is not knowledge. But our process, we are getting knowledge from the perfect personality. That is Vedic system. You acquire knowledge from a person who is perfect in knowledge. Perfect in knowledge and imperfect in knowledge... So long we are imperfect, we cannot give perfect knowledge. Therefore we must find out knowledge from the perfect person. That is Vedic injunction. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum eva abhigacchet [Muṅḍaka Upaniṣad 1.2.12].

[To understand these things properly, one must humbly approach, with firewood in hand, a spiritual master who is learned in the Vedas and firmly devoted to the Absolute Truth.]

Guru, guru means one who has got perfect knowledge. One who hasn't got perfect knowledge, he cannot become guru. How he can? Guru means heavy. So if I am light and I take knowledge from another light person, then what is the use of such knowledge?

So therefore the Vedic injunction is tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum eva abhigacchet [Muṅḍaka Upaniṣad 1.2.12]. Abhigacchet, "must." Gacchet. This form of verb, vidhi-liṅ, is used when there is the meaning "must." Abhigacchet. So it is not optional, that "I may go or I may not go." No. You must go. That is Vedic injunction. So here is the perfect teacher, Kṛṣṅa, real jagad-guru. Kṛṣṅa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, it appears in due course of time. There is a time when Kṛṣṅa appears. Everything is there in the calculation of the śāstras. Just like we have got a fixed time for the sunrise. Everyone knows that in the morning at 6:30 there will be sunrise. That is certain. Similarly, in the śāstras there is description when Kṛṣṅa comes down, descends, in this universe. In one day of Brahmā at the end of Dvāpara-yuga... Brahmā's days are described in the Bhagavad-gītā, sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmaṅo viduḥ [Bg 8.17].

[By human calculation, a thousand ages taken together is the duration of Brahmā's one day. And such also is the duration of his night.]

Forty-three lakhs of years multiplied by one thousand becomes one day of Brahmā. So forty-three lakhs thousand times, add another forty-three lakhs thousand times—this is the period after which Kṛṣṅa comes.

So why does He comes, that is also described. Paritrāṅāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām, yuge yuge sambhavāmi [Bg 4.8].

[In order to deliver the pious and to annihilate the miscreants, as well as to reestablish the principles of religion, I advent Myself millennium after millennium.]

So the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṅa, descends to give us knowledge like Bhagavad-gītā, personally speaking, so that even after disappearance of Kṛṣṅa, you can take advantage of Bhagavad-gītā and, as Arjuna is asking personally, so similarly, all your questions, not only religious... Of course, when there is something talks about God, it is taken as religious. So religious, the meaning of religion in the English dictionary is different from what we mean by religion, that in the dictionary it is said, "Religion is a kind of faith." Faith may be wrong or right, but religion cannot be wrong or right. Religion must be correct. That is the meaning of religion. The example is that the sugar is sweet. It is not the question of wrong or right. Sugar must be always sweet. You cannot change it. That is religion. Chili is hot. That is correct. Chili cannot be sweet, and sugar cannot be hot.

So religion means that. Religion described in the Vedic śāstras is said, dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṅītam [SB 6.3.19]:

[Real religious principles are enacted by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Although fully situated in the mode of goodness, even the great ṛṣis who occupy the topmost planets cannot ascertain the real religious principles, nor can the demigods or the leaders of Siddhaloka, to say nothing of the asuras, ordinary human beings, Vidyādharas and Cāraṅas.]

"Dharma means...," the plain description of religion is, "the code, or the laws, given by God." Dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṅītam. Just like the state law means the order given by the government. That is correct. You cannot accept government laws in a way that "I may believe or I may not believe." That is not law. Law means you must believe it. That is law. If you don't believe, then you will be punished. That is law. Similarly, religion means, as it is described in the English dictionary, that it is a kind of faith. Faith I may accept—suppose Hindu faith or Christian faith. So you may accept or not accept; there is no compulsion. But religion does not mean like that. Religion means you must accept. You believe or don't believe, it doesn't matter. You must accept. That is religion. And what is that religion? That religion... From Bhagavad-gītā we find, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṅaṁ vraja [Bg 18.66].

[Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me. I shall deliver you from all sinful reaction. Do not fear.]

That is religion.

Why Kṛṣṅa says, dharma-saṁsthāpanārthāya sambhavāmi yuge yuge: "I come down on this planet or in this universe for reestablishing the principles of religion"? Dharma-saṁsthāpanārthāya sambhavāmi yuge yuge. Then what is that dharma? That is not Hindu dharma or Muslim dharma or Christian dharma or this dharma or that dharma. No. Kṛṣṅa, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead, does not come down to teach a sectarian type of dharma. There is one dharma. What is that one dharma? To surrender to the orders of God. That's all. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṅaṁ vraja [Bg 18.66]. This is dharma. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje [SB 1.2.6].

[The supreme occupation [dharma] for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted to completely satisfy the self.]

Why you should surrender to God unless you have got love? Just like we surrender to the government laws. Why? Because we are confident that "If I surrender to the government laws, we shall be peaceful citizen. There will be no trouble." Because we know that, therefore we surrender to the laws of government.

So government at the present moment... Everywhere we see defective government. Therefore there is agitation against government. There are parties. One party is agitating to take the seat of the government. When he goes, then another party agitates. Because everyone is imperfect. Therefore they cannot give the real law so that the citizens may be happy and peaceful. That is the defect. But when we receive from the perfect the laws, then we become peaceful and perfect. Yayātmā samprasīdati. That is real law. That is described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that

vāsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ janayaty āśu vairāgyaṁ jñānaṁ ca yad ahaitukam [SB 1.2.7]

[By rendering devotional service unto the Personality of Godhead, Śrī Kṛṣṅa, one immediately acquires causeless knowledge and detachment from the world.]

If we engage ourself in the service of Vāsudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead... Vāsudeva is another name of Kṛṣṅa, because Kṛṣṅa appeared as the son of Vasudeva, and Vāsudeva means all-pervading also. So Kṛṣṅa is both. He is the son of Vasudeva. He appears. He accepts. Ajo 'pi sann avyayātmā bhūtānām īśvaro 'pi san [Bg 4.6].

[Although I am unborn and My transcendental body never deteriorates, and although I am the Lord of all sentient beings, I still appear in every millennium in My original transcendental form.]

Although He is the original source of everything, still, He appears like a human being, becoming the son of His devotee like Vasudeva or Nanda Mahārāja, like that, or Mahārāja Daśaratha. That is His option. He can appear from anywhere.

So Kṛṣṅa is perfect. If we take lessons from Kṛṣṅa, instruction from Kṛṣṅa, then we get perfect knowledge. That is the process of studying Bhagavad-gītā. If you accept Kṛṣṅa as ordinary human being, then we are befooled. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam [Bg 9.11].

[Fools deride Me when I descend in the human form. They do not know My transcendental nature and My supreme dominion over all that be.]

We should accept Kṛṣṅa. Why should we accept? Because all the śāstras accept. Kṛṣṅas tu bhagavān svayam [SB 1.3.28].

[All of the above-mentioned incarnations are either plenary portions or portions of the plenary portions of the Lord, but Lord Śrī Kṛṣṅa is the original Personality of Godhead. All of them appear on planets whenever there is a disturbance created by the atheists. The Lord incarnates to protect the theists.]

Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṅaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ [Bs 5.1].

[Kṛṣṅa who is known as Govinda is the Supreme Godhead. He has an eternal blissful spiritual body. He is the origin of all. He has no other origin and He is the prime cause of all causes.]

Sādhu-śāstra-guru—that is the evidence. According to our Vedic knowledge, we shall accept a thing when it is proved by Vedic evidence. Therefore Veda means knowledge, perfect knowledge.

So sādhu-śāstra. Śāstra means Vedas, and sādhu, saintly persons, and guru. Saintly person means who abides by the śāstra, Vedic knowledge. One who does not accept Vedic knowledge, so, followers of Vedas, they do not accept him as an authority. Even Lord Buddha, he, because he did not accept the authority of Vedas, therefore in India he was rejected. Although Lord Buddha appeared in India, for some times many people became followers of Buddhist religion, but later on it disappeared from India. It went outside. What was the reason? Because Lord Buddha did not accept the authority of the Vedas.

So although Lord Buddha is accepted as incarnation of God... We Vaiṣṅava, we worship Lord Buddha, keśava dhṛta-buddha-śarīra jaya jagadīśa hare. Nindasi yajña-vidher ahaha śruti-jātam. Śruti-jātam. The statement in the Vedas, that is called śruti-jātam. Nindasi. Because his mission was to establish animal..., to stop animal-killing. Sadaya-hṛdaya darśita-paśu-ghātam. Therefore he had to reject the Vedic principles, because in the Vedic principle, in the sacrifice, there is recommendation sometimes, not always, about sacrifice of the animal. But his aim was, mission was, to stop animal-killing. Therefore for the time being he rejected the Vedic authority, because people will take advantage, that "In the Vedas there is recommendation for sacrificing animals." So just to stop to take this advantage, he said that "I do not accept the authority of Vedas." Therefore he was accepted as atheist. Veda nā māniyā bauddha haya ta' nāstika [Cc Madhya 6.168]. That's a big story.

Anyway, we have to accept knowledge from the perfect person. This is the sum and substance. Unless we take knowledge from the perfect person, our knowledge is defective. Therefore Arjuna is asking, "What is this prakṛti, material nature? What is puruṣa?" Puruṣa means who is trying to exploit...

[break] ...he is also prakṛti. Prakṛti. Just try to understand, woman, strī. But if one strī wants to enjoy another strī, so how it is possible? That is not possible. There must be puruṣa. So puruṣa..., these living entities, although they have dressed like puruṣa, they are not puruṣa; they are prakṛti. Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho [Bg 7.5].

[Besides this inferior nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, there is a superior energy of Mine, which are all living entities who are struggling with material nature and are sustaining the universe.]

They are superior prakṛti, but not puruṣa. But they are trying to be puruṣa. This is called illusion. If a woman dresses like a man and wants to act like man, that is artificial. That is not possible. Similarly, a living entity is not puruṣa; he is prakṛti. But because he wanted to enjoy this material world, nature has given him a dress like a puruṣa, and he is falsely trying to enjoy it. This is the position. Kṛṣṅa-buliya jiva bhoga vancha kare [Prema-vivarta]. Prakṛti cannot enjoy another prakṛti. A puruṣa can enjoy.

That is also described in the Bhagavad-gītā.

bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati [Bg 5.29]

[The sages, knowing Me as the ultimate purpose of all sacrifices and austerities, the Supreme Lord of all planets and demigods and the benefactor and well-wisher of all living entities, attain peace from the pangs of material miseries.]

Śānti. If you want śānti, peace of mind, peace of living condition, then you must know three things: that Kṛṣṅa is the supreme bhoktā, enjoyer... And we are trying to imitate Him to become enjoyer. That is false. Because if you try to capture something false, then it is simply labor. You will never achieve that thing. Or even if you achieve, you cannot be happy, because thing is false. So real bhoktā is Kṛṣṅa. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānām [Bg 5.29].

People are after peace, śānti, but this is the śānti formula, that we must know Kṛṣṅa—the supreme enjoyer of everything. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasām.

If tapasya, you undergo severe austerities... Suppose you are doing business; that is also tapasya. You have to work very hard. Money does not come so easily. Then you get some money. So it is also the result of your tapasya. Sometimes we see that a poor man, working very, very hard, he becomes a millionaire. There are many instances. But that is tapasya. The result is you have got millions of dollars, but you cannot enjoy it. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasām. Yajña also. There are many ritualistic ceremonies in the Vedas to achieve something very great. That you can get. But Kṛṣṅa says that "When you achieve the result, you are not enjoyer; I am the enjoyer." Now, who will accept it? Everyone will say, "I have got this result after working so hard, and Kṛṣṅa will take everything?" Yes. If you want to enjoy yourself, you will never be happy. You give it to Kṛṣṅa and you will be happy. This is the formula.

So this simple formula, if we understand, bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram... [Bg 5.29].

Because He is the proprietor, sarva-loka-maheśvaram. He must enjoy. Suppose a carpenter makes a very nice furniture, a nice closet, very beautiful. So will the carpenter shall be the proprietor, or the man, the person who has supplied him wages, supplied him the wood, and he has made it? Who will be the proprietor? Very simple philosophy. Whatever we use... Similarly, suppose you construct a skyscraper building, costly building. But who has supplied the material? The brick, stone, wood, iron—where you have got it? It is Kṛṣṅa's property. You cannot produce these bricks or the iron or the wood. It is Kṛṣṅa's property. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca [Bg 7.4].

[Earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and false ego—altogether these eight comprise My separated material energies.]

These five elements of material ingredients—earth, water, air, fire—all these things, even mind, intelligence... The mind... Unless you have got intelligence, you cannot manufacture anything with these material things.

Just like in America. Before the Americans, the Europeans or from other countries, mostly Europeans, they went to America, and the American land was there. The ingredients were there. But because the Red Indians, they had no sufficient intelligence, they could not make America like present time. Lack of intelligence. So we are manufacturing so many things industrially, but the intelligence is also given by Kṛṣṅa. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhiḥ. The buddhi is also given by Kṛṣṅa. That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭaḥ: "I am sitting in everyone's heart." Mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca [Bg 15.15]:

[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 Vedānta, and I am the knower of the Vedas.]

"From Me, one gets intelligence, memory, and also forgets." We are completely dependent on Kṛṣṅa. Otherwise why a man is extraordinarily intelligent, another is not? Why this difference? He... Constitutionally, if you study the body of the intelligent man and the less intelligent man, the anatomy and physiological conditions you will find the same—the same blood, same bone, same marrow, same muscle, same skin, same veins running, same heart, everything. But why one man is less intelligent and another is very, very highly intelligent? Why this difference? Because the supply of intelligence is by Kṛṣṅa. That is said in the Bhagavad-gītā. Mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca. If Kṛṣṅa is favorable, you will get the right intelligence at the right moment. Otherwise you will miss. This is the position.

So we are completely dependent on Kṛṣṅa. We are conducted by the manipulation of Kṛṣṅa. Therefore right knowledge should be taken from Kṛṣṅa. Mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca. Jñānam. "From Me." Therefore Arjuna is rightly intelligent. Therefore asking Kṛṣṅa, "What is this prakṛti? What is this puruṣa? What is jñāna? What is kṣetra-jña? What is kṣetra?" And Kṛṣṅa is answering. So if we want to receive real knowledge, then we should consult this Bhagavad-gītā. That is our propagation. We are propagating this message, Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement, that "You take knowledge from Kṛṣṅa." That's all. Don't take knowledge from the rascals and fools. Then you will be misled. That is our propaganda.

So why not take this opportunity? Our business is not very difficult. Our business is very easy, because we are not manufacturing knowledge like the rascals. "I think." What you are, you are thinking like this? You are rascal number one, and you are thinking? What is the meaning of your thinking? We reject immediately, "I think," "It is my opinion." This is going on, big, big scientists, big, big philosophers. We don't accept. We must see whether he has received knowledge from Kṛṣṅa. And one who receives knowledge from Kṛṣṅa... Just like Arjuna. Arjuna said to Kṛṣṅa, śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ prapannam [Bg 2.7]:

[Now I am confused about my duty and have lost all composure because of weakness. In this condition I am asking You to tell me clearly what is best for me. Now I am Your disciple, and a soul surrendered unto You. Please instruct me.]

"My dear Kṛṣṅa, the perplexity which has arisen in my mind, it cannot be solved by anyone except Yourself." Because Arjuna knew that Kṛṣṅa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore he surrendered to Him. He surrendered. He was talking like friend. Friendly talking cannot give any good result, simply waste of time. But when there is talking between disciple and the spiritual master, that has got meaning.

Just like my disciples, because they have accepted me as guru, whatever I say, they accept it. Otherwise I have not bribed them. These European, Americans... I have no money. I went to New York with seven dollars. What money I have got? But they have accepted. So this is the process. You must find out somebody whom you can accept as guru. That guru must be bona fide. Otherwise what is the use of accepting a bogus guru? So what is that bona fide guru? That bona fide guru means one who has accepted Kṛṣṅa as guru. He is bona fide guru. That is bona fide guru. Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ [Bg 4.2].

[This supreme science was thus 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 is appears to be lost.]

Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam [Bg 4.1].

[The Blessed Lord said: I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvān, and Vivasvān instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Ikṣvāku.]

Kṛṣṅa says that "This system of yoga as it is described in the Bhagavad-gītā was first of all described by Me to the sun-god." Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam, vivasvān manave prāha [Bg 4.1]: "And the sun-god again handed over the knowledge to his son Manu." Manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt: "And Manu explained the same thing to his son Ikṣvāku." Evaṁ paramparā-prāptaṁ rājarṣayaḥ [Bg 4.2]. So that means the knowledge is actually coming from Kṛṣṅa.

In the beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is also stated, tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye [SB 1.1.1]. Ādi-kavi is Lord Brahmā, and brahma means Vedic knowledge. So there was nobody to teach Brahmā. Brahmā is called prapitāmaha [Bg 11.39],

[You are air, fire, water, and You are the moon! You are the supreme controller and the grandfather. Thus I offer my respectful obeisances unto You a thousand times, and again and yet again!]

the first-class knower of the Vedic knowledge, ādi-kavi. But wherefrom he got the knowledge? He got the knowledge from Kṛṣṅa. Tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye. And Brahmā distributed it to Nārada. Nārada distributed it to Vyāsadeva. Vyāsadeva distributed it to other ācāryas. In this way, evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ [Bg 4.2]. So there is paramparā. The knowledge is the same. There is no alteration. But it is coming through disciplic succession, one after an... So one who receives the knowledge from the disciplic succession... Just like at the present moment we see that Kṛṣṅa and Arjuna, they are talking. Arjuna is direct disciple of Kṛṣṅa. So if you take Bhagavad-gītā as it was understood by Arjuna, then you get the right knowledge. And if you take the knowledge of Bhagavad-gītā explained by some so-called scholar and politician, then it is rascaldom only. It has no meaning. It has no meaning.

That is the process. You try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as Arjuna understood. Arjuna is asking Kṛṣṅa. So what Kṛṣṅa is answering, you take it. Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṅa, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān [Bg 10.12].

[Arjuna said: You are the Supreme Brahman, the ultimate, the supreme abode and purifier, the Absolute Truth and the eternal divine person. You are the primal God, transcendental and original, and You are the unborn and all-pervading beauty. All the great sages such as Nārada, Asita, Devala, and Vyāsa proclaim this of You, and now You Yourself are declaring it to me.]

These are all statement in the Bhagavad-gītā. So our only request is that if you want knowledge as it is inquired by Arjuna, you take it from Kṛṣṅa or one who has accepted Kṛṣṅa as guru, the original. Then your knowledge is perfect. Otherwise you are cheated. You will not get the right knowledge. It is not possible. Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ [Bg 4.2].

So therefore Kṛṣṅa says that kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi. Kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata. First of all He gave knowledge that "This body is kṣetra." Kṣetra means field of activities. Just like a cultivator, he has got a field, and he is working with plow. So according to his labor he is getting the fruit. Similarly, we have got this field, this body, and we are working—you, me and everyone—according to our knowledge, according to my understanding capacity. So therefore... I am not this body; I am the owner of the body. I am working with this body. This is the position. Kṣetra-kṣetra-jña.

You study yourself. You take your finger. Ask yourself, "Am I this finger?" No. The answer will be, "I am not this finger. It is my finger." "I am this head?" So... Just like you ask one child, "What is this, my boy?" "Oh, my finger, father." No child will say, "I finger." Even a child will not say that "I finger." But the whole material civilization is going on, "I body." That's all. "I am Indian," "I am American." Therefore this is foolishness.

yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṅape tri-dhātuke sva-dhīḥ kalatrādiṣu bhauma ijya-dhīḥ yat-tīrtha-buddhiḥ salile na karhicij janeṣv abhijñeṣu sa eva go-kharaḥ [SB 10.84.13]

[One who identifies his self as the inert body composed of mucus, bile and air, who assumes his wife and family are permanently his own, who thinks an earthen image or the land of his birth is worshipable, or who sees a place of pilgrimage as merely the water there, but who never identifies himself with, feels kinship with, worships or even visits those who are wise in spiritual truth—such a person is no better than a cow or an ass.]

Yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṅape tri-dhātuke. This bag of bones and flesh and blood and urine and stool... This is the bag. This is body. What is this body? You dissect this body, you will find these things. You will find blood, muscle, bone, urine, stool and so many other things. Does it mean that such a great, intelligent man is combination of urine, stool, blood, bone? So why don't you create another intelligent man with these ingredients? But the so-called scientists and philosophers say that this body is everything. They have discovered some cellular theory, this theory... But that is not the fact. The fact is that within this body there is the owner of the body. That is called soul. Soul. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe [Bg 2.13].

[As the embodied soul continually passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. The self-realized soul is not bewildered by such a change.]

This is not the cause of our intelligence, but it is given by Kṛṣṅa, less or more intelligence. That is your position. But that knowledge, where you get? Not in the university, but you get from the Bhagavad-gītā. Therefore our request is, our only propaganda is, "Be Kṛṣṅa conscious. Try to understand everything, all problems." Then the solution is there in the Bhagavad-gītā.

The present problem is food problem. It is not simply talking on this platform or that platform. Yesterday some news reporter, "Sir, what is your view of the Bhagavad-gītā, dvaita-vāda, advaita-vāda?" The dvaita-vāda, advaita-vāda—that we shall consider later on. Come to the practical field. Now, suppose there is scarcity of food. So Kṛṣṅa does not say that this problem of scarcity of food will be solved by dvaita-vāda philosophy or advaita-vāda philosophy. Kṛṣṅa says practical way: annād bhavanti bhūtāni [Bg 3.14].

[All living bodies subsist on food grains, which are produced from rain. Rains are produced by performance of yajña [sacrifice], and yajña is born of prescribed duties.]

Annād. You have..., you must have sufficient food grains for the living entities—animal or man. This is practical. There is no question of talking. What is the talking of advaita-vāda philosophy or dvaita-vāda philosophy when you are needy, you require anna? That is practical solution given by Kṛṣṅa. Annād bhavanti. He never says that your food problem will be solved by philosophizing advaita-vāda or dvaita-vāda. Here is practical: annād bhavanti bhūtāni. You must find out sufficient grains. Annād bhavanti bhūtāni parjanyād anna-sambhavaḥ. Parjanyāt. When there is sufficient rain, then there will be food grains, not by your advaita-vāda philosophy or dvaita-vāda philosophy. These are practical solution.

Cātur-varṅyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṅa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ [Bg 4.13].

[According to the three modes of material nature and the work ascribed to them, the four divisions of human society were created by Me. And, although I am the creator of this system, you should know that I am yet the non-doer, being unchangeable.]

Kṛṣṅa has divided the society, human society, in four divisions: the brāhmaṅa, the kṣatriya, the vaiśya, the śūdras. These divisions of the human society must be there. If there is no intelligent person, brāhmaṅa, simply śūdras, you cannot be happy. That is not possible. Just like to keep your body, there must be head, there must be arms, there must be belly and there must be leg. Simply if you have got legs, that is dead body. Even simply you have got head, that is also dead body. Four things must be there. How you can violate this? "No, no, we don't require head" or "don't require leg." No, no. Kṛṣṅa says, "No." Cātur-varṅyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭam [Bg 4.13].

"This is My regulative principle. I give you." Just maintain a first-class, intelligent man. Don't disturb them. Give them all facilities. Let them cultivate Vedic knowledge and help you. That is required.

So in this way you will find solution all problems—social, political, economical, philosophical, religious—everything. So our Kṛṣṅa consciousness movement is for this purpose, that you study Bhagavad-gītā as it is, don't try to..., foolishly try to interpret in this way and that way and spoil your time. Then you get right direction for solution of your all problems and your life will be successful. That is our request.

Thank you very much. [end]