Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.26.40 Nitai: “Fire is appreciated by its light and by its capacity to cook, to digest, to destroy cold, to evaporate, and to give rise to hunger, thirst, eating and drinking.” Prabhupada: dyotanam pacanam panam adanam hima-mardanam tejaso vrttayas tv etah sosanam ksut trd eva ca So people may be astonished, that “They are reading Srimad-Bhagavatam. Why they are discussing the action and reaction of fire?” Generally, they think Bhagavata reading means rasa-pancadhyaya, bas, immediately jump over to the rasa-lila of Krsna. Actually to know God means to know everything in detail. Kasmin tu bhagavo vijnate sarvam idam vijnatam bhavati. That is the Vedic injunction. If we understand Krsna, then we must understand also how Krsna’s different energies are working. That is called tattvatah. Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita, manusyanam sahasresu kascid yatati siddhaye [Bg. 7.3]. The other day I was reading Gandhi’s discourses on Bhagavad-gita. He said that “I can imagine any way Krsna. I do not accept the historical Krsna.” In this way, so many things. He was a big man. He can say like that. But we cannot imagine or manufacture Krsna. That is not possible. That is not Krsna. God is never imagined or speculated or manufactured by my limited knowledge and limited senses. That is not Krsna. Of course, Krsna is everything. But if we want to know tattvatah Krsna, in truth, how Krsna has created the panca-bhuta and how each bhuta or each material element is working, that is being discussed. This is perfect knowledge, tattvatah. So because they do not want to know Krsna in tattvatah, factually, therefore they mistake Krsna. Especially they attack Krsna, that “He killed so many demons. He had rasa-lila with so many gopis. He married so many wives,” misunderstand Krsna. But if Krsna is all- powerful, almighty, then what is difficulty for Him to marry 16,108 wife? Krsna has many, many millions and millions of devotees. Some of them desiring to Krsna…, to serve Krsna as servant. Some of them are desiring Krsna, to serve Him as friend or as father, as mother, as lover, as wife. So there are many devotees, ananta devotees, only not one or two. So Krsna has to satisfy every one of them. That is not difficult for Him. Ye yatha mam prapadyante tams tathaiva bhajamy aham [Bg. 4.11]. There are so many millions and trillions of devotees. They are surrendering to Krsna and desiring to serve Him in his different propensity, and Krsna fulfills everyone’s desire. So to understand Krsna, krsna-upadesa, to know about Krsna, that is Krsna consciousness movement. Caitanya Mahaprabhu’s mission is like that. Yare dekha, tare kaha ‘krsna’-upadesa [Cc. Madhya 7.128]. If you study just like here, analytical study of fire… Dyotanam, illumination; pacanam, digesting; panam, increasing thirst. If you don’t feel thirsty, that means the agni, or the fire element within the stomach, is not working. Agni-mandya. Mandya, the word comes from manda. Manda means slow. So the Ayurvedic treatment, they say it, agni-mandya. So when there is agni-mandya, there is medicine how to ignite the fire again. There is fire within the stomach, within the abdomen. Everything is there. So according to Ayurveda treatment, this kapha, pitta, vayu. Vayu… About the air we have discussed something in the previous verses. Now agni and then kapha, mucus. Mucus, bile, and fire. So to know Krsna means know everything, because Krsna is everything. How Krsna is working in everything, even in different parts of our limbs, represented by demigods, they are all described. Even our eyelids moving under the direction of some demigod. And demigods, they are different parts and parcels, bodily limbs of whole Krsna. So do not mind, “Why Bhagavata is studying Krsna so analytically?” That is required. If we understand Krsna by analytical study, how His divine power is working throughout the whole universe, within the atom, within myself, within the movable, immovable, everywhere, antaryami… Eko ’py asau racayitum jagad-anda-kotim [Bs. 5.35]. Jagad-anda-koti. This universe, that is not one universe. We are in one of the universes. And Caitanya Mahaprabhu has described, “As there are many multimillions of mustard seed within a bag…” Just imagine. If you bring one bag of mustard seed, round, round. So that round, round seed, that each and every universe. So one devotee of Caitanya Mahaprabhu, Vasudeva Datta, he prayed to Caitanya Mahaprabhu, “Sir, You have come. You deliver all these fallen souls, conditioned souls within the universe. Your kindness can do that. And if You think they are so sinful they cannot be delivered, then I am prepared to take all their sins. I shall remain here alone to suffer. You kindly deliver them.” This is Vaisnava desire. Vaisnava is not selfish. He is… Vaisnava’s real qualification is para-duhkha-duhkhi: he is unhappy by seeing others unhappy.” Personally he has no unhappiness. Why he should be unhappy? He has got Krsna. But as he has become happy by getting Krsna, so he wants others also to become happy, and therefore he tries to spread Krsna consciousness. This is called para-duhkha-duhkhi. He knows that all these conditioned souls, they are, I mean to say, rotting in this material world and suffering. And the only remedy is Krsna consciousness. That’s a fact. Only remedy is. Bhavausadhac chrotra mano-’bhiramat. This was recommended by Srila Pariksit Maharaja, the king. He said that this Krsna consciousness is bhavausadhi. Bhavausadhi means bhava. Bhava means this repeated birth and death. Bhava means you be and again you not be, not be for few months. Our death means a sleeping for seven months. That is the description we get from the sastras. Just like you go on sleep every night, so death means to sleep for seven months, unconsciousness, very deep sleep, in the womb of the mother. Then, as soon as another body is grown up by the ingredients supplied by mother’s body or nature, then we get back again consciousness. Just like when we sleep deeply, there is no consciousness. There is consciousness—this is called susupti, unconscious. So again, as soon as the body is complete, then we get back our consciousness. Then we become in sleepy condition. Then again, when we come out of the mother’s abdomen, that is awakening state. There are three states of conditions: jagara, susupti, and svapna—dreaming condition, awakening condition, and unconscious or deep… Actually, we do not die. Na jayate na mriyate va kadacit. There is no question of death. It is simply sleeping or deep sleeping, like that. So if we keep Krsna consciousness very active always, that means try to understand Krsna from different angles of vision. Here also, as we are studying analytically the functions of agni, but what is this agni? This is also Krsna, Krsna’s energy. Bhumir apo ’nalo vayuh, Krsna says in the Bhagavad-gita. Anala. Anala means agni. Bhinna me prakrtir astadha. They are not different from Krsna. Just like sunshine: sunshine is not different from Krsna. Whenever there is sun, wherever there is sun, there is sunshine. Similarly, wherever there is Krsna, the Krsna’s energies are also there. Therefore Visnu. Visnu means all-pervading. So Krsna’s energies are spread everywhere, just like the illumination, dyotanam. It is called dyotanam, illumination. If the fire is there, there must be illumination. And you have seen in the morning—as soon as the sun, before the sun rising actually, before we can see the sun, immediately there is illumination, dyotanam. So the energy, sunshine, is the energy of the sun. it is always there. Sunshine is not differentiated from the sun. Similarly, Krsna’s energy is not differentiated from Krsna. Therefore fire is Krsna’s energy, air is Krsna’s energy, water is Krsna’s energy, land is Krsna’a energy, the sky is Krsna’s energy. This is Krsna’s all-pervasiveness or God’s all- pervasiveness. Parasya brahmanah saktis tathedam akhilam jagat: “Akhilam, the entire universe, is expansion of Krsna’s energy.” Therefore in the advanced stage of devotional life a devotee does not see fire. He sees Krsna. A devotee does not see air, but he sees Krsna. A devotee does not see sky, but he sees Krsna. Sarvatra haya nija ista-deva-sphurti. Ista-deva. Krsna is the worshipable Deity of the devotee. So immediately, he sees anything, because he knows it is Krsna’s energy… Just like we, generally, as soon as we see in the morning light, we can understand there is sun, immediately. There is no delay. “Now there is sun.” The sun may not be visible immediately, but because the darkness is gone and there is light, although glimpse light, now we understand this is morning, and now there is sun. Similarly, a advanced devotee, because he knows everything is Krsna’s energy… So this is energy study. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gita it is said, raso ’ham apsu kaunteya: “Apsu, in the water, the taste I am,” because every one of us becomes thirsty and we take water. And actually it is so; the taste of water is Krsna. Otherwise who can give taste unless Krsna is there? Now take. There are big, vast water in front of Bombay. Now change the taste. Then there is no need of acquiring water from here and there, bringing big, big pipes. No. You take and change the taste, salty taste, and making drinkable. No. That you cannot unless Krsna does it. Therefore the taste is Krsna. It is not difficult to understand. So if we study in this way, analytically, everything, Krsna’s energy… Sasi-suryayoh. Prabhasmi sasi-suryayoh. Krsna says, “I am the illumination of the sun and the moon.” So you can create by… Scientists, they say the sun is combination of so many chemicals. Now you create one sun and illuminate the whole universe. That you cannot do because that is Krsna. You cannot create Krsna. You cannot imagine Krsna. That is not possible. Foolish persons, they may say, “Krsna is my imagination.” No, He’s not imagination. He’s fact. Simply one has to know how Krsna is present in everything. That is described in the Bhagavad-gita. raso ’ham apsu kaunteya prabhasmi sasi-suryayoh pranavah sarva-vedesu sabdah khe paurusam nrsu So there is list of understanding Krsna. Don’t say that “We have not seen God. Can you show me God?” Why don’t you see? The God says, “I am here,” but why don’t you see? God says, “I am the taste of water.” So when you drink water, why don’t you see God in the taste? He is visible in every step. Every working of this nature, He is doing that. Simply we have to make our eyes to see. That is Krsna consciousness. Everything is there, present. Krsna, God, is present everywhere. Andantara-stha-paramanu-cayantara-stham. Krsna is present here. Krsna is within your heart. Isvarah sarva-bhutanam hrd-dese ’rjuna tisthati [Bg. 18.61]. But when you learn the art to see Him within your heart, that is called mystic yoga. Dhyanavasthita-tad-gatena manasa pasyanti yam yoginah [SB 12.13.1]. The yogic process is to see Krsna within the heart. That is real yoga. That is real yoga system. Try to see Krsna within the heart. Then you first-class yogi. That is the perfection of topmost yogic process. yoginam api sarvesam mad-gatenantar-atmana sraddhavan bhajate yo mam sa me yuktatamo matah [Bg. 6.47] If you can learn how to see Krsna within the heart always, twenty- four hours, then your life is successful. That is perfection of life. That is Krsna consciousness movement, how you can learn to see Krsna within your heart, within other’s heart, and everywhere. Sthavara-jangama dekhe na dekhe tara murti. This is wanted. So this is possible by increasing our love for Krsna. Simply we have to increase our love. Just like in practical life also, we begin to love somebody, one after another, gradually, not all of a sudden, similarly, we have to increase our love for Krsna. That love for Krsna is the devotional process. sravanam kirtanam visnoh smaranam pada-sevanam arcanam vandanam dasyam sakhyam atma-nivedanam [SB 7.5.23] Then surrender. That is the ultimate state of loving affairs, surrender. Why one should surrender to another person unless there is love? Just like wife surrenders to husband and husband protects the wife. This is general duty. So why one man is interested with one woman for giving her all protection, and why one man is surrendered to…, one woman is surrendered to one man? What is the basic principle? The basic principle is love. So similarly, our full surrender, full Krsna consciousness, can be achieved when we develop our love for Krsna little by little, little by little, and then come to the perfection. When we come to the perfection, then we cannot live without Krsna. Just like Caitanya Mahaprabhu taught us. In the last stage of His life He exhibited such manifestation of love that He was dying without Krsna. Sunyayitam jagat sarvam govinda-virahena me. Sunyayitam. Sunyayitam, everything is vacant. Sunyayitam jagat sarvam govinda-virahena me. “Without Govinda, I see everything vacant.” Sometimes we have got experience. If we lose a friend, a son, at that time, everything becomes vacant without my son, without my lover. That is practical. So Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was exhibiting that type of love for Krsna, that He was feeling that “Without Krsna, everything is void.” Sunyayitam jagat sarvam govinda-virahena me. This He taught personally, how to raise oneself to the topmost stage of love for Krsna. That is the ultimate aim and object of life. Preman… [break] …yam syama-sundaram acintya-guna-svarupam govindam adi-purusam tam aham bhajami. To see Krsna within the heart always, how… (end)
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Bombay, January 15, 1975