Different desires means infection from different types of association

In his final class, speaking on Srimad Bhagavatam, Srila Prabhupada gave an elaborate and careful analysis of the great responsibility that is afforded by the human form of life. Along with human life, he explained, came great intelligence and resourcefulness; but if that was not utilised in the proper cultivation of spiritual knowledge, then humans were no better than cats or dogs. If we instead chose to associate with other cat and dog-like human beings, then we would become infected.

"Originally, there were three kinds of infection: sattva guna or goodness, rajo guna, passion, and tamo guna, ignorance. These are just like the three primary colours: red, yellow and blue. Just like the expert artist can make a variety of colours from these three original colours, so similarly the three original qualities mix -- three times three is nine, nine times nine is eighty-one -- therefore there are 8,400,000 forms of life."

In his conclusion, Srila Prabhupada requested everyone to take advantage of the Krsna consciousness movement. "If you accept that ‘simply by chanting I shall realise God', you can do that. If you prefer to study, don't blindly accept. Come here, read our books, and try to understand with your full knowledge. Whichever you prefer, you should come here and fully utilise this Melbourne centre."

Before allowing questions, Madhudvisa announced some good news: Srila Prabhupada would be coming to Melbourne again in January for an extended stay. The devotees were ecstatic and cheered, "Jaya, haribol! Haribol!"

Question time was lively. An initiated devotee -- now living apart from the community -- wondered, considering that everyone was influenced by different desires, whether each individual should be allocated a different type of sadhana or daily practice in devotional life. Some devotees suspected that the man was making a veiled attempt to gain sanction for a less-than-standard observance of the rules and regulations. Srila Prabhupada's in-depth reply was clear. He explained that those different desires would have to change, not the daily routine.

"Different desires means infection from different types of association. Therefore we recommend that you associate with us. Then there will be one desire: how to understand God."

The room was hot. Two bare-chested brahmacaris, standing on either side of Srila Prabhupada, fanned him reverently with yak-tail whisks. Raghunatha , a middle-aged devotee householder was having difficulty in coming to grips with some of the Bhagavatam's descriptions. Instead of studying his spiritual master's books more carefully, he had made the mistake of studying books from the Theosophical Society, which had only further compounded his doubts and confusion. He raised his hand, and asked sheepishly, "Srila Prabhupada, when it is cited in the scripture that Lord Brahma rides on a swan, a hamsa, is this, er, are we to take this to mean that it is a real swan, or is it something symbolic?"

Prabhupada sat up taller on his vyasasana. "Not symbolic, it is fact. Why do you say symbolic?"

Raghunatha answered with some reticence. "It's, er, rather unusual."

Prabhupada's eyes opened wide. "Unusual? What experience have you got? You have no experience. Have you got any experience of other planetary systems? What is there? Then? Your experience is very teeny. So you should not calculate Brahma's life and other things from your teeny experience. Now, in the Bhagavad Gita it is said that the duration of life of Brahma, sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmano viduh ... Now, a Brahma's life is stated in the sastras. We have already explained that we accept the authoritative statement of sastra. Now, Brahma's life is stated there. Arhat means his one day is equal to our four yugas. Four yugas means 4,300,000 years. And multiply it by 1,000. Sahasra yuga paryantam. Sahasra means 1,000. And yuga means 4,300,000 years. Now, multiply it by 1,000. That period is Brahma's one day. Similarly, he has got one night, one month, one year. And such hundred years he will live.

"So, how you can calculate? How it is within your experience? You will think something mysterious. No, your experience is nothing. Therefore you have to take experience from the perfect person, Krsna. Then your knowledge is perfect. That I have already said. Don't try to understand everything with your teeny experience. Then you will be a failure."

A rather strange-minded regular congregational member with low self-esteem asked Srila Prabhupada whether one's small efforts to serve Krsna would ultimately be considered useless.

Prabhupada's reply to the man was a sensitive one. "That I have already explained. You are coming here, even though you are not initiated. That is also service. If you deposit one cent daily, one day it may become $100. So, when you get the $100, you can get the business." (Laughter.)

"So you come here daily, one cent, one cent. When it will be $100, you will be a devotee." Prabhupada's answer drew laughter and cheers from the audience.

Prabhupada explained further. "So this is not wasted. That is stated in the Srimad Bhagavatam, krta-punya punjah. Krta-punya. Krta means done. Sukadeva Goswami is describing when Krsna was playing with His cowherd boyfriends: ‘These cowherd boys who are playing with Krsna have not come to this platform in one day.' Life after life, having performed pious activities, now they have come to this position that they are allowed to play with the Supreme. Any pious activities done for the sake of Krsna is your permanent asset. It will never be lost. So go on increasing the asset. One day it will so help you that you will be able to play with Krsna. This is the Krsna consciousness movement."

A young man asked, "There are different, or many, spiritual movements in the world. How can I know which one is right?"

"It is very easy. Spiritual movement means to understand God. Any spiritual movement you adopt, if you understand God, then it is all right. If you think everyone is spiritual movement, all right, you take it. Then, if you come to understand, ‘Now I have understood God', then that is all right. Otherwise, bogus."

"But I have no experience, so ..."

"Here is the experience: Just like if you eat, you will feel satisfaction. And without eating, how you will feel satisfaction? So if you follow a spiritual movement, then you will understand God. That is the result. And if you think that you are following some spiritual movement but you do not know what is God that means that you are following some bogus thing. That is the test. It hasn't got to be certified. You can know. Just like if you eat, you will feel satisfaction. You haven't got to take a certificate from others. ‘Do you think I'm eating?' You can say. If you understand God fully, then that is a spiritual movement. If you do not understand, then you must know that you are following some bogus movement. This is the test."

A young devotee asked, "How do you convince a person that they are suffering, when they say that they are happy and not afraid to die?"

Prabhupada's reply was short and salty. "He is a madman!" As the whole room erupted in laughter, Prabhupada showed his teeth in a broad grin. "That's all. Who is caring for a madman's word?"

Newly-initiated Visvahetu raised his hand. "If we've been here, lifetime after lifetime performing impious activities, does it mean that we have to be here, lifetime after lifetime, performing pious activities to balance out our sinful reactions?"

Prabhupada opened his eyes wide and mildly admonished his young disciple. "One minute. That is Krsna consciousness movement. One minute. You are not reading Bhagavad Gita? What Krsna says? Sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami. ‘You surrender unto Me. Give up all your business. I will give you relief from all sinful reactions immediately.' So it requires one minute. ‘My dear Krsna, I had forgotten. Now I understand. I fully surrender unto You.' Then you become immediately free from all sinful reactions. Without any reservation, without any politics. If you fully surrender, Krsna is assuring aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami ma sucah."

Prabhupada paused briefly, his eyes wide open, his face animated and bright. "He reassures: ‘Don't worry whether I will be able to give you relief from all reaction. Ma sucah. Finished. Guaranteed. You do this.' So how much time it requires to surrender to Krsna? Immediately you can do that. Surrender means you surrender and work as Krsna says. That is surrender. What Krsna says to do? Four things: ‘You always think of Me, and you become My devotee. You worship Me and offer your respect, full obeisances unto Me.' You do these four things. That is full surrender. Mam evaisyasy asamsayah: ‘Then you come to Me without any difficulty.' Everything is there. Krsna has given everything, fully. If you accept it, then life is very simple. There is no difficulty."

Finally, another young brahmacari asked Srila Prabhupada a detailed question. "You're here, and all the devotees are your disciples, Srila Prabhupada, eternal disciples, eternal servitors. But what if we have to take birth in the material world in the next life? How will we be able to render direct service unto you?"

"Even if you remain in the material world," Prabhupada replied, "if you have not completed your spiritual life, still you will get good birth. Sucinam srimatam gehe yoga-bhrastah sanjayate. ‘One who is a failure in completing Krsna consciousness, then he is given next chance in a very aristocratic family or a very nice pure brahmana family, so that he can again cultivate Krsna consciousness next chance'."

The young brahmacari continued. "Will that mean taking initiation from another guru or will he remain your eternal servant?"

Madhudvisa clarified the question. "His question was, when we take initiation from you, we understand that we become your eternal servitors. But if we had to come back again to another birth ..."

"But if you remain eternally in the instruction," continued Srila Prabhupada, "and if you fall from the instruction, how you can remain eternal? You have to stay on the platform. Then eternally you are safe. If you fall down from the platform, then it is your fault. Just like we are all in the Vaikuntha planets. Now we want to enjoy this material world. We have fallen down. Just like Jaya and Vijaya. Now we are trying to go back again. Therefore we say, ‘Go back to home, back to Godhead.' There is a process. If you follow the process, then you go back. If you fall down, that is your fault. Therefore, this life is meant for tapasya that is Rsabhadeva's instruction, that our life should not be wasted like the dogs and hogs and pigs. It should be utilised for tapasya, for understanding our position. Srila Prabhupada said: Tapo putraka yena suddhyed sattvam. This is the aim of life. We have to purify our existence. At the present moment our existence is impure. Therefore we are subjected to birth, death, old age and disease. And as soon as we purify ourselves, then we are not subjected to these four material laws. Thank you very much, Hare Krsna."

With that, Srila Prabhupada brought the final session to a close.

From Biographies and Glorifications of Srila Prabhupada-‘The Great Transcendental Adventure-‘Such a Nice Temple’ -Melbourne, 1975–Kurma das