Bhikshu Gita 6 – See the mind’s aversion to concentration as a trick of illusion (Srimad Bhagavatam 11.23.47)
Hare Krishna. Thank all of you for coming here today evening and I will be speaking on the topic of the mind based on a section from the Srimad Bhagavatam which is called the Deeksha Gita. This is from the 11th canto where a mendicant Brahmin realizes and analyzes how his suffering is caused primarily by the mind.
And how many of you were there yesterday for the okay thank you. So this is of course going to be a separate class but it is in a series. So this is 11, 23, 47.
Mano vashe anye abhavam smadeva Manas chanaanya sevasham sameti Bhishmo hideva sahasa sahiyan Yunjad vashetam sahideva devaha So, mano vashe anye abhavam smadeva that all the senses have been conquered by the mind. manas chanaanyasya vashamsameti But the mind is not controlled by anything else. vishmohidevah sahasah sahiyan And it's extremely powerful.
Power is God-like. It's a very significant describer. I'm sorry.
There is a sound. There is a zone A and B. Zone B is almost zero. Can you increase the zone B? Zone A, B also.
Just say it. Is it better now? So one who conquers the mind will automatically conquer the senses. So essentially, this verse is talking about how we can make effective progress on the path to self-mastery.
And that requires controlling the mind. So many times, almost everyone recognizes that I have certain patterns of behavior which are unhealthy, which are counterproductive, by which I hurt myself. And then we try to change those behavioral patterns.
So for example, some people, if they become alcoholics, and then they realize, this alcohol is terrible, it makes me crazy, I want to give this up. Now there are some people, some medicines which sometimes people take. Because if they have taken that medicine, and after that if they take alcohol, then they get severe bodily dysfunction because they may vomit, they throw up.
And their idea is by taking this medicine, when my body becomes unreceptive to alcohol, then I will not take alcohol. Because alcohol causes suffering. But sometimes the suffering doesn't come immediately.
Initially we feel high. And afterwards that highness, feeling high we go crazy. And then afterwards we realize, why did I act like that? So, in order to avoid them from doing that, what they do is, they take this medicine, that's not exactly a medicine, it's a chemical basically, which is meant to cure something else, but when they take this medicine, after that somebody drinks alcohol, there is a severe reaction in the body.
And that way, they try to avoid taking alcohol. Because they know if I drink now, it's going to cause me suffering. But when the desire hits, it's so strong, that even if they have taken that medicine, still they will drink alcohol.
Even knowing that this is going to cause me suffering, and not just some remote suffering which is going to come to me in future. जानन्प्यात्मनोहितम् करोति भुयो विवशा जानोति अजि Even after knowing that this is ahitam, this is unbeneficial for me, still we end up doing it. So the senses, even if we create some obstacles externally, by which we say, okay, I am not indulging this.
But as long as the mind is there, the mind is going to create trouble. So certainly, sense control is required, but even more important is controlling the mind, focusing the mind. Suppose, there is a hunter who shoots an arrow.
And some hog is there who gets pierced in the mouth. The hog gets angry and starts chewing and biting the arrow itself. So the more he is biting the arrow, the more it is hurting itself.
And in the meanwhile, the hunter will shoot one more arrow and kill it. But the lion, the lion looks around, where did this arrow come from? Oh, this arrow has come from this hunter. Then the lion will charge towards the hunter and either finish off the hunter or drive the hunter away.
And then afterwards, this particular arrow that is in the mouth, that can be dealt with. So just trying to repress the senses doesn't work. Although some amount of controlling the senses is required, but just fighting at the level of the senses alone, that is like fighting with the arrow.
The fight is not with the arrow. The fight is with the archer who has sent the arrow. And understanding this is vital for making our inner life more effective, our inner battle more successful.
So the mind is the primary instigator of desire. There may be some external stimuli, but actually when the mind gets agitated, that's when we succumb. Whether it be to desire, whether it be to anger, whatever it is.
Now one of the ways the mind makes us vulnerable is through distraction. That means that in general, actually if we go back around the start of the 19th century, when lot of machines were being developed, at that time there was a famous social scientist who wrote an essay. He became quite celebrated at that time.
And he said now with so many machines being developed, then he said for future generations the biggest problem will be what to do with their time. Because the machines will do all the work and people will have nothing to do. I thought that people will be idle.
And he gave a whole idle. And he thought that what all can people do when they are idle. Now of course that has not happened.
Although there are so many machines which do our work, but there is so much other work to do. And interestingly, yes, a lot of people can have more leisure than what they had earlier. But paradoxically, it is when people have leisure, that is the time when they often have the most anxiety.
If you are busy in some work, okay, one thing, second thing, third thing, fourth thing. But when we come back home, I think now let me relax. At that time, the body is relaxing, but the mind is idle.
The mind starts thinking, what if this goes wrong? What if that goes wrong? You know, today I went to office and my boss looked at me in a strange way. Is my boss planning to fire me? Oh, oh, like that one small thought comes in and it grows. And quite often, that time which was meant for leisure and enjoyment, that is the time when the mind makes us the most miserable.
So the paradox is that when we are busy, we think, oh, I just want a break. There is so much work. We may get a break from the work, but we never get a break from the mind.
The mind is always at work and the mind makes us work. So the mind is always at work. Krishna Prabhupada writes in the Bhagavad Gita 3.42. 3.42 is Indriyani Paranya Hori Indriya Paramanah Manasastu Parabuddhe Yoguddhe Paratastu Saha So he says, the body, above the body is the senses.
Above the senses is the mind. Above the mind is the intelligence and above the intelligence is the soul. So he gives a hierarchy over here, Krishna.
And there Prabhupada says, sometimes the senses are inactive, but even then the mind is active. It's like when we are asleep. At that time we are physically lying on a bed, but our mind is going here, going there, and we see all sorts of things, experience so many things.
So the mind is always active. The mind is always at work. Now, whether it is doing our work or whether it is making us work, that is a difference.
That means, whether the mind is doing our work or the mind is making us work. What do I mean by this difference? See, the word mind has many meanings. In the Bhagavad Gita, the word mind is used in a specific sense.
So, in general language, you may use, if there is a low ceiling or a low entry, mind your roof, mind your head. So mind your head means be alert. Mind your head means be cautious.
So mind means be attentive and be cautious. Mind your head. Be attentive to look at where your head is going.
Or somebody may say, Einstein was one of the greatest minds of the 20th century. Here mind means intelligence or intelligent person. So the word mind can mean many things like that.
In the Bhagavad Gita, the mind refers to a particular thing. That is the interface between the body and the soul. Between the body and the soul.
How do the two interface? The mechanism that brings out the interface is called the mind. Now, in Western philosophy, there was the idea of the soul. But for the last 300-400 years, that idea has been more or less exiled from mainstream intellectual discourse.
And the main reason for that was in the Western schools of thought, there was no clear understanding of how spirit, which is non-material, can interact with and influence matter. Spirit and matter are two different things. So, for example, if I lift up this phone, and there is a physical object, a hand, and there is a physical object, a phone.
So this physical object is exerting a physical force. So normally in this world, things move when there is a physical force that is exerted. Every single thing, every single cause that we see, every single effect that we see, it has a material cause to it.
So, if the soul is spiritual, how can the spiritual soul influence the material body? That interface mechanism, they had no idea. And that's why they said, there is no need for anything as a soul. Everything that happens in the body can be explained by material phenomena itself, by material causes.
Now, Bhagavad Gita's understanding is that the mind is the subtle interface, which brings about the interaction between the body and the soul. So how does it work out? Yesterday I gave the example that the body is like the hardware, and the soul is like the user, and the mind is like the software. So now, if I have a brand new computer, be it the latest Mac computer or the latest Windows computer, but if there is no software on it, I cannot do anything with it.
I may press all the keys, but nothing will happen. The software is essential for interacting with the hardware. So like that, we need the mind.
Without the mind, the soul cannot interact with the body. The soul links with the body through the mind. And in that sense, to give a simpler example, that say a person has got a ranch, a big farm on which they have maybe cultivation of crops, they have some animals, animal husbandry is going on.
So now if they have a horse, they need the horse to move around in the farm. But if the horse is unruly, if the horse is undisciplined, the horse can throw them out. So similarly, but without the horse, they cannot cover all the territory.
So they need the horse, but they have to be very cautious in handling the horse. So our situation is like that. We need the mind for interacting with the body and interacting with the world.
But at the same time, the mind is like an unruly horse. So for example, right now, we are discussing the Bhagavad Gita message. So right now, I need my mind to be thinking, okay, I have spoken this point, now I have to speak this point.
So I need my mind to be attentive about what I am speaking. And you need your mind to be attentive to understand what is being spoken. So in this case, the mind is doing our work.
That means we want to do something and we use the mind to do our work. But sometimes, the mind stops doing our work and makes us do its work. What does this mean? Say, I go on a computer and I start the computer.
I want to go on some website and read something over there. But suddenly as I'm going towards that website, some other window pops up over there and some link comes over there. And I click on that link.
And then that link, I go and I start reading there and then I see another link, another link, another link. The thing I came for, that is gone completely. And sometimes, especially if people start watching movies or seeing some pictures, can spend hours and hours.
So surfing on the internet becomes suffering on the internet. People get addicted to the net and what has happened is they came to do some work on the computer. But instead of using the computer to do their work, because the software popped up something and they just took the lure.
And went off, they ended up doing something else only. So it was their time, their energy, they have to pay the electricity bill, they have to pay the data for the internet, all that. But they are doing something which they never intended to do.
At least they didn't plan to do originally. So like that, when we are trying to do something, the mind takes us off. Sometimes in an entirely different direction.
And when it takes us off in a different direction, we become as the word is used, absent-minded. Now actually speaking, the mind is never absent. So when we say absent-minded, that means the mind is absent from where we are and where we want the mind to be.
So how it works is, say I'm sitting in a class and say I'm hearing a teacher speaking something. But if I'm absent-minded, the mind becomes absent. The mind goes somewhere else.
And then wherever it is, the mind is showing us a movie. You can do this, you can do that, this will go on. So sometimes the movie is a pleasant movie, sometimes the movie is a horror movie.
Maybe this will happen, maybe that will happen. What if this happens? What if that happens? And either way, what is happening? We are not where we want to be. So then, this way, the mind starts distracting us.
Then we end up doing the mind's work. The mind is not doing our work. Rather, the mind is creating something for us.
And this will happen, that will happen, that will happen, and what will happen? This way we become tired, we become disempowered, we become discouraged completely. And thus, we end up hurting ourselves. How? Because the mind, when it gets distracted, I'm trying to do one thing, but the mind takes me somewhere else.
And firstly, the work which I wanted to do, it's not done well. And secondly, whatever the mind is thinking of, I cannot do anything about it right now. So in that sense, maybe this will happen.
If there is some problem, and the problem has to be dealt with, if there is some anxiety, I have to do something about the anxiety. But while I'm at one place, I can't do anything about that place. So, I'll do neither anything here, nor anything there.
And because of that, we feel exasperated. Sometimes you may see that actually, we wake up in the morning and our mind is hyperactive. What if this goes wrong? What if that goes wrong? What if that goes wrong? And then just two, three hours, we've just done a little work in the day and we feel exhausted.
I just don't want to do anything. What has happened? We have become mentally exhausted. Become mentally exhausted.
Why? Because the mind is saying, this, that, this, that, this, that. And just we get lost. So, the mind dissipates our energy.
And that's why what we need to see is that am I focusing the mind in whatever I'm doing? Now, in general, distraction is a big problem. There are weapons of mass destruction. We have nuclear weapons, chemical weapons, which destroy the body.
But, there are weapons of mass distraction. And they destroy the mind. Actually, they don't destroy in the sense of annihilating, but the weapons of mass distraction, the weapons of mass distraction hurt the mind in a way similar in scale to way the weapons of mass destruction hurt the body.
And when these weapons of mass distraction, they bombard us because they don't physically destroy us, we don't realize that they're damaging us. And nowadays, with a lot of technology available, a lot more can be done than what people were able to do in the past. Right now, I'm here and I can communicate with somebody in India, somebody in America.
We can do a lot of work using technology. But again, the test is is the technology doing our work or are we doing the technology's work? I'm sitting here right now and okay, you know, maybe there's a cricket match going on somewhere. I want to know the score.
And then I go there, one link, second link, third link, fourth link and I get lost. So, the distractedness of the mind disempowers us. And when we get disempowered, whatever we are doing, we are not able to do effectively.
Now, the process of bhakti is meant to help us move from distraction to concentration. Actually, bhakti is ultimately meant for absorption. So, absorption means there is really no effort required.
We just lost it. Because we like it, we find it interesting, we find it fascinating. We get absorbed in it.
So, once I was at an airport and some India-Pakistan match was going on. And then I had to go, so there's, in many airports, there is, there is TV there, which people are watching. So, this TV was more on the ground level.
And I had to go on, I usually go on a wheelchair. So, the wheelchair assistant, the only way was between the audience who was watching the TV match and the TV in between. And I had a flight to catch, and this wheelchair assistant, he just tried to take me along, and, no, no, you can't go, wait, wait.
And it's a wheelchair, it takes a little time to go. So, what was happening, they were waiting, so it was, I had to go for the flight, the announcers were coming, but they said, you cannot go unless this over gets over. Only after that, then there is some pause, we can miss, we can miss some action.
So, I was thinking at that time, you know, this is just like, in a materially distorted sense, the Gopis are saying, I don't want to close my eyes even for one moment. So, triti-yuga-yate tvam apashyatam the Gopis say that, just when we don't see your, we don't see your Krishna for one moment, Kavi Karnapur in his Anananda Vanchampu says that we, the Gopis are saying, we feel as if the blinking of the eyelids for one moment is like the destruction of the whole universe. It's as devastating for us to not be able to see the form of Krishna for even one moment.
So, here, there is, for the Gopis, there is absorption in Krishna and they can't tolerate even one moment of any distraction. So, similarly, somebody attached to cricket, they are absorbed in cricket. Recently this, not recently, 3-4 months ago, this new video game called Pokemon Go came out.
Some of you heard about it? So, what happened is, this Pokemon Go, people started playing and on the streets, they are going to Samadhi. There is a car going by, there is a person hooking, shouting, but they are trying to say, where is the Pokemon? I want to catch it. Maybe the Pokemon is there on this city wall, on this building wall or maybe behind this room.
It's like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu searching, where is Krishna? Where is Krishna? So, they are searching, where is the Pokemon? So, when there is interest, when there is attraction, there is absorption. Now, so, there is distraction and there is absorption. And in between, to move from distraction to absorption, what we need is concentration.
So, absorption is effortless. In fact, when somebody is absorbed, then effort is required to get them out of the absorption. If somebody is, the gopis, actually pull them out.
They just don't want to leave. Somebody is watching cricket, they just want to keep watching the cricket. So, that means, absorption means, there is no effort required to go in practically, but there is effort required to pull out.
In concentration, effort is required to go in. So, now, from the stage of distraction to the stage of absorption, the journey is effortful. It is not effortless.
We have to make consistent effort and that effort is the effort of concentration. In 5.21, the Gita Krishna says, Outer stimuli, outer pleasures one is detached from. One doesn't get involved in them.
It's a person delights in inner happiness. it's a person is engaged in yoga, connected with Brahma, focusing on the Brahma. By this, what will happen? It's a person will attain means imperishable, inexhaustible, unlimited happiness, it's a person will attain.
Krishna says, this will happen by concentration. So, to move from matter to spirit, from the external to the internal and that requires concentration. So, now, concentration is, it requires effort, but actually we need to see it not as an exertion, but as an exercise.
Both the exertion and exercise are efforts. For example, if we say, what is the primary difference between an exercise and an exertion? Say, sometimes if we have to come from, say, coming from airport back to our home or coming out and we don't have any porter over there, so we are lugging along the luggage. We're carrying a bag.
We may feel exhausted. But the same people who don't want to carry a big weight and they feel it's exertion, those same people may go to a gym and do a workout where they pay to lift weights. So, here they will pay somebody else so that you lift my weight.
But here they pay someone else so that you give me weights to lift. What is the difference? The difference is in the context. Here, the attitude is different.
This is avoidable. I don't want to do this. Let somebody else do it.
But when they're going to a gym, there they're thinking that, hey, if I lift this weight, my body will become more shapely, will become more healthy. So, I want to do this. So, in a sense, there is energy expenditure in both.
But, it's a difference of attitude. When it is that energy expenditure is in a constructive framework, in a framework that they feel is constructive, then they're eager to do it. Similarly, when we are trying to practice bhakti, it requires concentration.
Studying the philosophy, studying shastra requires concentration. Doing japa requires concentration. Now, whether we will see this effort required for concentration as an exertion or as an exercise, that will depend on our attitude.
If we have studied the philosophy, not just studied in a generic sense of knowing it, but in an immediate sense, I know and it's at the foreground of my mind, why is this important? If I'm sitting down to chant, it's not just, oh, everyday I have to chant some rounds. It is in the foreground of my awareness, why is this important for me? So, if my intelligence is strong, then when I approach the chanting, I'll approach it with a positive framework that, okay, this is going to purify me. This is going to take me closer to Krishna.
This is actually the way to discipline my mind. And then we will invest the effort. If we don't invest the effort in chanting, then sometimes after chanting, we feel exhausted.
Exhausted. During chanting also, sometimes what happens is chanting and you take out beads from the bead bag. Somebody changes, you know, instead of 108, somebody has put 1008 beads.
What happened? So, why? If I'm not convinced about the effort I have to put in this, then it becomes the same thing which could be an exercise, becomes an exertion. And if something is an exertion, just like if I'm carrying a, lugging a suitcase along in an airport, I'm just, when will this end? That's all that I'm thinking about. But if, say, I'm going to a gym and I'm lifting up a weight, I think, okay, you know, I've done 50, I want to do 50 more, or whatever is my target.
I look forward to it because I know everything is contributing to making my body better. So, that's why in the practice of bhakti, having our intelligence alert is very important. It is our intelligence which will determine our attitude.
Normally we say the attitude is the product of the mind. And that is true. But the mind often has certain default attitudes which are unhealthy.
And they need to be corrected with the intelligence. So, with the intelligence, the mind is chanting, it's boring, I don't want to do this. Or, oh, they're studying shastra.
I want something light. This philosophy is all very heavy. I want something light.
So, by default, the mind just passes some negative comment about anything spiritual that I'm doing. And even before I start, because that negative comment has been passed, I just become disheartened. I become half-hearted.
And when we are half-hearted, we don't connect with Krishna. We don't connect with Krishna because if actually we connect with Krishna, then there is a peace that comes in. There's some joy that we start experiencing.
But without that connection, there is no satisfaction. And when there is no connection, and there is no satisfaction because of the lack of connection, then there is frustration. Then there is exhaustion.
So, we start with the mind's wrong attitude. And that is because there is no connection. No connection because there is no satisfaction.
No satisfaction because there is frustration. So, it all has to begin with changing the attitude. And we can't change the mind's attitude immediately.
That will take time. But we can use our intelligence to subordinate the mind. So, if we study the philosophy regularly, then we are intellectually convinced this is important for me.
And then although the mind will have some default attitude, we can change it. I'll just put this thought aside. And we can focus.
Now this, the mind's default setting or the mind's faulty default setting, that affects us in all walks of life. It is not just when you are practicing spiritual life that the mind says, this is so demanding. I can't do this.
It requires too much energy. Same mind which de-energizes us in our devotional life. When we start doing our material life, that same mind de-energizes us.
All this is temporary only. Why are you working so hard? It is all material. See, when we are doing devotional activities, the mind becomes a non-devotee.
When we are doing material activities, the mind becomes a devotee. Laughter Laughter And the mind starts saying, this is all mundane. I used to do a lot of college preaching at that time.
So what would happen is, many of these students, just when their PLs would come, they would fall in love with the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. All the studies, they are just mundane. I love Shastra.
I want to study Shastra. But throughout the semester, they will not study Shastra. Just before the exams.
It is not important. It is mundane. Just leave it.
Study Shastra. Now, actually, that is not love for Shastra. There can be, but quite often, this is simply the mind's love for laziness masquerading as love for Shastra.
The mind doesn't want to apply itself in anything. So, when we are trying to practice spirituality, it is very difficult and it doesn't allow us to apply ourselves. When we are doing material work, the mind says, this is all material.
Ultimately, everything is temporary. Why bother? But the same mind, which says, this is temporary, afterwards a problem comes, it makes a big event. Hey, a big problem has come.
A big problem has come. At that time, you tell the mind it is temporary? Hey, but now it is there. Do something about it.
Not temporary. So, important thing is that as devotees, we needn't very rigidly separate the material and the spiritual. Yes, there has to be, when we separate the material and spiritual, in terms of analysis, so that we have good amount of time for our spiritual activities.
So, we need to, in terms of say, allotting the day to schedule, to have some good amount of time for our spiritual activities. Say, I am studying Shastra, chanting, I am doing deity worship, whatever it is. But once we have done the basic level of analysis, it is not necessary to constantly be thinking, is this material, is this spiritual? Because ultimately, what is material, what is spiritual? Ultimately, the material and spiritual is determined by our attitude.
If my attitude is an attitude of service, if I am taking care of my family members, and I am thinking, these are not just my family members, Krishna has placed me in this situation, I have to take care of them. I am serving Krishna by serving my family members. If I have a job and I am doing my job, I am thinking, by Krishna's arrangement that I am in this job.
And then I am doing this job in a mood of worship to Krishna. So, karmanatma birja, by your work, worship Him. So, then if I have that attitude, then it's not material, it's spiritual.
So, when we start too much analyzing, is this material, is this spiritual? That can become a trick of the mind to distract us, to de-energize us. Just now, before I came here, we were talking upstairs, when Swamiji was telling me that Mahavishnu Maharaj would say that we should be workers, not shirkers. Not shirkers.
We shirk the work in the name of spirituality. I don't do this work. Why? Because I am so spiritual.
All this is mundane. But the problem is that, yes, there are some spiritual activities, there are some material activities. And if we had the facility, naturally, if we are devotees, we will want to do more spiritual activities.
But the point is that if we let ourselves be controlled by the mind, if I had to do my work, and at that time, because of the mind, I said, I won't do this, because it is all mundane. Then, basically, I am letting the mind control me. And when the mind controls me in my material life, or when I am doing material activities, that same mind will also control me when I am doing my spiritual activities.
So, it's not that while doing material activities, by trying to be spiritual, I am actually becoming spiritual. No. Because I am basically coming under the control of my mind.
And this distraction is something which we need to avoid. And that means whatever I am doing, just let me do this wholeheartedly. Whatever it is I am doing.
And by doing that activity wholeheartedly, actually, we make a connection. Connection with that particular activity itself. Connection with Krishna ultimately through that activity if we are having that level of Krishna consciousness.
And then, that connection actually leads to some contribution. If I am studying, unless there is a connection with the subject, what am I doing? I am just wasting my time. If I am doing some work, unless I connect with it, I don't become absorbed.
I don't contribute anything. And ultimately, all of us have a certain amount of work which we need to do. So, if I don't concentrate in the time when I have to do that work, then afterwards I have to put more time and do that work anyway.
So, it's better that we recognize it's a tricky mind which is distracting. And for dealing with this tricky mind, it is very important that we be intellectually alert. That our intelligence has to be sharp.
The intelligence alone cannot control the mind. But the intelligence can remind us of what will control the mind. Intelligence will do two things, actually.
Intelligence will, first of all, the intelligence will, first of all, remind us of the need to control the mind. And secondly, the intelligence will guide us towards that which will help us to control the mind. If our intelligence is not alert, then, rather than we controlling the mind, we will be controlled by the mind and we will not even realize what is wrong.
So, if we have our intelligence alert, studying Shastra regularly, hearing the association of devotees regularly, and we start to think, this is, my mind is creating trouble for me, this is really messy. Actually, I am supposed to be doing this, why am I thinking of something else? If there is something else to be done, I will do it whenever the time comes. But right now, let me focus on this.
So, we can actually catch our mind before the mind catches us. Catch your mind before the mind catches you. That means, when the mind starts, I will conclude with this one example, about catching the mind.
Then you can have question answers. catch your mind means, say, most of us have heard about the chariot body analogy. The chariot is like the body, the horses are like the senses.
Yeah. The chariot here is the? Chariot is the intelligence. What is the mind? The reins.
Which connect the chariot to the horses. And of course, the chariot, the passenger or the warrior is the soul. See, the chariot is going on a particular road.
And then the horse sees off the road some nice juicy looking fruit or vegetable. And the horse starts looking at that direction. And the horse looks in that direction, horse starts running in that direction.
Now, as soon as the chariot here is alert, the charioter sees the horse has gone in that direction, immediately pull the reins. As soon as the charioter pulls the reins, the horse comes back in this direction and it can't look anymore in that direction. It will keep moving back on its track.
So, if the charioter is alert, then charioter pulls back the horse quickly as soon as it gets misdirected. But, if the charioter is not alert, the horse not only sees, the horse starts running in that direction. And as the horse starts running, the more it runs, the more momentum it gets.
And once the horse gets momentum, then pulling the horse back on track will require much greater work. So, catch the mind before the mind catches you. That means that catch the horse, catch the horse before the horse starts running so fast, the horse carries it.
So, catch the mind before the mind catches you. If we are alert, the mind starts going off in a particular direction, let me pull it back. Let me pull it back.
And when we are alert like this, we find that actually we will save so much of our time, so much of our mental energy from getting dissipated. Although it requires a little effort to be alert, but this alertness saves a lot of energy. Saves a lot of energy.
Suppose somebody is pouring water into a water tank from above. But there is a leak below. Now, but somehow, sometimes there are some leaks which are very gross and very clear.
From here water is coming out. But sometimes water tank may have just, water is not leaking out, it is just seeping out. So, from where it is coming out I am not able to see.
But somewhere it is coming out from. So, if I say, you know, I just can't find out where this water is seeping out from. So, I will not bother about it.
I just keep filling water in it. I keep filling water from above, but actually much of the water will be seeping out. On the other hand, if I just put some amount of energy in maybe coating the bottom of the tank properly so that the water doesn't seep out.
The effort required in that may not seem to be doing anything tangible in the sense that actually I could have been filling the water in the tank, right? What am I doing? I am just applying some glue or something on the water tank's bottom. But not doing that will mean that we may put in 10 mugs and we will have only 5 mugs of water. Or we put 100 litres of water and we may have only 50 litres of water left.
But putting in some effort to fix the leaking tank and afterwards whatever water we put in, that will be there available for us. Similarly, when we practice bhakti, sometimes in our busy life, we will have so many things to do and bhakti is also one more thing to do. So, it may seem like a burden for us.
Yes, it can be a burden, but actually it's a burden of a good kind. It's like an exercise, not an exertion. So, if we have the proper intellectual understanding, then we will see that the bhakti activity, that also requires time.
But this is the time which disciplines our mind. This is the time which purifies our mind. And ultimately, of course, this will connect us with Krishna, help us to become liberated from material existence.
But even in this world, this connection with Krishna which I have, that will help me to become more effective, more focused, more productive. This is like fixing the water tank at the bottom. And to the extent we do this, to that extent, In 6.27, Krishna states that when we keep practicing bhakti, अत्तेन्तं सुत्यमश्णते So, he says that युञ्जनेवं सिधात्मानि steadily keep practicing the process of yoga, by which कशान्तमनसं हियेनं, the mind will become peaceful.
उपैतिशान्त रजसं The agitating force that is there in the mind, that will go away. सुखेन ब्रह्मसं सपर्शं, we come in contact with Brahman. Ultimate Brahman.
परब्रह्मः is Krishna. We come in contact with Krishna. And when we come in contact with Krishna, what happens? अत्तेन्तं सुखमश्णते That is the experience of the ultimate happiness that comes by the contact with Krishna.
So, I'll summarize. I started by speaking about how the controlling the senses without controlling the mind is futile. So, I talked about how people try, in order to avoid taking alcohol, they take a chemical before that which will give severe reaction after they take alcohol.
But still, the desire is so forceful that they keep drinking it. They're trying to deal with the attachment purely at a sensory level. It doesn't work.
It's like somebody has shot an arrow and I start biting the arrow thinking I'm hurting the shooter of the arrow. So, just trying to curb things at the sensory level is like fighting with the arrow instead of fighting with the archer. And then we talked about what does fighting at the level of the mind or controlling the mind what does it mean? I talked about how there is the mind, what is itself the mind? The mind is essentially interface mechanism between the body and the soul.
So, we need the mind for functioning just as we need the software for working on a computer's hardware or say a rancher will need a horse to go over the big ranch that they may have. But the mind should do our work, not make us do its work. So, just like if a horse is out of control, the horse may go here and there and then the master's energy gets wasted in just trying to control the horse, get it back on track or just ranting here and there.
Or if I'm surfing on some site and some other sites pop up and I go over there and I waste my time on something other than what I wanted to do. Instead of internet surfing, internet suffering that happens. So, what determines whether the mind is doing my work or I am doing the mind's work? I talked about how the idle time that we have, the leisure time that's the time when the mind gets at work and it fills us with negativity, it fills us with worry and sometimes without doing anything we feel exhausted because the mind is constantly at work.
And how to make the mind work for us? We discussed that we have to move from distraction to absorption through concentration. And we live in an age of mass distraction. Just as weapons of mass distraction hurt the body, the whole media that is there, it's a weapon of mass distraction which debilitates us mentally.
We have to protect ourselves. We have to make sure that whatever technology I am using, I am using it to do my work, not doing its work. And absorption is effortless.
It comes when I have interest or I have attraction for something. When I love something, so let's say people watching the cricket match or people searching for Pokemon Go. Pokemon.
So, it's like, they love him for that. It's just like Chaitanya Mahaprabhu searching for Krishna or the Gopis can't tolerate even one moment of not seeing Krishna. So, the absorption will not come automatically.
We have to go through the phase of concentration which requires effort. This effort, we may see it negatively as exertion or we can see it positively as exercise. Like a person grumbling while dragging some luggage on an airport or that same person cheerfully lifting weights in a gym.
So, it's a matter of attitude. So, when we have to concentrate whether in our devotional activities or in our worldly activities, whatever they may be, if we don't concentrate, we waste our time, we feel exhausted, we feel exasperated and eventually we have to do that thing again. So, if we have the positive attitude, we'll see it not as an exertion but as an exercise.
And that's why intelligence is very important. Our mind will have certain default attitudes and often those attitudes will see everything negative. So, we have to use our intelligence to correct the wrong default attitudes and have the right attitude towards things.
Let's say the mind becomes a, mind acts like a non-devotee when we are doing devotional activities. You have to do this, you have to do that. Why do you waste so much time? And then it becomes a devotee when we are doing non-devotional activities.
Hey, all this is temporary. Why work so hard on this? But, actually, whatever we are doing, even if I am thinking that I am being spiritual, the essence of spiritual and material is not just the form of what I am doing. The essence of spiritual and material is the intent with which I am doing things, not just the form.
So, if I am doing with the intent of service, then even my material life can be spiritualized. And even the material life if I am doing and if I let myself get distracted spiritually or in the name of spirituality at that time, then I am not becoming spiritual, rather I am actually coming more under the control of the mind and that will make my spiritual life also difficult when the mind gets more power and control. So, better whatever we do, just focus on doing it.
Focus and wholeheartedly we do it seeing that this is an opportunity to connect with Krishna directly or indirectly in a mood of service. And, in conclusion, I talked about how the alertness can help us to, it can save us a lot of time and energy. Catch the mind before the mind catches you.
That means, just like a horse, if it is getting distracted initially, it is easy to pull it and get it under control. But once the horse starts running in the wrong direction, then it becomes very difficult. So, if you are alert, then we can save a lot of our time and energy.
Being alert requires energy also, but that is like expenditure of energy which saves a lot of energy afterwards. Like if there is a leaking water tank, all the energy that I spend in filling the water tank, that is not of much use because it will be leaking out from below. I put some energy to fix the leaking water tank, then whatever water I am putting in, it will be available for us.
So, the activities of bhakti, which we do, we should see that just as one more burden, one more thing that I have to get done. But rather, we should see this as an activity which will empower me to focus my mind, to purify my mind and it will help me to do everything better. Because everything is ultimately a service for Krishna and I can do it all better if I am fixed in the mood of service through my devotional activities.
Thank you very much. Are there any questions? Yeah. Yeah, I remember the question.
I'll ask, I'll take it. So, before we go to that question, are there any questions about today's class? Okay. Yeah.
Yeah. Yeah. So, we are alert, say, when we are in a program or in the association of devotees, but when we go out, that alertness goes away.
Yes. It is. That's true.
Sangat Sanjayate Kama. The Bhagavad Gita says that, in our, the word Sanga in that context means attachment. Actually, Prabhupada in one lecture, he translates Sanga there as association.
Sangat Sanjayate Kama. That means in association, our desire is developed. So, it's natural that whichever environment we go in, it will have some influence on us.
So, what we need to do is that we have to intersperse our worldly engagements with periodic spiritual renewals. Say, like we have, maybe we have a program once a week, or maybe after we come back home, we have some time where we spend, maybe in the altar, or reading some Shastra, doing some Kirtans. So, these are phases when we renew ourselves.
When a plane is traveling, say, from here I go back to Mumbai. So, now, when the plane is going from Abu Dhabi to Mumbai, 90% of the time, the plane is off-track. Because of the clouds, and because of the air pressure, and the wind is blowing.
And how does it ever get on the destination? Because the pilot keeps reorienting. The autopilot, when it keeps reorienting, the plane is meant to go this way, it goes on this way, again come back. Goes on this way, again come back.
So, that reorientation is what is required. Now, if the pilot expects that my plane will always go straight, it will never happen. So, like that, we can't expect that, once I decide I want to be spiritual, I am going to be spiritual.
So, yes, we will get distracted. That is the nature of the mind, that is the nature of the world. And Krishna also doesn't say that you should never get distracted.
यतो यतो निश्चरति मनस्चिन्चलमस्थिरम् तस्ततो नियम्येक दात्मन्येवशंनेय Wherever, whenever the mind wanders, bring it back under the control of the self. That means Krishna is acknowledging the mind will wander. Get it back.
So, of course, what will happen as we keep practicing bhakti is, the distraction will become less. But, if we have periodic renewals, then, at least hey, you know, what happened? Completely forgot what I was supposed to do. Just got lost.
So, we create these periodic renewals for ourselves. Say, morning we have some sadhana, evening we come back and do some devotional activities. In between, we might just get disoriented.
But, at least at the end of the day, we come back. And as we keep doing this reorienting ourselves, over a period of time, this reorientation will become a habit. See, the mind's habit of distraction will not go away very easily.
But, we can cultivate a habit of reorientation. To expect that the mind's habit of distraction will go away is to have an unrealistic expectation. That will take a long time.
But, what is possible for us? To create a habit of reorientation. And, the more we do that, the easier it will be to come back on track. And, sometimes, we can also find out what is the most effective way I can reorient myself.
So, I may find that, some of us may find that we like kirtans a lot. Let's hear some kirtans. Or, some of us may like to recite shlokas.
Some of us may regularly do shastras. Some of us may like to just take darshan of the deities. Whatever it is.
Find out what is the most easy reorienter, most effective reorienter for ourselves. And, try to connect with that as periodically as possible. As regularly as possible.
And, that will bring us back on track. Does that answer your question? Thank you. Yes.
Somebody had a question? Yeah. So, does the mind try to control us? Is it because of the induce of the modes? Or, the mind keep on inducing us because we have attachment on modes? How to understand that? Ok. So, does the mind tempt us and control us because of the modes? Or, is it that because we are attached to the modes, that's why the mind controls us? Yeah.
So, sometimes, the questions can become like splitting the hair. Laughter If there is a hair, I just have to throw it in the dustbin. I try to split the hair.
It can become too complicated. I am not saying this question is like that. Some questions can become like that.
Laughter So, it's a valid question. The, let's take a simple example to understand this first. Let's say, as I was talking about internet surfing and internet suffering.
Now, it can happen in two ways. One is that I am doing some work but I think maybe I can see something. I can watch something.
And then, I myself go on the computer and I start surfing here and there. The other is, in this case what happened, the desire came from me. And then, the computer became a device for me to go and computer or phone or whatever it was, that became a device for me to go.
So, the device becomes a gateway to the vice. The vice, the wrong desire is there within me. And the device becomes a gateway for acting on that vice.
So, in this case, it's come from me. And the second case, it can also happen that, say, I am doing something constructive on the computer but suddenly, I search, some other link comes up somewhere. Maybe I can look at that.
And that one link, second link, third link, and then we get lost. So, in both cases, we have made a choice. Without our choice, we won't go there.
But the initiative or the initial proposition, in one case, it came from within. In another case, it came from without, from the computer. So, same way, in some cases, with respect to the way we may get entangled, sometimes, the modes may create some phases in the mind.
Some people, they say they are poor risers. Poor risers, when they wake up, they're always in an irritable mood. They're always sullen, shouting, and things like that.
They're disagreeable when they wake up. That's just the way they are. After they wake up, they do some few things, then their mood starts improving.
Some people are like that. We just understand this is the nature of this person. I just have to manage it.
So, like that, sometimes, beyond our control, some people just, sometimes, our mind just goes in a particular mood. We may not have done anything, but just feel, you know, we feel depressed. Everything seems gloomy, everything seems dark.
Wherever we see, we see problems everywhere. So, sometimes, the mind is in a mood like that. So, that we could say is the influence of the moods.
So, when without our doing anything, suddenly we find a particular frame of mind over there, just coming in, that we can say the moods have acted and they have created that mood. Now, Krishna says in 14.22 that So, Krishna says that is the three shorthand words Krishna uses for In 14.11, he refers to that and and is So, basically, he is saying sometimes, the influence sometimes, we just feel clear, thoughtful, philosophical. We feel, you know, hyperactive.
I have to do something in my life. Why do you need to do all this? Just calm down. Don't need to do anything at all.
Externally, Satvaguna and Tamoguna can look alike. Thank you. I was once going for a program.
So, there was one person who would come way, way before time. And I thought, very sincere person. But, you know, during the class, he would be completely blank.
So, I used to wonder, you know, if he is not at all interested in the class, how would he come on time? So, I only come time, before time he would come. So, you always come on time. He said, yes.
This wall is so comfortable. I want to make sure that nobody comes and sits on the wall. So, I come before.
So, the person is sitting in a very peaceful way. But, in Jatvaguna, I am physically peaceful and I am mentally focused. In Tamoguna, I am physically peaceful, but I am mentally completely dull, dead.
You know, just thinking of nothing or just wandering all over, just distracted, not focused or productive. So, these are three different modes and sometimes we have different influences that come upon us. So, at that time what we do is, okay, this is just a mood that has come.
It will come, it will go. Tolerate it. Don't act on it.
So, sometimes, just the desire, that means, sometimes against our doing anything, the desire is coming. At that time, know it's a mood and just tolerate it. In some other times, we ourselves get the desire, you know, I want to do this.
But at that time also, if you understand, just because a desire has come inside me, that does not necessarily mean it is my desire. It has come, it will be there for some time, it will go away. So, it can work out either way.
It can work out because of the mode's influence certain desires pop up and then we act on them or otherwise sometimes some desires come up and then we do something. So, for example, say if somebody gets a sensual desire, then they may go and see something, watch something and they try to create that desire more in them so that they feel I can have some sensual titillation and I can enjoy. So, it can work both ways.
The important thing is that when either way it comes, we are alert. So, I write on the Gita every day. It's on the Gita daily.
So, I wrote one article. Temptations will come, we don't have to welcome. Temptations will come, we cannot avoid them.
But then, we don't have to welcome them. They'll come, they'll stay for some time. If you see that, some person comes uninvited and they keep knocking on the door, knocking on the door.
If nobody opens the door, they'll go away. But just because they knock on the door, it doesn't mean that we have to open and we let them in. If we let them in, they'll stay there.
So, like that temptations will come, but we don't have to welcome. Does it answer your question? Yes, sir. Yes, sir.
So, so, Rasaam had a question yesterday. Yesterday, I was speaking about how material problems need material solutions. So, for example, Arjuna won the Kurukshetra War, not just by his, by knowledge of Bhagavad Gita or by his bhakti.
He actually shot, fought with him, shot at the Gandiva. But then, it is also said that, you know, when we seek material solutions to material problems, you know, often the solution becomes a bigger problem. Prahlad Narayan also says, He says that the cure for a disease actually wasn't the disease.
So then, what does this mean? Do we need material solutions to material problems or should we just focus on spirituality? Actually, the two are talking about different contexts. Prahlad Narayan is talking about exclusively material solutions alone. That means, there are two extremes.
One is, we think the spiritual is a substitute for the material. So, that doesn't work. As I said, if I have a fracture and my bone is broken, chanting Hare Krishna will not fix up the bone.
Krishna can do anything. But that is not the way normally Krishna works. So, Krishna can chanting fix up somebody's fracture, but it is not for us to demand that Krishna do like this.
So, normally Krishna has given the process. So, Prabhupada also did not demand to Krishna that, Krishna, you arrange to take me by flight to America or let me take you just by airway that Hanuman flew across. Prabhupada arranged for, went to so many places and he got a contact who gave him free flight passage.
So, he went by a normal boat. Krishna could have done anything. But even in Prabhupada's life, Krishna did not intervene in miraculous ways in the sense of supernatural or paranormal ways.
The end result of what Prabhupada achieved was miraculous. But it is all through normal activities. Nothing paranormal much in Prabhupada's Leela.
So, one extreme is to think that the spiritual will substitute for the material. That is wrong. But the other extreme is to think that the material will substitute for the spiritual.
That means all that we need to do is just improve things materially and everything will be alright. So, that mentality is what Prahlad Maharaj is condemning. When he is saying that somebody thinks okay, whatever problem is there, just let me improve things materially and everything will be wonderful.
So, if we focus only on material solutions, then the solution often becomes the cause of a bigger problem. Dukkha ushedam tadapi dukkham atadyaham. And that's what we see in today's world.
Actually, if we consider the world 500 years ago, there is tremendous technological progress as compared to even 50 years ago. What to speak of 500 years ago? At the same time, is humanity happier? Are people really happier? Now, we may say that because you are a spiritualist, you say your people are not happier. But we can look at it objectively that according to WHO statistics, 1 million people commit suicide every year.
1 million people commit suicide every year means it's one suicide every 40 seconds. So, now actually speaking, this figure is even more alarming because 1 million suicides every year, this count is actually more than the total number of deaths due to wars, terrorist attacks, violent crimes all combined together. That is more than the number of people who are being killed by others are the people who are killing themselves.
Now, in the past, there were far more terrible diseases we could see, relatively speaking. The black plague and so many terrible diseases. But still in the past, people were not committing suicide at this scale.
Something was surely seriously wrong. So, when we work only at the material level, then we may make things more comfortable. So, in modern times, people are more comfortable and people are more comfortably miserable.
In the past, people may be sweating because it was so hot. Now people have AC, but in the AC they sweat because they have so much stress. So, if we just work only at the material level to solve problems, then whatever we do, it only aggravates the problems.
But it is not that material level we should not solve the problems. Even in the Vedic tradition itself, there was Ayurveda. And Ayurveda is, there is an understanding that Vishnu is the source of the medicine, ultimately.
Dhanvantari is a manifestation of Vishnu. But in practical terms, it's material. Okay, you have this imbalance in your body.
So, to correct this imbalance, you have to put this material. Take this herb, take this medicine. So, it's a material solution to a material problem.
And Ayurveda is a part of the Vedic body of knowledge itself. So, the point is, it's a material solution to a material problem, but it is not just a material solution because there is a spiritual understanding behind it. There is a spiritual consciousness underlying it.
So, there has to be a balance of the material and the spiritual. In the materialistic society, people think that the material will be a substitute for the spiritual. We don't need to do anything, just develop more science, develop more technology, have more economic progress and then everything will be happy.
That doesn't work. But if we have a very crude understanding of spirituality, we think the spiritual is a substitute for the material. That also doesn't work.
So, we use our material intelligence and material skills to tackle the problem as much as we can. And beyond that we depend on Krishna. So, the spiritual understanding, the spiritual aspect is that what is in my control, I'll do with my material abilities.
What is beyond my control, I'll leave it to Krishna. So, that way, we can be both having the material aspect and the spiritual aspect. Once, when I started speaking about Krishna Consciousness, one devotee did some guidelines for public speaking.
So, they said, the last guideline was, depend on Krishna. But in bracket, after you have prepared. Without preparing the class, I am depending on Krishna.
That is not dependence, that is simply laziness. sometimes we say that what is the difference between detachment and irresponsibility? What is the difference? There is a whole big, you can have a whole class on it, but simply put, detachment is after I have done my part. Irresponsibility is before I do my part.
So, after a student has studied well enough, then, okay, what questions will come in the paper, I don't know. After I have given my paper, okay, now it's up to the examiner. Now, it's not in my control.
So, after I have done my part, I am detached. But, if the student doesn't study only, I say, I am detached. That is not detachment.
That is irresponsibility. So, we do our part, that is our responsibility. And after doing our part, we leave it to Krishna.
That is detachment. If we have that capacity for detachment, that will bring Shanti. I have done my part, now, Krishna, you do your part.
Whatever is your will, I'll accept it. Does this answer your question? Thank you. Any other questions? Yes.
How do we strike the balance and how do we understand whether we are depending upon our own endeavour or we are depending upon Krishna? And eventually, like I said, at least increase our dependence upon Krishna. So, how do we understand whether we are on the right track or still in the material conception? So, how do we know whether we are depending on our own endeavours or whether we are depending on Krishna? And as we advance, how can we increase our dependence on Krishna? If we look at Sharanagati, surrender, Bhaktsona Thakur quotes a Purana that talks about six characteristics. anukulyasa sankalpa prathikulyasa varjanam rakshishyati hi vishwaso gop-tattve valanam tatha atma-nikshepa karpanye shadvidha sharanagati So, he talks about anukulyasa sankalpa prathikulyasa varjanam, accepting that which is favourable, putting aside that which is unfavourable.
And then he talks about rakshishyati hi vishwaso, having faith that Krishna will protect me. And gop-tattve valanam tatha. It's not just that when there is danger, Krishna will protect me.
Even now Krishna is maintaining me. He is my maintainer. Atma-nikshepa.
You know that. Actually, I offer my whole being to Krishna. It's not just that Krishna is there and He is protecting me.
I belong to Krishna. Atma-nikshepa. Anankarpanya.
Without Krishna, I am nothing. Now, if you see among these six elements, the last four are dispositions. And the first two are actions.
So, for example, Krishna will protect me. It's a disposition. It's a way of thinking and I cannot just wish it.
It will come gradually as my relationship with Krishna develops. Similarly, the realisation that actually it is Krishna who is maintaining me. All these last four, they will organically grow as our relationship with Krishna grows.
We cannot artificially pretend that… We cannot artificially… They are not just imagination. Krishna is going to protect me. You can't artificially imagine that.
It is a state of realisation which actually comes when we cultivate a disposition through a deeper relationship with Krishna. What we can do practically is these two things. That accepting the favourable, rejecting the unfavourable.
And it's interesting that he is talking about these two actions as parts of surrender. Normally, surrender means Krishna, I depend on you. That's what we call a surrender.
But here he is saying that be active. Accepting this, rejecting this. That is what is surrender.
So, normally whenever we talk about surrender, the standard image that we have of surrender is of Draupadi. She raises her hands in helplessness and surrenders to Krishna. That is one image of surrender.
There is entirely a different image of surrender. At the end of the Bhagavad Gita, Krishna tells Arjuna, surrender. That's 18.66. And 18.73, Arjuna says, I will do your will.
That means I will surrender. But after surrendering to Krishna, what does Arjuna do? Arjuna doesn't raise his hands. Arjuna actually raises his bow.
So, what? Arjuna not surrendered? That, no. For Arjuna, in this situation, surrender meant lifting up his bow and fighting. For Draupadi, in her situation, surrender meant raising her arms and calling out in helplessness.
So, surrender can take different forms in different situations. It's not a stereotype. So, Prabhupada was surrendered when he was composing Markene Bhagavad Dharma, the song, Krishna, make me dance, make me dance, Prabhu, nachao se mate.
Prabhupada surrendered when he was doing that. And, Prabhupada surrendered also when he in an act of unparalleled courage was taking the western disciples to Tompkins Square Park to do a first public kirtan. Actually, all of them were saying, Swami, we don't do this in America.
Our kirtan in the room is fine. We can't go out. We don't do like this.
Prabhupada was completely regal, majestic, fixed. So, Prabhupada was as bold as a lion. So, all courageous.
That is also surrender. Or, Prabhupada stepping into Jaldutha all alone at the age of 69 without much money, without any money, without any contacts. That was an act of courage.
That is also surrender. So, when we talk about dependence on Krishna or surrender to Krishna, it's not a stereotype. So, at our level, the practical thing which can implement surrender is by accepting that which is favorable and rejecting that which is unfavorable.
And, what will be favorable and what will be unfavorable, that will be, we have to use our intelligence to understand the awareness of time, place, circumstance and decide that. Now, in our endeavors, it is that our endeavors are also an expression of our devotion. So, for example, in our chanting, should we just depend on Krishna or should we try to concentrate on chanting? Concentrating is the way we express our desire for Krishna.
And sometimes, despite our best effort, we are trying to concentrate but not concentrating. We can call out to Krishna. Krishna, please help.
It's also one way. But, it's not that trying to depend on Krishna and concentrating, the two are opposite. Both go together.
We concentrate as much as we can and then we pray to Krishna also. See, when Yashoda Mai tied Krishna, the two fingers short it was. The first was her endeavor and the second was Krishna's words.
So, in that sense, she endeavored as much as she could. Similarly, it's not that we should think that I am depending on my efforts or I am depending on Krishna's efforts. We should focus on that I have to do my best in whatever I do.
And, after I have done my best, now what is my best? I may not be able to know immediately. But, in a reasonable way, I can understand. It's like lifting weights.
If I have capacity to lift 20 kg weights, once I start lifting 21, I can start feeling the strength. If I lift 22, it's unbearable. So, like that, overall we can know what is our capacity.
We exert according to our endeavor, according to our capacity. And then if things work out wonderfully, that is why Krishna is reciprocating. If things are not working out, there is another impetus in Krishna.
I call out to you more. I depend on you more. So, rather than focusing so much on dependence because dependence is a disposition, we can focus more on the action part.
Am I doing that which is favorable and am I avoiding that which is unfavorable? If we are doing that, that will develop our relationship with Krishna. And, once the relationship is developed, then this feeling of dependence will naturally come. So, in a sense, we don't have to make the whole concept of, because this dependence and Sharanagati and all these can sound very lofty concepts.
We can say it's very practical that if I have a relationship with someone or if I want to develop a relationship with someone, now what do I do? I know certain things which are favorable for that relationship and which are unfavorable for that relationship. So, if I have a spouse, I know that she doesn't like this. If I do that, she's going to get upset.
You know, she likes something. If I do that, that's going to, you know, she's going to be happy. So, then, it's not that everything we necessarily do according to what others want us to do, but it's just that, that awareness is there.
It's not just saying, oh, do I love her? Does she love me? It's all in the mind. Love is expressed through actions. So, like that, similarly, we can focus on, for developing relationship, what do we do? Do something practical.
And, by doing the practical, the internal will also come gradually. Same way with Krishna, focus on doing that which is favorable and avoiding that which is unfavorable. And gradually, the deeper dispositions, they will come.
Of course, we can also by singing Vaishnava songs, associating with devotees who have that disposition, we can also cultivate that disposition. But at the practical level, we can focus more on the active aspects of surrender, rather than the contemplative aspects of surrender. Does that answer your question? Thank you.
Yes, sir. Krishna tells about three divisions of Krishna consciousness. Second, third.
And there he tells about the third class person. Krishna is the inspection of Karna and Jnana. He should become second class or first class.
So the question is, how this inspection of Karna and Jnana can be applied in day-to-day life. Okay. Srishti Prabhupada, in the purport of 9.3 in the Gita, talks about three levels of devotees.
There he says that, actually one can rise to a higher level when the infection of Karma Yoga and Jnana Yoga goes down or is vanquished. So what does it mean and how can it be done practically? See, we don't, in our day-to-day activities, we focus on trying to remember Krishna and trying to serve Krishna. When we do that, basically Karma, Jnana and Bhakti are mentalities.
Karma is centered on, I want to enjoy this world. Jnana is focused on, oh, this world is filled with so much misery, I want to give it up. But in both, it's eye-centered.
This world will get a new enjoyment, so I want it. This world is going to cause me suffering, so I want to give it up. It's all eye-centered.
But Bhakti is Krishna-centered. Krishna, I want to serve you and how can I serve you? That's what I want to find out. That's what I want to do.
So we focus on that. And the more we connect with Krishna, the more we experience the joy of Krishna Bhakti, the more the contamination of Karma and Jnana will go away. If we focus too much on trying to drive away the contamination of Karma and Jnana, that is a very negative focus.
It's like if I have, there is a glass here. If I decide that I want to remove all air from the glass, I'll need some vacuum creating machine and pull out all the air. And then even if some little hole is there somewhere, some passage, immediately air will come inside.
So to create a vacuum for removing the air, that is a very complex thing. Simply fill the glass with water, then the air will go away. Similarly, if we try to think of, I have to give up Karma, I have to give up Jnana, that is difficult.
Focus on how can I serve Krishna? How can I do this activity in the mood of devotion? How can I increase my directly devotional activities and how can I infuse devotion in my other activities also? Once you do that, the contaminations will automatically go away gradually. Thank you very much. Shloka Shloka Shloka Shloka Shloka Shloka.