Dovetailing our propensities in Krishna’s service – SB 1.5.32

Thank you very much. The transcendental activities of the Lord, from the right and bona fide sources.

This is the only remedial process. The entire material existence is full of miseries. Foolish people have manufactured out of their tiny brains many remedial measures for removing the threefold miseries pertaining to the body and the mind, pertaining to the natural disturbances, and in relationship with other living entities.

The whole world is struggling very hard to exist out of these miseries, but men do not know that without the sanction of the Lord, no plan or no remedial measure can actually bring about the desired peace and tranquilly. The remedial measure to cure a patient by medical treatment is useless if it is not sanctioned by the Lord. To cross the river or the ocean by a suitable boat is no remedial measure if it is not sanctioned by the Lord.

We should know for certain that the Lord is the ultimate sanctioning officer and we must therefore dedicate our attempts to the mercy of the Lord for ultimate success or to get rid of the obstacles on the path of success. The Lord is all-pervading, all-powerful, omniscient and omnipresent. He is the ultimate sanctioning agent of all good or bad effects.

We should therefore learn to dedicate our activities unto the mercy of the Lord and accept Him either as impersonal Brahman, localised Paramatma or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It does not matter what one is. One must dedicate everything in the service of the Lord.

If one is a learned scholar, scientist, philosopher, poet, etc., then he should employ his learning to establish the supremacy of the Lord. Try to study the energy of the Lord in every sphere of life. Do not decry Him or try to become like Him or take His position simply by fragmental accumulation of knowledge.

If one is an administrator, statesman, warrior, politician, etc., then one should try to establish the Lord's supremacy in statesmanship. Fight for the cause of the Lord as Shri Arjuna did. In the beginning, Shri Arjuna, the great fighter, declined to fight.

But when he was convinced by the Lord that the fighting was necessary, Shri Arjuna changed his decision and fought for his cause. Similarly, if one is a businessman, an agriculturist, an industrialist, etc., then one should spend his hard-earned money for the cause of the Lord. Think always that the money which is accumulated is the wealth of the Lord.

Wealth is considered to be the goddess of fortune, Lakshmi, and the Lord is Narayan or the husband of Lakshmi. Try to engage Lakshmi in the service of Lord Narayan and be happy. This is the way to realise the Lord in every sphere of life.

The best thing is, after all, to get relief from all material activities and engage oneself completely in hearing the transcendental pastimes of the Lord. But, in case of the absence of such an opportunity, one should try to engage in the service of the Lord, everything for which one has a specific attraction. Shri Radha Kunj Bihari Bhagwan ki Shri Radha Kunj Bihari Bhagwan ki Shri Prabhupada ki And that is the way of peace and prosperity.

The word samsuchitam in this stanza is also significant. One should not think for a moment that the realisation of Narada was childish imagination only. It is not like that.

It is so realised by the expert and erudite scholars. And that is the real import of the word samsuchitam. This is the conclusion.

of Narada's instructions on Srimad Bhagavatam, where Narada by his own experience is telling that the only solution to all problems is Krishna Consciousness. So, I don't have much realisation of this, but I seek the blessings of the Vaishnavas that I can speak something worthwhile. Once, a young man went to a psychologist and he had a very serious look on his face.

And he told the psychologist, I am suffering from chronic depression. I am always on the verge of crying. Please help me.

Psychologist looked at that young man and he looked very healthy and handsome. He thought his problem is mostly just mental. So, he told him, he took him near this window, he took him near the window of his clinic and pointed outside.

You see the circus over there? In that circus, there is a very good joker. You just go and watch that circus. And if you just hear the jokes of that joker, all your depression will go away.

And he himself had gone to that circus. So, he was remembering the jokes. And he narrated one or two of the jokes.

And he was laughing and he looked around and he saw this person's face was more serious than before. He wondered, what happened? With a very grey voice and a serious face, he said, Doctor, I am that joker. This material world is a place where people specialise in two things.

Hiding and forgetting their miseries. Hiding means we hide from the world and forget means we try to refuse to acknowledge for ourselves. Prabhupada writes in one of the Isopanishad purports that modern civilisation is a patchwork of activities meant to cover the perpetual miseries of material existence.

The perpetual miseries of material existence. The material existence is always a place of suffering. 5,000 years ago, 3,000 years ago, 2,000 years ago, 1,000 years ago, the future after 5,000 years, always there is going to be janma-mutyu-jara-gaadi.

Always there is going to be adhyatmika, adhibhautika, daivika. Sometimes people watch some historical movies or something like that. Maybe in the past things were getting better.

Or they watch some science fiction movies and they think future we will have androids or whatever and things will be better. But these are inevitable factors of material existence. These four problems and the three miseries.

And that's why there is nothing new that is going to happen in this world. So in that sense, we have newspapers, but there is nothing new in them. It's all old.

Because nothing new happens in this world. It's just different forms of aahar, nidra, bhai, maithun and different ways in which disease, old age and death come upon. If you actually see the news, that's all that it is.

And the other thing, apart from that, this is the ways in which people forget that. There are cartoons, you know, in the front page you read such horrible news and in the back page you see the cartoon and you laugh. It's just a way to forget the reality of this world.

So, Prabhupada writes that modern civilisation is a patchwork of activities. Patchwork is a very good word. Patchwork means sometimes a cloth is torn.

So that piece of cloth is gone, but then we put another cloth on top of it. And if the second piece of cloth is put properly, it is the same colour and it is stitched very nicely, then you cannot see it. But still, the original cloth is torn and we just have put some other cloth on it.

So that is called patchwork. Patchwork means something which does not serve the purpose. We try to hide or cover, but it cannot.

So, it is a patchwork of activities to cover the perpetual miseries of material existence. So, modern times are far removed from the Vedic social context. Sri Prabhupada says that even in the Vedic times there were materialists.

And he gives the example of Charvak Muni. How he says, who is going to see what is there after that? Vasmibhutasya dehasya kutahapuna raagmano bhavet. Once you die, you die.

So, as long as you live, Rangritva ghrutampibet yavajjivet sukhamjivet. Just steal, beg, borrow, but get ghee and enjoy life. So, this is the greatest materialist of the Vedic times giving his most materialistic recommendation.

And that is, eat ghee, not eat meat. So, the point is that even the most materialistic person in the Vedic times could not have in the nightmare conceived the kind of organised slaughterhouses where man takes the role of devil. I saw a cartoon.

There is a vegan movement that put the cartoon. So, there was a picture of the devil and there was a picture of a modern human being. And the devil is saying, I have a tough time keeping up with him.

That means, the devil is supposed to do horrible devilish activities. But the modern man, how he is killing lakhs and lakhs of animals. It says that 9.6 million animals are killed every day.

So, it's awesome. So, the point is that the modern society is far, far more degraded with respect to activities as compared to the Vedic society. And not only that, it's very astonishing how the false ego can pervert reality.

The Vedic texts say that Kali Yuga is the worst of ages. And the modern man thinks that I, the modern man, am the most developed of all people. And he thinks that the modern age is the most developed of all ages.

And because of technology by which the modern man has so much control, he thinks that I can do anything and everything. And I deserve enjoyment. Because he sees enjoyment in the media, in the movies, in the newspapers.

And he thinks this is what life is all about. And when he doesn't get it, he becomes frustrated. So, what is the patchwork? The entertainment industry is the patchwork.

By which we get a false conception of reality. The reality, if you just look around at all the acquaintances that we know, who among them is really happy? Who among them has not suffered in life? No one. But we don't consider that to be the reality because of mis-education by the media.

We think what the media shows is the reality. That is how life will be. So, because of this, the modern man has a very inflated self-conception.

On one hand, he thinks I am the controller, because he can control through technology. And he thinks I am the enjoyer. Because he sees enjoyment so lavishly demonstrated on the media.

But, no matter what he thinks himself to be, the fact is that this world is a place of suffering. We are neither the enjoyers nor the controllers. So, the result is enormous frustration.

Even in the earlier ages, people would suffer the threefold miseries and the fourfold problems. But they didn't have such inflated expectations in life. They didn't have any media to mislead them.

And they could see around in the world that this world is a place of suffering. So, if they would get happiness, they would think they would feel grateful. And if they would get suffering, they would think, okay, what to do? That's how it is.

That's how life is. But now, if people get happiness, they think, I deserve it and I deserve more. And if they get suffering, why? Why me? Why this? Why now? Why? Why? So, that's why we see people who live in utter poverty in the forests of Bangladesh or India, they never get stress or depression.

But people who live in prosperity in the modern times, they get depression. Why? Because of a wrong self-conception. They think I am great.

They think I am glorious. And when material nature shows its face, they become miserable. That's why a modern poet has written that this proud modern man, he goes to the modern world and he says, I exist very proudly.

And the modern world says, I don't care. That's the way life is in this world. No one cares.

So, if you just see, if you go to a city like Mumbai and you see thousands of people on the railway station, who cares for anyone else? There are thousands of people crowded together in a railway station, but every one of them is alone. Although thousands are together, they are all alone. Because nobody cares for anyone else.

So, it's a patchwork of activities. And even those who try to make others happy, they are themselves not happy. The stars of the entertainment industry, they themselves smoke and drink and take drugs.

So, it's just as Prabhupada says in this purport, that the remedial measures don't work if they are not sanctioned by the Lord. And once we understand this, that this world is always a place of misery, no technology or no technology, then we can actually turn towards Krishna. Prabhupada writes in Bhagavad Gita Purport, that unless one is pessimistic about material life, there is no impetus to practise Krishna consciousness.

An American scholar who came to a Hare Krishna temple during Prabhupada's times found an astonishing contrast. He said, these people's philosophy says that this world is miserable. But when I meet these people, they are the happiest people I have ever met.

So, he couldn't make sense out of these two things. You say this world is a place of misery, and even the American media reported, the bright-faced disciples of Bhaktivedanta Swami. So, how is it like that? And if this world is a place of misery, then how can we be happy? Because a devotee does not aspire to be a part of this world.

To the extent a devotee aspires to be a part of this world, to that extent, the miseries of this world will also be a part of his life. But to the extent a devotee aspires to get out of this world and return back to Krishna, to that extent, he experiences the joy of the spiritual world, the joy of Krishna consciousness. And Prabhupada explains that we should dovetail all our activities in Krishna's service.

Now, interestingly, Narada Muni did not do any dovetailing. Narada Muni just heard and became realised. Of course, it is not that he is a singer and he is dovetailing his singing propensity.

He is a pure devotee and he is singing for the Lord's pleasure. But Narada Muni knows that everybody cannot practise spiritual life fully in the form of hearing and chanting. That's why Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita describes various levels at which a devotee can practise.

This is in the twelfth chapter from verses eight onwards. So, we will recite these verses. You can repeat after me.

Mayyeva manadhatsva Mayyeva manadhatsva Mayi budhyam niveshaya Mayi budhyam niveshaya Nivasishyasi mayyeva Nivasishyasi mayyeva Ata urdhvam na samshaya Ata urdhvam na samshaya So, Lord Krishna says the best way to get out of this material world to practise devotional services, just fix your mind on me. Use all your intelligence in my service. In this way you will always live in me even if you are living in the material world and at the end you will come back to me.

So, the Vedic scriptures describe three primary subjects as we know. Sambandha, Abhidhaya and Prayojanam. So, Sambandha Gyan is the beginning requirement for happiness in life.

Prabhupada says without transcendental knowledge there is no question of happiness in anyone's life. So, everybody is trying to form some Sambandha. A young man tries to form a Sambandha with a young woman.

A businessman tries to form a Sambandha with wealth or with another wealthy businessman. So, everybody is trying to form some relationship. And essentially what is it that people think will make them happy? They think that getting opulences will make them happy.

So, we have come here to imitate Krishna and when we see in this world what are people trying to do? What do people aspire for to acquire the opulences which Krishna has? And I think if we get those opulences we will be happy. If a person is poor he is miserable. If a person aspires for and acquires wealth then he does horrifying forms of bad karma which creates suffering for him in the future.

If a person is not good looking he is miserable. If a person is good looking then he himself does and attracts others to do horrible sinful sensual activities. If a person is not intelligent he suffers.

And if a person is intelligent he invents nuclear bombs to make everyone suffer. So, the point is that without Krishna consciousness the remedy creates a bigger problem. If a person is poor, how much sinful activity can he do? But if a person is wealthy, he can do so much sin that he will create karma for many lifetimes for the future.

Now, that's why the remedial measures which materialistic people approach or adopt if they are devoid of Krishna consciousness they create a greater suffering. Now, here Krishna is saying that you just fix your mind on me. That means forget all this business of imitation and just become a pure devotee.

But for most people that is not possible. So, Prabhupada says this is the highest, he says the best way is to just hear and chant and become liberated, to have nothing to do with the material world as Narada Muni did. But for most people this being not possible, Krishna gives the next level.

Athachittam samadhatum Athachittam samadhatum Nashaknosi maisthiram Nashaknosi maisthiram Abhyasayogena tato Abhyasayogena tato Mam ichchatum dhananjaya Mam ichchatum dhananjaya He says if it is not possible for you to constantly fix your mind on Krishna, then do sadhana bhakti. Do abhyas, do practise of fixing your mind on me. So, most of us in this corner are sadhakas.

Prabhupada has taught devotional service at this level and we aspire for the first level. But for not everyone is it possible to just do sadhana bhakti. So, then Krishna tells another lower level.

Abhyasepya samarthosi Abhyasepya samarthosi Matkarma paramobhava Matkarma paramobhava Madartham apikarmani Madartham apikarmani Kurvan siddhim avapsyasi Kurvan siddhim avapsyasi If you cannot do sadhana bhakti, then work for me. Work for me means whatever is your propensity, use that and engage that in my service. So, this is the recommendation which Prabhupada is giving.

Prabhupada is saying, if you are a scientist, if you are a philosopher, a poet, then understand the energy of the lord in every sphere of life. That refers to the brahmanas. If you are an administrator, a politician, statesman, then you would use statesmanship to establish the supremacy of the lord.

That refers to the kshatriyas. So, we all have our tendencies. We all have our inclinations.

Now, it sometimes appears very appealing. Yes, I can use my inclination in Krishna's service. Yes, that is good.

But ultimately, what is the inclination? Or what is the proclivity or propensity? That is the karmic way in which we try to become god. Somebody is good at management. Somebody is good at philosophy.

What does that mean? That means, through the intellect, he is trying to become god. He is trying to become the controller, trying to become the best. So, that is completely opposite to the principle of devotional service.

But Krishna is so wonderful that even the propensity to enjoy can be used in his service. So, a person wants to use his intelligence to speculate. A person wants to use his Ishwarabha to manage.

A person wants to use his money-making ability to amass a fortune. Krishna says, you do that, but do that for me. And in the next verse, Narada Muni explains how the same activity, if done in a slightly different way, gives a different result.

Completely opposite result. He says, just as if a person drinks milk, that has a laxative effect. But if you put a little acid in the milk, it transforms into curd.

And when it becomes curd, then instead of laxative, it cures the same stomach disorder. Or Ayurveda says that mercury, mercury is poisonous, but it can be used in medicine, and let's say mercury cures. Or I believe that it's if you put honey in milk, it increases the weight.

If you put honey in water, it decreases the weight. So, the same activity, depending on how it is applied, it has a completely different result. So, similarly, our psychophysical propensities, whatever we like to do, if we do them with the addition of Krishna consciousness, then normally those activities would bind us in karma, but now these activities can liberate us from karma.

So, that is Krishna's very merciful nature. And when we are trying to do this, it is Krishna's magnanimity that he allows us to do this. He accepts ye na kena prakarya na mana Krishna niveshayat.

He accepts that whichever way you try to come to me, you try to serve me, that is good. So, Gajendra in his prayers says yam dharma kama artha vimukti kama bhajan tya ishtam gatim apnuvanti kim cha shishoratya pideham avayam karo tume adabra dayo vimokshanam He says yam dharma kama artha vimukti kama Sometimes people come to you, O Lord, for what motives? For performing religious activities, but what? For kaam, for fulfilling their material desires. Or for artha, for financial gains.

Or for mukti. Now, all these three are selfish. Even mukti is a selfish desire.

So, my dear Lord, they come to you for their selfish desires. bhajan tya ishtam gatim apnuvanti But when they worship you, they get their respective material desire fulfilled. But my dear Lord, you do not stop your mercy at that.

kim cha shishoratya pideham avayam He says, you not only fulfil their aashish, their desire, but you also reward them deham avayam You reward them with imperishable body, the eternal spiritual body. So, Prabhupada in a purport says that Gajendra is referring to Dhruva Maharaj. He came to the Lord with a material motive, but the Lord not only fulfilled his material desire, also he gave him the ultimate spiritual benediction.

So, therefore, Gajendra is saying, karo tume adabra dayo vi mokshanam Adabra dayo. Dabra means limited. Adabra means unlimited.

Dayo. Adabra dayo means unlimitedly merciful. My dear Lord, please free me from this pashupash, from this crocodile which has grabbed me.

So, Gajendra is admitting that my dear Lord, I am approaching you for a material motive. I am in distress and I need relief. But you are so merciful that you are ready to relieve those who approach you, not only from material distress, but also from material existence.

But if we see Gajendra's prayers as they move forward, he, his motive starts becoming more pure. He prays in one of the last prayers. jee jee vishay naaham jee jee vishay naaham yo antar bahish chaavrute bhyayon ya ichcha mi kaalena nayasya viplavas tasyaatma loka vranasya moksham He says, My dear Lord, you may be thinking that my life is in danger.

So, I am approaching you to save my life. But he says, jee jee vishay naaham. I do not desire to live.

Iha. Iha means in this world. Amuya.

Amuya means in the next world. He says, I do not desire to live in this world or in the next world. Why not? He says, Yo antar bahish chaavrute bhyayon ya Inside and outside, there is a covering of ignorance in this world.

The Lord is present inside as well as outside. Kunti Maharani prays that, My dear Lord, although you are inside and outside, people cannot see you anywhere. That is because of the nature of the ignorance of the body we are in.

So, he says, What is the use of having such a body by which I cannot perceive you either inside or outside? That ignorance, Iccha me kaale nana yasya viblas tasyatma loka vranasya moksham So, that ignorance which hides you from me, that cannot be destroyed by the power of time. That can be destroyed only by the power of your mercy. So, my dear Lord, that is what I desire.

So, it may happen that because of distress or because of the desire for relief from material problems, one may approach the Lord. And the Lord may fulfil that also. But intelligent sadhaka, he gradually purifies his motives.

As Gajendra initially, the impetus for him to pray was to save his life. But eventually, what happened? As he purified his prayer, the Lord gave him the complete benediction. Uttarano duskrutiha Punyo duswapna nashana Veeraha rakshana santo Jeevana pariyavasthitaha In the Vishnu Sahasranama it says Uttarano.

The Lord delivered him not just from that crocodile but from the whole material existence. And we see Dhru Maharaj also came with a material motive. But he purified his motive.

After he saw the Lord, he said, my dear Lord, why did I come for such a material thing? And we see on the other hand, the power of the free will of the living entity. Pururava saw the Supreme Lord. But what did he ask from the Supreme Lord? Please give me your wish.

So the power of the free will is so great that even the Lord cannot penetrate that ignorance. The Lord can, but he respects our free will. That's why it is important for a sadhaka to gradually purify his motives.

And this happens in the process of Krishna Consciousness by our sadhana. When we especially those of us who are brahmacharis, we practise life at mostly second and third levels, which Krishna describes. We do sadhana half of the day and we are doing seva.

That seva is mostly dovetailing our propensities. And for those who are working outside also, it's second, third, fourth, it's a combination. They are working and offering the fruits of their result or they do sadhana, bhakti, whichever way.

But I was seeing this we see it is the final lesson by Sri Prabhupada. So one of the last times that Prabhupada spoke, it was on October 21, 1977, about three weeks before he left his body. So Prabhupada's eyes were completely closed and he probably didn't have strength to even open his eyes.

His body was so weak and thin. So there, I was very eager to see what does Prabhupada speak at that time. So Prabhupada quotes the shloka that purushya prakritisthohi bhoongte prakriti jan gunan karanam gunasangasya sadasodhyoni janmasu because the desire to enjoy the conditioned soul associates with the moods and so he continues on the cycle of birth and death.

And Prabhupada says in this modern times, there are these moods of passion and ignorance, very prevalent and rajoguna and tamoguna and this rajoguna and tamoguna cause lobha and kama, greediness and lust and a person who gets influenced by rajoguna and tamoguna, his future is very dangerous. It's very amazing that modern psychologists also arrive at a similar conclusion. They are saying that a large number of people in the modern times suffer from chronic depression and the remaining people suffer from what they call as maniac depression.

Maniac depression means, mania means, it's like a wild enthusiasm. So mania means a person thinks that I will do this and I will do that and I will do this and I will do everything. That's what is called a mania.

So we see that infatuation with the desire for material gains in the people of this world. So they think that we'll go to America, we'll go to do this, we'll do that. So mania is rajoguna and depression is tamoguna.

Prabhupada is saying that there is this influence of rajoguna and tamoguna and the way to save yourself from it is by coming to sattvaguna and then how does one come to sattvaguna? Prabhupada with his eyes closed says two things. He says wake up in the morning, come everyday for mangalarthi and second he says stay in the association of devotees. You stay in the association, then you can stay in sattvaguna.

So this, the modes are very powerful and they make everyone dance. Of course Krishna consciousness is far beyond the modes but to the extent we stay in sattvaguna we can happily practise Krishna consciousness and that is what dovetailing is all about. So when we dovetail, let's say somebody has a tendency to earn money.

So he is earning money for Krishna. But then what is the guarantee that there will be dovetailing? As Poonam Chandra said, when you do karma yoga you have to check how much is the percentage of karma and how much is the percentage of yoga. Otherwise there is only karma and no yoga.

And we also get the karmic bondage. Then it becomes karma bhoga, not karma yoga. So the point is that how can when we are dovetailing our propensities, how can we make sure that there is more of a doe than of a tail.

So that is through our sadhana. Especially our sadhana and our regular lifestyle. Even Prabhupada in the section on lust where Arjuna asks what is it that makes people do sinful activities? And Krishna explains kama-esha, krodhesha.

So there Prabhupada says this lust can be conquered by a regulated way of living by which the rajoguna will be elevated to sattvaguna rather than being degraded to tamoguna. So when a person is dovetailing his propensities, we have to check while dovetailing our propensities am I living my life in passion or am I living my life in goodness? So if I am living my life in passion and although I may be doing it for Krishna, still the passion will have its influence. And the mode of passion if somebody practises devotional service, in the mode of passion there are two results.

The first is that Krishna consciousness appears tasteless. The hardcore activities of Krishna consciousness, hearing and chanting, one cannot get any taste for them because in the mode of passion one is filled with the plans for controlling and enjoying. And second, material pleasures appear irresistibly attractive.

That's why a devotee may be performing devotional service but still he will never be satisfied because he is not getting Krishna conscious happiness and he is also feeling material pleasures as very charming. That's why it's important to try to regulate our life. The 11th canto of Bhagavatam describes ten factors which if we change in our life we can come to sattva guna.

So the modes essentially determine the way consciousness interacts with matter. That is what modes are all about. Matter influences consciousness that means we see some sight.

That's matter. It may be the form of the lord or it may be the form of a sense object. That's matter.

But the modes determine how the matter influences our consciousness. That's what the modes are all about. So if a person is sattva guna the form of the reti is attractive.

The person is rajo guna, the form of the sense object appears attractive. So how matter interacts with consciousness is described through the modes. So by changing certain material circumstances around us we can gradually change the mode influencing us.

Now this is not the primary activity of devotional service. The primary activity of devotional service of course is hearing and chanting. But if you want taste in hearing and chanting sattva guna helps in that.

And when we are dovetailing our propensities we get a clear comparison. Now the dovetailed the dovetailed activity and the spiritual activity. And if a person is sattva guna then he can clearly see that the dovetailed activity is not giving me a lot of happiness.

It is the pure spiritual activity. And then one can gradually get rid of the conditioning. Just like somebody is a painter and now he just likes to paint.

And that is wonderful. That is dovetailing the propensity. And the devotees meet him and he find devotees are nice so let me paint for them also.

And he paints. But gradually if he keeps painting and he keeps associating with devotees, hearing from them, taking Krishna prasad then they start thinking see I do painting but when I paint for Krishna there is some pleasure, special pleasure which is not there when I paint for earning money or for getting fame. So then he starts thinking that means the pleasure is not in the painting, the pleasure is in Krishna.

Then maybe not that I don't have to do only painting for Krishna, I can do other services for Krishna also. So that's how the person develops a sambandha not just with the painting but with Krishna. So when we are using our propensity we have to check our sambandha with what is increasing.

Is it with our conditioned nature or is it with Krishna? And then when one gets a comparison like this then one can choose and then one can advance. So these 10 factors we will see how Prabhupada so intelligently incorporate all these 10 factors in the life of the temple devotees. The first is Aapa.

Aapa means water and food, diet that we take in. So Prabhupada take only prasadam that is sanctified food. Then second is Agama.

Agama means scriptures. Prabhupada said read scriptures and Prabhupada did not encourage his followers to read especially non-Krishna conscious books or minimise them only for services that are required. So Agama.

Then he says Praja. Praja means association. The kind of people that we associate.

So Prabhupada says stay in association. Then he says Janma. The way we are born.

That we cannot change. Physically but we can change by taking a second birth. Then there is Desha.

The area in which we live. So if we stay in the temple proximity the vibrations due to the presence of the deity are there and they are themselves very sanctifying. Then there is Kaala.

Kaala means the time. So as all of us know something like depending on the season and place it will vary but generally from 3 to 11 is in Satvaguna. 11 to 7 is in Rajoguna.

And 7 to 3 is in Tamoguna. So the times when it is in Satvaguna if we are awake and alert then we can benefit from that. That's why Prabhupada says wake up early in the mornings.

And then there is Karma. The kind of activities that we do. Now all these seven are more or less material.

And the last three are religious or spiritual. He says mantra, dhyana and samskara. So mantra of course we chant the Hare Krishna mantra.

Dhyana is our constant thought process. What we are thinking about. And samskara is the kind of impressions that we carry in our mind.

So when we go for yatras or when there are festivals very divine impressions get embedded into our consciousness. And that helps us to purge away all the demonic impressions that are there. And then tapatraya chikitsitam then these threefold miseries can all be eradicated.

And we see this in the life of the disciples of Srila Prabhupada. Although they had very bad impressions from their earlier life but because they practised intense Krishna consciousness by the time they had to leave their bodies they were completely pure. And they remembered Krishna and then they returned back to the spiritual world.

So I'll quickly summarise. We discussed how in this material world there is just misery and the patchwork to try to hide the perpetual miseries. We discussed the story of that joker as well as how people try to get opulences to mitigate their miseries.

But those who get opulences suffer more and create more suffering for others than those without opulences. And then we discussed what is the solution? That is one has to establish the samandha with Krishna. So that knowledge is there.

And then what is the abhidheya? Krishna describes four levels of abhidheya. And for us we are doing sadhana bhakti and we are dovetailing our propensities in Krishna's service. But when we are dovetailing our propensities in Krishna's service, we have to be careful that we don't become passionate.

And we discussed how the lord can purify our motives if we allow him to. If we try to change our desires as Gajendra and Dhruva did. But Purva had to suffer much more.

So we may come with our material propensities but gradually as we become purified then we can get the full mercy of the lord. If we stay in rajoguna then Krishna consciousness appears tasteless and sense gratification appears very appealing. And then a person cannot be steady or joyful.

And then towards the end we discussed about the ten factors if we change and how Prabhupada even on his death bed he says come to sattva guna by raising early in the morning by staying in the association of devotees. If we come to sattva guna then we can steadily practise Krishna consciousness.