19820908 Evening Address

(Disclaimer: The following is a machine-generated transcript and may contain errors or inaccuracies. It will be reviewed and verified against the original audio soon.)

The following is an Evening Address given by His Holiness Jayapatākā Swami Mahārāja on September 8, 1982 – in Denver, USA.

Practical Hare Kṛṣṇa nam kīrtana Bahari, Kīrtana Ramdun Dohai sk dara Monsai gada santino say śakti anna sabze acha mahdalan kipatana sabo saj saburiya. Hari Kṛṣṇa, Hari Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, Hari, Hari, Ram. Hari, Ram, Ram. Hari, Hari jab kwana raboma. By now Harinam Kona Monse to Christianha like in Amba. Kṛṣṇa Kahula, Jesus to Montana, eastern India to Zara. So, Mātājī, accident. Oh, you have been in the states. You’re an american citizen now. I am. Discuss. We would read one of the poems written by Bhakti Siddhartha Soursi Thakur, the spiritual master of Śrī Lanka. This poem Prawfat repeatedly referred to in his books as well as in some of his preaching. And many devotees probably recognized the first verse of that 19th verse work. Actually, I have been reading in different places and the fifth verse and a few other verses are still remaining to be done.

Otherwise, we have done all the verses at different lectures. Śrīla Rameshwara said that he thinks it can be published into a book like that. This past is another poem called worshipping Kṛṣṇa and Vrindavana written by Śrīla Prabhupāda, which follows in the footsteps of this particular poem. This particular work, both together with many practices. The first verse that generally people are quite familiar with that. What type of devotee are you? What type of device are you? You’re desiring. You’re being under the influence of that desiree for a person of pride, position, adoration for teach cup. Therefore you are desiring. Therefore you are performing Halim in a secluded place. And that is nothing but keeping. So he describes that just to give a synopsis. Before I get to the actual verse we discussed tonight, he’s describing that this materialistic position.

He said, it’s just like a sukhre bisha, you know that sukha, you know that pigs don’t eat. Anyway, one thing, it says pigs will eat anything. You know, I mean any animal. But they want me to understand the status of that. So my mind, don’t you know that all this is very important for some type of distinction. Devotional service is simply the illusion of Māyā. To desire. To desire various types of sense gratification. All these things. Not at all the work by devotees. In fact, they’re all temporary and illusory. Don’t take that for enjoyment, but rather use it for the service of mother. We have desire to enjoy sense gratification or to enjoy company with beautiful women. That is not your place. The only lord to be able to enjoy the service of everyone, to enjoy the service of unlimited, beautiful servitors, is marvelous.

No one else is actually qualified. So he goes on to describe that all this type of desire for importance is actually the Death note given by this material world. And there’s another type of situation, which is the devotees desiring, being proud of Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa reciprocating and automatically making his devotee very prominent for christian purposes. There’s nothing wrong in that position when it sees the kitchen. If you don’t worship in that way, then one can expect simply to go to Lora, which is one of the places discouraged in the God worship Kṛṣṇa. You don’t go to heaven anyway. That is Kate avoiding hopeful form. So it’s great this one. Four words will come out like four sentences. Very likely.

I hope I am not committing any offense because it’s very hard to fully understand everything in his works, because Prabhupāda has written in the same line. I am hoping that by his mercy I will be able to say something. But how you can address this is to become envious of the. To become envious of the pure devotees of the Lord. The Lord Kṛṣṇa is one of the torments that one has to suffer due to becoming desirous of achieving some kind of special recognition, same adoration. So he’s asking in his mind the why, therefore, do you glorify or become proud of this desire for some special significance, some special recognition, some special distinction, knowing that it’s simply a cause offenses to Vaishnavas. Actually, by simply engaging in serving the greatest, by serving the supreme personality of Godhead, the supreme Lord automatically devoted certain kind of recognition.

And for being qualified to serve the Lord and to propagate his message in a humble mind, there’s a type of desire also of position, the position of being the eternal humble servitor of the Lord. So he described that my mind, you should know that with that desire we have position of serving the Lord, preaching his message that there is nothing temporary in that desire or in that position. So therefore, you should rather concentrate on trying to be a devotee rather than worry about how much recognition other devotees are getting more or less than you. That’s the end of the translation. So basically, what’s being discussed here is that when a person is born in this material world, naturally there’s no spiritual knowledge at all.

One simply has sensual perception and gradually starts to learn about eating, about their relatives, about different forms of life finally comes into knowing about society, nation, culture and all different academic aspects also. And finally, in this way, a person begins to know the world that he’s living in, but also a very materialistic, superficial point of view. Than to actually realize that one is not the temporary body. Therefore, one is not directly connected with this material world, the family, the relatives and other things that those connections are due to the body. When we’re in this body, the connection is there. When we leave this body and go either back to Kṛṣṇa or go again to take birth in this material world in some other place, then that connection is again cut and we are separated somehow.

In this WAnderinG in this material world, person finds the bona fide spiritual master. When one is seeking to know who is the supreme LoRD, what is the supreme truth, what is the purpose of life? And by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa, one finally finds the guru. And that guru injects in the heart spiritual knowledge the seed of devotional service. And then one starts to serve Kṛṣṇa, the supreme Lord, through performance of devotional service. So then to aid one’s devotional service, one is enjoying to give up unfavorable things and to accept everything favorable. So then a devotee starts to give up distractions like me, eating, gambling, intoxication, avoid, or rather non vedic sex life. One starts to undergo the process of serving Kṛṣṇa, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, becoming purified in devotional service takes initiation from the spiritual master, may even take initiation, may take some yas.

But all of these things are still not the ultimate destination. The ultimate goal is to have pure love, for action to be established and has intimate devotional service. So in the path of going back to home, back to Godhead, giving up these glorious material attachments. So I said about half of the battle. Generally speaking, we’re discussing with that half of the battle all the time. But then what is the other half of the battle? Once a person gets over the initial material and gross attachments. But then there are many subtle attachments which are in our mind. Desire for recognition, desire for some special power, for some kind of worship, desire for pūjā, for some prophet, these are there. Even suddenly we find that devotees, sometimes they think, well, let me make some money for Kṛṣṇa.

Then they say, well, I will just go out to this and then I will make it rich and I will give my money to Kṛṣṇa. And this is very nice. Then they leave the term flow and they go and try to do some business. They expected to become a millionaire in a few weeks, but they still have not, you know, cleared it. Then they make a little money, and then they think, well, I won’t give anything to Christian yet because I need the capital. How many times we have seen this happen? And then they go on like that. And then they have so much bad association. Before you know it, then they become more and more separated from devotees. They become resentful devotees. There is one aspect of going away from devotees. And India.

There’s another aspect where not only india, but even here, we find to some extent, though, people will go away to perform some private worship, some private or separate kind of movement into worship where they just an independent way. They do some worship of ajram. And then they’re trying to show that. They say, we don’t need all this association, so we have a better view and therefore we can succeed. Then, of course, there are just some who, they get overcome by their material desires and they enter back into the material world. So here what we’re discussing is the mind. He’s addressing Gustavo. All right, you ask your mind, you listen. What are you thinking about? All right, so you want to be recognized. You have some big position. You want to go off and show that this independence.

You don’t realize this is all the cause that you simply envious of other God, brothers and other devotees. You don’t see that what you are suffering because of this desire for some recognition. You say, oh, why he God? Do I see that? Why this one God? And then you’re becoming envious of them, and this envy is further driving you down to hell. So don’t mind. Don’t just become distracted in this way. You want some position. You want some importance. That real importance is not in the superficial consideration and some superficial or external position in the root. The real importance is to have the service of Kṛṣṇa to become a real, pure Vaishnava. There is no cheap thing. That is the greatest thing, to be the servant of the servant of the Lord. So you decide to become a humble.

And that is the greatest position. There is nothing material in that. Whatever. You be a humble servant to your spiritual master, and you use everything that Kṛṣṇa provides simply for the service of Kṛṣṇa. Use everything that Kṛṣṇa provides simply for the service of Caitanya Mahāprabhu for preaching his message. Don’t be concerned with others. Don’t try to leave the society of devotees to show others some kind of false pride or envy or desire for some importance that you don’t feel you’re getting in a society of devotees. We know, of course, that the background in the Gauli I mentioned that in Raha Khan the court is mentioned Leela Amita, that Bhakti at that time told him that I simply want books printed, that I built a big temple in Baghdad.

But ever since we had the big temple, then who was going to stay in what room? All these considerations came up. Who’s going to stay in what room and who’s going to have what position entitled. Now I am thinking better to tear out the white marble from the temple floor, sell it in print. Books. I can see there is going to be fire ignited in the mission I started. So the second half of the battle is to control the mind. The whole secret is there. In the third birth of Lord Caitanya Mahabra Sikhshastaka, being more humble than histories, more tolerant than the tree, always ready to offer respect unto others and not angering for respect for oneself.

In this humble state of mind, one can always chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa Mahama, that actually the devotee gives more happiness to see other devotees glorified, to see other devotees recognized. This is that devotional mood that you will find in the Loka. Even in Vaikuṇṭha, they are devotee, another devotee glorified. When a devotee is himself or herself being glorified, they are feeling at that time less happiness than when they actually go out. Find another. When a devotee is able to serve Kṛṣṇa directly, they are more happy when they can arrange when others devote to serve. This is the unique position in the spiritual sky, because everything is directed for Kṛṣṇa’s pleasure. Therefore, however we see Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa’s loved ones warrant, that’s actually more relatable for the pure devotees, and of course, because they are feeling the same way.

So sooner or later devotees may also be given somebody in a society, devotees, but they’re not really interested in that. The other secret was told here that if any money, recognition, whatever may be, it’s given, that should all be used simply for the service of Mahathabhati. Bhaktived once advised his bravadi that if you see any beautiful woman, you should think that, oh, this will be a very nice servitor for Lord Kṛṣṇa. The same thing. Bhakti Sananta Takwa. Here we’re finding that he’s saying the same thing, that the. Take it that he is the lord of all women. Take it that he is the master of all wealth, he is the lord of all things. And don’t become entangled in desiring anything independent. If something comes, use it for the service of Kṛṣṇa.

Of course, we also are having Kṛṣṇa Khansha’s householder life and that particular ashram. And husband and wife together cooperate. The same examples that are given for men to women are all the same the other way. And if you can apply that. But in Kṛṣṇa counts his household life, the husband wife to cooperate together to use everything for Kṛṣṇa. So in material life, this brihameidi consciousness is so powerful, beating the Joneses, seeing who has what. I know they’re dealing india with some less advanced devotees. You hear them, you know, complaining like sometimes some of them want to fight. The household is. The wife is telling the husband that this one is got six salaries. I only got five or they have 15, I only have ten. Why the temple gave her a silk and mine was, you know, not to say rs20 cheaper.

And it creates the whole thing, you know, so they have. So it becomes a very technical situation to deal with. When people are just coming in from the mature world. You can see that even they’re coming. Still a lot of these things plague them. So we get an idea about material life. So in the same way that mentality is there within us. So we know about Kṛṣṇa. Kant is competition, that is competition to please Kṛṣṇa. If someone else is able to do better service, then a devotee becomes very happy. Well, congratulations. By the mercy of Guru and Kṛṣṇa, you’re able to do my service. Then the devotee chai is harder. And may my service also be so nice. When Mahavender Purī saw that they’re offering such nice sweet rice or kir to the Lord, he didn’t think that, oh, become envious.

That why they’re offering such nice things. You know, this that makes them like this happens india now. If they see offering nice thing, then they can’t offer. They’re not thinking about offering. They will make find out some criticism. Oh, why they’re wasting so much money. That type of mentality is there. We find Mahārāja Purī. So what a wonderful offering they made to Kṛṣṇa. I wish I could somehow know how I. How they’re making it, how I could make similar nice offering for my Gopal deviya Kṛṣṇa. So in that way, devotees is very happy to see Kṛṣṇa serve maitri. Rather, they want to learn from others success, to increase in their own devotion, to increase them in perfecting their own service. But somehow that’s the pure mentality.

But when the material mentality gets in there, the dush kamon, the rascal mind, then we start to see things in a painted way. Just like what’s his name, Sakuni kept giving the bad advice like that. The mind tends to come out with the envious thoughts. Why? Even though you know why that person is giving that facility, why I am not giving that facility. So on and so forth. It can be in any level, doesn’t matter. And from that, a type of seed of envy is created, a type of Harijana grace. And then that makes you feel immediately unpeaceful anxiety. So the prophet said that as soon as you start to desire, immediately you feel dissatisfied. As soon as you desire anything material, you’re dissatisfied.

When you’re desiring to increase your devotion, to spread the message of Kṛṣṇa to fallen souls, to help others, in that way, one doesn’t feel dissatisfied. That desire itself brings internal satisfaction. But as soon as one desires anything material, immediately there’s a dissatisfaction sentence. So that thing we have to see, the mind is just like a creeper. It has to be guided by a very straight rod. That’s the intelligence has to constantly see. Is this thought that my mind is proposing to me based on materialistic Batista asa? Is it based upon ending the devotees? Is it a type of materialistic desire, or is it a pure Kṛṣṇa conscious desire? And if it’s the materialistic, they will reject it. Yeah, you nasty mind. While you’re going after these ridiculous things, you want to drag me down to hell.

I have come so far in emotional service, you want to simply block me now at the 11th hour. In this way, the intelligence is used to control the mind. So this thing about the solitary worship or going off from the devotees is very subtle, because the mind, it can’t directly just propose that, all right, stop emotion, go back to material life. If someone’s already quite advanced, then they’re not going to just accept that plus little some prestige with the society of devotees and others, it’s a difficult choice. So the mind has to propose it in a way that appears to be a Kṛṣṇa conscious alternative. So that’s why. All right, I am going to go off and worship these devotees. They’re not good. Their society is not good. I am going to, I am going to do my own worship, and I know better.

We know better, the four of us, whatever we’re going on, you don’t know anything. This whole thing is the mind is just cheating the intelligence. Intelligence knows deep down that this is bogus. Somehow, the mind wanted some type of recognition, some kind of festivity, which was not pure devotional. And therefore, instead of rather surrendering and becoming more fixed up in devotion, somehow finding the proper method of performing Kṛṣṇa consciousness under those situations or finding a better situation within the authorized process given by Lord Sheikha Mirasam Kirk movement, the Kṛṣṇa conscious movement given by Śrīla Prabhupāda. The mind is trying to find some kind of excuse to still make it seem like, see, I am all right, I am Kansas. See, not only that, but they want to prove. The mind wants to prove that more advanced, not only as, but more like that.

In India, many people, they become babaji, so called Balaji. They try to imitate the Sikh swamis and they say false imitation. And they just go and they do some worship. Prophet has stoutly chastised them in that previous poem, worshipping Lord Kṛṣṇa and Vrindavana, that they’re going around and dressing in their short rotis and begging for, begging daily for their food. They’re simply there. Babaji is simply running after some japanese and some chickpeas. And when any real preaching is to be done, then they’re nowhere to be seen. Whole Kṛṣṇa conscious philosophy, the message of Lord Chaitanya is being challenged by so many people. They want to know. They’re asking questions, who is your Kṛṣṇa? When the Kṛṣṇa missionaries come to India, they ask that, what is this Kṛṣṇa? He’s got 16,000 wives. He’s got dancing with cowherd girls. What is this? Your God is immoral.

They ask such questions. The prophet is saying, when the fathers are coming, we bring out and ask the then the Babaji, they’re nowhere to be seen. They’re only going after the Japan, their bread and their dog, the chickpeas. And these fathers, they could hear what Kṛṣṇa is, that he’s the same God Almighty, that is the supreme lord. That why God is supreme, that he has everything that man has in a perfect way and much more. Why 16,000? He has millions. But they’re all spiritual goddesses of fortune, angels who are living eternally with him. And they’re not having material relationship. They have pure spiritual relationship. The kingdom of God is not a dry place. It is filled with variety and beauty. And that’s where real happiness is. But they don’t know.

So they’re criticizing, they’re challenging and those who are supposed to know because they’re putting on a show that, no, we’re so renounced, we’re Babaji, so on and so forth, that they don’t actually go and tell them. The prophet said, they’re Khemistarikaris, they’re devotees of the third class. So they don’t have any compassion for these people and for the fallen souls who therefore have to suffer because of not getting this message of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, not giving rishnesses, not knowing the real truth about what is the purpose of life, who is God, what is the kingdom of God, what are his pastimes and activities, qualities form. The prophet was chastising them very much. And his poem explains the detail behind what this is given. 19 his was 27 verses and each verse was four times as long as this.

So it’s like about four, eight times as long. It’s an expansion. So the mind is taking us away from Kṛṣṇa if we let it. Therefore we train the mind or what are you doing? Mind? We have to be aware what are these subtle dangers. We start getting into these subtle desires, start feeling unfulfilled. Then the mind starts to try to find some alternative to serving in pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And we next thing we know, we’re going to be in royal. That’s the lowest hellish planet, practically speaking, one of the lowest hellish planets, especially meant for devotees who offend their gurus and offend the vaishnavas and who give up the pure path of Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

So now that the mind should be instructed again that actually to be a devotee, to be situated in dedicated devotional service, that is a transcendental situation, that is the pure situation. And we should try to understand what type of desire for a position as a devotee is appropriate, that there is appropriate desires, that there is appropriate situation, but that is all connected with the preaching, connected with the devotees, connected with satisfying the guru, and that within that appropriate desire for actually being situated as a devotee of the lord, there’s not even a hinge, not even a cent of material contamination, not even the aroma hare Kṛṣṇa there. Any questions? Nice bump. Very nice. Yeah. It seems like you’re encouraging talking to yourself. So I am kind of confused about that. If I am talking to myself, what is it?

Is it the soul that’s talking to the mind? Or is. Sometimes intelligence is talking to the mind or the mind is talking to the soul. I don’t understand the psychology of habits. Let’s see. The intelligence is directly connected with the soul. In materialize, the intelligence is being directed to serving the mind serving the senses. The senses are serving dull matter. But when you turn it around and one transcending and false ego has the real ego, that I am the servant of Kṛṣṇa and then uses the intelligence to direct the mind for serving in Kṛṣṇa, see the intelligence and the starts to relate directly with the soul. And finally, the soul’s quality is to be intelligent. That is, one of. There is a spiritual intelligence which is non different from the soul, and that gradually develops when one has one’s spiritual body.

At that time, the material intelligence is gone and the spiritual intelligence is there. But that also develops. And one develops that by using the intelligence. With this intelligence can reason, can decide what’s good, what’s bad, on the basis of certain policy criteria. So generally the policy is just based upon social sense, gratificatory ideas. But in Kansas, it’s based upon what’s ultimately beneficial for my service to Kṛṣṇa. What’s favorable to service of Kṛṣṇa. So you see the thoughts that come up, these are every. The yogis, they describe that there’s just an unlimited chain of thoughts, one after another. You see something, you think this Prabhupāda gave the example that say you’re walking down the street, you see some big movie advertisement there, you see there is a man and there’s a woman. They’re embracing.

Then a man sees it, next thing he sees is in his mind. The next thought is the mind puts himself in the place of the man, woman sees it, puts herself in the place of the woman, and next thing they’re embracing the other person on the thing. This is like the mental, just the mind, whatever it sees, some images there, the suggestions are there and thoughts are coming to come. That’s why they’re using all these things in advertising. One sees create suggestions and the thoughts just keep coming, one after another. So the intelligence is actually independent of this continuous thought train. When the thought comes up, it can reject it, or it can direct the mind to think further on it, or it can direct the mind go somewhere else. So this intelligence, when it’s purified, is very close to the soul.

And finally, when one is completely liberated, the intelligence and the soul are non different, they’re one. So.

(Side B of the Cassette)

And how is so much Māyā, and how it’s rotten and this and that. But then by doing that, you know, then we start getting agītāted. Or we can just, we can direct our mind what we want to think about. Suddenly we get an idea in our mind. It just comes up, you know, here’s a razky, let me smash him. But then our intelligence will say, but he’s bigger than you are, or it’s not, you shouldn’t smash him because it’s not worth the trouble, or he doesn’t really deserve it, or whatever you think of so many. So that’s like the intelligence. The mind first comes up with an idea, and then the intelligence is very subtle. And intelligence creates other thoughts to come up, like, should I do that? Then a few other thoughts that come up why you should or shouldn’t do it.

In this way. It’s very hard, of course, to understand that there’s like two machines there. One is directing what the thoughts are coming. One after another. One can direct those thoughts, can accept, reject. And that very subtle higher faculty is actually called intelligence, the reasoning power. Otherwise, thoughts, they come up. Even a crazy thought, even disgusting thoughts they come up with. How did that come? Just because we’re living in the world, we have so many, we see different images, we see different advertisements, we see things. It creates an impression, then those thoughts that may bring up a thought later. So at that time, the intelligence is there to say, well, it’s not me. This is not me. This is just like library impression, video impression is coming up in the mind. The mind is the next thing above the ether.

So it’s very susceptible to just starting to produce these images. So then intelligence has to direct. No, you can reason to the mind, why are you thinking like that? Why are you bringing up these thoughts? This is the danger. We start to only see the negative aspects of material life. Then we’re meditating on material life. Better to think of Kṛṣṇa. That way. We find many of the atarias, they pray to the mind, because if the mind wants to keep on battering us with really degraded thoughts, after a while, it gets very difficult for the intelligence. So the intelligence reasons with the mind why you shouldn’t think about these things.

And somehow, although it seems kind of like you’re talking to yourself, some kind of an abstract thing, but in this way, it actually clarifies the point between the coordination between the intelligence and the mind. And that way, it also helps one to reason out the good and bad points of different thoughts. And somehow by that also, it detracts Kṛṣṇa’s mercy, because he sees you really trying to get over the difficulties. And the end result is that it’s easier to actually control your mind and think about Kṛṣṇa. So although the mind, there’s only one soul there, and it’s not that the mind is an independent living entity or something, but it goes on in its own way, it’s got its own momentum and to kind of change its momentum, to direct it, so that sometimes the mind is addressed.

And by addressing the mind, what happened is actually the intelligence is also being tuned exactly how to, because the mind can reject and accept. You see, the mind has the nature of just like, you see, just like someone will see a picture and say, oh, that’s good, or see it’s bad, or you see, oh, that girl’s ugly, oh, that one’s beautiful. Or you see some, oh, this looks good, this looks bad, or this tastes good, that mind automatically has that ability to accept and reject a. But then you have to program the mind. The mind is like a computer, you have to program it. That what you should accept that you’re accepting things which are unacceptable. You’re accepting things on the basis of your previous material life, the mind has to.

That’s why the intelligence is actually programming the mind, because the mind automatically will accept and reject. So we want to program the mind as soon as the Māyā thought comes up from the mind itself, that the mind acceptance, rejection, inbuilt program will immediately reject. That may come up with a thought, because some impression and reject. And then the intelligence can then direct, go this way, go that way. It’s kind of like the intelligence is described as the driver, you see, and the chariot is like, is the mind, and the horses are the senses. It describes even that the 6th horse is the mind. One of the pulling agents is also the mind. So the devotee already more or less got over the five senses controlling them. But then the mind is the main problem, because the mind is also.

The mind is the range, and intelligence is the. The mind is the range, and the intelligence is the driver. So the mind is coordinating all the sensual things, the thoughts, all these, they’re all connected, but the intelligence is the driver. So practically, in modern terms, it’s like programming your mind to program it, what to accept, what to reject. And that makes it easier, as you automatically start to reject things, just like Prabhupāda instructed, that when you see, say that naturally you will be attracted to the opposite sex. But then, if you consider that if a person wants to remain celibate, the one thing that you can just immediately picture that person 50 years from now, right? All wrinkles and everything like that. So then it just helps one to remember that the forms we have now are very superficial and they’re not the real person.

That the real person is something deeper. And then it starts to relate as a. So I found as a, you know, young Brahmachary that was very helpful to just have these type of automatic programs where. Where suddenly the mind was a little bit exposed to some kind of attraction, that there would be inbuilt programs to just suddenly give oneself just enough time to not become distracted from one’s devotional service. So we’re dealing here on even a higher level. But it’s the same idea that the mind actually can be our best friend, Bhagavad Gītā says, or it can be our worst enemy, depending on how it’s controlled. So how to control the mind? Obviously, we have to control it. The mind isn’t supposed to control us. We are supposed to control it. Page 312.

I was just wondering, how does hypnosis work?

Well, you’re dealing with the subconscious mind where the thoughts are coming from, right? You don’t see where they come from. Maybe sitting in the middle of Christ, listening, all of a sudden you start thinking about, what’s for prasad to do? Then the next thing you think, yesterday the prasad was great, but the tao was burned. Who’s the clue? You know, like this. And pretty soon, you know, you’re way off there, right? So it’s like that the mind has a tendency of just, you know, going off anywhere. So then we have to learn to control it. Text five is udari dat manat manan natman avasada gītā. Translation? A man must elevate himself by his own mind, not degrade himself. The mind is the friend of the conditioned soul and his enemy as well. The word ātmā denotes body, mind, and soul depending upon different circumstances.

In the yoga system, the mind and the conditioned soul are especially important since the mind is a central point of yoga practice. Ātmā refers here to the mind. The purpose of the yoga system is to control the mind and to draw it away from attachment to sense objects. It is stressed herein that the mind must be so trained that it can deliver the conditioned soul from the mire of meshes. In material existence, one is subjected to the influence of the mind and the senses. In fact, a pure soul is entangled in the material world because of the mind’s ego, which desires to lord it over material nature. Therefore, the mind should be trained so that it will not be attracted by the glitter of material nature, and in this way the conditioned soul may be saved.

One should not degrade oneself by attraction to sense objects. The more one is attracted by sense objects, the more one becomes entangled in material existence. The best way to disentangle oneself is to always engage the mind. In Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the word he is used for emphasizing this point, in other words, that one must do this. It also said mana eva manusha naram karanang bandarmokshayo bandhaya vishaya sangho for man, mind is the cause of bondage, and mind is the cause of liberation. Mind absorbed in sense objects is the cause of bondage, and mind detached from the sense objects is the cause of liberation. Therefore, the mind which is always engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is the cause of supreme liberation. You want to hear more about the mind? Yes.

Bandhuratmatmanas translation Mashallah Prabhupāda chapter six text five six for him who has conquered the mind is the best of friends, but for one who has failed to do so, his very mind will be the greatest enemy. The purpose of practicing Eightfold yoga is to control the mind in order to make it a friend in discharging the human mission. Unless the mind is controlled, the practice of yoga for show is simply a waste of time. One who cannot control his mind lives always with the greatest enemy, and thus his life and its mission are spoiled. The constitutional position of the living entity is to carry out the order of the superior. As long as one’s mind remains an unconquered enemy, one has to serve the dictations of lust, anger, avarice, illusion, etcetera.

But when the mind is conquered, one voluntarily agrees to abide by the dictation of the personality of Godhead, who is situated within the heart of everyone as param Ātmā, real yoga practice entails meeting with the param Ātmā within the heart and then following his dictation. For one who takes the Kṛṣṇa consciousness directly, perfect surrender to the dictation of the Lord follows automatically. There’s one third here. Verse seven Sitoshna Sukaduke translation for one who has conquered the mind, the super soul is already reached, for he has attained tranquility. To such a man, happiness and distress, heat and cold, honor and dishonor are all the same. Actually, every living entity is intended to abide by the dictation of the supreme personality of Godhead, who is seated in everyone’s heart as param Ātmā.

When the mind is misled by the external illusory energy, one becomes entangled in material activities. Therefore, as soon as one’s mind is controlled through one of the yoga systems, one is to be considered as having already reached the destination. One has to abide by superior dictation. When one’s mind is fixed on the superior nature, he has no other alternative but to follow the dictation of the supreme. The mind must admit some superior dictation and follow it. The effect of controlling the mind is that what automatically follows the dictation of the paramātmā or super soul. Because this transcendental position is at once achieved by one who is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the devotee of the Lord is unaffected by the dualities of material existence. Namely distress and happiness, cold and heat, etcetera. This state is practical samadhi, or absorption in the supreme.

So the yoga process, they try to control the mind by doing the Eightfold system. Pranayama. Just thinking of breathing. Breath coming in. Filled apartheid. Hold the breath. Breath going out. Breath coming in. Hold the breath, fill the pot. Breath going out. Left nostril coming back in. And this way you start they are simply meditating on their breath. And then after like this, they are able to actually. When they hold the breath is considered to be advanced stage. When they can actually stop the thoughts. And at that time they’re supposed to be meditating on Vishnu in the heart. And in that way they come into Samadhi or that meditation. The first thing is they just get the thought but they do it in a very mechanical way. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness is known as Buddha yoga that we perform.

So I was just wondering, actually the intelligence is like super soul.

Yes. The intelligence of the Kṛṣṇa conscious person is actually the super soul. That’s why whether a disciple will confirm with the spiritual master that this is my idea. There’s only two alternatives. Either the idea from our intelligence is dictation of super soul or it’s Māyā. Because Māyā also gives us intelligence. If we want to increase, go back to Kṛṣṇa, then Kṛṣṇa is giving intelligence. And if we want to increase our material life, then Māyā gives intelligence. So in the beginning stage of devotion, we get a different, you know, at that point it’s. It’s not that every thought we. Some of it left over Māyā thoughts and Māyā ideas. So that way when we had everything confirmed with a superior authority. Whether the thought is Kṛṣṇa conscious or whether it’s Māyā.

And just like some of I think I should do for Kṛṣṇa, I should, you know, go out and do a business and make it rich like that. So then the guru or some senior Vaisna will consider a situation in the shastra and so on. Then tell him that whether his idea, his opinion is actually dictated by Māyā or by the super soul. So the Kṛṣṇa conscious intelligence is actually dictated by the super soul. So here the mind is being trained to understand that what is Māyā and what is Kṛṣṇa conscious on these very subtle topics. So that because you see that Māyā is illusory, so she disguises the things that even the thought, it may appear to be Kṛṣṇa conscious. Just like I was speaking with this one head pundit of the, that kimato mato, the Gombera.

So they had guru there, I had pandits. So they. We challenge them. That why you are chanting this? Nitāi goa, śrī kṛṣṇa karnya, prabhunity, hare kṛṣṇa, hare Ram, śrī ra govinda. That why you cut up the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. You cut up the Pachytattva mantra. You cut up. These are called kamdanams. You take a bona fide mantra and you cut it up and you make a khichdi. So why you do this? Why are you doing that? And of course, there was a long three, four hour discussion. He quoted so much Sanskrit and Bengali slokas. But it was all just, you know, like smoke in the eye. So one of the things that he said, well, listen, not everyone knows, Lord Caitanya, not everyone knows Radagobinda, not everyone knows. But someone knows one or the other everywhere.

So this way, by taking a little bit here, a little bit there, a little bit everywhere. You see, that way it’s very good for the Biharis, for the up Wallace. For this one, it’s a very, you see, marketing wise, it’s quite good. You know, that was when he was getting near the end, you know, when he was really grasping for some kind of, you know, ground, you know. So he says, you know, it’s not question of marketing medicine Avenue tactics about which mantra you should use. They’re supposed to be bona fide from the spiritual source. So that one, he had to change the subject real quick. We quarantined him on that. But this is the idea he was thinking. He had this material idea that. Well, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa is too difficult. Let’s step into, then we will get everybody.

Those who are the Radago venda devotees, those who are. This one will get everyone this way. This is better than Hare Kṛṣṇa. That has a limited market. This way we expand our market, our sales potential for getting spiritual disciples, whatever. So, you know, like that they get into. So that’s, like, superficially, maybe. It sounds like it’s. Well, you know. Yeah, he thought it was a pretty good argument, you know, but went over like a lead balloon with it BeCause he was compromising the original standards. And rather than uplift the people, he’s just trying to, you know, concoct DifFereNt methods. So, like that, one has to see that what’s AcTuaLLY bona fide and what. What are the limitations and what are the scriptures. This way, the mind is trained even. He was a big pundit, but he had so many strange ideas.

Actually, what they’re DoiNg is not that bad.

They’re one of the better groups. At the end of the 4 hours, he finally turned around and said, you know, we accept HARe Kṛṣṇa. We chant it once a year. It’s just, actually, we are very grateful for what you’re doing. You’re doing the greatest service by preaching this hari naam all over the world and everything. And what Prabhupda has done. And we don’t mind. You come here and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. We also chant one day a year, but actually, somehow along the way, one of our gurus, he gave us this mantra, and so we start doing it, and there’s not much we can do about it now. Don’t mind like that. In the end, he was almost apologetic.

Is that good.

Self hypnosis? Well, this is. This is self hypnosis. Means you’re conscious. So this is self hypnosis. When you’re just repeating something to yourself, you’re memorizing it, you’re programming your mind, that’s self hypnosis. When someone else does it for you and you’re unaware of what’s going on, that’s what they say is hypnosis. So then you have to have a lot of faith in the other person, but I don’t know the exact details behind it. As far as in terms of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it’s one of the siddhis, one of the eight mystic powers is to be able to control others minds of. But we don’t study those things much.

So pure devotee has all eight cities. When a pure devotee comes, is that why he’s converting them?

No, but he doesn’t use. So they don’t manifest his cities because, see, that type of thing would be a mechanical that they may do. Sometimes you just see that, you know, certain situation, a person is real angry all of a sudden. You know, they kind of just shut off and walk away or something. That’s when they use the city. It’s just like you just switched them on to a different wavelength and they went off. But you can’t make a person that’s devoted by hypnosis because ultimately has to come from the soul. You might, you know, hypnosis might be able to help a person, you know, spontaneously reject certain kinds of sense gratification. But ultimately, if a soul wants to enjoy this material world, then there’s no material way that you’re going to make him Kṛṣṇa conscious, him or her Kṛṣṇa conscious.

If the soul is decided, I want to enjoy this material world that RPA Goswami describes, that neither private talks, discussion groups, or big meetings are going to change his mind. The devotee, a person, if he wants to go back to Kṛṣṇa will give in to the devotee, will give the understanding who went on the line.

Because of the culture we’re raising our minds, have ingested so many things and so often, like I have seen in ISKCON, their devotees, though, I guess the saying is they will just leave. They will leave without actually discussing things with their authorities because of. I guess it would because they’re the. They’re afraid of what the authorities will think or so many things like this. How can this actually be avoided within the movement so that the devotees actually can confide in their authorities and actually get rid of mental concoctions and so many different things that come up? Is there a way, I mean, that devotees can actually, you know, stop this from happening so that they can actually. They’re having difficulties. They can actually just go right to their authorities and try and have the authorities clear.

It really depends on a lot is depending on the personal relationship between the individuals. If that type of faith in relationship is there, then they should naturally want to confide india because we don’t have a lot of Prabhupāda’s books translated into Bengali or Hindi yet. And because people dwell a lot stronger on their tradition, the tradition of ashram or a guru, they know about traditionally, what some standard they have an idea conception, but they don’t necessarily always really have a lot of the background philosophy. Well, in the west, because there’s no tradition, so the philosophical background is always stressed very much, and people study more and know the philosophy. So there’s a difference, actually, in dealing india.

A lot of it is, you see the people here, lady, please give your blessings, bless my daughter, that she can have a happy life and so on and so forth. They’re very steeped in tradition, but then philosophically they may be, you know, at first grade, they may not know that much in terms of a lot of deep philosophy. They just may have some general idea of traditional thing. So there india, there’s an inborn thing that in 90% of the cases, they have an understanding that I shouldn’t leave without saying I am going, just trained like that. If I am gonna go, I should go out the front door. Of course, they have to go out the back door. They will probably paint you black anyway, and say you ran off with something. So, you know, nice. They actually steal something, go out the back door.

Any person that’s there for, you know, they say that, you know, this is the problem, this is that. And then, you know, they go, well, there we have also the congregational programs that we try to engage them even when they’re outside the movement. That’s all right, you were a devotee for so long, or you’re still a devotee. If you can’t stay in the temple, at least make your village, Kṛṣṇa conscious, or your city or your family like that.

Or of course, first you try to convince them to stay, but they have that kind of a tradition, that tradition or that type of responsibility, where any person that comes to our movement would feel obligated to the leaders, that they’re actually well wishers, that they’re trying to help them, whoever it may be, the temple president, or back to leader, whatever it may be, so that if they have difficulty, they know that, well, they should confide. And if they really feel that it’s too difficult for them to make a real go at this time any longer, at least then they can say, you know, maybe they have to apologize, maybe it’s a difficult situation, but if they actually feel any gratefulness, then they should do that.

I know that if you get that can be trained, they can receive that kind of a training from when they join, that they should confine, if there is any difficulty. And the fact that as the congregational programs are more developed and actually take more of a shape, you will find a lot of people that are that over a period of years, gradually developing Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and then who become, you know, full time practicing devotees, even with either in the temple or in their house, you will find that they will be of a caliber that won’t stop suicidal, they won’t give it up so quickly. In other words, if over a period of years, you come up to that state, say you’re chatting four rounds for two years, you come eight like they come up 16 to give it all up, you’d be coming and going.

Finally, over all this time, you develop a relationship. Then it’s less likely that those people are going to just suddenly, just sometimes, you know, there’s some. Someone gets a little toasted in material life. You know, has some difficulty feelings from the high school exam. Or has an argument with the parent, or broken home or this or that, whatever, just on a bummer. There’s all kinds of people that come. And then somehow they come and they get good association. They feel some inspiration. They start practicing devotional service. And some of them make it. And some of them, after they get a little relief from whatever was troubling them. Then they feel, well, you know. Because now they got a little more self confidence built up. They got a little more relief from whatever was problemling in them.

Then they just feel, well, let me now make another stab at it. Material world doesn’t look that bad. And because they haven’t really been around long enough. Or taken, you know, really understood enough. Their motives for coming may not have been that in focus when they came. So one aspect is developing a personal relationship. With the people that deal with them. Other aspect is having that type of congregational program. Where they feel that, well, even if I don’t stay in the temple, it would be still good to be connected. Because there is an arrangement for that being connected. And something is better than nothing. And, of course, the other aspect is just that they have a better understanding. So that they don’t make those mistakes when they’re there in the temple. Building up as quickly as possible. A very strong foundation.

Someone who comes looking for the absolute truth. Generally they don’t want to go. Unless there usually has to be some tinge of these other aspects of sense gratification. Or maybe a tinge of Māyā body idea. For someone who’s looking for the truth. For this condition not to accept a personal concept of goddess that distracts them. So as quickly as possible. They can build up in the west a philosophical foundation or anywhere. Then that is the single most protection india. Because it takes a long time to build up. Because they already have so many ideas from the tradition there. We find that the personal Relationship is so important. That just on the basis of personal relationship. People stay in devotional service. They work in Sankirtan. They give their life just on the basis of the personal relationship. And gradually they start to assimilate the philosophy.

But there the personal relationship is actually somewhat more important. I mean, if you have a person doesn’t, you know, you have experience, they may not know anything. In philosophy, but if you just know how to treat them nicely, encourage them, and get them to chant and then a little bit, they know, I mean, they know something, the basics, just that relationship, they will work like anything and be very happy. While in the west, it doesn’t, it’s not that simple. But here, of course, the devotees that are there that were so strong that they really know the philosophy, that they’re very self sufficient in that way, it’s very good, just a whole different situation.

But I feel still that the thing you’re saying that, well, they leave without saying that personal relationship would help, then other things will be this congregational, the main thing, of course, they have to know the philosophy and should build up a strong foundation, so there should be.

You know, more available, so that there’s not that, you know, you see so many people coming, and because there’s no any kind of outside, current, middle of the road program for them, they just, you know, you never stand again, they never call, they never write, and you just gone, you know, you see those people, you loot. It seems kind of a loss.

If you have, I mean, the other successful groups in America, like the Mormon, 7th Adventist, or whatever, there’s different Jehovah Witness if they get a name. I think it takes, like, even if you wanted to get off the mailing list, it’d take a long time. Not that we want a pesticide. What if a person generally a little interested, then at least we should have a follow up program that we just sent out a bunch of junk mail and people don’t want it.

But if someone comes and they’re interested, and then they somehow met a devotee and thank your town, or they have come to the temple, you see, I met many Bhakti that said, well, they met a devotee two and a half years ago in sats and such, airport, got a book, read it, liked it, but then just got all involved with, you know, this girlfriend and this thing and this, you know, and then a year later, when they got smashed by the material energy, she left her or something. She left them. They remember, oh, that book I read. Then they thought, let me go to the temple.

And then they went, I got, you know, the temple, went to a Sunday feast, and then, you know, they got into something else, and then they were joining some band that went off, you know, whatever, and then like a year later, then again, they got. At that time, they came to temple, and then they became, you know. But in the meantime, had someone been writing them, keeping some connection, having some kind of program. It could be that they would have made a lot of advancement in that two and a half years, even though they were definitely not ready at that point. They had a lot of desires and material things. But if they were programmed, they could have done some service. Pastor could have watched some other books, subscribe to the doctor. Godhead may have even become a devotee.

The first time that they realized some of the naked cruelty of material nature. It’s usually when people get frustrated. They think about spiritual life when they’re high in material success. They get a little proud. They don’t want to listen to anything. They don’t want anything to endanger what they cherish. They don’t realize at any moment they could lose it. It’s to their security. Kṛṣṇa says that it’s not my greatest mercy that when a person loses everything and then they become surrendered to me and devoted greater than that is one that has so much material facility, but they don’t. They realize that it’s actually due to the. Ultimately to the blessings of God, and therefore they don’t become falsely proud. So then they don’t have to lose it. I don’t have to take it away from them just to show them that’s a greater standard.

Like America. They came to the west here. They came here and they established this country basically on religious freedom was one of the main things. A lot of the original settlers came here because there was persecution of them in England, religious persecution. So they came here and they did a lot of, you know, they built their churches and they did their, I mean, my grandfather and other people, they were all, you know, reading the Bible every day for like an hour and doing their prayers and everything. But, you know, those days are now becoming history and, you know, so what’s going to happen is everybody puffed up. We’re the greatest nation. We’re power. They don’t realize that they’re enjoying the results of pious activities of their forefathers. And now they’re where they’re just using those up.

And then again, so that they become godly kama, to take everything away, put them in a difficulty. So then they start to think that, you know, somewhere went wrong. So better than let America go through this degeneration. Due to their sinful activity, they become Kṛṣṇa conscious due to knowledge, due to proper association. All these recessions and difficulties, they should start to see the handwriting on the wall. Yes.

You mentioned earlier that his intelligence.

Is.

We can understand that also has a conscience, and that since the mind has had unlimited desires, it’s time immemorial. And therefore, all these desires, they can’t make one happy. The mind has gone through the perpetual frustration by trying to fulfill these desires.

Why is it that one has to.

Actually beat the mind to give it up? Why can’t it just give them up after unlimited time, that experience, so much.

Sensation.

Can we forget? We suffer, but we forget. So we have to remind ourselves. The mind has a way of camouflaging the same thing. We have done it a thousand times. We have seen it a thousand times in different ways, but to the mind, slightly different ways. So even in spiritual life, the mind camouflages. Māyā, get out from the devotees. Get a little further out here so I can kick you, so I can capture you. So then you won’t go out. Presents gratification. You’re beyond that stage. So then the mind is saying, all right, the camouflages. You come out and become more Kansas. You’re better than the other devotees. You’re too good for them.

Yes, that was just reminding me of, like, sex. Every year there’s a new style in women’s fashion. First the swimming suits are like this, then they’re like this.

It’s the same thing.

And then they have clothes this way, and they have. And this way they just build in a minecraft.

Just what do they call old wine and new bottles? Just changing the packaging. So like that, even in the subtle thought, we change the arrangement of how the things are. And then that way we sometimes were bewildered that, yes, this will better. I can be Kṛṣṇa conscious while I am doing my business and this and that. We don’t realize that as we how entangling Māyā is, we don’t foresee all the difficulties that are going to be there. So that’s why the intelligence is being trained in mind. Don’t do this because it’s not for your. Because, see, the mind is being then pulled by the three gunas. And the mind can be our friend. You can train the mind not to do these naughty things. Rather, the mind can help us to think rather of Kṛṣṇa.

The mind can also do the same thing in a positive direction. Thinking of the pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, thinking of different ways to serve Kṛṣṇa, thinking of the good qualities of the devotees. So that way we want to train the mind not to become the agent of Māyā, but to be the agent of our spiritual intelligence. So the mind can go either way. The mind is very sanchala, very flickering, very transient. It can go either way. So that way we want to train the mind to go the correct direction to help us to come up with Kṛṣṇa conscious thoughts which are going to let us experience greater heights of enthusiasm and determination.

This is my association with devotees for a number of years in the Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It always seems to me that the biggest problem that I have ever encountered with devotees is the fact that a lot of devotees, they come with certain types of desires, and after serving in Kṛṣṇa consciousness for a number of years, they seem to always develop a mood that Kṛṣṇa consciousness owes them something. So like the Torah was saying, sometimes we have people that come and they get a little disillusioned with the devotees or with the philosophy or the way things are being run and they leave. They can’t, they have a difficult time going to the temple because they always think that this movement, or the devotees or the authorities, this movement, Owens something and whatever that may be, I don’t know.

But a lot of times, you see, when you speak to devotees like that, they don’t have a sense of feeling where, what can I do for Kṛṣṇa consciousness? How, you know, I am out here. What can I do? They never, there’s always that conflict and.

Not what my country will do for me, but I will do for my country.

And devotees, they leave on that principle. They leave on the principle. Well, I am leaving because the authority didn’t talk to me, or I am leaving because they won’t give me this. So I am going to go. So how do you change that kind of mentality? How can you get it.