This Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is not new. It, it, it is continuing; it is going on since Kṛṣṇa appeared. And later on, five hundred years ago, Caitanya Mahāprabhu revived it, this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. Harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma iva kevalam (CC Adi 17.21). So when they met Caitanya Mahāprabhu, both the brothers decided that, "Now we shall join Caitanya Mahāprabhu's movement. It is very nice movement." So, after resigning their posts, Rūpa Gosvāmī stealthily left the country and Sanātana Gosvāmī was situated . . . he formally wanted to resign the post, but the Nawab would not allow him to resign; therefore he was arrested. And somehow or other, he managed to come out of the prison and then join Caitanya Mahāprabhu at Benares.
So when he met, there was discussion of life's . . . value of life between Caitanya Mahāprabhu and Sanātana Gosvāmī. So Sanātana Gosvāmī first of all questioned this, that grāmya-vyavahāre kahe paṇḍita satya kari māni (CC Madhya 20.100): "Now the ordinary few friends, my countrymen, they consider me I am very learned scholar." He was very learned scholar actually. He was great scholar in Sanskrit and in Arabic language and Persian language. Because in those days there were Muhammadan kingdom. So actually they were very learned scholar, from . . . because we understand from their writings, later on, after becoming disciples of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, vande rūpa-sanātanau raghu-yugau śrī-jīva-gopālakau.
So actually they were paṇḍita, learned scholars, brāhmin, and learned scholar. But he was asking that grāmya-vyavahāre kahe paṇḍita satya kari māni: "These people, my neighboring friends, they call me as learned scholar. And actually I accept that I am scholar, I am learned paṇḍita. But I do not know what I am. This is my position. I am paṇḍita. They call me paṇḍita, learned scholar, and I accept it. But actually I do not know what I am, I am such a paṇḍita." So this is the position. You call any person, any scientist, any philosopher, any politician, any minister at the present moment and ask him, "What you are?" he'll fail to answer. He'll say: "Yes, I am Mr. Such-and-such," "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am minister." He'll say like that.
This question was discussed with a great professor in Moscow. He said: "Swāmījī, after finishing this body, everything's finished, what I am. That's all. This is the position." But actually that is not. Therefore Sanātana Gosvāmī first of all inquired this question, grāmya-vyavahāre kahe paṇḍita. "Ordinary behavior, my neighbors, they call me very learned scholar, but I am such a scholar that I do not know what I am." Ke āmi kene more jare tāpa . . . "Why I am put into this miserable condition of life—birth, death and disease and old age?
And threefold miseries—ādhyātmika, ādhibhautika, ādhidaivika?" And the whole struggle is to minimize our miserable condition of life. The struggle is going on, whole day: work, day and night. What is the purpose? Ātyantika duḥkha nivṛtti: to minimize our miserable condition of life. "So why I am put into this miserable condition of life although I do not know . . . I do not want it? So what I am? What is my position?"
That is Bhāgavata decision. The . . . you don't forget yourself by simply satisfying your senses. Kāmasya nendriya-prītir (SB 1.2.10). Don't be satisfied simply when you see that your senses are satisfied. No. Jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā. One should be forward to understand what he actually is. The same, same story, that I am simply seeing dreams, day and night. I am seeing, that's a fact. Law of identity, "I am." "Then what I am? I'm simply to see these dreams? What is my actual life?" That is tattva-jijñāsā.
(aside) What is that? Read it.
Ānukūlyena kṛṣṇanu-śīlanam (CC Madhya 19.167).
So when we go deep into the matter, to inquire about ourself, what is my position, then we come to this understanding, as Caitanya Mahāprabhu instructed to Sanātana Gosvāmī: jīvera svarūpa haya nityera kṛṣṇa dāsa (CC Madhya 20.108). That we have forgotten. Our constitutional position is eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. This is our position. So as soon as we come to this position . . . the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu begins from this point. When a living entity, when a person comes to the understanding, without any doubt, that he's eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa, then his real life begins. Unless he understands this point, he's still in the hallucination of animal life. Jīvera svarūpa haya nityera kṛṣṇa dāsa.
Actually, we are engaged as servant always. Here, everyone who are sitting here, every one of us, servant: servant of the society, servant of the family, servant of the community, servant of the country, servant of the nation. In this way, we are servant. That's a fact. And we are serving. Everyone is serving. Nobody is actually enjoying; everyone is servant. That is the constitutional position of living entity. But they are serving hallucination. They are not serving the real fact. The constitutional portion is going on. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (CC Madhya 20.108-109). Therefore one brāhmin, he approached the Supreme Personality of Godhead that "I have served the whole of my life . . ." Kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśāḥ (Brs 3.2.35). Serving means we are serving the society, country, family, the . . . the essence is I am ser . . . not serving, I am satisfying my sense gratification. But I am pushing on this sense gratification in the name of service.
A man is working whole, whole day and night to maintain his family, considering himself that he is the master of the family. But he's the, actually he's the servant of the family. That is his real position. And servant of the family means he's servant of his senses. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tucchaṁ kaṇḍūyanena karayor du . . . (SB 7.9.45). They are . . . their happiness is that sex life. For enjoy that sex life, they are working so hard, day and night. Therefore he's neither serving the society, community, family, but he's serving his sense gratification. That's all. This is their service.
Therefore the Avantīpura brāhmin says that kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśāḥ (Brs 3.2.35): "My dear Lord, I have served my senses so abominably. I should not have served in that way. Still I have done." Just like sometimes we commit so many criminal activities to satisfy our senses, because we want money. So pālitā durnideśāḥ. My conscience says: "You don't do it." But, because I want to enjoy my senses, I must do it. I must do it. A thief knows that, "If I steal, I . . . then I'll be punished." He has heard from śāstra or he has known the state laws that, if one commits theft, he's punished. He knows it. And he has seen it, that one man has stolen, or committed theft, he's arrested, taken by the police. He has seen it. But still he commits theft. Why? Why?
Therefore it is a . . . that is my . . . I become habituated to serve the process of sense gratification in such low grade that what is not to be done, I still do it. Therefore he says, kāmādīnāṁ kati na katidhā pālitā durnideśāḥ (Brs. 3.2.35, CC Madhya 22.16), teṣāṁ mayi na karuṇā jātā. But anyone who serves for somebody—ask him, "Whether you are satisfied? I have served you so much." They'll never say. Just like . . . take the example—I've given this example many times—that who can serve his country than Mahatma Gandhi better? Nobody. But still he was shot dead. Still he was shot dead. His service was not acknowledged, recognized. Otherwise how he shot dead? There are so many cases. So many cases.
So this world, however faithfully you give service, it will be never recognized—because it is hallucination, illusion. You are serving your senses. You are not serving any person. You are serving your senses. So when one comes to this position, he understands that "I am actually servant, but I am posing myself falsely as master." That is real sense. Then whose servant I am? I am Kṛṣṇa's servant. Therefore Kṛṣṇa comes and demands: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). We have forgotten that. We have forgotten Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's service. That is māyā.