Therefore Yamarāja says, yasyehitaṁ na viduḥ: "They also tried to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Such great personalities whose duration of life is so long, who are so advanced in the modes of goodness, they also try to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Na viduḥ: "But they could not do so." And what to speak of us?
It is said also that Ananta, He has got unlimited faces, Anantadeva . . . you have seen the picture, Viṣṇu . . . holding over the head of Viṣṇu is Ananta. Ananta-śayyā. So Ananta, He has Ananta hoods and Ananta mouth and . . . Ananta means unlimited. And He is trying to chant the glories of the Supreme Personality of Godhead unlimitedly, in unlimited time. Still, it is unfinished. Still, it is unfinished.
So yasyehitaṁ na viduḥ. Why? If they are so much advanced, why they cannot? Spṛṣṭa-māyāḥ: "They are also contaminated by māyā." Spṛṣṭa-māyāḥ. Sattva-pradhānāḥ: "Their position in the platform of goodness, on the quality of goodness, that is very prominent, but they are not free from the contamination." Just like in this our experience, a first-class brāhmiṇ, he is supposed a first-class man. But still there is contamination.
At least this contamination is there: "Oh, I am a brāhmiṇ. I am brāhmiṇ. I am bigger . . . I am greater than all others. I am learned, and I know all the Vedas. I know what is what. I understand Brahman." Because brahma jānātīti brāhmaṇaḥ, so he knows. So all these qualities, first-class brāhmiṇ, but still he is contaminated, because he is proud: "I am this. I am this."
That is material identification. That is . . . he is not free from the material identification. And this proud, this pride, when increases, then there is falldown, which has caused this falldown of the brāhmiṇs of this age. Unnecessarily they became pride and tried to dominate over the other classes. And they saw . . . gradually they degraded in their qualities, and they saw, "Why this class of men . . ."
That is being protested still—who are known to be brāhmiṇs, they should go over everyone: "We are also qualified." Therefore, instead of cooperation there was misunderstanding, and the whole structure of Vedic society became dismantled. The whole Vedic society. They are simply now proud: "I am brāhmiṇ," "I am kṣatriya."
But according to our Bhāgavata school or the Vedānta school . . . Bhāgavata is the Vedānta, you should always remember. Bhāṣyaṁ brahma-sūtrāṇām. It is the right commentary on the Brahma-sūtra, Vedānta. So the falldown takes place not only of the brāhmaṇas, but also of the kṣatriyas, vaiśyas and the śūdras. How the falldown takes place?
- ya eṣāṁ puruṣaṁ sākṣād
- ātma-prabhavam īśvaram
- na bhajanty avajānanti
- sthānād bhraṣṭāḥ patanty adhaḥ
- (SB 11.5.3)
When these classes of men forget that we are all parts and parcels of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and as soon as they neglect . . . Always remember: being parts and parcel, our duty is to serve the Supreme. The same example: the finger, hand, being part and parcel of body, is always engaged in the service of the whole.
So these brāhmiṇs, kṣatriyas, vaiśyas, śūdras, they are also parts and parcels, the same position. Brāhmiṇ is the head, kṣatriya is the arm, vaiśya is the belly, and the śūdras . . . but everything is required. If you want to keep up your body in sound condition of . . . any part of the body is important.
Comparatively, the head is most important. But other parts, you cannot say they are not important. But when there is competition, that "I am the most important. You are nothing," or "I am something. You are nothing," in this way we forget to serve the whole, and that becomes the cause of our falldown.
Na bhajanty avajānanti. Gradually, by their degradation, they forget service of Kṛṣṇa. Simply they fight for their position. Then they fall down their position. Sthānād bhraṣṭaḥ patanty adhaḥ. They are no more brāhmiṇs or kṣatriyas; they are all rascals.
One who forgets the service of the Lord, in spite of His appearing in a brāhmiṇ family or a kṣatriya family, he is rascal. He is nothing. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ. All these guṇas . . . guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). All the guṇas are lost.
So Yamarāja says . . . it sometimes takes place in the great. Just like Bhṛgu Muni. There was meeting, "Who is the greatest, the three deities, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśvara?" So Bhṛgu Muni was deputed to test. And he purposefully kicked on the chest of Viṣṇu. So the so-called brāhmiṇs, they take pride, "Oh, our community man was able to kick." Even in Tulasī Dāsa's Rāmāyaṇa that is very . . . but no brāhmiṇ should discuss. The kicking on the chest of Viṣṇu, that was a different matter. But the so-called brāhmiṇs are very much proud that "We are so great that we can kick on the chest of Viṣṇu." They described this incident very proudly, nonsensically.
Bhṛgv-ādayaḥ. Bhṛgu is considered to be great ṛṣi. But Yamarāja says—he is mahājana, he is authority—that "They are also contaminated." "They are also contaminated," that Bhṛgu dared to kick on the chest of Viṣṇu, being contaminated by the brahminical . . . "I am so great. I can do that." So when such great personalities like Bhṛgu Muni, Parāśara Muni, er, I mean to say, Vasiṣṭha and Ātreya, they are so much contaminated, what to speak of others?
How they will understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead by mental speculation? They will conclude naturally, "Imperson." That's all. It is not possible for them. Only the devotees, they can understand what is the actual identification of the Absolute Truth. Yasyehitaṁ na viduḥ spṛṣṭa-māyāḥ sattva-pradhānā api kiṁ tato 'nye. What others can do it?