So this is material world means everyone is trying to become God. I am trying to become God, you are trying to become God. So there is competition between Gods. He has forgotten that he is dog, but he's trying to become God. Especially in these days, especially in our (chuckling) India, Bengal, there (are) so many Gods incarnation, rascal. You see? So many. As if God is so cheap thing that anyone can become God. So God has given us the chance, "All right. You try to become God." He's trying to become God, and more and more... This is asuric. Just like Hiraṇyakaśipu. As soon as his little child would say "Kṛṣṇa, Nārāyaṇa," he would immediately become angry: "Oh, who is this Nārāyaṇa?" "Oh, He is God." Just like this child is doing. "I am God. Who is God? You are trying to respect some other God?"
So this philosophy is there always, and now it is very prominent that everyone wants to become God. So many swamis, they come to your country and they, "Oh, you are God, I am God, this God, that God." So this is going on. And in the lower stage they are grossly under the impression that "I am this body," "I am this mind," or "I am this intelligence." And later on, "I am God," and so many things. So this Bhāgavata, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, explains that Supreme from where everything is emanating. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). From the very beginning. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ svarāṭ. Very nicely. You have read our explanation, English explanation in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. What is that Supreme? That Supreme, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1), that Supreme is abhijñaḥ. He knows everything. But the so-called cheap Gods, do they know everything? He does not know even what is going to happen in next moment. Just like I heard there was a "God," Meher Baba. He had came. And he did not know that he is going to meet with some motor accident, and still he claimed that he's God. You see?
So Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the right explanation of the philosophy. What is the original source of everything, that is the beginning. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Therefore it is called bhāṣyāyaṁ brahma-sūtrāṇām. Bhāṣya ayam. Ayam (grantha?) Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the right commentary on the Vedānta-sūtra. So how this Vedānta-sūtra commentary was originally written by the author himself is explained in the Fifth Chapter of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, First Canto. You try to understand it. So the cause was that after compiling all these Vedic literatures up to the end, Vedānta-sūtra, Vyāsadeva was not satisfied. Vyāsadeva was still morose. So Nārada Muni, he is spiritual master, he could understand that Vyāsadeva is seeking something, that "Why I am morose? I have tried to give knowledge to the people as far as possible, as far I have known from reliable sources. So why I am not satisfied?"
At that time Nārada came to him, and Vyāsadeva received him, as it is the duty of the disciple to give good reception to the spiritual master. And when he was seated nicely, it is said,
- atha taṁ sukham āsīna
- upāsīnaṁ bṛhac-chravāḥ
- devarṣiḥ prāha viprarṣiṁ
- vīṇā-pāṇiḥ smayann iva
So Devarṣi, when he was comfortably seated, with his hand, in his hand that vīṇā, vīṇā-pāṇiḥ. Vīṇā-pāṇiḥ is called Sarasvatī. Vīṇā means that stringed instrument which is carried by Nārada and also Sarasvatī, the goddess of learning. Sarasvatī. Students, they worship Sarasvatī for getting learning, material knowledge. And we Vaiṣṇavas, we also... He is also Sarasvatī. Nārada is also Sarasvatī. My spiritual master was known as Sarasvatī, Siddhānta Sarasvatī. Sarasvatī is the knowledge.
So there are two kinds of knowledge, avidyā and vidyā. Real vidyā means brahma-vidyā. This brahma-jijñāsā, athāto brahma..., that is vidyā. That is real knowledge. And avidyā, karma-saṁjña. Another vidyā is how to learn technology, avidyā. Avidyā. That is avidyā. Avidyā-karma-saṁjñānyā tṛtīyā śaktir iṣyate. So now, at the present moment, the education is being given to the people how to work hard, karma-saṁjña. That is not now. That is the system everywhere, because everyone wants to enjoy senses as far as possible, so he has to work very hard. But in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam you will find the instruction is by Ṛṣabhadeva, that this life is not meant for that simply hard labor for sense gratification. If you work hard, you try to work hard for attaining Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then your life will be successful. You have to work hard. If you want to enjoy senses, they are not very easily available. It is said that udyogināṁ praharṣaṁ praheti lakṣyam.(?) Unless you become industrious, laborious, you cannot enjoy even this material world.
So one has to work because his business is to become servant. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). So if he does not become servant of Kṛṣṇa, then he will have to become servant of māyā. Just like same thing we are doing in this New Vrindaban or anywhere. The same thing. We are also cooking, we are also cleansing. So this is for Kṛṣṇa. So even if we get tired by cleansing for Kṛṣṇa, but that is an asset. Yes. And if we work the same thing for sense gratification, that is simply spoiling time. This is the technology of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that we can achieve the highest perfection of life by doing the same thing. Nirbandhaḥ kṛṣṇa-sambandhe yuktaṁ vairāgyam ucyate.
So Vyāsadeva, he also worked very hard, wrote so many books, unlimited. But he was not happy. So if you work for māyā, then you'll never be happy. You'll get tired and you'll simply be confused. But if you work for Kṛṣṇa, then you'll be happy. Just like... There are so many examples. Arjuna. Arjuna also, he remained a military man. He was in the beginning military man, and after hearing Bhagavad-gītā he remained a military man. But that military man was for Kṛṣṇa. And in the beginning he was a military man for acquiring some kingdom for sense gratification. So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is simply to change the consciousness, to change the account. The activities may be the same, but when the account is changed, then you'll get the highest profit.