Now, when there is question of jijñāsā, brahma-jijñāsā, then we inquire from a person who knows. Therefore it is said that tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam (SB 11.3.21): "If you are actually interested in inquiring about Brahman, then you must go to guru who knows Brahman." Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta. You cannot understand Brahman realization alone. Therefore, according to Vaiṣṇava philosophy, ādau gurvāśrayam. The first business is to take shelter of a bona fide spiritual master. If you want . . . not only brahma-jijñāsā—any. You must go to the perfect person who knows things. If you are wandering on some street you do not know, you ask somebody, "Where shall I go? In this way or that way?" So this is natural. So about Brahman, jijñāsuḥ . . . Brahma-jijñāsā means . . . that is not ordinary jijñāsā. It is called uttamam. Uttamam means transcendental to this material world, which is full of darkness, ignorance. That is called ut. Ud-gata tama yasmād iti uttama. There is no more darkness; simply light. If you, at night, you inquire about something, then it is very difficult. But if you go in the daytime . . . and at night if you got up on your roof and want to see where is Bombay or where is Santa Cruz, it is very difficult. But daytime, you can see. Similarly, uttamam. You must go out of this darkness, come to the light, and then you will see.
So that light is given by guru. Ajñāna-timirāndhasya jñānāñjana-śalākayā (Gautamīya-tantra). That light is given not by bringing one torchlight, but jñānāñjana-śalākayā, the light of knowledge. The light of . . . jñānāñjana-śalākayā. Cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ. Guru's business is to give you light by knowledge. Then you understand. Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam (SB 11.3.21). How the jñāna, knowledge, light is given? Śābde pare ca niṣṇātaṁ brahmaṇy upaśamāśrayam. This is the guru's system, guru's symptom, what is guru. Śābde pare ca niṣṇātam. He has completely assimilated the Vedic essence of life. That is called guru. And what is śabda? Śāstra, or Vedas. Śruti-śāstra. Śruti means Veda, knowledge. Veda means knowledge. Or knowledge is received through ear, by hearing. That is real knowledge. Not by experimental knowledge. You cannot understand which is beyond your sense perception by experiment. Just like you cannot understand who is your father by experimental knowledge: "Let me make experiment and find out who is my father." That is not possible. Because it is beyond your experience. Your father was existing when you were not existing. Then how you can understand by experimental knowledge? The authority is mother. Therefore Vedic knowledge is the mother; the Purāṇas are the sisters. They are explained like that. You should understand from the Vedas what is the ultimate knowledge. And Kṛṣṇa says, vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15): the ultimate knowable objective is Kṛṣṇa.
So simply by understanding Kṛṣṇa . . . yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. If you can simply understand Kṛṣṇa, then you understand everything. You haven't got to understand separately Kṛṣṇa's enlightenment. Teṣām aham . . . what is that verse? Samuddhartā. Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā:
- teṣām evānukampārtham
- aham ajñāna-jaṁ tamaḥ
- nāśayāmy ātma-bhāva-stho
- jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā
- (BG 10.11)
If you actually come in contact with Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa is within your heart . . . Kṛṣṇa is not far away. Kṛṣṇa is everywhere. But He's still nearer. He is within your heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva . . . so if you become attached to Kṛṣṇa . . . when Kṛṣṇa sees now you are attached to Kṛṣṇa, then hṛdy antaḥ-stho abhadrāṇi vidhunoti suhṛt satām (SB 1.2.17). He is friend of the devotees. He's friend of everyone, but a special friend of the devotees. Suhṛt satām. Therefore you have to become a devotee. Therefore it is said, na yujyamānayā bhaktyā. Bhaktyā means devotee. Who performs devotional service unless he's a devotee? Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti (BG 18.55). So if we become devotee, if we take to devotional service, then Kṛṣṇa says, teṣām evānukampārtham (BG 10.11), "For special favor." Special favor. What is that? Teṣām evānukampārtham aham ajñāna-jaṁ tamaḥ nāśayāmi. Kṛṣṇa says: "I kill all kinds of ignorance."