Prabhupāda: Viśokaḥ, without any bereavement; brahma-sampattyā, by achieving spiritual assets. This is the sign how one is advanced in spiritual life. That will be tested by this word viśokaḥ, "without any bereavement." That is explained in Bhagavad-gītā the same thing: brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati (BG 18.54). Prasannātmā means there is no more lamentation and no more hankering. That is prasannātmā. We are subjected to two things. If our possessed . . . if our possession is lost, then we lament, and if we don't possess, then we hanker. So here, viśokaḥ brahma-sampattyā. When one is fully identified with Brahman . . . Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). So when you fully surrender and you become freed from other desire—only surrender to Kṛṣṇa—that is our only business. No more any other business. That is brahma-sampattyā.
Sanātha-jīvitam. Just like the child is sitting on the lap of the father. So the child is confident that, "I'm secure." So it has no more any second desire. In the material world, because we have not surrendered to Kṛṣṇa we are always wandering helpless. Everyone here feeling helpless. Even though one is millionaire, even though one is president, but he's feeling helplessness. This is the position of material conditional life.
- bhavantam evānucaran nirantaraḥ
- praśānta-niḥśeṣa-mano-rathāntaraḥ
- kadāham aikāntika-nitya-kiṅkaraḥ
- praharṣayiṣyāmi sanātha-jīvitam
- (Stotra-ratna 43)
This is a prayer by Yāmunācārya. He's aspiring, bhavantam evānucaran nirantaraḥ: "I shall always live in Kṛṣṇa consciousness." Bhavantam. He's addressing the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, bhavantam. Bhavantam evānucaran nirantaraḥ. Nirantara means without any stop, continually, "When I shall live in Kṛṣṇa consciousness without any stop?" Bhavantam evānucaran nirantaraḥ. Praśānta-niḥśeṣa-mano-rathāntaraḥ. Man means mind. We are on the chariot, and the mind is the driver and the senses are the horses. So we are being driven here and there by the char . . . this chariot is this body. The mind is the coachman, or the chariot driver, and the senses are the horses. So in this way we are being forced to wander in so many planets, in so many species of life. This is our material condition. Bhrāmayan yantrārūḍhāni māyayā. Bhrāmayan yantrārūḍhāni māyayā. This is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā:
- īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
- hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati
- bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni
- yantrārūḍhāni māyayā
- (BG 18.61)
So īśvara, the Supreme Lord, is there. Now He's giving chance, "You living entity, you did not surrender to Me. You wanted to enjoy this material world. So you take this chariot and take this driver and go on." This is going on. Kṛṣṇa is very kind. Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante (BG 4.11). "Whatever you want, you do it. But you'll never be happy." That is the point. "You can do whatever. I will give you chance. I'll give you." Just like you want a Rolls-Royce car. "All right, it is." If you want this car, "All right." So you are changing this car. Sometimes you are carried by the doggish cars, sometimes goddish car. These are all cars, but we are different from the car. We wanted to sit down in a certain type of car, so Kṛṣṇa is giving us the chance. Bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni. Yantra means car, or machine. It is very easy to understand.
So this is going on because . . . and we are identifying with the car. Just like a foolish man, if he rides on a Rolls-Royce car, he's thinking "Now I am very rich man. I have bought a Rolls-Royce car." Similarly, if one body has got inferior car, he thinks that, "I am poor"; identifying with the car. But he's not car. He's different from car. This knowledge is required. This is called viśoko brahma-sampattyā. When we understand our spiritual identity, then we are no more lamenting or jubilation. Equilibrium.
(aside) Read the purport. It is very important verse.
Pradyumna: "Doubts of duality begin from the misconception of the material body, which is accepted as the self by less intelligent persons. The most foolish part of our ignorance . . ."
Prabhupāda: That we were discussing in our walking, that the basic principle of this modern civilization is wrong. Everyone, the so-called advanced scientist, so-called advanced philosopher or politician, everyone is thinking that "I am this body." So on the basic principle they're wrong. Therefore the so-called advancement of civilization is wrong. It's . . . at one point mathematical calculation, if you have done mistake in one point—"Two plus two equal five," if you have made, or "three," the mistake—then the whole calculation will be mistaken. The balance, it will never tally. Similarly, our present civilization—not present; it is always there—now it is very strong bodily conception of life, so the basic principle is wrong. Therefore what . . . whatever we are advancing, that is wrong. Parābhava. That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Parābhavas tāvad abodha-jāto (SB 5.5.5). Basic principle is wrong, abodha, in ignorance. In ignorance. Abodha means without any perfect knowledge.
So we are born without any perfect knowledge. That is natural. But we have to be taught. We have to sent . . . we have to be sent to school for learning. Therefore these books are there. What for these books are being written? Just for the learning of the human society, so they can learn it. Cats and dogs cannot read this Bhāgavata or Bhagavad-gītā. It is meant for human society. So they should take advantage of this knowledge. But if they remain in the darkness of ignorance, then what is the meaning of their advancement? It has no meaning. So that is going on. They too do not accept knowledge from the authority. They manufacture. How you can manufacture? You are a fool, so whatever you'll manufacture, so-called knowledge, that is also foolish. How can we depend on your foolish knowledge? Abodha-jāta. Everyone is fool. So he cannot manufacture. He has to learn. He has to take knowledge from a person who knows. Then he's perfect.
That is our system. We are taking knowledge from Kṛṣṇa. We are taking knowledge from Bhāgavatam. Therefore our knowledge is perfect. We are taking authority. As we are, we are defective. Our position is sometimes we do mistake—"Two plus two equal to five." But it is not fact. So two plus two must be four. But if we make "five" or "three," that means the whole background becomes wrong. That is . . . we are liable to do that mistake. And illusion. Illusion means two plus two equal to four, I have written "five," but I am seeing it is all right. That is illusion. I'm seeing it is all right: "two." Therefore one should not correct himself. Another person should take the editorial correction work, because the man who has written, he sees that it is right. So this is called illusion.
So to commit mistake, to get into illusion, overpowered by illusion, and cheating. Cheating means you have made mistake, "Two plus two equal to five." "Yes," you're persisting, "Yes, it is right." That is cheating. Everyone in this material world, they're born foolish; still they're manufacturing knowledge. That is cheating. That is going on. The so-called scientists, so-called philosophers, their basic principle is wrong, and they're presenting some theories, and that is being accepted by people. That is cheating. That is cheating. For example, just like the insistence of the scientist that, "Life is production of matter." They have no experience, neither they can make any experiment in the laboratory that from matter one can produce life. But every child knows that, "My father is life and my mother is life, so I am produced by that combination. I am also life." So life comes from life. The dead body of father, the dead body of mother cannot produce. Any man can understand. Very simple thing. But these rascal so-called scientist, they're insisting that life is produced from matter. You see? Insisting, simply. Their only idea that prove that there is no God. Imitation.