View source for Why this is so much struggle in this New York City? Because now there is Presidential election, so everyone is thinking, "If I could become the President." That is everyone's desire

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[[Category:Questions Posed by Srila Prabhupada]]
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<div id="Lectures" class="section" sec_index="4" parent="compilation" text="Lectures"><h2>Lectures</h2>
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<div id="Sri_Caitanya-caritamrta_Lectures" class="sub_section" sec_index="3" parent="Lectures" text="Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures"><h3>Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures</h3>
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<div id="LectureonCCMadhyalila20108109NewYorkJuly151976_0" class="quote" parent="Sri_Caitanya-caritamrta_Lectures" book="Lec" index="62" link="Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.108-109 -- New York, July 15, 1976" link_text="Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.108-109 -- New York, July 15, 1976">
<div class="heading">"I am the monarch of all I survey." There is an English poetry. Everyone is thinking. Why this is so much struggle in this New York City? Because now there is Presidential election, so everyone is thinking, "If I could become the President." That is everyone's desire. But those who are not so fit, they do not stand for election, but those who are little fit, so they stand, make competition, "I am the President."
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<span class="link">[[Vanisource:Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.108-109 -- New York, July 15, 1976|Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.108-109 -- New York, July 15, 1976]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="text"><p style="display: inline;">So the philosophy is very simple, but unless one is fit or appropriate person, he cannot understand. No. So in the material world we are materially diseased; therefore it is very difficult for us to understand this Kṛṣṇa consciousness philosophy. Otherwise it is very simple thing. As Caitanya Mahāprabhu, jīvera 'svarūpa' haya kṛṣṇera nitya-dāsa ([[Vanisource:CC Madhya 20.108|CC Madhya 20.108]]). Very simple thing. Everyone, even a child can understand that we are, our svarūpa, our constitutional position, is that we are servant of God, Kṛṣṇa. But the material world is so bewildering that everyone is thinking that "I am master of everyone." This is the disease. "I am the monarch of all I survey." There is an English poetry. Everyone is thinking. Why this is so much struggle in this New York City? Because now there is Presidential election, so everyone is thinking, "If I could become the President." That is everyone's desire. But those who are not so fit, they do not stand for election, but those who are little fit, so they stand, make competition, "I am the President." If you are President, why you require election? The simple truth. If you are actually President, then why do you depend on other's vote? You become President. No. Artificial President. Simply by votes he is President. Actually he is not; he is the servant of the voters, but he's thinking, "I am President." This is called māyā. Everyone is servant of Kṛṣṇa. He's servant. Every one of us, we are servant. So take this example. Actually the President means the servant of the voters, and as soon as the voters do not like him... Just like Nixon is drawn back.</p>
<p>So nobody can be master. That is not possible. You'll find in this instruction, ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa āra saba bhṛtya ([[Vanisource:CC Adi 5.142|CC Adi 5.142]]). Only Kṛṣṇa is the master, and everyone is servant. This is our position, actual. But artificially we are trying to become master. That is struggle for existence. We are trying for something which we are not. We know this word, "struggle for existence," "survival of the fittest." So this is struggle. We are not master; still, we are trying to become master. The Māyāvāda philosophy, they also undergo severe type of austerities, penances, but what is the idea? The idea is that "I shall become one with God." Same mistake. Same mistake. He's not God, but he is trying to become God. Even though he has performed so much severe austerities, vairāgya, renunciation, everything... Sometimes they give up everything of material enjoyment, go to the forest, undergo severe type of penances. What is the idea? "Now I shall become one with God." The same mistake.</p>
<p>So māyā is very strong, that these mistakes continue even one is very advanced so-called spiritually. No. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu touches the main point immediately with His instruction. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's philosophy. Where Kṛṣṇa says the last word, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja.. ([[Vanisource:BG 18.66|BG 18.66]]). He is talking on the position; He is Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He is asking, demanding, "You rascal, give up everything. Just surrender to Me. Then you'll be happy." This is the last instruction of Bhagavad-gītā. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the same Kṛṣṇa but acting as devotee of Kṛṣṇa; therefore He is speaking the same thing. Kṛṣṇa said, "You surrender," and Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that "Every living entity is the servant of Kṛṣṇa." That means he must surrender. Servant's business is to surrender, not to argue with the master or to claim that "I am equal with you." These are all fanatic, mad proposal.</p>
:piśācī pāile yena mati-cchanna haya
:māyā-grasta jīvera se dāsa upajaya
<p>A servant cannot become master. That is not possible. But as soon as... As long as we shall persist on this wrong conception of life, that "I am not master; I am servant," er, "I am not servant; I am master," then he will suffer. The māyā will give him suffering. Daivī hy eṣā. Just like outlaws, rogues and thieves, they defy government order: "I don't care for government." But that means he voluntarily accepts suffering. He has to take care of government law. If he does not ordinarily take care, outlaw, then he'll be put into the prison house and by force, by beating, by punishment, he has to accept: "Yes, yes, I accept."</p>
<p>So this is māyā. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayi mama māyā duratyayā ([[Vanisource:BG 7.14|BG 7.14]]). We are under the rulings of the māyā. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ ([[Vanisource:BG 3.27|BG 3.27]]). Why? Because we are declaring master. Servant is declaring to become master; therefore suffering. And as soon as we accept that "I am not master; I am servant," then there is no suffering. Very simple philosophy. That is mukti. Mukti means just come to the right platform. That is mukti. Mukti is defined in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, muktir hitvā anyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ ([[Vanisource:SB 2.10.6|SB 2.10.6]]). Mukti means to give up this nonsense business, anyathā. He is servant, but he's thinking master. That is ankatha (?), just the opposite. So when he gives up this opposite conception of life that he is master, then he is mukti; he's liberated immediately. Mukti does not take so much time that you have to undergo so much severe austerities and go to the jungle and go to the Himalaya and meditate and press your nose and so many things. It doesn't require so many things. Simply you understand plain thing, that "I am servant of Kṛṣṇa"—you are mukta immediately. That is the definition of mukti given in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Muktir hitvā anyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa avasthitiḥ. Just like even a criminal in the prison house, if he becomes submissive that "Henceforward I shall be law-abiding. I then shall obey the government laws very obediently," then sometimes he is released prematurely on account of giving a declaration.</p>
<p>So we can become immediately liberated from this prison house of material existence if we accept this teaching of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇera dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). And therefore so many arrangement. We are having Kṛṣṇa Deity here, and every one of us, we are engaged as servant.</p>
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