Fall down means

Expressions researched:
"fall down means"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

When this competition spirit comes, then we fall down. Fall down means Kṛṣṇa gives the chance.

Lecture on BG 4.20 -- Bombay, April 9, 1974:

So we fall down when we deny to accept Kṛṣṇa as the supreme or we try to imitate Kṛṣṇa, "Why Kṛṣṇa shall be enjoyer? We shall also enjoy. Why Kṛṣṇa shall have rāsa dance? We shall also (have) rāsa dance. Why Kṛṣṇa will marry sixteen thousand wives? We shall at least sixteen wives." When this competition spirit comes, then we fall down. Fall down means Kṛṣṇa gives the chance. "All right, you also go. You also dance in the hotel, ball dance, and he complicated(?)." Because he does not know what is rāsa dance, he imitates ball dance. So everything, what is going on in this material world, it is imitation of Kṛṣṇa's activities. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). The Vedānta-sūtra says. Everything that is going on, it is simply generated from that original. So... But it is contaminated.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Fall down means from our spiritual identification we fall down to material identification, upādhi. Material identification, upādhi, designation.

Lecture on SB 5.6.11 -- Bombay, December 29, 1976:

So therefore the process of reviving their Kṛṣṇa consciousness is Kṛṣṇa's. No other process will help. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He was Kṛṣṇa Himself. He advised, harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma eva kevalam (CC Adi 17.21). The only hope is if you go through the śāstras, Vedic literature, that is the way to understand. But at the present moment people are so engrossed with material affairs that they are not interested even to hear or to talk about Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is not a very good sign. It is the feverish condition of durbhikṣa. That is mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that people in general, when they come to the point of suffering from natural law, then they will revive their nitya-siddha kṛṣṇa-bhakti. So therefore, as I was speaking in this morning, we have to elevate the human civilization from a platform which is on equal level with hog civilization. We should very carefully study and try to know whether the advancement of civilization which we have accepted is genuine. No. It is not genuine. It is misleading. Our aim of life is not to get a comfortable life for few years. Actually, there is no comfortable life. Still, we consider and forget our real business, self-realization. Apaśyatām ātma-tattvaṁ gṛheṣu gṛha-medhinām (SB 2.1.2).

So these persons, māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43). They have been described by Prahlāda Mahārāja as the most hated, foolish persons, vimūḍhān. Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa has mentioned this class of men as mūḍha. And Prahlāda Mahārāja has described these classes of men, not only mūḍha but vimūḍha. Vimūḍha means particularly mūḍha. Pramattaḥ. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma (SB 5.5.4). Same thing, vimūḍhān. It is very dangerous civilization. They are spoiling their human form of life. This human form of life is meant for different purpose, tapasya. But they have been engaged in the lives of hogs and dogs, work very hard, get some money, and enjoy for sense gratification. This is not human civilization. So following their own mental concoction they automatically fall down into the dark region of existence. Adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisram (SB 7.5.30). Here yesterday I went to Malad(?) to some friend's house. How they are living, middle-class men. In Bombay especially we see they are living very awkward position, not very comfortable life. Still, they stick to the city life, and if we call them, "Come to Hyderabad. We shall give you nice place, nice food, nice milk, nice cloth. That is your problem. We shall give you. Please come and live with us," "No." Therefore it is called hog civilization. Hog, they are living in a filthy place, eating stool. If you request the hog, "Please come with me. I shall give you nice place to live in. I shall give you halavā," they'll not come. So this is the position.

Therefore they fall down. Fall down means from our spiritual identification we fall down to material identification, upādhi. Material identification, upādhi, designation. I am now speaking, "I am Indian," but "Indian," that is (not) my designation. I am neither Indian nor European. You are not Indian, European. We are giving more stress on the designation. That is the mistake of modern civlization. And in the śāstra such persons who designate himself with this body, they have been described as go-kharaḥ, sa eva go-kharaḥ (SB 10.84.13). So we shall be very careful. Take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

The fall down means material world, there are three different grades: the tamo-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, and sattva-guṇa.

Room Conversation with Dr. John Mize -- June 23, 1975, Los Angeles:

Bahulāśva: Śrīla Prabhupāda, in our material contaminated state when we act in a foolishly or mad, then we call that tamas, or our ignorance, but in the spiritual sky when the living entity is in his pure state of consciousness, what acts..., Does something act upon him to make him illusioned at that point also?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Just like Jaya-Vijaya. They committed offense. They did not allow the four Kumāras to enter. That was their fault. And the Kumāras became very sorry. Then they cursed him that "You are not fit to remain in this place." So we sometimes commit mistake. That is also misuse of independence. Or we are prone to fall down because we are small. Just like small fragment of fire. Although it is fire, it is prone to be extinguished. The big fire does not extinguish. So Kṛṣṇa is the big fire, and we are part and parcel, sparks, very small. So within the fire there are sparks, "Fut, Fut!" There are so many. But if the sparks fall down, then it is extinguished. It is like that. The fall down means material world, there are three different grades: the tamo-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, and sattva-guṇa. If the... Just like the spark falls down. If it falls down on dry grass, the grass becomes ablazed. So the fiery quality is still maintained, although it is fall down. On account of the atmosphere of the dry grass, it again makes another fire, and the fiery quality maintains. That is sattva-guṇa. And if the spark falls down on the green grass, then it is extinguished. And the dry grass, if, when the green grass becomes dry, there is chance of again coming to the blazing, but if the spark falls down in water, then it is very difficult. Similarly, the soul, when comes in the material world, there are three guṇas. So if he contacts with tamo-guṇa then he is in the most abominable condition. If it falls down with rajo-guṇa then there is little activity. Just like they are working. And if he falls down in the sattva-guṇa, then he at least keeps himself in the knowledge that "I am fire. I do not belong to this dull material." So therefore we have to bring him again to the sattva-guṇa, brahminical qualification, so that he can understand ahaṁ brahmāsmi, "I am spirit soul. I am not this matter." So then his spiritual activity begins. Therefore we are trying to bring him to the platform of sattva-guṇa, means to give up the business of rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa: no meat-eating, no illicit sex, no intoxication, no gambling, so many no's, to deny him the influence of material qualities. Then, if he is situated in the sattva-guṇa, then he remains on the platform of... When he remains on the plat..., sattva-guṇa, then the rajas-tamaḥ, the other base qualities, cannot disturb him. The base quality, the platform of base quality is this: illicit sex, meat-eating, intoxication, gambling. So tadā rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ kāma-lobhādayaṣ ca ye (SB 1.2.19). When one is free from at least to these base qualities... Base quality means kama, lusty desires, and greediness. In material world, generally, they are under these base quality, means always filled up with lusty desires and not satisfied, greedy. So when we conquer over these base qualities, then we become happy. Tadā rajas-tamo-bhāvāḥ kāma-lobhādayaṣ ca ye, ceta etair anaviddham. When the consciousness is not influenced by these base qualities, ceta etair ana..., sthitaḥ sattve prasīdati, being situated on the platform of sattva-guṇa, he feels happy. That is the beginning of spiritual life. When... So long the mind is disturbed by lusty desires and greediness, there is no question of spiritual life. Therefore the first business is how to control the mind so that it may not be influenced by the base quality, lusty desires and greediness. We have seen in Paris old man, seventy-five years old, he is going to the night club. Because the lusty desire is there. He pays fifty dollars for entering the club, and then he pays further for other things. So even he is seventy-five years old, the lusty desire is there.