Actual business

Expressions researched:
"actual business"

SB Canto 4

To get out of the entanglement of fruitive activities is the actual business of human life.

SB 4.25.5, Purport: King Prācīnabarhiṣat found the best spiritual master, Nārada Muni, and he therefore asked him about that knowledge by which one can get out of the entanglement of karma-bandha-phāṅsa, fruitive activities. This is the actual business of human life. Jīvasya tattva jijñāsā nārtho yaś ceha karmabhiḥ. As stated in the Second Chapter of the First Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.2.10), a human being's only business is inquiring from a bona fide spiritual master about extrication from the entanglement of karma-bandha-phāṅsa.

CC Madhya-lila

The actual business of the sakhīs is described in Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi.

CC Madhya 8.204-205, Purport: One who expands the conjugal love of Kṛṣṇa and His enjoyment among the gopīs is called a sakhī. Such a person is a confidential gopī in the conjugal affairs. Such assistants are like jewels in the form of Kṛṣṇa’s confidantes. The actual business of the sakhīs is described thus in Ujjvala-nīlamaṇi (Sakhī-prakaraṇa 88–91):

Nectar of Devotion

A businessman is not satisfied by working the whole week; therefore, wanting a change for the weekend, he goes to a place where he tries to forget his business activities. Then, after the weekend is spent in forgetfulness, he again changes his position and resumes his actual business activities.

Nectar of Devotion Preface: The relish or taste of the mundane rasa does not long endure, and therefore mundane workers are always apt to change their position of enjoyment. A businessman is not satisfied by working the whole week; therefore, wanting a change for the weekend, he goes to a place where he tries to forget his business activities. Then, after the weekend is spent in forgetfulness, he again changes his position and resumes his actual business activities. Material engagement means accepting a particular status for some time and then changing it. This position of changing back and forth is technically known as bhoga-tyāga, which means a position of alternating sense enjoyment and renunciation.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

So our actual business is to become brahma-bhūtaḥ.

Lecture on BG 2.25 -- London, August 28, 1973: "Why I am working so hard for this lump of material things? Let me execute my real necessity of life, spiritual life." That is great relief. That is great relief. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati [Bg. 18.54]. The relief means there is hankering, no more lamentation. These are the brahma-bhūtaḥ. So our actual business is to become brahma-bhūtaḥ. So who can become? That is explained already. Kṛṣṇa has already explained that, what is that verse? Yaṁ hi na vyathayanty ete. Vyathayanti, does not give pain. Material, material burden, that is always troublesome. Even this body. This is also another burden. We have to carry it.

Our actual business is to go back to home, back to Godhead, not to enjoy in this material world.

Lecture on BG 4.5 -- Bombay, March 25, 1974: I wanted to enjoy something. Kṛṣṇa gives us full opportunity: "Now here is the opportunity. You can do it." Anumantā. He's so kind. But that is not our actual business. Our actual business is to go back to home, back to Godhead, not to enjoy in this material world. But still, because we want it, Kṛṣṇa gives us all facilities. Mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca [Bg. 15.15]. If we want to enjoy this material world, Kṛṣṇa will give us all the opportunities. You can become the topmost living entity like Lord Brahmā, and you can become an insignificant ant. According to your karma. Anumantā upadraṣṭā. So this is going on.

Civilization is that the living entity who is using these resources, what, to know what is the actual business.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- San Diego, July 1, 1972: You do the business of a porter, carry it out, and high, I mean to say, heap, heap it in one place, it becomes a skyscraper building. And if you simply are proud of these heaps of stones and woods and iron, that is not civilization. That is not civilization. Civilization is that the living entity who is using these resources, what, to know what is the actual business. This piling of stones and wood is done also by the birds. They also pick up, according to their strength, some twigs, and they make a nest. That intelligence is there. The rat also, he makes subway. (laughter) You see, So this is not very intelligent work, to imitate the rats, the birds, the cats, the dogs. That is not civilization. Civilization means self-realization, "What I am? Why I am forced to die? I do not like to die."

The actual business is that every one of us giving service to others. This is our dharma.

Lecture on BG 9.2 -- Melbourne, April 20, 1976: If sugar becomes salty, immediately, "Oh, it is not sugar. Throw it." And if salt become sweet, you throw it. Similarly, dharma means everything has got a special characteristic. That is called dharma. So what is our dharma, living entities? We are living entities. We may be in different forms; it doesn't matter, 8,400,000's of forms. But what is the actual business? The actual business is that every one of us giving service to others. This is our dharma.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

That is the actual business of human life. This human life is meant for understanding God because we are part and parcel of God and we have forgotten.

Lecture on SB 1.2.7 -- New Vrindaban, September 5, 1972: Just like in your western countries, Lord Jesus Christ sacrificed His life for God's. Can... He was charged that He was preaching something blasphemous. But He was a devotee of God. He, He preached to the people that there is kingdom of God, you love God, and go to the kingdom of God. Simple truth. That is the actual business of human life. This human life is meant for understanding God because we are part and parcel of God and we have forgotten. Just like the same thing, I have given several times example, a person, he belongs to a rich father, but somehow or other he has left home and he is loitering.

Material activities, that is not our actual business. Actual business is spiritual activity. Material activity means this body, to keep this body in comfortable position.

Lecture on SB 1.7.5-6 -- Johannesburg, October 15, 1975: Our svarūpa is our spiritual life. When we give up other activities, anyathā, which is not spiritual... Material activities, that is not our actual business. Actual business is spiritual activity. Material activity means this body, to keep this body in comfortable position. And the body is changing. Now, today, I am Indian—I am very great Indian leader or very good philanthropist. Now, tomorrow, or the next life, I may not be Indian; I may be Chinese or I may be European. Then my whole business program changed. Again another nationality, another feeling. So in this way... And if I become cats and dogs, then another mentality. This is going on.

Philosophy Discussions

Our actual business, is to have a complete idea, complete sense of God and our relationship. That is the business of human life.

Philosophy Discussion on William James: Prabhupāda: This material selfishness is māyā. Actually that is not selfishness. Real selfishness is to know the relationship with God. But persons who are engrossed with the spell of māyā, illusory energy, they do not know that. Mostly, 99.9%, they have vague idea of God, and how they will know the relationship? So, so that our actual business, first business is to have complete idea, complete sense of God and our relationship. That is the business of human life. Therefore in the Vedic process, the real business is realize God. Either you take yoga system or jñāna system, and bhakti is cent percent simply realization of God. That is the business of human life. He hasn't got to do any other thing.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Therefore actual human form of life, actual business of human form of life, begins from this inquiry. Brahma-jijñāsā, "Just realize what you are."

Room Conversation -- September 2, 1973, London: Prabhupāda: He's animal because animals never inquire. He's satisfied. A dog is satisfied. He knows that "I am this body." According to the dog's body, he barks. That's all. No more inquiry. Therefore actual human form of life, actual business of human form of life, begins from this inquiry. Brahma-jijñāsā. So this brahma-jijñāsā is being explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, what is Brahman? That is, dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ [Bg. 2.13]. So dehī, the owner of the body, is Brahman. Therefore Vedic injunction is, "Just realize what you are." Ahaṁ brahmāsmi.

1974 Correspondence

Our actual business is to become brahminical. We want to train some ksatriyas but that we can do in our own communities.

Letter to Amarendra -- Paris 10 June, 1974: I can understand that you want to run for political office, but we can not spend money even if we have money. If you have money of your own and you want to spend it for running for office you can do that. But for running we not only have to draw on the society's money but also on our men. This is not desirable. By competing with the politicians we may drop from our spiritual ideal. Our actual business is to become brahminical. We want to train some ksatriyas but that we can do in our own communities. Where is the money for this political work, that is my main question. And also, so much attention paid in this area is a diversion from our spiritual life.