Kṛṣṇa consciousness is a stage after liberation. Brahma-bhūtaḥ. Brahma-bhūtaḥ means "I am now free from all material anxieties." That is called brahma-bhūtaḥ stage. Just like a person suffering prison life for years together, and if he is given freedom, "Now you are free," how much delight he'll feel: "Oh, now I am free." You see?
So that is the stage of brahma-bhūtaḥ. Prasannātmā, joyful, immediately. And what is the nature of joyfulness? Na śocati. Even in the great loss, there is no lamentation. And big profit, there is no jubilation, or there is no hankering. That is called brahma-bhūtaḥ stage. Equipoised.
- brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā
- na śocati na kāṅkṣati
- samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu
- (BG 18.54)
In that stage one can see all living entities on the same understanding of spiritual identity. In another place Bhagavad-gītā says, paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ (BG 5.18). When a man is learned he sees everyone on the same level of spiritual understanding. So when one has reached this stage, then actually Kṛṣṇa consciousness begins. Mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām.
So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so nice that it is activities of liberated stage. Everyone is trying to get liberation from these material pangs, every philosophy. Buddha philosophy, they are also trying—nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇa means extinguish this. So they want to make void. All these material varieties, they want to make it zero. That is Buddha philosophy.
Māyāvāda philosophy is more or less like that. It is a second edition of Buddha philosophy. Zero, but that zero is without life. Māyāvāda philosophy says: "Yes, that zero, but with life." That is the mistake. If there is life, then there must be varieties. Life without variety is not possible. Dead body without variety, not life without variety.
So these are the defects of all other philosophies. They're not defects, but the class of people amongst whom the philosophy was taught, they could not understand more than that. That's all. Just like a patient too much disturbed, he wants some medicine from the physician, "Please stop my disturbance. Kill me. Kill me."
Sometimes they say like that, "Give me some poison, kill me. I cannot tolerate." A physician says: "Yes, there is no need of killing. I shall give you good, healthy life." He's so much impatient, "No. I cannot tolerate. Please kill me." So this Buddha philosophy, Māyāvāda philosophy is like that, kill him. "Kill me, please. Make me zero, void." So much frustration. So much disturbance that they want to make it zero. But our philosophy is life, real life.
But it is difficult to understand this philosophy, Kṛṣṇa philosophy. Why it is difficult? That is explained, gṛha-vratānām. Gṛha-vratānām. Gṛha means "house." So vrata means "vow." Just like everyone, common man, anywhere, they are interested with these bodily comforts: nice apartment, nice country, nice state, confident, nice bank balance. These things are their aspiration; no more. Nothing more. First of all this body, gṛha. Gṛha means house, living place.