So prāpañcikatayā buddhyā hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ. Everything has got connection with Kṛṣṇa because ultimately everything is Kṛṣṇa's energy. The material world is also manifestation of Kṛṣṇa's energy. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4). You'll find. Material world means these five elements, gross and subtle. Earth, water, air, fire, sky, these are gross. And mind, intelligence, and ego, these are subtle. These elements, material elements, Kṛṣṇa says, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā: "These material elements, they are separated, but they are My energy. They are My energy." The same example. Just like cloud. Cloud is created by the sun. It is sun's energy which creates the cloud. You know. By temperature the sea water is evaporated, forms into gas. That is cloud. So cloud is created by the energy of the sun, but when there is cloud you cannot see the sun. Sun is covered. Similarly, material energy is Kṛṣṇa's energy. But when you become covered by this material energy, you do not see Kṛṣṇa. This is the position.
Material elements (Lectures, BG)
Expressions researched:
"five basic elements"
|"five element"
|"five elements"
|"five great elements"
|"five gross elements"
|"five material elements"
|"five primary elements"
|"five principal elements"
|"material element"
|"material elements"
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
So try to understand the position of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is nārāyaṇaḥ paro 'vyaktāt, transcendental, paraḥ avyaktāt. That is puruṣottama-yoga in the Bhagavad-gītā. Kṛṣṇa has said, "Anyone who has understood Me, ajam avyayam, ajam—I never take birth in this material world, neither I am deteriorated by material contact—he knows me perfectly." That is called puruṣottama. Puruṣa uttama. Uttama. Uttama means "not of this material world." Ut. Ut means above, and tama means this darkness. So ut-tama means "above this darkness." So uttama puruṣa. Puruṣa uttama. Puruṣa. Puruṣa means enjoyer. Prakṛti means enjoyed. So actually, we are not puruṣa; we are prakṛti. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām, jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). Apareyam, these material elements, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ, earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā, these are separated energies, material energies of Kṛṣṇa. They are also prakṛti. As this material world is prakṛti, similarly, there is another prakṛti, Kṛṣṇa gives information. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām. But that is parā-prakṛti. So we are not puruṣa; we are prakṛtis. Although by materially dressed, we appear to be puruṣa, actually, we are not puruṣa. Just like if you dress one woman like a man, that does mean she has become man.
Therefore our aim of life should be to understand that every..., to know... This is self-realization, that everything belongs to God. Nothing belongs to us. This is self-realization. I also belong to God. My, this body made of five elements, gross body... Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4), earth, water, fire, air, sky. This is gross body. And subtle body, khaṁ mano buddhir eva, mind, intelligence, ego. These eight. Kṛṣṇa says, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā: "These eight kind of prakṛti, they are My energy. They are My energy." So this whole universe is creation of Kṛṣṇa's material energy.
Earth, water, fire, air, sky, these five elements are gross material, everyone can see, gross. We can see earth, we can see water. We can see fire, air, or we can perceive the sky also. But there is subtle matter also. Mind, intelligence, ego. We cannot see the mind. We cannot see intelligence. I understand that you have got intelligence, or everyone knows we have got mind, but we cannot see. This is subtle. They are also matter, subtle matter. So the television is a machine made of gross matter, but there is possibility of making another machine of subtle matter. There is possibility. Because matter, they are also matter. That subtle matter machine is not yet discovered. But here we can see the subtle matter discovery was there. Otherwise, how Sañjaya could see the activities in the battlefield? This is to be understood. They are very much proud of material advancement of science, but still, they have to make advancement, subtle matter. And above that subtle matter, within that subtle matter, there is spiritual identity. Indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ, manasas tu parā buddhiḥ (BG 3.42).
Psychic phenomena is the subtle materialism. There are two material conditions: one gross condition, one subtle condition. Gross condition is created by the five elements—earth, water, fire, air, and ether. And the subtle elements are mind, intelligence and ego, false ego. So all these eight elements, they are material. One section is gross, and another section is subtle. So the psychology means the subtle material elements. It is material; it is not spiritual. It is subtle.
Similarly, although Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna are friends, but Arjuna has accepted Him as spiritual master. There should not be any compromising words as it is done between friend and friend. The right things must be said that "You are wrong. Don't talk nonsense. Talking like very learned man but you do not know anything." "Why I do not know?" "Because this body, while living, agatāsūn..." Asun means the living force. While the living force is there, and when the living force is gone, two conditions... This body is moving very nicely because the living force is there. And as soon as the living force is gone out, this nice body will no longer move. It will decompose. "Dust thou art, dust thou beist." "Again become..." It is called pañca-bhūta. Mix with the earth. Earth, water, fire, air, sky—these five gross elements are the ingredients of this body. So as soon as the soul is out of this body, this body again... Conservation of the energy. The earthly energy goes to the earth, the waterly energy goes to the water. It is a combination of earth. water, air, fire. So they become decomposed. And become distributed to different elements. And that is the scientific law, it is called conservation of energy. The energy is never lost. It comes back again to the original stock.
The sun is also one of the planets, and there are living entities. Otherwise how Kṛṣṇa could go there and speak the predominating person, Vivasvān? The name of the person is also given, imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1). And vivasvān manave prāha. Vivasvān, the sun-god... Because in the higher planetary system the sun planet, moon planet, and many, many other planets, they are called the heavenly planets. The inhabitants of those planets are very opulent. The material happiness available in those planets are hundreds and thousand times better than in this planet. So it is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā that sun planet is also inhabited by living beings. But their body is made of fire. That is the difference. Just like here our body is made of earth. Earth, air... Earth, water, air, fire, ether—these are the five material elements. In some planet the earth is prominent; in some planet the water is prominent; in other planet the fire is prominent. So this is the creation of God, different varieties.
So when you come here you find... Similarly, from the distance of ninety millions of miles you can see the sun just like a ball, but it is not ball. It is a, it is a far, far greater than this planet, and there are cities and there men and there are persons and there are everything. But they are made up of fire. Their body's made of fire. Your body's made of earth. That is the difference. Just like in the water you cannot live because your body is made differently that you cannot live in the water. Similarly, the aquatics in the water, they cannot live in the land. Similarly, because I cannot live in the sun planet due to this, my body, that does not mean there are no living beings. There are living beings. After all, the whole material world is made of five elements, earth, water, fire, air and ether. Now these five elements, in some planet you'll find earth predominant. In some planet you'll find water predominant. In some planet you'll find fire predominant. In some planet you'll find air predominant. But that does not mean that there are no living entities. There are living entities. The sun planet is a planet where is, where fire is predominant. Now, according to medical science that by heat and fire of the germs are killed. But in the fire also there are living entities. Just like Dr. Mishra was giving the example the other day about opium. Now opium is a death poison. Death poison. But in the opium also you'll find some worms.
Yes. How it is possible? They are also living entities. If I, if I take a drop of opium, I die. But they are living and they are eating and they are living there. So because it is impossible for me to eat opium and live, you cannot say that there are other livi..., that there cannot be no living entities there. Similarly you have experience that you cannot live in the fire. That does not mean that in the sun planet there is no living entities. There are living entities. Because in Bhagavad-gītā you'll find that living soul, as it is, it is not burnt by fire. It is not burned by fire. Because it is spiritual. The material elements has no power to destroy it. It is not burnt by fire. So in every planet it is concluded that every planet there are living entities. There are intelligent beings. And because in the higher planets there are more intelligent persons, beings, they are called demigods. The demigods means they have got, practically, qualification almost equal to the Supreme Lord. They have got such qualification.
Asmin means "in this world" or "in this life." Yathā, "as." Dehe. Dehe means "within this body." Because dehinaḥ means "one who has accepted this body," and dehe, "within this body." So I am sitting within this body. Now, I am not this body. Just like you are within this shirt and coat, similarly, I am also within this body, this gross body and the subtle body. This gross body is made of this earth, water, and fire, air, and ether, this gross body, this our whole material body. Now, in this Earth, in this planet, earth is prominent. Anywhere, the body, material body, is made of these five elements: earth, water, fire, air and ether. These are the five ingredients. Just like this building. This whole building is made of earth, water and fire. You have taken some earth, and then you have made bricks and burnt into the fire, and after mixing the earth with water, you make a shape of brick, and then you put into the fire, and then when it is strong enough, then you set it just like a big building. So it is nothing but a display of earth, water and fire, simply. That's all.
The basic principle of spiritual understanding. The basic principle of spiritual understanding is to know the spirit soul first of all. What is that spirit soul? That spirit soul is within this body. Dehinaḥ asmin dehe. Asmin, this, asmin means this, and dehe means the body. Asmin dehe, in this body there is spirit soul who is called dehī. Dehī means one who possesses this body. Just like your coat, your shirt, you possess this coat and shirt. Not that you are the coat and the shirt. Try to understand clearly. This is my shirt, I am not this. I am different. I am within the shirt. Similarly, this body, this is gross coat. Just like you, when you put on your dress, you have one underwear, shirt, and then over that shirt there is coat. It is very easy to understand, there is no difficulty. Similarly, the spirit soul is within this coat and shirt. What is this coat? This gross body. There are five..., eight material elements: earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and ego. These are eight material elements. And out of these eight, gross elements we can see or perceive with your material senses. I can touch this earth; I can taste the water; I can smell the air; I can feel the sky; in this way. These are gross. And still there are finer elements, just like mind. Everyone of us knows that there is a mind, but we cannot see it. What is that mind? Everyone knows that there is intelligence, but nobody can see what is that intelligence. Similarly, everyone has his individuality, "I am this," "I am very learned," "I am very beautiful," "I am white," "I am black," "I am Indian," "I am American," this is called ego.
So we are conditioned now. In this form of life, covered by the material elements, we are conditioned by the material nature. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā:
- prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni
- guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ
- ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā
- kartāham iti manyate
- (BG 3.27)
We are conditioned in every step by the laws of material nature. Still, foolishly, we are thinking we are free. This is foolishness. We are so much controlled by the material nature, exactly like a small child is pulled by the ear by his mother. "Come here." He comes here. "Go there," and goes. Just like a dog. A dog may feel very freedom, jumping. But as soon as the master says "Come here," he comes and immediately chained. This is our position. So that is our position, that we are completely under the clutches of material nature, and according to the modes of material nature, we are acting and changing our body in different species of life. So our real business in this human form of life is to get, try to accept the process by which we can get free from this conditioned life. The process is that we have to give up all our false consciousness. We are, under false consciousness, I am thinking, "I am Indian," you are thinking you are German, and the dog is thinking "I am dog," and cat is thinking "I am cat." So this bodily consciousness, bodily concept of life, will keep us conditioned within the material nature.
Similarly, the soul is there. The proof is that I can feel pains and pleasure on my body. That is explained in this verse. Mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya (BG 2.14). Actually the body in touch with the consciousness feeling pains and pleasure. Otherwise body, what is this body? It is a lump of matter. It is a lump of matter, earth, water, fire, air, material combination of matter. Just like you make one doll, combination of matter, earth, water, fire... Or no fire. Yes, still there is fire. Because you dry it in the sunshine, therefore there is fire. Earth, water, fire, and there is air, there is sky—but there is no soul. That is the difference. You can prepare a doll with earth, water, air, fire, all these things, material elements. But you cannot give the soul. That is not possible. That is possible only by Kṛṣṇa. Ahaṁ garbhaṁ dadāmy aham.(?) Just like man and woman. Actually the woman is giving the ingredients of developing body of the child. But when it is possible? When the man gives the seed. Otherwise a woman could produce a child without the aid of a man. No, that is not possible. When the seed, with the seed the soul comes. And when the soul is situated in the womb of the woman, the woman can assist by supplying the ingredients to develop the body. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha upapattaye (SB 3.31.1). So by nature's process, when one gives up this material body, the subtle body is there, mind, intelligence and ego.
Therefore Buddha philosophy is also same thing, that you finish this body, nirvāṇa, nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇa means... Their philosophy is that your feeling of pains and pleasure, it is due to this body. They also accept. Now what is this body? This body is combination of matter. Combination of earth, water, air, fire, ether, mind, intelligence, ego—eight material elements, five gross and three subtle. This body is made of that. So the Buddha philosophy is that you dismantle this body, nirvāṇa. Just like this house is made of stone, brick and wood and so many. So you break it, and there is no more stone and no more brick. This is distributed to the earth. Throw it on the earth. Then there is no house. Similarly, if you become zero, no body, then you are free from pains and pleasure. This is their philosophy, nirvāṇa philosophy, śūnyavādi: "Make it zero." But that is not possible. That is not possible. You cannot... Because you are spirit soul... That will be explained. You are eternal. You cannot be zero. That will be explained, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20), that we are giving up this body, but immediately I have to accept another body, immediately. Then where is your question of dismantling? By nature's way you will get another body.
So here is the recommendation. Try to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. And then you'll not be disturbed with all these external, ephemeral changes of the material world. Not only of this body, practically..., practically one who is advanced in spiritual life, he's not agitated by the so-called political upheavals or social disturbances. No. He knows these are simply external, ephe... Just like in the dream. It is also a dream. The... Our present existence, it is also dream, Exactly like we dream at night. In dreaming, we create so many things. So this material world is also a gross dreaming. Gross dreaming. That is subtle dreaming. And this is gross dreaming. That is the action of the mind, body, intelligence, dreaming. And here, the action of five material elements: earth, water, air, fire... But all of them, these eight, they are simply material. So we are thinking that "I have now built a very nice house, skyscraper building." It is nothing but dream. Nothing but dream. Dream in this sense, that as soon as I give up this body, all my skyscraper building, business, factory—finished. Exactly the same dream. Dream is for few minutes, or few hours. And it is for few years. That's all. It is dream.
So one should not be disturbed by this dreaming condition. That is spiritual life. One should not be disturbed. Just like we are not disturbed. Suppose, in dream, I was put on the throne, and I was working like a king, and after the dream is over, I am not sorry. Similarly, in dream I was seeing that tiger has attacked me. I was actually crying "Here is tiger! Here is tiger! Save me." And the person who is lying behind me or beside me, he says, "Oh, why you are crying? Where is tiger?" So when he's awakened, he sees there is no tiger. So everything is like that. But this dream, these gross and subtle dreams, are simply reflections. Just like what is dream? The whole day, what I think, the dreaming is a reflection, reflection. My father was doing cloth business. So sometimes he, in dreaming he was quoting price: "This is the price." So similarly it is all dreaming. This material existence, made of these five gross elements and three subtle elements, they're exactly like dream. Smara nityam aniyatām.(?) Therefore Cāṇakya Paṇḍita says, smara nityam aniyatām. This anitya, temporary... Dreaming is always temporary.
So the touch sensation is there so long the soul is there. Now I am living body. If somebody pinches my body, because the consciousness is all over the body, so I feel: "Somebody's pinching me." But when the conscious, consciousness is not there, if somebody chops up my body I will not protest. Therefore we should understand what is that living thing. That consciousness, which is spreading all over this body, that is living force. Kṛṣṇa says here: avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. Yena, by that consciousness. The consciousness is spread all over the body. So Kṛṣṇa says, "That consciousness is avināśi." After the death of, after the annihilation of this body, which we call dead, the consciousness is not dead. That we do not understand. There is no science; there is no philosophy. Everything based on a foolish assumption. They say the consciousness is made possible by combination of matter. The combination of matter, five elements, gross, the subtle elements, they cannot see. Even they see. So their... (aside:) Not now. Their proposition is that this consciousness is a symptom of combination of matter. That is Buddhist philosophy. They do not accept the existence of soul. "The consciousness is a combination of matter."
So this so-called birth and death is due to the covering of māyā. The marginal potency. We are... Kṛṣṇa has got many potencies. Parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate (Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport). That is the Vedic instruction. The Absolute Truth has multi-energies. Whatever we see... Parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktis tathedam akhilaṁ jagat. Whatever little we are seeing, that is simply distribution of the energy of the Supreme. Exactly the same way: the sunshine and the sun globe, and the sun-god. Sun-god, from him... Not only sun-god, there are other living entities also. Their body is glowing. They have got fiery body. As we have got earthly body... Earth is prominent in this planet. Similarly, in the sun planet, the fire is prominent. As earth is one of the five elements, fire is also another one of the five elements. These things will be explained that the soul is never burned by the fire.
In India, we have got special experience during summer season. Sometimes a small pot can be filled up with the water produced from my body like this, put. Of course, one must be healthy man. Then he'll perspire and water will come out from the body. So I am limited. I am only a small particle of Kṛṣṇa's body, part and parcel. If I have got this power of producing water, maybe one grain or two grain or one ounce; Kṛṣṇa has got unlimited power, why not a sea? Where is the difficulty to understand? He can produce unlimited quantity of water which may be known as ocean and sea. Yato vā imāni bhūtāni jāyante. Therefore, Vedas say that "From whom all these five elements have come into being?" And Kṛṣṇa says,
- bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ
- khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
- ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me
- bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā
- (BG 7.4)
"That is my energy." So everything is Kṛṣṇa's energy. He can produce. Try to verify from the example. Because you are little sample of Kṛṣṇa. You can study what you are doing, what you are feeling, what you are acting. The same thing in unlimited quantity, Kṛṣṇa has got the power. That's all.
This is the negative description of the soul. Nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi. Is there anything in this material world which cannot be cut into pieces? Have you got any experience? Take wood, stone, iron, or anything. It can be cut into pieces. Therefore, the..., when Kṛṣṇa says nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi, that means it is nothing like anything material elements. It is different. It is different. Any material elements. There are earth, water, fire, air, and ether. You can prepare weapons from earth. Water, you cannot do now. But there can be a weapon from the water also. That was used in the Battle of Kurukṣetra. Here, the atomic bomb is thrown, brahmāstra. From the other side the watery astra is thrown so that the energy of the atomic bomb is immediately finished. So what the scientists know now? Although they have manufactured atomic bomb, but they are unable to manufacture another weapon counteraction of atomic bomb. That is not possible. But there is. Atomic bomb is fiery, and if you manufacture another bomb which is watery, then you can counteract. Because fight means I charge you with some kind of weapon. You have to protect yourself by the counteraction. That was going on. So nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi nainaṁ dahati pāvakaḥ.
So it is quite natural to understand that if there is living entity within the earth, within the water, even in the air... That we experience. In the air there are so many living entities. In the water, unvisible, not seen by the naked eyes. By microscope, we can see so many germs are there in the water, in the air. So why not in the fire? Fire is also one of the material elements. Therefore, the sun planet, although it is fiery planet, there is inhabitation of different type of human being who may be called as demigods. But there are similar buildings, similar persons, cities, motorcars, everything. Everything is there. Otherwise, how Kṛṣṇa could go there and says that imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1), unless it is exactly a planet like this where living entities, houses, roads, cars and everything is there? As Kṛṣṇa advented Himself within this planet, He came here, Kṛṣṇa can go anywhere. Kṛṣṇa, when He was present, He was going anywhere. Sometimes within the waters, sometimes within the walls of the universe, sometimes in the spiritual world. He went to the spiritual world, taking Arjuna with Him. Arjuna also went with Him. And He saw the Kāraṇodakaśāyī Viṣṇu in the spiritual world. These things are there, described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. He could go anywhere. They were going to the heavenly planets. That is Kṛṣṇa. Not Guruji. (laughs) That one slap, and he's blind. Not like that. Kṛṣṇa could go, Kṛṣṇa can do... All, this is called omnipotent, all-powerful. So unless we think of Kṛṣṇa possessing unconceivable powers, we cannot understand Kṛṣṇa.
So this is another way, negative way. In the previous verse Kṛṣṇa says: nainaṁ chindanti śastrāṇi. And now, negatively or passively, it is said that acchedyo 'yam. In every way, Kṛṣṇa is suggesting the immortality of the soul. There are five elements: earth, water, fire, air. So none of these elements can act on the soul. You can prepare sword, cutting sword from earth, from metal, but it does not mean that you can cut anything material with your sword. But you cannot cut the spirit soul with your sword or with your other material weapons. Neither... Acchedyo 'yam adāhyaḥ. Neither you can burn with fire, neither you can moisten it with water, neither you can dry. In every respect Kṛṣṇa explains how soul is immutable. Another significance is nityaḥ sarva-gataḥ. Sarva-gataḥ means all-pervading, everywhere the soul is there. Even within the stone, even within the sands, there are. So how these people can say there is no existence of living entity in the moon planet? Sarva-gataḥ. We have seen sometimes that from the stone, I have marked it. There is one juma mastika(?) in Agra. On the top of the stone dome a plant has come out, on the top. Now who has gone to place that seed that a banyan tree, banyan plant has come out and it has cracked the stone? So nobody has gone there, but this means the soul is everywhere. As soon as it gets the opportunity, it accepts a material body immediately. As soon as there is opportunity. That is explained in the Seventh Chapter very nicely.
Otherwise how Kṛṣṇa says sarva-gataḥ? Any, everywhere there is living entities. This is a false theory. We can see practically. We see there are living entities in the water. There are living entities in the air. There is living entities within the earth. There is living entities in so many ways. Why not in other planets? Where is the difference between this planet and that planet? This is also made of five elements. And that is also meant of, made of five elements. Here, the earthly element is very prominent. And the sun globe, the fire element is very prominent. So this material world is made of these five elements. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). So Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-gataḥ. The living entities are everywhere. Kṛṣṇa is also within everyone. Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). Kṛṣṇa is within this universe. Kṛṣṇa is within your heart. Not only your heart, but in everyone's heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Now, if you are a great scientist, take one insect. There are so many insects, we have seen, especially in the books, less than the full stop. Now, if you are a great scientist, find out where is the heart of this insect. And where is Kṛṣṇa. But Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-gataḥ, everywhere there is Kṛṣṇa. Unless there is Kṛṣṇa, there is living entity, how that small, full-stop-like insect is moving? There is everything. The physiological condition is there. There is heart also. You cannot make that. You have imitated a big bird, aeroplane, flying, but just imitate the small insect which is also flying.
That is perfection of life. Both energies are Kṛṣṇa's. Apara, para. This is explained in Bhagavad-gītā. So we are now attracted by the apara energy. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (. 7.4), these material elements. We want. Because we are attracted by the material energy, therefore, when we construct a very nice stone house, oh, we think, "Now, yes, my life is successful. I have got a very nice house, made of stone." Are you stone? No. Still, my attraction is for the stone. Therefore Kṛṣṇa gives me facility. "All right, you take the stone and try to... But you'll never be happy. Happy you'll be when you surrender to Me." Just like a child is given by the father all facilities to play, but at the same time, the father says, "My dear child, don't play like this. It is not good." But because the child persists, father sometimes says, "All right, you play like that. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa does not want that we should come in this material world and be attracted by the earth, water, air, fire, and become great scientist and make combination of these five elements. Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimaya. What is this world? This world is a mixture of fire, earth, water, air. That's all. What is this? Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ tri-sargo 'mṛṣā. It is a false thing. Actually it is a combination of these five elements. And we are accepting... This body's also like that. Body's also combination of five elements. And we are attracted to this. "Oh, I have got so, such a, such a nice, beautiful body, strong body, American body," "Indian body," "Brāhmaṇa body," "This body," "That body." All māyā. You'll never be happy by this bodily concept of life.
I've several times explained this verse. Yasya ātma-buddhiḥ. Ātmā means self; buddhi, has taken this body as self. Yasyātma-buddhiḥ. But what is this body? The body is nothing but a bag of tri-dhātu, kapha, pitta, vāyu, and its by-products. By mucus, bile and air, by interaction of these three things... Just like this material world, this house. What is this house? Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ. Anything in this material world, what is that? Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ. An exchange of fire, water, and earth. Tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ. Exchange. You take earth, you take water, mix them, and put it into the fire, it becomes brick, then powder it, it becomes cement, then again combine them, it becomes a big skyscraper building. So as this material world, anything you take, it is simply a combination of these three ingredients, plus air and sky for drying. Air is required for drying. So combination of the five elements. Similarly, this body is also combination of five elements. There is no difference. But because in the big skyscraper building there is no soul, it stands in one place, but the body has got the soul, therefore it moves. That is the difference. The soul is the important thing. But they do not know. Just like we have manufactured the airplane and there is no soul, but another soul means the pilot. He takes care of it. He drives. Therefore, it is moving. So without soul, there cannot be any movement. Either the thing must have soul or some other soul will take care of it. Then it will move. Therefore, the important is the soul, not this material body.
So this is the opinion of the modern scientists or the Buddha philosophy, that soul, there is nothing like soul separately, but by combination of matter, at a certain stage, the living symptoms are manifest. And as it is combination of several chemicals, so it is also finished as soon as the body is finished. There is no, nothing as soul. That is their opinion. So for argument's sake, Kṛṣṇa says, "If you think like that, that the body is all in all..., by certain condition, the material elements combine, and again it is finished..." So Arjuna was declining to fight. So the, for argument's sake, Kṛṣṇa says that "If you think like that, the body's everything, so it will be destroyed automatically. So why you are so much afraid?" Suppose I have combined some chemicals and it is destroyed... Say, bottles of chemicals, some way or other, it is destroyed. So who laments for that? You can purchase another bottle. That is simply for argument's sake. Actually, that is not the position. Now, if you think that the combination of chemicals can produce living force, then why don't you do it in the laboratory? The chemicals are there. You can combine and just produce a small ant, moving. Then it is... Science means observation and experiment. So if you simply observe, and cannot make any experiment, practical, so then that is not science. That is only theory. That is not possible. No scientist has ever made any living entity by combination of chemicals in the laboratory. Nobody can do that. (pause)
So Kṛṣṇa is putting forward the modern scientific view. The modern scientific view is that there is no soul. Life is generated from matter. By combination of material elements at a... Just like chemical combination. You mix acid and soda, alkaline and acid. There will be some reaction, effervescence, movement. Similarly, the Buddhist philosophy mostly, they do not believe in the existence of the soul. The Buddhist philosopher thinks that the combination of matter makes a living symptom. Their ultimate goal is nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇa means stop this combination. Due to this combination, we feel pains and pleasure. Therefore, if we disintegrate the combination, there will be no more pains and pleasure. Materialistic. Their solution, pains and pleasure, any philosophy or any religious system, ultimately aims at ātyantika-duḥkha-nivṛtti. Duḥkha means pain, and nivṛtti, nivṛtti means stop. Why people go to the church? Because they feel some pain, they go to church or temple to appeal, "If there is somebody as God..." They think like that. "Let me appeal to the Supreme Person so that my distress may be mitigated." So aim is ātyantika-duḥkha-nivṛtti. We are also cultivating this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Our aim is also the same. Duḥkha-nivṛtti. Kṛṣṇa says janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). We keep always in view that in this material existence there are four kinds of miserable condition, primarily. To stop this. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). Everyone's aim is duḥkha-nivṛtti. It may be presented in a different way. So the Buddha philosophy is also duḥkha-nivṛtti, stop pains.
Mostly the materialistic philosophers, they have no understanding of the soul. Therefore they have different kinds of theories which we do not accept. Kṛṣṇa says that if you are not sanātanist or followers of the Vedic principles, if you think that your principle and views are different, that by combination of matter this existence coming, atha cainaṁ nitya-jātam... Nityam means by combination of... Just like so many things are taking place by interaction of different material elements. Similarly, if you don't believe in this existence of the soul, if you think that there is no soul, the life is the result of combination of matter, nitya-jātam, and when this combination of matter is some way or other dismantled, then there is no more soul, it is finished. It began at a point by combination of matter, and it ends in a point by disintegration of matter. If you think like that, then also tathāpi tvaṁ mahā-bāho. Kṛṣṇa is criticizing Arjuna, mahā-bāhu. Actually he is mahā-bāhu. Mahā-bāhu means mighty-armed. One who has got a very strong, mighty arm, he can fight very strongly. Then also, why should you give up your fighting spirit? Why should you lament for combination of chemicals and material elements. Suppose this house is a combination of material elements. So some way or other, if it is dismantled, who laments for it? No sane man will lament. Similarly, if you have no idea of the existence of soul, then also you do not require to lament. Tathāpi tvaṁ mahā-bāho nainaṁ śocitum arhasi.
Pradyumna: (purport) "Yet even if, for argument's sake, we accept the atheistic theory, there is still no cause for lamentation. Apart from the separate existence of the soul, the material elements remain unmanifested before creation. From this subtle state of unmanifestation comes manifestation. Just as from ether, air is generated; from air, fire is generated; from fire, water is generated; and from water, earth becomes manifested. From the earth, many varieties of manifestations..."
Prabhupāda: This is the process of creation. From ether, then sky, then air, then fire, then water, then earth. This is the process of creation.
So we have to cure. Some philosopher says that this delirious condition should be cured, and there should be no activity. They are afraid of any activity. Because our, these material activities have become source of distress for us, therefore there are certain philosophers, they say that we should stop all sorts of activities. Their highest culmination of perfection according to their idea is that stopping all sorts of activities. Just like Buddha philosophy, nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇa means stopping, stopping all activities. Buddha philosophy is... According to Lord Buddha, his theory is that due to the combination of material elements, this body has come into existence. Now, some way or other, if these material elements are separated or dismantled, then the cause of distress is removed. That is his... Just like you have got a big house and the tenants or the government or tax collector, they give us too much trouble. So if you think that better to dismantle this house so that to get rid of these all troubles...
So this theory, that separating the material elements by which this material body is formed, if they are broken or they are sent back to their original position, then we are free from all distresses, material... But we, at least those who are following this Bhagavad-gītā, this philosophy does not say that the material body is all in all. Beyond this material body, there is spirit, and the symptom of that spirit is understood by consciousness. Consciousness. That is the philosophy of Bhagavad-gītā. Now, you cannot deny consciousness. You cannot deny consciousness. And consciousness minus... Body minus consciousness is dead body. Everyone knows it. A child can understand it, that I am speaking, you are hearing because your consciousness is present, my consciousness is present.
Just like we belong to the devotee group of philosophers. Then there are others who are impersonalists. But they, or both of them, they do not deny the presence of the soul, presence of the soul. The Buddha philosophy, they do not recognize the soul. They, according to them, that the combination of matter at a certain stage produces consciousness. But that philosophy, that argument, can be refuted that with matter, you cannot produce consciousness. Because... Take the example of a dead man. The dead man is there. All the elements, material elements, are all there present. But you cannot revise, you cannot revoke that man to consciousness. The elements are there, the ingredients are there. Now, if you think this ingredient has been decomposed or deteriorated, then replace that ingredient. Just like in a machine. In a machine some part is wear and tear. It is not working, stopped. You can replace that part into new part, and the machine will work. But this is not like that. If you think that something has deteriorated in this body, therefore it has become dead. Say, for example, that they say generally, due to heart failure. Now, heart... Medical practitioners they know it that heart is always pumping like this, pumping like this. Now, can you produce heart action by artificial pumping? No. It is not possible. They give respiratory oxygen gas and so many things, but it cannot be revived.
So we must utilize this human form of body properly to understand that "I am not this body; I am pure consciousness. And this pure consciousness I have to practice in such a way that in next life I get my pure conscious or into pure spiritual body, not again this material body." This material body, we must always know, this is a foreign thing. We have already explained to you that this is just like dress. Dress. Dress is a foreign thing to my body. Similarly, this gross and subtle body—gross body of this material five elements and the subtle body of mind, ego, intelligence—they are my foreign things. So I am now encaged in foreign things. My whole life mission is to get out of these foreign things. I want to be situated in my real spiritual body. That can be done if you practice. If you practice during this life to..., always to be spiritually situated, then your next life, after leaving... Even within this body, when you get clear conception that "I am not this body," and you are clearly working from the spiritual platform, as Lord Kṛṣṇa prescribes here that yoga-sthaḥ kuru karmāṇi, "Be situated in yoga and act in your daily duties," then similarly, if we practice this to work in such a way that we have to work from the spiritual platform, then your next life will be free from this material bondage and you get your freedom life.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Sometimes it appears to the student contradictory. But actually, the master who is well conversant, he does not say anything contradictory. It is the misunderstanding of the student that sometimes he thinks that it is contradictory. Therefore the question is allowed. You'll find that a student is advised to question to the spiritual master. Tad viddhi. You should understand the transcendental science by the process of... First thing is surrender; then question, and sevā, service. Surrender and service and question. Simply if you question, and don't surrender, don't render any service, then it will be simply waste of time.
Just like Arjuna was talking in the beginning with Kṛṣṇa as friends. So Kṛṣṇa was talking very cautiously because it was friendly talk. But when Arjuna surrendered unto Him, "I accept You as my spiritual master," He's talking freely. This is going on. Go on.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Three: "The blessed Lord said, 'O sinless Arjuna, I have already explained that there are two classes of men who realize the self. The contemplative are inclined to understand it by empirical philosophical speculations, and the active are inclined to know it by devotional service (BG 3.3).' "
Purport: "In the Second Chapter, verse thirty-nine, the Lord has explained two kinds of procedure, namely sāṅkhya-yoga and karma-yoga, or buddhi-yoga."
Prabhupāda: Sāṅkhya, sāṅkhya-yoga. Sāṅkhya means analyzing the material elements and dovetail it with the Supreme. This is called sāṅkhya-yoga. Samyak khyāpayate, or things are very explicitly explained for understanding of the common man. That is called sāṅkhya-yoga, or jñāna-yoga. And another is karma-yoga, or buddhi-yoga.
Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, "Try to understand this Bhagavad-gītā in this process." What is that? Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1). "I first of all spoke to the sun-god, Vivasvān." Vivasvān. The sun is there. Nobody knows what is there in the sun. The so-called scientists, philosophers... But there is possibility to talk with the sun-god personally. That is possible. You can also go. You can also talk, provided you become qualified by Kṛṣṇa's grace. Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He can go anywhere. It is not that because the fiery planet... Sun planet is fiery planet. The body there, the body is made of fire there. Just like here the body's made of earth. Similarly, there are planets where the body's made of water, the body's made of fire, because these are the material elements. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4). Either earth, water, fire, air... They are all material things. So I may have got a suitable body to live in this material, or this earthly planet. The fish has got a certain body to live in the water. You cannot live in the water. The fish cannot live on the land. That does not mean that it is impossible to live in the water. Similarly, because you cannot live in the fire, that does not mean for others it is impossible. This is foolishness. This is foolishness. The sun planet is there. It is made of fire. The bodies are so suitably made that those who have got this body, they can live there. Yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi-koṭiṣu vasudhādi-vibhūti-bhinnam (Bs. 5.40). Vibhūti. The atmosphere is different in every planet. Just like the atmosphere in the water is different from the land, but we know there are living entities within the water, on the land, on the air, within the earth, within the ether. Everywhere there is. Sarva-ga. Therefore living entity is called sarva-ga. The body is differently made. The spirit soul is the same. Your spirit soul, my spirit soul, is the same. But your body is called American body, my body is called Indian body. That is the difference. Just like you have got a different dress. I have got a different dress. Vāsāṁsi jīrṇāni yathā vi... The body is just like dress.
Similarly, if this is possible for a material object... sun is nothing but a material object, lump of material matter, very powerful, predominantly fiery. That's all. Everything in the material world, they're made of five elements: ether, air, and fire, water, and earth. So in somewhere the earth is predominant, somewhere the air is predominant, somewhere the fire is predominant. So there are innumerable planets, and the sun is one of them. So this is also material object. If it is possible for the material object to disappear and appear within our limited senses, what to speak of God and His devotees. So God does not mean that because He is not visible to our imperfect senses, therefore God has no existence. This is foolishness. God is existent.
Punar janma naiti, does not mean that soul is finished. No. This body, material body, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). This material body, when it is dissolved, pañcatvaṁ prāpta, mixes with these five elements, earth, water, fire, air, it does not mean that the soul is finished. The soul is there. The soul is transmigrating to another body. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). By the supervision of the external energy, and superior superintendent, we are transferred to a different body by the subtle body, mana, buddhi, ahaṅkāra. But these foolish people, they do not know how the soul is... They do not know what is soul and how the soul is being transferred. But these things are all explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. Just like we cannot see the flavor, but when the flavor passes through carried by the air, we can smell. Similarly, we can smell how the soul is being transferred. These processes are explained in the Bhagavad-gītā.
But what is there within the sun planet, nobody has explained so far material science is concerned, but from Vedic literature we have got information of the sun planet also, that there is a supreme deity which is known as the sun-god, and all the inhabitants there, they have got their body of fire, and the whole planet is fiery. That is also material. There is no reason to disbelieve it because the whole material word is composed of five elements, that inferior nature: earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, ego, intelligence. So you will find different planets also. Some planet is predominated with earth; some planet is predominated with water; some planet with fire, just like this. So the sun planet is predominated with fire. Fire is also matter. It is also material.
So as we have got experience, we can take experience from what we see daily, so as we have got three different vision of the sun, although the sunshine is spread all over the universe, you cannot accept the sunshine as important than the sun disc, localized. Which one is important? The sunshine is important or the localized disc, the planet, is important? The localized planet is important.
Just like dress. Your shirt and coat is the covering of your real body. Similarly, this body, gross body and subtle body, made of material elements... The gross body is made of earth, water, air, fire. And the subtle body's made of mind, intelligence and ego. This is the shirt and coat. Within this shirt and coat, there is the soul. So the soul is now encaged in this material body. And our business in the human form of body. In animal form of body, we cannot do this. But the human form of body we can understand that "I am not this body." The body, this material body, is a outer encagement, and, because I have got this body, I am subjected to birth, death, old age and disease.
This is called brahma-bhūtaḥ. We are now covered by the material energy. Just like we are covered now by the shirt and coat differently, but if we open our shirt and coat, we are human being, similarly, we are part and parcel of God. Now we are covered by this material body, subtle and gross. Subtle material body is mind, intelligence, and ego, and gross material body means five elements: earth, water, air, fire, ether. So this is our situation.
Now Arjuna's question was that "You are engaging me sometimes in karma-yoga and sometimes in sannyāsa. So what is the real thing that You want me to do?" So Kṛṣṇa replied here that sāṅkhya-yogau pṛthag bālāḥ pravadanti na paṇḍitāḥ. Sāṅkhya-yoga. Sāṅkhya-yoga. Perhaps some of you or most of you know what is sāṅkhya-yoga, metaphysics, by Kapila, sāṅkhya-yoga. Sāṅkhya-yoga means analytical study of these material elements.
Now what is the use of analytical study of this material world? Simply understanding that this material world is working in twenty-four elements. The eleven senses, ten senses, five working senses and five knowledge-acquiring senses, and the mind. Eleven. Eleven elements. And pañca-mahā-bhūta. Pañca-mahā-bhūta means the material elements just like earth, water, fire, air and ether. Eleven and five, it becomes sixteen. Then subtle elements, just like manaḥ, buddhiḥ, ahaṅkāra: mind, intelligence and false ego. False ego. So sixteen and three. Nineteen. And five, I mean to say, sense objects. Sense objects means rūpa, form; rasa, taste; form, taste, rūpa, rasa, gandha, smell; then rūpa, rasa, gandha, śabda, sound, sound. You have got ear. You require sound to hear. In this way, the sāṅkhya-yoga, they have analyzed the whole material world into twenty-four elements. That is sāṅkhya-yoga.
Now suppose you study very analytically these twenty-four elements. And what is the idea of studying these elemental, analytical study of this material world? Because we have to find out what is the main principle which is working behind these twenty-four elements. What is the main principle? Now, suppose I have got these senses, and suppose there are material elements, earth, water, fire, all these things are there. But are they sufficient by themselves? No. They are not sufficient by themselves. Unless that spirit soul is there, so they are lying down. Just take for example this land of America. It was lying, oh, vast land. Still you have got many lands vacant. So they are lying vacant. And so when the Europeans came there, they gradually developed. Now they nice. So simply these material elements has no value. Unless there is spiritual touch, there is no value.
No, let me explain this. "By virtue of divine consciousness." We are preparing this consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, divine consciousness. And the consciousness we go. Just like the flavor, the aroma of a rose flower is carried by the air and if the air passes through us we also experience the rose flavor. Similarly, when we die, this material body is finished. "Dust thou art, dust thou beist." This is made of five elements: earth, water, air, fire, ether. So the, so far earthy materials are concerned, that is mixed up. Somebody burns this body, somebody buries or somebody throws it for being eaten by the animals. The three system in the human society. Just like in India, Hindus, they burn the body. So the body is transformed into ashes—means earth. Ash means earth. Those who are burying the bodies of their forefathers, the body turns into dust, as the Christian Bible says, "dust thou art." This body is dust and again turns into dust. And those who are throwing for being eaten by the animals and birds, vultures, just like in India you have got the community, Parsee community. They do not burn, neither they bury. They throw and the vultures immediately comes and eat. Then the body turns into stool.
So God is great. That is admitted by the human civilization. Now what is that greatness? Generally when we speak of greatness...(coughs) (aside:) Water. We think of the greatness of the sky. That is the simple example how thing can be great: "As great as the sky." But in the sky you have no perception. As there is development of these material elements from finer, I mean to say, existential form, to grosser form, and the grosser form becomes tangible for our understanding, similarly, in every religion or in every society, the greatness of God is admitted. But how that greatness becomes tangible, that you can find in the Bhagavad-gītā.
Suppose you have got conception of a sky, but you cannot have a definite idea of the greatness of sky because your experience and knowledge is gathered by sense perception. In the sky there is no sense perception. Just like we are sitting in this room. Within this room there is sky, but we cannot understand the sky. But if we try to understand this table we can at once understand, because in the table, if I touch, I feel the hardness; the perception is there. My knowledge can receive that this is a hard table. But if I speak about sky, I cannot get any direct perception. Therefore simply understanding of greatness of God is not all. That, that is the beginning of attachment, "God is great." But you have to develop your attachment to the fullest extent. And that is love of God.
So these are the different features of Kṛṣṇa knowledge. Brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate (SB 1.2.11). The Absolute Truth is one, but one who is trying to understand Him by the dint of his personal knowledge, he approaches up to impersonal Brahman; one who is trying to understand Him as the localized Paramātmā feature, by the yogis, He is known to them as Paramātmā, or Antaryāmī; but those who are in direct contact with Kṛṣṇa, they are realizing as the most lovable object, the most beautiful personality, most opulent personality, Kṛṣṇa. But the object is the same. The example is generally given: just like the sunshine, the sun globe, and sun-god. The sunshine is all-pervading, all over the universe, and the sun globe is localized. But within the sun globe, there is a person who is called Sūrya-nārāyaṇa, or the sun-god. These are facts. Don't think that there is no living entity in the sun planet. There is. Their body is fiery body. That's all. Just like our body in this planet is earthly body, their body is fiery. Out of the five elements, the fire element is very prominent in the sun planet. But there are living entities. Otherwise how Kṛṣṇa says, imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1), "First of all, I said this philosophy of Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the sun-god"? If there is no living entity, how Kṛṣṇa says there is a sun-god? And if we are to believe Kṛṣṇa and the Bhagavad-gītā, we have to accept it that the sun globe is not without living entities. It is also the same, just like we have got hundred of thousands, millions of living entities here.
So these things, "Perhaps, it may be," that is not certain. Therefore they have now accepted the theory of uncertainty. But here we, if we hear from Kṛṣṇa, then it is perfect knowledge. Samagram. How this material world is created, how this earth, five elements of gross elements come into existence, and everything will be explained. Asaṁśayaṁ samagraṁ mām (BG 7.1). To understand Kṛṣṇa means to understand everything. Therefore tattvam.
- manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu
- kaścid yatati siddhaye
- yatatām api siddhānāṁ
- kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ
- (BG 7.3)
We have to understand Kṛṣṇa in truth. Simply superficially, if we understand Kṛṣṇa, that "Kṛṣṇa was born of the father and mother, Devakī and Vasudeva, and He was born in Mathurā, and then played with the gopīs. And then the..., He taught something on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra," that is not sufficient knowledge. We should try to understand samagram, as far as possible in complete. Then our devotion, our love for Kṛṣṇa, will be increased.
Who is accepting another body? The Darwin's theory is that the body is changing to another body. That is nonsense. That is not the fact. The soul is transmigrating from one body to another. That is knowledge. This is fact. So we can discuss if it is needed, but this is the fact. There is the soul, and these eight elements, material elements, they are outer covering. That you have got... As you have got shirt and coat, the shirt is the inner covering, the coat is outer covering. Similarly, the body is made of earth, water, air, fire. This lump of matter is nothing but distribution of the material elements. Just like we make some machine by manipulating the material elements. This is also just like a machine. And it is stated here in the Bhagavad-gītā, yantrārūḍhāni māyayā. We have been given this machine to move. By whom it is given? By māyā, by the illusory energy.
If you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, because Kṛṣṇa is everything, so if you understand Kṛṣṇa, automatically you understand what is this world, what is this earth, what is this water, what is this fire. This is material things. What is this air, what is this sky, what is this mind, what is this intelligence, what is this ego, and what is the soul. In this way you understand everything, because these material elements—earth, water, fire, air, sky—that will be explained in the next verse, it is the expansion of Kṛṣṇa's energy. As there are energies and the energetic, just like the fire. The fire has got two energies. One energy is the heat, and one energy is light. Just like in the morning, as soon as you see the light from you window, you can understand that there is sunrise. By the energy, light of the sun, you can understand there is now the sun on the sky. Heat also. When you are too much heated, even within the room, even if you do not see the sun, you can understand that this heat is due to the sun. Similarly, we have to understand the presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead by perceiving the different energies. Parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate. At the present moment we are trying to understand the energy of Kṛṣṇa. We cannot see directly Kṛṣṇa. But as soon as you see the energy or you perceive the energy, you can understand there is Kṛṣṇa, there is God. That is called intelligence. This is called jñānam. And when you are directly in connection with Kṛṣṇa, or directly in the service, that is called vijñānam.
Prakṛti means energy. So, because we are in the material world, our material science is simply studying the material energy of Kṛṣṇa. Physical, chemical, light, sound, these are the subject matter of the scientists to understand. But they do not know wherefrom these material elements come.
In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam or in the Vedic literature it is said that the material energy came out of the breathing of the Supreme Lord, Mahā-Viṣṇu.
- yasyaika-niśvasita-kālam athāvalambya
- jīvanti loma-vilajā jagad-aṇḍa-nāthāḥ
- viṣṇur-mahān sa iha yasya kalā-viśeṣo
- govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi
- (Bs. 5.48)
The material energy is coming through the breathing of Mahā-Viṣṇu, who is lying down in the Kāraṇa, Causal Ocean. So, from the breathing there is sound. From the ether, the sound comes—this is scientific—and from the sound, the air comes, the fire comes, then water comes, then the earth comes. The earth is the last, gross element in the material science. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says this earth, bhūmi... Bhūmi, earth, has come out of water, āpaḥ. And wherefrom āpaḥ, water, has come? Analaḥ, fire. Wherefrom fire has come? From air. Where the air has come? Ether, sky.
The material energy is coming through the breathing of Mahā-Viṣṇu, who is lying down in the Kāraṇa, Causal Ocean. So, from the breathing there is sound. From the ether, the sound comes—this is scientific—and from the sound, the air comes, the fire comes, then water comes, then the earth comes. The earth is the last, gross element in the material science. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says this earth, bhūmi... Bhūmi, earth, has come out of water, āpaḥ. And wherefrom āpaḥ, water, has come? Analaḥ, fire. Wherefrom fire has come? From air. Where the air has come? Ether, sky. Wherefrom the ether has come? False ego. Where from it has come? Mind. Wherefrom it has come? Intelligence. And wherefrom it has come? From the soul. This is the scientific study. But they do not know background of the soul. They're thinking, "There was a chunk and there was something. That's all. Perhaps, it may be." No definite knowledge. But here you can take the definite knowledge, wherefrom these material elements come. This Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Soul.
So from the Supreme Soul all these material elements have come. Just like your body. Wherefrom it has come? It has come from the soul. In the śāstra it is said, karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha-upapatti (SB 3.31.1). Jantu. Jantu means living entity, jan word(?), jantu. So jantur deha-upapatti. There... The atheist theory that combination of matter makes a situation when living symptoms come out, combination of matter, that is the present chemical theory, chemical evolution. There are so many theories based on Darwin's theory, chemical evolution. Recently, when I was in Los Angeles, one German scientist came there. He has written one book, Chemical Evolution, and he has got Nobel Prize. Now he's touring for lecturing on his theory. So in the California university there is our student, Dr. Svarūpa Dāmodara. He's my disciple. He's doctor in chemistry. So, when this German chemist was lecturing, theorizing that life has come from chemicals, so he put the question that "Suppose if I give you these chemicals, whether you can prepare a life?" He answered in the meeting, "That I cannot say." That means he's not certain; still, he's theorizing, that from chemical, life has come. No, from chemical, life has not come; from life, chemical has come. This is real theory.
In the Bhagavad-gītā, in another place, it is said that upadraṣṭā anumantā. The Supersoul, soul and Supersoul... There are two souls: the supreme soul and the subordinate soul within the body. So what we are doing, subordinate soul... The supreme soul or the Supersoul, who is also sitting with me within the heart, He is upadraṣṭā anumantā. He's simply seeing. And anumantā means without His sanction we cannot do anything. Sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭaḥ (BG 15.15). Everyone has got experience. When we want to do something wrong, there is conscience: "Don't do it." "No, no, let me do." There is struggle. So this is the struggle between the soul and the Supersoul. But when you're persistent, that "I must do it," then the Supersoul orders, "All right, you can do at your own risk." That is called karma-phala. We have become subjected to the resultant action of our karma. That is called karmaṇā. By the activities, daiva-netreṇa, by the superior authorities' superintendence, daiva-netreṇa, jantur deha-upapatti, the living entity gets a type of body. What is this body? The five elements, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca. Eight elements. Earth, water, fire, air, and sky, the mind, intelligence and ego. Ego, false ego. The false ego is that "I am this body." Ahaṅkāra. Ahaṅkāra: "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim." These are all false ahaṅkāra. Neither I am Hindu nor Muslim nor Christian nor American nor Indian. I am living entity.
So there is soul and there is the gross material body and there is the subtle material body. The soul is the basic principle, but to get a body, as I have already explained, the secretion discharged by the father and the mother, they mix up, they are emulsified and forms in the body of a pea. And the soul comes through the semina of the father and he's situated there. Then the body develops. Now, just try to understand. Because the spirit soul is there, therefore matter is developing. If the soul is not there, if the child is dead, no more development. No more development. No dead child develops a body. Everyone knows. Therefore these material elements come from the spirit soul, not that spirit soul comes from the material elements. This is not. This is wrong theory. If it comes from the material combination, then why you cannot produce a living entity in the laboratory? In the laboratory, no, that is not... A material... Because... Material creation is there because I wanted a, such a circumstances, atmosphere, and anumantā, the Supreme Lord, He's the supreme sanction giver—He gives me opportunity to enter into a certain type of mother's body, and the material grows.
Therefore the source of all material elements is originally the supreme life, not matter. That is explained here. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4). But they are separated. How they are separated? That is explained in a different verse.
- mayā tatam idaṁ sarvaṁ
- jagad avyakta-mūrtinā
- mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni
- na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ
- (BG 9.4)
It is separated because in this material world you cannot directly perceive the presence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Na cāhaṁ teṣv avasthitaḥ. "I am not present there. Although it is coming from My energy, still, I am not present there." This is simultaneously-one-and-different philosophy.
So these five elements, gross elements, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ kham..., kham. And finer than..., manaḥ, buddhiḥ, ahaṅkāraḥ, mind, intelligence and false ego. False ego means I am identifying with this matter, which I am not. Therefore ahaṅkāra. This ahaṅkāra is false ahaṅkāra, which I am not. I am accepting that I am this body, but actually I am not. Therefore I am saying, it is false ego. Real ahaṅkāra is ahaṁ brahmāsmi. There is also ahaṅkāra. Ahaṅkāra cannot be abolished. Ahaṅkāra will be there, but ahaṅkāra has to be cleansed. Therefore bhakti-mārga, the path of bhakti-yoga, is the cleansing process, clearing process. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12). Everything is there, but it has to be cleansed. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission. By chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, you'll be able to cleanse your misconception of life. Misconception of life is that "I am this matter." This is ahaṅkāra, false ahaṅkāra. But I am actually not this matter; I am spirit soul. Therefore pure ahaṅkāra is ahaṁ brahmāsmi, a spirit soul. That is the beginning of understanding. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi, that is also explained in the Bhagavad-gītā that brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati (BG 18.54). If one understands this fact, that "I am not this material body; I am a spirit soul," that is called brahma-bhūta (SB 4.30.20).
We materialistic persons, materialist scientists, they can study all these material elements, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ kham... And then, little higher than that, material scientists, there are psychologists or philosophers. They study mano buddhir ahaṅkāra, thinking, feeling, willing—different stages of the mind. But Kṛṣṇa says that itīyaṁ me bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā, "These eight kinds of material elements, they are separated energy from Me." Separated energy, you can understand very easily. Just like I am speaking and it is being recorded in the tape recorder. When the tape recorder is replayed again, you'll find that I am speaking again. But that speaking and my present speaking is different. Therefore that speaking is separated energy. Now I am speaking directly. That is not separated. But when it is transferred to another matter, that is separated energy.
Now Kṛṣṇa says that "These material energies are inferior," aparā. Just like in everything within our experience, we have got inferior quality and superior quality. Of course, Kṛṣṇa being absolute, everything is spiritual in the higher sense. But when we analyze scrutinizingly, we can understand that "This is this, this is that." So Kṛṣṇa is analyzing Himself, that "All these material energies, eight kinds of material energies, they are inferior quality. Apareyam itas tu. Apareyam itas tu anyāṁ prakṛtim. There is another prakṛti, another energy. Because parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate (Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport). Kṛṣṇa has got multi, various energies. So these eight elements, material elements in manifestation of His inferior energy. And the superior energy, Kṛṣṇa says, apareyam itas tu anyāṁ prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parām. Parām means superior energy. And that superior energy is jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). They are living entities, just like we are living entities.
This is called ṣaḍ-vikāra, six kind of changes of anything material. That is called jagat. Gacchati. But there is a moving force. Just like the motorcar is going, gacchati. But the motorcar is not moving without any driver. There is a machine, first-class machine, Rolls-Royce car, Cadillac car, good machine, but the machine is useless unless there is a driver. The aeroplane is moving, but without the pilot it cannot move. Therefore material elements, however, I mean to say, wonderful it may be, it has no value without the spirit soul. That is the explanation here. Apareyam.
Kṛṣṇa has explained the material elements: bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). But these material elements cannot work independently. It must be added with the superior energy, or the living energy, jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). This Bombay city is important because there are so many living entities. Otherwise, where there are no living entities... Even in Bombay, there are some open land. What is the value? There is no value. Therefore the conclusion should be that material elements may be wonderful, but it has no value without the touch of living entities. The modern scientists, they cannot understand that there is living, spiritual energy behind this material energy. Therefore it is moving. They are... Just like a child cannot understand that the motorcar or the aeroplane is moving because there is driver and the pilot.
Manure. The same manure, same water, the same gardener, but according to different flowers, the fragrance is different. How this is done? Can any scientist answer? How it is coming differently? And why there are differences? If it is nature, and the ingredients are the same, why nature is not producing the same quality or the same kind of flower or trees or fruits? Why? Therefore it is answered in the Bhagavad-gītā that nature is not all in all. Nature cannot work independently. Nature is the material world, material elements.
So it is answered there in the Bhagavad-gītā: mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). There is superintendence of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. He, He likes that "This kind of bīja, or the seed, will produce this kind of flower and this kind of flavor." The superintendence is there of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. We fools, we say, we cannot explain. We say "Nature." What is this nature? There must be brain behind the nature. Otherwise, how a rose, so nicely it is coming? Even from artistic point of view, if you want to paint one flower, you have to take so much labor, so many colors, reflection, and so many instruments, then hardly you can paint one nice rose flower. Still, it is not as good. And not at all good in comparison to the original flower. So if this third-class flower, you have to apply so much brain, and this first-class flower has no brain behind it? Is that very good logic? What is this logic? There must be brain. And that is stated here: puṇyo gandhaḥ pṛthivyāṁ ca tejaś cāsmi vibhāvasau, aham. "It is My, under My superintendence."
Just like in this planet you have got so many personalities, similarly, according to Vedic literature, we understand in the sun planet also there are varieties of living entities, but their bodies are made of fire. As our body is made of earth, similarly, their bodies are made of fire. There are five elements in the material nature: earth, water, fire, air, and ether. So in different planets, there are different atmospheres and different bodies also. Don't think that each and every planet of the same quality. No. Same quality in the sense because these five elements are present there. Without these five elements, no material thing exists. So somewhere the fire is prominent. Somewhere the air is prominent. Somewhere water is prominent. Somewhere earth is prominent. So in this planet, or in some other earthly planet, earth is predominant. Similarly, there are other planets also. So don't think that other planets are vacant. No. So far Vedic literatures are concerned... Just like modern scientists. They are calculating that the moon is full of dust, but according to Vedic literature moon is not full of dust. There are also higher living entities. And from..., from your practical reason also, you can just understand that a lump of dust cannot be so brilliant so that it is illuminating the whole earth. It is not possible. Anyway, let the scientists go on with their own research work. So far we have got information from Vedic literature, all the planets—sun planet, moon planet, Venus—they are all full of living entities, and they have got different types of body.
Now, this, these are technical terms. What are these technical terms? First technical term is "brahma." What is Brahman? Arjuna's question is first: "What is Brahman?" Then next question is: "What is adhyātmā? What is adhyātmā, spirit?" Then next question is: adhibhūtam. Adhibhūtam means "What is these material elements?" And adhiyajña: "What is Supersoul?" And "At the time of death, what are the perception of these three things?" Very complicated questions. Very complicated question. Adhyātma-brahma, adhyātmā, adhibhūta and adhiyajña and adhidaiva.
Puruṣottama. Arjuna addressed Kṛṣṇa as Puruṣottama, uttama-puruṣa. There are three kinds of puruṣas. Puruṣa means the male, or the enjoyer. So uttama-puruṣa, madhyama-puruṣa, adhama-puruṣa. Adhama means the lowest. We are also puruṣa. At least, we have taken the position of puruṣa to enjoy this material world. But we are adhama-puruṣa. Adhama means the lowest. We cannot enjoy independently. We require so many favorable circumstances. Just like we cannot see without the sunrise. Still, we are very much proud of seeing. We say, "Can you show me God?" Well, can you see God? You cannot see without sunshine, and still, you are so much proud of your eyes. That is called adhama. He has no knowledge; still, he's taking Ph.D. degree and getting Nobel Prize. This is going on. So Kṛṣṇa is the Puruṣottama, uttama-puruṣa. The madhyama-puruṣa is the Supersoul. Via media between Kṛṣṇa and we. We are adhama-puruṣa. So Kṛṣṇa is addressed as uttama-puruṣa, "the best of all puruṣas, or enjoyers." Adhibhūtam, the matter, five elements of matter. Kiṁ proktam. Which of them are called the Brahman, ātmā.
They, they are under the impression that when there is too strong temperature, the microbes die, or when there is too cold, the microbes die. There are two kinds of sterilization: either by increasing the heat or decreasing the heat, below zero. But Bhagavad-gītā, from Bhagavad-gītā we understand, adāhyo 'yam: soul is never killed in fire, neither it is killed by extreme coldness. Nityaḥ śāśvato 'yam. Spirit cannot be counteracted by any material reaction. That is spirit. So therefore, the theory that in the fire the living entity dies, it is not; otherwise how these ślokas are there in the Second Chapter? Adāhyo 'yam, akledyo 'yam, aśoṣya 'yam. That means anything material, that can be cut into pieces, but the soul cannot be cut into pieces. Acchedyo 'yam. It cannot be cut into pieces. Acchedyo' yam. Adāhyo 'yam: it cannot be burned into ashes in the fire. Akledyo 'yam aśoṣya 'yam: by the reaction of the five elements, earth, water, fire, air, that is not applicable in the soul. So if they're not applicable to the soul, which is minute particle of the Supreme Soul, how it is applicable to the Supreme Soul? Therefore it is a miscalculation that Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Soul, is affected by this material nature. That is not possible. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says that sambhavāmy ātma-māyayā (BG 4.6). Besides that, Kṛṣṇa says that material nature works under His direction, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). There are other evidences.
Now Kṛṣṇa is therefore explaining that the, whatever you are seeing in this material world... What is this material world? This material world is combination of the spiritual and material energy of Kṛṣṇa. Parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktiḥ. There are two different energies of Brahman. Sarvedam akhilaṁ jagat. What is this Calcutta city? Calcutta city means the earth, water, air, fire, sky. These are material elements, gross elements. Mind, intelligence and ego, these are the subtle elements. These eight elements, Kṛṣṇa's energy, and beyond this energy, aparayam, these are inferior energy. Beyond this inferior, super..., inferior energy there is a superior energy. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parā (BG 7.5). Another superior. What is that superior energy? Jīva-bhūta, the living force, the living entity. So what is this world? This world, or take this Calcutta, what is it? It is a combination of material energy and spiritual energy. The spiritual energies are the living entities. He has got this material body; therefore it is a combination. So they are working. But who is working? Actually working these living entities, and he is utilizing this material energy. This is going on. Yayedaṁ dharyate..., the whole world is going on like this: a combination of material energy and spiritual energy. The spiritual energy is superior and the material energy is inferior. Therefore whatever we are seeing, they are simply display, manifestation of two energies of Kṛṣṇa. Parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktiḥ sarvedam akhilaṁ jagat. This is jagat.
Just like in the sky there are so many things. Yathākāśa. Yathākāśa-sthito nityaṁ vāyuḥ. The vāyuḥ, vāyuḥ is everywhere, but it is within the sky. It is nityo, nityam. Nityaṁ vāyuḥ sarvatra-go mahān tathā sarvāṇi bhūtāni mat-sthānī. "Everything is in Me, and still I am not there." So Kṛṣṇa is outside, Kṛṣṇa is inside. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Kṛṣṇa is so kind. Kṛṣṇa is outside. Kṛṣṇa is inside. Kṛṣṇa is outside. Brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā—no. Jagan not, not mithyā, because these elements, jagat means these five elements. That is also Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa in everything. Kṛṣṇa's energy, how we can say it is mithyā? It is not mithyā; it is fact, but we do not know it is Kṛṣṇa. We are claiming, "This is our land," but we do not know it is, it is whose land. That is our mistake. Land is not mithyā; land is fact. But we do not know whose land, to whom this land belongs. That we do not know. But a devotee knows that īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1), everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa also says, sarva-loka-maheśvaram: (BG 5.29) "I am the proprietor of all lokas." But we are claiming, "This is Indian land, it is our land," "This is Chinese land," "This is American land," and you are fighting. This is due to want of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Actually everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa. We belong to Kṛṣṇa. My body belongs to Kṛṣṇa. I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa; therefore my only duty is to serve Kṛṣṇa. This is perfect knowledge. Otherwise all nonsense.
So when He said, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam, it is not a false pride. It is fact. Simply we must have brain to understand. Mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam. Every particle, every atom, there is presence of God. That is stated in the śāstra. Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). Paramāṇu means the atom. God is within the atom. So God is within you also. God is outside; God is within. Outside, as we see these five elements... What are these five elements? The same thing, expansion of God's energy. Just like we practically see scientifically, the sunshine is the cause of this universe. Within the sunshine all the planets have grown, and in each and every planet, due to the sunshine the vegetables are growing. There are leaves. When there is no sunshine the leaf falls down. As soon as the sunshine is there the colorful fruits and flowers and leaves come out. Everything is due to the sunshine.
Similarly, God's effulgence is the cause of material things also. That is explained in the Seventh Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). The five elements... (break) ...have been summarized into three: external energy, internal energy, and marginal energy. The external energy is this material expansion, manifestation. Similarly, there is internal energy, the spiritual world manifestation, and in between them there is another energy called marginal energy, taṭastha, that we are, we living entities. We are His marginal energy. Marginal energy means we can live either in this external energy or in the internal energy, in between. So at the present moment we are living in the external energy. But this external energy is also Kṛṣṇa's energies, God's energy. It is not different from Him. But the external energy means we are captivated by the external energy. But the external energy is not permanent. The internal energy is permanent.
The demigods have their different places in this material world. All the planets, heavenly planets... There are seven planetary systems up and seven planetary systems down. So this is called bhūrloka, earthly planet, and there are many planets on this system. So bhūrloka, bhuvarloka, janaloka, tapoloka, then brahmaloka, satyaloka, like that—so many planets there are. So there are different kinds of living entities and different kinds of comforts. They are highly intelligent, more intelligent than the human being. Therefore they are called demigods, almost God. So here Kṛṣṇa says, "Those who are trying to worship the demigods, they'll go to the planets of the demigods." Yānti deva-vratā devān pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ (BG 9.25). Pitṛ-vratāḥ. There is a form of worship of the forefathers. So there is a particular planet. The worshiper of the forefathers, they go there. Pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ. And bhūtejyā yānti. Bhūtāni yānti bhūtejyā. And those who are materialistic, those who want to worship these earthly things in this material..., not material world, everywhere, but bhūtejyā, especially material worship, so bhūtejyā, those who are worshiper of material elements, they go to... They remain in the material platform. Yānti mad-yājino 'pi mām: (BG 9.25) "And those who are worshiping Me, Lord, they will come to Me."
Just like you possess your shirt and coat, similarly, you possess this body also. The gross body made of material elements is your coat, and the subtle body made of finer material elements—mind, intelligence, ego—that is your shirt. And within that coat and shirt, the real living entity is there.
So one who has such vision, one who is learned in spiritual understanding, he is called paṇḍita.
- vidyā-vinaya-sampanne
- brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
- śuni caiva śva-pāke ca
- paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ
- (BG 5.18)
Paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ. That is the real vision. A paṇḍita means he sees. There is... For a advanced spiritualist, advanced Kṛṣṇa consciousness person, there is no such distinctive, "Here is American; here is Indian; here is brāhmaṇa; here is śūdra; here is Hindu; here is Muslim." No. He has no such vision. He has the vision that within this body, the spirit soul is there. That is part and parcel of God, or Kṛṣṇa. He is suffering on account of different dresses, different conception of... Therefore he should be released from this misconception of life. That is called paṇḍita.
Then how we are puruṣa? Puruṣa means enjoyer. If the puruṣa becomes under the ruling of prakṛti, then how he is puruṣa? He is not puruṣa. Therefore in Bhagavad-gītā the living entity has been described as prakṛti, not puruṣa. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām. Kṛṣṇa says that this material nature, matter, dull matter... Earth, water, air, fire, sky, these are called gross material elements. So they are also prakṛti. Bhinnā prakṛtiḥ me aṣṭadhā. Kṛṣṇa says that "These material elements—earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence and ego, eight—they are all material. Mind is also material. There is spiritual also. But whatever is within our experience, that is material. So that is claimed as Kṛṣṇa's prakṛti or energy.
Yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke. This body, according to Ayurvedic system of medicine, this body is made of three elements—kapha, pitta, vāyu: mucus, bile, and cough. So anyway, so tri-dhātuke... This body, is made of material elements. I am spirit soul; I am not material element. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi: "I am spirit soul." This is knowledge. But if one does not take this knowledge, he remains with the bodily concept of life, "I finger," not "my finger," then he is in ignorance. "I head," not "my head." Nobody says, "I head." Everyone says "My head." But find out who is "I." This is knowledge.
Similarly, suppose you construct a skyscraper building, costly building. But who has supplied the material? The brick, stone, wood, iron—where you have got it? It is Kṛṣṇa's property. You cannot produce these bricks or the iron or the wood. It is Kṛṣṇa's property. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). These five elements of material ingredients... earth, water, air fire, all these things, even mind, intelligence... The mind... Unless you have got intelligence, you cannot manufacture anything with this material things.
Just like in America. Before the Americans, the Europeans or from other countries, mostly Europeans, they went to America... And the American land was there. The ingredients were there. But because the red Indians, they had no sufficient intelligence, they could not make America like present time. Lack of intelligence. So we are manufacturing so many things industrially, but the intelligence is also given by Kṛṣṇa. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhiḥ. The buddhi is also given by Kṛṣṇa. That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭaḥ. "I am sitting in everyone's heart." Mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca: (BG 15.15) "From Me, one gets intelligence, memory, and also forgets."
This is more or less sāṅkhya philosophy, analysis of material elements. We are embodied in material elements. Kṛṣṇa is questioned by Arjuna, "What is this body and who is the owner of this body, and what is knowledge?" Kṛṣṇa has answered that "The soul is the owner of this body, and I also, I am also the owner of this body." The owner of this body, one individual soul and the Supersoul. Just like owner of this storefront. The tenant is in one sense an owner; at the same time the landlord is also owner. These points we have discussed. Now, Kṛṣṇa has also discussed that the knowledge by which we can understand the soul, the Supersoul, and the material embodiment, that is real knowledge.
People are after knowledge. So many there are, departments of knowledge. But according to Bhagavad-gītā, real knowledge is to understand the soul, the Supersoul, and the material world. So He's analyzing these material elements: mahā-bhūtāny ahaṅkāraḥ. Mahā-bhūtāni. There are five gross elements, which are called mahā-bhūtāni, great material elements. And what are those? Khadiny ahaṅkāras tad-hetus tamaso bhūtādi-saṁjño buddhis tad-hetur...pradhāno mahān avyaktaṁ tad-hetus tri-guṇavasthaṁ pradhāna indriyāṇi śrotrādīni,(?) one after another. This sky and false ego is due to the intelligence. Everything begins from the subtle. The most subtle element is the spirit soul, and little grosser than the spirit soul is the intelligence. And little grosser than the intelligence is the false ego identification. And little grosser than the false..., intelligence, is the mind. And from mind, then the senses. And the senses, next the grosser element is the body. So we have to analyze according to the śāstra, because it is not possible. Suppose the modern scientist is given to find out where is the soul in this body. It is not possible.
That is, Kṛṣṇa is explaining here, that mahā-bhūtāny ahaṅkāra. The ahaṅkāra is very important thing. False ahaṅkāra and real ahaṅkāra. Ahaṅkāra means law of identity. "I am Indian," this is ahaṅkāra. "I am American," this is ahaṅkāra. "I am rich man," this is also ahaṅkāra. "I am poor man." There are so many ahaṅkāras, law of identification. So this ahaṅkāra is the basis of getting a type of body, And... This is the subtle basis, ahaṅkāra. Mano buddhir ahaṅkāra. There are eight material elements: bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khāṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). That is stated in the seventh chapter. This earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence, and ahaṅkāra. This is creating my different types of body.
If you take it for acceptance that this vast mass of water has come from the perspiration of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So there is nothing to deny this fact. Acintya-śakti. Acintya-śakti means inconceivable power. We have got inconceivable power. Because we are minute particle of God, we have also minute inconceivable power. We do not know how the hairs are growing, but the energy is there within me. Similarly, so many things come out from the inconceivable power of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore Kṛṣṇa claims,
- bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ
- khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca
- ahaṅkara itīyaṁ me
- bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā
- (BG 7.4)
"They are My separated energy." So this whole earth is creation of these five elements, gross elements. So it is Kṛṣṇa's property. How we can claim, "This is our property?" That is illusion. We are claiming, "This portion is American," "This portion is Indian," "This portion is Pakistani," but we do not know that no portion belongs to us; everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa.
Good chemists, they can understand how by combining different elements they can produce something. So these chemical products of this body is described by Kṛṣṇa very nicely, gross chemical and subtle chemical. But I am different from this. That is knowledge. I am different from this combination. But that we do not know. That is ignorance. I am thinking that "I am this combination," and I am thinking, "Wherefrom this combination has come into being, that is my place." That is described in the śāstras, yasyātmā-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke sva-dhīḥ kalatrādiṣu bhauma ijya-dhīḥ (SB 10.84.13). The chemicals comes from the earth. So everything in my body, they have come from these material elements and I'm identifying, "This place is mine because this body is born out of these elements." That is going on as nationalism. Bhauma iḍya-dhīḥ. Bhauma iḍya-dhīḥ. They'll not prefer worshiping Kṛṣṇa. They'll prefer worshiping that land from which this body has emanated. Bhauma idya-dhiḥ.
So we have discussed about the body, kṣetra. The question of Arjuna was kṣetra, kṣetrajna, jñānam, and jñeyam. Now kṣetra, we have discussed yesterday. Kṣetra, this body, is combination of "the five great elements, false ego, intelligence, the unmanifested, the ten senses, the mind, the five sense objects, desire, hatred, happiness, distress, the aggregate, the life symptom, and convictions—all these are considered in summary to be the field of activities." Yesterday we have discussed.
So both the bodily platform and mental platform, they are material. Because the body is also matter and mind is also matter. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca, apareyam, prakṛtir me bhinnā aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4). This body is made of five elements: earth, water, fire, air, sky, and mind is there, subtle body, mind, intelligence and egotism. So both platform are material platform. Therefore it is said harāv abhaktasya. Those who are devotees of the Lord, they are not acting on the mental or the gross material platform. They are not working on that platform. They are working on the spiritual platform.
Now here Kṛṣṇa says, bahir antaś ca bhūtānām. The Absolute Truth is there, bahir antaś ca, not that it is in a different position or different angle of vision. You are already in the Absolute Truth, even materially conception. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). These are the material elements, five gross elements and three subtle elements. So even taken materially, so what is this material? We have already explained. The materials are different energies of the Supreme Lord. Bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā. Kṛṣṇa says, "These eight kinds of material nature, subtle and gross, they are My energy, inferior energy." Itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām.
So, the mind is within, the intelligence is within, the soul is within, and outside your body... So this body made of five elements, they are also Kṛṣṇa's energy, and within, the mind, intelligence and the soul, that is also Kṛṣṇa's energy. Two kinds of energies: supreme, er, inferior and superior. Therefore He is outside and inside both. Bahir antaś ca bhūtānām. Every living entity, Kṛṣṇa is existing outside and inside. Therefore we have to purify both outside and inside. That is our human life. Human life means to become purified. Because we are not purified, therefore we have to accept birth, death, old age and disease. This is the problem.
Avibhaktaṁ ca bhūteṣu, īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). This is another statement of Bhagavad-gītā, that the Lord, Supreme Lord, he is situated in everyone's heart, hṛd-deśe, particularly pointed out. Hṛd-deśe means "in the heart". Hṛt means heart. So modern medical science, they see that the energy is coming from the heart and as soon as the heart stops to work, it is said that the body is dead. So here also the same thing is confirmed. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). They cannot say, explain, why the heart stops, but here we get the explanation that as soon as the soul, both the soul and the Supersoul, leave this body, then it is only a lump of matter only. "Dust thou art; dust thou beist." It is developed from these material elements, five gross elements and three subtle elements, but so long... It works as long as the soul, the spirit soul and the Supersoul, remains.
So jyotiṣām api jyotis tamasaḥ param. So this jyoti, this illumination, is beyond this material world. And because there is illumination, that illumination is reflected in the material world. You will find the reflection, bluish reflection, in the sky. It means that brahma-jyotir is bluish because it is coming out from the blue body of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it is bluish. We see the sky bluish, and in darkness we see, although it is darkness, there is some brightness in the sky. Always the sky is... The sky is everywhere, but the covering is seven times covered by different types of material elements, and that brahma-jyotir is penetrating through the covers, and little reflection we can see in the sky. So therefore, here it is said,
- jyotiṣām api taj jyotis
- tamasaḥ param ucyate
- jñānaṁ jñeyaṁ jñāna-gamyaṁ
- hṛdi sarvasya viṣṭhitam
Viṣṭhitam. Kṛṣṇa is situated in everyone's heart. Actually He is knowledge, and He is the object of knowledge, jñeyam, and one should try to understand Kṛṣṇa. Jñānaṁ jñeyaṁ jñāna-gamyam. And He is in everyone's heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Simply we have to know the process how to know Him. That is explained already, We have discussed. Amānitvam adambhitvam ahiṁsā kṣāntir ārjavam (BG 13.8), ācāryopāsanam, indriya, vinigrahaḥ, bhakti-yoga... Māṁ ca yo 'vyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena... (BG 14.26). These things are already discussed. So human life is meant for understanding this. Athāto brahma-jijñā... These are all Brahman subject. They are not material subject matter. Tattva-vastu. Vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvaṁ yaj jñānam advayam (SB 1.2.11).
We are all prakṛtis. And because, being prakṛti, we are trying to become puruṣa, that is called māyā, or illusion. Just like if a woman dresses like a man and wants to act as man, as that is illusion, similarly, we are differently dressed in the material ingredient, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4). Everyone's body is made of these five elements and mind, intelligence, they are also subtle material elements, and with this combination we have got this body, and I am the spirit soul. I am trying to enjoy. This is material world. We have forgotten that we are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Our business is not to enjoy but to help Kṛṣṇa to enjoy. That is our business, part and parcel.
So actually, we all living entities, we are prakṛti, we are not puruṣa. That is stated in the seventh chapter.
- apareyam itas tv anyāṁ
- prakṛtiṁ viddhi me parām
- jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho
- yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat
- (BG 7.5)
Kṛṣṇa, after analyzing the material elements—earth, water, fire, air, mind, intelligence, ego—he concluded that "These eight kinds of prakṛti, energy, they are My separated energy. But above this energy, there is another superior energy." Apareyam. Aparā means inferior. This matter is inferior and the living entity, on account of having life, it is superior energy. Because the living entities, they are trying to exploit the resources of this material nature. That is going on all over the world. A country is supposed to be very rich which has become able to exploit the material resources. So this is the going on.
This tree, being the reflection of the real tree, is an exact replica. Everything is there in the spiritual world. The impersonalists take Brahmā to be the root of this material tree, and from the root, according to sāṅkhya philosophy, come prakṛti, puruṣa, then the three guṇas, then the five gross elements (pañca-mahābhūta), then the ten senses (daśendriya), mind, etc. In this way they divide up the whole material world. If Brahmā is the center of all manifestations, then this material world is a manifestation of the center by 180 degrees, and the other 180 degrees constitute the spiritual world. The material world is the perverted reflection, so the spiritual world must have the same variegatedness, but in reality. The prakṛti is the external energy of the Supreme Lord, and the puruṣa is the Supreme Lord Himself, and that is explained in Bhagavad-gītā. Since this manifestation is material, it is temporary. A reflection is temporary, for it is sometimes seen and sometimes not seen. But the origin from whence the reflection is reflected is eternal. The material reflection of the real tree has to be cut off. When it is said that a person knows the Vedas, it is assumed that he knows how to cut off attachment to this material world. If one knows that process, he actually knows the Vedas. One who is attracted by the ritualistic formulas of the Vedas is attracted by the beautiful green leaves of the tree. He does not exactly know the purpose of the Vedas. The purpose of the Vedas, as disclosed by the Personality of Godhead Himself, is to cut down this reflected tree and attain the real tree of the spiritual world.
Paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20). You'll find in the Bhagavad-gītā. There is another nature. This nature, what you see, the sky, a round dome, that, above that, there are layers of five elements again. This is the covering. Just like you have seen the coconut. There is hard covering, and within the covering there is water. Similarly, within this covering... And outside the covering there are five layers, thousand times bigger than the one another: Water layer, air layer, fire layer. So you have to penetrate all these layers. Then you will get the spiritual world. All these universes, unlimited number, koṭi. Yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi (Bs. 5.40). Jagad-aṇḍa means the universe. Koṭi, many millions clustered together, that is material world. And beyond that material world there is spiritual world, another sky. That is also sky. That is called paravyoma. So by your sense perception you cannot estimate even what is there in the moon planet or sun planet, this planet, within this universe. How you can understand the spiritual world by speculation? This is foolishness.
He says, "The material things..." Prapañcikā means material. So this house is material. It is made of wood, stone. So we are giving up all material connection. Then why shall we live in this house? This is material. So prapañcikā. Prapañcikā means considering something as material. Hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ. Vastu means substance or thing which has connection with Hari. This stone, wood, air, fire, water—five gross elements—it has connection with Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vayuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca, bhinnā me prakṛtir aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4). These eight kinds of material elements, five gross and three subtle, namely the earth, water, air fire, sky—these are gross elements—and the subtle elements, mind, intelligence, and ego... So these are subtle. Mind is also material, and intelligence is also material, and ego, the false ego that "I am this material body," that is also material. And above this, that is spiritual.
So, therefore, life is the original source of everything, both matter and life. The body is coming from life, and the soul is coming from life, the supreme life, Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says, mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ: (BG 15.7) "This living entity, they are part and parcel of Me." So Kṛṣṇa is the supreme life. Therefore He says, ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate (BG 10.8). So Kṛṣṇa is the source of both life and matter. There are two energies. One is superior energy; another, it is inferior energy. The material elements, they are inferior energy, and the superior energy-jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). So how you can say jagad āhur anīśvaram (BG 16.8)? How you can say that without the control of the Supreme Lord this material world has come into being? There is no sufficient reasoning.
| Page Title: | Material elements (Lectures, BG) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, Mayapur |
| Created: | 30 of Mar, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=86, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 86 |