We are fully under the control of material nature, and foolishly, ahaṅkāra, on account of being bewildered by false egotism, we are thinking that, "I am independent." This is called material illusion.
So our first business is to understand what is this material world, what is the spiritual world, what is God, what is my relationship with Him, and how to execute the business of my life, to become successful in this human form of life. The success of human form of life is to understand this thing: our relationship with God. And we should act in relationship with God. Then our success of life will be achieved. This is the main purpose of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. It is a very prolonged subject matter to understand, but everything is explained. Our only request is that you read Bhagavad-gītā as it is; don't try to interpret. That is useless. Otherwise, why people have lost in India their own culture? Because they have interpreted wrongly. Every śāstra has been interpreted wrongly, and therefore people are misguided. They could not take advantage of the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā because all through, the Bhagavad-gītā has been misinterpreted. So many so-called politicians, scholars, but it is maybe for the first time—not first time; it is there—but to make it broad propaganda-wide that, "Try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is, without any interpretation." That is our mission.
That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission. Don't try to interpret and spoil it. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). Ei deśa means . . . he was born in Bengal, India—it may be Bengal or in India—He . . . he was interested with every man all over the world:
- pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma
- sarvatra pracāra hoibe mora nāma
- (CB Antya-khaṇḍa 4.126)
So He was interested in all the parts of the world, how they can be delivered from the clutches of this material energy. So He wished especially the Indians to take this job preaching the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā all over the world. He wanted it.
- bhārata-bhūmite manuṣya janma hoila yāra
- janma sārthaka kari' karo para-upakāra
- (CC Adi 9.41)
This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission, para-upakāra. It is not the business of the Indian people to exploit others. The mission is they must be very, very merciful to all outsiders, born in . . . out of India. That is India's mission. Because they are in darkness; they do not know. So instead of . . . enlighten them, giving them jyotir gamaḥ-tamasi mā: "Don't remain in darkness." So we are imitating them. This is not India's good fortune. We should not imitate. That is not very good civilization. That is . . . this has been described as asuric civilization in the Bhagavad-gītā. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇu, they do not know. Anyway, although they do not know, they are accepting now. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is so potential that they are accepting. That is upakāra. Caitanya Mahāprabhu wanted this, para upakāra. They are in darkness, tamasi. Bring them in the light: tamasi mā jyotir gamaḥ.