Recovery from Amnesia

Transcendental Sound

"Who is My Father? Who is My Mother?" Hansadutta das

Hearing transcendental knowledge from the bona fide source is the only way our illusion can actually be dissolved. When there is morning fog, we cannot see clearly, but with the rising of the sun, the fog is automatically dissipated. Similarly, as long as we remain devoid of transcendental knowledge we shall be in the fog of material existence, but just by hearing the message of Krishna consciousness this foggy consciousness is dissolved.

Krishna consciousness has nothing to do with our intellectual or mental power. It has only to do with our willingness to hear transcendental sound vibration. That is the significance of this movement: it is organized for broadcasting transcendental sound vibration. Even though we may not intellectually comprehend, it nevertheless acts, just as medicine acts although we may not know the medicinal composition. more

Related Articles

"Who is My Father? Who is My Mother?"
All of Us Transients
Propensity for Amnesia
Wake Up to Your Real State of Consciousness

Related Topics

Aim of Life
Health
Karma - Work
Reality V. Maya

daivi hy esha guna-mayi
mama maya duratyaya
mam eva ye prapadyante
mayam etam taranti te [Bhagavad-gita 7.14][1]

So Lord Chaitanya Mahaprabhu says that this is the condition, suffering condition of the living entities, and he can be rescued by the mercy of sadhu, saintly persons, the scriptures and the spiritual master. They are prepared to bestow their mercy upon everyone, provided people like to take their instruction and mercy. That is the solution. And in the Bhagavad-gita the same thing is confirmed in the Seventh Chapter: daivi hy esha guna-mayi mama maya duratyaya [Bg. 7.14]. The influx of the disturbances created by this material nature under different forms is very stringent. So anyone who wants to be rescued from these miseries, he should surrender unto the Supreme Lord. Mam eva ye prapadyante mayam etam taranti te.

This maya has got two kinds of influence: prakshepatmika, avaranatmika. Avaranatmika means we are already covered by the illusion. Although we are suffering in every step, we are thinking that we are happy. Just, just the day before yesterday the lady, she said, "Oh, the temperature was so high that I could not tolerate it. I could not..." The next moment she said, "Oh, I don't feeling any, any unhappiness." This is called prakshepatmika. First thing is that I am so much illusioned that I... Just like the animals. They are suffering so much, but they have no knowledge that they are suffering. But human beings, who are above them, they can understand that what sort of suffering there is. An animal, he's being taken to the slaughterhouse, but it does not know due to ignorance. This is called avaranatmika, covering influence of the material nature. And there is another influence. Suppose one is trying to come out of the covering. Prakshepatmika. It throws: "Oh, why you are trying for this? You are very happy. Why do you think, why you are so much pessimistic of this life? Just work hard and enjoy life. That's all."

So these things are going on. Actually, we are suffering and we are in dangerous position step by step. But by the influence of this material, external energy, we are covered, illusioned. We are thinking, "Yes, I am very happy." And if somebody tries to come out of it, then he is also advised by the material nature, "Oh, why you are doing all this nonsense? You are very happy." Yavaj jivet sukham jivet. The atheistic theory... Nowadays there are atheists, not that... Atheist class of men there are always. Maybe number of the atheists are now greater than before, but there was a great atheist in India. There are six kinds of philosophical theses. Out of those, atheism is one of them. Charvaka Muni, he was the leader of the atheists. His theory was that rinam kritva ghritam pibet: "Just beg, borrow or steal. You must eat butter. Never mind." Rinam kritva ghritam pibet, yavan jivet sukham jivet: "So long you shall live, you must live very comfortably." Then one may say, "Oh, beg, borrow, steal, and who'll suffer the sins? If I borrow, if I cannot pay? If I commit sins? If I commit burglary? Oh." The Charvaka Muni replied, bhasmi-bhutasya dehasya kutah punar-agamano bhavet: "Well, when your body will be burnt into ashes, who is coming here and who is going to be responsible? Don't think all these." So this is atheistic theory. They don't believe that there is transmigration of the soul. He has to take another body and he has to take body according to his work, and there are 8,400,000's of different kinds of bodies, and human body is the most benefactory. So they do not know all these things. So this is called avaranatmika, covering influence.

So covering influence and throwing influence. Out of these two influences, one can come out if he agrees to surrender unto the Supreme Lord. Otherwise there is no other way. He'll be, he'll be always covered or be thrown again.

daivi hy esha guna-mayi
mama maya duratyaya
mam eva ye prapadyante
mayam etam taranti te [Bhagavad-gita 7.14]

Lord Krishna says in the Bhagavad-gita, "Anyone who surrenders unto Me fully, he, he alone can get rid of these two kinds of influence of maya. Others cannot."

maya-mugdha jivera nahi svatah krishna-jñana
jivere kripaya kaila krishna veda-purana[2]

These, I mean to say, illusioned, maya-mugdha, illusioned living entities, they have forgotten. They have forgotten their relationship with the Supreme Lord. Mostly: "Oh, what is God?" Somebody says, "God is dead." So these things are going on. Not now. Now the number has increased. It is always. So long the world is there, the material world is there, this sort of thing is going on. So maya-mugdha, illusioned by this external energy, they have no memory that how they are connected with the Supreme Lord. They have no memory. They have forgotten. That there is something like God, altogether they have forgotten by the illusion. Yes. Maya-mugdha jivera nahi krishna smriti-jñana. And just to revive their memory, Krishna... Jivere kripaya kaila krishna veda-purana. Veda-purana. Veda means the Vedic literatures. Veda, real literal meaning is veda means knowledge. Vetti veda vido jñane. There is a Sanskrit root, vid-dhatu. From that vid-dhatu, veda. Veda means knowledge. And Purana, Purana means supplementary Vedic instruction described in story form. That is called Purana, story. This Bhagavata is also one of the Maha Purana. Maha Purana means the science of Krishna is described in story form. This is called Purana. People better understand in stories, in history.

So Lord Chaitanya says, "Because people in general, by the influence of the illusory energy, they have forgotten their eternal relationship with the Supreme Lord, therefore the Lord Himself appeared as Krishna-dvaipayana Vyasa." Krishna-dvaipayana Vyasa is considered to be a powerful incarnation of Krishna. Unless he was an incarnation, it was not possible to write so many books. There are eighteen Puranas and four Vedas and 108 Upanishads, and Vedanta, then Mahabharata, then Srimad-Bhagavatam. Each of them contains thousands and thousands and millions of verses. So we cannot imagine that a man can write in that way. You see. So Veda-vyasa is considered to be incarnation of Krishna, and he was very powerful in writing. In the Mahabharata itself are so many verses, so big book. And there are... Each Purana contains thousands and thousands of verses. So these are his gifts. Because sadhu, sadhu, those who are saintly persons, they're always thinking of the miseries of the people in general. They are not meditating for their own purpose. They are writing books. They are thinking how to establish them in such a way so that they can properly utilize the human form of life. That is their business, sadhu. Sadhu means that they are always compassionate with the sufferings of the people in general. That is sadhu. Because they are devotees. The Lord comes... Yada yada hi dharmasya glanir bhavati bharata [Bg. 4.7].[3] The nature's law is so stringent that if you violate a little, then you have to suffer. There is no mercy. There is no mercy. So as you go on violating the laws of nature, the nature law is so made that the nature is giving you chance to be Krishna conscious. That is the whole program. And as soon as you deviate from that law, then you are put into trouble. So we are passing in that way.

So the sadhu and the pious and the devotees of the Lord, out of their compassion, they write books what they have heard in the disciplic succession. They do not manufacture. These Vedas, what is written by Vyasadeva, you don't think that he has manufactured something. No. Formerly the Vedic knowledge was simply spoken by the spiritual master, and the disciple simply heard it. Therefore the Veda is known as shruti [knowledge passed down by oral tradition]. There was no need of books. They were so, I mean to say, their memory was so sharp that once heard, they can remember, they could remember. The life was so nice that... In the advancement of Kali-yuga, as I have several times described, that this memory will be decreased. People's memory will be very shortened. They'll forget. Just like the lady was angry. At once forgets. One moment she says that "Oh, it was terrible heat," and next moment says, "Oh, I don't feel any unhappiness." That is forgetfulness. So memory will be so short that people will forget. Just like the animals. They forget. There is no memory. In some of the animals there is no mind. That is also analyzed in the Srimad-Bhagavatam. So memory shortened, shortened. So just to give us remembrance again, the books are presented. Vyasadeva wrote those Vedic traditions into books. Vyasadeva is the first man who put this Vedic knowledge into writing. Before that, there was no writing. Only by hearing, by memory, the students will grasp the whole thing and coming down, tradition. Yes. Shruti, by hearing.

So jivere kripaya kaila krishna veda-purana.

'shastra-guru-atma'-rupe apanare janana
'krishna mora prabhu, trata'-jivera haya jñana [4]

So what is the utility of this Vedic knowledge? Now, by understanding, by hearing from authorized sources, or by reading from authorized sources, the forgetful living entities will come to his senses. That is the purpose. He will come to his sense: "Oh, my position is this, and I am suffering in this way." So shastra-guru-atma-rupe apanare janana. Krishna, or the Supreme Lord, is always anxious to revive the memory of these forgotten souls, conditioned souls. Now, how He revives? He revives in shastra. Shastra means scripture. Shastra, guru, spiritual master. Shastra, guru, atma-rupe. And sometimes He comes Himself or as Paramatma, or the Supersoul [Krishna residing in the heart]. He is giving you instruction from within as Paramatma, He's sending you suitable spiritual master so you can have instruction without, and the books are, the scriptures are there. So many facilities the Lord has created. And therefore the human form of life is meant for utilizing all these facilities. In the animal form of life there is no facility. They cannot read shastra. They cannot understand scripture. They cannot take the advantage of a bona fide spiritual master. They cannot consult within with God. They have no this capacity. Their consciousness is so undeveloped that it is not possible to have, utilize all these facilities. But in human form of life we can utilize all these facilities. The shastras are there, the Vedas are there, scriptures are there. And still, although it is the age of Kali, still, those who are following the disciplic succession, there is bona fide spiritual master also. Shastra, guru and atma. And over all, the Paramatma. The Paramatma, the Supersoul, Krishna as Supersoul, is sitting within your heart along with you. And as soon as, by the instruction of the scripture and direction of the spiritual master, you begin sincerely something, the Paramatma, from within you, He'll speak, "Yes, now you are right." He'll speak to you.

In the Bhagavad-gita it is clearly:

tesham satata-yuktanam
bhajatam priti-purvakam
dadami buddhi-yogam tam
yena mam upayanti te [Bg. 10.10][5]

Tesham satata-yuktanam. Those... The spiritual master's duty is to lead a person, a forgotten soul, to the right way in terms of the shastra and scripture, and when he begins sincerely and with love and seriously, then the next stage is that God within, who is sitting within you, He'll dictate, "Yes, you do like this. You do like this." So in every respect the Lord is trying to help us. But we are so much stubborn, we don't like to take advantage of this position. Oh, he says, "Why shall I take all this? I am very happy." There is a story in the Bhagavata that once Indra, the king of heaven, he was condemned by his spiritual master, Brihaspati, that "You are so foolish. You should have become a hog." So he became a hog. So after some days, when the throne of the heavenly kingdom was vacant, Brahma went to reclaim this hog, Indra, that "Come to your place." So when the hog was requested that "You are Indra. Why you are suffering? Now you come. I have come to take you," so the hog says, "Oh! I do not know what I am, Indra. I have got my responsibility. I cannot leave this place." Just see. Even the hog—you can just imagine what is the standard of his living—he thinks also that "I am very happy. I am very happy." The stool-eating and this nasty place, and "Oh, I have got a very comfortable life." So this is the, I mean to say, prakshepatmika.

So the sadhu-shastra, the God Himself comes, He sends His confidential servant, He sends His son to reclaim us, and we should take advantage of these facilities and make our life successful. That should be the aim of human life.

Thank you very much.

1. "This divine energy of Mine, consisting of the three modes of material nature, is difficult to overcome. But those who have surrendered unto Me can easily cross beyond it." (Bhagavad-gita 7.14) [Back to text]

2. "When a living entity is enchanted by the external energy, he cannot revive his original Krishna consciousness independently. Due to such circumstances, Krishna has kindly given him the Vedic literatures, such as the four Vedas and eighteen Puranas." (Chaitanya-charitamrita, Madhya-lila 20.122) [Back to text]

3. "Whenever and wherever there is a decline in religious practice, O descendant of Bharata, and a predominant rise of irreligion-at that time I descend Myself." (Bhagavad-gita 4.7) [Back to text]

4. "“The forgetful conditioned soul is educated by Krishna through the Vedic literatures, the realized spiritual master and the Supersoul. Through these, he can understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead as He is, and he can understand that Lord Krishna is his eternal master and deliverer from the clutches of maya. In this way one can acquire real knowledge of his conditioned life and can come to understand how to attain liberation." (Chaitanya-charitamrita Madhya-lila 20.123) [Back to text]

5. "To those who are constantly devoted and worship Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me." (Bhagavad-gita 10.10) [Back to text]