Subtle Laws of the Universe

Founder-Acharya of the world-wide Hare Krishna Movement, Brahma Sampradaya Acharya

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Pradyumna: [Reading:] kim idam svit kuto vetideva-deva na vedmy ahamsarvato mukham ayatitejah parama-darunam: "O Lord of lords, how is it that this dangerous effulgence is spreading all around? Where does it come from? I do not understand it."

Prabhupada: Kim idam svit kuto vetideva-deva na vedmy ahamsarvato mukham ayatitejah parama-darunam. So Asvatthama's brahmastra... We have discussed about brahmastra. It is almost similar to the modern nuclear weapon or bomb. But it is made with chemicals, but this brahmastra is made of mantra. That is the subtle way.

Modern science has not reached to that point of subtle existence. Therefore they cannot understand how transmigration of the soul takes place. The modern science has no knowledge. Imperfect knowledge. They see the gross body, but they have no knowledge about the subtle body. But the subtle body is there. Just like we do not see your mind, but I know that you have got mind. You do not see my mind, but you know that I have got mind. Mind, intelligence and ego. My conception, identity, "I am," that conception is there. That is ego. And my intelligence and my mind, you cannot see. Neither I can see. Therefore how the mind, intelligence, and personal identity or egotism carries the soul to other body, they do not see it. They cannot see it.

They see the gross body is stopped, everything is stopped. The gross body is burned into ashes. Therefore they think everything is finished. Bhasmi-bhutasya dehasya kutah punar agamano bhaved. The atheist class, they'll think like that. With poor fund of knowledge, they think that "I see the body is now burnt into ashes. Then where is the soul?" So "There is no soul, there is no God, it is all imagination." But that is not the fact, not that is the fact.

The fact is that the gross body is finished, but the subtle body is there. Mano buddhir ahankarah. Bhumir apo 'nalo vayuh kham mano buddhir eva cha. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakritim param. So the action and reaction of the subtle thing, subtle matter... Mind is also matter, but subtle matter, very fine. Just like sky, ether. Ether is also matter, but it is very subtle, fine. And finer than the ether is the mind, and the... finer than the mind is the intelligence. And finer than the intelligence is my egotism: "I am," this conception. So they have no knowledge. Therefore they can manufacture weapon or bomb with the gross things. Bhumir apo 'nalo—the chemicals, that is gross. But this brahmastra is not gross. This is also material, but it is made of subtle things: mind, intelligence, and ego.

Therefore Arjuna is asking Krishna, "I do not know wherefrom it is coming, wherefrom this such high temperature is coming." It is stated here, tejah parama-darunam. The temperature is so high, intolerable. So we should ask the authority. Krishna is the best authority. So Arjuna is asking from Him, kim idam svit kuto veti: "My dear Krishna, wherefrom this temperature is coming?" Kim idam. Deva-deva. Why he's asking to Krishna? Because Krishna is the deva-deva. Here we have got many millions of different varieties of life, 8,400,000 varieties of life. Out of them, we human form of life, and above this, the demigods in the higher planetary system, their standard of living, their duration of life is many, many times higher, superior than ours.

Just like our standard of life, we are human being, it is better than the uncivilized man. And the uncivilized man's standard of life is better than the animal life. Phalguni tatra mahatam jivo jivasya jivanam. The uncivilized man, they cannot produce food; therefore they kill animal. In the forest they live, and they kill some animals and eat. They cannot... They have no such knowledge that the forest can be cleared and we can till the ground and we can get very nice foodstuff, foodgrains, vegetables, so many things. Krsi, agriculture. So the land is there, but this uncivilized man does not know how to get the necessities of life from land. They do not know. Otherwise, in the land everything is there. It is stated in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, sarva-dugha mahi. Sarva-dugha. No. Sarva-kama-dugha mahi. Kama, kama means the necessities. We can get all the necessities of our life from the land. The land is so important. But the uncivilized man, they do not know how to utilize the land. Therefore they commit sinful activities for their existence. Instead of utilizing land for the necessities of life, unnecessarily...

Although they are civilized... they should not have done so: they are killing animals. The animal killing is for the uncivilized man, one who cannot get the necessities of life by intelligence. Just like modern civilized man, they are getting, suppose, so many machines, say, motorcar, a very useful vehicle. But wherefrom it is obtained? From the land. What is the motorcar ingredients? It is a combination of matter: earth, water, air, fire. You get iron, put into the fire and melt it, and then get the wheel. Similarly so many things. Tejo-vari-mrdam vinimayah. Material civilization means tejo-vari-mrdam vinimayah, exchange of fire, water, and earth—that's all. It is just like you see nice doll. What is this nice doll? Tejo-vari-mrdam vinimayah. There is earth, water, fire. You mix the earth with water, and make it a nice doll, and put it into the fire and then color it. It will appear just like a very, very beautiful girl. But it is not the fact. Similarly the whole material world is nothing but an imitation of the spiritual world by intermixture of earth, water, and fire-and nothing else. But because we are not beyond this material existence, we are in the material... I am identifying with this body, therefore I am thinking that after the finish of this body everything is finished. This is rascaldom, atheism. No.

But Krishna gives information, na hanyate hanyamane sarire [Bhagavad-gita 2.20]. This is right information. Krishna, the supreme authority, gives you the information that don't think that this body is finished, therefore everything is finished. No. Not everything finished. The soul is being carried by the subtle body." The example is given just like when the air passes through the rose garden and you smell very nice fragrance. You cannot see what is that fragrance, but you experience that there is some fragrance. Wherefrom?

Sometimes we inquire "Wherefrom this fragrance coming?" You cannot see. Similarly, the soul is very, very small, a small particle of the same ingredient as Krishna. Mamaivamsa. Mamaivamso jiva-bhutah [Bhagavad-gita 15.7]. Jiva is very small particle of the same ingredient as Krishna's body. Sach-chid-ananda-vigrahah. Isvarah paramah krishnah sach-chid-ananda-vigrahah [Bramha-samhita 5.1]. So we have got our vigraha, very small. That is also stated in the shastra. Kesagra-sata-bhagasya satadha kalpitasya cha: [Chaitanya-charitamrita Madya 19.140] one ten-thousandth part of the tip of the hair. We cannot even imagine what is the length and breadth of the hair, but the soul is one ten-thousandth part. So how you can see the soul?

That small particle is being carried by the subtle body—mind, intelligence, and ego. And it is pushed through the semina of the father into the womb of the mother, and another body is manufactured in due course of time, and it comes out and works. This is called transmigration of the soul from one body to another. That body is given by superior examination, Yamaraja. Yamaraja fixes up what kind of body this soul will get. Karmana daiva-netrena. Just like in the court, there is case, and the magistrate decides what kind of punishment this criminal should be awarded. So similarly, here in this material world, we are simply engaged in sinful activities.

Here the so-called pious and impious, that is simply imagination. Really, if I am actually pious, I should not get this material body. Just like to remain in the prison house means criminal. You may be a first-class prisoner, it doesn't matter, but you are a prisoner. You are a criminal. Sometimes the big, big politicians, they are put into the jail and they're given all comforts. But that does not mean he's not a criminal. He's a criminal. Either he may be Gandhi or anyone, because he's put into the jail he's a criminal. Similarly, anyone who is enwrapped with this material body, he's a criminal. He's a criminal. Either he may be in the heavenly planet or in this earthly planet or in the cats' and dogs' life or insect or aquatics. There are varieties of life. Every one of us, as long as we are put into this material body, it is to be understood that we are all criminal.

Therefore Krishna said, yesam tv anta-gatam papamjananam punya-karmanamte dvandva-moha-nirmuktabhajante mam dridha-vratah [Bhagavad-gita 7.28]. The krishna-bhajana is not so easy thing. Yesam tv anta-gatam papam. One who is completely free from the reaction of papa, he cannot [can] take to Krishna consciousness. But in the ordinary way, karma... According to karma... Just like you are working to earn some money, businessman, karma. So ordinary way you have to work very hard day and night to get some money. Suppose if you want one lakh of rupees or one crore of rupees, you have to work for it. But there is another way. Suppose one rich man gives you, that "You haven't got to work. Take this one lakh of rupees or one crore of rupees. You take it." That is another way.

Ordinary way to accumulate crores of rupees, it may not be possible in your life. But if some friend or some rich man becomes kind upon you and delivers you, "Take it," you can get it immediately, without any hard labor. Similarly, Krishna, the supreme rich man, supreme rich being, is offering you, sarva-dharman parityajya mam ... [Bhagavad-gita 18.66]. "You haven't got to do anything. Come on. You surrender unto Me, and I give you immediately liberation." Aham tvam sarva-papebhyo mokshayisyami ma suchah. There is no anxiety. So that is Krishna. He can give you immediately liberation. Simply you have to surrender. Therefore He's deva-deva. Sometimes we go to this demigod, to that demigod for some material perfection or ultimate liberation. But Krishna can give you liberation within a second. That is Krishna. Within a second. Otherwise, it is not very easy. Aruhya kricchrena param padam tatah patanty adho 'nadrita-yusmad-anghrayah [Srimad Bhagavatam 10.2.32].

The jnanis, they are trying for liberation and undergoing very severe type of austerity and penances. Kricchrena. Kricchrena means very severe type of austerities they undergo. But still they fall down. Aruhya kricchrena param padam tatah patanty adho 'nadrita-yusmad-anghrayah [Srimad Bhagavatam 10.2.32]. One who does not understand Krishna, then his knowledge, his so-called jnana... Maybe to some extent it is perfect, but it is not completely perfect. Completely perfect will be possible when you understand Krishna. So if you go on the ordinary way, from the karma platform to jnana platform, from jnana platform to yoga platform, but ultimately you have to come to the bhakti platform. If you do not come to the bhakti platform, then there is no question of liberation. That is not possible.

You can get better position by karma, jnana, yoga. Suppose a yogi, he can achieve many wonderful things. Suppose we can fly in the sky by airplane. Many hundreds of miles we can. But a yogi, within a second he can reach even the sun planet. That yogic perfection is there. Prapti-siddhi. It is called prapti-siddhi. A perfect yogi, simply by catching the beam of sunlight, he can go to the sun planet. He can go to the moon planet. Within a second. That is called yoga-siddhi. But even if you go to the sun planet or moon planet by yoga-siddhi or material science, what is the profit? There is no profit. Krsna says, abrahma-bhuvanal lokah punar avartino 'rjuna: [Bhagavad-gita 8.16] "Even if you approach the topmost planet, Brahmaloka, you have to come back again." Again come back, again become grass and again be eaten by cows, and again somebody drinks milk, and he gets the semina, again gives you birth in the womb of woman.

These subtle laws they do not know, how things are happening in the subtle ways. Therefore Arjuna knows, but for our education he's asking Krsna that "Wherefrom this high temperature is coming?" Kim idam svit kuto veti deva-deva na vedmi. We cannot understand. It is not possible. So many things are there even in this material world we cannot understand. We cannot get full information. But if we take Krishna's instruction... He's giving personally the instruction in the Bhagavad-gita. If we take care of them, then we can understand everything very easily. Krishna consciousness movement is so nice that simply by understanding Krishna, you can understand everything. Kasmin tu bhagavo vijnate sarvam idam vijnatam bhavati. So this is the all-perfect knowledge, perfect culture, perfect advancement of civilization. So everyone should take to it and all questions should be, is answered by Krishna. You take it and become a perfect man. Thank you very much.