Don't Waste a Single Moment: You Cannot Get It Back

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

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idam mamachakshva tavadhimulam
vasundhare yena vikarshitasi
kalena va te balinam baliyasa
surarchitam kim hritam amba saubhagam [Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.16.24]

Translation: "Mother, you are the reservoir of all riches. Please inform me of the root cause of your tribulations, by which you have been reduced to such a weak state. I think that the powerful influence of time, which conquers the most powerful, might have forcibly taken away all your fortune, which was adored even by the demigods."

Prabhupada: Kalena va te balinam baliyasa. Time is very powerful. Another place in the Srimad-Bhagavatam it is said, kalena sarvatra gabhira-ramhasa.

tasyaiva hetoh prayateta kovido
na labhyate yad bhramatam upary adhah
tal labhyate duhkhavad anyatah sukham
kalena sarvatra gabhira-ramhasa [Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.5.18]

So in due course of time, everything happens. That is the nature's law. When I was also a child, I was looking very beautiful, but kalena, in due course of time, I'm now old man, a ugly man. Nobody likes. [laughter] So this is the influence of time, influence of time. So influence of time will act. You cannot check it. Influence of time, that is nature's law. Daivi hy esha gunamayi mama maya [Bhagavad-gita 7.14]. That is maya's strength. How you can check? It is not in your power.

So this is another question by Dharmaraja to Mother Earth, "Whether you are now in tribulation by the influence of time?" Surarchitam kim hritam amba saubhagam. So we should remember saubhagam, opulence, can be taken away, in due course of time. You cannot check it. Suppose in America you are all fortunate. You have got very nice roads, very nice cars, very nice skyscraper building, government, food, everything very nice. But in due course of time everything can be taken away. You cannot check it. Shastra says therefore, tasyaiva hetoh prayateta kovidah. Everything will be taken away, or ultimately, destruction. That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gita. You can find out, somebody, the verse. Mrityuh sarva-harash chaham, mrityuh sarva-harash cha aham. In due course of time, death will come, and it will take everything, what you possess. Mrityuh sarva-harash chaham. That death is Krishna.

Pradyumna: [Reads:]

mrityuh sarva-harash chaham
udbhavash cha bhavishyatam
kirtih shrir vak cha narinam
smritir medha dhritih kshama [Bhagavad-gita 10.34]

"I am all-devouring death, and I am the generator of all things yet to be. Among women I am fame, fortune, speech, memory, intelligence, faithfulness and patience."

Prabhupada: So Krishna is acting everywhere by His energy. This kala, this time, is another form of Krishna. Just like Krishna has got various forms, advaitam achyutam anadim ananta-rupam [ Brahma-samhita 5.33]. Advaita, one, without a second. Achyuta, does not fall. That is the difference between Krishna and ourself. We are part and parcel of God, Krishna, but Krishna is achyuta, He does not fall down. We fall down. This is the difference. The example is... Just like the fire, big fire, and the sparks, they are also fire. The quality of big fire and the small sparks of fire, they're the same. Therefore qualitatively, we are one with Krishna. As Krishna has got propensities, we have got also propensities. Krishna has got creative power, we have also got creative power. In this way, compare anything. In minute quantity... Krishna has got independence, full independence; we have got independence, but not full independence. But we have got independence. So that is the difference. Advaitam achyutam anadim ananta-rupam [Brahma-samhita 5.33]. Krishna has got various forms, but His real form is Krishna. God has got many forms, but the original form is that, playing on flute, curved in three places with barhavatamsam asitambuda-sundaran gam, with a feather on the head. These are Vedic description of Krishna. It is not an artistic paint, but it is taken from the Vedic literature, what is the original form of Krishna. Govindam adi-purusham tam aham bhajami **. That is original form. Krishnas tu bhagavan svayam [Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.3.28].

Advaitam achyutam anadim ananta-rupam [Brahma-samhita 5.33]. Ananta-rupam, ananta, unlimited, unlimited. It is described in the shastras. How unlimited? Just like in a big river you sit down, or on the ocean, if you count the waves, is it possible? There is no possibility. But there are waves always, twenty-four hours going on, going on. But if you want to count them, it is not possible. That is described. Just like the waves of river or... Not satiated. You'll find in the Pacific Ocean in your front, the waves are constantly coming. It is never satiated. So Krishna's incarnations are also like that, incessantly coming, one after another, one... Advaitam achyutam anadim ananta-rupam [Brahma-samhita 5.33]. So ananta-rupa, how many rupa, how many forms we have seen Krishna's? No. That is not possible.

So the conclusion is all these forms, ete, all these, cha amsha-kalah... Amsha means plenary portion, not personally. Amsha... And kala means portion of the portion. Just like first of all, Krishna. Then His next expansion is Balarama. His next expansion is Sankarshana. Next, Aniruddha, Pradyumna. Sankarshana, Aniruddha, Pradyumna. In this way, next expansion Narayana. Then, from Narayana, another quadruple expansion: Pradyumna, Aniruddha, Sankarshana... Then Maha-Vishnu, the origin of this material creation. Yah karanarnava-jale bhajati sma yoga-nidram ananta-jagad-anda -saroma-kupah [Brahma-samhita 5.47]. Yah karanarnava-jale bhajati sma yoga-nidram anantam. That is Maha-Vishnu. Yasyaika-nishvasita-kalam athavalambya jivanti loma-vilaja jagad-anda-nathah [Brahma-samhita 5.48]. So from His breathing nostril, ananta, unlimited number of potential universes, are coming, and—exhaling, inhaling—and unlimited going within. This is Maha-Vishnu. This Maha-Vishnu is also plenary portion of Krishna. Yasyaika-nishvasita-kalam athavalambya jivanti loma-vilaja jagad-anda-nathah [Brahma-samhita 5.48]. So many things are described in the Brahma-samhita. But still, He is achyuta, anadi, He has no cause. He is causeless. Sarva-karana-karanam: [Brahma-samhita 5.1] He is the cause of everyone, but He has no cause. Anadi, anantam. Advaitam achyutam anadim ananta-rupam adyam purana-purusham [ Brahma-samhita 5.33]. He's the origin person, original person. Purana, very old, must be very old because everything... Janmady asya yatah [Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.1]. From Him, everything has come. Therefore Purana. Purana means old. Nutana and Purana. Nutana means "just very recently," and Purana means very old.

So we are also old. In the Bhagavad-gita you find this verse, nityah shashvato 'yam purano na hanyate hanyamane sharire [Bhagavad-gita 2.20]. Do you remember, any one of you, this verse from the Bhagavad-gita? Eh? But you don't read. So I am writing all these books simply for selling, not for reading. This is not good. And if somebody asks you, "You are so much eager to sell your books. Do you read your books?" Then what you will say? "No, sir, we don't read. We sell only. Our Guru Maharaja writes, and we sell." That is not good business. You must read. Why I am writing so many books? Not a single moment waste. If you want to become successful in Krishna consciousness, don't lose even a single moment. That should be the first determination. Avyartha-kalatvam [Chaitanya-charitamrita Madhya 23.18-19], Rupa Gosvami says. Forget sleeping, eating, mating. This is all material necessities. If you increase these things, then you cannot make any progress in spiritual life.

Therefore we say, "No illicit sex, no intoxication." You are already intoxicated. Why you are increasing intoxication? This maya means intoxication. Pishachi paile yena mati-cchanna... Just like a person, when he's ghostly haunted, he calls his father by ill names, but he cannot recognize even his father. So all of us, we are already under the clutches of maya. That is the position of intoxication. And again intoxication? So what will be our condition? Therefore it is prohibited. First of all, whatever intoxication you have already got, just try to cure it. Don't increase it. So everything... The physical necessities means we have already got it, but it is meant for decreasing, not increasing. Pravrittir esha bhutanam nivrittis tu maha-phala. We have got general tendency, loke vyavayamisha-madya -seva. Everything is there in the shastra. Nitya hi jantoh. Jantu means living entities. So, it is eternally existing, loke vyavaya, sex intercourse, amisha, eating non-fruital things. Amisha means "which is not fruits and vegetables." Meat, fish, eggs, they are called amisha. And they are called niramisha. Niramisha means fruits, vegetables, milks, food grains, sugar. These are niramisha. And eggs, fish, meat and so many other things, they are called amisha. So amisha. Amisha means these things. Seva, eating. And vyavaya. Vyavaya means sex life. Loke vyavayamisha-madya, intoxication. It is not that Vedic civilization did not know how to eat meat and how to drink liquor. It is all known. But they are prohibited, "Don't eat." It is not that then they were unknown, now it is discovered by scientific advancement. Loke vyavayamisha-madya-seva nitya hi, nityasti, asti, it is there. It is not that because one is not educated now to use sex life... Nobody requires education. It is automatic. But people are now very much advanced in understanding sex life. So many books, Freud philosophy, this philosophy. And after all, this is already there. What is the need of philosophy? Without your rascal philosophy, everyone knows how to use sex life. But they are thinking this is advancement. Nitya hi. It is already there. Who was speaking yesterday? Jayatirtha. That his niece, seven years old, she is also dating. So this is already there.

So to increase it no credit. To decrease it is credit. That is credit. Nitya hi jantoh. It is already there. Pravrittir esha bhutanam. Bhutanam means "of all living entities." Amongst the ants, they are very intoxicant. Therefore they find out sugar. The all kinds of liquor preparation is made from sugar. You know that? Sugar is fermented with acid and then distilled. It becomes liquor. And the ants are very much fond of sugar. You keep up one piece of sugar candy. Then the news will be immediately spread, and all the ant class will go there: "Here it is, sugar, yes. Gold rush." [laughter] You see? So every living entity has got a tendency for certain class of thing, especially sex and eating nonvegetarian things. If you eat vegetarian fruits and flowers and grains, you'll not eat more than you require. That is nature. You'll eat only what is needed by yourself. You cannot eat any more. It is very good. If you don't eat... Atyaharah prayasash cha prajalpo niyamagrahah [Nectar of Instruction 2]. Atyahara, eating more than needed, is against spiritual life. Atyaharah prayasash cha prajalpo niyamagrahah. Everything is there. Rupa Gosvami has said. Atyahara means eating more than you require, or eating, enjoying more than. We require, ahara-nidra-bhaya-maithuna. We require little, little everything... [break] ...for spiritually advancing. They remain without dress. Even in the severest type of cold, they remain without dress, sitting, only smearing the body with some ashes. They'll take bath in the morning and cover the body with ashes, not very thick. But he'll sit down whole day and night and chant Hare Krishna. No business. No endeavor for food. If food comes, by God's grace, they will eat; otherwise no, they'll not go anywhere. Completely dependent: "If God gives, then I shall eat. Otherwise we shall not endeavor." This is our first endeavor, what to eat, where to live, where to sleep, where to have sex life. This is our all endeavor. They stop all this endeavor. That is spiritual life. Stop everything. That is called... And I am going in a secluded place and thinking, "How many women I have hunted." What is this nonsense? Eh? And showing, "I have become very much advanced. I am leader." And my leading is I'm thinking of woman. That's all. And money.

This is not spiritual life. This is all cheating. Dhohka-bhaje(?) they are called, dhohka-bhaje,(?) cheaters. Don't be cheaters. Krishna knows whether you are cheater or you are sincere. If you are sincere, then He will give you intelligence how you will make progress. Tesham satata-yuktanam... Find out this verse.

tesham satata-yuktanam
bhajatam priti-purvakam
dadami buddhi-yogam tam
yena mam upayanti te [Bhagavad-gita 10.10]

To whom He gives direct instruction? Satata-yuktanam: one who is twenty-four hours busy in His service. Twenty -four hours, satata. Satata means, read it.

Pradyumna: [Reads:]

tesham satata-yuktanam
bhajatam priti-purvakam
dadami buddhi-yogam tam
yena mam upayanti te [Bhagavad-gita 10.10]

"To those who are constantly devoted and worship Me with love, I give the understanding by which they can come to Me."

Prabhupada: Yes. So Krishna is within you. He knows whether you are cheater and whether you are sincere. So therefore He says, "Those who are sincere and twenty-four hours engaged in My service, I give them intelligence." What kind of intelligence? "To... As he may come back to Me, that kind of intelligence." Because that is our aim, back to home, back to Godhead.

So Krishna is prepared to help you. Paramatma. Sarvas... In another place it is said, sarvasya chaham hridi sannivishtah [Bhagavad-gita 15.15]. Read Bhagavad-gita thoroughly and be sincere and make your life successful. Don't be cheater. Read, and follow, and Krishna will help you, this life. Don't expect another life to prepare. "It is guaranteed human life?" somebody's asking. Even if it guaranteed, why should you take the chance of another life? Finish this business within this life. Take help from Krishna, take help from books, take from your spiritual master. Why another life? Another life... Suppose you get another human life. Is it guaranteed? You may fall down again. So my Guru Maharaja used to say that "Finish all business in this life." Na mochayed yah samupeta-mrityum. Finish this business of birth, death, old age and disease in this life. You can do that. This is our main business, not to make arrangement for eating, sleeping, mating and defending under different garb, under different pretext. That is not our business. Our main business is...

Therefore... Kalena sarvatra gabhira-ramhasa. There it is said, kalena va te balinam baliyasa. Kala, time, is very powerful. Time... In time everything can be done. In time you can become very happy, and in time you can become very distressed, very much distressed, unhappy. Time can give you. And time is also Krishna, kala-rupena. When... You'll find in the Bhagavad-gita that, in the Eleventh Chapter... I've just now forget that..., that "Who are you?" Kala. The virat-rupa, the universal form seeing, Arjuna said, "Who are You, Sir?" So He said that "I am in the kala-rupa, in the form of time, now. I have come to kill the all, all of you." So therefore our business should be that this life should be utilized only for complete Krishna consciousness. No other business. That is Chaitanya Mahaprabhu's cult. And it is not very difficult. Not at all difficult. Kirtaniyah sada harih [Chaitanya-charitamrita Adi 17.31]. But it is difficult. It is very difficult. It is to chant Hare Krishna mantra twenty-four hours. Those who are not accustomed, they'll become mad simply by chanting. It's difficult. You cannot imitate Haridasa Thakura, that "Now I shall go in a secluded place and chant Hare Krishna." It is not possible, sir. It requires great advancement of spiritual life when one can concentrate in chanting Hare Krishna. It is not so easy.

Therefore, for neophytes, we must have many engagements. In the neophyte stage, if you try to imitate the advanced stage, then it will be simply ludicrous. In the neophyte stage we must be always engaged. Krishna has got different venues of rendering service. You can serve Krishna in so many ways. Karmana manasa vacha etavaj janma-saphalyam dehinam iha dehishu. Karmana manasa vacha shreya-acharanam sada. Karmana manasa, we have got three venues: by working, karmana; by thinking, manasa; karmana manasa vacha, and by speaking. We can do things. Karmana manasa vacha. So this tridanda-sannyasa means... There are four dandas. One danda is the, what is called, symbol of his person. And the other three dandas, they are symbol of his body, mind, and speeches. This danda means, perhaps you know, do not know. You try to understand... So karmana, this danda, means "I have taken now vow to engage myself, even whatever assets I have got." So I have got my assets. I can work with my body, I can work with my mind, and I can work by speaking. So tridanda-sannyasa means one who has devoted his life, means his activities, his body and his speeches. That is tridanda-sannyasa. Anyone who has devoted his mind, his body and his speeches for the service of the Lord, he is sannyasi. Sannyasi does not mean simply changing the dress and thinking otherwise. No. Sannyasi, anyone, it does not matter whether the dress is changed or not, if one is fully engaged by his body, mind and words, sa sannyasi.

Anashritah karma-phalam karyam karma karoti yah, sa sannyasi [Bhagavad-gita 6.1], Krishna says. Who is sannyasi? Anashritah karma-phalam. "I shall speak for Krishna." Then what profit you'll get? "No matter what is profit, I shall speak for Krishna. That's all." Sa sannyasi, Krishna says. "This is my duty, karyam." Karyam means duty. "It is my duty to speak for Krishna only. That's all. I am not going to speak anything." He's a sannyasi. Anashritah karma... Now, if you engage some lawyer to speak for you in the court, "Immediately bring me two thousand dollars." He'll charge. But a sannyasi, he'll speak twenty-four hours for Krishna, no expectation of profit. That is sannyasi. Twenty-four hours engaging the body for Krishna's work—he's a sannyasi. Twenty-four hours thinking of Krishna—he's a sannyasi. This is sannyasi. No other business. Anashritah karma-phalam karyam karma... Everyone is working for his personal benefit, "How much money I shall get? How much name and fame and reputation I shall get?" For his personal profit. And that is material. That is material. As soon as you work for your personal benefit, that is material. And as soon as you work for Krishna's benefit, that is spiritual. That's all. This is the distinction between material and spiritual. Everything in relationship with Krishna.

So the Krishna consciousness movement is very scientific, authorized. Try to understand Krishna. We have got so many literature. Don't waste a single moment. Kalena. And Chanakya Pandita, the moral instructor... He's not spiritual instructor, but moral instructor. But he has said that ayushah kshana eko 'pi na labhyah svarna-kotibhih. One moment of your life, if it is wasted without any profit, just imagine how much loss you have suffered. Because you cannot get back one moment of your life again even if you are prepared to pay millions of dollars. That you cannot get back. Nineteen seventy-four, 19th January, passed—you cannot get it back again. If you, any rich man comes forward, "Please get me back again 1974, 19th January," "No, sir, that is not possible." Any price you offer, it is not possible.

So just imagine, if we waste our time, how much loss we are suffering. We calculate loss and gain. So don't waste time. Kala, kala is very... Yoga system means to save time. The whole process, mechanical process, of yoga, mystic power, means to save time. We have got a limited duration of life. Suppose one is destined to live for... Utmost they will live, anyone, but nobody goes to live for hundred years—say, seventy, eighty, sixty or something like that. Gradually it is reducing, and it will reduce twenty to thirty years. That will be duration of life. Because people are becoming more and more sinful. So that is fixed up. A body is given to us by the superior power, and the duration of life is also fixed up. Even the greatest scientist, he cannot increase a moment's time for his life. That is not possible. A moment's life. Professor Einstein was a great scientist, but he could not find out any means that instead of living for, say, eighty years, he could live eighty years, one day. No, that is not possible. That is not possible. Your destiny, duration of life—fixed up. And how it is fixed up? The machine is breathing. Machine is breathing. Just like the clock goes on, tick-tick, tick-tick, tick-tick. As soon as the tick-tick stops, then whole things is lost. Similarly, our breathing is going on, tick-tick, tick-tick, tick-tick, a fixed time. Just like you wind your clock, so that winding will help, tick-tick, for a certain duration of time, say, twenty-four hours. Similarly, there is winding in our life, a spring. That "tick-tick" means this breathing. So if you... Breathing exercise means if you can stop breathing, then you increase your life. That is called samadhi. No more breathing. That is Vedic, I mean to say, yogic success. Stop breathing. There are yogis, perfect... not these gymnastic-wala, no. Real yogis. They can remain without breathing for days together. That means the days he does not breathe, so much time saved: he increases his life. Suppose daily if he stops breathing for three hours, that means daily he saves three hours time. So in hundred years about..., so many, so much time. So in this way, the yogi can live for three hundred years, four hundred years, six hundred years. Still there are yogis. This is called yogic success.

So kala, to control... You cannot control time. Just like if you have got one hundred dollars, if you deposit in a bank, you will get some interest, but you cannot make without any endeavor two hundred dollars. No, that is not possible. But if you don't spend it, then the hundred dollars remains. Similarly, your duration of life is there, and it is being wasted by breathing. If you can control the breathing process, then your life can be increased. This is yogic... But after all, we are under the full control of time. Kalena sarvatra gabhira-ramhasa. That is explained here. Kalena va te balinam baliyasa. Very, very strong—there is no power. Your so-called scientific power... You cannot struggle against the influence of time. So save time. Save time.

Another process is, save time, if you chant Hare Krishna mantra, then the time is not lost. Time is not lost. Hare Krishna mantra, read book, Krishna book. Any moment, any time you spend for thinking of Krishna, working for Krishna, chanting for Krishna, eating for Krishna, dancing for Krishna, that time is saved. That time is saved. Therefore it is recommended, harer nama harer nama harer namaiva kevalam, kalau nasty eva nasty eva... [Chaitanya-charitamrita Adi 17.21]. Otherwise, by yoga process, it is not... How many men can actually practice yoga? It is all farce. This is possible. Even a child can take part, Hare Krishna mantra.

Thank you very much. Hare Krishna. [break]

Sudama: ... questions. [microphone makes noise] Prabhupada: [commenting on microphone] Purchase something better. Instead of diverting your attention always, pay little more. In Bengali it is said, sastarthin abastra:(?) "If you purchase something cheap, it will always give you trouble." Better spend once, costly things, nice things. That is...

Sudama: Any questions?

Prabhupada: Yes?

Devotee (1): Was Lord Jesus in pure Krishna consciousness?

Prabhupada: These are old questions, always asked. What is that, huh? What is that question?

Satsvarupa: Was Lord Jesus in pure Krishna consciousness?

Prabhupada: Yes. He also taught about God. Krishna consciousness means God consciousness. So why Jesus? Anyone speaks... But one must know. There are degrees. Just like a person... Somebody knows to some extent, other knows to some extent, other knows to some extent, other knows to some extent. Or somebody understands to some extent. So Krishna consciousness means complete understanding of Krishna. Just like there are steps; if you want to go to the 104th floor, there are so many steps. So everyone is going, aiming, to that 104th, but one has covered ten steps, one has covered twenty, another hundred, like that. The aim is the same, but you cannot say that one who has already covered one hundred steps, he is as good as one who has covered two steps. There is that difference. Here is a person who has covered only two steps; here is another person who has covered fifty steps; here is another person who has covered hundred steps. Suppose you have to fulfill five hundred steps. So proportionately, that is the position. But the steps are already there. So any religious system—it doesn't matter Hindu religion or Christian religion or Muhammadan religion—it is the question of how the followers are covering the steps. They are going on the same staircase, but it is the question of...

So ultimate success is... That is described in the Srimad-Bhagavatam, sa vai pumsam paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokshaje: [Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.6] "The highest perfection is that when you understand God and you are in love with God." That is success. You are in love in God. It doesn't matter how we have learned to love God, either Christian religion or Hindu religion or Muhammadan, but if you have got that success, that you have learned how to love God, then your life is successful. Then there are different stages of loving platform, and when you love Krishna as Radharani did... That is not possible, but that is the aim, and that is the highest perfection. But the beginning is love, how you are in love with God. Shanta, dasya, sakhya, vatsalya, madhurya. So unless you come to that... If you love these material things, then you should know that you are not in love with God. If you are in love with God, then you'll forget material love. That is the test. Bhaktih pareshanubhavo viraktir anyatra syat [Srimad-Bhagavatam 11.2.42]. Bhakti, love of Godhead, the symptom is that he's no more in love with material things. That is the test. You cannot... Just like you cannot love two persons. That is divided. One love concentrated, that is perfect love. Similarly, another example is given that we are all hankering after love. Because we do not find whom to love, therefore we place our love even cats and dogs. We love a dog. Anyone who has no other object to love, no children, no family, no wife —all right, keep a cat, keep a dog. But love is there.

So that love is deserved for Krishna, or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So the more we learn how to love the Supreme Lord, that is perfection of life. Sa vai pumsam paro dharmah. And what kind of love? Ahaituky apratihata: that love is not motivated, that "I want this thing; therefore I shall love." Here in this material world the so-called love, lust, is motivated. "I'll get so much sense gratification; therefore I love a boy or a girl." That is not love; that is lust. Love means without any motive. Without any motive. Ahaituki. And that, that love cannot be checked by any material impediments. Ahaituky apratihata yayatma suprasidati. If you can reach that love of Godhead, then you'll feel, "Oh, I am so fortunate." Otherwise we remain unfortunate. So love is there everywhere. Even in cats' and dogs' love there is love. But the perfection is when you actually find the person to love and you actually do it, that is perfection.

Bali-mardana: Prabhupada, you stated that on the Battlefield of Kurukshetra all the warriors who were dying in the presence of Krishna, they all gained liberation. So I'm wondering... Each one of us has within our heart also the representative of Krishna. So when we die, why is not everyone liberated?

Prabhupada: But you have no sense of Krishna. You have no sense of Krishna. Or actually you do not die. That is another thing. This death means in the... That is described in the Bhagavatam. Those who die before Krishna, they attain their original position, svarupa. So that is real success. Otherwise, there is no death. Na hanyate hanyamane sharire [Bhagavad-gita 2.20]. It is not death; when our body is destroyed, that does not mean we are dead. You are spirit soul, I am spirit soul, every one of us, but we have no death. That is another illusion. Tatha dehantara-praptir dhiras tatra na muhyati [Bhagavad-gita 2.13]. This so-called death, it is not death. Dhira, one who knows, one who is sober, he knows that "This man or this boy or this father is dying... He's not dying. Dehantara-praptih: he is just changing another body. He's changing an..." So actually we have no death. The change of body. So we are accepting this change of body as death. That is another illusion. Dhiras tatra na muhyati. One who is sober, he is not bewildered. He knows that... Suppose we are sitting here. We are sitting here, and after a few minutes we shall go away. That does not mean we are dead. We are in this apartment; we go to another apartment. Tatha dehantara-praptih [Bhagavad-gita 2.13]. Similarly, nobody dies. It is change of body, from this body to another body. So we have no death. This is illusion. So what is your question?

Bali-mardana: Simply that we have Krishna within our heart. So why...

Prabhupada: Krishna why within heart? Krishna is everywhere. Andantara-stha-paramanu -chayantara-stham [Brahma-samhita 5.35]. He is within the atom. Antar bahih. Kunti prayed ... You have... I do not remember, but Kunti's prayer, that "Krishna, You are within and without present, but nobody can see You." This is Krishna's position. Krishna is within yourself, and Krishna is without. But we do not see Krishna. The example is, nato natyadharo yatha. Nata, a dramatic player, is dancing on the stage, and his son or relative seeing, he cannot understand that who is dancing. He's dancing before him, but because he's dressed in such a way that he cannot understand, "Oh, he's my brother" or "father" or..., "dancing." No. Therefore this example has been given, nato natyadharo yatha. Krishna is everywhere, but because nato natyadharo yatha, we cannot understand. This is our position. That requires knowledge. That requires knowledge. Krishna is everywhere, not only within. He's everywhere. Andantara-stha-paramanu-chayantara-stham govindam adi-purusham tam aham bhajami **. So Krishna can be seen only by person who has developed love for Krishna; otherwise, Krishna is everywhere, everyone is seeing, but he cannot see. That is the difficulty.

Bali-mardana: So all these warriors on the battlefield, they were all Krishna conscious?

Prabhupada: Huh?

Bali-mardana: So all these warriors on the battlefield, they were all Krishna conscious? Is that correct?

Prabhupada: Yes. At least for the time being, they knew that Krishna has come. Suppose a prominent man comes in a big meeting. Is not everyone conscious of that person?

Bali-mardana: Jaya.

Devotee (2): Srila Prabhupada, you state that spirit soul has form.

Prabhupada: Yes.

Devotee (2): Otherwise, how is the material body grown to accommodate the spirit soul? Just like a shirt has no form, but when it's put on the body, it takes the shapes of the body. Does that mean that the spirit soul has the shape of the body that is accommodating it?

Prabhupada: Yes. You have got body, shape, very minute shape. That we cannot see, we cannot measure. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gita it is said, anumeyam, or... What is that? You cannot measure. What is that word used? Aprameyam. Aprameyam. You cannot measure. But it has a form. How, what is the length and breadth of that form, that is not in your power. In your power, but not materially. That is... If you have got spiritual power, then you can measure it. And that measurement is also given in the shastra. What is that? One ten-thousandth part of the tip of the hair. Hair is a very small point. And divide it into ten thousand parts. That one part is the measure, magnitude of the soul.

keshagra-shata-bhagasya
shatadha kalpitasya cha
jiva-bhagah sa vijneyah
sa chanantyaya kalpate [Chaitanya-charitamrita Madhya 19.140]

Everything is there. But you have no eyes to see, how to see one ten-thousandth portion of the top of the hair. You cannot see even the original top of the hair. Everything is there. We must have eyes. So Krishna is also there. Premanjana- cchurita-bhakti-vilochanena santah sadaiva hridayeshu vilokayanti [Brahma-samhita 5.38]. You were saying that Krishna is within the heart, but who is seeing? Is it seen by the yogis, bhakti-yogis? Because he has got love for Krishna. A bhakta is always seeing, "Krishna is with me."

Devotee (2): Does that mean that the spirit soul in my body is shaped like this body?

Prabhupada: Yes. Spirit soul, he has got hands and legs and everything. That is body. Form means hands and legs, not without form. The same example. Because I have got my form, therefore my dress... This body is described as dress. The dress has got two hands, just like your coat has got two hands; actually, coat, the cloth has no hands, legs. That is impossible. But because you have got your hands, your coat has assumed the hands. So this material dress... These hands and legs are there because originally we are spirit soul, we have got hands and legs. This is the proof that we are not formless. With form. Because this body has been described as dress, outward dress, different dress. Just like we are, somebody white, somebody yellow, somebody black, somebody... This is dress. But actually, we spirit soul, we are one. It is by dress we are fighting. "You are Englishman," "I am German," "I am this," "I am Indian," "I am that," "I am man," "I am woman." So many fighting on account of this dress. So when you become dressless, that is the spiritual platform. When you become dressless. Sarvopadhi-vinirmuktam tat-paratvena nirmalam [Chaitanya-charitamrita Madhya 19.170]. When we are free from all this designation dress. We are now covered by this designation dress. "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am Englishman," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am..." So many, we have created dress. Just like innumerable quantity or quality of dresses, similarly, these are all dresses. So the spiritual platform means sarvopadhi-vinir..., when we become free from all this designation and fixed up in the understanding that "I am eternal servant of Krishna," that is our real position. Yes?

Devotee (3): If Krishna's name, fame, form and paraphernalia, everything is equal, then is it not true that the devotee who worships the Lord in the temple, or sings, you know, authorized songs in the Vaishnava songbook, is not that the same, equal level as chanting the maha-mantra?

Prabhupada: Hm?

Devotee (3): Is chanting Vaishnava songs on an equal level with maha-mantra?

Prabhupada: Yes. Yes, that is also... But first of all understand what is the maha-mantra. He Krishna, Hare Krishna, "O the energy of Krishna, please accept me." This is the prayer. This is addressing, He Krishna, Hare Krishna, "Hara, please, now I am engaged in this material service; kindly accept me in Your service." This is meaning of Hare Krishna. So a relationship, requesting something. So all these songs are like that, requesting relationship. Therefore they are the same. Nirbandhah krishna-sambandhe yuktam vairagyam uchyate. All right. Chant Hare Krishna. [end]