BY: SUN STAFF
Feb 04, CANADA (SUN) — By HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada, 'Back to Godhead' - Volume 3, Part 8, June 29, 1956
An Essential Service
"Back to Godhead" is published fortnightly to enlighten modern leaders, religionists, philosophers and the people in general—on Rational Theism. It is not blind religious fanaticism neither it is a revolt of an upstart but it is scientific approach to the matter of our eternal necessity in relation with the Absolute Personality of Godhead or the Purushottam. It simply deals with our eternal relation with Him, the process of discharging our relative duties towards Him and thereby to achieve the highest perfection of life attainable in the present human form of existence.
We must therefore always remember this particular form of human life obtained after an evolution of many millions of years in the cycle of transmigration of the spirit soul. In this particular form of life especially in the land of "Bharatvarsha" (India) solution of economic question is much easier than that of other animals in different shapes.
There is the swine, dog, camel, ass, etc. in front of us whose economic necessities are as much important as that of ours. But the economic question of these animals and others are solved under nasty conditions while the human being is given all the facilities of comfortable life by the laws of nature because the human form of life is more important than the animal form.
And why a man is given better chance of living than the swine and other animals? And why a highly posted government officer is given all the facilities of comfortable life, better than an ordinary clerk? The answers for these are very simple.
The highly placed responsible officer has to discharge duties of higher responsible character than that of an ordinary clerk. Similarly the human being has to discharge higher duties of life than the animals always busy in the matter of fulfilling the hungry stomach. The modern standard of animal civilization has increased problems of hungry stomach by the laws of nature. When we approach some polished animals, they say that they want to work for stomach satisfaction and there is no necessity of Godhead for them. But by the laws of nature in spite of his eagerness to work hard, there is always the question of unemployment even by denouncing the necessity of acknowledging Godhead.
We are given this human form of encagement not for hard work like the swine or dog but to attain the highest perfection of life. If we do not want that perfection, it is by the laws of nature that we have to work very hard even if we do not want it. In the closing days of "Kaliyuga" the men have to work exactly like the asses only for a lump of bread. The sample has already begun and the ratio will increase year after year. Therefore human civilization means not to work like the animals. That makes the difference between a man and an animal. If therefore a man fails to discharge the duties of human being, he is forced to transmigrate in the degraded species of life by the laws of nature. Bhagwat Geeta has very vividly described this law of nature how a spirit soul takes his birth and gets the suitable form of sense organs for enjoying the matter and the material world.
In the Bhagwat Geeta it is also stated that the Yoga Bhrastas or the persons who in the previous life could not complete the way of approaching Godhead but had tried for it, or in other words, persons who failed to achieve complete success in realising their eternal relation with the Supreme Lord—are given chance of appearing in the families of 'Suchinam' or the spiritually advanced 'Brahmin' and that of Srimatam or the financially well to do merchant class, on account of such failing conditions to go Back to Godhead. The failed candidates are offered such chances of noble parentage and what to speak of those who have actually attained the required success. To make an attempt therefore to go 'Back to Godhead,' even it is half finished—is a guarantee for next birth as well placed human being.
Both these families are boon to the heirarity because in the family of a spiritually advanced Brahmins, the children of the family get good chance of making further progress from the point where they stopped in the previous birth in the matter of spiritual realisation. The atmosphere in such good family is favourable for the culture. The Bhagwat Geeta reminds such well placed persons about their past deeds. Unfortunately without consultation of Bhagwat Geeta such children of 'Brahmin' family are misguided by Maya.
And to take birth in a family of a well to do mercantile home called by the name of Vaishyas—means solution of the bread problem from the beginning of life and later on comparatively easier and comfortable life. This situation of comparatively comfortable life is surely a chance for one to make progress in spiritual realisation. But as ill luck would have it, by the influence of the present iron age (full of machines and mechanical society) such sons of aristocracy are misguided for sense enjoyment forgetting the chance of spiritual enlightenment at a comfortable home. The law of nature is therefore setting fire in these golden homes as the golden city of Lanka, under the regime of Ravana, was burnt down to ashes on account of godlessness. That is the law of nature.
The reminders made in the "Back to Godhead" are therefore essential service to the classes of intellectuals and the capitalists. They should particularly read it carefully and see to it is going on. This is called rational theism.
The Bhagwat Geeta is the preliminary study of the transcendental science and it is the duty of every responsible heads of the society to chalk out the economic programme or other plans of welfare work with reference to Bhagwat Geeta. We are not meant for solving the economic question of life on a tottering platform but we are meant for the ultimate solution of problematic life, i.e. in which we are placed now by the conditions of nature. This is obligatory on our part and 'Back to Godhead' reminds everyone to be careful in that discharge of duty.
The present day civilization is a static one without any movement in the spiritual side. The spirit moves the body and the living body moves the world. We care for everybody but do not know what is the moving spirit. Without this moving spirit the body becomes movementless. This human body is a first class moving vehicle to reach the destination of eternal life.
This human form of body is a rare and very important boat for crossing over the nescience of material existence. On the boat there is the expert service of the boatman the spiritual master. The boat is a plying by Divine Grace under favourable wind and who will not take this good chance of crossing over the ocean of nescience? If anybody neglects this good chance he must be committing suicide.
There is certainly much comfort in the first class air conditioned compartment of a railway carriage. But if the train does not move towards the destination of journey and stands static at a certain railway station then what is the benefit of such air conditioned compartment?
The present day civilization is too much busy in making the material body situated in the comfortable position but it has no information of the real destination of life is to go 'Back to Godhead' and not to become a hard working ass. We remind the learned readers of 'Back to Godhead' not to remain sitting in a comfortable compartment only but to see also whether the vehicle is moving towards destination. There is no objection in making our material body very comfortably situated but we may not forget at the same time the prime necessity of spiritual identity. The boat of human life must be moving towards a destination of spiritual destination. There is a good and instructive story in this connection.
There was a bridegroom party who had to go to the bride's house by the river. It was settled that they would start at night on boat and reach the destination early in the morning. At night therefore after supper the party in jubilation got on board the boat and made themselves comfortably situated after instruction to the boatman to start.
All the members of the party being comfortably seated had a very sound sleep at night due to the cooling river breeze and all of them got up early in the morning after a very sound sleep. But to their astonishment they saw that the boat did not move an inch towards the destination although the boatman plied the bats in the best. The boat remained static in the same port without any progress. And on enquiry it was found that in spite of the boatman's plying the bats very vigorously the boat did not move toward the destination on account of their not raising the anchor by mistake. The marriage ceremony was thus spoiled on account of a common mistake.
The present day civilization is therefore a mistaken civilization on account of the mistaken leaders who have forgotten to raise the anchor of attachment. On the contrary the material attachment is more and more being firmly fixed up by a process of sense gratificatory social structure. This sense gratificatory process of social and political set up by various plans and schemes—has been described in the Bhagwat Geeta (16.10-11) as follows:—
Kamam, Astritya, Duspuram, Dambha, Mana, Madannita, Mohad, Grihitwa, Asat, Grahan, Prabartante, Ashuchi, Brata.
Chinta, Aparimayam, Cha, Pralayantam, Upashrita, Kamopabhoga, Parama, Etabad, Iti, Nischita.
The leaders or the boatmen who are meant for taking us to the desired destination are all illusioned (Mohad). As such they are misleaders to some temporary benefit (Asat Grahan). And why they are so because they are all of unclean mind and addicted to filthy life (Ashuchi Brata). Their life is full of dirty things. And how they are misleading us? It is by plans and schemes only (Chinta aparimeyam). How long these plans and schemes will go on? They will go on till they die by heart failure or are killed by some enemy (Pralyanta Upashrita). What is their aim of life? What they have fixed up as the destination of life? Oh it is very simple thing. It is simply a business of sense gratification and nothing more (Kamopa bhoga Parama). But some of the leaders are great philosophers also and why do they not guide the foolish mediocres and henchmen? Oh! the philosophers are captivated by material name and fame. Why it is so? It is due to their being carried away by the influence of Maya (Maya apabritajnana).
Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Srila Prabhupada.
