Om Namo Bhagavate Vasudevaya.
SB 10.1.42
(yato yato dhāvati daiva-coditaṁ)
mano vikārātmakam āpa pañcasu
guṇeṣu māyā-raciteṣu dehy asau
prapadyamānaḥ saha tena jāyate
Translation
At the time of death, according to the thinking, feeling and willing of the mind, which is involved in fruitive activities, one receives a particular body. In other words, the body develops according to the activities of the mind. Changes of body are due to the flickering of the mind, for otherwise the soul could remain in its original, spiritual body.
Purport:
One can very easily understand that the mind is constantly flickering, changing in the quality of its thinking, feeling and willing. This is explained by Arjuna in Bhagavad-gītā (BG 6.34):
cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa
pramāthi balavad dṛḍham
tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye
vāyor iva suduṣkaram
The mind is cañcala, flickering, and it changes very strongly. Therefore Arjuna admitted that controlling the mind is not at all possible; this would be as difficult as controlling the wind. For example, if one were in a boat moving according to the wind on a river or the sea, and the wind were uncontrollable, the tilting boat would be very much disturbed and extremely difficult to control. It might even capsize. Therefore, in the bhava-samudra, the ocean of mental speculation and transmigration to different types of bodies, one must first control the mind.
By regulative practice one can control the mind, and this is the purpose of the yoga system (abhyāsa-yoga-yuktena (BG 8.8)). But there is a chance of failure with the yoga system, especially in this age of Kali, because the yoga system uses artificial means. If the mind is engaged in bhakti-yoga, however, by the grace of Kṛṣṇa one can very easily control it. Therefore Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has recommended, harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam (CC Adi 17.21). One should chant the holy name of the Lord constantly, for the holy name of the Lord is nondifferent from Hari, the Supreme Person.
By chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra constantly, one can fix the mind on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa (sa vai manaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravindayoḥ (SB 9.4.18)) and in this way achieve the perfection of yoga. Otherwise, the flickering mind will hover on the platform of mental speculation for sense enjoyment, and one will have to transmigrate from one type of body to another because the mind is trained only in relation to the material elements, or, in other words, to sense gratification, which is false. Māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43). Rascals (vimūḍhān), being controlled by mental speculation, make huge arrangements by which to enjoy life temporarily, but they must give up the body at the time of death, when everything is taken away by Kṛṣṇa’s external energy (mṛtyuḥ sarva-haraś cāham (BG 10.34)). At that time, whatever one has created in this life is lost, and one must automatically accept a new body by the force of material nature. In this life one may have constructed a very tall skyscraper, but in the next life, because of one’s mentality, one may have to accept a body like that of a cat, a dog, a tree or perhaps a demigod. Thus the body is offered by the laws of material nature. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo ‘sya sad-asad-yoni janmasu (BG 13.22). The spirit soul takes birth in higher and lower species of life only because of his association with the three qualities of material nature.
ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthā
madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ
jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā
adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ
“Those situated in the mode of goodness gradually go upward to the higher planets; those in the mode of passion live on the earthly planets; and those in the mode of ignorance go down to the hellish worlds.” (BG 14.18)
In conclusion, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement offers the topmost welfare activity for human society. The saner section of human society must therefore take this movement very seriously for the benefit of all humanity. To save oneself from the repetition of birth and death, one must purify his consciousness. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170). One must be freed from all designations-“I am American,” “I am Indian,” “I am this,” “I am that”-and come to the platform of understanding that Kṛṣṇa is the original master and we are His eternal servants. When the senses are purified and engaged in Kṛṣṇa’s service, one achieves the highest perfection. Hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate (CC Madhya 19.170). The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a movement of bhakti-yoga. Vairāgya-vidyā-nija-bhakti-yoga (CC Madhya 6.254). By following the principles of this movement, one becomes disassociated from material mental concoctions and is established on the original platform of the eternal relationship between the living entity and the Supreme Personality of Godhead as servant and master. This, in summary, is the purpose of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
Translation:
At the time of death, according to the thinking, feeling and willing of the mind, which is involved in fruitive activities, one receives a particular body. In other words, the body develops according to the activities of the mind. Changes of body are due to the flickering of the mind, for otherwise the soul could remain in its original, spiritual body.
oṁ ajñāna-timirāndhasya jñānāñjana-śalākayā
cakṣur unmīlitaṁ yena tasmai śrī-gurave namaḥ
Ploughing The Field:
In continuation of the discussion taking place between Vasudeva and Kamsa on the chariot, where Kamsa is standing with his left-hand grasping the hair of his beloved sister, Devaki,. His right-hand clutched to his sword, raised in the air on the verge of killing her. And Vasudeva, in his immediate urgent condition, he is doing everything within his power to save the sister from death. As we saw yesterday, he began by first trying to soften the heart of Vasudeva. This is very important. Because unless the heart is soft, the seed of knowledge cannot grow. Just like a good gardener does not just throw his seeds in the ground. First he tills the ground. First he makes the ground very soft, through the process of plowing, of fertilization. And when he sees that it is a soft-field, it is a good place for the seed to take its roots, then he plants the seed. So, in the same way when we are trying to enlighten another in Krishna consciousness, we should know that the seed of transcendental knowledge will not take its roots and grow within a person’s heart unless we first prepare the person’s heart. And according to the time and circumstance, we must do the needful.
By His Own Example :
For instance, when Srila Prabhupada first came to America, he was simply kind to everyone. He was like the most loving gentle father, giving wonderful prasad. The devotees, when they heard Prabhupada, for the first 2-3 times, they didn’t even know what he was saying in his lectures. He had Indian accent; they had never heard such a thing. He was just such a kind man, such a loving man, such a godly man, so much anxious to help them, such a genuine concern for them. He wanted to give them prasad with his own hands. In this way, they simply wanted to be with him, whatever he was talking about. And gradually, as they began to understand his accent, they, they could see that they had never, they had never experienced such a philosophy of life. Such a precise and precision description of the Truth, that their minds, their hearts were convinced.
Softening The Heart :
And here Vasudeva, knowing that Kamsa is essentially an extremely egoistic man, with an insurmountable sense of pride,- he knew that the way to get him to hear his words, to soften his heart, he would have to praise him. So, in so many nice words he flattered Kamsa, saying he was the best of men, he was a great hero, he was the pride and joy of his whole dynasty. In this way Kamsa was thinking, “Ha, yes, what he is saying is correct. He knows. He is a man, a learned man. He knows the truth. So whatever he says, it must be true.” And now that the heart of Kamsa has been softened to the extent he could, now he is trying to plant the seed of knowledge. And what is the seed of knowledge? He begins by explaining to Kamsa that you are not this body. You are the eternal soul. In one sense, this dialogue is very similar to how Bhagavat Gita begins. Through a different method Krishna completely softened Arjuna’ heart. Not in the same way, but the same principle. First he was very proud, and he became so bewildered he just wanted to hear. And then Krishna began with the same topic- you are not this body, you are the eternal soul.
Knowledge Of Body and Soul :
So, here Vasudeva is explaining that this body has to die today or tomorrow. That you cannot avoid. Whether you kill your sister, or you do not kill your sister, it is not going to save you from death. This omen in the sky has said that you are going to be killed, but is that something new? You didn’t know that you are going to die? Everybody is going to die. Whether it is from your eighth son, or whether it is from your tenth son, or whether it is from your enemy, or whether it is just by the process of time- through old-age. You must die. You cannot escape that on the physical plane. But, he is explaining, live your life in such a way that the eternal soul, which is the true essence of your existence, that it is elevated, is uplifted in this life and in the next. Otherwise, your life is a great waste.
And he is explaining here that at the time of death, according to your thinking, feeling, and willing, the mind carries the soul to another body. Just like it is explained that a flower gives-off an aroma and that aroma is carried by the wind, to another place. In the same way, the mind is like that wind. The soul is like that aroma. After we leave this particular body, according to the condition of our mind, the mind literally carries the soul to the womb of another mother according to our consciousness, and according to our karma.
Different Planets :
Krishna says in the Gita, “ ā-brahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino ‘rjuna mām upetya tu kaunteya punar janma na vidyate (BG 8.16).” That this material universe created by Bhagavan, Lord Sri Krishna, is created in such a way to fulfill everyone’ desires, to give everyone a facility to enjoy according to their particular tendencies; and also to provide the reactions for their pious or sinful acts. Therefore there are higher planets- Siddhaloka, Brahmaloka, Suryaloka. And in these planets, there is immense enjoyment, longevity of life, health, and great-great-great facility for material pleasure, sense gratification.
And there are hellish planets for those who are sinful. And those planets are full of incredible miseries. Miseries that could never be tolerated in this planet. These types of miseries you would die instantly in this planet. But in those planets, you are awarded a body that could endure such incredible pain and suffer.
And in this earth planet is the middle planet. There is facility to suffer a lot; there is some facility to enjoy quite a bit. You have both. Now, according to Krishna in the Gita, from the highest planet down to the lowest, they are all places of misery. Why? Even if you attain the post of Lord Brahma, still you have to die. And at the time of death- everything that you have been enjoying all your life- is taken away. Extremely painful. It is a miserable state.
At The Time Of Death :
Therefore, Kamsa, whether you are king or whether you are a prince, whatever your situation is, you are going to have to suffer the miseries of death. Even if you conquer the entire universe, you are going to have to suffer the miseries of death. Therefore, Krishna is explaining, “But one who is conscious of Me at the time of death attains Me without fail. Never takes birth again in this material world.“ To be Krishna conscious or, to purify one’ mind is the purpose of life. If our mind is fixed in the loving service of Krishna, in the remembrance of His form, and His name, then anta-kāle ca mām eva smaran muktvā kalevaram (BG 8.5), krishna says, “What you think of at the time of death, what your state of mind is, that is what you attain without fail. If you are thinking of Me, you will attain Me. If you are thinking of anything of this world, you have to come back into this world according to that particular consciousness.”
So then people take this very cheaply and think, “Well, I will just live my life as I like, and at the time of death I know the secret – I will just think of Krishna and attain the supreme destination”. This way, this way, I will have best of both the worlds. I will have my cake and eat it too, as they say.
Death – Very Tragic and Painful:
But, it cannot work like this. Because, at the time of death a person has no choice of what he is going to think. It is too tragic of a situation. As a soul is being ripped from the body, it becomes completely disoriented. Doesn’t know where it is going, where it is coming from. It is such a tragic and painful experience. We know how the mind just goes into a storm of chaos when just some problem comes about in our life. What to speak of when we see that our family members, our friends, our loved ones, this body we nourished and taken care of so long- we will never going to see any of these things again; they are gone. They are being destroyed. And we don’t know where we are going. And it is painful. In fact, at the time of death, it describes in the Bhagavatam, you can’t, you cannot breathe. You become choked-up. Your bodily temperature becomes sometimes very hot, very cold. In this way, it is such a very-very great crisis that we cannot just decide in that situation in a sober, cool and calm way that, “Today I will think of Krishna, and I will go back to Godhead”. What I have done in life doesn’t matter.
The Final Exam :
What your prominent consciousness is during your life, what you cultivated most during your life, that thought will come. It will surface as your last thought at the time of death. So, therefore, it is like the final exam. Every student has to very careful, haribol. Every student has to very-very carefully prepare himself for that final exam. Because whatever you have done throughout the semester, if you fail the exam, you fail. When you go to school, you are just preparing yourself for that last test. And human life is like that. This, this, this world should be seen like a school- to learn what is the truth, to assimilate the truth. And at the time of death when the final exam comes, you can fix your mind on the truth. You can’t expect to just do all nonsense during the entire semester, and think, “Well, all I have to do is pass the final exam. Why should I bother with things now?” You will not be able to pass the final exam, unless you carefully, scrutinizingly study throughout the year. So, in the same way, at the time of death, what we have attached our self most in this life to, our mind will just grasp on to that, at the time of death.
IF You Are Prepared – It’s Glorious :
Therefore, the supreme goal of life is to learn how to attach our self to Krishna, to the eternal, to the Absolute Truth. And then naturally at the time of death, Hare Krishna, you will simply take shelter of the holy name of Krishna. And for such a person, death is not a bad thing; it is not a terrible thing. It is a glorious thing. In fact for such a person, death is simply entrance into the doors of the kingdom of God. At the time of death, one sees the doors to Vaikuntha, the doors to the eternal spiritual world, opening before one. And the Supreme Personality of Godhead, with His divine representatives, personally takes you by the hand and escort you through this beautiful door into Goloka, the spiritual world. Such will be the most beautiful experience in life. But one who is not thinking of Krishna, it is the most tragic, horrible, painful experience in life.
Why We Celebrate “Disappearance Day”:
In fact, recently when I was in Jerusalem, there was a big celebration going on in the Christian quarter. There is the Jewish quarter, the Muslim quarter, the Christian quarter. One of the most-most famous of all saints of the Christian tradition who happened to have made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and he lived there for some time. So, he is very-very much worshiped there. The largest church practically is in honor of him. And that is St Francis of Assisi. The biggest festival of the year for his tradition is the feast of St Francis. And that was just last month. So I asked this lady, who is a very devout follower. I said, “This feast of St Francis- what is it commemorate? Doesn’t that mean that it is his birthday?” She said, “Yes. But not as you know it.” I said, “Well, can you explain?” She said, “Actually, this is the day he died. This is the day he disappeared from this world. And we accept that the day he disappeared from this world, was the day he took birth in the kingdom of God, in heaven. So, therefore, it is his heavenly birthday. And we consider the heavenly birthday more important than the earthly birthday.”
So in all great spiritual traditions, there is this understanding that for one who is God-conscious, there is no death. You take birth in the spiritual world. It is a glorious experience. That is why in our own tradition, we celebrate the disappearance of the great acharyas, the great devotees of the lord. We celebrate their disappearance with as much love and joy as we celebrate their appearance day.
I remember, one time Srila Prabhupada- it was the disappearance day of his Guru Maharaj, Om Vishnupada Paramahansa Srila Bhakti Siddhanta Saraswati Thakur Prabhupada. And Srila Prabhupada began his lecture by saying for a great liberated soul, there is no difference between his appearance and his disappearance. Because he is simply performing a divine lila in this world. And he is conscious of the eternality of the soul.
They Come To deliver Us :
And whether he is appearing or disappearing, it is simply for the sake of spreading the message of love of God, spreading the joy of Krishna consciousness. And in many ways, the disappearance, it is a tragic experience because we are separated from that person.
But it is a joyful experience because we know that he doesn’t have to anymore be harassed by the complications of this world, where there is so much envy, and so much duplicity. But now he can simply be with Krishna, for eternity. Not that he is not with Krishna, when he is in this world. A great devotee is with Krishna everywhere. But it is a very difficult mission, one has to do for Krishna in this world. You have to be persecuted, you have to be harassed, you have to be ridiculed, you have to deal with so many problems, you have to, you have to accept the body that’s growing old, getting diseased and dying. It is a difficult mission.
But in the spiritual world, sat-chit-ananda vigraha, an eternal body where there is simply joy, simply the lila of love. So it is a great-great-great benediction that such souls are willing to come to this world to perform their service for the lord, for our sake. For our sake only.
Seek The Essence – In Everything, Everyone, Everywhere:
And, that is truly the goal of our human life. It is to develop that state of consciousness while living in this world. As it is said, we should be in this world, but not of this world. Although we may be performing so many duties and responsibilities for our family, our friends, our society, our nation, in our hearts, in our consciousness, we should be offering everything in the loving service to Krishna knowing that He is the true proprietor of my family, of my nation. He is the essence within the heart of all of my friends. In this way service to Krishna is our all-in-all. Consciousness of Krishna is the essence, of everything we do, in everything, in everyone we know and everywhere we go, is Krishna consciousness. And it is not an artificial, superficial imposition of the mind, but is simply a recognition of what is true. Krishna consciousness, people think, that we are simply imposing these different ideas in trying to see the world in a certain way. But that is not correct. In Krishna consciousness, we are simply- according to the vision of God, which is coming through the scripture, through the Guru, through the sadhus- we are trying to see things as they are; recognize the truth- everywhere, and in everything, and in everyone.
Practical Process For Purification:
And here it is explained that the way this is done is by simply utilizing this mind, which is like a raging wind. By simply connecting our mind to Krishna – this is the meaning of yoga- to reconnect our mind to God, to its source. And how to do this?” sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ, tat-paratvena nirmalam, hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanaṁ bhaktir ucyate.” The same mind and senses that are now just striving for so many of the temporary enjoyments of this world, use them all in the service of Krishna. This is the process of purification. You like to dance, dance for Krishna; you like to see something beautiful, see the beautiful form of Krishna in the temple, see the beautiful waterfalls that are, that are just glorifying the kingdom of God; if you like to taste something sweet, taste the nice mahaprasad- the remnants of the Lord; you like to hear something, hear the beautiful philosophy of the Absolute Truth- no need to hear gossip, or the worldly pleasures of this world; you like to hear music, hear the beautiful bhajan and kirtan, which is bringing one’s heart and one’s mind closer to Krishna; you like to smell something sweet, smell the sweet incense that has been offered to the Lord, or the flower that has been offered to the Lord; you like to use your hands, your body’s abilities, your mind’s capacity- engage in the loving service of the Lord- offer the fruits of your action, whatever you may do, offer it as an act of love to Krishna. In this way Krishna consciousness is utterly practical. And through this process, the mind is purified. Through this process, the mind is Krishna-ised; becomes saturated with the remembrance, the thought, and the consciousness of Krishna.
Always Possible To Connect by “Chanting”:
And most of all, our constant friend, our constant associate, if we so desire, is Krishna, through His holy name. There is no more sublime and no more direct means of keeping our mind on Krishna than chanting his names.”” hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa hare hare, hare rāma hare rāma rāma rāma hare hare.”” Because Krishna is non-different than his name. kali-kāle nāma-rūpe kṛṣṇa-avatāra (CC, Adi Lila, 17.22). In the age of Kali-yuga Krishna incarnates within the sound of His name. And where is it that we cannot think of the name of God, or chant the name of God? What circumstance of life is that not possible? The yogic process which is filled with mechanical techniques, you have to be in a certain atmosphere to perform it. You cannot do a headstand while riding on the train from Bandra to Bombay Central. And it would be very difficult to perform pranayam in that condition. You could not sit in the lotus posture. You could not perform techniques to raise your kundalini. But you could chant. In fact, one of the best places, not to do japa but to chant, as people are crunching against you, hare kṛṣṇa hare kṛṣṇa. Wherever you are, whether you are in a quite secluded cave in the Himalayas, whether you are at 5o’clock in the morning very-very peaceful atmosphere of Sri Radha Gopinath Mandir, or whether you are riding in your car- you could always call upon the name of Krishna. And you could always unite your mind with Krishna. In this way purify your heart through Krishna’ grace.
Krsna’s Promise Is Infallible :
So, therefore this is most highly recommended process of yoga. And this is the true supreme welfare for other, for all living beings to give this message, and it is the supreme occupation of life- to learn the art of purifying our heart, purifying our mind, learning how to think, to feel and to will for Krishna. And in this way Krishna guarantees,” janma karma ca me divyam evaṁ yo vetti tattvataḥ tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti so ‘rjuna “(BG, 4.9). “One who understands the transcendental nature of My appearance and activities, never takes birth in this material world again, but attains My supreme abode.” This is Krishna’ promise. And when Krishna makes a promise, it is infallible.
Is there any questions?
Question: –We hear that, if you are a devotee than krsna forces himself in your mind at the time of death. So is krsna forces himself OR we have to try to remember him? And even mayavadis also have similar concept, they do have a strong faith. Saying that at last moment they will be saved by guru. So, whats the difference?
Maharaj : Naturally Turn To Krsna:
It is not that Krishna forces Himself in your mind because you are a devotee. It is that you have developed a purity of consciousness, where it becomes your very nature to turn to Krishna in every situation of life. At that tragic experience of death, you will naturally turn to Krishna, if you have purified your heart through practicing in this way during your life. That is why the test that come to us in this life are very, they are very good. It is the mercy of God. When crises come in life, we see how difficult it is to turn to Krishna. So how are we going to turn to him at the time of death? We have to learn to make Krishna our very, to turn to Krishna our very nature. Krishna will not force His way into your mind at the time of death. But by His grace, if you are sincere, even in this life, you will learn to naturally turn to Krishna in every situation, your mind will naturally remember Krishna at the time of death. And when you remember Him, He will reveal himself to you perfectly.
And in regard to the impersonalist, if one is actually on that liberated state in this life, then he will remember the impersonal aspect of the Absolute at the time of death, and he will enter into that atmosphere of Brahman, the impersonal realisation of Godhead. If one is merged in that consciousness of mukti during life, then naturally at the time of death he will be merged in that consciousness and he will enter into the Brahman.
But as devotees, we are not very concerned with that realization, because we are developing the consciousness of eternal servitude to the Lord. In the condition of Brahman realization, there can be no service; there is no relationship; there is no loving exchange; there is simply an eternal blissful existence. But much higher realization and more complete is an eternal loving existence in relationship of Godhead.
Is there any other…
Question: Krsna says, he preserves what a devotee has, and provides what he lacks. Sometimes krsna tests his devotees by putting them into difficulties, and many times we are not able to remember him at that time. So, what is our future when in test you failed in remembering him?
Maharaj –Be Determined Not To Fail Again:
You are speaking of failing tests in this life. What do you do when you fail a test in school? You realize that I did not prepare myself properly. You realize that another test is coming. So, you learn your lesson and you work a hundred times harder, knowing your own frailties, knowing your own ignorance. When a child is learning to walk and he falls down, he gets back up; doesn’t just lay there. So we can learn from our failures. We shouldn’t fail on purpose, thinking that’s how I learn. But, if by some unavoidable condition according to our calculation, we fail, then we have to calculate, where did I go wrong? That means I didn’t study enough, I didn’t absorb enough, I didn’t practice enough, I wasn’t sincere enough. So you learn from your mistakes. And you, and you, and you reinforce greater than ever your determination to not fail the next test.
Question: So, in this context I preserve what you have, what does that mean?
Maharaj —Do Your 1% Sincerely:
That means whatever little you have to defend yourself against Maya, Krishna preserves. But you are lacking a lot. You can’t do it own on your own. Maya is very powerful; you are very weak. If you give your capacity, which is not even one fraction of what is required to counteract the temptations of Maya, you just give everything you have- Krishna will preserve what you have, and all that you lack, He carries. Believe me, Krishna is carrying a lot more than He is preserving for all of us. He is 99 percent carrying, and 1 percent preserving. But that little 1 percent, if we don’t use all of it sincerely, in the endeavor to serve Him and to please Him, then He will not carry anything for us. If we are misusing the little that He has given us, He would just let us be on our own. But if we are fully utilizing whatever He gives us, He would give us whatever the rest is required.
Humility Attracts Krsna :
We shouldn’t be proud that I can withstand the allurements of the material energy. We cannot, it is not possible. Only by the grace of Guru and Krishna is it possible. Even if we are following the regulative principles and we are living as, a very austere life- just pride itself has defeated us. Maya is gross and Maya is subtle. She does not care whether she uses her gross or subtle energies as long as she conquers you. So some people on the gross platform are very strict, they do everything very morally, they don’t engage in gross sinful activities, they are just very-very strict in every sense. So Maya thinks, “Oh! Very strict? You are very great, aren’t you?” “Yes, of course, I am.” She has you. You are much in, you are more in her hands than somebody who is fallen but humble. Maya doesn’t care how she gets you, as long as she has you. So therefore, we must understand that it is only through a humble heart that Krishna protects us. Krishna takes special notice to preserve, and, what we have and carry what we lack when we humble our self before Him, and surrender to Him.
Is there any other questions?
Thank you very much.
Hare Krishna.
