Dear Prabhujis and Matajis,
Hare Krishna. Please accept my humble obeisances. All glories to Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva.
We will continue to hear the very powerful lecture delivered by our Guru Maharaj H H Mahavishnu Goswami on the 20th Jan 2009 in Rajkot. Maharaj was explaining on the verse SB 1.9.12. He was explaining how obedience is important to avoid terrible sufferings and injustice:
aho kaṣṭam aho ’nyāyyaṁ yad yūyaṁ dharma-nandanāḥ
jīvituṁ nārhatha kliṣṭaṁ vipra-dharmācyutāśrayāḥ
Bhishmadeva said: Oh, what terrible sufferings and what terrible injustices you good souls suffer for being the sons of religion personified. You did not deserve to remain alive under those tribulations, yet you were protected by the brahmanas, God and religion.
1. All the inebrieties are present in our family and society. How to improve the situations is shown in Bhagavatam. That is why Bhagavatam we can never avoid. If you explain this way, the hearers will be very elevated, how to organize their life. Whether they organize or not we don't know, it depends on so many things. We just show the way, that is our duty. And according to time and circumstances, these slokas and Prabhupada's purports should be moulded into their understanding. Then they will be satisfied, because young or old, everybody is in need of guidance. They don't know what to do. They have the human existence, they have money also but the guidance is absent. Guidance means unselfish guidance. Otherwise you go anywhere, the guide wants to grab from you everything. That is selfish guidance because the guide is polluted. Unselfish guidance is the monopoly of Prabhupada.
2. The thing is, unless some way of improving the quality of our existence is there, all these discussions are useless. Our quality must improve. Otherwise what are we going to do if our quality doesn't improve? We are then back into the rut. Our life must be guided by some principles. Some guidelines must be there. And because we are organizing our lives according to the guidelines, we are improving. You took education, you were not rebellious, that's why you are educated. Now suppose you were rebellious, don't know today what you will be doing. There was obedience, that's why the education was there. You were obeying your parents, you were obeying your teachers. You passed the exam according to their guidance. It is all obedience to the higher laws. And in English it is very nicely stated, "Those who obey, they can only command." So 'command' is not the first thing, 'obedience' is the first thing.
3. Because Duryodhana disobeyed 125%, that's why the result was, not even a single Kaurava remained. These things are very clear. Make it crystal clear for the people to follow Bhagavat-gita, so that they can avoid terrible suffering and terrible injustice. There is no question of injustice. As soon as the law is there, "You have to drive on the left", that's it. No suffering, no anyaaya at all. We have to follow. That's it. And we are safe. Otherwise we will have banging and so many accidents.
4. We have to avoid misunderstanding about the whole injustice attitude. Because everybody wants to be in some prime position. That is our disease. We are suffering with the disease - "I want to be in a prime position", and subtly it works. We are very humble. But then again we see if our obedience is giving us 'something' (in return). We are not naturally humble. We try to be humble. But then we want to see if people recognize us that we are humble. Humility is the first thing required in this devotional field. Humility is a must. Humility means you put your head down and obey, that's it. That is the symptom of humility. You have to be humble, because if you are in difficulty, nobody will save you. That time you have to be humble somewhere to save yourself from difficulty. This is the meaning of that sentence - "As long as a person is fully in cooperation with the wishes of the Lord, guided by the bonafide brahmanas and vaishnavas, strictly following the religious principles, one has no cause for despondency, however trying the circumstances of life."
5. Prabhupada has given everything. First the cooperation must be there. Then taking guidance from brahmanas and then strictly following the religious principles. Three conditions are there. Then there is nothing to do with despondency and 'trying' circumstances. It is very clear. If you miss one thing, then the chain is broken. Then it doesn't work. Full cooperation must be there, guided by brahmanas and vaishnavas and strictly following the religious principles. If one item in the chain is missing, then it will be problem. Chain is a chain only when everything is connected. Otherwise, we can take, may be Cooperation. but if we are not guided by the Brahmanas then we are in trouble. If we are not following the religious principles then we are gone. That's why the cause of despondency is there and we are always suffering. Somehow or other these three things have to be insisted. And the societies are peaceful only when they followed religious principles. Formerly, police department was not there at all. Corporation and Municipality was not there. All religions were there. Without any expenditure all the things were done which are done by the big departments now. Religiosity was doing everything. The society was purely guided by the principles of Bhagavatam.
6. Unless we try to find out some practical point from the verses, the discussion is not worth it. People must know what to do. People don't want to know about Yudhishtira Maharaj or Bhishmadev or whatever. People want to be guided. They are in kashta, terrible suffering and terrible injustice. How to go about solving it? In the family nobody complains that the injustice is there The head of the family dictates and others obey. The family members don't feel any injustice. The same way in factory also, the rule must be there, otherwise the concern will be bankrupt. Bhagavatam should be put into practice in our day-day life. This is how this sentence is very important.
Thank you very much.
Yours in service of Srila Prabhupada and Srila Gurudeva,
Kalacakra Krsna das.
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