Bhagavad-

Bhagavad-gt
gt 9.29
9.29-32
-32

New York, December 20, 1966

Prabhupda:

samo 'ha sarva-bhteu

na me dveyo 'sti na priya
ye bhajanti tu m bhakty
mayi te teu cpy aham
[Bg. 9.29]

The Lord says that "I am... Although I am equal to everyone..." God is no-
body's enemy and nobody's special friend, just like the king, the government,
nobody's enemy, nobody's friend. As you act, so you get result. Similarly, for
common man, there is no special favor from God. Ye tu bhajanti m bhakt-
y. Ye tu. This tu means "but." Here is a word, but. But means just like we so-
metimes say that "I am such and such, but..." "But" means there is something
special. So this word is used here, tu. Tu means "but." What is that
"but?" Ye tu bhajanti m prty: "Anyone who is engaged in devotional ser-
vice of Me, so for him I have got special attention." Ye tu mm..., ye bhajan-
ti tu m bhakty mayi te teu cpy aham: "As he is always, constantly enga-
ged in My service, similarly, I am also engaged always in his service," the Lord
says.

Here one passage is quoted by a great commentator, Balade-

va Vidybhaa, that bhagavn bhakta-bhaktimn. Just like we become de-
voted, similarly, God also becomes devoted to us. You don't think that one-si-
ded devotion. No. Just like love is never one-sided. Love is reciprocation, reci-
procation. Similarly, although God is great, He becomes a devotee of the devo-
tee. He takes pleasure in that way. It is clearly stated that "I also try to devote
Myself for his service." As we take pleasure in serving God, similarly, God also
takes pleasure by serving the devotee. That is reciprocation. Now, this lo-
ka we have already discussed last day. Next loka is

api cet su-durcro

bhajate mm ananya-bhk
 sdhur eva sa mantavya
samyag vyavasito hi sa
[Bg. 9.30]

So now, somebody may say that "If a devotee is engaged in the service of the
Lord, that's all right, but if his behavior is not up to the standard, then what
happens to him?" Of course, a devotee is naturally developed, developing the
twenty-six good qualities, but even if he does not develop those qualities... Of
course, that very quality, that he is a devotee of Ka, that is sufficient. But
still, if somebody is not up to the point, but he is unflinching, not moving, he
is perfect devotee of Ka, then Lord Ka says, api cet su-
durcra. Api cet su-durcra. Durcra means his conduct is not good,
and su-durcra means still further. So api cet su-durcro bhaja-
te mm ananya-bhk. Ananya-bhk means "Without deviating his attention
to any other demigod or any other business, if one is simply cent percent en-
gaged in My service, but his character is, general activities are not so to the
point, still," the Lord says, sdhur eva sa mantavya [Bg. 9.30]. Sdhu means
a pious man or a religious man. Sdhu means the honest man and all good
qualities. Still, although he is found that he is not to the standard, but his only
qualification is that he is acting in Ka consciousness sincerely... It may be...

Suppose I have got some bad character from the beginning of my life, but I
have understood that "Ka consciousness is very nice. I shall take to it." So I
am trying, trying my best. But at the same time, because I am habituated to
something, I cannot give it up. Although I know that this, my habit, is not
good, but still, habit is the second nature. I cannot give it up. So
Lord Ka recommends that "Still, he is good. There is no question that he is
not a sdhu or he is not an honest, he is not religious man. That simple one
qualification, that he is Ka conscious, and he is acting sincerely, but failing
sometime, but still, he is to be taken as sdhu." Sdhu means honest, reli-
gious, pious. Sdhur eva sa mantavya [Bg. 9.30]. And one may say that "Yes,
because he is devotee of God, devotee of Ka, we may call him sdhu, but
not cent percent." But Ka says, "No, cent percent sdhu. In spite of his bad
character, he is cent percent sdhu."

So this is the recommendation. Why? Why is Ka stressing on this point,

that "whatever he may be, still he is honest, he is sdhu, he is religious, he is
pious"? Why? That is to be understood in the next... So this su-
durcra... Su-durcra means that according to time, according to cir-
cumstances, according to so many... There are influences. Just like I have co-
me to your country. So so far rigid regulation and rules are concerned, in the
beginning, of course, we do not find such opportunities to strictly follow. But
still, we should not give so much attention for the regulation or strict rules
and regulation. But we must see how much a person is advanced
in Ka consciousness. That we have to see. And if we go on criticizing ever-
yone, "Oh, you are not doing this. You are not doing this," so many things ac-
cording to Vedic culture... There may be so many things, but we are not con-
cerned. As far as possible, people should be given chance to deve-
lop Ka consciousness. Rpa Gosvm, one of the big cryas, he
says, yena tenaprakrea mana ke niveayet: "The first business is so-
mehow or other people should be Ka conscious." So far rules and regula-
tions are concerned...

yena tena prakrea

mana ke niveayet
sarve vidhi-niedh syur
etayor eva kikar

If one takes to that line of activities, Ka consciousness, then all things, all
regulation, will follow just like a servant follows a master. If the master starts,
the servant follows. Similarly, these things, rules and regulation, that will fo-
llow automatically. In the next loka the Lord says, kipra dharma: "Becau-
se he has taken to that Ka consciousness, very soon he will be perfect pious
man." This process will help him. Don't be too much anxious, "Oh, I am not in
such a way. I am not in such way." Whatever way you may be, you just take to
this Ka consciousness, very easy thing. If you take this Ka conscious-
ness, chan-
ting Hare KaHare Ka Ka Ka Hare Hare, Hare Rma Hare Rma
Rma Rma Hare Hare very sincerely and regularly as far as possible by follo-
wing the rules and regulation, this Ka consciousness will help you to beco-
me a perfect and pious man very soon. Kipram. Kipram means very soon.

Just like in the material world, suppose if you want to sit on the bench of a
high-court judge, you will have to acquire so many qualifications. You have to
be a very big lawyer, and government must recognize that you are good law-
yer. Then there will be so many recommendation by the Bar Association, by
the lawyers. Then you can be recommended. But here the process is just that
any way you sit down on the high-court judge, then all education will come to
you. Don't you see how nice it is? Any way, if somebody takes to Ka cons-
ciousness, naturally and generally it will be found that he is becoming gra-
dually a perfect pious man, perfect honest man. That is the
thing. Kipra bhavati dharmtm avac-chnti nigacchati.

avac-chnti. Because he will relish. He will relish this Ka conscious-

ness so nicely that he will give up all nonsense automatically: "I don't like it,
don't like it." This is the process. He will give up automati-
cally. Para dv nivartate [Bg. 9.59]. Para dv nivartate. The whole
world is after sense gratification, but a Ka conscious person, just very soon
he will find that "All these nonsense, oh, there is no happiness." He will give it
up. He will give it up. It is so nice thing. Some way or other, if you take
to Ka consciousness, your reluctance for sense gratification will automati-
cally come, automatic... You haven't got to train yourself that "How to stop my
sense gratification?" If you simply go on chanting Hare Ka sincerely. And
what is that process? Chanting and hearing. When you chant, you hear, and
you will enjoy. And you will enjoy so nicely that you will give up all that is not
wanted in the advancement of his spiritual life. Kipram. This is recommenda-
tion by Ka Himself, not that I am advertising. Because I am preaching he-
re Ka consciousness, therefore I am advertising, "The candidate may take
it." But Ka Himself says. Kipra bhavati dharmtm avac-chnti ni-
gacchati. nti means very soon he attains that perfect eternal happiness. Per-
fect peaceful life, eternal life, blissful life, he very soon attains.

And why? Kaunteya pratijnhi. Pratijnhi: "My dear Arjuna, you can de-
clare this to the world. You declare." Why Ka is not declaring? Ka is de-
claring through His devotee because Ka has a promise that "I shall protect
My devotee." If a promise is there by the devotee, that cannot be viola-
ted. Ka can... Because He is God, He can violate His own promise because
He is supreme. But He wants to protect His devotee; therefore He is trying to
give the declaration through His devotee that "It will be protected."

I will give you one example how Ka sometimes breaks His promise. It is
very nice story. Ka, when He joined Arjuna, He promised from His own si-
de that "Because the fight is between your brothers, so it is not My duty... Be-
cause both of you are My relatives, so it is not My duty to join one party and
not to join another. But because I have divided MyselfMyself, one side, and
other side, My soldiersbut Duryodhana has decided to take My soldiers, not
Me, so I shall join you. But I shall not fight. I shall not fight. I may take some
work which may assist you." So Arjuna offered, "Whatever work You like, You
can take." So He said, "All right. I shall drive your chariot." So Ka's promi-
se was that He will not fight. But at a time when Arjuna was perplexed by figh-
ting with Bhma... Bhma was the greatest fighter, although he was very old
man. Duryodhana incited him that "Because the other side are your very pet
grandsons, you are not fighting fully." That was the complaint of Duryodhana.
So in order to encourage him, Bhma said to Duryodhana, "All right, tomo-
rrow I shall finish all these five brothers. Tomorrow I shall finish. And I have
got now special arrows for killing these five chivalrous brothers."

So Duryodhana was very intelligent. He told, "All right, please keep these
five arrows with me for the night. I shall deliver you tomorrow in the mor-
ning." "All right, you take it." And Ka understood. Ka is, everything
knows, past, present and future. Ka knew it that "Bhma has now promi-
sed. He will kill." So He asked Arjunathis is also politicsthat "You go to
Duryodhana. Do you remember that Duryodhana"Duryodhana is elderly
than Arjuna"that he would keep some promise which was offered to you?"
Duryodhana told him, "Arjuna, whenever you want something, I shall give
you." "Now this is the time. You can go." "And what is that?" "Now, he has got
five arrows for killing you. You should take and come to Me." So after fight,
they were friends. So Arjuna went to the camp of Duryodhana, and he was
well received. "Well Arjuna, come on. What do you want? Come on. Sit down.
Do you want anything from me? If you want, I can stop this fight. I can return
you this..." Arjuna said, "No. I have not come to you for begging my kingdom.
Fighting will go on. But I want... You promised something." "Yes. I know. I of-
fer you. What do you want?" "Now, I want those five arrows." At once he deli-
vered.

And this information was carried to, I mean to say, Bhma. Bhma knew
that "Ka is very cunning also. He will save His devotee. So He has done
this. All right, in spite of Ka... He has broken my promise, and tomorrow I
shall see. If Ka does not break His promise, then His friend will be killed. I
will fight in such a way." So he was fighting in such a way that Arjuna became
almost dead. Then at that time, Ka... The chariot was torn into pieces,
and Arjuna fell down. And then Ka took up one of the wheel of the chariot
and came before: "Now, Bhma, you stop this fighting; otherwise I will kill
you." Bhma at once gave up his arrow, and he offered, "All right. Kill me." So
thing is that because Bhma promised that "I shall kill Arjuna tomorrow,"
and Ka also promised not to fight, just to save these two devotees, Arju-
na and BhmaBhma also was a great devoteejust to show him that "I
am breaking My promise. Please stop..." He wanted that "Either I shall break
My promise or you shall kill Arjuna. So better see that I have broken My pro-
mise." So in this way, sometimes, for devotee, He sometimes breaks His own
promise.

So here Ka says, kaunteya pratijnhi. "You promise so I shall protect

your promise." And what is that? Na me bhaktapraayati: "Anyone who has
taken to Ka consciousness, he will be never destroyed. He will never be
destroyed." Na me bhakta praayati. What is that destruction? The destruc-
tion is... Of course, a living entity is never destroyed so far his constitution is
concerned. Na hanyate hanyamne [Bg. 2.20]. The destruction of this body is
not his destruction. The real destruction is that when we lose our spiritual
consciousness, we lose our identity, that is destruction. That is destruction,
that now, in our material conception of life, we are practically destroyed be-
cause, destroyed in this way, because as spiritual being, I have got my eternal
life, I have got my blissful life, I have got my knowledge, full knowledge, but
here I am living in a wretched condition that my life is not eternal, I am not
blissful, and I am not in full knowledge. So don't you think that we are already
destroyed? We are thinking that "I am very much advancing in civilization,"
but unless you revive your original life of eternity and full knowledge and
bliss, you should know that you are not advancing; you are being defeated by
the illusory energy. This is destruction. Destruction of my real life is materia-
lism.

So here Ka says, kaunteya pratijnhi: "Please declare in the world that

anyone who has taken to this Ka consciousness will never be destroyed. He
will never go back again to that material life of sense gratification and pull on
this material existence full of miseries. He will be taken out. He will be taken
out sooner or later. As he has taken to this Ka consciousness, he will be ne-
ver destroyed." Our destruction is... You always remember: our destruction
means material existence is the destruction of our spiritual existence. Because
destroyed does not mean that as spiritual being, I will be nowhere, no. This is
my position, nowhere. I do not know. Just like I am being kicked like a foot-
ball. I have no place. You have seen football playing. The football has no place.
As soon as comes, somebody's feet, he kicks. He goes to another body. He
kicks. He's another bodykicking. His only situation is being kicked, football.
So we are just like football. We are being kicked up. Now I am American. Next
time I shall be kicked up to China. Maybe. And from China, I will be kicked up
to India. And from India, I shall be kicked up to Burma or kicked up to
another place. This is going on. We do not know how we are being kicked up
like a football from one place to another, one place to another. This is all false
notion. How long I shall remain here?

Therefore this is the only way, Ka consciousness, to become perfect.

Perfection means to attain spiritual life, eternity, blissful, and full of knowled-
ge. That is waiting us. That is waiting us. Why should we refuse it? It is not a
theory. Don't think that Bhagavad-gt is something, imaginary thing. No.
People have taken to it. They have practiced. They have attained success. It is
coming on since a very, very long time. It was first advised to the sun-god.
Then, after many, many millions of years, again, five thousand years before, it
was advised to Arjuna. So it is coming down. It is accepted by all great cr-
yas of India, and it is being followed, still being followed. So take it. Don't be
destroyed. Take to Ka consciousness, and you will be saved. You will be sa-
ved from this destruction in the material...

Suppose if I am thrown into the ocean, that is practically my destruction. I

may be very good swimmer, but that is no hope. That is no hope of my life.
Any moment, I can go down into the depth of the ocean. Similarly, we are
struggling very hard in this material ocean of existence, simply struggling.
Just like a man is trying to save himself in the Atlantic Ocean, similarly, we
are also trying here. This is not the process of getting yourself from the strug-
gle-for-existence ocean. The thing is one must get you out from the
ocean. Tem aha samuddhart mtyu-sasra-sga-
rt [Bg. 12.7]. So Ka promisesyou will find in the later, tenth, chapter,
that "Those who are in Ka consciousness, I promise I shall take him from
this ocean of birth and death."

m hi prtha vyapritya
ye 'pi syu ppa-yonaya
striyo vaiys tath drs
te 'pi ynti par gatim
[Bg. 9.32]

Now, somebody may inquire, "Now, to become a Ka conscious person, is

there any qualification required? Bhagavad-gt was spoken by Lord Ka.
He appeared to be a Hindu, and it was spoken in India, and all the cr-
yas, they are very learned men. They have adopted. But how we can take to
this Ka consciousness? I am not... I do not belong to such particular creed
or, say, particular country." Now Ka says, "No, that is not disqualifica-
tion." M hi prtha vyapritya ye 'pi syu ppa-yonaya. Ppa-
yonaya... Of course, according to Vedic literature, there are mentions of p-
pa-yoni. Yoni means species. Ppa-yoni. Just like it is mentioned
here, striya dr, striyo vaiys tath drs te 'pi ynti par ga-
tim. Even the striya, even women, they are also classified amongst the ppa-
yoni. Ppa-yoni means those who have got little facility for advancing them-
selves in spiritual life. So it is particularly mentioned here, striya, the woman
class, dradra means the laborer classand the vaiya, mercantile class.
Or less than that.

Because in India, according to the caste system, or varrama-dhar-

ma, the brhmaa and katriyas are considered to be the highest in the so-
ciety, and the vaiyas, a little less than them, and dras, they are not taken
into account. In the similarly, woman class, they are taken as dra, -
dra. Just like the thread ceremony is given to the brhmaa, katriya, vai-
ya, but there is no thread ceremony for the woman class. Although the woman
is born in the brhmaa family, she has no that reformation. Becau-
se striya, woman class, are taken less intelligent, they should be given protec-
tion, but they cannot be elevated. But here in the Bhagavad-gt, He surpasses
all these formalities. Lord Ka surpasses all these formalities. He is giving
facility to everyone. Never mind what he is. In the social structure, you may
consider that woman is less intelligent or dra or less purified, but in spiri-
tual consciousness there is no such bar. Here Ka accepts everyone. Either
you become woman or you are dra or a vaiya or whatever you may be, that
doesn't matter. If you simply take to Ka consciousness, the Lord is there.
He will give you all protection, all protection, and gradually He will help you.
You are already...

One who is in the Ka consciousness platform, he is already in the libera-

ted platform. Simply kipram: it will take some time only, kipram, but very
soon he will be all right. So this is the proposal of Lord Ka, and this is the
facility of Ka consciousness. So we should take this advantage of
being Ka conscious. Never mind what we are. And that will help us in attai-
ning the perfection of life. M hi prtha vyapritya ye 'pi syu ppa-
yonaya [Bg. 9.32]. It is very clearly declared here. Never mind what here he
is or she is. Just take to this process of Ka consciousness and your progress
and advancement of spiritual life is guaranteed. Thank you very much. Any
question? (end)
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