The Materialist thinks–everything I do-is necessary!
The Spiritualist thinks-nothing, except Krsna, is necessary!
The Materialist thinks-I must work hard and make money
The Spiritualist thinks- excessive working is punishment , due to ignorance
The Materialist thinks-I must increase my work day and night !
The Spiritualist thinks- To stop working and death-that is spiritual tendency
Therefore the Real Civilization is to minimize work, save time,and go back to spiritual life.
Here below are 3 examples Prabhupada gives to understand this principle of simple living and high thinking…
1. )Svarupa Damodara: Actually the trees are absolutely necessary for the
survival of animals.
Prabhupada: That is another thing. We say nothing is necessary, simply
Krsna is necessary. That is material conception: “This is necessary.
This is necessary.” But Krsna says, “Nothing is necessary.”
Sarva-dharman parityajya. You are simply planning and becoming
entangled with so-called “necessary.”
Svarupa Damodara: But that is on the spiritual platform.
Prabhupada: You can create spiritual platform immediately. Sa gunan
samatityaitan. If you fully engage yourself in devotional service,
immediately you are above this material conception.
Svarupa Damodara: So the concept that the three modes of material
nature, they’re working all species, so it’s not the…
Prabhupada: They are directing. Just like in the jail there are
different departmental management, similarly, this management is
required because you are in the jail. If you don’t go to jail, the
management may be closed. But you are thinking, “If I do not go to
jail, how it will exist?” That is your business, say that “If we all
become liberated, how this world will go on?” They say like that, as
if it is very necessary.
2.) ►750304mw.dal Conversations
The three divisions of God’s energies. One energy is His spiritual
energy; another energy–these living entities, they are also
spiritual; another energy–material energy, where there is ignorance
and work. That is material energy. In the material energy everyone is
ignorant and they have to work. Karma. Karma means working.
Avidya-karma-samjnanya trtiya. So here you have to work. Without
working, you cannot get your… The things are ready, but you will
have to work. So they have increased the working capability. That is
civilization. Just like in the prisonhouse you have to work. Eh? So
they think this working is civilization. This is avidya. So therefore
they have created more work. From early morning, five o’clock, till
ten o’clock, simply working. They do not know that “This working is
our punishment.” But because ignorant, they think that “Working is
life.” This is called ignorance. He does not know, “This working is my
punishment. How to get out of this work?” No. To increase the work
more, complicate, that is civilization. This is called avidya.
Avidya-karma-samjnanya. Our tendency is not to work but get things.
Therefore he has asked that question. Because he has to get cloth by
working, therefore he asking, “Why God has not created?” That means
tendency is not to work. That is spiritual tendency. Everything,
necessities, automatically available. That is our… Therefore as soon
as one man becomes rich, he does not work. He gets his thing by
working others. The tendency is there, to retire from work. They go to
a solitary place. They retire. They do not go out. Weekly, at least,
they want to stop working. So why this tendency? He does not
want to die. He does not want to work. This is spiritual. Why man
should work like… (ass) Therefore real civilization is that minimize work.
Minimize work, save time, and go back to your spiritual life. That is
civilization. And this is not civilization, to get the necessities of
life, sense gratification, and work like hog and dog. That is
condemned. Nayam deho deha-bhajam nrloke kastan kaman arhate
vid-bhujam ye. This human life is not meant for working so hard for
sense gratification which are done by the dogs and hogs. Human life is
meant: tapo divyam putraka yena sattvam suddhyed. Human life is for
tapasya. Why tapasya? Yena sattvam suddhyed: their existence will be
purified. Then you will get unlimited pleasure. Yato brahma-saukhyam
anantam. We are seeking after unlimited pleasure. So that is not
possible in this material life. And we are thinking, “By working very
hard, like hogs and dogs, we will get happiness.” This is… The dogs
and hogs, they work day and night for searching out where is stool,
and as soon as he gets stool, he becomes very strong and stout. Then
sex. Never mind, the mother, sister, daughter. This is hog life.
Therefore this particular animal has been… Kastan kaman arhate
vid-bhujam ye. Vid-bhujam means this hog, stool-eater. So this human
life is not meant for imitating the stool-eater hogs.
3.) 690622SB.NV Lectures
So our main business is how to improve Krsna consciousness. We
should not divert our attention in any other material condition of
improvement. That is actually not improvement. It is simply illusion,
that “I am making improvement.” What improvement? Suppose you are
earning now, say, five hundred dollars per month. If you earn, say,
five million dollars, so then what? Will you eat more than four
capatis? (laughter) You’ll eat the same four capatis. And you’ll
occupy the same six feet bed. You may acquire the whole property of
West Virginia, (laughter) but you’ll have to lie down on six feet.
(laughter) That’s all. And you’ll have to eat four capatis. So this is
maya. This is maya, “I am improving.” What you are improving? You’ll
not be taller. You’ll not be great eater, nothing of the sort.
Whatever you have already, you’ll have so the same thing. You see?
CONSCLUSIONS– We have included only three different explanations (for simplicity) for how the materialist and thespiritualist thinks. One thinks–I have to work very hard, and even miss out on spiritual events from time to time or— not even think about it at all. The spiritualist thinks and understands ,(at least theoretically) , that he or she is not the owner of his or her body, and that this body we possess must be used for its rightful owner-God, or Krsna. And if I do use this body rightly,and the time allotted to this body properly, then I, being a part of the Spirit Whole (Krsna) will also be Jolly like that Supreme Being who is All Blissful, All Knowing, and All Eternal . As Prabhupada says, nobody wants to work or die, yet why do we go on with the same fruitive activities that produce death and misery? Karma is the same as fruitive activities which are acts done without the approval of God, or have not His interests in mind while we perform them , and this is due to avidya, ignorance of who we are.
There is one nice example given about how to trap a monkey in India.You put a banana inside this special box with a lid that allows the monkey to touch the banana from the outside, but not take it and his hand out. So the money is trapped by his DESIRE to have that object of sense gratification-not only does he not get the cherished banana to eat, but he himself is caught due to his own DESIRE.
However he can easily remove himself from this trap if he simply gives up the idea that he can have that which is not his-the banana. He will find a banana somewhere else, by Gods arrangement, but not here in this trap. Similarly in the same way, we go about this world trying to take what is never ours, or what is not our quota designated by the Laws of nature (like over eating) and then we get the result for this action in ignorance. Trapped by our own excessive desire for sense gratification we refuse to live simply and take ONLY what we actually need. He gives a great example above about the poor man and the rich man both only requiring 3-4 chappatis per meal and 6 feet to lay down in a bed. Both humans require basically the same things, but one is working like a total ass, day and night for the same things another man gets quite easily with a lot less work and time.
So who is the intelligent one? The one filled with great stress (due to the mode of passion) or the one who gives up this relentless pursuit for material “perfection” or material “improvement” and simply takes what he or she daily needs? If we understand there is no ” improvement” due to destiny or our karma, then why work so hard day and night for what cannot be improved?? Just like nobody asks for misery, yet it comes of its own accord, similarly
happiness will also come, of its own accord.
By Chanting chanting chanting, our heart become purified so that we can understand these things Ceto darpanam marjanam ! Unless the lower modes, specifically passion and ignorance become cleansed, we will not be able to understand and practice the lifestyle of Krsna Consciousness thru simple living and high thinking. It simply will not be possible.
Hare Krsna
Damaghosa das