Prabhupäda:

dehino 'smin yathä dehe
kaumäraà yauvanaà jarä
tathä dehäntara-präptir
dhéras tatra na muhyati
[Bg. 2.13]

So this is a statement by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, bhagavän uväca, that you are not this body. The first instruction for spiritual understanding is to know that I am not this body. This is the beginning. The so-called yogis, they are exercising the body, studying the psychology of the mind by charts, by so many humbugs. But our philosophy (is) that we are not this body. Then where is the question of exercising the body and spiritual realization? If I am not this body, then how I can realize myself simply by some gymnastic process? So this is the mistake-the karmés, jïänés and the yogis. The karmés, fruitive workers, materialistic persons, they want bodily comforts. Their only idea is how to get the best comfort of this body. This body means the senses. We have got eyes, ears, nose, mouth, tongue, hands, genital-so many senses we have got.

So therefore we have to control the tongue. What is the tongue's business? The tongue's business is taste and vibrate. So you vibrate in service of the Lord, Hare Kåñëa. Hare Kåñëa means "O Kåñëa, O the energy of the Lord, kindly engage me in Your service." Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare... This is the meaning of Hare Kåñëa. It has no other meaning. "O my Lord Kåñëa and O the energy of Kåñëa, Rädhäräëé, especially, kindly both of You engage me in Your service." As Narottama däsa Öhäkura says: hä hä prabhu nanda-suta våñabhänu-sutä-juta: "My Lord, Kåñëa, You are well known as the son of Nanda Mahäräja. And Your eternal consort, Rädhäräëé, She's also known as the daughter of King Våñabhänu. So both of You are here." Hä hä prabhu nanda-suta våñabhänu-sutä... koruëä karoho ei-bära. "Now I have come to You. Please both of You be merciful upon me." This is Hare Kåñëa: "Be merciful upon me." Narottama-däsa koy nä öheliho räìgä päy: "Your lotus feet, You have got, don't neglect me or push away with Your lotus feet." I think if Kåñëa kicks and push away, that is our great fortune. You see. If Kåñëa kicks with His lotus feet: "You go away," that is also a great fortune. What to speak of accepting? Just like when Kåñëa was kicking on the hood of the Käliya. So the Käliya's wives prayed: "My dear Sir, I do not know, this culprit, Käliya, how he became so fortunate that his hood is being kicked by You? Your touch of lotus feet, great, great sages, saintly persons are trying to meditate upon millions of years, but this Käliya... I do not know, what did he do in his past life that he's fortunate that his hood is being kicked by You?"

So this is our position, that we cannot understand Kåñëa by our mental speculation, limited sense. That is not possible. We have to engage-sevonmukhe hi jihvädau-beginning from jihvä, tongue. Tongue is the greatest enemy, and it is the greatest friend also. If you allow the tongue to do whatever it likes, smoking, drinking, eating meat, and this and that, then it is your greatest enemy. And if you do not allow the tongue, you can control the tongue, then you can control the, all the senses. Automatically. Tä'ra madhye jihvä ati lobhamoy sudurmati, tä'ke jetä kaöhina saàsäre, kåñëa baòo doyämoy koribäre jihvä jay, sva-prasäd-anna dilo bhäi, sei annämåta päo, rädhä-kåñëa-guëa gäo, preme òäko caitanya-nitäi. So tongue should be used always for glorifying the Supreme Lord. That is our business with the tongue. And the tongue should not be allowed to eat anything except kåñëa-prasäda. Then you become liberated, simply by controlling the tongue. And if you allow the tongue to do anything, then it very difficult. So the spiritual education, as Kåñëa says, begins when you understand that I am not this body. And satisfying the senses is not my business, because I am not this body. If I am not this body, why shall I bother myself to satisfy the body only? Body means the senses. This is the first instruction.

So the karmés, jïänés, yogis, they're all trying to satisfy the demands of the body. The karmés are directly doing that. "Eat, drink, be merry, enjoy." That is their philosophy. Jïäné also, he's simply trying to understand that "I am not this body." Neti neti neti neti: "This is not, this is not, this is not, this is not, this is no..." The yogis, they are also trying to come to the point of controlling the senses by bodily exercise, haöha-yoga. So their center of activity is body. Center of activity is body. And our philosophy begins that "You are not this body." You see? When they will pass their M.A. examination in studying this body, then they may be able to understand what is their function. But our philosophy begins that "You are not this body." Postgraduate study. "You are not this body." That is Kåñëa's instruction. We have seen so many big, big politicians and scholars in India. They write comments on Bhagavad-gétä, but they write on this bodily concept of life. We have seen in our country the great leader, Mahatma Gandhi, his photo is with Bhagavad-gétä. But what did he do throughout his whole life? The bodily concept: "I am Indian. I am Indian." Nationalism means that bodily concept of life. "I am Indian." "I am American." "I am Canadian." But we are not this body. Then were is the question of "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am Canadian"? So they have no, this knowledge, the bodily concept of life, they're absorbed, and still they're authority of Bhagavad-gétä. Just see the fun. And Bhagavad-gétä teaches in the beginning "You are not this body." And they are in the bodily concept of life. Then just try to understand what is their position. What they can understand Bhagavad-gétä? If one is feeling that "I belong to this nation, I belong to this family, I belong to this community, I belong to this cult, I belong to this, I belong to this religion...," everything is bodily concept of life. The yogis, they are also trying to understand by bodily exercise. The jïäné is also trying to know, understand fully that "I am not this body." And the karmés, they cannot understand. They are as animals. The animals cannot understand that he's not body.

So factually the karmés, jïänés, yogis, are a little, maybe elevated than the animals. That's all. They are on the animal platform, but it is little elevated. So I give this example-perhaps you heard it-that the dry side of the stool. India, they pass stool on the open field. So at the end of day, because there is sunshine, the upper side of the stool becomes dried up. And the lower side, still moist. So somebody says, "This side is very good." He does not know. It is stool after all. This side, or that side. So these rascals, they are on the bodily concept of life, and they are thinking that "I am nationalist," "I am yogi," "I am this, I am that, I am that..." You see. This is the philosophy.

So long you are in the bodily concept of life, we are no better than the animal. That is the Bhägavata philosophy. You are animal. Yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape tri-dhätuke. Yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape tri-dhä... [SB 10.84.13], sva-dhéù kalaträdiñu bhauma ijya-dhéù, yat-tértha-buddhiù salile na karhicij janeñv abhijïeñu sa eva go-kharaù [SB 10.84.13]. So go-khara means, go means cow, khara means ass. Animals. So who is that? Now yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape tri-dhätu. This bag of tri-dhätu-kapha pitta väyu-if one thinks that "I am this body, I am this body, and, in bodily relation,..." Because in bodily relation I have got my family, society, children, wife, country, and therefore they are mine. So yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape tri-dhä..., sva-dhéù. Sva-dhéù means thinking: "They are mine. I am theirs." Sva-dhéù kalaträdiñu. Kalatra means wife. Through wife, we get children, we expand. The Sanskrit word is stré. Stré means expansion. I remain one. As soon as I get wife, I get, become two. Then three, then four, then five. Like that. That is called stré. So, our expansion, these expansions, these material expansion, bodily expansion, means illusion. Janasya moho 'yam ahaà mameti [SB 5.5.8]. This illusion increases, that "I am this body, and in bodily relation, everything is mine." Ahaà mama. Aham means "I", and mama means "my."

So, so long one shall remain in the bodily concept of life, his illusion will increase. It will never decrease. Therefore the first instruction of Kåñëa to Arjuna... Because if Arjuna would not have been in that position of illusion, that "I am this body, and the other side, my brother, my grandfather, my nephews, they're all my relations. How can I kill?" This is the illusion. Therefore to dissipate this illusion, darkness, Kåñëa begins the first lesson that "You are not this body." Dehino 'smin yathä dehe kaumäraà yauvanaà jarä, tathä dehäntara-präptiù [Bg. 2.13]. You'll have to change this body as you have already changed. You have already changed. You were a baby. You change your body to child. You change your body to boyhood. You change your body to youthhood. You change your body to old man. Now, after change is ... As you have already changed so many times, similarly, there will be another change. You'll have to accept another body. Very simply logic. You have already changed.

So tathä dehäntara-präptir dhéras tatra na muhyati: [Bg. 2.13] "So don't be afraid that your nephews and grandfather or guru and they will die. They'll not die. Change the body." That's it. So na muhyati dhéra. Dhéra means sober, whose brain is nice, cool brain. One should not be bewildered when there is change of body. But the point is, Kåñëa says that tathä dehäntara-präptiù. Another change of... So the sober, one who is sober, he will think: "Then what kind of body I'm going to get next?" That is the problem. But these rascals, they do not know. Still, they are proud of their intelligence. He does not know for what kind of body he has come to this body, and what he's going to get next body. They have no intelligence. Even they are said that "Suppose if you get next body, dog's body," they say, "What is the harm?" Yes. In, what is called, Hawaii University, one student says like that. He's student. He's being educated. But he doesn't care even if he's going to become a dog next life. This is the education. This is the education. And they're intelligent. Professor Kotovsky said, in Moscow: "Swamiji, after finishing this body, everything is finished." Just see. He's professor. And he's student.

So this is the position of so-called professor, student, university, all rascals. This is our challenge. All rascals. Because they are in the bodily concept of life, "I am this body. And the body has no change." Body's changing. He's seeing actually in this life. Still he'll not believe that "After changing this body, I'll get another body." It is very logical. Dehino 'smin yathä dehe kaumäraà yauvanaà jarä, tathä dehäntara-präptiù [Bg. 2.13]. Exactly in the same way, as we have changed so many times this body, I'll have to change. Therefore, one who is intelligent, he should try to understand that "What kind of body I going to get next?" That is intelligence. So that is also explained in the Bhagavad-gétä, what kind of body you can get.

yänti deva-vratä devän
pitèn yänti pitå-vratäù
bhütäni yänti bhütejyä
yänti mad-yäjino 'pi mäm
[Bg. 9.25]

If you want to go to the higher planetary system where demigods live for hundreds and thousands and millions of years... Just like Brahmä. Brahmä's one day you cannot calculate. So in higher planetary system, you have got thousands and thousands of better facility for sense gratification and duration of life. Everything. Otherwise, why the karmés, they want to go to the heavenly planet? So yänti deva-vratä devän [Bg. 9.25]. So if you try to go the higher planetary system, you can go. Kåñëa says. There is process. Just like for going to the moon planet, one must be very expert in the karma-käëòa, fruitive activities. By karma-käëòa, you get, by the resultant action of your pious activities, you can be promoted to the moon planet. That is mentioned in the Çrémad-Bhägavatam. But you cannot enter moon planet by your, this process: "By force we shall go with this aeroplane and jets and sputniks. Oh..." That's not possible. Suppose I got a nice motorcar in America. If I want to enter in another country forcibly, is it possible? No. You must get the passport, visa. You must get sanction from the government. Then you can enter. Not that because you have got a very good car, you'll be allowed. So we cannot by force... This is foolish attempt, childish attempt. They cannot go. Therefore nowadays they stopped. They do not speak. They are realizing their failure. In this way, you cannot. So, but there is possibility. You can go if you adopt the real process. You can be promoted. Similarly you can go to the Pitålokas by offering çräddhas and piëòa; you can go to the Pitåloka. Similarly you can remain in this loka. Bhütejyä. Similarly you can go back to home, back to Godhead. So who is intelligent? And if you ask: What is the benefit by going to the planet, back to home, back to Godhead? That is assured in the Bhagavad-gétä: mäm upetya tu kaunteya duùkhälayam açäçvataà näpnuvanti: [Bg. 8.15] "If you come to Me, then you won't have to accept again this material body, which is full of miserable conditions. You will remain in your spiritual body."

So our Kåñëa consciousness movement is meant for, I mean to say, allowing, elevating all living entities... Of course, it is not for all. It is very difficult. But anyone who has accepted this Kåñëa consciousness movement, if he follows the principles, then he's surely going to home, back to home, back to Godhead. That is certain. But if you deviate, if you become attracted by mäyä, that is your business. But we are giving you information: This is the process, a simple process. Chant Hare Kåñëa mahä-mantra, be purified, be..., remain always liberated from material clutches, and tyaktvä deham. Mäm upetya. Janma karma me divyaà yo jänäti... If you simply try to understand Kåñëa, then tyaktvä deham, after quitting this body, mäm eti, "You'll come to Me."

So this is our philosophy. It is very simple. And everything is explained in the Bhagavad-gétä. You try to realize and preach this cult for the benefit of the whole world. Then everyone will be happy.