| Bhagavad-gétä 4.13 -- Bombay, April 2, 1974
Pradyumna: (leads chanting) cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà Translation: "According to the three modes of material nature and the work ascribed to them, the four divisions of human society were created by Me. And, although I am the creator of this system, you should know that I am yet the non-doer, being unchangeable." cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà So beginning of human civilization is this varëäçrama-dharma. The Vedic system is varëäçrama-dharma. The people known as Hindus in the world, the Hindu is a term given by the Mohammedans, from "Indus." Indus River is there. Now it is in Pakistan. So people beyond the Indus River, the Mohammedans in Arabia and other countries, they pronounce "s" as "h". Instead of "Sindhu," they used to pronounce it as "Hindu." So people living, crossing the river Indus or Hindus, they were called "Hindus." Otherwise, this "Hindu" term is not seen in any Vedic literature. The real meaning is the people who observe the varëäçrama-dharma, four varëas and four äçramas. Four varëa means brähmaëa, kñatriya, vaiçya, çüdra. And below the çüdras, they are called caëòälas, païcama, fifth grade, less than the çüdras. That natural division is there everywhere.
Brähmaëa means the most intellectual, most intelligent person. Intelligent means one who knows, who has got sufficient knowledge. So brähmaëa means he has got sufficient knowledge even up to the understanding of the Absolute Truth. Brahma jänätéti brähmaëaù. So that is first-class men, brähmaëa. So intellectuals or very intelligent class of men, these are everywhere, all over the world. You may call them brähmaëa or not, but a class of men, very intelligent, that is available in every part of the world. So brähmaëa means the intelligent class of men. And kñatriya means they are less than the brähmaëas. And vaiçyas means less than the kñatriyas. And çüdras less than all of them. It is a question of intelligence. So cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam [Bg. 4.13]. Kåñëa says, "These four varëas are created by Me." So anything created by God, that is not monopoly for any class of men or for any country. Just like the sun is created by God. The sun is the thing which is enjoyed by all parts of the world. But there are countries, Western countries, where sun is not visible, covered by the cloud. Any country, any part of the world which is covered by cloud and the sun is not visible, according to çästra, such country is condemned. Because, although the sunshine is there, but certain condition, they cannot enjoy the sunshine. Therefore from the Western countries, when people come to this country, especially in India, when they see from the Arabian Sea bright sunshine, they very much become astonished, "How nice sunshine is here." So sunshine is the property for everyone, but according to intelligence or according to fortune, they enjoy it. So brahminical culture also, similarly, it is just like sunshine. It is meant for everyone. But the people must be intelligent enough to take it. Unfortunately, this system, although India was observing very rigidly, now it is slackened, or practically nil. We have lost our brahminical culture, the cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam [Bg. 4.13]. This is the, due to the influence of Kali-yuga. Kalau çüdra-sambhavaù In the Kali-yuga practically everyone is a çüdra or less than çüdra. Less than çüdra is called caëòäla. Çüdras, sometimes çüdras also eat meat, but the less than çüdras, they have no discrimination. They eat even dogs. The dog-eaters, they are described in the çästra, çva-paca. Çva means dog, and paca means, pacanti, cook. But Kåñëa consciousness is so nice. It is said in the çästra, aho bata çva-paco 'to garéyän yaj-jihvägre (vartate) näma tubhyam. Even a çva-paca, caëòäla, dog-eater, if he learns from the spiritual master how to chant Hare Kåñëa mantra, he is garéyän, he is glorified. In another place also, that çva-paca, caëòälo 'pi dvija-çreñöho hari-bhakti-paräyaëaù. Even caëòäla, he becomes greater than a brähmaëa, provided he becomes a devotee of the Lord. Hari-bhakti-paräyaëaù. So ordinarily, when people are not on the standard of bhagavad-bhakti, devotees of the Lord, there is division of the society. There must be. Otherwise things cannot go on. In the çästras we find that there is division even in my body: the brain division, the hand division or the arms division, the belly division and the leg division. The brain division is the brähmaëa, and the arm division is the kñatriya, gives you protection. As soon as somebody is going to attack you, immediately, automatically you spread your hands. Kñatriya. Kñat means injury. In Hindu it is called kñatra. So kñat träyate. A kñatriya's business is one who can save you from being injured by others. That is kñatriya. And brähmaëa means the intelligent class. So as in the body, the brain is also required the hand is also required the belly is also required, and the leg is also required. Although the activities of the leg is not so important than the activity of the brain. Comparatively studying, the brain is most important part of the body, this head. If you cut the head of a man, then, in spite of possessing the arms, belly and legs, he is dead man. But if you cut the hand or the leg, he can live, and the brain can work. This is an example. Similarly, when the society is divided nicely in these four divisions, the brahminical culture, the kñatriya culture, the vaiçya culture, and the çüdra culture... Brahminical culture means people should learn how to speak truth, satya, çama, how to control the mind, how to control the senses. Satya, çama, damaù, titikñä, how to become tolerant, ärjavam, how to become simple in life, how to become cleansed, how to acquire knowledge and how to practically apply the knowledge in daily life.
Jïänaà vijïänam ästikyam. And ästikyam means full faith in the Vedic literature. That is called ästikya. Ästikya generally is called theism. So if one has full faith and full knowledge in Vedas, he becomes theist. If he has no sufficient knowledge in the Vedas, he becomes atheist. So just like Çré Caitanya Mahäprabhu says, veda nä mäniyä bauddha haila nästika. The Buddhists, they did not accept the authority of the Vedas. Therefore they are called nästika, or atheist. That is the definition, that if you do not accept the authority of the Vedas, then you become atheist. So this is the brahminical.... One of the brahminical qualification is how to live under the Vedic civilization. That is brähmaëa. Similarly, kñatriya. Tejaù, çauryam, very powerful, and kñatriya will never go away from the battlefield. Kñatriya's business is, in the battlefield, either to become victorious or lay down life. That is kñatriya. He is not coming back from the battlefield without being victorious, no. That is kñatriya's business. Not like.... kñatriya, therefore, they are in charge of the government. Nowadays the kñatriyas, they do not go to the government. Practically there is no kñatriya. That is stated in the çästras. Asaàskåtäù kriyä-hénä mlecchä räjanya-rüpiëaù. Mleccha. They have no that kñatriya qualification, mleccha, unclean.
Mleccha means unclean, without any Vedic culture. They are called mleccha. Anyone. It does not mean that any particular class of men is called mleccha. Anyone who is unclean and does not abide by the injunction of the Vedas, they are called mleccha, yavana. That is the shastric term. So Kåñëa says for the upkeep of the society, there must be this cultural division of the society, namely varëa and äçrama. But at the present moment people do not know what is the aim of life. They do not know. na te viduù svärtha-gatià hi viñëuà
Uru-dämni-baddhäù. Te 'péça-tantryäm uru-dämni-baddhäù, andhä yathändhair upanéyamänäù. People are.... Because the Vedic culture is lost, the system of brähmaëa, kñatriya, vaiçya, is no longer existing, neither there is training. One politician, minister in Calcutta, he came to see me, I was talking. "Why there is chaotic condition?" And the simple reason is there is no this cätur-varëya system is lost. Practically without any brahminical culture, kñatriya culture, people remain çüdras, the fourth-class man. Or fifth-class men. So unless there are first-class men, second-class men, at least third-class men, only fourth-class, fifth-class, sixth-class men, how they can conduct. That is not possible. Therefore it is enjoined that cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam [Bg. 4.13]. This division of the society must be observed. Educational institution, there should be, but the education.... Just like in a university, they have different departments: medical department, engineering department, or biological and so many, psychological, chemical, physical.... They have so many departments. But there is no department, brahminical, kshatriyacal, or vaiçya, nothing. Because they do not know what is the aim of life. They are simply interested with the bodily comforts of life. That's all. Never mind what is our next life, What kind of life we are going to. But that is, this is a fact. Therefore we have to study Bhagavad-gétä very seriously. In the beginning of Bhagavad-gétä it is said by Kåñëa, tathä dehäntara-präptir. There is dehäntara. After leaving this body, I have to accept another body. Tathä dehäntara-präptir dhéras tatra na muhyati [Bg. 2.13]. Dhéraù means those who are sober, intelligent, they know that what is death. Death means giving up this body and accepting another, transmigration of the soul. That is death. So dhéras tatra na muhyati. A dhéraù who is learned, he knows, but others, adhéraù... There are two classes of men: dhéra and adhéra. Adhéraù means not controlled, animals. Just like animal cannot control. So human being is gradually coming to the platform of the animals. Because they are being conducted on the bodily concept of life. yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape tri-dhätuke Anyone Who is thinking that "I am this body," yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape.... Kuëape means this bag, tri-dhätuke, of kapha, pitta, väyu. Am I this body? A first-class intelligent man is composed of this body. What is the composition? The blood, bone, flesh, muscle, stool, urine. Does it mean a first-class man is composition of these ingredients? But foolish people are taking the bodily conception of life. No.
Tathä dehäntara-präptiù. Dehino 'smin yathä dehe [Bg. 2.13]. This is the first understanding of knowledge, but people do not understand that within the body there is soul. They are so fool. Therefore they have been described in the çästra, sa eva go-kharaù: [SB 10.84.13] "This class of men, they are no better than the cows and the asses." So you cannot become happy in the assembly of some animals. Therefore people are so much disturbed at the present moment. There is no sober life, dhéra. If you want peaceful life in the society, then you must accept this program. Cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam [Bg. 4.13]. There must be brahminical class of men, kñatriya class of men, vaiçya class of men. The vaiçya... Generally, we understand, vaiçya means the mercantile class of men. No. At the present moment the so-called vaiçyas are çüdras, less than çüdras. Why? Now the vaiçya's business is kåñi-go-rakñya-väëijyaà vaiçya-karma svabhäva-jam [Bg. 18.44]. The vaiçyas must be engaged in producing foodgrains, but they are not interested. They are interested for opening factories for bolts and nuts and tires, Goodwheel tires, Goodyear tires. Now you eat tire and bolt nut. No, you cannot eat. You have to eat rice, and rice is ten rupees per kilo. That's all. Because no vaiçya is producing food grains. This is the defect. They don't see the defect. They're simply howling, bawling, "Oh, it has increased price". Why not, increased, price? There are millions of people in Bombay city. Who is producing food grain? But they are known as vaiçya. What kind of vaiçya? There is no brahminical culture; there is no brain. There is no kñatriya who can give you protection. There are so many defects. So if you want to remodel your life, the society, the human society, nationally or internationally-everything is spoken here, international-then you have to take to the advice of Kåñëa. This is the purpose of Kåñëa consciousness movement: wholesale, thorough, overhauling of the human society. We have not manufactured anything, concocted things. It is very scientific. If you actually want to fulfill the mission of your life, then you have to take to this advice of Bhagavad-gétä, very scientific and spoken by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, without any defects. If I speak something, there may be so many defects, because I am imperfect. Every one of us, imperfect. We commit mistake. To err is human. There is no human being who can say boldly that "I never committed any mistake." That is not possible. You must commit mistake. And sometimes we are illusioned, pramäda. That we are all, because we are accepting this body as "I am," which I am not. That is called pramäda, bhrama pramäda. Then vipralipsä. I have got bhrama, I commit mistake, I am bewildered, I am illusioned. Still, I am taking the position of teacher. That is cheating. If you are defective, if you have got so many defects in your life, how you can become teacher? You are a cheater. Nobody's teacher, because without being perfect, how you can become teacher? So this is going on. And the last defect is that my senses are imperfect. I cannot see properly, I cannot smell properly, I cannot touch properly. So many defects. Just for example I am seeing the sun everyday but I am seeing just like a disk. But it is fourteen hundred thousand times bigger than the earth. So çästra-cakñusä. You must see through the çästra, not with these eyes. Just like they say sometimes, "Can you show me God? Have you seen God?" Well, can you see God? You cannot see even the sun properly. How can you see God? Why you are proud of your eyes so much? If you cannot see even material object and you cannot see even the spirit soul... You are seeing daily your father, and when your father dies you cry, "Oh, my father is gone." Well, your father is lying here. How do you say your father is gone? "No, father is gone." Then how it is gone? "Now he is dead." How he is dead? That means you are seeing your father so many years, but you did not see who is your father. Now he cries, "Now my father is gone." Where he is gone? He is there, lying on the floor. So just see our fault, how much defective our eyes. I am seeing the body of the father and I am thinking, "He is my father." Sa eva go-kharaù [SB 10.84.13], ass and cow, the seeing of the ass and cow. So in this way we are defective. How we can guide the people? How we can become teacher? How we can become leader? Andhä yathändhair upanéyamänäù, yasyätma-buddhiù kuëape. Andha. I am andha, blind, and I try to lead others, andhas. Therefore there must be chaos. This will not help us. We must see through the eyes of Kåñëa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. We must study Bhagavad-gétä perfectly well. How to read? Evaà paramparä-präptam, through the disciplic succession. As Kåñëa said, you have to accept that teaching through the disciplic succession, not concocted meanings. "Oh, I am a very good scholar. I passed my DHC or MAC or MA. I can comment on Bhagavad-gétä in my own way." That is rascaldom. That is not understanding of Bhagavad-gétä. Bhagavad-gétä means you must understand what Kåñëa says. That is understanding. But generally, it is done, "Kill Kåñëa. There was no Kåñëa. There was no battlefield. There was no Mahäbhärata. I have my concoction about Kåñëa." This kind of commentary and understanding of Bhagavad-gétä has spoiled the whole world. Therefore in the Western countries so many swamis and yogis went there and they misrepresented Bhagavad-gétä. Of course, everyone knows in Eastern country Bhagavad-gétä. Every institution, every gentleman, learned man, knows that there is a nice book, Bhagavad-gétä, but they read these faulty commentaries. They cannot understand. Now we are presenting Bhagavad-gétä as it is, and they are now understanding what is real Bhagavad-gétä. Therefore they are now devotees. For the last two hundred years, so many swamis and yogis went there and talked about Bhagavad-gétä. Not a single person became a devotee of Kåñëa. Now you will find thousands. Why? The Bhagavad-gétä is being accepted as it is. This is the secret of this Kåñëa consciousness movement. So our only request is that if you want happiness, if you want to prosper, make your life successful, you must read Bhagavad-gétä thoroughly, as it is, as Kåñëa says. Don't try to misinterpret. "Kåñëa means this" and "päëòava means this" and "This means this." Don't make this foolish rascaldom. Take as it is, Bhagavad-gétä. Kåñëa says that mattaù parataraà nänyat kiïcid asti dhanaïjaya [Bg. 7.7], aham ädir hi devänäm, cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam [Bg. 4.13]. Here it is said. Kåñëa says, cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam, you cannot cancel this system of varëäçrama. Then you will suffer. You cannot cancel. You must accept, that there must be a class of men, real, brähmaëa. Not that "I am born in a brähmaëa family and I am doing the work of a cobbler. Still, I am a brähmaëa. No, not like that. Guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù. Kåñëa never says that brähmaëa is born in a brähmaëa family. Here it is clearly said, cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöaà guëa-karma-vibhägaçaù [Bg. 4.13]. Guëa means quality. As you purchase something, that it is good quality, nice quality, similarly, you should accept a brähmaëa, a kñatriya, a vaiçya, a çüdra, by the quality and by the work. Not only that. Just like you qualify yourself as a lawyer, but you do not practice. So who will call you lawyer? Nobody will call. But if you are qualified and if you are practicing, everyone says, [Hindi] He will go. People will go to consult with you. But if you do not practice, simply you have passed legal examination, nobody will come to you. So two things are required: the brahminical qualities and work like a brähmaëa. These two things.... If you are born in a brähmaëa family and you are, "Oh, all blessing to you," oh, what power you have got to bless me? You are not in quality, not in work. But people accept it, paëòitajé. What kind of paëòitajé? Paëòita. Paëòita means one who knows. Then the Bhagavad-gétä says, paëòitäù sama-darçinaù. vidyä-vinaya-sampanne So this is the paëòita, definition of paëòita, not this rascal paëòita, that rascal paëòita. Paëòita means one who has attained the spiritual platform. That is called paëòita. Paëòitäù sama-darçinaù [Bg. 5.18]. Vidyä-vinaya, brähmaëe, a learned brähmaëa; gavi, a cow; hastini, an elephant; çuni, çuni means caëòäla, er, çuni means dog; and çva-päke, those who are dog-eaters, caëòäla. Paëòitäù sama-darçinaù. How is that, paëòita has become mad that he is seeing the brähmaëa, learned brähmaëa, and a caëòäla and a cow, everything on the same platform? How? Because he is not seeing this body: he is seeing the soul. That is paëòita. Otherwise how a paëòitäù sama-darçinaù... [Bg. 5.18]. He is not madman. Those who are advanced in education, learned, they see that everyone is living entity, part and parcel of God. He is under condition now. So let him be awakened. Uttiñöhata jägrata präpya varän nibodhata. This is paëòita's business, to educate. Just like the human being, one who hasn't got the spiritual knowledge, it is the business of the paëòita to educate him.
Uttiñöhata jägrata präpya varän nibodhata: "You have got now this human body. In the animal body you could not understand what is spirit soul, what is God. Now you have got the opportunity." Uttiñöhata: "Now get up." Präpya varän nibodhata. "You have got this opportunity to understand." Athäto brahma jijïäsä. "Now it is your opportunity to inquire about jévasya tattva-jijïäsä." These are the instruction in the Vedic literature. Tattva-jijïäsä. The human life is only meant for tattva-jijïäsä, to understand the Absolute Truth. That requires brahminical culture, not the dull brain of çüdras and caëòälas. They cannot understand. Therefore there must be an institution to educate a brähmaëa, to educate kñatriya. That is required. Cätur-varëyaà mayä såñöam [Bg. 4.13]. If you don't do it, if you simply produce çüdras, bolt, nut manufacturers, technicians, then how you can be happy? Çüdras. This is the business of the çüdras. This is not business of brähmaëa. You keep çüdras, but there must be brähmaëas also. Just like leg is also required, the brain is also required. You cut the leg, simply keep the brain, that is also defective and if you cut off the brain, then everything is finished. This is going on. There is no brähmaëa, there is no kñatriya, there is no vaiçya, only çüdras. So how you can be happy? Therefore it is very essential to understand this verse. Cätur-varëyam, train a class of men. Everyone required. There is intelligent class of men, but there brain is being misused, and intelligent man is being taught technology, how to manufacture machine. This is çüdra's business. This is çüdra's business. Misuse, brain misuse. There must be university where brain is properly utilized. Here is a child or here is a boy. He has good intelligence. Train him as brähmaëa. Less than that, train him as kñatriya, train him as vaiçya. Everything is there in the Bhagavad-gétä. There is no difficulty. So if you actually want happiness, prosperity of the society, not only of this society, that, whole human society, they must accept this Kåñëa consciousness movement and then they will be happy. Thank you very much. (end) |