Purification of Existence

(Compiled from notes on lectures of H. H. Mahavishnu Goswami)

Normally when we walk on the roads in India we step on so many contaminations in the street and therefore we come home and wash our body and legs for purification to avoid contamination in our external body. Cleaning process is a must or otherwise we will become diseased. We do it naturally because we know that we are contaminated with so many germs and bacteria which will affect our health. This we do religiously for the sake of bodily protection. Therefore it needs to be cleansed every day without fail. But the same body when it lies dead becomes a source of nuisance and we want to throw it out immediately even though it is our own close relatives. Because the real fragrance of the body is mainly due to presence of the soul. In fact the soul is the one which is making the body move and do all activities. This soul is not independent. He is completely dependent on the Supreme Soul Lord Krishna. If the Supreme soul decides to leave the body the soul has to move from one body to another body. Therefore we can conclude that without the presence of the Lord the body does not have any value at all nor fragrance. This needs to be sunk in our thick brain. This point is going inside our brain but it is not sinking itself and that is the real cause of all our contaminations. This point is very nicely elucidated by Srila Prabhupada in his purport to Srimad Bhagavatam 3.6.34 with the actual reasons of our contamination and the process of purifying the contaminations.

"All the conditioned souls are impure due to contact with the material energy in three modes of nature. Therefore it is necessary that they purify themselves under the guidance of the bona fide spiritual master, who not only is a brahmana by qualification but must also be a Vaishnava."

So we can understand that Purification of existence is necessary not optional. The whole process of devotional service is to accelerate the process of purification.

The purification of existence means and includes

1. Eating
2. Body and senses
3. Mind
4. Intelligence
5. Speech
6. Consciousness

We have to purify from gross to subtle. Gross is more easy for us to relate.

1. Purification in Eating

aahaara-suddhau sattva-suddhih sattva-suddhau
dhruvaa smrtih smrti-lambhe sarva-granthinaam vipra-moksah
"By performance of yajna one's eatables become sanctified, and by eating sanctified foodstuffs one's very existence become purified. By the purification of existence finer tissues in the memory become sanctified, and when memory is sanctified one can think of the path of liberation."

Our Guru Maharaja has said that ATLEAST devotees should take one vow in their lives. i.e they will eat only prasadam and avoid outside food.

The word atleast is very important to meditate upon. If we cannot do anything else in devotional service, atleast this should be our vow or otherwise there is no question of purification in our eating. Our tendencies are to compromise so many times with so many justifications and arguments for eating other than prasadam. Since we compromise on eating any food, our existence is not purified and thereby memory does not work and we fail to remember basic things in Krishna consciousness even after so-called practice for so many years in the process. Where is the question of thinking about the path of liberation.

So the Vedic literature instructs us that

mitam bhuktva satam gatvaa mitam suptvaa mitam vacah
vaime bhage sayaanasya bhisakbhir kim prayojanam
"What is the use of a doctor if we eat very little, walk atleast 100 feet, have limited/regulated sleep and speech and sleep lying on the left side?"

As our Maharaja says that because of our excessive eating we accumulate so much undigested food in our stomach which is the root cause of all our diseases. Consequently on account of excessive eating we sleep excessively. Because of lack of tongue control we tend to speak unnecessarily all the nonsense talks. By talking all nonsense talks (nrnaam santi sahasrashah) we invite Yamaraja just as frog invites death by croaking.

2. Purification of the Body and Senses
Srimad Bhagavatam 2.8.3 states that

kathayasva mahaabhaaga
yathaaham akhilaatmani
krsne nivesya nihsangam
manas tyaksye kalevaram
"O greatly fortunate Sukadeva Gosvami, please continue narrating Srimad Bhagavatam so that I can place my mind upon the Supreme Soul, Lord Krsna, and, being completely freed from material qualities, thus relinquish this body."

Srila Prabhupada in his wonderful purport gives the way of purification of our body and senses.

To be fully engaged in hearing the transcendental narration described in the text of Srimad Bhagavatam means to constantly associate with the Supreme Soul, Sri Krishna. And to constantly associate with the Supreme Lord Krishna means to be liberated from the qualities of matter. Lord Krishna is like the sun, and material contamination is like darkness. As the presence of the sun dissipates darkness, constant engagement in the association of the Lord Sri Krishna frees one from the contamination of the material qualities. Contamination by the material qualities is the cause of repeated birth and death, and liberation from material qualities is transcendence.

Maharaja was saying that simply by hearing our body improves. Those who hear transcendental topics their body is not material. Not at all. They are surcharged with Krishna katha. The body also becomes transcendental. No disease touches us. But because of our past sinful reactions we suffer from it.

The point that we need to be fully engaged should be meditated upon. We are engaged for so many years of Krishna consciousness but whether we are fully engaged is definitely a question. If yes then we can associate with Lord Krishna. Then all the material qualities will dissipate. But our tendency is that we come and hear but attentive hearing is absent and that is the reason for our body not becoming transcendental. Scriptures are perfect but since we are not applying it, it is not working for us and we conveniently blame the Lord. Even after so many years we are unable to relish Bhagavatam for more than 40 minutes, we become restless.

2. Purification of Mind
In Bhagavad gita, 16.1-3, Srila Prabhupad in his super excellent purport states that

Lord Caitanya said, “For a sannyasi or anyone who is aspiring to get out of the clutches of material nature and trying to elevate himself to the spiritual nature and go back home, back to Godhead, for him, looking toward material possessions and women for sense gratification— not even enjoying them, but just looking toward them with such a propensity—is so condemned that he had better commit suicide before experiencing such illicit desires. So these are the processes for purification.”

I was completely baffled by this statement and I enquired submissively from Maharaja that I have to commit suicide every second of my existence. Maharaja gave a profound realisation to this statement: The moment we endeavour to control this thinking propensity is itself a suicide because it is so difficult to endeavour to control the propensity of experiencing such illicit desires. It is a struggle and we have to do this.

In Srimad Bhagavatam 5.11.17, Jada Bharata Maharaja confirms the powerful nature of the mind and how to get freed from the service of mind.

bhraatrvyam enam tad adabhra-viryam
upeksayaadhyedhitam apramattah
guror hares caranopaasanaastro
jahi vyalikam svayam aatma-mosam
"This uncontrolled mind is the greatest enemy of the living entity. If one neglects it or gives it a chance, it will grow more and more powerful and will become victorious. Although it is not factual, it is very strong. It covers the constitutional position of the soul. O King, please try to conquer this mind by the weapon of service to the lotus feet of the spiritual master and of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Do this with great care."

1) First weapon is to neglect the mind.

2) We should be expert in disobeying the mind's orders.

3) Gradually the mind should be trained to obey the orders of the soul.

4) As given by Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Thakura, we should beat the mind with shoes many time before going to sleep.

5) Very strictly abide by the orders of the spiritual master and engage in the Lord's service.

Srila Prabhupada puts a very powerful punch statement that even if you are not able to do all of these above five things just simply follow the fifth one and you will be successful - “If one abides by the orders of the spiritual master by the grace of Krishna, he is freed from the service to the mind." This is the only way of purification of mind.

Purification of Intelligence – Vishuddha Buddhi

Maharaja gave a wonderful insight to this aspect of purification of intelligence by remembering the shloka from Srimad Bhagavatam 1.6.7:

isasya hi vase loko
yosaa daarumayi yathaa

"The world is under the full control of the Supreme Lord; therefore everyone is like a wooden doll in the hands of a puppet master."

Maharaja statement on Vishuddha buddhi is worth remembering again.

1. Everything animate or inanimate helplessly follows the order of Krishna. This buddhi is vishuddha buddhi or purified intelligence. Those who understand this transcendental fact of the full control of the Supreme Personality of Godhead are not stuck anywhere in the material world because in any situation they think that it is under the control of Krishna. If He wants, what can we do? That is how we are completely out of anxiety, out of petty differences. That is the purpose of Bhagavatam - to clear our intelligence.

2. The main symptom of vishuddha buddhi is ‘ishasya hi vashe loko’- the world is under the full control of the Supreme Lord. This one principle, if we can remember from the pages of Srimad Bhagavatam, our intelligence will become clear. The material matters should not be an impediment to our devotional service. They are an impediment because of our differentiation attitude. We differ with each other. That is saamaanya buddhi. Whereas common sense demands that there should not be any differentiation. It is depending on the principle ‘ishasya hi vashe loko’.

Everything is alright. In Gujarati, there are three words - faav se, gam se, caal se - they mean that for me everything is good, I like everything and anything is alright. This is vishuddha buddhi.

3. Contaminated Buddhi creates anxiety. If you do not have this type of intelligence depending on ‘ishasya hi vashe loko’, any other buddhi is contaminated and contaminated buddhi will unnecessarily cause anxiety to us and that is the nature of contaminated intelligence. Contaminated intelligence means personified anxiety and the whole world is completely misguided regarding these things. There is more and more contamination day after day. Nobody tries to purify. That is why anxiety never leaves us. As soon as anxiety takes grip over our whole being, our being (body) gets diseased. Only if we are out of anxiety, our sleep is unbroken and our behaviour is not that fanatic.

Somehow or the other we have to come to this vishuddha buddhi. Otherwise the contaminated intelligence creates hell for all the living entities around us. If we do not follow the Vedic principles, we are destroyed and the contamination increases. Because the cloth is clean, it is surviving. As soon as it becomes dirty, if it is not washed, then it will again tear because of contamination and that is what is happening regarding the present society. The contamination is so much increasing and it is torn here and there. How many patches we can put? So the cleaning process should be here for vishuddha buddhi. And the process is given by Srila Prabhupada in a simple way that without much endeavour we can clean the society. Before we clean the society we must clean ourselves first. And for this we have to remember only one thing. In the whole of Bhagavatam if you want to remember one sentence please remember this sentence. - 'ishasya hi vashe loko yoshaa daaarumayi yatha'. That is it. Nothing more and nothing less. Our behaviour is that we are stuck from corner to corner, and as soon as we try to understand the supreme transcendental controller, we are completely off the worry. That is the main result. Any problem and this sentence will relieve you. The whole world is helped by this one sentence and it is Srila Prabhupada’s diagnosis.

We conditioned living beings by nature are rebellious to this principle and so it is not so easy for us to accept. Because of this non-acceptance of this vishuddha buddhi we struggle in our material existence and get stuck with so many things and we are unable to progress even an inch in our spiritual pursuits and we become like stagnant water and become stinky. We tend to freak out and create havoc because of contaminated intelligence and it is very important that this statement should be read day in day out and understand the guiding principle behind it.

We have to be on guard on this aspect if we really want accelerated progress in our devotional service. It is easy to offer to Granthraj but practising it is very difficult. Even then we should make an attempt to apply this principle in a limited way at least to get purified.

6. Speech and Consciousness

For purification of speech and consciousness we have to refer to the wonderful verse spoken by Maitreya Muni in 3.6.36

tathaapi kirtayaamy anga
yathaa-mati yathaa-srutam
kirtim hareh svaam sat-kartum
giram anyaabhidhaasatim
"In spite of my inability, whatever I have been able to hear [from the spiritual master] and whatever I could assimilate I am now describing in glorification of the Lord by pure speech, for otherwise my power of speaking would remain unchaste."

Maitreya muni was so fortunate that he was personally present in front of the Lord along with Uddhava and heard the direct instructions coming from the Lotus mouth of the Lord. This statement expressed by him shows his wonderful quality of humility. Maitreya Muni starts speaking to Vidura from Third canto Fifth chapter and to the end of Fourth canto. But Maitreya Muni was emphasising one point that inspite of his inability he wants to glorify the Lord according to his intelligence (yathaa mati yathaa shrutam) and his submissive hearing or otherwise his power of speech would become unchaste.

Prabhupada in his magnanimous wonderful purport elucidates complete purification of existence by including speech, consciousness and everything by simply preaching the glories of the Lord.

The purification of the conditioned soul necessitates purification of his consciousness. One should not become unchaste by stopping the activities of pure consciousness. If the activities of pure consciousness are stopped, certainly the conscious living force will be otherwise engaged because unless engaged the consciousness has no standing. One must attempt to engage one's bodily, mental and verbal activities in the transcendental glorification of the Lord, otherwise such activities will remain unchaste and impure. The existence of the conditioned soul can be purified only by the method of engaging mind and speech in the service of the Lord.

In these days of instant food and instant cooking, we see Srila Prabhupada in this purport gives the complete purification of existence of body, senses, mind, intelligence, eating, speech and consciousness by simply preaching about the glories of the Lord. If you have to preach for one hour then the following things has to be done by us inevitably.

1. You have to study for at least 6 to 7 hours, if not that, at least nityam bhagavata sevaya is a must. Body and senses are purified.

2. You have to churn your mind and intelligence to understand and assimilate the studied content to give to the hearers nicely which implies mind and intelligence is getting purified.

3 Because of speaking in the class your speech is purified and in order to think and speak your consciousness also gets purified automatically.

4. Once you study Srimad Bhagavatam or Bhagavad gita which emphasizes more on soul conception than bodily conception you will automatically eat only Krishna prasadam and eat frugally. So there is purification in eating.

So it is so important that we must attempt to preach the glories of the Lord and attain complete purification of existence. Also in the pages of Bhagavad gita, Lord Krishna Himself says that no one is more dear than the one who preaches His message and also He guarantees pure devotional service.

With all these offers by the Lord and His pure devotees if we don't attempt to preach then we are the ultimate loser. Our tendency is that I will retire from service and study Srimad Bhagavad gita/Srimad Bhagavatam in full and then start preaching. By the time we become 60 we may be alive or not and even if we are alive we may have the old age symptoms and disease and therefore it is mandatory to take up the process of preaching immediately before we fall down dead (turnam yateta na patet anu mrtyuhuh yaavan). Procrastination of preaching is a sign of ignorance and in no way we can enter Vaikuntha.
Prabhupada writes further about the glories of preaching in his wonderful purport to 7.6.24, 7.14.40 and 7.14.42 to guarantee our purification of existence.
7.6.24

1. The Lord will immediately be extremely satisfied with one who engages in this service of preaching Krishna consciousness.

2. If one sincerely tries his best to spread Krishna consciousness by preaching the glories of the Lord and His supremacy, even if he is imperfectly educated, he becomes the dearmost servant of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

3 .Preaching is the easiest way to realize the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

4. By preaching without discrimination we do the best service to humanity and

thereby the mission of one's life is fulfilled.

7.14.40 - If one wants to be recognized by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, he must preach the glories of the Lord.

7.14.42 - The brahmanas preach the cult of Krishna consciousness all around the world, and therefore, although they worship Krishna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Lord also recognizes them as worshipable.

How much more the Lord and His devotees could emphasise on preaching and if we don't preach then we are the real losers. Our tendency is that someone will preach, someone will do various devotional service then someone will go to Vaikuntha and we have to stay back. As Maharaja says preaching solidifies our knowledge and also we are out of the modes when representing the conclusions of the scriptures. In order to preach we have to sit and study which is the most difficult part and we start envying the preachers and thereby our devotional service is becoming bankrupt. Instead of grumbling, envying and moaning, we should take up the process of preaching with firm determination and give up the contemplation of being unfit (vigata viklava) and start attempting to glorify the Lord with sincerity and devotion.

Chant,

Hare Krishna Hare Krishna

Krishna Krishna

Hare Hare

Hare Rama Hare Rama

Rama Rama

Hare Hare

and be happy.