Remembering Srila Prabhupada - Stages of madness - Blog - ISKCON Desire Tree

Stages of madness

In class Prabhupada spoke about various stages of madness. He told us that pramatta does not mean constitutionally mad, but it means mad by some temporary circumstance. Quoting Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.1.4, he said that actually 99.9% of the world's population are pramatta. Why? Because they think that their husbands, wives, families, nations, bank balance or a strong body will save them from the clutches of Yamaraja, the Lord of death. "Now some of our big sannyasis," Prabhupada said, referring to a popular Mayavadi, "he took it that unless you become very strong and stout by eating meat and exercise, gymnastics, you cannot understand spiritual life. This is their interpretation. But that is not the fact. Bala, bala means Balarama. Do you think that because you are very strong and stout, a big wrestler with muscles, you'll live? No. For Yamaraja there is no consideration that 'Here is a weak person, lean and thin, and here is a very strong person; therefore the strong person should be left over and the lean and thin will be taken to Yamaraja.' No. When the time will come, the lean and thin may be spared, but the strong man may be immediately taken. So this rascaldom, that by exercise ... People are very much attached to the body. We have seen everywhere, especially in European, they are very much attached to make the body stout and strong. And in the morning you'll find -- here also you'll find -- they're running to make the body ... As if the strong body will save him from death. This is rascaldom. Therefore pramatta. Crazy."

He cited the humorous story of a man in Bengal who reasoned that since stool was an obnoxious substance, if he smeared his entire body with it, then Yamaraja would not approach him. "This is another pramatta. That crazy fellow, that he is thinking 'By keeping myself dirty and obnoxious, Yamaraja is gentleman, he'll not come and touch me.'"

Likewise Prabhupada said, we should not think that because we have a nice husband or wife that we are secure, although he did relate the story of how Savitri saved her husband Satyavan from the clutches of Yamaraja. "The husband died. So Yamaraja came. So she pleased Yamaraja by prayers, and then Yamaraja asked, 'What do you want?'

"'A very good son.'

"'All right, you'll have a good son.' So then Yamaraja was taking her husband, and she was going behind. Then Yamaraja said, 'Your husband cannot be returned. He is dead. And it is my duty, I am taking. Why you are coming, following me?'

" 'Now, you said that I will have a son. So if you are taking my husband, how I will have son?'

So Yamaraja came to his senses that 'I have done a mistake.' Then 'All right, take your husband.'

He cautioned us, "These are rare instances. But don't think that because you are very clever and you'll be untouched by Yamaraja. No, no, no. Dehapatya-kalatradisu asatsu. Asat. Nobody will stay. This material world is like that. Asat means temporary, everything. This body is temporary, this life is temporary. Therefore asato ma sad gama; this is Vedic instruction. Don't be attached to this asat, temporary things, that is called vairagya."

He said that if we want to learn how to be detached from this material world, then we must take to devotional service. "Bhakti-yoga means vairagya; one who is actually attached to Krsna, he must be no attachment for this material world. That is the sign. Bhakta, without any endeavor, because he develops attachment for Krsna, he automatically gives up attachment for this material world. Bhaktih paresanubhavo viraktir anyatra syat. This is the symptom how one has become attached with this material world. If under the cover of becoming bhakta I am trying to gather some material profit, that is not bhakti, that is very dangerous."

- From "A Transcendental Diary Vol 4" by HG Hari Sauri Prabhu

Comments