The following is a class given by H.H.Jayapataka Swami Maharaj on june 8th 1980 in Calcutta, India. The class begins with a reading from the Srimad Bhagvatam canto 7, chapter 2, text 41.

SB 7.2.41 bhūtāni tais tair nija-yoni-karmabhir bhavanti kāle na bhavanti sarvaśaḥ na tatra hātmā prakṛtāv api sthitas tasyā guṇair anyatamo hi badhyate

TRANSLATION

Every conditioned soul receives a different type of body according to his work, and when the engagement is finished the body is finished. Although the spirit soul is situated in subtle and gross material bodies in different forms of life, he is not bound by them, for he is always understood to be completely different from the manifested body.

PURPORT

Here it is very plainly explained that God is not responsible for the living entity’s accepting different types of bodies. One has to accept a body according to the laws of nature and one’s own karma. Therefore the Vedic injunction is that a person engaged in material activities should be given directions by which he can intelligently apply his activities to the service of the Lord to become free from the material bondage of repeated birth and death (sva-karmaṇā tam abhyarcya siddhiṁ vindati mānavaḥ). The Lord is always ready to give directions. Indeed, His directions are elaborately given in Bhagavad-gītā. If we take advantage of these directions, then in spite of our being conditioned by the laws of material nature, we shall become free to attain our original constitution (mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te). We should have firm faith that the Lord is supreme and that if we surrender to Him, He will take charge of us and indicate how we can get out of material life and return home, back to Godhead. Without such surrender, one is obliged to accept a certain type of body according to his karma, sometimes as an animal, sometimes a demigod and so on. Although the body is obtained and lost in due course of time, the spirit soul does not actually mix with the body, but is subjugated by the particular modes of nature with which he is sinfully associated. Spiritual education changes one’s consciousness so that one simply carries out the orders of the Supreme Lord and becomes free from the influence of the modes of material nature.

Just as the fire is situated within wood, yet it is separate from wood, it is not the same as wood. In the same way, the spirit soul is within the body, yet it is separate. It is not the same as the other ingredients within this material body. So, this spirit soul does not mix with the body, but it is subjugated; it is controlled by the sinful association with the three modes of material nature. That three modes of material nature mix with each other, that makes three different combinations and then again they mix, and then again they mix, and you will come up with 81 different combinations; those are considered to be the principle. Then, the again so many mixtures in the mode of goodness, in mode of passion and in the mode of ignorance, which create the unlimited varieties of life with in this universe.

All mixtures are the basic three ingredients SATYA RAJA and TAMAS, but the living entity is individual and independent from this mixing. But due to the association with material nature the living entity thinks, “I am the enjoyer of this material world,” and thus is bound by the stringent laws of this material world. prakrteh kriyamanani gunaih karmani sarvasah ahankara-vimudhatma kartaham iti manyate

Kartaham iti manyate. In actuality, the doer is this material world; the material energy is doing everything. The living entity is simply desiring. So long as the living entity is desiring to be independent of krishna, Krsna bahir mukha hoye bhoga vancha kore, so long he is turning his face away to Krishna desiring sense gratification maya jhapatiya dhore. maya is simply tackling him, tackling the living entity and binding him very rigidly with her grips; so, we are trying in this material world to get out of these grips by making so many plans. But here it very clearly states that everyone is suffering and enjoying according to his karma.

A Person is working very hard from morning till night with an idea “I will beome happy.” Bhaktivinod thakura, he wrote a beautiful song in Bengali, amar jeevan where he portrayed that he was born, he was i begging to be born , suffering in the womb , so many miserable conditions; he was born, and then he was immediately worshipped by everyone, and he forgot all about his prayers to krishna to become a devotee, and he was thinking, “Everything is meant for me, they are feeding me, they are clothing me, they are taking care of me, I am centre of attraction, so therefore the world is meant for my pleasure.”

In this way, passed his days playing as he grew, finally was sent to school. In school, he had to compete very hard with his classmates, finally going to primary school, high school , he went into his degree course and he finished his jada vidhya, his cultivation of materialistic knowledge. After getting his degree, then he went out in the market to compete to get his service, then he got married , he had so many children and he was all singing that how he becomes absorbed in various kinds of activities finally he prays that, “Now I am becoming old, nothing is very pleasant anymore, and I am thinking that how I have lead my whole life and I have simply forgotten your lotus feet; O my dear darling of Yashoda Nandan, how I have lead my whole life, simply absorbed in these activities and forgetting all along your lotus feet. Now I am simply thinking how I can be engaged in your service. I simply surrender unto you.

So, here SRILA PRABUPADA has said in his purport that we should have the firm faith that the Lord is supreme and that if we surrender to Him He would take charge of us and indicate how we can get out of this material life and return home back to Godhead. Without such surrender, one is obliged to accept the certain type of body according to his karma; sometimes he is an animal,sometimes a demigod and so on, unless one surrenders to Krishna. That means he is free from his karma, Krishna says: sarva-dharman parityajya mam ekam saranam vraja aham tvam sarva-papebhyo moksayisyami ma sucah “By surrendering to me,” krishna is saying, “I deliver you from all your karma.”

So, unless someone is surrendered to Krishna, that means he is not delivered from his karma. Work done for Vishnu is purifying and work done not for Vishnu is binding;that is everyone’s secret of karma. So one who is working against Vishnu’s interest, he is subject to accept all the fruits of his activities, all the karma phala. What is that fruit? That is next life; after leaving his body he must again take birth in this material world, either as a human , or as an animal, or as a demigod. Swarge uthai, narake chubaai. Sometimes one is raised to swarga, heavenly planet, sometimes he is cast down to hell, just like a criminal in the dunking pool, sometimes put into the water and sometimes lifted out. This is the position we're in! We are dunked into the water and we just about to, we feel we're going to drown. We don’t like it all the more this material world and then maya gives one little bit of hope, little bit of material bhoga and then we take one grasp of air, mhoooh(loud sound of inhaling a breath of air)! and we think now I am enjoying, then again drunk into that water, again suffer, again we get one breath of air,mhoooh(loud sound of inhaling a breath of air) ! And again we think, “Now I am enjoying; again we cast into this miserable condition; this is what is happening.

So, this law of karma is very very complex, the law karma of is working in multiple stages. Even if someone thinks that, “I have lead a good life , I have not tried to cheat anyone, I have not tried to hurt anyone, I am leading a good life, therefore I have nothing to fear,” unfortunately, this is not the position. You may have heard the story of Mahabharat that Vidhura is actually Jamraj, the same Jamraj who is speaking here is Vidhura in the Mahabharat. Then how is it, Vidhura is considered to be the son of a maid servant; how is it that yamraj, the most exalted demigod, is forced to take birth as the son of a maid servant?

The history is that, millions of years before, one big sage was sitting in his ashram and some dacoits were fleeing some criminals were fleeing from the king, king's soldiers, and two of them hid within his ashram, unknown to the sadhu, so when they searched in the ashram, they said, “Do you have any criminals here?” He says no, they said they found two men, they say, “Oh, you are concealing _fugitives from the law, then they took the sadhu and he was sentenced, “You must die,” So he was sentenced to die by his fear, they were going to spear him.

Arrow, some projectile, so they were ready to aim and they were going to just have an execution by one means or another and, at the last at the moment, when he was about to be pierced by the projectile, the king’s message came and he said, “Stop, don’t kill him; the king has ordered his release.” So the sage, he was very disturbed, as to why he was put in such such difficult position; so he approached Yamaraj, who is the ruler of all the karma, why I have been put in such a difficult position? What was my apraadh? what is my offence?

So, yamaraj explained. “When you were a boy, four five years old then you were taking a grass and you were poking an insect and by poking insect you were creating tremendous pain for that insect by poking and jabbing; therefore your punishment was to nearly be killed by being pierced, just like you were piercing when you were a child that insect. He said I didn’t know anything and I was just a child and for that I am suffering? I think you should take birth as a shudra! I curse you to take birth as a shudra! This is not fair! I didn’t know better at that time. Yamaraj said, “You know better or not, you were creating pain for the entity and the law of karma is strict; you cursed me, that is another thing. But I have to carry out this law of karma strictly. No one is free. But as the result, yamaraj accepted that curse and he became the son of a maid servant. He became the uncle of Krsna.

And the illustration is, we may think that, “Oh, I have not committed any sinful activity or have done anything so bad, but how many things we've done in this life alone, you see; and what is the result? No body can properly give the weight. In addition to that, karma is coming in seven levels, some karma is the stage of seed stage, some is unmanifest, some seed , some is about to sprout, some is just sprouting, some is already manifested growing stage, some is already given fruit and some is finished. And in this way, there are seven layers of karma reactions, through which birth, which activity will fructify, what time, there is no guarantee. One may have killed a person ten births ago; that sinful reaction is just now coming to fructify, suddenly a person gets crushed under the wheels of a double decker stage transport bus... he was not planing, he had gone to school and college to get his degree, to get his job but just walking across the street, he got crushed by the double decker bus.

Recently, in a newspaper, may be a year and six months ago, there was a terrible accident about seven to eight youths hanging outside of the bus, not and unusual sight in Calcutta and the two buses burst right against each other and the eight people were squished on the side of the bus just like people would squish ants under their feet. This well may have been the the result for squishing ants under the feet while walking... no one can say. But critically people will say, “Oh God is so cruel, but Krsna, he doesn’t take personal care for those who are not His devotee they say, “Oh God is dead, God doesn’t care, so, for them God is not caring. He has made this material world and He has made the laws by which it should run, and everyone is subjected to those strict laws. If someone is squished between two buses, this was not an accident, this meant that this was their karma, if someone becomes wealthy that is not an accident, that is also not an accident. And if some wealthy man gets robbed, that is not an accident.

One suffers and enjoys according to his previous activities, how we act now will determine what will happen to us in the future; how successful we can be. If a person works very hard he can get the full effect of his karma, but even a person doesn’t work even what good karma he should get, he wont get; you see the full effect. Everyone has to work, Krishna said! In Bhagvat gita, everyone has to perform his duty, and one who doesn’t perform his duty then in the future he will reap bad result, he may enjoy for the time being the results of his previous activity, but in the future his non-work, no one can not work,that means he can be less active, but eating is going on, if one is not eating prasad he is eating sin, anna kalvisah sinful food, and if one eats prasad, it is yajnya shish, it is the remnants of the sacrifice.

So, Krishna says, “All right, if you want to be free from this karma, I will help you, and in fact, He says, “You should want to be free from this material karma; if you don’t want to, you are most unfortunate and foolish.!” Krishna clearly said! If some one who thinks, He said who is desiring to get this temporary material foods he is less intelligent, he's a fool.

Then Krishna says that if you worship me you'll come to me , if you surrender to me I will deliver you from all this miserable nature, but if you are so proud, “No Krishna I will not serve you,” I don’t want help from you Krishna, then the responsibility lies more on krsna, even the person he doesn’t know about Krsna, he is ignoring Krishna that is also his fault; why he is not trying to understand from where this universe is coming, I have mother, I have father, they have mother they have father, they had mother they had father, and in this way, ad infinitum, we see that every one is having resource, so the natural inquiry a human can make is what is the source of this universe, so some one is not inquiring if he is ignoring Krsna then the result is that he responsible, the result is that which he responsible is for his activity, just like this state has so many laws , if we follow the laws of the state then we are protected by the law, but if we disobey the laws of state, then we're forced to suffer, but the president, he is above the law of state in so many dealings he is considered to be immune.

Of course, in democracy, they don’t give the president much power, but in monarchy, basically the king can do no wrong, the king is not to be challenged, but he is the owner on behalf of God. He is the representative of God; so he is not challanged. So Krishna is owner of everything, the devotee who is simply carrying out Krsna's order, he is protected by Krishna he is not the part of this material world. māṁ ca yo ’vyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena sevate sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate

He is above this meterial world, above the actions of the three modes of material nature. So devotee is one who understands who is Krishna, He is my eternal master, He is the supreme personality of Godhead and he surrenders himself to that Krishna that supreme, carrying out his desire; that is position of devotee. And someone who is not a devotee has to take birth, birth is miserable. Here, boy or a baby here suffering, sometimes the mother is poking us with a pin and we are crying, we have no words to express, please take the pin out , we would be screaming aaaaaahhh! And we're being poked and then we're thinking, “Oh,may be we have eaten something wrong, may be you're suffering headache; no, please pull the pin out! But we have no words to express, simply crying. So this is our punishment, we are helpless, you see.

In this material nature we are helpless, although we feel ourselves very strong and powerful due to the illusion of this material world. We can be crushed like a bug at any moment; we are very insignificant beings, but by the arrangement of this material world we have given the maximum facility to enjoy our desires in material life or by Krsna’s arrangement we can become free from this illusion, and we can go back to home back to Godhead. So, this Krishna conscious movement is meant for delivering all the fallen conditional souls to awaken them jiv jao jiv jago Gaura chandra bole, koto nidra jao maya picha shira khole! Wake up, wake up, sleeping souls! How long will you waste sleeping on the lap of the witch maya, ami bina bandhu ke ache tomara who else is your friend to help you in your misery? Who else is your friend?

When we are in the hospital , when we are suffering someone is there to put the cold water on the head , someone is there to give the injection, someone is there to give us the pill, who is there to stop the pain? So they give a painkiller. Pain is still there; we have simply become numb. No one can save us. The only one person who can save us from this birth, death , old age and disease is Krishna. So, Krishna sends His representatives in the form of spiritual master, acharya, guru, in the form of devotee, in the form of shakta awesh avatar, in so many different forms He personally comes Himself, simply to broadcast the message, how to get free from this miserable life.

Only when the people become God conscious can there be a progressive society on this world, a society which has no Krishna consciousness, which has no God consciousness is a headless society; progress means one is progressing back to home back to Godhead and a so called material progress things one is simply increasing the pain at which he has been conditioned , untill finally one is so degraded that everything is destroyed. Progress in the modern age means increasing the pain of our conditioning, how to become illusioned that is more rapid, and a more rapid intense pain, until finally people completely lose sight, thinking that they have defenses, their happiness is all that counts, they begin to look upon all their friends, all their relatives everything simply as means for them to get more and more material sense gratification.

Start to first time so filled with greed become envious of all his competitors and he become filled with hate, and thus the world is thrown into a fire of conflict, of ignorance in that misery. And all the so-called propaganda based upon material illusion, is simply stop-gap measures, which simply create another smoke screen to the real solution; people have to be re-directed, they have to see the positive alternative that Krishna is providing, when they finally accept that, unless we obey the laws of God , unless we follow the rule of Krishna we cannot be happy, and we put ourselves in Krishna’s hand that now I am simply going to follow Your instructions, until that point, there is no shelter; thus one is forced into unwelcome situations again and again.

So, as soon as one performs pure devotional service, vasudeve bhagavati bhaktiyoga proyojjita, jnanagyasu vairagyam jnanam yatata ahaituka, immediately He is giving illumination , He is giving knowledge, He is giving vairagya, He is giving renunciation. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharma yato bhaktir adhokṣaje, ahaituky apratihatā yayātmā suprasīdati. Constantly, he becomes filled with self-satisfaction, spiritual bliss, when one can see knowledge by which illusion is destroyed, then just as when one turns the light on in the dark room everything becomes illuminated; that is the Krishna conscious movement. Turn on the light of Krishna and become illuminated . Thank you very much.

Devotee : You said due to our karma, we're given a particular destiny. So, if it's my karma, then surrender is my destiny, and if it is not my karma, then I can't surrender?

Jayapataka Maharaja : Surrender to Krishna is not a function of karma, if it were a function of karma, then why Krishna would offer to Arjuna the choice, either you fight or you don’t fight, but I say fight , that means that there is a choice; living entity has minute independence, if they were.. If everything was simply done by destiny, then there is no question of paap and punya , there is no question of sin and pious activity. There is the question of sin. Why there will we be suffering if everything is done by destiny?

How we are able to succeed or fail, how we are able to suffer and enjoy in our activity, that is regulated by our previous activity; people are competing why one is able to succeed, that ability to succeed the so called success that increases the enjoyment that is due to how much he has performed pious activities in the past. If someone is born a king, born in a wealthy family, sri, suta janma aiswarya, beauty, learning, good birth, and wealth-- these things are the products of pious activities and lack of these things are the product of sinful activity. So even in material life human beings have got the responsibility to choose what to do, what not to do.

According to what he does, that creates, you see, new situations, but basically because this material world is so powerful that due to association, we are conditioned to choose in a certain way, but somehow or other by association with a sadhu, by association with a devotee or by Krishna’s mercy if we get the opportunity to choose to serve Krishna, not to serve Krishna , that choice has to be made; it is not a matter of destiny. That the choice is given to us, that may be the destiny, but we have to... what choice we will make, that is up to our own individual.

Some people are not at all destined to be with such a good fortune, but particularly because a devotee goes out of his to give him good fortune, even when a person has no good fortune he benefits; somehow or other, whether we are fortunate or whether we are unfortunate, if we get the shelter of Krishna, that is that is our real fortune. In this material world, one does not have to try for happiness, or just like we don’t have to try for misery, it is coming automatically, but the shastra saying if you want to get spiritual emancipation, if you want to get krishna consciousness he must try for it. Athato brahma jijnasa ! One must inquire to the truth, because that does not come by destiny, that has to come only by individual effort. It is like we are wrapped up in this big wheel of karma; we have to try to get out of it.

The only attempt is try to get to Krishna, otherwise we are in the wheel , Krishna is outside of the wheel. Therefore the results of destiny are within, you see, this karma chakra. Unless one gets the mercy of Krishna, he cannot get out of it. If a person given that opportunity does not take the choice, does not take this opportunity, it is simply understood he is most bewildered, he has lost his intelligence, and no one knows what is their destiny. If a person is destined to be given the choice to go to krishna, and he gets that choice, and he refuses and gives excuse, “No krishna, take me by my ear, I will come. If I am forced to, then I will do.” That means he does not want Krsna; he was given the choice, he's rejected. Therefore, he is forced to suffer. It is not that Krishna is going to drag one by his feet. There has to be a little desire.

One has the choice to accept or reject. If we accept Krsna, we get His shelter, if we reject Krsna, we get the shelter of His illusory energy, Mahamaya, and we will wrapped up in that destiny of that unlimited wheel of karma. So, we can choose our master. We can have Krishna who is eternal, youthful beauty, who is a compassionate, kind Lord , who personally takes charge of our life, or we can have His agent Maya, the prison-keeper to take care of us; we can choose our master.

Jayapataka Maharaja : Any other question?

Devotee : Yes. (the rest of the question inaudible)

This is a theoretical question. Just like you can ask that if there were no more criminals in this world, what would happen to the prison houses, the jailers and the jail keepers? So we should propagate crime to give all these people more jobs. (devotees laugh).

You see, this same question was said. Vasudev Datta, one great devotee of Lord Chaitanya, he prayed, “I want to deliver all these fallen souls, let them all go back to Krishna and I take all their karma; I will personally take all of their karma, and I will suffer here forever until all the karma is worked out. Let them go back to Krishna, I alone will suffer. And Lord chaitanya, He saw the great compassion of His devotee crying embarrassed him and said, “You don’t have to worry, they are already being delivered by your desire. But as soon as one batch is delivered, there is unlimited jivatmas that are still now in a dormant stage, in the brahmajyoti, in different position. And as soon as one batch of jivas delivered from the universe, again new jivatmas come down, so you don’t have to worry there is always a fresh supply.

Jayapatka Maharaja : Any other question?

Devotee : (Question inaudible)

The accumulated karma reactions which are there have to be completely nullified before one can go back to Godhead. So long as one has sinful reactions he has to suffer, so long he has pious activities he has to enjoy, suffering and enjoying materially are both causes for staying in this material world; so when one surrenders to Krishna, if one can completely surrender, thought, word and deed everything to krishna, then of course Krishna can immediately take up all the reactions, but generally when one surrenders to Krishna, but the momentum of the desires have yet to be purified. So Krishna takes charge of that living entity and as he is performing his devotional service, as he is chanting the accumulated sins, sinful reactions from the unlimited birth are being destroyed.

It is said that while one is chanting, clapping hands with his smiling at the deity, that as he is clapping his hands, just as in the rice paddy field, sometimes the sparrows are coming down and eating the rice; then we have to clap our hands to scare them away and you see thousands of birds, they fly out, just like that if you are clapping and chanting, dancing and laughing or smiling in kirtan, as you're clapping, like this thousands and thousands of sinful reactions are flying away. So, in this way, so many karma reactions are being... at every moment we're performing devotional service, they are being lifted; but because we may be harboring so many attachments in spite of formally surrendering to Krishna, who's taken charge of our lives at the time of initiation and surrender, but due to so many attachments and so many Mayas, reactions are not... the momentum is still there of those reactions. So, Krishna allows us to enjoy or suffer token...

Just like a person, he may be enjoying what appears to be a karma of being very wealthy or very powerful; Krishna may allow him to maintain that, which He promises, “I preserve what you have and what you lack I give,” In other words, if a person has something good on his side, Krishna doesn’t say, “I have to smash it down.” He maintains it; because when one is pure, he is all good. Highest activities, because it is intended for material sense gratification; it is not pure goodness. It is materially contaminated goodness, but His devotee have all goodness, pure goodness. So, Krishna protects what good qualities are there and He gives what is lacking; so there may be so many sinful reactions pending, we may have committed them earlier, we may have done so many different things... eating meat, taking intoxication , illicit sex in so many different births; so the reactions of that should come, you see, directly, but instead Krishna gives a token.

Prabupada once cut His finger and blood came, He said that in a previous birth I chopped a man's head off and now I am giving one drop of blood, a token is given to remind us that how fallen we were to remind us how we have be humble and submissive to Krishna; because the tendency is to become independent, to become very proud , intoxicated by our material situations, and so when Krishna He gives dose of our karma to us, we may refuse, infinite __ in and open manner to just put that In our place , to remind us, and purify we get purified by suffering this is the actual fact, people say no they are hungry, people will never chant God's name, they say fill everyone's belly then they will chant. We find that when people belly are so much full then they don’t like to chant, you go in the village , there are poor people , they all very gradually chant , but if go to you see in a very wealthy society, they already say that I have got money, I have got everything which I need now when I get old then at that time I will chant, now I have go out to increase my wealth.

When there is big financial difficulty then everyone is praying to God , then when He gives them, “All right you get wealth,” they become wealthy; then they forget. Then they think “Oh, economic development is enough; I don't need God anymore. And then He takes everything away, and then again they say they are in a position; that is what happens. After the coming of kali yuga , all India was the richest place in the world. America was discovered simply because Columbus was trying to find India to get the short route, to get all the wealth, gold, and all the masalas; it was the wealthiest place in the world. Then, due to kaliyuga, all the Hindu kings, they gradually became, you see, intoxicated and brahminical culture went down.

Gradually by birth, caste consciousness became established in a rampant exploitation ; as a result of this, then so many foreign conquestors came and gradually India fell to the foreigners and fell under Moghal rule, then under British rule, you see. Now there is a so-called independence, but you can say that its under a foreign political system, because the system which are being used are not the original systems of vedic culture. They are mental concoctions. So the difficulty is there where; that if someone becomes too proud that he is forced to see , have everything taken away by Krishna as a special mercy. Then he can think that, “Why I am suffering? Oh. I must remember Krishna; otherwise when one is in his hey day, he has no time for Krishna. That is the general thing.

The demigods, they forget about Krishna often, you see. And when they forget, not often but sometimes, then the asuras come and defeat them. Then they go to Vishnu and pray, “please help us,” So if Krishna did not have asuras to fight with demigods, they would forget Krsna in their enjoyment. So this material world is always in conflict, and it has the sublime purpose to bring the people back to Krishna, but in spiritual sky where everyone is surrendered to Krishna, there is no conflict, Vaikuntha. So, the more we depend on Krishna, the more He takes charge of our lives; and the more we try to make our own alternative arrangements, you see, beyond maintaining--- we have two things (we have to maintain our body and we have to be Krishna conscious).

So, beyond maintaining our body, if we try to increase unnecessarily our material entanglement, then you'll see to that extent Krishna, He will not give His mercy, or He will give His mercy by giving one a good blast of misery to wake up. What am I doing? This is terrible position I am in! Krishna, help me! Krishna, help me! Someone may know what reaction will come , what severe reaction will come , that is regulated by Krsna. A devotees gets a token, finished! Non-devotees, FULL BLAST! And the devotee is not accumulating new karma; so as the karma is going on, as the reactions is being expended, it is finished. And gradually the load is getting lighter and lighter and one is getting closer and closer to Krsna. More attracted to Krishna, more spontaneously devoted to Krishna, although the non-devotee, as the karmic reaction increases, he becomes more and more weighted down with unlimited accumulation until finally he falls down, down. and goes back into the lowest species of life.

Any other question?

Devotee : (Question inaudible)

Whatever one does for Krishna, for that he is never the loser; he always gains. If one gets money by sinful means, then if he offers to Krsna he can get forgiven for that, but Krsna doesn’t want that the person should go on committing sinful activities. That’s why, people who are committing the sinful activities, they generally speaking, don’t give to Krishna.; they may give to some demigod. They know that if they give to Krishna, then Krishna says, “Oh this living entity wants to get my shelter, then Krishna puts him in such a position that He takes away the opportunity to commit the sinful activity. And gives opportunity to more fully devote himself in Krishna's service; so they avoid Krsna.

These (generally speaking )people doing heavily sinful activity approach some demigod, where they think that where they think that, “Well, I will give and get back some more opportunity to enjoy sinful life, without any... In other words, someone who is sinning, usually, unless he gets some.. it is a very difficult position to get out of ; so, but if one somehow or other gives to Krishna, then he is freed from that sin, no doubt. Krishna takes the reaction, but Krishna does not want that one should earn money by unfair means and give to Him. So, then Krishna will try to give some good instruction to that person, but if one is actually you see gaining by any means and giving to Krishna, then he is like a tax collector, because everything is belonging to Krishna, actually everyone should be giving to Krishna, other sinful people, they are not giving to Krishna, so if one is actually taking and giving to Krishna , where is the question of sinful activity?

The problem is that if someone is engaging in illicit activity and then they are going to give to Krishna generally due to such a tamasic association, they get contaminated and cannot give to Krishna. Therefore it is recommended that the vaishnava should not perform activity which is, you see, against the regulative principles, but in this material world every work is sinful , every work gets the some bad part to it, if you do business you must tell lie and cheat there is no way out of it ; that’s why if a man is doing business he must be giving to Krishna, if he doesn’t definitely he will be defeated by this material energy, because you have to tell lies if you do business, if you tell a person who is buying something, this thing is not very good, someone who told you is very good, you bought it oh you say its not good, but you should buy any way, no one would buy; you have say this good. You have to say it is first class, it may have a rip in it, it may have a defect. You must say it is good, if you want to make your money back.

So business means, to some extent, you see, there has to be little bit of misrepresentation; at least not complete representation of all the defects ;otherwise how you can make money? So it’s the question of degree. A person is putting a poison in the oil and killing people and giving the money to Krishna, he may, you see, get some release, but he may also, you see, have to suffer for the reactions, and then he will get the results of giving to Krishna. How Krishna would do? Unless one fully surrender to Krsna , he will not get Krsna's shelter. When is one is fully surrendered, he cant do that, he cant poison people with mobil oil, because that is against the regulative principles. So until one is fully surrendered, he will get both the punya and the paap; he wont get spiritual shelter. So that means you have to suffer for this mischief and you have to get the enjoyment for his good deeds.