Prabhupada 0343 - We are Trying to Educate the Mudhas
Lecture on BG 3.27 -- Madras, January 1, 1976
Kṛṣṇa, when He was present on this planet He practically demonstrated that He controlled everyone but nobody controlled Him. That is īśvara. That is called parameśvara. Īśvara everyone may be. God everyone may be. But Godhead is Kṛṣṇa. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13) . So we should understand it very nicely, and it is not very difficult. The same controller is coming before us as one of us, as human being. But we are not accepting Him. That is the difficulty. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). That is very regretful. Kṛṣṇa says that "I am coming to exhibit who is the supreme controller, and I am playing as human being so that everyone can understand. I am giving instruction in the Bhagavad-gītā. Still, these fools, the rascals, they cannot understand." So God is there. We give the God's name, Kṛṣṇa, God's address also, Vṛndāvana, God's father's name, mothers' name. So why... Where is the difficulty to find out God? But they will not accept. They will not accept. Mūḍha. They have been described as mūḍha.
So this morning these press reporters asking me, "What is the purpose of your movement?" So I said, "To educate the mūḍhas, that's all." This is the sum and substance of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, that we are trying to educate the mūḍhas. And who is mūḍha? That is described by Kṛṣṇa. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). Why? Māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ. Why māyā has taken away his knowledge? Āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ. We have got very simple test, just like a chemist in the small test tube can analyze what is the liquid. So we are not very intelligent. We are also one of so many mūḍhas, but we have got the test tube. Kṛṣṇa says... We like to remain mūḍha, and take education from Kṛṣṇa. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We do not pose ourselves as very learned scholar and very erudite scholar—"We know everything." No.
We are... Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He also tried to remain a mūḍha. He, when He talked with Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī... He was Māyāvādī sannyāsī. Caitanya Mahāprabhu was dancing and chanting. So these Māyāvādī sannyāsīs were criticizing Him that "He is a sannyāsī, and He's simply chanting and dancing with some sentimental persons. What is this?" So a meeting was arranged between Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī and Caitanya Mahāprabhu. In that meeting Caitanya Mahāprabhu attended as a humble sannyāsī. So Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī questioned Him, "Sir, You are a sannyāsī. Your duty is to study Vedānta always. So how is that, You are chanting and dancing? You are not reading Vedānta." Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, "Yes, sir, that's a fact. I am doing because My Guru Mahārāja saw Me a mūḍha, rascal." "How is that?" "He said, guru more mūrkha dekhi' karila śāsana (CC Adi 7.71). My Guru Mahārāja saw Me a fool number one, and he chastised Me." "How he has chastised You?" Now, " 'You have no jurisdiction to studying Vedānta. It is not possible for You. You are a mūḍha. You better chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.' "
So what is His purpose? The purpose is, at the present moment, these mūḍhas, how they will understand Vedānta? Better chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Then you will get all knowledge.
- harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam
- kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā
- (CC Adi 17.21)
In this age people are so fallen that what they will understand Vedānta and who has got the time to read Vedānta? So better take the education of Vedānta directly as Kṛṣṇa says, vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15).
So Vedānta knowledge is śabdād anāvṛtti. By chanting the śabda-brahma one can be liberated. So this, this is recommended in the śāstras
- harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam
- kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā
- (CC Adi 17.21)
So if one is actually interested how to become liberated from this material bondage, janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9)—these are the problems—then, according to śāstra, according to mahājana, one must take to this chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. This is our, I mean to say, purpose.