BHAGAVAD-GITA 11:55

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BHAGAVAD-GITA 11:55

 

mat-karma-krn mat-paramo

mad-bhaktah sanga-varjitah

nirvairah sarva-bhutesu

yah sa mam eti pandava

 

WORD FOR WORD

 

mat-karma-krt--engaged in doing My work; mat-paramah--considering Me

the Supreme; mat-bhaktah--engaged in My devotional service;

sanga-varjitah--freed from the contamination of fruitive activities

and mental speculation; nirvairah--without an enemy;

sarva-bhutesu--among all living entities; yah--one who; sah--he;

mam--unto Me; eti--comes; pandava--O son of Pandu.

 

TRANSLATION

 

My dear Arjuna, he who engages in My pure devotional service, free

from the contaminations of fruitive activities and mental speculation,

he who works for Me, who makes Me the supreme goal of his life, and

who is friendly to every living being--he certainly comes to Me.

 

PURPORT

 

Anyone who wants to approach the supreme of all the Personalities of

Godhead, on the Krsnaloka planet in the spiritual sky, and be

intimately connected with the Supreme Personality, Krsna, must take

this formula, as stated by the Supreme Himself. Therefore, this verse

is considered to be the essence of Bhagavad-gita. The Bhagavad-gita is

a book directed to the conditioned souls, who are engaged in the

material world with the purpose of lording it over nature and who do

not know of the real, spiritual life. The Bhagavad-gita is meant to

show how one can understand his spiritual existence and his eternal

relationship with the supreme spiritual personality and to teach one

how to go back home, back to Godhead. Now here is the verse which

clearly explains the process by which one can attain success in his

spiritual activity: devotional service.

 

As far as work is concerned, one should transfer his energy entirely

to Krsna conscious activities. As stated in the Bhakti rasamrta-sindhu

(2.255),

 

anasaktasya visayan

yatharham upayunjatah

nirbandhah krsna-sambandhe

yuktam vairagyam ucyate

 

No work should be done by any man except in relationship to Krsna.

This is called krsna-karma. One may be engaged in various activities,

but one should not be attached to the result of his work; the result

should be done only for Him. For example, one may be engaged in

business, but to transform that activity into Krsna consciousness, one

has to do business for Krsna. If Krsna is the proprietor of the

business, then Krsna should enjoy the profit of the business. If a

businessman is in possession of thousands and thousands of dollars,

and if he has to offer all this to Krsna, he can do it. This is work

for Krsna. Instead of constructing a big building for his sense

gratification, he can construct a nice temple for Krsna, and he can

install the Deity of Krsna and arrange for the Deity's service, as is

outlined in the authorized books of devotional service. This is all

krsna-karma. One should not be attached to the result of his work, but

the result should be offered to Krsna, and one should accept as

prasadam the remnants of offerings to Krsna. If one constructs a very

big building for Krsna and installs the Deity of Krsna, one is not

prohibited from living there, but it is understood that the proprietor

of the building is Krsna. That is called Krsna consciousness. If,

however, one is not able to construct a temple for Krsna, one can

engage himself in cleansing the temple of Krsna; that is also

krsna-karma. One can cultivate a garden. Anyone who has land--in

India, at least, any poor man has a certain amount of land--can

utilize that for Krsna by growing flowers to offer Him. One can sow

tulasi plants, because tulasi leaves are very important and Krsna has

recommended this in Bhagavad-gita. Patram puspam phalam toyam. Krsna

desires that one offer Him either a leaf, or a flower, or fruit, or a

little water--and by such an offering He is satisfied. This leaf

especially refers to the tulasi. So one can sow tulasi and pour water

on the plant. Thus, even the poorest man can engage in the service of

Krsna. These are some of the examples of how one can engage in working

for Krsna.

 

The word mat-paramah refers to one who considers the association of

Krsna in His supreme abode to be the highest perfection of life. Such

a person does not wish to be elevated to the higher planets such as

the moon or sun or heavenly planets, or even the highest planet of

this universe, Brahmaloka. He has no attraction for that. He is only

attracted to being transferred to the spiritual sky. And even in the

spiritual sky he is not satisfied with merging into the glowing

brahmajyoti effulgence, for he wants to enter the highest spiritual

planet, namely Krsnaloka, Goloka Vrndavana. He has full knowledge of

that planet, and therefore he is not interested in any other. As

indicated by the word mad-bhaktah, he fully engages in devotional

service, specifically in the nine processes of devotional engagement:

hearing, chanting, remembering, worshiping, serving the lotus feet of

the Lord, offering prayers, carrying out the orders of the Lord,

making friends with Him, and surrendering everything to Him. One can

engage in all nine devotional processes, or eight, or seven, or at

least in one, and that will surely make one perfect.

 

The term sanga-varjitah is very significant. One should disassociate

himself from persons who are against Krsna. Not only are the atheistic

persons against Krsna, but so also are those who are attracted to

fruitive activities and mental speculation. Therefore the pure form of

devotional service is described in Bhakti-rasamrta-sindhu (1.1.11) as

follows:

 

anyabhilasita-sunyam

jnana-karmady-anavrtam

anukulyena krsnanu-

silanam bhaktir uttama

 

In this verse Srila Rupa Gosvami clearly states that if anyone wants

to execute unalloyed devotional service, he must be freed from all

kinds of material contamination. He must be freed from the association

of persons who are addicted to fruitive activities and mental

speculation. When, freed from such unwanted association and from the

contamination of material desires, one favorably cultivates knowledge

of Krsna, that is called pure devotional service. Anukulyasya

sankalpah pratikulyasya varjanam (Hari-bhakti-vilasa 11.676). One

should think of Krsna and act for Krsna favorably, not unfavorably.

Kamsa was an enemy of Krsna's. From the very beginning of Krsna's

birth, Kamsa planned in so many ways to kill Him, and because he was

always unsuccessful, he was always thinking of Krsna. Thus while

working, while eating and while sleeping, he was always Krsna

conscious in every respect, but that Krsna consciousness was not

favorable, and therefore in spite of his always thinking of Krsna

twenty-four hours a day, he was considered a demon, and Krsna at last

killed him. Of course anyone who is killed by Krsna attains salvation

immediately, but that is not the aim of the pure devotee. The pure

devotee does not even want salvation. He does not want to be

transferred even to the highest planet, Goloka Vrndavana. His only

objective is to serve Krsna wherever he may be.

 

A devotee of Krsna is friendly to everyone. Therefore it is said here

that he has no enemy (nirvairah). How is this? A devotee situated in

Krsna consciousness knows that only devotional service to Krsna can

relieve a person from all the problems of life. He has personal

experience of this, and therefore he wants to introduce this system,

Krsna consciousness, into human society. There are many examples in

history of devotees of the Lord who risked their lives for the

spreading of God consciousness. The favorite example is Lord Jesus

Christ. He was crucified by the nondevotees, but he sacrificed his

life for spreading God consciousness. Of course, it would be

superficial to understand that he was killed. Similarly, in India also

there are many examples, such as Thakura Haridasa and Prahlada

Maharaja. Why such risk? Because they wanted to spread Krsna

consciousness, and it is difficult. A Krsna conscious person knows

that if a man is suffering it is due to his forgetfulness of his

eternal relationship with Krsna. Therefore, the highest benefit one

can render to human society is relieving one's neighbor from all

material problems. In such a way, a pure devotee is engaged in the

service of the Lord. Now, we can imagine how merciful Krsna is to

those engaged in His service, risking everything for Him. Therefore it

is certain that such persons must reach the supreme planet after

leaving the body.

 

In summary, the universal form of Krsna, which is a temporary

manifestation, and the form of time which devours everything, and even

the form of Visnu, four-handed, have all been exhibited by Krsna. Thus

Krsna is the origin of all these manifestations. It is not that Krsna

is a manifestation of the original visva-rupa, or Visnu. Krsna is the

origin of all forms. There are hundreds and thousands of Visnus, but

for a devotee no form of Krsna is important but the original form,

two-handed Syamasundara. In the Brahma-samhita it is stated that those

who are attached to the Syamasundara form of Krsna in love and

devotion can see Him always within the heart and cannot see anything

else. One should understand, therefore, that the purport of this

Eleventh Chapter is that the form of Krsna is essential and supreme.

 

Thus end the Bhaktivedanta Purports to the Eleventh Chapter of the

Srimad Bhagavad-gita in the matter of the Universal Form.

 

Copyright 1983 The Bhaktivedanta Book Trust International. Used with

permission.