Gour Govinda Swami (reading from Srimad Bhagavatam 7.7.25):
buddher jāgaraṇaṁ svapnaḥ
suṣuptir iti vṛttayaḥ
tā yenaivānubhūyante
so ’dhyakṣaḥ puruṣaḥ paraḥ
Translation:
Intelligence can be perceived in three states of activity—wakefulness, dreaming and deep sleep. The person who perceives these three is to be considered the original master, the ruler, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Purport:
Without intelligence one cannot understand the direct activities of the senses, nor can he understand dreaming or the cessation of all gross and subtle activities. The seer and controller is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supreme Soul, by whose direction the individual soul can understand when he is awake, when he is sleeping, and when he is completely in trance. In Bhagavad-gītā (15.15) the Lord says, sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca: “I am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness.” The living entities are completely absorbed in the three states of wakefulness, dreaming and deep sleep through their intelligence. This intelligence is supplied by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who accompanies the individual soul as a friend. Śrīla Madhvācārya says that the living entity is sometimes described as sattva-buddhi when his intelligence acts directly to perceive pains and pleasures above activities. There is a dreaming state in which understanding comes from the Supreme Personality of Godhead (mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca [Bg. 15.15]). The Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Supersoul, is the supreme controller, and under His direction the living entities are subcontrollers. One must understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead with one’s intelligence.
Gour Govinda Swami: There are three steps of activity. What are those three steps?
Nrhari answers: "Here Prabhupāda says wakefulness, dreaming, and sleeping."
Gour Govinda Swāmī: "Deep sleeping."
Nrhari: "Deep sleep."
Gour Govinda Swāmī: "Yes, these are the three states: wakefulness, dreaming, and deep sleep. These are three states of activity. And then during these three states of activity, the intelligence can be perceived. This verse says: 'The person who perceives these three is to be considered the original master, the ruler, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.' In these three states—wakefulness, dreaming, and deep sleep—Prabhupāda says, these three states are the supreme master, ruler, or Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Prahlāda Mahārāja speaks about the three states of activity and who is the real perceiver of these states of activity—He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He sees what is the real activity going on in these three states of activity.
And how? That's a fact that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who knows everything, sarva-jñāna. Nothing is unknown to Him. Whatever state one may be, either wakefulness, dreaming, or deep sleep—whatever activities, state is going on—the Supreme Personality of Godhead knows it. Because He is always there, He is without and within. Within the living entity as Supersoul, or Paramātmā, and without, outside also He is everywhere.
As Prahlāda Mahārāja saw in a pillar. And his demoniac father, Hiraṇyākasipu, asked him: "Is there your God in this pillar?" Who is a devotee? He sees the Supreme Personality of Godhead everywhere. etāvān eva loke ’smin puṁsaḥ svārthaḥ paraḥ smṛtaḥ ekānta-bhaktiḥ govinde yat sarvatra tad-īkṣaṇam.
This Prahlāda Mahārāja says, "One who is an unalloyed devotee of the Lord, he has been endowed with such a vision, that he can see the Lord everywhere." prabhu kahe, — kṛṣṇe tomāra gāḍha premā hayayāhāṅ netra paḍe, tāhāṅ śrī-kṛṣṇa sphuraya—"Wherever he looks, he sees Kṛṣṇa, nothing else." This is the pure devotee's vision, isn't it?
Can you see Kṛṣṇa everywhere? No. (Laughs) You can't see. Why don't you develop such a vision that you can see only Kṛṣṇa and nothing else? Should be very eager to develop such a vision. I am eager—you have no eagerness, I think. Are you eager to develop such a vision? No, you never think like this. What is given to me, alright, I am content, I am satisfied.
Yes, then you are a number one rascal. A number one rascal. You are satisfied with the present condition. Your present condition is a miserable one."
Nrhari: "Of suffering."
Gour Govinda Swāmī: "You are suffering and still you are satisfied in your present condition?"
Nrhari: (inaudible)
Gour Govinda Swāmī: "Then? How do you say—yes, yes it is alright. Why are you not eager to develop such a vision, be endowed with such a vision to see Kṛṣṇa always? How nice it would be if someone sees Kṛṣṇa everywhere. Not to see anything else but Kṛṣṇa. How nice it would be, is it not?"
Nrhari: "The problem is I don't know how to develop that eagerness."
Gour Govinda Swāmī: "That is a different thing! You don't know how to develop, but you should be eager to have such a vision. You should have such eagerness. But you are not eager. Why will Kṛṣṇa give you?"
Nrhari: "I try to..."
Gour Govinda Swāmī: "Develop such eagerness, then Kṛṣṇa will grant you such a vision. Or make arrangements how you can have such a vision. That Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā 15.15: sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca 'I am seated in everyone's heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge, and forgetfulness.' Yes, this is a fact.
And I say that Bhagavad-gītā says—He is within and without. He is within our heart as overseer—upadrasta, Supersoul. He knows what we are thinking, what we are doing—He sees. So, if we are eager to know Kṛṣṇa and do see Kṛṣṇa everywhere—very eager you are, then Kṛṣṇa knows that—yes, Nrhari is very eager to see Me everywhere, to know Me, to remember Me always, not to forget Me at any moment. Then He'll grant that state. If you are not eager, that means you don't want to see Him, or don't want to understand Him, know Him, and remember Him.
You know, this Nrhari is a number one rascal. He doesn't want to see Me or know Me. He wants to forget Me—alright, that is granted, alright, forget Me. mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca. That forgetfulness is granted now.
So it depends on you! Depends on the living entity. What he desires, the Supreme Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa grants that. What you desired, you have been given. No? As you are very eager to come to India to see your Guru Mahārāja, so He makes arrangements for you to come here. Because everything is done and directed by Him, the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Therefore, He sees everything in three states of activity: wakefulness, dreaming, and deep sleep.
So, the instruction is there for us that we should develop such an intelligence that we should see and remember and think of Kṛṣṇa in all these three states. Should not forget Him in any state.
So, suppose you are now in a wakeful state, you are not dreaming, you are not in a deep sleep state. Now you are listening to Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, which is about the Supreme Personality of Godhead and His transcendental pastimes or activities. So you may be thinking of Him now, but when you are sleeping, dreaming, or in deep sleep state, you are not thinking of Kṛṣṇa. Are you? No. Our mind is very, very wicked—duṣṭa mana, wicked mind.
Thinking, feeling, and desiring are the activities of the mind. The mind will think, the mind will desire, and the mind will feel—Kṛṣṇa. The mind will think of Kṛṣṇa. The mind will desire how to get Kṛṣṇa. The mind will feel how Kṛṣṇa is there everywhere. Only through mind, by the help of this intelligence—(Bhagavad-gītā 3.42) indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ
Do you know this? Bhagavad-gītā says. Don't you read Bhagavad-gītā?"
Nrhari: "Yes."
Gour Govinda Swami: "Then why don't you know it?” indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ.
Which is superior to the senses? Intelligence. indriyebhyah param manah—mind. Mind is the chief of the senses. Then superior to mind is intelligence—manasas tu para buddhir. Superior to mind is intelligence. Then what is superior to intelligence?”
Nrhari: "Soul."
Gour Govinda Swami: "yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ." That is soul, ātma. So, the intelligence is superior to the mind. So, Bhagavad-gītā says this thing and here in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Prahlāda Mahārāja says: "In three states of activity, intelligence can be perceived." And who perceives? He is the ruler, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. You never perceive because you are not the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
But when you'll be a pure devotee, always absorbed in the thought of Kṛṣṇa, not missing a single moment—you understand me? So you'll always be on that platform. What platform? The platform on which Kṛṣṇa is. sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstrair uktaḥ tathā bhāvyata eva sadbhiḥ kintu prabhor yah priya eva tasya vande gurōḥ śrī-caraṇāravindam. That we sing in Gurvāṣṭakam.
He is sākṣād-dhāri, as good as Hari. Who? Guru, spiritual master. Who is sākṣād-dhāri? Who is as good as Hari? Spiritual master. Don't you know it? You know it? Why don't you say yes?”
Nrhari: "I can't understand your question."
Gour Govinda Swami: "Oh, you can't understand my question. I am speaking in English. I am not speaking in another language. Only for you, I am speaking to you. sākṣād-dhāri. Who is sākṣād-dhāri? The spiritual master, because the spiritual master is on that platform on which Hari is. He is as good as Hari. Hari is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Is the spiritual master the Supreme Personality of Godhead? No. What is he?”
Nrhari: "He is the servant."
Gour Govinda Swami: "He is the servant. He is a very dear and intimate servant. He is always with Kṛṣṇa. Or Kṛṣṇa is always with him. Therefore, it is said it's the same platform. But we are not on the same platform. Are you? Are you on the same platform with Hari? No. You are not... we are not. We are conditioned souls, degraded souls. Very, very low platform."
But the spiritual master tries to uplift us to that platform...(cut in the recording, 30.27) ....oversees the activities of wakefulness, dreaming, and deep sleep, because He is Supersoul who has assumed a body to come down here. nāyamātmā pravacanena labhyo na medhayā na bahunā śrutena yamevaiṣa vṛṇute tena labhyastasyaiṣa ātmā vivṛṇute tanūm̐ svām, Upaniṣad says.
He assumes the body. Who? Paramātmā, the Supersoul within the heart.
When some individual soul is very eager; very, very eager to know Him, to understand Him, to get Him.....(break in recording, 31.24)
*(Note - this is the same recording as above starting at 29.34)...31.27....(Nrhari:) "the servant." (Gurudeva:) "He is the servant, a very dear and intimate servant.... But the spiritual master tries to uplift us to that platform." (No more recording from 32.15)
32.32 (this is the same recording as above starting at 30.27, but continuous on after the above break)...oversees the activities of wakefulness, dreaming, and deep sleep, because He is Supersoul who has assumed a body to come down here. nāyamātmā pravacanena labhyo na medhayā na bahunā śrutena yamevaiṣa vṛṇute tena labhyastasyaiṣa ātmā vivṛṇute tanūm̐ svām, Upaniṣad says. He assumes the body. Who? Paramātmā, the Supersoul within the heart.
When some individual soul is very eager; very, very eager to know Him, to understand Him, to get Him—how to get Him, then that Supersoul will know that Nrhari and such and such individual souls are very eager to know Me, to understand Me, and get Me. How can he? Unless I go and teach him the way.
So, He assumes a body and comes as spiritual master to teach all these things: how to know, how to understand, how to get the Supersoul or the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So, that is why the spiritual master and Him are on the same platform. He also knows the activities going on in wakefulness, dreaming, and deep sleep. This is the sum and substance.
This is enough for you. Now I'll speak in Oriya.
(34.43) That is śuddha-buddhi, by dint of that intelligence what can be achieved?
Nrhari: "Perfection of life."
Gour Govinda Swami: "Perfection of life." What is that?
Nrhari: "To see Kṛṣṇa, realize Kṛṣṇa."
Gour Govinda Swami: "To see Kṛṣṇa, how to get Kṛṣṇa, how to approach Kṛṣṇa. mam upayanti te (BG 10.10)—how one can approach Me."
"If someone is endowed with such intelligence, with that intelligence Kṛṣṇa gives him direction on how he can approach Kṛṣṇa. But with impure intelligence, you cannot do it. You may try your best with your impure intelligence. And up to what stage can you go with impure intelligence?"
Nrhari: "Heavenly planets."
Gour Govinda Swami: "Heavenly planets..."
Nrhari: "Sometimes different destinations. Maybe hell."
Gour Govinda Swami: "Hell means very low."
Nrhari: "With impure intelligence to heavenly planets."
Gour Govinda Swami: "Up to only heavenly planets?" (Quotes SB 10.2.32:)
aryhya kṛcchena paraṁ padam tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yusmad-aṅghrayaḥ.
ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninas tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ
āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ.
This is what Śrīmad Bhāgavatam says in the 10th canto.
It says "aviśuddha-buddhaya", meaning impure intelligence. "āruhya kṛcchrena paraṁ padam tataḥ." ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninas tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ.
'Aravindākṣa' means lotus-eyed Kṛṣṇa, Bhagavān.
Others, those who are not devotees, 'anye' means others. Those who are not devotees, they are not endowed with pure intelligence. Why will the non-devotees be given pure intelligence by the Lord? No. Therefore, Bhagavatam says: ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninas tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ.
The non-devotees think for themselves, by dint of their mystic yoga process, yama, niyama—eightfold āsṭāṅga-yoga, mystic yoga process, they want to ascend, they try the ascending process. There are two types of process—ascending process and descending process.
So, they follow this ascending process to reach the Lord, but they are not successful. Through their mystic yoga process, āsṭāṅga-yoga process—āruhya kṛcchrena paraṁ padam tataḥ—they go up to that Brahman effulgence—impersonal Brahman effulgence. Up to that point, not more than that.
From that point, they fall down. This is non-devotees—anye. Because—tvayy asta-bhāvād aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ—they have not taken shelter at the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. They have disregarded the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. They have aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ. Their intelligence is impure. And these are the activities of persons with impure intelligence. Kṛṣṇa never gives them intelligence. Why will He give them?
Those who are pure devotees, they are given this pure intelligence that comes from Lord Kṛṣṇa, thereby they can understand how to approach the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. And they go back to Him. If you are very, very eager to have this intelligence, how I can approach the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then Kṛṣṇa will grant that thing to you. Otherwise, why will He grant? mattaḥ smṛtir jñānam apohanaṁ ca (BG 15.15).
"Yes, finish, enough for you."