Supreme Conclusions According to Bhagavad-gītā
In his teachings, Śrīla Prabhupāda consistently establishes the authority of the Bhagavad-gītā as the ultimate standard for judging reality, distinguishing it from the imperfect conclusions of mundane philosophers and scientists. He clarifies that real knowledge is not based on academic degrees or material advancement but on understanding the eternal nature of the soul and its relationship with the Supreme Lord. The following sections explore how Śrīla Prabhupāda uses scriptural evidence to define the perfection of life, the nature of the universe, and the exclusive path of devotional service that leads back to the spiritual world.
True Knowledge Versus Academic Education
Śrīla Prabhupāda emphasizes that material education, no matter how prestigious, does not qualify one as learned if they identify with the temporary body. True knowledge, according to the Bhagavad-gītā, is characterized by the spiritual vision to see the equality of the soul in all beings and the humility to surrender to the Supreme.
- A very learned man by academic education may not be a learned man according to the view of Bhagavad-gita.
- According to Bhagavad-gita, one may not be a learned man just because he has received a lot of education from a university. Bhagavad-gita says that he is a learned man who can see everything on an equal level - Bhagavad-gītā 5.18.
- According to the standard of the Gita, a learned man is he who sees on equal terms the learned brahmana, the dog, the cow, the elephant and the dog-eater. That is the vision of a true devotee.
Nature of the Soul and Reincarnation
The fundamental teaching of the Bhagavad-gītā is that the living entity is not the material body but an eternal spirit soul. Śrīla Prabhupāda explains that our next birth is determined by our consciousness at the moment of death, a stringent law of nature that operates regardless of one's religious or national designation.
- According to Bhagavad-gita (8.6): Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail.
- According to Bhagavad-gita, at the time of death, if you are going on thinking, "Oh, Pakistan is my enemy," then you get a birth in Pakistan.
- According to Bhagavad-gita, the existence of soul is accepted in the Vedic literature. Just like after Lord Buddha, Sankaracarya, Sankaracarya came. He gave hint about the spiritual nature of the soul, and he said, brahma satyam jagan mithya.
The Supreme Personality of Godhead and His Energies
Śrīla Prabhupāda asserts that Kṛṣṇa is the source of all material and spiritual worlds and that the ultimate goal of all Vedic study is to know Him. He refutes atheistic conclusions by presenting the scriptural truth that the material world is a temporary manifestation of the Lord's energy, while the Lord Himself remains the eternal knower and controller.
- According to Bhagavad-gita this atheistic conclusion is false. In the verse under discussion it is stated that Krsna is the original cause of the material manifestation.
- According to the Bhagavad-gita (Bhagavad-gītā 15.15): I (Krsna) am seated in everyone’s heart, and from Me come remembrance, knowledge and forgetfulness. By all the Vedas, I am to be known. Indeed I am the compiler of the Vedanta, and I am the knower of the Vedas.
- According to Visnu Purana, Bhagavad-gita and all other Vedic literatures, the living entities are generated from the tatastha energy of the Lord, and thus they are always the energy of the Lord and are not the energetic.
Process of Surrender and Devotional Service
The supreme conclusion of the Bhagavad-gītā is total surrender to Kṛṣṇa through the process of bhakti-yoga. Śrīla Prabhupāda highlights that this path is open to everyone without discrimination, and it is the only method by which one can transcend the modes of nature and enter the kingdom of God.
- According to Bhagavad-gita 18.66, "Abandon all varieties of religion and just surrender unto Me." This is the advice of Lord Krsna. Our only aim should be to act in Krsna consciousness for the satisfaction of the Lord. This is oneness, or aprthag-dharma.
- According to Krsna in the Bhagavad-gita (BG 18.55): One can understand Me as I am, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, only by devotional service. And when one is in full consciousness of Me by such devotion, he can enter into the kingdom of God.
- According to Bhagavad-gita (9.32), anyone can take shelter of Krsna. Krsna never denies anyone, and similarly, Krsna's devotee never denies anyone. That is this Krsna consciousness movement.
Social Order and Material Existence
Śrīla Prabhupāda uses the Bhagavad-gītā to critique modern society, noting that leaders devoid of God consciousness are misleading the population. He contrasts the miserable reality of birth, death, old age, and disease with the perfect social order of varṇāśrama, which is designed to gradually elevate human beings to spiritual perfection.
- According to Bhagavad-gita, because the leaders of society are bereft of all factual knowledge due to their atheistic way of life, they are actually sinful rascals and are the lowest among men.
- All advancement of science, knowledge, philosophy, theology - anything - the idea is how to stop the miserable condition of life. But the real miserable condition of life, according to Bhagavad-gita, is birth, death, old age and disease.
- The caste system created by the Personality of Godhead and referred to in the Bhagavad-gita is universally true at all times and in all parts of the world, and actually, the universe.
Conclusion
Whether discussing the eternal nature of the soul, the infallibility of Kṛṣṇa, or the structure of human society, the Bhagavad-gītā provides the definitive answers. The ultimate conclusion is that the living entity must abandon all temporary designations and material attachments to surrender fully to the Supreme Lord, thereby solving the problems of birth and death once and for all.
Dive Deeper into Śrīla Prabhupāda's Vani
Śrīla Prabhupāda lives within his instructions. This article is a summary of the profound truths found in the Vaniquotes category According to the Bhagavad-gita. We invite you to visit this link to study the complete compilation and experience Śrīla Prabhupāda's teachings in their direct, verbatim form.