26
THE PATH OF PERFECTION
jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya paramātmā samāhitaḥ śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkheṣu tathā māṇāpamāṇavoḥ
“For one who has conquered the mind, the Supersoul is already reached, for he has attained tranquillity. To such a man happiness and distress, heat and cold, honor and dishonor are all the same.” (Bg. 6.7)
Actually, every living entity is intended to abide by the dictation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is seated in everyone's heart as Paramātmā. When the mind is misled by the external illusory energy, one becomes entangled in material activities. Therefore, as soon as one's mind is controlled through one of the  yoga  systems, one is to be considered as having already reached the destination. One has to abide by superior dictation. When the mind is fixed on the superior nature, he has no alternative but to follow the dictation of the Supreme. The mind must admit some superior dictation and follow it. When the mind is controlled, one automatically follows the dictation of the Paramātmā, or Supersoul. Because this transcendental position is at once achieved by one who is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the devotee of the Lord is unaffected by the dualities of material existence—distress and happiness, cold and heat, etc. This state is called  samādhi , or absorption in the Supreme.
jñāna-vijñāna-trptātmā  
 kūṭa-stho vijitendriyaḥ  
 yukta ity ucyate yogī  
 sama-loṣṭrāśma-kāñcanaḥ
“A person is said to be established in self-realization and is called a  yogī  [or mystic] when he is fully satisfied by virtue of acquired knowledge and realization. Such a person is situated in transcendence and is self-controlled. He sees everything—whether it be pebbles, stones, or gold—as the same.” (Bg. 6.8)
Learning How to See God
27
Book knowledge without realization of the Supreme Truth is useless. This is stated as follows:
ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi  
 na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ  
 sevonmukhe hi jihvādau  
 svavam eva sphuratv adaḥ
“No one can understand the transcendental nature of the name, form, quality, and pastimes of Śrī Kṛṣṇa through his materially contaminated senses. Only when one becomes spiritually saturated by transcendental service to the Lord are the transcendental name, form, quality, and pastimes of the Lord revealed to him.” ( Padma Purāna )
There are men in the modes of goodness, passion, and ignorance, and to reclaim all these conditioned souls, there are eighteen  Purāṇas . Six  Purāṇas  are meant for those in the mode of goodness, six for those in the mode of passion, and six for those in the mode of ignorance. The  Padma Purāṇa  is written for those in the mode of goodness. Because there are many different types of men, there are many different Vedic rituals. In the Vedic literatures there are descriptions of rituals and ceremonies in which a goat may be sacrificed in the presence of the goddess Kālī. This is described in the  Mārkaṇḍeya Purāṇa , but this  Purāṇa  is meant for the instruction of those in the mode of ignorance.
It is very difficult for one to give up his attachments all at once. If one is addicted to meat-eating and is suddenly told that he must not eat meat, he cannot do so. If one is attached to drinking liquor and is suddenly told that liquor is no good, he cannot accept this advice. Therefore, in the  Purāṇas  we find certain instructions that say in essence, “All right, if you want to eat meat, just worship the goddess Kālī and sacrifice a goat for her. Only then can you eat meat. You cannot eat meat just by purchasing it from the butcher shop. No, there must be sacrifice or restriction.” In order to sacrifice a goat to the goddess Kālī, one must make arrangements for a certain date and utilize certain paraphernalia. That type of