56
Teachings of Lord Chaitanya
serpent swallowing up the smaller serpent. From practical experience we see sometimes that a big serpent swallows up a smaller one, and the merging into the spiritual existence of the Supreme is analogous. The small serpent is, therefore, searching after perfection, and he is swallowed by the big serpent.
Digging on the western side is compared to the hidden treasure protected by  Yakasa , the evil spirit that protects it. The idea is that hidden treasure can never be delivered by one who asks the favor of the Yakasa for attaining it. The result is that he will simply be killed. The Yogins who practice meditation are analogous to the small serpents. The speculative process of self-realization, or  Jnana , is also suicidal in this case.
Actually, one has to dig for the hidden treasure from the eastern side, which is called devotional service in full Krishna Consciousness. That is the perpetual hidden treasure, and when one attains to that achievement, he becomes perpetually rich. One who is poor in devotional service and Krishna Consciousness is always in need of material gain. Sometimes he suffers the bites of poisonous things, and sometimes he is baffled; sometimes he follows the philosophy of monism and therefore loses his identity, and sometimes he is swallowed by the big serpent. By giving up all these things and becoming fixed in Krishna Consciousness, or devotional service to the Lord, he achieves the perfection of life.