18 On the Way to Krsna

This position of transcendental service to the
Supreme Whole is being misused due to material con-
tact. Service is implicit in our constitutional position.
Everyone is a servant, and no one is a master. Every-
one is serving someone or other. Although the Presi-
dent may be the chief executive of the state, still he
is serving the state, and when his services are no long-
er required, the state disposes of him. To think to one-
self, “I am the master of all I survey,” is called maya,
illusion. Thus in material consciousness our service is
being misused under various designations. When we
can become free from these designations, that is to
say when the dust has been cleared from the mirror
of the mind, we will be able to see ourselves in our
actual position as eternal servants of Krsna.

One should not think that his service in the mate-
rial world and his service in the spiritual atmosphere
are the same. We may shudder to think, “Oh, after
liberation will I still be a servant?” This is because
we have experience that being a servant in the mate-
rial world is not very enjoyable, but transcendental
service is not like this. In the spiritual world there is
no difference between the servant and the master.
Here, of course, there is distinction, but in the
absolute world everything is one. For instance, in
Bhagavad-gita we can see that Krsna has taken the
position of servant as the chariot driver of Arjuna.
In his constitutional position, Arjuna is the servant
of Krsna, but in behavior we can see that sometimes
the Lord becomes the servant of the servant. So we
should be careful not to carry materialistic ideas into
the spiritual realm. Whatever we have materially ex-
