8 THE PATH OF PERFECTION Yoga as Action 9
Krsna Himself does not sit down idly. All His pastimes are when we get tired, we take prasada. Is dancing difficult? Is chant-
filled with activity. When we go to the spiritual world, we will see Ing difficult? We don’t charge anything to dance in the temple. If
that Krsna is always engaged in dancing, eating, and enjoying. He F yOu go to a ballroom, you have to pay to enter, but we do not
-does not sit down to meditate. Is there any account of the gopis charge. It is natural to enjoy music and dancing and palatable
meditating? Did Caitanya Mahaprabhu sit down to meditate? No, ' foods. These are our recreations, and this is our method of
He was always dancing and chanting Hare Krsna. The spirit soul is Meditation. So this yoga system is not at all laborious. It is simply
naturally active. How can we sit down silently and do nothing? It fecreation, susukham. It is stated in the Ninth Chapter of
is not possible. Therefore, after Sri Krsna outlined the sakhya- Bhagavada-gita (9.2) that this yoga is susukham—very happy. “‘It is
yoga system in the Sixth Chapter of Bhagavad-gita, Arjuna frankly everlasting, and it is joyfully performed.” It is natural, automatic,
said, and spontaneous. It is our real life in the spiritual world.
In Vaikuntha, the spiritual world, there is no anxiety.
yo ‘yam yogas tvayd proktah Vaikuntha means ‘‘freedom from anxiety,’’ and in Vaikuntha the
. samyena madhusudana ; liberated souls are always dancing, chanting, and taking prasdda.
- etasyaham na pasyami There are no factories, hard work, or technical institutions. There
cancalatvat sthitim sthiram is no need for these artificial things. In Veddnta-siitra it is stated,
. @nandamayo 'bhyasat: God is dnandamaya, full of bliss and
**O Madhusidana [Krsna], the system of yoga which You have pleasure. Since we are part and parcel of God, we also possess
summarized appears impractical and unendurable to me, for the these same qualities. So the goal of our yoga process is to join with
mind is restless and unsteady.”’ (Bg. 6.33) Although Arjuna was the supreme dnandamaya, Sri Krsna, tojoin His dance party. Then
highly elevated and was Krsna’s intimate friend, he immediately we will be actually happy.
refused to take up this sarkhya-yoga system. In essence, he said, On this earth we are trying to be happy artificially and are
“It is not possible for me.” How could it have been possible? Ar- therefore frustrated. Once we are situated in Krsna consciousness,
-juna was a warrior, a householder, and he wanted a kingdom. we will revive our original position and become simply joyful.
What time did he have for meditation? He flatly refused to prac- Since our actual nature is dnandamaya, blissful, we are always
tice this type of meditational yoga, saying that the mind is as dif- searching for happiness. In the cities we are inundated with adver-
ficult to control as the wind (Bg. 6.34). That is a fact. It is not tlsements. Restaurants, bars, nightclubs, and dance halls are al-
possible to control the mind artificially; therefore we must engage ways announcing, ‘‘Come on, here is dnanda. Here is pleasure.”
the mind in Krsna consciousness. Then it is controlled. If Arjuna That is because everyone is searching for dnanda, pleasure. Our
found this process more difficult than controlling the wind, then eociety for Krsna consciousness is also announcing, ‘‘Here is
what of us? After all, Arjuna was not an ordinary man. He was @nanda,”’ but our standard of pleasure is very different. In any
personally talking with the Supreme Lord, Sri Krsna, and he case, the goal—pleasure—is the same.
proclaimed the mind to be like a great wind. How can we control Most people are hunting for pleasure on the gross material
the wind? We can control the mind only by fixing it on Krsna’s platform. The more advanced search for pleasure in speculation,
| lotus feet. That is the perfection of meditation. philosophy, poetry, or art. The bhakti-yogi, however, searches for
| No one really wants to sit down and meditate. Why should we? pleasure on the transcendental platform, and that is his only busi-
| We’re meant for positive activity, for recreation, for pleasure. In ness. Why are people working so hard all day? They are thinking,
Krsna consciousness, our recreation is dancing and chanting, and “Tonight I shall enjoy. Tonight I will associate with this girl or
