124 THE PATH OF PERFECTION . Destination After Death 125
Therefore Krsna is called the reservoir of all pleasure. If, upon One who is intelligent naturally thinks, ‘‘I am permanent and
leaving this body, we transfer ourselves to the spiritual world—to eternal. Why should I be interested in things that are not perma-
Krsna’s planet or any other spiritual planet—we attain a similar nent?’ Actually, no one wants an existence that is temporary. If
body full of sac-cid-ananda. we are living in an apartment and the landlord asks us to vacate,
The spirit soul is a very minute particle within the body. It can- we have to do so, whether we want to leave or not. However, if we
not be seen like the external body, but it is sustaining the external move to a better apartment, we are not sorry. It is our nature,
body. The object of the sat-cakra system is to locate the soul at the however, to want to remain wherever we live. That is because we
topmost part of the head. From there, one who is perfect in are permanent and want a permanent residence. Our inclination is
dhyana-yoga can transfer himself to a higher planet at will. That is to remain. Therefore we don’t want to die. We don’t want the mis-
the perfection of this type of yoga. The dhydna-yogi is somewhat eries of birth, old age, disease, and death. These are external
like a traveler who thinks, ‘‘Oh, let me see what the moon is like, miseries inflicted by material nature, and they attack us like some
then I will transfer myself to higher planets.’” He goes from here fever. In order to extricate ourselves, we have to take certain pre-
to there in the universe, just as on earth travelers go from New cautions. To get rid of these miseries, it is necessary to get rid of
York to California or Canada. But a Krsna conscious person is not the material body, because these miseries are inherent in material
interested in such interplanetary travel within the material uni- | existence.
verse. His goal is service to Krsna and transferral to the spiritual : Thus by vibrating om and leaving the material body thinking of
sky. ' the Supreme Lord, the yogi is transferred to the spiritual world.
om ity ekaksaram brahma Those who are not personalists, however, cannot enter into the
vyaharan mam anusmaran spiritual planet of Lord Sri Krsna. They remain outside, in the
yah prayati tyajan deham brahmajyoti effulgence. Just as the sunshine is not different from
Sa yati paramam gatim the sun globe, the brahmajyoti effulgence of the Supreme Lord is
not different from the Supreme Lord. The impersonalists are
‘*After being situated in this yoga practice and vibrating the sacred placed in that brahmajyoti as minute particles. We are all spiritual
syllable om, the supreme combination of letters, if one thinks of sparks, and the brahmajyoti is full of these spiritual sparks. In this
the Supreme Personality of Godhead and quits his body, he will way, the impersonalists merge into the spiritual existence;
certainly reach the spiritual planets.” (Bg. 8.13) Om, or omkara, is however, individuality is retained, because the spirit soul is con-
the concise form, or impersonal form, of the transcendental vibra- stitutionally an individual. Because the impersonalists don’t want
tion. The. dhydna-yogi should vibrate om while remembering a personal form, they are placed and held in the impersonal
Krsna, or Visnu, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The im- brahmajyoti. There they exist just as atoms exist within the
personal sound of Krsna is om, but the sound Hare Krsna contains sunshine. The individual spiritual spark remains within the
om. Whatever the case, the entire yoga system aims at concentra- brahmajyoti as if homogeneous.
tion on Visnu. Impersonalists may imagine a form of Visnu, but As living entities, we all want enjoyment. We do not simply
the personalists do not imagine; they actually see the form of the want existence. We are constitutionally sac-cid-ananda—eternal
Supreme Lord. Whether one imagines or factually sees, one has to (sat), full of knowledge (cit), and full of bliss (dnanda). Those
concentrate his mind on the Visnu form. Here the word mam who enter the impersonal brahmajyoti cannot remain there eter-
means ‘‘unto the Supreme Lord, Visnu.” If one can remember nally with the knowledge that ‘‘Now I am merged. I am now one
Visnu upon quitting this body, he can enter into the spiritual with Brahman.”’ Although there is eternality and knowledge, bliss
kingdom. (dnanda) is lacking. Who can remain alone in a room year after
