View source for At the present moment . . . that is sudra. Kalau sudra-sambhavah. In this age of Kali, everyone is in the modes of ignorance. Sudra

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{{compiler|Soham}}
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[[Category:At the Present Moment]]
[[Category:That Is]]
[[Category:In This Age]]
[[Category:In Kali-yuga Everyone is Sudra]]
[[Category:Mode of Ignorance]]
[[Category:Pages Needing Audio - SOHAM]]
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<h2>Lectures</h2>
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<h3>Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures</h3>
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At the present moment . . . that is śūdra. Kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ. In this age of Kali, everyone is in the modes of ignorance. Śūdra. They do not know, because they have no . . . One who knows that "I am spirit soul; I am not this body," he is brāhmaṇa. And one who does not know, he is śūdra, kṛpaṇa. Etad vidita prāye sa brāhmaṇa. One . . . everyone dies, that's all right, but one who dies after knowing the spiritual truth . . . just like here, the students who are trying to understand what is spiritual life and, somehow or other, if he understands that he's spirit soul, at least, then he becomes brāhmaṇa.
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[[Vanisource:730828 - Lecture BG 02.25 - London|730828 - Lecture BG 02.25 - London]]
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Our business should be not to associate with the material qualities—even up to goodness. Material quality, goodness means the brahminical quality: sattva śama damas titikṣā. So devotional service is transcendental to these good qualities also. In this material world, if somehow or other he has got the birth in a brāhmaṇa family or he's executing his duties exactly a strict brāhmaṇa, still he's conditioned, under the laws of this material nature, still. And what to speak of others, those who are in the modes of passion and ignorance. Their position is most abominable. Jaghanya-guṇa-vṛtti-sthā adho gacchanti tāmasāḥ ([[Vanisource:BG 14.18 (1972)|BG 14.18]]). Those who are in the modes of ignorance, jaghanya, very abominable condition.

So at the present moment . . . that is śūdra. Kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ. In this age of Kali, everyone is in the modes of ignorance. Śūdra. They do not know, because they have no . . . One who knows that "I am spirit soul; I am not this body," he is brāhmaṇa. And one who does not know, he is śūdra, kṛpaṇa. Etad vidita prāye sa brāhmaṇa. One . . . everyone dies, that's all right, but one who dies after knowing the spiritual truth . . . just like here, the students who are trying to understand what is spiritual life and, somehow or other, if he understands that he's spirit soul, at least, then he becomes brāhmaṇa. He becomes brāhmaṇa. Etad viditya. And one who does not understand, he is kṛpaṇa. Kṛpaṇa means miser. Brāhmaṇa means liberal. These are the śāstric injunction.

So first of all, we have to become brāhmaṇa. Then Vaiṣṇava. Brāhmaṇa simply knows that "I am spirit soul," ahaṁ brahmāsmi. Brahma jānāti iti brāhmaṇa. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā ([[Vanisource:BG 18.54 (1972)|BG 18.54]]). By such knowledge one becomes prasannātmā. Means relieved. As you feel relief . . . if there is burden on your head, and when the burden is taken away you feel relieved, similarly, this ignorance that, "I am this body" is a great burden, a burden upon us. So when you get out of this burden, then you feel relieved. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā. Means when actually one understands that, "I am not this body; I am soul," then he has to work so hard for maintaining this body, so he gets relief that, "Why I am working so hard for this lump of material thing? Let me execute my real necessity of life, spiritual life." That is great relief. That is great relief. Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati ([[Vanisource:BG 18.54 (1972)|BG 18.54]]). The relief means there is no hankering, no more lamentation. These are the brahma-bhūtaḥ.
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