geerkuh guh gouiyrahtzneh – passion makes one blind

People in this world become mad after sense gratification or the frenetic attempt to please the senses. Thus they seek pleasure by seeing movies, television, internet, plays, etc. (eyes), listening to music, talk shows, telephone and internet chat, etc. (ears), tasting delicious food (tongue), smelling good perfumes (nose) and experiencing sensual pleasures (skin), and reading or listening to tantalizing descriptions and concepts (mind). These sense pleasures can be uplifting when engaged in for offering them for the pleasure of God or degrading when engaged in for selfish pleasure.

Although the body is temporary, it has five highly developed senses and the mind which is referred to as the sixth sense. The attempt to pleasure the senses and the mind can consume all of a human being’s energy and thought for an entire lifetime. One may become obsessed by such an endeavor and completely ignore the real goal of human life which is self-realization by which one can attain eternal love for God and share it with others.

The dictionary definition of passion that is appropriate for this proverb is the following:
1- any powerful or compelling emotion or feeling, as love, hate, pleasure
2- strong sexual desire; lust.

All material activities in the world are conducted under the influence of the modes of material nature called goodness, passion and ignorance. A mode of material nature is a conditioning force sometimes likened to a rope that binds one to a certain mentality and body constitution and which limits or colors one’s range of perception, thought and decision making. Every living entity that is under the influence of the three modes has a particular type of body and psychological and biological activities. It is said in the Bhagavad-gita, “Material nature consists of three modes: goodness, passion and ignorance. When the eternal living entity comes in contact with nature, O mighty-armed Arjuna, he becomes conditioned by these modes.” (Bg 14.5)

The real identity of a person is spiritual. Everyone has an eternal, individual soul that has nothing to do with the material nature. However, by illusion one falsely identifies with the material body and becomes conditioned by the three modes of material nature. Due to having a temporary material body which is the result of previous karma and desires, one is forced to act according to the influence of the modes on the body. One encounters happiness and distress due to having made decisions previously based on material conditioning and the false thinking that the purpose of life is sense gratification.

There is a proverb in India that says, “A little bit of a pure thing is much better than huge volumes of impure, adulterated things. No amount of selfish and passionate endeavor for sense gratification will lead to a good thing. It just makes a situation and relationships deteriorate. For example, if you have two friends and one is always giving and the other is always taking from you, which one would you prefer? Now, put yourself in God’s place. Would you prefer the servant who always gives or the one who always wants to take? By analyzing oneself carefully, it is possible to understand much about God because we are made in the image of God. We are not God nor can we become God by any amount of endeavor, but we have many things in common with God qualitatively.

If we develop the culture of unselfish behavior based on understanding that there is a supreme God and we are all His eternal servants, then our actions will liberate us from the influence of the modes of material nature. God is the Supreme proprietor of everything. Therefore, we should recognize His proprietorship and accept only our minimum needs and use all the rest that we may be blessed with to serve God and share with all others.

In the Bhagavad-gita, it is said, “One who performs his duty without attachment, surrendering the results unto the Supreme Lord, is unaffected by sinful action, as the lotus leaf is untouched by water.” (Bg 5.10) Engaging everything in the service of God frees one from the reactions of work and anxiety over the result. One acts as a matter of duty knowing well the God is the proprietor of everything in existence. Such a mentality and action frees one from sinful reactions just as the lotus leaf, though remaining in water, is never wet due to having a protective covering.

A person without divine consciousness acts with the wrong concept that he is the proprietor and that he should use his body and senses for sense gratification. Whereas, a person in divine consciousness knows that the body is the property of God and should always be engaged in the service of the Lord. In the Bible, it is said “And you will again see the distinction between the righteous and the wicked, between those who serve God and those who do not.”
Malachi 3:17-18 (NIV)

Lord Krishna explains to His disciple Arjuna, “The yogis, abandoning attachment, act with body, mind, intelligence and even with the senses, only for the purpose of purification.” (Bg 5.11) Engaging all one’s energies, mind, body, and everything in the service of God, one is purged of all material impurities. Such purified action does not produce any material reactions.

One acts without false ego or the wrong belief that one’s real identity is the body which he thinks is his to do anything he pleases. Being situated in his real ego, he is convinced that he belongs to God and that his body should only be used in God’s service. He is continually connected with God by directing everything he produces with his mind, body, intelligence, words, wealth, etc. in the service of God.

Lord Krishna continues, “The steadily devoted soul attains unadulterated peace because he offers the result of all activities to Me; whereas a person who is not in union with the Divine, who is greedy for the fruits of his labor, becomes entangled.” (Bg 5.13) Someone who has a false ego and believes his real identity is the body remains attached to the results of his activities. A person, however, who is a genuine servant of God is attached to God. Such a person is factually liberated and is not feeling anxiety over the result of his work.

The cause of anxiety for the result of one’s work is due to functioning in the conception of duality. When one lacks knowledge of God or does not believe in the existence of God, he is beset always by duality, such as honor and dishonor, success and failure, heat and cold, riches and poverty, love and hate, fame and infamy, etc. If one is always concerned with making a profit for sense gratification, it is impossible to have peace or be free of anxiety. One remains attached to the result and anxious either to achieve it or fail to achieve it.

However, if one is uniquely concerned with pleasing God by sincere service and dedication, understanding that God is the supreme proprietor, maintainer and creator of all that exists, then one is not in anxiety about the result of work. One performs his duty as best possible and offers the result to God. By serving God, one remains aloof from constant preoccupations of sensual pleasures for the body.

In material life, everyone wants to satisfy his senses, and he wants God to be the order supplier for such satisfaction. God will satisfy the senses of the living beings as much as they deserve, but not to the extent that they may desire. But, if one assumes the opposite path, by trying to satisfy the senses of God without selfishly desiring to satisfy one’s own senses, then with the help of God all such spiritual desires of the person are satisfied. One is no longer controlled by the strict laws of material nature of action and reaction, but comes under the protection of God to act unselfishly for His pleasure.

This fundamental change of world view that produces a state of peace and unselfish love for God can be summarized by the following. Pure knowledge resulting in transcendental vision begins by understanding that God is the Supreme Person. Understanding His transcendental personality is the goal of spiritual realization. We understand ourselves better through relationships with others. When we begin to relate to the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is greater than the greatest, no one is equal or greater than Him, He is not subject to the laws of material nature or its conditioning modes, He controls material nature and its modes and is the controller of time, He is the Supreme proprietor, the best friend and protector that we have and the ultimate beneficiary of all sacrifices and offerings we give, then we begin to understand that we are eternally subordinate to Him is a loving, reciprocal relationship. Being in a loving relationship of affectionate exchanges with God eliminates any residue of false ego, envy, competition, or negativity in the relationship and we become peaceful and fulfilled because because we offer everything to Him and He reciprocates by offering His limitless love to us.

In the beginning of our relationship with the transcendent God, we try to give up attachment to materialism, but there is a tendency to consider God as impersonal. However, if we are guided properly and advance further, we understand that there are activities of devotion or unselfish service that bring us closer and closer to God in loving exchanges. The offering of service results in increasing self-knowledge and expertise in arts such as singing, dancing, cooking, speaking, dressing, writing, etc. that are necessary to express the different feelings of love one experiences. Realizing this tremendous surge of affectionate exchanges with God and the gentle sharing of such feeling with others, one becomes attached to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and confidently surrenders to Him. At that time the name, personality, form, pastimes, preferences of God become understandable. One realizes that the mercy of God is everything. He is the ultimate controller of the material and spiritual worlds and that nothing is independent of Him. One sees that the material world is a perverted reflection of the spiritual world. By dedicating everything material in this world to the service of God one can lift the veil of perverted vision and understand how in everything we perceive, there is a relationship with God. The sense of existence separate from God or seeing things without understanding its relationship to the Divine is illusion. Anything seen as existing apart or independent of God is an illusory conceptual thought or belief.