There is a famous saying that “There is nothing permanent except Change”. Yes it is, everything in this material world is prone to change. It could be a small thing to bigger one eg. our behaviour, body, circumstances, relationships, climate, everything you can imagine. Why is this so? Lord Krishna says in Bg. 2.27 that “One who has taken his birth is sure to die, and after death one is sure to take birth again.” So in this material world things which have taken birth or created are sure to die or end one day.
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The Lord further says in Bg. 2.13;
dehino ’smin yathā dehe
kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā
tathā dehāntara-prāptir
dhīras tatra na muhyati
Translation:
As the embodied soul continuously passes, in this body, from boyhood to youth to old age, the soul similarly passes into another body at death. A sober person is not bewildered by such a change.
Srila Prabhupada describes that “every living entity is changing his body every moment manifests sometimes as a child, sometimes as a youth and sometimes as an old man yet the same spirit soul is there and does not undergo change. It is sure to have another body in the next birth and such changes of body account for varieties of enjoyment or suffering according to one’s work in life and a sober person is not deluded by such change.”(purport;Bg.2.13)
But the question arises is that how are sober people not affected by this inevitable situation and can we become like one of them? Moreover, how can we utilize this change properly to finally come out of this net? Is it even practically possible!? Yes, Bhagavad Gita provides the torch light of divine knowledge in the dark forest of this material world which is full of ignorance, duplicity, hypocrisy and miseries. By this divine knowledge of Bhagavad Gita, which transcends the bodily designations, it transfers an individual to the blissful Spiritual realm.
Srila Prabhupada further describes that “anyone who has perfect knowledge of the Constitution of the individual soul, the Supersoul and nature both material and spiritual is called a Dhira or a most sober man, such man is not deluded by the change of bodies.”
One who understands in truth that we are the individual souls and are eternal fragmental parts and parcels of the Personality of Godhead, and that our actual business is to serve Him. The lord himself confirms this in Bhagavad Gita 15.7;
“mamaivamso jiva-loke
jiva-bhutah sanatanah”
“The living entities in this conditioned world are My eternal, fragmental parts.”
And one who is involved in utilising this human form of life to solve the real problems of life; birth, death, old age and disease and hence is engaged in understanding the science of self realization, is considered intelligent according to all the vedic conclusions. And hence, the individual takes shelter of the bonafide representative of Lord Krishna who can guide him further in the matter of self realization and one finally engages in the devotional service of the Lord, which opens the gate for achieving the highest goal of human life. Hence, by the mercy of the Lord one can transcend these temporary bodily changes in the material world permanently and can be situated in the eternal, blissful, transcendental spiritual identity, as an eternal servant of Him, which is in pure knowledge, in connection with the personality of Godhead. And can finally go back home, back to Godhead. Such a person can become a sober person and hence can actually make progress in his life.
B.g.15.6;
na tad bhāsayate sūryo
na śaśāṅko na pāvakaḥ
yad gatvā na nivartante
tad dhāma paramaṁ mama
Translation:
“That supreme abode of Mine is not illumined by the sun or moon, nor by fire or electricity. Those who reach it never return to this material world.”
One should not think however, that there is total darkness and no illuminaries, and hence don’t have any sufficiency, so it’s not worth our endeavor.
ŚB 3.16.27;
“vaikuṇṭhaṁ tad-adhiṣṭhānaṁ
vikuṇṭhaṁ ca svayaṁ-prabham”
Translation:
Lord Brahmā said: After seeing the Lord of Vaikuṇṭha, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, in the self-illuminated Vaikuṇṭha planet, the sages left that transcendental abode.
Srila Prabhupada further explains; “This indicates that all the planets there are self-illuminated, self-sufficient and independent; everything there is complete. Lord Kṛṣṇa says that once one goes to that Vaikuṇṭha planet, he never returns.”
So unless one is situated in the self-realization through the process of Bhakti yoga, cannot see how things are changing in the body of a living entity, which the Lord mentions in BG 15.11;
yatanto yoginaś cainaṁ
paśyanty ātmany avasthitam
yatanto ’py akṛtātmāno
nainaṁ paśyanty acetasaḥ
Translation:
“The endeavoring transcendentalists who are situated in self-realization can see all this clearly. But those whose minds are not developed and who are not situated in self-realization cannot see what is taking place, though they may try to. ”
Srila Prabhupada describes that, “Only those who are actually in the yoga system and have realized the self, the world and the Supreme Lord – in other words, the bhakti-yogīs, those engaged in pure devotional service in Kṛṣṇa consciousness – can understand how things are taking place.”
We don’t know the reality, the truth is we are in darkness. That’s why we are fearful just as a man considers a rope as a snake and becomes afraid of it in darkness but in light there will be no fear of a rope. Similarly in our life also we are in darkness, in ignorance and that’s why we are always fearful and only by the torch of wisdom from Bhagavad Gita, we can become fearless.
Following the wisdom of Bhagavad Gita, which is not based on false bodily designations, we will never be disturbed in any change of life whether in good times or bad times, rather we will become more determined for our real advancement in life by taking shelter of the Supreme. We will learn to tolerate the changes in life for executing higher purposes in our life. And automatically this will help us perform excellently well in our field as a student, as a worker, etc. because we will never be affected by our changeable circumstances around us. Furthermore, society will actually abide by the laws, or else without the spiritual substance in our hearts, we will simply create devastation in society, influenced by ignorance. A sincere student of Bhagavad Gita is always enthusiastic in every aspect of his life to deal with the problems of life and to grow like anything.
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