Guru14 13 15

GURU 14 - PingalaGURU 14 - Pingala
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INTRODUCTION
There was once a prostitute named Pingala in the city of Videha, and from her the
Avadhüta brahman learned another lesson. One day she
dressed herself in very attractive clothing and ornaments and
was waiting from sunset until midnight for a customer. She
waited in great anticipation, but as the time passed her mind became very uneasy.
No man came to see her, and in disgust she finally became renounced, giving up her
hankering for the arrival of a suitor. Thereafter, she engaged herself in thinking only
of the Supreme Lord, Hari, and her mind achieved the supreme platform of peace.
THE LESSON LEARNT BY THE AVADHUTA BRAHMANA
The instruction received from her is that hopes for sense gratification are the root
cause of all suffering. Therefore, only one who has given up such hankering can fix
himself in meditation upon the Personality of Godhead and achieve transcendental
peace.
The Theme - Hopes of sense gratiﬁcation are
the root cause of suffering – so ﬁx your mind
on Krishna
SLOKA RECITATION
Let us learn a sloka from Neeti Sastra, which teaches us something about the
above theme.
Before teaching the present verse, the teacher should begin the class by
chanting all the verses of the 24 Gurus with the children all-together.
Chant the fourteenth verse of the 24 Gurus again. Tell the children we will
learn the twenty-fourth verse and also understand it.
Learn the fourteenth verse. (The teacher recites the sloka line by line and
makes the children repeat and memorize the Sloka)
Material desires bind us
Asa nama manusyanam
Kacidascarya srnkhala
Yaya baddha pradhavanti
Muktastisthanti panguvat
1/3 60 mins 180 mins
Let us learn a sloka from Neeti Sastra, which teaches us something about the
Before teaching the present verse, the teacher should begin the class by
Chant the fourteenth verse of the 24 Gurus again. Tell the children we will
learn the twenty-fourth verse and also understand it.
Learn the fourteenth verse. (The teacher recites the sloka line by line and
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Desire is an amazing shackle for human beings. One who is bound by this chain is
running around and one who is free is sitting peacefully “like a” lame man!
LESSONS FROM GURU
Desire
GURU 14 - Pingala
The following is a story between a
devotee & Srila Prabhupada...
One devotee came running to Srila
Prabhupada before he was leaving
in the car and asked “How can we
become Krishna Conscious?” and Srila
Prabhupada answered in one word. Can
you guess what was that word?
– Not chant or sincerity etc.
“DESIRE” – that’s what we’re
doing all the time; making
choices.
Conquering Desire
As we drove to the park Prabhupäda
preached to him about conquering
desire, which he said, is the cause of
bondage. “This body, if the desires
are not fulfilled but the desire is
continuing, so to fulfill the desire,
Kåñëa will give him chance for another
type of body by which he can fulfill.
That means he gets another body.
Then another desire. Jïänés, they’re
trying to put out the desire, but he
desires to become liberated. That is
another desire. The yogis are trying to
concentrate on liberation by practicing
yoga. And that is also another desire.
In this way, one desire after another,
another desire...”
“Then how to get free from those
desires?” devotee asked.
“Free means desire should be purified,”
Prabhupäda explained. “That means
desires should be to render service to
the Lord. That is real purification. The
example is given, just like gold. There
are impurities. Those impurities, you
cannot cleanse them simply by washing.
You have to put into the fire. When it is
melted then automatically all the dirty
things are gone. His natural position is
part and parcel of God, to render service
to God. So unless he takes up that thing,
there is no question of desirelessness.
Therefore Kåñëa is demanding,
‘Surrender.’ And as soon as he
surrenders, then material desires
become vanquished. Sarvopädhi-
vinirmuktam. Anyäbhiläñitä-
çünyam. He cannot rectify one desire by
another desire. That is not possible;
then it will produce another desire.”
“To purify that desire we also have to
be put into the fire?”
“This is an example, that without
being put into the fire, there is no purity
of the gold or silver. Similarly, without
being engaged in the service of the Lord,
there is no question of purifying the
desire.”
STORY 1
Prabhupada answered in one word. Can
Kåñëa will give him chance for another çünyam. He cannot rectify one desire by
desire, which he said, is the cause of

167
Only have desire for Service
While Prabhupada was living in Los
Angeles in 1969, he got
a letter from one of his
relatives stating that one
of his brothers had died.
Prabhupada received
this information in the presence of some
of the devotees and he informed them,
“I have just received this letter saying
that my brother died. Previously my
other brother died. These two brothers
were very nice. They wanted to live
long, healthy lives, but they didn’t care
so much for Krsna consciousness. But
my sister and I,” Prabhupada laughed
softly, “we didn’t want to live long,
healthy lives. We only wanted to do
some service, and when Krsna wanted
to, He would take us. But now I see that
my two brothers are both dead, and my
sister and I are living long, happy lives.”
STORY 2
MORAL: Those who are very sensual and are engaged in sense gratification do not
wish to die. Generally a prince has enough money to enjoy his senses, therefore the
great sage said that he should live forever, for as long as he lived he could enjoy life,
but after death he would go to hell. Since the brahmacari devotee led a life of severe
Dovetail desires in Krishna’s service
STORY 3 - THE SAINTLY PERSON’S BLESSINGS
Once when a saintly person
was passing on his way, he met
a prince, the son of a king, and
he blessed him, saying, “Raja
putra ciram jiva: You are a king’s son, a
prince. May you live forever.”
Next, the sage met a
brahmacari devotee,
and he blessed him,
saying, “Muni-putra
ma jiva: My dear devotee, you may die
immediately.”
Sometime later the sage met a butcher,
and he blessed him, saying,
“Ma jiva ma mara: Neither
live nor die.”
The sage next met a saintly
woman and said to her, “jiva va
maro va: You may either live or
die.”
raja-putra ciram jiva
muni-putra ma jiva /
jiva ma maro va
ma jiva ma mara
was passing on his way, he met
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GURU 14 - Pingala
austerities and penances in order to be promoted back to Godhead, the sage said
that he should die immediately so he would not have to keep labouring hard but
could instead go back to Godhead. Since the butcher leads a very ghastly life due
to killing animals, and since he will go to hell when he dies, he is advised to neither
live nor die. And a devotee may either live or die, because during life she is serving
the Lord, and after death she also serves the Lord. Thus this life and the next are the
same for the saintly devotee, for in both she serves the Lord. So the essence is that
sense gratification is not going to lead us anywhere other than destruction, so it is
best for a person engaged in sense gratification to divert his mind and energies and
dovetail them in Krishna consciousness.
Desires are Unlimited
STORY 4 - THE WISE LADY. (DESIRE FOR KRISHNA’S SERVICE,
THE SUPREME OCCUPATION)
A religious minded and charitable king
arranged for a big charity show. All
kinds of things were on
display and anyone could
take anything. The people
of the whole city came
and took what they liked except on old
lady, she did not take anything, she was
dissatisfied. The king’s
minister reported this
to the king. The king
said that he would
personally like to meet this lady. On
meeting her he asked her what was that
she would like to have, immediately she
said I do not want these little objects
of insignificance, I want to possess you
only. Now naturally the whole wealth of
the state belonged to the lady if the king
accepted her as his mother, which the
king agreed to and very carefully took
care of her till her very end.
By entertaining various
desires one runs after the
objects. There is neither
satisfactionnorcontentment.
If one renounces mundane
desires and takes shelter of
the supreme Lord naturally all of one’s
desires are fulfilled, just as the old lady
rejected all insignificant objects and
asked for the king’s association.
arranged for a big charity show. All
desires and takes shelter of
Continued Sense Gratification achieves Destruction
There was an old man named Vithal
Jadhav who was very poor and had
nothing but a thatched
hut. He was very lazy and
therefore had to suffer in
his life. So he thought that
he would go to the Vindhya hills where
there were many mystic sadhus who
could give him wealth and fulfill his
desires by their mystic powers. So he
could live comfortably without working
hard. After reaching the hills he met
STORY 5 - THE MAGIC MAT
his life. So he thought that

169
sadhu and prostrated before
him, the sadhu entertained
him nicely and enquired
about the purpose
of his visit.
He replied that he was very poor and due
to old age he was not able to work, so he
wanted him to help him by giving him
some wealth. After repeated requests
the sadhu gave him a mat saying that
whenever he wanted something he
should sit on this mat after washing his
feet, hands and face and think of the
desired object.
The old man thanked the
sadhu and proceeded to his
house. Now he washed his
hands, feet and face and sat
on the mat and desired for a
good meal as he was hungry.
Immediately a sumptuous
feast was ready right before his eyes.
Next he desired for a bed to
rest, after resting he desired for
a palace to live in. Now that
he had a luxurious palace to live in he
wanted wealth and some servants. As
per his desire he had bags of gold, silver
and diamonds in his palace and also
many servants at his call. Now a thought
came across his mind that what if there
was an earthquake and
as he was sitting on the
mat within no time there
was an earthquake that
demolished his palace to
the ground and the old
man and his servants perished in the
ruins.
Desire is a great obstacle on the path
of self-realization. The monkey mind
is always restless, desiring something
or the other. Just as the fish taken out
of water tries to get back into the water
by some means or the other, so also
the mind will be restless and entertain
evil thoughts. The mind has to be
freed from all surging emotions and
bubbling thoughts before one can attain
concentration. Such a mind will be as
calm as a lamp in a windless place. One
who attains such a state is a perfect yogi.
If one wants to discipline the mind one
has to either give up all kinds of desires
which is practically very difficult. So we
have a practical solution for this, one
has to ideally dovetail his propensities
in Krishna’s service and thus replace his
material desires with spiritual desires.
Hence one should learn that hopes of
sense gratification are the root cause of
suffering, so fix your mind on Krishna.
him nicely and enquired
feast was ready right before his eyes.
was an earthquake that
Those who don’t desire enjoyment actually get
unlimited Enjoyment
STORY 6 - RUPA GOSWAMI GOT TO TASTE THE KHEER
COOKED BY RADHARANI
“Srila Prabhupada says, “Never
try to take benefit from Kåñëa,
simply try to give benefit to
Kåñëa. This is pure devotion.”
To further illustrate his point let
us read this wonderful pastime
narrated by Srila Prabhupada. The
story is as follows.
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GURU 14 - Pingala
“Once upon a time Rüpa
Gosvämé desired that ‘If
I would get some nice
foodstuff, I would have
invited Sanätana Gosvämé and cook
some nice food.’ He desired like that.
They were living in Våndävana, here
and there, under the shade of a tree.
They had no stock, nothing.
So one very beautiful girl
came and offered rice, däl,
ghee. She said, ‘Bäbä, we have
got some festival.’ In this
country they address saintly
person as Bäbä. So she offered so
many things, and he immediately
invited Sanätana Gosvämé—they were
living separately. And Rüpa
Gosvämé was very good cook
also, so he prepared very nice
preparation and offered to
Sanätana Gosvämé prasädam.
So Sanätana Gosvämé astonishingly
inquired, “Where you got all these nice
thingsinthisforest?”Sohetoldthewhole
story, that ‘In the morning I desired,
and in just a few hours time, little time,
one very beautiful girl came and offered
this ingredients.’ So after hearing the
description of
the beautiful
girl, Sanätana
G o s v ä m é
c o u l d
understand that
she was Rädhäräëé. So
immediately he chastised
Rüpa Gosvämé, that ‘You have
taken service from Rädhäräëé. This is
not good. We are trying to give service
to Rädhäräëé, and you have taken service
from Rädhäräëé.’
“So this is Vaiñëava consideration. They
are firmly determined not to bother
Kåñëa with anything. Simply to serve
Him. Änukülyena kåñëänuçélanam.” But
in the end Radharani personally came
and fulfilled their desire of offering some
nice foodstuff to Krishna.
Asayah ye dasaha
Te dasah sarva lokasya
Asa yesam dasihi
Tesam dasayet lokah
Those who are servants of asa – material
hope/ desire … they must become
servants of many people! But for whom
desire is a servant, to him many other
people serve.
description of
c o u l d
understand that
STORY 7 - SRILA PRABHUPADA
Srila Prabhupada himself never wanted
anything. Whatever he desired was for
Krishna and it was arranged in such
away that he got everything. But
everything he got was used
in Krishna’s service. He went
to the west with practically
nothing, a mere 40 rupees and
some Bhagavatam copies with him. His
intention in going to the west was not
for any personal sense gratification
but to preach the message of God
and fulfill the instructions of his
spiritual master. Thus we see
that he travelled around the
world and in the process the
Lord arranged that he got unlimited
fame and honor.
anything. Whatever he desired was for
Krishna and it was arranged in such
away that he got everything. But
in Krishna’s service. He went
to the west with practically
nothing, a mere 40 rupees and
for any personal sense gratification
but to preach the message of God
and fulfill the instructions of his
world and in the process the
Lord arranged that he got unlimited

171
SLOKA RECITATION
The teacher should begin the class by chanting all the verses of the 24 Gurus
with the children all together.
Chant the twenty-fourth verse of the 24 Gurus again. Learn it once again.
Asa nama manusyanam
LESSONS FROM GURU
Chant the twenty-fourth verse of the 24 Gurus again.
Sense gratification is Pleasure of Mind, intellect
and ego
People get infatuated by watching
all kinds of sports, at the same time a
level of detachment from
other physical activities is
achieved and a pleasure is
achieved in the mind. E.g.
imagine the intensity with
which someone is watching a
football match in the world cup finals.
Even if someone brings the best samosa
(fried pastry), he would not accept it at
that moment. In the same situation, if
someone who is not attached
to this game might say, “why
22 people are running behind
one ball, just give one ball
to each one”! So, one who
understands the game, who is
into the game gets certain pleasure that
is at the level of the mind.
EXAMPLE 1 - PLEASURE OF THE MIND
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GURU 12 - Innocent Child
Intellectual Pleasure
EXAMPLE 2 - CHESS OR A COMPUTER PROGRAM
Above mental pleasure
is intellectual pleasure
e.g. two people sit down
for a chess game at one
place, gazing intently on the board with
great concentration, for hours together.
If you watch them, even after 2 hours
they are in the same pose as if they have
been frozen! What makes them sit and
continuously think about the
next moves? There is some
pleasure they are receiving at
the level of intelligence - that
is called intellectual pleasure. Someone
may be working on a computer program
or mathematical problem. It may absorb
his mind so much that he forgets all the
other lower pleasures.
pleasure they are receiving at
the level of intelligence - that
There was an
i n t e r e s t i n g
case in 1863, a
famous American
engineer John
Robbling, decided to make a bridge
across the Manhattan River, connecting
New York to Manhattan. He soon
conceived the design for this Manhattan
bridge, and anyone who heard of this
idea said, “This is an outlandish idea,
this is impossible!” No structural
engineer would take it seriously and
said, “You just can’t make it.” But John
Robbling was fully convinced and he
said, “Yes, I will do it.” He knew that
the design is perfect, and he convinced
his son Washington Robbling about
it. Both father and son started the
construction, but unfortunately with
in a couple of years there was a major
accident on the site. John Robbling
died, and Washington Robbling was
left with a crippling head injury, which
paralyzed him. Washington Robbling
was uncomfortable in this state and tried
to communicate with his engineers. The
engineers were leaving as they thought
“Only father and son know what is going
on. We have no idea about the future of
the bridge, the father is dead, and the
son is about to die. So as far as we are
concerned, we have nothing to do with
this bridge. We are quitting.”
Washington Robbling couldn’t move his
hands and legs. He couldn’t speak, and he
was bed ridden. But the power of intellect
is such that Washington Robbling
conceived of a system of communicating
with his wife. All he could move was his
fingers and that too gently. So he would
call his wife and tap upon her shoulders
and her arms in a certain way and he
developed a code of communication,
simply by the movement of his fingers.
When she became familiar with the
code of communication, he slowly
started transmitting the ideas he had,
for the completion of the bridge. The
engineers started implementing those
ideas as they would be coming from
the hospital. Within one decade, the
Manhattan Bridge was completed. We
can imagine the power of intelligence.
STORY 8 - THE MANHATTAN BRIDGE

173
Practically, even when all of his senses
were inert, his intelligence was working.
Washington Robbling was getting a
terrific pleasure and satisfaction, by
using his intelligence in a certain way,
which led him to complete
the bridge. Therefore
intellectual pleasure is higher
than mental and sensual
pleasures.
Sense Gratification is Pleasure of the Ego
EXAMPLE 3 - CONQUERING HIMALAYAS
Above this is the pleasure of ego. We have
so many people going to the Himälayas.
They have certain kind
of satisfaction about
conquering the mountain.
We have conquered this
peak, we have created
certain kind of revolution! We think we
have achieved a certain thing in life and
that gives a certain kind of pleasure to
the ego.
In short, sense pleasures, mental
pleasures, intellectual
pleasure and egoistic
pleasures are the ways
by which we try to get
pleasure at the physical
and subtle levels. But these are all
material pleasures and at the level of
body and the psyche.
Pleasure comes along with Pain
EXAMPLE 4 - BOTH HEAD AND TAIL
If we have a coin, we get both head
and tail. We can’t have only one of
them. Similarly, if we have material
pleasure, we get pain also! It’s a
package deal. It is a free gift from
material nature. If we want material
pleasure, we will get material pain free
of cost!
and tail. We can’t have only one of
EXAMPLE 5 - DOG - SHADOW - DUKHALAYAM
When the dog is walking besides a
lamp post on a street, he sees its own
shadow. The dog tries to run away from
the shadow thinking it to be a different
creature which is trying to attack him.
When the dog barks and
runs, the shadow also moves
along with him. The dog
becomes more afraid, and he
runs ahead, he looks back
and wags his tail, the shadow also follow
suit. Dog feels that the other creature
is more powerful because the shadow
looks bigger. The dog feels that someone
bigger than me is standing here, so he
tries to run away from his
own shadow. However, one
can never run away from
one’s own shadow. Similarly,
one can never run away from
creature which is trying to attack him. bigger than me is standing here, so he
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GURU 14 - Pingala
EXAMPLE 7 - CHILD AND CHOCOLATE
A child may like to eat
chocolates not realizing what the
consequences will be. He does
not have the foresight to see that
it would be harmful for him to
consume a lot of chocolates. But his
parents are aware and hence they
stop him. For the child it feels and
tastes good, so he cannot understand
what the harm is.
material miseries which follow us
like a shadow. Kåñëa, who has made
this material world, has given this
guarantee card tag of duùkhälayam
açäçvatam. No one knows this
world better then the creator. No one
knows a product better then the creator.
Kåñëa at the time of creation
has certified this world to be,
duùkhälayam açäçvatam meaning
- this product is only filled with
misery no matter whatever you
may do! This is true for all the species
of life.
Just like if you go to a washing machine
shop and they are advertising, “You
buy this beautiful washing
machine. We are selling it at 50%
discount. You put your clothes
and they will get chopped into
small pieces! You try to put your
hand, sometimes you will get
a big electric shock. If you are lucky,
you will get a small shock! But a shock
is guaranteed. You put water in, and
suddenly it will start erupting inside
and start steaming up. These are some
of the unpredictable features of
this washing machine and there
are many more!” How many will
go to buy? We may laugh at this
absurd offer but this material
world is exactly like that washing
machine and everyone is running to
get one! Therefore as soon as there is
pleasure, there is associated pain.
EXAMPLE 6 - DISCOUNTED WASHING MACHINE - MATERIAL WORLD
shop and they are advertising, “You
hand, sometimes you will get
and start steaming up. These are some
Sense gratification means something that feels good, but is not good.
Sensegratificationmeanssomethingthatfeelsgood,tastesgood,something
that one may like to do, but it may not be necessarily good in the long run
or the end result may be quite the opposite.
EXAMPLE 8 - STRESS BUSTER - ALCOHOL?
Similarly for a person
who is stressed out too
when he indulges in
intoxication it may feel
good for a while and
one may be temporarily relived but the
next morning he is sure to
have a splitting headache for
which he himself is the cause.
So sense gratification may
seem good for that period but
in actuality is certainly not.
seem good for that period but

175
EXAMPLE 9 - HIRANYAKASIPU
“In spite of achieving the power
to control in all directions and
in spite of enjoying all types of
dear sense gratification as much
as possible, Hiraëyakaçipu was
dissatisfied because instead
of controlling his senses he
remained their servant.” (Çrémad
Bhägavatam 7.4.19)
Hiraëyakaçipu had practically
everything at his disposal but he was
not satisfied. yathopajoñaà bhuïjäno
He had practically everything
that one would dream for,
but the nature of sense
pleasure is that it is illusory.
Simply amassing the objects
cannot satisfy us nätåpyad
ajitendriyaù. For satisfaction,
you need sense control.
Uncontrolled senses means
misery and lack of peace.
That is the law, whether we understand
it today or tomorrow.
Sense gratification is only joyful as long as it is in the Mind – but when it turns to
action, it is not as satisfying – so you try to do it again hoping to enjoy the next time.
A person who enters a casino
or gambling den and indulges
in any sort of activity at first is
made to win and he enjoys it
and develops a feeling of greed
to win more so that he could
fulfill more of his desires which
never end. And in the process he
goes on gambling and starts losing
until he has lost everything.
So sense gratification may feel good
in the beginning but is not good.
EXAMPLE 10 - GAMBLING DEN EXPERIENCE OF A FIRST TIMER
made to win and he enjoys it
Material pleasure is illusory because it is mental
ANALOGY 1 - CHAPPAN BHOG AND EXAM RESULTS
Just imagine if we have
a big feast of chappan
bhog (56 delicacies
offered to Kåñëa) to eat.
We are about to start
eating and one of our
friend comes and says, “You have failed
in your university exam, but you carry
on with your eating.” How much will
we be able to eat? The potential pleasure
is there but the pleasure is not there in
läòòu(sweet), not there in sweets, not
there in kachoré(fried pastry). It is there
in mind! Now the mind
is disturbed, so now the
läòòu which is source of
pleasure will not be giving
us that happiness. The same might
happen when just before we start eating
someone says, “You greedy pig, start
eating. I know you are just like a big
fat hippopotamus.” Those words, those
insults go deep inside the heart. We lose
our mood to eat because the pleasure
is actually there in the mind. Therefore
material pleasure is illusory.
läòòu which is source of
Just imagine if we have
We are about to start
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GURU 14 - Pingala
Once upon a time a boy went to a movie theatre to see the
latest movie in town. He goes in with a lot of hopes and anticipation
in his mind. But when he comes out of the theatre, he is completely
frustrated and irritated that he wasted money on the movie. His hopes
were frustrated.
Cite one instance in your own life, where you tried your best to enjoy your self in
some way, but in the end you got completely frustrated.
Recap the session

177
SLOKA RECITATION
Chant the twenty-fourth verse of the 24 Gurus again. Learn it once again.
Asa nama manusyanam
LESSONS FROM GURU
The teacher should begin the class by chanting all the verses of the 24 GurusThe teacher should begin the class by chanting all the verses of the 24 Gurus
Chant the twenty-fourth verse of the 24 Gurus again.
Practical Experiences of people who tried to enjoy
– but ended up suffering
A rich person once
wanted to spend his
weekend relaxing and
enjoying the beauty of
nature. So he travelled all the way across
seven seas to spend a weekend in the
beaches of Hawaii. He was very excited
to be there and looking forward to some
nice rest. But when he went to the beach
to take a sun bath he realized that the
sand was too hot to lie down on and he
started running towards the water. As he
was about to swim, the lifeguards
stopped him saying that there
were sharks in the water. So he decided
to go and take rest underneath a tree.
Within minutes he got up and started
running as there was a huge population
of scorpions living there. Thus we see
that he had everything possible money,
fame etc and facilities to enjoy. But
when he tried to enjoy he could not
and ultimately the result ended up in
suffering.
STORY 9 - PERSON TRAVELLING TO A BEACH WITH EXPECTATIONS
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GURU 14 - Pingala
STORY 10 - 25 PAISE CIRCUS
Once upon a time,
outside a town, a circus
company created a
huge tent for a special
show. They made a
loud announcement,
“Entry fee for this circus is only 25 paise.
However, there is one condition, “Only
one person at a time will be allowed to
watch this circus.” So the next day, the
town’s people woke up early at 5:00 a.m.
to stand in line for the circus.
At 9:00 a.m. when the
gates opened, the first man
was very eager to go inside.
When he went inside he was
surprised to see a huge but empty tent!
He shouted, “Is there anyone here? Will
there be a circus here? From the corner
of the tent a big wrestler came out with
a huge club in his hand. He said, “Yes,
there will definitely be a circus here.
You will be the clown. I will be the ring
master and let’s start the circus now!”
Then this
powerful wrestler
starting giving heavy
blows of his club to the
poor man! The man was shouting and
groaning, but because he was alone, no
one could help him. Finally after a few
beatings the poor man was thrown out
of the tent from the exit door. When he
came out, many people were waiting for
his interview because he was the first to
see the circus. Immediately, he dusted
off his clothes and combed his hair. He
commented, “Fantastic circus. I have
never seen a circus like this in my life.
And probably I will never see another
circus in my life….!” and he ran away
from there.
This increased the anticipation of
the second man. He went in and got a
similar thrashing like the first man and
was mercilessly ejected out from the exit
by the wrestler. When the people asked
him for his opinion, he thought, “The
first man had a great time in the circus.
He must have seen many wonderful
items. I was given a good beating. If I tell
people about it they will simply laugh at
me for waking up at 5:00 a.m. to stand
in line!” So he said, “Oh! It was a great
circus. Everyone should see it!”
In this way the entire town went
to see the circus. Each and every one of
them got a good thrashing at the hands
of that wrestler. Throughout the evening
and for the next one week they were all
discussing the different events they saw
at the circus. Each one was thinking that
only I was beaten and others enjoyed the
circus to their heart’s content!
poor man! The man was shouting and

179
How much pleasure can we enjoy?
ANALOGY 2 - COW TIED TO POLE AND GRASS - HUMANS LIMITED BY
KARMA.
Just as a cow which is tied to a pole,
cannot go beyond a certain
limit because it is bound,
similarly we cannot go beyond
thelimitsofourkarmaintrying
to enjoy material pleasure.
Our karmic activities act like
a rope. They will not allow us to graze
beyond a certain limit. The cow may see
the greenery all around. But
when it tries to stretch beyond
limit, it will only strangle.
Therefore it can roam only
round and round in a circle.
Thus material pleasure is
limiting by nature.
How long can we enjoy?
ANALOGY 3 - OLD DOG AND BONE - SENSE PLEASURES
Just like an old dog which has lost
all of its teeth cannot enjoy the
succulent bone. So he cannot enjoy
material pleasure beyond a certain
limit.
As a matter of fact most of the time
we are simply trying to decrease the
extent of our miseries.
Just like an old dog which has lost
EXAMPLE 11 - HOTEL OWNER - DIABETES
The owner of one of the
biggest hotels in Bombay
was explaining that
when he first came to
Bombay, he hardly had
any money. The thing he would love
the most to eat was a certain delicacy.
He used to work in a hotel as a hotel
boy. He would steal that delicacy, eat it
and would imagine that one day he will
have so much wealth that he can eat
his favorite delicacy as much
as he wants. Few years later,
he made millions of rupees
through his five hotels in
Bombay, but unfortunately he
was detected to have diabetes
during his medical checkup. The
doctor’s prescription prohibited him to
eat his favorite delicacy. So how long
can we enjoy? The body is constantly
deteriorating.
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180
GURU 14 - Pingala
All the satisfaction we can get is that, “I am less miserable than someone
else.” And life passes by comparing miseries.
STORY 11 - BAD NEWS CANCER / GOOD NEWS ALZEIMERS DISEASE
Once a patient went to a
doctor for a checkup. After the
checkup, the doctor said that I
have some good news and a bad
news for you. Which one would
you like to hear first? Patient
asked for the bad news to be
told first. Doctor said, “You
have cancer. You are going to
die within three years”. Patient
was shocked and he asked, “Then what is
the good news?” the doctor said, “Along
with cancer, you also have Alzheimer’s
disease. Because of this you will lose
your memory.
So in next three months,
you will forget that you have
cancer. You can relax now.”
Isn’t this our condition? Misery
is awaiting us, but the only
satisfaction we have is that
we have lost memory of those
miserable conditions. We are
simply comparing, “What is
the condition in which I will
be least miserable?” Therefore there
is nothing very positive about it. So,
material pleasure is painful. Material
pleasure is also addicting.
HOW IS IT RELEVANT IN MY LIFE?
If you look deeper at your life, it is actually a series of frustrations.
For example, when you see television, what is your motive behind seeing it?
1. I watch T.V because there is nothing else to do.
2. I watch T.V because it keeps me from feeling lonely.
3. I watch T.V because I don’t want to miss what’s good on T.V.
4. I watch T.V to be in touch with the conversation of my friends.
5. I watch T.V to reward myself for the hard work completed during the day.
6. I watch T.V for news and entertainment.
7. I watch T.V for only sports.
8. I watch T.V to learn about places, people and things.
All of us watch T.V at some time or the other, because it is one of the most
attractive ways of passing time.
Now we have to ask ourselves the question, that does it really give you satisfaction
in the innermost core of your heart. And if you are honest the answer will be no.

181
If TV would have given you happiness, consider these points to ponder upon:
(a) Why are there so many T.V channels?
(b) When T.V did not exist, were not our ancestors happy?
(c) Has T.V been able to replace the sweetness and intimacy we experience
while our grandmother tells us stories from the scriptures?
(d) Bill Gates never watched T.V before he graduated, so T,V does not determine
your success or failure in life either?
This is the similar situation with other things we try to achieve satisfaction and
happiness.
CHARACTERISTICS OF
SENSE GRATIFICATION
These are six characteristics of material pleasure:
1. Painful,
2. Addicting,
3. Risky,
4. Illusory and
5. Stale.
If we take the first letter of each word of this it is PARIS. If you want to
remember the danger of material pleasure remember PARIS, and the last is flickering.
FLY, FLY to PARIS. PARIS FLY. If we remember this, we will remember the nature of
material pleasure.
Conclusion
The conclusion is that we are hunting for pleasure at the wrong place with the
wrong kind of weapons. Our condition is like hunting for a fish in the forest. We
are climbing up the tree for fishes.
Pleasure is there but it does not exist in this material world, it exists in the spiritual
world. What you see here is the reflection. If there is tree standing on the bank
of river, what you see is reflection? You see some mangoes in the reflection. To
taste the mangoes you may jump into the river. What are the chances of finding
those reflected mangoes? They are nil. And everyone is swimming and trying to
search those mangoes! In spite of his best efforts, one can’t find those mangoes. He
comes out and says, “Where are the mangoes? Another person says see see … it is
still there.” So again he goes inside and on top of it he finds 3-4 other people also
searching. They say, they have been searching much before him. He thinks, “Ok I
am not the only one, there is a big crowd of people searching under water. By that
time on the bank, they have set up book stalls selling books on 10 sure shot ways
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182
GURU 14 - Pingala
of searching mangoes under water and they are making a good sale. They say, “You
did not dive properly. Otherwise you would have surely found it.”
Happiness is achieved depending on whom you are doing it for.
Real pleasure is at the level of soul. If we have to seek real pleasure, it is spiritual
pleasure. It is available only in connection with Kåñëa, and there is no other way.
The conclusion is, any attempt to hunt for material pleasure will result in frustration
and misery. You have to look in the right place. Similarly, pleasure exists but not
in the material world, not through material senses but at the level of soul and it can
be searched through spiritual senses. The process for doing it is, to find a bonafide
spiritual master, get association of devotees and start chanting the holy names in
proper association.
Hare Kåñëa Hare Kåñëa Kåñëa Kåñëa Hare Hare,
Hare Räma Hare Räma Räma Räma Hare Hare
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