Meditate upon Kṛṣṇa, the eternal Absolute Truth, not temporary material illusions.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Prabhupāda: ei śloke ‘paraṃ-śabde ‘kṛṣṇa’-nirūpaṇa ‘satyaṃ’ śabde kahe tāìra svarūpa-lakṣaṇa [Cc Madhya 20.360] [In this invocation from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the word ’param’ indicates Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and the word ’satyam’ indicates His personal characteristics.] Now, we have been discussing this janmādy asya verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, and this śloka, this verse, ascertains two features of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa: constantly, eternally manifested features and temporary features. The sum and substance of this verse is that there are two features of the Supreme Personality of Godhead according to the nature, superior nature and inferior nature. So in the last line of this verse, it is clearly stated that dhāmnā svena sadā nirasta-kuhakaṃ satyaṃ paraṃ dhīmahi [SB 1.1.1]. [O my Lord, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, son of Vasudeva, O all-pervading Personality of Godhead, I offer my respectful obeisances unto You. I meditate upon Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa because He is the Absolute Truth and the primeval cause of all causes of the creation, sustenance and destruction of the manifested universes. He is directly and indirectly conscious of all manifestations, and He is independent because there is no other cause beyond Him. It is He only who first imparted the Vedic knowledge unto the heart of Brahmājī, the original living being. By Him even the great sages and demigods are placed into illusion, as one is bewildered by the illusory representations of water seen in fire, or land seen on water. Only because of Him do the material universes, temporarily manifested by the reactions of the three modes of nature, appear factual, although they are unreal. I therefore meditate upon Him, Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa, who is eternally existent in the transcendental abode, which is forever free from the illusory representations of the material world. I meditate upon Him, for He is the Absolute Truth.] Our aim should be to offer our obeisances unto the Supreme Lord along with His eternal abode. So the impersonalist, they take it for granted that everything is God, so we can approach the Supreme Truth by any way. That is not accepted by Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam here. Here it is stated clearly, paraṃ satyaṃ dhīmahi.
The eternal part of the Supreme Lord, that should be accepted, that should be worshiped, not the temporary manifestation. Take for example, the same example, just like in this apartment we are not so much interested with this toilet part of this room. We keep it closed. Although the toilet part of this room is also part and parcel of this room, but we have nothing to do with the toilet part. You have to take advantage of the other part, so that we can sit and we can talk.
Similarly, the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam indicates that dhāmnā svena nirasta-kuhakaṃ: we offer our obeisances, satyaṃ paraṃ, the Supreme, where there is no these illusory, temporary things. Dhāmnā svena satyaṃ paraṃ dhīmahi. There are many interesting stories in this connection. Of course, I do not wish to take much of your time, because our morning time is very short, but we should be interested into the spiritual part of the Supreme. Just like in this body also, the spiritual part is the soul and this material part is of this gross body.
But unfortunately, in the modern civilizations they are taking more care for this material part of this body. They have no information of the spiritual part of the body. But actually, one should take more care to the spiritual part of the body. Material part of the body secondary. We can maintain our body for spiritual realization.
We should not be too much attracted with the bodily necessities of life, sacrificing our spiritual needs. Satyaṃ paraṃ dhīmahi. That is the defect of modern civilization. They have no information; they don’t care for the spiritual part. Whenever you call some gentleman, if you begin to talk about spiritual necessities of our life, oh, they will at once think that "Swāmījī is talking some nonsense.
Let us go away." And if you talk of politics and just everything, yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke... [SB 10.84.13]. [One who identifies his self as the inert body composed of mucus, bile and air, who assumes his wife and family are permanently his own, who thinks an earthen image or the land of his birth is worshipable, or who sees a place of pilgrimage as merely the water there, but who never identifies himself with, feels kinship with, worships or even visits those who are wise in spiritual truth—such a person is no better than a cow or an ass.] Regarding in relationship with this body we have many things, we have manufactured so many things, bodily necessities. So the Bhāgavata says, paśyann api na paśyati. Teṣāṃ pramatto nidhanaṃ paśyann api na paśyati [SB 2.1.4]. [Persons devoid of ātma-tattva do not inquire into the problems of life, being too attached to the fallible soldiers like the body, children and wife. Although sufficiently experienced, they still do not see their inevitable destruction.] Pramatta, the mad, crazy human being, although they are seeing that everything is being vanquished, it is all annihilated, vanished, paśyann api, still they do not see. Why? Pramatta, crazy. The Bhāgavata has given designation to these people who are materially interested, pramatya. Teṣāṃ pramatto paśyann api, nidhanaṃ paśyann api na paśyati.
I see that my father has died, my father’s father has died, his father has died and I am going to die, and similarly, my son will die, my grandson will die, and therefore no more will come back again. Once this body is vanished, there is no chance of coming back; it is vanished forever, simply just like a bubble in the ocean. Still, we are interested with these bodily activities. Therefore, they have been described as pramatta.