Either surrender to Krishna's loving control or suffer under material nature's merciless subjugation.Listen — Srila Prabhupada Uvaca
Bhagavad-gītā 4.11 — August 3, 1974, Vṛndāvana 740803BG-VRNDAVAN [26:43 Minutes] Bg-04.11_740803BG-VRNDAVAN Nitāi: Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. [devotees repeat] [leads chanting of verse, etc.] ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ [Bg. 4.11] [break] [01:45] "[All of them-as they surrender unto Me]...I reward accordingly. Everyone follows My path in all respects, O son of Pṛthā." Prabhupāda: Hmm. ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham mama vartmānuvartante manuṣyāḥ pārtha sarvaśaḥ [Bg. 4.11] Now, in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa [Cc. Madhya 20.108].
Actually, our position is eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. This is our real position. But artificially, we are trying to become master. This is called māyā.
Actually, my position is servant. Just like woman: natural position is to remain dependent on man. That is natural position. But if some woman artificially tries to become man, or master, that is suffering.
That is suffering. We have given this example that in India the women, they voluntarily surrender to the subjugation of the husband. But there are many families—hundreds and thousands even—they are happy. That's a fact.
And in the Western countries they want to remain independent, so they are not happy. This is my study, because I have seen the Western world and the Eastern world. Similarly, naturally, a woman is dependent. Similarly, we are, we are prakṛti. Prakṛti means one who is controlled.
That is called prakṛti. And puruṣa means the controller. So our position in this material world, that we have revolted against Kṛṣṇa, "Why should we..., shall I serve Kṛṣṇa?" Therefore we are subjugated by the external energy, Kṛṣṇa's energy, material nature. We are not supposed to be controlled by material nature, so that we are now under the jurisdiction of repetition of birth, death, old age and disease.
That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā, that na jāyate mriyate vā kadācit [Bg. 2.20]. For the living entity, there is no death, there is no birth. But this is something fictitious. Every one of us experience birth and death.