Science

Published on August 17th, 2024 | by HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

6

Nature’s Laws–But Who Created Them?

They are studying how the laws of nature is working. That’s nice. But they should appreciate at the same time: Who made such subtle laws that they are working so nicely? That is our philosophy. We do not only study the laws and appreciate it, but we study the law-maker also. That is the difference between ourself and the so-called scientists. They are left, poor fund of knowledge. They cannot appreciate that there is a law-maker of these subtle laws. That is their defect.

Morning Walk
—
April 20, 1973, Los Angeles

Prabhupada: Does it mean the sand is begetting the insects?

Svarupa Damodara: No.

Prabhupada: So their conclusion is like that. Because they see that the insects are coming from the sand. So from matter, this life is coming. This is their logic. It is called in Sanskrit: tandula-vrscika-nyaya. Everything is discussed. Tandula-vrscika-nyaya. You know tandula-vrscika-nyaya?

Svarupa Damodara: No.

Prabhupada: Tandula means rice.

Svarupa Damodara: Rice?

Prabhupada: Rice. And vrscika means scorpion. The scorpions enter within the heaps of rice and lay their eggs. And by heat of the rice, they, another baby vrscika come out. And when they’re coming out of the, that tandula, rice, the rascals are thinking that the rice is begetting the vrscika. They do not know the inner secrecy that another vrscika, scorpion, has laid down the eggs within the rice, and by the fermentation of the heat of the rice, the eggs are fructified and the living entities coming out. Tandula-vrscika-nyaya. (pause)

Svarupa Damodara: So many birds…

Prabhupada: They have got their food. Everyone is intelligent enough where to find out food, where to lie down. Ahara-nidra-bhaya. How to have sex. Everyone is intelligent. Even a small insect, the flies. I see, at night, they have sex. One fly after another. Everyone knows it.

Svarupa Damodara: That’s the inborn quality of the living entities.

Prabhupada: Yes. Ahara-nidra-bhaya-maithunam ca samanyam etat pasubhir naranam. The only special significance of human being is that he has got special intelligence to understand what is Absolute Truth. Athato brahma jijnasa. So therefore his first duty is to know the Absolute Truth. Not waste time for eating, sleeping, mating. The modern material civilization is wasting time, so-called advancement of material comforts. Simply wasting time. Nidraya hriyate naktam vyavayena ca va vayah [SB 2.1.3]. They are wasting time at night either by sleeping or by sexual intercourse. Diva carthehaya rajan kutumba-bharanena va. And during daytime, simply: “Where is money? Where is money? Where is money?” And as soon as they get money, they spend it for kutumba-bharana, for maintaining the family.

This is their business. The sum total of modern civilization. And if they can purchase a nice car, that is the success of their life. Kutumba-bharanena va. Not only for himself, for his wife, for his children, if he has got three cars. Just like our Mukunda Maharaja is doing. He’s earning one thousand dollars and spending in car. That is his Krsna consciousness. Rascal boy is so much captivated with the rascal girl. He’s thinking that he’s happy. He’s spoiling his life. (pause) Diva carthehaya rajan kutumba-bharanena va [SB 2.1.3]. Dehapatya-kalatradisv atma-sainyesv asatsv api, tesam pramatto nidhanam pasyann api na pasyati. Dehapatya. Deha means body. Apatya means children. Dehapatya-kalatra. Kalatra means wife. Dehapatya-kalatradisv atma-sainyesu. He thinks: “They are my soldiers. I’ll fight with nature, struggle for existence. And they’ll save me.” Dehapatya-kalatradisv atma-sainyesv asatsv api. Although he knows that they’ll not exist, still he’s so mad, tesam pramatto nidhanam, he knows I’ll not exist, the soldiers will not be able to help me. pasyann api na pasyati, he sees and still he does not see. Pasyann api na pasyati. He knows by practical experience that “This society, friendship, love, nation, nobody can save me.” But still he thinks that “They’ll save me.” Just like when you, in the aeroplane, there may be thousands of aeroplanes, others, but when your aeroplane is in danger, nobody can save you. You have to save yourself, Otherwise, you go to hell. Similarly, we have to save ourself individually by Krsna consciousness.

What this material advancement will save me? Will the material advancement of knowledge can save anyone from death? Is it possible? Real problem, duhkha-dosanudarsanam, real problem is birth, death, old age and disease. So what this material advancement of science will help in this connection? They’ll bluff: “Yes, in the future, we shall do.” That’s all. Bluffing. Past, present, future, never they’ll be able to help. Still they’re proud. “Yes, in the future, we shall do it.” Dehapatya kalatradisu. Tasmad ekena manasa bhagavan satvatam patih srotavyah kirtitavyas ca dhyeyah pujyas ca nityada. (pause) Dehapatya kalatradisv atma-sainyesv asatsv api. (pause). They have discovered so many… Can they fly like the birds are flying, all together? There is no collision. They can go with full force. There is no collision. They haven’t got even intelligence like the birds. And they’re proud. If a small bird, they’ll fly together, flock together, with great force, they’ll not collapse. Can the scientists arrange flying like that. Immediately, they’ll be all smashed. Still, they’re proud of intelligence. What intelligence you have got? You are less intelligent than the birds.

Karandhara: The ants also can walk.

Prabhupada: Eh?

Karandhara: The ants, thousands of them without colliding. But the cars, they’re always colliding.

Prabhupada: Yes.

Svarupa Damodara: The living entities, when the soul is inside a body, they’re much more flexible than the, the aeroplanes or cars that are made by the scientists?

Prabhupada: Yes. The aeroplane wings, they’re fixed up. But the bird wings, he can do like this. Even they can do like that, where is the credit? It is already there. Many millions and thousands. (pause)

Svarupa Damodara: In physical sciences, there’s a branch called thermodynamics that deals with the transfer of heat and energy in different forms. So their three laws is called first law, second law and the third law. First law deals with the conservation of energy in different forms. And the second law, it is stated that the energy of the universe is constant. Just like the, in the Sri Isopanisad, the Invocation, purna…

Prabhupada: Yes. Purnat purnam udacyate, purnasya purnam adaya purnam evavasisyate.

Svarupa Damodara: On the other hand the second law says that the, the entropy, that means the randomness of the all natural, spontaneously occurring natural processes, always increase. The randomness…

Prabhupada: But… Thing is that they are studying the laws very nicely. That’s good. But they should appreciate that who has made this law? That is their defect. They are studying how the laws of nature is working. That’s nice. But they should appreciate at the same time: Who made such subtle laws that they are working so nicely? That is our philosophy. We do not only study the laws and appreciate it, but we study the law-maker also. That is the difference between ourself and the so-called scientists. They are left, poor fund of knowledge. They cannot appreciate that there is a law-maker of these subtle laws. That is their defect. That is called poor fund of knowledge.

And as soon as we accept law-maker, we have to accept that He’s a person, He has got brain. Therefore He can make laws. Just like the great ocean is working, but there is a law. It cannot come here. Although there is potency. At any second it can cover the whole city But there is a law. Just like state laws. Up to this. No more admission. You have to stop. Similarly, there is law of God. Where there is order: You mighty ocean, you cannot come beyond this. This is law. There is sun. “You must rise at half-past, at five o’clock in the morning.” “Yes, sir.” This is law. “You must rise on the Eastern side.” “Yes, Sir.” Not whimsically. Sometimes this side, sometimes that side, sometimes that side. Cannot do whimsically. That is law of nature. And behind the law of nature, there is the order-giver, law-maker.

This is perfect knowledge. mayadhyaksena prakrtih suyate sa-caracaram [Bg. 9.10]. “Under My superintendence, the laws of nature is working.” This is intelligence. We are teaching people this intelligence. That’s all. We don’t decry that your studying of the laws of nature is useless. We don’t say that. We say: “Not so much. This is imperfect. Go forward still.” And that is perfection. You are a science student. By your scientific knowledge, you prove that behind these laws, there is Krsna. Then your scientific knowledge is perfect.

Either from the chemical department or physical department or electrical department. Any department. It doesn’t matter. Through that department you go to the ultimate center. Just like here is center. And there are so many spokes. So many spokes. So whichever spoke you may be, come to the center. That is your perfection. The spokes may be of different direction. Like that. But center is Krsna. The energy, central energy is Krsna. Atah pumbhir dvija-srestha varnasrama-vibhagasah, svanusthitasya dharmasya samsiddhir hari-tosanam [SB 1.2.13]. And these, these living entities, they’re flying. They have got intelligence. “The men are coming. We shall be smashed.” They’re flying, taking shelter. Defence. Ahara-nidra-bhaya-mai… Defence, defence measures. They know how to defend themselves in their own way. Similarly they know how to eat and similarly they know how to sleep.

But what is the difference between this insect and me? I can talk of God, I can understand God. It cannot. That is the difference. I can study Vedic literature, so many facilities for me. But all these facilities, all this intelligence, I am utilizing for the same purpose, eating, sleeping, sex and defence. Therefore it is useless waste of time, waste of life, valuable life. What is their benefit? Suppose you are studying that this law is working like that, this law is working like that, but you cannot help. You cannot change the law. You are under the laws. So what is the benefit simply by studying?

Svarupa Damodara: They get some pleasure.

Prabhupada: Eh?

Svarupa Damodara: Just knowing the law.

Prabhupada: That, that is sense gratification. That is sense gratification. Tesam kleso vasisyate. For that sense gratification, he’s working so hard, spending so much money, but the result is that, taking labor is their business. That’s all. No benefit, no other benefit. Tesam klesa eva vasisyate. Nanyat, yatha sthula tusa-khandana.(?) Just like you have taken the rice from the paddy. So now it is only skin. And if you try to employ that machine, Deki(?), what is called?

Devotee: Thresher.

Svarupa Damodara: Deki(?) What you’ll gain?

Prabhupada: Deki, yes. Simply dag da dag da dag dak. (sound imitation) But the rice is already taken away. So their labor is being spoiled in that way. They, pleasure… For the pleasure’s sake, they are spoiling the human facilities. This is their intelligence. Therefore Bhaktivinoda Thakura says: jada-vidya jato mayara vaibhava tomara bhajane badha, anitya samsare moha janamiya jibake karaye gadha. This jada-vidya, this material science, is simply a hindrance to our progress of spiritual life. All these rascal scientists, they’ll deny God. That is their business.

Just like you said yesterday that somebody was accepting God, and the other scientists, they thought: “No, it is insult.” So already they are in oblivion. They cannot understand what is God. And these rascals are making them more and more rascals. “There is no God.” By their scientific research, the rascals are becoming more rascals. And they’re becoming captivated: “This is pleasure.” What pleasure you will do you with. Therefore they are, they are gadha. They are gadha and they are creating gadhas. That is the song of Bhaktivinoda Thakura. Jada-vidya jato mayara… It is expansion of maya’s illusory energy. The so-called scientific advancement is simply expanding the influence of maya’s illusory energy. They’re already rascals and fools, and still they are being made rascals and fools. So they’re forgetting their real purpose of life and the whole human life is spoiled. This is the result of so-called scientific advancement.

Brahmananda: Bhaktivinoda Thakura also says that the modern education makes men just like an ass.

Prabhupada: That is, I am explaining. (pause) Just like this, what is called, anthropology?

Svarupa Damodara: Astrology?

Prabhupada: Darwin’s…?

Svarupa Damodara: Dar, Darwin? Oh, naturalists.

Prabhupada: No, No. There are…

Svarupa Damodara: Oh, archaeologists?

Prabhupada: No, no. Anthropology. There’s a department…

Svarupa Damodara: Anthropologists study with the skulls and…

Prabhupada: Oh, oh. This is…

Karandhara: Ecology?

Svarupa Damodara: Yes.

Prabhupada: Anthropology. It is a false theory, and upon this so many universities are spending money, professors. Thousands. Rascal theory. You see. In this way, they’re wasting money. Srama eva hi kevalam. Avisuddha-buddhayah.

Karandhara: They always have to revise their theories because about every few years they find something new which contradicts everything they have said before.

Prabhupada: Yes. That is their intelligence.

Brahmananda: And they think that’s progress.

Prabhupada: Yes. Progress in one sense. Because they’re rascals, making little progress.

Svarupa Damodara: Advancing in the wrong direction.

Prabhupada: But the real progress is that when they will understand that: “We are rascals.” That will be real progress, when they come to understand that: “We are all fools and rascals.” That will be real progress. Just like Caitanya Mahaprabhu presented Himself that: “My Guru Maharaja found me a rascal number one. Yes.” That is real progress.

Svarupa Damodara: Science is nearing that stage. Science…

Prabhupada: Because they’re going to accept that they’re all rascals? That will be the real progress. Bahunam janmanam ante jnanavan mam prapadyate [Bg. 7.19]. After many, many births of rascaldom, when he comes to Krsna and surrenders. Yes. Vasudevah sarvam iti [Bg. 7.19]. He is everything. That is real knowledge. (pause)

Svarupa Damodara: A group of scientists are now working on the idea that before we start anything, one should think…

Prabhupada: No, there is the latest theory. What is this, theory of ignorance? Or what is that? Theory of impossibility, or something like that?

Karandhara: Oh, theory of uncertainty?

Prabhupada: Uncertainty, yes. Theory of uncertainty. Everything is uncertain. And that is little intelligence. That, how to find out the certainty. (pause)

Svarupa Damodara: The scientists, they claim that the discoveries are accidental and incidental, by accident, by chance.

Prabhupada: What is this? That means they’re fools.

Svarupa Damodara: In many instances, when they try to find out something, they do not find the real one that they want, but in between, along the way, they find something else. So that is why they call it by accident. Because they did not aim for that, but somehow they get it along the way. (pause) [break]

Prabhupada: …also know how to keep pace with the big, big waves. They know how to do it. They’re not afraid of big waves.

Svarupa Damodara: They know that the wave is coming. They run because they know that the wave is coming.

Prabhupada: Yes. And they know how to go forward and come back. Who has taught them this discipline? Krsna is there, within. Sarvasya caham hrdi sannivistho mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca [Bg. 15.15]. Krsna is dictating: “Now you go forward. Now you come back. Here is your food.” He’s giving intelligence. Sarvasya caham hrdi sannivistho mattah smrtir jnanam apohanam ca [Bg. 15.15]. He’s giving direction in every living entity, but when a human being, He gives direction, if he surrenders, that: “Go this way. You’ll come to Me.” Dadami buddhi-yogam tam yena mam upayanti te. And that is human intelligence.

So far these lower animals are concerned, they are given, being given intelligence how to eat, how to sleep, how to mate, how to defend. But a human being, if he engages himself in the service of the Lord, then Lord will give intelligence how to come back to home, back to Godhead. This is stated in the Bhagavad-gita. That is the condition. Tesam satata-yuktanam bhajatam priti-purvakam [Bg. 10.10]. “Only to those who are engaged in devotional service with love and faith, I give him intelligence how to come back to home, back to Godhead.” Therefore, after coming to human form of body, we must awaken our intelligence about understanding the Supreme Lord. And if we take up the process sincerely, with love, then Lord within will give you dictation: “You come this way, come this way, come this way.” Otherwise, not.

The first condition is: tesam satata-yuktanam. Therefore we are trying to engage all our disciples to be engaged twenty-four hours in devotional service. Then his life will be successful. That is our Krsna consciousness movement. Satata. Satata means always, constantly. Just like we are walking, but we are engaged in Krsna consciousness. Others are walking. They’re wasting time. But we are, we are walking, but, at the same time, we are engaged in Krsna consciousness. We are eating. We are engaged in Krsna consciousness. We are sleeping. We are engaged in Krsna consciousness. We are working… Always. Then Krsna will see: “Now he’s serious. Let him have some intelligence, how he can come back to home.” This is the process.

And the pleasure of sense gratification, oh, that is also known how to do it by the hogs and dogs. They know. The hogs are eating everything, up to stool, for sense gratification. So the human being, if they have no discrimination, they can eat anything and everything for sense grati…, they are no better than hogs. What is the difference between hog and human being? The hog has no discrimination of eating. Anything it will eat, up to stool. So if a human being becomes like hog, without any discrimination, he will eat anything, that is advancement of civilization? Advancement of becoming hog. That’s all. And they like, actually. The hippies, they like hogs.

Brahmananda: They worship them.

Prabhupada: Worship. That is their advancement of… After taking so much university education, they have learned how to love hogs. Just see the fun. (pause) They are living within the sand. How these rascals are speaking that because in the moon planet there is sand only there is no living entity. How we can believe? We see practically. They do not go to the garden. They live within the sand. How they are living? (pause-break) …and they do some acrobatic feats, like that. Still they’re in no condition.

Svarupa Damodara: They’re smart.

Prabhupada: So that smartness you haven’t got. Even of a small bird. And still you are proud of advancement. The vulture goes up and he can see everything but when you go up, aeroplane, up you cannot see where is your home. Is it not? They can find out, four miles, five miles away, where is a corpse. Immediately they flock. (pause) What is this building? Some…

Karandhara: An auditorium. We’re going to have a festival here on, next month.

Prabhupada: Oh. That’s nice. What do they charge?

Karandhara: Well, if you don’t charge anything, they don’t charge you anything for using it.

Prabhupada: Oh, they don’t charge?

Karandhara: No. If you don’t charge people for coming to the function, they don’t charge you for using this place.

Prabhupada: Oh, that’s nice.

Karandhara: It’s owned by the city.

Prabhupada: This is good. We can hold meetings, distribute prasadam. (pause) They have discovered computer machine…?

Svarupa Damodara: Yes.

Prabhupada: And put some sand in it. Let it count. Not very much. A handful of sand and put in. The machine will stop. The result will be the machine will be no more working.

Svarupa Damodara:Computer will reject.

Prabhupada: Eh.

Svarupa Damodara: Computer will reject, saying that: “I cannot do it.”

Prabhupada: They reject?

Svarupa Damodara: Yes. Something which is not possible…

Prabhupada: Then, then it is imperfect. If he cannot count, reject, then it is imperfect. Hare Rama Hare Rama…

Karandhara: They would estimate.

Prabhupada: Eh?

Karandhara: They would estimate.

Prabhupada: What is that, estimating. Estimate how many…?

Karandhara: They cannot count perfectly. So they estimate.

Prabhupada: Rough idea. (pause) So on the sea side, it is more pleasant than in the park. Is it not? Brace air. (pause) This is bike route? Bicycle route?

Karandhara: Yes. (pause)

Prabhupada: The car looks like governor’s car.

Devotee: Jagad-guru (indistinct)

Prabhupada: Hare Krsna (end)

Tags: laws, laws of nature, nature\'s laws, Science

About the Author

HDG A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada Founded the Hare Krishna Movement in 1966 in New York. In only 11 years he spread the movement all over the world. He wrote more than 80 books including Bhagavad-gita As It Is, Srimad-Bhagavatam, Sri Caitanya-caritamrta, Sri Isopanisad. Prabhupada's books constitute a complete library of Vedic philosophy, religion, literature and culture.

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