Sreyas and Preyas

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Sri Krishna Hari Das Satish Gosain

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Jan 23, 2013, 10:27:49 AM1/23/13

Sreyas and Preyas

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na ca sreyo ’nupasyami; hatva svajanam ahave

na kaìkse vijayam krsna; na ca rajyam sukhani ca (Bg. 1.31)

Translation: “I do not see how any good can come from killing my own kinsmen in this battle, nor can I, my dear Krsna, desire any subsequent victory, kingdom, or happiness.”

Srila Prabhupada explains:

So there are two things, sreyas and preyas. Here Arjuna is speaking of sreyas.

Preyas—activity, which is immediately beneficial but not ultimately auspicious. preyas means immediately palatable. Just like a child, he likes to play all day and night. Naturally. Playful child. So that is called preyas. He likes immediate pleasure.

Preyas means immediate. Just like we eat something, which I may not digest, or it may have some bad effect later on. But people are interested—the immediate benefit, without calculation of future benefit.

Sreyas—activities that are ultimately beneficial and auspicious. Sreyas means ultimate good. A father says to his child, “My dear child, just go to school or read book.” So father is asking for sreyas, ultimate good. If he is not educated in childhood, then how he will prosper in his future life? So considering the future prospect, ultimate good that is called sreyas.

So everyone should be interested for sreyas, not for preyas.

So Arjuna is considering with reference to his future, that “If I kill my kinsmen, what benefit there will be? I want victory, I want kingdom, to become happy, but if my all kinsmen are killed, then what is the value of my victory? With whom I shall enjoy?”

He is thinking like that. Society... The same thing: society, friendship and love. Everyone wants to enjoy life with society, friends. Nobody wants to enjoy life alone.

So where from we got this idea that I cannot enjoy alone? Just like generally a person is alone, but he gets a wife with a hope for enjoying family life, children, wife, friends.

Atah grha-ksetra-sutapta-vittair janasya moho ’yam aham mameti [SB 5.5.8].

Grha means apartment, and ksetra means land. Suta means children. Äpta means friends, society. To support all these things there is required money, vitta. Vitta means money. This is material life.

Grha means with wife. Na grham grham ity ahur grhini grham ucyate.

Actual sreyas means to achieve Krsna consciousness. That is wanting in Arjuna. He is showing that feature of life, that he wants better the society, friendship and love. He does not want to kill them. Then everything will be finished.

But actually the fact is that even after killing the so-called kinsmen, if he can satisfy Krsna, that is his sreyas. That is his sreyas. That he does not know. And because he does not know, therefore this Bhagavad-gita is there. (Bhagavad-gita 1.31, London, July 24, 1973)

Distinguish between sreyas and preyas:

Ø A human being must be intelligent enough to distinguish between preyas, or temporary gratification, and sreyas, permanent benefit.

Ø One may accept sense activity in a regulated, limited fashion so that one will be strong for serving Krsna, but if one excessively indulges the material senses, one will lose one’s gravity and seriousness in spiritual life and act like an ordinary materialist. (S.B. 11.7.39)

Ø So those who are interested in the ultimate benefit go back to home, back to Godhead. For them, worshiping the Supreme Lord is most beneficial.

Ø And those who are interested in the matter of temporary benefit, dhanam dehi, rupam dehi, yaso dehi. Just like by worshiping goddess Durga we want all these things. But we forget that whatever we get, material benefit, with the end of this material body, everything is lost.

Ø That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gita, that “At the end, I, as death, I take away all your material possession.” Sarva-haro mrtyuh. (Bhagavad-gita 4.12, Bombay, April 1, 1974)

Should be interested in sreyas:

Ø According to Vedic civilization, a human being must be God conscious. He should understand what God is, what this material world is, who he is, and what their interrelationships are. This is called sreyas, or ultimately auspicious activity.

Ø In Srimad-Bhagavatam it is said that one should be interested in sreyas. To achieve the ultimate goal of sreyas, or good fortune, one should engage everything, including his life, wealth and words, not only for himself but for others also. However, unless one is interested in sreyas in his own life, he cannot preach of sreyas for the benefit of others.

Ø Unfortunately, human beings, although they have the bodies of men, are becoming less than animals in their behavior. This is the fault of modern education. Modern educators do not know the aim of human life; they are simply concerned with how to develop the economic condition of their countries or of human society. This is also necessary.

Ø Vedic civilization considers all aspects of human life, including dharma (religion), artha (economic development), kama (sense gratification) and moksa (liberation). But humanity’s first concern should be religion. To be religious, one must abide by the orders of God, but unfortunately people in this age have rejected religion, and they are busy in economic development. Therefore they will adopt any means to get money.

Ø For economic development one does not need to get money by hook or by crook; one needs only sufficient money to maintain his body and soul. However, because modern economic development is going on with no religious background, people have become lusty, greedy and mad after money.

Ø They are simply developing the qualities of rajas (passion) and tamas (ignorance), neglecting the other quality of nature, sattva (goodness), and the brahminical qualifications. Therefore the entire society is in chaos.

Ø The Bhagavatam says that it is the duty of an advanced human being to act in such a way as to facilitate human society’s attainment of the ultimate goal of life. There is a similar verse in the Visnu Purana, 3.12.45, which is next quoted in the Caitanya-caritamrta. (C.c. Ädi lila 9.42)

Not be attracted by the preyas:

Ø So our life, this human form of life, should be used for sreyas. It is said, pumsam ekantatah sreyas. We should not be attracted by the preyas. Preyas.

Ø But modern education is so nasty that they encourage preyas. Especially in the, not in this country, everywhere.

Ø That boys and girls are not checked, rather encouraged, encouraged in the matter of immature sex life. Preyas. They want it, “All right, do it, take tablets and enjoy.” This is dangerous.

Ø For this reason, the generation is becoming degraded, because they are not aiming at the sreyas. They are simply aiming at the preyas, immediate pleasing thing.

Ø They do not know that immature sex life spoils the brain, spoils strength. Everything is spoiled.

Ø In student life, brahmacari system is very nice. If he keeps brahmacari without any sex life, then his brain becomes very potent. He can remember, memory becomes very sharp, bodily sense becomes very solid. In this way his life becomes very solid for future sreyas.

Ø But that is not being taught at the present moment. But here the rsis, the great sages, they are asking, pumsam ekantatah sreyas. Tan nah samsitum arhasi, “Kindly describe what we should accept.” This is called inquiry.

Ø Everyone should be inquisitive for the ultimate benefit of life. What is that ultimate benefit of life?

Ø The ultimate benefit of life is to stop this repetition of birth and death, old age and disease. That is ultimate benefit of life. But they do not know. Then? (Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.1.9, Auckland, February 20, 1973)

Ø Example by Srila Prabhupada: Two young men, if one friend says to the other friend, “Oh, let us go to the cinema,” that is very palatable. And if he says, “Let us go to this meeting in Hare Krsna Land,” that is not very palatable. This is the distinction between sreyas and preyas. Nihsreyasaya. Nihsreyasaya means ultimate goal of life, ultimate profit of life. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 3.26.43, Bombay, January 18, 1975)

Sreyas is the ultimate goal:

Ø According to the sastras, there is sreyas and preyas. Sreyas is the ultimate goal. We should act in such a way that ultimately we will become happy.

Ø However, if we want immediate happiness and disregard the future, we want preyas. Preyas is for unintelligent people and children.

Ø The sastras instruct us to aim for sreyas and not be captivated by preyas. The supreme sreyas is bhakti-yoga. (Teachings of Lord Kapila, Devotional Service The Final Perfection, Ch. 18, verse 43)

Real Use of Intelligence:

Ø Intelligence is not gauged by IQ examinations but by the ability to distinguish the permanent from the temporary, the true from the false, the good from the bad—and to act on that understanding.

Ø One can acquire such genuine intelligence only by hearing from a bona fide spiritual master and the authorized Vaisnava scriptures.

Ø Then one will have the good sense to sacrifice immediate, temporary sense pleasures (preyas) in the interests of attaining the permanent good (sreyas): pure love of God and liberation from birth and death. (Mukund Mala Stotra, Text 41)

For persons actually serious about sreyas:

Tasmad gurum prapadyeta jijnasuh sreya uttamam [SB 11.3.21].

Ø sreyas-kamah. If you are actually inquisitive to understand what is sreyas, that is sreyas-kamah. kamah means desiring, and sreyas means ultimate good. But if you want to reach the goal of life, then go to Krsna conscious movement. If you are actually serious about the ultimate goal of life, then you approach a guru.

Ø Preyas-kamah: If you want to enjoy these material facilities, then you can go to such kind of men, such kind of men, and... If you want to learn drinking, so go to a club where drinking is very encouraged. If you want to enjoy sex, go to the club where prostitutes are available. That is preyas-kamah.

Ø Who becomes sreyas-kamah? Maha-bhaga, with great fortune. Not ordinary person. Unfortunate or misfortunate, they cannot understand Krsna consciousness. Maha-bhaga. Very, very great fortunate person. (Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.9.54, Vrndavana, April 9, 1976)

sreyas-kamah persons:

Ø Persons freed from the dualities of material desire, they are called sreyas-kamah. In other words, they are not concerned with dharma (religiosity), artha (economic development), or kama (sense gratification). The only concern of such devotees is moksa, liberation.

Ø Either in this life or in the next, the only concern of such saintly devotees is to serve the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus they are also absolute because they have no other desires. (S.B. 8.12.6)

Acquire real knowledge and happiness:

atmano gurur atmaiva ; purusasya visesatah

yat pratyaksanumanabhyam ; sreyo ’sav anuvindate

TRANSLATION

An intelligent person, expert in perceiving the world around him and in applying sound logic, can achieve real benefit through his own intelligence. Thus sometimes one acts as one’s own instructing spiritual master.

PURPORT

As illustrated in this chapter by the conversation between King Yadu and the avadhuta, a sensitive, reasonable person can acquire real knowledge and happiness simply by carefully observing the world around him.

Ø By observing the happiness and distress of other living entities, one can understand what is beneficial and what is destructive.

Ø Srila Jiva Gosvami states in this connection, gurv-anusarane pravartaka ity arthah: the knowledge acquired by one’s own perception and intelligence leads one to appreciate the value of the representative of Lord Krsna.

Ø The word sreyas in this verse indicates that one can advance in life through one’s own intelligence.

Ø By good association one should gradually come to understand one’s eternal position as servant of Krsna, and then one becomes very eager to live in the company of other enlightened persons.

Ø Birds of a feather flock together. The symptom of an enlightened servant of Krsna is that he is eager for the company of other such great souls.

Ø Thus by one’s sensitive and rational observation of this material world, one should come to appreciate the value of spiritual life in the association of the devotees. (SB 11.7.20)

Yours Servant

Sri Krishna Hari Das

Dr. Satish Chander Gosain

M.B., B. S., D.N.B.(i) Med

Congregational Preacher, ISKCON Delhi, NCR, Meerut & Panchkula.

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