Join Secrets of Success on Telegram:

https://t.me/rasajnadas

Join LIVE session on SAVAJI ONLINE YouTube Channel every Sunday at 11am (IST)

One who is Krsna conscious is a perfect  yogi ; he is aware of everyone's happiness and distress by dint of his own personal experience. The cause of the distress of a living entity is forgetfulness of his relationship with God. And the cause of happiness is knowing Krsna to be the supreme enjoyer of all the activities of the human being. Krsna is the proprietor of all lands and planets. The perfect  yogi  is the sincerest friend of all living entities. He knows that the living being who is conditioned by the modes of material nature is subjected to the threefold material miseries due to forgetfulness of his relationship with Krsna. Because one in Krsna consciousness is happy, he tries to distribute the knowledge of Krsna everywhere. Since the perfect  yogi  tries to broadcast the importance of becoming Krsna conscious, he is the best philanthropist in the world, and he is the dearest servitor of the Lord.  Na tasmat kascid me priyakrt tamah.  In other words, a devotee of the Lord always looks to the welfare of all living entities, and in this way he is factually the friend of everyone. He is the best  yogi  because he does not desire perfection in  yoga  for his personal benefit, but tries for others also. He does not envy his fellow living entities. Here is a contrast between a pure devotee of the Lord and a  yogi  interested only in his personal elevation. The  yogi  who has withdrawn to a secluded place in order to meditate perfectly may not be as perfect as a devotee who is trying his best to turn every man toward Krsna consciousness.

The system of mysticism described by Lord Krsna to Arjuna beginning with the words  sucau dese  and ending with  yogi paramah  is here being rejected by Arjuna out of a feeling of inability. It is not possible for an ordinary man to leave home and go to a secluded place in the mountains or jungles to practice  yoga  in this age of Kali. The present age is characterized by a bitter struggle for a life of short duration. People are not serious about self-realization even by simple, practical means, and what to speak of this difficult  yoga  system, which regulates the mode of living, the manner of sitting, selection of place, and detachment of the mind from material engagements. As a practical man, Arjuna thought it was impossible to follow this system of  yoga,  even though he was favorably endowed in many ways. He belonged to the royal family and was highly elevated in terms of numerous qualities; he was a great warrior, he had great longevity, and, above all, he was the most intimate friend of Lord Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Five thousand years ago, Arjuna had much better facilities then we do now, yet he refused to accept this system of  yoga.  In fact, we do not find any record in history of his practicing it at any time. Therefore this system must be considered generally impossible in this age of Kali. Of course it may be possible for some very few, rare men, but for the people in general it is an impossible proposal. If this were so five thousand years ago, then what of the present day? Those who are imitating this  yoga  system in different so-called schools and societies, although complacent, are certainly wasting their time. They are completely in ignorance of the desired goal.