Come out of Confusion and Frustration by dancing and singing in Rath

Yatra
By His Divine Grace A.C Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada

Lord Caitanya Mahäprabhu appeared five hundred years ago, and He introduced this Kåñëa
consciousness movement. This Ratha-yäträ is one of the item of this Kåñëa consciousness
movement. Jagannätha, just try to understand Jagannätha. Jagat means the moving world.
Gacchati iti jagat, Sanskrit word, gacchati means which is moving. So all these planets, this
universe, even the sun, everything is moving, as we are moving... We are, of course, animate.
Even inanimate things are moving. Your motorcar moving, your machine is moving, but they
are moving under the control of some animate object. But animate objects moving, some of
the animate objects are standstill, just like trees, but ultimately they are also moving in this
sense: that one species of life is being transmigrated to another species of life. Therefore it is
called jagat. Jagat means moving. And Jagat-nätha, nätha means the proprietor, master,
proprietor. So Jagannätha means the proprietor or the master of all these movements, He is
Jagannätha. And Balabhadra, Balaräma, bala means strength and räma means enjoyment. So
Balaräma means who gives you spiritual strength for enjoying eternal blissful life, He is
Balaräma. And Subhadrä, su means auspicious and bhadra means well-being. Subhadrä,
Jagannätha and Balaräma combined together are present before you to reclaim you all from
your miserable condition of life. That is the purport of this Ratha-yäträ Festival. [break] If
anyone sees on the cart Jagannätha, Subhadrä, and Baladeva, then he does not take birth
again in this material world. Ratheja vamanaà dåñöa

This Kåñëa consciousness movement is not a religious type; it is a great culture. It is a great
culture for spiritual emancipation. Try to understand that we are in this world—not only we
are; everything is combination of matter and spirit. Just like your body, this body is matter;
but within this body, you, the spirit soul, is encaged or embodied. So anywhere you see, the
tree... There are so many species of life, every species, every individual living entity is
combination of spirit and matter. When the spirit is out of this body, then the body is matter
only. Just like in your Bible also it is said, "Dust thou art, dust thou be-est." That dust is this
body but not this spirit soul. So in this material world we are part and parcel of God,
Jagannätha, and we are under the auspicious protection of Subhadrä, and we have got, I mean
to say, implicitly the spiritual strength. In the Vedic literature you will find, näyam ätmä bala-
hénena labhyo. Bala, bala means this Balaräma, the spiritual strength. The spiritual
realization can be achieved by the grace of Lord Balaräma.

So this human form of life is meant for spiritual realization. Please try to understand that this
human form of life is a chance to get out of this material entanglement. In other than human
life—animal life, trees life, beast life, birds life, aquatic life—there are so many, 8,400,000
species of life. Out of that, this human form of life is a boon wherein you can get out of this
material entanglement and, being freed from this material entanglement, you can enter into
the spiritual world, the kingdom of God. Yad gatvä na nivartante [Bg. 15.6]. And if you go
there, then you haven't got to come back in this material world, which is called duùkhälayam
açäçvatam [Bg. 8.15]. It is the place of miseries as well as temporary. Even if we accept this
place, miserable place, you will not be allowed to live here for long. You will have to quit
this stage. Therefore it is called açäçvatam. This is our position. In the Bhagavad-gétä, the
Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself says that this is duùkhälayam açäçvatam. So the
human form of life should endeavor how to get out of it.

In this country especially, in all other countries also, the younger generation are not very
satisfied. In your country, they say that the frustrated community, the confused community,
the hippies. So my request to you, those who are feeling frustration, confused, this is a good
qualification. Good qualification in this sense: that those who are feeling frustration and
confused, they are disgusted with this materialistic way of life. That is a good qualification
for spiritual advancement. But if you are not properly guided, then that will be another
frustration. That will be another frustration. To save you from that frustration, this Kåñëa
consciousness movement has come to your country, Lord Caitanya's movement. A great
devotee, Narottama däsa Öhäkura, he sings, patita-pävana-hetu tava avatära: "My dear Lord,
Your incarnation is to reclaim all kinds of fallen souls." Mo sama patita prabhu nä paibe ära.
"But I am the most fallen. Therefore, my claim is first. Because You have advented Yourself
to claim all fallen souls, I am the most fallen; therefore You take care of me first."

So actually, who is a fallen soul? Fallen soul means anyone who has taken birth in this
material world, he is a fallen soul, never mind what he is. He may be Brahmä or he may be an
insignificant ant. Anyone who is within this material world. Because our constitutional
position is spirit soul. Spirit means änandamayo 'bhyäsät (Vedänta-sütra 1.1.12), by nature
joyful, that is spirit. So because we have been put into some awkward position of this
material existence, therefore we are... Although constitutionally we are joyful, we do not find
anything joyful. Try to understand this point. In this material world, because we have been
encaged with this material body, although our endeavor is to become joyful, on account of
this encagement of this material body, we are not joyful.

So my request to you, those who are feeling frustration or confused, please take to this maha-
mantra, chanting, Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare
Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare. When I was coming, I was waiting there to see the
procession, so many boys and girls, they are not within our Kåñëa conscious group, they are
outsiders, but they are also chanting this Hare Kåñëa mantra very feelingly. I was very much
satisfied. Therefore my request is, I have specially come to you. I was not very feeling well to
come here. But because I have come to San Francisco, I must give you the message. It is very
important message. Those of you who are feeling frustration and confused, kindly take to this
chanting of Hare Kåñëa mantra, that's all. You... There is no expenditure, there is no loss. We
are not charging anything. It is not a business, that we are asking you to pay something
because I am giving this information. No. It is freely distributed. You please chant this Hare
Kåñëa mantra twenty-four hours. You can work, you can walk, and at the same time chant
this Hare Kåñëa mantra.

So this Ratha-yäträ Festival is a mass movement for enlightening people to this Kåñëa
consciousness movement. We have got many other festivities in Kåñëa consciousness
movement. We have got Janmäñöamé, Çré Räma-navamé, Dola-yäträ, Jhulana-yäträ. So
there are twelve months, but we have got twenty-four festivals as big as this Ratha-yäträ
Festival. So if you kindly take to them, then as advised by Lord Caitanya, kértanéyaù sadä
hariù [Cc. Ädi 17.31], you will always be in Kåñëa consciousness, and there will be no scope
of your frustration and confusion. For this purpose especially, I came in this meeting, that you
kindly accept this humble instruction that wherever you may be, in whatever position, in
whatever condition, you kindly chant these sixteen names [everyone chants], Hare Kåñëa,
Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare.
Chant again, Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare Räma, Hare Räma,
Räma Räma, Hare Hare. Again, Hare Kåñëa, Hare Kåñëa, Kåñëa Kåñëa, Hare Hare/ Hare
Räma, Hare Räma, Räma Räma, Hare Hare. Thank you very much. (end)