When you speak of God, then they are not ready to hear. But if you speak of dog, that “Here is a dog’s medicine. You can maintain a dog like this, and a dog can become fatty like this,” oh, it is very scientific matter. You see? So they are called grhamedhis. So they have got many subject matter to hear, but they are not agreeable to hear only one thing—about God.
Why? Now, apasyatam atma-tattvam: [SB 2.1.2] “They do not know what is self-realization.” Apasyatam, cannot see. Their vision is very poor. Why? They are thinking this body as self; therefore they are very poorly thoughtful. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam, in another place, it is stated, yasyatma-buddhih kunape tri-dhatuke [SB 10.84.13]. Every day we are experiencing that “I am not this body. The body is growing. I am still there.” There are so many instances. But we cannot understand that we are not this body. Apasyatam atma- tattvam [SB 2.1.2]. Atma means, the atma… There are various meanings of atma. Atma sometimes is meant, indicating this body, atma is sometimes indicating this mind, atma is soul, and atma, Paramatma, the Supreme Lord. Atma-tattvam. Tattvam means truth, philosophy, or science. So they do not know the science of atma, either take it body or mind. Generally, they take it as this body. So so far body is concerned, there are so many departments: medical department and health department and… I do not remember. There are so many departments. All these departments of knowledge, they are practically on the basis of this body. Then higher than this, atma, if you take it, “mind,” there are psychological department, speculation department, philosophical department, so many departments, mind. Then intellectual department. But there is no department of the atma, of the soul. That is the defect of the modern civilization.
Therefore Bhagavata says, apasyatam atma-tattvam: [SB 2.1.2] “They have no information of the real atma, of the real position, real background of all these activities. They do not see it.” Therefore they have got many subject matter to hear about this body, about this mind, about intellectual activities, and so many things. But because they do not know that atma means the self, they do not know, therefore they have got many subject matter except this one—the soul, the subject matter of soul. Apasyatam atma-tattvam grhesu grha-medhinam [SB 2.1.2].
And why they are so much ignorant? “Because they have made home as the center of activities. They do not know; neither they are educated. It is not their fault. The system of education is faulty. They do not give any education about the atma-tattvam. They give education that, about economic development, about technological understanding, about scientific understanding of the laws of nature, and so many other things, but there is no department of knowledge to understand what is soul.
Srimad-Bhagavatam 2.1.2-5
by His Divine Grace A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Montreal, October 23, 1968
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