Every conditioned living entity in this material world has four defects. They are sure to: 1) commit mistakes, 2) become illusioned, 3) have imperfect senses, and 4) to cheat others. Out of these four, the cheating propensity is the most prominent. This is because the conditioned soul's are trying to become "the Lord of all that I survey". In this way there is war and fierce competition to become "Number One". In this day and age practically everyone is cheating and being cheated. The famous politician from 200 BC India, Chanakya Pandit, once said that in order to head off being cheated, one must also inevitably cheat the cheater. And so goes the dog eat dog world known as the "Rat Race".
Our government's educational institutions are cheating its citizens into thinking that they can climb the latter of material life and rise "to the top", but those same leaders who are "at the top" are also victims of conditional life. The leaders as well as the everyday man, are all conditioned by nature's laws; repeated birth, death, desease, and old age.
Why is one man born rich, while another man is born poor? Why are there babies born with birth defects? It is because they are conditioned to nature's law of Karma, the law of "activities" or "action and reaction". It is stated in the Eighth chapter of the Bagavad-Gita As It Is "yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ tyajaty ante kalevaram", "Whatever state of being one remembers when he quits his body, that state he will attain without fail" and henceforth there is birth, death, disease, and old age and than again it is repeated. It is stated in the Vedic literature that there are 8,400,000 different types of bodies that the soul can take. Each one is trying to lord it over the other, trying to become dominant, trying to cheat the other. And so much energy is being waisted in cheating and being cheated.
The Vedic literature recommends that one break free from this conditioned life by finding a person who is not conditioned. In the Srimad-Bhagavatam (11th canto, 3rd chapter, verse 21) it is stated, "tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam", “One who is inquisitive to understand the highest goal and benefit of life must approach a bona fide spiritual master and surrender unto him.” It is also stated in the Bhagavad-Gita in the 4th Chapter, verse 34, "tad viddhi praṇipātena paripraśnena sevayā..." "Just try to learn the truth by approaching a spiritual master. Inquire from him submissively and render service unto him. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the truth."
It is understood that because the spiritual master is liberated from this repeated cycle of nature's laws (Samsara), that he can impart perfect knowledge unto the conditioned souls. And this is done because the bona fide Spiritual Master is following the "perfect person" or the Maha Purusha.
Who is that perfect person? The Vedas state that the perfect person has six opulences; 1) He is the richest, 2) He is the most powerful, 3) He is the most famous, 4) He is the most beautiful, 5) He is the greatest in knowledge, and 6) He is the greatest renouncer. It is stated that one who has these 6 opulences in full, he is God, or Krishna.
The Vedic knowledge comes directly from the Maha Purusha, Krishna, by way of succeeding disciples who are fully considered liberated persons. Krishna Himself says in the 4th chapter of the Bhagavad-Gita, "imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam" , "I instructed this imperishable science of yoga to the sun-god, Vivasvān, and Vivasvān instructed it to Manu, the father of mankind, and Manu in turn instructed it to Ikṣvāku." This disciplic succession today is being carried on by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada and his disciples.
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