Becoming free from material suffering

"The sufferings of the conditioned soul are superficial and have no intrinsic value, like the cutting off of one’s head in a dream." What does this mean?

In his purport to SB 3.7.18, Srila Prabhupada mentions that: "The sufferings of the conditioned soul are superficial and have no intrinsic value, like the cutting off of one’s head in a dream."

Well, the sufferings we experience in this world seem to be very real indeed. People really suffer here; we can easily imagine at least a couple of situations. How can we say that their suffering is superficial and has no intrinsic value? How can it be so?

The example given is quite instructive. One may see oneself being decapitated in a dream, but this is an impossible situation. If someone were to cut our head off, how would we be able to see it? It's an impossible situation that can be experienced only in a dream. However, because one mistakenly takes the dream as real, one suffers.

Similarly, to die, be maimed, or lose a dear relative are all impossible situations. Nobody ever dies. We are all immortal spiritual beings. There is not even one case in the whole story of creation when a soul died. Nobody ever died, and no one will ever die. It's an impossible situation, which is possible only in the illusory environment of this material world. Similarly, all the relationships in the spiritual platform (the real platform) are eternal; therefore, there is no possibility of ever losing a friend or relative. Similarly, all the opulences of each of the inhabitants of the spiritual world are eternal; therefore, there is no possibility of anyone losing anything. Again, such things are possible only in the illusory environment of this material world. We suffer because we accept an illusory situation as factual.

This point is not so difficult to understand theoretically, but it's quite difficult to see things in this way when we experience the raw sufferings of this material world. Srila Prabhupada mentions in his purport that "Yet although this statement is theoretically very true, it is very difficult for the common man or the neophyte on the transcendental path to realize practically." If not even a neophyte devotee can fully understand, what to say about a materialistic person?

That's why, although we may study this philosophical point and try to apply it to our own lives, it's not very effective to try to flaunt such cheap philosophical understanding to other people when they are in difficulties. People who are experiencing material suffering should be dealt with compassion, not with cheap philosophy that we can't realize ourselves.

The next question is, how can one really realize it? How can one finally understand that material suffering is illusory and become immune to it? The answer comes in the next purport. There, Srila Prabhupada explains:

"Service to the Lord is rendered in different transcendental mellows (relationships): neutral, active, friendly, parental, and conjugal. A living entity in the liberated position of transcendental service to the Lord becomes attracted to one of the above-mentioned mellows, and when one is engaged in transcendental loving service to the Lord, one’s service attachment in the material world is automatically vanquished" (SB 3.7.19p)

This can be better understood with an example. Once, researchers conducted an experiment with rats to study the reasons and effects of addiction to drugs. In the first phase of the experiment, they put a rat alone in an empty cage. In the cage, he had the option of drinking normal water or water mixed with some addictive drug. As predicted, the rat very quickly started drinking more and more of the water with the drug, becoming addicted and eventually dying from an overdose.

One the second part of the experiment, they put a similar rat in a cage full of toys and distractions, including a wheel for exercise and other rats. The same option of normal water and laced water was offered to the second rat, but the outcome was completely different. Being able to play and socialize, the rat was not very interested in the laced water. He would check it in the beginning, but would quickly lose interest in it.

Similarly, when we are disconnected from Krsna, we can be easily attracted to material life and very strongly become identified with the pains and pleasures of this material world, but as one ad Krsna in his life, his interest in materialistic life slackens and eventually vanishes.

A real relationship with Krsna starts in the Brahma-bhuta platform. As He mentions in the Bhagavad-Gita: brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā, na śocati na kāṅkṣati. samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu, mad-bhaktiṁ labhate parām. (One who is thus transcendentally situated at once realizes the Supreme Brahman and becomes fully joyful. He never laments or desires to have anything. He is equally disposed toward every living entity. In that state, he attains pure devotional service unto Me.)

As long as we are in a material platform, we may study the Vaiṣnava philosophy and respectfully serve Krsna, but we may not be able to become fully detached from this material world. However, as our service matures, our realization deepens, and eventually, when we reach the platform when we can really start relating with Krsna in one of the five rasas.

The path for this is also given in the same purport: "The association of a bona fide spiritual master like the sage Maitreya can be of absolute help in achieving transcendental attachment for the direct service of the Lord."

To really know Krsna, we need to associate with people who know Him. Association with pure devotees is so powerful that even if we can associate with them for just a small period of time, we can still get something we can practice, and by such practice, we can progress in spiritual life and eventually reach the stage where we can start to really understand things.