(Kadamba Kanana Swami, 19 February 2013, London, England, Srimad Bhagavatam 8.5.13)
So the illusory energy, maya, is very strong as it is described. So strong that it bewilders everyone. This is interesting because there are three energies of the Supreme Personality of Godhead described, namely antaranga-sakti – the internal energy that is manifest in the spiritual world; tatastha-sakti – the living beings who are the intermediate energy; and bahiranga-sakti – the external energy.
So, this external energy, maya, although it is of a lower nature, of a lower order than the living being, is more powerful than the living being. How is that?
It is said because the material energy is a reflection of the original spiritual energy and because the spiritual world is unlimited, therefore the reflection of that unlimited spiritual world is almost unlimited and therefore maya is creating almost unlimited varieties of temptations.
Somehow or other, she knows! She knows exactly what we think and what we desire because maya is not on the outside of us, maya is within. That is the difficulty. Therefore, she knows exactly, she knows exactly every thought we have, every desire we have and provides accordingly. So in this way, it becomes very tricky and very difficult to overcome the illusory energy which just offers us the irresistible opportunity. You could let anything go except this one dream that is now right in front of you. You know, you’d be out of your mind if you let it go! It may never come again. You’d never forgive yourself. So, we can be Krsna conscious tomorrow and just for a day have a vacation!
Or other varieties. Let us say, yes to Krsna… yes to the Supreme Personality of Godhead… yes to devotional service… yes to the Bhagavad-gita. Yes, I have full faith in all that but I don’t have faith in myself that I will be able to do it. I have doubts about my own power to actually follow it all. Of course, indirectly, that is having doubt in the power of Krsna, in the power of Bhagavad-gita, in the power of Krsna’s words to reform us.
Do we think that we are so fallen, that even Krsna cannot do anything about it!? Because when we think that these rasas are so difficult and we don’t know if we can make it, then it means that we think that we are the doer! We still think we are the doer and actually the success of this rasas depends on us! It’s not like that. It is actually a matter of taking shelter. Certainly take shelter! The shelter is so potent and powerful. We simply have to just take shelter and automatically prakashante mahatmanah (Svetashvatara Upanishad 6.23). Automatically the transformation will take place by transcendental influence of the Supreme Lord. So in this way, through taking shelter of Krsna, we can we be easily saved of the material energy.