Srimad-Bhagavatam: Canto 3 - Chapter 1 - Verse 25


Sanskrit:

यथा ह्यप्रतिबुद्धस्य प्रस्वापो बह्वनर्थभृत् ।स एव प्रतिबुद्धस्य न वै मोहाय कल्पते ॥ २५ ॥

ITRANS:

yathā hy apratibuddhasyaprasvāpo bahv-anartha-bhṛtsa eva pratibuddhasyana vai mohāya kalpate

Translation:

In the dreaming state one’s consciousness is almost covered, and one sees many inauspicious things, but when he is awakened and fully conscious, such inauspicious things cannot bewilder him.

Purport:

In the condition of dreaming, when one’s consciousness is almost covered, one may see many unfavorable things which cause disturbance or anxiety, but upon awakening, although he remembers what happened in the dream, he is not disturbed. Similarly the position of self-realization, or understanding of one’s real relationship with the Supreme Lord, makes one completely satisfied, and the three modes of material nature, which are the cause of all disturbances, cannot affect him. In contaminated consciousness one sees everything to be for his own enjoyment, but in pure consciousness, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he sees that everything exists for the enjoyment of the supreme enjoyer. That is the difference between the dream state and wakefulness. The state of contaminated consciousness is compared to dream consciousness, and Kṛṣṇa consciousness is compared to the awakened stage of life. Actually, as stated in Bhagavad-gītā, the only absolute enjoyer is Kṛṣṇa. One who can understand that Kṛṣṇa is the proprietor of all the three worlds and that He is the friend of everyone is peaceful and independent. As long as a conditioned soul does not have this knowledge, he wants to be the enjoyer of everything; he wants to become a humanitarian or philanthropist and open hospitals and schools for his fellow human beings. This is all illusion, for one cannot benefit anyone by such material activities. If one wishes to benefit his fellow brother, he must awaken his dormant Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The Kṛṣṇa conscious position is that of pratibuddha, which means “pure consciousness.”