Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam 2.3.20-21
—
Los Angeles, June 17, 1972 -
This doggish mentality has to be sacrificed. Otherwise, what you can sacrifice? What you have got? Renouncement. There is no question of renouncement. You haven't got anything, what to renounce? When you come naked, and you go naked. Simply by false, illusory conception, you think: "This is mine, this is mine, this is mine." Actually, when you take your birth, you do not bring anything with you. And when you go away, you do not take away anything. The things were there, and things will be there. You come and go. But then where is the question of sacrifice? Where is the question of renouncement? This is illusion. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam [Īśo mantra 1]. Everything belongs to God; nothing belongs to you. So what is the meaning of renouncement? And what is the meaning of enjoyment? You cannot enjoy others' property, neither it is a very nice thing if you say, "I renounce it." Suppose you are passing through Bank of America, if you say, "I renounce this." Where, where? What is the renouncement?
Bank of America belongs to you? This is craziness. You cannot enjoy the Bank of America. If you go and try to enjoy, then you'll be criminal. And if you say, "I renounce it," then you are a madman. This is your position. But people are going on under two impressions. Somebody, the karmīs, they are thinking, "I am enjoyer. I am the lord of all I survey. This America is mine. You cannot enter." So this is the karmī's position. Falsely, they are claiming proprietorship, which does not belong to them. Thieves, rather; they are thieves, rogues. There is a story that a, a group of thieves, they plundered some booty, some property, somewhere, and then, out of the town, they were dividing. So one of the thieves was speaking, "Please divide the property morally." Now, the property's stolen property, and they are speaking of "morally." Devil recites scripture. Similarly, you Americans, you have come from Europe, you have stolen this property. Now you are speaking of morality.