Five Designations That Are Of The Same Essence

“Situated on the vehicle given by material nature and reminded by the Supersoul within the heart, the living entity struggles all over the universe to fulfill his plans, thinking, ‘I am a brahmana,’ ‘I am a kshatriya,’ ‘I am an American,’ ‘I am an Indian,’ and so on. All these designations are of the same essence.” (Shrila Prabhupada, Shrimad Bhagavatam, 4.29.62 Purport)

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1. Brahmana

“Yes, I am familiar with the caste system. It is controversial to people on the outside, but insiders don’t have much of a problem with it. I never did. Okay, perhaps that is because I was born into the highest caste. I am a brahmana. We lived by the culture of the brahmanas, at least to the best extent possible. Most of the adults did not eat meat. They did not drink. This is from what I noticed while growing up.

“There is nothing wrong with having a hierarchy, a pecking order, a chain of command, if you will. Every functional organizational unit has the same, whether they explicitly acknowledge it or not. Do I feel privileged to be in the position of a brahmana? Sure, but who cares. This is my lot in life. I will take full advantage. I should not be ashamed of my heritage just because some outsider tries to guilt me over the circumstances of my birth.”

2. Kshatriya

“We protect others from injury. While everyone else runs away, screaming in fear, overcome by terror, we lean into the danger. We head straight to where the problem is. A burning building. A gunman on a rampage. A helpless dependent stuck in a dangerous situation. Society calls upon us. It is our duty to answer that call. I am certainly proud of my position, of my standing, and of my occupation. I try my best to live up to the ideals.”

3. American

“It is the greatest place in the world. It is the most flourishing place in the history of existence, if you ask me. You want to know the secret? It is in our founding documents. We place limits not on what the people can do, but rather on what the government can do. We have freedoms from God. We acknowledge that. No one is better or worse over here. The government officials answer to us; we do not answer to them. Anyone can come here and succeed, if they have the right attitude. Hard work. Perseverance. Respect for the rule of law. Everyone has a chance.”

4. Indian

“Sorry to inform you, but you have been misled your entire life. There is like this giant barrier which prevents anything truthful from entering your sphere. Take any area of study, of deliberation, of significance – the origin is in the place that I call home. We gave the world mathematics. We have the oldest language in the world, one which is still preserved, learned, and understood, though not by many. We don’t have religion in the sense of your dogmatic insistence. We can study spirituality. We can live it. Religion does not have to be limited to a compulsory meeting at an established place, once a week, where other envious members are taking attendance. Real religion is dharma. It is a way of life.

“We also do not falsely take every person to be equal or of the same status. Other countries boast of their economic progress, but see how they had to go to a foreign country to enslave people and bring them over to work as servants, with no pay, at that. Now they introduce concepts like minimum wage, to make a show of compassion for the less fortunate, but they simultaneously import lower class workers from the country neighboring to the south. There are almost two systems in place. One is the honest way, which only the suckers follow. The other is the underground way, which is known by the elite and those exploited by them. At least in my country people are honest about the circumstances. We try to work together, to make the best of the situation.”

5. Anything else

His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada describes the above designations to be of the same essence. We can take related designations, within the same category in question, and reach the same conclusion. These are only temporary in significance, after all. The individual inside does not change. They endure throughout the time continuum. Their designations lack endurance, as described in Bhagavad-gita.

नासतो विद्यते भावो नाभावो विद्यते सतः
उभयोरपि दृष्टोऽन्तस्त्वनयोस्तत्त्वदर्शिभिः

nāsato vidyate bhāvo
nābhāvo vidyate sataḥ
ubhayor api dṛṣṭo ’ntas
tv anayos tattva-darśibhiḥ

“Those who are seers of the truth have concluded that of the nonexistent there is no endurance, and of the existent there is no cessation. This seers have concluded by studying the nature of both.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 2.16)

The cause of the designations is desire, which is known as kama in Sanskrit. Kama has variety. The results to kama thus are not uniform. One person enters a certain field, while another person has the qualities suited for a different field. One person takes birth in a certain land, while another person lives across the globe. The languages are different. The objectives are different. The policies and procedures developed to govern the limited duration of life are also different.

And yet, the experience is more or less the same. Coming and going. Enjoying and rejecting. Being attracted and being repulsed. Finding happiness and suffering misery. Taking birth and then dying. The Supersoul, which is an expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, reminds the individual of their desires. It is like someone carrying a hard drive that can be accessed after booting up the machine again.

शरीरं यद् अवाप्नोति
यच् चाप्य् उत्क्रामतीश्वरः
गृहीत्वैतानि संयाति
वायुर् गन्धान् इवाशयात्

śarīraṁ yad avāpnoti
yac cāpy utkrāmatīśvaraḥ
gṛhītvaitāni saṁyāti
vāyur gandhān ivāśayāt

“The living entity in the material world carries his different conceptions of life from one body to another as the air carries aromas.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 15.8)

The machine might be different each time, but the constant factor is forgetfulness. The hard drive carries the desires for enjoyment in a temporary realm, but the Supersoul actually wants the individual to remember their eternal nature. That nature has a corresponding home, which is known as the spiritual world. The meeting with the spiritual master, who is in alignment with the interests of Supersoul, is like being called back home. If a person is fortunate enough to have this meeting, they should follow the path recommended to them. They should try to return back home, back to Godhead, rather than keep running through temporary designations.

In Closing:

Into exclusive places allowed,
Of my highest status proud.

While others crying and afraid,
Into danger on battlefield played.

Identity from place of birth,
Or features of face for worth.

But since temporary actually the same,
Elevation only when Vaikuntha to attain.