Srila Gurudeva: Krsna is telling us, “How can we know, ‘Who am I?’ How can a God which is not visible by these senses, these material eyes and senses, how can He be realized?”
tad viddhi pranipatena
pariprasnena sevaya
upadeksyanti te jnanam
jnaninas tattva-darsinah
-Bhagavad-Gita 4.34
[Acquire this jnana by offering prostrated obeisances to a guru who imparts transcendental knowledge, by asking relevant questions from him and by rendering service to him. The tattva darsis, who are expert in the imports of sastra, and the jnanis, who have realized the Absolute Reality, will enlighten you with that jnana.]
We should go to any realized soul to know how we can come out of birth and death, misery and sorrow. How will we be happy? Who is the controller of this world? Why are we becoming so unhappy? He will tell you, “You should remember Krsna.” How can we know Krsna? Then he will give the intelligence to know these things. Caitya-guru will inspire us in our mind that, “You should go to any realized person who knows all these things.” Who is the controller of this world? Who is controlling this world? Who is nourishing and supporting everyone and everything? Who has created this world? You should go to those who know this. Tattva-darsi, those who are realizing everything in their heart, go to them.
Pranipatena means surrendering. Pariprasnena, you should ask some question. In what mood? To know something. You should ask any question very politely and humbly, not in a challenging mood or in a mood to defeat him. You cannot defeat him. Also they will not tell you anything if you approach them in a challenging mood. First go and take their shelter and then ask some question, “I want to know something. If I am qualified to know, then you should reply.” Then, sevaya, approach them with a serving mood. You should try to serve them. If anyone is giving you a hundred dollars salary, you must serve him. You will have to serve him, otherwise you cannot have that salary. If you want to have some money, you will have to serve.
So, this is the most high class of wealth to know these things because by this we can overcome all troubles and all kinds of miseries. So we will have to serve him. How we can serve him? What does he want? He does not want any wealth, reputation, or any worldly thing. He only wants some pure sraddha, faith. Faith in whom? In the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the controller of this world. Then he will easily give you this knowledge and by knowing this you will begin to practice bhakti and then quickly you will know all these things and you will overcome this birth and death and all these things.
[Spoken by Srila Gurudeva on December 19th, 1998, Bali, published as part of the Bhakta Bandhav Anthology, Volume 24]