Why has he forgotten? The jīva forgets because his intelligence is polluted. Why is it polluted? Due to the influence of māyā. When the jīva desires to lord it over māyā and enjoy her, his intelligence is polluted, and he is captured by māyā. So māyā says, "Alright, you want to enjoy me? Oh, please come, please come." So māyā is a witch, māyā je piśāci. Do you know māyā is a witch? So, she imprisons the soul, "Alright, you are now a prisoner of mine. Do you want to enjoy me? Come to my fold." So, she makes him a prisoner, puts him in the fort, and inflicts punishment on him, "Alright, this is the result of enjoying māyā."
The reason for our falling into māyā is polluted consciousness. So, if we take shelter under the guru, our consciousness can be purified. Why does one suffer from the modes of material nature, and why are we subjected to the modes? What is the reason for our suffering? Because we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa. Why? Why have we forgotten Kṛṣṇa? Because our intelligence is polluted. Due to our polluted intelligence, we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa, and therefore we are subjected to the modes of material nature.

Bhagavad-gītā says, indriyāṇi parāṇy āhur indriyebhyaḥ paraṁ manaḥ manasas tu parā buddhir yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ [3.42]. Do you understand this verse from the Bhagavad gītā? The mind is superior to the senses, and intelligence is superior to the mind, but who is superior to intelligence? Ātma. Yo buddheḥ paratas tu saḥ. So, what are you? Are you the senses or mind or intelligence or soul? Who are you? You are the soul, meaning the senses, mind, and intelligence are all subordinate to you. You are superior to all of these. They are subordinate to you. They are not your master. You are the master. You are the master of the senses, of the mind, and also of intelligence.

Then a question arises: how did that intelligence get polluted when you are the master of the intelligence, which is superior to the mind, which is superior to the senses? Who is responsible for it? You, yourself, are responsible for it! Do you know it? No. That is a fact, and you don't understand it. You don't know it unless you are fortunate enough to meet a bona fide spiritual master and are instructed by him, then you can understand it. Otherwise, you won't understand it. You are responsible for the pollution of your intelligence, the forgetfulness of Kṛṣṇa, and the suffering in this material existence.

This material existence or material life, Prahlāda Mahārāja says, is like a dream. It's like a dreaming stage. Previously, Prahlāda Mahārāja has talked about three stages: awake, dream, and deep sleep. Jāgrata avasthā, svapna avasthā and suṣupti nidrā avasthā. So, for example, in a dream, you see that your head is cut off. Then you cry, "Oh, my head is cut off!" You wake up, and it's a dream. When you see in a dream that you have become the king of heaven, then you are very happy and enjoy yourself. You see yourself dancing with the angels, dancing girls of heaven like Urvaśī and Menakā. When the dream finishes and you awake, "Oh, I am sleeping here. I am in my court, sleeping. I saw that I had become Indra, the king of heaven, and I was dancing with dancing girls. Oh, where is it? Here is nothing." This dream is false.