Just like a girl is married. Generally, a girl wants a child. But if she wants a child immediately after marriage, that is not possible. She must wait. She must serve her husband nicely. Utsāhān dhairyāt tat-tat-karma-pravartanāt. Just like a faithful wife. Time will come she will become pregnant and she will have child. So niścayāt means... Just like the girl must know because she's married, because she has got a husband, that there must be a child. It is a fact. It may be little later. Similarly, when you have entered into devotional service, bhakti-yoga, bhakti-mārga, your success is assured, provided you are enthusiastic and patient. Not that "Immediately I want a child," "Immediately I become fully Kṛṣṇa consciousness and perfect." No. There may be so many imperfections. Because we are in the imperfect atmosphere. But patiently, if you go on executing your duties in devotional service as it is directed in the śāstras and confirmed by the spiritual master, then rest assured that your success is guaranteed. This is the way. Utsāhān dhairyāt tat-tat-karma-pravartanāt. You must execute the duties.
Atmosphere (Lectures, Other)
Lectures
Nectar of Devotion Lectures
We are Brahman, but we have now forgotten. Jīva-bhūta. At the present moment, because I'm identifying with this body, I'm thinking, "I am American," "I am Indian, " "I am brāhmaṇa," "I am Vaiṣṇava," "I am this or that." No. When we are actually brahma-bhūtaḥ, as explained by Caitanya Mahāprabhu, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). Mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ (BG 15.7). That is self-realization. When we understand perfectly well that "I am eternal servant of God," servant... I'm not God; I'm servant of God. But one cannot be servant of God without becoming God. That they do not know, the Māyāvādī philosophers. Servant... Just like if one becomes secretary or servant of a very big man, he's in the same position. He's sitting on the same place. He's eating the same way. He's in the same atmosphere. So everything is same. Simply the relationship is different. That's all. So when one goes to the spiritual world... Just like the cowherd boys, the gopīs, they are on the same platform of Kṛṣṇa. They do not think that "We are lesser than Kṛṣṇa." The cowherds boy, they sometimes chastise Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is obliged to take them on the shoulder. Sometimes. They do not know that Kṛṣṇa is God, or "Kṛṣṇa is greater than me." That is the position. Equality.
We are meant for being enjoyed, not to take the post of enjoyer. Here, in this material world, everyone is artificially trying to become enjoyer, both men and women. But that is illusion. Nobody's enjoyer. Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). The supreme enjoyer is Kṛṣṇa. So just like prakṛti-puruṣa, we can get one idea, husband and wife. Husband is puruṣa, wife is prakṛti. So if the wife is faithful, always trying to serve the husband, always to make her husband pleased, and husband takes care of the wife for all her necessities of life, as that home life becomes very beautiful and happy, similarly, Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Puruṣa, enjoyer. We living entities, if we simply try to serve Him and make Him happy, as the gopīs did, then it is very congenial atmosphere as it was in Vṛndāvana. Everyone is serving Kṛṣṇa. Everyone is trying to please Kṛṣṇa. The birds, the beasts, the trees, the land, the water, the cowherd boys, the gopīs, Kṛṣṇa's father, mother, elderly people—everyone—the central point is Kṛṣṇa. That is Vṛndāvana.
These are clear things. There is no hazy idea. Everything is clear. We have to become designationless, free from designation. We shall forget. Not that "Here are some foreigners. Pick up some quarrel with them and try to drive them away. Why they have come?" So many nonsense things are going on, for want of actual spiritual education. This is not good, at least, for Vṛndāvana. This is not good. People have not been educated properly with the Vṛndāvana spirit. Therefore things are happening like that. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam: (CC Madhya 19.170) how to engage the senses, being freed from designation, in the service of the Lord. That is Vṛndāvana life. That is Vṛndāvana atmosphere. If there is any other purpose than this, then it is very difficult to utilize the opportunity, the fortune of living in Vṛndāvana. One has to be designationless.
People can rise early in the morning, take bath in the Yamunā and visit the Deities in the temple. There is no necessity of passing M.A. examination, taking B.A. degree for devotional service. Simply you have to follow the regulative principles. Then automatically you'll become spiritualized. Very simple method. Vṛndāvana is specially meant for that purpose. Why people come to Vṛndāvana? To take the advantage. Here the atmosphere is surcharged with devotional service. We should take advantage of it. This is called sādhana-bhakti. Sādhana. Sādhana-bhakti means we have to practice it. And it does not require much education. It does not depend on your riches, that you have to become a very rich man to follow the regulative principles, rise early in the morning. Anyone can rise ea... It is simply a practice. You can take bath in the Yamunā. It is simply practice. You can visit the temples early in the morning. It is simply practice. So this is called sādhana-bhakti, practicing.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
So this is called māyā. You try to understand māyā. Māyā means where there is no happiness, no fact, and still, we are struggling for it. This is called māyā. Try to understand what is māyā. Māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43). Prahlāda Mahārāja says. Actually there is no fact, and still, we are struggling for it. The whole universe is like that. Even you are situated as Brahmā or you are situated as an ordinary insignificant ant, this struggle for existence is going on. So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that "These rascals, they are struggling for existence for happiness which is not possible in this material world. And beyond this struggling atmosphere of material world, māyā atīte..." Atīte. Atīte means beyond. Māyātīte vyāpi-vaikuṇṭha-loke. There is another world. That is also informed in the Bhagavad-gītā. Paraḥ tasmād tu bhāva anyaḥ 'vyaktāvyaktāt sanātanaḥ. There is another bhāva.
So everyone is anxiety in this material world, māyā. So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to take a person or all of them from this māyā to Vaikuṇṭha. That is the Kṛṣṇa consciousness, to save the living entity from anxiety and bring him to the platform of no anxiety. That is the difference, from anxiety to no anxiety. That is the greatest gift to the human society. Everyone is full of anxiety because he is in this material world. He must be full of anxiety. So here the information is given, māyātīte vyāpi-vaikuṇṭha-loke: "There is another atmosphere, another nature, where there is no anxiety, no anxiety." Kalpa-vṛkṣa-lakṣāvṛteṣu surabhīr abhipālayanatam. Here we are keeping cows, but no milk-anxiety. Thousands of rupees' spending, and no milk, powdered milk. You see? This is the position, full of anxiety, always. So you cannot be free from anxiety in this loka. Therefore in this life, in human form of life, you can understand by cultivating knowledge from the śāstra, from guru, from saintly persons, "What is the position? What I want? Why I am full of anxiety? How it can be mitigated?" So therefore this information is given vaikuṇṭha-loka, back to home. Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāmaṁ paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6).
So especially in India, the atmosphere is very good. It is especially meant, within this universe, this plot of land known as Bhāratavarṣa, India, is the most sacred place within this universe. And of the whole land Bhāratavarṣa, in Bengal, it is very sacred. And the whole of Bengal, this Nadia is very sacred. And in the whole Nadia, this part is very sacred, Māyāpur Candradoya Temple. So by Kṛṣṇa's grace, you have got this opportunity to live here. Take advantage, full advantage of this opportunity, spiritually fortunate. This is the statement of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. Not that I am manufacturing. We cannot manufacture anything, but we can repeat the words of our predecessors. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, in his Jaiva-Dharma, or in Caitanya-śikṣāmṛta, he has stated like that. In the Bhāratavarṣa, Bengal is the most important place, and in Bengal, the district Nadia is most important place, because Caitanya Mahāprabhu appeared. Don't take it leniently. It is very serious thing that Bhāratavarṣa is meant for cultivation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Unfortunately, the present leaders, they are misleading them. Anyway, you are fortunate. You take advantage of this cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness which was spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself, in this land of Bhāratavarṣa, dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ (BG 1.1).
So (reading:) "A person in the conditional stage of material existence is in an atmosphere of helplessness. But the conditioned soul, under the illusion of māyā or the external energy, thinks that he is completely protected by his country, society, friendship and love, not knowing that at the time of death none of these can save him." This is called māyā. But he does not believe. Under the illusion of māyā, he does not also believe that what is the meaning of saving. Saving. Saving means saving oneself from this repetition, cycle of birth and death. That is real saving. But they do not know. (reading:) "The laws of material nature are so strong that none of our material possessions can save us from the cruel hands of death." Everyone knows it. And that is our real problem. Who is not afraid of death? Everyone is afraid of death. Why? Because any living entity, he is not meant for dying. He is eternal; therefore birth, death, old age and disease, these things are botheration for him. Because he is eternal, he does not take birth, na jāyate, and one who does not take birth, he has no death also, na mriyate kadācit. This is our actual position. Therefore we are afraid of death. That is our natural inclination.
So Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, ei ājñā pāñā: "I received this order from My spiritual master, and I follow it strictly." Nāma la-i anukṣaṇa: "Because My spiritual master told Me that 'You don't touch Vedānta. You, You fool. You just go on.' " Or, in other words, Caitanya Mahāprabhu was not a fool. He was a vastly learned man. He's representing the fools of the present age. What they will understand, Vedānta-sūtra? Their life is so molded by the present atmosphere, materialistic atmosphere, that they are unable to touch Vedānta-sūtra. They are unfit to touch even Vedānta-sūtra, what to speak of understanding it. Therefore they'll create more rascaldom to create so many Vedānta societies and they are the same rascals, still. For hundred years they are studying Vedānta-sūtra, and the same thing, the same bad habit—same illicit connection, same intoxication, same gambling. Everything is going on. And they're Vedānta-sūtra student? This is rascaldom. There must be change in life. Otherwise, what is the use of Vedānta-sūtra? Veda-anta. Vedānta means... Veda means knowledge, and anta means end, end of all knowledge. Everyone is searching after knowledge, but there must be some end. What is the ultimate end? The Bhagavad-gītā says, vedānta-vid vedānta-kṛd ca aham: "I am the compiler of Vedānta. I am the knower of Vedānta." So, if you simply understand what Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, you are Vedantist. And what says Kṛṣṇa? What does He say? He says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: (BG 18.66) "You give up all rascaldom. Simply surrender unto Me." This is Vedānta. This is Vedānta. Ārādhito yadi haris tapasā tataḥ kim (Nārada Pañcarātra).
Kṛṣṇa says, "Out of many millions of persons, one is interested how to become siddha." Siddha means liberated, one who is not entangled with this material atmosphere. He is called siddha. So out of many millions of people, one may be interested how to become free from this material entanglement. And yatatām api siddhānām (BG 7.3), and out of many such siddhas, one may understand Kṛṣṇa. Kaścid vetti māṁ tattvataḥ. So it is not so easy to understand Kṛṣṇa, but when Kṛṣṇa comes personally as a devotee and shows us the ways and means how to approach Kṛṣṇa, then it becomes easier. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu. So if we follow the methods, the method prescribed by Kṛṣṇa is very easy, but still, because we misunderstand Kṛṣṇa... Therefore, if we go through the mercy of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, then we can easily understand Kṛṣṇa. That is recognized by Rūpa Gosvāmī, the younger brother of Sanātana Gosvāmī. Two of them were ministers.
So in this way the whole world is going on under a gross atmosphere of ignorance. There are so many things to be discussed. Just like we do not know what is the problems of life, how life comes into existence. We see a child is born, but we do not know wherefrom the life came. The lump of matter of the child is not the child. If the child takes birth dead, without life, it has no value; it is a lump of matter. You throw it immediately. But if it has a life, then we take care of it, we raise it, give him food, give him breast milk, and so much care. The life is so important. But nobody cares to know what is this life, where it begins, wherefrom it comes, what is the destiny. No question. Similarly, if we... We are seeing every night so many planets. We are making tiny attempt to go to moon planet or some other planet, but there are, we see there are so many millions and trillions of planet. What about their situation? We have made our calculation from here that they are simply decoration; there is no life. No, there is life. There is life, but we do not know it. So yesterday our scientist, Svarūpa Dāmodara, Dr. Svarūpa Dāmodara, was speaking that in the history of human society, actually these two things are ignorance: what is the beginning of life and what are these planetary systems.
So it is all congested with population. And because they are all fiery, everything made there fiery, therefore it is a blazing fire, and the illumination is coming all over the universe. But they cannot understand this, the so-called scientists. It is not... Beyond their conception. But this is a fact. And the moon planet is also fiery, exactly like the sun. Therefore that illumination is distributed. But the difference is, so far I can remember, that the moon planet fire is surrounded by cool atmosphere. Because the heat is coming through some cool atmosphere, it is at night so pleasing. It is not vacant. There is also living entities. This is one of the heavenly planets. Heavenly planet begins from the sun, then moon, then Mars, Jupiter, like that. We have challenged this, that moon planet is beyond the sun planet. The moon planet is not the first planet. The sun is first, moon is second. So we have to learn from Vedic literature all this information. Many, many millions of years ago this Vedic literature was given to us. So about these planetary systems, everything is there, described. It is not unknown.
So Brahman realization, impersonal Brahman realization, is realization of eternity; Paramātmā realization means eternity and knowledge; and Bhagavān realization means full realization: eternity, knowledge and bliss. Simple eternal realization is without factual knowledge and without bliss—impersonal. The impersonalists, they cannot enjoy the transcendental bliss. They simply stay as eternal. That's all. Śānta-rasa. It is called śānta-rasa, peaceful śānta-rasa. There is no exchange. And further development is dāsya-rasa. And further development is sākhya-rasa. And further development is vātsalya-rasa. And further, ultimate development is mādhurya-rasa. So in the spiritual atmosphere there are different degrees of realization. So this Brahman realization is the first step, and the Paramātmā realization is the second step, and Bhagavān realization, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is the ultimate stage.
Therefore we have to accept this, that if we be engaged in devotional service of the Supreme Lord, then we are transcendental to these material modes of nature. Therefore anyone who is so engaged, he is liberated. He is liberated. Officially he is liberated. But if he falls down by the attraction of these three modes of nature, that is a different thing. That is possible. That is possible if we are not strong enough because... Always remember that this Kṛṣṇa consciousness is a sort of declaration of war with this illusory material nature. So there is war. She will always try to get you fall down. Daivī hy eṣā guṇa-mayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). It is very strong, powerful. How you can save yourself? Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te. If you persistently simply adhere to the devotional service of Kṛṣṇa, there will be no more strength of this illusory nature to drag you. No more. There will be no more power to get you into this province of sense gratification. Material nature means the jurisdiction of sense gratification. That's all. Simply people are engaged by sense gratification like cats and dogs. That's all. This is material atmosphere. And in the spiritual atmosphere there is no sense gratification; there is only activity for satisfying the Supreme, Kṛṣṇa. That is the difference.
That is described, the glories of Kṛṣṇa—nobody can understand. Similarly, vṛndāvana-sthānera āścarya vibhutā. Similarly, the land which is known as Vṛndāvana, it has also got unlimited potency. Still, as I have several times mentioned, if you go to Vṛndāvana you'll find unlimited potency of spiritual atmosphere still. And therefore Lord Caitanya recommended that ārādhyo bhagavān vrajeśa-tanayaḥ tad dhāma vṛndāvanam: "As Lord Kṛṣṇa is worshipable, similarly His place, Vṛndāvana, is as good as Kṛṣṇa. It is also worshipable." And actually, still in India, if you go to Vṛndāvana, you'll see so many saints and sages are still there. They are worshiping Vṛndāvana-dhāma.
In all those systems of different kinds of planets, teṣu teṣu, te te prabhāva-nicayā vihitas ca yena (Bs. 5.43). Every planet, every spiritual atmosphere or material atmosphere, they have got some particular specially, every, every planet. So that is designed by Kṛṣṇa. Te te prabhāva-nicayā. Every planet has specific influence or specific... Just like in the moon planet the specific feature is that it gives you cold light. Moon planet is never hot. Similarly, in sun planet, it supplies you heat. You cannot expect from any other planet heat or any other planet this coolness. They are designed by the Supreme Lord, everything nicely. Te te prabhāva-nicayā. That speciality is designed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa. Govinda: He is reservoir of pleasure. So everything designed by Him is full of pleasure, and it is full of perfection. Govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ. Ādi-puruṣam means the supreme, original personality. Tam ahaṁ bhajāmi: "I worship Him." Yes. That is the instruction. "I do not worship anyone; I worship Kṛṣṇa." That's all right. The Brahmā says.
Sri Brahma-samhita Lectures
Yogis, jñānīs, they are trying to understand God, but they do not know they are in illusion. They're in illusion. So far karmīs are concerned, they're in illusion, māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43). They're fools and rascals because for illusory happiness for a moment, they are working so hard. Therefore, they are rascal number one. They cannot, how they can have peace? There is no question. And next the jñānīs. Jñānīs, they want to get relief from this hard work of this material world. Brahmā satyaṁ jagan mithyā, they reject this material world. Mithyā, false. We have no, nothing to (indistinct). That is little higher than the karmīs, because the karmīs, they have taken this material world as everything. Here we shall be happy. Their dharma means: how we shall live peacefully here in this material world. Their religion means. I've talked with so many, their religion means to make a peaceful atmosphere within this material world. But the rascals do not know that it has been tried for millions of years for making this world peaceful. It has never happened. And never it will happen. How it will happen?
Festival Lectures
Therefore, practically we see that in spite of advancement of education, in spite of economic development, in spite of so many philosophical speculations, we are in the same problematic atmosphere. That is the defect of the present civilization, because they do not know what we are. We are spirit soul. So we must realize. That is... If we want to realize, everything explained in the Vedic literature, which is summarized in the Vedānta-sūtra and later on in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. And five thousand years, the Lord Himself, Lord Kṛṣṇa, spoke the philosophy or the knowledge in the Bhagavad-gītā. We are publishing all these literatures translated into English. If you want to read them, if you want to understand this scientific, spiritual movement through your scientific knowledge, philosophical speculation, we have got dozens of books. You can read them and you can understand them. Otherwise, it is very simple method.
This International Society for Kṛṣṇa Consciousness movement is meant for spreading the Kṛṣṇa consciousness to the whole world so that people might realize their spiritual existence, and so that the whole atmosphere of the world can become spiritualized by chanting the names of Kṛṣṇa. So we welcome everybody who comes to this temple to inquire about how to make your life perfect by tuning in to the desires of the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa. You'll find that this is such a pleasant proposition, that all insignificant lower desires will be forgotten. There will not be any need for unnecessary fighting among the people of the world if they can only understand the spiritual plane of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The way to realize Kṛṣṇa consciousness is very simple. Simply chant
Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare
Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare
Chant this mahā-mantra under the guidance of the spiritual master and the results will be very quick. Thank you very much.
So anitya saṁsāra, this material atmosphere, it is anitya. Anitya means temporary. Although temporary, I shall live here, say, for fifty years or hundred years. Still, I am very much busy to make adjustment of my, this temporary living condition. Everyone is busy: how to have a house, how to have nice bank balance, how to be secure nationally, this way, that way. We are embarrassed with so many problems. But at any time, at any moment, the notice may come: "Please vacate this place." We have to do that. But we do not take care of this.
This is a song by Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura, a great ācārya of the Gauḍīya-vaiṣṇava-sampradāya. He has written many songs about the Vaiṣṇava philosophy, and they are approved as completely corresponding with Vedic instructions. So here Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura is singing that "The whole world is suffering under the blazing fire of material existence. Therefore, if one takes the shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Nityānanda...," whose birthday is today, 31st, January, 1969. So we should relish this instruction of Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura that in order to get relief from the pangs of blazing fire of this material existence, one should take shelter of the lotus feet of Lord Nityānanda because it is as cooling as the moon rays combined together of millions of moons. That means one will immediately find peaceful atmosphere. Just like a man works whole day and if he comes under the moonshine he feels relief.
Now this universe, this material world is called Devī-dhāma. Devī-dhāma. It is under the control of the material energy. Sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya-sādhana-śaktir-eka chāyeva yasya bhuvanāni vibharti durgā (Bs. 5.44). This energy is also personified called Durgādevī. So above this planetary system there is Maheśa-dhāma. Maheśa-dhāma. In the border between spiritual sky and material sky. Above that, there are Hari-dhāma, the Vaikuṇṭha planets where Nārāyaṇa, in various forms is predominating. And above all of them there is Goloka-dhāma or Kṛṣṇa's dhāma. So picture we have given in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. So goloka-nāmni nija-dhāmni tale ca tasya (Bs. 5.43), devī-maheśa-hari-dhāmasu teṣu teṣu, te te prabhava-nicayā vihitaś ca yena. Each planetary system has got specific atmosphere. Everything is specific. So that is done, that is created by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So in this way, Kṛṣṇa is there in the topmost Goloka-dhāma. But still goloka-dhāmni nivasati, although He is living there, akhilātmā-bhūto, He is everywhere. He's everywhere. That is Kṛṣṇa.
Arrival Addresses and Talks
So I am very glad to see that you are maintaining the temple standard as good as I saw when I left. That is my satisfaction. And keep this, I mean to say, situation, atmosphere, always, and follow the regulative principles, chant sixteen rounds. You'll remain always happy, because although we are in Los Angeles, we have nothing to do with the material atmosphere of Los Angeles. Therefore a devotee who lives with Kṛṣṇa or in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he does not live in the material world. He always live in the spiritual world. That is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā. Māṁ cāvyabhicāriṇi-bhakti-yogena yaḥ sevate: "Anyone who is engaged in bhakti-yoga with Kṛṣṇa," sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate (BG 14.26), "such person is always above these material modes of nature." Our difficulty or miserable condition of life is due to being under the material laws of nature.
So I am very much pleased to see the atmosphere here. Education means Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is education. If simply we understand that "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Person. He is great, and we are all subordinate. So our duty is to serve Kṛṣṇa," these two lines, if we understand, then our life is perfect. If we simply learn how to worship Kṛṣṇa, how to please Him, how to dress Him nicely, how to give Him nice foodstuff, how to decorate Him with ornaments and flowers, how to offer our respectful obeisances unto Him, how to chant His name, in this way, if we simply think, without any so-called education we become the perfect person within the universe. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It doesn't require A-B-C-D education. It requires simply change of consciousness.
Prabhupāda: Ohh. Very nice. So Atreya-ṛṣi prabhu, you are feeling all right here?
Jayapatākā: You feeling all right here?
Atreya-ṛṣi: Yes.
Jayatīrtha: The atmosphere here is sublime, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Prabhupāda: Now make sublime management. (laughter) That is required now. We are now extended. We must manage very nicely. Of course, management means sincere service. Then everything will be all right. Still, we have to deal with the material world. We have to become little proper.(?) So in Calcutta the one lock was open. There was nothing. You said it is in Calcutta? Is it all right? You don't require fan. Therefore I planned two sides open, cross ventilation.
Initiation Lectures
Karandhara: No, I have the names. Do you want to give them now?
Prabhupāda: Oh. Yes. We can give. So come on. No, no, mantra, one mantra. That mantra. Chant mantra, then I will give the names. (break) ...such atmosphere. So we have to maintain this.
Karandhara: Jesus. (devotee comes up) (all spiritual names first told by Karandhara to Prabhupāda)
Prabhupāda: Virāha. Virāha dāsa. I am not asking individually about the four principles. I suppose you know this. But just I was explaining sat and asat. These two things are side by side. Just like there is darkness and there is light, you can see merging in the sunlight. You'll see, one side is light, and one side is dark. Similarly, sat and asat, they are existing side by side. If you don't remain this side, then you come to this side. So it is my choice. So this Hare Kṛṣṇa is the bright side, and the other things, material activities and sinful activities, meat-eating, intoxication, gambling, illicit sex, the dark side. So it is your choice. If you remain the bright side, then your progress is certain, and if you fall down again on the dark side, that is your misfortune. So you should always remember that.
General Lectures
So time is according to the different object. But time is eternal. Actually, there is no past, present, future, or limitation. This is understanding of time. So God, living entity, material nature, time, and the activities. What are these activities? The activities are not eternal; they are temporary. You have got this temporary American body. You are thinking American. You are busy twenty-four hours as American. I am Indian. Or these boys... The boy's activities are different, the woman's activities are different, man's activities are different, the Russian's activities are different, and American's activities, different. All different activities. So therefore activities are temporary. Temporary, according to the time, according to the atmosphere, according to the body, the activities are... Just like the dog, unnecessarily running this side, this side. He thinks that "I am very busy." He is very busy. He is businessman. But you are calling, "A nonsense dog is running here and there." Similarly, all these activities by your motorcar, they may think it is very important, but those who are in higher status, they are thinking like dog is going this side, that side, this side, that side. So the activities are temporary.
Now in your country these boys are trying to preach this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. So my humble request to you all is to try to understand this sublime benediction of life. Simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, you'll gradually develop a transcendental loving attitude for Kṛṣṇa. And as soon as you begin to love Kṛṣṇa, your all troubles... That means you will feel complete satisfaction. Trouble or distress is of the mind. One man is getting $6000 a month; one man is getting $200 a month. But I have seen one gentleman in Calcutta, he was drawing 6,000; he committed suicide. Committed suicide. Why? That money could not give him satisfaction. He was trying to have something else. So this material atmosphere, by earning great amount of money, will never give you satisfaction, because every one of us is the servant of the senses. This platform of service of the senses should be transferred to the platform of service to Kṛṣṇa, and then you will find all problems solved.
So past, present, future-time is eternal. It is according to the different dimension of body relativity. Time is eternal. Just like a small ant. In twenty-four hours he has twenty-four times past, present and future. In the sputnik, in the Russian sputnik, circumambulated round this earth in one hour, twenty-five minutes, or something like that. They, I mean to say, went round the earth for twenty-five times. That means within one hour, twenty-five minutes, the sputnik man saw twenty-five times day and night. So in the higher atmosphere the past end present is different. So this past, present, future is relative according to your body, according to circumstances. Actually, there is no past, present, future. Everything is eternal. You are eternal, nityo śāśvato 'yaṁ na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). You do not die. Therefore... The people do not know that I am eternal. What is my eternal engagement? What is my eternal life? They're simply captivated on the spot life: "I am American," "I am Indian," "I am this," "I am that." That's all. This is ignorance. So one has to search out this eternal engagement with Kṛṣṇa. Then he'll be happy. Thank you. (devotees offer obeisances) Chant, Upendra, chant. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Chant. (kīrtana) (end)
So either Jesus Christ or Rāma or Kṛṣṇa, whoever comes from the kingdom of God, they are the same. There is no difference. But the difference is... Just like in your country temperature of sun is less, and in a tropical country the temperature of the sun is very great. Does it mean the sun's temperature is changed? It is according to the reception. The atmosphere of this country is so surcharged that you cannot receive the sunshine properly, but the sunshine distributes its shining everywhere the same. Similarly, according to the country, according to the circumstances, according to the planet, God is manifested differently, but He is not different. You are wrapping your body with some winter clothes. Same time, telegraph in India, oh, they are running fan. Why the temperature is different? Therefore whatever Lord Jesus Christ says or whatever Kṛṣṇa says or what Rāma says, that is in terms of the place, in terms of the circumstances, atmosphere, persons, hearer. There is different. One thing which I try to convince a child is not possible to teach the same thing to his father. Or a child cannot understand what is sex life, but a young man can understand. The same child, when he'll be grown up, he'll know. So you do not think that everyone can understand everything. So Bible is spoken under certain circumstances; Bhagavad-gītā is spoken under certain circumstances. It is the difference of the circumstances. Otherwise, the principle is the same. In the Bible also it is said, "Love God," and Bhagavad-gītā also says, "Love God." There is no difference.
Just like sun planet, there is sunshine. The sunshine is impersonal, but if you have got power to enter into the sun globe, then you will find there, there are so many persons, they have got fiery body. It is not a fact in other planets there is no life. That is a nonsense. Every planet there is life, but they have got different situation, different atmosphere. The moon planet is very cold. Even the modern scientists, they agree that the temperature in the moon planet is below two hundred degree zero. So it is very cold. Similarly, sun planet is very hot. Similarly, there are other planets which is made of air, some planets made of water. These five elements, earth, water, air, ether, this is the, these are the ingredients of material world. So some planet is made of something, some planet is made of something. But this earth is made of earth only, and water. So in the sunshine you see, you go by airplane, go in the "friendly sky" above the... You see everything impersonal. Simply glaring sunshine, that's all. But that does not mean it is impersonal. There are many planets within the sunshine, millions of planets, but you cannot see. Similarly, persons who cannot see beyond the brahma-jyotir, the transcendental rays of the spiritual sky, they are impersonalists. They are impersonalists. But one who goes to the transcendental planets, Vaikuṇṭhas, Goloka Vṛndāvana, they see God is there person. As you are person, I am person, you'll find person.
Prabhupāda: This will go on. They are not comfortably seated.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "In the Bhagavad-gītā it is recommended that we should meditate upon the form of the Lord. For practicing concentration of the mind one has to sit down in a secluded place, sanctified by a sacred atmosphere. And the yogi should observe the rules and regulations of brahmacarya, to live a life of strict self-restraint and celibacy. Nobody can practice yoga in a congested city, living a life of extravagance, including unrestricted sex indulgence and adultery of the tongue. We have already stated that yoga practice means controlling the senses. And the beginning of controlling the senses is to control the tongue. You cannot allow the tongue to take all kinds of forbidden food and drink and at the same time improve in the practice of yoga. It is a very regrettable fact that many unauthorized and stray so-called yogis now come to the West and exploit the learning of the people towards yoga. Such unauthorized yogis even dare to say publicly that one can indulge in drinking and at the same time practice meditation. Five thousand years ago in the Bhagavad-gītā dialogue Lord Kṛṣṇa recommended the yoga practice to his disciple Arjuna. But Arjuna flatly expressed his inability to follow the stringent rules and regulations of yoga. One should be practical in every field of activity. One should not waste his valuable time simply in practicing some gymnastic feats in the name of yoga. Real yoga is to search out the four-handed Supersoul within one's heart and to see Him perpetually in meditation. Such continued meditation is called samādhi. If however, one wants to meditate upon something void or impersonal it will require a very long time to achieve anything by yoga practice. We cannot concentrate our mind on something void or impersonal. Real yoga practice is to fix up the mind on the person of the four-handed Nārāyaṇa, who dwells in everyone's heart. Sometimes it is said that by meditation one will understand that God is seated within one's heart always, even when one does not know it. God is seated within the heart of everyone. He is not only seated within the heart of the human being but he is also there within the hearts of the cats and dogs. The Bhagavad-gītā certifies this with this declaration of the Lord. "Īśvara, the Supreme Controller of the world, is seated within the heart of everyone. He is not only in everyone's heart but He is also present within the atoms." No place is vacant. No place is without the presence of the Lord.
"The feature of the Lord by which He is present everywhere is called the Paramātman. Ātman means the individual soul and Paramātman means the individual Supersoul. Both ātman and Paramātman are individual persons. The difference between them is that the ātman, or soul, is present only in one particular place, whereas the Paramātman is present everywhere. In this connection the example of the sun is very nice. An individual person may be situated in one place, but the sun, even though a specific individual entity, is present over the head of every individual person. In the Bhagavad-gītā this is very nicely explained. Therefore even though the qualities of all entities, including the Lord, are equal, the Supersoul is different from the individual soul by quantity of expansion. The Lord or Supersoul can expand Himself into millions of different forms while the individual soul cannot do so. The Supersoul, being seated in everyone's heart, can witness everyone's activities—past, present and future. In the Upaniṣads the Supersoul is said to be sitting with the individual soul as a friend and witness. As a friend He is always anxious to get the individual soul back to home, back to Godhead. As a witness He is the endower of all benedictions that result from the individual's actions. The Supersoul gives all facility to the individual soul for achieving whatever he may desire, but He instructs his friend so that he may ultimately give up all other engagements and simply surrender unto God for perpetual bliss and eternal life full of knowledge. This is the last instruction of the Bhagavad-gītā, the most authorized and widely read book on all forms of yoga. The last word of the Bhagavad-gītā, as stated above, is the last word in the matter of perfecting the yoga system. It is further stated in the Bhagavad-gītā that a person who is always absorbed in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the topmost yogi. What is this Kṛṣṇa consciousness? Just as the individual soul is present by his consciousness throughout the whole body, so the Supersoul or Paramātmā is present throughout the whole creation by His superconsciousness. This superconsciousness cannot be imitated by the individual soul."
Prabhupāda: This consciousness formula is very simple to understand. Anyone can understand. Just like this body, so long the soul is there within this body, there is consciousness. Just like so long the sun is visible, there is heat and sunlight. Similarly, so long the soul is there within this body, we have got this consciousness. And as soon as the soul is gone from this body, there is no consciousness. So... But this consciousness, my consciousness, your consciousness is limited within this body. I cannot feel what pain and pleasure is within your body, neither you can feel. Therefore your consciousness is individual, my consciousness is individual. But there is another consciousness, which is all-pervading. That consciousness is able to understand your feelings, my feelings, and everyone's feelings. The same example: The sun is located in one place, but five thousand miles away, you ask your friend where is sun, he will reply that "He is on my head." Similarly, you will say. Any direction. But the sun is one, but he is all-pervading. This is crude example. Similarly, the Kṛṣṇa consciousness means when you dovetail your consciousness with the supreme consciousness, then your life becomes perfect. Just like a motorcar is being driven at fifty miles speed, but a cyclist is going at ten miles speed. But if he catches the motorcar, he'll also have the fifty miles speed immediately.
I offer my respectful obeisances unto the spiritual master, who has opened my eyes with the torch of knowledge in my material existence of darkness. Ladies and Gentlemen, please accept my greetings in the happy new year of 1969, and blessings of Śrī Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, for your kindly participating in this happy meeting of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa appeared on this earthly planet five thousand years ago and gave us the unique philosophy and religious principles of Kṛṣṇa consciousness in the shape of the Bhagavad-gītā. Unfortunately, in course of time, as things change and deteriorate in the material world, people deteriorated and forgot the art of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Lord Kṛṣṇa again therefore appeared as Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya Mahāprabhu at the end of the fifteenth century to revive the same Kṛṣṇa consciousness atmosphere in the human society. Lord Caitanya's special gift to the fallen souls of this age of quarrel and disagreement is to induce the people in general, the religionists, the philosophers and everyone to take to the chanting of the holy name of Kṛṣṇa. He informed us that the Absolute Supreme Personality of Godhead can descend also in transcendental sound vibration, and thus, when you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra offenselessly, we immediately contact Kṛṣṇa and His internal energy, and thus we become immediately purified from all dirty things in our heart.
So it is not possible. Even if you go, it is not possible to live there. If you have to live, then you have to dress yourself nicely. Just like when men like us from tropical countries come to your country, we dress... In India, practically there is no dress. You see these pictures, they are without any dress because there is no need of dress. It is tropical country. But in your country you require dress. You cannot go out without dress. You have to take precaution. Similarly, in other planets the atmosphere is different, the standard of living is different, the duration of life is different. There are varieties. Yānti deva-vratā devān pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ (BG 9.25). In the Bhagavad-gītā you'll find that if you want to go to the higher planets, there is ways and means. So we have discussed this point in our small book Easy Journey to Other Planets. So there is life in other planet, there is standard of living.
So our request—that you give a try. You simply chant, at home or anywhere. There is no restriction that "You have to chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra in such and such place, in such and such condition." Niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ. There is no restriction of time and, I mean to say, circumstances or atmosphere. Anywhere, at any time, you can meditate. You are... No meditation is possible while you are walking on the street. But this meditation is possible: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. And go on with your work. You are working with your hands? You can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare. So this is very nice. So kindly accept this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. At the same time, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis tatrārpitā niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ. Lord Caitanya says that the Lord's name... Lord's name is not, I mean to say, limited with Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the perfect name. Kṛṣṇa means all-attractive. Kṛṣṇa means all-attractive. And Rāma means the supreme pleasure.
This is an Orient version of what may be the same tradition, suppressed in the West when the CIA took over religion in 313 A.D., (laughter and applause), when Constantine, Caesar, made a deal with the church to suppress all alien thoughts and heresies and to formulate a square Western version of heaven and hell. The Kali-yuga concept is one that you can, in a sense, interpret ecologically. If you've been following the scientifical pronouncements of doom possibility coming over television, radio, and slick magazines, as well as from the underground press, you will notice that there's increasing attention to the fact that our own fecal material, the waste products of our robots, have now so polluted Lake Erie that it's a great lake of green goo slime, biologically dead; that our atmosphere, the planetary atmosphere, is increasingly polluted with carbon wastes; and that we are so sunk in our attachment to automobile exhaust fumes, to sulphur wastes from great steel factories producing metals that can be sent flying to explode on the other side of the planet with the collaboration of the science faculties in such universities as this, (applause) so that we find ourselves increasingly sunk into what is called a materialistic habit, like a junky stuck on his junk.
Does he follow this devotional service blindly? No. Jñātvā. Jñātvā means "knowing perfectly that I am the source of everything." Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavaḥ: (BG 10.8) "I am the source of everything." So these things are there in the Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. It is not possible to explain all the verses. But our request is that this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to spread the knowledge depicted in the Bhagavad-gītā as it is, without any nonsensical commentation. Then the human society will profit by it. They are actually not in sound condition of living atmosphere, but if they understand Bhagavad-gītā and if they actually expand their broader outlook, then these questions of social, national, international, all will be automatically solved. There will be no difficulty. And without finding out the center, if we manufacture our own ways... Not to speak of any individual persons, the different nations of the whole world, they are trying to be united. And in your country there is United Nations organization. Unfortunately, instead of becoming one, the flags are increasing. Daily you pass, you'll see another flag is there. Just like in our India, there was one Hindustan. Now (chuckling) there has become another, Pakistan. And sometimes there will be Sikhistan and there will be some-stan. So instead of becoming united, we are being disunited because we are missing the center.
So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to educate people how to live in spiritual atmosphere, and then there will be peace and prosperity. Unless one is in spiritual life... Because factually we are spiritual entities. Mamaivāṁśaḥ. We are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the whole spirit, and we are His part and parcel. Just like a machine and there is small screw, a part of the machine. The screw, although it has no value, but because it is a part of the machine, big machine, if that screw is missing, you will have to purchase at any price. It has got value. The same screw, when it is without the machine, it has no value because it is only a small particle of the machine. Similarly, when we are out of the atmosphere, we are out of Kṛṣṇa atmosphere... There are many examples. Just like a fire and the sparks of the fire. They are of the same quality. If the sparks of the fire falls on your cloth, it will immediately burn. But the sparks of the fire and the whole fire is different in quantity. But in quality the sparks of the fire is as good as the fire. There are many examples. You can understand what is our relationship with Kṛṣṇa or God. We are small. We are atomic small, and Kṛṣṇa is unlimitedly great. That is the difference. Otherwise, so far quality is concerned, Kṛṣṇa and ourself, the same. As the part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, if we live always with Kṛṣṇa, then we are in spiritual life. If we always live in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then in spite of our living in this material world we are called jīvan mukta, "liberated in this material condition." Jīvan mukta. He has got to die and take liberation. Even in this life he is liberated.
Without being human being, nobody can perfect his life. Animal, they cannot make perfect his life. It is not possible. By nature they are stopped. But a human being, he can perfect his life. And especially in India there is treasure of knowledge, Vedic knowledge. Why you neglect it? And the summarized knowledge is Bhagavad-gītā. So if we simply try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is, we understand immediately the science of God. And because we are all parts and parcels of God, we are actually hankering after uniting with God. That is our seeking. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). God is ānandamaya, and we, being part and parcel of God, or Kṛṣṇa, we are also ānandamaya. But we are seeking ānanda in a different atmosphere, in the material atmosphere. Therefore we are being baffled. The only remedy is that you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and you will be happy.
So according to Bhagavad-gītā, we can transfer to other planets also. This is explained in our book Easy Journey to Other Planets. The present endeavor is to transfer one to the moon planet. But as we get information from the Vedic literature, we cannot transfer ourself by mechanical arrangement to the moon planet. That is not possible. This is futile attempt. Every planet has got different atmosphere. So in order to enter into a particular planet we have to prepare ourself. This is also understandable very easily. Just like if we go to a foreign country we have to prepare for visa and passport. If in this planet also we are so much restricted, how foolishly we are attempting to go to other planet without being prepared for entering that planet.
So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for reviving that lost consciousness. That lost consciousness. We have lost this consciousness that "I am the part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, the supreme blissful enjoyer, but somehow or other, being complicated within this matter, I am suffering. I am trying to become happy with this material atmosphere, which is not possible." Just like if you are put into the water you may be very nice swimmer, but you cannot be happy there because the water is not your place. You are a living entity of the land. Similarly, a fish, if you take out of the water and give it a velvet bedding, "My dear fish, you lie down here, on the velvet," he'll die because the condition is different. Similarly, we are spirit soul, Kṛṣṇa's part and parcel. So unless we go back to Kṛṣṇa, just like the gopīs or the cowherds boy, we cannot be happy. There is no possibility.
If one tries to understand Kṛṣṇa, as He is, not by fiction, not by speculation, not by so-called scholarly, foolish commentation, but Kṛṣṇa should be understood as He is. Then, that is right Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and then one will be able to understand how Kṛṣṇa is working, how the whole world, material atmosphere, and material, cosmic manifestation is working. Then you will understand. Kṛṣṇa says, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10), under my supervision. To understand Kṛṣṇa, and anyone who understands Kṛṣṇa, scientifically, then he, Kṛṣṇa says, janma karma me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ. Not the foolish man, the intelligent man, who knows Kṛṣṇa actually, then the result is tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). Immediately he becomes liberated. So after giving up this body, he never, no more comes back to accept another, this material body. He goes back to home, back to Godhead.
There is a spark. When it falls down on dry grass, the dry grass becomes blazing. Although the spark is fallen, it causes the atmosphere lighten(?). And if the spark falls on the wet ground, then it is, the sparking, the glowing quality may remain for sometime, but it will be extinguished. And if it falls down on the water, it is extinguished. Similarly, when the living entity comes to this material world, if by chance he is in the association of the goodness, he keeps God consciousness. And if he is in the association of passion, he is materially busy. And if he associates with the quality of ignorance, he becomes animals or animal-like man. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is giving everyone the chance of to become again (indistinct) by association of Kṛṣṇa. The same spark, that extinguished charcoal, or karma, if you put into the fire, it will be again light. Similarly this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to bring forth again the dormant Kṛṣṇa consciousness in every living entity.
So our aim of life is to get out of these sinful activities and be situated in our own original position, constitutional position, spiritual position. Because we are part and parcel of God, we are as pure as God, but we have been contaminated by this material association, and therefore we have got different types of bodies, encagements. And according to the different types of bodies we have to enjoy or suffer the material atmosphere. This is our position. So bhāgavata-dharma means to surrender unto God. That's all. Very simple thing. And Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, is teaching us this bhāgavata-dharma, how to surrender. He demanded that "You surrender unto Me." But still, people misunderstood Him.
Religion" is not the exact translation of the word dharma. Religion is understood in English dictionary as a kind of faith. But dharma does not mean that. Dharma means your characteristic which you cannot change. Just like water... Water is liquid. That is the characteristic of water. It cannot be changed. Stone-hardness is the characteristic of the stone. It cannot be changed. If you say that water has now changed its characteristic, it has become now hard, stonelike, that is not actually the fact. Although water sometimes becomes hard like stone by the influence of atmosphere, it immediately begins to melt. That means it is going to its own characteristic, liquidity. So when we speak of dharma, according to Vedic understanding, dharma means your characteristic which you cannot change. Therefore, in other words, sometimes dharma is explained as sanātana-dharma, sanātana-dharma. Sanātana means eternal. You cannot change it.
And this is verdict of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam: kalau doṣa-nidhe rājann asty eko mahān guṇaḥ. This Kali-yuga is a ocean of fault, simply faulty. Mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā (SB 1.1.10). In this Kali-yuga people are..., duration of life is very short; and still, they are slow, mandāḥ, all bad; sumanda-matayo, and they have their different concoctions of ideology and philosophy, sumanda-matayo; manda-bhāgyā, very unfortunate; and upadrutāḥ, always disturbed. This is the position of this age. Therefore this Kali-yuga is full of faulty atmosphere. Kalau doṣa-nidhe rājann. Doṣa-nidhe: ocean of faults. But there is one opportunity. What is that opportunity? The opportunity is Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya, who is teaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness. He is Kṛṣṇa Himself.
So if we like, we can go to the higher planetary system, heavenly planetary system. Just like we are trying to go to the moon planet, but we have not been successful. In this way we can go there. Each planet, each and every planet, has got different atmosphere. So unless your body is completely competent to live in such planet, you cannot go there. Just like the scientists say that in the moon planet the temperature is two hundred degrees below zero. Similarly, in the sun planet, the temperature is very, very high, hundred and thousand times degrees above the normal. So in this way every planet has got different atmosphere, different temperature, different standard of life, different duration of life. So one has to become competent to transfer himself in a particular type of planet. So we, as spirit soul, dehi, the possessor of this body... Dehi means one who possesses this body or the occupier of the body, the spirit soul. That is eternal, changing body only, but eternal. Therefore we should not be interested to these different types of temporary body. That is not very good intelligence. So we have to prepare ourself, if we want. There are the full description of each and every planet, and we can prepare ourself according to our desire which planet we wish to go. But Kṛṣṇa says, mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām: (BG 9.25) "Persons who are engaged in My occupational duties, they will come to Me."
Prabhupāda: Jesus Christ, Lord Jesus Christ, is... He is son of God, the best son of God, so we have all respect for him. Yes. Anyone who is teaching people about God consciousness, he is respectful to us. It does not matter in which country, in which atmosphere, he was preaching. It doesn't matter.
Madhudviṣa: (repeating question) St. Francis, the founder of this particular order which we have been invited to speak to, found God in the material world. And he used to address the aspects of the material world as "brother" and "sister." "Brother tree," "sister water," like that. What is your view upon this?
Prabhupāda: This is real God consciousness. This is real God consciousness, yes, not that "I am God conscious, and I kill the animals." That is not God conscious. To accept the trees, plants, lower animals, insignificant ants even, as brothers... Samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu. This is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā.
So Kṛṣṇa conscious person are no more interested. Why not interested? They are disgusted. Why disgusted? No, because it is full of danger. Padaṁ padaṁ yad vipadām (SB 10.14.58). Here everything appears to be very nice, but every step there is danger. So the Kṛṣṇa conscious person knows it, that although it is decorated very nicely. The New York is a big city. Twenty-four hours, "dungdungdungdungdungdung-guggugguggugguggug"—fire, always fire. Every minute there is a fire case. Saṁsāra-dāvānala-līḍha-loka **. Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura's description of this material world as blazing fire... We see big, big cities in America, always in blazing fire. Still, they like this kind of life. But one who is advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they are no more interested, no more interested. They are interested back home, back to Godhead. Back to Godhead. Therefore our magazine is Back to Godhead. They are no more interested in front. They are going back to... (laughter) Therefore this name was given, Back to Godhead. They are trying: "No more we are so foolish. To go forward, material civilization..." And where you'll go? You are packed up within this universal atmosphere. Just like they are running for the moon planet, for the Mars planet. And where the rascals running, they'll come back.
Departure Talks
Even if he is brother, even if he is son, this is the nature of the... So therefore this Bhāgavata-dharma is not meant for such persons, who are envious. It is meant for the paramo nirmatsarāṇām, who has given up this envy or envious attitude ultimately. Now, how it is possible? It is possible only when you have learned how to love Kṛṣṇa. Then it is possible. Then you will see that "Everyone is Kṛṣṇa's part and parcel. So he is suffering for want of his Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let me speak something about Him, about Kṛṣṇa. Let me give some literature to him about Kṛṣṇa so that one day he will come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and become happy." This is śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ smaraṇam process. We should ourself also continuously hear from authoritative literature, person, and continuously go on chanting the same thing, repetition. That's all. Then everything will be happy atmosphere. Otherwise the crows assembly in the garbage will continue, and nobody will be happy.
Philosophy Discussions
Śyāmasundara: He says that at some point a man who had developed sympathy for others, he was able to survive because he would cooperate with them to survive when others were killing each other, like that. So gradually morality also evolved. Tomorrow maybe we should finish Darwin. (break)
Prabhupāda: An animal is put in some certain atmosphere, he adjusts. But there are different types animals. Just like we see while walking (in) severe cold, we try to adjust by covering. Others, the birds, the skylark, the so on, they do not adjust.
Śyāmasundara: His finding is that new types of species will come out, which will be better adapted. The swans, if it becomes too cold, they will die.
Prabhupāda: They are better than us, than human being?
Atreya Ṛṣi: What the theory is Prabhupāda is that, for example, if there are many, many swans living in one place, those who cannot adjust will be extinct after many, many years, and those who can adjust will live. In effect, what he tried to prove was that Kṛṣṇa's law, nature's law, is perfect. But he was missing Kṛṣṇa. In other words, what the proof is very scientific, but it is lacking.
Prabhupāda: Yes. He is adding zero, without one.
Prabhupāda: Conscious. Discrimination of good and bad.
Devotees: Yes.
Prabhupāda: That conscience is due to practice. Just like a butcher, he has no conscience that killing is bad. That he is practiced to do that, he does not say that... His conscience is not touched by killing. So this conscience is by practice created in a different atmosphere, so it does not act. Unless one comes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his conscience has no value. It is contaminated conscience. So as you are accustomed, so you have made a particular type of conscience. A thief, a thief, when he goes to steal, his conscience says, "This is all right. This is my livelihood. Why shall I stop it?" So what is value of this conscience?
Śyāmasundara: His idea is that because he comes from a Christian background, where there is no...
Prabhupāda: Under some background he is speaking of conscience. But I say there are different consciences according to different backgrounds. So unless one comes to Kṛṣṇa background, his conscience has no value.
Hayagrīva: Despite so many interesting points, Jung appears to have a somewhat limited understanding of Indian philosophy. He did not appear to understand that saṁsāra, although it appears to be endless, can be ended if one surrenders to Kṛṣṇa, that there is mukti, that saṁsāra can be overcome by surrendering unto Mukunda. He writes, "The succession of birth and death is viewed as an endless continuity, as an eternal wheel rolling on forever without a goal. Man lives and attains knowledge and dies and begins again from the beginning." He says, "Only with the Buddha does the idea of a goal emerge, namely the overcoming of earthly existence."
Prabhupāda: Hm. So overcoming the earthly existence means you enter in the spiritual world, because spirit soul is eternal. So from this atmosphere to another. That is explained clearly in the Bhagavad-gītā, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). After giving up this present body, this is material, so those who continue to, in the cycle of birth and death, they get another material body, but those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious, they do not get another material body, but he goes to Kṛṣṇa. That is the difference.
Hayagrīva: Kṛṣṇa says that over and over in Bhagavad-gītā. He says it many times.
Prabhupāda: Yes, that, that is for the dviṣataḥ krūrān (BG 16.19), those who are envious of Kṛṣṇa. For them, continuous. And those who are not envious, accepts Kṛṣṇa's instruction, surrenders unto Him and understands Kṛṣṇa, for them this is the last birth, material birth. After this he goes back to home, back to Godhead.
Hayagrīva: "...although they do not show themselves."
Prabhupāda: But they are finite. They are finite, very small particle. That I have already explained many times, that the creative force is in me. I can create also. Now in the modern scientific knowledge, so I have created a big plane floating in the air, but I cannot create another planet with so many mountains and vast water, oceans, and trees. That I cannot do. That is done by God. This planet is also floating in the air and the tiny 747 plane is also floating in the air. So that is created by me, infinite, ah, finite. I have no other more power. Even if I float a city like plane, still I am finite. But God has created this planet or many other planets with so many things—mountains, seas and forests and cities and so many. That is the difference between... The creative power is there. Because I am part and parcel of God, I have got that creative power. So I have got also little knowledge. I know my knowledge within my atmosphere, but God knows everything. That is explained, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1), abhijñaḥ, itarataś ca. Abhijñaḥ, abhijñaḥ means He knows everything. In the Bhagavad-gītā also it is said, vedāhaṁ sarvam, "I know everything." That is the difference. When Arjuna questioned Kṛṣṇa that "How it is that You remember millions of years ago, You taught Bhagavad-gītā?" And that Kṛṣṇa says, "Yes, that is the difference between you and Me. I remember; you forgot." So therefore in all cases God is also living being, I am also living being, but I am very, very small, finite, and He is infinite. He is also living being.
Hayagrīva: Although he was considered a great philosopher, he concluded that philosophy in itself only leads to skepticism, that faith is needed, and he always added here, "God."
Prabhupāda: Philosophy means, real philosophy means to understand the truth. That is philosophy. So without understanding about the truth, if he encourages untruth... Just like some philosophers are philosophizing on sex life. So the people are becoming degraded. So what is philosophy in sex life, that is an (indistinct). It is there in animal and man also. So sex life is not actual life; it is a symptom of life only. So if we stress on this point only, that is not philosophy. Philosophy means, as it is stated, tattva jñānārthaṁ darśanam. To find out the Absolute Truth, tattva, that is philosophy. And tattva means the spirit soul or the spiritual atmosphere. Brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate (SB 1.2.11). So those who are discussing about Brahman or Paramātmā, Supersoul, or Bhagavān, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, they are real philosopher because they are trying to find out the Absolute Truth, and others are bogus.
Hayagrīva: That's, that's all.
Prabhupāda: That's all. (end)
Prabhupāda: The humanity, love of humanity means to raise the humanity to the real understanding of the goal of life. If the humanity or the whole human society kept into darkness as to what is the goal of life, that is not serving humanity, to keep them in darkness. But to enlighten them with knowledge, the ultimate knowledge is understanding of God and our relationship with God and activities in that relationship, that is real humanitarian work. Otherwise, if we keep the humanity in darkness, only within the jurisdiction of eating, sleeping, mating, and defending, or that is, that means to keep them in, in the animal atmosphere. But to teach the humanity about real knowledge, that he is not this body, he is soul, the soul is within the body and the nature of the soul, the necessity of the soul, the goal of soul—these things, if actually taken into hand to enlighten the humanity—that is real service to the humanity. And to keep them in darkness in the animal propensities, that is no service to the humanity.
Hayagrīva: So that's the end of Comte. (end)
Purports to Songs
Because we are very much attached to this body. This is the first business, how to save this body. Now, the next question is "Why you are so much anxious to save this body?" What will be the answer? Can anyone say? Why one is so much attached with this body? The answer is that because I, the real I, I am within this body, therefore I am anxious to save it. Then why you are anxious to save the soul, individual soul? The answer will be that because I am part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. So ultimately we want to love Kṛṣṇa, but because we are in a forgetful platform, then someone is trying to save his body, someone is trying to save his bodily relationship. Therefore in so many ways we are implicated with this material atmosphere.
| Page Title: | Atmosphere (Lectures, Other) |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, Mayapur |
| Created: | 06 of Mar, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=59, Con=0, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 59 |