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Authorized sources

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 1

One who understands this fact, either from the Lord or from authorized sources, is not reborn after leaving the present material body.
SB 1.18.11, Purport: When we hear about the transcendental qualities and activities of the Personality of Godhead, we may always remember what has been spoken by the Lord Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā (4.9). His acts, even when He acts in human society, are all transcendental, for they are all accentuated by the spiritual energy of the Lord, which is distinguished from His material energy. As stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, such acts are called divyam. This means that He does not act or take His birth like an ordinary living being under the custody of material energy. Nor is His body material or changeable like that of ordinary living beings. And one who understands this fact, either from the Lord or from authorized sources, is not reborn after leaving the present material body. Such an enlightened soul is admitted into the spiritual realm of the Lord and engages in the transcendental loving service of the Lord. Therefore, the more we hear about the transcendental activities of the Lord, as they are stated in the Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, the more we can know about His transcendental nature and thus make definite progress on the path back to Godhead.

SB Canto 3

One should be very inquisitive to hear with open ears from the authorized source of the bona fide spiritual master.
SB 3.22.7, Purport: Manu said that since he was advised and instructed by Kardama Muni, he was very much favored. He considered himself lucky to receive the message by aural reception. It is especially mentioned here that one should be very inquisitive to hear with open ears from the authorized source of the bona fide spiritual master. How is one to receive?

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta

CC Adi-lila

Rādhā-bhāva must be understood from the Gosvāmīs, who are actually controllers of the senses, and also the authorized sources.
CC Adi 4.106, Purport: Lord Caitanya’s heart was full of the feelings of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī, and His appearance resembled Hers. Svarūpa Dāmodara has explained His attitude as rādhā-bhāva-mūrti, the attitude of Rādhārāṇī. One who engages in sense gratification on the material platform can hardly understand rādhā-bhāva, but one who is freed from the demands of sense gratification can understand it. Rādhā-bhāva must be understood from the Gosvāmīs, those who are actually controllers of the senses. From such authorized sources it is to be known that the attitude of Śrīmatī Rādhārāṇī is the highest perfection of conjugal love, which is the highest of the five transcendental mellows, and it is the complete perfection of love of Kṛṣṇa.
The development of knowledge is different from all kinds of living beings, and only the truth will reveal to the proper person. Therefore, we have to gather knowledge from authorised Vedic sources without hesitation.
CC Adi 5.14, Purport: Everything, in fact, is inconceivable, for the truth is revealed only to the proper persons. Although there are varieties of personalities, from Brahmā down to the insignificant ant, all of whom are living beings, their development of knowledge is different. Therefore we have to gather knowledge from the right source. Indeed, in reality we can get knowledge only from the Vedic sources. The four Vedas, with their supplementary Purāṇas, the Mahābhārata, the Rāmāyaṇa and their corollaries, which are known as smṛtis, are all authorized sources of knowledge. If we are at all to gather knowledge, we must gather it from these sources without hesitation.

Other Books by Srila Prabhupada

Narada-bhakti-sutra (sutras 1 to 8 only)

Gopīnātha Ācārya further stated that only that person who has received the mercy of the Lord by rendering Him devotional service can understand Him. Logical hypothesis is not the way, but rather śabda-brahma, hearing from authorized sources.
Narada Bhakti Sutra 5: When Lord Caitanya first came to Jagannātha Purī, a dispute arose between His followers and Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya, who was at that time a mundane logician. The Bhaṭṭācārya and his students refused to accept that Lord Caitanya was the Supreme Personality of Godhead, although Gopīnātha Ācārya presented much evidence from Vedic scriptures. Finally the disciples of the Bhaṭṭācārya said, "We derive knowledge of the Absolute Truth by logical hypothesis." Gopīnātha Ācārya replied, "One cannot attain real knowledge of the Supreme Personality of Godhead by such logical hypothesis and argument" (Cc. Madhya 6.81). Gopīnātha Ācārya further stated that only that person who has received the mercy of the Lord by rendering Him devotional service can understand Him. Logical hypothesis is not the way, but rather śabda-brahma, hearing from authorized sources. Lord Brahmā made the same point in his prayers to Lord Kṛṣṇa in Chapter Fourteen of the Tenth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Religion cannot be manufactured and it is accepted from authorized source as it is according to the Vedic rules or authorised scriptures.
Lecture on BG 9.2-5 -- New York, November 23, 1966: So this is, Kṛṣṇa consciousness... Because persons who are acting for transcendental loving service of the Supreme Lord, they are called Kṛṣṇa conscious, so it has connection with God. Therefore it is religion, dharma. And how a religion is accepted? Religion accepted from authorized source. Just like Vedic religion, Bible religion. Because they have got source from authority. Śruti-pramāṇa. Śruti-pramāṇa religion. You cannot manufacture religion. It must be according to the Vedic rules or authorized scriptures. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is said, dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam: [SB 6.3.19] "Dharma, religion, means it is the law of God." Just like state laws. You cannot manufacture any law. If you make some by-laws... Just like for your society you make some by-laws. That is to be sanctioned by this society registration under religious regulation, as we have registered. But you cannot make any law without any sanction.
To be a better Christian, is to hear submissively from the authorized source, representative of God.
Lecture on BG 9.15 -- New York, December 1, 1966: So submissively, submissively we shall try to hear from the authorized source, representative of God. San-mukharitāṁ bhavadīya-vārtāṁ jīvanti, lives, sthāne sthitāḥ. Sthāne sthitāḥ means keeping himself in his position. Sthāne sthitāḥ. Just like you are hearing Bhagavad-gītā. Some of you are medical man. Some of you are engineer. Some of you businessman. Some of you clerk. That doesn't matter. You keep yourself in your position. You remain as American. You remain as Christian. It doesn't matter. But there is no harm in hearing Bhagavad-gītā. There is no harm. You'll get knowledge. You'll get knowledge. You'll become better Christian. You'll become better American.
You are accepted as authority when you support your statement by quoting the section or the injunction from the Vedas, the perfect authorized source.
Lecture on BG 16.9 -- Hawaii, February 5, 1975: You have to accept anything from the authorized source. So according to Vedic civilization, all knowledge is received from the Vedas, perfect authorized source. Śruti-pramāṇa, evidence from the śruti, from the Vedas, that is perfect. Therefore, according to Vedic civilization, if you want to establish something you have to quote the section or the injunction from the Vedas, Then it is perfect. In learned circle you cannot say anything hodge-podge. That will not be accepted. If you support your statement from the evidence of the Vedas, then you are accepted as authority.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Even though one do not understand the real Kṛṣṇa, by not hearing the first nine cantos, and take advantage of Kṛṣṇa's rāsa-līlā only as ordinary story, but because one is hearing about Kṛṣṇa's pastimes from authorized source, one still can become purified and promoted to transcendental devotional platform.
Lecture on SB 6.2.5-8 -- Calcutta, January 10, 1971: Everything is discussed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, but people do not take advantage of all these instructions. They mean... Bhāgavatam means that rāsa-līlā, that's all. So many nice instructions are there in different cantos. Actually, the Kṛṣṇa is described in the Tenth Canto, and other nine cantos are specially meant for purifying the heart and understanding real Kṛṣṇa, tattvataḥ, as it is described in the Bhagavad-gītā. They do not know. Those who take advantage of Kṛṣṇa's rāsa-līlā only as ordinary story, they do not know Kṛṣṇa tattvataḥ. But even though they do not know, because they are hearing about Kṛṣṇa's pastimes, they are also becoming purified. But if they hear from authorized source, then the result will be bhaktiṁ parāṁ bhagavati bhagavati pratilabhya. They will be promoted to transcendental devotional platform, and the result will be that hṛd-roga-kāmam apahinoti.
Learn it from authorized sources, otherwise one will be mislead by the rascals by thinking that we are also Kṛṣṇa.
Lecture on SB 7.9.2 -- Mayapur, February 12, 1977: By seeing, we cannot eat, but whatever we offer, if Kṛṣṇa sees, He eats also. Aṅgāni yasya sakalendriya-vṛtti-manti. So how we can compare Kṛṣṇa's body with our body? But avajānanti māṁ mūḍhāḥ [BG. 9.11]. Those who are rascals, they think that "Kṛṣṇa has two hands, two legs; therefore I am also Kṛṣṇa. I am also." So don't be misled by the rascals, pāṣaṇḍi. Take as there in the śāstra, learn it from authorized sources, and be happy.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

By understanding, by hearing from authorized sources, or by reading from authorized sources, the forgetful living entities will come to his senses.
Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.121-124 -- New York, November 25, 1966: Vyāsadeva is the first man who wrote this Vedic knowledge into writing. Before that, there was no writing. Only by hearing, by memory, the students will grasp the whole thing and coming down, tradition, tradition. Yes. Śruti, by hearing.

So jīvere kṛpāya kaila kṛṣṇa veda-purāṇa. 'sādhu-guru-ātma'-rūpe āpanāre jānāna 'kṛṣṇa mora prabhu, trātā'-jīvera haya jñāna

So what is the utility of this Vedic knowledge? Now, by understanding, by hearing from authorized sources, or by reading from authorized sources, the forgetful living entities will come to his senses. That is the purpose. He will come to his sense: "Oh, my position is this, and I am suffering in this way."
Lord Caitanya is not recommending this process by manufacturing Himself, but He is quoting from the authorized scripture and authorized sources so that people can accept it as this is the only process of swiftly realizing the supreme truth, Absolute Truth.
Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.137 -- New York, November 28, 1966: This verse is quoted from Bṛhad-Nāradīya Purāṇa. Out of eighteen Purāṇas, this Bṛhad-Nāradīya Purāṇa is also... So this is recommended. So Lord Caitanya's recommendation also is corroborating. He is not recommending this process by manufacturing Himself, but He is quoting from the authorized scripture and authorized sources so that people can accept it. So we should accept this process—

harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma iva kevalam kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā [Cc. Ādi 17.21]

—and practically see that this is the only process of swiftly realizing the supreme truth, Absolute Truth. So we should follow Kṛṣṇa consciousness very seriously and sincerely.
All Vedic literatures, they say the same thing. So we have to learn from authorized sources, and we can be informed perfectly.
Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 21.49-61 -- New York, January 5, 1967: Now, there is material world, this material world is within the mahat-tattva compass. You have seen the picture, mahat-tattva compass. And that mahat-tattva is full with water. This is called Causal Ocean. And beyond that Causal Ocean, there is spiritual world. It is stated, tasyāḥ pāre paravyoma. Paravyoma means spiritual sky. And tripād-bhūtam. Tripād-bhūtaṁ sanātanam. Tripād-bhūtam means this material manifestation is only one-fourth energy of the Supreme Lord. This inferior energy is only one-fourth manifestation of the energy. The three-fourths manifestation of energy (is) in the spiritual world, and that is sanātanam. That is not subjected to creation and annihilation as this material world is subjected to that creation and annihilation. That is confirmed in Bhagavad-gītā. All Vedic literatures, they say the same thing. So we have to learn from authorized sources, and we can be informed perfectly about parāvara, para and avara.

Festival Lectures

All our books are not mental speculation, but written from the conclusion of Vedic literature, the authorized source.
Sri Vyasa-puja -- London, August 22, 1973: All these literatures whatever we have produced, they are actually originally from Vyāsadeva. The four Vedas, Brahma-sūtra, Upaniṣads, Purāṇas, they are called Vedic literature. And whatever is written with the conclusion of this Vedic literature, that is also Vedic literature. Just like our books. All our books, they are not mental speculation. Whatever I have learned from my Guru Mahārāja, I am presenting. That's all. It is not mental speculation—this philosophy, that philosophy. We kick out all these things. Unless we get the knowledge from the authorized source, we don't accept.

General Lectures

God has given you these two ears and you can learn from the authorized sources. Then you will understand God. And when you understand God, then you develop love of God without any motive, and you will feel completely satisfied.
Lecture with Allen Ginsberg at Ohio State University -- Columbus, May 12, 1969: Try to understand God. This is the business of human form of life, not that simply eating, sleeping and mating and defending. These are animal business. The animal knows how to eat, how to sleep, how to mate, and how to defend in its own way. So that is common formula for human being or animal. But there is one speciality in human society or human being—he can understand God, what is God. If I explain to a human being, however illiterate, uneducated, he may be, if he has simply these two ears, he will understand what is God. Therefore the Vedic information is called śruti. Just try to hear. You haven't got to be educated or literate. God has given you these two ears and you can learn. Simply you have to learn from the authorized sources. Then you will understand God. And when you understand God, then you develop love of God. And when you develop love of God without any motive and without any impediment, then you find, "Oh," svāmin kṛtārtho 'smi varaṁ na yāce [Cc. Madhya 22.42], "I have no more any demand. I am completely satisfied." Try to come to this platform, transcendental stage. You cannot be happy simply by material advancement. That is not possible.
Due to our tiny senses, it is foolish to try to speculate and understand the ultimate truth. Just try to be humble to receive the message from authorized sources, so that we will able to conquer the Supreme Lord, who is unconquerable.
Lecture with Allen Ginsberg at Ohio State University -- Columbus, May 12, 1969: Don't be foolishly try to speculate to understand the unlimited. It is not possible. By your tiny senses you cannot understand the unlimited. It is not possible. Therefore the first recommendation is that jñāne prayāsam udapāsya. Don't try to be a dry speculator to understand the ultimate truth. Namanta. Just become meek and humble. Namanta eva san-mukharitāṁ bhavadīya-vārtām. And try to receive the message from authorized sources. Then sthane sthitaḥ śruti-gatam tanu-van-manobhiḥ: in whatever condition you are, you don't require to change. You simply hear. Then a day will come when you will be able to conquer the Supreme Lord, who is unconquerable.
God is great, nobody can conquer, but if you simply follow this process, then—in whatever condition you are, simply try to hear about God from authorized sources—then one day you will be able to conquer God.
Lecture with Allen Ginsberg at Ohio State University -- Columbus, May 12, 1969: God is great, nobody can conquer, but if you simply follow this process, then—in whatever condition you are, simply try to hear about God from authorized sources—then one day you will be able to conquer God within your hand. This is also confirmed in the Brahma-saṁhitā:

advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca vedeṣu durlabham adurlabham ātma-bhaktau...

[Bs. 5.33]

Conversations and Morning Walks

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

If you do not know God, you must approach a person who is authorized to tell you about God.
Room Conversation -- June 14, 1972, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: How do you know your real father?

Devotee: How do you know he's your father, who you met?

John Fahey: They just told me.

Prabhupāda: Who told you?

John Fahey: (laughs) My father.

Prabhupāda: Somebody told you.

John Fahey: Yeah.

Prabhupāda: The mother told you, or somebody told you.

John Fahey: Yeah.

Prabhupāda: And you accepted it. Similarly, about God you have to take information from somebody who is authorized to tell you about God.

John Fahey: Yeah.

Prabhupāda: Everything is known, can be known, from authorized source of knowledge. A child does not know what is this. He asks father, "Father, what is this?" The father explains, "My dear boy, this is dictaphone. When I speak, it records." Childlike, you see? That is the way of knowledge. If you do not know God, you must approach a person who knows God. There is knowledge. There is no difficulty.

Correspondence

1972 Correspondence

If heard from authorized sources, that is much sufficient.
Letter to Madhudvisa -- Los Angeles 16 May, 1972: Regarding your questions, generally we do not discuss these incidents because a devotee of Lord Caitanya does not feel very happy to discuss them. But so far we have heard from authorized sources, He simultaneously entered Jagannatha Temple and Gopinatha Temple in Puri and He did not come out. That much is sufficient.
It is not our process to act upon rumors. We hear from the authorized sources, and then our hearing is perfect.
Letter to Prajapati -- Los Angeles 16 June, 1972: Regarding your questions, we should not take any stock of rumors which may come, that is not our process to act upon rumors. We hear from the authorized sources, and then our hearing is perfect. So you are the leader of big temple, you should know these things and avoid them, and instruct the other students there to stick to whatever is mentioned in our books and try to understand that subject matter from every angle of vision, without trying to adulterate by adding anything rumor. Our preaching must be based upon the subject matter from books and nothing outside of them.

1975 Correspondence

As Westerners have no authorized sources of information in yoga practice, they are misleaded. Actually, the astanga yoga system practiced thousands of years ago is not practical for this age, it is said in the sastras that the same result that was formerly attained by difficult sacrifices or yoga practice is easily achieved in this age simply by chanting the Holy name of God, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.
Letter to Dr. Yogi Raj Dev Svarupa -- Vrindaban 4 December, 1975: I request you to study some of my books, especially Bhagavad-gita as it is. As stated in the Bhagavad-gita, manah samyamya mac-citto, yukta asita mat parah "One should meditate upon me (Krishna) within the heart and make me the ultimate goal of life." [BG. 6.13-14]. Western people are now becoming more and more interested in yoga practice, but unfortunately because they have no authorized source of information, they are being mislead by unauthorized teachers and concocted methods of yoga practice. Actually the astanga yoga system practiced thousands of years ago is not practical for this age, therefore Lord Caitanya Mahaprabhu introduced the simple process of chanting the Holy name of Krishna for the people of this fallen age of Kali. It is said in the sastras that the same result that was formerly attained by difficult sacrifices or yoga practice is easily achieved in this age simply by chanting the Holy name of God, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.
Page Title:Authorized sources
Compiler:Visnu Murti, Suan
Created:21 of Nov, 2008
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=2, CC=2, OB=1, Lec=12, Con=1, Let=3
No. of Quotes:21