Even in Vedic age, everything was memorized. There was nothing in writing. People were so sharp in brain that once heard from the spiritual master, they will never forget. The brahmacārī system made their brain so powerful that whatever they will hear from the spiritual master, they will keep in the brain and never forget. They will repeat verbatim. Smṛti. This is called retaining power.
So God-realization does not depend on material opulence. Material opulence means to take birth in high family, janma. Janma means high parentage. Then . . . janmaiśvarya, and wealthy, great riches. These are material opulences: high parentage, great riches and great learning and great beauty. These four things are material opulences. Janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrī (SB 1.8.26). Janma means birth, aiśvarya means wealth, and śruta means education and śrī means beauty. So for God realization these things are not essential, but Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement can utilize everything. So nothing is neglected. That is another point. But if somebody thinks that "I have got all these opulences; therefore God realization is very easy for me," no, that is not.
So God realization depends on God, because God . . . you cannot oblige God by some force. Just like if you have got money, oh, you can do anything nowadays. If you have got strength of wealth, you can have any power, you can do anything. But that does not mean that you can purchase God. No. That is not possible.
If you have got beauty, you can conquer over very stalwart, very strong men. Just like what is the . . . Cleopatra. You have heard the Grecian history. She was very beautiful, and she conquered many great warriors. So beauty sometimes can conquer even the greatest man, but that does not mean beauty can conquer God. No. That is not possible.
So the vairāgya-vidyā-nija-bhakti-yoga (CC Madhya 6.254). To conquer God is bhakti. If you are advanced in devotional service, then you can conquer God. Just like the gopīs, as I was speaking: their parentage was not very high, not at all high. Village, agriculturist, farmers, no education, practical . . . no education at all. And they were not rich at all. Agriculturist, farmers, they are not very rich. So how they conquered Kṛṣṇa? Kṛṣṇa was just a play toy in their hands.
Gopī-bhāva-rasāmṛtābdhi-laharī. They conquered Kṛṣṇa simply by devotional service. That's all. They did not know anything except Kṛṣṇa. They did not, I mean to . . . (indistinct) . . . care anything. Simply they’re, always they're thinking of Kṛṣṇa.
The one instance of their absorption in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is explained, that when Kṛṣṇa was going on the pasturing ground, the gopīs were crying at home. Why? They were thinking that, "Kṛṣṇa . . . His body is so delicate, so soft, that we, when we take His lotus feet and place on our breast or chest, we think it is hard, very hard for Him. So Kṛṣṇa is walking in the forest. There are so many particles of stones. They are pricking, and how much Kṛṣṇa is feeling pain."