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Depicted (Conversations)

Conversations and Morning Walks

1967 Conversations and Morning Walks

Discourse on Lord Caitanya Play Between Srila Prabhupada and Hayagriva -- April 5-6, 1967, San Francisco:

Hayagrīva: Now Kali is depicted as a male. As male?

Prabhupāda: As male, yes.

Hayagrīva: Because sometimes I know he's depicted as female.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Male, his feature black, and dressed like a king. Black means ignorance. And similarly the scene is also blackish.

Hayagrīva: Yes.

Prabhupāda: These things should be ascertained(?). Then, it is mentioned there, exhibit illicit sex, slaughterhouse, intoxication, gambling. Then the third scene is very nice. Rāsa dance.

Hayagrīva: Uh... Just before this... I'm not going to make this I don't believe either eastern or western, but I think this can apply for the whole world in the sense that the names may be Indian names, but I think the exhibition of the assembly of Kali and his consort sin and the exhibition of illicit sex and slaughterhouse, this can all be, it can be from western type prototype.

Prabhupāda: That may be. No, why should you... It may be sometimes misunderstood that western people are only under the influence of Kali. Because the world is under the influence of Kali. Not that in your country only this intoxication, illicit sex. No, everywhere it is.

Discourse on Lord Caitanya Play Between Srila Prabhupada and Hayagriva -- April 5-6, 1967, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: That may be. No, why should you... It may be sometimes misunderstood that western people are only under the influence of Kali. Because the world is under the influence of Kali. Not that in your country only this intoxication, illicit sex. No, everywhere it is.

Hayagrīva: I realize that.

Prabhupāda: More or less. More or less.

Hayagrīva: Not only in that scene. My point is that I don't want to make this an Indian play.

Prabhupāda: That you may do. That you may do. I have no objection. But people may not misunderstand that here a scene is depicted simply criticizing the western way. That is my point. Yes.

Hayagrīva: Yes. Now that other person, that other Lord Caitanya... Roy? Who wrote the other Lord Caitanya? That other play?

Prabhupāda: No, nobody...

Hayagrīva: I showed you that other play.

Prabhupāda: Oh, that Dilip Kumar.

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Talk with Bob Cohen -- February 27-29, 1972, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: The Vedic principle is that one should avoid sex life altogether. The whole Vedic principle is to get liberation from this material bondage. And there are different attachments for this material enjoyment, out of which sex life is the source of topmost enjoyment. The Bhāgavata says that this material world... Puṁsaḥ striyā mithunī-bhāvam etam (SB 5.5.8). Means that a man is attached to woman and woman is attached to man. Not only human society, in animal society also. That attachment is the basic principle of material life. So, a woman is hankering or seeking after the association of a man, and a man is hankering or seeking the association of a woman. Just like we see the, all the fictions, novels, dramas, this cinema, or even ordinary advertisement, simply they depict the attachment between man and woman. Even in tailor's shop you'll find on the window some woman, some man. (break) So this attachment is already there.

Conversation with Bajaj and Bhusan -- September 11, 1972, Arlington, Texas, At Their Home:

Prabhupāda: No, we have got center in Bombay. No, I have... My personal centers are not there. But just like Gītā Press. They are also publishing Bhagavad-gītā, millions of copies every month, and that is being distributed in India. So why does he say, "Indians, they do not know"? That is foolishness. Every Indian knows what is Kṛṣṇa.

Guest (2): You're talking about the center, Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Guest (3): Yeah, they look at this point of view because they think if that's the only movement which he associated with Lord Kṛṣṇa, but Lord Kṛṣṇa is almost in every home in India.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Janmāṣṭamī, Kṛṣṇa's birthday, is observed by every Indian still, although artificially they are being checked not to take to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is presented by government in so many bad way. You see? In government there is a paper. It is called "Indian Culture," something. In that paper Kṛṣṇa is depicted as a bil boy. (?)

Guest (3): What?

Prabhupāda: Bil boy means just like black, Negro. And He is worshiped. Such a rascal. Kṛṣṇa is worshiped, and for Kṛṣṇa worship so many Vedic literature, and government is presenting Him as bil boy. Just see what kind of government we have got.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Conversation with Sridhara Maharaja -- June 27, 1973, Navadvipa:

Prabhupāda: (Bengali) Goloka-nāmni nija-dhāmni tale ca tasya devī-maheśa-hari-dhāma... (Bs. 5.43). (Bengali) About our temple contemplation, it will be almost a skyscraper building.

Bhavānanda: Will be.

Śrīdhara Mahārāja: Eh?

Prabhupāda: Skyscraper building in temple shape, with four divisions. Goloka-nāmni nija-dhāmni tale ca tasya devī-maheśa... (Bs. 5.43). So Maheśa-dhāma, how it will be depicted? Pārvatī-wise. (?)

Śrīdhara Mahārāja: It has been already described by Sanātana Gosvāmī in Bṛhad-Bhāgavatāmṛtam. After crossing Brahmaloka,

Prabhupāda: There is Maheśa-dhāma, in between.

Morning Walk -- August 30, 1973, London:

David Lawrence: I'm probably misunderstanding it you see.

Prabhupāda: ...it will be difficult for ordinary persons. Still, as far as possible, I have tried to explain for understanding of the ordinary people. By general reading, it is not difficult.

David Lawrence:. This is the sort of problem one comes across, whether in fact... You see, having grown up in what was really a very liberal, critical attitude...

Prabhupāda: Therefore, this portion of Kṛṣṇa's life is depicted on the Tenth Canto. Nine Cantos are devoted to understand Kṛṣṇa. So without understanding Kṛṣṇa if one tries to read the life and pastimes of Kṛṣṇa, it may be misleading.

David Lawrence: Yes, yes. I think somewhere it says...

Prabhupāda: Therefore Bhāgavata begins, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1), what is the original source of creation. Not abruptly Kṛṣṇa. Then after developing all such knowledge one can understand what is Kṛṣṇa. But in the spiritual world there are activities like that. The material world is only perverted reflection of these activities of the spiritual world. Perverted reflections. It is reflection, but perverted. Therefore, it is difficult. Everything is there. Basic principle that Kṛṣṇa loved the gopīs... Gopīs were young girls, Kṛṣṇa was young boy, But the same love between young boy and girl here is lust. Therefore, it is perverted. The reflection is there, but it is not love, it is lust.

Morning Walk -- December 13, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Insane, yes. So they are all insane. Anyone who has no clear knowledge what is the aim of life, what is God, "what is my relationship," one who does not know all these things, he is a bokā, illusioned. He is hovering in darkness. Therefore, whatever he is doing, it is defeat. That we see practically. So many scientists, so many philosophers, politicians, are engaged to bring in a better condition in the world, but they are failure. In the darkness they are working. They do not know. One bokā is trying to excel another bokā. This is going on. (break) ...great personality, Rabindranath Tagore, he used to say, a bokā. Actually he is so. What he has done? He has given some imaginary songs, that's all. What benefit the people will derive out of it? Simply waste of time, that's all. (break)

Svarūpa Dāmodara: ...could have written a lot of Vaiṣṇava songs, if he were a Vaiṣṇava.

Prabhupāda: Yes. But he borrowed the idea from Vaiṣṇava. His guru, not exactly guru... In his zamindari, Golpur, he was going to a Vaiṣṇava, Baul. But Baul is sahajiyā. So he got the idea of Vaiṣṇavism, but because he was not Vaiṣṇava, he presented his idea in a different way. That is his Gītāñjali. Gītāñjali is the depiction of the idea he got from that Baul.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: His songs are so popular in Bengal.

Prabhupāda: No, all over the world, more or less.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 3, 1974, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Yes, president also administrator. No, one is in the religious order. That is also required. But here we see, persons who are in religious order, they're also addicted to these four sinful, four sinful life. And he's presenting himself as religious.

Karandhara: On the one should we depict meat-eating or animal slaughter?

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Karandhara: Should we depict animal-slaughter or meat-eating?

Prabhupāda: Animal slaughter.

Karandhara: Animal slaughter.

Prabhupāda: That will be still broader.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Ganesa dasa's Mother and Sister -- May 14, 1975, Perth:

Sister: But you don't need to see the picture... With His omnipotence, you don't need to have the picture.

Prabhupāda: No, because you, without seeing Him, you do not develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You require to see Him. So He has appeared before you so that you can see Him. That is His mercy, so that you see Him and you think of Him. Man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ. You see Him and think of Him. That is the meaning of picture. You cannot say, "I have not seen God." Here is God. You see God's picture here in the temple. In the śāstra description is there. Just like in the Brahma-saṁhitā it is said, veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣam: (Bs. 5.30) "Kṛṣṇa is playing on His flute." That is the information in the Vedas. Here He is playing on flute. Veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāya... "His eyes are like lotus petal." You see? The description in the Vedas and the picture the same. It is not imagination. It is in the Veda. Vedas will give you information. Then surabhīr abhipālayantam (Bs. 5.29). There are cows. Kṛṣṇa is very much fond of cows. So what is stated in the Vedas about Kṛṣṇa, that is depicted.

It is not imagination, not that we have imagined something like, "This is like..." No. It is corroborated, established by Vedic knowledge. So you'll find Kṛṣṇa's form like this everywhere. In India there are millions of temples. Everywhere you will find this.

Mother: How old is Kṛṣṇa?

Prabhupāda: He is never old. That is material question. He is the oldest person. He is the origin of everything.

Morning Walk -- November 20, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: No, more scientists were there in Germany.

Dr. Patel: They say Germany could produce more scientists because they had all our, our Vedas and all our secret ancient books with them, the Sanskrit. They had read them.

Prabhupāda: That is also fact.

Dr. Patel: And one Śaṅkarācārya—I don't know which—who was the professor in one of the colleges of Madras, he went and met Professor Einstein and talked about... And then he gave out some, one śloka of two lines which actually depicted how atoms could be smashed. That is in our sciences.

Indian man (2): This is fact?

Dr. Patel: Yes, it's a fact. (Hindi)

Prabhupāda: (break) ...ago, there was one Mr. Badhuri in Benares. He was a great astrologer. So he told me that from Benares the Germans have taken three books: one is Akāśa-patola, one is Kapota-vahi and his Khapoda-vahi. Khapoda-vahi, this airplane. Kha means akasa. And there is another science, kapota-vahi, to carry man by the pigeons. That is not yet displayed. Kapota-vahi. And there is another, Akasa-patola. Any, any, even your chairs you sit down; by mantra it will go on.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Interview with Kathy Kerr Reporter from The Star -- June 17, 1976, Toronto:

Jayādvaita: I hadn't heard about them.

Prabhupāda: No, in India they know. And I have described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Hari-śauri: They're depicted like that quite often in Europe, because they used to have the guillotine chopping the head off.

Prabhupāda: A ghost without head, yes, there is a ghost. So at the present moment, without head ghost. A civilization of ghosts, without brain. It is something revolutionary. Something revolutionary, but this is a fact.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Film Producer about Krsna Lila -- January 22, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: My point is that for ordinary discussion, ordinary show, these things are not meant for. That is my point.

Guest (1): No, we are just depicting the līlās.

Prabhupāda: It is not that they should be forbidden altogether. No. That is meant for a certain high-class devotees, not for ordinary persons.

Guest (2): Here they say that when you get to this Maha-vandana or Kṛṣṇa līlā, they take... Any party. Even one Vaiṣṇava, he was getting a troupe and making that Kṛṣṇa conscious movement here. Or that some of this... The Suri Patel, he became leper. And the woman who was acting as the Rādhā, she also became the victim of leprosy.

Prabhupāda: So why should take such risk? (laughs)

Guest (2): No. No, no, no. What happened...

Prabhupāda: It happened, and it must happen. It must happen. So why should you take that risk?

Guest (1): This is... We are depicting the līlā...

Prabhupāda: Any... Anyway...

Room Conversation With Artists and About BTG -- February 25, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: You can... If you want to increase picture, you can take important words... Just like the verse nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānāt: "One who has no more material hankering..." Paint it in picture. Nivṛtta-tarṣaiḥ, no more hankering for anything material. And there is word, dharma-śīla, "religious." What is that religion? One who has surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, he is religious. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam (BG 18.66). He is religious. Ordinary religious, they are not religious. In this way you depict one picture, one word. This can be...

Brahmānanda: Is that the first chapter?

Prabhupāda: Paśu-ghna. Paśu-ghna, the animal-killer.

Room Conversation about Mayapura Attack Talk with Vrindavan De -- July 8, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "Light of the Bhāgavata." It's a lecture by you. These are original illustrations.

Prabhupāda: Very good.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh, do you see what this says, Śrīla Prabhupāda, on this past page? It says... This is the verse. "The small rivulets, which were almost dried up during the months of May and June, now begin to overflow, transgressing the banks of the river, just as the upstarts addicted to uncontrolled sense enjoyment overflow the limits of expenditure all of a sudden." And then they show a picture describing it. Sense enjoyment. They're going verse by verse and drawing original illustrations to depict. Vedic recipe page: rasagullās. It says, "Agni-hotra on Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva's Appearance Day."

Prabhupāda: Very good.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Sanskrit is given. It's very nice. "Spiritual Psychology: Going Beyond the Sex Impulse."

Prabhupāda: They printed in their own press.

Page Title:Depicted (Conversations)
Compiler:Visnu Murti, Serene
Created:08 of Mar, 2012
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=14, Let=0
No. of Quotes:14