Prabhupāda: The śāstra means what is spoken by God and His representative. That's all. That is śāstra. Unless Kṛṣṇa accepts śāstra, how He saying like that? Tasmāc chāstraṁ pramāṇaṁ te. Śāstra should be...
Dr. Ramachandra: Some śāstras must be existing before...
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Dr. Ramachandra: Some śāstras after, existing before Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna.
Prabhupāda: Śāstra? Śāstra means it is authorized. Just like Bhagavad-gītā is śāstra because it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the supreme authority. Therefore all the ācāryas, they accept it. Still the ācārya-sampradāyas are there. Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Viṣṇu Svāmī, Śaṅkara, they accept all this. And at the time of...
Guest (2): Do you accept the supremacy of the Vedas, veda-pramāṇam.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15). And if you do not understand Kṛṣṇa, then you do not know what is Veda. Your knowledge of Vedas will be accepted when you understand Kṛṣṇa. So if you do not know what Kṛṣṇa, then what is the use of taking so much trouble to study Vedas? You do not know anything. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19).
Dr. Ramachandra: Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti.
Prabhupāda: Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti. That is knowledge.
Dr. Ramachandra: Sa mahātmā.
Prabhupāda: Sa mahātmā. If you do not know vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti (BG 7.19), śrama eva hi kevalam: (SB 1.2.8) simply you have labored hard. That's all. You have gained nothing. And if you understood Vāsudeva, then you understood everything. Kasmin tu bhagavo vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati.