Prabhupāda: Duḥkhse sab hari bhaje. When one is distressed, there is sense of God consciousness. But if they continue it even in their happiness, then it is all right.
Prajāpati: They must have knowledge, though, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Prabhupāda: But in happiness they forget.
(aside) Don't keep so near.
Prajāpati: Without knowledge, their sentiment is not so important.
Prabhupāda: Huh?
Prajāpati: Without knowledge, their sentiment is just worthless.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Hṛdayānanda: That's a fact. In American history, whenever there was economic prosperity, always increase in sense gratification. Historically speaking, in America, whenever there was increase in prosperity, there was a trend towards irreligion and sense gratification.
Prabhupāda: That is everywhere. Luxury leads to poverty. (break) . . . a living man, but if you are actually interested, why don't you do it, organized way? Sentiment, it is good, but if you do not understand the science, sentiment may be for the time being. Sentiment is sentiment. That will not act. They are admitting sinful activities, eh?
Prajāpati: Yes, they are admitting that they . . . they are in an abyss of moral decay.
Prabhupāda: So let them know what are the sinful activities. These are the sinful activities. Close all the slaughterhouses. Close all these illicit sex brothel houses, and close the liquor houses.
Prajāpati: The gambling also?
Prabhupāda: Certainly. Then their business will be finished. Then they will say: "Where we stand? It is all finished." Now you stand on a different platform.
Prajāpati: Yesterday, Śrīla Prabhupāda, in class you mentioned how the churches, people could pay them for supposedly becoming very religious men. In Las Vegas, the capital of the gambling and the illicit sex and the intoxication, where all these things are very prominent, the churches there are very prominent also. These big demons, they pay large money to the churches, and therefore they feel like they are very religious men even though they are committing all these sinful activities.
Prabhupāda: Yes. And by taking their sinful money, because they do not engage to Kṛṣṇa, they also become sinful. Affected. Infection. (break) They have mentioned something like sinful?
Prajāpati: Yes, sinful.
Prabhupāda: What he has said, Karandhara?
Karandhara: He doesn't say specifically. He just said that generally the country is degraded and people have become apathetic, and the morals have reduced. He was referring to things like Watergate, political scandals, and the youth degradation.
Prabhupāda: But why they have degraded? That is to be understood. Not known to them.
Karandhara: Yes. Actually they don't have the scientific analysis. They just have some vague understanding that things are falling apart.
Prabhupāda: Here are the causes: sinful life. (break)
Prajāpati: . . . the affair, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Oh, then the country could be . . .
Prabhupāda: No, no, I am already in charge, but who is following me? (laughter) (laughs) That is the difficulty. (break) . . . one who is to be followed, that is called ācārya. So who is following the ācārya? Nobody is following. Ācārya is there, but nobody is following ācārya. Ācaraṇa. Ācaraṇa means behavior. Ācārya that, "This man is ideal. One should follow him." That is called ācārya. (break) . . . to allow us one day to have chanting and speaking something about God consciousness.
Prajāpati: Very nice.
Prabhupāda: Yes. And I will go. I will speak and have kīrtana. (break) . . . date.
Karandhara: April 30th.
Prabhupāda: April 30th. So on that date arrange a meeting of the senators. And I will go and speak and have kīrtana, what is actually life. Approach them that, "We are spreading this. So why not arrange meeting?" Or any day, on 30th or any day. (break) . . . office here in Los Angeles?
Karandhara: The local senator does. The local senator. For this area.
Prabhupāda: So see him. You and you go and arrange, and explain to him that, "This is our movement, simply how to make people pure, moral, sinless, and advanced in God consciousness." Just take this opportunity. "You come and see how God consciousness we are executing, and then arrange a meeting in the Senate. And try to understand, 'It is simply sentiment, or how it will help me?' " (break) . . . so much money, and still they are crying, "Degradation." So they should come to their senses. This kind of understanding will not help. They must understand scientifically.
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Everybody is saying, not only politicians, but everybody is saying that we are degrading; moral standard is degrading. But nobody acts. That is the difficulty.
Prabhupāda: So it is our duty to help them. Those who are . . . just like here is an opportunity. Go, see them immediately, the person. It is our duty. (break) . . . sometime I can go and see. Who is the senator, local?
Karandhara: I'm not sure.
Prabhupāda: Find out and arrange some meeting. I shall go personally.
Svarūpa Dāmodara: How many senators here in California?
Karandhara: Two per state. (break)
Prabhupāda: As we know about God, nobody knows in the world. That is a fact. Any person, we can challenge that he has no clear idea what is God, how to contact God, how to . . . nobody knows. (break)
Prajāpati: . . . a vague notion that they should be serving God, but they do not know how or what will please God.
Prabhupāda: Vague notion must be there, because we have got relationship with God, eternal. So that is stated in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta: nitya-siddha. It is eternally a fact that we are servant of God, but we have forgotten this. So that has to be revived by this śravaṇa-kīrtana, by hearing, chanting. This is the process. Otherwise, the relationship is already there. It is not to be created. It is already there. (break)
Prajāpati: An article appeared about the Vedānta Society here, and they mentioned us to say that we are not them. They said that, "Those Hare Kṛṣṇas, they are fundamentalists." Just like there are fundamentalist Christians, we are fundamentalist followers of Kṛṣṇa. So it is very nice, actually, because it is fundamental to believe everything that Kṛṣṇa says.