Giant

Expressions researched:
"giant" |"giants"

BG Chapters 7 - 12

BG 11.32, Purport:

Eventually all the brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and everyone else are devoured like a meal by the Supreme. This form of the Supreme Lord is the all-devouring giant, and here Kṛṣṇa presents Himself in that form of all-devouring time. Except for a few Pāṇḍavas, everyone who was present on that battlefield would be devoured by Him. Arjuna was not in favor of the fight, and he thought it was better not to fight; then there would be no frustration. In reply, the Lord is saying that even if he did not fight, every one of them would be destroyed, for that was His plan. If Arjuna stopped fighting, they would die in another way. Death could not be checked, even if he did not fight. In fact, they were already dead. Time is destruction, and all manifestations are to be vanquished by the desire of the Supreme Lord. That is the law of nature.

SB Canto 1

SB 1.9.36, Purport:

They were to pay one fourth of their income to the ruler, whether he be Arjuna or Duryodhana. All the commanders of the parties on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra were standing face to face, and Arjuna saw them with great compassion and lamented that he was to kill his kinsmen on the battlefield for the sake of the empire. He was not at all afraid of the giant military phalanx presented by Duryodhana, but as a merciful devotee of the Lord, renunciation of worldly things was natural for him, and thus he decided not to fight for worldly possessions. But this was due to a poor fund of knowledge, and therefore it is said here that his intelligence became polluted. His intelligence could not be polluted at any time because he was a devotee and constant companion of the Lord, as is clear in the Fourth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā. Apparently Arjuna's intelligence became polluted because otherwise there would not have been a chance to deliver the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā for the good of all polluted conditioned souls engaged in material bondage by the conception of the false material body.

SB Canto 2

SB 2.7.27, Translation:

There is no doubt about Lord Kṛṣṇa's being the Supreme Lord, otherwise how was it possible for Him to kill a giant demon like Pūtanā when He was just on the lap of His mother, to overturn a cart with His leg when He was only three months old, to uproot a pair of arjuna trees, so high that they touched the sky, when He was only crawling? All these activities are impossible for anyone other than the Lord Himself.

SB Canto 3

SB 3.3.1, Purport:

The Lord proved to be a worthy son of His parents even at the age of sixteen years. Both brothers, Lord Kṛṣṇa and Lord Baladeva, went to Mathurā from Vṛndāvana and killed Their maternal uncle, who had given so much trouble to Their parents, Vasudeva and Devakī. Kaṁsa was a great giant, and Vasudeva and Devakī never thought that Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma (Baladeva) would be able to kill such a great and strong enemy. When the two brothers attacked Kaṁsa on the throne, Their parents feared that now Kaṁsa would finally get the opportunity to kill their sons, whom they had hidden for so long in the house of Nanda Mahārāja. The parents of the Lord, due to parental affection, felt extreme danger, and they almost fainted. Just to convince them that They had actually killed Kaṁsa, Kṛṣṇa and Baladeva pulled Kaṁsa's dead body along the ground to encourage them.

SB 3.13.29, Translation:

Diving into the water like a giant mountain, Lord Boar divided the middle of the ocean, and two high waves appeared as the arms of the ocean, which cried loudly as if praying to the Lord, "O Lord of all sacrifices, please do not cut me in two! Kindly give me protection!"

SB Canto 7

SB 7.8.17, Purport:

Prahlāda Mahārāja fearlessly replied, "Yes, my Lord is present everywhere." Therefore, to convince Hiraṇyakaśipu that the statement of Prahlāda Mahārāja was unmistakably true, the Lord appeared from the pillar. The Lord appeared as half lion and half man so that Hiraṇyakaśipu could not understand whether the great giant was a lion or a human being. To substantiate Prahlāda's statement, the Lord proved that His devotee, as declared in Bhagavad-gītā, is never vanquished (kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati (BG 9.31)). Prahlāda Mahārāja's demoniac father had repeatedly threatened to kill Prahlāda, but Prahlāda was confident that he could not be killed, since he was protected by the Supreme Lord. By appearing from the pillar, the Lord encouraged His devotee, saying in effect, "Don't worry. I am present here." By manifesting His form as Nṛsiṁha-deva, the Lord also preserved the truth of Lord Brahmā's promise that Hiraṇyakaśipu was not to be killed by any animal or any man. The Lord appeared in a form that could not be said to be fully a man or a lion.

SB 7.10.33, Translation:

Thereafter, along with Śukrācārya and other great saints, Lord Brahmā, whose seat is on the lotus flower, made Prahlāda the king of all the demons and giants in the universe.

SB Canto 8

SB 8.10.45, Translation:

My dear King, Bali Mahārāja then disappeared and resorted to demoniac illusions. A giant mountain, generated from illusion, then appeared above the heads of the demigod soldiers.

SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)

SB 10.46.25, Translation:

With the ease of a royal elephant breaking a stick, Kṛṣṇa broke a powerful, giant bow three tālas long. He also held a mountain aloft for seven days with just one hand.

CC Preface and Introduction

CC Foreword:

During this period of six years, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu transmits His teachings to His principal disciples. He debates and converts many of the renowned philosophers and theologians of His time, including Śaṅkarites, Buddhists, and Muslims, and incorporates their many thousands of followers and disciples into His own burgeoning numbers. The author also includes in this section a dramatic account of Caitanya Mahāprabhu's miraculous activities at the giant Ratha-yātrā (Car Festival) in Jagannātha Purī, Orissa.

The Antya-līlā concerns the last eighteen years of Śrī Caitanya's presence, spent in semiseclusion near the famous Jagannātha temple in Purī. During these final years, Śrī Kṛṣṇa Caitanya drifted deeper and deeper into trances of spiritual ecstasy unparalleled in all of religious and literary history, Eastern or Western. His perpetual and ever-increasing religious beatitude, graphically described in the eyewitness accounts of Svarūpa Dāmodara Gosvāmī, His constant companion during this period, clearly defy the investigative and descriptive abilities of modern psychologists and phenomenologists of religious experience.

Nectar of Devotion

Nectar of Devotion 29:

When Nanda Mahārāja saw his foster son Kṛṣṇa embarrassed in the sacrificial arena of Kaṁsa, he said, "How unfortunate I am that I did not keep my son bolted within a room. Unfortunately, I have brought Him to Mathurā, and now I see that He's embarrassed by this giant elephant named Kuvalaya. It is as though the moon of Kṛṣṇa were eclipsed by the shadow of the earth." This is an instance of lamentation caused by reversed conditions.

In the Tenth Canto, Fourteenth Chapter, verse 9, of the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam there is a statement by Brahmā: "My dear Lord, just see my impudence! You are the unlimited, the original Personality of Godhead, the Supersoul—and You rule over the most perfect illusory energies! And just see my impudence! I wanted to supersede You by my own personal power, and I was very puffed up with this tiny power of mine. Just as a simple spark from a fire cannot do any harm to the fire, so my bewildering potency was completely unsuccessful in thwarting Your superior illusory power. Therefore I find myself to be most insignificant and think of myself as a most useless person." This statement by Brahmā is an instance of lamentation caused by committing an offense.

Nectar of Devotion 33:

When the Keśī demon was causing disturbances in Vṛndāvana by assuming a large horse's body that was so big that he could jump over the trees, mother Yaśodā told her husband, Nanda Mahārāja, "Our child is very restless, so we had better keep Him locked up within the house. I have been very worried about the recent disturbances of the Keśī demon, who has been assuming the form of a giant horse." When it was learned that the demon was entering Gokula in an angry mood, mother Yaśodā became so anxious to protect her child that her face dried up and there were tears in her eyes. These are some of the signs of the ecstasy of dread in devotional service, caused by seeing and hearing something that is dangerous to Kṛṣṇa.

After the Pūtanā witch had been killed, some friends of mother Yaśodā inquired from her about the incident. Mother Yaśodā at once requested her friends, "Please stop! Please stop! Don't bring up the incident of Pūtanā. I become distressed just by remembering this incident. The Pūtanā witch came to devour my son, and she deceived me into letting her take the child on her lap.

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

Krsna Book 36:

I request you to go immediately to Vṛndāvana and find the two boys named Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma. They are the sons of Nanda Mahārāja. Take this nice chariot, especially prepared for the boys, and bring Them here immediately. That is my request to you. Now, my plan is to kill these two boys. As soon as They come in the gate, there will be a giant elephant named Kuvalayāpīḍa waiting, and possibly he will be able to kill Them. But if somehow or other They escape, They will next meet the wrestlers and will be killed by them. That is my plan. And after killing these two boys, I shall kill Vasudeva and Nanda, who are supporters of the Vṛṣṇi and Bhoja dynasties. I shall also kill my father, Ugrasena, and his brother Devaka, because they are actually my enemies and are hindrances to my diplomacy and politics. Thus I shall get rid of all my enemies. Jarāsandha is my father-in-law, and I have a great monkey friend named Dvivida. With their help it will be easy to kill all the kings on the surface of the earth who support the demigods.

Krsna Book 46:

This was foretold by Garga Muni when making Kṛṣṇa's horoscope. If Kṛṣṇa were not a great personality, how could He have killed Kaṁsa, who possessed the strength of ten thousand elephants? Besides Kaṁsa, there were the very strong wrestlers, as well as the giant elephant Kuvalayāpīḍa. Kṛṣṇa killed all these animals and demons just as a lion kills an ordinary animal. How wonderful it is that Kṛṣṇa took in one hand the big, heavy bow made of three joined palm trees and broke it very quickly! How wonderful it is that for seven days continuously He held up Govardhana Hill with one hand! How wonderful it is that He has killed all the demons like Pralambāsura, Dhenukāsura, Ariṣṭāsura, Tṛṇāvarta and Bakāsura! They were so strong that even the demigods in the heavenly planets were afraid of them, but Kṛṣṇa killed them as easily as anything.”

Krsna Book 66:

With a determined vow of austerity, he began to execute the black art of chanting mantras, assisted by the priests. After this, out of the fire came a great demoniac form, whose hair, beard and mustache were exactly the color of hot copper. This form was very big and fierce. As the demon arose from the fire, cinders of fire emanated from the sockets of his eyes. The giant fiery demon appeared still more fierce due to the movements of his eyebrows. He exhibited long, sharp teeth and, sticking out his long tongue, licked his upper and lower lips. He was naked, and he carried a big trident, blazing like fire. After appearing from the fire of sacrifice, he stood wielding the trident in his hand. Instigated by Sudakṣiṇa, the demon proceeded toward the capital city, Dvārakā, with many hundreds of ghostly companions, and it appeared that he was going to burn all outer space to ashes. The surface of the earth trembled because of his striking steps. When he entered the city of Dvārakā, all the residents panicked, just like animals in a forest fire.

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 1.13-14 -- London, July 14, 1973:

This is the difficulty. So we should know from the very beginning that Kṛṣṇa is transcendental. And all His activities, they are all transcendental. Although Kṛṣṇa appears just like ordinary human being... He does not appear like ordinary human being because Kṛṣṇa, when He was three months old only, He killed the Pūtanā rākṣasī. A three month's old child cannot kill such giant demon. It is not possible. Kṛṣṇa, when He was six or seven years old, He lifted the Govardhana Hill. So what is the difficulty for Kṛṣṇa? If Kṛṣṇa can float big, big gigantic planets in the air just like cotton swab floating, so is it very difficult for Kṛṣṇa to lift a mountain with His hand, with His finger? That is not difficult for Kṛṣṇa. But those who want to be cheated, when Kṛṣṇa shows His transcendental strength, they don't believe it, another cheating. They, they'll admit, "Oh, these are... What is called?

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversations with Sannyasis -- March 15, 1974, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Devotee (3): What's the use of having a giant temple if, if we all... We have seen that all over India. They have giant temples but no...

Prabhupāda: No management.

Devotee (3): No management.

Pañcadraviḍa: As far as the men since I think a lot are even, some cases they are sending problem cases to India, people they can't manage in the states. I think maybe if you divide, if you actually, since in the states you've divided the states into territories and certain men have certain territories. If you maybe appoint certain people in charge of territories of India and ask them which men they want, then they will tell you who they want, and the rest they can send away or send somewhere else. Then you'll have solid centers because the men will actually be desired.

Śyāmasundara: That's a good idea.

Prabhupāda: That's good. So you make like that.

Morning Walk -- April 28, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Why I challenge you? Not that because you are my disciple, you are accepting all my challenges. You have got your reasons. You are not a fool. So how it is possible? Practically, how it is possible? Because we are trying to know little about Kṛṣṇa. That's all. Therefore this Vedic injunction, yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati, yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābhaṁ manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ. These statements are there. If you get Kṛṣṇa, then you will not hanker after any more profit. Bas. All profit is there. Yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābham. If you get Kṛṣṇa, then all other kinds of profit, you'll not hanker after. And what kind of profit this is? Yasmin sthito na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate (Bg. 6.20-23). If one is situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, in the greatest calamity of this world, he'll not be disturbed. This is the greatest profit. Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja. A big giant, Hiraṇyakaśipu, is putting him always in difficulty, but he's confident: "Yes, there is Kṛṣṇa." A five years old boy. He's not at all disturbed. Father is giving poison. "All right, give me poison." And throwing him from the hill on down.

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

Prabhupāda: Labor pain.

Śrīdhara Mahārāja: Labor... "Then a big child must come." At last it was seen that a mice, a mouse was produced. So the big, giants of the present world, so-called leaders of the scholars...

Prabhupāda: Scientists.

Śrīdhara Mahārāja: ...scholars, with world, they are producing like a mouse. That is a dying substance, in this form or that form.

Prabhupāda: Punaḥ punaś carvita-carvaṇānām (SB 7.5.30).

Śrīdhara Mahārāja: Ah, this is sheer deception, a deception to be a challenge to the real thinkers. We should abhorrently throw it out at once. It is within the boundary of janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9). Throw it off.

Prabhupāda: So I, I try to impress upon them this fact, that this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a challenge for this deception. They're simply deceived.

Discussion about Guru Maharaji -- August 13, 1973, Paris:

Prabhupāda: So he should be insulted everywhere. Our men should go and do that, pie. (laughter) And when you have to (indistinct) He's God. Why can't you protect. He should have been killed. We have no such power. Otherwise, I would have obliged to kill him. Anyone says God, he should be killed. That is the example given by Kṛṣṇa. He should be killed. No other remedy. Only kill him. That's all. Then this false propaganda will stop. Just like the Christians said: Jesus Christ, God. And how God can be killed by crucification? We do not discuss this point, but actually this is the fact. He was empowered man, that we can understand. But we cannot accept him God. In our history, God is never killed. God kills others. That we have got evidence. And ordinary men, they took him, and crucified, and nobody, other, of the opposite party was killed. So that makes a little difference. So far son of God, that we accept. Everyone is son of God. We accept him śaktyāveśa avatāra, a living entity especially powered from God. That we can accept. So son of God we can accept. That is another thing. And where is the evidence in the śāstras that God was killed? Big, big giant, God fought them and killed them. Rāvaṇa, Hiraṇyakaśipu, Kaṁsa. Very, very great giant and demon.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- May 16, 1975, Perth:

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Paramahaṁsa: The Greeks say that they built their buildings... They hired some very big men called cyclopses, big giants. And they came and built all the buildings.

Prabhupāda: Yes. And such stories are in Mahābhārata also. The demons were engaged, giants and demons, for construction. Yes. And they were very good artist, how to do it. Now we employ the first-class men, so-called first-class engineering, but they were meant for the demons and giants. Yes.

Paramahaṁsa: Well, that explains how they built such fantastic temples and palaces.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Amogha: Some people say, "Why don't we see any giants any more today?"

Prabhupāda: Yes. In the Africa, there were many giants, very high, very strong.

Devotee (1):. Where is that?

Morning Walk -- June 25, 1975, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That is their foolishness. "Where angels dare not, foolish rush in. Where angels dare not, fools rush in." So big, big, giant, saintly persons, they simply admired, and they are going to understand it. What is that? And they can create, like that? They cannot create even an ant, a small ant, and they are going to create, imitate the creation of God. Just see. And we have to believe such fools. (laughter) This is our misfortune.

Dharmādhyakṣa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, because the Christian theologians do not have very much information about God, they are being very much influenced by these scientists and their conceptions.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, sva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra-kharaiḥ saṁstutaḥ puruṣaḥ paśuḥ (SB 2.3.19). The same example. A lion is accepted as the king. He is considered to be the king of the beasts in the forest. And he is very much praised. But a human being will see that the lion is also an animal and those who are praising him, they are also animals. Is it not? So if some animals praises another animal, does it mean that the animal is very big? It may be very big for these animals, but lion is not very big thing to the human being.

Morning Walk -- July 11, 1975, Chicago:

Prabhupāda: So that is not philosophy.

Śrī Govinda: They say it all originates from a giant mass of primordial matter.

Prabhupāda: Then same comes..., that "Wherefrom the matter comes?"

Harikeśa: They say it's an accident.

Prabhupāda: That is another nonsense, another rascaldom. Where is the accident? Nothing is accident, everything is cause and effect. We say that in the beginning there was God or word of God. In Bible they say?

Devotee: Yes.

Prabhupāda: So God was there and God's word was there. That is the beginning, our beginning. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Aham evāsam agre. And Bhagavad-gītā, ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavaḥ mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate (BG 10.8). This is our philosophy, "Everything begins from God." Now you can say, "Wherefrom God came?" But that is God. God existing, He is not caused by any other cause, He is the original cause. Anādir ādiḥ: "He has no beginning, but He is the beginning of everything."

Morning Walk -- November 19, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Devotee (2): He has a big, a giant bungalow on Altamount Road on Malabar Hill.

Prabhupāda: He knows me.

Devotee (2): I think so. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...going to the West, and I was collecting some money, this gentleman gave me five hundred rupees.

Devotee (2): Tarachand Gupta. Really? He makes trains, train cars.

Prabhupāda: Ācchā? He has got factory?

Devotee (2): Yes.

Prabhupāda: A good business.

Devotee (2): Yes.

Brahmānanda: Where is the factory?

Devotee (2): It's outside of Bombay.

Prabhupāda: (break) ...at his home, Deity.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

'Life Comes From Life' Slideshow Discussions -- July 3, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: But in the..., from our experience, it is quite clear though that matter, as such... For example, let's take a crystal of diamond or, that will be shown later in the slide, that there are... Actually crystal of diamond is built in very simple structures. It's a hexagon, six carbon atoms, one after another, forms a very simple structure. But on the other hand, now when life is in association with matter, if we take a simple cell, the cell is composed of so many big, big molecules like proteins and DNA's and all these giant molecules. And they are wonderfully complex.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So what this studying of a dead man, the molecules? When a man is dead, what is the condition of the molecules?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: The molecules will deteriorate to simple molecules. It will degrade from big, big molecules to small molecules. In other words, it tends to be simple. When the living entity is out of the material body, the body itself becomes very simple.

Prabhupāda: No varieties.

Evening Darsana -- July 7, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19).

Bill Sauer: Our star will eventually turn into a red giant, will incinerate this earth. Other stars, the astrologers have found, or astronomers, excuse me...

Prabhupāda: You find out that verse? (Sauer laughs) Paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20).

Bill Sauer: The... Many stars in this galaxy are far less stable than our star. Our star has been stable now for five billion years. Many stars are not stable that long, and we're kind of living on borrowed time.

Room Conversation -- August 17, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Therefore wanted.(?)

Yaśomatīnandana: Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī. In Shri Rangam they have this giant festival every year, the biggest festival in India. It's Vaikuṇṭha Ekādaśī in December.

Guest: Last December we went there.

Yaśomatīnandana: November-December is a very good time. Pañca-puram. Bharadvāja.

Guest: (Bengali) This is the original birth, Shri Rangam.

Prabhupāda: Now with Suraji's(?) cooperation make a program.

Yaśomatīnandana: Yes, we will do like that. November-December will be very suitable time. Then in January the Kumbhamela, we will try to organize something big there also. January, Allahabad, Kumbhamela.

Prabhupāda: (Bengali) That's all. Stop now.

Garden Conversation -- September 3, 1976, Vrndavana:

Caraṇāravindam: Also he makes those, you wrote in the Bhāgavatam there are those giant birds that fly in space.

Prabhupāda: And there will be hundreds and thousands mosquitos, they will fly. There will be no accident.

Hari-śauri: No collisions.

Prabhupāda: No. Anywhere it will be... Not only flies. The birds, when they flock together, so there is no collision. And they very forcibly go like this, this, this, this, all together, but you won't find one accident. And this is Kṛṣṇa's inconceivable energy. What you can do? You cannot fly hundreds of planes at a time. There will be at least three, four accidents.

Caraṇāravindam: They have great difficulty doing these air displays. Many planes flying together, these air displays. There is so much difficulty for them. A lot of them, they have accidents. Also...

Prabhupāda: Formerly I used to see three, four, more than four flies going together. Nowadays I do not see.

Garden Conversation -- September 3, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: No, aeroplanes. During wartime when they used to come to bombard they used to come in four, five together because the enemies, they used to shot down. So if one is shot down the other will be bombing.

Caraṇāravindam: You wrote in the Bhāgavatam, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that in outer space there are those giant birds like eagle. Very, very big. Giant size. Enormous.

Prabhupāda: They go from one planet to another.

Caraṇāravindam: It is like a big plane. Bigger than jet.

Prabhupāda: And while flying they lay down eggs. And the eggs, while falling down, they become birds. By the, what is called?

Hari-śauri: Friction?

Prabhupāda: No, no. When they, what it is called. Velocity of falling down, it becomes fomented, and then the birds come out. Just like parasites. No? Parachute?

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation With Son (Vrindavan De) -- July 5, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Even in this planet, in different places there are different standard. In the ocean, then the standard is different from this standard.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. You said, just like in Africa there are seven-foot-tall people.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Giants.

Prabhupāda: In Japan, when I went there for... (aside:) Here. The house, it was so low that "How they live here?"

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Was that when we went to Dai Nippon that time?

Prabhupāda: (laughs) No, Dai Nippon has good building.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, I mean is that the time?

Prabhupāda: Yes. "What is this? Why so low?" (laughs) I was...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Paper house. You were living in a paper house.

Room Conversation -- October 13, 1977, Vrndavana:

Rāmeśvara: This one is Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma in the cowshed of Nanda Mahārāja for the name-giving ceremony. And Gargamuni is there. This one is Nārada Muni cursing the two demigods for sporting naked and drinking. This is Kṛṣṇa killing the giant witch Pūtanā. Kṛṣṇa is very small on her chest.

Hari-śauri: These are the supermost.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The artists have become very expert, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Kīrtanānanda: Wonderful.

Rāmeśvara: This one I think you have seen. Kṛṣṇa stealing butter.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This has been given to the Shah of Iran, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Hari-śauri: To hang in their palace.

Prabhupāda: The Shah of Iran (Bengali) some connection (Bengali) Parivrājakācārya (Bengali)...

1947 to 1965 Correspondence

Letter to Juggannath Babu -- Calcutta 14 March, 1949:

It is not possible for the masses to study the Vedanta or to undergo the difficult mystic processes especially in the Kali-yuga when the general people is indolent, unfortunate, shortlived and always disturbed by physical and mental tribulations. So they the general mass of people are fallen in the estimation of the great saints and as such for them Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu is the only hope for deliverance. When Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu visited Varanasi He was invited to a philosophical discourse by the Prakashananda Sarasvati a great giant scholar and sannyasi of the Mayavadi or Sankara sampradaya and discussion was made on the Vedanta philosophy. Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu was victorious in that discussion and converted the great sannyasi with his 60,000 followers to His cult of devotion and established His easy method of sankirtana movement the most suitable method for the deliverance of the people in general.

Letter to Jawaharlal Nehru -- Allahabad 20 January, 1952:

It is not the question of a jungle or a grain of sugar that can solve our bread problem but it is the question of real food that can quench the hunger of human being and revitalise him to proper life. Human being therefore should not be encouraged to satisfy his unsatiated hunger like the giant elephant or the little ant but he should be trained up otherwise which shall provide for his real food.

The wonderful temples, the mosques and the cathedrals of past centuries were built up to give them the real food and were not built up by blind or unquestioning faith. The were built up on full faith and reasoning which were based on the deductive process. The Vedas, the Bible or the Koran would ask the human being to make proper use of his conserved energy in the transcendental service of God and unsophisticated men in the old days would follow such instruction unhesitatingly for realizing the Absolute Truth. Such temples, mosques were therefore centres of high culture to provide real food to human consciousness.

1969 Correspondence

Letter to Jadurani -- Los Angeles 15 January, 1969:

Krishna was lying underneath a cart which was actually a demon who had taken the shape of a cart so Krishna would not suspect danger. Krishna was lying underneath the cart, but then He kicked it while playing, and a great giant came out and died.

4. One asura Trinavarta whirlwind took Baby Krishna into the sky and was fighting with Him. The idea was to take Krishna into the sky and drop Him. But once in the sky, Krishna fought with the whirlwind, and the demon fell down dead while Krishna was lying happily on the ground. Yasoda was praying in thanks that "God has saved my Boy."

Regarding your question about placing an effulgence around Krishna's head in all of these pictures, yes this should be done. I hope to be receiving the previous paintings you have done soon. Kindly convey my blessings to all others at Boston temple.

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Upendra -- Delhi 8 December, 1971:

In Vedic literature we find description of all kinds of wonderful machines, like great airplanes which moved as fast as the mind on the principle of sound vibration. Where is that science now? And how is their science advancing when their sons are all becoming hippies who have no interest in such science? Compare our so-called knowledge today with the giant brains who gave us Vedic literature. No poetry, no science, no philosophy, no religion, no culture, no knowledge we have today can be said to be superior to that we find 5,000 years or more ago in India. So where is the question of advancement of civilization? We cannot create even one flower, what to speak of one sun, so we should not be hopeful that in this material atmosphere there will be any kind of improvement at all. Better to become closely associated with the Supreme Perfect, then we shall know what is perfection of our life. This is the culmination of evolution.