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Hamburg (Conversations)

Conversations and Morning Walks

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Interview -- February 1, 1968, Los Angeles:

Interviewer: I think the first question is kind of basic, is why is everything always taped at all the...

Prabhupāda: Because we have got so many branches, they want to hear me, my singing, my speech, therefore they record it and send it to different branches. We have got thirteen, fourteen branches: one in New York, one in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Buffalo, Boston, Montreal, Vancouver, London, Hamburg. We have got so many branches.

Interview -- February 1, 1968, Los Angeles:

Interviewer: I think the first question is kind of basic, is why is everything always taped at all the...

Prabhupāda: Because we have got so many branches, they want to hear me, my singing, my speech, therefore they record it and send it to different branches. We have got thirteen, fourteen branches: one in New York, one in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Buffalo, Boston, Montreal, Vancouver, London, Hamburg. We have got so many branches.

Interview -- February 1, 1968, Los Angeles:

Interviewer: Did you come with the purpose of spreading Kṛṣṇa consciousness?

Prabhupāda: Yes. I am an ordained minister for preaching these missionary activities. So I came here in September, 1965. Then, for one year, I was traveling in many parts of your country. In the beginning I was in Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, and then I went to Philadelphia. Then I came to New York. And in this way I was traveling, not very much. And in 1966, in July 1st, I started my class in New York at 26 Second Avenue. That is my first starting. Then the younger generation began to come to me, and they started the San Francisco branch, Montreal branch. In this way the institution is going. And we have sent our students to Europe also. They have already started one branch in London, one in Hamburg. And we have sent our students in Honolulu. They have started a branch there. So our program is to start several..., as many branches as possible to spread this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. And it is very easy. We simply invite persons to come and chant with us. It doesn't matter what he is, what is his language, what is his religion. We don't take into account all these things. And this Hare Kṛṣṇa is so easy to utter, that any man can utter. That we have experienced. Any part of the world, we chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, and they can very easily imitate and chant.

Press Interview -- December 30, 1968, Los Angeles:

Journalist: How many temples are there?

Prabhupāda: We have got thirteen temples. Thirteen. One in this Los Angeles, one San Francisco, one in New York, one Santa Fe, one Buffalo, one Boston, one Montreal, one Vancouver, and Seattle, Columbus, and then London, Hamburg, in this way... Hawaii.

Journalist: Well, there's got to be more than a hundred people in thirteen temples.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes, more than a hundred, yes. About a...

Hayagrīva: I don't know.

Prabhupāda: Yes, I have got list. There are more than hundred.

Hayagrīva: Must be at least because that would only be an average of ten per temple.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Here we have got about twenty heads in this temple.

Journalist: About twenty. Where does the money come from to print Godhead?

Prabhupāda: God sends. (laughs)

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- June 20, 1974, Germany:

Prabhupāda: Oh. So these Germans were tribe people, uncivilized?

Haṁsadūta: Yes, before Christianity, Europe was completely uncivilized.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Therefore the order is "Thou shalt not kill." Simply their business was killing. Uncivilized persons, they kill animals and eat. So due to past habit they could not forget this killing business. This is the proof that this system of religion was preached among the crude people, not civilized. So why they introduced this beer?

Haṁsadūta: It was a kind of refreshment.

Prabhupāda: But before that, they were not drinking.

Haṁsadūta: There may have been something like wine. The monks also used to make wine.

Prabhupāda: Yes, they make wine. Uncivilized men, they know how to make wine. In India they do so by rice boiling and keep it for some days. It becomes wine, fermented. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (break) ...used to say that "I was drinking beer in barrels." He said. Forty years ago he said me like that. Here I don't see them, but Hamburg I have seen, yes, passing urine on the roadside. There are so many urine coming from the wall. 'Cause the more you drink beer, you will pass urine more. The German language is trinken, trinking. Drinking means trinking. Yes, I have seen it.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- June 11, 1976, Los Angeles:

Hari-śauri: Twentieth Century Fox. It is a very well known film company.

Rāmeśvara: Movie company. This is that park where we sometimes go. When they have this war it will reduce everything, just finish off all the industries and factories. So everything will be reduced to a primitive stage.

Prabhupāda: No, they will again repair.

Rāmeśvara: Again rebuild everything.

Prabhupāda: In Germany.... Just like Germany was finished. The American planes bombed in such a way that Germany was finished, very heavily bombed. One lady in Hamburg, she was showing me one wall, big wall building dismantled, and it has become black on account of bombing. She was showing me how far injustice they have been done.

Rāmeśvara: So then after the war, nothing will change. System of government, the industries, everything will just be rebuilt.

Prabhupāda: They'll try at least. Just like after the Second World War, Germany or England finished. They could not recoup. They are now poverty-stricken.

Morning Walk -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Dhṛṣṭadyumna: ...so powerful, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that all over the country young men are running away from home. We have one fifteen-year-old boy, he left everything after getting a book in a parking lot. Another boy is a sculptor, an artist. He's also runaway, seventeen years old. Just like Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, once he was attracted by Lord Caitanya's movement, nothing could keep him at home. So all the young men of America, as they read your books, will come and join us.

Prabhupāda: Our books are prescribed as textbook in Hamburg University.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Eastern Berlin.

Prabhupāda: East Berlin. As Sanskrit text.

Devotees: Jaya.

Room Conversation with Ambarisa and Catholic Priest -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Stansky: Now the reason I would like to keep a log and prepare an outline and start a book, say a year from now, it would show a transition from Roman priesthood to Hare Kṛṣṇa devotee. I think this would open up the door to all of the colleges and universities across the country.

Prabhupāda: Very good idea, yes. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate (BG 2.59). The nature is if we get better engagement, we give up inferior engagement. Paraṁ dṛṣṭvā nivartate. So this will be an example. You are a Roman priest. You are educated, learned scholar also. So when you come to this movement, you do not come here by sentiment or by whims. You consider, then you have come.

Stansky: This is what I wanted to say, that I'm not here because of sentiment. I'm here for very, very sound reasons, and I want to explain the reasons.

Prabhupāda: Therefore we are presenting these books, that we are not a so-called sect of whimsical faith. It is based on science and authorities. Recently we have got report that our books have been taken in Hamburg University. You know Hamburg University?

Stansky: Yes.

Prabhupāda: As their textbook for Sanskrit class. They found it so wonderful. Because for Sanskrit scholar it is good opportunity to learn Sanskrit, because each word we have given in English and German synonyms.

Stansky: I want very much to learn basic Sanskrit, but I have so much to learn right now that ah,...

Prabhupāda: No, it is not necessary, but those who are interested in studying Sanskrit literature, for them it is very good help. And at the same time they get sublime knowledge. They study Sanskrit and get knowledge. So you have kindly come to join us. You study our philosophy very minutely and then try to do something for the suffering humanity.

Interview with Professors O'Connell, Motilal and Shivaram -- June 18, 1976, Toronto:

All these things, tapasya can be executed simply by learning devotional service. Then everything is there. Kecit kevalayā bhaktyā. So we are describing these things in our books. If these books are made textbook.... I think in some of the colleges they are making textbooks, our books, in Germany, in Hamburg University. There is university of the name Hamburg?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: East Berlin.

Prabhupāda: They have taken some of our books for textbook.

Conversation with George Harrison -- July 26, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: We have got a very nice house in Detroit. If you sometimes go there...

George Harrison: Whereabouts?

Prabhupāda: Detroit.

George Harrison: Ah, Detroit. They need one there. Crazy place.

Jayatīrtha: Heavy place.

Prabhupāda: That house was constructed fifty years ago at the cost of six million dollars, and we have got it very cheap. Three hundred thousand dollars.

George Harrison: Was it a big house?

Hari-śauri: A very big mansion on the riverside.

George Harrison: Colonial house?

Prabhupāda: Not as big-four acres of land—but the building is very costly. One room will cost now three hundred thousand dollars. So nicely made.

Hari-śauri: They estimated it would cost about fifteen million to build such a house now.

George Harrison: Yes, they probably wouldn't even bother or be able to, at least. Is it an old house?

Hari-śauri: Fifty years old. It's very solid, though, very good condition as well.

Prabhupāda: And on the house on bottom, there is river. Not directly, but an offshoot of river. People come, rowing. A very nice situation, and because it is black quarter, nobody was purchasing. So I said that "For us, what is black or white? Purchase it." So we got very cheap. At that time I paid them hundred and fifty thousand, and (indistinct). So we purchased.

George Harrison: Did they find a temple in Hamburg? In Hamburg. I was there once, but they just had a little tiny house, and they were trying to get another.

Prabhupāda: Hamburg, I think closed?

Jayatīrtha: They have a place in Frankfurt, where the devotees are.... Just outside Frankfurt.

George Harrison: So they haven't got a place in Hamburg.

Jayatīrtha: No, it's a heavy city.

George Harrison: I was there one year when they were having fights. It's...

Jayatīrtha: Rockers. It's a heavy place.

Mukunda: Rockers.

George Harrison: It is full of gangs.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Evening Darsana -- May 11, 1977, Hrishikesh:

Prabhupāda: (Hindi) (Hindi conversation) (break)

German man (1): Germany.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

German man (1): Germany.

Prabhupāda: Germany.

English man (2): England.

Prabhupāda: He is German. I went to Hamburg.

German man (1): In Hamburg. In Batche Schlossen(?)?

German devotee (3): (German)

German man (1): (German) The very beginning center was in the Batche Schlossen(?), Batche(?) Street, a very small temple. And then it changed to bigger and..., in Hamburg.

Page Title:Hamburg (Conversations)
Compiler:Visnu Murti, Jahnu
Created:18 of Dec, 2011
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=11, Let=0
No. of Quotes:11