If you want to be a medical practitioner, if you purchase books from the bookstore, medical books, and you study, that will not help you. You have to admit yourself in a medical college and study there. Then you will understand

Expressions researched:
"if you want to be a medical practitioner, if you purchase books from the bookstore, medical books, and you study, that will not help you. You have to admit yourself in a medical college and study there. Then you will understand"

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Simple study will not help you. You must study from a bona fide teacher. Otherwise it will be misleading. Just like if you want to be a medical practitioner, if you purchase books from the bookstore, medical books, and you study, that will not help you. You have to admit yourself in a medical college and study there. Then you will understand. If you say that "I have studied all the medical books," the government will not recognize you as a medical practitioner. When he will see, and the government will see or any person will see that you have regularly passed medical examination from authorities, then you will be accepted.

690108 - Lecture BG 04.11-18 - Los Angeles

Young woman: So how do you realize Kṛṣṇa?

Prabhupāda: You have to adopt the process. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Young woman: Say that again?

Prabhupāda: You have to adopt the process. Ādau śraddhā. If you are inquisitive to understand, that is your first stage of faith. That is called śraddhā. Ādau śraddhā. In the beginning, your inquisitiveness that, "I want to understand," that is faith. Then next stage is association of persons who know, sādhu-saṅga (CC Madhya 22.83).

Then initiation. Then disappearance of all misgivings. Then steady faith. Then attachment. And then ecstasy. Then realization. These are stages.

So if you are anxious to know, then please come to our classes. We are discussing simply this subject matter, so you'll kindly . . . if you kindly come, gradually you'll be able to understand. It is not very difficult. All my students, they are all American boys and girls. I have not brought with me any Indian or Hindu, but they are understanding.

Just talk with them. They will be able to explain how they are understanding. So similarly, you will also be able to understand. It is not very difficult subject. But you must be sincere to understand. That is the only qualification required. That's all.

Yes?

Young man: (indistinct) . . . do you reach a certain spiritual . . .

Prabhupāda: What is that?.

Revatīnandana: (explaining question) By studying what is the realization . . .

Prabhupāda: Study, yes. Study . . . simple study will not help you. You must study from a bona fide teacher. Otherwise it will be misleading. Just like if you want to be a medical practitioner, if you purchase books from the bookstore, medical books, and you study, that will not help you. You have to admit yourself in a medical college and study there. Then you will understand.

If you say that "I have studied all the medical books," the government will not recognize you as a medical practitioner. When he will see, and the government will see or any person will see that you have regularly passed medical examination from authorities, then you will be accepted.