You cannot understand God by studying Vedas. Vedeṣu durlabha. Adurlabha ātmā-bhaktau. But for His devotees, He is very, very easily available. Therefore bhakti is the only source. Bhaktyām ekayā grāhyam. Only through bhakti you can approach, you can talk with God on equal level just like friend. The cowherd boys, they were treating Kṛṣṇa on the same status: "Kṛṣṇa is like us." But they loved Kṛṣṇa very, very intensely. That is their qualification. Therefore Kṛṣṇa sometimes agreed to take the cowherd boys on His shoulder. So this is the... Kṛṣṇa wants that, that "My bhakta... Be My bhakta and control Me. Everyone worships Me with awe and veneration. I want somebody should come forward and control Me." That He wants. Therefore He has accepted Mother Yaśodā to control Him. How God can be controlled? Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). He's the supreme controller. Who can control Him? It is not possible. But He agrees to be controlled by His pure devotee. He agrees, "Yes, mother, you control Me. You bind Me. You show Me your stick so that I may be afraid."
Intensely (Lect., Conv, and Letters)
Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
There is a nice verse of Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura. He lived for seven hundred years in Vṛndāvana, and he was, became a great devotee of Kṛṣṇa. In the beginning he was an impersonalist. His life is very nice. It is better to cite his life. He was a South Indian brāhmaṇa, a very rich man and very much sensuous. He kept one prostitute, prostitute. So he was so much, I mean to say, devoted to the prostitute that he was performing his father's death ceremony and he was asking the priest, "Please, haste. Please make haste. I have to go. I have to go." Means prostitute's house. So he was very rich man. Priestly, anyway, he finished that business. Then there was ceremony. He took very nice foodstuff in a bag, and he was going to that prostitute's house. But when he came out of his home, oh, it was raining torrently. You see? So he never cared for that raining. He went to the riverside. Oh, there was no boat, and it was, river was waving. The waves were very furious. And he thought that "How can I go to the other side?" He was daily going to the other side of the river. Then, anyway, he swimmed over, crossed over by swimming. Then the prostitute thought, "Oh, it is today raining, and he may not come." So he (she) blocked the door and went to sleep. And when he came to the house he saw, "Oh, the door is blocked," and it was raining still. "So how can I go?" So he crossed over the wall by catching one snake. Just see how much intensely he was attached. And he went to the prostitute, and she was astonished: "Well, Bilvamaṅgala"—his name was Bilvamaṅgala—"how do you dare to come here like this?" Oh, he described, "Yes. I did this, I did this, I did this, I did this." Oh, the prostitute was astonished. Her name was Cintāmaṇi. So the prostitute said, "My dear Bilvamaṅgala, if you have got so intense love for me, oh, had it been for God, for Kṛṣṇa, how would have been, your life, sublime." Oh, that struck him: "Yes." He at once left and went away: "Yes, you are right."
Initiation Lectures
Ṛṣabhadeva says that people are mad after sense gratification. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ. Pramattaḥ means intensely. Intensely intoxicated. Pra means intensely, and mattaḥ, mattaḥ means intoxicated. So the disease, material disease, is intensely intoxicated in the matter of sense gratification. This is material disease. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma. And impelled by this propensity of sense gratification, they are prepared to do any kind of nonsense. Vikarma. Vikarma means what we should not do. Just like a man steals. He knows that stealing is not good, but he wants to satisfy some sense; therefore he is committing stealing also. Therefore he is mad. He knows that "If I am arrested for this stealing or committing this offense, I'll be punished. I may be hanged or..." There are so many things. But still, because he is mad after some sense gratification, he commits such sinful activities. This is practical.
Immediately if the state calls, "Come on. You sacrifice your body in the Vietnam," oh, you have to do that. So in this way, if you analytically study, you'll see the body does not belong to you. Then why should you be so much dexterous to satisfy? Just try to understand. I am not interested to satisfy the senses of your body; I am interested to satisfy the senses of my body. But if this body does not belong to me, then why should we be so much expert in satisfying the senses? Therefore they are called pramattaḥ, intensely intoxicated. It is philosophical vision that "This body does not belong to me." Therefore Kṛṣṇa's name is Hṛṣīkeśa. I am claiming this hand "my hand," but as soon as it is paralyzed it is no more my hand; it is physician's hand or Kṛṣṇa's hand or somebody's hand.
General Lectures
If one chants this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra offenselessly, then immediately he becomes liberated. Nāmābhāsa, mukti. And when he chants Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra in ecstasy, then he is in deep love of God. Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He showed the example, He was chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and was fainting, and He was crying. And He writes in His eight ślokas,
- yugāyitaṁ nimeṣeṇa
- cakṣuṣā prāvṛṣāyitam
- śūnyāyitaṁ jagat sarvaṁ
- govinda-viraheṇa me
He was feeling separation of Govinda, Kṛṣṇa, so intensely that He was thinking one moment as twelve years. yugāyitaṁ nimeṣeṇa cakṣuṣā prāvṛṣāyitam. So these are mahābhāva. Great transcendental ecstasy can be achieved simply by chanting this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra.
So this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra or bhakti-yoga Prahlāda Mahārāja recommends. Kaumāra ācaret. Kaumāra means the age from five years to fifteen years. So in all schools and colleges this chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra should be taught. If you actually want to advance your nationality, India, then you must take to this culture.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
Dharmādhyakṣa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, there are some questions about exactly how to do this college. We will be licensed by the state of California, that is no problem. We can get a license immediately.
Prabhupāda: Get it.
Dharmādhyakṣa: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Get it, and the, what is called, syllabus, that we shall give. We have got so many books. We shall select this book for graduate, this book for post-graduate, and these books for Ph.D.'s.
Dharmādhyakṣa: Even you have different levels. Like they can undergraduately study Bhagavad-gītā, but in graduate they can study it more intensely, like that.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Just like in general course they select some passages from some books. So we can do that.
Bahulāśva: Yes. We have laid out all your books in this style, just like at a college catalogue. This is all your literatures and then different courses are given there, what subject matter will be covered.
Prabhupāda: Yes. We shall make a program, and it may be approved by the professors, and then we will let them study.
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Immediately kindly help me, that give at least one hundred men permanent residential permission. They are not politicians. They are not interested. They are devotee. Then I can manage this big, big establishment like Bombay, Vṛndāvana.
Mr. Rajda: Now tell me with your men written over all this(?). I will give you immediately.
Prabhupāda: Have you got that, made any list...?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I called for the names, so within a short time.
Prabhupāda: That's all. Name is there. So this is the...
Indian (1): First progress thing.
Mr. Rajda: No, no, we'll do this immediately, and even if necessary, I will fight with the government. They have got to do it. Only thing is if you can give me some note, what are the hurdles...
Prabhupāda: Bring some paper. Write it. Immediately begin to do this. They are coming from very rich, respectable family. They have not come here to earn money for exploit India. They have no business to do this. I can guarantee that they will bring money from America and live here—not touch a single paisa of India. Now, suppose there are one hundred Americans, and if I am bringing ten lakhs of rupees per month, then what is the per capita?
Mr. Rajda: Per capita will show...
Girirāja: Ten thousand.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Indian (1): I... Yeah, complete list. That is why I asked you, "What first step you wanted to?"
Prabhupāda: Kindly help.
Indian (1): Concrete step.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Indian (1): That, Mr. Ratensingh is bound to do.
Prabhupāda: Kindly help me.
Mr. Rajda: No, no, we will think ourselves duty-bound. Oh, I feel intensely about it. There is no question about it.
Prabhupāda: And I guarantee that if they take any part in politics, you can drive away immediately. They have no.... They have given everything. They are not thinking that they are Americans. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktaṁ tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170). This is the process of bhakti. Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam. Upādhi. This is upādhi. I am living being, but I have got some designation, "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim." These are designation. So then they are M.P... This is designation. You are not M.P... You are living being, part and parcel of God.
Prabhupāda: When I was in Delhi, there was one day a meeting at Brahmananda's place, so I personally requested. So he noted down. That's all. So he's the chief man, home member.
Indian (1): Home member. But the last day his powers were very much limited in home matter. He had to look after the home ministry. And possibly...
Mr. Rajda: There was too much power struggle in those days. That is the main difficulty...
Prabhupāda: In Delhi...
Mr. Rajda: Everyone was struggling for his own existence in that power, in that... Some of the people...
Indian (1): Now we have got a government. The chief man of the...
Prabhupāda: Government.
Indian (1): ...the team, he is an intensely religious-minded man.
Prabhupāda: That is...
Indian (1): Delivering Bhagavad-gītā.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Indian (1): Practicing the principle of Bhagavad-gītā. So to him we can appeal.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Indian (1): And it will, appeal go straight home.
Correspondence
1975 Correspondence
I think your idea is a little utopian. First thing is that one must understand Srimad-Bhagavatam fully. The first verse, if you simply explain, will take volumes and volumes. So, please study my books intensely and do not fail to chant 16 rounds daily following the four regulative principles strictly. This will make everything perfect.
We should follow in the footsteps of Lord Caitanya and the six Goswamis of Vrndavana. They were always serving Krishna in the mood of separation. They never said that "now I have seen Krishna" or "last night I danced with Krishna"—No. They were crying where is Krishna, and they were always searching after Him, wondering when they would finally be able to see Him. We should also desire intensely to see and be with Krishna, but first thing is to become purified through devotional service. It is not possible otherwise. So, keep on helping me to spread this Krishna Consciousness movement, following the rules and regulations very carefully, and your life will be perfected and you will see Krishna.
1977 Correspondence
I am feeling very intensely your separation. In 1967 you joined me in San Francisco. You were driving my car and chanting Hare Krsna. You were the first man to give me some contribution ($5000) for printing my Bhagavad-gita. After that, you have rendered very favorable service to Krsna in different ways. I so hope at the time of your death you were remembering Krsna and as such, you have been promoted to the eternal association of Krsna. If not, if you had any tinge of material desire, you have gone to the celestial kingdom to live with the demigods for many thousands of years and enjoy the most opulent life of material existence. From there you can promote yourself to the spiritual world. But even if one fails to promote himself to the spiritual world, at that time he comes down again on the surface of this globe and takes birth in a big family like a yogis' or a brahmanas' or an aristocratic family, where there is again chance of reviving Krsna Consciousness.
| Page Title: | Intensely (Lect., Conv, and Letters) |
| Compiler: | Mayapur, ParthsarathyM |
| Created: | 08 of Oct, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=5, Con=3, Let=3 |
| No. of Quotes: | 11 |