Supreme God (Lectures)

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG Introduction -- New York, February 19-20, 1966:

And next, the time, or duration of existence of the whole universe, or this manifestation of the material nature, and the duration of time, or the eternal time, and karma. Karma means activity. Everything, the whole universe, whole cosmic manifestation is full of different activities. The living beings especially, they are all engaged in different activities. So we have to study from the Bhagavad-gītā, īśvara, what is God, jīva, what are these living entities, and prakṛti, what is this cosmic manifestation, and how it is controlled by time, and what are these activities?

Now out of these five subject matter, in the Bhagavad-gītā it establish that the Supreme Godhead or Kṛṣṇa or Brahman or Paramātmā... You may call whatever you like. But the supreme controller. There is a supreme controller. So the supreme controller is the greatest of all. And the living beings, they are in quality like the supreme controller. Just like the supreme controller, the Lord, He has control over the universal affairs, over the material nature, how the... It will be explained in the later chapters of Bhagavad-gītā that this material nature is not independent. She is acting under the direction of the Supreme Lord. Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). "This material nature is working under My direction," mayādhyakṣeṇa, "under My superintendence." So we, we are mistaken. When we see wonderful things happening in the cosmic nature, we should know that behind these wonderful manifestations, there is a controller. Nothing can be manifested without being controlled. It is childish to, not to consider about the controller. Just like a very nice motor car with very good speed and very good engineering arrangement is running on the street. A child may think that "How this motor car is running without the help of any horse or any pulling agent?" But a sane man or an elderly person, he knows that in spite of all engineering arrangements in the motor car, without the driver it cannot move. That engineering arrangement of a motor car, or in electric powerhouse...

Lecture on BG 1.15 -- London, July 15, 1973:

"Whatever you want to do, you can do. I will give you intelligence. So if you want to become atheist, then I will give you intelligence how to become first-class atheist, like Hiraṇyakaśipu, Rāvaṇa, Kaṁsa. And if you want to become devotee, then I will give you intelligence also in that way." Buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi taṁ yena mām upayānti te. Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam (BG 10.10). Anyone who is engaged in His service with love and affection, teṣām, not all, not all... Because not all, not everyone wants to serve Him. Everyone wants to become God, imitator. Imitation. Therefore they say, "Why Kṛṣṇa shall be alone God? I am God." You are God. That's all right. But you are not the Supreme God. Why you forget that? You may be a God at home of your wife, but when you go to your office, you are not god; your master is god. He directs you to do something; you have to do it.

So we may claim that "Every one of us, we are God," but nobody can claim that "We are supreme; I am Supreme God." That is not possible. That can, Kṛṣṇa can claim only. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: (BG 7.7) "My dear Dhanañjaya, there is no more superior personality than Me." And He proved it. So God cannot be manufactured. God is God. Kṛṣṇa, when He was three months old on the lap of His mother, still, He was God. He could kill the Pūtanā. So God cannot be manufactured by so-called meditation and mystic power. You can get some of the insignificant powers of God, but simply, but you do not know how much powerful is God. That you do not know. Therefore when a person gets little power, he thinks that he has become God. He does not know how much powerful God is.

Lecture on BG 1.15 -- London, July 15, 1973:

So therefore śāstra says that "You may be god in your own atmosphere, in your own jurisdiction. You may think that you are God." And everyone thinks like that. "But the Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa." Eko yo bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān. In the Upaniṣads it is said that God is also a person like me, you. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). But His personality is different from your personality, from my personality. What is that difference? Eko yo bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān: "He supplies all the necessities of all other personalities." That is the difference. God is supplying us food. This conception is there in the Bible, "God, give us our daily bread." This is nice. Accepting that you are getting all supplies from God, this is sukṛti, this is puṇyavat.

If one, anyone says, "Oh, what God? We are creating our own food." Just like the Communist says. They are duṣkṛtina, rascals. But if anyone even goes to the church and temple for asking something to God, he is pious. At least, he has approached God. So one day when he will be advanced devotee, he will not ask any more. He knows that "Why shall I bother God? He is supplying everyone food, so why shall I ask Him food? My food is also there. Let me serve Him." That is his higher intelligence. That is higher intelligence, that "Why shall I ask food from God? God is supplying food to the cats, dogs, ants, elephants, and I want little food, he will not supply me? And especially when I engage myself in His service? Ordinary man pays to his servant, and I shall starve if I am engaged in the service of God?" This is intelligence. This is intelligence. "Why shall I bother God? If He likes, I will starve. That doesn't matter.

Lecture on BG 2.11 -- New York, March 4, 1966:

I give you... Cheat. No, that is also in the definition of a conditioned soul. These four principles are there. It is not my manufactured thing. The, these are information from authoritative scripture, that a conditioned soul has four imperfectness. One imperfectness is that he's sure to commit mistake. He's illusioned, and he has got a tendency to cheat, and, above all, his senses are imperfect. So anyone who is above all these four imperfectness—who never commits mistake, who is never illusioned, who never cheats others, and who has got perfect senses—He is God. That is also another definition of God. He may not be... God is Supreme, God, but anyone who comes to this stage of life, he's liberated. He's lib..., as good as God. Yes?

Lecture on BG 2.11 (with Spanish translator) -- Mexico, February 11, 1975:

What is that Supreme Being? We are all living being, but amongst ourself there is comparative, superlative positions. I am here; you are here; he is there. So you may be better than me, he may be better than you, and somebody else may be better than him. In this way you go on searching after one better than the other. When you ultimately come to a point that nobody is better then him, that is Bhagavān.

Bhaga means opulence. So there are six kinds of opulences. One opulence is to become very rich, another opulence is to become very powerful, another opulence is to become very strong, another opulence is to become very famous, another opulence is to become very wise, and another opulence is to become very much renounced. So these six kinds of opulences, when present in the superlative degree, that is Bhagavān. This means, as it is stated in the Vedic literature, na tasya samaḥ adhikaś ca dṛśyate: "Nobody is found equal to Him or greater than Him." In this material world any person you take, next moment you'll find somebody equal to him and somebody greater than him. But the Vedic information is: God means who has no equal and who has no greater person than Him. Actually Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, and here it is said, bhagavān uvāca. So Bhagavān, the Supreme God, means Kṛṣṇa. That is the statement in all Vedic literature.

Lecture on BG 2.12 -- New York, March 7, 1966:

Devotee: "In fact there was never a time when I was not, or you or these kings were not, nor is it a fact that hereafter we shall cease to be."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Now...

Devotee: "...we shall ever..."

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is trying to convince Arjuna that death does not take place. He says clearly that "Myself—I am the Supreme God, Kṛṣṇa—yourself, you, and all the other kings and the soldiers, those who have assembled in this great battlefield, it is not that in the past, we were not existing. And in the present, we are now face to face. We are seeing that we are existing. And in the future, we shall also exist in the same way." "In the same way" means individually. Just like I am an individual person. You are an individual person. He is an individual person. So I, you, he, or they—first person, second person and the third person—so that individuality continues. Individuality of every living being is a fact. Therefore in the actual field also, we see that we have got difference of opinion. What I think, you may not agree with me because you have got your individuality. Similarly, your thinking may not be agreed by another gentleman. So everyone has got his individuality. That is a fact. Not that the... Just like there is a class of philosophers who says that the soul is a homogeneous, one entity, and after the destruction, after the annihilation of this body, the soul, as a substance, will mix up. Just like water. You keep in different pots. In different pots you keep water. So the water takes the shape of the pot, the bowl, round bowl. You keep water. The water takes the shape of round. So similarly, there are thousands of, or millions of, waterpots, and suppose all the waters are mixed up. Then there is no distinction. Just like they were in the pots. So their theory is that when a soul is liberated then the, that it mixes up with the Supersoul. Just like a drop water taken from the sea water and again put it into the sea, it mixes up. It loses its identity.

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- Pittsburgh, September 8, 1972:

Then beasts, paśavas triṁśa-lakṣāṇi, 3,000,000 types of animals, four-legged. And catur-lakṣāṇi mānuṣaḥ, and the human being the forms are 400,000. Out of them, most of them are uncivilized.

So we civilized human beings—never mind American or Indian or German or Englishman, it doesn't matter—we are very few. So we have got economic problems. We are trying for developing our economic condition. What is that economic condition? Eating, sleeping, mating, and defending. We are busy always, but the animals are also busy for eating, sleeping, mating, and defending, but they have no problem. We have got problems. So just try to understand, if the major portion of the living entities have no problem... Their necessities of life are being supplied by the supreme eternal, God. Just like an elephant. There are millions of elephants in African jungle. They eat at a time fifty kilos. But they're getting their food. Similarly, a small ant, it requires a grain of sugar. So he's also getting his food. So the supreme eternal has arranged food, or the economic problems are solved by nature. They do not do any business, they do not go to school or colleges to learn technology, to earn livelihood, but they are being supplied. They are healthy. There is no disease.

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- Manila, October 12, 1972:

So first of all you have to understand that we are spirit soul, ahaṁ brahmāsmi, Brahman. "I am not matter, I am spirit," ahaṁ brahmāsmi. These are Vedic words, so 'ham. So 'ham does not mean "I am God." I am God-ly—I am part and parcel of. As God is in quality, so I am also in quality. Just like a drop of ocean water, qualitatively it is the same as the vast mass of water in the sea, but not the drop of water is equal to the vast mass of water. Similarly, in quality, so 'ham, "I am," that means the Supreme God, as He is in quality, I am also the same in quality. So 'ham. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi, "I am Brahman. I am not this matter, I am spirit soul." These are the knowledge.

So when one comes to that knowledge, brahma-bhūtaḥ... Now we are not brahma-bhūtaḥ, prākṛta-bhūtaḥ, jīva-bhūtaḥ, the exact word. Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). The world is being maintained by this jīva-bhūtaḥ, by the living entities. Just like this city of Manila is very important so long the living entities are there. If there are no living entities, nobody will be prepared to purchase the whole land even for (indistinct). What he will do with the dead matter? The dead matter has no value. It is valuable so long we utilize it in different purposes. Otherwise, it has no value. A nice motorcar with nice machine, first class, it has value so long it is driven by a living entity. Otherwise, who cares for it? Nobody cares for it. Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedam (BG 7.5). Therefore matter, however valuable it may be, it is inferior to the spirit. The spirit is superior energy of God. Matter is inferior energy of God.

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- Hyderabad, November 18, 1972:

So that is God, from the very beginning. Not that, by attaining some mystic power, one can become God. You can have some power, godly... You have already power. Because we are, every one of us is a part and parcel of God. Therefore godly qualities are there. But you cannot become cent percent God. That is not possible. That is not possible. There, they..., they have been analyzed. All the demigods and living entities, they have been analyzed by great stalwart people, and it has been found that Kṛṣṇa is cent percent God. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. Ete cāṁśa-kalāḥ puṁsaḥ kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). All others... There are many other gods. Then gods means not the Supreme God. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). We are speaking of the paramaḥ īśvaraḥ, or Parameśvara. There are two words: īśvara, parameśvara; ātmā, paramātmā. That param is God. We are Brahman; Para-brahman. So Para-brahman, Paramātmā, Parameśvara, all these are applicable to Kṛṣṇa. Just like Arjuna, after hearing Bhagavad-gītā, he admitted, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān, puruṣaṁ śāśvatam ādyam (BG 10.12). That is the position of Kṛṣṇa. Ādi-puruṣam. Govindam ādi-puruṣam. Kṛṣṇa also says, in the Bhagavad-gītā, aham ādir hi devānām (Bg 10.2). Devānām, Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśvara... Then, after Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśvara, there are other demigods, Indra, Candra, Varuṇa, so many. So Kṛṣṇa says, aham ādir hi devānām. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavaḥ. He's the origin of everything. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate (BG 10.8). "Everything emanates from Me." In the Vedānta-sūtra also the Absolute Truth is described as janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). The Absolute Truth is that from whom everything emanates.

Lecture on BG 2.17 -- London, August 23, 1973:

It is very, very difficult to raise them. Very difficult. Mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ (SB 1.1.10). So only those who are very fortunate, they will understand that "I am eternal," avināśi, "I am imperishable. I am put into this condition of perishable condition due to this my material body." So how to get out of it? They have no ambition. Just like dogs and cats. Simply sense gratification. Kṛṣṇa is so kind, how, very clearly explains. You try to understand what is the soul.

So who does not understand there is consciousness all over the body? Tad viddhi. Yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. They'll jump over, "Yes, I am the Supreme God." God's consciousness is also spread all over. That's all right. But is your consciousness spread all over the universe? Both of us, we are conscious. But He is supreme consciousness. Therefore His consciousness is spread all over the universe, all over the creation. In the Thirteenth Chapter, you'll find Kṛṣṇa says, kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata: (BG 13.3) "I am also kṣetra-jñam." Supersoul. What is the difference between Supersoul and soul? Soul, consciousness, is spread all over this body. You are soul, your consciousness spread all over your body. I am soul, my consciousness spread all over the body. But my consciousness not spread all over your body, neither your consciousness spread all over my body. But God's, Kṛṣṇa's, consciousness is spread over your body and my body, His body and everyone.

Lecture on BG 2.17 -- London, August 23, 1973:

No, you have... Immediately, hand comes. Svābhāvikī, by nature. Similarly when God has to create, as soon as He desires "Let there be a creation," immediately creation. He hasn't got to think, make a plan, how to do it, how to execute it, where to get the ingredients. No. His energies are so perfect that as soon as He desires, everything is there. That is God. That is God. And that is happening. Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). He desires: "Prakṛti, nature, immediately produce a rose flower." Prakṛti helps immediately. The color is coming, the beauty is coming, everything is coming. These rascals say it is automatic. No automatically. There is expert knowledge behind it—that is God. So let us utilize this consciousness, the sense how to understand that supreme consciousness, supreme God. Because I am not supreme, although I am conscious, I am not supremely conscious. I am not expert. God is expert. So always there is difference between God and ourself. We cannot be equal with God. That is not possible. This is sense. Otherwise all rascaldom. Don't be victim of the rascals.

Lecture on BG 2.18 -- Hyderabad, November 23, 1972:

Just like part and parcel of my body, hands and legs, they are serving the whole body, similarly, Kṛṣṇa is the supreme whole and we are His parts and parcels; therefore our duty is to serve Him. This is our constitutional position. Jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). We cannot become Kṛṣṇa. We are eternally Kṛṣṇa's servitors, part and parcel. This is real conclusion, qualitatively one. Just like this finger, you can call it body, but it is part and parcel of the body. Similarly, the part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, you may call "God," but he's not the Supreme God. Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). So anāśinaḥ aprameyasya. Anāśinaḥ, it cannot be destroyed. Although it is very minute, aprameyasya, you cannot measure. You have no such measuring method, that you can measure the soul's breadth and..., length and breadth. In geometry, they finish it: "(A) Point has no length and breadth," but that is not the fact. A point has also length and breadth, but we cannot measure it. Aprameya. Similarly, there is length and breadth of the soul also. That is also mentioned in the Vedic literature. (aside:) Go little back side. It is said in the Purāṇas: keśāgra-śata-bhāgasya śatadhā kalpitasya ca, jīva-bhāgaḥ sa vijñeyaḥ sa anantyāya kalpate (CC Madhya 19.140). The spirit soul is measured, first of all, divide the tip of your hair into one hundred parts, and then take one part again, and again divide it into one hundred parts. That portion is the measurement of the soul. Or, in other words, one ten-thousandth part of the tip of your hair. Now, we have no measuring instrument. Therefore, because we have no measuring instrument, although the soul is there, within this body, we cannot find it out. Although the soul and the Supersoul both are situated within the heart, and the heart is the center of all vitality, energy of this body... That is accepted. But we have no eyes to see the soul or the Supersoul because these material eyes are blunt, imperfect. You cannot see so many things. I cannot see even my eyelids, the nearest, and I cannot see which is far, far away, distant place.

Lecture on BG 2.18 -- Hyderabad, November 23, 1972:

Therefore, because we have no measuring instrument, although the soul is there, within this body, we cannot find it out. Although the soul and the Supersoul both are situated within the heart, and the heart is the center of all vitality, energy of this body... That is accepted. But we have no eyes to see the soul or the Supersoul because these material eyes are blunt, imperfect. You cannot see so many things. I cannot see even my eyelids, the nearest, and I cannot see which is far, far away, distant place.

So all our senses are imperfect. By imperfect senses, you cannot see the spirit soul. You cannot see even the spirit soul. How you can see the Supreme Soul, God? That is not possible. You have to purify your senses. Then you can see. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ (CC Madhya 17.136). The present blunt senses, material senses, all are imperfect. Even we hear the Lord's name, nāmādi, ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi... Just like we are chanting. One who is spiritually advanced, he's enjoying this Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa's name. But those who are blunt, they will see, they will think, "What these people are chanting?" Because he has no power to hear. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi. But realization of Śrī Kṛṣṇa begins by hearing. That is the method. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ (SB 7.5.23). If you hear about Kṛṣṇa, if you chant about Kṛṣṇa, then gradually, your heart will be cleansed. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaṁ bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam (CC Antya 20.12). By chanting and hearing, the dirty things within the heart will be cleansed. Then you will understand what is your position in relationship with God. You'll understand what is God. Therefore in this age especially, Kali-yuga, because people cannot perform any other austerities... They're unable. They're so dull. Mandāḥ sumanda-matayo manda-bhāgyā hy upadrutāḥ (SB 1.1.10). This is the position of the people of this age. Prāyeṇa alpa āyuṣaḥ.

Lecture on BG 2.28 -- London, August 30, 1973:

Therefore, Vyāsadeva saw, apaśyat puruṣaṁ pūrṇam. He saw... Just like in airplane, you go above the cloud. The sun is not affected at all by the cloud. Although below the airplane you'll see vast mass of cloud. Similarly, māyā cannot affect Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, Bhagavad-gītā says daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā. Mama māyā (BG 7.14), Kṛṣṇa says, "My illusory energy." Kṛṣṇa is never affected by the illusory energy. Exactly like the cloud. But the Māyāvādī philosophers, they say that when impersonal Absolute Truth comes, appears, they also accept the incarnation, but their philosophy is that ultimately the Absolute Truth is impersonal. When He appears as a person, He accepts the māyā body. This is Māyāvāda. Kṛṣṇa may be accepted as the Supreme God, but He has accepted a material body. That means they want to compare Kṛṣṇa with ordinary living entity, and that is condemned in the Bhagavad-gītā. It is said that avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). Because Kṛṣṇa comes in His original form... Original form is two-handed. It is also accepted in the Bible: "Man is made after the image of God." So God has got two-handed. Even the four-handed Viṣṇu form is not the original form. Viṣṇu form is secondary manifestation of Saṅkarṣaṇa. So Kṛṣṇa is never affected by māyā. This is point.

Lecture on BG 3.11-19 -- Los Angeles, December 27, 1968:

Prabhupāda: This is a cycle. Cycle. We are living on food grains. We cannot live on meat-eating. It is not possible. However a great meat-eater may be he must have some grains some vegetables. That is his life. Yes. Therefore grains, vegetables, they are actually our food. Now, I am living and getting energy by eating grains and vegetables and how my energy should be utilized? It should be utilized for the purpose from where I am getting energy. I am getting energy from the Supreme Lord by supply of this foodstuff; therefore my energy should be utilized for the service of the Supreme Lord.

That is called sacrifice. So I should be strong enough to offer sacrifice to the Lord. By sacrifice, the demigods, the Lord will be pleased and there will be sufficient rain. There will be again production. Again you will eat. Again you will get strength. Again you will offer saṅkīrtana. This cycle. This cycle must go on. This cycle. You get from the Supreme Lord supply by His natural ways. You get strength. And your strength should be utilized not for sense gratification. "Because I am now very stout and strong, oh, let me enjoy senses." Then you are sinful. And if you use your strength for satisfying the Supreme Lord then your energy is properly utilized. This is the way.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Fifteen: "Activity, karma, arises from the Vedas and the Vedas spring from the Supreme Godhead. Therefore the all-pervading Transcendence is eternally situated in acts of sacrifice (BG 3.15)."

Lecture on BG 3.13-16 -- New York, May 23, 1966:

So many wonderful things are being done in the material nature. Do you think it is without being done, consciousness? No. There is also consciousness. Just like for the management of your own body, due to the consciousness everything is being well done, similarly, everything that you see very nicely well done in the material nature, that is also being done by superior consciousness. This is human reasoning. How can you deny it? Can you deny it? I don't think any sane man can deny it.

Similarly, as your consciousness is a symptom of your presence, you are spirit soul, similarly, the supreme consciousness is the symptom of the supreme soul, or God, the supreme God. This is the position. Now, as consciousness, we are part and parcel of the supreme consciousness. Therefore, the whole business of our life is to dovetail our activities with the supreme plan. That is called karma-yoga. That is called karma-yoga. Eko bahu syāt.

In the Vedic literature you will find that God has expanded Himself into many, just like the father expands himself into many children. The children is nothing but expansions of the body of the father. Similarly, we, all living entities, spiritual parts or living souls, we are also expansion of the supreme spirit. Now, the reason is, why the supreme spirit soul expanded himself into so many? What is the purpose? We have to understand. Now you can take the example. What is the purpose of father's expanding himself into children? A father takes the responsibility of maintaining the children. Why? Why he takes such, I mean, a grave responsibility, a family man. That "why" is answered—just to have happy and enjoyable life. That's all.

Lecture on BG 3.18-30 -- Los Angeles, December 30, 1968:

This is self-realization. So long it is not completely realized, so long we have got doubt, we have to make progress. And as soon as we come to the point and firmly convinced, that is self-realization.

Therefore here it is stated, "A self-realized man has no purpose to fulfill in the discharge of his prescribed duties." Prescribed duties, either take for... Any scripture. Take your Bible, take Koran, take Vedas. There are some prescribed duties. Just like in your Bible, there are ten commandments. "Thou shall not kill." So for whom? One who is not self-realized, one who is self-realized that "I am part and parcel of the Supreme God, everyone is part and parcel of the Supreme God and human being, animal, ant, aquatic, beasts, birds, every living entity is part and parcel of the Supreme Lord,"... That is self-realization. Then how can you kill? If everyone is part and parcel, son of the Supreme, how can you kill your brother? This is self-realization. You'll not... You'll hesitate even to kill even an ant.

Just like we published that picture in our Back to Godhead, "The Hunter." The hunter was taking pleasure in killing animals half dead, and when he was self-realized, he was hesitating to kill even an ant. You see? Why? Self-realized. So he has no prescribed duties. To him you haven't got to say, "Thou shall not kill." He will automatically not kill because he is self-realized. Self-realized person does not do any harm to anyone because he knows everyone in relationship with the Supreme. His central point is Kṛṣṇa. Neither he'll misuse anything. He makes everything proper use. "This nice foodstuff, it is given by Kṛṣṇa, let it be offered to Kṛṣṇa." That is not misuse; that is the proper use. "Here is nice rose flower, it is manufactured by Kṛṣṇa's energy, let it be offered to Kṛṣṇa." This is self-realization.

Lecture on BG 3.18-30 -- Los Angeles, December 30, 1968:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "We cannot imitate the Lord by lifting Govardhana Hill as the Lord did in His childhood. It is impossible for any human being. We have to follow His instructions, but we may not imitate Him in any way. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam affirms this as follows: 'One should simply follow the instructions of the controllers and should not imitate them in their activities. Their instructions are all good for us and any intelligent person must perform them as instructed. However, one should guard against trying to imitate their actions. One should not try to drink the ocean of poison imitating Lord Śiva.' "

We should always remember the position of the īśvaras, or those who actually control the movements of the sun and moon. Without such power, one cannot imitate the īśvara or the superpowerful. The example set herein is very appropriate. Lord Śiva drank poison to the extent of swallowing an ocean, but if any common man tries to drink even a fragment of such poison he will be killed. There are many pseudo-devotees of Lord Śiva who want to indulge in smoking gāñjā (marijuana) and similar intoxicating drugs, forgetting that by so imitating the acts of Lord Śiva they are calling death very near. Similarly, there are some pseudo-devotees of Lord Kṛṣṇa who prefer to imitate the Lord in the matter of the rāsa-līlā or dance of love, forgetting their inability to lift the Govardhana Hill. It is best, therefore, that one not try to imitate the powerful, but simply endeavor to follow their instructions. Nor should one try to occupy the posts of the powerful without qualification. There are so many 'incarnations' of God without the powers of the Supreme Godhead."

Twenty-five: "As the ignorant perform their duties with attachment to result... (BG 3.25)"

Prabhupāda: This morning, the press representative, he was astonished that "Swamiji, so many people are coming, they are declaring that 'I am God.' What is this?" So these rascals are like that. Therefore there are so many incarnations of God without the powers of. So people, why they should be cheated? If somebody comes and says that "I am God," why don't you test? For testing this... When Kṛṣṇa assumed the Supreme Personality of Godhead... Of course, Arjuna was convinced. He accepted, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma (BG 10.12), but for future guidance, he requested Kṛṣṇa, "Please show me Your universal form." Otherwise, without showing universal (form), they're still claiming that "I am God." God is not so cheap thing. They're imitating, trying to imitate. This is very dangerous.

Lecture on BG 4.2 -- Bombay, March 22, 1974:

So the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā, how it has to be received, that is explained here. It is not to be understood by so-called scholarship. In the Vedic literature we find, nāyam ātmā pravacanena labhyo na medhayā na bahunā śrutena. If you're actually interested in ātma-jñāna, self-realization, then you cannot understand by your so-called academic education. No. Nāyam ātmā pravacanena... Or because you are a big speaker, you can speak very nicely, decorating language, therefore you have understood. That is also not possible. The spiritual knowledge has to be understood by the grace of the Supreme Spirit. Yam evaiṣa vṛṇute tena labhyaḥ-labhyaḥ Kaṭha Upaniṣad 1.2.23. One who is favored by the Supreme... Here Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Being, God, He's explaining about Himself. So you have to learn about God, or Kṛṣṇa, from Kṛṣṇa, or through the paramparā. As Kṛṣṇa says, evaṁ paramparā.

Paramparā means Kṛṣṇa explained the knowledge, Vedic knowledge, to Lord Brahmā, ādi-kavaye. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayāt itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ sva-rāṭ tene brahma hṛdā (SB 1.1.1). The spiritual knowledge, brahma, brahma-vidyā, śabda-brahma, the Vedic knowledge... Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā, the words written in this book, Bhagavad-gītā, although it appears like ordinary letters, they are not like that. It is Vedic vibration. The things which are being spoken by Kṛṣṇa, they are not ordinary language. Had it been ordinary language, how...? Because it was written five thousand years ago. How it is still going on? There are many literatures written by great, great poets within two thousand, two hundred years, three hundred years, or, say, thousands of years. But they are being forgotten. But therefore the character of the Vedic knowledge, they are not material things. They're all spiritual. Why we are giving so much importance to the words of Kṛṣṇa? Because this language is absolute. Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's words, Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's language, or Kṛṣṇa's words, they are the same. Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's forms... We are worshiping Kṛṣṇa's form.

Lecture on BG 4.6 -- Bombay, March 26, 1974:

Kṛṣṇa's body, mind, there is no difference, absolute. What is Kṛṣṇa's body, that is Kṛṣṇa's soul. What is Kṛṣṇa's mind, that is Kṛṣṇa's soul. Or what is Kṛṣṇa's soul, that is Kṛṣṇa's body, that is Kṛṣṇa. Avyayātmā. Ajo 'pi sann avyayātmā bhūtānām īśvaraḥ. Īśvaraḥ. He's not ordinary living being. Bhūtānām īśvaraḥ. That is the difference. He's īśvaraḥ. We are not īśvaraḥ. We may be īśvaraḥ. Īśvaraḥ means controller. But that, we are not the supreme īśvara. The supreme īśvara is called Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). We are not supreme īśvara.

The so-called incarnations of God, they declare that "I am God." But... He may be God. God means a subordinate god. Not the Supreme God. The Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. God means controller. You have, you may have some controlling power, admitted, but you are not Supreme Controller. The Supreme Controller is Īśvara. Therefore here Kṛṣṇa... Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, bhūtānām īśvaro 'pi. Īśvaraḥ. All bhūtas... Bhūtānām means all living entities, or everything which has appeared within this material world. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). He is the Supreme Source of everything. That is also described in the Tenth Chapter that aham ādir hi devānām (Bg 10.2). Mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate. Everything. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7).

Lecture on BG 4.7 -- Bombay, March 27, 1974:

First of all you have to understand. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glāniḥ (BG 4.7). What is dharma? First of all you have to understand. Dharma means occupational duty. Or natural characteristic. That is called dharma. Just like sugar. Sugar is sweet. The sweetness is dharma of sugar. Chili is very hot. The hotness is the dharma of chili. If the chili becomes sweet and sugar becomes hot, that is adharma. Try to understand this. So first of all, who can give us dharma? That is stated in the śāstras, dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam (SB 6.3.19). Dharma means the orders, given by the Supreme Lord, or Supreme Being, God. That is dharma. This is the shortest definition of dharma. Dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam (SB 6.3.19).

Just like law. Law means which is given by the government. You cannot manufacture law at home. That is not possible. I have given this example many times, that in some country the law is "Keep to the right," in some country, "Keep to the left." I think, in America it is "Keep to the left." In England it is "Keep to the right." India, "Keep to the... Now which one is correct? "Keep to the left" or "Keep to the right?" No. According to the government. If the government says that "Keep to the right" is right, then you have to accept that. And the government says, "Keep to the left, that is right," then it is right. We cannot say that "In my country I keep to the left. Why shall I keep to the right?" No. That will not be accepted.

Try to understand what is religion. So God is one. God cannot say somewhere that "This is religion and this is not religion." God says, Bhagavān Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā... Here it is said that yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati (BG 4.7), paritrāṇāya sādhū...

Lecture on BG 4.11-12 -- New York, July 28, 1966:

Now, I accept some particular class of leader because I belong to that status of ideas. So therefore you know that in the Vedic literature there are names of many demigods. Sometimes the Hindus are criticized that "Hindus have got many gods." But they are not the Supreme God. If somebody is a serious student of Upaniṣads, they will find that the demigods described, they are all, I mean to say, servants of the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa. But here it is said, kāṅkṣantaḥ karmaṇāṁ siddhim.

Sometimes we want something immediately by worshiping these demigods. Just like it is mentioned that if one wants to be free from diseases, he has to worship the sun-god. If one has to become very beautiful or he wants a beautiful wife, then he has to worship Umā. Similarly, there are different gods named in the Vedic literatures, and they become successful. That is not unreal. By worshiping those different demigods for particular purpose, they become successful. That is a fact. But in another place you will find in the Bhagavad-gītā that it is said, I mean to say, kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ yajanty anya-devatāḥ (BG 7.20). Kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ: "Those who are misguided by material desires, they take the shelter of other demigods."

One goes to the worship of demigods because one is persuaded for a particular purpose. Just like one who wants to be very healthy man or to be free from all diseases, he worships the sun-god. Or one who wants to have a beautiful wife or becomes himself a very beautiful human, he worships the devī Umā.

Lecture on BG 4.34-39 -- Los Angeles, January 12, 1969:

This is knowledge. When one understands that God is such and such by the mercy of spiritual master, by studying, by serving, then what is that understanding? "When you have thus learned the truth you will know that all living beings are My part and parcel." This is real knowledge. Part and parcel is not the whole. This finger is part and parcel of my body, but it is not the whole body, although you can call it body. Suppose somebody touches my finger. I can say, "Oh, why you have touched my body?" This can be called body, but it is, actually it is not body; it is finger.

Similarly, part and parcel of God can be called God, but he is not Supreme God. Therefore there are two words in Vedic language: ātmā, Paramātmā. Ātmā. Ātmā means living entities. We are all ātmās. And God is Paramātmā. And in the Kaṭhopaniṣad it is said, nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). God is also a living entity like us, but He is the Supreme. Kṛṣṇa appears just like human being, but He is Supreme. Paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). You will find in the Tenth Chapter. Although He appears...

Just like your President Nixon. He's also American gentleman. If she (he) appears here, he will appear just like one of you. But he is not one of you. He is distinct. Similarly, if the president is distinct, if the minister is distinct, then how much God is distinct from you. Try to understand.

You are claiming that "I am God." This is all nonsense. We are part and parcel. Part and parcel. Just like a small part of the Pacific Ocean, a small drop. You taste it; it is salty. So you can understand the whole Pacific Ocean is salty. Immediately you understand what is Pacific Ocean.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- San Francisco, March 26, 1968:

There are many other evidences if we believe śāstra. That Kṛṣṇa married 16,108 wives, and He provided each one of them with big palaces and each one of them had ten children, and from ten children there were many other children also.

So these are the evidences from revealed scripture. And in the Brahma-saṁhitā also, Kṛṣṇa is accepted as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is a very old book, supposed to be written by Brahma. It is called Brahma-saṁhitā. In that Brahma-saṁhitā it is said that īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Īśvaraḥ means God. There are many gods, but... In Sanskrit language, about God, there are many demigods, and there is Supreme God. So this Brahma-saṁhitā says, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ, "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme God. He is the God of gods." Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). "And His body is eternal, and full of bliss and knowledge." This is the description of the body. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Anādi, "He has no beginning, but He is the beginning of everyone." Anādir ādir govindaḥ. "And His name is Govinda." Go means senses, and go means cow, and go means land. So He is the proprietor of all land, He is the proprietor of all cows, and He is the, I mean to say, pleasure for all senses. We are after sense pleasure, but our perfection of sense pleasure can be achieved when we reciprocate our pleasure with Kṛṣṇa. Therefore His name is Govinda. Govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi **. Govinda is the Supreme original Personality of Godhead.

So the same Personality of Godhead, He is speaking to Arjuna personally about Himself. Then how you can say that somebody, simply by speculation, speaks something about God which is more important than what is being spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself? It is not possible. Nobody can speak better than Kṛṣṇa about God, because God Himself is speaking about Himself. If you speak about yourself personally, who can speak more than you? So if we have faith, if we believe theoretically and practically Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then by the speeches which is being delivered by Kṛṣṇa in this chapter, you can understand God. There is no difficulty.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Calcutta, January 27, 1973:

Not cheating religion. Cheating religion will not help us. Why I say "cheating religion"? Because it is said in the beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra (SB 1.1.2). Kaitava means cheating. You cannot make people happy by presenting some cheating religion. That is the injunction of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Real religion. What is the real, real religion? Dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam (SB 6.3.19). Dharma means the codes given by God. That is dharma. You cannot make this dharma, that dharma. Dharma is one. God is one. And you have to follow that one principle, how to approach Kṛṣṇa. That is bhakti. So dharma is to approach Kṛṣṇa, and the process is bhakti. And Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme God.

īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ

sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ

anādir ādir govindaḥ

sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam

(Bs. 5.1)

He's the cause of all causes. This is the shastric injunction. So if you take this movement very seriously, the world will be happy, we'll be happy, personally or socially or economically, politically... That's a fact. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). If we accept Kṛṣṇa, simply Kṛṣṇa, then you understand everything. Asaṁśayam, without any doubt. Samagram, in fullness. Kasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Sydney, February 16, 1973:

So they come forward. The president recommends that "This boy or girl is now living with us for so many months, he's interested, he may be initiated." Then we initiate. But initiate with some condition. Anartha-nivṛttiḥ syāt. These are the different stages. Initiation means that he must be free from all kinds of sinful activities. These four principles, the pillars of sinful activities, are four in number: illicit sex life, meat-eating, intoxication and gambling. Striya suna panabhi(?). So automatically they give. All these boys and girls who are sitting here, you know that they have given up automatically. They have been able, by association with Kṛṣṇa. It has become very practical and easy thing to give up all these four principles of sinful activities. Because without being pure, you cannot understand the Supreme Pure. God is the Supreme Pure. It is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, yeṣām anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. Anyone who is completely free from the reaction of sinful life, yeṣām anta-gatam pāpaṁ janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. Now, how is it possible? If one is simply engaged in pious activities. The most pious activity is to be engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Pure. Then these are the different stages. Adau śraddhā tato sādhu-saṅgo tato bhajana-kriyā atha anartha-nivṛttiḥ syāt. Anartha means things we do not want. Artificially we are practiced to things. Just like meat-eating. Meat-eating, we do not practice it from the beginning of our birth. Just after birth the child, the baby, requires little honey or little milk, not the meat. But afterwards, the parents or the guardians are teaching how to eat meat. This is not our human business. Human teeth is meant for eating fruits and grains. That is scientific. Our teeth is made in that way. So anyway, meat-eating, intoxication, illicit sex, as soon as one takes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, these four pillars of sinful life is immediately broken.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Sydney, February 16, 1973:

This is not fiction; this is science. Because if you accept God as absolute, there cannot be difference between God and His name and His form. So this is science. You'll realize as you make progress. You'll realize. Just like these boys, they're chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, they are realizing; otherwise I've not bribed them. They're mad after Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. It is not due to my bribing them. They're actually realizing that they are in touch with Kṛṣṇa. So anyone can do that. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, therefore, that there are many thousands of names of God. Although we say that the only perfect name is Kṛṣṇa, but if you think, "No, we have got another name," that's all right. But it must be the name of God. It must be full with the conception of God. If you have got, you can chant that name also. There is no hindrance. Nāmnām akāri. Because every name being identical with God, every name of God is as powerful as God. As powerful, because identical. Identical; therefore every name has got the same power and potency as the Supreme Person, God, has got. Nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija sarva śaktis. Nija sarva śaktis: all potencies are there. Tatrārpitā. There is, it is already endowed with all the potencies.

So Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, etādṛśī tava kṛpā bhagavān mamāpi durdaivam īdṛśam ihājani nānurāgaḥ: "My dear Lord, You have sent in age Your name, which is full of potency, as much potencies as You have got. Still, I am so unfortunate that I cannot chant even Your holy names." It is so nice. You haven't got to do anything, simply try to chant the holy name of God. Then gradually everything will evolve within you, because within you everything is there. Simply you have to accept the process and everything will come out. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12).

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Hyderabad, August 22, 1976:

Just like Kṛṣṇa, when He was three months old, He's Bhagavān. Pūtanā came to kill Him, but Pūtanā was killed by Him. That is Bhagavān. At the age of three months what meditation He could do? So this meditation Bhagavān and this Bhagavān is different. Bhagavān is always Bhagavān. Either He's three months old or 125 years old. When He was in the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra His age was 125 or little less. He was a great-grandfather. So his Bhagavān is not this Bhagavān. Bhagavān cannot be manufactured by meditation factory. No. Therefore it is said bhagavān uvāca.

So to understand Bhagavān, Para-brahman, that is the mission of human life. The cats and dogs cannot understand Bhagavān. That is not possible. A human being can understand. This Bhagavad-gītā is for the human being, not for the cats and dogs. So Kṛṣṇa says that "If you want to know Me..." It is not easy to understand Bhagavān, or God. God is not the exact word of Bhagavān; therefore we use the word "Godhead." "Back to Godhead." Bhagavān means the Supreme Lord, the Supreme Being. God means the ruler, the controller. But when we come to the supreme controller, He is Bhagavān. You are controller, I am controller. I am controller of my disciples within the Kṛṣṇa conscious society, but I cannot control the whole world. I have got some... You are controller in your home, of your wife, children, servants. But you are also controlled. You are not absolute controller. Therefore Bhagavān means the absolute controller.

Lecture on BG 7.1-3 -- Stockholm, September 10, 1973:

So to commit mistake, illusioned, and our senses are imperfect. The knowledge we gather through our senses, that is imperfect because our senses are imperfect. Just like we see every day the sun with our eyes, but because our senses are imperfect, we see the sun like a disc, although it is fourteen hundred thousand times bigger than this earth. In this way, if we analyze our senses, it will be found that our senses are imperfect. By the imperfect senses speculating, that is not perfect. Therefore all the speculators, they, so-called scientists, philosophers, they put forward theories: "Perhaps," "It may be," like that. That means it is not perfect knowledge. But if we receive knowledge from the supreme perfect God, that it is actually perfect. Our process is like that.

In the Fourth Chapter of the Śrīmad-Bhagavad-gītā you will find, Kṛṣṇa says, evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). Imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1). Kṛṣṇa said this philosophy of Bhagavad-gītā first to the sun-god, and he spoke to his son Manu, he spoke to his son Ikṣvāku. In this way, disciplic succession, this Bhagavad-gītā has come down to this earthly planet, and if we accept that disciplic succession, do not unnecessarily interpret, then we understand what is Bhagavad-gītā. That is the process. Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to understand the Supreme Person, Kṛṣṇa, as He is, without any interpretation. That is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness yoga. That can be achieved, as Kṛṣṇa says, always keeping center Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 7.3 -- London, March 11, 1975:

That is Kṛṣṇa's speaking. And we are trying to place this Kṛṣṇa's teachings to the world. And not only that, Bhagavān, God, means Kṛṣṇa. And if I give the name of "God" instead of "Kṛṣṇa," they will bring forth so many competition of Kṛṣṇa. That is not our purpose. Kṛṣṇa means God. If God has any perfect name, that is "Kṛṣṇa." Because "Kṛṣṇa" means all-attractive. God cannot be attractive for certain person. God cannot be Christian God or a Hindu God or Muslim God. God is equally attractive for Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Buddha. That is real God. And if Hindu has manufactured some God, Christian has manufactured some God, that may be God partially, but not the Supreme God. The Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Parama means supreme. God... You are also god, I am also god, and every one of us, god. Why? God means controller. So controller, every one of us is a controller to certain extent, not the complete controller. But Kṛṣṇa means the complete controller. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Controller... You may be controller; I may be controller; he may be controller; but not controller like Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa can control all other controllers. Therefore He is called supreme controller, Parameśvara, Paramātmā, Para-brahman.

These words are used. In the Bhagavad-gītā you will find. Arjuna says paraṁ brahma. Not Brahman. Brahman we are, every one of us. Sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. Brahman is the small Brahman, and Para-brahman means the Supreme Brahman, or the biggest Brahman. So Kṛṣṇa is the biggest Brahman, biggest Lord, biggest controller. We may be a small Brahman, a small controller. That is the distinction. How the distinction is made? That is also stated in the Vedas.

Lecture on BG 7.8-14 -- New York, October 2, 1966:

Now, one may question, "Then if You are particularly—You are Personality of Godhead, Supreme God—You are speaking that You are sound, You are this light, You are this praṇava, You are bīja, You are also kāma, so many things. So do You mean to say that You are simply in goodness? And what about the other things?" Because there are three qualities of the material world: the modes of goodness and the modes of passion and the modes of darkness. Now, so far Kṛṣṇa has described Himself, that any good thing... Just like sex life in marriage is a good. "That's all right. You are. What about other things?" Then Kṛṣṇa replies. He automatically says that ye caiva sāttvikā bhāvā rājasās tāmasāś ca ye.

Whatever there are in this material world, we find interaction of three qualities only: goodness, passion, and ignorance. All manifestations that you are observing, they are different combination of these three qualities. Now that can be made into nine. Three into three equal to nine; nine into nine equal to eighty-one; and so on—go on diluting. But the main background is that three qualities. So Kṛṣṇa says that "Whatever qualities are there," ye caiva sāttvikā bhāvā rājasās tāmasāś ca ye, "either goodness or passion or ignorance," matta eveti tān viddhi, "they are all produced from Me. They are all produced from Me." How is that? Na tv ahaṁ teṣu te mayi, that "Because they are produced from Me, therefore they are standing, their position is in Me, but I am not there. I am transcendental." So in another sense, even the bad things, evil things, which is produced out of ignorance, that is also Kṛṣṇa. But when? When it is applied by Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 9.11 -- Calcutta, June 30, 1973:

Kṛṣṇa is not in the category of jīva-tattva. There are jīva-tattvas, there are śakti-tattvas, there are viṣṇu-tattvas. People do not know it. Therefore in the next line it is said, paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ. They do not know what is viṣṇu-tattva, what is jīva-tattva, what is śakti-tattva, how things are working. Paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ (BG 9.11). Mama bhūta-maheśvaram: "I am the Supreme Person."

In another place Kṛṣṇa says, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat: (BG 7.7) "There is no more superior personality than Me." This is... These are the facts. In the Brahma-saṁhitā it is said, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ: (Bs. 5.1) "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead." You can become God, I can become God, He can become God, but Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. If we accept that we are all gods... But still, there is distinction. Here is male god, here is female god, here is child god, here is an educated god, here is a foolish god. If we are all gods, then we have to qualify these gods in this way. There are differentiations from one god to another. That means one god is superior than another god. That you have to accept. So in this way, if you go on making progress, who is the best God, then you come to Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. So the param, paraṁ brahma, impersonal they say. No. Vigraha, person, just like you and me, person. But they cannot imagine how a person can become so powerful, as in the previous verse it is said, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). A person is directing.

Lecture on BG 9.23-24 -- New York, December 10, 1966:

Vidhi-pūrvakam means under regulation. Just like in your body. In your body you have to take special care of your stomach, the digesting machine for your foodstuff. If your digestion is all right, then the energy will be supplied equal to the all parts of the body. So that is necessary. But at the same time, it is not prohibited that you should not take care of the hand which is a part of your body. That's all right. Similarly, to worship demigods may be accepted if people know that these demigods are authorized agents of the Supreme Lord. There is acceptance of Supreme Lord. But those fools who do not accept the Supreme God and misunderstand that "This particular type of demigod is all in all," oh, they are doing nonsense. They are doing nonsense. They are keeping, placing, so many competitors of the Supreme Lord. That is avidhi-pūrvakam. Avidhi-pūrvakam. That is illegal. Nobody can be competitor of the Supreme Lord. The Supreme Lord is known as asamordhva. Asama-ūrdhva. Nobody is greater than the Supreme Lord, and nobody is equal, on the same level.

Everyone, whatever he may be, however powerful he may be, they are all living entities. There are innumerable living entities, and some of them are, by degree, one is powerful more than the other. So in the material world we can see that Brahmā, Lord Brahmā, is the most powerful demigod. Similarly, Lord Śiva is also next to Brahmā or equal to Brahmā. Somebody says he's more than Brahmā. Whatever it may be. So Lord Śiva and Lord Brahmā are considered to be the most powerful demigods, but still, it is prohibited that one should not think of them as equal to the Supreme Lord. It is strictly prohibited in Vaiṣṇava Purāṇas. It is said like this: yas tu nārāyaṇaṁ devam...

Lecture on BG 10.1 -- New York, December 27, 1966:

"All these living entities, they are My parts and parcels." Just like your son or your daughter is the part and parcel of your own body, personal body. Similarly, we are all part and parcel of the Supreme God. We are all sons of God.

How is it? That is also mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā in the fourteenth chapter.

sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya

mūrtayaḥ sambhavanti yāḥ

tāsāṁ brahma mahad yonir

ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā

(BG 14.4)

Lord Kṛṣṇa says that, "My dear Arjuna, we find so many species of life, eight, eight thousand, no, eight millions four hundred thousand, eight million four hundred thousands of species of life. All of them, they are My sons. I am the seed-giving father." He accepts that every living being, either man or beast or ant or bird, everyone, anywhere, they're all sons of God.

Lecture on BG 13.1-3 -- Durban, October 13, 1975:

Kṛṣṇa's another name is Keśava. So he is addressing Kṛṣṇa, "My dear Keśava, I want to know these subject matters—prakṛti, puruṣa." Prakṛti means nature, material nature, and puruṣa means the enjoyer, just like the living entities. We are trying to enjoy this material nature. Another prakṛti-puruṣa... Puruṣa means, real puruṣa means, the supreme enjoyer, God, Kṛṣṇa. And prakṛti means which is enjoyed. Another meaning—prakṛti, means woman and puruṣa means man. So this material world is going on—one party is trying to enjoy, and the other party is being enjoyed.

So Arjuna wanted to know what is the distinction, what is the integral part and parcel of this prakṛti and puruṣa. Then kṣetraṁ kṣetra-jña. Jña means one who knows, and kṣetra-jña means one who knows the field. Just like the agriculturist, the cultivator, he knows that "This is my field." He works there. Different cultivator works in his own field. So this kṣetra means this body, kṣetra, the field of activity. We have got different field of activities. So kṣetraṁ kṣetra-jñaṁ ca, kṣetram eva etad veditum icchāmi: "My dear Kṛṣṇa, I want to know from You." Why he wants to know from Kṛṣṇa? Because Kṛṣṇa is infallible. Whatever knowledge we get from the infallible, that is perfect knowledge.

Lecture on BG 13.1-3 -- Durban, October 13, 1975:

Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam it is stated by Vyāsadeva that kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. Similarly, in the Brahma-saṁhitā it is stated, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Īśvara means controller. So parama means the supreme. So every one of us, we are more or less controller. But we are not supreme controller. We must know this. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). There are some men who claim to become Īśvara, to become God. So we have no objection, that if somebody says, "I am God," or "I am controller," we have no objection. But if somebody says that "I am supreme God," or "supreme controller," then we have got objection. Supreme means he has no controller. And ordinary controller, just like we are... You are controller. You are controlling some sphere of life. I am also controlling some. But I also being controlled.

But īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1) means He is the supreme controller. He has no controller over Him. He controls everyone, but He is not controlled by anyone. Therefore it is called

īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ

sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ

anādir ādir govindaḥ

sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam

(Bs. 5.1)

These are the Vedic statement. And our process of knowledge, Veda... Veda means knowledge. Vetti veda vido jñāne. Supreme knowledge, perfect knowledge, that is Veda. So Kṛṣṇa is the supreme person. He is the speaker of Vedas. The subject matter of Vedas is to know Kṛṣṇa. Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15).

Lecture on BG 13.6-7 -- Montreal, October 25, 1968:

There is no instrument to divide the upper portion of the hair into ten thousand parts. And just to take one part as the magnitude of the soul, that is not... Actually, we are very small. That small particle of soul is within the ant and within the elephant. It is a bodily expansion only that we are, we appear..., the elephant appears to be the biggest animal, and the ant or the germ appears to be the smallest. But actually, these are bodily expansions. The soul as it is is really smaller than the grass or straw on the street.

So Vedic aphorism says that ahaṁ brahmāsmi. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. So ahaṁ brahmāsmi sometimes mistakenly is understood that "I am the Supreme God." Ahaṁ brahmāsmi means "I am Brahman." Brahman means spirit. "I am spirit soul." This conception, this identification, is right. This is the right identification. As soon as I think that "I am elephant" or "I am ant," that is not my identification. That is my misidentification. My real identification is that "I am neither ant nor elephant, but I am spirit soul." But sometimes by identifying myself with the spirit soul, sometimes I falsely claim that "I am the supreme soul." Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that tṛṇād api sunīcena, "You are soul, you are spirit soul, but you are smaller than the smallest straw in the street." So actually, there is no miscalculation. The conclusion is there. So adambhitvam dharmikatva-khyāti-phalaka-dharmācaraṇa. Khyāti. We should not be very much anxious about being famous. Not, "Oh, there is a great man who knows everything about spirit and who is perfect." No. We should be very sincere to understand things as they are. We should not falsely claim which I am not.

Lecture on BG Lecture -- Ahmedabad, December 8, 1972:

Complete. Because I have got mill... (break) Whether one has got... (break) That is not million, trillion, billion; it is unlimited. Asamordhva. That is the version. God must be asama ūrdhva. Asamor... Nobody's greater than God, nobody's equal to God. That is God. If you find somebody equal to you, then you are not God. You may be demigod, but the God means supreme. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). That Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Parama, supreme. Nobody is equal to Kṛṣṇa, nobody's greater than Kṛṣṇa. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is God. There are so many gods nowadays. The... Actually, the Māyāvādī philosophers, they say everyone is Nārāyaṇa. But what is the proof? We find out from the śāstra that Nārāyaṇa has got four hands. So where is your four hands? You are claiming to become Nārāyaṇa. So where are your four hands? Just manifest your four hands at least so that we can understand you are Nārāyaṇa. (chuckles) No. Without four hands. And Nārāyaṇa is Lakṣmī-Nārāyaṇa. He's the husband of Lakṣmī, the goddess of fortune. So where is your goddess of fortune? You are begging from door to door. Where is your goddess of fortune? You have become Nārāyaṇa. This kind of God and Nārāyaṇa is going on, bluffing.

But we are not bluffed in that way. We follow the shastric injunction, what is Nārāyaṇa. We cannot accept Nārāyaṇa as daridra. Daridra-nārāyaṇa. What is this? Nārāyaṇa is the husband of the goddess of fortune.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.5 -- Melbourne, April 3, 1972, Lecture at Christian Monastery:

Prabhupāda: Well, as you are apart from me, similarly, God is also apart from you. God is also an individual person as you are individual person, I am individual person, but the difference between God and you and me is this, that you know your business, I know my business. but God knows everyone's business. That is the difference.

Guest (4): (indistinct) ...man and God?

Śyāmasundara: What is the relationship between man and God?

Prabhupāda: Man is servant of God, and God is the Supreme. God is asamordhva. Nobody can be equal to Him, nobody can be greater than Him. This is our point.

Guest (5): Do you believe in reincarnation?

Prabhupāda: What is that?

Woman: Do you believe in reincarnation?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Why not? Just like I had my small body. Then I had greater body, another body, another body. So every moment there is incarnation, reincarnation, every moment. That is medical science opinion. We are changing our bodily condition, material condition, but I am existing. Therefore, as I have passed over my childhood body to be incarnated into boyhood body, from boyhood I have reincarnated in a youthhood body. From youthhood body I reincarnated my old body. Similarly, after leaving this body I must have to accept another body. That I have already explained. Just like we change our dresses. So soul is eternal; the body is not permanent, temporary, and there are 8,400,000's of different types of bodies. We are migrating or transmigrating from one to another. This business, if we want to stop... Because we are eternal, our aims and object should be to attain that eternal status.

Lecture on SB 1.2.6 -- Delhi, November 11, 1973:

We shall produce our happiness." They are called duṣkṛtina. Duṣkṛtina means sinful. Actually, they do not know that without sanction of God, you cannot get anything. So at least, one who accepts this power of God and goes to God for asking bread or something, money or something else, they are pious. That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā. Sukṛtino 'rjuna. But those who do not go at all, do not care for God, they are called duṣkṛtina. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15).

So to love God is the ultimate... Caitanya Mahāprabhu also said premā pum-artho mahān: "The supreme gain of life is how to be situated in the platform of loving service to the Supreme Person, God." That is actual perfection. That is described here. Ahaituky apratihatā. Apratihatā means this love cannot be checked. If you love somebody here in this material world, then if you have no money, the exchange of love will be hampered. But this love of God cannot be hampered. If you want to love God, there is no material impediments. Ahaituky apratihatā. It cannot be checked. You may be the poor of the poorest of the poor; still you can love God. That Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). Patram, a little leaf or a little water or little flower or little fruit. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam. If you offer to Kṛṣṇa, "My Lord, My Kṛṣṇa, I am very poor man. I cannot give You anything. But I have collected a little fruit, little flower, little water. So I have come to offer You," Kṛṣṇa says, "Yes," tad aham aśnāmi, tad ahaṁ bhakty-upahṛtam aśnāmi prayatātmanaḥ. He is not hungry, but He wants your love. He wants your love. That is... Therefore He comes, personally He comes. Yadā yadā hi dharmasya glāniḥ (BG 4.7).

Lecture on SB 1.2.6 -- Calcutta, February 26, 1974:

Therefore it is said here, sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmaḥ. Paraḥ means Supreme. What is that? Yato bhaktir adhokṣaje, "Wherein this is taught, 'Just surrender to the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, that is first-class religion." All other religions, they are bogus. That is not religion. Just like good citizenship means to abide by the laws of the state, of the government. That is good citizenship. Similarly, a real religious person means who is abiding by the orders of the Supreme Lord. Unfortunately, they have no information of the Supreme Lord. Although the Lord, the Supreme Lord Kṛṣṇa, is present, still, they are thinking that Supreme Lord is nirākāra. Nirākāra means to avoid. How Supreme God can be nirākāra? If the Supreme Lord is the supreme father... We have got experience: I am a person, my father is person, his father is person, his father is person... In this way, if you go to the topmost platform to find out the Supreme Person or Supreme God, why He should be imperson? Imperson is a feature of the Supreme Person, but ultimately brahmeti paramātmeti bhagavān iti śabdyate (SB 1.2.11), ultimately the Absolute Truth is a Supreme Person. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). This is the Vedic information, that as we are all nityas, eternal, we are also living being, but there is another supreme nitya, eternal, and supreme cetana, or living being, and that is God. That is Kṛṣṇa. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: (BG 7.7) "There is no more superior living being than Me." That is Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on SB 1.2.30 -- Vrndavana, November 9, 1972:

I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya-kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). That is the eternal identification of the living entity, to remain servant of Kṛṣṇa. As soon as we forget this, that is māyā. As soon as I think that "I am Kṛṣṇa," that is māyā. That māyā means this māyā, illusion, can be rejected by advancement of knowledge. That is jñānī. Jñānī means this is real knowledge, to understand his real position. This is not knowledge, that "I am equal to God. I am God." This is not knowledge. I am God, but I am sample of God. But the Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa like that: paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). Paraṁ brahma. We may become Brahman... We are Brahman. There is no question of becoming. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. This is not very difficult to understand. Because I am spirit soul, so I am Brahman. That's all right. But I am not Paraṁ Brahman. That is ignorance. I am not Paraṁ Brahman. If one, anyone thinks that he is Paraṁ Brahman, then it must be understood that he's under the clutches of māyā. That is the last snare of māyā. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says that when one actually becomes knowledgeable, cognizant, he surrenders. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). That is real knowledge.

Lecture on SB 1.2.32 -- Vrndavana, November 11, 1972:

That is māyā. That is going on. Nobody wants to accept the Supreme everyone wants to become Supreme. Even after performing severe austerities, penances, still, they want to become one with the Supreme. This is also māyā.

Therefore Bhāgavata says, vimukta-māninaḥ. They are thinking that after undergoing such severe austerities and penances, now he has become God. That is māyā. He does not know. He's not God. But he claims like that, falsely. This is the cause of his suffering. Nobody can be..., can become God or equal to God. That is not possible. The same quotation: ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa, āra saba bhṛtya (CC Adi 5.142). Only the Supreme God, Supreme Person, Īśvara, supreme controller, is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). You are, why you are, rascal, trying to become Bhagavān, God? This is māyā. He does not know. He's thinking that "I have become God." This is māyā. Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ means his intelligence is not yet cleansed. It's still dirty. Although he has undergone good austerities, penances or taken sannyāsa, but the mind is dirty. Mind is dirty. So that will not help. The whole process is ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam. We have to cleanse our heart. We have to understand our position. Then it will be successful. If we don't cleanse our heart by regular chanting,

ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanaṁ bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇaṁ

śreyaḥ-kairava-candrikā-vitaraṇaṁ vidyā-vadhū-jīvanam

ānandāmbudhi-vardhanaṁ prati-padaṁ pūrṇāmṛtāsvādanaṁ

sarvātma-snapanaṁ paraṁ vijayate śrī-kṛṣṇa-saṅkīrtanam

(CC Antya 20.12)

So we have to understand our position. The dirty things should be removed completely, always by hearing kṛṣṇa-kathā. That is the way of understanding. Only way. This Vṛndāvana is so important, valuable. Why? Because anywhere you go in Vṛndāvana, there is the opportunity of hearing kṛṣṇa-kathā. This whole Vṛndāvana is simply cultivation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Unfortunately, we take to other consciousness here.

Lecture on SB 1.7.6 -- Vrndavana, April 23, 1975:

Not that I make a ceremony, I hear for one week. Without understanding a word of Bhāgavata, I hear for one week, and the business is finished—no. You have to hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam daily, regularly. Then anartha upaśamaṁ sākṣāt. This sātvata-saṁhitā is given by Śrīla Vyāsadeva so that... We are fools, rascal, ajānataḥ, ajānataḥ. Lokasya ajānataḥ. All these fools and rascals, if they hear with great attention from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam about the activities and glories of Kṛṣṇa... Yasyāṁ vai śrūyamāṇāyāṁ kṛṣṇe parama-pūruṣe (SB 1.7.7). He is the parama-puruṣa. That is the verdict of all Vedic literature. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). He is īśvara, parama-puruṣa, the Supreme Person. Īśvara means the Supreme Person. In the English dictionary also it is said "God means the Supreme Person." God means the Supreme Person. So that Supreme Person is Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat: (BG 7.7) "There is no more superior authority than Me." But people do not understand, because ajānataḥ. Ajānataḥ means without any knowledge.

So we have to take knowledge from Bhagavad-gītā or Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam about Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇe parama-pūruṣe bhaktir utpadyate. If you hear Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam... Of course, if you do not understand what is the basic principle of Kṛṣṇa or basic principle of perfection... That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam in the beginning. Dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavaḥ atra paramo nirmatsarāṇām (SB 1.1.2). Here in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam the so-called manufactured religious system is kicked out. It is meant for the paramahaṁsa. Nirmatsarāṇām. Nirmatsara means one who does not become envious. So our enviousness, our envy has begun from Kṛṣṇa. We don't accept Kṛṣṇa. Mostly they will say, "Why Kṛṣṇa should be only the Supreme Person? There are many others." That is envy. So our enviousness has begun from Kṛṣṇa, and therefore it has expanded in so many ways. And in our ordinary life we are envious. We are envious of our friends, envious of our father, our son even, what to speak of others—businessmen, nation, society, community, only enviousness. Matsaratā. "Why he should go ahead?" I become envious. This is material nature.

Lecture on SB 1.7.41-42 -- Vrndavana, October 2, 1976:

Just like Uddhava. Uddhava wanted to become one grass in Vṛndāvana because the gopīs will trample over it. This is the highest perfection. So liberation... Liberation means gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa-dāsa-dāsānudāsaḥ. The more you become servant of the servant, servant of Vaiṣṇava, then your perfection is there (CC Madhya 13.80). That is perfection. Our, the Vedic injunction is just try to understand yourself, ahaṁ brahmāsmi. That is a fact.

But if I simply try to become ahaṁ brahmāsmi without knowing the full philosophy, then I shall be fallen again, that "I am equal to God." Ahaṁ brahmāsmi means "I am the Supreme God," as the Māyāvādīs, they think that liberation means "I become one with God." No. That is not your position. You cannot become... That is another māyā. That is the last dictation of māyā: "Why you shall become the servant of gopī-bhartuḥ? You become God." That is māyā. That is the last snare of māyā. Therefore they fall down. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Anādṛta. With great austerity, penances and vairāgya, they can go up to the paraṁ padam. Paraṁ padam means Brahman. Nirviśeṣa-brahman. Not in the material existence, but in the spiritual existence. Āruhya. They can rise up to that. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi: to understand that "I am not this matter, I am Brahman." But unless one takes shelter of the gopī-bhartuḥ pada-kamalayor dāsa, he'll fall down. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adhaḥ (SB 10.2.32). Why?

Lecture on SB 1.8.23 -- Mayapura, October 3, 1974:

That covering is designation. We are thinking, "I am Indian," "I am American," "I am brāhmaṇa," "I am śūdra," "I am this," "I am that." These are coverings. Actually I am ahaṁ brahmāsmi. Kṛṣṇa is also Para-brahman. Brahman... By quality, He is Brahman; we are also Brahman. But He is Para-brahman. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). He's singular number; we are plural number. That is the Vedic instruction. He is the singular number eternal, and we are plural number eternal. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām. He is singular number living entity, and we are plural number living entity. Therefore in the dictionary you'll find, this Oxford Dictionary, "the Supreme Being." God means "the Supreme Being." He's a being. He's not a stone. He's a living being. Even the dictionary accepts. He's not a stone, dead stone. That is explained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavata, janmādy asya yataḥ: (SB 1.1.1) "The Supreme Absolute Truth is the original source of all creation." Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Everything that we see, matter and life, everything comes from Him. But whether He is matter or life? That is explained: yes, He is life. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ (SB 1.1.1). He is life because He knows. So who knows? A dead stone cannot know. Unless one is a living being, he cannot know.

Lecture on SB 1.10.4 -- London, November 25, 1973:

That's it. Everything is cycle. If you execute your prescribed duties as a brāhmaṇa, as a kṣatriya, as a vaiśya, or as a śūdra, as a brahmacārī, as a gṛhastha, as a vānaprastha, or as a sannyāsī... Divisions are there. Division must be there. Just like government. For executing nicely the governmental business, there are so many departments. Not that one department, only king, queen. Then government... Why the government is spending so much money, maintaining so many building? Simply queen's palace, that Buckingham, that is sufficient? No. There must be departments. So these are departments, this brāhmaṇa, this kṣatriya, the vaiśyas, the śūdras. Just like in your body there are departments. This department, brain, head. Therefore it is called head, head office, head office. Why do you refer to the head office? It has come from this head. Why Godhead? The Supreme Godhead, the Supreme. Therefore we say, "Godhead. That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: (BG 7.7) "There is no more superior person than Me." So the divisions required. The divisions required.

Lecture on SB 1.15.42 -- Los Angeles, December 20, 1973:

This is creation. So as my body is formed, similarly, this whole universal body is formed. That is creation. They do not understand. They are so rascal that they do not understand that creation is a fact, and the original creator is God. So in the scriptures, "God created this world," that is fact, but unfortunately, they do not know how it is created. Lack of knowledge. So that is explained here, tritve hutvā ca pañcatvam, how things are developing. From the spirit soul there is total material energy. Energy is coming. The conservation of energy is the spirit soul. Where is the difficulty to understand? That is permanent, avyaya.

So therefore there are two kinds of energy from the Supreme Soul, God. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā,

bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ

khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca

ahaṅkāra itīyaṁ me

bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā

(BG 7.4)

Aṣṭadhā. Aṣṭadhā means eight. So tritve, three, and pañcatvam, five, that means eight, the eight kinds of material energy. Earth, water, fire, air, sky—these are gross. The gross, amongst the gross also, the finer material energy, the sky, we cannot see. This is also gross. Then mind. Everyone knows I am thinking, I have got mind. You know, I know. But where is the mind? Have you seen? Somebody suggests mind is in the brain, somebody suggests in the stomach, somebody... Suggesting. But there is mind. Everyone knows. Then next finer, the sky.

Lecture on SB 1.15.51 -- Los Angeles, December 28, 1973:

Therefore here it is called, yaḥ śraddhayaitad bhagavat-priyāṇām. The Pāṇḍavas were so dear to Kṛṣṇa. So it is better to hear about the Pāṇḍavas than to hear about Kṛṣṇa. To hear about Kṛṣṇa, people may be very much inclined, but the śāstra says, "To hear about the devotees of Kṛṣṇa is still better." Therefore in the...You chant daily, yasya prasādāt. Sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstrair uktaḥ **. The spiritual master, it is said that "He is directly the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstraiḥ. Ukta, "said." Sākṣād-dharitvena samasta-śāstrair uktas tathā bhāvyata eva sadbhiḥ: ** "It is not only said, but it is accepted by sadbhiḥ, those who are actually advanced in spiritual life, sadbhiḥ." Why? Why the spiritual master should be accepted as directly as the Supreme God? Kintu prabhor yaḥ priya eva tasya. This priya, again, priyāṇām: "Because he is very, very dear to Kṛṣṇa." Not that because he is worshiped as Kṛṣṇa, therefore he thinks himself Kṛṣṇa and declares, "Now I am Kṛṣṇa." No. Kintu prabhor yaḥ priya eva tasya. This priya. Priya is word. So therefore try to become priya of Kṛṣṇa. Do, act in such a way that Kṛṣṇa can understand that you are very dear to Him.

And the very simple thing is that ya idaṁ guhyaṁ mad-bhakteṣv abhidhāsyati. This confidential service, preaching of Bhagavad-gītā... What is that? Bhagavad-gītā preaching essence: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Simply go and preach. This very thing. Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). This is Kṛṣṇa's desire. Preach to the world, "Just be Kṛṣṇa conscious." Man-manāḥ. "Just become Kṛṣṇa's devotee." Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī. "Just worship Kṛṣṇa." Mad-yājī mām... "Just offer your obeisances to Kṛṣṇa." Four words. Then you become a preacher. It is not very difficult to become a preacher and to become a spiritual master. How? Very simple thing. Go and speak what Kṛṣṇa says. That's all.

Lecture on SB 1.16.13-15 -- Los Angeles, January 10, 1974:

In the English proverb it is said, "A man is known by his company." So similarly, if the subject matter is animalistic, āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithuna, then, however he may be big man, we will take him amongst the categories of cats and dogs.

Then who is above? That above—who is inquiring about the Absolute. Jijñāsuḥ śreya-uttamam. He is human being, jijñāsu. He may not know in the beginning, but if he is inquisitive about knowing the Absolute Truth, he is human being. Just try to understand what is the distinction between a human being and cat and dog. So a human being means he is inquiring about the spirit soul or the spiritual world, the supreme spirit, God, Kṛṣṇa. He is human being. Otherwise cats and dogs. It is very simple to distinguish who is a cat and dog and who is a human being. There is no difficulty. What is the subject matter of his inquiry and what he is after? What he wants in life? Everyone wants to eat very nicely in table, chair and nice plate, nicely cooked food, and palatable. Never mind whatever nonsense it is; it must be palatable. So that is eating, eating problem. So in this way, if we analyze, it is not difficult to find out who is a human being and who is a cat and dog. That is... Everything can be understood.

Lecture on SB 2.1.5 -- Los Angeles, August 13, 1972:

How He is personally present? Just like in this temple, He's personally present. This arcā-mūrti, it is not idol worship. You practically try to understand. If it was idol worship, idol worship, then these boys and girls, they are American boys and girls, intelligent, educated, they should not have spared so much time for worshiping one idol. No. It is God's mercy that He incarnates Himself as we can handle Him. If we want to worship His gigantic universal form, we cannot approach Him. It is not possible. But He's so kind. He comes just suitable for our, for our being handled by us. That is God's mercy. He, He's in this temple, but He, if you like to worship Him, He can live within your closet. Everyone can take advantage of God, Supreme God. There is no difficulty. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). There is no expenditure. He is agreeable to accept a little fruit, a little flower, a little water. Simply He wants your devotional love. That's all. He's not hungry. Of course, this Society is, according to our capacity, offering Kṛṣṇa the best foodstuff. Not that because He says patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ, therefore we offer Him patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ. No. We offer Him to our best capacity—the best, the best foodstuff. That should be the motto.

So here it is recommended that the Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is beautiful, full of all opulences, and all-pervading, He should be śrotyavyaḥ. Śrotavyaḥ means He should always be heard. Therefore we are presenting so many books so that one may read. Just like I'm reading Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam; you are hearing. This is śrotavyaḥ. The beginning of devotional service is hearing. Śrotavyaḥ. Hearing means somebody must be chanting. Therefore it is called śrotavyaḥ kīrtitavyaś ca. Kīrtitavya means chanting or reciting. Just like Parīkṣit Mahārāja. Parīkṣit Mahārāja is simply hearing. And Śukadeva Gosvāmī is simply chanting. There are nine methods of devotional services:

Lecture on SB 3.25.1 -- Bombay, November 1, 1974:

Hindu dharma, Muslim dharma, Christian dharma or this dharma, that dharma... No. Gold is gold. Does it mean that if a Christian possesses some gold, it becomes Christian gold? Or Hindu possesses some gold, it becomes Hindu gold? No. Gold is gold. Either it is in possession of Hindu or Muslim or Christian, it doesn't matter. Gold is gold. So we are preaching that, that "Here is dharma, to surrender unto the Supreme Being." That is dharma. Sarva-dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66). This is bhāgavata-dharma. Everyone should be taught how to surrender to God.

So God is one. God cannot be two. When there is competition of God, they are not God. Just like it has become nowadays—in every state there is a God. That is not... Kṛṣṇa is not that kind of God. He is the Supreme God. Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: (BG 7.7) "Nobody is superior than Me." So that is... We are preaching. We are teaching people. These Americans and the Europeans, they have taken it seriously because they are fortunate. They have no information of these hodgepodge gods. That is their opportunity. I have told them, given the information that Kṛṣṇa, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). I have not given any wrong information. Right information. Bhagavān means Kṛṣṇa. God means Kṛṣṇa. So I have given them this information as a peon, that "Here is God," and they have taken it seriously. Therefore they are advancing. See practically. Why they are advancing? Because they are not misled. They have been given the right information, and they have taken it seriously, and they are trying their best to do, to render service. That is the reason. People are surprised how these Americans and Europeans have become such great devotees and dancing in ecstasy. They are surprised. Yes, it is surprising.

Lecture on SB 3.25.17 -- Bombay, November 17, 1974:

Tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ. He learned first of all how to control over the universe. Then he became Brahmā. Of course, he was born Brahmā, but still, he was to be educated. Just like we require to be educated. So Brahmā was educated. So who educated him? Kṛṣṇa. Aham ādir hi devānām (Bg 10.2). Kṛṣṇa says. Aham ādir hi devānām. Deva, the original deva, is Brahmā, Viṣṇu, Maheśvara. So Viṣṇu, Kṛṣṇa is Viṣṇu, but He is the instructor of Brahmā and Śiva also. This is the shastric conclusion. That is greatness. That is greatness.

So we should not falsely claim that "I am as great as the Supreme God." No. We should understand this, aṇimānam. Svayaṁ-jyo... Etad jyotiḥ, I am as effulgent... Just like spark. Spark is jyoti, but not as brilliant, effulgent, as the original fire. The original fire—phat! phat!—there are some sparks. You have got experience. The spark is also jyoti. If a spark falls on your cloth, it will immediately burn. The burning capacity is there. But it is not as good as the original fire. Svayaṁ-jyotiḥ. Here it is said, nirantaram. So nirantaram means there is, so far jyoti is concerned, there is no difference, but the small, very small. Aṇimānam akhaṇḍitam. This is self-realization. Don't falsely claim that "Because I am qualitatively one with God, therefore I am God." No. You may be god. God means controller. But you are not the Supreme God. The Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ. Parama means Supreme. We are īśvara, we may be īśvara. I may be īśvara for few persons, another may be for a big nation, another may be for the... You can go on increasing. But you cannot reach the, I mean to say, position of God. That is aviśuddha-buddhayaḥ.

Lecture on SB 6.1.13-14 -- Los Angeles, June 26, 1975:

Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). He is the oldest person because He has created everything, but He will never look old. You will never see Kṛṣṇa's picture as old man. These are the definition of God. God, nobody can be richer than Him, nobody can be stronger than Him, nobody can be more beautiful than Him, and nobody wiser than Him even. That proof we can see: Bhagavad-gītā was spoken five thousand years ago, and still Bhagavad-gītā is worshiped as the best book of knowledge. This is the proof. So God does not depend on anyone's proof. But if you want to prove whether He is God, you can get. That you can get.

Therefore we should accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme God. It is stated in all śāstras, and Arjuna also, who listened Bhagavad-gītā from Kṛṣṇa, he also accepted. After hearing Bhagavad-gītā, he said, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān, puruṣaṁ śāśvatam ādyam (BG 10.12). So our process is to follow the predecessor. The Arjuna, he accepted. Not only Arjuna. "Arjuna may be His friend. He might have accepted his friend as God." No. Kṛṣṇa is accepted by the greatest learned scholar, Vyāsadeva, and greatest saintly person, Nārada. That is Vyāsadeva writes in his Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that "I have given description of different incarnation of God." He has given so many incarnation. At last, he concludes that "Although Kṛṣṇa came as incarnation, but He is not incarnation. He is the incarnate. From Him, all incarnations come." Ete cāṁśa-kalāḥ puṁsaḥ kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). As soon as you say "incarnation," the next question will be, "Whose incarnation?" That Vyāsadeva explains, that Kṛṣṇa's incarnation Kṛṣṇa is not incarnation. Kṛṣṇa is personally the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is the statement of Vyāsadeva, the most learned. He is accepted the most, actually. Who can be more learned than Vyāsadeva in this material world? Nobody. You can see his writing, Bhāgavatam, how exalted, scholarly. Nobody can write such verses at the present moment. It is not possible. Each and every word is full of meaning and so nicely set up. Therefore it is said, vidvān cakre sātvata-saṁhitām: "The vidvān, the most learned Vyāsadeva, has given us the sātvata-saṁhitā."

Lecture on SB 6.1.30 -- Philadelphia, July 14, 1975:

What is the use? You must know. You have got a good car. You must know where is the destination, where you have to go. That is your business. The business... Of course, it is secondary. If you want to know what is the car, that is secondary; that is not your main business. The main business is how to utilize the car and go to my destination. That is intelligence.

So we are fallen in this material condition in different forms. So long we are in this bodily concept, "I am this car," that is ignorance. I am not this car, but I have to utilize this car for going to my destination. That is wanted. So I am not this body. I am spirit soul. My destination is how to go to the spiritual world, how to meet the supreme spirit, God, and live with Him in His association. So this life is meant for understanding what is the Supreme Lord, where does He live, what does He do, what is my relationship with Him. This is called brahma-jijñāsā. That is actual education. And I am given this machine. If we simply study the machine, then what is the use of it? The śāstra says that machine is working, and it will work until it is rotten. So you don't bother with the machine, but you simply appreciate that you have got now a good machine. The dog has got also a machine, and a human being has got a machine. Everyone has got a machine, living entity, but the śāstra says, "This machine should not be utilized like the dog's machine." Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛ... Everyone has got machine. Even an ant, it has got machine, because according to his desire, he has been given a body. That is also machine. An elephant has got a machine. I am also. I have got also machine. Every one of us, we are spirit soul, and relatively we have got different machine. So that machine is required for going from here. But we should not waste our time simply studying the machine, forgetting our destination. This is human intelligence. God has already given you a type of machine. Now utilize it to go to the destination.

Lecture on SB 6.2.12-14 -- Allahabad, January 17, 1971, at Kumbha-mela:

"That type of religion is first class which elevates one to the platform of pure devotional service to the Absolute Truth." That is religion. People are not attracted to the bhāgavata-dharma, or the religion. Bhāgavata-dharma is actually sanātana-dharma. Sanātana-dharma does not mean that one must have a certain type of religious life. Sanātana-dharma means the eternal religion. Sanātana-dharma is applicable for all living entities. A living entity is eternal, God is eternal, and there is an eternal abode also. Paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20). So the religious principles which promote a follower to the highest platform of serving the eternal, supreme God, that is called sanātana-dharma. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). That is first-class religion.

Therefore here it is said, naikāntikam. Naikāntikaṁ tad dhi kṛte 'pi niṣkṛte (SB 6.2.12). Even one becomes free from all contamination of sinful life by prosecuting the particular type of religious principles, that is not sufficient, because ultimately it cannot give any good result. Naikāntikaṁ tad dhi kṛte 'pi niṣkṛte manaḥ punar dhāvati ced asat-pathe. Because the mind is so disturbing that even after being free from all contamination of sinful life, the mind again goes to that sinful activity. It is very difficult to control the mind. Arjuna, when he was advised to perform the haṭha-yoga system to control the mind, he flatly refused, that "I am unable to control my mind in this way." He stated that cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa: (BG 6.34) "Kṛṣṇa, the mind is so agitating and moving," cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi, "it is just like a madman." Just like you cannot control a madman. Sometimes you have to chain a madman for doing mischievous activities. Sometimes you have to send to some hospital for special care. So Arjuna said, cañcalaṁ hi manaḥ kṛṣṇa pramāthi, balavat. And not only balavat, "is very strong," and dṛḍham, "and very strong and determined" Tasyāhaṁ nigrahaṁ manye: "If you ask me to control my mind, it is very difficult for me."

Lecture on SB 7.6.1 -- San Francisco, March 3, 1967:

There are so many. You are also god, I am also god, in this sense, that every one of us has got little, little, these opulences. Everyone, you have got some wealth. It is not that you have no wealth, but you cannot claim that you are the wealthiest. That is not possible. As you have got also some strength, you have got also some fame, you have got also some beauty, you have got some also wisdom, you have got some renunciation. Little, little. Because we are part and parcel of the Supreme, therefore all the qualities of God can be found in each and every living entity in minute quantity. So you can claim that you are also minute god, but you cannot claim that you are Supreme God. This is the definition of God! So the science of God, or our relationship with God and our dealings with God, is called bhāgavata-dharma, occupation with God..., dealings with God. But Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam means how we can learn.

First of all, we have to understand what is God, what I am, what is my relationship with God. And as soon as the relationship is established, then there is dealings. And as soon as there is dealing, then there is some profit. There must be some profit. Just like a businessman, another businessman, they first of all make some connection, that "You are supplier. I am..." I mean to say. What is called? "Receiver." Because a businessman, one businessman sells. Another businessman purchases. "So you are purchaser. I am seller." So our agreement is made that "I shall supply you. You shall purchase." This is called relationship. In every dealings we must have first of all the relationship. Then, when there is relationship established, then next stage is to deal according to that relationship. And when the dealing is perfect, then we get the desired result. So either in business field or in other relationship, friend and friend, wife and husband, master and servant, father and son... You can take any, accept any form of relationship.

Lecture on SB 7.6.1 -- New York, April 9, 1969:

In this way, the disciplic succession is coming. And what is the specific condition or what is the significance of the disciplic succession? The disciplic succession, if you receive knowledge from the descendants of these authorities, or disciplic succession, then you get the perfect knowledge. Perfect knowledge. Perfect knowledge is imparted by the supreme perfect, God. And it is received by Brahmā, and the same knowledge is handed over to Nārada. Nārada hands over to Vyāsadeva, Vyāsadeva hands over to... Just like a ripe fruit on the top of the tree, if it falls down all of a sudden, it is destroyed. But if it is handed over from up to down, down, down, then it comes as it is. As it is. Then you can enjoy the reality. And that is confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā.

In the fourth chapter, those who have read Bhagavad-gītā, you'll find, that Kṛṣṇa says, imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1). "First of all, I spoke this yoga system to Vivasvān." Vivasvān is the name of the controlling deity in the sun planet. There is also a president. As we have got many presidents, in the other higher planetary systems there is one president, and some of them is called the moon-god or the sun-god or the Varuṇa according to Vedic languages. They have got... Such post can be occupied by you also if you become qualified. Just like you can become the President. Similarly, you can also occupy the predominating post in the sun planet, in the moon planet, and all the other planets. That is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā, devān deva-yājo yānti, that anyone who aspires after to be elevated to such planetary system which is inhabited by the demigods, they can go.

Lecture on SB 7.6.1 -- Madras, January 2, 1976:

There is no difference between Brahman and Paramātmā and Bhagavān. But still, there is difference. This is called acintya-bheda-bhedābheda. There are two kinds of philosophers, bheda and abheda, oneness and different. So these bheda, abheda, combine together. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's philosophy, acintya bheda abheda, simultaneously one and different. So other gods, they are also gods. We are also god. You are also god because god means controller. Your Honor, Chief Justice, he is also controlling the whole high-court. I am controlling this institution, you are controlling your family or office or factory. So in that sense everyone is god, controller. But he is not Supreme God, that is not. Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. We may be īśvara, god, but Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). That is the verdict of Lord Brahmā.

Even Brahmā, he is also worshiping the Supreme God. Tene brahma hṛdā ādi-kavaye muhyanti yatra sūrayaḥ. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ svarāṭ (SB 1.1.1). So God is svarāṭ. He is not dependent on any other controller. That is God. We are god, that's all right, but we are controlled even by the material nature, what to speak of other things. So we are not independent. Independent God is Kṛṣṇa. Svarāṭ. He is described as svarāṭ. Svarāṭ means independent. He is not controlled by anyone. That is real God. And we may be god but imitation god or small god. But the great... "God is great." That "great" God is Kṛṣṇa. So Prahlāda Mahārāja says that kaumāra. The boys... He was taking the opportunity of teaching his class friend. He was five years old boy and his father was a great demon, Hiraṇyakaśipu: "Don't talk of God." So in this way he was in a very precarious condition. Still, because he was a Vaiṣṇava he was taking the opportunity of preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So he was asking...

Lecture on SB 7.6.9-17 -- San Francisco, March 31, 1969:

Nirvidyate na kuṭumba-rāmaḥ. But there is no satiation because the only solace is that he is within the so-called friendship, love and society. That's all. Kuṭumba-rāmaḥ. Vitteṣu nityābhiniviṣṭa-cetā vidvāṁś ca doṣaṁ para-vitta-hartuḥ. And being too much attached to money matters, even learned persons, even very, I mean to say, advanced intellectually, they also try to steal others money. Para-vitta. Although it is a fault. Although it is fault. Vitteṣu nityābhiniviṣṭa-cetā. Nitya, perpetually too much attached to money. Nityābhiniviṣṭa. Niviṣṭa means profoundly attached. Profoundly attached to money. Vidvāṁś ca doṣaṁ para-vitta-hartuḥ. Although to take other money or to steal others' money is a fault It is a fault not only to the law of the state, but it is a fault to the law of the Supreme God also. You can avoid the state law by stealing, but you cannot avoid the law of the Supreme Person. You see, He can see everywhere. You can steal very stealthily so that police constables or police force cannot see. You are think that "I am doing very nicely. Nobody can see me." But you cannot avoid the eyes of the Supreme. So doṣa, it is fault. Either in this world or in the next world, it is faulty. But we are so accustomed, we are so, I mean to say, profoundly attached to money that we take illegally others' money. Para-vitta-hartuḥ. Pretyeha vāthāpy ajitendriyas. Although we know that in this world it is faulty and also next world it is faulty, but because we have our senses uncontrolled, we cannot change. Aśānta kāmo harate kuṭumbī. And the main attraction is all these nonsense things are done simply being attached to the so-called society, friendship, and love. That's all.

Lecture on SB 7.9.8 -- Montreal, July 2, 1968:

"One who engages himself in the devotional service of the Supreme Lord, Kṛṣṇa, it is to be understood that he has seen all activities of auspicity." That means he has already finished or passed the examination of pious activities. Kṛṣṇe bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya. This is the beginning. Unless one takes it firmly that "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead..." And if anyone is engaged in the transcendental loving service of Kṛṣṇa, then it is to be understood that he has done all pious activities. This is this faith, this kind of faith, unflinching faith. When we have got this unflinching faith, that is the beginning of Bhāgavata life. Bhāgavata life means devotional life, direct connection with the Supreme God. That is Bhāgavata life.

So after one has got this unflinching faith, that "Simply by serving Lord Kṛṣṇa, all religious activities or all pious activities are done," that faith is the last word of Bhagavad-gītā. Bhagavad-gītā is explained to Arjuna in so many ways. But ultimately, he comes to the point through Him Himself. When He explains the yoga system, He explains nicely the process, how to execute yoga performances, the sitting posture, the breathing posture and eating and sitting and place. Everything explained nicely. But at the end He says that,

yoginām api sarveṣāṁ

mad-gatenāntar-ātmanā

śraddhāvān bhajate yo māṁ

sa me yuktatamo mataḥ

(BG 6.47)

"Of all the yogis, one who is always thinking of Me, Kṛṣṇa, within his heart, he is first-class yogi." Similarly, when He explains about jñāna system, or philosophical speculation, He summarizes at the end, bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate: (BG 7.19) "After many, many births of philosophical speculation, when the learned scholar or philosopher comes to this point..." What is that point? Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate: (BG 7.19) "After many, many births' philosophical speculation, when one actually becomes scholar or wise, he surrenders unto Vasudeva, the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Why? Vāsudeva sarvam iti: "Because He is everything."

Lecture on SB 7.9.8 -- Calcutta, March 5, 1972:

The recommendation is śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtanaḥ (SB 1.2.17). Śṛṇvataṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ. Kṛṣṇa, as I already told you, Kṛṣṇa is situated in everyone's heart. So when people are anxious to hear about Kṛṣṇa, this is the only qualification. Just like you are so kind, you are anxious to hear about Kṛṣṇa because here there is no other business than Kṛṣṇa. All of you who have come here, it is due to your anxiousness to hear about Kṛṣṇa. Because our society's name is Kṛṣṇa Consciousness. When I registered this society, some friend suggested that "Why don't you make it God Consciousness?" I said "No. God means Kṛṣṇa." Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇah (Bs. 5.1). God means..., the Supreme God means Kṛṣṇa. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat (BG 7.7). So Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme God. If we say God, it remains a vague thing. It is not clearly understood. Everyone can be God. God, this word can be applied to everyone. God means controller. So everyone can be controller. Therefore, we have distinctly mentioned Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So in our society, anyone who joins, that means he is interested in Kṛṣṇa, little. May not be very much. At least they come here out of inquisitiveness to hear what they speak about Kṛṣṇa, what do they do about Kṛṣṇa. But our everything is open. There is no secrecy. We worship Kṛṣṇa, we think of Kṛṣṇa, we work for Kṛṣṇa, we glorify Kṛṣṇa, we chant for Kṛṣṇa, we dedicate our life for Kṛṣṇa. That's all. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etām... This is our philosophy. We think of Kṛṣṇa, as Kṛṣṇa says, we are devotees of Kṛṣṇa, man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ, we worship Kṛṣṇa, mad-yājī, we offer our obeisance to Kṛṣṇa, māṁ namaskuru, this is our... Sarva-dharmān parityajya, we have no other religion, we don't approve any other religion except Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is our philosophy.

Lecture on SB 7.9.12 -- Montreal, August 18, 1968:

"I am the origin, I am the fountainhead of everything." "Everything" means He's the fountainhead of Lord Śiva, He's fountainhead, the origin of Viṣṇu, He's the origin of Brahma, He's the origin of Lord Śiva, and what to speak of other demigods, and what to speak of other living creatures. Mamaivāṁśo jīva bhūtaḥ: (BG 15.7) "All these living creatures, they are all My parts and parcels." Therefore He is the origin. And in the Brahma-saṁhitā, the Brahmā in his saṁhitā-Saṁhitā means Vedic literature—so he explains that "You are finding out cause. Here is cause." Everywhere you'll find. But the rascal demons are so obstinate that although Kṛṣṇa is confirmed the Supreme God by Brahmā, by Śiva, by Vyāsa, Nārada, Devala, and many, many devotees, Bhīṣma... There are twelve standard ācāryas. They are svayambhūr nārada śaṁbhu... Svayambhūr means Brahmā; Nārada, Nārada Muni; and Śaṁbhu means Lord Śiva. Kapila, Vyāsa, Kumāra—everyone has accepted. And in the recent years Lord Caitanya, He said. And the Bhāgavata says, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). Bhāgavata gives list of all incarnations of God, and at the last he concludes that in this list the name "Kṛṣṇa," He is the Supreme Personality. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. And all other manifestations, they are incarnations. Ete ca aṁśa-kalāḥ. All these different names of God, they are either parts or part of the parts. The part of parts is called kalā, and part is called aṁśa. We are also amsa, but we are very fragmental aṁśa. We are not as big as Viṣṇu. We are very fragmental. We are also aṁśa. So aṁśa kalā.

Lecture on SB 7.9.12 -- Montreal, August 18, 1968:

So our prayers should be to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore we pray, govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi **. We worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the original person. We are all persons. Just like your father is person; therefore you are person. Your son is person. Similarly, your father's father is a person, his father person, his father person. So to Brahma, his, he's also person. His father, Viṣṇu, is person. His father, his father, everywhere—Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Person. God cannot be without being person. He must be person. This impersonal understanding of God, nirākāravādī, that nirākār... Of course, in the Vedic language, when we speak nirākāra, ni, ni means negative, and ākāra, ākāra means form. So negative form. Negative form means not that He has no form but He has no form like you and me. That is negative. Form means just like we have got form. So what is the value of this form? This form will be changed after few years. As soon as I give up this body this form is changed. Just like we change our dress. Therefore He hasn't got a form like this to be changed. Therefore He's sometimes called nirākāra. Ākāra is there, and that is also explained in the Brahma-saṁhitā that īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). "Oh, Kṛṣṇa has got a form, sir? How you say that He is the Supreme? Brahman is the Supreme." No. He has form certainly. Sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. His form is not like you and me. Sac-cid-ānanda. His form is eternal, full of bliss, and full of knowledge. Sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ anādir. He has no source. He has no source.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 7.106-107 -- San Francisco, February 13, 1967:

So, in my childhood or even when my mother was pregnant, my father died. So I did not see my father. There are so many cases. Just like Mahārāja Parīkṣit. His father died while he was in the womb of his mother. Now he has not seen his father. Does this mean that his father is impersonal? Any common man (can) understand, "I have got this body from my father, and I am so intelligent. I can do things nicely. So naturally my father is a person. How he can become imperson?" although I have not seen it. So these require, janmādy asya yataḥ... Vedānta-sūtra says that "from whom everything is emanated." So He's not imperson. Therefore Bhāgavata explains this verse, this sūtra, very nicely. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ svarāṭ (SB 1.1.1). That Supreme Person, God, is cognizant. He's sentient, not imperson, because He knows everything. Because everything is... Just like your father knows almost everything of you because he has created you. This is crude example. But He's perfect. We fathers, we are not perfect. But He's perfect. Therefore, because He's perfect, He knows everything in the nook and corner of this creation. He knows everything. And Bhāgavata says abhijñaḥ. Abhijñaḥ means He knows. How He knows? Yac-cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇām. His knowing process is different. And we simply apply our nonsense, I mean to say, ideas to God. Now here, Vedas, Vedas says now this sun is the eye of God. Yac-cakṣur eṣa savitā sakalā-grahāṇāṁ rājā samasta-sura-mūrtir aśeṣa-tejāḥ. This sun, which is so illuminating and so powerful, it is the eye of God. Now how we can hide yourself from the eyes of God? The sunshine is within your room. You are thinking that "I am alone in this room. Nobody can see. Let us do all nonsense." Oh, the sunshine is there. How can you hide yourself? Therefore He's perfect. He can see what... Besides that, that is outside looking. Inside—īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). He's sitting within you. So how can you hide yourself? This is not possible. There is no flaw. His seeing, His working, His writing, His instructing—everything is perfect. First of all, you have to understand this.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.313-317 -- New York, December 21, 1966:

At night He is calling girls, "Come on," and dance with Him. They were coming. From material point of view it is immoral, at least in India. But He is free. Rāmacandra accepted one wife. He accepted sixteen thousand wives.

So Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is above everything. No rules and regulation. He cannot do anything wrong. He is not under the jurisdiction of any law. Therefore Kṛṣṇa manifested the full power of the Supreme Lord. And other incarnations, although they came, they came for the time being to perform a certain particular purpose, but they did not manifest the full power of God. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme God. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). It is confirmed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam that He is the Supreme Personality, original Personality of Godhead. He is nobody's under control. Even He was not controlled by His supreme lover Rādhārāṇī. Rādhārāṇī is considered... The gopīs are considered the topmost lover of Kṛṣṇa. But when Kṛṣṇa decided to leave Vṛndāvana, oh, they began to cry. They blocked the way. Kṛṣṇa didn't care, went away. Went away. He didn't care even. So much dear Rādhārāṇī. They became blind, crying, crying, crying, crying, whole life. But Kṛṣṇa never returned. Never returned. He sent His message, He sent His letter, that "I am very sorry, but..." That is God. He is not controlled by anything. Anything. That is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28).

Festival Lectures

Lecture-Day after Sri Gaura-Purnima -- Hawaii, March 5, 1969:

He says that jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa-dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). What is the pure consciousness? Kṛṣṇa said that happiness can be achieved in pure consciousness, or when your senses are transcendental. He gave hint. Not only hint, He practically suggested also that "You simply surrender unto Me."

So Lord Caitanya said the same thing. Lord Kṛṣṇa said... As the Supreme Lord, He commended—He has got the commanding power because He is the Supreme God—that "You surrender unto Me." Just like some superior, the teacher or father or king, says "You must do it." But there is force. A state says "You must do it," but if you do not do it, then there is force. Just like this draft board. They are demanding that "You must join. If you don't join, there will be force, and you will be forcibly joined after that." So here, in the Kṛṣṇa's order, because He is Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Lord, there is no force. That voluntary. He says that "This is life. You surrender unto Me." But He could force Arjuna to surrender, or anybody, because He is Supreme Lord. But that force He does not apply because He has given us little independence. Therefore, if He forces, then His gift of independence is misused from His side. We are misusing our, that gift of independence, but for that reason, Kṛṣṇa cannot withdraw your independence. Just like you are independent citizen. You are... If somebody misuses that independence, he becomes a criminal, but still, the independence continues. You are criminal. You are punished. Again you are set free. That means you are given again independence. But again if you misuse, then again you are put into prison. Similarly, if the state cannot withdraw your independence, then what is the meaning of this independent country? How God can withdraw the independence He has given to you?

Ratha-yatra Lecture at The Family Dog Auditorium -- San Francisco, July 27, 1969:

Therefore those who are impersonalists, their knowledge is not yet perfect. They do not know actually what is the situation of their father. The supreme father is a person. It is confirmed in the Vedas, nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām: (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13) "He is the supreme eternal of all eternals." We are all eternal. Each living entity, they are all eternal. Death means the end of this body. We are dying at every moment as our bodies change. So this death means death of this body, not of the spirit soul. Spirit soul is eternal. God is eternal, and I am His son, you are His son. You are also eternal. But just like particle of gold is still gold, similarly, the part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, he is also God. It is said that we are partly God, and He is the Supreme God. That is stated in the Vedas, nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām: "He is the supreme eternal amongst all the eternal, and He is the supreme living creature amongst all living creatures." Supreme, that is the difference. The quality of God, the quality of me and you, is the same. Just like a small portion of the ocean water—if you analyze chemically you will find the same chemical composition. Similarly, as living entity you have got all the qualities of God in minute portion. Therefore He is Supreme. Because we have got all the qualities of God in very minute portions. So He is Supreme. We are subordinate.

Radhastami, Srimati Radharani's Appearance Day -- Montreal, August 30, 1968:

Sura-gurum. Sura means the demigods and gurum is spiritual master. Sura-gurum. Just like Arjuna is sura, and his guru is Kṛṣṇa. Vyāsadeva, his guru, Nārada; Nārada's guru is Brahmā; Brahmā's guru is Kṛṣṇa. So sura-gurum. māyā-manusyam. And when He appears as human being, that is māyā. māyā means actually He is not an ordinary man. He is the Supreme Personality of God, but the rascals they think that "Because Rāma and Kṛṣṇa has appeared like one of us, He is a man, He's an ordinary man." This is the version of the rascals. That Rāma, especially there is a class who are known as Ārya-samājīs. They do not agree that the Supreme Person can, Supreme God can appear as Rāma and Kṛṣṇa. They do not know that although He appeared as one of us in the form of human body, He is not a human being. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore it is called rāmākhya, māyā mānuṣya hari. He is the Hari... Hari means the Supreme Personality of Godhead who can give you all pleasure, taking all your miserable condition. He is Hari.

So vande 'haṁ karuṇākaraṁ raghu-varaṁ bhu-pāla-cuḍāmaṇi. So he is offering his respectful obeisances to the Lord Rāma. Karuṇākaram. He comes, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtam (BG 4.8). Therefore He is karuṇā-ākaram. Ākaram means mine. He is the great mine of mercy. Karuṇākaraṁ raghu-varam. And because He appeared in the dynasty of Mahārāja Raghu, so He is the Supreme Personality in the Raghu dynasty, raghu-varam. And bhu-pāla-cuḍāmaṇi. He is the helmet of all kings. Cuḍāmaṇi. Cuḍāmaṇi means, maṇi means pearl, and cuda means helmet. So the pearl is placed in the crown. So He is the, although He appeared as King, but He is the helmet of all kings. In this way, Lord Rāma's description is here. Now Mātājī requested me to explain one verse, so I have tried to explain.

Jagannatha Deities Installation Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.13-14 -- San Francisco, March 23, 1967:

"Oh, here is incarnation of God." No. So that God is Kṛṣṇa. That conception of God is Kṛṣṇa, because in the Bhagavad-gītā you find mattaḥ nānyat parataram asti. Kṛṣṇa says that "There is nothing beyond Me. There is nothing beyond Me." Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate (BG 10.8): "I am the origin of everything." Mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate: "Everything emanates from Me." Iti matvā: "One who knows this," iti matvā bhajante māṁ budhā bhāva-samanvitāḥ, "those who are actually learned, he knows it, and therefore he becomes My devotee."

In the Brahma-saṁhitā also it is stated, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). There are many gods, but who is the Supreme God? The Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ. Paramaḥ means the Supreme. You may be your god, I may be god, and there are many gods. But Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme God. Nobody is above Him. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ anādir ādir govindaḥ. He has no cause, anādi. He is causeless. We have got cause; He is causeless. Anādir ādir govindaḥ. Govinda means He is pleasure of... He is the reservoir of all pleasure, Govinda. Anādir ādir govindaḥ sarva-kāraṇa-kāraṇam (Bs. 5.1), cause of all causes. So here it is said that "That Bhagavān, who is sātvatāṁ patiḥ..." That means there are many great, great devotees, stalwart devotees, ācāryas and teachers, and for all of them, He is the master. Sātvatāṁ patiḥ. And what is to be done about Him? śrotavyaḥ: "You have to hear about Him." Where I can hear? When He speaks Himself. Why don't you hear there? How can you know the Supreme, the cause of all causes? Nobody can explain. But when He explains Himself, you can hear. That is Bhagavad-gītā. Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself.

Initiation Lectures

Talk, Initiation Lecture, and Ten Offenses Lecture -- Los Angeles, December 1, 1968:

Revatīnandana: "Two. Considering the Lord and other demigods on the same level."

Prabhupāda: Yes. One should not put the Supreme Personality of Godhead... Just like the Māyāvādī says, "The demigods and God, they are all the same." Because according to them, God has no form, so any form you accept, imagine, as the form of God, it is as good. But that is not the fact. There are demigods and the Supreme God also. So we should not place... Just like demigod, Lord Brahmā or Lord Śiva, Indra, Candra, they are demigods. So we should not place... In one sense, there is nothing except God, because everything expansion of God. But that does not mean I am equal to God. I am also expansion of God, that's a fact. Just like father and the son. Son is the expansion of father; still, the son is not the father. Don't mistake that. There is no difference between father and son because the same body is expanded as son, but still, the son is not the father. Father is father, son is son. This, I mean to say, variety, the Māyāvādī philosophers, they do not understand. Then?

Revatīnandana: "...or assuming that there are many Gods."

Prabhupāda: God is one. There cannot be many Gods. If God is not one, there is no meaning of God. God means, according to Vedic definition, asamordhva. Asama means one who has no equal. Nobody is equal to God. And urdhva means nobody is greater than God. God is great. Nobody can be greater than God. Therefore God is one. Nobody is greater, nobody is equal. That means everyone is lower. Then?

Revatīnandana: "Neglecting the orders of the spiritual master."

Initiation of Lokanatha dasa -- New Vrindaban, May 21, 1969:

In that sense you are god also. Part and parcel of God is also god, but small god. Just like your earring. That is gold. So that gold is not equal to the gold mine. That gold mine is different. Therefore the philosophy is, "simultaneously one and different." We are, every one of us, we are simultaneously one with God and different from God. One in quality. The quality of God is also in me. I am of the same quality. Just like a drop of sea water and the vast water, ocean. The quality analytical, chemical composition, is the same, but the quantity of component parts are different. This is called acintya-bhedābheda-tattva: "inconceivably, simultaneously one and different." The Māyāvāda philosophy, they say that "We are God. Everyone is God." But we say that "Yes, everyone is God, but not that God, the Supreme God." Everyone is American, but not that American like President Nixon. This common sense knowledge the Māyāvādī hasn't got. But they are puffed up: "Oh, I am the same. I am..." So 'ham: "I am the same." How you are the same? If you are the same, why you are fallen in this condition? They will say, "It is māyā. It is illusion." No. Why you are in illusion? If you are great—"God is great"—if you are that great, then why you are captured by illusion? Then illusion is great, not God is great. This commonsense philosophy they do not understand. Therefore my Guru Mahārāja used to say, "Poor fund of knowledge." Whenever he used to designate these Māyāvādī philosophers, he would say, "Poor fund of knowledge."

So this is the opportunity to... You are part and parcel of God. Don't try to become artificially like God. That is not possible. That will be simply waste of energy. This is māyā. Everyone under the spell of māyā, they are working very hard. Why? Everyone is trying to become God: "I shall be the great man of this country," or "My country shall be the greatest country in the world." That means God is great, and everyone is trying to be great like that. That is competition. So you are trying, I am trying, he is trying, everyone is trying. This is called māyā.

Initiation Lecture -- Hamburg, August 27, 1969:

Bahya means externally and abhyantara means internally. Bahyābhyantaraṁ śuciḥ. Śuciḥ means purified. Another śuci means brāhmaṇa. A brāhmaṇa is called śuci. A brāhmaṇa means a purified person. Not that by birth one becomes pure. No. The purificatory process. There are purificatory processes. Just like in infectious condition, those who are vaccinated, given injection, he is supposed to be purified. He cannot be attacked or infected by the disease. Similarly, in spiritual life also one has to remain purified. The whole process, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, is to purify the people in general from the contaminated condition of material existence. Purifying. It is purifying process. A living entity by nature is pure because he is part and parcel of the Supreme Pure, God. But due to his impure condition, he has forgotten his eternal relationship with God. So this initiation means that one is being accepted as student by the spiritual master to promote him gradually to the purified state, where he can realize himself and God. This is the whole process. In contaminated state we cannot approach. I have given this example many times. Just like if you want to enter into certain place, then you must be adjusted with the conditions. Just like people are going to the moon planet. There it is supposed to be it is very cold. So people go with a certain type of dress by adjusting. Similarly, if you want to enter into the spiritual kingdom, the abode, the planet where Kṛṣṇa lives, so you must be purified. Adjust yourself. Not only to the spiritual kingdom of Kṛṣṇa—any planet you want to enter, you must adjust yourself in that way.

General Lectures

Lecture on Maha-mantra -- New York, September 8, 1966:

Because we cannot see God with our present eyes, present eyes, because this is not our proper eyes. They are material eyes. You don't think that this eye, the transparent thing which is floating in this, I mean to say, hole... That is not seeing. Similarly, if you can present, or if you take this eye... You cannot see. That cannot see. It is simply a lens only. It is only lens. So none of this body, bodily part, is actually the thing which is taking part. So therefore with these eyes, with these material eyes, you cannot see. Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ (CC Madhya 17.136). The present senses, the present senses cannot have any knowledge of the Supreme God. But how then we can have knowledge? If my senses are unfit, then how can I make it fit? Oh, that is the thing. That is the thing, that you have to spiritualize, spiritualize these material sense, I mean to say, organs. And then, when you spiritualize, then you can have the spiritual vision and see God and yourself. The same example which I have recited many times: just like the iron rod. Iron rod, you put into the fire. It gets warm—warm, warmer, warmer. And when it is red hot, then it is no longer iron. Iron it is, but it does not act as iron, but it acts as fire. That iron rod which is red hot in association with fire, you can take that rod and touch anything; it will burn. That means it is no longer acting as iron; it is acting as fire. Similarly, if you associate with this transcendental incarnation, sound incarnation of God, then you will be gradually godly. You will be godly. You can become godly with God's association, not by any other material, extraneous things. No. Just like you can have fire only in association with fire, not with water. If you want to get yourself warm, then you have to associate with fire, not with water, not with air. Similarly, if you want to spiritualize your vision, if you want to spiritualize your action, if you want to spiritualize the whole constitution of your existence, then you have to associate with the supreme spirit. And that supreme spirit is very kind because He is everything. That we have already explained.

Speech to Indian Audience -- Montreal, July 28, 1968:

What is that cleansing? That I am thinking at the present moment in my material concept of life that "I am part and parcel of this matter." And when we come to the understanding that "I have nothing to do with this matter; I am accidentally in contact with the matter, but my real position is that I am spirit soul, brahma-bhūtaḥ..." Brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54). Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. Ahaṁ brahma. Lord Śaṅkarācārya, he preached this philosophy, that... Just try to understand, but don't try to misunderstand. Unfortunately, this understanding that ahaṁ brahmāsmi, people are misunderstanding that "I am God." He is not... Nobody can be God. God is supreme. God is great. We are very small. If I am God, if I am great, then how I have come to this position? How I have fallen from my brahma-bhūtaḥ stage? That is not actually understanding. Brahma-bhūtaḥ, ahaṁ brahmāsmi, means "I am part and parcel of the Supreme Brahman." This is also confirmed in the Bhagavad-gītā and every Vedic literature, that the living entities are just like sparks of the fire, just like there is big fire and there are sparks also, small particle of fire. That small particle of fire is also fire, but it is not as big as the big fire. Similarly, in quality we are as good as Brahman, but in quantity we are minute, infinitesimal, and He is infinite. That is the difference.

Lecture Excerpt -- New York, April 12, 1969:

Anyway, then when I asked him that "If everyone is incarnation, then what is the speciality of Meher Baba?" Then, "He knows more than others." Then next reply is that somebody may be more than Meher Baba. So if you go on searching like that, you will find Kṛṣṇa. Nobody is greater than Kṛṣṇa. Therefore He is the Supreme. By logic. You go on by logic. If everyone is incarnation and if everyone, out of many, one who is still more advanced, he is accepted as God, then you have to search more—if there is any other person who is greater than that person.

That has been searched in Vedic literature by Lord Brahma, and he said, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1): "We have searched out all types of gods, all types of gods, but the Supreme God is Kṛṣṇa." "Everyone is God," that's nice. But there is bigger God and little God also. So if you go on searching after bigger God, bigger God, bigger God, when you come to Kṛṣṇa you'll find nobody bigger than Him. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Mattaḥ parataraṁ nasti. In the Bhagavad-gītā you'll find, Kṛṣṇa said that "Nobody is greater than Me." And actually when Kṛṣṇa was present on this earth, there was no contemporary who was greater than Kṛṣṇa. Neither even at the present moment, there is anyone who can claim that "I am greater than Kṛṣṇa." In opulence... Greatness in six kinds of opulences: in richness, in reputation, in strength, in beauty, in wisdom, and in renunciation. If you analyze, you'll find nobody is greater than Kṛṣṇa even in material richness. Everyone wants to become rich, to have a nice family, nice wife, good bank balance, a nice house. But Kṛṣṇa married 16,108 wives. Is there any history, any instance? And each wife had a palace which did not require any lightening, electricity. It was jewel-bedecked. So at night, by the light of the jewel it was brilliant.

Lecture -- London, September 26, 1969:

Ladies and gentlemen, our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is just the appropriate movement for self-realization in this age. Self... When we speak of self, there are two kinds of self according to Vedic literatures. The exact word in Sanskrit, the self-ātmā. And there is another word—Paramātmā. Ātmā and Paramātmā. There is some other words also—mahātmā, durātmā. Mahātmā means one who has expanded his soul up to the Supersoul, Paramātmā. He's called mahātmā. Another word is durātmā, when one is far, far away from the Supersoul. Dur, dur means distant. Bahut dur. Bahut dur pare hai (?), they say. In Hindi also, they say dur. Dur means distant. So Paramātmā and ātmā, or God and Godhead, the Supreme Godhead or Supreme God. So we cannot place everyone on the same level. That is nonsense. As in this world we see that you are richer than me, and somebody is richer than you, and somebody is richer than somebody else... You go on finding out who is the richest, then you'll come to God. You cannot find anyone in this material world as the richest of all. No. Somebody will come who is richer than him, and somebody will come out who is, I mean to say, poorer than him. Any position you stand, you'll find somebody greater and somebody lesser. Even in the lowest stage of life also, you'll find somebody is lesser. In any capacity, either in richness or in knowledge or in beauty or in strength—in so many things we have got. So everyone cannot be placed on the same level, not only materially, but also spiritually. If you say that "This higher status, lower status, are calculated in the material world; in the spiritual world there is no such distinction," that is partially true. In the spiritual world there is no such distinction, but that spiritual distinction is not exactly like material distinction. That distinction is of consciousness, varieties of consciousness. That distinction.

Lecture at Harvard University -- Boston, December 24, 1969:

That means you'll realize yourself that "I am not this matter, I am soul. And my relationship with God is this. God is like this." And gradually, you will develop your love for God. You have got that love. Dormant love is there, but because we do not know what is God, because we do not see the beauty of God, because we do not know the mercy of God, therefore our love has been forced or placed in the dog. Instead of God, we have placed our love on dog. So we have to simply change. Our love is distributed in the matter in so many ways. That will not make me happy because I am not matter. I am a spirit soul. I have to transfer my love towards the Supreme Spirit, God, then I'll be happy.

So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is a process by which you can transform your love from matter to God. That's all. You have got love but you are being frustrated. You are being frustrated. You are being baffled. Your love is not placed in the proper place. Therefore we have to make our choice, "Where I shall place my love?" Then I'll be satisfied. That is replied in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam,

sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo

yato bhaktiradhokṣaje

ahaituky apratihatā

yayātmā suprasīdati

(SB 1.2.6)

Ātmā, self. Everyone is seeking after peacefulness, peacefulness of ātmā, or self. So this is the process recommended. Not recommended, it is the fact, that sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo (SB 1.2.6). In whatever occupation you are situated, doesn't matter. You have to see simply whether by your occupation the Supreme Lord is satisfied, or your love for the Supreme Lord is increasing. That is the test of perfection.

Lecture at Art Gallery -- Auckland, April 16, 1972:

He is giving direction. Īśvara, controlling everything. Here in this material world we have got experience of a controller. Every one of us is a controller. You are controller, I am a controller. But above me there is another controller. And above that controller there is another controller, another, another controller. You go on searching out controller after controller. When you come to the supreme controller, that He is not controlled by everyone but He controls everyone, that is Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). This is our definition of God. God means controller. So everyone is controller. In that sense everyone is god. But everyone is not supreme God, supreme controller. Suppose I am controlling some of my students. But I am being controlled by somebody else. Similarly, he is also controlled by somebody else. That is our practical experience. But the supreme controller means who is not controlled by anyone, but He is controller of everyone. That is God. Nowadays it has become a cheap business, to see so many Gods. But you test this, whether he is controlled by anyone. If he is controlled by somebody, then he is not God. If He is simply controller, then you can accept Him as God. That is the definition of God, a very simple definition.

Lecture -- Jakarta, February 26, 1973:

So simultaneously, I am servant and controller. As controller, I can be called īśvara, īśvara, god, as controller. But I am not controller, Supreme Controller. That I cannot say. Nobody can say that "I am the Supreme Controller." That you cannot say. You can control, say, a dozen of men. Another can control a hundred men. Another can control a thousand, or millions. But nobody can say that "I am the controller of the whole universe." That is not possible. That controller is Kṛṣṇa.

Therefore in the śāstra it is said, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1): "The Supreme Controller is Kṛṣṇa." You are not supreme controller. Controller means god. So you can become a god, but you are not Supreme God. Therefore we use the word Godhead. Our magazine name is Back to Godhead. Not to "God." God, there are so many. Even the rascal, he is also god. That is another thing. But Godhead, that is explained in the Vedic literature, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. This is explanation. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ, the Supreme Personality of Godhead is Kṛṣṇa. And how is He? Sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). He has got His form. God is not formless. Vigraha. Vigraha means form. But what kind of form? Sat-cid-ānanda. Sat means eternal, cit means full of knowledge, and ānanda means full of bliss. You find that form, Kṛṣṇa's picture, always blissful, ānanda. You'll see here is Kṛṣṇa's picture. Here He's enjoying with his pleasure potency, Rādhārāṇī. That is His own potency. When Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is Para-brahman, described, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). When Arjuna understood Bhagavad-gītā, he said..., he addressed Kṛṣṇa not as Kṛṣṇa. Before that he was addressing Kṛṣṇa, because he is friend. Now when he understood Bhagavad-gītā, he understood Kṛṣṇa also. He addressed Him, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān: "You are perfect." So if Kṛṣṇa is even naughty actually, He's Para-brahman. So when Para-brahman wants to enjoy...

Lecture What is a Guru? -- London, August 22, 1973:

Big, big rascal swamis, they say, "Why you are finding out God anywhere? You do not see so many rascal gods are loitering in the street?" This is going on. If you simply consult dictionary, you can understand what is the meaning of God. God is so cheap thing, huh? Supreme being. Are you supreme being? Supreme means the highest authority. Highest authority means nobody is equal to him, nobody is greater than him. That is supreme. So these rascals who are claiming to become God, is it a fact that nobody is equal to him, nobody is greater than him? There are so many.

So this kind of guru, this kind of rascal, will not help you. Guru must come from the paramparā system by disciplic succession. Five thousand years or five millions of years, what was spoken by the supreme God or guru, the present guru also will say the same thing. That is guru. That is bona fide guru. Otherwise, he's not guru. Simple definition. Guru cannot change any word of the predecessor. There is one instance in Caitanya Mahāprabhu's life. One gentleman, (he) is Vallabha Ācārya. He was very much devotee of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He wrote one comment on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Subodhinī-ṭīkā, it is called. That is recognized, nice ṭīkā, comment. But he approached Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He was very great devotee of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. So he simply said that "Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Lord Caitanya, if You hear my comment on the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, You'll find it is far better than Śrīdhara Svāmī's." Śrīdhara Svāmī is the very old commentator. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu immediately rejected: "Oh, you are claiming that you have written something better than Śrīdhara Svāmī?" He chastised him. Svāmī means another... He sarcastically remarked, the word svāmī, Śrīdhara Swami, svāmī, another svāmī means "husband." So He said, svāmī jīva nahi mane besa bali guni(?): "I think one who does not recognize svāmī, he's a prostitute." He immediately said. "You do not recognize Śrīdhara Svāmī, then you are a prostitute. How can I hear from a prostitute?" He refused. Only word, that "I have written better than Svāmī." So this is the process of guru. You cannot disobey the previous ācārya or guru. No.

Lecture -- London, August 23, 1973:

Therefore Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā that sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). This is dharma. We have created so many dharmas or duties, so-called duties, social duty, political duty, humanitarian duty, so many. But we are violating God. So many humanitarians, philanthropists, they are thinking of good welfare for the human being, but they are not thinking any welfare for the poor animals. They are being sent to the slaughterhouse under some plea. So they are all punishable because every living being is the son of the Supreme Person. Bhagavad-gītā says. We also address the Supreme Being, God, as "Father." Father means every one of us, we are sons. But we are disobedient son. One who is obedient son, he is perfect. One who is disobedient son, he is imperfect. Therefore we have to ask. Father is giving food even to the disobedient son. He is so kind. So God is always kind upon us. But we are suffering because we have forgotten God. This is our position. Therefore God comes, Kṛṣṇa comes, and teaches us Bhagavad-gītā, how to become God conscious, how to become obedient to God. And at last He says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66).

Lecture at Upsala University Faculty -- Stockholm, September 7, 1973:

These are the Vedic information. God means na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate. He has nothing to do; He has simply to desire. I think in your Christian Bible also it is said, "God said 'Let there be creation,' and there was creation." He has to simply desire. Other things will be done by His energies. Just like big man, a king or president, his simply sanction order—"This must be done"—the things will be done by the subordinates, by... He has go so many energies, secretaries. So why not for God, the Supreme Being, God? So therefore the Vedic instruction is, God has nothing to do, practically. Simply His desire is sufficient. Na tasya kāryaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate na tasya samaś cābhyadhikaś ca dṛśyate. There is nobody equal to Him or above Him. Everyone must be below, subordinate. That is Vedic instruction. And that has been selected or that has been concluded, who is that Supreme Being. That we also get from Vedic information. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1): that Supreme Being means Kṛṣṇa. The Kṛṣṇa, the word, means "all-attractive." It is not that God is attractive for the Hindus or God is attractive for the Muslims or the Christians. No. If He is God at all, then He must be attractive for all. That is the meaning of the word Kṛṣṇa, "all-attractive." So that is very nice word. Actually, God has no name, but we call Him by different holy names according to His activity. Just like we believe that God is great. So this is fact. The Vedic instruction is also there, na tasya samaś cābhkyadhikaś ca dṛśyate: "Nobody is equal, nobody is greater than Him." Therefore God is great. Now who is that great? That is decided: īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Being. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ. Īśvaraḥ means controller.

General Lecture -- (location & date unknown):

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Guest: Whose disciple was Kṛṣṇa?

Prabhupāda: He was also disciple of Sandipani Muni. Everyone has to become disciple. That is the Vedic system. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ gurum evābhigacchet. Without becoming disciple, nobody can understand.

Guest: No, but Kṛṣṇa was Supreme God.

Prabhupāda: That not... Supreme God... But He was playing just like human being. Supreme God we know by His activities. But He played the part of human being. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam: (BG 9.11) "Because I am playing just like ordinary human being, those who are foolish persons, mūḍha, less intelligent, they accept Me as ordinary man." Paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ: "They do not know the greatness behind Me. They do not know." Paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ. Mama bhūta-maheśvaram: "That I am the Supreme Lord." Because they do not know, therefore, simply by superficial observation, that "He is playing just like ordinary man," that "He is the chariot driver of Arjuna..." Now, somebody may say, "How Kṛṣṇa can be the Supreme Personality of Godhead? He was ordinary chariot driver of Arjuna. He was ordinary cowherds boy." Muhyanti yat sūrayayaḥ. Very great sages, great saintly persons, also sometimes become bewildered. But to understand Kṛṣṇa, that is explained also in the Bhagavad-gītā. Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti (BG 18.55). Not by learning, not by education, not by scholarship. Bhaktyā. Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ: "In reality what I am, that can be understood by the devotees, not by others." And in the beginning also, of the Bhagavad-gītā teaching, He said Arjuna that "I am teaching Bhagavad-gītā to you because you are devotee." Bhakto 'si priyo 'si: (BG 4.3)

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Hegel:

Śyāmasundara: What about between America and Germany, for instance? Neither one of them were God conscious.

Prabhupāda: Then it is demonic. This is not justified war, this is where two demons, we fight, just like cats and dogs fight. That's all. But there is, according to Vedic literature, yuddha, dharma-yuddha.

Kīrtanānanda: What does that mean?

Prabhupāda: Dharma-yuddha, on behalf of supreme God, that is called dharma-yuddha. Just like Arjuna. Arjuna, they are not for fighting, but Kṛṣṇa said, "Yes, I am on your side, you fight." That is dharma-yuddha. And therefore Arjuna became victorious because God was on his side. That is dharma-yuddha. So if you declare war on the principle of God consciousness, that war is justified and you will become victorious. This is the conclusion.

Śyāmasundara: His idea is that our everyday life, everything is a state of war and that this is a purifying, this conflict is purifying, that it has an ethical element and he makes the statement, "By this war, ethical health in the nation is preserved and their finite aims uprooted. War protects the people from the corruption which an everlasting peace would bring upon it. He says that to be in a state of peace is corrupt, and when there's always a war that it purifies the country, makes it more ethical, moral.

Prabhupāda: Then he wants continuous war?

Śyāmasundara: Something like that; he glorifies war, says that it makes a nation healthy to have war.

Prabhupāda: Then Hitler was first-class man by his standard.

Philosophy Discussion on Soren Aabye Kierkegaard:

Śyāmasundara: Yes. He means faith in the orders of God; the opposite of that.

Prabhupāda: It is not a question of faith, it is a question of fact. Then it is, the same example, just like Arjuna. He decided to become nonviolent in the beginning, but at the end he decided to fight and kill. Now which is piety and which is sinful? Actually, this decision to kill by the order of Kṛṣṇa is piety, because he satisfies the higher authorities. So in this material world we concoct that "This is sinful, this is piety," but actual sinful and piety is decided on the order of the Supreme God. That is (indistinct). So if you have no connection with God, so our these thoughts of sinful and piety, they are simply mental concoction. It has no value.

Śyāmasundara: He says that faith in the order of God, that is piety.

Prabhupāda: Then you must have order of God. Unless you have no conception of God, where is the question of order? If God is impersonal, He cannot speak, He has no mouth, He has no tongue, He has no eyes, He has..., where is the question of order?

Śyāmasundara: His idea is that Jesus is the standard.

Prabhupāda: But that's all right. Then there is no Christian. Jesus Christ's first order is "Thou shall not kill," and they're killing, simply killing. Then where is Christians? There is no Christian.

Śyāmasundara: So he calls the modern Christianity the "sickness unto death," because he says...

Prabhupāda: In the other words, we say there is no Christian.

Philosophy Discussion on Ludwig Wittgenstein:

Prabhupāda: That is good. Anything that satisfies God, that is good. Just like Arjuna was thinking fighting is bad, but when he understood that this fighting will be utilized for Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction, therefore it is good. So how the same bad thing becomes good? Because it satisfies Kṛṣṇa. So anything which satisfies Kṛṣṇa, that is good. Anything which does not satisfy Kṛṣṇa, that is bad.

Śyāmasundara: His final statement was that philosophy must describe the actual uses of language, never interfere with it, in order to achieve clarification. In other words...

Prabhupāda: This is clear clarification, that God is the Supreme, God is all-good; therefore what satisfies God, that is good. What will satisfy God, that is nice.

Śyāmasundara: So our philosophy describes the actual uses of words. There may be the word good and several...

Prabhupāda: Otherwise why you are chanting the words Hare Kṛṣṇa? There are also words.

Śyāmasundara: There may be ten philosophies, and each one will purport this same word good differently. But real philosophy is (indistinct).

Prabhupāda: Absolute good means to satisfy God.

Śyāmasundara: The use of a word, not exactly what the word means, but the use of it, how it is used.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Śyāmasundara: There's one more quote. He says, "Don't ask for the meaning, ask for the use of a word." In other words, we don't say if good means this or that; we say how it is used.

Philosophy Discussion on Sigmund Freud:

Prabhupāda: That, that means he has no clear conception of God, because God has to take power from some parliament. God does not take power from anyone. He is God. That is described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that janmādy asya yataḥ anvayād itarataḥ ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ svarāṭ (SB 1.1.1), that the Supreme, God, or Supreme Truth, Brahman, He knows everything. He knows everything in details. And wherefrom? Abhijñaḥ. He is, abhijñaḥ means completely in awareness. Then the question may be raised that "How He got this complete knowledge? From whom He received?" The answer is immediate, svarāṭ. Svarāṭ means independent. That is God. If one has to take knowledge from Mr. Freud, then he is not God. Anyone, if you come to that person that He is independent, parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate svābhāvikī (Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport), naturally He is all-perfect. He hasn't got to become perfect by some process or from some authority. That is God. He is all-perfect automatically. That is God. So anyone who is trying to be perfect, he is not God. One who is... That, that, that is in the history, we find in the history of life of Kṛṣṇa. When He was three-months-old child He, He could kill big giant like Pūtanā. That is automatic. Either He is child or He is a young man or He is old man, the godly power is there. The nowadays these so-called yogis, they are becoming God by meditation, but the three-months-old child in the lap of His mother, how He became God? The God is God always. He hasn't got to learn it from anyone. That is His svarāṭ, independent. So these people have no conception of God; therefore they are simply speculating and misleading persons. God is not the subject matter of speculation. We, if we want to know God, then we must know it from God Himself or a person who knows Him. That is the direction in the Bhagavad-gītā:

Philosophy Discussion on Carl Gustav Jung:

Prabhupāda: Yes. That I was complaining, that none of these rascals have any clear idea of God. They are simply speculating. Therefore they cannot speak anything about religion or God, because they have no clear conception. But so far we are concerned, we have got clear conception of God: "Here is God, Kṛṣṇa." And we want to give that conception to the world. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Kṛṣṇa is accepted as the Supreme Person, Supreme God, by everyone, all authorities, past, present, future must be. So why they do not accept this personal God? If they have got any reason, if they have got any logic, any philosophy, here is Kṛṣṇa, perfect God. So He, according to Vedic scripture, He is complete, cent percent God. Other incarnation of God, they are not cent percent. It has been analyzed in our Nectar of Devotion. Up to Nārāyaṇa, ninety-four percent God, ah, ninety-six percent God. Lord Śiva, eighty-four percent God, Lord Brahma, er, eighty...

Hari-śauri: Seventy-eight?

Prabhupāda: Seventy-eight percent. That is also very minute quantity of the characteristics and qualities of God. But Kṛṣṇa is full-fledged, cent percent God. That Rūpa Goswami has analyzed in the Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu. We have given the translation in Nectar of Devotion. So God is person. Simply if we study man's character, then we can study also God, the same character. Loving affairs, as we also want to enjoy with friends, with girls, with parents, with superiors, with servants, as we take pleasure in these relationship, similarly, God also takes pleasure in these similar relationship. He has got five relationship primarily, and seven relationship secondarily. So twelve kinds of relationship, and therefore He is described, akhila-rasāmṛta-sindhu, reservoir of all pleasure. That is His completeness. So the philosophers, they should try to understand, and very, I mean, analytically, what is God. They do not know God, and they speak of God, imaginary. That is not perfect knowledge. One must study what is God with perfect knowledge. That is advancement of knowledge. That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā:

Philosophy Discussion on Karl Marx:

Prabhupāda: Yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavanti. That is the Vedic injunction, that people are searching after knowledge, knowledge, knowledge, knowledge, knowledge, so when one understands the Absolute Truth, then he understands everything. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavanti. And Bhāgavata says, na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum: (SB 7.5.31) "They are trying to approach the objective, but they do not know the objective is Viṣṇu." Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ: "They are simply trying to adjust by so many revolutions, these material things." But he has no knowledge that he is spiritual being. Unless he goes back to the spiritual world and associates with the supreme spirit, God, there is no question of happiness. Exactly, if you have taken a fish from the water, there is no question of happiness of this fish unless it is again thrown into the water. So we have come... We are part and parcel of the supreme spirit. We have come from the spiritual world with the mentality of enjoying this material world. So unless we divert, reverse ourself to that spiritual conclusion, we understand our spiritual position and go back to home, we go to back... Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramam (BG 15.6). When you come to this position, that is happiness. Otherwise you go on theorizing, but one revolution will be... That is the world. "Yielding place to new. Old order changes, yielding place to new." This is revolution. So this will go on. What he is thinking now new, it will be old after some days, and another new thing will come, will be changed. So this is the order. "Old order changes, yielding place to new." Or, in other words, "History repeats itself."

Śyāmasundara: He says that this is purely the nature of matter, that there are always two conflicting properties, and that this inner impulse, this inner pulsation of opposite forces, will cause history to take leaps like you just said, from one revolution to another. But the Communist revolution he calls the final revolution because it is the perfect answer.

Philosophy Discussion on Socrates:

Hayagrīva: You once mentioned that Greeks, the ancient Greeks were chased out of India where... They were kṣatriyas chased out of India by Parāśara Muni, something like that. But Socrates was confronted with a society that on one hand included what were called Sophists—these were more or less mental speculators; they were paid money to philosophize or to speculate—and humanists, who said, "Man is the measure of all things." They..., no belief in God or any higher force; nothing beside man. And with the demigod worshipers, the Greek pantheon of gods were very much like the demigods described in the Vedic literatures, like Zeus was like Indra, and Athena was like Sarasvatī. They retained..., the Greeks retained their worship of the demigods, but there is no mention of a Supreme God under whom everyone else served, and Socrates, on..., neglected the worship of these demigods. He felt that there was no use in worshiping the demigods, and he stressed meditation on the self, on the highest good which resides in the heart, which must correspond to the Paramātmā.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Hayagrīva: And so in teaching this he was teaching something radically different, and this is one of the reasons that he was condemned to death—for blaspheming the demigods, for blaspheming the gods. He felt that the worship of these gods did not lead to self-realization at all.

Philosophy Discussion on Origen:

Prabhupāda: Our Vedic conception is almost the same, that the individual souls, or living entities, innumerable, and each one of them has an intimate relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead. In the material condition of life the living entity has forgotten his relationship, and when, by the process of devotional service, he comes to his liberated position, at that time he revives his old relationship with the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Hayagrīva: Origen ascribed to the doctrine of the Trinity. In the Trinity, God the father is Supreme, God the son, who's called the logos, L-O-G-O-S, which is Greek for word, is subordinate to the father, and he brings the material world into existence.

Prabhupāda: Who?

Hayagrīva: The son. God the son brings the material world into existence. God the father is not the direct creator; it is the son who is the direct creator. The Ho... The third aspect of the Trinity is the Holy Spirit, and he is in turn subordinate to the, to the son. So these Holy Spirits, they liken unto the...

Prabhupāda: Holy Spirit, he is the son?

Hayagrīva: There's the father.

Prabhupāda: Father.

Hayagrīva: There's the son, who is the direct creator of the material, like Brahmā.

Prabhupāda: The son, the son.

Philosophy Discussion on Samuel Alexander:

Hayagrīva: Although Alexander himself tries to describe God in philosophical terms...

Prabhupāda: Then his philosophy is right, that an ant's god is a bird; bird's god..., like that. So when he finds, comes to a person who has no more god, then He is Supreme God.

Hayagrīva: But he feels that ultimately God is beyond description. He says...

Prabhupāda: No. Why? We have, this, this is description.

Hayagrīva: Yes, but he's giving a description, or attempting to give a philosophical definition.

Prabhupāda: Whatever it may be, this is right description, that you find deity in different stages, but when you come to a person that He has no more deity, then He is God.

Hayagrīva: He says even the description...

Prabhupāda: You don't find in the life of Kṛṣṇa that He is worshiping any other God.

Hayagrīva: He worships no-one.

Prabhupāda: No-one. There is... Therefore He is God.

Hayagrīva: Nor does He meditate.

Page Title:	Supreme God (Lectures)
Compiler:	Visnu Murti, RupaManjari
Created:	14 of May, 2013
Totals by Section:	BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=93, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:	93