Technique (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"technique" |"techniques"

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Discussion with Guests -- December 23, 1969, Boston:

Prabhupāda: Yes, if you love God, you love matter and God... Because matter is energy of God.

Guest (2): Then you said that the technique, that you decide as to whether you are succeeding is, you'll find out whether a technique is the best or not when your love for God will increase and love for matter will decrease.

Prabhupāda: No. In relationship with God... What is matter? Matter is another manifestation of God's energy. Just like if you love yourself, your body, then naturally you love your finger, the part of the body. Therefore God is the supreme whole. If you love God, then you can understand that I have to love everybody.

1971 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- August 14, 1971, London:

Revatīnandana: Everyone is a member of this movement. But some people have forgotten. Our movement is to remind them. Every living being is by nature a servant of God. Now people are forgetting. We want them to remember. We don't care for some difference of technique in worship. We want people to take up the business of chanting the names of God.

Prabhupāda: Just as in the same family some of the sons have forgotten father and some of them remember, but both of them member of the same family. Because he has forgotten his father does not mean that he is not son. He still remains. So actually, everyone is a member of God's family. That is our vision. Not only human being, but animals also. We therefore consider animals also brothers. We don't support animal killing.

Room Conversation with Dr. Weir of the Mensa Society -- September 5, 1971, London:

Prabhupāda: But experimental knowledge of scientific handling must he have learned from somebody else.

Dr. Weir: That's a different thing.

Prabhupāda: Therefore he has a teacher. You cannot say that, or he has taken the techniques of other scientists and he has experimented. In the laboratory appliances he cannot say that he has, he invented the laboratory appliances.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation With David Lawrence -- July 12, 1973, London:

Pradyumna:

māṁ ca yo 'vyabhicāreṇa

bhakti-yogena sevate

sa guṇān samatītyaitān

brahma-bhūyāya kalpate

(BG 14.26)

"One who engages in full devotional service, who does not fall down in any circumstance, at once transcends the modes of material nature and thus comes to the level of Brahman."

Prabhupāda: Simply by devotion. Anyone who is always engaged in devotional service, he's not in this material platform. He's in the spiritual platform. This is the technique. You remain always Kṛṣṇa conscious; you are no longer living in the material world.

Room Conversation with French Journalist and UNESCO Worker -- August 10, 1973, Paris:

Dr. Inger: Well, many people would say that the use of the intellect alone, which is an excuse for not going deep into oneself, is the technique that is used. What can be rationally explained, only rationally explained, is what matters.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Dr. Inger: Anything where, something beyond reason, call it intuition...

Prabhupāda: Yes, it is quite reasonable.

Room Conversation with Rosicrucians -- August 13, 1973, Paris:

Yogeśvara: He says there are many different techniques, but ultimately they are really all the same because they lead to the same conclusion. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...those techniques? Let him say some of the techniques.

Yogeśvara: He says the first thing is that we have to awaken our internal consciousness which is ninety percent asleep.

Prabhupāda: So what is the process?

Yogeśvara: I don't care to talk about them here.

Prabhupāda: Then how can I accept it? I cannot enter into some vague thing.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Richard Webster, chairman, Societa Filosofica Italiana -- May 24, 1974, Rome:

Yogeśvara: It's a great science. My mother is an executive in a public relations firm. Her business is to show products, goods, to people that otherwise they have no need for and to convince them that there is some value. It's a very big industry, especially in the United States, public relations, advertising. It's very psychological too. They use all kinds of psychological techniques for inducing people to take things they have no need for.

Prabhupāda: All right but thing is that after all our prime necessity is food. So why people are not engaged to produce food?

Room Conversation with Monsieur Roost, Hatha-yogi -- May 31, 1974, Geneva:

M. Roost: And you must have the conscious of your breathing from rodha to ājñā, and ājñā through the Rājadvāra (?) column to mūlādhāra. This is one example. And it's a general technique of concentration. For example, to...

Prabhupāda: That I already said, dhyānāvasthita, dhyāna avasthita. Dhyāna means meditation, and situated, avasthita. Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā, by mind, paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ. So these processes are approved, but they are more or less on the bodily concept of life.

Room Conversation with Professor Durckheim German Spiritual Writer -- June 19, 1974, Germany:

Professor Durckheim: Absolutely, that's it. But I realize that since about twenty, thirty years there is a big awakening in the western part of the world. Science and the technique coming out of science, which was invented to liberate the human being, right do exactly the contrary. People become more and more slaves of that organization which they created for their freedom.

Prabhupāda: (chuckles) Yes.

Room Conversation with Professor Durckheim German Spiritual Writer -- June 19, 1974, Germany:

Prabhupāda: Just like you say, "Hallowed be Thy name." President. President. Now the president has a name but you do not know. But the president must have a name. (German)

Dr. P. J. Saher: Has the name a special esoteric meaning? And is the technique of chanting the name, has this a special hidden purpose that the unenlightened...

Prabhupāda: No, not hidden but open because Absolute is not different from His name. Therefore when you chant the name of the Absolute that means you associate with the Absolute. And as soon as you associate with the Absolute you become purified.

Room Conversation with Professor Durckheim German Spiritual Writer -- June 19, 1974, Germany:

Dr. P. J. Saher: Will you please be so kind as to further elucidate your technique of that one chants the name of God and will you please be so kind as to elucidate further in some particular way or what comes (German) what should be done in relation to that or how it is, how it is formulated in that, in that total, in that complete system of your reverent teachings?

Prabhupāda: Yes. This is the bhakti-mārga, means, the first thing is śravaṇam, hearing. Just like these books are being written to give chance people to hear. That is first business. If we don't hear about God we simply imagine something. No. We must hear about God. We are publishing eighty books like this, simply to hear about God. Then when you hear perfectly then you can describe to others.

Room Conversation with Scientists -- July 2, 1974, Melbourne:

Dr. Harrap: And we are doing some quite interesting work at the dairy research laboratory aimed at making ruminants' milk, cow's milk, much more like human milk in this way by a special feeding techniques to the cows.

Prabhupāda: Yes, milk means cow's milk. Milk means cow's milk because you find in this book that kṛṣi-go-rakṣya. Go means cow. Cow protection, cow's milk is important, not other animal's milk.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Woman Sanskrit Professor -- February 13, 1975, Mexico:

Professor: Well, then what do we with all techniques, all systems, that have been developed? I am thinking only India, I am not thinking other places, and all the old tradition, since Śaṅkara onwards, of different ways to think, to study, to go deeply to all these relations between...

Prabhupāda: Śaṅkara has interpreted. Śaṅkara has interpreted by his limited knowledge. So that is not perfect knowledge. Therefore we don't accept Śaṅkara's philosophy.

Room Conversation with Woman Sanskrit Professor -- February 13, 1975, Mexico:

Guest (1): The question is, well, Vedic idea that knowledge, human knowledge, is imperfect, does that not then go along... Of course, we are limited by, all time by biological limitation and so on. But this statement, that there is perfect knowledge, that it can be acquired, and that there are some people who did acquire it, that's very strong statement indeed, and my question is of the practical nature. How one can know that given source of supposed spiritual truth is an actual truth? Is there any technique how one can get to it?

Prabhupāda: That I have already said, that you take the vibration from the Vedic knowledge and you experiment it. Observation and experiment, that is scientific. So first of all observation and then experiment. And when you are satisfied by experiment, then it is perfect knowledge.

Guest (1): If I am satisfied? Can I rely that much on myself?

Prabhupāda: Anyone can do, provided he knows the art how to do it. It is a technique also. You cannot make experiment as a crude man. You must be expert. But it is... In our Caitanya-caritāmṛta you'll find that there is a statement, caitanyera dayāra kathā karaha vicāra: "Just try to make an experiment on the mercy of Lord Caitanya." Vicāra karile citte pabe camatkāra: "When you make an experiment, then you'll be awe-full 'Oh, it is so nice.' " So it is not to be accepted blindly.

Room Conversation with Tripurari -- March 2, 1975, Atlanta:

Tripurāri: Sometimes when we go to the temples they ask us to give class, saṅkīrtana class on book distribution techniques. We tell them that before you can take any techniques, first you must follow the principles and study the books.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is real technique. Our only technique is to be very devout followers of the rules and regulation.

Room Conversation with Tripurari -- March 2, 1975, Atlanta:

Devotee (1): We've been trying more and more, Śrīla Prabhupāda, to make our techniques of distribution more honest and straightforward, not to cheat so much as some of these methods in the past.

Prabhupāda: No, the thing is that Kṛṣṇa's service is so sublime that even if we cheat, you are not culprit. But because we have to deal with the worldly man, we have to go according to their rules and regulation on cheating. Otherwise, a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he never cheats. He never cheats. Whatever he does... Just like a mother says to his child, "My dear child, if you take this medicine, I will give you this lugloo." The child is diseased. He will not be able to digest lugloo, but the mother sometimes cheats him. And when he takes the medicine the lugloo is not delivered. Similarly, sometimes we have to say so many things very pleasing to him, but our business is that let him take this medicine. That is tactics. But that is not cheating.

Room Conversation with Tripurari -- March 2, 1975, Atlanta:

Doug: Actually, it's interesting about that, because he finished the whole Bhagavad-gītā, and he put out these first six chapters in a really a boggling word, way, the first six chapters. He was writing in a way that people could still enjoy material sense enjoyment and still do his technique of meditation. But I had a chance to hear the rest of the Bhagavad-gītā that he had translated. And we asked him... We heard that he had it. We asked him why he didn't put it out, and he said that the people of the Western world weren't ready to hear what he had to present. But actually what he had to say was... It's very authentic. What I read was very close with what you have to say, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that Kṛṣṇa says surrender all your senses unto Him. And I have hopes that maybe someday... Balavanta suggested the idea that I should write him a letter and ask him to have a meeting with you. And maybe some conciliation could be made, and maybe he could come to his senses or something that he could propagate this Kṛṣṇa consciousness also, because he has so many followers. And I think that there must be some sincerity in him, else I wouldn't have spent so long with him. He must have some sincerity. And I think that he obviously feels that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Lord, and I noticed that on his pūjā table he always had a picture of Kṛṣṇa protecting the cows.

Prabhupāda: Instead of asking him to preach, you preach. He has already enunciated a type of formula, and it is very difficult for him to change it. He does not say that he is Bhagavān?

Garden Conversation with Professors -- June 24, 1975, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Where to find eatables, where to find sex, where to find shelter for sleeping, and how to defense—these circumstances are understood by the animals. There is no need of education. Just like this morning I pointed out. The bird is catching a small fish, "Fut!" He knows where to find out his eatable. And that you cannot do. You also eat fish, but you jump over and take a fish. You cannot do that. But he can do that. He is more expert than you. (guests chuckle) Yes. In the troubled water, he is flying. He can see a small fish and immediately pick it up. Can you do that? So he is more advanced in civilization. (laughter) He knows his techniques. He is greater scientist than you.

Room Conversation with Mr. & Mrs. Wax, Writer and Editing Manager of Playboy Magazine -- July 5, 1975, Chicago:

Jayatīrtha: There's this one fellow, Mr. Ted Patrick. He goes and he kidnaps the devotees. The parents pay him $1,000 up to $25,000...

Prabhupāda: Ācchā.

Jayatīrtha: ...depending on how wealthy they are. He kidnaps them and tries to brainwash them that this Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not good.

Devotee: He calls it deprogramming. He says... He tries to deprogram the devotees that we have simply been hypnotized by chanting. So he has to snap us out of it by deprogramming. And he uses very severe techniques, very harsh.

Prabhupāda: And the parents are inducing him.

Jayatīrtha: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Just see.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Reporter -- June 3, 1976, Los Angeles:

Devotee (1): You asked earlier about our program for educating society, are you still interested in this?

Prabhupāda: This education is all explained.

Devotee (2): I think he was interested also techniques by which we go about educating society. We have some techniques which...

Prabhupāda: Technical knowledge is not education.

Devotee (2): No, but I mean, as far as our books are.... We have our techniques for educating society.

Garden Conversation -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Mādhavānanda: Sometimes the karmī salesmen, they stand around to watch us distribute books. Because they are so amazed at our techniques of sale and distribution, they want to learn.

Jayādvaita: They become very respectful. They don't know anything about our philosophy, but they see how nicely we...

Prabhupāda: Good salesmen.

Morning Walk -- July 4, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: What will be the technique to attract the Bengali educational class? To attract the Bengalis who are educated, what technique will be most effective?

Prabhupāda: This kīrtana and prasāda distribution.

Room Conversation With Scientists -- July 6, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: These elements, that science calls elements, gold and mercury, are these several other elements in the Vedic scriptures? Little information how they separate it, the technique they use...

Prabhupāda: Oh, that, that is not given. But they, all these metals, they are different forms of earth. You find in ores.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: But they are all impure.

Prabhupāda: That's all right, you have to purify, but they are in the group of earth. We have to purify. Gold is also purified. It is taken from the mine, it is not pure gold. You have to treat it, then pure gold comes.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: But that treatment must involve a lot of process.

Prabhupāda: That may be, but by treating you can get, that's all. The metallurgists, they know.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Yes. So actually the Vedas must have known these techniques, because otherwise they cannot get this gold so easily.

Prabhupāda: No, there are gold mountains also.

Room Conversation -- July 6, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: So we are discussing about our limitations of our so-called knowledge-finding technique. So we said, "One has to be a little open-minded and discuss these things..."

Prabhupāda: What does they say about that disi, astralogic kalokyam (Hindi) ?

Room Conversation -- July 6, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Actually as astronomy and (indistinct) are especially astronomy is one of the most unscientific branch of study, knowledge is concerned. It's very, very little known. The way that... The techniques that they use, are very difficult to rely on.

Prabhupāda: So their Astronomical calculation, the sun is fixed up, that is also wrong. The sun is not fixed up.

Room Conversation -- July 7, 1976, Baltimore:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: So we'll explain there are two types of acquiring knowledge. Two different techniques. Now the scientists are believing their own...

Prabhupāda: That is imperfect. Inductive knowledge is always imperfect. Deductive knowledge is perfect if it is taken from the authority. Suppose man is mortal. So inductive process is that you examine every man whether he's mortal or immortal. So suppose you have seen millions of men, and they are all mortal, they die. Then your conclusion is man is mortal. But I can say you have not seen a man who does not die. I can say that. So this inductive knowledge will remain always imperfect. It will never be perfect, because your examination is limited.

Room Conversation -- July 10, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: Yes, they are cheating. Is there any meaning that you pay so many dollars and take the mantra? Mantra is such a thing for business?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In this meditation magazine one of the things they sell, the special techniques is you take a ping-pong ball, ping-pong, you know, that table tennis? And you cut it in half and you place the two halves on your eyes, and then that is called samādhi. (laughter)

Interview with Newsday Newspaper -- July 14, 1976, New York:

Rāmeśvara: He is asking whether one technique is more important than another.

Prabhupāda: Everything is important. Everything is important. You cannot say, "This is most important; this is less important." Everything is important.

Rāmeśvara: But suppose someone cannot live in our temple. Then we may recommend to him at least chant Hare Kṛṣṇa in your home...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Radio Interview -- July 27, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. (Mike Robinson leaves) (break)

Hari-śauri: Actually he was quite intelligent, he was asking good questions because he was following the conversation. He was better than most of the interviewers, anyway. You're very expert. (laughter) You capture them and then you guide what they're going to say. It's perfect.

Harikeśa: I was noticing that, that when you finish speaking with somebody, although he's bewildered, all of a sudden he understands, and he becomes amazed. I mean that happens with me also. It's just, it's the most fantastic technique. You're so patient.

Meeting with Endowments Commissioner -- August 24, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhaviṣṇu: When I speak to some of these archaeologists that I meet, these professors, I ask them do they believe in the historical validity of this Mahābhārata and Bhāgavatam, and they say, "Personally, I believe, but officially we have to follow the archaeology, the techniques of measuring the time." So they have two faces, one for official life and one for personal life.

Prabhupāda: Duplicity. Duplicity.

Room Conversation with Indian Man -- December 22, 1976, Poona:

Indian man: ...self-realization. Various methods, as many people are there, so many techniques are there. Each individual has to find out his own way.

Prabhupāda: Do you think that is scientific proposal?

Indian man: They say.

Prabhupāda: I say they are (indistinct). Just like you go to educational institution, is there any knowledge that is to be realized according to the whims of the students?

Room Conversation -- December 26, 1976, Bombay:

Jagadīśa: "...is not actually religious but is an exploitative brain-washing technique. In the past and even today the leaders of the Hare Kṛṣṇa faith, as we understand, have been abducted, assaulted, and subjected to mental and physical abuse. We also understand that there are widespread pressures being applied to convince the media and the government that religious freedom should not include the choice to live by the tenets of the Hare Kṛṣṇa Hindu scriptures. We strongly feel all these developments to be objectionable to all freedom-loving people of this great country. We will appreciate if you please look into this matter and take the needed steps to halt such religious suppression. Signed, V.J. Pandhi, Corporation Secretary and Member of the Board of Directors."

Prabhupāda: V.J.?

Jagadīśa: V.J. Pandhi.

Prabhupāda: Pandit?

Jagadīśa: P-a-n-d-h-i. Pandhi.

Prabhupāda: It is European or?

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Discussion on Deprogrammers -- January 9, 1977, Bombay:

Rāmeśvara: They're already working on that. So then they say, "If you can do this to your son, then it will get national news media into the scene, and then people will learn about Hare Kṛṣṇa in particular, and all the effects of destructive cults on our youth." Then it says, "We have a legal packet which contains advice on the procedure and techniques for legal deprogramming."

Prabhupāda: So nowhere they have mentioned my name. That is good. (laughter) Otherwise, I would have been the target. That was very dangerous.

Conversation on Train to Allahabad -- January 11, 1977, India:

Hari-śauri: He's just saying that in the West one requires a great deal of capital. To start a farm, to get the land, you need a lot of money because land is very expensive. And also we have to use modern farming techniques because we have so few men to run the farms.

Prabhupāda: No, you show example. People will do automatically. When the people find it is very nice, they will take.

Room Conversation with Svarupa Damodara -- January 30, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Ah, yes. They're trying their best. And personally also from outside, there are some friends, outsiders, but not in the movement, but those who are slightly favorable to the movement. They also have some comments about some of the techniques that we use, some of the methods that we use in saṅkīrtana, in book distribution, things like that.

Prabhupāda: They do not like it?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Some of them don't. The technique that we use especially during the Christmas time.

Room Conversation 'GBC Resolutions' -- March 1, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: So you have discussed Hare Kṛṣṇa, er, Harikeśa's activities, reviewed? It is all right?

Rāmeśvara: No. That is yet to be discussed under saṅkīrtana techniques.

Gargamuni: The techniques?

Prabhupāda: Not techniques. On the whole... He's the...

Kīrtanānanda: Jayatīrtha gave us a report.

Jayatīrtha: I gave very good reports. I had a very good experience as far as...

Prabhupāda: He is, after all, new appointed, so you have to study how things are going on.

Room Conversation with GBC members -- March 2-3, 1977, Mayapura:

Satsvarūpa: We made resolutions regarding book distribution techniques. Any illegal techniques for book distribution, that is, illegal according to law, should be banned, including... And then a comprehensive list will follow, mainly supplied by Rāmeśvara Mahārāja. They will include some things like outright illegal techniques.

Prabhupāda: Real point is if we can introduce book, there is nothing illegal. Everything is legal. Now, to save us from so-called legal complication, we must be legal. Otherwise there is nothing illegal, what we do for Kṛṣṇa.

Room Conversation with GBC members -- March 2-3, 1977, Mayapura:

Satsvarūpa: More resolutions about book distribution. The temple presidents, in order to control the techniques of book distribution, whether they are going against our resolution not to use illegal techniques, the presidents should go out on a monthly basis and observe their own book distributors, how they distribute books in the field. And also the GBC man should go out in each of his temples in his zone at least once during the year to see how the men are distributing books. And if a temple continues some illegal technique for book distribution, the BBT trustees are responsible to do the needful to rectify it.

Prabhupāda: What is that?

Satsvarūpa: We have made one resolution that certain techniques should not be done. They are too dangerous for arrest. So if a temple persists in doing those illegal techniques, then the BBT will...

Prabhupāda: Rectify.

Satsvarūpa: Yes. Also for book distribution techniques, the use of the Santa Claus uniform and other theatrical costumes is banned, not to be done.

Room Conversation with GBC members -- March 2-3, 1977, Mayapura:

Satsvarūpa: A legal committee of Balavanta, Ādi-keśava, and Rāmeśvara will investigate whether certain techniques are legal or illegal according to the laws. Then one of the popular means to distribute books is by women's party. A party of women will travel under the care of a man devotee. But in taking care of the women, we have noted that some of these parties have been preaching a false philosophy of the relationship of the man who's taking care of the women, and that philosophy is that the saṅkīrtana leader is the eternal husband and protector of the women in the party. We want that this philosophy should be rejected. If a man is taking care of a number of women in a saṅkīrtana party, he should be regarded as the son as well as a representative of the spiritual master, of Śrīla Prabhupāda, and not the husband of these women.

Prabhupāda: Husband, but why he does not marry them? (laughter)

Conversation with Yadubara (after seeing film) -- April 17, 1977, Bombay:

Yadubara: Just like in this last film, we suggested that there is a soul in the hand sequence—when the hands were always changing, and the body grows old. So the idea was that there is something that's not changing there. So in film there are certain techniques we can use to suggest, as Tamāla Kṛṣṇa Goswami said, certain ideas.

Prabhupāda: Idea, that idea is given there. Just like you cannot see the flavor, but still, you are smelling, some flavor is nice. In the air, it is rose flavor, it is passing. You cannot see what is that flavor and how it is being carried, but you can smell. Similarly, the soul is being carried by the mind, ego and intelligence. You cannot see it, but you have to understand by hearing from the authorities like Kṛṣṇa.

Room Conversation -- October 3, 1977, Vrndavana:

Haṁsadūta: Well, the public has really relished the whole situation. But it seemed to me afterwards that this same technique could be applied in any university or anywhere where such a man is propagating this idea. As soon as you find one out, then make a public announcement that a program will be conducted, he's invited, and such-and-such amount of money would be offered if he can substantiate his idea of inert chemicals being the origin of life. Because I saw that the public interest became very keen, especially when they saw there was such a huge reward being offered to substantiate such a widely accepted, scientific idea.

Prabhupāda: Yes, it is a challenge to the, all these Nobel Prize-winner scientists. So our position is better.

Room Conversation -- October 6, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Whatever it may be, there is no need of keeping in the bank.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. Because we can print more books and keep them in stock. And now we are finding out that this mail order technique is selling thousands of books. Like in two months I sold more books than Gargamuni's party did in one year with this mail order technique.