Unless there is... (Lectures, BG)

Expressions researched:
"unless there is"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 1.16-19 -- London, July 16, 1973:

So if you like I can get this girl married with my son Saubhadra, Subhadrā's son."

Arjuna had another wife Subhadrā. That Subhadrā, you know, sister of Kṛṣṇa. Sister of Kṛṣṇa. So Subhadrā, Balarāma, elder brother, Kṛṣṇa, younger brother. Kṛṣṇa wanted to hand over Subhadrā to Arjuna, and Balarāma wanted to hand over Subhadrā to Duryodhana. So Kṛṣṇa could not say anything. The elder brother has decided. Therefore Kṛṣṇa advised Arjuna to kidnap Subhadrā. Just see how much Kṛṣṇa was affectionate to Arjuna that Arjuna liked also to marry Subhadrā, and Subhadrā also liked, but the elder brother did not agree. So they made a plan that Arjuna kidnap Subhadrā.

This kidnapping was allowed among the kṣatriyas, and fight. That is kṣatriya marriage. Unless there is fight, that marriage is not complete. The red vermillion which we apply, that is kṣatriya principle. After killing the opposite party, the blood will be smeared over the hair of the bride. That is conquer, victory. So in every marriage, Kṛṣṇa had 16,108 wives, and each wife was married by fighting, beginning from Rukmiṇī. Rukmiṇī also, the first wife of Kṛṣṇa, the first queen, when Kṛṣṇa became king of Dvārakā, she was the first queen. So Subhadra was kidnapped by Arjuna. Rukmiṇī was settled up to be married with Śiśupāla. Śiśupāla also happened to be Kṛṣṇa's cousin-brother, and Rukmiṇī did not like that she would be handed over to Śiśupāla. She wanted to marry Kṛṣṇa. So she sent one letter to Kṛṣṇa that this is the position. "My brother Rukma, he has decided to hand over to me to Śiśupāla, but I don't like. So please arrange for kidnapping." A brāhmaṇa was sent to Kṛṣṇa.

That is also another responsibility of kṣatriya. If a girl proposes, "I want to marry you," a kṣatriya cannot refuse, he cannot refuse. He must marry that girl, even at the risk of life. This is kṣatriya spirit. One rākṣasī, she wanted to marry Bhīma. So Bhīma refused, she was a rākṣasī. So she complained to Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira that I wanted to marry Bhīma but he has refused. And Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja compelled Bhīma, "You must marry. Even though she is rākṣasī, you are kṣatriya you cannot refuse." This was the system, very nice system, brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra. Don't work now, you should hear. You cannot divert your attention.

Lecture on BG 1.31 -- London, July 24, 1973:

"O God, give us our daily bread." So he has gone to God not to serve God, but to take bread. Ārtaḥ arthārthī. That is also good. But he... Because he has gone to God to ask for bread, he is better than the rascals who do not care for God. He has gone to God. That is recommended in the Bhagavad-gītā. Ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha. Catur-vidhā bhajante māṁ janāḥ sukṛtino 'rjuna (BG 7.16). "Arjuna, four kinds of people, they become devotee." Who are they? Ārta. Ārta means distressed. Arthārthī, one who is poor, wants some money; jijñāsu, inquisitive; and jñānī, and a man of knowledge. So ārtaḥ arthārthī, this is meant, this is referred to the gṛhastha. The gṛhasthas, they become sometimes distressed. The gṛhastha-āśrama means unless there is Kṛṣṇa or full consciousness of Kṛṣṇa, it is simply miserable, simply miserable. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). Simply working hard day and night, then there is, child is sick, then wife is not satisfied, the servant is not satisfied... So many things, problem. But if there is Kṛṣṇa in the center, the all problems will be solved. But people do not know this. They think that "I shall be happy with wife, children, servants, house, and this and that." No. That is not possible. Therefore one should be in gṛhastha-āśrama. Not only in family life. Family, the dogs have got family life. He has got wife, children. The cats and the hogs, a big family. Because a hog begets, at a time, one dozen children. What you beget? You are afraid of begetting one child even. This contraceptive method. But they are not afraid. They beget one dozen children at a time, twice in a year. So to live with family, wife, children... Then the hog accepts family life. No. That is not family life. You live with wife, children, peacefully, if you like, but bring in Kṛṣṇa in the center. That is gṛhastha-āśrama.

Lecture on BG 1.43 -- London, July 30, 1973:

So this is already there. Brahmādbhiḥ. In this way the living entity is wandering in the cycle of transmigration of the soul. So from this, Mr. Darwin might have taken some hints, but he could not explain properly. He could not catch up that brahmādbhiḥ, who is wandering. So it is a chaos.

So anyway, why this living entity is wandering, not fixed up? So there must be some goal. He is hankering after that. There must be some goal of life. To achieve that goal of life that is called sādhya. Why we are struggling here for happiness or something else? We are struggling. So this question was raised by Caitanya Mahāprabhu, that "What is the goal of life?" Unless there is goal of life, why there is struggle? Why... There must be some goal of life, sādhya. And sādhana. Sādhana means the means by which we can achieve that goal of life. That is called sādhana, sādhana. So Rāmānanda Rāya quoted... Because when there is talk between two learned persons, they... Just like nowadays it has become a fashion: "In my opinion," "I think in this way." What, nonsense, what you can think? What is your knowledge? But he is very proud. Everyone like that. The other day, that Sir Alistair? Alistair Hardy came. He also said, "It is my opinion." Nobody thinks that he is a nonsense number one; what is the value of his opinion? Nobody thinks. But this is the Vedic principle. Even Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He, when He was asked by Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī that "You are a sannyāsī. You do not engage Yourself in the study of Vedānta. You are simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa." So... Because a sannyāsī is supposed to be always reading Vedānta philosophy especially and all other philosophy. So "What is this, that you are chanting like a sentimental person?" So Caitanya Mahāprabhu replied, "Yes, My Guru Mahārāja, spiritual master, saw Me a fool number one." So Caitanya Mahāprabhu, it was known to Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī, He was a great learned scholar in His student life. So He is posing Himself as a fool number one. So this is the way. Caitanya-caritāmṛta the author of Caitanya-caritāmṛta, he is presenting himself: purīṣera kīṭa haite muñi sei laghiṣṭha: (CC Adi 5.205) "I am lower than the worm of the stool."

Lecture on BG 2.11 -- Mauritius, October 1, 1975:

Even in Communist country they also have the supreme person, dictator. So taking the whole universal affair, the nature, how things are going on... The sun is rising early in the morning. It is setting exactly in due time. Then the moon is coming. Everyone in big, big planetary system, they are working very systematically. The astronomical calculation is so perfect that, they say, one ten-thousandth part of a second is also calculated. So accurately things are moving.

So in the Brahma-saṁhitā it is said, yac cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇām. The sun is the eye of all the planets. We have got eyes, but unless there is sunrise, what is the value of our eyes? We cannot see. We are very much proud of our eyes, we want to see everything. But we do not calculate the value of our eyes. Unless there is sunshine we cannot see. At night, unless there is electricity or moonlight or some lamp, we cannot see. And still, we are very much proud of seeing. This is called illusion. We have no power. We are put under certain condition; then we work. Otherwise we cannot work. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni (BG 3.27). Prakṛti, material nature, puts us under certain condition and we work accordingly, not independently. And the prakṛti, material nature, also working under somebody. Just like when you go on the street you see red light and green light. As soon as you see red light you stop your car. So this red light and green light is being manipulated by the police, and the police is working under government. Similarly, this whole material nature is acting like red light or green light, but behind that red light and green light there is the supreme brain. That is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So as a layman or as child cannot understand how the red light and blue light, green light, is working... He sees simply, he thinks automatically it is being done. That is foolishness. It is not being automatically done. There is machine. There is manipulator behind this red light. So this is intelligence. Anyone who is concluding that "On the street the red light and green light is working automatically; there is no brain behind it," he's a rascal.

Lecture on BG 2.18 -- London, August 24, 1973:

So we cannot estimate by direct perception, even in this material world, and what to speak of the spiritual world. Not (possible.) Panthās tu koṭi-śata-vatsara-sampragamyo vāyor athāpi manaso muni-puṅgavānām (Bs. 5.34). By mental, muni-puṅga means mental speculation. You can go on mental speculating, but if you do even for many hundreds and thousand of years, it is not possible to calculate. You have to accept this truth through the śāstra; otherwise, it is not possible. Therefore Kṛṣṇa said, nityasyoktāḥ śarīr-ukta. Ukta means it is said. Not that "I am presenting some dogma," although He can do so. He's Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is the method. Unless there is ukta, said by authorities, previous authorities, ācāryas, you cannot say anything. This is called paramparā. You try to understand with your intelligence, but you cannot make any addition or alteration. That is not possible. Therefore it is called nityasyoktāḥ. It is said, it is already settled. You cannot argue. Nityasyoktāḥ śarīriṇaḥ anāśino 'prameyasya, immeasurable.

Now, this soul, as in the previous verse we have understood, avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. This is not measurement of the soul, but the power of the soul you can measure. But not the soul. It is not possible. Soul is so small that it is not possible. You have no measuring means, and because now our material senses, it is not possible. You can simply understand by consciousness. Just like when Caitanya Mahāprabhu fainted in the Jagannātha temple, Sarvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya examined that there was no consciousness. Even the abdomen was not moving. When you actually you have consciousness and you breathe, the abdomen moves. But Caitanya Mahāprabhu's abdomen was tested by Sarvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya. It was also not moving. So he thought that "This sannyāsī might have died." But he again tried. He brought a little cotton swab and put before His nostril, and when he saw the swab, the fibers little moving, then he became hopeful, yes. So everything has got a different type of calculation, measurement. But so far the soul is concerned, it is said here, aprameyasya, there is no source of measurement. There is no source.

Lecture on BG 2.24 -- Hyderabad, November 28, 1972:

So this material world is made of these five elements. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). So Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-gataḥ. The living entities are everywhere. Kṛṣṇa is also within everyone. Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). Kṛṣṇa is within this universe. Kṛṣṇa is within your heart. Not only your heart, but in everyone's heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Now, if you are a great scientist, take one insect. There are so many insects, we have seen, especially in the books, less than the full stop. Now, if you are a great scientist, find out where is the heart of this insect. And where is Kṛṣṇa. But Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-gataḥ, everywhere there is Kṛṣṇa. Unless there is Kṛṣṇa, there is living entity, how that small, full-stop-like insect is moving? There is everything. The physiological condition is there. There is heart also. You cannot make that. You have imitated a big bird, aeroplane, flying, but just imitate the small insect which is also flying.

So there are so many questions that if we actually, philosophically study, then we can see vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ (BG 7.19), how Vāsudeva, Kṛṣṇa is acting. Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). So here the living entity is described as sanātana. And the process by which we can understand our sanātana nature, that is called sanātana-dharma, not that having a big tilaka and considering this rascal lump of matter as "I am brāhmaṇa. This body is brāhmaṇa, and sanātana-dharma." This is all nonsense. Sanātana-dharma means you first of all you must know what you are. That is sanātana-dharma. Is it... Is sanātana-dharma is limited to a certain area? How it can be? Sarva-gataḥ.

Lecture on BG 2.26 -- Hyderabad, November 30, 1972:

Tāmasa, they, those who are in the tāmasika-guṇa, they go adhaḥ. Madhye tiṣṭhanti rājasāḥ. And via media, those who are in touch with the rajo-guṇa. And ūrdhvaṁ gacchanti sattva-sthāḥ: (BG 14.18) those who are in the goodness, they go up, in the upper platform of the society or in the universe. But Kṛṣṇa says, ābrahma-bhuvanāl lokāḥ punar āvartino 'rjuna (BG 8.16). Either you go even to the Brahmaloka, one day you have come to the hellish loka. This is the way. So some, cakravat parivartante sukhāni ca duḥkhāni ca. Just like the wheel turns round, sometimes up, sometimes down, so this is the position of this material world. There is no question of lamenting. You cannot say, "These people are suffering and that people are enjoying." The man who is enjoying, he'll also suffer next moment. This is going on, suffering and enjoying. Unless we come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there is no way of coming out of this duality of this world. This is duality. Everything you'll find in dual. Unless there is happiness, you cannot understand what is distress. And unless there is distress, you cannot understand happiness. You cannot understand light unless there is darkness. So this is the world of darkness and light, so-called light. You have to transcend. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9). So we have to make arrangement. That facility is there to every human being, how he can get out of this world of duality and come to the transcendental platform which is called avyabhicāriṇī-bhakti-yoga.

Lecture on BG 2.26-27 -- London, August 29, 1973:

Because one will think "This is morality," another will think, "No, this is not morality." Same thing. Keep to the left, keep to the right. Somebody says "Keep to the left is right," somebody says "Keep to the left, it is wrong." Manorathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ (SB 5.18.12). Because those who are not Kṛṣṇa conscious, they are hovering on the mental plane. They cannot, there cannot be any fixed up morality, honesty, dishonesty. No. And rascals will also say yato mata tato patha. Means, whatever you think is all right, that is all right. According to you, your conception this is right, and according to my conception, both of them are right. How both of them can be right?

So this contradiction, opposing elements, will continue unless there is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So this is not a fact that the karma-vādīs simply by discharging your duties nicely... This is... On principle, it is all right. But we must know what is actual morality. There are so many examples. Just like when there is war, to kill the enemies, that is morality. But in peaceful condition if you kill a person that is immorality or sinful. The process is the same, morality or immorality, the process is the same. But sometimes it is moral, sometimes immoral. So how it will be standardized? Therefore Bhāgavata says dharmaṁ tu sākṣād bhagavat-praṇītam (SB 6.3.19). Real dharma, real religion, morality, honesty, they can be decided on the words of the Supreme Lord. That is the... When Kṛṣṇa says "This is all right," then it is all right. When Kṛṣṇa says it is not right, then it is not right. This is our decision. We Kṛṣṇa conscious men, we simply accept. And that is a fact. That is a fact in this way because Kṛṣṇa is the greatest authority, Supreme Being. Supreme means the greatest authority. Just like state says "Now it is wartime. If you kill a number of enemies then you will be awarded with gold medal." The same process of killing. But at another time, when there is no war, if you kill one person you'll be hanged. The killing process is the same, but the judgement is given by the greatest authority, the government. "This is all right, this is not right." Therefore, standard of morality means to abide by the orders of the greatest authority. That is standard of morality. This is the conclusion. You cannot make your own morality. No. If Kṛṣṇa says "This is all right," then it is all right. Otherwise, it is not.

Lecture on BG 2.32 -- London, September 2, 1973:

If you want to drink water, simply if you chant "water, water, water," your thirst will not be satisfied. But in spiritual world, the absolute world, the name and the person is the same. Otherwise, why we stress so much on chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa name? Not we, it is in the śāstra. Harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma eva kevalam, kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā (CC Adi 17.21). This is shastric. But there are many rascals. They give the example, that "Chanting, what is the benefit? I can chant 'soda water, soda water,' like that." But they do not know, rascals, what is the śāstra's injunction. And actually, it is happening. But they are blind. How these European, American boys and girls, simply by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra they are becoming purified? How? Unless there is spiritual potency in chanting, how they are becoming so purified? Even in..., so-called Hindus they are surprised that "How these Europeans and Americans they have become so nice devotees." The chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra has got the power, has got the potency.

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

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

(CC Antya 20.12)

Everything is there, formula. If we follow the regulative principles, the injunction of the ācāryas or the śāstra, then we get success. Otherwise we may simply labor unnecessarily, wasting time. Yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ (BG 16.23). That is said in the Bhagavad-gītā. One who does not follow the regulative principle mentioned in the śāstras, śāstra-vidhim..., vidhim means regulative principle. Yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ, and lives whimsically, as he, whatever he likes, and that is sanctioned by some rascal swami, that, "Oh, yes, you can do whatever you like..." Yato mata tato patha. "You can manufacture your way of religious principle." These things are going on.

Lecture on BG 2.39 -- London, September 12, 1973:

There is the buddhi-yoga, one word, and here is also the buddhi-yoga. So what is that buddhi-yoga? Kṛṣṇa says, teṣāṁ satata-yuktānām: "Persons who are twenty-four hours engaged," satata... Satata means always. Engaged. What kind of engagement? Bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam. This engagement means always trying to render some service to the Lord. How? Prīti-pūrvakam: "with love and faith." Not that "Oh, I have to do it? All right, let me do." No. "Oh, I have to do it? Let me do it nicely." Unless there is love, you cannot do it nicely, any matter. In the material world also, unless you have got some attachment for something, you cannot act it very nicely. Just like a musician. Because one has got a good attachment for music, he tries to perform it very perfectly. So love is the basis. Similarly, when you serve Kṛṣṇa, if you have no love for Kṛṣṇa, you cannot serve Him very nicely. And Kṛṣṇa also does not accept your service if it is not done in great love and affection. That is the basic principle. Kṛṣṇa does not require your service. He is self-sufficient. He has got many servants anywhere and everywhere. So Kṛṣṇa does not require our service. It is our interest. If we render service to Kṛṣṇa, then we become happy. That is the profit. Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam (BG 10.10).

Lecture on BG 2.40-45 -- Los Angeles, December 13, 1968:

Prabhupāda: No, 45.

Devotee: "The Vedas mainly deal with the subject of the three modes of material nature. Rise above these modes, O Arjuna. Be transcendental to all of them. Be free from all dualities and from all anxieties for gain and safety."

Prabhupāda: Yes. As soon as we are... This world is of duality. Duality means you cannot understand one thing without understanding the other. Just like light. You have no conception of light without the conception of darkness. This is called duality. Good—unless you have experienced bad, you cannot understand good. Father—unless there is a son, there is no meaning of father. Husband—unless there is wife, there is no meaning of husband. This is called duality. This world is duality. So we have to rise above this dual world and enter into the absolute world. Then there will be happiness. That's all right. Thank you. So any questions?

Guest: Uh, I heard it said that you have perfect enlightenment. If this is true, I'd like to know what does that mean?

Prabhupāda: That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Lecture on BG 2.46-62 -- Los Angeles, December 16, 1968:

The same example. Because they see that the sunshine is spreading all over the universe, therefore it is more important, greater than the sun planet. But actually it is not. The simple truth. And if you go into the sun planet you will find Vivasvān the sun-god is there. The sun planet is so dazzling due to his presence. Similarly, with all impersonal conception, when you reach Kṛṣṇa, then you reach to the goal. There are so many crude examples. Just like your country. There are so many departmental government businesses going on. This department, that department, all over the country. The whole thing is concentrate in the President. How can I deny it? The everything is going on on the finger's end of the President. This is a crude example. Similarly, ultimately, unless there is the Supreme Person on the background... That, Hayagrīva has brought one book, Evidence of God. So the many scientists they have written in that book, and they have agreed that if God is there, He must be person. He must be person. Is not that, Hayagrīva?

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

Yes. Because after all, however tractor, machine, or farm arrangement you may make, unless there is supply of heat and water, it is all useless. You cannot produce grains just like wheat or rice or pulses(?) in your factory or by your will, defying the nature's law. Oh, that you cannot do. Real, your life is in the hands of the demigods. If they stop supply, sunshine, if they stop supply, water supply, how you can produce? Therefore you have to satisfy them. People have practically forgotten their duty.

(indistinct) ...and regulations, there is no scarcity. The modern theory—the population has increased—this is a nonsense theory. If there is production is sufficient, where is the question of population increasing? Let population increase. The supplier will give you. In the Vedic literature we find, eko bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān. That Supreme Lord is supplying everyone food. Why do you think of human society? What is the human society? Out of 8,400,000 forms of life there are only 400,000 forms of human life. And 8,000,000 forms they are lower animals, birds, beasts, aquatics. Who is supplying their foodstuff? Everyone is sumptuously fed by the grace of God.

Why not you? You are suffering because you are disobeying, therefore you are suffering. That you should know, only the suffering population theory, this theory, that theory, only in the human society because they are regularly defying the existence of God—science, science, science. Now there are so many suffering people. Why your science cannot provide them food? So this is wrong theory. You have to satisfy the supreme supplier. Then you'll get sufficient production and you'll be happy. Go on.

Lecture on BG 3.31-43 -- Los Angeles, January 1, 1969:

Regulating, how can you regulate the senses? Not by artificial means. The yoga practice, of course, is meant for controlling the senses but nobody can practice in this age perfectly yoga, neither one can control the senses. But this is practically. Just like our sense, tongue. We want to taste very palatable dishes. Now you supply palatable Kṛṣṇa prasādam. You forget going to hotel immediately. This sort of process is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We don't simply prohibit that "You don't do this," but we supply something which is engaged by the senses and the mind, the intelligence, so that you do not require to be engaged otherwise.

Positive and negative. Simply negative is no good unless there is positive engagement. So there is no question of negative. Negative is already there. If you taking nice foodstuff, automatically you give up obnoxious and nonsense foodstuff. But if I say, "Don't take this foodstuff. This is not good," and if I don't supply you nice foodstuff, naturally you are hungry; you will have to take whatever is there.

Just like sometimes you have seen the dogs? They are eating stool, their own stool. So I was talking this. One of my students told me that in the last war in the concentrated camp, the human being, they also ate their stool out of hunger. You see? There was no food, so they ate their own stool. So when there is no opportunity of good occupation, one must be satisfied with nonsense occupation. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so nice that one who is occupied with this movement, he cannot go any more to so-called lusty and other nonsense occupation. Go on.

Lecture on BG 4.6-8 -- New York, July 20, 1966:

I mean to say, earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and ego—these eight, these eight kinds of material nature, they are, and they have been described as aparā. Aparā means inferior. And beyond this eight nature, there is another ninth nature. And which is that? Now, jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho: these living entities. That is the living force. The living force, that is superior nature and this matter is inferior nature. And the whole world is moving due to the superior nature, not the material, inferior nature.

Just like this tape recorder... There was some difficulty in running on. So as soon as some superior nature, some living entity comes and touches it, it goes on. Although the machine is all right, so unless there is touch of the superior nature, it cannot work. You have manufactured many wonderful machines. You have manufactured the sputnik, flying in the outer space, but do you know that, in spite of all wonderful mechanical arrangement of sputnik or any machine, can it go on without any touch of a man? No. Unless the man in the laboratory touches the switch of electronic machine, oh, the sputnik cannot fly in the space. That is not possible. Therefore however wonderful may be the sputnik machine, unless there is touch of the living force, it cannot go on. That is the distinction between superior nature and the inferior nature. You can understand.

Now, we are now in contact with inferior nature. That is our conditional life. We are also su... Actually, as spirit soul, we belong to the superior nature. Just like God is superior nature. Prakṛtiṁ svām adhiṣṭhāya. The Lord says that "I come down, I incarnate Myself in My superior nature." Svām adhiṣṭhāya. But what is our position? Although we belong to the superior nature, we have come to this material world not in superior nature, but we are in contact with the inferior nature. Therefore death takes place.

Lecture on BG 4.9-11 -- New York, July 25, 1966:

So similarly, this world, in the Fifteenth Chapter it is described there, the obverted tree. That means the real tree is there. The real tree is there.

Just like the example is given... I have several times..., that the impersonalists, they describe this world as false, as false. But simply describing this world as false is not sufficient. What is the reality we must know. The... Generally the example is cited that in the darkness when you see a curling rope, you misunderstand it that it is a snake. But actually it is not the snake. Now, this conception of a snake comes wherefrom? Unless there is a real snake, how you can see that it is a snake? That rope is false. That's all right. That rope is not snake, but there is real snake. Otherwise, how you get the conception of the snake? Just try to follow it. Without having the real snake, you cannot get this conception of snake.

Similarly, we say that this world is false, or shadow. The shadow, without being the reality, how there can be possibility of shadow? If there is no reality of my hand, how the shadow of the hand can be there? So this world is temporary shadow. That is accepted. But there is the real world which has no destruction. This world is destructive. It will be dissolved. Just like our body is temporary, but it will be dissolved. Anything material that has got a birth, a stay for some time, a byproduct, a growth, a dwindling, and then vanish. That is the nature, anything. Just like this body. It was born from the mother's womb at a certain time, and it is staying for some time. It is staying for some time, and the body has got some byproducts, like children. We have got some children, the byproducts. Then it is dwindling. Just like I am getting older. Anyone, everyone, we are getting older. And at the last, it will vanish. Similarly, the whole material world, it has a time of its appearance, it grows, it makes so many varieties of byproducts, it dwindles and again vanishes.

Lecture on BG 4.10 Festival at Maison de Faubourg -- Geneva, May 31, 1974:

And the spiritual nature is yourself, the spirit soul, the living force, which is sustaining these material bodies. So both these natures, the material nature and the spiritual nature, they are different energies of God. Just like the fire has got two energies, namely, the heat and light, similarly, God has got two nature. One is called material nature and the other is called spiritual nature. So this cosmic manifestation which we experience is combination of material nature and spiritual nature. The material nature is called inferior nature, and the spiritual nature is called the superior nature. The material nature is inferior because the superior nature living entity controls over it. We have got experience. Just like a big machine, computer, or any other machine, it is combination of matter, but it cannot work independently until and unless there is touch of the spiritual nature, a human being. The big airplane is floating in the... (break) ...I mean to say, mechanical arrangement. But unless there is the pilot, it cannot work. Similarly, you try to understand that this material nature, cosmic manifestation, however wonderful it may be, unless there is direction of the Supreme Being, it is useless. So if you have understood the difference between material nature and the spiritual nature, then try to understand that as you have got experience of this material nature, there is another nature, another sky, another planetary system, everything another. That is all made of spiritual nature.

Lecture on BG 4.13-14 -- New York, August 1, 1966:

We find in the present social, I mean to say, status of our life, we are actually existing in four divisions, but there is no cooperation. Practically, everyone is dissatisfied. Take for example the strife between the capitalist class and the laborer class. They, they are trying in different way. There is no compromise. There is always friction. And especially in a country like India, oh, there is always friction, and other countries also. So they are not satisfied. Recently also, in your country also, there was strike by the bus drivers and the subway drivers and administration. So there is always strike. Why? This is due to lack of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is due to lack of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There cannot be any cooperation unless there is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is an essential fact for harmonizing even the present material society. That is required. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so important thing, that cooperation...

The same example can be said here also, that the leg, the hands, and the belly and the mouth—what they are? They are cooperating. Cooperating for what? Cooperating for maintaining this body. This is the common interest. And how it is cooperated? To supply everything to the stomach. The brain is working, earning some money, the hand is fetching something and cooking, and the mouth is chewing, and the leg is going, but the whole function is targeted to fulfill the demands of the stomach. If these parts of the body non-cooperate with the stomach, they'll become feeble and weak and there will be no capacity to work.

Lecture on BG 4.24 -- Bombay, April 13, 1974:

So here Kṛṣṇa says that everything can be converted into Brahman. It is a fact, sarvaṁ khalv idaṁ brahma. Now how to realize? That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā very nicely. Just like Kṛṣṇa says.... Everything is Kṛṣṇa. Now how to realize? Kṛṣṇa says.... Those who are not very advanced, they have been advised to understand Kṛṣṇa, how? Raso 'ham apsu kaunteya: (BG 7.8) "My dear Arjuna, I am the taste of the water." Begin like that.

Raso 'ham apsu kaunteya. Apsu, in liquid, any liquid thing, you have some taste. Otherwise how you drink the liquid things? You have got some.... Everything has got taste. The whole world is full of taste. Unless there is taste, nobody can be inclined to enjoy something, anything you take. Therefore sex life is called ādi-rasa, the original taste. So in the water, while we drink water or milk or even wine, any liquid thing, if you simply try to practice this, that "This taste, which I am enjoying, that is Kṛṣṇa," that begins Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is not very difficult. Everyone can do that.

If you cannot chant, if you cannot hear about Kṛṣṇa, if you cannot understand about Kṛṣṇa.... Because the devotional method is śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda-sevanam (SB 7.5.23). So to hear about Kṛṣṇa, it does not appeal to everyone. Kṛṣṇa is fighting in the battlefield of Kurukṣetra and Kṛṣṇa is playing on the courtyard of Yaśodāmāyi. There are so many description in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. So ordinary, less intelligent men, they cannot understand that the Para-brahman, Supreme Brahman, can crawl in the courtyard of Mother Yaśodā. It is very difficult for them to understand. Therefore the Tenth Canto of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, there is description of Kṛṣṇa's activities. Because unless one understands what is Kṛṣṇa, he is not interested in the activities of Kṛṣṇa. But those who are devotees, they know that Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's activities are one and the same, absolute. So if we cannot understand Kṛṣṇa.... Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He descends and plays in so many ways. If we simply hear about Kṛṣṇa, then that means we associate with Kṛṣṇa.

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

Madhudviṣa: "Satisfaction of the self-realized spiritual master is the secret of advancement in spiritual life. Inquiries in submission constitute the proper combination for spiritual understanding. Unless there is submission in service, inquiries from the learned spiritual master will not be effective. One must be able to pass the test of the spiritual master. And when the spiritual master sees the genuine desire of the disciple, he automatically blesses the disciple with genuine spiritual understanding. In this verse both blind following and absurd inquiries are condemned."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Blind following and absurd inquiries. These things are condemned in this verse. Blind following means: "Oh, there is a swami. So many thousands of people are following. Let me become his disciple." This is called blind following. You do not know what is that swami, whether he is a swami or a rascal. You do not know. But because everyone is going, "Oh, let me become his disciple." This is blind following, without any knowledge, blind following. The swami says that "You give me money. I make you immediately God." So this is blind following. And another thing, what it says? What? What is that? Blind following?

Madhudviṣa: Absurd inquiries.

Prabhupāda: And absurd inquiries. Absurd inquiries... Just like somebody goes to a so-called spiritual master. There are so many stories, that such-and-such person approached his spiritual master, and he asked his spiritual master, "Can you show me God?" And the spiritual master immediately showed him God. You see? This rascaldom is going on.

Lecture on BG 5.3-7 -- New York, August 26, 1966:

Now suppose you study very analytically these twenty-four elements. And what is the idea of studying these elemental, analytical study of this material world? Because we have to find out what is the main principle which is working behind these twenty-four elements. What is the main principle? Now, suppose I have got these senses, and suppose there are material elements, earth, water, fire, all these things are there. But are they sufficient by themselves? No. They are not sufficient by themselves. Unless that spirit soul is there, so they are lying down. Just take for example this land of America. It was lying, oh, vast land. Still you have got many lands vacant. So they are lying vacant. And so when the Europeans came there, they gradually developed. Now they nice. So simply these material elements has no value. Unless there is spiritual touch, there is no value.

So study of, analytical study of this material world, they are not sufficient by themselves. You have to find out the spiritual power behind it. So sannyāsa means, generally, the sannyāsa, those who have taken up the renounced order of life, they search after the Supreme Truth and make an analytical study of this material world. That is called sāṅkhya-yoga. Kṛṣṇa says, sāṅkhya-yoga... Sāṅkhya and yoga. And yoga means direct connection with the Lord, direct connection with the Lord. Just like in the darkness. In dark, in the darkness, you cannot see anything. Suppose your room is closed and dark. You cannot see anything. But when you come to the light, you come to the sunlight, then you can see yourself and everything very nicely. So yoga, this word yoga, means to come in direct touch with the absolute light or Absolute Truth. That is called yoga. So by analytical, analytical study of this material world, that is not sufficient. Unless you come in direct touch with the Supreme Absolute Truth, this knowledge has no value. This knowledge has no value. If you want, you can study anything, any straw in the street. You can make a very analytical study of the straw. But that sort of knowledge has no value unless you come to the point of our spiritual existence.

Lecture on BG 6.13-15 -- Los Angeles, February 16, 1969:

That made him so determined, that "I shall drive away these Britishers from the land of India," and he did it. You see? And actually he did it. So controlling the sex life, to refrain from sex life is so powerful. Even if you don't do anything, if you simply restrain your sex life, you become a very powerful man. People do not know the secret. So anything you do, if you want to do it with determination, you have to stop sex life. That is the secret.

So any process take Vedic process. Either you take yoga process or bhakti process or jñāna process, in no process sex indulgence is allowed, no. Sex indulgence is only allowed, family life, just to beget very nice children. That's all. Sex life is not for sense enjoyment. Although there is enjoyment by nature. Unless there is enjoyment, why one should take responsibility for family life. That is the secret of nature's gift. But we should not take advantage of it. These are the secrets of life. These are the secrets of life. So yoga practice, such a nice thing. If you indulge in sex life, this is simply nonsense. Simply nonsense. And if anyone says that you go on with your sex life as much as you like, at the same time you become a yogi, simply pay my fees. I give you some mantra. These are all nonsense. All nonsense. But we want to be cheated. We want to be cheated. We want something sublime very cheap. That means we want to be cheated. If you want very nice thing you must pay for it. "No. I shall go to a store, Sir, I can pay you ten cents, you give me the best thing for it." How can you expect for ten cent? If you want to purchase some valuable, if you want to purchase gold, then you have to pay for it. Similarly if you want perfection in yoga practice, then you have to pay for it like this. Don't make it childish affair. That is the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā. If you make it childish affair then you'll be cheated. And so many cheaters are waiting to cheat you and take your money and go away. That's all. Here is the statement, authoritative statement. Free from sex life. One should meditate upon Me. And ultimately, where is the meditation. Not in void. Just on Viṣṇu, this Viṣṇu form. That is sāṅkhya-yoga.

Lecture on BG 6.21-27 -- New York, September 9, 1966:

So these things require intelligence. Intelligence. Sukham ātyantikaṁ yat tat buddhi-grāhyam atīndriyam (BG 6.21). Atīndriyam. Atīndriyam means you have to transcend these material senses. Then you can actually appreciate what is happiness.

Just like the other day I explained the happiness of the yogis. Ramante yoginaḥ anante satyānande cid-ātmani (CC Madhya 9.29). Ramante yoginaḥ anante. The yogis, those who are transcendentalists aspiring after spiritual life, they are called yogis: bhakti-yogī, jñāna-yogī, dhyāna-yogī. There are so many departments of yogis. Now, they also enjoy. The whole process is to concentrate upon the viṣṇu-mūrti, Viṣṇu form, within the heart. And unless there is pleasure, there is no enjoyment, what is the use of controlling the senses and focusing the mind on the Supreme Supersoul within the heart? There is pleasure. What sort of pleasure that is? That pleasure is ananta. Ananta means endless. Endless. Yoginaḥ. Yoginaḥ. Ramante yoginaḥ anante. Anante means that pleasure is not endless. That pleasure, why it is not ended? Because spirit is eternal and the Supreme Lord is eternal, therefore reciprocation of their loving exchanges, they are eternal. They are eternal. The living spirit is eternal, the Lord is eternal, and their exchange of feelings, or loving feelings, that is also eternal. So one who is intelligent, they should refrain from this sensual enjoyment of this material body which is flickering, which is not in essence, and should seek such enjoyment of spiritual life. That is called rāsa-līlā. You have heard about Lord Kṛṣṇa's rāsa-līlā. That is not ordinary exchange of feelings of this material body. That is exchange of feelings of the spiritual body. So sukham ātyantikaṁ yat tad buddhi-grāhyam (BG 6.21). One has to use his intelligence to understand what is real happiness. Foolish man cannot understand what is real happiness. Intelligent. So as soon as one becomes intelligent... The next śloka will describe it. Vetti yatra na caivāyaṁ sthitaś calati tattvataḥ. One who does not know what is real happiness, they are seeking happiness in this material world.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- San Francisco, March 17, 1968:

You do not know that Kṛṣṇa is original father and we are all sons. The tree is my brother, the ant is my brother, the bull is my brother, the American is my brother, the Indian is my brother, the Chinese my brother. This is universal. Therefore you have to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness before you talk of this nonsense universal brotherhood and this United Nations and all this nonsense. These are useless talks if you have no idea how to think of universal brotherhood or United Nations. Useless. Therefore they are talking for years, years. Still, they are the same fools. Don't you see? The United Nations, they have got their headquarters here. Simply talking nonsense. That's all. That is their business.

So unless there is full-fledged Kṛṣṇa consciousness, there cannot by any improvement of the world situation. You have to learn it. So how to do that? Kṛṣṇa says, mayy āsakta-manāḥ. You have to develop your attachment for Kṛṣṇa. Begin it. Now, begin, not begin it. That is a very difficult job. But you can do it. It is difficult. Just as we have got a few students here, sincere students, both boys and... They are developing. If not complete, but they are developing, Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise, why they shall waste their time in chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa? They are developing. And it can be developed. You can develop love for anything if you try for it. But Kṛṣṇa development, Kṛṣṇa conscious development is very natural because Kṛṣṇa is not a thing belonging to a particular type of religion or sect or society. Kṛṣṇa claims that "I belong to everyone." Therefore, originally, you are all connected with Kṛṣṇa. Simply you have forgotten.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Bombay, January 13, 1973:

Eko 'py asau racayitum. Just like this body has developed. How it has developed? Because the spirit soul is there. The spirit soul is injected by the semina of the father, and it is put within the womb of the mother. And then the two secretions develops into small body, like a pea, and that develops, gradually. When the development is complete, on the seventh month, the child moves. His sense, consciousness, comes. He's in the dreaming condition then. In the beginning, he's unconscious. Suṣupti. Then dreaming condition. He returns to his consciousness. And then he wants to come out. And then, in due course of time, at the end of ten months, the child comes out. This is the process of bodily construction, material bodily construction. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha upapattaye (SB 3.31.1). This is the beginning of body. So a dead child, coming out, does not grow because the soul is not there.

So unless the soul is there... There are so many instances. A very nice, big machine, aeroplane, 747, but if there is no pilot, who will drive it? The machine is worthless unless there is the pilot. Similarly this is also machine, this body. Yantrārūḍhāni māyayā (BG 18.61). Īśvara... (break) ...yantra... (end)

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Hyderabad, April 27, 1974:

There is lack of brāhmaṇa. There is lack of kṣatriya and vaiśya.

So in Bhagavad-gītā we'll find all the solutions of the human problems, all the solutions. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). Unless you divide the whole human society into four divisions, the brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya and śūdra... You must have to divide. You cannot say "classless society." That is useless society. Classless society means useless society. There must be an intelligent high class, ideal class of men to see the "Here is human civilization." That is brāhmaṇa. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma... (BG 4.13). Unless people see the ideal men, how they will follow? Yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhaḥ, lokas tad anuvartate (BG 3.21). The brāhmaṇa is compared with the brain of the body. Unless there is brain, what is the use of these hands and legs? If one's brain is cracked, madman, he cannot do anything. So at the present moment, because there is scarcity of brahminical qualified men in the whole human society... It is not meant... Brāhmaṇa is not meant for simply for India of Hindus. For the whole human society. Kṛṣṇa never says that the cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭam (BG 4.13) is meant for India, or for Hindus, or for a class of men. For whole human society, there must be a very ideal intellectual man, so that people will follow. Brain, brain of the society. That is the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā. You cannot say that "We can do without brain." Suppose from your body if the brain is cut off, your head is cut off, then you are finished. What the hands and legs will do if there is brain, if there is no brain? So at the present moment there is scarcity of brain in the whole human society. Therefore, it is in the chaotic condition. So there is need, as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. The human society, the whole human civilization, must be reformed in this way, that there are intellectual class of men, naturally. There are first-class intellectual class of men, second-class intellectual, third-class, fourth-class, like that. So the first-class intellectual man, they must be brāhmaṇas, in the brahminical qualification, and they must be Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then they can guide the whole society in the right way, and there will be no problem.

Lecture on BG 7.2 -- San Francisco, September 11, 1968:

Everywhere, wherever you want to receive something, you have to be controlled or you have to be surrendered to the rules and regulation. Just like in our class we are imparting some lessons from the Bhagavad-gītā, and if you do not follow the rules and regulations of this class, it is not possible to receive the knowledge. Similarly, the full knowledge of the controller and the process of controlling can be understood when one is surrendered like Arjuna to Kṛṣṇa. Unless one is surrendered soul, it is not possible. You always remember that Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna surrendered himself to Kṛṣṇa. Śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ prapannam (BG 2.7). So therefore Kṛṣṇa is also speaking to him.

Actually, these discussions of scripture is not to be acted unless there is relationship between the speaker and the audience. So audience means the disciples. Disciple means who accepts the discipline. Śiṣya. Śiṣya. The exact Sanskrit word is śiṣya. A śiṣya means... There is a verb, Sanskrit verb, which is called śās. Śās means controlling. From śās, the "śāstra" comes. Śāstra means controlling books. And from śas, śastra. Śastra means weapons. When argument fails, reason fails... Just like the state controls. First of all they give you the laws. If you break the laws, if you don't follow the regulation books, means śāstra, then next step is śastra. Śastra means weapons. If you don't follow the regulation of the government, keep to the right, then there is police batons—śastra. You have to be controlled. If you are gentleman, then you be controlled under the instruction of the śāstras. And if you are defying, then there is trident of Durgādevī. You have seen Durgādevī, the picture, trident, threefold miseries. You cannot, I mean to say, violate any rules and regulations; as of the state, similarly of the supreme state Kṛṣṇa. It is not possible. Just take for example there are some health rules. If we eat more, then you will be controlled by some disease. You'll have indigestion and the doctor will advise you not to eat three days. So there is control—by nature. Nature means God's law. Automatically working. Foolish people do not see God's law, but there is God's law. The sun is rising just exactly in the time, the moon is rising exactly in the time. The first year, first January, has come exactly in time.

Lecture on BG 7.5 -- Bombay, February 20, 1974:

The whole material planets, earthly planets, you have 25,000 miles, and this is rotating. Similarly every planet is rotating. The sun is also rotating. Yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakraḥ. The sun is also having a duration of life, and it will rotate, then it will be finished. Everything in the material world, it has got a date of birth, it lives for some time, it grows or changes the body, and produces some by-products, then dwindles, and then vanishes. This is called ṣaḍ-vikāra, six kind of changes of anything material. That is called jagat. Gacchati. But there is a moving force. Just like the motorcar is going, gacchati. But the motorcar is not moving without any driver. There is a machine, first-class machine, Rolls-Royce car, Cadillac car, good machine, but the machine is useless unless there is a driver. The aeroplane is moving, but without the pilot it cannot move. Therefore material elements, however, I mean to say, wonderful it may be, it has no value without the spirit soul. That is the explanation here. Apareyam.

Kṛṣṇa has explained the material elements: bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). But these material elements cannot work independently. It must be added with the superior energy, or the living energy, jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat (BG 7.5). This Bombay city is important because there are so many living entities. Otherwise, where there are no living entities... Even in Bombay, there are some open land. What is the value? There is no value. Therefore the conclusion should be that material elements may be wonderful, but it has no value without the touch of living entities. The modern scientists, they cannot understand that there is living, spiritual energy behind this material energy. Therefore it is moving. They are... Just like a child cannot understand that the motorcar or the aeroplane is moving because there is driver and the pilot. Foolish children may think, "Oh, how the motorcar is going on?" The motorcar is not going on independently. That the child does not know. Therefore, those who have no information of the spiritual energy behind the material energy, they are children, foolish children. Mūḍha. They have been described as mūḍha.

Lecture on BG 9.1 -- Vrndavana, April 17, 1975:

What is that? Can you remember? Tatala seikate vari-bindu-sama, suta-mitā-ramaṇi-samāje. Suta-mitā-ramaṇi-samāje.(?) The exact English equivalent is "society, friendship and love." Everyone is busy—society, family, friends, country, nation, community, in this way, suta-mitā-ramaṇi-samāje. And what is the composition? Now, children, suta; mitā means friends; and ramaṇi, some woman. If they are beautiful woman, that is also very nice. So they are busy. They are busy. The other day we had been guest in Hyderabad. He is very busy with this suta-mitā-ramaṇi-samāje. Everyone is. Everyone is busy with suta-mitā-ramaṇi-samāje.

So somebody can say, "Unless there is happiness, why people should be interested?" There is happiness certainly. So that happiness is compared by Vidyāpati, the great Vaiṣṇava poet, that it is just like tatala seikate vari-bindu sama.(?) Just like desert. You have seen desert. Desert means it requires huge quantities of water. Nowadays, practically, in every country, especially in India, every land is just like desert for want of water. So you see in Vṛndāvana so much land lying vacant, no agriculture. Why? There is want of water. There is no sufficient supply of water. So in this way, if there is scarcity of water, then gradually these places will be converted into desert. Converted into desert. So the "desert" word is used because it requires huge quantity of water. Similarly, we are, in this material world, we are trying to be happy in the society, friendship and love. Suta-mitā-ramaṇi-samāje. But the happiness we are getting, that is compared with a drop of water in the desert. If in the vast desert, Arabian desert, if we say that "We want water," and somebody brings a drop of water and take it, it will be very insignificant, has no meaning.

Lecture on BG 9.4-7 -- New York, November 24, 1966:

The Lord says, mayādhyakṣeṇa. Mayādhyakṣeṇa means "under My superintendence. Under My superintendence." So material nature cannot play such wonderful things unless there is hand behind it, the Lord's hand. That is to be accepted. You cannot see. You cannot give an example where material things are automatically working. You have no such example in your experience. Matter is inert. Without spiritual touch, there is no possibility of acting. Matter cannot act automatically. Just like you take for example a nice arrangement of machine, wonderful, but unless a person touches that machinery, it cannot work. It cannot work. And what is that person? That person is spirit, the driver, the engineer. He's a spirit. So without spiritual touch, oh, nothing can move. It is simply ignorance that we say that matter is moving automatically. No, that is not possible. You cannot show any example within your experience or in the history that matter is moving automatically, no.

So the Lord says that "All these planets, all this universe, they are resting on My impersonal energy." So His energy is impersonal, but He is person. He is person. We have so many examples in our experience that a person, by his energy, he can play wonders, by his energy. But still, the person remains as person. Because he is expanding energy in various ways, he does not become imperson. So if a ordinary man in this world, he can expand his energy in various ways and at the same time, he can remain a person, why not the Supreme Personality of Godhead? So that, that impersonal feature of the Lord is His energy. But the Lord Himself is a person. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). Just, just like we are persons, so He is also person. But He is the Supreme Person. We are all dependent person. That is the difference. He's the Supreme Person.

Lecture on BG 9.10 -- Calcutta, June 29, 1973:

Therefore Kṛṣṇa says: mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ sūyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). It is Kṛṣṇa who has entered this material world and He is supervising all the actions and reactions of this material world. Therefore it is moving. Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ. Prakṛti has no power. These rascals, foolish persons, they are thinking that the prakṛti is working automatically. No, that is not possible. Prakṛti is jaḍa. Jaḍa-prakṛti. Jaḍa-prakṛti. Without any sense. The motor car has got the wheels, the machine, everything, but it has no sense. So unless there is a sensible driver there, it cannot move. Very plain truth. Anyone can understand. But we are so foolishly educated that we do not accept this fact. We say that: "Matter is the cause of life. We do not accept this theory that life is the cause of matter." Because they are atheistic persons. As soon as they accept that life is the cause of matter, they have to accept God. Immediately. Immediately they have to accept God.

So these atheistic persons, in order to avoid Kṛṣṇa consciousness, in order to avoid Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Person, they push forward this theory that life is caused by matter. But that is not the fact. There are many instances. We can give many instances that life produces matter. Life... I can give you one small example. Just take, for example, one lemon tree. Lemon tree, it is also a living entity. Because there are eight million four hundred thousand species of living entities. Jalajā nava-lakṣāṇi sthāvarā lakṣa-viṁśati. Sthāvarāḥ means these trees, plants, creepers. They are two millions of varieties. So this ordinary lemon tree is producing so many lemons. And the lemon means citric acid. So if you take all these lemons, and take their juice, so one ordinary lemon tree produces tons of citric acid. It is a small living entity.

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

Another process is you become a devotee of Vāsudeva, then jñāna, vairāgya, will automatically come. You'll... Because the human life, the perfection of human life is to accept jñāna and vairāgya. That is perfection. In our Vedic civilization, this is the process, perfection. There are different stages of life. Brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, sannyāsa. So what is the sannyāsa law? Sannyāsa means perfection. Jñāna and vairāgya. Who can take sannyāsa, renounced order, unless he has got full knowledge? As Śaṅkarācārya explains, brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā. Unless one understands fully that "Our these material engagements, they are simply waste of time." He can attain perfection knowledge. Jñāna-vairāgya-yuktāya (SB 1.2.12). Unless there is perfection of knowledge, jñāna, there cannot be vairāgya. And unless there is vairāgya, unless you become detestful of this material existence, there is no question of liberation. Jñāna-vairāgya-yuktāya.

So this jñāna and vairāgya can be achieved simply by becoming a devotee of Vāsudeva. That is the verdict of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Vāsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ, janayaty āśu vairāgyam (SB 1.2.7). Āśu vairāgya, very soon. Just like these boys, these American, these European boys, they are young men. Now they have taken sannyāsa and dedicated their life for service of Kṛṣṇa. They are vairāgya. They are coming from opulent nation, very rich men, rich nation. Their parents are very rich. There is no scarcity of food. There is no scarcity of money. There is no scarcity of women in the western countries. But they have left everything. Simply boys. They are all within thirty. How much a young man may have propensities for enjoying this material way of life! And when there is facilities. But how they have taken to it? This is the proof.

Lecture on BG 9.27-29 -- New York, December 19, 1966:

This śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam (SB 7.5.23), the class which we are holding, that you are hearing and I am speaking, this is the beginning of love of God. Unless we hear of God, ādau śraddhā. You gentlemen, ladies, you come here with some faith. So this faith is the basis of developing love. Ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu-saṅgo 'tha bhajana-kriyā tato 'nartha-nivṛttiḥ syāt (Cc. Madhya 23.14-15). So we have forgotten our relationship with Kṛṣṇa. Therefore there is no question of love at the present moment. But we can develop this love by this process, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam. Bhajanti. Bhajanti means bhakti. Bhakti. The beginning of bhakti, or devotional service, is to hear, is to chant and hear. Unless there is chanting, there is no question of hearing. Hear means somebody must be chanting. Either we chant with musical sound or we chant by lectures of Bhagavad-gītā, this is all chanting. And the others, they are hearing. So this hearing and chanting is the beginning of bhakti, or devotional service. Here it is recommended, ye tu bhajanti māṁ bhaktyā. Anyone who with devotional love begins this service of hearing and chanting... Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇam. Smaraṇam. Smaraṇam means remembering, smaraṇam.

Lecture on BG 10.8 -- New York, January 6, 1967:

This is universal. As soon as you become Kṛṣṇa conscious, as soon as you become God conscious, then your real universal, ideal, universal consciousness develops. Otherwise it is all simply jugglery. There are so many doctrines of universal love, universal friendship, fraternity, but they are fighting, and they are killing simply, because there is no God consciousness. If you are universal, if you are after universal love, then how you can maintain regular slaughterhouse? How you can think that an American gentleman or lady is your countryman and not a cow, and not a goat, not a serpent? Where is your universal idea?

So unless there is development of God consciousness, this universal ideas, oh, these are nonsense. There cannot be. It is all false, jugglery of words. So first business is to understand your identity, identity of God, your relationship, and your action reformed in that way. Then there is question of universal, brotherhood, universal... Otherwise it is simply jugglery of words.

If you are thinking of universal way, how you can give protection to a human being born in America, and send a cow to the slaughterhouse. What is your reason?

Lecture on BG 13.18 -- Bombay, October 12, 1973:

There is a small machine. You'll find it. As soon as it is heated, within that machine the balls begin to rotate. Similarly, the certain temperature of the sunshine, the whole planetary system is rotating on the orbit, on account of the sunshine. This is scientifically true. And because there is sunshine, there is vegetation, there is water, there is rainfall, and from the rainfall, there is agricultural products.

So as the sunshine is the cause of all material variegatedness, similarly, the sunshine is also due to the brahma-jyotir. The sunshine, yac cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇām. The sun is described in the Brahma-saṁhitā as the eyes of all the planets. Yac cakṣur eṣa, eṣa sakala-grahāṇāṁ cakṣuḥ. The sun is the actual eyes for all the planets because unless there is sunshine you cannot see. We are very much proud of our eyes. Sometimes we challenge, "Can you show me God?" But he does not think that what power his eyes have got. It is simply completely dependant on the sunshine. If there is no sunshine his so called eyes are useless. Still, with that useless eyes he wants to see God. Just see. "Can you show me God? I am not seeing God, Therefore God cannot be seen. Therefore I don't believe in God." But he does not think that what power he has got to see. It is only dependant on sunshine. Not only this planet, all the planets, unless there is sunshine... Because it is darkness. This material world is simply darkness.

Lecture on BG 13.19 -- Bombay, October 13, 1973:

Kṛṣṇa's another name is Śyāmasundara. He's blackish, but very beautiful. Generally, we don't like to see blackish people. But Kṛṣṇa is so nice. Although He's blackish, He's kandarpa-koṭi-kamanīya. Barhāvataṁsam asitāmbuda-sundarāṅgam. These are described in the Vedic literature. Although He's blackish, He is more beautiful than millions of millions of cupids. Kandarpa-koṭi-kamanīya. So Kṛṣṇa is so beauty. That is His Godliness. Because beauty is also... We don't worship nirākāra. Beautiful, the most beautiful. The most beautiful. Kṛṣṇa is the most beautiful, Rādhārāṇī is the most beautiful. Couple, young couple. Our object of worship when we see how nice Rādhārāṇī, how nice Kṛṣṇa, beauty. Yes.

Wherefrom the beauty worship has come in this material world unless there is beauty in the original form, Kṛṣṇa and Rādhārāṇī? So God cannot be nirākāra. Otherwise, why this beauty worship has come? What you'll say? Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). The Vedānta-sūtra says. Whatever you see within this world, there is origin. It is only reflection. It is only reflection. Just like in the mirror, there is reflection of your beautiful face, and it looks beautiful because the face is beautiful. If the face is ugly, the reflection will be ugly.

So everything is there in God. Aham ādir hi devānām (BG 10.2). Another place, Kṛṣṇa says, mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavaḥ (BG 10.8). So Kṛṣṇa is the origin of everything. Mattaḥ sarvaṁ pravartate. "Everything emanates from Me." That is the answer to the Vedānta-sūtra, Brahma-sūtra, Brahma-sūtra. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). So the origin is there. The richness is there, the potency is there, the beauty is there, the riches is there, the knowledge is there, and the detachment is there. Just see.

Lecture on BG 16.2-7 -- Bombay, April 8, 1971:

Only (on) account of chanting this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. This is... They are now developing the daivī sampat. Daivī sampat means the characteristics by which they can make very easy progress for liberation and spiritual realization. That is called daivī sampat. As soon as one becomes a devotee, this daivī sampat automatically becomes manifested. Yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiñcanā sarvair guṇais tatra samāsate surāḥ (SB 5.18.12). As soon as one develops his original dormant love of God, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then all the good qualities becomes manifest. Because the good qualities are already there. This is the process. People are trying to make people very honest. But how they can be honest? Unless there is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, it is very difficult to become honest. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ. Mahad-guṇāḥ, good qualities, good characteristics, good behavior, moral qualities, cannot be developed if one is not Kṛṣṇa conscious. That is not possible. If people are simply paid to be Kṛṣṇa conscious, then the state will save so much expense. Because they have to maintain huge establishment to stop criminal activities. But if people become devotees, there will be no more criminal activities. That's a fact.

Therefore it is the duty of everyone to train everyone. Just like the parents. They should train their children to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. The state should encourage how people can become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then automatically all the good qualities will come. Now, actually, in the United States the government is realizing the importance of our movement because the government has failed to stop this intoxication habit, LSD. In the Western countries, the younger generation are becoming too much addicted to this intoxication, LSD habit, and it has become a problem to the government and they have established so many institutions to stop this habit, but they have failed. But they are seeing wonderful result amongst our camp, that simply coming to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they have given all intoxication. It is practical. They have given up. So some of the institutions, government, they are inviting us, that "How you can help?

Lecture on BG 16.8 -- Hawaii, February 4, 1975:

The material laws of material nature is not working blindly. That is a fact. Combination of material thing, a big, nice airship, is moving. It is combination of material things. There are iron, aluminium, wood, and petrol, so many other things, the combination of material things. But this combination of material things, if it is kept in one place, in many thousands of years it will not fly. It will not fly—the petrol is here; everything is there—unless the pilot is there. When the pilot comes he pushes the button. Then it becomes.

So these foolish, these atheistic persons, mūḍhas, they cannot see. There must be a spiritual touch. In spite of all electronic arrangement, unless there is a spiritual... The pilot is spiritual being. Unless he touches his finger, it is not moving. So how this gigantic material manifestation can work independently? They have no sense. Therefore they say, jagad āhur anīśvaram (BG 16.8). Anīśvaram: "There is no pilot. It is moving automatically." This is asuric conclusion. How it can move? Where is your experience that simply combination of material thing can move the machine? Where is your experience? How do you say like that? It is very common sense. Therefore Kṛṣṇa said these rascals, these demons, they say, jagad āhur anīśvaram: (BG 16.8) "There is no controller." He's thinking. The scientist thinking. He's practically doing in the laboratory, that he is a spiritual soul. He is mixing the chemicals, hydrogen, oxygen, acid and alkaline. He's mixing, and there is reaction. Then something is coming out. He's doing that. Still, he says, "There is no God." What is this foolishness? Why do they say like that? Therefore they are asuras. They do not admit the existence. Big, big chemist...

Lecture on BG 16.8 -- Hawaii, February 4, 1975:

They think like that. They are thinking everything is matter. No. There is good brain within the combination. That is explained in the Vedic literature. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur dehopapattaye (SB 3.31.1). This body is not coming accidentally by the sex intercourse. That is not the fact. The fact is karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa. Otherwise, why the same kind of body is not coming by material combination and permutation? Why there are different types of body? Why there is rich body? Why there is poor body? Why there is cat body? Why is dog body? Why there are varieties? That they cannot answer. If you say that "Simply by combination of matter the secretion of the man and woman emulsifies and takes another shape, and that secretion, discharge of matter, is due to lust," that is all right. But unless there is the living spark, soul, within that material combination, there is no pregnancy. The pregnancy will take place when there is actually living soul within this material creation, material combination, emulsification. That is the knowledge we get from Vedic sources. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha upapatti: (SB 3.31.1) "Jantuḥ, the living entity, is getting a type of body by the karma." It is not simply lusty combination. Because the living entity has got his karma, therefore one is born and Mr. Ford and one is born something else. It is due to karma. Otherwise, why he's born one rich and poor? There must be some consideration.

So that they do not find. They do not... They have no eyes to see. They simply see the superfluous combination, permutation. No. That superintendence is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ (BG 9.10). The Bhāgavata also says, daiva-netreṇa. Daiva-netreṇa means "under the leadership of the Supreme." As soon as one dies, gives up this body... He does not die; he changes the body. Now, the next body... Here is a duration of changing body.

Lecture on BG 16.10 -- Hawaii, February 6, 1975:

The living entities are maintained by God, and God is the maintainer. That is the difference. Eko yo bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān. We cannot maintain ourself. God maintains. Therefore, according to the Christian principle, they go to the church to beg bread from God.

Actually that is the fact. That is the fact. We are not independent. We are dependent on God in so many things. God has engaged the servant, the sun-god. He's also demigod. He is working under the order of the Supreme Lord. Yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kāla-cakraḥ. In the Vedic literature we get information of the sun-god on the sun planet. Yac-cakṣur eṣa savitā sakala-grahāṇām. The sun-god, or the sun planet, is the eye of all other planets. Because unless there is sunshine—you may be very proud of your tiny eyes—you cannot see. Therefore real eye is the sun, not your these balls, tiny balls. But still, we are so proud: "Can you show me God?" What, nonsense, what eyes you have got to see God? You cannot see yourself, and what to speak of seeing God?

So therefore it is said that dambha, false pride... Dambha-māna-madānvitāḥ. These asuras, these demons, the rascals, they are simply falsely proud. That's all. They have no possession of pride; still, they are proud. So, that... I was speaking about the sun. So Kṛṣṇa has given you the sunlight so that you can see. Kṛṣṇa has given you the nice breeze. Therefore you can live; you can breathe. Everything is dependent. We are dependent. Without light, without air, without rain or water, how we can live? So we are completely dependent, but on account of false prestige, less intelligence, we are thinking that we are free, we can... "I am God. I can do anything." This is demonic attitude. Completely being dependent, as soon as the death comes, immediately we have to leave this position. "Sir, let me stay for one hour more." "No, not even a minute." This is our position.