Very rich (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"very rich"

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Interview -- February 1, 1968, Los Angeles:

Interviewer: What are the basic beliefs of the Kṛṣṇa religion?

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa means God. So God, this word, does not explain the nomenclature of God. Now this Kṛṣṇa is Sanskrit word, and it conveys the full meaning of God. Kṛṣṇa means all-attractive. All-attractive means He is full of all opulences. In this world we are attracted by one who is very rich, we are attracted by one who is very famous, we are attracted by one who is very highly educated, we are attracted by someone who is very beautiful. Similarly, these are features of attraction. And when all these attractions are reposed in one place without any rivalry, He is God. That is the conception of God. So Kṛṣṇa means all these six opulences in fullness together. That is the full definition of God.

Radio Interview -- March 12, 1968, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: It is not for particularly selected the hippies' quarter, but the boys they found a cheaper place in that quarter. Therefore they occupied that place.

Interviewer: Cheapest place you could find.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Because we are not very rich institution. So we found it cheaper. So we selected it. It is not for the reason that because it is hippie quarter, therefore we selected it. No.

Interviewer: Actually, most hippies couldn't join your religion because they take drugs...

Prabhupāda: Yes, we are completely different from the hippies, because hippies they are addicted to sex and intoxication, and these things are completely forbidden in our temple.

Interviewer: You do perform wedding ceremonies?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Interviewer: What is your wedding ceremony like?

Prabhupāda: The same chanting, Hare Kṛṣṇa.

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Conversation Including Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.2.1-34 Recitation & Explanation -- April 1, 1969, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: If somebody comes to encroach upon your property, you kill him immediately. That is said. But not kill unnecessarily. Just like Arjuna was taught, "Kill them. They have insulted your wife, they have encroached upon your property. They must be killed." That is allowed. But you don't be aggressive. So ahāra-nidrā-bhaya, and sex, sex life. Yes. Just get yourself married and have sex life only for children. Not for other purposes. So kāmasya nendriya-prītiḥ. Kāma means we have got some demands of the body. That is called kāma or lust. So that does not mean that we have to gratify the senses. As far as necessary, we shall utilize it. Nendriya-prītiḥ. Then how to live? Now, kāmasya, that satisfaction of the senses should be allowed just to keep myself fit. I must live. Even if I become Kṛṣṇa consciousness, I must work. So that is allowed. But what is my... What is your main business? Jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā nārtho yaś ceha kārmabhiḥ. Your only business is to understand what you are, what God is, what is this world, what is your relationship. This is your main business. This is your main business. Not that you earn money and employ it for sense gratification, as it is going on in this materialistic way of life. Nobody is inquisitive to know what he is. How can he? Very big businessman or very rich man or so-called advancement, can you say what you are? What is your duty? Nobody can't. So that is the main business, that jīvasya tattva-jijñāsā nārtho yaś ceha kārmabhiḥ. By your... By the result of your activity... Or your main activity should be inquiring about your spiritual existence. So this should be our inquiry. I think we should stop here. Yes. (break) (devotees offer obeisances) Govinda dāsī? Where is Govinda dāsī? You take these two fruits, offer, cutting, and distribute prasāda.

Room Conversation -- April 11, 1969, New York:

Prabhupāda: Yes, you can... Because... Have you seen how the... You have no experience here in your country. Have you got any experience? But in India we have got experience how in the morning the cowboy takes some food from the mother and with the cows he goes to the field. The cows are let loose on the grazing ground. They are enjoying, and this cowboy is sometimes singing. The flute, Kṛṣṇa's flute is because He is cowboy. The cowboys still play in that flute. In India you'll find. Because the cows are let... They are doing their own work, and what this boy will do? They are playing. There are many cowherds boys, they are playing. Sometimes playing on flutes, sometimes sporting, sometimes eating. So Kṛṣṇa was exactly doing like that. All the cowboy friend went with Him. Kṛṣṇa was, of course, a very rich man's son. His father was very rich. So He used to take with Him very nice foodstuff, lugdoo, kacaurī. And other, His poor friends, they were taking capātīs, dry capātīs. (laughs) So they were enjoying, dividing, "Your food, my food, his food." And sometimes there was some trouble in the forest because Kamsa was after Kṛṣṇa to kill Him. He was sending his assistants. So some asura would come, Bakāsura, Aghāsura, and Kṛṣṇa would kill. And the boys would return and narrate the story to their mother. "Oh, my dear mother! Such and such thing happened and Kṛṣṇa killed it! Very..." (laughter) The mother will, "Oh, yes, our Kṛṣṇa is very wonderful!" (laughter) So Kṛṣṇa was their enjoyment. That's all. The mother is speaking of Kṛṣṇa, the boy is speaking of Kṛṣṇa. So therefore they did not know anything but Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa. Whenever there is some trouble, "Oh Kṛṣṇa." When there is fire, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa." That is the beauty of Vṛndāvana. Their mind is absorbed in Kṛṣṇa. Not through philosophy. Not through understanding, but natural love. "Kṛṣṇa is our village boy, our relative, our friend, our lover, our master." Some way or other, Kṛṣṇa. That is the beauty. Therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī is describing the playing of the boys.

Room Conversation -- May 10, 1969, Columbus, Ohio:

Prabhupāda: Hm. So engage all yourselves in the service of Kṛṣṇa. It is very pleasing, and what is called encouraging, enlivening. After too much material enjoyment, the next stage is frustration. That stage is coming to your country. Therefore the boys are becoming hippies. After too much material enjoyment, the next stage is—that is natural-frustration. There is a good example in our country, one Mr. C.R. Das. He was a great leader, next to Gandhi, important political leader. So he was on the topmost of... He was lawyer, barrister. He was earning fifty thousand dollars monthly, very rich man. And he was making charity, and he was spending like thing (anything). He was drunkard number one, woman-hunter number one, and everything. Because he had money he could enjoy everything. But he was not happy. So one day he was sitting with his wife. Just like in the street, he was looking over. So his wife asked him—his name was Chittaranjan—"Chittaranjan, you are earning so much. You are spending. People are very much fond of you. You are a great leader. Why you always remain morose? What do you want to be? You have got now everything." So at that time one mendicant, a sannyāsī was passing. So Chittaranjan said, "I want to be like him. Then I will be happy. I don't want to enjoy. I want to beggar, to be beggar-like." You see? So that time is coming to your country. So these hippies, they are frustrating. They have given up everything. We can study their psychic movement. They are not satisfied. That is the main principle. That is natural, to accept adversity voluntarily, adversity. So this is frustration. But before reaching to that point of frustration, if you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then you reach the real standard of happiness because everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa. I shall give you another example. Suppose you have stolen something from somebody's house or some friends. You will not be happy, even possessing that thing, stolen property. But if someday you come to return that thing to that friend, you will be happy.

Room Conversation with Allen Ginsberg -- May 11, 1969, Columbus, Ohio:

Prabhupāda: No, we have to corroborate.

Allen Ginsberg: ...of your own?

Prabhupāda: Corroborate. Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā, it is said that śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate (BG 6.41). One who could not finish this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he gets birth in two places, either in very rich family, or in a very pure brāhmaṇa family, brahminical cultured family. So from my life I experience, when I was very little child six or seven years old, I was very much fond of Kṛṣṇa. And I got the opportunity of this two things. Although my father was not very rich, but he was pure Vaiṣṇava. He was great devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa.

Allen Ginsberg: I assume Calcutta.

Prabhupāda: In Calcutta, and accidentally, I was born in a very rich family. You have seen that picture in my Calcutta, dancing. In that, there is a Kashi Mallik's family.

Indian Woman: (Bengali) Kashi Malliker?

Prabhupāda: They are very aristocratic family. I do, I did not belong to that family, but I was born in that family, you see? And from the very beginning the Kashi Mallik, they have got nice Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa temple. So I was standing before the deity, and I was seeing, "Oh, He is Kṛṣṇa. Oh, people say He is dead. How he is dead?" Like that I was thinking. And then my, I asked my father, "Oh, I shall worship Kṛṣṇa, give me." So my father gave me Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, so I, whatever I was eating, I was offering them. So the statement of the śāstra and my practical experience corroborates. So we we have to take instance like that, you see? Sādhu śāstra guru vākya. We have to test everything from three positions: the spiritual master, scripture, and holy man. Scripture means, just like Bible. What is Bible? Scripture. Why the scripture? It is fully contains the instruction of sādhu, holy man, or spiritual master, Lord Jesus Christ, therefore is scripture. The scripture means the statement of liberated holy man. That is sādhu. Therefore, scripture should be tested through the holy man and spiritual master. Spiritual master should be tested through scripture and holy man, and holy man should be tested through spiritual master and scripture.

Room Conversation with Allen Ginsberg -- May 11, 1969, Columbus, Ohio:

Prabhupāda: That I am instructing Kīrtanānanda, to show this example in New Vrindaban.

Allen Ginsberg: Are you going to be able to do it on four acres?

Kīrtanānanda: I hope so.

Prabhupāda: Is it very difficult? Four acres of land per head?

Allen Ginsberg: I just this last night was in Minnesota, which is flat, very fertile, very rich land.

Prabhupāda: Where it is? Which province?

Allen Ginsberg: Minnesota. Midwest. Further west. Talking with a poet who also is a fellow sādhana, whose family is from that area for many generations, whose brother has a thousand acres of land, and he himself has 160 acres of land. And as farming is done now in America, apparently 160 acres is not enough to support a farm economically because farming is done now in such large scale with machines.

Kīrtanānanda: You can use those machines if you want. If you want to live in the so-called American style, that is so. But if you're willing to adopt the Vedic way of minimizing the material needs in order to pursue Kṛṣṇa consciousness, what does one need? He needs sufficient food to keep the body healthy and a place to lay down. So four acres is plenty.

Allen Ginsberg: Where do you get the... How do you feed the cow, or would you?

Kīrtanānanda: On four acres you can do it.

Allen Ginsberg: You can get enough hay for a cow, for...?

Prabhupāda: Fodder. Yes. We grow.

Room Conversation with Allen Ginsberg -- May 13, 1969, Columbus, Ohio:

Prabhupāda: Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura, in his previous life, he elevated himself to the loving stage of Kṛṣṇa. Not exactly, just previous, bhāva. It is called bhāva, ecstasy. But some way or other, he could not finish, so according to the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā, he was given birth to a nice brāhmaṇa family. (aside:) You can call that Bengali lady. She can hear. So very rich. Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe (BG 6.41), in that way. Rich family, at the same time, brāhmaṇa family. But richness, generally, sometimes glide down to wine, women, and intoxication. So by bad company he became woman-hunter, prostitute-hunter. So he was too much addicted to one woman, Cintāmaṇi. So his father died, and he was... He did not marry. In your country it is called girlfriend, and in our country it is called prostitute. So he was that about that prostitute, Cintāmaṇi. So he was performing the rituals, but he was thinking of his girlfriend, that Cintāmaṇi, "When I shall go there?" Bilvamaṅgala Ṭhākura? Yes. So he asked his servants, "Give me some food. I shall go to Cintāmaṇi." So anyway, he performed... Did not perform. His mind was there. He took some nice foodstuff, and when he went, there was a big river, and it was raining heavily, and the river was flooded. So he thought, "How shall I go the other side?" So one dead body was floating. So he thought, "It is a log," and he took the help of the log and went the other side. And it was heavy raining. And then, when he reached that Cintāmaṇi's home, he saw the door is locked already.

Lord Caitanya Play Told to Tamala Krsna -- August 4, 1969, Los Angeles:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That will be very nice in this...

Prabhupāda: Yes. You can make band, fireworks, decoration, and feasting...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Kīrtana.

Prabhupāda: So many ladies, like that. That scene, I shall direct how to do it. Caitanya Mahāprabhu's father was not very rich man. So there was a big zamindar. He was devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa. So he had some affection for Caitanya. So when the marriage ceremony was being settled up, he said, "Oh, His marriage shall not be just like the brāhmaṇas' marriage." Brāhmaṇa's wife, they are poor; so there is no expenditure. Some way or other, his marriage is done. But especially kṣatriyas and the vaiśyas, oh, they spend lakhs of rupees in marriage. So he said that "His marriage will not take place just like the brāhmaṇas. His marriage will be royal marriage." So he spent all the money, and there was grand, everything grandeur.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Then His wife, she died?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

1970 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- December 12, 1970, Indore:

Prabhupāda: They are sincere, sincerely seeking after. Their material business is finished because they have enjoyed enough of material things. Now there is spiritual inquiry. That is natural. When our material necessities are complete, we enjoy, then next stage is spiritual hankering. And that is explained in the Vedānta-sūtra, athāto brahma jijñāsā. After finishing karma-kāṇḍīya life... Karma-kāṇḍīya life means you do pious activities and enjoy life. That is called karma-kāṇḍīya. So... But the fact is that even you get your birth in a very rich family, you cannot avoid the sufferings of this material nature. Just like yesterday we had an interview with Holkar(?), His Highness Holkar, the old gentleman. So he was a king. He has got very beautiful wife, very beautiful family, very palatial building, but he is not happy, we saw. So the foolish people, they do not know that in this material life there is no happiness. They hanker after these palatial buildings, the motor cars, the bank balance, and so on, so on. Therefore those who have enjoyed all these things but have not become happy, there is another inquiry: "How to become happy?" (break) ...say America, they have enjoyed material life. Their children have enjoyed material life to the fullest extent but they are not happy. Therefore they have come to this spiritual life.

Room Conversation -- December 21, 1970, Surat:

Revatinandana: Yes, (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: That means the social structure is very bad. Otherwise, natural procedure is that everyone should be self-independent. But why state has to give them help? That's not good. You may be... Just like a son may be very rich man's son, but if the father provides him only, then he's a useless son. Is it not? If the father has to provide him money for his maintenance, then that son is useless son. That is not a good certificate. Although you may be very much proud that "I am maintaining my so many sons," why you should maintain? Let them be self-supported.

Yadubara: But what can the state do? Should the state just leave the people alone?

Prabhupāda: No. They should make the citizens so nicely developed in their Kṛṣṇa consciousness that they should be self-dependent, self-satisfied. That is the ideal of civilization.

Yadubara: But America is so far from that.

Prabhupāda: Therefore it is not advancement, although they are very much proud of advancement. This is not sign of advancement. According to Bhagavad-gītā it is said, yasmin sthite guruṇāpi duḥkhena na vicālyate: (Bg. 6.20-23) "If one is situated in such a position that even in the greatest, gravest type of dangerous position, he is not agitated, he is not agitated, that is the real happiness." Yasmin sthite guruṇāpi duḥkhena na vicālyate. These are the words, yasmin sthite: "Situated in such a position that although he is facing greatest danger, he is not agitated." There is one instance. Not very long ago, say, about two hundred years ago there was a big zamindar. He was known as king in Krishnanagar. So he was charitably disposed. He went to a brāhmaṇa and asked him—he was a great learned scholar—"Can I help you any way?" And the pandit replied, "No. I don't require your help. I am quite satisfied." "How you are satisfied?" "Oh, my, these students, they bring some rice. So my wife boils that, and I have got this tamarind tree. I take some leaves and prepare some juice out of it. That is sufficient."

1971 Conversations and Morning Walks

Conversation with Journalists -- August 18, 1971, London:

Prabhupāda: So you can become also happy, you can know also God provided you take. If you don't take how can I help?

Journalist (1): What I'm suggesting is, I mean trying to suggest is that for a large number of people...

Prabhupāda: Well, large number... Large number... When you speak of something good, you cannot expect many. Just like if you want to sell diamond, you cannot expect that the whole population of England will purchase it. When there is question of diamond, the customer also must be very rich. Similarly, to understand God is not so difficult, or, easy job. Only the fortunate, pious, nice people can understand God. Not ordinary...

Journalist (1): And only get to work at it, find the time to try it. (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: But we are giving facilities to everyone to understand God. That is our mission.

Journalist (1): But it does require a certain price for them to pay as individuals.

Prabhupāda: No price. Simply to become sincere.

Journalist (1): To sincerely try to find Him.

Prabhupāda: Yes. If you are sincerely anxious to know God, there is no difficulty. There is no difficulty. Tatra laulyam eka-mūlyam. One must be very much anxious that "I must know God." Then God is revealed. There is no question of paying so much money. Our transaction in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, there is no monetary transaction. I did not pay anything to them, neither they are paying to me. It is a question of understanding.

Room Conversation -- November 11, 1971, New Delhi:

Guest: Some people say that jīva is a, you see, surrounded by (indistinct).

Prabhupāda: (Hindi) False. False ego. He is misidentifying with this matter. He is not matter. So this ahaṅkāra, this identification, has to be purified by understanding himself that "I am brahman. I am not matter." That is purification. And as soon as he is purified, brahma-bhūta (SB 4.30.20). Now jīva-bhūta, but when he becomes brahma-bhūta, then he becomes jolly. Brahma-bhutaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54). That is the symptom. Not that "I am realized Brahman." But the symptom will be there. If he says, "I am very rich man," then I'll see what is the symptom, whether you have got a nice car, you have got many servants and "Oh, yes, you are rich man." And if you are working on the street with a sweeper, how can I accept it?

Guest: If I am that bad balances and (indistinct). (laughter)

Prabhupāda: Subject to your symptom. (laughter) (Hindi)

Guest: (Hindi)

Prabhupāda: (Hindi)

Guest: We're just asking questions and questions. (indistinct) Endeavor to understand it. (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: Bhagavān's rāsa-līla is very confidential. It is not for ordinary man. (Hindi) So, step by step (Hindi). Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa rāsa-līla, Kṛṣṇa with young girls dancing, embracing, kissing, just like ordinary novel and nātha. They like it. So these professional Bhāgavata readers, they take advantage of the people's inferior quality, of their weakness, and make money. That's all.

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Talk with Bob Cohen -- February 27-29, 1972, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Similarly, the central stomach of the whole creation is God, or Kṛṣṇa. He's the enjoyer and He's the friend. He's maintaining everyone. Eko bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān. Therefore He's friend of everyone. And everywhere... He is maintaining means everywhere He's the proprietor. Just like a king can maintain the whole country, citizens, because he's the proprietor. Without being proprietor, how he can become everyone's friend? So these things have to be understood, that Kṛṣṇa is the enjoyer, Kṛṣṇa is the proprietor, and Kṛṣṇa is friend. If you know these three things, then your knowledge is full. You do not require to understand anything more. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.3). If you simply understand Kṛṣṇa by these three formulas, then your knowledge is complete. You don't require any more knowledge. But people will not agree. "Why Kṛṣṇa shall be proprietor? Hitler shall be proprietor. Yayha Khan should be proprietor. (laughter) Nixon shall be proprietor." That is going on. Therefore you are in trouble. But if you understand these three things only, then your knowledge is finished. But he'll not accept, he'll put forward so many impediments for understanding these three things. And that is the cause of our trouble. But Bhagavad-gītā, in the Bhagavad-gītā it is plainly said,

bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ

sarva-loka-maheśvaram

suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānāṁ

jñātvā māṁ śāntim ṛcchati

(BG 5.29)

But we won't take this. We shall put forward so many false proprietor, false friends, false enjoyer, and they will fight one another. This is the situation of the world. If this education is given and people takes this knowledge, there is peace, śāntim ṛcchati. Immediately there is peace. This is knowledge. And if anyone follows this principle, he's honest. He does not claim "It is mine." He everything knows it is Kṛṣṇa's, so therefore everything should be utilized for Kṛṣṇa's service. That is honesty. If this pencil belongs to me the etiquette is... Just like my students sometimes do: "Can I use this pencil?" "Yes." This is etiquette, I say, "Yes, you can." Similarly, if I know that everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa, without His permission I'll not use. That is honesty. And that is knowledge. And one does not know, he's ignorant, he's foolish, and foolish man commits all criminality. All criminals, they're foolish men. Out of ignorance one commits lawbreaking. So ignorance is not bliss, but it is folly to be wise where ignorance is bliss. That is the difficulty, our. The whole world is enjoying ignorance, and when we say about Kṛṣṇa consciousness, they do not very much appreciate. If I say, "Kṛṣṇa is the proprietor, you are not proprietor," he'll not be very much satisfied. (laughs) Just see, ignorance is bliss. So it is my foolishness to say the real truth. Therefore this is, it is folly to be wise where ignorance is bliss. So we are taking the risk to offend people because they'll think we are fools. If I say, "Birla, Mr. Birla, you are not proprietor, Kṛṣṇa is proprietor. So whatever money you have got spend for Kṛṣṇa," he'll be angry. Mūrkha upadeśo hi prakopāya na śāntaye. If you instruct a rascal, he'll be angry. Therefore we go as beggar. "My dear Mr. Birla, you are very rich man. I am sannyāsī beggar. So I want to construct a temple if you spare some money." So he'll be, "Oh, here is a beggar, give him some money." (laughter) But if I say "Mr. Birla, you have got millions of dollars at your disposal. That is Kṛṣṇa's money. Give it to me. I am Kṛṣṇa's servant." Oh, he will... (laughter) He'll not be very satisfied. Rather, if I go as a beggar, he would give something, and if I tell him the truth, he'll not give me a farthing. Therefore we take this beggar's dress. We are not beggar. We cheat him as beggar. We are not beggar. We are Kṛṣṇa's servant, we are not beggar. We don't want anything from anyone. Because we know Kṛṣṇa will provide everything.

Room Conversation Vaisnava Calendar Description -- March 11, 1972, Vrndavana:

Devotee: On the 13th of September, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda's Appearance is there any special observance?

Prabhupāda: No, special observance means to discuss about the life and works of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, thats all. Then 26th September, Ekādaśī. Then 10th October, Vijayā-daśamī, appearance date of Śrīla Madhvācārya, and the victory day of Lord Rāmacandra. So there is no fasting, but in the evening we should celebrate some feasting and discuss about the life and works of Śrī Madhvācārya as well as Rāmāyaṇa incidents where Rāma and Rāvaṇa fought.

The next day is Ekādaśī, that is means 11th October. Then 12th October is Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī, there is no fasting, but we should have discussion of Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī. Raghunātha Dāsa Gosvāmī happened to be the only boy of his father and his uncle. He was a very rich man's son, but he left home for Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu. His life should be discussed as follows, that from the beginning he was very much detached to worldly life. So his father and mother saw that this boy is very much detached, he should be immediately married with a beautiful wife. So that was done—he was given a very nice house and beautiful wife—but still he was very much detached. So when he was a householder he met Nityānanda at Pāṇihāṭī and he prayed Lord Caitanya to take him with Him. At that time Caitanya was sannyāsī. Lord Caitanya instructed him, that "Don't be in a hurry, gradually Kṛṣṇa will give you a chance to be aloof from these worldly affairs." He was very intelligent even though he was detached from worldly affairs, but from his activities it appears that he was very intelligent also in worldly affairs. While somehow or other, for political reasons, his father and uncle were to be arrested by the minister of the region(?), Muslim government, and his father and uncle hided themselves to avoid the arrest.

Room Conversation -- April 1, 1972, Sydney:

Pradyumna: Adopted daughter. Step-daughter.

Prabhupāda: Adopted daughter, niece, we have practically seen. I knew one man, Gupta. Guru dāsa met him in Delhi. So he was old man, about four years younger than me, very rich man. So I used to visit sometimes his house. He was friendly. So one day I saw one young girl. So I enquired, "Who is this young girl?" "No, she is my adopted daughter. I have no..." He had no daughters, all sons, grown up. "So I have no daughter, so I have adopted her as my daughter." I thought, "That's all right." Some day after, one day I went there. I saw that his wife was not there. So his wife has left home on some complaint. And then I understood that that man was implicated with that daughter. So the wife, under protest, has left. There are many rascals who open girls' schools with the contract with the head mistress that she will supply young girls. Convent school. This is going on. So all these greatness are terminating in sex life and they are making arrangement, plan, and he says there is no plan. Even for his ordinary living he is making plan, and he says there is no plan.

Room Conversation -- April 18, 1972, Hong Kong:

Prabhupāda: That's very natural. It is costly here. But these children and their parents also very much interested. So I think you should have a nice institution here to train the children in this country. And after their education, they may take to any line of livelihood. That doesn't matter. But the foundation... Just like in our Vedic system, first of all brahmacārī. That brahmacārī system is very nice. Even Kṛṣṇa, God Himself, He has nothing to learn. He is abhijñā. In the Vedas He is described as abhijñā: He knows everything. But just to teach us, He also became a brahmacārī in the Gurukula. Lord Rāmacandra, He also accepted a guru, Vasiṣṭha. So that is our Vedic system. Anybody may be anything, but the process is tad vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). In order to learn the value of life, spiritual value of life, one must go to a guru. Tad vijñānārtham. In order to understand the spiritual value of life one must go to a guru. Gurum evābhigacchet. What is that guru? Śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham: "He is well learned in Vedic literature," and brahma-niṣṭham, "and firm faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead." These are the two qualifications of guru. He must know all the Vedic conclusions, śrotriyam, not that he has to read, but he must hear from the authoritative sources. Just like Arjuna is hearing from Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is the most authoritative personality. So similarly, everyone has to hear either from Kṛṣṇa or from His bona fide representative. That is śrotriyam. And the result will be that after becoming student of such bona fide guru, one will be firmly fixed up in God consciousness. That is the result, firmly fixed up. Now, these boys from foreign countries, according to our geographical arrangement, they are foreigners. But we don't see anything foreign. We see every land belongs to Kṛṣṇa and everyone is part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa. So we have no such distinction. But still, from materialistic point of view, these boys and girls, they, three or four years ago they did not know what is this word Kṛṣṇa. But now they are so perfectly devotee of Kṛṣṇa, and nobody can deviate them. If somebody says that "You give up this Kṛṣṇa consciousness and take..." Now here is Śyāmasundara. His father is very, very rich man, young man. He is always canvassing him that—he is only son—that "You come, do business. You take millions of dollars, whatever you like." He is not going. There are many like that. They cannot give up this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And you know our Jagatāriṇī, wife of Bhūrijana, she was a theatrical girl and earning millions of dollars, but she has given up everything. You have seen his wife, you all, Bhūrijana's wife? She is a nice girl, educated, qualified. But she is satisfied.

Room Conversation -- April 18, 1972, Hong Kong:

Prabhupāda: Because the United States, they are our best customer. A businessman goes to a place... Just like you have come here. Why you have come here? Wherever there is best possibility of doing your business, there you must go. I went to United States because I know these people are not poverty-stricken. And our Indian people, they are now, they have been trained to think like that—they are poverty-stricken. Actually, they are not poverty-stricken, but the leaders have educated them that, "You are all poverty-stricken." This is India's position. So far I knew that it would not be successful in India. The government will not help. The public is educated in a different way. They are after technology. So and "familiarity breeds contempt." They say, "What is this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement? It is known to us since a long time. What effect it will have?" Many Indian students in foreign countries, they say, "Swamiji, what will this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement benefit us? We want technology." So that is the mentality of the Indians at the present moment. They have lost everything and therefore they are beggars. They have lost their own culture and therefore they are beggars. So I thought it wise that I shall go to a country where there is no poverty. They will learn. They have enough. For material enjoyment, they have got enough. The material enjoyment means money and woman. That is, in America, it is lying on the street. As much as you like, you can take. But they are disgusted with this material enjoyment. Therefore they are coming as hippies. They are coming from very rich family. Their fathers, their grandfathers, are very rich. At least they belong to the richest nation. But they are not satisfied. They are not satisfied. That is the natural sequence. The Vedānta-sūtra says, athāto brahma jijñāsā. When one has satisfied his senses sufficiently, he is no longer interested in sense gratification. Perhaps you know C.R. Das, the name of C.R. Das in Calcutta. In those days, fifty years ago he was earning fifty thousand rupees per month, but he was not satisfied. And one day he and his wife were sitting together and the wife questioned, "Why do you look so morose? You have got everything at your command.

Room Conversation -- July 5, 1972, London:

Sumati Morarjee: I want your advice. So first day I called him, he came. I said, you I don't want. Where is that Śyāmasundara?

(laughter) .

Prabhupāda: His father is very rich man.

Sumati Morarjee: Is he?

Prabhupāda: His father is a very big lawyer, and mother, father, both came to me Calcutta. Mother, after all mother, she was crying, that give me back my boy (laughter) . You can take away your boy. So anyway, they are very good gentlemen. So, but he has he's graduate in psychology. He's learned.

Sumati Morarjee: No, no, he's a very nice man. So I asked him just now, I'm running a school. I said you come and, uh, give lecture, mean some stories...

Prabhupāda: Why don't you give some fruits?

Sumati Morarjee: ...to the children. No, I will take this, you give me a piece of paper, can you?

Prabhupāda: Yes, why not.

Sumati Morarjee: And I'll take this for the children.

Devotee: Isn't there some prasāda also, that's still out there in the...

Sumati Morarjee: (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: Śyāmasundara.

Śyāmasundara: Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: Immediately, write one letter to Girirāja that, uh, I suggest some names for becoming trustee, or you can suggest some of the life members you know.

Room Conversation -- July 5, 1972, London:

Devotee: Do you know how old she is Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Maybe over sixty.

Devotee: She's very much alive, so much alive.

Prabhupāda: Her father was one the richest men in Bombay, and her husband, her father-in-law also one of the richest men. There're coming from very rich family in Bombay. And she's so intelligent that Scindia Steam Navigation Company, very big company. It is a semi-government, and she's the managing director. All the big, big officers respecting as mother, carries out her order. And she's great devotee of Kṛṣṇa, but she does not take leave with her husband (laughter). Hm? The husband and wife, not very agreement. Yes.

Devotee: Her husband is alive?

Prabhupāda: Yes. They live separate building. That mean, that they live separate building, separate (indistinct), she looks one department of business, and he looks another department. That child, adopted. She has no, own child.

Devotee: Oh.

Devotee (2): So, perhaps she's ship the punks, and the vehicle.

Prabhupāda: And the car also. And I've asked her to become the president of the trustee for construction of Bombay. She has agreed.

Room Conversation and Interview with Ian Polsen -- July 31, 1972, London:

Prabhupāda: British Empire, when there was British Empire, when they were getting money from all over the world, somehow or other they constructed so many big, big buildings. Now they are encouraging not so big, and now it is difficult to maintain it. We can see practically that you have got so nice buildings in London, but it is not being properly maintained. You haven't got sufficient means now to maintain them. Therefore it was..., British Empire was for the time being that prosperity. Now to keep up your prestige you are concerned in so many ways. So anything you do in this material world, that is temporary. So many-Roman Empire, Moghul Empire, British Empire, Hitler Empire—they came and gone. But my real problem is that I am eternal, so what I am doing for my eternal life? That is it. Temporarily I may become very rich or poor, it doesn't matter. But people are being taught, "Oh, you are poor? You become rich." That's all. Just like our India trying to imitate the Western world. But they do not see that in the Western world, in America, in Europe, why these young boys, they are rejecting this materialistic way of life? These boys have come to me because they have rejected, they don't like. Just like you are coming. Why you are surrendering to me? Because you are not satisfied. So our Indians, they do not see that "These men, they have already everything. Why they are rejecting?" All facility. Because this will not give us real happiness. We are spirit soul. We cannot be happy simply by material opulence. That is not possible. This is Vedic civilization: how people will be happy. They can be happy simply by self-realization, spiritual realization, because he is spirit. Material advancement will never make us happy, that's a fact. People have not become happy. In India they say that we neglected this material side therefore. But actually that is not the fact.

Conversation with Bajaj and Bhusan -- September 11, 1972, Arlington, Texas, At Their Home:

Guest (2): Hypothetical case that...

Prabhupāda: No, nothing hypothetical. Your bondage... Bondage means that birth, death, old age and disease. This is bondage. We are all living entities, part and parcel of God. We are spirit soul. So this is not our business, birth, death, old age and disease. So bondage means so long you'll get this material body you are under this bondage: birth, death, old age, and disease. Because you are very rich man, getting good salary, it does not mean that you will not die, or disease will not attack you. This is bondage. First of all try to understand what is bondage. Bondage and freedom. Bondage means to be subjected to the condition of this material body. That is called bondage. The body may be elephant's body or tiger's body or Brahmā's body or ant's body, but that is bondage. Because as soon as you get a material body you are under this bondage of birth, death, old age and disease. So your problem is how to get out of this bondage, not that to accept the bondage—just like I am bound up by iron shackles—"Let me be bound up by golden shackles." So that is bondage. The people do not know. They are satisfied when they are bound up with golden shackles. That is called ignorance. He feels satisfied when he is locked up with golden shackles. That is called ignorance.

Room Conversation with Kenneth Keating, U.S. Ambassador to India -- October 14, 1972, New Delhi:

Prabhupāda: It is a fact. Just like this child is transmigrating from one body, one kind of body to another body. So in the same way, when I give up this body I transmigrate to another body. This is the science. Unfortunately, there is no university, no education, no culture of this great science. Therefore according to Bhāgavatam, the knowledge is imperfect. The knowledge which are imparting from universities, they are not perfect knowledge. And this human form of body is the opportunity to understand the position of the soul and how he is transmigrating from one body to another, what is happening next. In this way, in this human form of body, we can understand this science, science of soul. Unfortunately, no education is there to understand this science. So in other words, it may be taken that the modern civilization is killing the prerogative of the human being. He has got a chance to understand himself and to stop. He can stop this repetition of birth and death. He can remain in a spiritual form in the spiritual kingdom or with God, but these things are unknown to him, because there is no discussion in any university or any institution of knowledge. Although the Vedic literature gives us ample information of this—in the the Bhagavad-gītā, that is the preliminary study of all Vedic literature—but there is no chance for the people to understand. This is the defect of the modern civilization. Therefore it is necessary. And actually, because there is no sufficient knowledge of the position, I see the American boys and girls, although they are coming out very rich and respectable family, they are turning to hippies. In spite of your arrangement for very big, big university, they are becoming frustrated. They are no longer satisfied to live materially opulent like their fathers and grandfathers. In other countries also, the same symptoms are there. Just like in India, the Naxalites. So that is another form of confusion. In your country the confusion state is a different kind. Another type is another confusion. In China also there is another type of confusion. In Russia also there is another type of confusion. So the present position of the human society is very dangerous because everyone is feeling dissatisfaction for confusion.

Room Conversation with Kenneth Keating, U.S. Ambassador to India -- October 14, 1972, New Delhi:

Prabhupāda: This is the right... Another definition is God, God is all-attractive. Now, if you try to understand what is this attractiveness, just like your American country is very opulent, very attractive. If a man is very rich in the society, he is attractive. Then if a man is very strong, then he is attractive. If a man is very famous, he is attractive. If a man-man or woman—if a man is very beautiful, he is attractive. If a man is in the renounced order, he is attractive. If a man is very wise, he is attractive. These six features are attractive features. Now, these attractive features, every one of us have to some extent. Just like you are ambassador, representative of USA, so you are attractive. So this attractiveness you have got. Sometimes I have also got. Somebody comes to me, "Let me see this Swami speak," you see. So this attractiveness everyone possesses. But God means who has got all the attractiveness in full. That is God. You may be very rich, but you cannot say that "I am the richest person in the world." That is not possible. But God can say "I am the richest person in the whole creation." Bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram (BG 5.29). He says, "I am the proprietor of everything." Just like in America, before the Europeans migrated to America, the land was there. It belonged to somebody. Now you are claiming you are proprietor. Say after five hundred years or something somebody may come. The land is there, we come here for the time being and claim "It is my property." But actually who is the proprietor? Actually God is the proprietor. Therefore anything produced out of the land, that is also property of God. Just like if you have got a gold mine in your country. So I am not.... India will not go to claim that "It is my property." It is your property, because it is produced with your land. So if the whole land, whole sky, whole air, whole light, everything belongs to God, then where is your proprietorship? It is stated, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ buddhiḥ mano eva (BG 7.4). Now, nobody can say "The sky is my property," but there must be some proprietor of the sky.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- March 17, 1973, Mayapur:

rīdhara Mahārāja: Yes, yes.

Prabhupāda: Yes. He was my intimate friend. So in their house, old Tīrtha Mahārāja went to beg some alms—they are very rich man. So, he informed me that "One nice sannyāsī came to our house," and he was invited, "in Ultadanga there is Gauḍīya Maṭha, so he has invited me. I wish to go there. Why don't you come? Let us go together." He was my very intimate friend. So at that time I was a little pessimistic (?), "I know all these sādhus there, I am not going." So he forced me, "Oh, why not come? Let us go." "All right, let us go." So I went to see His Divine Grace Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura in 1922 in that Ultadanga building, and that time Prabhupāda was sitting on the roof. There was small house (indistinct) room, and we were welcome, because they thought Naren Mullik was very rich man and he has contributed some money. So, we went to see Prabhupāda, offered our obeisances. So immediately he said that "You are all educated young men, why don't you preach Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu's message throughout the whole world?" So I replied him, "Sir, we are dependent nation, who will hear our message? We can talk all these things after we get independence," because I was politically-minded at that time. So he refuted my argument. Certainly I was defeated, and I took his words very seriously, I appreciated. Then we were offered some prasādam, we came down, and my friend Naren Mullik asked me, "How did you like this sādhu?" "Yes, here is a sādhu in whose hands Caitanya Mahāprabhu's message is there, and it will be done. I think this is very nice." That was my appreciation. Then 1923, I resigned my post as manager in Bose's laboratory, and I accepted the agency of whole U.P., beginning from Mughalsarai (?) up to Delhi, and I made my head office in Allahabad. So I was always thinking, "Oh yes, I met a very nice sādhu." From the very beginning, that was my impression, that "I have met a real sādhu." So, actually the words, lava mātra sādhu saṅge sarva siddhi haya (CC Madhya 22.54), was actually... I perceived a kind (?) for a moment, and he impressed so much, Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura, that it was, it continued. Then in 1928, when there was Kumbha-melā... Mahārāja, when you joined Gauḍīya Maṭha?

Morning Walk -- April 19, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That means fools.

Brahmā: The blind leading the blind.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāḥ (SB 7.5.31). All rascals, mūḍhāḥ. Our simple formula is: Anyone who is not Kṛṣṇa conscious, he's a rascal. Never mind what he is. We immediately reject him, a rascal. Our simple formula. And actually they're rascals. They're talking like rascals, childish, that life came from matter. Prove it. That future. What is this? I am very rich man. And as soon as I ask you: "Give me some money." "Oh, yes, I'll give you in future." What is this?

Devotee: Bluff.

Brahmānanda: Sometimes when we ask someone to become a life member, they say: "Yes, sometime in future." We become very disappointed.

Prabhupāda: We shall make vigorous propaganda against all this rascalism. That is our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Mūḍhāḥ. Challenge them.

Brahmānanda: Saying "In future", that is a bluff.

Prabhupāda: Bluff. That is a bluff. When that future will come? That they do not know. That is another bluff. And still, they're proud of advancement of knowledge. Still, they're talking of future. And what is your advancement?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: So long as the future is there they have a voice to say...

Prabhupāda: Future we cannot trust. Trust no future however pleasant. This is our philosophy. Everyone says that. Trust no future, however pleasant. You may talk that future is very bright, but we don't believe in that.

Room Conversation with Krishna Tiwari -- May 22, 1973, New York:

Prabhupāda: Industrial city.

Krishna Tiwari: My name is Krishna Tiwari.

Prabhupāda: Tiwari.

Krishna Tiwari: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Oh. In Kanpur I had an old friend—he was just like my father-Tiwari. Very rich man. They have got their temple.

Krishna Tiwari: Which place? I probably know it.

Prabhupāda: In Kanpur there is a big temple that belongs to the Tiwari family. It is famous temple. Many people go there to visit.

Krishna Tiwari: I haven't lived there too long. Lucknow, we came to Lucknow, and...

Prabhupāda: The temple is very old temple. So the proprietors of the temple are brāhmaṇas, Tiwari. So the eldest member, old Mr. Tiwari, was a very nice, great devotee. At home he had Deity, Rukmiṇī-Kṛṣṇa. He was worshiping at home Rukmiṇī-Kṛṣṇa, Dvārakā.

Room Conversation with Educationists -- July 11, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: This is not religion. This is the only business. Religion is different thing. Suppose... Just like... I have already explained, that you are sleeping, and you have got a good engagement. And somebody's trying to awake you, that "You have to go there. Just get up! Get up!" So this kind of business is not religion. Religion is a, what is a kind of faith, a sentiment. That is different thing. It is the main business of human being. Because we are part and parcel of... Just like a boy, he's very rich man's son. Some way or other, he's out of his home, and he's suffering for want of food, want of shelter. And somebody's giving information that "I know you are such and such big man's son. Why you are loitering in the street? Why don't you go back to your home, back to your father?" So is it not the best business. So everyone is suffering. That I have already explained, how they are suffering. We are trying to save his suffering by dispatching him back to home, back to Godhead. This is our business. So it is not religion. It is the most important humanitarian work. What do you think?

Haṁsadūta: Yes.

Room Conversation -- July 19, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: Hm. And in the front house, there is ample space back there for children's play. This will facilitate... Very nice. And then one house after, there is another house.

Pradyumna: Yes, up on the street, on our side of street.

Prabhupāda: Hm. Watseka. And that is Venice. On Venice we have got two house. The real estate men, they think of us—very, very rich. (laughs) After purchasing these houses. Here also, we can have very nice colony, in this village. There are so many land, houses are for sale. If we can organize. Now you utilize these lands for growing fruit, flower, anything, whatever you can grow. But utilize this land. It doesn't matter what you would grow, anything. Who will be in charge?

Devotee: Bhaja Hari. (?)

Prabhupāda: Bhaja Hari. Where is he?

Devotee: He is in his office downstairs.

Prabhupāda: Call him.

Room Conversation with Graham Hill Former World Champion Race Car Driver -- London, August 26, 1973:

Prabhupāda: That is ultimate goal. So long we do not go back to home, back to Godhead, we have to, in our material existence, we have to change from one body to another. That is going on. And there are 8,400,000 forms of bodies. The cats and dogs, they are also living entities, but they have got a different type of body. Every one of us, different type body. Even they are children, their body is different from your body. Even the (indistinct). Although their body is obtained, there are some similarities. But if you analyze very scrutinizingly there will be some difference from your body, from your daughter's body, from your boy's body. So every body, every living entity is getting a certain type of body according to his desire. According to his desire. So that desire means material enjoyment. Just like you have got certain desire to become champion in racing. Another body has got desire to become something else. Another body has got desire for something else. So we have got this freedom by the grace of God or Kṛṣṇa. Because we are children. He has given freedom. "All right, if you want this, take it." In this way our life is going on. This is called birth and death. One chapter you are finishing in one life, next chapter begins another life. Next chapter begins another life. So the problem is birth and death. But nobody wants birth and death. Nobody wants. But it is there on account of our material life. So in material life there are four problems: birth, death, old age, and disease. So long one has to accept a material body, he has to accept these miseries also. Birth is also misery. When the child remains within the womb, in a compact bag... Very precarious condition. We have forgotten, but it is very precarious condition. And for ten months, because he is unconscious at least for seven months he cannot understand. But after seven months when the child becomes conscious, it is very intolerable. He always prays, "Oh, how to get out, how to get out." Then he gets, come out, comes out. Then another life begins. That is also accompanied with so many miserable conditions from the birth. Just like, don't mind, when you drive your car, it is not a very good position. (laughter) Yes. But you are taking that risk for winning over. But the position is not very good. At any moment there can be accident. So similarly, we are trying to achieve some goal of life, every one of us—there are so many varieties of living entities—with the risk of life and death, old age and disease. But if we know what is our actual aim of life... The actual aim of life should be back to home, back to Godhead. Then this human form of life is successful. Just like your son. If he goes out independent. Now he is under father's protection, he is very happy. But if he declares his independence... Just like Śyāmasundara. He is very rich man's son. His father, I met him. His father is a big lawyer, big businessman. But he declared independence. And I know his life history, how much he had to go through so many tribulations. Similarly, we are also sons of God. We have declared independence and we are going through so many chapters of life and death in different... Now we have got... Suppose you have got now a nice Englishman's body but next body you do not know what kind of body you are going to get. That will depend on your karma and desire.

Room Conversation with Graham Hill Former World Champion Race Car Driver -- London, August 26, 1973:

Graham Hill: (indistinct) what sort of body we have been in in the past?

Prabhupāda: Yes, in the past. You forgot, but in the past you had life. Just like in the past I was young man. That's a fact. Similarly, but that young body is no more existing. Similarly, I had a past life but I have forgotten. That is the... Forgetfulness is our nature. Death means forgetting what was your first, past life. That is by nature you become forgetful because if you remember our past life and compare with this life... Suppose one was very rich man and if he becomes a poor, a cat and dog, then if he remembers, then it is very unbearable for him. Therefore nature helps him to forget. Forget. Otherwise he cannot do it. But the real problem is that we are eternal soul, we are changing our body one after another, birth and death. Apart from worldly happiness and distress, this birth and death, that is not very good process. At death time we have to suffer so much that we give up this body. And then again we enter into the womb of a mother. That is not very good situation. Then when come out there are so many tribulations, disease, then again old age. So people do not understand that he is passing... Especially when we are in other than human life. There are 8,400,000 species of life. Aquatics, then birds, trees, plants, insects, then beasts. In this way we come to human form of life. This is evolution. So in this human form of life there is chance of understanding the problems of life. In other forms of life it is not possible.

Room Conversation -- September 2, 1973, London:

Pradyumna: Uṣitvā śāśvatīḥ samāḥ, śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate (BG 6.41).

Prabhupāda: Then, again they come down to this material world and he takes birth either in a very exalted brāhmaṇa family, śucīnām, or very rich, vaiśya family. After enjoying there, again he's given chance to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. And if he misses, then again he goes down. Therefore Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura says these are all false elevation. If I have to come again back, again I have to accept another lower grade life, then what is the profit? Kṛṣṇa gives His straight understanding, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti: (BG 4.9) You become Kṛṣṇa conscious. After the giving up this body, no more material body either in the heavenly planet or in the lower hellish planet. "You come direct to Me." That is perfection. You should not be attracted by somebody has gone to heavenly planet for ten thousands of years living. We should not be attracted by these things. Therefore Prabodhānanda Sarasvatī says, kaivalyaṁ narakāyate tridaśa-pur ākāśa-puṣpāyate. Tridaśa-pur means the heavenly planets. Ākāśa, it is just like will of the wisp. Something, just like, what do you say Hindi? There are many proverbs, which has no existence. Just like in Bengali we say ghoḍā-ḍima. Ghoḍa-ḍima. Ḍima means egg. The horse never lays down egg. But the word is running on: "the egg of horse." So it has no existence but the word is there. Similarly, what do you say in Hindi? Something which has no existence but it is current. I think there is.

Room Conversation -- September 19, 1973, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: So people are interested in the bodily concept of life. Anything which is immediately pleasing to my senses, we take it, "This is my end of life." Therefore śāstra says, śreya uttamam, not that śreyas which is immediately very pleasing to you. What is immediately pleasing to you, it will be a source of great displeasure at the end. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. So uttamam. Uttamam. Ut means transcendental, and tama means this material world. "Beyond this material world," Uttama. Śreya uttamam. Because we are not this material body, therefore our śreyas, our highest perfection of life, is different. Here the perfection of life—you get a comfortable life of the body. That is not possible, however comfortably you may situate. You may be very rich man, you may have very rich connection or good apartment, but still, you cannot be happy because you are not this body. But they do not know. Therefore one should be inquisitiveness that "I want to be happy. I am arranging for my happiness with so many material paraphernalia, but still I am not happy." This inquiry should be there. That is called jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam. And that is brahma-jijñāsā. So brahma-jijñāsā is not for everyone. Brahma-jijñāsā. And for brahma-jijñāsā one should make a guru, not for any material welfare. If I get some money, if some guru gives me some money, some gold, I think he is Bhagavān. Because I am attached to this gold and material things. That is not śreyas. But people like that. If somebody by miracles give you some money, some gold, they think, "Oh, here is God. Here is God, here is God." But that is not śreyas. And if gold is the standard of happiness, then... There are many persons, Birlas and others, they possess huge stock of gold. Does it mean that they will not die? They will not suffer from disease? But foolish persons, they think, "If I get some gold, then I'll be happy." And that is foolishness. Nothing material will make you happy. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, real happiness means to approach Him. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya (BG 9.32). No? What is that? Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ (BG 8.15). Find out this verse. Duḥkhālayam... The second line you can find out.

Morning Walk -- December 2, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: They are coming for playing golfs?

Karandhara: Yes, as soon as it's light, they'll be playing. They work hard all week so that they can play golf on Sunday.

Hṛdayānanda: They think that a gentleman should play golf.

Prabhupāda: Yes, that is the fashion of the society.

Karandhara: A man is considered very rich if he can play golf every day. The rich men play every day.

Prabhupāda: It is very expensive, golf?

Karandhara: Well, if you play golf, you don't have to work. People who are rich, they don't work. They just play golf all day. (break)

Citraka: ...newspapers, that now he is follower of Śaṅkarācārya in India. The queen of Greece. She's a follower.

Prabhupāda: Queen of Greece. This cloth is very inconvenient... (break) ...illusion. Accepting this illusion, wherefrom the idea came? Just like in the tailor's window, there are nice beautiful women or men standing. That is illusion. Actually, that is neither man or woman. It is doll. But wherefrom the idea came of this illusion?

Hṛdayānanda: Kṛṣṇa.

Morning Walk -- December 10, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prajāpati: No one equal to or greater than.

Prabhupāda: No, that you cannot find here in this material world. Anyone has relative position. Everyone will find somebody is greater than him, somebody is lower than him. He's not absolute, nobody. A rough estimate of supremacy: if one man has got, is very rich, he's considered great. If he has got influence, if he has got bodily strength, bodily beauty, wisdom, or renunciation... These are the six items for calculating a man's greatness. Therefore when you speak, "God, the Supreme," He must possess all these things. That is the definition given by Parāśara Muni. The other day we were discussing. Somebody said, "This is all imagination." Why imagination? Who was telling?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Scientist.

Prabhupāda: Scientist! (laughs) So how, why it is imagination? Your idea of supremacy, you must define. How do you accept here in this material world a person as supreme? Why? Why you accept Nixon as supreme person within your state? What is the cause?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Because he has some power.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Eh?

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- March 27, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Guest (1): She was painting in that film?

Prabhupāda: No, no. She is another girl. She's Jadurāṇī. So this Jagat-tāriṇī, after some days, I asked her that "You go to Japan. There is my disciple, Bhūrijana. You go and marry him." So she did not see the boy, did not know anything about. And she was very rich. Still, on my order, she went to Japan and married that boy.

Dr. Patel: And is she unhappy?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Dr. Patel: Very happy.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Guest (1): That's guru-vacana.

Dr. Patel: No, no. That guru and... Gurudeva... (break)

Prabhupāda: No. I did not like my wife. Still, I had to marry her. (laughter)

Dr. Patel: And you had not bad days all your life. Or you were quarreling? I am sorry to intrude.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Morning Walk -- April 10, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Anna-vastra, anna-vastra-dhana. Charity means to give in charity anna and vastra and cows. (break) ...give in charity some paper, one hundred rupees. (laughs) Another cheating. And he is also satisfied, "One hundred rupees." What is this one hundred? It is a paper, a piece of paper. (break) ...earned, black market, white market. Because when one does business, he has to do it, but it should be purified. I have seen the Marwaris, they do that. Although when earning money, they don't care, they do anything, but they give in charity. (break) ...purify the body by taking bath, similarly, the wealth is purified by the charity process, giving it to the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas. Just like Rūpa Gosvāmī. He accumulated much wealth. He brought in a big boat, all gold coins. So... So he distributed fifty percent to the brāhmaṇa and Vaiṣṇava and twenty-five percent he gave to the relatives, and twenty-five percent he kept for his personal emergency. This is example shown by Rūpa Gosvāmī. (break) Kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyam vaiśya-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.44). So where is that vaiśya, giving protection to the cows? Although they were village men, they were very rich. That is the old Vedic civilization. Now you go to the village—all poor. The cows are skinny, people have no home, no nice cloth. This is the position. And we are still advanced, advanced. They are proud of "advanced." And here is the... Just hear the description of the village, with cows only. So how much fallen we have become, we can just imagine.

Morning Walk -- April 12, 1974, Bombay:

Indian man (1): I know.

Prabhupāda: Yes. And he was earning fifty-thousand rupees at that time, fifty years ago. What is the value, just see. He was earning and spending like anything, lavishly, and he was so bad associated that wine and woman was his paraphernalia. That's all. As soon as there will be case engaged the first order is that "You have to supply so many cases of wine and so many batches of prostitute." That was C.R. Dasa's condition, first condition. In the Mopaceel(?) court when he would be invited to plead, the first condition is this. Then his fees. So in this way he was living. But he gave up. On Congress Movement he gave up everything practiced, but he died within one year. Because he was living so luxuriously, all of a sudden he became a renouncer, he could not tolerate that. He died. Within one year he died. So therefore these ministers, they gave up all this luxurious life, became a mendicant. The question is how they lived? Tyaktvā tūrṇam aśeṣa-maṇḍala-pati-śreṇīṁ sadā tuccha-vat bhūtvā dīna-gaṇeśakau karuṇayā kaupīna kan... Then gopī-bhāva-rasāmṛtādhi-laharī-kallola-magnau sadā: They were fully absorbed in the thought of how Kṛṣṇa, and His pastimes with His gopīs. He was always absorbed. Vande rūpa-sanātanau raghu-yugau śrī-jīva-gopālakau. This is exhibition. When one becomes ecstatic, "Oh, now I have to do something for Kṛṣṇa," then he renounces everything. Only Kṛṣṇa. Only Kṛṣṇa's business. That is the test. That is the test. What is the use of spiritual advancement? Spiritual advancement means these material things given up. That is spiritual advancement. That is... The example is given, bhaktiḥ pareṣānubhavoḥ viraktir anyatra syāt. As soon as one develops real bhakti, he will be averse to all these material things. That is the first sign. "No more these things." Bhaktiḥ pareṣānubhavo viraktir anyatra syāt (SB 11.2.42). Just like if you are hungry and if you are given some food, if you are satisfied, then the same food will be denied by you. "No, no, no. I don't want anymore." Full satisfaction. Just like Dhruva Mahārāja said, svāmin kṛtārtho 'smi varaṁ na yāce (CC Madhya 22.42). When he fully became perfect and Nārāyaṇa was present before him, He asked him, "What benediction you want? You take." He said, svāmin kṛtārtho 'smi: "Simply by seeing You, by Your presence, I am fully satisfied. No more benediction. I don't want any benediction." This is bhakti. Bhaktiḥ pareṣānubhavo viraktir anyatra syāt. (break) ...ca lābha-santuṣṭau. No more demand. "Whatever by Kṛṣṇa's grace comes, that's all right. And not comes, it doesn't matter." The other śloka also, nirāśī, That is bhakti. Otherwise how one can be satisfied in any condition of life unless there is bhakti? That is the test. The test is that he has got something. Yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābhaṁ manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ. If he actually achieves Kṛṣṇa, then he does not think that anything better than this. That I see amongst these Europeans and American boys and girls. They have seen it, that "It is better than our so-called material life." Therefore they have been able to give up. Just like this boy Girirāja, he is very rich man's son. His father gave him a special car. His father is a big lawyer in Chicago. So he gave up everything. Now he is begging daily, although he is earning at least fifty-thousand rupees per month. But he has no... He is just like beggar. He doesn't care for his father. There are many like this.

Morning Walk -- April 16, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: There also, there is life. There is life.

Indian Man (2): Unfertilized, but then... (break)

Prabhupāda: She became widow at the age of eighteen years. So my father engaged her in worshiping Deity. My father was worshiping, and she was the assistant. Of course, she had two children by that time. Yes, go on. (break) ...Kṛṣṇa, and Kṛṣṇa is all attractive. So immediately they attracted the other cows, although they were not actual mother. (break) ...doctor in Calcutta, young man, he married the daughter of a very rich man. So his father-in-law gave him a motorcar, so he advised... He was a businessman. He advised that "Even if you have no practice, you simply ride on this car and go around."

Dr. Patel: (laughter) He's a typical Bengali. (Prabhupāda laughs)

Prabhupāda: So actually, by his going round, he increased his practice. (Indians talking Hindi)

Prabhupāda: (break) ...between demigod. Demigods are also expansion, but that is separated expansion, separated expansion, vibhinnāṁśa. In the Varāha-Purāṇa it is said, vibhinnāṁśa. And here, svāṁśa, personal expansion. (break)

Indian Man (3): I have worked with men of international fame like Colonel De Gaulle, Colonel Acton, Colonel Knowles, but worldwide... (break)

Prabhupāda: Because you do not accept the soul, medical science.

Morning Walk -- April 18, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: One has to practice. It will take some time. (break) ...yuktena cetasā nānya-gāminā. One has to practice. That means his determination is not yet fixed up. Because he is very rich, he is thinking that "This is all right." That is another defect of becoming very much rich. Bhogaiśvarya prasaktānāṁ tayā upahṛta-cetasām: (BG 2.44) "Those who are too much attached to this material enjoyment and..., by which his consciousness is bewildered..." All these defects are there because he is too much attached to material enjoyment. Why don't you give him dress if he has no dress. This is not good. You have not marked it?

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Then what is this? He's... Give him dress. (break) Give him lesson how to make tilaka. He has come to your shelter. You teach him. (break) Just like a diseased person, if he is a little careless, he is not very strict in following the..., it will take some time. It is exactly like that. He, because of his material opulences, he thinks that "Oh, where is the disease? This is all right. I am happy." That is the defect. We have to reduce. That is called tapasya. Not that "Because my tongue is asking me to eat something, therefore I must eat." Not that. That is the difference between ordinary man and gosvāmī. Gosvāmī means one who has conquered over the dictation of the senses. My sense dictates to do something, but when I am able to dictate the sense, "No, you cannot do it," that is called gosvāmī. Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Morning Walk -- April 29, 1974, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Everyone... Even government... In the parliament the question was raised, "Wherefrom they get money fabulously?" These men, in our country, they may be fools. In your country also, Los Angeles, I mean, neighboring storekeepers, they are wonderful, that "These people do not work and they have got so many cars and live so nicely?" (laughing) They inquire that "How do we get all these things?" They actually see that they are not ordinary working. They have no working or bank balance or business. Still, they have got so many cars and they eat nicely and they maintain such a nice house. And six, seven house they have purchasing. The realtors, they also know in America that we are very rich men. As soon as there is some property, they offer, because they know that we are very rich men. Because we have purchased some properties, so all the realtors, they have taken it for granted that we have got immense money. Here also, the members are thinking like that, that "Swamiji has got immense money."

Room Conversation with Mr. C. Hennis of the International Labor Organization of the U.N. -- May 31, 1974, Geneva:

Yogeśvara: Oh, yes. He asked me to excuse him to you. He had a meeting to go to.

Prabhupāda: I would say "If he has no brain, what is the use of going to a meeting?" (laughter) Our only... Śva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra-kharaiḥ saṁstutaḥ puruṣaḥ paśuḥ (SB 2.3.19). The men are like dogs, hogs, camels and asses. What they will do? Meeting of the dogs, hogs, camels and asses will be any beneficial to the society? We are very pessimistic, and our conclusion, that anyone who is not Kṛṣṇa conscious, he is dogs, hogs, camels, asses, that's all. No brain, animal. Animal has got brain: how to eat, how to sleep, how to have sex life. So these people, they have got brain for that purposes only. That is animal life. Actually, they do not know what is the aim of life, why people should be educated, why human society should be organized. They do not know. Bahir-artha-māninaḥ. Enamored by these big, big buildings. That's all. "Oh, they are so advanced." And naturally, the common man comes to the European or American city, he says, "Oh, Americans are very rich." "Rich" means they have piled up stones and bricks, that's all. This is their richness. What is there in the richness here? But people are common men. They think that this piling of bricks and stone is like real civilization. What do you think? Is that real civilization?

Yogeśvara: No.

Room Conversation with M. Lallier, noted French Poet -- June 12, 1974, Paris:

Bhagavān: Why does the soul?

Prabhupāda: He does not forget, but he... Just like the same example. You call it forgetfulness or imitation. Just like the child was offering. He was not required to offer oblation, but he was imitating the mother. That is natural. According to Vedic instruction, we are all living entities. God is also a living entity. But He is chief. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13), (break) ...that He is the topmost living entity, leader of the all other living entities. Eko yo bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān. The supreme one is maintaining all other living entities. So we are maintained. And He is maintainer. So sometimes... (to translator:) Yes, explain. There is... Sometimes it happens the father maintains the children, but the same child sometimes gives up the protection of the father. "Why shall I live under the guidance of...? I shall become independent." There are many instances in your western countries. He's happy being under the protection of the parents, but he rebels. He goes away. So that he can do. But if the father is very big, very rich, and the son leaves home and goes away to live independently, he suffers so much inconveniences and that is his choice.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Sanskrit Professor, other Guests and Disciples -- February 12, 1975, Mexico:

Prabhupāda: They must be wanting something. They are in need of something.

Guest (2): But not necessarily food.

Prabhupāda: One body is in need of food; another body is in need of something else. They're needy, everyone, needy. That you have to accept. I have seen in Los Angeles. I was walking in the Beverly Hills quarter. One hippie boy is coming from a very nice house. Beverly Hills, that quarter, is resided by all rich class. And he has got very nice car, but he's hippie. Why? His father is very rich man. He has got nice car. He might be very educated. Then why he is hippie? What is the answer?

Hanumān: He's frustrated.

Prabhupāda: That means in need. So that is the question, that you may be in need of food, I may be in need of some woman, he may be in need of some money... In this way everyone is needy. Therefore ultimately one should search after God, when every need will be fulfilled. Just like Dhruva Mahārāja, he went... He was in need of an empire like his father. For that reason he went to the forest and performed all kinds of austerities, and when he saw God he said, svāmin kṛthārto 'smi varaṁ na yāce: "I have no more need. Everything is fulfilled. I don't want anything." He... God said, "Now whatever benediction you want, you take from Me." He said, "No, I don't want anything. Now everything is fulfilled." So that is the real need. The child is crying, and he is not stopping crying. So many others coming. But as soon as his mother comes, he will stop. He understands immediately, "Now I have got the thing, my mother." So the real need is Kṛṣṇa. That is missing. Therefore this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. All these Western students, they were in need. Now they have got Kṛṣṇa. This young man, twenty-four years old, he has got all the desires for enjoyment, but he's no more after enjoyment. He's a sannyāsī. He's chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Why? (break) ...playing jugglery? He becomes God.

Room Conversation with Sanskrit Professor, other Guests and Disciples -- February 12, 1975, Mexico:

Prabhupāda: God has all the qualities that you can conceive. It is generally not... Bhaga(?), it is taken as six, six opulences. Bhaga means opulence, and vān means possessing. Bhagavat. Bhagavat-śabda. Bhaga means opulence, and vat means one who possesses. And the first word in bhagavat-śabda is bhagavān. This bhaga means six kinds of opulences: riches, then fame, then bodily strength, influence, knowledge, beauty, and renunciation. These are opulences. If one is very rich, people are attracted. If one is very reputed, people are attracted. If one is very strong, people are attracted. Influential-attracted. If one is very beautiful, man or woman, he is also attractive. If one is very wise, he's attractive. And one who is renounced, he's also attra... So Kṛṣṇa has got all these qualification in full. That is the definition of God. Anyone who possesses all these qualities in fullness, not partially, that is God. This is the definition of God. Not that "I can produce one ounce of gold," but if he can produce all the mines of gold, he is God. Not cheap God. In that way everyone is God. (end)

Room Conversation with Indian Guests -- March 13, 1975, Tehran:

Devotee (1): Can you satisfy equally as brahmacārī or gṛhastha or sannyāsī? Can you satisfy equally in whatever path you have chosen?

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. The satisfaction is the point. So just like the head of the family, he is asking his wife to do something, children to do something, servant to do something. So if they are doing according to the order, then it is very nice. The head of the family is satisfied, and everything is going nicely. Anywhere, in office also. There are different officers, secretaries, managers, and the director. He has given: "You do this. You do that. You do that. You do that." So if they do their duty, then everything is nice. Just like in your body. Here also we have got different parts. The hand does something, the leg something, the belly something, the brain something. What the brain does, the leg does not do. But the leg is doing for the satisfaction of the whole body. The brain is doing for the satisfaction of the whole body. Hand is doing for the satisfaction of the whole body. That is required, not that what is brain doing, the leg has to do the same. The leg may do his own way, but the aim is satisfaction of the order of the... I ask the leg, "Please take me from this room to that room." That is leg's duty. I am satisfied. So not that Kṛṣṇa is only one-sided. That they do not understand. Kṛṣṇa is the īśvara, controller of the whole creation. So if He gives you something to do for His satisfaction, you do that. It does not matter whether you are doing the same thing. The same example: Leg is doing something else than the hand, hand is doing something else than the brain, but the real purpose is to satisfy the whole. So Kṛṣṇa is not asking Vyāsadeva to come and fight in the battlefield of Kurukṣetra. Vyāsadeva is doing his own work. He is writing literature, Vedavyāsa. He is asking Arjuna to fight. But although the activities are different-Vyāsadeva is writing Vedānta-sūtra, and Arjuna is fighting—but both of them are equally important. Kṛṣṇa says Arjuna, bhakto 'si: "You are My very dear friend," and priyo 'si (BG 4.3), "Therefore I shall speak to you about this Bhagavad-gītā." Kṛṣṇa did not say, "Call Vyāsadeva. I have to speak Bhagavad-gītā. He is learned scholar." No. Arjuna was not a learned scholar; he was a warrior. And he was a gṛhastha, busy in politics. Still, He called Arjuna, "Yes, I shall speak to you Bhagavad-gītā." Why? Bhakto 'si: "You are My devotee." So to become devotee doesn't require that one has to become very big scholar or very rich man. No. Simply you have to agree, "Yes, Sir, what You say I shall do," that's all. This is bhakta.

Morning Walk -- March 15, 1975, Tehran:

Devotee: (indistinct) (barely audible) ...industrialists they are making life very difficult.

Prabhupāda: Where, where?

Devotee: In India.

Prabhupāda: In India. Oh.

Devotee: One industrialist friend, (indistinct), who has come to Tehran, I visited him. Very, very rich industrialist, he built a temple, very nice temple, (indistinct), and the government was not pleased that he has built a temple and they came in and searched his house and they gave him 20,000,000 rupees penalty.

Prabhupāda: For constructing a temple?

Devotee: No, for taxes and but their real reason was they were not happy that he was spending his money constructing a temple. (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Devotee: Juhu Beach temple?

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Morning Walk -- April 19, 1975, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: And now that you are saying, many people are stopping.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Somebody, they act... Just like illicit sex. They did not know that it is sinful. Now they are understanding. There was no good leader. Even the priests. In the Bible it is said, "Thou shalt not kill." The priests never said, because they are meat-eaters. They themselves are meat-eaters. How they can say? "It is our tradition to eat meat." But how the common man will be educated? (break) You can give me the general prasāda today. I will taste. (test?) (break) When one becomes rich, he becomes lazy. What is called? "Leads to poverty"? Luxury. "Luxury leads to poverty." So at one time one become very rich by hard work, and next generation gets the money for nothing, he spends it on luxuries, and the third generation, poor. There are many families, in everywhere. In England, all these English men, in the beginning they worked very hard, expanding their empire and working. Then gradually, when they became Lord family, then luxury. Now they are poverty-stricken.

Morning Walk -- May 8, 1975, Perth:

Paramahaṁsa: Australian, he says.

Prabhupāda: Australian, that's nice. Learn this art and preach. There is good potency in your country. You are also not poverty. Kṛṣṇa says, imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). Rājarṣi means very rich, kings. He never said, "All the bungees understood it. All the wretched class understood it." He never taught. It is meant for the leaders of the society, opulent kings and leaders. It is meant for them. Poverty-stricken man cannot under... But there is no bar, there is no hindrance. But this is especially meant for the opulent person. Otherwise why Kṛṣṇa says imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ? And He instructed first to the sun-god. He is not ordinary person. He instructed later on to Arjuna. He is not ordinary person. Because one important person learns the science, he will preach it all over the earth. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has directly said they are not ordinary persons. So unless one is materially not ordinary, he cannot preach. All the Gosvāmīs, they were coming from respectable... And where Gauḍīya Maṭha came? These are third-class men, no position in their past life.

Room Conversation with Justin Murphy (Geographer) -- May 14, 1975, Perth:

Prabhupāda: Without cooking.

Justin Murphy: No cooking. No cooking. Immediately, wiggling. The fresher the better. They used to eat small furry animals, bandicoots, wombats. There were no rabbits, of course, in those days. Rabbit has been a disaster introduced by man, by European man. But they used to occasionally pound the grass seeds from a few species of arid sand grasses and make a kind of an unleavened bread, which they would then bake. But generally the aborigines were nomadic, they were shifting, and they didn't cultivate. They didn't till the soil ever. But we must, whilst attempting to provide for the inevitable Australian people and the growth of population, we must also try to do that within the confines and the dictates of nature and the natural resources which we have. Australia is very rich in a lot of natural resources; it's very, very poor in others. It is quite poor in water, and, of course, water is absolutely basic to the growth process. Australia has abundant sunlight, solar energy, which is the basis of photosynthesis.

Prabhupāda: Vegetable.

Justin Murphy: And vegetable growth. But we lack water. And in Perth we are doing an excellent job at ruining our water. It's criminal in many respects, what is going on. And this is what we must do. So we are trying to strike a balance between science for and research for the benefit of people. But it must be also for the benefit of the environment, because...

Prabhupāda: You find out this verse. Annād bhavanti bhūtāni. Annād. A-n-n-a-d. Annād.

Morning Walk -- June 2, 1975, Honolulu:

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Devotee (1): It says, they put it in mattresses and pillows a long time ago. They used that for their bedding. It's called (?)

Indian man: We have also in India.

Prabhupāda: We make thread out of it. It is called cotton wool. We can sit down here? (break) ...Zamindar, very rich man, Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura. (break) ...cars, but where their men?

Bali-mardana: There is a Buddhist temple here, Chinese Buddhist temple, and I think the cars are for that. And some of the keepers. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...be superintend when the garden opens. (break) ... saw the question, but he cannot answer. So he began to write words like this, whole book, and the examiners saw that it has no meaning. But he has coined so many words. They said, "Very intelligent." They passed him. (laughter) Now, "upperfluous." You don't find all these words in dictionary. "Upperfluous rain of agua was dogbendikulali gondolized by lacticism of wine." It appears very gramatically nice composed, but it has no meaning. So he coined such words, a full book. Because he could not answer. So the time was there. He began to coin words. And he was passed, for his intelligence. Similarly, these people are putting words which you cannot understand, and they are getting their salaries, that's all. (break) ...invent something, that they will not die, there will be no disease, there will be no old age. That is something. What is this nonsense, simply speculating? (break) The cloud is standing there. It is not systematic. Then why the gravitation is not working? There are millions and millions tons of water. Why the gravitation is not working? The law of gravitation, why it is not working? Don't work with a rod.(?) What is the answer? They are not systematic changing. Why? Why the gravitation is not working, fall down? They are heavy, very heavy when they, what is called... Agitation. What is called?

Śrutakīrti: Friction.

Morning Walk -- June 23, 1975, Los Angeles:

Brahmānanda: Tagore?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Tagore also got his position because he got the Nobel Prize from western world. Therefore he was so much obliged. All the big, big men, governors, etcetera, he would invite at his home. He was rich man, zamindar. Not very rich but a descendant of rich. (break) ...became so enamored by the western people that there is a song, yo kūṭeko baralad galikiya uska tengri laya uṣka mutton chop bānāiya: "A dog, because he is killed by the governor, so we have made mutton chop out of it. Take it." (laughter) The dog became so exalted because he was killed by the viceroy." This is their philosophy.

Indian guest: Rabindranath Tagore and all these big people, they were not pure devotees, but...

Prabhupāda: They're big lions, that's all. And they are praised by the small cats and dogs. (laughter) (break) ...Rabindranath Tagore's Gitanjali he indirectly praises, "I love you," but he does not mention whom he loves. He does not know who is the lovable object. You have read his Gitanjali?

Indian guest: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Is it not like...?

Indian guest: Yes.

Morning Walk -- June 29, 1975, Denver:

Brahmānanda: From Mathurā.

Prabhupāda: Mathurā, yes. His father, mother... That Sally used to say, "My husband is a lost child of their parents." He is not doing very well. He is getting $800. At that time, maybe $1,000. What is here, eight hundred, thousand dollars? He could have lived very comfortably at his father's care. He is very rich man. (break) (walking:) Thing is that people are working so hard day and night for these temporary years, and less than that laboring they can go to back to home, back to Godhead. Little labor. But they do not know. Kṛṣṇa says, yānti deva-vratā devān pitṟn yānti pitṛ-vratāḥ (BG 9.25), bhūtejyā yānti bhū..., mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām. Just to get a nice car, a nice wife, and a few children by working so hard, bhūtejya, and the same labor, mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām, if he devotes for Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he goes back to home, back to Godhead. And what is wrong there? We have got so many Kṛṣṇa conscious devotees. What is wrong there than these ordinary karmīs? Hmm? Are we unhappy? What do you think?

Brahmatīrtha: No, nice.

Prabhupāda: See? Just see the foolish people. They are working so hard for nothing. Everything will be finished after this death, and he will become a cat and dog or a tree. You see? (break) ...sometimes advocate the materialists.

Room Conversation with the Mayor of Evanston -- July 4, 1975, Chicago:

Prabhupāda: So they were habituated to all... Because that is a system in the European, American life. But now they are free. That is Professor Judah's remark in his letter. Have you got that? Yes. He has written one book, Hare Kṛṣṇa and Counterculture, about our movement. He has read all our books. Here are, you have shown all these books? So he appreciates, many gentlemen appreciate, even the priestly class, they also appreciate. So this is a movement which is trying to create at least a section to become first-class. The first-class man does not mean that he is nicely dressed or very rich or very opulent. Generally, of course, a first-class man means good parentage, good education, good looking and nicely rich. That is the standard. But... That may be first-class position, but first-class man is different. First-class man means he is self-controlled, in the mind he is undisturbed, he is truthful, he is very clean, inside and outside, he is very simple, tolerant, full of knowledge, practical application of knowledge, and believe in God. This is first-class man. There is no mention that he is rich, he is beautiful, bodily, or he is educated. Educated, this is a result of education. Real education means that he is self controlled. Controlling the mind, controlling the senses, truthful. He will speak truth in any circumstances. Even to his enemy he will speak the truth. And clean, and very simple, tolerant. And any knowledge, he has got some, I mean to say, strength over it. Ultimate knowledge, Brahmān, he believes in that and he has... Brahma janātītī brāhmaṇaḥ, This is first-class man. So it is not expected that everyone will become first-class. but there must be a section in the society, ideal first-class. And they will be advisor to the rest. These brāhmaṇas, they will not take part in politics, but those who are politicians, administrators, they should take advice from these first-class men, how to rule, how to control, what is the ideal. So the ruling class, they are called kṣatriyas.

Room Conversation with the Mayor of Evanston -- July 4, 1975, Chicago:

Prabhupāda: How they can be? They are not trained up. They are not trained up from the very beginning. For being trained up, there is another four divisions, brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, sannyāsa. These are the training divisions. So for the first-class, second-class, third-class, all the students, they are trained up as brahmacārī, student life. Brahmacārī means celibacy, live under the direction of the teacher and accept all kinds of hardship under the teacher's or spiritual master direction. Children, they can easily take it. If a child, a small child, I ask him, "My dear child, you take my shoes and keep it there," he will immediately agree. He has no sense, "Oh, he is asking me to take his shoes." He will immediately agree. Even he is very rich man's son. So this life is advised that a student live just like a menial servant of the teacher or the spiritual master. And they agree. We have got good instances. And he is coming from the first-class family, brāhmaṇa family or kṣatriya family or vaiśya family, first, second, third. So even śūdra family, he can learn also. So brahmacārī. Then he is, if he can remain without wife or without opposite sex, then he continues to remain as brahmacārī. He is encouraged. This process encourages to remain brahmacārī, that "Don't take to sex life, it is entailed with so many difficulties. Practice to remain a brahmacārī. You'll save so much trouble." But if he is unable—the teacher sees-Then he is allowed to marry, marriage. If he is trained up brahmacārī, when he marries, he lives with wife under rules and regulation, not like cats and dogs. And then, because he had previous training, at a certain age he gives up family life. That is called vānaprastha. Pañcaśordhvam vānam vrajet.

Room Conversation with Lt. Mozee, Policeman -- July 5, 1975, Chicago:

Prabhupāda: And I have known many instances. In Calcutta one very rich man's son in the evening he would take his bath and dress nicely, and he would go to the Howrah station and beg, cheat men: "I have lost my purse. Will you kindly help me?" And any gentleman: "He has lost..." And he will go to the restaurant and eat and go home. That was his habit. He was a very rich man, but his habit was this. So we have to change the habit by changing the heart. You know very well. Many thieves, they have committed many times theft and put into the jail. So he knows that "If I commit theft, I will go to the jail." He has practically seen it, and he knows it. Still, he steals. Why? Because heart is unclean. So this process will cleanse the heart. Unless he cleans the heart, you cannot stop criminality simply by laws. Laws are already known. The professional thief, he knows the law. The professional murderer, he knows the law. But still, he commits because heart is unclean. And our process, to cleanse the heart. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12), it is Sanskrit, "Cleansing the heart." Bhava-mahā-dāvāgni-nirvāpaṇam, "Then all the troubles of this material world will be solved."

Room Conversations -- July 26, 1975, Laguna Beach:

Jayatīrtha: Both economic development and spiritual advancement.

Prabhupāda: Yes. You can... Actually there is no need of economic development. But if you think it is required, you can do that. But don't forget your real business. That is our proposal. We don't condemn, but economic development... Just like in America. When I did not come here... Of course, I know that everywhere everything is there. But I thought that "America is very rich, there is no poverty. There is no crime because they are rich." But when I came here I saw everything is the..., as in India so in America. There is crime; there is poverty; everything is there. At least, they are voluntarily accepting poverty, just like hippies. Most of them are coming from rich family, rich father. But he has volunteered to lie down on the street. Why? Why he doesn't care for economic development?

Mr. Surface: Maybe he's had too much.

Room Conversations -- July 26, 1975, Laguna Beach:

Prabhupāda: "Cheerful attitude." If cows know. They have got intelligence that "We will be killed." Therefore they are not supplying sufficient milk. They cannot, just like if your mind is full of anxiety, you cannot work fully. So because they are denied this cheerfulness, you are getting less milk. If you keep them cheerful, they will give more milk. This is nature's economic development. Artificially you cannot increase the production of milk. But according to the instruction of scripture, if you keep them cheerful without any fear, they will deliver double milk. So therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is recommended that cows should be protected in the human society. If you want to eat meat, you can kill insignificant, small animal, but don't kill cows. There are other animals-hogs, pigs, goats, lambs or birds, so many, fish—if you are at all interested in meat-eating; but don't kill cow. Find out this verse from Bhagavad-gītā, kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyam vaiśya-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.44). Those who are vaiśyas... Economic development... Vaiśya means economic development. They should produce ample food grains and give protection to the cows. Just like our Kṛṣṇa's life, His foster father was a vaiśya. So he is keeping so many hundred thousands of cows, and Kṛṣṇa was entrusted to take charge of the calves, Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma. So although They were very rich father's son, still They were taking the calves in the forest for tending in childhood. Still... You have seen in Māyāpur? The small children, they are taking care very nicely of the cows. After all, it is animal. The small child has got a stick, and he has been trained up how to allow them to graze. They have done. So according to Bhagavad-gītā... But that is very nice, that economic development means you produce more food grains and more milk. Then it will solve all posit... There will be no scarcity of food or happiness. Our, these Kṛṣṇa society young boys and girls, they have prepared so many nice things from milk. It is nutritious, very palatable, every..., everything. And we take food grains, fruits, milk preparation, that's all. That is very easily available. You can get enough fruits if you cultivate trees and plants. That is recommended in Bhagavad-gītā. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). What I have given, purport of that verse?

Morning Walk -- August 27, 1975, Vrndavana:

Akṣayānanda: Yes. That's what I tell them. They say, "We already helped the other, but you came too late, so therefore we can't help you."

Prabhupāda: "So you are so poor?"—(aside:) Hare Kṛṣṇa—"that you cannot help the second man? Then how you are charitable? You must be open to give charity to everyone." No use talking.

French devotee (1): They are very rich, Śrīla Prabhupāda. They are very rich.

Prabhupāda: Richer than us? (laughter) Do you think?

French devotee (1): No.

Prabhupāda: How many branches he has got of his business?

Akṣayānanda: So I usually tell them, "It is not for us that we want help, but so that we can help others." They like that. They can appreciate humanitarian viewpoint, material benefit. That's all.

Prabhupāda: So we are giving the best humanitarian service—to stop his repetition of birth and death.

Brahmānanda: The final solution.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Morning Walk -- September 29, 1975, Ahmedabad:

Indian man (3): A very bad habit.

Prabhupāda: Emperor of British Empire, and he was a thief. Just see.

Brahmānanda: You've said that a fly sitting on a throne is still a fly.

Prabhupāda: Yes. (break) ...one gentleman, young man, he was very rich man's son. He would come in the evening in the Howrah station nicely dressed and would approach any gentleman, "Sir, I am very sorry. I have lost my purse. Can you give me? Otherwise I cannot return." So he will collect five, ten rupees and go to a restaurant and eat and go home. (break) It is the second nature. Now the door is open? We can go?

Kartikeya: Yes. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...enter. Not the cows.

Indian man (4): Physical world, this earth is there. Are there any other earthly planets of this type where human beings or other beings are staying other than spiritual beings?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Press Conference -- October 2, 1975, Mauritius:

Prabhupāda: Ordinary students who are satisfied by simply understanding the sunshine, its universal pervasiveness and the glaring effulgence of its impersonal nature may be compared to those who can realize only the Brahman feature of the Absolute Truth. The student who has advanced still further can know the sun disc, which is compared to knowledge of the Paramātmā feature of the Absolute Truth. And the student who can enter into the heart of the sun planet is compared to those who realize the personal features of the Supreme Absolute Truth. Therefore the bhaktas, or the transcendentalists who have realized the Bhagavān feature of the Absolute Truth, are the topmost transcendentalists, although all students who are engaged in the study of the Absolute Truth are engaged in the same subject matter. The sunshine, the sun disc and the inner affairs of the sun planet cannot be separated from one another, and yet the students of the three different phases are not in the same category. The Sanskrit word bhagavān is explained by the great authority Parāśara Muni, the father of Vyāsadeva. The Supreme Personality who possesses all riches, all strength, all fame, all beauty, all knowledge and all renunciation is called Bhagavān. There are many persons who are very rich, very powerful, very beautiful, very famous, very learned, and very much detached, but no one can claim that he possesses all riches, all strength, etc., entirely. Only Kṛṣṇa can claim this because He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. No living entity, including Brahmā, Lord Śiva or Nārāyaṇa, can possess opulences as fully as Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it is concluded in the Brahma-saṁhitā by Lord Brahmā himself that Lord Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. No one is equal to or above Him. He is the primeval Lord, or Bhagavān, known as Govinda, and He is the supreme cause of all causes.

Morning Walk -- October 5, 1975, Mauritius:

Prabhupāda: Just like here, this is māyā influence. These things should be stopped.

Cyavana: The Chinese come and make propaganda. The Russians come and make propaganda. The Americans come and make propaganda. They become confused what to do.

Prabhupāda: The climate is nice. There is good potential for producing food, keeping cows. Everything nice.

Devotee: It is all volcanic. The soil here is all from volcano, volcanic soil, very rich.

Prabhupāda: Oh? Volcanic or not volcanic, pūrṇam idam (Īśopaniṣad, Invocation). When it is created by Lord, it is complete. You are originally from India? No.

Indian boy (2): No, Mauritius.

Indian boy (1): Our father from India.

Prabhupāda: All of you? Bihar? No.

Indian boy (1): Bihar, yes, Bihar.

Prabhupāda: (break) ...is also known as Magadha. Magadha. That is the... Candragupta and others, they were reigning in Bihar, emperor of India. Jarāsandha also belonged to Bihar. (break) ...a great scientist?

Cyavana: Yes, I studied.

Morning Walk -- October 28, 1975, Nairobi:

Indian lady (3): Temporary they give hormone.

Prabhupāda: What is this temporary? Temporary means...

Indian lady (3): Temporary they get to be God.

Prabhupāda: One Marwari man, very rich man, he eighty years old, he wanted to change the hormones to remain...

Indian lady (3): Yes. That was in Indore.

Prabhupāda: Indore, yes.

Indian lady (3): Kukumcha.

Prabhupāda: Kukumcha. Yes, you know.

Indian lady (3): He got the glands from the monkey.

Prabhupāda: Just see. But where is now Kukumcha?

Indian lady (3): Now he is no more.

Prabhupāda: So Kukum, finished. (laughter) Kukum means order. So he thought... Kukum means order.

Indian lady (3): He was very rich. He used to...

Prabhupāda: I know that. In Calcutta, Kukumcha. This firm was very big. One of the richest Marwari. So eighty years old, he wanted to change the hormone to become young. Not only... There are many Marwaris. You know the (name witheld)? (name witheld)? His elder brother, (name witheld). His only business is to keep one wife and have a big establishment. He has got four, five wives—one Bengali, one U.P., one Marwari, one this—and each wife's establishment not less than ten thousand per month. And his business is morning to this wife and evening to this wife and noon to this wife, this wife. And he is old man. The wives do not care for him, and she is doing everything whatever, with the secretary. That's all. It is going on. I have seen. I was guest in his home, and this rascal is doing this. He is earning money, black market, white market, this mar... At any cost, and spending like this. That's all. There are many persons. Oh, in Europe also, the same thing. In Paris very, very old men, seventy-five years old, eighty years, they go to the night club. Entrance fee fifty dollar, then pay for the woman, wine. Spend few hours and spend two hundred, three hundred, five hundred dollars-go home. Then tranquilizer pill and sleep. This is going on. Therefore mūḍha.

Morning Walk -- November 14, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Just like America... (laughs) Americans have not even one per cent. They are many thousands times opulent, the demigods. So it is very difficult. Just like here for a very rich man to take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness is very difficult. That is a disquali...

bhogaiśvarya-prasaktānāṁ

tayāpahṛta-cetasām

vyavasāyātmikā-buddhiḥ

samādhau na dhigacchati

(BG 2.44)

(Hindi) Voluntarily sannyāsa. All big, big kings in India, voluntarily: "Eh! Give it! Kick it out!" Mahārāja Bhārata, at the age of twenty-four years, he left everything, young wife, children, kingdom, whole world—gave it up. This is Indian culture, vairāgya. Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja, (Hindi) as soon as the grandson, Mahārāja Parīkṣit, was major: "Take it. We are going." That is the fact. (Hindi) Even Mahatma (Gandhi). He declared himself mahātmā. He is such a mahātmā that unless he was killed by Goli(?), he was not leaving anything. He was not prepared. This is mahātmā, Kali-yūga ka mahātmā. Mahātmānas tu māṁ pārtha daivīṁ prakṛtim āśritāḥ, bhajanty ananya-manaso (BG 9.13). (Hindi) ...politics, politics, politics. (Hindi) ...nonviolence theory. Kṛṣṇa said, "You will die by violence. Nonviolence, there cannot be nonviolence. You wanted to prove nonviolence from Bhagavad-gītā and criticize Me, Kṛṣṇa. All right, you die." Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Morning Walk -- November 29, 1975, Delhi:

Haṁsadūta: Khadi.

Prabhupāda: Khadi, yes. No mill-made cloth can be used. That was Indian culture. They would not touch even foreign medicine. Dr. Bose, Kartick Chandra Bose, he told me that "You do not know how much we had to flatter to accept this British medicine." They would not touch quinine, anything foreign-made. This was Indian culture.

Harikeśa: Well, the basic flaw with Indian culture is that some people are very rich and some people are very poor.

Prabhupāda: No, no. Then why in your country there are hippies lying on the street? Why? Why they have accepted poverty?

Harikeśa: That's a temporary thing.

Prabhupāda: India is poor and rich, and why they are voluntarily poor?

Harikeśa: That was because they were all intoxicated.

Prabhupāda: Then you cannot say that there is no poor. There is voluntarily poor. You cannot say there is no poor.

Harikeśa: Well, in our Russian system we are trying to abolish that poor by making, take money from the rich.

Prabhupāda: Again that, "We are trying to abolish," the postdated check again.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- February 18, 1976, Mayapura:

Acyutānanda: I met him once. He is addicted to snuff very, very much.

Prabhupāda: Constantly.

Acyutānanda: Even during his lectures he makes gestures so that he can take snuff without anybody knowing.

Yaśodānandana: And one of his favorite styles is that whenever he goes to a city, he always stays with elderly widows, very rich elderly widows, in their houses. Very strange.

Acyutānanda: I think the people know that he is bogus, but they just go for some entertainment because he is so... (Prabhupāda laughs) Yes, they just go for some... Some people go just because they want to hear some nice English, to improve their English knowledge.

Prabhupāda: He speaks good English?

Acyutānanda: Very... He's an orator.

Prabhupāda: He's M.A. in English. I know. He's...

Acyutānanda: He used to be, I heard, a journalist.

Prabhupāda: Yes, journalist.

Morning Walk -- February 18, 1976, Mayapura:

Acyutānanda: But he got into some big embarrassment.

Prabhupāda: Journalists, they write very good English. Every journalist, they learn how to write good English.

Acyutānanda: He got into some big embarrassment. I don't know how. Then he went to the Himalayas.

Prabhupāda: He was in, several times in embarrassment. One friend in Delhi, Mr. Gupta, he told many things about him. He was patronizing him. In those days, when he was not very rich, he had, he gave him 25,000 rupees, that Mr. Gupta. (break) Ācchā?

Acyutānanda: I felt uncomfortable. He was clicking his teeth and moving his hands and talking very quickly. It was very uncomfortable just to be in his presence. I was very nervous. He actually contradicted himself. I was saying we should be respected in all Hindu temples. He says, "Yes, you are Hindus." He says, "Jains and Buddhists, they are also Hindus." I said, "How is that?" He says, "Who is Buddha?" I said, "He is incarnation of Kṛṣṇa." He says, "No, aside from that, he is the son of a kṣatriya." I said, "Then you are bringing it back to birth again." And then he started groping for words and avoiding it. They want to make a unity of Hindus so that they can always sway elections, so that Mohammedan and Christians do not change the election.

Prabhupāda: And we want to make Mohammedans Hindus.

Conversation with News Reporters -- March 25, 1976, Delhi:

Reporter (3): No. Because the number of starving men here is much larger.

Prabhupāda: You are starving on account of your economic condition being bad or.... I cannot say anything. But they are also starving. You are poor by force, and they sometimes accept poverty voluntarily, just like the hippies. They have enough money. They are coming from very rich father and grandfather, but they lie down on the street, and the police comes and kick them, "Hey, get up! Get up!" Why? Why they have accepted this? So this kind of varieties we find everywhere-rich man, middle class man, and poverty-stricken man. Don't think that it is in India. I am traveling all over the world.

Reporter (1): Swamiji, what do you suggest to your disciples to arouse what you call Hare Kṛṣṇa consciousness or God consciousness?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Hare Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the purificatory process. If you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.... God is so kind. In this age.... It is meant for every age. Especially this age when we are so much fallen and so much suffering, and neither we are able to act very piously, therefore this Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, if you chant, you gradually become purified. Then you come to your own consciousness.

Room Conversation -- April 20, 1976, Melbourne:

Carol Jarvis: But you make a lot of money out of the sales of your books, etc.; there is begging in the street each day.

Prabhupāda: Yes. But there are many beggars. They do not get money. We get money. We are not beggars. We are giving books, knowledge. Do you think we are beggars?

Carol Jarvis: If I could use the example, perhaps, of your temple, which has a lot of very rich material things in it. I wonder what significance that plays in your spiritual life.

Prabhupāda: So what do you mean by spiritual and material? Do you know the distinction? Then I'll show you spiritual. And do you know?

Carol Jarvis: Well, the material...

Prabhupāda: I say that in the temple there is nothing material, all spiritual, but you have no eyes to see to it.

Carol Jarvis: I wonder if you could lead an equal sort of life without the richness of the temple.

Prabhupāda: Yes, you can do. You can live at your home like us. We are giving the example. You can live also like that. That is spiritual life. If you follow the same rules and regulation and live like that, that is spiritual life.

Morning Walk -- June 4, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That's all. You have now got the power. You cheat more.

Rāmeśvara: The people in America that claim that the American government is controlled by Communists. They say that these big, big bankers, the very rich, rich people, that they are actually..., their theory is Communist government, or, not Communist, dictatorship, and that they are secretly manipulating.

Prabhupāda: What is their aim?

Rāmeśvara: Power.

Prabhupāda: Power..., anyone who has got money, he has got power. That is open secret. What is the secret? (laughs) If you have got money, you have got all power.

Rāmeśvara: They're very expert in making the people think that this is democracy and that the people have power. (static)

Prabhupāda: If you can purchase vote by paying money, then where is democracy?

Rāmeśvara: Just like one of their arguments is that these rich bankers, they can control how much money is being printed.

Prabhupāda: Yes, suppose I stand for presidency, and I take money from bank and bribe and get vote.

Morning Walk -- June 15, 1976, Detroit:

Prabhupāda: Yes, we had two German Godbrothers. One is that Sadānanda. Another was Bon something.

Hari-śauri: He was initiated?

Prabhupāda: Yes. (break)

Devotee (1): ...family they live in Houston, they're a big construction company, and they do all kinds of construction work for the government.

Prabhupāda: I think his grandfather was also architect.... That gentleman was Jew.

Devotee (1): I don't remember. I think he was. He used to work with George Harrison.... Harrison was their name. He was very rich. Their family does construction work for big government officials in Iran, and they are building one big naval base in Iran.

Prabhupāda: Why not to take our work in Māyāpur? (break)

Devotee (1): ...letter, Śrīla Prabhupāda. He never returned it.

Room Conversation -- June 17, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: You see these two things especially, that they.... English is their mother tongue, mother language. They can easily become English scholar very easily. And Sanskrit language is no difficulty. Read and write, read and write, then he will learn. Our education in Sanskrit was in college. Of course, I was the best student in my class of Sanskrit. I was standing first. But we are not like the so-called Sanskrit scholars. But for our purpose we can read and write, that's all. Similarly, we don't want any very learned scholars, Sanskrit grammarian to manufacture jugglery of words, meanings. No, we don't want that. Simply we can conduct our business, that's all. Just like Marwaris, they, their education is up to their business understanding, that's all. They don't want to be scholars or technologists. You won't find in big, big Marwari family they have become a doctor, engineer or technologist, no. But in business dealings they are first class. (laughs) That they train. I had one Marwari friend in Calcutta. He was a very rich businessman and has got several (indistinct). So sometimes I went to his house. I saw that he had engaged a Sanskrit paṇḍita and an English teacher. That's all. So I asked him, "You don't send your children to school?" "No, no, no, no. I..." If we require some technologist, we can purchase. You pay some money; so many technologists you will get, M.A., Ph.D., D.H.C., C.H.C. All right, take payment and do business (indistinct). They employ very, very, very large salary. But on the head, management, their own sons, grandsons.

Morning Walk -- July 3, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: What is that building?

Vṛṣākapi: This is the neighborhood. It is a very rich neighborhood, Prabhupāda. Very wealthy. This is the most wealthy neighborhood, practically all of America. The builders are putting up houses all in here just like that house over there.

Prabhupāda: Oh, bungalow type (?). Very good. This is very nice. Is it not? Very nice.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Very peaceful.

Vṛṣākapi: Many senators and congressmen, they live out here.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: They ever come to the Sunday feast?

Vṛṣākapi: Some do. One man does. We've been here a short time, only four months. So we have to advertise more so people will come on the Sunday feast. But I think we will have thousands.

Prabhupāda: That is nice. (break) ...trees very long?

Vṛṣākapi: Just pine trees and oak trees. No fruit trees. (break) He was run over by a car, he was intoxicated.

Prabhupāda: Then? What happened, he was not identified?

Vṛṣākapi: They said that he lived in these woods back here, way back in the woods.

Prabhupāda: Oh, drunkard.

Evening Darsana -- July 6, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: We got it from the Library of Congress.

Prabhupāda: So God is great. Now we have to analyze what is the greatness. A man is supposed to be great when he is very rich. A man is supposed to be great when he is very wise, man of knowledge, strength, reputation. So item by item, you analyze and see, you'll see Kṛṣṇa is the greatest. By reasoning. Therefore He is God. They have been analyzed. You'll find in The Nectar of Devotion, the Gosvāmīs have analyzed the characteristics of Kṛṣṇa, and they found Him the greatest. So if God is great, and He is the greatest, then He is God. How can you deny it? At least, we can see in the Bhagavad-gītā, the little knowledge given by Kṛṣṇa, it is still standing as the greatest. Five thousand years past, nobody could give such a book of knowledge throughout the whole world. The Bhagavad-gītā is studied not only by the Indians and Hindus but by all scholars of the world. Even such persons who think that there is somebody greater than Kṛṣṇa, they also read Bhagavad-gītā and they recite from the Bhagavad-gītā. Even Śaṅkarācārya, the leader of the Māyāvādīs, he says Bhagavad-gītā kiñcid adhītā. Is it not? Does he not say?

Guest (3): Was it not true also Śaṅkarācārya Swamiji who said vande kṛṣṇa jagat-guru?

Prabhupāda: Yes, bhaja govindaṁ bhaja govindaṁ bhaja govindam...

Room Conversation -- July 7, 1976, Baltimore:

Rūpānuga: It is very heavy cake.

Prabhupāda: Hm. Very nice. Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). This is the movement of ānanda, pleasure only. Kṛṣṇa is ānandamaya, and if you remain with Kṛṣṇa you'll become ānandamaya. A rich man, he's enjoying, and if you remain in association with the rich man, you also enjoy. Where is the difficulty? A very rich man, and his associates, they are also rich men. Is it not? And if you remain with poor man, you are also poor.

Rūpānuga: You've explained that the servant in the house of the king, he is almost as good as the king.

Prabhupāda: No, he is better than king. King, he eats whatever is offered to him, but they can eat whatever they like. Is it not? Who is restricting them? (aside:) You can open that. Just stand towards there. Yes.

Hari-śauri: Is that, cutting the cake, is that a Vedic..., did they used to do that in Vedic times, or is that a Western invention? We were just wondering about it.

Prabhupāda: Prasāda distribution. Either you cut or take with hand, the same thing. It doesn't make any difference.

Rūpānuga: On the cake it was marked on one side 1966, on the other side 1976. Like a coin. They make coins celebrating, commemorating.

Prabhupāda: And the cake is made very nicely. Who has made it?

Evening Darsana -- July 8, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Demigod means just like you or me, ordinary living being, but they are very pious. On account of their piety they have got very good post. Just like janma... There are four: to get birth in very high, aristocratic family; to become very learned scholar; to become beautiful in bodily feature. Janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrī (SB 1.8.26): high parentage, birth, to take birth in aristocratic family, in brāhmaṇa family, or very exalted royal family. This is janma. And śruta, to become very learned scholar. Janma, aiśvarya, to become very rich. Janmaiśvarya-śruta, śruta means education, and śrī, bodily beauty. These things are obtained on account of piety, pious activities. And just the opposite, low-class family, lowborn, no money, always poverty-stricken, no education, no bodily beauty, these are the results of impious activities. So the demigods means on account of their pious activities they get the situation in higher planet where the duration of life is ten thousands of years, and their one day is equal to our six months. Such ten thousands of years. Very beautiful body, facilities. There... The other day I was reading about the bodily construction of woman there. They are ever-young, the chest is very hard. (laughs) It is stated, yes. So such class of women is there, and aiśvarya, nandana-kānana, so many things. The roads are paved with pearls and jewels, not these pebbles. In the higher planetary system there is facility for higher standard of material comforts. So they get there birth and enjoy for ten thousand of years. But it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, kṣīṇe puṇye punar martya-lokaṁ viśanti. As soon as they spend up their resultant action of pious activities, then again drop down, kṣīṇe puṇye punar martya-lokaṁ viśanti. And again begins life from the grass. They fall down with rains, and then they grow as grass. Then evolutional life begins, from plant life to insect life, to insect life to bird's life.

Room Conversation -- July 9, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. (pause) My Guru Mahārāja left alone, so he has sent so many gurus to take care of me. You are all my Guru Mahārāja's representatives.

Bali-mardana: We are guru dāsa.

Prabhupāda: So you are taking care. I am very much obliged to you. I sometimes think in my childhood I was very, very pet son of my father. I have admitted that in that book I told. My father was not very rich man, but still, whatever I wanted, he would give me. He never chastised me, but full love. Then of course I got friends and I was married, so by Kṛṣṇa's grace everyone loved me. (laughs) And I came to this foreign country without any acquaintance. So Kṛṣṇa has sent so many fathers to love me. In that way I am fortunate. At the last stage if I live very peacefully, that is a great mercy of Kṛṣṇa. By Kṛṣṇa's mercy everything is possible. So we shall stick to Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet and everything is possible. What is that book? After Kṛṣṇa book? No, after Kṛṣṇa book, that yellow...?

Dhṛṣṭadyumna: Teachings of Lord Caitanya.

Prabhupāda: So distribute this prasādam. So Eighth Canto is also?

Rāmeśvara: It is going out to the printer in the month of July, this month, by the end of the month.

Prabhupāda: Oh, first part.

Evening Darsana -- July 13, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: The brain must be little clear to understand what is the value of life, why I am suffering, if is there any remedial measure, how can I take it. That is brain. And if the brain is used only to find out where is sense gratification, where is sex, where is food, where is shelter, where is money? Then, that is, that business is being done by the hogs and dogs. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means to save people from this dogs' and hogs' life and to come to the real platform of understanding the value of life. They do not know it. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ (SB 7.5.31). They do not know what is the aim of life. Simply by false hopes they are trying to adjust things with material effects. That will never do that. Durāśayā. Durāśayā means it is useless hope. It cannot be. Just like we practically see that the, here in New York City, American people are very rich and intelligent, but they cannot stop this fire which is unwanted. They cannot stop it. That is not possible. Because they are living very high, 300 feet high or more than that, you are not safe still. You are still in the same danger. Because you are living in big, big skyscraper building, it does not mean that you will not die. Death is there also, birth, death, old age, disease, the real problems of life. It does not mean that because we have advanced in so-called material civilization, you have avoided birth, death. Even big, big scientists who gave us so many big, big inventions, but still they died. They could not invent something which will protect them from death, that at the time of death, give me this pill so that I will not die and I'll go on giving you more scientific advance. That is not possible.

Morning Walk and Room Conversation -- August 9, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: Because the yajña stopped.

Pradyumna: The Sahara Desert used to be all trees, very fertile. Sahara Desert in Africa, it is the biggest desert in the world. Nothing...

Prabhupāda: Sahara, Sahara.

Pradyumna: Sahara Desert. It used to be very rich thousands of years ago, but then became desert.

Hari-śauri: It's supposed to increase its size by ten miles every year.

Pradyumna: Desert growth. Formerly, that city Carthage used to be there. Carthage was fighting Rome. Carthage was very rich, all farms.

Prabhupāda: Cartharian civilization was very big civilization. The thing is that the more people become sinful, they'll be disturbed by this natural atmosphere. Therefore I'm surprised that moon planet is inhabited by pious inhabitants, how there can be desert?

Pradyumna: But does moon planet have something to do with Pitṛs? Does the Pitṛ..., Pitṛloka is different?

Prabhupāda: Pitṛ?

Pradyumna: Pitā, Pitṛ?

Prabhupāda: No, Pitṛloka is different. That is downwards.

Evening Darsan -- August 10, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: That tendency is here. Because we are very small fragment of spiritual identity, that tendency is there. The example is given, just like fire and spark of the fire. The fire and the spark, the spark is very small, but it is fire. And the big fire, together they look very beautiful. With the fire, when the sparks come-sput sput—so many sparks, it looks very beautiful. But the sparks sometimes fall down from the original fire. Then it is no more fire. It is fire, but it's extinguished. The illumination is over. So we are small particles of God. God is big fire; we are small particles of God. So we are playing with the big fire very nice, but there is chance of falling down. That chance is there. The big fire does not fall. The big fire is always blazing. But the small fire, although it is possessing the same quality of fire, it may fall down. So we are small particle, very, very small, atomic portion God. Therefore we have got the tendency to be separated from the big fire, and then we begin our material body. Just like another crude example, just like a very rich man's son, he's enjoying life. Sometimes he thinks, "Why not independently live? Why dependent of father?" He goes out and he becomes a hippie. There are many examples. He was living very comfortably, rich man's son, but he left the house of his father and became a hippie. There are many practical examples. Why does he do so? I have seen in Allahabad one big lawyer, very famous lawyer, Ferolal Bannerji. He had two sons. One son became a good barrister like him, and another son became a car-wala, driving a car. The reason was that this son, a car-wala, he fell in love with a low-class woman, and he preferred to remain a car-wala.

Evening Darsana -- August 12, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda:

yaṁ brahmā varuṇendra rudra marutaḥ stunvanti divyaiḥ stavair

vedaiḥ sāṅga-pada-kramopaniṣadair gāyanti yaṁ sāma-gāḥ

dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yogino

yasyāntaṁ na viduḥ surāsura-gaṇā devāya tasmai namaḥ

In Vedic prayer it is like this. Yasyāntaṁ na viduḥ surāsura-gaṇāḥ. Yasya antam, the glories of the Lord, unlimited. So nobody can go to the limit of His glorification, either the sura or asura, the demons or the demigods. Nobody can reach. But He's glorified by the demigods like, yaṁ brahmā, Brahmā, Lord Brahmā, Śiva, Varuṇa, the predominating deity of air, fire, Lord Brahmā. Everyone worships Him, yaṁ brahmā varuṇendra-rudra stunvanti divyaiḥ stavaiḥ, by glorified prayers. And gāyanti yaṁ sāma-gāḥ. Vedaiḥ sāṅga-pada-kramopaniṣadaiḥ—by Vedic hymns, by Upaniṣad, by Vedic literature. Gāyanti yaṁ sāma-gāḥ. Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ (SB 12.13.1). The yogis in meditation try to find out Him within the core of the heart. Yasyāntaṁ na viduḥ surāsura-gaṇā devāya tasmai namaḥ. The same prayer. The difference is the action. Difference is in the action. So far prayer is concerned, God is great, accepted, either by the Christian or the Muhammadan or the Hindus or the followers of Vedic principles. Now "God is great, glorify Him, and that is the business of human life," that they are not taking. Practically. That is the defect. And that is to be done. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. Brahmā means the great. Brhavad brhanantvad iti brahma.(?) Brahmā means the greatest. Now here we get the information God is great. So naturally one should be inquisitive to know how He is great. That is human life. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. Just like if I introduce, "Here is a gentleman, very rich." So naturally next inquiry will be, "How he is rich? What is the position that he is very rich?" These inquiries are natural. If I simply remain satisfied by hearing that he is rich, that is also good. You have got some respect. But if you know how he is rich, to what extent he is rich, then your respect will be increased.

Room Conversation -- August 12, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: Yes, just opposite. That is His building. Very good income. Besides that, He has many other lands. They have got very good income.

Hari-śauri: They're very well looked after.

Prabhupāda: Yes. They're one of the oldest aristocratic families of Calcutta, Mulliks. The whole, from Howrah Bridge up to that street, all belongs to their property. Very rich men.

Hari-śauri: Now they don't own so much.

Prabhupāda: No, the Deity has got income. So they have got terms for worshiping the Deity. So one who gets the term for worshiping, he takes the income.

Hari-śauri: Oh, in the family members.

Prabhupāda: Yes, but practically that is now their income. The more one gets the worshiping term longer, he gets more income. (laughs) The Deity has got very, very good income. All the temples in India... Just like I am trying to make some fund for Vṛndāvana and Māyāpur. Even no contribution comes, it will go on. The sevā-pūjā will not stop for want of money. So there will be no want of money. Still, I must make some provision, by the income the sevā-pūjā will go on. Contribution may come or not. That provision should be made. Now in Vṛndāvana Akṣayānanda is collecting in so many ways. Suppose nobody collects. That does not mean this temple will be closed. It must go on. So I am trying to make some provision from that bank interest.

Room Conversation -- August 14, 1976, Bombay:

Indian Doctor: Kuṇape tri-dhātuke.

Prabhupāda: That they do not understand. That as soon as you accept a material body, either a very rich man's body or poor man's body or any body, either brāhmaṇa's body or śūdra's body, to accept material body means undergo miseries.

Indian Doctor: But you have no choice to accept. By the will of God...

Prabhupāda: No, you have got... You can become free. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti...

Indian Doctor: Bhakti-avyabhicāriṇī. I have got that tendency, bhakti, avyabhicāriṇī-bhakti.

Prabhupāda: No, no, simply to know Kṛṣṇa. Māṁ ca 'vyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena ya... So you cannot understand Kṛṣṇa without bhakti. Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti (BG 18.55). So without bhakti there is no possibility to understand Kṛṣṇa. But if you understand Kṛṣṇa, then you'll become free from this process of accepting material body.

Indian Doctor: Ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (BG 18.66).

Prabhupāda: Yes. This is only business, to become Kṛṣṇa conscious and avoid this botheration of repeating body, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). Dehāntara-prāptiḥ is there. If you want to stop dehāntara-prāptiḥ, then you have to become Kṛṣṇa conscious. There is no other way. But if you think that it is very pleasure to enter within the womb of mother and accept one body, and again come out and again work, and again die, and again enter. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). If you want this business, that is your choice. You can do it. But if you want to stop it, then this is the only way. Therefore śāstra says na sādhu manye. It is not good. Nūnam, read that verse.

Room Conversation About Mayapura Construction -- August 19, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Anyway, what is the investigation?

Jayapatākā: They are being investigated for income tax.

Gargamuni: For income tax. The government is making it so that no one can give any donation. They don't want any more donation. They want everything to come to the government. So it's not easy to get money locally. We are getting enough to do maintenance, but it is not like it was, say, two or three years ago, when you could get 25,000 fifteen thousand, especially in Calcutta, where the income tax, every day they are raiding the houses.

Jayapatākā: Even if people give, a life, patron member, 2,222, if they are not so big, they want to give in installment and even though they'll give at one time with postdated... They want different receipt because if they give one lump sum, then it makes it seem that they are very rich. Although they'll give you at one time, they want small, small receipt so that the income tax won't think, "Oh, they are are giving so much donation? They must be very rich. They must have hidden wealth which we can capture from them by investigation." So in this way they are very much pressurized. Sometimes they prefer to give money without receipt.

Prabhupāda: Soon the whole, our program is going on.

Gargamuni: Oh, yes. No, it's going on more. The book distribution is going on more. More people are joining. There's no hindrance.

Prabhupāda: That I want.

Room Conversation About Mayapura Construction -- August 19, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: In Calcutta?

Gargamuni: No, it's in Rajastan.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Gargamuni: It's a place which he's not using. He met you in Bombay. He also visited our centers in Paris and New York. He's a Marwari man, very rich, very nice. He's also donated good sums to the society. So now he wants to meet you, and he wants someone to go there. So I told him we will go and look at it.

Prabhupāda: Where?

Gargamuni: It's in Rajastan.

Prabhupāda: Rajastan? Where? Which side.

Gargamuni: It's near Beekanair. It's with agricultural land and a big house. They said they spent about fifteen lacks on it, marble house. The family is not using it. They have no use. We're getting a lot of offers.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Gargamuni: But because of Māyāpur, I have not taken them very seriously, because we already have huge affair in Māyāpur. But if you like, we can see.

Prabhupāda: No, kāca dhun kāca kaphe (?): "If some property is offered, we should take it." That is the... And washed cloth. Kācā dhun kācā kapha (?). If somebody offers you very nicely washed cloth, you should use it. And some property, you must use it. They are... You can utilize this property by inhabiting the persons, if they are inclined to develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They are rotting outside Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They may come to live. We are for everyone. So he... Where does he reside, this gentleman?

Room Conversation -- August 20, 1976, Hyderabad:

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: ...if we give them guarantee that we will develop it.

Prabhupāda: No, no, we shall do. You guarantee that. Decision is made. So you can take.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: And from what I've heard, this Malhotra is a very—Girirāja told me—very, very nice man.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: He is not going to... He's a very, very rich man himself, so he's not really trying to cheat us or anything.

Prabhupāda: That decision is made. It is a very well known place, Mahabaleswar.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, Mahabaleswar.

Saurabha: Just on the other side of the plateau you have that RMA, ARA?

Prabhupāda: Aurobindo?

Saurabha: No.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: I think Mahabaleswar is also the summer capital of Mahara... All the government ministers have been meeting there. And this Bhogilal Patel's son, he was saying that he knows all the big people there. Sītā, Rāma, (indistinct) he's the chairman of the local municipality...

Prabhupāda: So we must have a big temple there.

Room Conversation About Blitz News Clipping -- August 21, 1976, Hyderabad:

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: You dedicated the Kṛṣṇa book to him.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Because he was a pure Vaiṣṇava. And he wanted me to become like this. He was praying Rādhārāṇī. He was praying to Rādhārāṇī. And any saintly person would come, he would simply say, "Give blessings to my son that he may become a Rādhārāṇī's servant." That was my father's prayer. He never prayed that "My son may become very rich man." He never prayed like that. Actually, his ardent desire that his son may become a Vaiṣṇava. And my Guru Mahārāja's training has put me this position. That I have admitted. Later on. What is that word I have given? Hmm? Find out.

Gargamuni: "The eternal father?"

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: "Which was later on solidified..."

Prabhupāda: Ahh!

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: "...by my eternal father."

Prabhupāda: "The ideas given by my father were solidified by..."

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: That's what you said.

Room Conversation -- September 6, 1976, Vrndavana:

Akṣayānanda: Spoiled. Spoiled brat.

Prabhupāda: Because he gets money. One who has got money but no children, he takes some adopted son. So the adopted son thinks that "I have got so much money," and he has never worked. He is spoiled. I have seen many adopted son, our... Got lakhs and lakhs of rupees, and in one night he's spoiled everything. Simply after woman and wine. I have seen it. There was one gentleman, Narendranath Singh. Very big, palatial building and very rich man. And I have seen him when he was finished. He was friend of big, big person, Raja Maharlel (?). And one day I saw in Calcutta, there was raining and he was sitting in a rickshaw. And no friend. He had known practically all big men of Calcutta friend. Nobody is coming. "Well Narendra, you are sitting. Come on in my car." Nobody. I was (indistinct). And he was drenching, there was heavy rain. And sitting a... And he was keeping Rolls Royce car.

Akṣayānanda: Keeping?

Prabhupāda: Rolls Royce. When he was rich man.

Akṣayānanda: Sometimes while traveling I've met some very old rich men lying on their deathbed dying. I approached them to help us. They will not give a single penny. It is all going to the son, and the son is atheist. In the house there is everywhere Kṛṣṇa's picture. Very difficult. They don't know that Kṛṣṇa is giving them a chance. They die, within days some of them can die. They are lying on the bed, passing stool and urine. So rich. But they do not care to help this movement. So many people like that. We have to become very expert. (end)

Room Conversation -- October 4, 1976, Vrndavana:

Akṣayānanda: They're used to eating large quantities of food. Here it cannot be done.

Haṁsadūta: And if I ask them... They're used to eating huge amounts of very rich foods.

Prabhupāda: Where?

Haṁsadūta: In the Western temples. They get so many nice foodstuffs which are not available here and when they become sick then they...

Prabhupāda: What rich food?

Haṁsadūta: Oh, like sour cream and butter and so many things. All kinds of fruits and vegetables.

Garden Conversation -- October 9, 1976, Aligarh:

Prabhupāda: And he has called Padma-locana. Similarly, this harijana movement is a farce because they remain the Cāmāra and Bhangis, and still they are called harijana. The same thing. No locana, but padma-locana. Everyone has got right. You can become the most advanced devotee. There is no hindrance. But they must be trained up as harijana. Not that artificially you simply rubberstamp harijana. Therefore that movement is failure. We have no objection to make anyone... Kṛṣṇa says māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Pāpa-yoni, lower class. Janma-aiśvarya-śruta-śrī, these four things, to take birth in high class family, janma, aiśvarya, to become very rich, and śruta, to become very learned scholar, and śrī, beautiful, these four things are there whose background is pious life. Otherwise, not possible. Janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrī (SB 1.8.26). So those who are just the opposite—means not born in very high class family, not... They say "accident." No, it is not accident. According to śāstra, karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1), there is superior examination. Yamarāja is there. Now, this man is now dead, this soul is now changing body.

Room Conversation on New York court case -- November 2, 1976, Vrindaban:

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, we can do that.

Prabhupāda: Yes, many thousands and thousands of important Indians, very rich men there are. In London there are very rich Indians. They can form immediately a solid association. They should present that this Kṛṣṇa is our God. In every Indian home we observe Kṛṣṇa Janmāṣṭamī. Even though one does not follow Kṛṣṇa cult, still if he is Hindu he follows the Janmāṣṭamī. Inevitably, everywhere. So this Kṛṣṇa cult is genuine, Vedic, based on Bhagavad-gītā which was spoken long, long years ago before any religion, any religious literature in the world. The Buddha literature or the Christian literature and Jewish literature, they cannot be counted more than two thousand years. A little more than that. But this Kṛṣṇa cult is coming, it is coming from, I have already explained in the introduction, it is coming from four hundred millions of years ago. But even from historically, it is five thousand years. Beyond all religious literature in the world. We have to present this case in the court. And let it be discussed thorough (indistinct), and see our books, compare any religious books with our these books. Present all the opinions of big, big professors how traditional Indian culture is there. You have to fight, organize (indistinct).

Room Conversation on New York court case -- November 2, 1976, Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: You should go to see Visvambhara Gosvāmī also. (Hindi) This is fortunate that you have come in this moment. So I'll give you this inspiration, now combine together all Vṛndāvana gosvāmīs. Kṛṣṇa cult is for everyone, either Gauḍīya or Rāmānuja or everyone. Now all of you should come forward. That you do. Admitting (Hindi conversation). They are concerned with the Kṛṣṇa cult. Kṛṣṇa cult means all the ācāryas, all the ācāryas, either Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Nimbārka or anyone, they should combine together. (Hindi) (aside:) Why you are talking? It is not very important. It is for him. It is a very bad habit. (aside ends) So we should be very alert in this point. All the Vaiṣṇavas of different sampradāyas, especially Gauḍīya sampradāya, you should come forward to fight this. They are gathering their strength. We should gather our strength. Fight, Kṛṣṇa never said that "Don't fight." (He) never said (to) Arjuna that "You are My devotee, you don't fight. You are very good gentleman, nonviolent, and I shall do everything for you." (He) never said that. (indistinct) Kutas tvā kaśmalam idaṁ viṣame samu.... viṣame samupasthitam. "Now there is a great dangerous fight, why you are saying like a nonsense," anārya-juṣṭam, like non-Aryan. (Hindi conversation) This fight is another good news that they are feeling the strength. Otherwise they would not have prepared to fight. Formerly they were thinking that so many swamis and yogis come, come and go. But now they are feeling the strength, they (are) charging that their young men are being kidnapped. It is strong party. And these boys, they have taken to Vaiṣṇava principles, their parents have tried to take them back and induce them to eat meat and according.... They deny. This is also tried. I have got many disciples, they are coming out very rich family, rich father. So one of the fathers called his son that "I am old man, the business is dwindling, you come and take..." So I told him that "You go. Why not take your father's business and use it for Kṛṣṇa?" So he went, on my order. The father wanted him to eat meat. So he denied that "I cannot do that. I can help in your business, but I cannot accept your way of life. That is not possible."

Room Conversation -- November 11, 1976, Vrndavana:

Hari-śauri: If one is not complete in their Kṛṣṇa consciousness then what will happen?

Prabhupāda: She will get again birth in a human body. That is guaranteed so that he'll get again chance of chanting. That is also great gain. Ordinary person, he does not know what body he is going to get next body. But a person who is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, chanting, he is guaranteed. Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe (BG 6.41). He is guaranteed to take birth as human being in a very sacred family like brāhmaṇa and very rich family. So I have to go.

Manīṣā: Thank you, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. Nobody is going to live here. Everyone is going to die. Before death, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Manīṣā: Thank you. Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: Don't be worried.

Antardhyāna: She is worried Prabhupāda, about...

Prabhupāda: What is the worry? I have already said everyone is going to die.

Evening Darsana -- December 3, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: There will be proper rainfall. And if there is proper rainfall, then you get sufficient food grains, not only food grains, other things also. Sarva-dughā mahī, sarva-kāma-dughā mahī. From the earth you can get all the necessities of life. Actually you are getting food grains, minerals, trees, fruits, flowers, everything from the earth. Sarva-dughā, sarva-kāma-dughā mahī. This mahī, when it is soaked with proper rains, it becomes fertile. Therefore we have to depend on the rainfall. There is one verse in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, kāmaṁ vavarṣa parjanyaḥ (SB 1.10.4). Parjanya means rainfall. Rainfall means it is supplying all the necessities of life. And this rainfall will be easy when there is yajña. And nobody is performing yajña; therefore nowadays rainfall is scarcity. In Europe recently I have seen, there is no rainfall, whole Europe. It is on the verge of drying everything. So this punishment will come in this Kali-yuga. There will be no rainfall, and there will be not sufficient food supply, and the government will simply levy taxes on different pleas and people will be so much embarrassed that they will give up their hearth and home and flee away to the forest. It is stated. So therefore you must perform yajña. And that is very easy in this age. Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi su-medhasaḥ (SB 11.5.32). You cannot perform the former yajñas by sacrifice tons of ghee and grains because you have no sufficient food grains even. But still, if you chant this saṅkīrtana, that is yajña. Therefore you must take to saṅkīrtana-yajña. Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi su-medhasaḥ. It is very easy. (break) ...the duty of human being, prāṇaiḥ, with life, arthaiḥ, with money, dhiyā, with intelligence, and vācā, by words. If one sacrifices his life for Kṛṣṇa's cause, then it is first-class. If he cannot sacrifice his life for Kṛṣṇa he can contribute his hard-earned money for Kṛṣṇa. If he cannot do so, if he has no money, he can give some intelligence. If he is not intelligent, then he can give some words. Just like we are doing preaching. We are preaching, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). So without any jugglery of words we present to the people that "Here is Bhagavān," kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. So giving some words, sacrificing some words... Not that every one of us is very highly educated or very rich. Still, if we carry the words of Kṛṣṇa... As Kṛṣṇa says, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7), so we have to carry these words, that "The Supreme Personality of Godhead is Kṛṣṇa."

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

Prabhupāda: Very simple thing, that you are part and parcel of God. God is eternal. So if you understand God, then you become eternal. Just like your father is very rich man, but you have left your father. You are loitering in the street. But as soon as you understand your father, "Oh, I am the son of such and such person. He is so rich! Oh, I haven't got any necessity." Then you become rich. Go back home, back to Godhead. Mām eti. "He comes to Me." Someone is there. You must know your father, and you must go back to father. Then there is no question of suffering. Very simple thing. Now what is the purport?

Girirāja: Purport. "The Lord's descent from His transcendental abode is already explained in the 6th verse. One who can understand the truth of the appearance of the Personality of Godhead is already liberated from material bondage."

Prabhupāda: Yes. He is already liberated. When one understands Kṛṣṇa properly. Then.

Girirāja: "And therefore he returns to the kingdom of God immediately after quitting this present material body."

Prabhupāda: That return to God is eternal. Suppose I am your guest here, so you may provide me for some days, but I cannot expect that you can provide me for all the days. That is my mistake. But if you go to your father's house, there is no question of. He takes. That is the required. Go to your father. Mām eti. Therefore this is the way of eternity, that you understand who is your father and you go back to Him. Then his life is successful. And who is the father?

Indian man: (laughing) Not the body.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Conversation with Yogi Amrit Desai of Kripalu Ashram (PA USA) -- January 2, 1977, Bombay:

Girirāja: They were proud.

Prabhupāda: In our childhood I saw. To go weekend to the garden and... Generally they go with family, and others, they go with prostitute. With prostitute they have got freedom to handle. The higher... And not only that, during marriage ceremony, high circle marriage ceremony, they would participate in drinking, even men and women. Otherwise, in India, woman drinking or taking meat is a horrible crime. And what to speak of smoking? That is most shameless. That was aristocratic, drinking and eating meat... The Bengali, they were the richer section because others, they were foreigners. They came to Calcutta and earned money. And the Bengalis, they had their aristocratic families, zamindaries, everything in their occupation. So Bengalis were richer section in Calcutta, and..., four, five big, big families. And now they are finished on account of this aristocracy. So one gentleman, he was Harendranatha Singh, very rich man, one of the richest men of Calcutta. He lost all his estate simply by this extravagance. Every evening his house is full with guests every evening, for... What is called? That table?

Morning Walk -- January 6, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: And what do you mean by "we"? We are not...

Dr. Patel: "We" means our forefathers.

Prabhupāda: Forefathers may be saintly person, but we are not. Why do you say "we"?

Dr. Patel: "We" means the descendants of our forefathers.

Prabhupāda: My father might have been very rich man, but I am a poverty-stricken man, loitering in the street. Why say "we"?

Dr. Patel: "We" means these Aryans in India, they brought all the Vedas and Vedic culture with them. They must have taken it in.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. One who is speaking, he is not in Vedic culture. That is the difficulty.

Dr. Patel: I talk of these historical facts, sir. Historically, Eastern European races are just our cousin. I mean the Indian races. But still, they have not been able to take the...

Prabhupāda: This, falsely to become proud: "We... We have done." What I am at the present? That is to be taken, not that... Now in Bengal... "Fourteen generations before my father took ghee, and I have got a smell." (laughs) What is that? Whether you are eating ghee or not, that is talk, not that "Fourteen generations before my father and forefathers ate ghee, and I have got the smell here." (laughs)

Morning Walk -- January 6, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Hariramdas.

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Whose daughter, she called.

Girirāja: Yes. So Mota says that he's a very rich man and that man who came, we should approach his older brother and he says that they can give a very big donation. And they can introduce us to other Punjabis.

Prabhupāda: Mm. So whatever you sanction, it will not be good.

Girirāja: Well, we had a confrontation that they want to break the condition that we have to hand over these ten feet. So I said that this is a separate issue and one thing had nothing to do with the other. So, actually they have accepted all of our arguments, what is boils down is that Mantrey is pressing them and they must, you know, why they are letting this slide by. So they say they want something to reply to him so we have to write a letter explaining our case. And...

Prabhupāda: Mantrey is an all-in-all.

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

Prabhupāda: Well, there is? Why? You are so rich country, why? Why it is happening? Not small minority.

Rāmeśvara: And we have our vacations. We can travel anywhere in the world and visit, sightsee.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. But you cannot say that everyone is very rich. That is not... We admit your contribution, but... The other day I was saying that aeroplane is contribution, but it is not safe. So long it is flying, it is all right, but any moment... Similarly, this civilization will be contribution like that. It is not safe. Because this life, you are enjoying very good house, very good society, but next life, if you are going to be a tree by nature's law, then what is the value of your this life?

Rāmeśvara: "But I believe in God. I go to church every Sunday, and I confess."

Prabhupāda: But you go to church, but you don't do anything what God says.

Rāmeśvara: "I am taught that God gave us all of these fruits to enjoy."

Prabhupāda: Not to follow His advice. You are so great devotee that you simply enjoy God's gifts, but what He says, you don't follow. You are such a great devotee. "I enjoy my father's property, but I don't care for his advice." (aside:) Ask your mother to learn how to make kachoris from Kulādri. Is that all right? (train slowing) Bulahanipur.(?) Somebody wrote me a letter from this place, Bulahanipur.

Morning Walk -- January 24, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Hari-śauri: Like monkeys.

Prabhupāda: Like monkeys, yes. Markaṭa-vairāgya. (break) And they are living very rich. And if you make big, big cities without industry, cities cannot be maintained. You'll require so many instruments, machine. That means you require (indistinct). If you require food, there is no need of industry.

Satsvarūpa: I remember in school seeing films of India, and they would say, "This is very backward. They're living as they used to live hundreds of years ago by using the ox and the plow."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Now we have, hundred years after, we have learned how to kill ox and bulls. That is your advancement. And kill your own children also. Rascal civilization. They say "primitive." I was talking with a priest in Australia. So he said, "This civilization you are suggesting, this is primitive." Do they call it primitive?

Satsvarūpa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: And what is the wrong with the primitive?

Satsvarūpa: They think it's shocking that the way they used to live hundreds of years ago, they're still living. But in America...

Prabhupāda: So what improvement you have done, rascal?

Satsvarūpa: Motorcars, roads, buildings.

Room Conversation -- January 29, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Satsvarūpa: Hindu College?

Prabhupāda: No. St. Julia's. All Indian students, all very rich man's sons. I sent my sons to English, St. Mary's High School and St. Teresa's school. Learned English very nicely. Scottish Churches College. I was educated in Scottish... All our professors European, Englishmen and Scotsmen.

Satsvarūpa: I think you wrote somewhere that Sanskrit should be the national...

Prabhupāda: That is very difficult. No, I... They wanted to make a national language. There was fight, great fight. Therefore I suggested, "Why not make Sanskrit language?" Everyone will adore.

Satsvarūpa: Because English is the language of the invaders; Sanskrit...

Prabhupāda: Yes. I have no objection, English. But if they wanted that national language, why not take Sanskrit? I am international. I don't believe in this national or statewise. I never believed. This is very good idea, īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). God is the proprietor. He is the original father. Ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā (BG 14.4). Why do they not take this philosophy? They have attempted this United Nation organization. And where is the philosophy how to make one state? That is cheating them. Why not make one state?

Hari-śauri: They actually don't desire that.

Room Conversation -- January 30, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: Still war going on?

Pṛthu-putra: Yes.

Prabhupāda: (break) Oh. In the dictionary it is clearly stated, "God the Supreme Being." So He's a being, but supreme. And what are the signs of supremacy? One must be very rich, very famous, very strong, very learned. In this way analyze. So God means one who is in possession of all these things, all the reputation, all the beauty. That is God. On this point discuss. Now, who is God, that is to be found. But this is the position of God. Try to convince them.

Pṛthu-putra: Because they are convinced already about this through the Koran. They already accept God is one, and He's possessing all fame, all beauty. But they say... The only point is that He cannot come down to the earth because the earth is a planet of sin.

Prabhupāda: No, that is your not perfect conception. If He is almighty and He's all-powerful, why you restrict Him?

Pṛthu-putra: They say, "No, He's not restricted. But when He has to reveal Himself He reveals to the prophet. This is the reason why Muhammad received the instruction from God."

Prabhupāda: That's all right. That's all right. But you cannot say that He does not come to showing mercy to a prophet. He may come if He likes. That is mission. Paritrāṇāya sādhūnām (BG 4.8). One who is actually devotee, prophet, he's always anxious to see what they (indistinct). So in order to favor them, (Sanskrit). What is their proposition?

Pṛthu-putra: In the story of Koran they say Muhammad once asked to see God, and God's answer was, "You're not able to see Me."

Prabhupāda: That's all right. At least he could hear Him. So that is possible. Not that necessarily one has to see Him, but he can hear Him. Now, you have said that Muhammad heard Him, so God can speak. So you can hear. So where is the objection?

Pṛthu-putra: No objection.

Room Conversation -- January 31, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: This is your advancement. (laughs) Every line of action you see, you have created greatest danger. No solution. Solution is not there, but you have created greater danger. That is your credit.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: He was very impressed. He can become life member. Very, very nice man. Very old. And he said his children are in United States and he has everything he has. He's very rich also.

Prabhupāda: Why don't you ask him to come? He's rich. Ask him to come, live with us in Māyāpur, and rest of the life let him become happy. Why he's after money?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: His aim is to make as many bridges as possible. He's thinks that's some sort of philanthropic work.

Prabhupāda: This is māyā. This is māyā. What he can do? He will die. This is called māyā. Therefore our system is because you are rascal, do all rascaldom up to fiftieth year. Then give it up. All kinds of rascaldom you can continue. Pañcāśordhvaṁ vanaṁ vrajet. Then you retire from all this rascal work.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Still, we don't know we'll live for fifty years.

Prabhupāda: That is another difficulty. For general calculation a man can live up to a hundred years in this age. So in the middle, stop all rascaldom-compulsory. Now take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Because you are persistent to continue your rascaldom, all right, do it up to this point. And then stop all this. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. This is a concession for continuing the rascaldom. But if he's so fool that he will continue the rascaldom as Jawaharlal Nehru did and Gandhi did and Hitler did and-up to the point of death—let him do. What can be done? They will continue their rascaldom. Mūḍhaḥ nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam. Gandhi, unless he was killed by his own men, he did not retire.

Room Conversation Varnasrama System Must Be Introduced -- February 14, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Yes. He has written. Not only that. Nowadays somebody has accused that even in his old age he was having sex with young girls. I do not know. But it is a fact, when he was coming in the meeting he would touch two young girls, granddaughter and granddaughter-in-law, and then come in the meeting. I have seen. One gentleman in our, the Mullick's Thakur Badhi, when we were there. He was attorney. So when there was some function, so all neighboring men were invited. So he was also invited. He would come with at least three, four prostitutes. And he was old man, blind. Asutosh Bhan. He became very rich man by cunning lawyer. He was a lawyer. So he would take a credit that "When I go to a friend's house to keep my invitation, I take some three, four prostitute and flatterer. Then..." And he'd be received very nicely. We have seen when, when we were boys, ten years, twelve years old. I have seen it. Formerly, in our father's time, it was aristocratic to keep one prostitute and keep one garden also. Then he'll get... So this man, dehātma-buddhi and sexually inclined, he is mahātmā. This is the standard of... Ramakrishna, he was worshiping goddess Kālī. It is condemned in the Bhagavad-gītā, kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ prapadyante 'nya-devatāḥ (BG 7.20), that "Anyone who is worshiping a demigod, he is lost of all sense." So this man, by losing his all senses, worshiping a demigod, he became God. People do not take reference from Bhagavad-gītā, that "A demigod worshiper has no sense, and he has become God?" What kind of God? Senseless God? And God's definition is aiśvaryasya samagrasya vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 6.5.47), jñāna. God means full in knowledge. And a man who has no sense, he has become God? From logic. Jñāna-vairāgyayaś caiva. God means he has got full knowledge. And this man is senseless and he has become God. Logic, how you can defy? And they're accepting: "Ramakrishna is God." How you defend it? I am giving this logic. Defend.

Room Conversation -- February 17, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Don't bring now scripture. We are talking in common language, common sense, that within... You cannot understand it. Therefore where is your brain? The dog also cannot understand. He's simply identifying with this body, and you also doing that. So where is your brain? Man is rational animal. Where is your rationality? If (you) avoid rationality, you are as good as dog. Where is your brain? Argue on this point. Dog... If one big dog thinking, "I am greyhound " or "this big body I am..." The lion also thinking, "I am so powerful. I am this body." So I am also thinking like that: "I am American, very rich." But both of them—no understanding that how you are powerful, why you are powerful, what is that active principle. Then where is your brain? Why man is important than the animal? It is common sense. So it is not brainwashing, but it is giving brain, this movement. They have no brain at all. So argue on this point. Our challenge is that "You have no brain. Where is the question of brainwash? You cannot understand the simple thing, which is important."

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Above other more senior men.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes, selected me. "Someday I shall appoint him manager."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The other people working there couldn't understand that so easily.

Prabhupāda: Three, four men liked me very, very much. One is my father, one is Dr. Bose, Kartik Chandra, one my Guru Mahārāja, and..., who else? One, my maternal uncle. Rakal Chandrardha. He was very rich man.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What was his name?

Prabhupāda: Rakal Chandrardha(?). He has got a street. He liked me. He's known to(?) take care of his son very nice.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your mother's brother.

Prabhupāda: Not real, but cousin.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your mother's...

Prabhupāda: My mother is the brother's daughter, and he was the sister daughter. Just like our this nephew, first cousin.

Room Conversation -- February 25, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Now, on this subject matter, you GBC decide how to do it and do it practically.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This is the real business of talking.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. How the supply will come, and everything, make program and do that. There will be no difficulty. Kṛṣṇa will supply you everything. No difficulty. Actually Kṛṣṇa is supplying. Now we are known all over the world, "very rich." Is it not?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh, yes.

Prabhupāda: (laughing) "Fabulously rich."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "Fabulously rich," they say in Parliament.

Prabhupāda: So I started... Was I rich?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Forty rupees.

Prabhupāda: Wherefrom...? Forty rupees. So it is Kṛṣṇa's mercy. So if we work sincerely, Kṛṣṇa will supply us.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That point we have seen proven more than anything else. You've always said this, and more and more, Kṛṣṇa is supplying everything.

Prabhupāda: No, it is, after all, Kṛṣṇa's. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). It is His property. As soon as He sees that "Here is My real servant." "Give him all facility." It is stated in the... Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānām... (BG 10.10). You know? Nityābhiyuktānāṁ yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham (BG 9.22). Teṣāṁ nityābhiyuktānāṁ yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham. Everything is there.

Room Conversation -- March 26, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Logical.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They don't know what the meaning of logic is.

Prabhupāda: Orphan. Orphan means, does it, he has no father? He does not know who is his father.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Orphan means doesn't know.

Prabhupāda: We are not orphans. We are taken care of by our rich father, very wise father, very rich father, able father. We are not forlorn orphans. We have got respectability. And we offer our respect to father. We depend on father. We are safe. Everyone can become safe. The opportunity is offered. If you don't take, that is your misfortune. We are offering, "Every one of you can become safe, safely protected by the father, Kṛṣṇa." Ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣa... (BG 18.66). Why don't you take advantage? That is your misfortune. If you want to remain unfortunate, don't (indistinct). These rascals, they want to remain. We have got knowledge for understanding whole philosophy. So try to convince this philosophy in Australia. And Kṛṣṇa will help you more and more. The more you try to convince others about this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, the more you become enlightened.

Room Conversation -- March 26, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Amogha. Amogha goes?

Hari-śauri: No, he is doing college programs mainly in Melbourne now. But the BBT distribution party, sometimes they collect three or four hundred dollars a day, each man.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Hari-śauri: It's very rich. Because in the northwestern Australia, there is lots of mining towns, and Perth is the only place that they can come to spend their money. So we can collect lots of money. It's very good.

Indian man: Śrīla Prabhupāda (Hindi).

Prabhupāda: Nei. Develop farms.

Hari-śauri: There's an eight-hundred-acre farm we are getting in Australia. The devotees are very enthusiastic for it, because in the past we haven't been able to make so many new devotees. They are not very much attracted to living in the cities in Australia. But they think that the farm... Then that will expand a lot. Probably this region we can grow everything, fruits, all kinds of tropical fruits, and cows.

Prabhupāda: Fruit, grains and milk. Vegetables. Finished everything.(?)

Hari-śauri: Flowers... Svarūpa Dāmodara was also suggesting that in a little while I might like to arrange a tour of the universities there, for he and Mādhava and Sadāpūta. Then it will be very good. Because there is a man that Svarūpa Dāmodara used to study under who is in Metrope(?) University in Melbourne. So I can arrange something there. (end)

Room Conversation with Scientists, Svarupa Damodara, and Dr. Sharma -- March 31, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: This is our so-called leaders misled them. Even Gandhi misled. That Vinobha Bhave is misleading, what to speak of others.

Dr. Sharma: Many of the even small temples in villages, their revenue have been taken away after independence. There are many small temples in where I come from, our village in Rajasthan. And when I was a small boy I used to go to the temple because, you know, my grandfather and my father used to go. And there was a very rich life in the villages because, you know, early morning, we would take a shower, bath, and go to the temples and do our pūjā, and the temple also we'd get some prasādam, and there was some land grants attached to a temple, some cows...

Prabhupāda: Some contribution.

Dr. Sharma: Contribution. And there was a real rich life in Indian village. Now, after independence, that life has been really destroyed. Because the grants have been taken away and here, it's really a pain to see such beautiful temples having no maintenance now. Plus this so-called secular education, you know godless education they have introduced, that has further harmed, because the temple-going public has also dwindled in number. And it looks like there has been a systematic plan to undermine our...

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes, by this Congress. Their opinion is that India is too much religious; they spoiled.

Dr. Sharma: Yes. Also I just happened to do a survey in South about the party brāhmaṇas who were having the...

Prabhupāda: The brāhmaṇas, they, from your Rajasthan, the other day, I got before. Twenty thousand brāhmaṇas have come here in Bombay to serve as tea-walla.

Room Conversation with Ratan Singh Rajda M.P. 'Nationalism and Cheating' -- April 15, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: That's all. Name is there. So this is the...

Indian (1): First progress thing.

Mr. Rajda: No, no, we'll do this immediately, and even if necessary, I will fight with the government. They have got to do it. Only thing is if you can give me some note, what are the hurdles...

Prabhupāda: Bring some paper. Write it. Immediately begin to do this. They are coming from very rich, respectable family. They have not come here to earn money for exploit India. They have no business to do this. I can guarantee that they will bring money from America and live here—not touch a single paisa of India. Now, suppose there are one hundred Americans, and if I am bringing ten lakhs of rupees per month, then what is the per capita?

Mr. Rajda: Per capita will show...

Girirāja: Ten thousand.

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Indian (1): I... Yeah, complete list. That is why I asked you, "What first step you wanted to?"

Prabhupāda: Kindly help.

Room Conversation -- April 19, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Girirāja: So far, he seems to be more preoccupied with his own ideas, so we don't know whether there will be any benefit to this meeting.

Prabhupāda: But if he wants to meet, I have no objection. (break) ...and the host was very rich man in anywhere. And he has no son. He expressed his desire to father to take me. This is the position.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your father would not give you up. He was a sannyāsī?

Prabhupāda: Another gentleman in Hasi(?)... We were going in the same car. So he requested me, "Please come here." An old man, nice, very well-to-do man. And after giving the nice seat and some refreshment, so he said that "I like you very much. I have no son. Why don't you become my son?"

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Seems like everyone is very affectionate to you, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Yes, it is Kṛṣṇa's grace. He picked up on the street like this.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That man?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Ne, adopted son, that is a practice.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In America also, they have the foster home. The children are there, and parents may go and adopt some child.

Prabhupāda: That is everywhere. So that village gentleman, that place I liked.

Second Meeting with Mr. Dwivedi -- April 24, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: There are... Poor people, so far concerned, that... Are we not taking care of the poor people? That is automatically taken. Who is poor? A man who is poor in knowledge, he is poor.

Mr. Dwivedi: Yes, correct. Yes.

Prabhupāda: Otherwise nobody's poor.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Americans are very rich from...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: ...material point of view.

Prabhupāda: Poor means poor in knowledge. Otherwise even a small ants, it is not poor. It is eating. You are not giving food. In this room you'll find some hole. Hundreds and thousands of ants will come out. Are you giving him food? And you go to the jungle. Thousands of elephants are there. Are you giving them food? Why you are concerned about the poor? Who is poor? Poor means who has no knowledge. He is rascal. He is poor. Poor means poor in knowledge. Otherwise nobody is poor. Everyone is getting his food according to his karma. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha upapattaye (SB 3.31.1). These are wrong theories. Wrong means because they are rascals, they are putting something rascal, idea. Mūḍhaḥ nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam, avyayam. Nityo nityānāṁ ceta... This is Vedic version. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām eko yo bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). (Hindi) We want to stop all this nonsense. That is our mission. Our Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission is that "You become guru," as I was telling, "and teach, deliver persons where you are." If you say, "How can I become guru?" there is no difficulty. Simply repeat the words of Bhagavad-gītā. That's all. You become guru. So our mission is to create real guru, not these jugglers. And real guru is he who speaks on behalf of Kṛṣṇa. And that is wan... It is very simple. Do you accept or not? Boliye.

Evening Darsana -- May 13, 1977, Hrishikesh:

Prabhupāda: So without this faith, nobody can achieve the association of Kṛṣṇa. There are two things. You become associate of Kṛṣṇa, or you become associate of this material world. So if you do not become associate of Kṛṣṇa, then the next step is this association of material world. And association of material world means accepting one type of body and enjoy or suffer for some time; then you get another body. Mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani (BG 9.3). Now we have to make our choice, whether you want to stop this material way of life and attain the eternal spiritual life...

mām upetya punar janma

duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam

nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ

saṁsiddhiṁ paramāṁ gatāḥ

(BG 8.15)

If you get the association of Kṛṣṇa, then you haven't got to come here, this material world. Duḥkhālayam. Kṛṣṇa says it is duḥkhālayam. Either you take birth in a very rich, aristocratic family, born in the upper planetary system as demigods-Brahmā, Indra, Candra, like that—or you take your birth, an insignificant ant; wherever you are in material body, it is duḥkhālayam. That you cannot avoid. Duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). And you cannot make any compromise that "Never mind it is very much miserable. I shall enjoy." So that also will not be allowed. Aśāśvatam. Your tendency is to live forever. So that will not be allowed. Aśāśvata. So this requires knowledge, intelligence, that "If I am eternal," na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20), "I am not destroyed even this body is destroyed," then you should seek after eternal happiness. Why temporary? That is not in your interest. That happiness is there when you go back to Kṛṣṇa; otherwise not. These are the statement in the Bhagavad-gītā. So if we do not try to understand the real purpose of Bhagavad-gītā, and if we theorize, "Bhagavad-gītā means nonviolence. Bhagavad-gītā means to become patriot," these are materialism. We should avoid this wrong interpretation, misguiding direction of blind leaders. We'll not get any benefit out of it.

Conversation with M.P., Shri Sita Ram Singh -- May 19, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: They are interested to keep the new position of the party. Who is thinking of the public? Public is in the same distressed condition.

Sita Ram Singh: Same distressed condition.

Prabhupāda: Rather, they are more distressed. Take for example, in our childhood my father's income was, utmost, three hundred rupees. So we were not very rich men. But we had no want. Father was maintaining his family, getting children married, distributing the wealth. Everything very nice. And we never felt any want. In this mango season, because father saw it that "There must be a full basket of mangoes daily for the children," so we were jumping, playing and eating mangoes. And now, taking consideration of gold standard... At that time my mother was purchasing gold, twenty rupees...

Sita Ram Singh: Per tolā.

Prabhupāda: Twenty-two rupees. Now the same gold is six hundred rupees. So three hundred times more?

Sita Ram Singh: Yes.

Prabhupāda: If my father's income was three hundred rupees, increased by three hundred, it becomes nine thousand. So where is the nine thousand rupees income for a middle-class man?

Sita Ram Singh: Quite.

Short Dissertations -- May 24-25, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: One gentleman, he has now become my disciple.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Mr. Sindh. That jeweler from Calcutta?

Jayapatākā: He's given (indistinct) me.

Prabhupāda: They are very rich man, that Singh jeweler. They can give. He is very nice man, very nice man and very well-to-do. You have seen them?

Jayapatākā: Yes, before I went I saw him, and he gave me three or four names of very wealthy people in Bangladesh to see, and those people are also... One person already became a member, and they'll give us much support.

Prabhupāda: No, you'll get.

Jayapatākā: There are so many. They're scattered about. I couldn't see all the different people in a short period. It's a big place.

Prabhupāda: And whole Bangladesh is a picture.

Jayapatākā: It's just so green, all rivers. And everywhere I saw rice field and jackfruit and mango, everywhere filled with fruits, very luscious.

Prabhupāda: And cow's milk.

Short Dissertations -- May 24-25, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Ātreya Ṛṣi can go for some time, Bangladesh. They... He went there. Both Hindus and Muslims, they have regard to our society. And explain.

Jayapatākā: I went to Bangladesh, and even the Muhammadans, hearing the philosophy we were preaching, they thought it was so appropriate for the time that they've sponsored a program. First they approached some of the Hindus to sponsor a program, the Muhammadans, saying that it is much more in line with their own preaching and what they felt was more needed for the world. And generally over there the young people, both Hindus and even some Muhammadans, they are very receptive to our philosophy as presented by Śrīla Prabhupāda. Śrīla Prabhupāda said that sometime you can visit there.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Jaya. In Tehran the royalty, the court, is very interested in your teachings and philosophy. There is a prince and princess, very high and very rich, and they are regularly hearing, and they are now recently visiting our Bombay temple. They have come to Bombay, and they are really seeking for a teacher. And there is many intelligent people who are very interested. We are actively preaching and giving them Śrīla Prabhupāda's books.

Prabhupāda: It is plain fact. God is one. Why God should be Muhammadan, Christian, Hindu? That is not God. God is God. Gold is gold. This example I give always. Because a piece of gold is coming from some Muhammadan gentleman, does it mean it is Muhammadan gold? It is gold. It may come from any source, but one must know that it is gold, not imitation. That is wanted. If it is imitation, then it is Muhammadan gold, Hindu gold. And if it is real gold, it is neither Muhammadan nor Hindu. (end)

Room Conversation With Son (Vrindavan De) -- July 5, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Um hm. (aside:) You can go out. (break) ...but still, I have given you chance. So you want simply... Just like a widow. We... But we want that you may not be disturbed. Go ahead. Do business and have big building. Everyone's constructing big, big building, Marwaris. Why you cannot do? You have been given all chance. Yogināṁ puruṣam upaiti lakṣmīm. Unless one is dedicated, a yogi, very endeavoring... So we have showed a yogi endeavoring. Seventy years old, I was here in Vṛndāvana, and I came. For ten years I worked! Now see. All over the world I have got hundreds of buildings like this. I am the same man. At least one hundred temples we have only by working ten years. So there must be capacity, there must be endeavor, there must be good fortune. Then everything will be... It is not that you simply desire and it will drop from the sky. That is not possible. Hm? Arjuna fought the Battle of Kurukṣetra. Kṛṣṇa never advised him, "No, I am your friend. I shall do everything. You sit down and sleep." "You have to fight!" And Kṛṣṇa is merciful. He gives him... The two things required. Utsāhān dhairyāt niścayāt tat-tat-karma-pravart... If you have no capacity, you cannot expect to become very rich or learned, or very... That is not possible. It is not your capacity. Just like within this land there is gold, but you have to dig it. That is mine. And if you smell, "Ah, there is gold here," will you get gold? You are fortunate. You have got a place. Here is gold. But you have to dig it. You have to work. "No, I shall smell, and gold will come." That is not... So don't be worried. You'll be allowed to stay here. But I cannot transfer the property to your mother's name. Then your brother will spoil. And otherwise you are... I am not going to lease them.

Room Conversation With Son (Vrindavan De) -- July 5, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Unnecessary, and increase anxiety.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. The worries increase.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Why more? Live very comfortably and be advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is required.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: How much can you eat more than your share?

Prabhupāda: We have seen many persons... The other day, he was our member. One Mr. Agarwal? Very rich man. He committed suicide falling down from the bridge to the Ganges. What is that? Very rich man. The happiness cannot be attained in that way. Happiness is in Kṛṣṇa. It is so sublime that... Dhruva Mahārāja went for kingdom, and he performed austerities. When he saw Kṛṣṇa he said, "I don't want anything." Svāmin kṛtārtho 'smi varaṁ na yāce: (CC Madhya 22.42) "I came to ask You something, but I am now fully satisfied." That is happiness. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir... yayātmā supra... (SB 1.2.6). You want to satisfy your ātmā. So that can be satisfied when you are fully devoted to Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise simply by material wealth, increasing your economic position, that is not... They do not know it. The European civilization, they are struggling very hard-colonization, industrialization, this... (end)

Room Conversations -- July 7, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: And his wife takes four bottles of Nax Pomica.(?) If we said that "Dr. Bannerji prescribes Nax Pomica(?) and different (indistinct) to every person," therefore we finished the Nax Pomica(?) bottle very quickly. He was the biggest customer for Nax Pomica, Tincture Nax Pomica.(?) So he... And he was very famous doctor. And Abhinas Chandra Bannerji, he went to Allahabad very poor condition. Then, by medical practice, he became very rich man. I think simply by the mercy of Nax Pomica.(?) So one must know the right way. (coughs)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: How's your cold, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: There is nothing.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Is it changing the condition at all? We should think how to get rid of it.

Prabhupāda: How to rid?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I remember one thing you were taking to loosen the phlegm in Māyāpur when you had a cough. You were taking a little hot lemon juice in the mornings.

Prabhupāda: You can give me.

Room Conversation about Grhasthas -- July 17, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Anywhere. Bombay is the best city. He has got facility to stay there. For business Bombay is the best city.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In India.

Prabhupāda: In India. No, world. It is a very important city. Export, import, local. Tremendous business possibility there. Many poor men goes and becomes very rich men. Bombay is very important center. You have to get a place by giving bribe, fifty thousand, sixty thousand, to stay there.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They call that huṇḍi.

Prabhupāda: Not huṇḍi.

Bhakti-caru: Pagri.(?)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Pagri, I mean.

Prabhupāda: Pagri, yes. To get a place there... Bombay is so important that if you want to get a place you have to pay no less, fifty thousand, lakh of rupees to stand. Then do business. Very important. Anything you do, you must have land first of all to stand. Otherwise what you'll do? To stand in Bombay you have to pay lakh of... Don't you see—we drive away the tenants—how much we recompense. We pay compensation.

Room Conversation -- August 10, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Everywhere.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda? Prabhaviṣṇu has some Bengali articles. Should I call Bhakti-caru to read them?

Prabhupāda: Oh. Prabhaviṣṇu, you have come?

Prabhaviṣṇu: Yes.

Prabhupāda: (Bengali) There is a... There was a great Bengali poet. He was very rich man, Micheal, Madhusūdana Datta. So he went to England, and because he was extravagant, he spent all his money. So he was in difficulty. He begged some money from his countrymen, help him. But nobody gave him. Only there was a big paṇḍita, Isvaracandra Vidyasagar. He gave him the money. He thought that "Such a big man is in need of money. Let me... He may pay or not." So after receiving that money, he thanked Isvaracandra Vidyasagar, that "You have got courage of an Englishman and the heart of a Bengali mother." He was poet, so he gave these two examples: the courage of an Englishman and the heart of a Bengali mother. So you are Englishman. You are famous for your forefathers' courage to expand British Empire. The America is also your creation. But everything in this material world deteriorates. That is not fault. But Englishmen were, at least formerly, famous for courage, enthusiasm, expansion of prestige. This Lord Clive was a crewman in a ship, and he established British Empire. So you have to show that Englishman-courage. So you have done something which has proved Englishman-courage. And go on doing it. That is your heritage. And two nice fields, Bangladesh and Nepal. Nepal is only Hindu free state, or it is called... Now India is also free.

Room Conversation -- October 6, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Apartment?

Haṁsadūta: No. It's a house. Quite a large house. Large area.

Prabhupāda: What foot is area?

Haṁsadūta: It's forty feet wide by maybe three hundred feet long. It's ten minutes from the center of the city. That particular piece of land is worth about two lakhs. There's another man, very rich man. He saw the Bombay project, and he promised to give us a piece of land right on the beach for which he already had zoning permission to build a hotel. It's also a very nice area. But the most important thing is we're trying to get some books published in Tamil and Singhalese languages. And we do a lot of preaching. Is there something special you want me to do there, Prabhupāda? Do you have some...

Prabhupāda: No. There is every chance of making it successful, and the... As Kīrtanānanda has developed New Vrindaban, similarly you can do.

Haṁsadūta: Something along that line?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Room Conversation About 10th Canto -- October 16, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Why? He knows how to liquify.

Jayādvaita: You were saying that we should do one verse in one day, Śrīla Prabhupāda? And do it thoroughly?

Prabhupāda: Then I think you can do it very nicely. Yes.

Jayādvaita: Yes. Each purport will be very rich that way.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Jayādvaita: It will be very much appreciated.

Prabhupāda: Or you bring one morning one, like that. There is no need of being hurry. Hm?

Jayādvaita: No.

Prabhupāda: You can discuss amongst yourselves. Pick up the right word and place. Then it will be very nice.

Abhirāma: Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Ba... No more want.

Abhirāma: It wasn't good?

Prabhupāda: Not bad. We shall see tomorrow. Give me little water. And with some wet handkerchief...

Abhirāma: Yes, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: In this way let us pull on. Fight between māyā. Sit up for while and chant beads. (end)

Room Conversation -- October 27, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That four lakhs, two lakhs was for the godown and two lakhs for book printing.

Prabhupāda: Money you'll get. There is no scarcity. Ātreya Ṛṣi will give you.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, he is very rich.

Prabhupāda: Their country is very rich now.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: We used to send devotees to collect from these Middle East countries.

Prabhupāda: Richest country now, Middle East. Everywhere we can make Vaikuṇṭha by Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let people understand gradually.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: When they see your books, that's when they really appreciate our movement.

Prabhupāda: Who has got such substantial books? Nowhere in the world.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's a fact.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, I also spoke to the Chinese Embassy in Delhi yesterday. I said I'd like to go to China, and I wanted to find out what the possibilities were. So they said since I have Canadian citizenship, they said I should write to the Chinese Embassy in Ottawa. I told them I'm from a publishing house that publishes books on ancient Indian culture. And I found out that they do not teach any Sanskrit in China, but they have Hindi and Urdu departments. Peking University has a Department on Asian studies that teaches Hindi and Urdu.

Prabhupāda: Let us introduce in Hindi.