Devotee (2): Śrīla Prabhupāda, when it is cited in the scriptures that Lord Brahmā rides on a swan, a haṁsa, is this. . .? Are we to take this to mean it is a real swan, or is it something symbolic?
Prabhupāda: Not symbolic, it is fact. Why do you say symbolic?
Devotee (2): It's rather unusual.
Prabhupāda: Unusual. . . What experience you have got? You have no experience. Have you got any experience of other planetary system, what is there? Then? Your experience is very teeny. So you should not calculate Brahmā's life and other things by your teeny experience. Now, in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that the duration of life of Brahmā, sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmaṇo viduḥ. . . (BG 8.17). Now, Brahmā's life, it is stated in the śāstras. We have already explained that we accept the authoritative statement of śāstra. Now, Brahmā's life is stated there. Arhat means his one day is equal to our four yugas. Four yugas means 4,300,000 years, and multiply it by one thousand, sahasra-yuga-paryantam. Sahasra means one thousand. And yuga, yuga means the 4,300,000 years makes a yuga. And multiply it by one thousand: that period is Brahmā's one day. Similarly, he has got one night. Similarly, he has got one month. Similarly, he has got one year. And such hundred years he will live. So how you can calculate? How it is within your experience? You will think something mysterious. No. Your experience is nothing. Therefore you have to take experience from the perfect person, Kṛṣṇa. Then your knowledge is perfect. That I have already said. Don't try to understand with your teeny experience everything. Then you will be failure.
Devotee (3): Prabhupāda, are all one's efforts to serve Kṛṣṇa virtually. . . (break)
Prabhupāda: That I have already explained, that you are coming here; even though you are not initiated, that is also service. So if you deposit one cent daily, one day it may become a hundred dollars. So when you get the hundred dollars, you can get the business. (laughter) So you come here daily, one cent, one cent. . . When it will be hundred dollars, you will become a devotee.
Devotees: Jaya! Haribol!