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Without being devotee, you cannot make others devotee. That is also a secret. If you remain nondevotee, you cannot convince others. That is not in your power

Expressions researched:
"without being devotee, you cannot make others devotee. That is also a secret. If you remain nondevotee, you cannot convince others. That is not in your power"

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Our movement is to make people in general devotee. Then he'll understand God. Then his life will be successful. That's all. You be yourself devotee and try to make others devotee. Then both your life and the person who is under your instruction, he, everyone is successful. And without being devotee, you cannot make others devotee. That is also a secret. If you remain nondevotee, you cannot convince others. That is not in your power. Therefore the nondevotee class of men, they cannot understand God, they cannot convince others about God. That's a fact. They'll simply present hodge-podge thing, they do not understand clearly, and they present hodge-podge.
Lecture on BG 2.20-25 -- Seattle, October 14, 1968:

Viṣṇujana: Ice cream truck.

Prabhupāda: Oh, ice cream. (laughter) You are taking ice cream? Huh?

Viṣṇujana: No. They go up and down the street.

Prabhupāda: Canvassing?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Don't take ice cream. (music continues louder in background) (laughs) This is māyā. (laughter) "Come on, come on, enjoy me. Come on, come on, enjoy me." (laughs) As soon as you enjoy, you become entrapped. That's all. Just like fishing tackle. They throw the tackle and invite the fish, "Come on, come on, enjoy me. Come on, come on, enjoy me." As soon as—Ap! (laughter) Finished. Then, (sound imitating fish) "Where you go now? Come on in my bag. Yes, I'll fry you nicely." You see? So these are all explained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The fish is losing his life by eating, by tongue. He cannot check the dictation of the tongue; therefore he is losing his life. You see? Similarly the animals, deer, in the jungle, the hunter, they play very nice flute and all of them assemble to hear how he's nice, and then he keeps him in the trap, loses his life. That means hearing. Tasting, hearing. And the elephant is caught by sexual... Do you know how elephant is captured? Yes. A she-elephant is trained, goes to the male elephant, and it follows, and the male elephant is dropped into a, what is called, big pot, pit. Yes. Then he remains there for some time. Then he's shackled and he's taken away. In this way there are different examples of senses. The, what is called? That black, what is called, bhramara? English? That black big fly? (makes buzzing sound) Onnnhhh.

Madhudviṣa: Bumblebee?

Prabhupāda: It may be.

Revatīnandana: Horsefly.

Prabhupāda: It is entrapped by smelling lotus flower, within the lotus flower, and loses its life. So by different sense gratification, the different kinds of animals, they are losing their life. And we have got all our senses active. So where we are? These examples are for animal kingdom whose one sense is only active. But our all senses are active. Then what is our position? You see? This example is given in the Bhāgavata. A man has got six wives, and he has entered the house, and all the wives have captured him, "You come to my room." You see? So one has taken his one hand, another has taken another hand, one has taken his one leg, one has taken, so he's like this: "Where shall I go?" You see? So this is our position. Human being, whether they shall control the senses... Instead of controlling the senses, they are becoming servant of senses and losing their, this great opportunity of human life. Yes.

Viṣṇujana: People that are concerned with advancing to the higher planets, do they have more opportunity to become entrapped?

Prabhupāda: No. Anyone within this material world, they are entrapped by this sense enjoyment. Either in higher planets or lower planets. Just like animal kingdom there is sense impetus, and human being also. What this human being? We are civilized being, what we are doing? The same thing. Eating, sleeping, mating. The same thing as the dog is doing. So anywhere in the material world, either in the higher planet or in the lower planet, this sense gratification is prominent. Only in the spiritual world there is no sense gratification. There is simply an endeavor to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. That is... Here everyone is trying to satisfy his senses. That is the law of material world. That is material life. So long you try to satisfy your senses, that is your material life. And as soon as you turn your self to satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa, that is your spiritual life. It's a very simple thing. Instead of satisfying... Hṛṣīkeṇa hṛṣīkeśa-sevanam (CC Madhya 19.170). That is bhakti. You have got senses. You have to satisfy. Senses, with senses you have to satisfy. Either you satisfy yourself... But you do not know. The conditioned soul does not know that satisfying the Kṛṣṇa's senses, his senses will be automatically satisfied. The same example. Just like pouring water to the root... Or these fingers, part and parcel of my body, giving foodstuff here to the stomach, automatically the fingers will be satisfied. This secret we are missing. We are thinking we shall be happy by trying to satisfy our senses. Kṛṣṇa consciousness means don't try to satisfy your senses. You try to satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa; automatically your senses will be satisfied. This is the secret of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The opposite party, they are thinking, "Oh, why shall I satisfy? Why shall I work for Kṛṣṇa the whole day and night? Let me try for the karmīs." Just like you are working whole day and night for Kṛṣṇa, they are thinking, "What fools they are. We are very intelligent. We are working for our own sense gratification whole day and night, and why they are working for Kṛṣṇa?" This is the difference between materialist and spiritualist. The spiritualist's endeavor is to work whole day and night strenuously without any hurt(?) simply for Kṛṣṇa. That is spiritual life. And the materialist means the same endeavor, always trying to satisfy their personal senses. That is the difference, materialistic and spiritual. So Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement means that we have to train our senses to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. That's all. So long in other, previous, many, many thousands and millions of lives, we have simply tried to satisfy our senses, personal senses. Let this life be dedicated for satisfying Kṛṣṇa's senses. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. One life. We have, several lives, we have tried to satisfy our personal senses. Let this life, at least one life, let me try, what happens. So we are not loser. Even we feel inconveniences by not satisfying our senses, but we are not loser. Try simply to satisfy Kṛṣṇa's senses; then it will be all right. So we shall stop. What is the time?

Devotee: Seven o'clock.

Prabhupāda: All right. Stop. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Madhudviṣa: Prabhupāda? We're reading about the Sixth Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā now. And should I wait until you come to that chapter or could I ask you a question now pertaining to that chapter?

Prabhupāda: As you like.

Madhudviṣa: It mentions dhyāna (pronounces "dahayana") and rāja-yoga in that chapter. Can you explain the meaning of these two yogas?

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Madhudviṣa: Dahyana. D-h-y-a-n-a.

Prabhupāda: Dhyāna. Dhyāna-yoga, meditation.

Madhudviṣa: That's meditation. And is rāja-yoga the same?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Madhudviṣa: Both meditation processes?

Vīrabhadra: You said in your lecture that everybody... I think that's what you said, that everybody in the material world is...in māyā. But you can't be in māyā.

Prabhupāda: How do you think?

Vīrabhadra: You're spiritual, so you can't be in māyā. So how does that work?

Prabhupāda: How do you think that I am not in māyā?

Vīrabhadra: Because you're a pure devotee. You see Kṛṣṇa in everybody.

Prabhupāda: (laughs) Yes. Then a pure devotee is not in māyā. Do you agree to that?

Vīrabhadra: Uh huh.

Prabhupāda: So are you going to be a pure devotee?

Vīrabhadra: Me?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Vīrabhadra: I'm not a pure devotee.

Prabhupāda: But you are going to be, trying to be.

Vīrabhadra: I try to be.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. That's all right. That's all right. Yes?

Devotee: In Bhagavad-gītā it says that we are one...that spirit soul, I, spirit soul, am one ten-thousandth the tip of a hair.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Devotee: We are very small. One ten-thousandth part of a hair. Since we are unchangeable, does Kṛṣṇa change His size to be the same size as us so that we can associate with Him when we go back to the spiritual world?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Govinda dāsī: Prabhupāda? Is it true that you once said something about the Supersoul being the size of the thumb? Where is that information or authority? He's the size of the thumb in human being?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Śrīmatī: In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta you wrote that Kṛṣṇa has no arms or legs as we have arms and legs, and His spiritual body and the other is the same. The spiritual body and...

Prabhupāda: He has got spiritual arms, spiritual legs. I never said that He has no arms and legs.

Śrīmatī: It said that He has no arms and legs as we know arms and legs.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the statement in the Vedas. Apāni-pādo javana grahīta.(?) The Supreme Lord has no legs and hands, but still, He accepts whatever we offer. Now we are accepting, we are offering here foodstuff, Kṛṣṇa. So it is confirmed that He accepts. Now He is... We do not know how far away He is staying in Vaikuṇṭhaloka. There is no limit of measurement. Then how He's accepting? It is said that javana, He is accepting our offerings. So He must be accepting with His hand. So He can stretch His hand so many millions and trillions miles away. Therefore when it is said that He has no hand, that means He has no hand like us, limited. But that does not mean He has no hand. He has hand unlimited. Unlimitedly He can stretch. That we cannot conceive. Because we have got this three-feet hand. So Kṛṣṇa must have at least four-feet. That's all. That frog philosophy. (laughter) Simply imagining. "Ah, Kṛṣṇa may be very great. So we have got this three-feet, Kṛṣṇa, let Him have six-feet. That's all." But we cannot imagine how long His hand is. Therefore His hand cannot be compared with this material hand. He has no material hand. That is the version of Vedas. But He has hand. That you cannot measure. Just like Arjuna could not measure when He showed the universal form. So avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīm... (BG 9.11). Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, "Because I am moving amongst them as ordinary human being, they are thinking of Me as one of them." Paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ. "They do not know what is My background." Paraṁ bhāvam. "Therefore they fail to understand Me." Mūḍha. Rascals, fools. Everyone is trying to understand Kṛṣṇa from the angle of vision as he can understand. Kṛṣṇa is beyond that. Therefore His name is Adhokṣaja, "beyond the limit." He can simply be presented by Himself, revealed. Just like Kṛṣṇa is revealing Himself to Arjuna. Arjuna is not understanding Kṛṣṇa by his philosophical speculation. Directly Kṛṣṇa revealing. This is the process of understanding God. You cannot create your imagination, imaginative God. No. God reveals unto you being pleased upon you by your devotional activities. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau (Brs. 1.2.234). Just like Kṛṣṇa says to Arjuna, bhakto 'si priyo 'si (BG 4.3). "You are My very dear friend, you are My devotee. Therefore I'll reveal unto you. Not to others." This is the qualification of understanding God, to become devotee.

So our movement is to make people in general devotee. Then he'll understand God. Then his life will be successful. That's all. You be yourself devotee and try to make others devotee. Then both your life and the person who is under your instruction, he, everyone is successful. And without being devotee, you cannot make others devotee. That is also a secret. If you remain nondevotee, you cannot convince others. That is not in your power. Therefore the nondevotee class of men, they cannot understand God, they cannot convince others about God. That's a fact. They'll simply present hodge-podge thing, they do not understand clearly, and they present hodge-podge. That's all. Without being... Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ (BG 18.55). "If anyone wants to understand Me as I am..." Of course, nobody can understand Kṛṣṇa as He is, still, as far as possible. That is only through bhakti. Bhaktyā, it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. It doesn't say that through knowledge, philosophical speculation or through haṭha-yoga system. No. He says bhaktyā, clearly. And in the beginning also He says, "Because you are My bhakta, therefore I shall reveal to you." The whole science is for the devotee. Not for anyone else. Those who are not devotees, their understanding of God is blocked forever. They cannot understand. It is a fact. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, māyāvādī-bhāṣya śunile haya sarva-nāśa (CC Madhya 6.169). If anyone tries to understand these impersonalist Māyāvādī philosophers, then his, I mean to say, progress is blocked for good. Not for good, of course. Nothing can be for good. But for the present at least his progress is blocked. Sarva-nāśa. Chant. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (kīrtana) (end)

Page Title:Without being devotee, you cannot make others devotee. That is also a secret. If you remain nondevotee, you cannot convince others. That is not in your power
Compiler:Krsnadas
Created:13 of Jun, 2012
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:1