Without considersation

Expressions researched:
"without any caste or race consideration" |"without any consideration" |"without any other consideration" |"without consideration"

BG Chapters 1 - 6

BG 3.30, Purport:

The living entity cannot be happy independent of the cooperation of the Supreme Lord, because the eternal constitutional position of the living entity is to become subordinate to the desires of the Lord. Arjuna was therefore ordered by Śrī Kṛṣṇa to fight as if the Lord were his military commander. One has to sacrifice everything for the good will of the Supreme Lord, and at the same time discharge prescribed duties without claiming proprietorship. Arjuna did not have to consider the order of the Lord; he had only to execute His order. The Supreme Lord is the soul of all souls; therefore, one who depends solely and wholly on the Supreme Soul without personal consideration, or in other words, one who is fully Kṛṣṇa conscious, is called adhyātma-cetas. Nirāśīḥ means that one has to act on the order of the master but should not expect fruitive results. The cashier may count millions of dollars for his employer, but he does not claim a cent for himself. Similarly, one has to realize that nothing in the world belongs to any individual person, but that everything belongs to the Supreme Lord. That is the real purport of mayi, or "unto Me." And when one acts in such Kṛṣṇa consciousness, certainly he does not claim proprietorship over anything. This consciousness is called nirmama, or "nothing is mine." And if there is any reluctance to execute such a stern order, which is without consideration of so-called kinsmen in the bodily relationship, that reluctance should be thrown off; in this way one may become vigata-jvara, or without feverish mentality or lethargy. Everyone, according to his quality and position, has a particular type of work to discharge, and all such duties may be discharged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, as described above. That will lead one to the path of liberation.

BG 3.31, Purport:

As the Vedas are eternal, so this truth of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is also eternal. One should have firm faith in this injunction, without envying the Lord. There are many philosophers who write comments on the Bhagavad-gītā but have no faith in Kṛṣṇa. They will never be liberated from the bondage of fruitive action. But an ordinary man with firm faith in the eternal injunctions of the Lord, even though unable to execute such orders, becomes liberated from the bondage of the law of karma. In the beginning of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one may not fully discharge the injunctions of the Lord, but because one is not resentful of this principle and works sincerely without consideration of defeat and hopelessness, he will surely be promoted to the stage of pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

BG Chapters 13 - 18

BG 17.20, Purport:

In the Vedic literature, charity given to a person engaged in spiritual activities is recommended. There is no recommendation for giving charity indiscriminately. Spiritual perfection is always a consideration. Therefore charity is recommended to be given at a place of pilgrimage and at lunar or solar eclipses or at the end of the month or to a qualified brāhmaṇa or a Vaiṣṇava (devotee) or in temples. Such charities should be given without any consideration of return. Charity to the poor is sometimes given out of compassion, but if a poor man is not worth giving charity to, then there is no spiritual advancement. In other words, indiscriminate charity is not recommended in the Vedic literature.

SB Canto 1

SB 1.3.22, Purport:

For example, the attempt to fly to other planets by material means is a challenge to the established order. The conditions of each and every planet are different, and different classes of human beings are accommodated there for particular purposes mentioned in the codes of the Lord. But, puffed up by tiny success in material advancement, sometimes the godless materialists challenge the existence of God. Rāvaṇa was one of them, and he wanted to deport ordinary men to the planet of Indra (heaven) by material means without consideration of the necessary qualifications. He wanted a staircase to be built up directly reaching the heavenly planet so that people might not be required to undergo the routine of pious work necessary to enter that planet. He also wanted to perform other acts against the established rule of the Lord. He even challenged the authority of Śrī Rāma, the Personality of Godhead, and kidnapped His wife, Sītā. Of course, Lord Rāma had come to chastise such atheists, answering the prayer and desire of the demigods. He therefore took up the challenge of Rāvaṇa, and the complete activity is the subject matter of the Rāmāyaṇa. Because Lord Rāmacandra was the Personality of Godhead, He exhibited superhuman activities which no human being, including the materially advanced Rāvaṇa, could perform. Lord Rāmacandra prepared a royal road on the Indian Ocean with stones that floated on the water. The modern scientists have done research in the area of weightlessness, but it is not possible to bring in weightlessness anywhere and everywhere. But because weightlessness is the creation of the Lord by which He can make the gigantic planets fly and float in the air, He made the stones even within this earth to be weightless and prepared a stone bridge on the sea without any supporting pillar. That is the display of the power of God.

SB 1.7.43, Purport:

As soon as Aśvatthāmā was brought before Draupadī, she thought it intolerable that a brāhmaṇa should be arrested like a culprit and brought before her in that condition, especially when the brāhmaṇa happened to be a teacher's son.

Arjuna arrested Aśvatthāmā knowing perfectly well that he was the son of Droṇācārya. Kṛṣṇa also knew him to be so, but both of them condemned the murderer without consideration of his being the son of a brāhmaṇa. According to revealed scriptures, a teacher or spiritual master is liable to be rejected if he proves himself unworthy of the position of a guru or spiritual master. A guru is called also an ācārya, or a person who has personally assimilated all the essence of śāstras and has helped his disciples to adopt the ways. Aśvatthāmā failed to discharge the duties of a brāhmaṇa or teacher, and therefore he was liable to be rejected from the exalted position of a brāhmaṇa. On this consideration, both Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna were right in condemning Aśvatthāmā. But to a good lady like Draupadī, the matter was considered not from the angle of śāstric vision, but as a matter of custom. By custom, Aśvatthāmā was offered the same respect as offered to his father. It was so because generally the people accept the son of a brāhmaṇa as a real brāhmaṇa, by sentiment only. Factually the matter is different. A brāhmaṇa is accepted on the merit of qualification and not on the merit of simply being the son of a brāhmaṇa.

But in spite of all this, Draupadī desired that Aśvatthāmā be at once released, and it was all the same a good sentiment for her. This means that a devotee of the Lord can tolerate all sorts of tribulation personally, but still such devotees are never unkind to others, even to the enemy. These are the characteristics of one who is a pure devotee of the Lord.

SB 1.9.36, Purport:

The kings and the commanders were to stand in the front of the fighting soldiers. That was the system of actual fighting. The kings and commanders were not so-called presidents or ministers of defense as they are today. They would not stay home while the poor soldiers or mercenaries were fighting face to face. This may be the regulation of modern democracy, but when actual monarchy was prevailing, the monarchs were not cowards elected without consideration of qualification. As it was evident from the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra, all the executive heads of both parties, like Droṇa, Bhīṣma, Arjuna and Duryodhana, were not sleeping; all of them were actual participants in the fighting, which was selected to be executed at a place away from the civil residential quarters. This means that the innocent citizens were immune from all effects of fighting between the rival royal parties. The citizens had no business in seeing what was going to happen during such fighting. They were to pay one fourth of their income to the ruler, whether he be Arjuna or Duryodhana. All the commanders of the parties on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra were standing face to face, and Arjuna saw them with great compassion and lamented that he was to kill his kinsmen on the battlefield for the sake of the empire. He was not at all afraid of the giant military phalanx presented by Duryodhana, but as a merciful devotee of the Lord, renunciation of worldly things was natural for him, and thus he decided not to fight for worldly possessions. But this was due to a poor fund of knowledge, and therefore it is said here that his intelligence became polluted. His intelligence could not be polluted at any time because he was a devotee and constant companion of the Lord, as is clear in the Fourth Chapter of the Bhagavad-gītā. Apparently Arjuna's intelligence became polluted because otherwise there would not have been a chance to deliver the teachings of Bhagavad-gītā for the good of all polluted conditioned souls engaged in material bondage by the conception of the false material body.

SB 1.12.23, Purport:

So what to speak of others, who are naturally very critical of every action of a responsible man? Similarly, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira had to cross over many difficult situations created by his enemies, and he proved to be the most perfect maintainer of mental equanimity in all critical circumstances. Therefore the example of both grandfathers for maintaining equanimity of mind is quite fitting.

Lord Śiva is a demigod celebrated for awarding gifts to beggars. His name is therefore Āśutoṣa, or one who is pleased very easily. He is also called the Bhūtanātha, or the lord of the common folk, who are mainly attached to him because of his munificent gifts, even without consideration of the aftereffects. Rāvaṇa was very attached to Lord Śiva, and by easily pleasing him, Rāvaṇa became so powerful that he wanted to challenge the authority of Lord Rāma. Of course, Rāvaṇa was never helped by Lord Śiva when he fought with Rāma, the Supreme Personality of Godhead and the Lord of Lord Śiva. To Vṛkāsura, Lord Śiva awarded a benediction which was not only awkward, but also disturbing. Vṛkāsura became empowered, by the grace of Lord Śiva, to vanish anyone's head simply by touching it. Although this was awarded by Lord Śiva, the cunning fellow wanted to make an experiment of the power by touching the head of Lord Śiva. Thus the lord had to take shelter of Viṣṇu to save himself from trouble, and the Lord Viṣṇu, by His illusory potency, asked Vṛkāsura to make an experiment with his own head. The fellow did it and was finished himself, and so the world was saved from all sorts of trouble by such a cunning beggar of the demigods. The excellent point is that Lord Śiva never denies anyone any sort of gift. He is therefore the most generous, although sometimes some kind of a mistake is made.

SB 1.13.30, Purport:

Saubalinī, or Gāndhārī, daughter of King Subala and wife of King Dhṛtarāṣṭra, was ideal as a wife devoted to her husband. The Vedic civilization especially prepares chaste and devoted wives, of whom Gāndhārī is one amongst many mentioned in history. Lakṣmījī Sītādevī was also a daughter of a great king, but she followed her husband, Lord Rāmacandra, into the forest. Similarly, as a woman Gāndhārī could have remained at home or at her father's house, but as a chaste and gentle lady she followed her husband without consideration. Instructions for the renounced order of life were imparted to Dhṛtarāṣṭra by Vidura, and Gāndhārī was by the side of her husband. But he did not ask her to follow him because he was at that time fully determined, like a great warrior who faces all kinds of dangers in the battlefield. He was no longer attracted to so-called wife or relatives, and he decided to start alone, but as a chaste lady Gāndhārī decided to follow her husband till the last moment. Mahārāja Dhṛtarāṣṭra accepted the order of vānaprastha, and at this stage the wife is allowed to remain as a voluntary servitor, but in the sannyāsa stage no wife can stay with her former husband. A sannyāsī is considered to be a dead man civilly, and therefore the wife becomes a civil widow without connection with her former husband. Mahārāja Dhṛtarāṣṭra did not deny his faithful wife, and she followed her husband at her own risk.

SB Canto 2

SB 2.4.18, Purport:

The only qualification is that one take shelter of a pure devotee of the Lord who has thorough knowledge in the transcendental science of Kṛṣṇa (Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam). Anyone from any part of the world who becomes well conversant in the science of Kṛṣṇa becomes a pure devotee and a spiritual master for the general mass of people and may reclaim them by purification of heart. Though a person be even the most sinful man, he can at once be purified by systematic contact with a pure Vaiṣṇava. A Vaiṣṇava, therefore, can accept a bona fide disciple from any part of the world without any consideration of caste and creed and promote him by regulative principles to the status of a pure Vaiṣṇava who is transcendental to brahminical culture. The system of caste, or varṇāśrama-dharma, is no longer regular even amongst the so-called followers of the system. Nor is it now possible to reestablish the institutional function in the present context of social, political and economic revolution. Without any reference to the particular custom of a country, one can be accepted to the Vaiṣṇava cult spiritually, and there is no hindrance in the transcendental process. So by the order of Lord Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, the cult of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam or the Bhagavad-gītā can be preached all over the world, reclaiming all persons willing to accept the transcendental cult. Such cultural propaganda by the devotees will certainly be accepted by all persons who are reasonable and inquisitive, without any particular bias for the custom of the country. The Vaiṣṇava never accepts another Vaiṣṇava on the basis of birthright, just as he never thinks of the Deity of the Lord in a temple as an idol. And to remove all doubts in this connection, Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī has invoked the blessings of the Lord, who is all-powerful (prabhaviṣṇave namaḥ). As the all-powerful Lord accepts the humble service of His devotee in devotional activities of the arcana, His form as the worshipable Deity in the temple, similarly the body of a pure Vaiṣṇava changes transcendentally at once when he gives himself up to the service of the Lord and is trained by a qualified Vaiṣṇava.

SB Canto 4

SB 4.7.6, Purport:

In this verse Lord Śiva is described as mīḍhuṣṭama, the best of the benedictors. He is also known as Āśutoṣa, which indicates that he is very quickly satisfied and very quickly angered. It is said in Bhagavad-gītā that less intelligent persons go to the demigods for material benedictions. In this connection, people generally go to Lord Śiva, and because he is always quickly satisfied and gives benedictions to his devotees without consideration, he is called mīḍhuṣṭama, or the best of the benedictors. Materialistic persons are always anxious to get material profit, but they are not serious about spiritual profit.

Sometimes, of course, it so happens that Lord Śiva becomes the best benedictor in spiritual life. It is said that once a poor brāhmaṇa worshiped Lord Śiva for a benediction, and Lord Śiva advised the devotee to go to see Sanātana Gosvāmī. The devotee went to Sanātana Gosvāmī and informed him that Lord Śiva had advised him to seek out the best benediction from him (Sanātana). Sanātana had a touchstone with him, which he kept with the garbage. On the request of the poor brāhmaṇa, Sanātana Gosvāmī gave him the touchstone, and the brāhmaṇa was very happy to have it. He now could get as much gold as he desired simply by touching the touchstone to iron. But after he left Sanātana, he thought, "If a touchstone is the best benediction, why has Sanātana Gosvāmī kept it with the garbage?" He therefore returned and asked Sanātana Gosvāmī, "Sir, if this is the best benediction, why did you keep it with the garbage?" Sanātana Gosvāmī then informed him, "Actually, this is not the best benediction. But are you prepared to take the best benediction from me?" The brāhmaṇa said, "Yes, sir. Lord Śiva has sent me to you for the best benediction." Then Sanātana Gosvāmī asked him to throw the touchstone in the water nearby and then come back. The poor brāhmaṇa did so, and when he returned, Sanātana Gosvāmī initiated him with the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. Thus by the benediction of Lord Śiva the brāhmaṇa got the association of the best devotee of Lord Kṛṣṇa and was thus initiated in the mahā-mantra, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare.

SB 4.8.38, Purport:

Dhruva Mahārāja, although a young child, expressed his hope that he might be offered the benediction of a kingdom which would exceed in opulence those of his father and grandfather. He also expressed his gladness that he had met such an exalted person as Nārada, whose only concern was to illuminate the world, like the sun, which rotates all over the universe only for the purpose of benefiting the inhabitants of all planets. Nārada Muni travels all over the universe for the sole purpose of performing the best welfare activity for the entire universe by teaching everyone how to become a devotee of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Thus Dhruva Mahārāja felt fully assured that Nārada Muni could fulfill his desire, even though the desire was very extraordinary.

The example of the sun is very significant. The sun is so kind that he distributes his sunshine everywhere, without consideration. Dhruva Mahārāja requested Nārada Muni to be merciful to him. He pointed out that Nārada travels all over the universe just for the purpose of doing good to all conditioned souls. He requested that Nārada Muni show his mercy by awarding him the benefit of his particular desire. Dhruva Mahārāja was strongly determined to fulfill his desire, and it was for that purpose that he had left his home and palace.

SB Canto 6

SB 6.1.49, Purport:

Everything depends on bhagavān, or ajaḥ, the unborn. Why doesn't one please Bhagavān to receive a better body? The answer is ajñas tamasā: because of gross ignorance. One who is in complete darkness cannot know what his past life was or what his next life will be; he is simply interested in his present body. Even though he has a human body, a person in the mode of ignorance and interested only in his present body is like an animal, for an animal, being covered by ignorance, thinks that the ultimate goal of life and happiness is to eat as much as possible. A human being must be educated to understand his past life and how he can endeavor for a better life in the future. There is even a book, called Bhṛgu-saṁhitā, which reveals information about one's past, present and future lives according to astrological calculations. Somehow or other one must be enlightened about his past, present and future. One who is interested only in his present body and who tries to enjoy his senses to the fullest extent is understood to be engrossed in the mode of ignorance. His future is very, very dark. Indeed, the future is always dark for one who is grossly covered by ignorance. Especially in this age, human society is covered by the mode of ignorance, and therefore everyone thinks his present body to be everything, without consideration of the past or future.

SB Canto 7

SB 7.9.12, Purport:

It is clearly understood that a devotee does not need to be born in a very high family, to be rich, to be aristocratic or to be very beautiful. None of these qualifications will engage one in devotional service. With devotion one should feel, "God is great, and I am very small. Therefore my duty is to offer my prayers to the Lord." Only on this basis can one understand and render service to the Lord. As the Lord says in Bhagavad-gītā (18.55):

bhaktyā mām abhijānāti

yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ

tato māṁ tattvato jñātvā

viśate tad-anantaram

"One can understand the Supreme Personality as He is only by devotional service. And when one is in full consciousness of the Supreme Lord by such devotion, he can enter into the kingdom of God." Thus Prahlāda Mahārāja decided to offer his best prayers to the Lord, without consideration of his material position.

SB 7.11.8-12, Purport:

In order that human beings be distinct from the animals, the great saint Nārada recommends that every human being be educated in terms of the above-mentioned thirty qualifications. Nowadays there is propaganda everywhere, all over the world, for a secular state, a state interested only in mundane activities. But if the citizens of the state are not educated in the above-mentioned good qualities, how can there be happiness? For example, if the total populace is untruthful, how can the state be happy? Therefore, without consideration of one's belonging to a sectarian religion, whether Hindu, Muslim, Christian, Buddhist or any other sect, everyone should be taught to become truthful. Similarly, everyone should be taught to be merciful, and everyone should observe fasting on certain days of the month. Everyone should bathe twice a day, cleanse his teeth and body externally, and cleanse his mind internally by remembering the holy name of the Lord. The Lord is one, whether one is Hindu, Muslim or Christian. Therefore, one should chant the holy name of the Lord, regardless of differences in linguistic pronunciation. Also, everyone should be taught to be very careful not to discharge semen unnecessarily. This is very important for all human beings. If semen is not discharged unnecessarily, one becomes extremely strong in memory, determination, activity and the vitality of one's bodily energy. Everyone should also be taught to be simple in thought and feeling and satisfied in body and mind. These are the general qualifications of a human being. There is no question of a secular state or an ecclesiastical state. Unless one is educated in the above-mentioned thirty qualities, there cannot be any peace. Ultimately it is recommended:

SB 7.14.9, Purport:

Like children, the unintelligent animals are also sons of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and therefore a Kṛṣṇa conscious person, even though a householder, should not discriminate between children and poor animals. Unfortunately, modern society has devised many means for killing animals in different forms of life. For example, in the agricultural fields there may be many mice, flies and other creatures that disturb production, and sometimes they are killed by pesticides. In this verse, however, such killing is forbidden. Every living entity should be nourished by the food given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Human society should not consider itself the only enjoyer of all the properties of God; rather, men should understand that all the other animals also have a claim to God's property. In this verse even the snake is mentioned, indicating that a householder should not be envious even of a snake. If everyone is fully satisfied by eating food that is a gift from the Lord, why should there be envy between one living being and another? In modern days people are very much inclined toward communistic ideas of society, but we do not think that there can be any better communistic idea than that which is explained in this verse of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Even in the communistic countries the poor animals are killed without consideration, although they also should have the right to take their allotted food with which to live.

SB 7.15.31, Purport:

Here the chanting of oṁkāra is recommended because in the beginning of transcendental realization, instead of chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, one may chant oṁkāra (praṇava). There is no difference between the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and oṁkāra because both of them are sound representations of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu. In all Vedic literatures, the sound vibration oṁkāra is the beginning. Oṁ namo bhagavate vāsudevāya. The difference between chanting oṁkāra and chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra is that the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra may be chanted without consideration of the place or the sitting arrangements recommended in Bhagavad-gītā (6.11):

śucau deśe pratiṣṭhāpya

sthiram āsanam ātmanaḥ

nāty-ucchritaṁ nātinīcaṁ

cailājina-kuśottaram

"To practice yoga, one should go to a secluded place and should lay kuśa grass on the ground and then cover it with a deerskin and a soft cloth. The seat should neither be too high nor too low and should be situated in a sacred place." The Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra may be chanted by anyone, without consideration of the place or how one sits. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has openly declared, niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ. In chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra there are no particular injunctions regarding one's sitting place. The injunction niyamitaḥ smaraṇe na kālaḥ includes deśa, kāla and pātra—place, time and the individual. Therefore anyone may chant the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, without consideration of the time and place. Especially in this age, Kali-yuga, it is very difficult to find a suitable place according to the recommendations of Bhagavad-gītā. The Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, however, may be chanted at any place and any time, and this will bring results very quickly. Yet even while chanting the Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra one may observe regulative principles. Thus while sitting and chanting one may keep his body straight, and this will help one in the chanting process; otherwise one may feel sleepy.

SB Canto 9

SB 9.15.15, Purport:

Therefore in previous times, when the ruling class was degraded to the modes of passion and ignorance, the brāhmaṇas, headed by such a kṣatriya-spirited brāhmaṇa as Paraśurāma, killed them twenty-one consecutive times.

In Kali-yuga, as stated in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (12.2.13), dasyu-prāyeṣu rājasu: the ruling class (rājanya) will be no better than plunderers (dasyus) because the third-class and fourth-class men will monopolize the affairs of the government. Ignoring the religious principles and brahminical rules and regulations, they will certainly try to plunder the riches of the citizens without consideration. As stated elsewhere in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (12.1.40):

asaṁskṛtāḥ kriyā-hīnā

rajasā tamasāvṛtāḥ

prajās te bhakṣayiṣyanti

mlecchā rājanya-rūpiṇaḥ

Being unpurified, neglecting to discharge human duties properly, and being influenced by the modes of passion (rajas) and ignorance (tamas), unclean people (mlecchas), posing as members of the government (rājanya-rūpiṇaḥ), will swallow the citizens (prājas te bhakṣayiṣyanti). And in still another place, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (12.2.7-8) says:

SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)

SB 11.25.23, Translation:

Work performed as an offering to Me, without consideration of the fruit, is considered to be in the mode of goodness. Work performed with a desire to enjoy the results is in the mode of passion. And work impelled by violence and envy is in the mode of ignorance.

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 7.79, Purport:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu hints in this verse that to chant the holy name of Kṛṣṇa one does not need to speculate on the philosophical aspects of the science of God, for one automatically becomes ecstatic and without consideration immediately chants, dances, laughs, cries and sings just like a madman.

CC Adi 8.22, Translation and Purport:

Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, as the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself, is fully independent. Therefore, although it is the most confidentially stored benediction, He can distribute love of Godhead to anyone and everyone without consideration.

This is the benefit of Lord Caitanya's movement. If one somehow or other comes in contact with the Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, without consideration of his being a śūdra, vaiśya, Jagāi, Mādhāi or even lower, he becomes advanced in spiritual consciousness and immediately develops love of Godhead. We now have actual experience that throughout the entire world this movement is making many such persons lovers of God simply by the chanting of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Actually, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu has appeared as the spiritual master of the entire world. He does not discriminate between offenders and the innocent. Kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te: (CC Madhya 19.53) He liberally gives love of Godhead to anyone and everyone. This can be actually experienced, as stated in the next verse.

CC Adi 9.34, Purport:

Here Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu indicates that the distribution of the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra should be performed by combined forces. Although He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He laments, "How can I act alone? How can I alone pick the fruit and distribute it all over the world?" This indicates that all classes of devotees should combine to distribute the Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra without consideration of the time, place or situation.

CC Adi 9.46, Purport:

According to Vedic civilization, kṣatriyas are considered to be great personalities because if anyone goes to a kṣatriya king to ask for charity, the king will never refuse. The trees are compared to those noble kṣatriyas because everyone derives all kinds of benefits from them—some people take fruit, others take flowers, others take leaves, others take twigs, and others even cut the tree, and yet the tree gives to everyone without hesitation.

Unnecessarily cutting trees without consideration is another example of human debauchery. The paper industry cuts many hundreds and thousands of trees for its mills, and with the paper so much rubbish literature is published for the whimsical satisfaction of human society. Unfortunately, although these industrialists are now happy in this life by dint of their industrial development, they do not know that they will incur the responsibility for killing these living entities who are in the form of trees.

This verse, quoted from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, was spoken by Lord Kṛṣṇa to His friends when He was taking rest underneath a tree after His pastime of stealing the clothes of the gopīs (vastra-haraṇa-līlā). By quoting this verse, Caitanya Mahāprabhu teaches us that we should be tolerant like trees and also beneficial like trees, which give everything to the needy persons who come underneath them. A needy person may derive many advantages from trees and also from many animals, but in modern civilization people have become so ungrateful that they exploit the trees and animals and kill them. These are some of the sinful activities of modern civilization.

CC Adi 14.29, Translation:

"This body is a transformation of dirt, and the eatables are also a transformation of dirt. Please reflect upon this. You are blaming Me without consideration. What can I say?"

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 10.145, Translation:

“"Being ordered by his father, Paraśurāma killed his mother, Reṇukā, just as if she were an enemy. When Lakṣmaṇa, the younger brother of Lord Rāmacandra, heard of this, He immediately engaged Himself in the service of His elder brother and accepted His orders. The order of the spiritual master must be obeyed without consideration."

CC Madhya 10.146, Translation:

""The order of a great personality like a father must be executed without consideration because there is good fortune in such an order for both of us. In particular, there is good fortune for Me.""

CC Madhya 17.179, Purport:

The priests who guide the Kālawāras and the Sānwāḍas are called Sanoḍiyā brāhmaṇas. Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura states that the word sānoyāḍa in Bengal indicates suvarṇa-vaṇik. In Bengal there are priests who guide the suvarṇa-vaṇik community, which is also considered a low class. There is little difference between the Sānwāḍas and the suvarṇa-vaṇiks. Generally the suvarṇa-vaṇiks are bankers dealing in gold and silver. In western India, the Āgarwālās also belong to the banking profession. This is the original business of the suvarṇa-vaṇik or Āgarwālā community. Historically, the Āgarwālās came from the up-country named Ayodha, and the suvarṇa-vaṇik community also came from Ayodha. It therefore appears that the suvarṇa-vaṇiks and the Āgarwālās belong to the same community. The Sanoḍiyā brāhmaṇas were the guides of the Kālawāras and Sānwāḍas. They are therefore considered to be lower-class brāhmaṇas, and a sannyāsī is not allowed to take alms or food from them. However, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu accepted lunch cooked by a Sanoḍiyā brāhmaṇa simply because he belonged to Mādhavendra Purī’s community. Śrīla Mādhavendra Purī was the spiritual master of Īśvara Purī, who was the spiritual master of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Thus a spiritual relationship is established on the spiritual platform, without consideration of material inferiority or superiority.

CC Antya-lila

CC Antya 3.50, Purport:

From this statement by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu we can clearly understand that the word yavana does not refer only to a particular class of men. Anyone who is against the behavior of the Vedic principles is called a yavana. Such a yavana may be in India or outside of India. As described here, the symptom of yavanas is that they are violent killers of cows and brahminical culture. We offer our prayers to the Lord by saying, namo brahmaṇya-devāya go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca. The Lord is the maintainer of brahminical culture. His first concern is to see to the benefit of cows and brāhmaṇas. As soon as human civilization turns against brahminical culture and allows unrestricted killing of cows, we should understand that men are no longer under the control of the Vedic culture but are all yavanas and mlecchas. It is said that the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement will be prominent within the next ten thousand years, but after that people will all become mlecchas and yavanas. Thus at the end of the yuga, Kṛṣṇa will appear as the Kalki avatāra and kill them without consideration.

CC Antya 9.53, Translation:

"I shall gradually pay the balance as I can. Without consideration, however, you were going to take my life. What can I say?"

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

Krsna Book 39:

The gopīs then began to condemn the activities of Akrūra. They stated that he was taking Kṛṣṇa, who was more dear than the dearest to them and who was the pleasure of their eyes. He was being taken from their sight without their being informed or solaced by Akrūra. Akrūra should not have been so merciless but should have taken compassion on them.

The gopīs went on to say, “The most astonishing feature is that Kṛṣṇa, the son of Nanda, without consideration, has already seated Himself on the chariot. From this it appears that Kṛṣṇa is not very intelligent. Yet He may be very intelligent—but He is not very merciful. Not only Kṛṣṇa but all the cowherd men are so callous that they are already yoking the bulls and calves for the journey to Mathurā. The elderly persons in Vṛndāvana are also merciless; they do not take our plight into consideration and stop Kṛṣṇa's journey to Mathurā. Even the demigods are very unkind to us; they are also not impeding His going to Mathurā.”

The gopīs prayed to the demigods to create some natural disturbance, such as a hurricane, storm or heavy rainfall, so that Kṛṣṇa could not go to Mathurā. They then began to consider, "Despite our parents and guardians, we shall personally stop Kṛṣṇa from going to Mathurā. We have no alternative but to take this direct action. Everyone has gone against us to take away Kṛṣṇa from our sight. Without Him we cannot live for a moment." The gopīs thus decided to obstruct the passage through which the chariot of Kṛṣṇa was supposed to pass. They began to talk among themselves: “We have passed a very long night—which seemed only a moment—engaged in the rāsa dance with Kṛṣṇa.

Krsna Book 60:

Great saintly persons like Nārada Muni are always engaged simply in glorifying Your transcendental characteristics. Someone who simply takes shelter of such a saintly person immediately becomes freed from all material contamination. And when he comes in direct contact with Your service, the goddess of fortune agrees to bestow all her blessings. Under the circumstances, what woman who has once heard of Your glories from authoritative sources and has somehow or other relished the nectarean fragrance of Your lotus feet would be foolish enough to agree to marry someone of this material world, who is always afraid of death, disease, old age and rebirth? I have therefore accepted Your lotus feet not without consideration but after mature and deliberate decision. My dear Lord, You are the master of the three worlds. You can fulfill all the desires of all Your devotees in this world and the next because You are the Supreme Soul of everyone. I have therefore selected You as my husband, considering You to be the only fit personality. You may throw me in any species of life according to the reactions of my fruitive activities, and I haven’t the least concern for this. My only ambition is that I may always remain fast to Your lotus feet, for You can deliver Your devotees from illusory material existence and are always prepared to distribute Yourself to Your devotees.

Krsna Book 65:

When the gopīs were talking in this way, their feelings for Kṛṣṇa became more and more intense, and they were experiencing Kṛṣṇa's smiling, Kṛṣṇa's words of love, Kṛṣṇa's attractive features, Kṛṣṇa's characteristics and Kṛṣṇa's embraces. By the force of their ecstatic feelings, it appeared to them that Kṛṣṇa was personally present and dancing before them. Because of their sweet remembrance of Kṛṣṇa, they could not check their tears, and they cried without consideration.

Lord Balarāma, of course, could understand the ecstatic feelings of the gopīs, and therefore He wanted to pacify them. He was expert in presenting an appeal, and thus, treating the gopīs very respectfully, He began to narrate the stories of Kṛṣṇa so tactfully that the gopīs became satisfied. To keep the gopīs in Vṛndāvana satisfied, Lord Balarāma stayed there continuously for two months, namely the months of Caitra (March–April) and Vaiśākha (April–May). For those two months He kept Himself among the gopīs, and He passed every night with them in the forest of Vṛndāvana to satisfy their desire for conjugal love. Thus Balarāma also enjoyed the rāsa dance with the gopīs during those two months. Since the season was springtime, the breeze on the bank of the Yamunā was blowing very mildly, carrying the aroma of different flowers, especially the flower known as kaumudī. Moonlight filled the sky and spread everywhere, and thus the banks of the Yamunā appeared very bright and pleasing, and Lord Balarāma enjoyed the company of the gopīs there.

Krsna Book 88:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī addressed King Parīkṣit thus: "My dear King, Lord Brahmā, Lord Viṣṇu and Lord Śiva, the principal trio of the material creation, are able to bless or curse anyone. Of this trio, Lord Brahmā and Lord Śiva are very easily satisfied but also very easily angered. When satisfied they give benedictions without consideration, and when angry they curse the devotee without consideration. But Lord Viṣṇu is not like that. Lord Viṣṇu is very considerate. Whenever a devotee wants something from Lord Viṣṇu, Lord Viṣṇu first considers whether such a benediction will ultimately be good for the devotee. Lord Viṣṇu never bestows any benediction which will ultimately prove disastrous to the devotee. By His transcendental nature, He is always merciful; therefore, before giving any benediction, He considers whether it will prove beneficial for the devotee. Since the Supreme Personality of Godhead is always merciful, even when it appears that He has killed a demon, or even when He apparently becomes angry toward a devotee, His actions are always auspicious. The Supreme Personality of Godhead is therefore known as all-good. Whatever He does is good."

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 2.1-5 -- Germany, June 16, 1974:

So this was a discussion between Arjuna and Kṛṣṇa in the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra. So the subject of discussion was that although the battle was declared, Arjuna, when he actually found that "On the other side there are my relatives," how he could slay them? Kṛṣṇa advised that "Everyone must execute his prescribed duty without consideration of any personal loss or gain." According to Vedic civilization, there are four divisions of the society. Everywhere the same divisions are there all over the world. This is very natural. Just like we can study from our own body, there is head, there is arm, there is belly, and there is leg, similarly, in the society there must be a class of men who should be considered as brain, another class of men should be there who will protect the society from danger, another class of men will be expert in producing food grains and give protection to the cows and make trade, so. And the rest class of men, namely who cannot work as brain neither can work as protector from danger, nor they can produce food grains or give protection to the cows, they are called śūdras—as you cannot avoid, to make your body complete, the brain department, the arms department, the belly department and the walking or working department.

Lecture on BG 2.3 -- London, August 4, 1973:

You cannot take." Even hundred years ago. So this capital punishment is required. Nowadays the capital punishment is excused. Murderers are not hanged. This is all mistake, all rascaldom. A murderer must be killed. No mercy. Why a human killer? Even an animal killer should be immediately hanged? That is kingdom. The king should be so strict.

So this sympathy is like Arjuna's sympathy. The sympathy... Now the state is sympathizing with the murderer not to be killed. This is Arjuna. That is hṛdaya-daurbalyam. That is not duty. One has to discharge the duty ordered by the superior authority very strictly, without any consideration. So these are weakness of the heart, this kind of sympathy. But ordinary person will not understand. Therefore to understand Kṛṣṇa, one requires special senses, special senses, not ordinary senses. Special senses means you have to pluck your eyes and you have to put another eyes? No. You have to purify. Tat-paratvena nirmalam (CC Madhya 19.170). Just like if you have got some disease in the eyes, you apply medicine, and when it is clear, you can see clearly everything; similarly, with these blunt senses, we cannot understand what is Kṛṣṇa. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ (Brs. 1.2.234). As śrī-kṛṣṇasya nāmādau, Kṛṣṇa's name, form, quality, etc., is not understand by these blunt senses, so how it is to be done? Now, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau. Again jihvādau, beginning from the tongue, controlling the tongue. Just see it is something peculiar, that you have to understand Kṛṣṇa by controlling the tongue? This is something wonderful. How is that? I have to control my tongue to understand Kṛṣṇa? But it is, the śāstra injunction is there: sevonmukhe hi jihvādau. Jihvā means tongue. So in order to see Kṛṣṇa, in order to understand Kṛṣṇa, the first business is to control your tongue. Therefore we say, don't take meat, don't take liquor. Because it is controlling the tongue. The tongue is the most strong enemy as sense, as perverted sense.

Lecture on BG 2.27-38 -- Los Angeles, December 11, 1968:

Devotee: "Your enemies will describe you in many unkind words and scorn your ability. What could be more painful for you (BG 2.36)?" 37: "O son of Kuntī, either you will be killed on the battlefield and attain the heavenly planets or you will conquer and enjoy the earthly kingdom. Therefore get up and fight with determination (BG 2.37)." 38: "Do thou fight for the sake of fighting without considering happiness or distress, loss or gain (BG 2.38)."

Prabhupāda: This is duty. One has to execute duty without any consideration of loss and gain. That is duty, observing duty. Just see. "You are kṣatriya. There is necessity of this fighting. So you should not consider whether you are gaining or losing. It is your duty to fight." Go on.

Devotee: "And by so doing you shall never incur sin."

Prabhupāda: Yes. If you execute your duty nicely, there is no question of sin. To execute duty is piety. Yes.

Devotee: Purport: "Lord Kṛṣṇa now directly says that Arjuna should fight for the sake of fighting because Kṛṣṇa desires the battle. There is no consideration of happiness or distress, profit or gain."

Prabhupāda: This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa says... Actually this happened... This is the Kṛṣṇa consciousness. One should not think of personal loss or gain. "Kṛṣṇa desires it, so I have to do it," that's all. There is no personal consideration. That is real Kṛṣṇa consciousness. "Kṛṣṇa, You are asking me to do this. I do not like to do this. You give me some other work." That is not Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no, I mean to say, yes or no. As Kṛṣṇa says. What Kṛṣṇa says? Kṛṣṇa says the essence of Bhagavad-gītā that "A person who preaches this sublime message of Bhagavad-gītā, he is My dearmost friend in the human society."

Lecture on BG 2.27-38 -- Los Angeles, December 11, 1968:

Prabhupāda: This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Kṛṣṇa says... Actually this happened... This is the Kṛṣṇa consciousness. One should not think of personal loss or gain. "Kṛṣṇa desires it, so I have to do it," that's all. There is no personal consideration. That is real Kṛṣṇa consciousness. "Kṛṣṇa, You are asking me to do this. I do not like to do this. You give me some other work." That is not Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no, I mean to say, yes or no. As Kṛṣṇa says. What Kṛṣṇa says? Kṛṣṇa says the essence of Bhagavad-gītā that "A person who preaches this sublime message of Bhagavad-gītā, he is My dearmost friend in the human society." This is the open order of Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya says,

āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra' ei deśa

yāre dekha tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa

(CC Madhya 7.128)

"Take My order and you become a spiritual master." How? "Simply speak Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that's all. Simply speak on Kṛṣṇa's message, kṛṣṇa-kathā." There are two kinds of kṛṣṇa-kathās. One is the Bhagavad-gītā, and the other is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. So this is the propagation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We have to abide by the superior orders without consideration of our personal gain or loss. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. There is no question of personal gain or loss. Go on reading.

Devotee: "...victory or defeat in the activities of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That everything should be performed for the sake of Kṛṣṇa is transcendental consciousness, so there is no reaction from material activities."

Lecture on BG 3.18-30 -- Los Angeles, December 30, 1968:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "One has to act on the order of the master. One should not expect any fruitive results. The cashier may count millions of dollars for his employer, but he does not claim a cent out of the great amount of money. Similarly one has to take it for granted that nothing in the world belongs to any individual person, but everything belongs to the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is the real purport of Kṛṣṇa saying, 'Unto Me.' And when one acts in such Kṛṣṇa consciousness, certainly he does not claim proprietorship over anything. So this consciousness is called nirmama, or 'nothing is mine.' And if there is any reluctance to execute such a stern order, which is without consideration of so-called kinsmen in the bodily relationship, that reluctance should be thrown off. In this way one may become without feverish mentality or lethargy. Everyone according to his quality and position has a particular type of work to discharge and all such duties may be discharged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness as described above. That will lead one to the path of liberation."

Prabhupāda: Thank you. That's all.

Devotees: Hare Kṛṣṇa. (obeisances)

Prabhupāda: Now if anybody has any question?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In the past, when there were men who practiced yoga, concentration on Kṛṣṇa within the heart, when they perfected this were they rendering devotional service?

Lecture on BG 3.18-30 -- Los Angeles, December 30, 1968:

No. He says guṇa-karma. Guṇa means quality, and karma...

Just like if you have achieved the quality of a medical practitioner, then your work shall be a medical practitioner. Similarly if one has achieved the quality of a brāhmaṇa or Vaiṣṇava, then his activities should be like that. If I become Kṛṣṇa conscious and if I work as a butcher, that will not be. You have to work just like a Vaiṣṇava. So guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ. You have to acquire the qualities and work like that. Then it is perfect.

So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is teaching people to work for Kṛṣṇa and to qualify himself for Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the highest perfection. Without any consideration of His previous position or qualification or social standard. There is no such thing. Simply if he takes to Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and prosecutes nicely according to direction, he becomes the, I mean to say, in transcendental position. Highest position. More than a brāhmaṇa. Yes. Chant. Jaya. (kīrtana) (end)

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

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "As the Vedas are eternal, so this truth of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is also eternal. One should have firm faith in this injunction without envying the Lord. There are many so-called philosophers who write comment on the Bhagavad-gītā but who have no faith in Kṛṣṇa. They will never be liberated from the bondage of fruitive actions. But an ordinary man with firm faith in the eternal injunctions of the Lord, even though unable to execute such orders, becomes liberated from the bondage of the law of karma. In the beginning of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one may not fully discharge the injunctions of the Lord. But because one is not resentful of this principle and works sincerely without consideration of defeat and hopelessness, he will surely be promoted to the stage of pure Kṛṣṇa consciousness."

Prabhupāda: Yes. In the beginning there may be some failures. That is quite natural. Just a child is trying to stand, he may fall down. But that does not mean he should give up the idea. Go on. A time will come come when he will be perfect. So we should not give up this business, to try to serve the Supreme. May be imperfect in the beginning, but stick to it, and a time will come when you'll be perfect, Kṛṣṇa conscious.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Thirty-two: "But those who, out of envy, disregard these teachings and do not practice them regularly are to be considered bereft of all knowledge, befooled, and doomed to ignorance and bondage (BG 3.32)."

Prabhupāda: Yes. If somebody says, "Oh, why shall I serve God?" all right, then you shall have to serve dog. That's all. Therefore he is befooled. He does not know that he has to serve somebody. His constitutional position is like that. He cannot escape. So therefore if he denies to serve God, Kṛṣṇa, then he has to serve māyā, illusion, in the hope that "I have become the master."

Lecture on BG 7.5 -- Nairobi, November 1, 1975:

So God, He is the greatest. Aṇor aṇīyān mahato mahīyān. Then what is your business? To serve Him, that's all. This is natural position. In the material world he is going to serve somebody, ready(?), from somebody else for his bread; still, he is thinking, "I am God." Just see what kind of God he is. (laughter) This is rascal, he is thinking that he is God. If he is driven away from the office, he'll not get his bread, and he is God. This is material world. Everyone is thinking "I am God." Therefore they have been called mūḍhas, rascals. They do not surrender to God. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ māyayāpahṛta-jñānāḥ (BG 7.15). Apahṛta-jñānāḥ. His real knowledge is taken away. He does not know that he is small, God is great, his business is to serve God. This knowledge is taken away. Māyayāpahṛta-jñānā āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ. This is the sign.

And you can understand by the one symptom. Just like pressing one rice from the whole pot of the rice you can understand the rice is quite all right, similarly, by one symptom you can understand who is a rascal, by one symptom. What is that? Na māṁ prapadyante. He is not a devotee of Kṛṣṇa? He's a rascal. That's all. Immediately you take it without any consideration that anyone who is not devotee of Kṛṣṇa, who is not prepared to surrender to Kṛṣṇa, he's a rascal. That's all. This is our conclusion.

Lecture on BG 8.14-15 -- New York, November 16, 1966:

We, as living entities, we are part and parcel of the Supreme, sac-cid-ānanda. We want pleasure. So impersonal feature does not give us that pleasure which we want, which is our demand. That pleasure is available in the spiritual planets. If you enter in any of the spiritual planets, then that spiritual happiness and exchange of pleasure you can attain. Therefore the Lord says, Kṛṣṇa, ananya-cetāḥ satataṁ yo māṁ smarati nityaśaḥ: "A person without any deviation..." Ananya-cetāḥ. Without any consideration of jñāna, yoga, or any other process... Simply devotional process, simply surrendered process... "My Lord, I am Your eternal servant. Please give me Your service. Let me engage. Let me be engaged in Your service." This is called ananya-cetāḥ. Ananya-cetāḥ satatam. Satatam means always, twenty-four hours, cent percent, without any deviation. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If anyone is engaged in such Kṛṣṇa consciousness, twenty-four hours and cent percent, then yo māṁ smarati nityaśaḥ, always remembering... Suppose if you are engaged in some work, naturally you'll be thinking of that particular work. When you go to your office and work, oh, you have to think always of the office business. That is quite natural. Similarly, if you engage yourself in the business of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, naturally you'll be always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it is said, yo māṁ smarati nityaśaḥ: "Always remembering Me." Tasyāhaṁ sulabhaḥ pārtha: (BG 8.14) "My dear Pārtha, Arjuna, for him I am very cheap." Sulabhaḥ means very easily available.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.3.22 -- Los Angeles, September 27, 1972:

Pradyumna: "The Personality of Godhead, Śrī Rāma, assumed the form of a human being and appeared on the earth for the purpose of doing some pleasing work for the demigods, or the administrative personalities to maintain the order of the universe. Sometimes great demons and atheists like Rāvaṇa and Hiraṇyakaśipu and many others become very famous due to advancing material civilization by the help of material science and other activities with a spirit of challenging the established order of the Lord. For example, the attempt to fly to other planets by material means is a challenge to the established order. The conditions of each and every plane are different, and different classes of human beings are accommodated there for particular purposes mentioned in the codes of the Lord. But puffed up by tiny success in material advancement, sometimes the godless materialist challenges the existence of God. Rāvaṇa was one of them, and he wanted to deport ordinary men to the planets of Indra, or heaven, by material means, without consideration of the necessary qualifications. He wanted a staircase..."

Prabhupāda: Just now they are planning that everyone will go to the moon planet without any qualification. That is their plan. It is Rāvaṇa's plan. Rāvaṇa said that "Why you are undergoing so much severe austerities to go to heaven? I shall make a staircase, and you go directly, without having performed any austerities." So to go to the moon planet, according to the Vedic description, it requires a qualification. The moon planet, that is one of the heavenly planets, and if anyone can go there, he gets ten thousands of years span of life. And the standard of living is very higher than this planet. These are the description in the Vedic literature. In the Bhagavad-gītā also, it is said, yānti deva-vratā devān (BG 9.25). If you want to be promoted to a heavenly planets, then you just perform the duties to please the particular demigod, you'll be... So these materialist scientists, they are thinking that they can go anywhere by the force of their so-called scientific advancement. But it has not proved successful till now. But still, they will say, "Yes, in future we shall go." All right, in future. "Trust no future, however pleasant." That's all. Go on.

Lecture on SB 1.7.43 -- Vrndavana, October 3, 1976:

So Draupadī, in the previous verse it has been described, vāma-svabhāvā kṛpayā nanāma ca. Vāma-svabhāvā. Vāma, woman. Women, they are very soft-hearted, vāma-svabhāvā. So although Aśvatthāmā killed her sons very mercilessly, and he was arrested and Kṛṣṇa ordered him to be killed, and Arjuna was just preparing to punish him, but vāma-svabhāvā, woman, being very soft-hearted, without any consideration, she immediately offered her respect, nanāma. Not only she offered her respect to Aśvatthāmā being the son of a brāhmaṇa, especially of Droṇācārya, their teacher... So she immediately ordered Arjuna, mucyatāṁ mucyatām: "Release him immediately. You have arrested a brāhmaṇa." Mucyatāṁ mucyatām eṣa brāhmaṇo nitarāṁ guruḥ. "Brāhmaṇa is always our guru. Although he has killed my sons, still, he stands to be my guru, your guru."

So this is Vedic culture, that they know how to offer respect to the proper persons. But Arjuna, he also decided that although Kṛṣṇa ordered him to kill Aśvatthāmā, he's guru's son, although he's not brāhmaṇa; he's brahma-bandhu. He has been described as brahma-bandhu, not brāhmaṇa. But Draupadī, being woman, vāma-svabhāvā, very soft-hearted, she did not consider whether he's actually a brāhmaṇa. The son of a brāhmaṇa, that much she knew. This is the difference, how to calculate whether one is brāhmaṇa or not brāhmaṇa. Brāhmaṇa and brahma-bandhu, these two words are there. Just like if you are the son of a high-court judge, you can be called, you have got the right, that "son of a high-court judge." That is all right. But you cannot claim to become the high-court judge. That is not possible. Unless you are qualified, unless you are actually acting as high-court judge, you cannot be called a high-court judge. Simply by becoming the son of a high-court judge you cannot become the high-court judge. Similarly, simply by becoming the son of a brāhmaṇa, you cannot become a brāhmaṇa.

Lecture on SB 1.8.48 -- Mayapura, October 28, 1974:

Just like Kṛṣṇa sometimes became sick. So, in Dvārakā... You have seen that play in Bombay. And so many physicians came; nobody could cure Him. Then Kṛṣṇa suggested His own medicine, that "If some of my devotees will give the dust of his feet on My head, then I'll be cured." So the first devotee, Nārada and others, everywhere, it was approached that "Give your dust of feet. Kṛṣṇa is suffering." "No, no, no. How can I give my dust of feet? Kṛṣṇa is Supreme Personality of Godhead." But when the gopīs were approached, when they heard that Kṛṣṇa is sick, and He's in urgently necessity of the dust of His devotees' feet, so immediately they began to give: "Take it, take it immediately. Immediately." They did not consider that "Giving the dust of my feet to Kṛṣṇa, I shall go to hell." "Never mind, I shall go to hell; it doesn't matter, but let Kṛṣṇa be cured." That is first consideration.

So this is the topmost devotee, prepared to do anything without any consideration. That is pure devotee. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānuśīlanam (Brs. 1.1.11). There should be no personal desire. That should be zero. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ jñāna-karmādy-anā... Simply one should try to please Kṛṣṇa. There is no other consideration. Only to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. That is pure bhakti. That is explained by Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura,

vyavasāyātmikā buddhir

ekeha kuru-nandana

bahu-śākhā hy anantāś ca

buddhayo 'vyavasāyinām

(BG 2.41)

This is perfect conclusion, that "I shall execute the desire of Kṛṣṇa." "But Kṛṣṇa is not physically present before me. Then how I shall know what Kṛṣṇa desires?" That is not very difficult. Kṛṣṇa's representative is there, the spiritual master. If you fulfill the desire of the spiritual master, then you fulfill the desire of Kṛṣṇa. Yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādaḥ **. That is stated by Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura.

Lecture on SB 1.15.50 -- Los Angeles, December 27, 1973:

And when the Pāṇḍavas were lost, now he wanted to retaliate the insult given by Draupadī during her svayaṁvara. So he advised... He was friendly to Duryodhana and brothers. "Now this lady is lost. Now we can deal with her as we like. She is our property." So she was lost. "So I want to see her naked in this assembly." So vastra-haraṇa. You know. But Kṛṣṇa saved her. So Draupadī knows very well Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it is said tadājñāya draupadī ca.

And another side is that when... At the time of retirement, there is no more responsibility. Here is it said, patīnām anapekṣatām. They are retiring from home without any consideration, "What will happen to our wife Draupadī?" No. "Now everyone should take care of himself. We are also going alone." This is retirement. Anapekṣatām, without waiting for anyone, alone, simply depending on Kṛṣṇa. This is called renounced order of life. So this is the process of retirement, not that to make arrangement in the family that "I am now retiring. You send me some money, and I shall maintain myself." No. No dependence. Simply dependent on Kṛṣṇa. Therefore it is said, ekānta-matir āpa. Ekānta. Actually, Kṛṣṇa saves us. Why we should depend on others? Kṛṣṇa saves. Kṛṣṇa says that "Anyone who is completely dependent upon Me," yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham (BG 9.22), "I personally bring whatever his necessity is." That is the promise of Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā. So renounced order means no more dependence on father, mother, husband, daughter. No. Completely dependent on Kṛṣṇa. Ekānta. That is perfection. One who is fully convinced that "Kṛṣṇa is with me..." Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61)—"I will not have to search out Kṛṣṇa anywhere. He is within me, within my heart." There are so many instances.

Lecture on SB 2.1.2-5 -- Montreal, October 23, 1968:

That is the grace of the devotees. The devotees offer their service, and they get the opportunity. Never mind what he is. It is the grace. Therefore, when Bhāgavata says, yad-apāśrayāśrayam... Apāśrayāśrayam means a devotee is already under the protection of God, and if one takes protection of a devotee, he also becomes a devotee and becomes purified. Therefore a devotee is more merciful than God. Even in God there is consideration-pious, impious. For a devotee there is no such consideration. "Everyone come." What is the purpose of opening so many centers? Just to give people opportunity to take advantage, without any consideration of his position. But if one does not take the advantage, it is up to him. That independence has everyone. We are inviting everyone to understand Kṛṣṇa consciousness, but nobody is coming. What can we do? Those who are fortunate, they are taking advantage. That's all.

Now you take the mṛdaṅga, and you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Two mṛdaṅgas must be sounded equal, equally, on the same level. And how many cymbals? (end)

Lecture on SB 2.3.1-4 -- Los Angeles, May 24, 1972:

That's all. Even when Kṛṣṇa played wonderful thing, so they simply thought, "Oh, He might be a demigod." You see. So they never tried to analyze Kṛṣṇa, but their love for Kṛṣṇa, there is no comparison. So that is wanted. Jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam (CC Madhya 19.167). "Whether Kṛṣṇa is God or not, let me test." You can test, but pure love means whatever Kṛṣṇa may be, He is my lovable object: mat-prāṇa-nāthas tu sa eva nāparaḥ. We have no other business than to love Kṛṣṇa, whatever He may be. He may be God or He may be whatever He may be. That is called anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam (Brs. 1.1.11). Then what is the business? If everything is śūnyam... Śūnyam means zero. No, we are not zero. We are positive. What is that? Ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānuśīlanam (CC Madhya 19.167). Simply cultivate Kṛṣṇa consciousness favorably: "How I can become a lover of Kṛṣṇa?" That is wanted. Ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānuśīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā. This is first-class devotion service. Of course, we should know Kṛṣṇa; otherwise, it may be we may neglect Him.

Just like we are trying to explain what is Deity. But if one has got unflinching love for the Deity, he doesn't require to understand the Deity through the śāstra. Spontaneous love. Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu showed, as soon as He entered the Deity room, fainted, "Here is My Lord." That is first-class position of devotee... Without any other consideration. Enhance your love for Kṛṣṇa without any condition. That is required. So these worship of different demigods are recommended in the scripture, not to mislead him, but to lead him gradually to the higher stage, to lead him to the higher stage. Because the demigods are considered different limbs of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Lecture on SB 3.25.7 -- Bombay, November 7, 1974:

Purification means we are eternal, and if we become purified from this material contaminating, then we get back our eternal life, back to home, back to Godhead. That is required. That is... For that we have to accept little tapasya. Not to become sense gratifier like the dogs and hogs. That is not civilization. Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye (SB 5.5.1). This human life should be regulated in such a way that he hasn't got to satisfy the senses after taking so much hard labor. The modern civilization is like that. Everyone is engaged in hard labor simply for satisfaction of the senses. So they have become mad. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vi... And they are acting without any consideration of the effect. They do not consider whether it is sinful or not. They do not believe in the next life. They do not discriminate what is sinful, what is pious—nothing. Exactly like animals.

So śāstra says, "This is not good." Here also, Devahūti says that bhūmann asad-indriya-tarṣaṇāt. Asad-indriya-tarṣ... Actually, these senses are not real senses. It is covered. Just like my, this body, covered with this shirt, or this cloth. It is not my real body. Although you see the shirt has got a hand, that hand is not real hand. The real hand is within the shirt. Similarly, our real body is within this body. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). Dehe. Dehinaḥ. Dehinaḥ means the real body, or the spiritual body of the soul, is within this body. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe. And the body is changing. Kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā. It is sometimes child, sometimes youth, sometimes a young man, sometimes old man. And then vanishes. It is... There are six changes. So this is not real body. But... And we are engaged in this unreal body, sense gratification.

Lecture on SB 3.25.13 -- Los Angeles, November 10, 1968:

They are attracted by playthings more than education. They do not like to go to school. They like to play the whole day. In my childhood also, I was very naughty boy, and I was not going to school. And my mother kept a special man to drag me to the school. At that time, there was no system like in your country, school buses. One had to go to school on foot. So my father was very lenient. I was not going to school. Preyaḥ, pleasing. Children like to play. Similarly, there are two paths, śreyaḥ and preyaḥ.

So śreyaḥ means... Preyaḥ means sense gratification. We have got our senses, material senses, and we want to satisfy them without consideration, the sequence, the bad results of sense gratification. In the Bhāgavatam there is one passage in which it is stated that yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham (SB 7.9.45). Persons who are conditioned in the society, friendship, and love, this is the attraction for material life. "Society, friendship and love," they think, "divinely bestowed upon man." But that, it is not divinely bestowed upon man. From spiritual point of view, it is the gift of māyā. Society, friendship and love is the gift of māyā, illusion. Actually, the society with which we associate, and friendship which we make here, and so-called love, how long? Now, supposing I am now in human society. How long I shall remain in human society? I am preparing for my next life, or the next society. I may be transferred to dog society. And I may transfer, I may be transferred to god society. That will depend on my work.

Lecture on SB 5.5.1 -- London, August 30, 1971:

This is not meant for. This is meant for the hogs and dogs, not for the human beings. This is division of life. The human life is to make a solution of all the problems of life. The real problem is birth, death, old age and disease. All other problems, they are secondary. So you can conquer over this birth and death and old age and disease. There is possibility. Here is a chance of human form of life. Here you take a chance. Don't lose it, don't spoil it like hogs and dogs. That is the propaganda of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Don't take it that it is a type of sectarian religion. No. It is a culture. It is meant for every human being. Therefore we are trying to propagate this movement all over the world, without any consideration of caste, creed and nation. Because we don't see, "This is Englishman, this is European, this is American." No. We have no such vision. Paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ (BG 5.18). One who is really learned, he sees everyone on the equal level: soul, spirit soul.

vidyā-vinaya-sampanne

brāhmaṇe gavi hastini

śuni caiva śva-pāke ca

paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ

(BG 5.18)

One who is paṇḍita, he'll see equally a learned brāhmaṇa and a dog. Why? Because he knows, "Here is a brāhmaṇa and here is a dog. But a dog, by his karma, by his work, he has accepted this dog's body, and the brāhmaṇa has accepted by his karma the brāhmaṇa's body. The king has accepted a king's body. But these are..." Just like we are sitting here. We are not studying what kind of dress you have got.

Lecture on SB 5.5.3 -- Boston, May 4, 1968:

The boy wants to enjoy the girl, the girl wants to enjoy the boy, and that is going on in love. Love is not like that. Love means, "I enjoy or not enjoy, I love you." That is love. Just like Cowper said, "England, with all thy faults, I love you." That is love. There is no return. Just like Rādhārāṇī's love to Kṛṣṇa. She does not require any return. You see? Kṛṣṇa left Vṛndāvana, Rādhārāṇī, and their whole life remained simply crying for Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa never returned. But still, they loved Kṛṣṇa. That is love. That love is being shown by Caitanya Mahāprabhu: "Where is Kṛṣṇa? Where is Kṛṣṇa?" That's Rādhārāṇī's separation, love in separation. So love means without any return, without any sense gratification, without any consideration. That is love. Āśliṣya. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā (CC Antya 20.47). The lover is saying to the beloved, "Either You embrace me with love or you kick me, trample me down under Your feet. And if You make me brokenhearted without meeting me, so whatever You like, You can do. Still I love You." That is love. That is only possible to love Kṛṣṇa. That is not materially possible. Here the so-called love means he or she wants some return for sense gratification. So there the so-called love is lust. It is going in the market in the name of love. There is no love.

Lecture on SB 6.1.56-62 -- Surat, January 3, 1971, at Adubhai Patel's House:

They simply automatically developed—not automatically; by their previous good activities—acute love for Kṛṣṇa. They never tried to understand Kṛṣṇa, whether He is God. When Uddhava tried to preach before them about jñāna they did not hear it very attentively. They simply absorbed in thought of Kṛṣṇa. That is the perfection of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Never mind Kṛṣṇa worship, but one loves Kṛṣṇa. And that is wanted. That is spontaneous. Real love means that. A lover does not consider what he is, the opposite party, what he is, whether he is rich man, whether he is educated man or educated... There is no such consideration. Love is spontaneous. That is an example also. Similarly, love for Kṛṣṇa, that should be simply spontaneous, without any consideration. Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām: (CC Antya 20.47) "Either You trample down under Your feet or embrace me, still, I love You." That is love, that kind of love. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa...

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, December 26, 1972:

So this is pure bhakti. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ jñāna-karmādy... (CC Madhya 19.167). The, the, the gopīs, they're not jñānīs; they're ordinary village girls. What jñāna they have? No jñāna, no karma. They did not know what is karma, what is sacrifice. No. They did not know. (aside:) All right, you can close. Close this door. So we should, we should be prepared to sacrifice everything, without any consideration of jñāna, karma, yoga. No. We have to see whether Kṛṣṇa is satisfied. Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam (SB 1.2.13). That is perfection. Saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam: whether Kṛṣṇa is satisfied. So people have no information what is Kṛṣṇa, and what to speak of satisfying Him. That... Who was speaking? That Girirāja. He was talking to Mr. Motta, every so-called learned scholars, they have no, I mean to say, idea what is God, what is Kṛṣṇa, and where to speak of satisfying Him? But the bhakti means that he, a bhakta, is always ready to sacrifice everything to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. But if one has no idea what is Kṛṣṇa, then where is bhakti? For the impersonalist, there cannot be any bhakti because they have no information of Kṛṣṇa. They do not know what is Kṛṣṇa. And bhakti means satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa. If I know the person, if I know what is his nature, then I can know also how to satisfy him. If you have no information of any person, then where is the question of satisfaction? Go on reading.

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, January 4, 1973:

That we do not know. That is Kṛṣṇa. People... The same example. Just like if you water in the root of tree, then the water is distributed all over the branches, leaves and flowers and everywhere. If you put foodstuff in the stomach, the energy's distributed all over the body. Everyone can understand this. There are... Kṛṣṇa is the root. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo (BG 10.8). Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). He's the root. But we are neglecting the root. We are trying to pour water in the leaves. The leaf will dry, and his labor will be frustrated. That is happening. So-called humanitarian service, social service, without any touch with Kṛṣṇa... Just like watering on the tree without touching the root—it is useless labor. Similarly, you do whatever service you can do to the society, to the community, to the nation, but do it in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then you're perfect. Otherwise it will remain imperfect. The persons who are, whom you are giving service, they'll never be happy, neither you'll be happy. So this is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, that they're simply wasting their time. Śrama eva hi kevalam (SB 1.2.8). Simply wasting their time in so-called humanitarian service. They must take... Nirbandhe kṛṣṇa-sambandhe. Everything should be in relationship with Kṛṣṇa.

anāsaktasya viṣayān

yathārham upayuñjataḥ

nirbandhaḥ kṛṣṇa-sambandhe

yuktaṁ vairāgyam ucyate

The simple process. First of all, try, try to understand Kṛṣṇa and try to love Him. Your love will be distributed, not only in your family and community, but throughout the whole world. All animals, all insects, all trees. You'll never be inclined to do harm, even to an ant even. A tree is cut down—a Kṛṣṇa-bhakta becomes sorry. Others, they do not become sorry. They are so sympathetic. Nowadays, trees are being cut into pieces without any consideration. This is also sinful activities. They're also living entities. You cannot kill them unnecessarily. This is the law of nature. Go on.

General Lectures

Lecture at a School -- Montreal, June 11, 1968:

This is the greatest drawback of modern education, that not only in your country or any country they have completely neglected what is meant by God. And in India, they are especially... Now, as soon as there is any question of God, they see phobia: "Oh, this is all nonsense." They have become so clever.

So anyway, my appeal to you, American people, that you are considered to be the leader of all nations of the world. You should take this Kṛṣṇa conscious movement very seriously. It is good for you. It is good for the whole world. It is individually, collectively, without any consideration of caste, creed, or color. Everyone can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, anyone and everyone, at home, on the street. There is no expenditure. Suppose while walking if you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, there is no loss, there is no expenditure, but you see how much you are profited by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. This is practical. We don't say that "You come to our temple and give us some subscription. Become our member." That is a secondary question. Our primary movement is that everyone may take advantage of this movement and simply chant wherever possible, at home, at work, on the street, anywhere. There is no regulation where you have to chant and how you have to chant. It is spontaneous. Simply chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. There are only three words there: Hare, Kṛṣṇa, and Rāma, but they are adjusted in a different position. There are sixteen words. So it is not very difficult. You can make an experiment. The children also may take pleasure. We have got our records. If you play those records and chant with it, you will find a transcendental pleasure in you. These are facts. So our request to you, that you take this movement a little seriously, and you will be happy by grace of Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture -- Seattle, October 2, 1968:

You have no right." Then what is the authority of this lawbook if everyone comes, "I interpret in this way"? And interpretation when required? When a thing is not understood. If I say, "It is watch," and everyone understands that "This is watch, yes," then where is the opportunity of interpreting that this is spectacle? If anyone can understand the clear passage... Just like in the Bible, "God said, 'Let there be creation,' and there was creation." Where is the question of interpretation? Yes, God created. You cannot create. Where is the opportunity of interpretation? So unnecessary interpretation is not required and that is not bona fide, and those who are interpreting unnecessarily, they should be rejected immediately. Immediately, without any consideration. God said, "Let there be creation." So there was creation. Simple thing. Where is the question of interpretation? What can be the interpretation here? Suggest that this can be interpretation. Am I right? In the beginning of the Bible it is said like that? "God said, 'Let there be creation,' and there was creation. So what is your interpretation? Tell me what is your interpretation. Is there any possibility of interpretation? Can any one of you suggest? Then where is the opportunity of interpretation? One can explain. That is different thing, but the fact that God created, that will remain. That you cannot change. Now, how that creative process took place, that is explained in Bhāgavatam: First of all, there was sky, then there was sound, then there was this, that. This is the process of creation, that is another thing. But the fact, the primary fact that God created, that will remain at any circumstances. Not the rascal scientist says, "Oh, there was a chunk and it is split up, and there was these planets. Perhaps this and likely this," all this nonsense. They'll simply interpret, "likely," "perhaps." That is not science—"likely," "perhaps." Why perhaps? Here is clear statement, "God created." That's all. Finish. Yes.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Hegel:

Prabhupāda: Why I shall not kill. That is philosophy. Jñāna, vijñānam(?). Just like devotee, he accept Kṛṣṇa or God, that's all right. He's also devotee but one understands actually what is Kṛṣṇa, therefore he is very dear devotee. Madhyama-adhikārī. He is kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, the lowest stage of devotee. He's as good as the other devotees. He does not like to... Just like gopīs, they are not philosophers and they're, neither they knew that Kṛṣṇa is God, but they loved Kṛṣṇa, that is highest. Without any consideration. Caitanya Mahāprabhu, "Whatever you may be, I love you."

Śyāmasundara: Last time we discussed Hegel, you said, "Yes, philosophy is highest but even higher than philosophy is the practice of philosophy."

Prabhupāda: Yes. This is practice as I say, the gopīs. They're actually loving.

Śyāmasundara: They were practising the result of philosophy.

Prabhupāda: Enjoying the result of philosophy. (laughter)

Śyāmasundara: I guess that's a good place to stop for today. We'll try to finish Hegel tomorrow. (break) First we'll be discussing the ethical, social and political philosophy of Hegel. He believed that one's basic right was to be a person and respect others as persons.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So what is the philosophy of killing animals?

Śyāmasundara: Well, animals are considered as things and persons have the dominion over things.

Prabhupāda: Therefore they are rascals. Rascal philosophy. So the basic principle is this, one has right to be.

Śyāmasundara: One has the right to be a person.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Philosophy Discussion on Henri Bergson:

Śyāmasundara: The dictionary defines intuition as "immediate apprehension by the mind without any reasoning."

Prabhupāda: That is experience. That is experience. Intuition means mature experience. Just like when as soon as there is mosquito, my hand immediately sees. You can say it is intuition, but it is experience, that when there is mosquito my hand must go there and try to kill him. But the experience is so mature that without consideration the hand goes.

Śyāmasundara: Like instinct?

Prabhupāda: That is instinct, or intuition, or whatever you call it.

Devotee: Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā it explains that a yogi in this life means that in his last life (sic), but in this life it may look like he has intuition towards yoga, but actually...

Prabhupāda: Because he has got experience.

Śyāmasundara: Just like in mathematics they use the concept of intuition a lot, that...

Prabhupāda: A big mathametician, suppose there is a big addition, sum, and one experienced mathematician, he can simply... Sometimes there is some difference. You know that? Generally we have some (indistinct). Is it not? But there are many experienced (indistinct) immediately (indistinct). That is experience.

Devotee: The concept of intuition...

Philosophy Discussion on Edmund Husserl:

Śyāmasundara: Well, their idea is to reduce everything to the level of pure consciousness.

Prabhupāda: That is pure consciousness.

Śyāmasundara: But by examining a phenomenon purely, without any other consideration, he says that each thing has its given content or its principle of principles, as an object of intuition. Or he calls it also a thing of authentic reality. Just like a leaf. If you look at a leaf, and you have no consideration of previous knowledge where do these things come, what is a leaf, anything, then the authentic reality of that leaf will present itself to my consciousness. It will be self-evident what is that leaf.

Prabhupāda: You don't take... That means that analytical study of the leaf.

Śyāmasundara: Yes. But without any previous knowledge—as if I knew nothing about leaves before, but I begin to look at the leaf and it will be self-evident what that leaf is.

Prabhupāda: So you can talk any nonsense. (laughter) Then what is the use of going to school? There is no need of opening so many schools and colleges. You go on studying, you can know all knowledge and talk all kinds of nonsense. Is that perfect?

Śyāmasundara: No. He says that if a man has a clear intelligence that he will be able to understand the essence of that...

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Questions and Answers -- September 6, 1968, New York:

Prabhupāda: One who loves Kṛṣṇa without inquiry, that is nice position. To inquire about Kṛṣṇa is knowledge. And pure devotion is transcendental to knowledge. Love does not depend on the greatness. If a boy loves a girl or the girl loves a boy, even in this material field, it does not depend on the greatness of the boy. Of course, here everything is on material consideration. But actual love is without any consideration, what He is or what He isn't. That is real love. That is the perfectional stage of love, without inquiring how great He is or what He is. But for the neophytes it is necessary to know about Kṛṣṇa. Because we have no love, so if we understand that Kṛṣṇa is so great, then gradually we can love. Our position is different because when... Therefore Caitanya-caritāmṛta, it is said that siddhānta boliya citte na kara ālasa: "Try to understand about Kṛṣṇa." Just like Kṛṣṇa is explaining in Bhagavad-gītā that "I am this amongst the trees. I am this. I am this planet. Amongst this, I am this. I am this." So just to impress upon the neophyte devotees about the greatness... And those who are advanced devotees, they do not want to see whether Kṛṣṇa is great or small. They simply love Him. That's all. That is pure love. In Vṛndāvana, at least these gopīs, they never saw Kṛṣṇa's any jugglery or any greatness. But they still love, pure love. Pure love means

anyābhilāśitā-śūnyaṁ

jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam

ānukūlyena kṛṣṇānu

śīlanaṁ bhaktir uttamā

(Brs. 1.1.11)

Without any cultivation of knowledge, without any activities of fruitive action, without any desire, simply to love Kṛṣṇa in order to please Him—that is the highest perfectional stage of devotion. There is no consideration "Whether Kṛṣṇa is God or not, whether we are getting benefit or not." "Simply we love Kṛṣṇa." That is the perfectional stage. (break)

Questions and Answers -- September 6, 1968, New York:

Prabhupāda: Yes. That I explained. For ordinary neophyte devotees... This is the highest stage. The stage of the gopīs or the cowherd boys playing with Kṛṣṇa, oh, they are kṛta-punya-puñjāḥ. Many, many lives they have undergone many types of sacrifices, austerities, penances, and then they have come to that stage. That stage is not ordinary stage. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam Śukadeva Gosvāmī says, itthaṁ satāṁ brahma-sukhānubhūtya dāsyaṁ gatānāṁ para-daivatena, māyāśritānāṁ nara-dārakeṇa sākaṁ vijahruḥ kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ (SB 10.12.11). He is describing when Kṛṣṇa was playing with His cowherds boy. So he is describing that "These cowherds boy—who are they? They are living entities who have amassed volumes and volumes of pious activities." Kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ. "After many, many lives Just like bank balance increases, similarly, one who has increased the balance of pious activities for many, many thousands of lives, oh, such persons are now playing with Kṛṣṇa. They have taken the body of His cowherds boy, transcendental spiritual body, and just they are playing with Kṛṣṇa. And who is Kṛṣṇa?" Itthaṁ satāṁ brahma-sukhānubhūtya: "The great saints and sages who are trying to understand the Supreme Brahman, here is Kṛṣṇa. That Supreme Brahman is here, playing." Itthaṁ satāṁ brahma-sukhanubhutya dāsyaṁ gatānāṁ para-daivatena: "The impersonalist Brahman is... Because Kṛṣṇa's effulgence is impersonal Brahman, so here is He." And dāsyaṁ gatānāṁ: "Those who are devotees, those who have accepted Kṛṣṇa as the master, for them here is Kṛṣṇa." And māyāśritānāṁ nara-dārakeṇa: "And those who are materialistic—they simply think Kṛṣṇa is ordinary boy or man—He is also there. But who are these boys? They are playing with the same person who is Brahman, who is Bhagavān, or who is ordinary man, according to different calculation. But these boys who are playing with Him, they have accumulated many, many lives' heaps of pious activities." They are not ordinary men. So all these gopīs, all the cowherds boy in Vṛndāvana, they are not ordinary living entities. They have approached that stage after many, many pious activities. Yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ. After brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā na śocati na kāṅkṣati (BG 18.54). Their position is different. Therefore they have reached that unalloyed stage: without any consideration, simply loving Kṛṣṇa. That stage they have passed already. There is no such consideration. Pure love.

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

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

Prabhupāda: 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. I asked her to go and marry Bhūrijana. She never saw her (him). She never saw her (him), what kind of husband she is going to accept. But simply on my word, she came, and she came from Los Angeles to Japan and got married. Similarly I am asking one girl. She is a French girl, Mandākinī. So I am asking her to go to Russia and marry one boy. She has never seen. So they obey in such a way. The Western boys and girls, they want to see and behave before marrying. But they are so obedient that without any consideration... Because marriage or no marriage, that is not their consideration. The only consideration is how to please Kṛṣṇa and his representative. Guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya-pāya bhakti-latā-bīja (CC Madhya 19.151). Bhakti-latā-bīja. Bhakti is just like a creeper, and the seed of that creeper can be obtained by the mercy of guru and Kṛṣṇa. That is Vedic injunction.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Two Buddhist Monks -- July 12, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: Four hundred years ago the land was there. They, these Europeans, migrated there. Now they are proprietor. So four hundred years ago, who was the proprietor. In this way, trace history. The land is there, the ocean is there, everything is there. We sometimes claim that "I am the proprietor," "We are the proprietor," but this is lying there. Who is actually the proprietor? Actually proprietor is God, Kṛṣṇa. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). Everything is owned by the supreme īśvara. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). So if we study scrutinizingly, then we'll find God is the proprietor actually. He is the creator; therefore He is the proprietor. And because He is the proprietor, He is friend of all. Actually. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Īśvara is situated in everyone's heart as Paramātmā, and He's giving us good counsel. We are not abiding by that. We are disobeying. Therefore we are suffering. Otherwise, He's giving us good counsel, good advice. So this formula, that bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram, suhṛdaṁ sarva-bhūtānām... (BG 5.29). So if we accept God, or Kṛṣṇa, as the supreme friend, then whatever advice He'll give me, if we follow, then I am happy. There is no difficulty. He says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). If we do that, we become happy. Where is the difficulty? From historical point of view... Of course, no, I mean to say, religious literature is older than Bhagavad-gītā. It was spoken by the Supreme Lord personally five thousand years ago. And that old thing we are presenting as it is. Our Bhagavad-gītā is therefore named Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Without any interpretation. Without any addition, alteration. No, we don't make that. If we make addition, alteration, then where is the authority of Bhagavad-gītā? We don't do that. And that is proving effective. Those who are taking according to the instruction, they're becoming happy. Practical. Without any consideration of time, country, people. Anyone is accepting, and he's becoming happy. And they are not expected to undergo very severe type of austerities. Neither prāṇāyāma or yoga. They are unable. Simply I have advised them, "With these beads chant Hare Kṛṣṇa sixteen rounds." They are chanting. It is very easy. Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare, Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma... Sixteen rounds. It takes about two hours. And they're refraining from four kinds of sinful activities: illicit sex, gambling, intoxication, meat-eating. This much they are following austerities, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, taking prasādam. They are happy. Anyone can take. It is not difficult at all. Anyone. They are gṛhasthas. It is not that one has to become a sannyāsī. No. All my, these disciples... Here is a gṛhastha. Here is a sannyāsī. Here is a brahmacārī. So all together, they are serving the same purport. And we are getting good result. You have seen our Ratha-yātrā?

Room Conversation with Banker -- September 21, 1973, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: The meditation you can do, just like we are also doing meditation, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. But meditation as it is, to absorb the mind fully in God's vision, that is very difficult nowadays, at the present moment. People's mind is very disturbed. They cannot actually meditate. Therefore in this age, meditation, chanting the holy name of the Lord, that is recommended, congregationally. Just like we do, Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare, Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma... So there is no need of dark room. Just like this boy. He is also a responsible officer in New York. He is also chanting. All these sannyāsīs. And we have got all these beads. So there is no need of meditating in darkness. We are going on the open street. We are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare Hare Hare Rāma... There is no difficulty. Neither we have to select a dark place. Anywhere. Just like I am talking with you, they are chanting. Their chanting is not stopped. So why should you go to a dark room? It is open thing. And it is open for everyone, in any moment. There is no hard and fast rule, that "You have to do like that, do like that." Simply you have to chant, anywhere possible. Suppose if you leave this room, you go on the street, you can chant, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare... Nobody... There is no taxation. There is no loss. But the gain is very great by chanting. And this is recommended in this age, not sophistically to find out a dark room. No. It may be suitable for a particular person. But for mass of people, where is the facility of getting a dark room while going on the street? Suppose you are going on the street or in a car to your office, can you arrange for the dark room? But you can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa without any dark room. So which is better? For concentrating your mind, for meditating, if you have to make so many facilities arrangement, and without any arrangement, if you can do, which one is better? Without any arrangement. That is Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. Without any arrangement, immediately you can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Without any consideration of your age, of your religion, of your country, of your nationality, of your color, caste, anything. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. And that is being done, and the whole world is accepting. We are not recommending that "Go to a dark room." Neither it is required. Everything must be for mass benefit. That is only this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. What do you think?

Morning Walk -- December 9, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes, yes. There is no... There is no question of trust. Yes. That is, that is the first requirement in the Bhagavad-gītā. "You surrender unto Me." That means: "You trust." I cannot surrender unto you if I do not trust you. That is trust. I don't believe you; how can I trust you? Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). That is full trust. "Yes, I must surrender to Kṛṣṇa. He, He..." Just like Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura sings,

mānasa deha geha jo kichu mora

arpilūṅ tuwā pade nanda-kiśora

Nanda-kiśora, Kṛṣṇa, now I fully surrender unto You. And what I have got? I have got my mind, I have got my body, and I have got my family. So everything I surrender unto You. Deha, geha everything." This is our possession. Otherwise... I cannot say, "I possess this universe." But I can say, "I possess this body. I have got some mind. And I have got some little family. So everything I surrender unto You." Mānasa deha geha jo kichu..., arpilūṅ tuwā pade nanda-kiśora. Now what kind of surrender? Mārobi rākhobi, jo icchā tohārā. "Now I have surrendered. If you want, you can kill me. And if You want, You can keep me." This is surrender. This is trust. "If You like, you can kill me. And if You like, you can save me." Jo icchā tohārā. "That depends on Your free will because You are completely independent." This is surrender. This is trust. Then activities begins. Then he will act according to the order of Kṛṣṇa. When he has surrendered, he'll do as Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Just like our students are doing. They have surrendered unto me. I am dictating, "You do this. You worship like this." They are doing. This is surrender. They are doing. "You chant like this You live like this. You worship like this." This is surrender. So, without any consideration, whether this chanting... Of course, there must be consideration. Otherwise, how they are doing? But this obedience is there. That is called surrender. Mārobi rākhobi jo icchā tohārā. Where to go?

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

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

Prabhupāda: No... But principle is that you try to understand that you are not this body. That is applicable in all time, all circumstances, all, for everyone. It is not that formerly one had to learn that he's not this body, and now that is not required. The same problem is there still. Arjuna, five thousand years ago he was given lesson about this, that "You are not this body; you are soul." The same problem is now also for the foolish person because the foolish person will always remain in the world, and the intelligent man is to teach him. This is fact always, without any consideration of time, space, and circumstance. There will be certain class of men, foolish, and there will be certain class of men who are intelligent. So the foolish man has to take intelligence from the intelligent man. This is perpetually truth in this material world. It is not, time and circumstances changes this principle. There will be foolish men. Just like now we read, "Two classes of men are there always, the demons and the demigods." So at the present moment more demons. Two classes of men are there always, but at the present moment the demons, number of demons, are more and number of demigods are less because it is Kali-yuga.

Devotee: Śrīla Prabhupāda, does this possible anyhow to teach consciousness in Russian and the country who are in the unitary trust in the East? Like here in the west or America and Australia, in the...?

Madhudviṣa: His question is... He is... This boy is Yugoslavian, Yugoslavian, and he has done some translating of your Īśopaniṣad into Yugoslavian. So he is wondering is it possible to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness in Yugoslavia?

Prabhupāda: Everywhere possible.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- July 9, 1975, Chicago:

Jayatīrtha: ...gods are also included in this human species.

Prabhupāda: Different types of... Kinnara, 400,000.

Brahmānanda: Also different planets?

Prabhupāda: Yes. But everyone can become devotee. There is no harm. It is not that because one is in the lower species, he cannot become a devotee. Everyone can become a devotee. (break) ...yoni, they can also become perfect devotee. (break) This is the power of God. He can deliver anyone without any consideration. Therefore paṇḍita is sama-darśinaḥ, he does not make these divisions. He sees that "He is spirit soul. So let him be delivered." That's all. Paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśināh (BG 5.18). Materially there is division. He is black, he is white, he is this, he is that. This is material. Spiritually, there is no division. One. (break) They make, what is called, spiritual division also. That is their foolishness. Spiritually there is no division. Samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu mad-bhaktiṁ labhate param (BG 18.54). Samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu mad-bhaktiṁ labhate param. Hare Kṛṣṇa. Jaya. (end)

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- May 2, 1976, Fiji:

Prabhupāda: Many? What you...? Many followers.... The philosophy you present, it must be followed by everyone. That is wanted. You have got, say, ten thousand followers. That does not mean success. Everyone has got some followers. This.... What is that? Guruji Maharaja. He has got also so-called followers. The T.M., he has got also some followers. Everyone has got some followers. But what kind of followers they have? That is quality. Everything has quality. Simply quantity is not. There are many Christians. Even up to date, some Christian fair or.... Many millions will come. What is the quality? Quality is all meat-eater. But Christian means he should not kill. Where is the Christian? So we have to test by the quality, followers. Not many followers, the quality of the followers. My Guru Mahārāja used to say like that, that "If I get at least one quality disciple, then all my labor will be success." He was saying like that: quality, not the quantity. By quantity if one is amazed, then he is also goru. By quality—what kind of followers? That is the.... From the very beginning my strictures are there, that "You have to follow this"—quality. If I were..., "No, you can do like Vivekananda. Yes, what you can, whatever you like," then I think quantity would have been very, very big. But I don't say. I make him promise before the fire, before the Deity, before guru. (break) That one moon is taken into account. Who takes account of the millions of stars? Ekaś candras tamo hanti na ca tārā sahasraśaḥ. Quality. So we should be quality devotee, not quantity devotee. I have taken two glasses. Just see how nice water is, tap water. Here so many dobs are available, and this rascal is manufacturing RC and he is going as to be..., business. And for hearing Bhagavad-gītā they have no time, and they are trying to go to Vṛndāvana. Quantity, not quality. So civilization should be quality civilization, not quantity civilization. Do that. Bheḍyadāsana. Bheḍyadāsana (indistinct). Bheḍī, lamb, they are going, hundreds and thousands. They flock. So, and if one bheḍī, lamb, is somehow or other pushed into slaughterhouse stockroom, so all the.... All of them. You haven't got to take many. Some way or other, you induce one of them to go into the, what is called, shed, where stocks are kept for taking out daily and killing. So they do not mind that "We are being pushed into this room for future killing. Never mind. One has gone. Go." They'll go. So this is called in Hindi, bheḍyadāsana, that without any consideration, "One has entered. Let us all enter." That is bheḍī, means animal, their disciple like this. They liked the ceremony?

Morning Walk -- June 8, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That's all right. The life is there. You make some arrangement that it will not take part. That is another thing. If it is a fact that the egg is not life, then why you rascal do not manufacture a chemical egg and get a chicken? Why you rascal talking nonsense? That is our challenge. We say "rascals" not without consideration, because actually they talk like nonsense. Rascals. They cannot do, and still they'll insist they will do. That is rascal. Is it all right? (laughs) South, South America, er, South Africa, there are so many factories of begetting chicken.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: The Rainbow Chicken Factory.

Prabhupāda: Yes, the chicken factory, but they're taking the eggs from chicken. Why not manufacture small egg and give to the fermentation and come? There is no question of killing animals. Why they are taking?

Rādhāvallabha: They say God has provided it for us for food.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. Then you become a dog. God has provided you a dog's body. Take advantage of it and bark. (laughter) Protest. "Why You have made me? Why You are doing?" (laughter)

Rādhāvallabha: When I was in the hospital, right next to me there was one yogi, and a girl yogi came to instruct him every day.

Prabhupāda: Girl?

Room Conversation -- June 17, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: Printing. Why this is going on?

Jagadīśa: Those were purchased before I got involved.

Prabhupāda: That means money was spent unnecessarily, without any tangible result. Now Dayānanda left. He was there.... Without any consideration, he left. So what to do with all these things?

Jagadīśa: I think I have it under control. I have plans...

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.

Answers to a Questionnaire from Bhavan's Journal -- June 28, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Certainly.

tapasā brahmacaryeṇa

śamena damena va

tyāgena sattva-śaucābhyāṁ

yamena niyamena vā

(SB 6.1.13)

To advance in spiritual life these things are essential, tapasya. Tapasya means voluntarily accepting something which may be painful. Just like we are recommending no illicit sex, no gambling, no meat-eating. So those who are accustomed to these bad habits, for them, in he beginning it may be a little difficult. But in spite of becoming difficult, one has to do it. That is called tapasya. To rise early in the morning, those who are not practiced, it is a little painful, but one has to do it. So this is called tapasya. So according to the Vedic injunction, there are some tapasyas that must be done. It is not, "I may do it or not do it." It must be done. Just like in the Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad it is ordered that one must go to the spiritual master. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). So there is no question of voluntarily, but it must be. And one must carry out by the order of a spiritual master and the order of the śāstra. That is called tapasya. Just like in our line ekādaśī is compulsory. One may feel some inconvenience fasting or simply eating fruits. No. It must be done. There are so many rules and regulations which is essential. It must be done. That is called tapasya. Without consideration whether it is convenient or inconvenient for you, which is, must be done, that is called tapasya. Tapaḥ, divyam... Just like Rsabhādeva orders that this human life is meant for tapasya. Therefore in our Vedic civilization we find so many rules and regulations. This is tapasya. From the very beginning of life, brahmacārī, to go to the spiritual master's place and act like menial servant. Nicavat. It is said. If the spiritual master says that "You go and pick up some wood from the forest," and one may be a king's son, but he cannot deny it, the spiritual master's order, "You must go." As Kṛṣṇa, He was ordered to go and pick up some dry wood from the forest. So He had to go.

Conversation with George Harrison -- July 26, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: (laughs) Simply kartal and mṛdaṅga. Still, people do not come. They'll prefer to go the factory, whole day work in the hell. (laughs) They prefer.

George Harrison: I suppose some day the whole of the world will just be chanting in the country.

Prabhupāda: That is not possible, but if some of the leading men, they take it seriously, then others will follow. Just like in our book, your signature is there, "Oh, George Harrison. Yes." They take it without any consideration. Kṛṣṇa book. Yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas tad tad evetaro janaḥ (BG 3.21). If the leading man does something, then his followers also do. This is the way. So if some of the leading men of the world, they take this movement seriously, then people will be happy. There's no doubt about it. You have come alone, without any associate?

George Harrison: Just on my own.

Prabhupāda: That's all right.

George Harrison: It took me a while to find it. They're always building new roads everywhere and change the whole countryside. So I got a little lost.

Prabhupāda: You came here twice, right?

George Harrison: Yes, I've been here three times. Where will you be in India when you go back to India?

Prabhupāda: Most probably in Bombay. You have been in my Bombay?

Evening Darsana -- August 12, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: So there is no question of blind faith. Here it is said that "I have explained to you the knowledge, confidential and most confidential. Now you consider about it, and after due consideration, then do whatever you like." But if you actually appreciate that there is God, here is Kṛṣṇa, so whatever He is saying, it is all right. Sarvam etad 'ṛtaṁ manye (BG 10.14). There is no harm even if you accept His word blindly, there is no harm. Otherwise, if you don't like to follow blindly, then consider what is instructed. And then whatever you like, you can do. Both ways are there. But if you have faith in God, "God is saying this, I must do it," that blind faith is as good. Although it is blind faith, it is the fact. Actually it is not blind faith. It is full faith in God. "God is speaking this; I'll accept it." Sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ. That is the position of mahātmā. Although such mahātmās are very rare, but one who accepts this fact that "God is speaking, so let me accept it without any consideration," that is as good as you accept. If gold is real, something real gold is offered to you, you accept it blindly or by checking it, the result is the same.

Mr. Sahani: But being inquisitive, again, and accepting it...

Prabhupāda: No, no. Inquisitive means one who does not accept that "Here is a person giving me gold. He's very good man, he'll not cheat me." Then you accept. But if you have no such faith, then you check it. But real gold, either you take in blind faith or by checking, the result is the same. Now it is up to you. If you believe Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead as He says... He is the Supreme Person. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7). That's a fact. But if you don't believe it, then check and consider of our statement, and then accept. Two ways are there. Why people are misled? They do not accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. They are taking Bhagavad-gītā in their own way.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

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

Prabhupāda: And Morarji is very religious person.

Mr. Rajda: Yes, he is a highly religious man.

Prabhupāda: So why not attempt? At least keep an ideal institution. Just like for technical knowledge, if there is a good medical college any part of the world, people go there without any consideration of nationality or anything. Similarly let there be an ideal institution in India so that the whole world will come in there.

Mr. Rajda: We had those universities, Taka(?), Silandar(?), and Narandhara...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Mr. Rajda: ...in ancient days.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Mr. Rajda: And people from all over the world were coming.

Prabhupāda: So why don't you invite now?

Mr. Rajda: Quite.

Prabhupāda: We go there for imitating their technology. But who comes here to learn something?

Mr. Rajda: Quite right, quite right.

1967 Correspondence

Letter to Brahmananda -- Vrindaban 4 August, 1967:

Regarding your question about Lord Caitanya's thinking himself lower than the grass, it should be understood spiritually. The dimension of the spirit soul is 1/10,000 part of the hair tip; so the spirit soul is certainly smaller than the grass. Caitanya Mahaprabhu was teaching us as a teacher, so he represented himself as an ordinary living entity; but as the Supreme Brahman he is greater than anything.

I am glad that you had a demonstration of kirtana at the home of the Consul General. Whenever you meet you should strictly speak the Truth without any consideration of future material gains. If we are sincere servants of Krishna, our material necessities will never be hampered. But I was anxiously awaiting your reply about your meeting the Ambassador, Mr. B.K. Nehru, with my books. After your presentation of the books and personally seeing him and his reactions I shall begin correspondence with him. We need his help in so many ways.

I am glad that Sri Radha Krishna Murti etc. has arrived. For the present you can keep the murti packed. I am expecting to return within six months, as I told you; and maybe earlier, calculating on the present improvement.

I have already instructed you that Gargamuni should get married. They should get a marriage certificate as soon as is possible. In the temple the ceremony should be observed by chanting Hare Krishna before the fire, offering the clarified butter with the word Saha, and the bride and groom should exchange their garlands before the Lord Krishna deity and promise not to be separated in life. They should know it that bodily relation between the husband and wife is secondary; primary factor is that both should help one another in the matter of advancement of K.C.

1969 Correspondence

Letter to Rayarama -- Los Angeles 22 February, 1969:

In this way, if four centers sell on an average 200 copies daily, then we come to the point of selling 6,000 copies directly which will cover the expense of printing and other charges. The balance 14,000 copies can be sold by the temples simply on profit. If they are not sold, then we distribute free to different societies, libraries, public institutions, respectable gentlemen, schools, etc. In this way we shall make propaganda. The idea is like that of a Bible society in India which distributes millions of dollars in the shape of biblical literature without any consideration of return. Similarly, we have to sacrifice each $750 on this principle. If there is return, that is alright, but still we have to do it on a missionary spirit. That is my idea. So try to think on this program and do the needful.

I have received the booklet known as Paramahamsa Sarasvati Goswami issued by the Gaudiya Mission of London. I can understand that this brochure was written by my godbrother, Professor Sannyal, but the essay is not very practical. It contains some ideal discussions only, and I know that this Professor Sannyal is personally deviated from all of these ideas. So I don't think it is very much valuable for publishing in Back To Godhead.

Letter to Janardana -- Los Angeles 2 March, 1969:

No religion or no principle is accepted by the whole world; that is a fact. I can give you a statement of Albert Einstein in which he says "The most beautiful and most profound emotion we can experience is in the sensation of the mystical. It is a shower of all true science. He to whom this emotion is a stranger, he who can no longer stand rapt in awe, is as good as dead. That deeply emotional conviction of the presence of a superior reasoning power which is revealed in the comprehensible universe forms my idea of God."

I think that our Hare Krishna Movement is just following the same concept of God by awakening the dormant transcendental emotion of the human being without any consideration of religious faith. In our camp all of my disciples are coming from different faiths, mostly Christians or Jews, and why are they accepting this Sankirtana Movement, unless there is the awakening of mystical emotion described by a great scientist like Albert Einstein.

If somebody does not accept Caitanya Mahaprabhu for want of archeological evidence, it will not hamper our movement. There is sufficient archeological evidence in this connection, and it can be supplied from various sources which are in India. There is even archeological evidence of Vyasadeva which was recently propounded by one Dr. Cakravarti. I personally saw this in a monthly magazine of Calcutta of the name Mother in which I was giving my articles. If you like, you can inquire from them or such institutes as Caitanya Research Institute, started by my godbrother, Tirtha Maharaja. That is not a very difficult task.

1970 Correspondence

Letter to Gurudasa -- Los Angeles 16 April, 1970:

I beg to acknowledge reciept of your letter dated 6th April, 1970, and the information therein are all very encouraging. It appears that under your management everything is going on systematically. So by the grace of Krsna both your wife and yourself are endowed with great responsibility. Kindly manage things very intelligently and always feel yourself completely dependent on Krsna's protection.

BTG is my life and soul. Please therefore try to distribute BTG as many as it is possible. I started this magazine in 1947 in my householder life. I was spending Rs. 300 to 400 at the time ($300 to 400 in your exchange), and I was distributing this magazine without any consideration how much I was getting in return. Practically the whole money was spent without any return. But ten years after, from 1954 to 1959, the struggle was very hard because at that time I had no money and alone I was editing, publishing, and securing money for publication. So it was a great struggle. My ambition was that I would publish BTG in huge quantity so that people may understand transcendental blessings of Lord Caitanya.

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Rupanuga -- Vrindaban 30 November, 1971:

As far as Bhagavad-gita is concerned, I do not know why it is delayed. For the last three years you've been saying Bhagavad-gita is going to be printed and the last deadline was given by Advaita that it would be printed by the 1st October, 1971. Unfortunately, nothing has been done by now. Now it is December, 1971. If for printing one book it takes so much time I do not know how the other 60 books will be printed. I am very much depressed. The MacMillan Company simply wants to consider their business point of view. But we have to print our books just to present to the world. Please therefore have Dai Nippon print the books immediately, without any consideration by MacMillan Co.—promotion or no promotion. If by this time they have agreed to print the book from their side it is all right. Otherwise ask Dai Nippon to print immediately without delay.

The photography exhibit for Delhi pandal arrived, but the exorbitant price of $240 plus shipping costs was too much for 70 photos, so I have advised them to pay only the actual cost price as will be determined by Gurudasa. I have seen the photo price list from Uddhava and the prices quoted are very high. He is simply taking advantage of our devotees' sentiment to make money, and this is not a very good position.

There is no limit to expanding—you talk of expanding—we have to invest more and more to remain modern by purchasing machines, etc. But if the machines we have cannot even be utilized properly, then what is the use of expanding? I want that all of these big plans should be realized, and there will be no end to the resources Krishna will provide, but first there must be good management. Who will manage? But I have no objection if you can develop the Press by making outside profit with commercial work and investing—that is all right.

1972 Correspondence

Letter to Stokakrsna -- Los Angeles 20 June, 1972:

For children it is a long time between 8:45 a.m. and 1:30 p.m., therefore they are naturally hungry long before the lunch time. If it is convenient you may add another period for light prasadam between those times. The children should e allowed to eat as much as they like, therefore if children are complaining from hunger we must feed them. On the second point, if someone is coming to our school for the first time, still, they must eat what we are eating, namely Krsna prasadam. Yes, everything should be prepared for the pleasure of the Lord, without any other consideration. Our policy is that the children should be so trained that they will enjoy performing austerities, it is not that we shall spoil them at young age by indulging them in sense gratification. If there is obedience then there will be discipline, and without any discipline the management is very difficult. So first obedience by the children. That is not always by punishing or by force, but sometimes by showing the stick, without necessarily hitting and sometimes it is learning how to trick them or even cheat them into obeying you voluntarily and enjoying by their obedience. If there is difficulty for taking the smaller children on public sankirtana, there is no need. Unless tey are behaving, what is the use of taking them into public? The smaller children can have their sankirtana party within the school grounds daily and they will enjoy as much. The main point is that these children may be given the two-fold program of education in Krsna Consciousness, namely, chanting and performing devotional activities on the one hand, and some knowledge of our philosophy and other subjects of knowledge on the other hand.

Letter to Tamala Krsna -- London 1 August, 1972:

Now there is a very important job for you to do. I have just now understood from Gurudasa that practically no one is able to carry on the construction work at Vrindaban with good results. So many months they have been there but there is nothing tangible begun. Practically you are the best man for giving them a good start. Now the Bangladesh business is postponed, and you have trained Yasodanandana Maharaja in leading the sankirtana party, so you will be free for a few weeks to help me in this way by taking one qualified engineer from Calcutta who has agreed to work with us and live with us without consideration of remuneration and go to Vrindaban and do some solid work. Kindly do the needful immediately and let me know. Gargamuni has collected funds for Vrindaban project very nicely, so if cooperatively you and Gargamuni Maharaja work together you can do something concrete, and this will please me very much. He will supply you with funds and you supervise the building work. In the same way that you have begun everything at Mayapur, just bring along one engineer and see that he is doing everything properly. That will relieve me of so much anxiety, as I want to display something very wonderful in Vrindaban, but as yet there is nothing to show.

1973 Correspondence

Letter to Minister in charge of Immigration -- Bhaktivedanta Manor 24 November, 1973:

Our principle is, preach God Consciousness all over the world. I think we believe rightly that for want of God consciousness, there is very much confusion all over the world, simply fighting between individual to individual, man to man, nation to nation. Nobody believes anyone. Any sober man will admit the present _ for unifying the whole human society without any consideration of bodily identification so that there may be peace and prosperity on the platform of spiritual identification. Perhaps you have heard the very good name of Bhagavad-gita. Our preaching is on the basis of Bhagavad-gita As It Is. In this Bhagavad-gita it is stated that God is the Supreme Being, and He is the proprietor of all planets and actually He is the enjoyer of all benefits. Anyone who will understand these three principles of life will be automatically peaceful. So, if every individual is peaceful, naturally there will be peace and prosperity in the community, society, and nation of all over the world. This is our principle. We are trying to broadcast this message on the authority of Vedic knowledge. Everywhere we are very much peaceful, trying to reform the character of the modern man. We teach our students to follow the following regulative principles, namely no illicit sex life, no meat eating, no intoxication, and no gambling. These are the negative principles, and the positive principle is to chant always the Holy Name of God. By the grace of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, we have become successful everywhere, in all parts of the world. We have no principle striction that one is Indian, one is America, one is African, or one is Hindu, one is Christian, one is Mohammedan. We invite everyone to understand the philosophy and reform the activities of life.

1974 Correspondence

Letter to Subala -- Bombay 13 November, 1974:

I am in due receipt of your letter dated October 23, 1974 and have noted the contents with much joy. You have done something tangible, and I am pleased that you are simply carrying out my order without any consideration of your self-interest. This is wanted for progress in spiritual life. So as you have pleased me, you should take it that you have pleased Krsna, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. It is for this I have given you sannyasa, to be prepared to go anywhere on my order and preach sincerely and purely without any other consideration. So I thank you very much in this regard.

Cooperate with Mr. Punja, and chant Hare Krishna and distribute prasadam for the time being. This should be your program. When we get sincere devotees, trained up brahmanas, we shall install Deity there, not before then. It is good that you are getting men from Australia to assist you. Most probably I will be going to Hawaii in mid December, so if you like we can go to Fiji also.

1976 Correspondence

Letter to Jayapataka, Bhavananda -- Hyderabad 7 December, 1976:

I am in due receipt of your letter dated December 3, 1976.

Yes, I sanction your getting the necessary funds from the MVT (1 1/2 lakhs). One thing is, you say you have received $10,000 from Gurukrpa for a generator. However, that should not cost more than $6,000. The balance can be utilized in the building scheme.

The boat party must continue preaching. It is very nicely responded to. The educated men you have mentioned, who have joined us must be kept very satisfied. These men are required. You say that everyone is working without any caste or race consideration. That is required. That is the basic standard of Krsna Consciousness.

Regarding Sri Jaya Narayana das Babaji, don't allow him any more. He has gone out without telling, that's alright.