Youth (Lectures, Other)

Expressions researched:
"youth" |"youth's" |"youthful" |"youthfulness" |"youthhood" |"youths" |"youthtime"

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, December 27, 1972:

Pradyumna: (reading:) "...but his whole advancement of material happiness immediately terminates along with his body as soon as his life is over. Death is therefore taken as the representative of God for the atheistic class of men. The devotee realizes the presence of God by devotional service, whereas the atheist realizes the presence of God in the shape of death. At death everything is finished, and one has to begin a new chapter of life in a new situation, perhaps higher or lower than the last one. In any..."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Bhagavad-gītā, it is said, Kṛṣṇa says: mṛ tyuḥ sarva-haraś ca aham. At the... By death, everything is taken away by Kṛṣṇa. So the modern civilization, they do not believe in the next birth. That is the basic mistake of the present civilization, that we get information that tathā dehāntaraṁ prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati. Dehāntaram. Just like we are transmigrating, even in this span of life, from childhood to boyhood, from boyhood to youthhood, from youthhood to old age body. Therefore it is natural to conclude that after this old body's finished, then we get another body, transmigration of the soul. But there is no education, no enlightenment about this transmigration of the soul. But we can, if we think, ponder very deeply on this matter, how transmigration of the soul is taking place, and it is authorized, authorized statement of Bhagavad-gītā: tathā dehāntaraṁ prāptir.

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, December 28, 1972:

Yes. Svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. Just Ajāmila. Ajāmila in his boyhood, he was very sincere brāhmaṇa. He was conducting devotional service under the direction of his father. But in youthhood, he fell down. He became a victim of a prostitute. He forgot everything. He became a rogue, drunkard, meat-eater, woman-hunter, all fallen down. But at the end of life, when he was afraid of the Yamadūtas, out of fearfulness he called for his youngest son whose name was Nārāyaṇa. Because when you are in danger, naturally... Just like a child, cries for the mother. Because mother is the only... Similarly affection is there. Similarly this Ajāmila asked for the youngest child: "Nārāyaṇa." But immediately he remembered that Nārāyaṇa whom he served in his boyhood. So immediately the Nārāyaṇa messengers came and saved him. Svalpam apy. He, he executed very little service in his boyhood as a devotee. That saved him from the greatest danger. He was being dragged out by the men of Yamarāja, but the Viṣṇudūtas came and protected him and took him to Vaikuṇṭha. Svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. By by chance, he remembered Nārāyaṇa because he executed Nārāyaṇa's service. Then he was saved. Go on.

The Nectar of Devotion -- Bombay, January 11, 1973:

So Kṛṣṇa... Ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ (BG 18.66). Kṛṣṇa is giving assurance. There are so many things that, by understanding Kṛṣṇa, simply by understanding Kṛṣṇa, you, your life is successful. The life, success of life is to stop this repetition of birth and death. That we also do not know. There is repetition of birth and death. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir. Kṛṣṇa says in the beginning, asmin dehe dehi. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir. Kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Those who are actually educated, sober, they can understand that, that "Here is a man who's supposed to be dead, but he's not dead. He has transferred this body. That's all." Tathā dehāntara-prāptir. As I am transferring my body from babyhood to childhood, childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood, youthhood to old body, similarly, as I have changed so many bodies, where is the difficulty to understand that after giving up this body, I'll get another body? And Kṛṣṇa is confirming. All the Vedic literature confirming: tathā dehāntara-prāptir. Another body. But we must know what kind of body I'm going to get. That is intelligence. Body, you must have to accept. As you have changed, as you accepted so many bodies, even in this life, then you have to accept another body. Now there are 8,400,000's of bodies. That you see. There are aquatic bodies, there are tree's bodies, plant's bodies, insect body, bird's body, beast's body—so many bodies. Eight million, four hun ... So Kṛṣṇa says, tathā dehāntara-prāptir. He does not say what kind of body you'll get; He says dehāntaram. You'll get another body. So how that body, you'll have to make? That is in your hand in this life. You can prepare your next body in this body, just like you can prepare your future life in your youthhood by education, by culture. Then you can get a very nice post, very nice position, honored in the society. But if you spoil your life in childhood and youthhood, then you have no position in future life. Similarly, if you want to get next body, very nice, valuable body, so you prepare for that. You prepare for that. And how the preparation goes? That is also stated in the Bhagavad-gītā:

The Nectar of Devotion -- Vrndavana, November 6, 1972:

Prabhupāda: Svalpam apy asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. That is stated the Bhagavad-gītā. Svalpam apy asya dharmasya. A little Kṛṣṇa consciousness can save you from the greatest danger. The example is this Ajāmila. Ajāmila, he was the greatest sinful man. Similarly, Jagāi-Mādhāi. So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so nice that from the life of Ajāmila we understand, simply by uttering the name of Nārāyaṇa at the time of his death, he became eligible to be promoted to the Vaikuṇṭhaloka. Go on.

Pradyumna: "Śukadeva points out that austerity, charity and the performance of ritualistic ceremonies for counteracting sinful activities are recommended processes, but that by performing them one cannot remove the sin desire-seed from the heart, as was the case with Ajāmila in his youth. This sinful desire-seed can be accomplished very easily by chanting the mahā-mantra, or Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, as recommended by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. In other words, unless one adopts the path of devotional service, he cannot be one hundred percent clean from all the reactions of sinful activities."

Prabhupāda: So we shall discuss more tomorrow. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. (end)

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 1.3 -- Mayapur, March 27, 1975:

"There is no greater truth than Kṛṣṇa Caitanya." We are after truth, so here the author of Caitanya-caritāmṛta, he is asserting that "Here is the Supreme Truth, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu." Na caitanyāt kṛṣṇāt. Kṛṣṇāt, because Kṛṣṇa has appeared as Kṛṣṇa Caitanya. We have explained this truth yesterday according to Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya's declaration, vairāgya-vidyā-nija-bhakti-yogaṁ-śikṣārtham ekaḥ puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ (CC Madhya 6.254). Puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ. Puruṣaḥ purāṇaḥ is Kṛṣṇa. Puruṣaḥ, He is puruṣaḥ, and purāṇaḥ, ādyam, the original person. Govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi **. In many Vedic literature Kṛṣṇa is described as the purāṇaḥ puruṣaḥ, the oldest. Purāṇaḥ puruṣaḥ nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). Although He is the oldest of all, still, He is always like fresh youth, nava-yauvanaṁ ca. So how it is possible? They are trying to understand God. Sometimes they paint the picture of God as very old man. Because He is the original person, so by this time He must have become very old. This is imagination. This is not actually the form of the Lord. The form of the Lord is there in the Brahma-saṁhitā and other Vedic literatures. Even Śaṅkarācārya, who is a impersonalist, he has accepted Lord Kṛṣṇa as the supreme Nārāyaṇa. In his comment on Bhagavad-gītā he says, nārāyaṇaḥ paraḥ avyaktāt: "Nārāyaṇa is beyond this material creation." And while describing Nārāyaṇa, he has affirmed, sa bhagavān svayaṁ kṛṣṇaḥ: "That Nārāyaṇa is Kṛṣṇa." And he has clearly mentioned, "Now He has appeared as the son of Devakī and Vāsudeva," to confirm just like identification is confirmed when the father's name is there.

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 7.1 -- Atlanta, March 1, 1975:

So you can prepare yourself for better life in the heavenly planets or in a better society in this world or to go to the planets where ghost and other wretches are controlling. Or you can go to the planet where Kṛṣṇa is there. Everything is open to you. Yānti bhūtejyā bhūtāni mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām. Simply you have to prepare yourself. Just like in youth life they are educated—somebody is going to be engineer, somebody is going to be medical man, somebody is going to be lawyer and many other professional man—and they are preparing by education, similarly, you can prepare for your next life. This is not difficult to understand.

But they do not believe in the next life, although it is very common sense. Actually there is next life because Kṛṣṇa says, and we can understand the philosophy by a little intelligence that there is next life. So our proposition is that "If you have got to prepare yourself for the next life, then why don't you take the trouble of preparing for going back to home, back to Godhead?" This is our proposition. You can prepare yourself to go to hell or heaven. That doesn't matter because that is also temporary. Kṣīṇe puṇye punar martya-lokaṁ viṣanti. After you have finished... Just like you may go to jail or to somewhere else. When your visa or time is finished, then you are free from such life. Similarly, even if we go to the heavenly planet, when the resultant action of our pious activities are finished, then again we are turned down here. So in this way sometimes higher planetary, sometimes lower planetary, we are traveling. Therefore our best business is: "Why not go back to home, back to Godhead?" Kṛṣṇa says, mad-yājino 'pi yānti mam: (BG 9.25) "Anyone who is Kṛṣṇa conscious, he comes to Me." So why not go to Kṛṣṇa? Then the question will be: "What is the benefit of going to Kṛṣṇaloka?

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 7.3 -- Mayapur, March 3, 1974:

Therefore, we are inviting you at this place of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, His birthsite, to take the inspiration given by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. That will help us understanding Kṛṣṇa. Tato māṁ tattvato jñātvā visate tad anantaram. If you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, tattvataḥ, in truth, by the mercy of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu... Namo mahā-vadānyāya kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te (CC Madhya 19.53). Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's activities means His distributing kṛṣṇa-prema, love of Kṛṣṇa. He has no other business. He has no other business. At the full youthful age He gave up His family life, beautiful wife, most obedient perfect wife, beautiful wife, mother, affectionate mother, very good prestige, social prestige. Nimāi Paṇḍita, learned scholar, everything He sacrificed. Tyaktvā su-dustyaja rājya lakṣmīm. Gave up everything—that is the teachings of Lord Caitanya—and became a servant of Kṛṣṇa personally. He's Kṛṣṇa Himself, but teaching us how to become servant of Kṛṣṇa. This is the significance of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu or Kṛṣṇa Himself along with His personal associates—sāṅgopāṅgāstra pārṣadam... Kṛṣṇa comes to kill the demons: paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām (BG 4.8). This is the business of Kṛṣṇa, two-sided business: one side killing the demons, another side giving the protection to the devotees. So Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu appeared on this part 488 years ago to, I mean to say, hand the same two principles, paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām. He... Vināśāya duṣkṛtām. He killed Jagāi-Mādhāi not by the body, but by their atrocious activities, stopped that. So Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission is to kill the demon—not by life but by their heinous activities. Anyone who comes to be killed by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, his heinous, nefarious activities becomes killed and he becomes a Vaiṣṇava, just like Jagāi-Mādhāi.

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 7.91-2 -- Vrndavana, March 13, 1974:

So the Māyāvādī sannyāsīs everywhere, they are very proud of their Sanskrit education. Sometimes people ask our students whether you have learned Sanskrit. But Kṛṣṇa consciousness understanding does not depend on Sanskrit scholarship. That is the teaching of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He said to the Māyāvādī sannyāsī Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī that "My Guru Mahārāja studied Me as a great fool." Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, presenting Himself. He was a learned scholar, undoubtedly, very learned scholar. In His youthful age He was known as Nimāi Paṇḍita. This paṇḍita title, especially the brāhmaṇas are given this paṇḍita title. But He was specifically known as Paṇḍita, Nimāi Paṇḍita, very good scholar. And He defeated the Keśava Kashmiri, a great, renowned scholar of Kashmir. The Kashmir country is mentioned in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also. It is a very old country. And there were many learned scholars. And one scholar came to Navadvīpa to defeat the paṇḍitas, the learned scholars of Navadvīpa, but he was defeated by a young boy, Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Nimāi Paṇḍita was at that time only sixteen years old. But He defeated only in composition, Sanskrit composition. The Sanskrit composition, there is rules and regulations. So you know the story. He pointed out many defects in the verses composed by the Keśava Kashmiri. So he was defeated.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 6.151-154 -- Gorakhpur, February 14, 1971:

Ataeva śruti kahe brahma-saviśeṣa: God, Brahma, the great. Brahma means the great. Bṛhatvād bṛhannatvāt. The Absolute Truth is the great and can expand also unlimitedly. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam (Bs. 5.33). Rūpam: He has got His transcendental forms, ananta, unlimited. But they are all one. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam. Ādyam, the original; Purāṇa, the oldest; puruṣam, person. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam. Although He has got innumerable forms, they are advaita, they are one. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam (Bs. 5.33). Ādyam, original; Purāṇa, the oldest; and puruṣam, the person. Nava-yauvanam. The oldest, but nava-yauvana, just beginning of youthful life. That is the description in the Brahma-saṁhitā. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu confirms that brahma saviśeṣa. Saviśeṣa means person with varieties of energy. Not imperson. Ataeva śruti kahe. According to Vedic evidence from the Śvetāśvatara Upaniṣad, apāṇi pāda, He has proved that when the Upaniṣad says that "The Absolute Truth has no hands and legs, this means that He has no material hands and legs. But He has His hands and legs." (shouting in background) (aside:) Who is shouting? Why they do not come? Why they are shouting there? All right.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 6.154-155 -- Gorakhpur, February 19, 1971 (Krsna Niketan):

So the progress of the material world... Progress, no... Progress means... In the material objects progress means... Just like a flower: it is in the bud, then it fructifies. That is progress. Again dwindles and vanishes. Ṣaḍ-vikāra. Just like your body, my body—progress means from babyhood, childhood, boyhood, youthhood. That is, up to that, youthhood, progress. Then as soon as youthhood passed, old age comes in, then dwindling, then finish. That means janma-sthiti-pralaya. It comes into existence, then it remains for some time, and again pralaya, vanishes, vanquish. This is the way of material existence. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). It takes place... Therefore in the Vedānta-sūtra, Brahman means the original source of appearance, maintenance, and disappearance. From Brahman, the Supreme Brahman, everything is emanating, janma. Janmādi. Janmādi means, janma sthiti and pralaya. So it is remaining in Brahman. Mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam avyakta-mūrtinā, mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni (BG 9.4). Everything is existing, maintained by Brahman. And when the whole manifestation annihilates, pralaya-prakṛtiṁ yānti māmikam—it enters into the energy, supreme energy of the Personality of Godhead. That is the way, sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya. From the energy... In the Vedas also it is said, sa aikṣata sa asṛjata: "The Supreme Personality of Godhead glanced over." In the Bhagavad-gītā also, ahaṁ bijā-pradaḥ pitā (BG 14.4). In the material energy, Kṛṣṇa gives the seed. Just like a father gives the seed, the semina, within the womb of the mother, and a living entity comes out, similarly, within this material world the Supreme Personality puts, impregnates, the material energy with the living entities, and they come out with different types of bodies, 8,400,000's. This is the creation.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.101-104 -- Bombay, November 3, 1975:

Population is neither increasing nor decreasing. It may be... The living entities, they are transmigrating in this material world, not in the spiritual world. In the spiritual world they have got their eternal form. But in the material world, because the living entities have come to enjoy the material resources, therefore, according to the desire, the living entity is getting different forms of body, 8,400,000. But he is not dying. The body is changed. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13).

Our death means to transmigrate to another body. Just like from childhood we are transmigrating to another body, boyhood; from boyhood we are transmigrating to another body, youth-hood; and from youth-hood we are transferred to another body, old body. Similarly, when this body will not be any more workable, then we shall transmigrate to another body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Those who are dhīra—dhīra means sober, thoughtful—they are not bewildered. But those who are not dhīra, adhīra... There are two classes of men: dhīra and adhīra. Dhīra means one who is spiritually situated. He is called dhīra or brahma-bhūtaḥ, prasannātmā (BG 18.54), dhīra. And one who is not spiritually situated, materially situated, means on the platform of bodily conception of life, then he is adhīra, he is restless, from this platform to that platform, this platform to that platform. This is going on.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.152-154 -- New York, December 5, 1966:

So Lord Caitanya says, kṛṣṇa advaya-jñāna-tattva. He is Absolute Truth. Vraje vrajendra-nandana. And the abode which is called Kṛṣṇaloka, Vṛndāvana... He is just like the boy of... Vrajendra-nandana. He has got His devotee as father and mother. He is just like a boy, sixteen-years-old boy, Vrajendra-nandana. That is the real feature of Kṛṣṇa. You will never find Kṛṣṇa as very old man. No. Kṛṣṇa's real feature of body, not this body, His transcendental body, sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1), with a flute in the hand, He looks just like a fresh sixteen-years-old boy, always freshness. Kiśora. Kiśora means, kiśora age is from ten years to sixteen years. And after sixteenth year, one begins his youth. So Kṛṣṇa is always in His kiśora avasthā. Kiśora avasthā means He will appear just like boy, a fifteen-, sixteen-years-old boy, Vrajendra-nandana. But at the same time, sarva-ādi: He is the original. Everything, whatever you see, either in the material world or spiritual world, He is the origin. So He is the oldest. He is the oldest, but you will see Him as youngest. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). In the Brahma-saṁhitā you will find description of Kṛṣṇa, advaita acyuta... Advaita means absolute. Acyuta means nonfallible, Brahman. He is Parambrahman. We are also Brahman, but we have fallen down. We have fallen down in this material condition. But Kṛṣṇa never falls down in material condition. When He appears before us, don't think that "He is also fallen soul like me." The fools consider like that. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā (BG 9.11). Mūḍhā means fools. The fools consider Kṛṣṇa as ordinary man. Mānuṣīṁ paraṁ bhāvam ajānantaḥ. The fools do not know what is immense potency, background, of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore they think Kṛṣṇa as like one of us.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.367-84 -- New York, December 31, 1966:

So the Brahma-saṁhitā says although He's the oldest person... In the Bhagavad-gītā He is stated by Arjuna as great-grandfather. Prapitāmahaś ca. You'll find this word in the Bhagavad-gītā. Because Brahmā is addressed as pitāmaha, grandfather. He's the original first creature in this material world, in this universe, and everyone has come from him. Therefore he is called pitāmaha. Pitāmaha means grandfather. And, because he's born also of Viṣṇu, therefore Viṣṇu is prapitāmaha (BG 11.39).

So the Supreme Lord, Personality of Godhead, is the oldest of all, but whenever you'll find, you'll find just like a young man. Ādyaṁ purāṇa puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). Nava-yauvanam means just a fresh youth. So that is being explained, explained by Lord Caitanya, the age of... This is another characteristics of God. Kiśora-śekhara-dharmī vrajendra-nandana. Kiśora-śekhara. Kiśora. Kiśora is... Kiśora age is called from eleven years to sixteen years. These teen years, or, in English, what is called? Adolescent? Yes. This, this age... So Kṛṣṇa represents Himself just like a boy from eleven to sixteen years old. Not more than that. Even in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, when He was great-grandfather, still, His feature was just like a young boy.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.385-394 -- New York, January 1, 1967:

Still in India boys are married in early age. The boys and girls were married just after sixteen years, especially in the kṣatriya families. They are very developed because they can eat very nicely, they live very nicely. So their body development is very nice. They can beget children even at fifteen years old—in those days, especially. So Kṛṣṇa had, at that time, great-grandchildren when He was fighting in the Kurukṣetra. He was... He came just to help His friend Arjuna. He did not take part in the fighting; He was charioteer. Now you have seen the Kṛṣṇa's picture. He looks like a twenty-years boy. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanam (Bs. 5.33). Nava-yauvanam—just a fresh youth. Youthful luster. He's very nice, beautiful. So He is seen like that, kiśora. Kiśora. Just sixteen-years-old boy.

So, tāhā yaiche vraja-pure karilā vilāsa

saoyāśata vatsara kṛṣṇera prakaṭa-prakāśa

tāhā yaiche vraja-pure karilā vilāsa

So within these 125 years, all the pastimes that Kṛṣṇa displayed during His presence, all those things are going on in each and every universe, just like the sun planet is moving from one place to another. This is the idea of Kṛṣṇa-līlā.

alāta-cakra-prāya sei līlā-cakra phire

saba līlā saba brahmāṇḍe krame udaya kare

So saba līlā. And all the activities, they are manifested in either of the so many brahmāṇḍas. So at every second you just divide that 125 years into seconds and all, less than second, what it is? Of course, I do not know... But if you divide in that way, then you can calculate how many universes are there. How many seconds are there in one hour?

Sri Brahma-samhita Lectures

Lecture on Brahma-samhita, Verse 33 -- New York, July 19, 1971:

Kṛṣṇa, being the original person, ādi-puruṣam... Govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ. Ādi means original. So you do not think that he might have become very, very old. Because our material conception... Sometimes we paint picture: "God is the original person. Then He must be very old. He must have grown so much white, gray hairs." No. The Vedic knowledge says, advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣam (Bs. 5.33). The oldest man, but nava-yauvanaṁ ca, always just like a young man, sixteen to twenty years old. That is called nava-yauvana. When a man or woman comes to sixteen years, that is the beginning of youthful life. So sixteen to twenty years, this is very nice—in full energy. And that is the time for growth, intelligence. Unfortunately, we spoil this period, so we become less intelligent, life becomes shorter. If we spoil this period, then our life will be shortened. And if we keep this period complete celibacy, brahmacārī, then you can live up to hundred years. So this period is very nice. It is called nava-yauvana, just new youthful life. So Kṛṣṇa you'll find all new, always new youthful. You'll never find Kṛṣṇa's picture as old. Nava-yauvanaṁ ca.

Then again, it is said, vedeṣu durlabha. (aside:) What is that sound? Vedeṣu durlabham. Vede means in the Vedic literature, if you make research work how Kṛṣṇa is, then it will be very difficult. Then you come to the impersonal only. Vedeṣu durlabham. You have to go beyond the Vedas. What is that? Vedeṣu durlabham adurlabham ātma-bhaktau (Bs. 5.33). Kṛṣṇa is available through His confidential devotee. Not that if anyone has studied very nicely all Vedic literatures he'll understand Kṛṣṇa. No. Maybe, but it is very difficult. Kṛṣṇa can be delivered by His devotee, ātma-bhaktau. Therefore you have to take shelter of Kṛṣṇa's devotee. That is paramparā system. If you want to understand Kṛṣṇa, if you want to have Kṛṣṇa...

Lecture on Brahma-samhita, Verse 33 -- New York, July 27, 1971:

Therefore it is advaita acyuta. Acyuta means who never falls. Living entities, although they are forms of Kṛṣṇa, they fall down. Just like our present condition is fallen condition. We are in the matter. But the personal expansions, they never fall in the matter. Therefore another name of God, or Kṛṣṇa, is Acyuta. Acyuta means never falls.

Advaita acyuta anādi. Our beginning is from God, but God has no beginning. Anādi. Advaita acyuta anādi ananta-rūpam, although the forms are many millions and trillions. Advaita acyuta anādi ananta-rūpam, ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣam. Ādyam, original. Therefore the oldest person. Kṛṣṇa, God is the original person; therefore the oldest person. Still nava-yauvanaṁ ca. But still He's always youth, youthful. Vedeṣu durlabha. To search out Kṛṣṇa by academic education, by mental speculation, by pursuits of different types of knowledge is not possible. Advaita acyuta anādi ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣam nava-yauvanam, vedeṣu durlabha. You cannot find out Kṛṣṇa by simply academic education. Adurlabha ātma-bhaktau. But He is available from His devotee. If you approach a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he can deliver you Kṛṣṇa like anything: "Here is Kṛṣṇa. Take." Kṛṣṇa is so nice. He becomes a doll in the hands of devotee. He agrees. Just like before Mother Yaśodā He was trembling. Mother Yaśodā showed Him the cane.

So this is Kṛṣṇa's merciful pastime, that He becomes very easily available to the devotees. Otherwise it is very difficult to find out where is Kṛṣṇa, how is Kṛṣṇa. So our process is therefore to go through the devotees, not directly. Directly one cannot understand what Kṛṣṇa... Vedeṣu durlabham adurlabham ātma-bhaktau govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam ahaṁ bhajāmi (Bs. 5.33). We worship Govinda, the original Personality of Godhead. That is our business.

Lecture on Brahma-samhita, Lecture -- Los Angeles, November 9, 1968:

He was a sannyāsī. Sannyāsīs's business is to travel all over the world, or as far as he can, and enlighten people about Brahman. That is sannyāsīs' business. So Śaṅkarācārya is lamenting, bālasya tāvad kriyā-saktaḥ: "Oh, what I see? I see the boys are engaged in playing." Bālasya tāvad kriyāsaktas taruṇas tāvad taruṇī-raktaḥ: "Young boys, they are after young girls. That is their business. Boys are playing. Young boys are after young girls." And vṛddhas tāvad cinta-magnaḥ: "And those who are old, they are absorbed in thought, 'Oh, what I have done? I could not do this. I have...' " Vṛddhas tāvad cinta-magnaḥ, taruṇī, parame brahmaṇi ko 'pi na lagnaḥ: "Nobody is interested with the Paraṁbrahman. Oh, what nonsense society it is." He analyzed the whole population—boys, youths, old men—and he saw nobody is, no rascal is interested with Brahman. So that is the position. But it is meant for Brahma-jijñāsā. This is the defect of material civilization. The human form of life is being spoiled, simply spoiled. And they are... Māyā is dictating, "Oh, you are making so much advancement. Thank you." What advancement you have made, sir? Bhagavad-gītā says, janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). Your problem is birth, death, old age and disease. What you have made for these four problems? What solution you have got? Your scientific advancement? Is there any solution of controlling birth? They have invented so many contraceptive methods. Still, in every minute, there is three human increasing. Where is your birth control? You cannot control. So birth... Similarly, death. So many medicines, so many scientific research, this thing, that thing, they have invented. And what you have done? You have stopped death? "No, sir." Then? Birth, death, old age. What your scientific advancement of knowledge has done to stop old age? Everyone is trying to keep his youth by cosmetic, pomade, lipstick, but nature will not allow him. It is becoming flappy. (laughter) You see? One Marwari gentleman, he, in Calcutta, he spent eighty lakhs of rupees, or eighty-thousand, for changing his gland into monkey gland for increasing his sex life.

Lecture on Brahma-samhita, Lecture -- New York, July 28, 1971:

Not that "Because he's lowborn or not brāhmaṇa, I shall not take the education from him." The point is that you have to take the education. And strī-ratnaṁ duṣkulād api. In India still the marriage takes place in equal family. The boy and the girl must be equally rich, equally cultured, equally educated. Equality. They find out. Even by horoscope, they test whether their astronomical calculations are also equal, so that after marriage they may not be unhappy. So many things, they are taken care of by the parents, and the marriage takes place. It is not that in youthful age the boy and girl mixes and... No. There are so many. But these things are now gone. So the point is that they were calculating especially to accept a girl from a family, they must be equal. But Cāṇakya Paṇḍita says that if a girl is well qualified, strī-ratna... Strī-ratna means... Ratna means jewel. If a girl is just like jewel, very qualified, even she is born in low family, accept her. Nīcād apy uttamāṁ vidyāṁ strī-ratnaṁ duṣkulād api. Duṣkulād api means born of low family. Never mind. Don't care for her parentage. If she's qualified, accept her. There are many instances. Similarly, if you are serious about understanding God, don't consider that "I am Christian," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "Why shall I go this? Why shall I hear from Swamijī?" If you are serious about understanding God, to love God, then here is the nicest process. That is practical. There is no question of grudging, "Oh, why shall I go there? They are following some Hindu, Vedic scripture." No. There is no question of Vedic scripture. We, our business is how to love God. That's all. Just like many students come here to take higher education. As there is no consideration that "Why shall I go to America or Germany? They are different people. Oh, I don't take higher education." No. Everyone goes. Similarly, if there is nice process to understand God, to approach God, you should take it. Don't be grudging. Take it. You'll be benefited. Kevalayā bhaktyā.

Festival Lectures

Janmastami Lord Sri Krsna's Appearance Day Lecture -- London, August 21, 1973:

Kṛṣṇa, when I speak Kṛṣṇa, that means God. If there is any important name... God, it is sometimes said God has no name. That's a fact. But God's name is given by His activities. Just like Kṛṣṇa accepted the sonhood of Mahārāja Nanda, or Yaśodāmāyī, or Devakī, or Vasudeva. Vasudeva and Devakī were Kṛṣṇa's real father and mother. Nobody is real father and mother of Kṛṣṇa, because Kṛṣṇa is the original father of everyone. But when Kṛṣṇa comes here, advents, He accepts some devotees as His father, as His mother. Kṛṣṇa is the original, ādi-puruṣaṁ. Ādyaṁ Purāṇa-puruṣam nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). He is the original person. Then must be very old? No. Adyam purāṇa puruṣam nava-yauvanam ca. Always fresh youth. That is Kṛṣṇa. When Kṛṣṇa was on the battlefield of Kurukṣetra, you have seen the picture, He's just like a boy of twenty years or, at most, twenty-four years old. But at that time, He had great-grandchildren. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa is always youth. Navayauvanam ca. These are the statements of Vedic literatures.

advaitam acyutam anādiṁ ananta-rūpam

ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca

vedeṣu durlābhaṁ adurlābhaṁ ātmā-bhaktau

(Bs. 5.33)

So, to understand Kṛṣṇa, simply if we read as a formality the Vedic literature, it will be very difficult to understand what is Kṛṣṇa. Vedesu durlābhaṁ. Although all the Vedas are meant for understanding Kṛṣṇa. In the Bhagavad-gītā, it is said, vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyo. Aham eva vedyo. What is the use of studying Vedas if you do not understand Kṛṣṇa? Because the ultimate goal of education means to understand the Supreme Lord, the supreme father, the supreme cause. As it is said in the Vedānta-sūtra, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Athāto brahma jijñāsā.

His Divine Grace Srila Sac-cid-ananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Appearance Day, Lecture -- London, September 3, 1971:

So spiritual knowledge is beyond the scope of our sense speculation. Beyond the scope. Just like when a soul, a spiritual spark only, leaves this body, you cannot see. Therefore, atheistic class of men, they speculate, "There may be a soul; there may not be soul." Or, "The bodily function was going like this; now it stopped. The blood corpuscles now cease. It is no more red; it is white; therefore life..." These are speculation. This is not actual knowledge. Actual knowledge you get from the authority, Kṛṣṇa. He says, tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati. Just like the soul is passing through different stages. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). Deha, deha means this body. Asmin dehe, in this body, there is dehi. Dehi means who is the owner of this body. That is soul. That is passing through childhood, boyhood, babyhood, youthhood, old age. Everyone, you can perceive that you were a child, you were a baby, you were a boy. Now you are young man or old man. So you are there. So as you are passing through different types of bodies, similarly, when you give up this body you accept another body. What is the difficulty? Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). There is no question of becoming astonished, how transmigration of the self, soul, takes place. The vivid example is there. Simply you require little intelligence. That intelligence is developed through the instruction of ācārya. Therefore, Vedic injunction is not to acquire knowledge by speculation. That is useless. Athāpi te deva padāmbuja-dvayaṁ jānāti tattvaṁ prasāda-leśānugṛhīta eva hi, na cānya eko 'pi ciraṁ vicinvan (SB 10.14.29). Ciraṁ vicinvan. Ciram means for thousands of years you can speculate; you cannot understand what is God. That is not possible. But if you receive knowledge from the devotee, he can deliver you. Therefore Vedic injunction is that tad-vijñāna... (break) ...in order to understand tad-vijñāna... Vijñāna means science. If you want to know the transcendental science, then you must approach a guru. Tad-vijñānārtham, in order to... If you are at all interested to understand the spiritual science. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ (sa) gurum eva abhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). You must approach guru. Guru means this disciplic succession, as I have explained.

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Appearance Day, Lecture -- Los Angeles, February 7, 1969:

So Advaita Prabhu, when He found that people are simply engaged in eating, sleeping, and they are not, they have no concern with Kṛṣṇa, and their life is being spoiled, so He wanted to start this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, say, about six hundred years ago, but He considered Himself as unable to take up this movement seriously because the condition of the people was so wretched. He thought that "If Kṛṣṇa Himself comes, then it can be done. Otherwise it is not possible." So Advaita Prabhu called Caitanya Mahāprabhu. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu, by His call, He appeared, Kṛṣṇa appeared. Caitanya Mahāprabhu was almost like grandson of Advaita Prabhu. But when He was young man, a very beautiful youth, so at that time nobody knew, but Advaita Prabhu knew that "He is Kṛṣṇa. He has come." So He was simply... Sometimes devotees pretend to be not in knowledge. So He was praying Kṛṣṇa, "This boy is very nice. If He takes up this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, then it will be very successful. He is very intelligent, beautiful."

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Appearance Day, Lecture -- Los Angeles, February 7, 1969:

Yes. So zamindar, landholder. So he belonged to a very big landholder... His father, his father and uncle, two brothers. So he was the only son. So naturally, he was to inherit the whole property, and at that time it was twelve hundred thousands dollars' income. Just see how much he was rich man. When he used to see Caitanya Mahāprabhu or Nityānanda in his youth-hood, when he was eighteen years', twenty years' age—he was almost of the contemporary of Lord Caitanya—he used to distribute gold to the brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas, gold, so much gold. What is the price of so much gold? He used to distribute. He was rich man, so he was doing like rich man. So that is the history of Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī. That is the history of Sanātana Gosvāmī. None of them were belonging to the Vaiṣṇava sect or nothing. Caitanya Mahāprabhu turned them. This Sanātana Gosvāmī and Rūpa Gosvāmī were rejected from the brāhmaṇa community because at that time the brāhmaṇa society was so strict, if somebody takes service of a Musselman or anyone, oh, he is immediately exterminated: "Oh, you cannot be accepted as pure..." Brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, according to Vedic system, the brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, and vaiśya, they'll not accept any service, even it is worth $200,000. No. That he will not acc... Then that is degradation. Only the śūdras can accept. That was the Vedic system. To accept another's service was so abominable. In the Bhāgavata also it is stated that if the brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas and vaiśya, especially the brāhmaṇas, they have no livelihood, then they can adopt the business of kṣatriya and vaiśya, but never accept the occupation of the dog, śūdra. That is stated. You see? So to accept service of others was so abominable, even five hundred years ago. So this Sanātana Gosvāmī and Rūpa Gosvāmī, they were also belonged to very rich family, but because they accepted ministership in the government of a Muhammadan, they were rejected. They were exterminated from the society.

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Appearance Day, Evening -- Gorakhpur, February 15, 1971:

Perhaps you may know, Dr. Bose's laboratory. One of my friends—he's still living, Śrī Narendranath Mullik—he informed me that "One saintly person has come. Let us go and see." At that time I was young man, and I did not care for very much about so-called saintly persons. Because in our house, my father used to receive so many sannyāsīs, but some of them were not very to the standard, and due to my association with college friends, younger days, I lost my faith practically, although I was born in a Vaiṣṇava family. My father was a pure Vaiṣṇava. From my childhood, he gave me Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa Deity for worshiping. A ratha... I was playing with my boyfriends, Ratha-yātrā, Ḍola, like that. My father encouraged. So I was trained up in this line, but in my youthful age, when I was college student, gradually, by their bad association or something, gradually, I lost my activities. But when this friend, Mr. Mullik, took me to Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja, he immediately asked me that, "You are educated young boys. Why don't you take up Lord Caitanya's message and preach in the Western world?" In the very first sight, he told me. At that time, I argued with him that "We are dependent nation, and who is going to hear about our message?" So he defeated my argument. (aside:) There is no necessity of closing. Yes. He defeated my argument. He was learned scholar. What I was? I was still boy. So I agreed (chuckles) that I was defeated. So after finishing our visit with Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī, I got some impression that "Here is a person who has taken Lord Caitanya's message very seriously. Now it will be preached." My friend asked my opinion, that "What is your opinion?" So I gave this opinion, that "Here is a person who has taken Lord Caitanya's movement very seriously, and now it will be preached."

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Appearance Day, Evening -- Gorakhpur, February 15, 1971:

We are eternally servant of Kṛṣṇa. And mukti means svarūpenāvasthitiḥ. When you are situated as servant of Kṛṣṇa, that is mukti. And so long you are falsely claiming that "I am enjoyer, I am proprietor," that is māyā. That is our philosophy. And Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is meant for that. We are... (break)

...that this movement is not new. It was long, long ago started. Even before five thousand years, when Kṛṣṇa spoke this philosophy to Arjuna, He said, imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1). Formerly, He spoke to Vivasvān, the sun-god. Manu. Manu understood this philosophy from Vivasvān. That means four hundred millions of years ago. So it is not a new movement. It is very old. Just like Kṛṣṇa is very old. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣam (Bs. 5.33). Purāṇa means very old. Purāṇa means very old. Nava-yauvanaṁ ca: at the same time, very youthful. Similarly, this movement is very, very old, but it appears very fresh. Because it is spiritual, it is ever-fresh. So you take to this movement very seriously, and all of you will be very happy. That is our request. We are presenting this movement all over the world, and anyone who has taken, he is happy. But one must be sincere and serious. Then it will act.

Thank you very much.

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Appearance Day, Lecture -- Atlanta, March 2, 1975:

If you don't keep in touch with the original link, then it will be lost. And if you keep touch with the original link, then you are directly hearing Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's representative, spiritual master, if you keep always intact, in link with the words and instruction of the superior authorities, then you are always fresh. This is spiritual understanding. Na jāyate na mrīyate vā kadācit nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṁ purāṇo (BG 2.20). Purāṇaḥ means very old. Just like Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Being. He must be very old because He is the original person. But the Brahma-saṁhitā says, advaita acyuta anādi ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣa nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). Purāṇa-puruṣa, the oldest person, but you will find Him nava-yauvanaṁ ca, always a fresh youth. That is God. God is not a material, that it gets old. The body gets old.

So you are hearing this philosophy daily. Try to understand more and more. We have got so many books. And this is the mission of Caitanya Mahāprabhu and, by disciplic succession, Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, then my spiritual master. Then we are trying our level best. Similarly, you will also try your level best on the same principle. Then it will go on. Same principle. It doesn't matter whether one is born in India or outside India. No. When Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi-grāma, "As many towns and cities and villages are there," (CB Antya-khaṇḍa 4.126) He did not say it to make a farce. He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So sometimes I am very much criticized that I am making foreigners a brāhmaṇa. The caste brāhmaṇas in India, they are very much against me.

Arrival Addresses and Talks

Arrival Lecture -- Calcutta, March 20, 1975:

People are suffering from anartha, unwanted things. They do not know how to get relief from this entanglement. Therefore vidvān, the most learned scholar, Vyāsadeva, compiled Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Bhagavate mahā-muni-kṛte. Mahā-muni is Vyāsadeva. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to preach this sātvata-saṁhitā. Saṁhitā means Vedic scripture. Sātvata-saṁhitā. So people are responding, especially in the Western countries. In Africa also, they are responding. Many Africans, they have become Vaiṣṇava now. That is the latest news. And they are receiving very well.

So by Caitanya Mahāprabhu's grace, with the cooperation of the Western youths, this movement is going on. I have traveled all over the countries, as I reported, and everywhere I saw, I was very much pleased that saṅkīrtana is going on. And it is improving. It is not declining. That is my greatest encouragement, that even in my absence, things are going on very nicely, improving. That is very hopeful. Not only that—from the Gurukula we are training small children. There are about more than hundred children in Dallas. They are rising early in the morning, attending maṅgala āratik, boys and girls not more than ten years, not more than five, six years. So that is very hopeful. In future they will become nice Vaiṣṇava. And many children are taking birth. They are very nice devotees. In last, in our Śrīpāda Atreya-rsi's small child, about six months old, as soon as I shout out, "Hare Kṛṣṇa," immediately he'll... He'll laugh. Very nice.

Arrival Address -- Mauritius, October 1, 1975:

The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is little different from... Why little? Completely different from ordinary movement. This is spiritual movement. This movement begins when one understands that he is not this body. (break) We are under the bodily concept of life. Ninety-nine percent people think that one is this material body. But that is not the fact. The fact is that within this body there is the spirit soul. The example is given in the Bhagavad-gītā that because the spirit soul is there within the body, therefore the body is changing from childhood to boyhood, from boyhood to youthhood, then middle-aged, then old man. This body is changing. But if the child is born dead—that means without the soul—then the body does not change. We have got practical experience. A dead child, if you keep the body in a preservative way, it will not grow. So long the soul is there, the bodily changes are there. From the womb of the mother, the embryo, the child, grows daily. Why? Because the soul is there. So our, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to understand this fact first of all, that body is superficial. Just like you are dressed with your shirt and coat. The shirt and coat is not important, but the person who is putting on the shirt and coat, he is important. Unfortunately, modern education is giving stress on the outward, external body or to the dress and not to... They do not understand who is the person who is dressed or who has got this body. This is the first lesson of spiritual understanding. In the Bhagavad-gītā you will find, this is the first instruction:

Initiation Lectures

Initiation of Hrsikesa Dasa and Marriage of Satsvarupa and Jadurani -- New York, September 5, 1968:

So although we have four divisions of the social orders, namely the brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, and sannyāsa... Brahmacārī means student, strictly observing life of celibacy, following the rules and regulations enunciated by the spiritual master under strict discipline. That is called brahmacārī. And next is that if a brahmacārī wants to get himself married, that is allowed. So when a brahmacārī is married, he is called gṛhastha, or householder. But because a brahmacārī is trained from the very beginning of his life renunciation of material enjoyment, he cannot be absorbed like ordinary man in family life. Ordinary man, they cannot give up the family life or association of woman even up to the end of life. But according to Vedic system, association of woman is allowed only for a certain period, during the youthful days only, just to beget nice children. Because from the age of twenty-five years old up to fifty years, one can beget nice children. Gṛhastha life, householder life, is meant for begetting nice children. If there are Kṛṣṇa conscious children in the society, there will be no disturbance. According to Vedic system, the population is divided into two divisions. Illegitimate sons are called varṇa-saṅkara. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said that when the population becomes varṇa-saṅkara, the whole social situation becomes hellish. Actually that is the fact. So one should be very careful to beget nice children so that society, social order, political order will be calm, quiet, peaceful. That is the idea of gṛhastha life. And many devotees... There are twelve selected personalities who are considered to be the authority of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Out of twelve authorities, seven authorities were all gṛhasthas, householders. Caitanya Mahāprabhu's associates, Nityānanda Prabhu, Advaita Prabhu, Gadādhara, and Śrīvāsa, and Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself, they were all householders. So it is not that simply sannyāsī or brahmacārī can realize Kṛṣṇa consciousness and not the householders. No.

Lecture at Initiation Fire Sacrifice -- Los Angeles, July 16, 1969:

There is a rasa, mellow—every ānanda. Just like if you take a nice fruit, mango, the taste is pleasing. That is called rasa, that taste. Anyway, anything enjoy, there is a rasa. Rasa. You love somebody, you kiss somebody, embrace somebody, there is a rasa. So this picture is ānanda-cinmaya-rasa. Here we have got that taste of rasa in a perverted manner. But cinmaya-rasa means it continues. This Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa with the gopīs, they are enjoying, dancing, chanting. That is eternally; that is never stopped. It is not that they become old and there is no more enjoyment or they are separated or somebody, Kṛṣṇa goes somewhere and the Rādhārāṇī goes to somewhere. No. Everything is eternal. They are enjoying. That is the difference between this rasa and that rasa. This rasa is temporary. Your youthful enjoyment will not exist; it will be finished. Your American life will be finished. Your this life, that life, everything will be finished—and finished forever. Not that you are going to have it again. Therefore this is flashing. It is coming and going. But that life is eternal. That is ānanda-cinmaya. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitābhis tābhir ya eva nija-rūpatayā kalābhiḥ (Bs. 5.37). This ānanda-cinmaya-rasa is called hladini-śakti, Kṛṣṇa's pleasure potency. Parāsya śaktir vividhaiva śrūyate, na tasya karyaṁ karaṇaṁ ca vidyate (Cc. Madhya 13.65, purport). These are Vedic versions, that "The Supreme has nothing to do." Just like here if we enjoy in the hotel some dancing, and next morning I'll have to go into the garbage for bringing money for that dancing. I'll work, go underground to dig out garbage. It is not like that, that Kṛṣṇa has to go next morning to garbage. (laughter) You see? It is not that I'll have to acquire money by flattering somebody or working some in hell. No. Ānanda-cinmaya-rasa-pratibhāvitā... That is the expansion of His pleasure potency. Kṛṣṇa is Paraṁ Brahman. Paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). When Arjuna understood Kṛṣṇa, he says, confirms, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, You are Paraṁ Brahman, You are the Supreme Personality of Godhead." This is understanding of Gītā. And after reading I understand that I am God. What is this nonsense? Where do you get this idea?

Initiations and Lecture Sannyasa Initiation of Sudama dasa -- Tokyo, April 30, 1972:

Absolute Truth is a person like us, but He is the Supreme Person. That is the Vedic information. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). Nitya means eternal. We living entities, we are all eternal. That is very nicely explained in Bhagavad-gītā. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Those who under the impression that after finishing annihilation of this body, everything is finished, they are not in perfect knowledge. The living entity continues to exist either in this body or in another body. Just like very simple example, we can understand. All of us sitting here, we had a small baby body. I existed, you existed, in that baby body, but that body is not now existing, but I am existing. I know that "I existed in a baby body, I existed in a boyhood body, I existed in a youthhood body. Now I am existing in this old age body. Similarly, when this body is finished, I shall again exist in another body." This is the right conclusion. Therefore na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). After the destruction of this body, ātmā, or the spirit soul, is not destroyed or annihilated. He continues.

So ātmā vastu, that ātmā is also part and parcel of the Supreme Truth sat. Now at the present moment I am given to this misunderstanding that "I am this body." Sannyāsa means to give up this false concept of bodily concept of life and surrender, nyāsa. Nyāsa means renounce-renounce everything for the sake of Kṛṣṇa, the Absolute Person. This is called sannyāsa. Actually this is the beginning of my liberated activities. Sannyāsa means that living entity is acting. Living entity for a second cannot be inactive. You know that even in sleeping we are acting: we dream, we go somewhere, we see something. Although the body is silent, I, the spirit soul, I create another subtle body, and with that subtle body I create so many things and try to enjoy it or suffer it. Therefore a living entity is not inactive even for a second. So these activities, when they are performed in the bodily concept of life—"I am this body," "I am Indian," "I am Japanese," "I am Hindu," "I am Muslim," "I am Christian"—in this way, so long we act on this bodily concept of life, it is called material existence. But when we understand that we are not this body—"I am spirit soul"—and on this understanding I understand that I am the part and parcel of the Supreme Absolute Person, that is called brahma-bhūtaḥ situation.

Lecture at Sannyasa Initiation -- Los Angeles, May 27, 1972:

Ahaṁ tariṣyāmi duranta-pāraṁ tamo mukundāṅghri-niṣevayaiva. As explained in the beginning, the whole process is to engage in the service of Kṛṣṇa, whose another name is Mukunda. Muk means liberation, one who gives liberation and blissful life. So this Kṛṣṇa Conscious movement is meant for delivering the conditioned soul of this age, Kali-yuga, as it was inaugurated by Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu Himself, accompanied by Nityānanda. He also took sannyāsa at the age of twenty-four years only, very young man. So according to Vedic system, one takes sannyāsa at the fag end of life. Just like I have taken. While I was going to die, I took sannyāsa. So, that is also, something is better than nothing. And now you have sannyāsa in prime youthful life. So you are all far better than me. You have got enough opportunity to serve Kṛṣṇa and His mission. I am old man. I may pass away at any moment. The wording is already there. So you remain and preach this cult.

The world is suffering for ignorance. They may be very proud of their advancement of education. After all, they have no education, no improvement. Simply, they are bold enough, just like the insects. The insects are bold enough to fall down on the fire. Similarly, this civilization without any control of the senses, adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisraṁ punaḥ punaś carvita-carvaṇānām (SB 7.5.30), being unable to control the senses, exactly like the insect, flies very boldly, falls on the fire. Similarly, these uncontrolled senses (are) leading them to the darkest region of materialistic life. They do not know it, and they don't care to know it, because they, they have got their own theory that after this body everything is finished, zero. But that is not the case. Not finished. There are so many species of life we have to enter, in any one of them, and this human form of life is the opportunity to get out of the clutches of māyā, this repetition of birth and death, and anyone can go back to home, back to Godhead, and become eternal associate of the Lord in blissful life. That opportunity is there.

So, but this foolish civilization, they do not know it. It is our duty on behalf of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa wants it.

General Lectures

Lecture -- San Francisco, April 2, 1968:

This is Sanskrit language. I'll explain it in English. He said that within this body there is soul, and the body is changing every moment, but the soul is there. He is giving example, just as a soul comes from the womb of his mother with a small body, and that small body changes—it becomes the body of a boy, it becomes the body of a youth, then it becomes the body of an old man, then it vanquishes... That we have to admit. We may say that the body is growing, but actually, the fact is, body is changing. It is medically admitted that we are changing our body every second. We are changing our blood corpuscles, and therefore a change of the body is taking place, and that is being manifested in a different shape only. Actually, we are changing every moment our body. So the ultimate change, when this body cannot be worked any more, just like a dress, when it is torn, when it is too old, you have to change it. Similarly, when this body becomes useless, no more, it cannot be pulled on any more, you take another body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir. As we are, in our practical life, we are changing our body every moment, similarly, the last stage of changing this body is called death. Death means, according to Vedic literature, sleeping for seven months. Just as I give up this body, I have to enter into the womb of some kind of mother. These things are explained in the Vedic literatures. I am not manufacturing. That karmaṇā dehopapattaye. We are preparing our next life, next body rather... Life is continuing. I am eternal. Next body—according to my present one. Just like in this meeting we have got two hundred ladies and gentlemen, but you cannot find out any lady or any gentleman exactly like the feature of the other. Differences. That means different consciousness, different work, and we have got different body. According to Bhagavad-gītā, the soul is transmigrating from one body to another, but the soul is eternal and permanent. And there are evolutionary process also.

Lecture at Engagement -- Boston, May 8, 1968:

That is a fact. It doesn't matter whether you believe in God or do not believe in God, but you are conscious. As soon as I pinch in any part of your body, you at once protest. You feel that "Somebody is pinching me. I am feeling pain." This consciousness is there even in the animal or in man and everyone. Now what is this consciousness? The Bhagavad-gītā replies what is this consciousness. The Bhagavad-gītā says, avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. That consciousness which is spread all over your body, that is eternal. How it is eternal? That also you can understand by practical experience. Just like in your childhood, there was consciousness. When you were in the womb of your mother, of course, at a certain stage there was consciousness. In your boyhood, there was consciousness. In your youthhood, there is consciousness, and as you make progress, in your old age, there is also consciousness. Now, your body is changing but consciousness is continuing. That you cannot deny. Therefore the Bhagavad-gītā says, avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. That consciousness is eternal, and that does not vanquish with the destruction of the body. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Now as soon as this consciousness is over, the body is called dead body. Now what is this consciousness? This consciousness is the symptom of the soul. That is... Just like in a light, in a fire, there is distribution of heat and light. Similarly, the spirit soul being present in your body, the consciousness is spread all over your body. This is the fact. Now this consciousness is being carried. Just like from your childhood this consciousness is being carried. From childhood body to boyhood body to youthhood body, the consciousness is continuing. Similarly, this consciousness will also carry you in another body, and that transformation or transmigration from one body to another, it is called death. Death means when this body cannot be carried any more, the consciousness has to be transferred to another new body. Just like when your garment is too old, it has to be changed; similarly, when this material body is too old to carry on, then this consciousness is transferred to another body and you begin another life. This is the process of nature.

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

So this consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, is scientifically presented. It is not a sentiment. It is not a sentimental movement. It is very scientific movement. And the easiest process to come to this Kṛṣṇa consciousness is by chanting this Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. So we are presenting very easy formula for coming to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness platform. Just a moment before, we were dancing and chanting equally, the boys, the girls, the men, the women. So there is no distinction. Even if we do not understand the language, what is the meaning of Hare Kṛṣṇa, but because it is transcendental, because it is spiritual, from the spiritual platform, everything is equal. We forget that we are American, or we are Indian, we are child, we are youth, or man, or woman, because in the spiritual platform there is no such bodily distinction. So our request to all the guardians of the boys and girls present here, or the teachers, that they should teach from the very beginning this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or God consciousness. Otherwise the future of the world is not very bright. It is recommended in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. We are having our class in our temple: the instruction of Prahlāda Mahārāja. Prahlāda Mahārāja was a five-years-old boy, and he was agitating this Kṛṣṇa conscious movement in his school. The schoolteacher would not allow him to speak about God, but as soon as there was some recess and the child, the boy, five-years-old boy, he would take the opportunity, call his friends and speak on Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And he said, kaumāra ācaret prājño dharmān bhāgavatān iha (SB 7.6.1). The Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or God consciousness, should be taught from the very beginning of education. 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.

Speech to Indian Audience -- Montreal, July 28, 1968:

Unfortunately, the present policy is that students are being taught to forget their old Vedic culture and try to imitate the Westernized way of life, industrial life, technical life. That is being encouraged. But here I find that the young men and young girls and boys, both, they are very much interested about Indian original culture of spiritual life. Recently, you know, some yogi came, and he simply bluffed so many people that "If you pay me thirty-five dollars, I will give you one personal mantra, and you will be in transcendental life," or so many things. So thousands and thousands of European boys and girls, as well as in America, they flocked together, but later on, they were frustrated. That means while the Indian youths are coming to the Western countries for advancement of technological knowledge, the Western boys and girls, they are hankering after spiritual life. This I have very particularly studied. I am here, not in Canada, in America. I came here in 1965, and I am studying the mind of the younger generation especially. They are hankering after something, spiritual enlightenment, not only in America, also in Europe. And they expect something from India because... It is a fact. I have read one book written by one Chinese gentleman. That book is recommended in the New York University for study. That Chinese gentleman is very learned man. He has given comparative studies of all religion and philosophies, but he recommends that "If you want to study religion as it is, then you have to go to India." So our Indian spiritual culture is still adored and worshiped by the learned section of every part of the world. And especially in America and Germany and England, they are hankering after it. We should be little careful that this knowledge, transcendental knowledge, as distributed by Lord Caitanya, should be seriously taken up by the responsible Indians present here. Unfortunately, I see that Indians are not very much interested, but that is our misfortune. Actually, Caitanya Mahāprabhu entrusted this mission that anyone who has taken birth as human being on the land of Bhārata-varṣa should learn this spiritual science very seriously, make his life successful, and distribute all over the world so that people of the world may become happy. That was His mission.

Lecture -- Montreal, October 26, 1968:

God, Kṛṣṇa, He's the original person because from the original father, you can take, from whom everyone has come. Therefore He's the oldest. Advaitam acyutam anādim ādyam. Ādyam means the original person. Man is made after God; therefore God is original person. So that person ādyam, acyutam, anādim, nava-yauvanaṁ ca. Nava-yauvanaṁ ca means He is always a young man. Just like you are all young men, attractive. Young life is attractive. So that youthful age is always in the spiritual world. And as the youthful means joyful life, ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt... (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). All young boys and young girls, they are after joyfulness, but they are being frustrated in this material world. That is the inebriety. The spiritual world means these things are there, but without any inebriety. Here we love. A boy loves a girl; a girl loves... But they are frustrated. After few days it is broken. Or if it is married, then again there is divorce. He finds another husband; she finds out another... Like that. These things are not there. Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa, the love of Rādhā and Kṛṣṇa is never broken. Never broken. That is the significance of the spiritual... They are eternally enjoying the loving affairs. And if you qualify yourself, then you leave this material world, this interaction of the modes of material nature, and be implicated in such things and you become free, that is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is very nice. Try to understand Kṛṣṇa consciousness. As soon as you become Kṛṣṇa conscious perfectly, you are no longer living in this material world. You are in the spiritual world. That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam:

Press Release -- Los Angeles, December 22, 1968:

Since the beginning of our material body in the womb of our mother, the body is transforming from one shape to another in every second and in every minute. This process is generally known as growth, but actually it is change of body. On this earth planet we see change of day and night and of seasons. The more primitive mentality attributes this change to changes occurring in the sun. For example, in the winter they think the sun is getting weaker, and at night they presume sometimes that the sun is dead. With more advanced knowledge of discovery we see that sun is not changing at all in this way. Seasonal and diurnal changes are attributed to the change of the position of the earth planet. Similarly, we experience bodily changes from embryo to child to youth to maturity to old age and to death. The less intelligent mentality presumes that at the death the spirit soul's existence is forever finished, just like primitive tribes who believe that the sun dies at sunset. Actually, the sun is rising in another part of the world. Similarly, the soul is accepting another type of body. When the body gets old like the old garments and is no longer usable, then the soul accepts another body just like we accept a new suit of clothes. The modern civilization is practically unaware of this truth. They do not care about the constitutional position of the soul. There are different departments of knowledge in different universities and many technological institutions to study and understand the subtle laws of material nature—medical research laboratories to study the physiological condition of the material body—but there is no institution to study the constitutional position of the soul. This is the greatest drawback of material civilization, which is external manifestation of the soul. They are enamored by the glimmering manifestation of the cosmic body or the individual body, but they do not try to understand the basic principles of this glimmering situation. The body looks very beautiful working with full energy and exhibiting great traits of talent and wonderful brain work. But as soon as the soul is away from the body, all this glimmering situation of the body becomes useless. Even the great scientists who have discovered many wonderful scientific contributions could not trace out about the personal self, which is the cause of such wonderful discoveries.

Lecture -- Hawaii, March 23, 1969:

"My dear Arjuna, you are posing yourself as very learned man, but a learned man is not disturbed by this change of body." Just He says very nice example. Just like a child. A child is growing. Growing means he is changing body. A child is born so small; a few years, he becomes big. Now where is that small body? That body is gone. You tell whatever you think, but that body is gone—another body. Then the same child becomes youth, young man. That body is gone. The same man becomes old man. That, that youthful body is gone. So every second the body is gone, but the soul is there. Anyone knows... You can remember; I can remember. When I was child, I remember I was doing this. And where is that body? That body is gone, but I am remain... Why I am remaining? Because I am eternal. I have changed my body, but I am there. Similarly, when I change this body, still I'll be there. This is knowledge. This is nir(?) condition. If in this, during this life, I am changing so many body, so many bodies, still I am there, similarly, it is natural conclusion: when I change this body, I shall remain. I may be in another body. This simple logic is sufficient for a sane man to understand that living soul is eternal; the body is artificial, dress. By changing dress, one does not die. He is eternal.

Lecture at International Student Society -- Boston, May 3, 1969:

Just like within this body there is soul, and it is changing bodies, from childhood to boyhood, from boyhood to youthhood, from youthhood to old age. And then again, when the body is useless, no more, cannot be maintained, then we will give up this body and accept another body just like we change our dress." That is going on. So I am eternal. Although I am old man, I can understand what I was in my childhood, in my boyhood, youthhood. So body has changed, but I am existing. This is very simple thing. Everyone can understand. Therefore I, as spirit soul, I am not body. Body is changing; I am different from body. Therefore change of this body does not mean I am finished. I am continuing. Therefore I should be responsible: "What kind of body I am going to accept next?" That is my responsibility. If you don't take this responsibility, "What kind of body...?" It may be, if I am of doggish mentality, my next life will be just a dog because I will have to accept the dress of a dog. And if I am evolving my godly mentality, then I'll have to accept, or I will accept another body just like God. So that is in my hands.

So in the modern educational system, universities, there is no such information, we see. It is very lamentable, but these knowledges are there in the Vedic literature. The summary of all Vedic literature is Śrīmad-Bhagavad-gītā and the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. There are many other literatures-Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata, eighteen Purāṇas.

Lecture at Engagement -- Columbus, may 19, 1969:

As you are changing your body even in this present life, you remember that you were a child, you were a boy... I remember I was a child... I was a baby. I still remember in my babyhood I was lying down on my elder sister's lap. She was knitting. I can still remember. So, we can remember our childhood, our boyhood, our youth, but I am the same, the body is changing. It is a fact. Similarly, when these bodies ultimately lapse or change, I am accepting another body. That is a fact. This is called transmigration of the soul. As we are changing our dress, similarly we are changing our body. And there are 8,400,000 of different kinds of bodies.

So our, at present moment, our business is simply to change bodies, change body. So we do not know what kind of body I am going to take next. There is a vast science about it, so one should know, one should prepare. Just like you are preparing yourself by education to be well situated in your future life, in this life; similarly, you should prepare yourself to get the best body in you next life. What is that next body? That is answered in the Bhagavad-gītā:

Lecture 'Nobody Wants to Die' -- Boston, May 7, 1968:

"As the living spark, the soul, is changing from childhood to boyhood, from boyhood to youthhood, from youthhood to old age..." This is a fact. Everyone knows. Similarly, to change to another body is a fact. And dhīras tatra na muhyati: "Any intelligent man is not surprised." He doesn't say that there is no life after death. There is. Now that life after death may be in one of the so many, 8,400,000's of bodies. There is no guarantee what kind of a body you are going to get. In our last meeting we explained that from Bhagavad-gītā, that yaṁ yaṁ vāpi smaran bhāvaṁ tyajaty ante kalevaram (BG 8.6). Ante, at the time of death, as his mental position is there, he gets the, another body, similar. There are many historical references. As I told you the other day, that King Bhārata, he was very much elevated and very great soul. At twenty-four years of age he was emperor of the world, but at the very young time he gave up his wife, children and kingdom and went to the forest for spiritual enlightenment. And he was making progress. Unfortunately, one day he saw that a deer cub was in helpless condition. It's mother came to drink water from the river, and there was a roaring of lion, and she begot the calf and fled away—after all, she's animal. So Bhārata Mahārāja took compassion on the little, just-born calf: "Oh, it will die. Let me take care." So he was taking care. One evening that calf did not come back. So he was anxious where it was gone, and so he went to the forest, and while he was on the up, hill, he slipped from the hill and fell down and died. And at that time, his mind was absorbed in the thought of that calf. So next body, he got a deer. Yes.

Lecture 'Nobody Wants to Die' -- Boston, May 7, 1968:

Then next life, after leaving this body, you'll be pushed into the womb of a mother there in the moon planet, and you'll come out with a suitable body. So the birth is there, and wherever there is birth and death, there is disease and old age. But I am, as spirit soul, I am free from... Asaṅgo 'yaṁ puruṣaḥ. I have nothing to do with birth, death and disease and old age. I am spirit soul. Na jāyate na mriyate na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṁ purāṇaḥ. It is always, although it is the oldest, it is always fresh. Just like I have become. Now, amongst you, I am the oldest man. You are fresh. But the propensities of you and when the..., of me, it is the same. I want to enjoy life. The same propensities which I had in my youthful life, I've got still. But because my body has become old, I cannot enjoy like that. So it is the bodily impediments that is hampering my real happiness. So problem is how to get out of this entanglement of repetition of taking one body after another, one body after another, as we are taking in this life also. That is the solution. That solution is yad gatvā na nivartante. Kṛṣṇa says, tad dhāma paramaṁ mama: (BG 15.6) "If you go to My planet, you have no more (to) come back again." You get your eternal life, eternal, blissful life, full of knowledge and remain, enjoy like Kṛṣṇa with Kṛṣṇa. That is the highest perfection.

Lecture at Harvard University -- Boston, December 24, 1969:

Just like I pinch over your head or any part of your body, you feel—that is consciousness. But when this body is dead or when you are out of this body, if I chop up your body, there is no consciousness. That is the distinction between consciousness. Avināśi tu tad viddhi yena sarvam idaṁ tatam. In the Bhagavad-gītā the consciousness is stated: avināśi. Avināśi means cannot, never dies. Always living. Avināśi tu tad viddhi. You just try to understand that thing without always living. What is that? Yena sarvam idaṁ tatam—by which your whole body is spread by air(?). And anywhere of your body, that consciousness is spread. And that substance, consciousness, is always living. When you leave this body this consciousness goes to another body. Just like the air passes, the flavor the air carries from one garden to another place. Similarly, this consciousness will carry you to another body after your death. After you leave this body... Just like we are changing our consciousness also from childhood consciousness to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood, and the old age. The consciousness is carrying me although the body is changing. Similarly, when you change this body, the consciousness will carry you to another body. That consciousness is always living. It is never dead. (break) Because they don't take it.

Lecture (Day after Lord Rama's Appearance Day) -- Los Angeles, April 16, 1970:

Asmin dehe, in this body, there is one thing which is the proprietor of the body. And that proprietor of the body, due to the presence of the proprietor of the body, the body is changing from childhood to boyhood, from boyhood to youthhood, from youthhood to old age. And when it is too old, when it is not useful any more, you have to change another body, that is called death. So dhīras tatra na muhyati. One who is intelligent, one who is in the knowledge, he is not bewildered. He sees that every second, every moment, the body is changing, and the last phase of change is called death.

So these answers are there in the Bhagavad-gītā. The problems of life is that how to stop these changes of body. Because it has been spoken that that thing which is not changing, unchangeable, that is soul and eternal. Avināśi tu tad viddhi. That is eternal. Now, if there is any possibility of getting eternal body also? Yes, there is possibility. That is answered in the Bhagavad-gītā, how you can get eternal, blissful, all-knowledge body, sac-cid-ānanda-vigraha (Bs. 5.1). This body is not eternal, neither it is blissful, neither it is full of knowledge. It is full of ignorance, it is temporary, and always miserable. And if you say, "Now we are very happily living," that is māyā, that is illusion. Lord Buddha's teaching is that he was prince and there was no want in his life. He was luxuriously living. But he left home for meditation. Therefore he understood that "I am not living comfortably." This understanding, when we can understand that this life, this material life, is not at all comfortable, it is full of misery, that is called buddha life, intelligent. Buddha means intelligent. And if we are thinking that "I am living very comfortably. I am very happy," that is called māyā, illusion. Actually, we are always in miserable condition.

Pandal Lecture at Cross Maidan -- Bombay, March 26, 1971:

So phalgu-vairāgya and yukta-vairāgya. Phalgu-vairāgya means inferior renunciation, or false renunciation. And yukta-vairāgya means actual renunciation. What is that difference? Prāpañcikatayā buddhyā. The Māyāvādī philosophers, they are giving up this world as false, māyā. Prāpañcikatayā buddhyā hari-sambandhi-vastunaḥ. Just like sometimes we are criticized because we are using the advantages offered by the material science. Just like I am using this microphone. So the people may criticize, "If this world is false, the material world is false, then why should I take advantage of this material product?" They expect that those who are spiritualists, they should go to Himalayas, giving up, giving up everything material and meditate in a solitary place, in snow-covered area. But Vaiṣṇava philosophy does not think like that. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, pṛthivīte āche yata nagarādi grāma. (CB Antya-khaṇḍa 4.126) He does not recommend, although He was a sannyāsī, He was in renounced order of life. He gave up His family, beautiful wife, very affectionate mother, very comfortable home, very prestige, too much prestige of His personality in the society. He gave up everything. He was in the prime age of His youthful life, twenty-four years only, but He gave up everything.

Pandal Lecture -- Bombay, April 6, 1971:

Asmin loke, in this world, there are two kinds of living entities, not only in human society but also in animal society, in trees, in plants, in... There are 8,400,000 species of life—aquatic, plants, trees, reptiles, insects, birds, beasts, then human beings, civilized human beings, noncivilized human beings. And altogether, there are 8,400,000 species of life, and they are divided into...(break)

...man's body. So... But I am the same. I can remember some of the incidences of my childhood, of my boyhood, of my youthhood. Therefore I am permanent. That is the real understanding of the living entity. These things have been explained very vividly. And in the Sixth Chapter Lord Kṛṣṇa recommended how to practice yoga. Yoga is the beginning of linking up our lost relationship with the Lord, yoga. Yoga means adding, addition or linking. Because we are now forgotten... The yoga system, any yoga system, means... Bhakti-yoga, karma-yoga, jñāna-yoga—there are different names of yogas—but actual fact is how to link up our lost relationship with the Supreme Lord. That is called yoga. Yoga indriya-samyamaḥ. Indriya. Because we are being deviated from our eternal relationship with God, Kṛṣṇa, on account of our too much being engaged in sense gratification. Bhogaiśvarya-prasaktānāṁ tayāpahṛta-cetasām (BG 2.44). Lord says, Kṛṣṇa says, "Those who are too much after bhoga and aiśvarya, material enjoyment and material opulence," prasaktān āṁ tayāpahṛta-cetasām, "whose heart has been taken away by the process of sense gratification, for them, it is very difficult to be situated in samādhi." Bhogaiśvarya-prasaktānāṁ tayāpahṛta-cetasām. So yoga, yoga means to control the senses. Those who are too much in the bodily concept of life, for them, this haṭha-yoga is prescribed just to control the sense by some mechanical way. You sit down, āsana, prāṇāyāma, dhyāna, dhāraṇā, pratyāhāra. There are eight different stages of fulfilling the yoga practice and then coming to the position of samādhi. Samādhi means fully situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Lecture -- Los Angeles, July 11, 1971 :

The ant's past, present and future is different from human being. So, this past, present and future is in relationship with this body. Actually, as we are eternal spirit soul, we have no past, present or future. Just like this child, he is playing. After a few years this age will be a past tense. Every one of us, we had also similar body, and that is now past tense. But I am this proprietor of the body. I remember that in such and such year I was a child like this, in such and such year I was a boy like this, in such and such year I was a young man like this. Therefore, "I" is eternal. I am eternal. This past and present and future is due to the change of body. Is it not a fact? I am the same, feeling; I am feelng same. The old man, an old man, he also remembers his enjoyments during his youthful time, and sometimes he wants to go back to those youthful days. An old man, when he meets his old friends, he talks about his youthful days. That means as spirit soul I am always youthful, but due to this condition of this body, I am feeling sometimes childish, sometimes old man, sometimes this or that.

Bhagavad-gītā explains this idea very nicely: na jāyate mriyate vā kadācin. The spirit soul has no birth nor death. This body, just like we are no longer in our past childhood body, similarly, when this body will be also finished, it does not mean that I will not exist. I will continue to exist. As I am existing, as I can remember my childhood days, my youthful days, therefore I am existing. In spite of my..., that childhood body being finished, my youthful body being finished, I am existing. Similarly, after finishing this body also, I will exist. Is there any difficulty to understand? There is no difficulty. I am eternal. The only difference is that, because we are infinitesimal living spark, therefore we forget. Just like I can remember roughly about my childhood days, but I cannot remember the day to day activities in my childhood.

Lecture -- Detroit, July 16, 1971:

A learned man sees every living entity on the equal level. So we are trying to see in that light, and we are trying to teach others also how to accept that light, how to enjoy that light. So it is a very serious movement. You can take. Every one of you can take advantage of it. It is not very difficult to practice, because our process is very simple. You come and chant with us Hare Kṛṣṇa. Anyone can pronounce this word Hare Kṛṣṇa. Actually we are seeing all over the world. There is no difficulty to chant this mantra. It is open. There is no secrecy, that "I shall give you one mantra, a particular mantra for you." No. This mantra is one, and it is equally applicable to everyone—to the learned, to the ignorant, to the white, to the black, to the old, to the youth. Everyone can chant. And actually it is happening. It is very easy. And chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra and learn how to chant. There is... Of course, there is no hard and fast rules. You begin chanting in whatever condition you are and see the result. And so far examples, we have got our temples, we have got our devotees. How they are living, how their characters are being formed, how they are becoming purified, how their faces are becoming brighter, you try to see. It is practical. So that is our request, that you take full advantage of this center. You come here. It is being guided by one of my best disciples, Bhagavān dāsa. So he and others will help you. Please come regularly to this temple and take advantage of it.

Lecture -- Delhi, December 13, 1971:

Nara-Nārāyaṇa: I think people will argue that just because a child develops to a certain stage, what is the indication that he will develop after that stage? In other words, if I go from birth, youth, old age, then what is to say that I am again going to youth? They will say, "What is that logic? How I will go again to youth? Simply I will go again and vanish away," or something like that. They do not know...

Prabhupāda: No, that example is given. Just like this garment I am using. So when it becomes too old torn or something, so I will throw it away. I take another. What is the difficulty? When this body I am growing or changing, whatever the Christians say, but when it is no more workable, I give it up. I take another. What is the difficulty?

Nara-Nārāyaṇa: The materialistic man will think, "Well, I am voluntarily giving up my clothing, but I'm involuntarily giving up my body."

Prabhupāda: Voluntarily, involuntarily, that is another thing. Just like a child does not know that his coat is useless, but mother comes and changes the garment. So it is changing, that's a fact. It doesn't matter whether you are changing voluntarily or involuntarily, that is not very important thing. You are changing, that's a fact. Yes?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What they will argue perhaps, materialists may argue that "We can see that Sarasvatī is changing from the time she was a little girl and now she is a little older, we have seen her both times, but at the time of death we have not seen the next body of anyone.

Lecture at Christian Monastery -- Melbourne, April 6, 1972:

Oh, yes. Certainly. This is experienced in this life also. Just like you had a body of a child. That body is finished, but you are existing. You can remember that you had a body of a child, you had a body of a boy, but that body of the child, body of the boy is no longer existing. You are in a different body, but you know that you are existing. That is the proof that after this body, you will have another body. This is the proof. There is no difficulty to understand. As I am still living in spite of my changing childhood body, babyhood body, boyhood body, youthhood body, so naturally it should be concluded when I give up this body... Actually, I don't give up. The body... There are two kinds of bodies. This is gross body made of the five elements: earth, water, fire air and... And there is subtle body: mind, intelligence and ego. Just like we have got shirt and coat. So when we give up this gross body, we are carried by the subtle body to another gross body. So I am not giving up. Actually, I am not giving up this body. I am giving up this... Just like sometimes you give up the coat, but your underwear remains, and you take another coat or..., similarly, my, the subtle body will remain with me so long I am not emancipated or liberated from material condition. So presently when I give up this body, so I am carried by the subtle mind. And at the time of death, the condition of my mind will carry me to a particular type of body. And there are 8,400,000's of bodies. We may accept any of them according... That will be given by superior authority. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). Just like in huge, big establishment, management, a man is promoted by the superior authority or sometimes he is degraded, similarly, in this form of human body we have got intelligence to understand about God, about ourself, our relationship with God. If we don't utilize this body for this purpose, there is every possibility to be glided down in the animal kingdom.

Lecture at Auckland University -- Auckland, April 17, 1972:

That is not possible. Death... Birth, death, old age and disease—these are the four problems of our life. Nobody wants to die, but death is sure. We must die. Nobody wants to take birth, but there is birth. Now there are so many contraceptive methods for checking birth. But still, the population of the whole world is increasing. So birth, death, old age. Nobody wants to become old, everyone wants to remain young and fresh, but old age overcomes. Similarly, disease. There are scientific advancement of knowledge, you have got very effective medicines, but there is no science to stop disease or to stop death. These are the actual problems. But the problems, these problems, are pertaining to the body. The soul is different from this body. This is our misunderstanding. I am soul; you are soul. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. But somehow or other, I have been entrapped in these bodily, material bodily changes. Changes, you can understand, that you had a body like a baby; you had a body like a child; you had a body like a boy. Now you have got youthful body. Some days after, you will get a body like me. So the body is changing, and I am the same. I can remember my childhood body, my babyhood body or my boyhood body.

So the soul is eternal and the body is changing. That is explained in this Bhagavad-gītā. Most of you are well known to this book, Bhagavad-gītā. It is widely read book all over the world. So the first instruction given in the Bhagavad-gītā is this:

Lecture -- London, July 12, 1972:

Because if you don't accept the standard way, then it will waste, you will waste your time. So you will have to come to the same point. But if you are inquisitive, that is your life. If we come to the point of inquiring about "What I am?" Oh, that is great advancement. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. I can understand very well that when... There are so many babies here. I was also a baby. My body, I had a body like a baby on the lap of my mother. I can remember that. Then I became a child, then I became a boy, then I became a young man, now I am old man. Now, the bodies, different bodies, I possessed. I remember. But those bodies are no more existing. Where is my childhood body? Where is my boyhood body? Where is my youthhood body? They're all gone. So although the bodies are gone, I remember that I had a body of a child, I had a body of a boy, I had a body of young man. Therefore I am eternal, my bodies are not eternal. Therefore the conclusion should be: when I change this body, then I'll exist. That is... Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra... (BG 2.13). Everything is there, either you study yourself or take the lesson from the Vedic version.

Lecture at Bharata Chamber of Commerce 'Culture and Business' -- Calcutta, January 30, 1973:

Otherwise you become bound up by the acts, by the reaction of your activities. Karma-bandhana. And so long you are in the bondage of karma, you have to transmigrate from one body to another.

Unfortunately at the present moment, people do not know that there is soul and the soul transmigrates from one body to another. As it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, tathā dehāntaraṁ prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Big, big professors... I've talked with big, big scientists, professors, but they do not know that there is life after death. They do not know. But according to our Vedic information, we know. And we can ex..., experience in this present life. It is very common thing. Just like a baby has got a body of a boy. The boy has got a body again of a youth, young man. The young man has got a body again of a old man. So similarly, old man, after annihilation of this body, he'll get another body. It is very, quite natural, logical. And we change our body. Although this gross body's destroyed, we change our body by the subtle body. The subtle body is made of mind, intelligence and ego. Just like we forget about this body at night, and the subtle body works. We dream. We are taken away from our home, from our bed, to some other place, and completely forget this body. And when the sleep is over, we forget about the dream and we become attached to this gross body. This is going on—in our daily experience. So I am the observer. I am sometimes in this gross body and sometimes in the subtle body. But it is changing. But I am the observer. Therefore the inquiry should be that "What is my position? At night I forget my gross body, and during daytime I forget my subtle body. Then what is my real body?" These are the questions.

Lecture at Indo-American Society 'East and West' -- Calcutta, January 31, 1973:

Asmin dehe, in this body, there is the proprietor of the body. That is soul. Asmin dehe, on this body, there is the proprietor of the body. this proprietor of the body constantly changing different types of bodies. The example is given that kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā. Just like a child is changing his body to boyhood, the boy is changing his body to youthhood, and young man is changing, his body to old body. Similarly when the old man dies, he does not die. He accepts another body. This knowledge. Dhīras tatra na muhyati. One who's actually in knowledge, he's not surprised that a man is dead. He's not dead. And the example is given just you change your dress. Now some of you are present here with a coat, black color. You can change it tomorrow into white color. That does not make any difference, that you are dead. Similarly, when we change our body. Just like I was a baby. Everyone knows. I, I remember that I had a little body. I remember at least. But that body is missing now. I remember that I was young man. I had a very youthful body. But that is missing now. And my elderly person, he may also, he may also know that he has changed his body, but he's not dead. I know that I have changed my body. I have simply changed my body, but I am living. I remember the body. Similarly, when we change our body, it does not mean that I am dead. Tathā dehāntaraṁ prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati.

Lecture -- Jakarta, February 28, 1973:

Just like I, living entity, I am all existing in this body. I'm changing bodies so many times. I was a baby; I changed that body. I became a boy or a child. Then I became a boy; I changed my body. Then I became a young man; I changed my body. Then I became an old man; I changed my body. All those bodies, different types of body—babyhood, childhood, boyhood, youthhood—they are now gone, and now I'm existing in this old body. So it will also go. But that does not mean that I'll be finished. No. I'll accept another body. As I am changing different types of bodies, I am existing. Similarly, when I shall change this body, I shall exist in another body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Dhīra means those who are sober. He's not bewildered. Adhīra. There are two kinds of men—dhīra and adhīra. Adhīra means senseless, crazy, and dhīra means with sense. He's not bewildered. He's called dhīra. So when somebody dies, one who is dhīra, he understands, "My father, my brother, or my relative, or somebody else, he has simply changed this body." Tathā dehāntaraṁ prāptir. "So what is the cause of lamenting?" These things are discussed in the Bhagavad-gītā. But even if you have got affection for that body, still Kṛṣṇa says,

mātrā-sparśās tu kaunteya

śītoṣṇa-sukha-duḥkha-dāḥ

āgamāpāyino anitya

tāṁs titikṣasva bhārata

(BG 2.14)

"My dear Arjuna, even if you are very much affected when the body of your son or your relative is finished, these things are temporary," āgamāpāyina anitya. This death is also temporary because he'll accept immediately another body. So because we are accustomed to think that "This body is my son," or "my father," "my this, that," there is some pain, causes of pain. But Kṛṣṇa says, "These are temporary."

Lecture -- London, August 26, 1973:

We have to understand this; otherwise, we are missing the opportunity of this human life. If we neglect, then we are just like animals. The animals have no concern to understand this philosophy of life, that "I am not this body, I am spirit soul. I am encaged. Somehow or other I have to get out of this entanglement and be again reinstalled in my original consciousness and be happy, having eternal life, blissful life and full of knowledge." This is the problem. But people have become so dull and rascal that they do not even care to understand this philosophy of life, that "I am not this body; I am spirit soul." Actually, even one's daily life, one can understand that he is different from this body. Just like every one of us, we had a child's body, a boy's body, a youth's body. Now I am old man, but I can remember that I had a body, a small body, baby's body. I remember personally when I was six months old I was lying down on my eldest(?) sister's lap. She was knitting. I still remember. So then I got another body, another body, another body, and according to development of body I had different consciousness, just like child's consciousness is different from the father's consciousness. So we are actually getting different types of body every moment, and the consciousness is changed also according to the body. This is a fact. But I remember that I had such and such body, I was doing such foolish things when I was a child. All these things I remember. Therefore I, the person, the soul, is existing, although the bodies are not existing. This is a fact. Those bodies, my childhood body, my boyhood body, my youthhood body, they are no longer existing. It is a fact. I have got now a different body, but I remember that I possessed such and such bodies. Therefore the conclusion is that, in spite of change of body, the spirit soul remains the same eternally. Similarly, when I shall change this body, I shall get another body. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir. That is called transmigration of the soul.

Lecture at Upsala University Faculty -- Stockholm, September 7, 1973:

So here is a chance, this human form of life. Either you go back to home, back to Godhead, or again you go to the cycle of different species of life. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). You accept one type of body, live there for some time, then give it up, then accept another type of body, live for some time, then accept another type of body. In this way... But we are so much illusioned that although this is botheration, to accept one type of body, again give it up, again accept another type of body, we are not disgusted with this business. Because actually we are eternal. Why should we accept one type of body, live there for some time and again change it? That we have experienced. Just like any one of us, we desire that my youthful body may remain. We try to keep that youthfulness by so many medicine, by so many means. But nature will not allow to keep yourself always youthful. That is not possible. You must change. Therefore one should be inquisitive, that "I don't want this type of body, old body, feeble body, more conditioned, with rheumatic disease and other, so many disease, cough disease. I don't want it, but I'm forced to accept this body. This is real problem. I don't want to die, but death is forced upon me." So these question should be raised by really advanced human being, that "I don't want all these things. I want to enjoy this material world, but I am forced to change into a body. I cannot enjoy. I cannot enjoy." This is real problem. That real problem has been discussed in the Bhagavad-gītā: janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). We want to enjoy. Suppose I am a technologist. I want to enjoy this material world. I manufacture something, very good facility for living condition, as we are doing. But before finishing my desirable construction, nature takes me away. Just like I saw in France, Paris. What is that arch?

Pandal Speech and Question Session -- Delhi, November 10, 1973:

If somebody says that "I have no money," so Cārvāka Muni says that "You take loan from your friend and purchase ghee and enjoy life." Ṛṇaṁ kṛtvā ghṛtaṁ pibet yāvaj jīvet sukhaṁ jīvet. "So long you will live, live happily. Why... Make beg, borrow, steal and live happily." "No. I shall be responsible. I shall have to pay next life." Cārvāka Muni says, "No, no. Don't bother about next life." Bhasmī-bhūtasya dehasya kuto punar āgamano bhavet: "Your body will be burned in the crematorium. That finished. That's all." This foolishness is there, that this life... We do not know that this human form of life we have got by the evolutionary process, going through so many lives. Just like in our present life we can understand that I have come to this body, old body, through child's body, boy's body, youth's body, in this way. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. It is not manufactured.

dehino 'smin yathā dehe

kaumāra yauvanaṁ jarā

tathā dehāntara-prāptir

dhīras tatra na muhyati

(BG 2.13)

You have to accept this, dehāntara-prāpti, from one body to another. Where is my childhood body? That is gone. Where is my boyhood body? That is gone. Where is my youthhood body? That is gone. Not only for me, for everyone. There is past, present and future. Similarly, when this body will be gone, I will get another body. Where is the difficulty to understand? Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Dhīra. Because we are not sober... There are two classes of men: dhīra and adhīra. Dhīra means sober, thinking, thoughtful, and adhīra means restless.

Lecture at the Hare Krsna Festival at La Salle Pleyel -- Paris, June 14, 1974:

You take your finger. You ask yourself whether you are finger, the answer will be "No, I am not finger. It is my finger." Everyone will say, even a child will say, "This is my finger, my hand, my leg, my head." Nobody will say that "I leg, I finger, I head." Nobody will say. Therefore the conclusion should be I, the soul, is different from this material body. The material body changes on account of presence of the soul. Just like a child gets a different body like a boy; a boy gets a different body like a young man. Similarly, young man gets another body as an old man. Every one of us can consider that "I had a small body of child. I had a small body of boy. I had a youthful body. Now I have got this old body." By this simple study, I can understand that I am different from the body. And because I am eternal, in all forms of body I was existing. That I can understand also.

Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre: (BG 2.20) "After the destruction of this body, I, the soul, I am not destroyed. I continue to live." The soul is eternal. That is described in the Bhagavad-gītā: nityaḥ śāśvato 'yaṁ na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Eternal, very old, still, after the destruction of the body, the soul is never destroyed. Death means destruction of this outer, gross material body. Every day, every night we have got experience: the body lies down on the bed, but with my subtle body—mind, intelligence and ego—I dream and I go somewhere else from my bedroom. So this is going on daily in our experience, that I leave this gross body, I take my subtle body, and I do something else, although my body is here. The conclusion is therefore that I, the soul, am changing my body from the gross to the subtle, from the subtle to the gross. In our daily life we have got experience that I accept this subtle body.

La Trobe University Lecture -- Melbourne, July 1, 1974:

So we are preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement on the platform of the spirit soul, which we do not see with these material eyes. This is great ignorance. After death we cry that "My father is gone," "My son is gone." But where he has gone? He is lying on the bed. Now, even still, we do not come to the understanding what is the difference between the living body and the dead body. There are so many theories, but as I have already told you that we receive knowledge from the perfect person, Kṛṣṇa. He says that within this body the owner of the body is there, and on account of the owner of the body presence, the body is changing. The owner of the body is sometimes in the childhood body; the owner of the body sometimes in a different boyhood body; the owner of the body is sometimes in the youthhood body. Similarly, as he is changing different types of body during this duration of life, similarly, after this annihilation of this body, when it is old... Just like old garment or old coat, old shirt cannot be used—it is thrown away; another new shirt, new coat is taken—similarly, this body, being annihilated, the soul accepts another body. This is a real knowledge. Tathā dehāntara-prāptir dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). This is explained in Bhagavad-gītā very broadly.

Sunday Feast Lecture -- Atlanta, March 2, 1975:

Why do you say, "My father has gone away"? This is ignorance. We do not know what is soul. We see the body. So long I have seen the body of my father. Now the soul has gone. I am crying, "My father has gone away." But did you see your father? "Yes, that body." The body is there. Why you are crying? So it is very common sense affair to understand where there is soul. A big stone, a big mountain, it cannot move although it is so big. And a small ant is moving. Why? There is soul. So how can you say the animals have no soul? This is ignorance. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). The soul being within the body means it is changing the body from babyhood to childhood, childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood, like that. And if the child is born dead—no more change of body. That is the proof that there is soul. Soul means the living force which is moving the body. That is soul. How you can say the animal has no soul? Everyone has soul. Even the grass has soul, because it is growing, changing body. (break) ...simple thing. Ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12). Because all dirty things are within our heart. On account of dirty things we are thinking that "I have got soul, and the animal has no soul." This is due to dirtiness of the heart. So if you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, the heart will be cleansed. Just like a mirror with a dust, you cannot see, but if this dust is cleansed, then you can see your face very nicely. Similarly, because on account of material contamination our heart is unclean, we cannot see things as they are, but the chanting process will cleanse your heart, and then you will see everything in order. Then you will not say the animal has no soul.

Lecture -- Nellore, January 4, 1976:

As we are working, creating a mentality—just like if I am infecting some disease, then I have to suffer from that disease—so similarly, this material world is consisting of three modes of nature, sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa, and mixed. So we are infecting according to our activities. The first-class position is to become a qualified brāhmaṇa. Śamo damo satyaṁ śaucaṁ titikṣa ārjavam, jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.42). So that is the best quality. And next the kṣatriya quality, next the vaiśya quality... Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭam (BG 4.13). So according to the infection of different qualities, we are preparing the next body, karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). This is karma. You work as a brāhmaṇa, you work as a kṣatriya, svakarma, according to your capacity, quality. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā, guṇa. These guṇa... As we are associating with the qualities and acting, then we are creating a body next life. So next life, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ... (BG 2.13). As we pass from one form of body even in this life, from childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youth-hood, youth-hood to old age... Kṛṣṇa begins His instruction with this point, that we must know what we are. We are not this body. If we remain in the bodily concept of life, then we are no better than cats and dogs. Sa eva go-kharaḥ (SB 10.84.13).

Subha Vilasa Home Engagement -- Toronto, June 19, 1976:

"To preach means to accept discomfort," that for an older person to travel on airplanes and to always move about and to go here and there for the service of the Lord is naturally more difficult than for a very young person. But Prabhupāda is accepting this uncomfortable situation simply to establish Kṛṣṇa consciousness throughout the world, at least to give people the opportunity that "Choose, if you like, between the internal potency and the external potency." The external potency means you're forced. We have no choice. We're forced to undergo repetition of birth and death. Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9). Nobody likes to grow old, but this youthful age, soon it will become old age. And nobody likes to die. So present-day civilization is blindly going on. Andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānās: (SB 7.5.31) the blind leading the blind. People are thinking that "My parents did it. Their parents did it. Generations have done it. So also we engage blindly in materialistic way of life and everything will be okay." But the result is that everyone is simply suffering, and after this lifetime they also have to suffer the consequences of this present life's activities blindly, not knowing that they're responsible for their activities.

Address to Rotary Club -- Chandigarh, October 17, 1976:

This is the position. And therefore we should not continue to remain apaṇḍitāḥ, nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ, and lament. So long we are not paṇḍitāḥ, our business is to lament and to hanker. We lament what is lost, and we hanker what is not in our possession. This is material disease. So when we understand that ahaṁ brahmāsmi... That hint is given by Kṛṣṇa, that asmin dehe dehinaḥ: "The proprietor of the body is there, asmin dehe. On account of presence of the proprietor of the body, the body is changing." Dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā (BG 2.13). The kaumāra, the childhood, the boyhood, the youthhood—these changes of body is taking place on account of presence of the dehina. So where is this education all over the world? There is no such education. But there is knowledge. This is Bhagavad-gītā. We don't take advantage of Bhagavad-gītā; therefore there is no such education, athāto brahma jijñāsā, or to understand Brahman.

So everything is very nicely explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, and you have got a nice club. So I request you to discuss on the Bhagavad-gītā as it is, without any malinterpretation. Then it will be beneficial for your club. Because Cāṇakya Paṇḍita... You have heard the name of Cāṇakya Paṇḍita. In New Delhi there is a Cāṇakya Purī. He was a great politician, very learned scholar, brāhmaṇa and great moralist also. So he has instructed about this Brahman knowledge in various ways. So our point is that we should not spoil this life. We should utilize every moment of our life very properly. This Cāṇakya Pandit I am referring because he has given very good instruction how to utilize our life.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz:

Prabhupāda: That is another nonsense. The soul desires something, and to fulfill that desire he gets a certain type of body; therefore soul is the cause of manufacturing a type of body.

Śyāmasundara: He likens the soul and the body to two synchronized clocks, both going at the same speed but separate.

Prabhupāda: Yes. The soul is separate from the body, but the body is going or the body is being manifested on account of the soul's desire. Just like a young child desires how he will become a youth. He sees the youthful energy, gradually he develops or changes his body to a youthful body.

Śyāmasundara: Then is the body really affecting the soul? Does the body really have a causal influence on the soul?

Prabhupāda: No. The soul is unaffected by the body, but the body is helping the soul to fulfill its desires. Just as I am taking the help of this microphone to serve my purpose, but microphone is not influencing me. It is not that microphone is willing that I shall dictate. It is not like that.

Śyāmasundara: His idea is that the body has a monad and the soul has a monad. They are two different monads.

Prabhupāda: The body is a combination at atoms. If Kṛṣṇa is within the atoms, the monads of the atoms and the monad in the body are different.

Śyāmasundara: So that although the monad of the body is acting...

Prabhupāda: What is the meaning of monad?

Śyāmasundara: The only meaning I know is that it means unity or oneness. A small particle of unity or oneness.

Philosophy Discussion on Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz:

Hayagrīva: That is he does not believe that the souls in animals transmigrate at death from one body to another.

Prabhupāda: Then what is his understanding of the soul?

Hayagrīva: He says there are no entirely separate souls without bodies.

Prabhupāda: That is rascal. That means he is imperfect. How he can say so when we practically see that the soul is changing from childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood? How he can say like that? He is transmigrating. That is, every day we have experience. How he can deny that? Otherwise, if he, if the soul does not transmigrate, then how the child becomes a young man? The body is different. The, this is simple understanding, that he has changed the body. The body changes and the soul remains eternal.

Hayagrīva: He further writes on this... He says, "There is strictly speaking neither absolute birth nor complete death consisting in the separation of the soul from the body. What we call birth is development or growth, as what we call death is envelopment and diminution."

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is transmigration. That is transmigration. He hasn't..., he is not dead, but he has developed into another body. That is transmigration. Then why does he deny that?

Hayagrīva: So he says, in other words, as soon as the human soul leaves the body, it must immediately...

Prabhupāda: Enters another body.

Hayagrīva: ...enter another.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Philosophy Discussion on Henri Bergson:

Śyāmasundara: No. The life force is eternal but it advances to higher and higher levels.

Devotee: It's eternal, but I don't realize its eternality (indistinct).

Śyāmasundara: No. The forms. The life force itself is eternal but the forms will change up to the stage of immortality.

Prabhupāda: Material forms have changed. The living force has not. The same example: the living force is there, the forms babyhood to childhood, childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood, the form is changed, but the person whose bodies have been changed, he is permanent, he is spiritual, he is not changed. But when he identifies with the body, he thinks that "I am changed." The example is, just like in the rainy season, at night there is cloud, and the cloud is moving, but if you see, you see the moon is moving, moon is moving. But actually the moon is not moving, the cloud is moving. You have any experience?

Śyāmasundara: Yes, we have.

Prabhupāda: You find the moon is moving like anything. Spirit soul (indistinct) is not moving.

Śyāmasundara: Is this progress toward human immortality, is that a creative process?

Prabhupāda: What do you mean by creative process? This is not creative.

Devotee: Well, Bergson's idea of creative means we are creating our immortality.

Prabhupāda: No. You are immortal always, by constitution, but you are changing your bodies exactly like the moon is fixed but the bodies are changing, clouds, changing, and it appears that the moon is also going on, but moon is not going on. Similarly, soul is permanent.

Philosophy Discussion on Soren Aabye Kierkegaard:

Prabhupāda: Ah?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They would admire Hitler for sticking to his principles and acting upon them.

Prabhupāda: So what happened? Hitler became vanquished. That's all.

Devotee: Now they admire the Hell's Angels.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Wouldn't you say that pretty much, that this philosophy is guiding a lot of the figures, the youth...?

Śyāmasundara: This is the most prevalent philosophy today, guiding people. It says that because God is dead, that we don't know where we came from, all we know is that we're here existing, the only way we can genuinely know ourself and exist authentically...

Prabhupāda: But our point is that we do not know genuinely. What we know, that is foolishness, that is asses' knowledge. Just like ass knows that "I am this body. I am the servant of this washerman." So this knowledge, like this. So he has made the decision. The ass has made this decision that "I shall take a morsel of grass and whole day I shall carry tons of cloth of this washerman." He has made this decision, that's all. Then is it that the decision is very nice? This is asses' decision, that's all.

Śyāmasundara: They say that rather than indulge in unrestricted sense gratification or spend our life speculating about...

Prabhupāda: So why not unrestricted sense gratification, if one makes that decision?

Śyāmasundara: Just because it becomes boring.

Philosophy Discussion on Arthur Schopenhauer:

Prabhupāda: As far as different, old men have got different experience. We have seen in Western countries old men, they still follow the path of sense gratification. So where is his experience? Unless there is training, simply to become old man is not sufficient. Training is required. Old man, actual old man should take renunciation. That is Vedic plan. At the end of life one should become a sannyāsa and completely devote his time and energy to understand and serve God. So unless there is training from the very beginning as brahmacārī, simply by age one is not mature. That is not correct.

Hayagrīva: He says it's customary to call youth happy and age the sad part of life. This would be true if it were the passions that made a man happy. Youth...

Prabhupāda: Happy, happiness to the modern standard means sense gratification. So that sense gratification continues even in old man. So actually he requires training and acquirement of knowledge. There is a word in Sanskrit, vidya tam (indistinct). One can become old man even without age. That means it is knowledge that is counted, not the age.

Hayagrīva: There's an expression, "The old fool."

Prabhupāda: Old fool, yes.

Hayagrīva: An old goat.

Prabhupāda: Yes. If he is not educated properly, he remains a old fool. Yes.

Hayagrīva: He says, "In one of the Vedic Upaniṣads, the natural length of human life is put down at one hundred years, and I believe this to be right. I have observed, as a matter of fact, that it is only people who exceed the age of ninety who attain euthanasia, who die, that is to say, of no disease, apoplexy, or convulsion, and pass away without agony of any sort. To come to one's end before the age of ninety means to die of disease, in other words, prematurely."

Philosophy Discussion on Ludwig Wittgenstein:

Prabhupāda: This is evidence: that there is no soul. The self, the individual soul, is now departed; therefore this body is lump of matter. This is evidence. And because the soul is there, therefore the body changes or develops. Just like if a child is born dead, then the body does not develop or changes. It remains in the same condition. But so long the soul is there, the child grows or changes his body. That is evidence. Because the soul is there, therefore the child is growing or changing body from childhood to boyhood, boyhood to youth. Suppose a child is born, doctor says it is dead child. You say something is wanted, but what is that something? You do not know. Otherwise, if you know, you add it. What is that something? Suggest, what is that something? Simply vague idea something, that is nonsense idea. That is not science. You must give, "This is wanting." Suppose that you say that the blood, the redness, just like nowadays blood supply is the theory, so what is this blood? Blood is a liquid, red liquid, like chemical or something, with some salt. So you can add salt, just like in cholera cases, they add saline injection. So dead body, you give saline injection, make it red by some color, give him life. If you say that "Red blood is now white," so make it red. What is the difficulty? There is no difficulty. There are so many chemicals. If you say the redness is the life, then there are many natural products, just like jewels, by nature it is red. Why is it not alive? Why it is not alive? By natural redness of something, if you say that is the cause of life, then there are many jewels. What is called, jewels?

Śyāmasundara: Ruby.

Prabhupāda: Ruby. Why it is not alive? Redness is there. Therefore we have to accept your identification with the soul, not with this body; otherwise this is nonsense.

Philosophy Discussion on Sigmund Freud:

Prabhupāda: I don't think children are so clever, that in order to win the love of parents they will treat like that.

Devotee: Freud put so much emphasis on children and the mentality and emotions of children—what one is experiencing, youth and so on—and it is all concocted, don't you think?

Prabhupāda: Children can be trained in a different way. As you train them, they become like that.

Devotee: Freud says that all children experience this if there is a younger child born in the family.

Prabhupāda: They imitate. Children's position is imitation. I have seen in other children, one child was two years old and another child was three years old, and they were imitating just like they had seen sexual intercourse of their father. I have seen it. They are playing, lying down, and the male child is laying upon her. I saw it. Imitation. They do not know what is sex, but they will imitate it. That's all.

Śyāmasundara: Freud analyzes that there are different defense mechanisms by which the ego protects itself.

Prabhupāda: The conclusion is that children generally imitate. They do not know what is the value, but they imitate.

Śyāmasundara: He would say there are instinctive defense mechanisms in the psychological make-up of everyone, such as repression, projection, excessive overt reactions of an opposite kind, different mechanisms which the ego employs to cover up, to protect itself from the impulses of the id, primitive impulses.

Philosophy Discussion on Sigmund Freud:

Hayagrīva: ...and on Sigmund Freud, you discussed with Śyāmasundara Prabhu the sexual aspects, but not the theological aspects. Freud wrote two basic books on religion, Future of an Illusion, and there was a great deal in Leonardo da Vinci, A Study in Psycho-sexuality. He writes, "Psychoanalysis, which has taught us the intimate connection between the father complex and belief in God, has shown us that the personal God is psychologically nothing but an exalted father. Youthful persons lose their religious belief as soon as the authority of the father breaks down." So he sees God as basically a father complex arising out of the need of help of the little child.

Prabhupāda: That little child, how he can give up the idea of father? And how Mr. Freud can give up the idea? Was he not born by a father?

Hayagrīva: He feels that...

Prabhupāda: He dropped from the sky? Huh? Did, did he?

Hayagrīva: He feels that this is childish.

Prabhupāda: That childish, what is that childish? He had no father?

Hayagrīva: He had a father, but he believed in ultimate emancipation.

Prabhupāda: No, no, ultimate we shall go later on. First of all, he has to think whether he had his father or not. Or his father's father was not there, and go on searching out. So without father, how can one exist or one can come into being? So that if he cannot understand this simple philosophy, what kind of philosopher he is? He had his father. His father had his father. So this is fact. Even though he might not have seen his dead grandfather, but he was there. That is a fact. So if you go on searching, father's father's father, where you will come there is no father? Which..., which is that point when you can say, "Now here there is no father"? And if you actually come to that point that "Here is a person of whom there is no father," that is God.

Philosophy Discussion on Carl Gustav Jung:

Śyāmasundara: But someone would say that that bud is developing into a flower.

Prabhupāda: That is a (indistinct) in the terminology. Just like we say that we are changing bodies, they say developing bodies. So anyway, either you say developing or changing, the original body is not there. That you have to accept. The child's body, either you say it has developed into youth's body, and either you say that is (indistinct) body. I say the child's body is gone; it is another body. In both cases, the child's body is no longer existing. That you have to agree—either you call developed or it has gone.

Śyāmasundara: He says that the personality which we manifest in our social lives, in our family life, at work, etc., is called our persona, or our mask. We have to present a certain personality in our family and social and our working life, which is...

Prabhupāda: This is (indistinct), this mask. Just like your face is covered with some mask. That mask is taken away, uncovered, then your real face is seen. So it is not development; it is covering. He cannot say that I saw you just like a monkey's face, but when the mask is taken away, become a beautiful gentleman face. This gentleman's face is not developed, it is already there. Simply it was covered by the mask and you take it away and you see your real self. That is our process, ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12). The mirror is covered with dust, and you cleanse it and see your face nicely. So it is not the developing process, it is cleansing process.

Śyāmasundara: So he says that we show ourself to the world not as our total self...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Philosophy Discussion on The Evolutionists Thomas Huxley, Henri Bergson, and Samuel Alexander:

Prabhupāda: It is not his urge. Nature is giving him the impetus. Just like when you are young, there is no sex urge. When you are a small boy, there is no sex urge, but as soon as you come to a certain stage, say, sixteen years, you immediately... The sex urge is there within you, but it was not developed in your childhood. But as soon as you go, come to the youth-hood, there is. Similarly, the perfection of consciousness is there, but unless you come to the stage of human being, that is not developed.

Śyāmasundara: In the animals it may take the form of trying to survive. That's all. The animals want to survive. They want to live.

Prabhupāda: Their only business is how to eat, how to sleep. Where to get eating, eatable things. That is their business. They have no other business.

Śyāmasundara: It is said that the low form of striving to improve...

Prabhupāda: That is struggle for existence you can say. They are simply trying to live. They have no other ambition. That's all. But if a man..., if the living soul, after having come to the stage of human being, if he also simply tries for these four things, eating, sleeping, mating and defending, then he is no better than animal. So nowadays in the modern civilization, simply these things are taught: how you can live comfortably with a car, with a bungalow...

Śyāmasundara: So the urge, the urge to improve or to advance...

Prabhupāda: (aside, Hindi:) Aiye aiye. Give them something, sitting place. Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Philosophy Discussion on Plato:

Prabhupāda: That means he believes in eternity. This loss of senses, that is we also accept that there are three stages: jāgrati, awakening, and sleeping and deep sleeping. So deep sleeping means unconsciousness. So when a man dies from awakening state, he enters into the dreaming state and then enters into the deep sleeping state. So transmigration of the soul means he gives up this gross body, and the subtle body, mind, intelligence carries him to the another body, and in another body, unless the body is prepared properly, he lives in deep sleep. And when the body is prepared at seven months for human being, then he comes to consciousness. He feels, "Oh, why I am put into this packed-up status." If he is pious he feels very uncomfortable. He prays to God—these things are described—that "Kindly excuse me from this awkward position. Now this time I shall become a devotee." This is position. The soul is immortal, but still he enters into different stages of life. Then when he comes out, the same different stages of body continues. In childhood he is something different from his boyhood; boyhood something different from youthhood; and he is the same, but he is passing through different... That is called evolution. So when he comes to the perfect stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then his life is successful. Just like a flower, in the bud stage, in the fructified stage, in the blooming stage, and when it is fully bloomed it looks very nice, beautiful. Similarly, when by gradual development when you come to the stage of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then our whole beauty is revealed.

Hayagrīva: He also stressed the process of remembering. It's called the, his, Plato's doctrine of recollection. And he says you can ask a boy, who may be ignorant of a subject, you can elicit answers from him, and this answers, he may give you the right answers, and this would suggest that he acquired this knowledge in a previous existence.

Philosophy Discussion on Auguste Comte:

Prabhupāda: These are all imagination. When woman, when she is misguided, she becomes dangerous. There is no question of love. But one thing, according to Vedic conception life, that women and children are on the same level, so they should be given protection by men. In childhood the protection is from the father, in youthhood the protection is from the husband, and in old age the protection is from the grown-up sons. So they should never be given independence. They should be given protection, and their natural love for father or for husband or for children, then that propensity will grow very smoothly, and that will establish the relationship with woman and man very happy, and both of them will be able to execute their real function, spiritual life, by cooperation. The woman is known as his better half, so if she looks after the comfort of the man, a man is working and he is looking after the comfort, then both will be satisfied and their spiritual life will progress. Woman is meant for certain duties; man is meant for... Man is meant for hard working, and woman is meant for homely comfort, love. So both of them, if they are situated in their respective duties under proper training, then this combination of man and woman will help both of them to make progress in spiritual life.

Hayagrīva: Comte felt that love of God has always interfered with man's love of women. He says, "Love of God is inconsistent with love for our fellow men, and it was impiety for the knight to love his lady better than his God. And thus the best feelings of man's nature were repressed by his religious faith. Women, therefore, are not really interested in perpetuating the old system of religion."

Purports to Songs

Purport Excerpt to Sri Sri Siksastakam -- Los Angeles, December 28, 1968:

Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu instructed His disciples to write books on the science of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. A task which those who follow Him have continued to carry out down to the present day. The elaboration and exposition on the philosophy taught by Lord Caitanya are in fact the most voluminous, exacting, and consistent, due to the unbreakable system of disciplic succession of any religious culture in the world. Yet Lord Caitanya in His youth widely renowned as a scholar Himself, left us only eight verses called Śikṣāṣṭaka.

Glories to the śrī-kṛṣṇa-saṅkīrtana, which cleanses the heart of all the dust accumulated for years together. Thus the fire of conditioned life, of repeated birth and death is extinguished. This saṅkīrtana movement is the prime benediction for humanity at large because it spreads the rays of benediction moon. It is the life of all transcendental knowledge, it increases the ocean of transcendental bliss, and it helps to have a taste of the full nectar for which we are always anxious. Second verse. Oh my Lord, Your holy name alone can render all benediction upon the living beings and therefore You have hundreds and millions of names like Kṛṣṇa, Govinda, etc. In these transcendental names You have invested all Your transcendental energies and there is no hard and fast rule for chanting these holy names. Oh my Lord, You have so kindly made approach to You easy by Your holy names, but unfortunate as I am, I have no attraction for them. Three. One can chant the holy name of the Lord in a humble state of mind, thinking himself lower than the straw in the street, more tolerant than the tree, devoid of all sense of false prestige, and ready to offer all respects to others. In such a state of mind one can chant the holy name of the Lord constantly. (end)

Purport to Bhajahu Re Mana -- Los Angeles, January 7, 1969:

"Oh, I have got to enjoy so many things. How can I fix up my mind on the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa?" Then Govinda dāsa advises, "No, no." Durlabha mānava-janma. "You don't waste your life in that way. This human form of life is very rare. Out of many, many thousands and millions of births, you have got this opportunity." Durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge. "Therefore don't go anywhere. You just associate with pure devotees." Taraha ei bhava-sindhu re." Then you shall be able to cross of the ocean of nescience." "Oh, if I engage my mind always in Kṛṣṇa, then how I shall enjoy my family, my other paraphernalia?" So Govinda dāsa says, ei dhana yauvana. "You want to enjoy your wealth and your youthful ages," ei dhana yauvana, putra parijana, "and you want to enjoy the society of freindship, love and family, but I say," ithe ki āche paratīti re, "do you think that there is transcendental pleasure in these nonsense thing? No, there is none. It is simply illusion." Ei dhana yauvana, putra parijana, ithe ki āche paratīti re. Durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge, taraha ei bhava sindhu re.

Then again he says that

śīta ātapa bāta bariṣaṇa

ei dina jāminī jāgi 're

viphale sevinu kṛpaṇa durajana

capala sukha-laba lāgi' re

Now Govinda dāsa is reminding his mind: "You have experience of your material happiness. So material happiness means, the ultimate goal of material happiness is sex life. But don't you remember how long you can enjoy this sex life?" Capala. "Flickering. Say, for a few minutes or moment. That's all. But for that purpose you are working so hard?" Śīta ātapa. "Don't care for snowfall. Don't care for scorching heat. Don't care for torrents of rain.

Purport to Bhajahu Re Mana -- Los Angeles, January 7, 1969:

Don't care for scorching heat. Don't care for torrents of rain. Don't care for keeping night, night duty. Whole day and night you are working. And what is the result? Simply for that flickering momentous enjoyment. Are you not ashamed of this?" So śīta ātapa, bāta bariṣaṇa, ei dina jāminī jāgi re. Dina means day, and jāminī means night. So "Day and night, you are working so hard. Why?" Capala sukha-laba lāgi' re. "Simply for that flickering happiness." Then he says, ei dhana yauvana, putra parijana, ithe ki āche paratīti re. "There is no happiness actually, eternal happiness, transcendental happiness, in enjoying this life, or this youthful age, or family, society. There is no happiness, no transcendental happiness."

Therefore kamala-dala-jala, jīvana ṭalamala. "And you do not know how long you shall enjoy this life. Because it is tottering. You are on the tottering platform. Just like there is water on the lily leaf. It is tilting. At any moment it will fall down. So our life is tilting. At any moment it may collapse. We may meet, by chance, any danger, and finished. So don't waste life in that way." Bhajahū hari-pada nīti re. "Be always engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the success of your life." And how to discharge this Kṛṣṇa consciousness? He advises, śravaṇa kīrtana, smaraṇa vandana, pāda-sevana dāsya re. You can adopt out of the nine ways of devotional service any one. If you can adopt all of them, that's very nice. If not, you can adopt eight of them. You can adopt seven of them, six of them, five of them, four of them. But even if you adopt only one of them, your life will be successful. What are those nine methods? Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam. Hearing from authoritative sources. And chanting. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam. Smaraṇam. Memorizing. Vandanam, prayers. Śravaṇa kīrtanaṁ, smaraṇaṁ vandana, pāda-sevanam. Offering service to His lotus feet as eternal servant. Pūjana sakhī-jana. Or just try to love Kṛṣṇa as your friend. Ātma-nivedana. Or give up everything for Kṛṣṇa. That is the way of devotional service, and Govinda dāsa is aspiring after that Kṛṣṇa consciousness business. (end)