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Carpenter (Lectures)

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 1.36 -- London, July 26, 1973:

So Karna, nobody knew that he is kṣatriya. He was supposed to be son of a carpenter. Karṇa was born before Kuntī's marriage. Therefore she... Karṇa remained hidden, whose son. But he was kṣatriya. So it was unknown. So Draupadi took this opportunity that "This competition is meant for the kṣatriyas, not for the non-kṣatriyas." Because he was supposed to be son of a carpenter, śūdra. So he was not given the opportunity to gain Draupadi. But if he was given the opportunity, he would have come out victorious. So now Karṇa took this opportunity. When Draupadi was lost in the game, so he immediately... Karṇa was Duryodhana's friend. He immediately advised, "Now she is our property. We can do whatever we like with. Arjuna has lost his wife." So he advised that "Make her naked in this assembly." To become naked in the, so many people, that is a great insult for woman. So actually, they tried to insult. Not tried, it was fact. But Kṛṣṇa saved.

Lecture on BG 5.17-25 -- Los Angeles, February 8, 1969:

So try to keep yourself always in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then you are safe in any circumstance. So we should mold our life in such a way that we cannot go out of the orbit of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, always thinking of Kṛṣṇa, that's all. Either you become a carpenter of the temple or a gardener of the temple, or a cooker of the temple, or a typewriter of the temple, or a tape recorder of the temple—anything, because it is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, therefore you are safe because you are thinking of Kṛṣṇa. That is required, sadā tad-bhāva-bhāvitaḥ (BG 8.6), always thinking of Kṛṣṇa, any way, this way or that way. That is meditation; that is trance; that is everything.

Lecture on BG 9.18-19 -- New York, December 4, 1966:

So this material life experience—chasing after woman and drinking and sense gratification and so many things, spending like anything—we have seen it, but we have not experienced any actual happiness. Still, I am trying to induce my son, my dependent, into that way. The foolish people do not think that "I have already experimented all these things. What benefit, what happiness, I have got?" This is called punaḥ punaś car..., repeatedly chewing the chewed, repeatedly. This is going on. Nobody thinks that "I have already experimented all these things. What benefit I have got? What happiness I have got? I am frustrated in my life. So why shall I induce my son? If I at all love my son, why shall I induce my son into that? Let him experiment this, Kṛṣṇa consciousness." No. Because adānta-gobhir viśatāṁ tamisram (SB 7.5.30).

Just like there is a very nice story. A monkey... Monkeys, they are very busy. Do you know? But their business is to simply destroy. You will find monkey always busy, very active. So in the village there was a carpenter who was bifurcating one big beam by saw. So at the end of his work, half of the beam was cut into two, so he put one block between the two pieces and he went away. And then one monkey came, and he pulled out the block, and his tail was captured in that, between the two, and it was cut. So he went to his society, and he said that "This is the fashion. This is the fashion." Langulim segar(?). He advertised, "To cut one's tail, this is the latest fashion."

Lecture on BG 13.3 -- Hyderabad, April 19, 1974:

There are many ritualistic ceremonies in the Vedas to achieve something very great. That you can get. But Kṛṣṇa says that "When you achieve the result, you are not enjoyer; I am the enjoyer." Now, who will accept it? Everyone will say, "I have got this result after working so hard, and Kṛṣṇa will take everything?" Yes. If you want to enjoy yourself, you will never be happy. You give it to Kṛṣṇa and you will be happy. This is the formula. So this simple formula, if we understand, bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram... (BG 5.29). Because He is the proprietor sarva-loka-maheśvaram, he must enjoy. Suppose a carpenter makes a very nice furniture, a nice closet, very beautiful. So will the carpenter shall be the proprietor or the man, the person who has supplied him wages, who has supplied him the wood, and he has made it? Who will be the proprietor? Very simple philosophy.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.6 -- London, August 27, 1971:

Pradyumna: Translation: "The supreme occupation, or dharma, for all humanity is that by which men can attain to loving devotional service unto the transcendent Lord. Such devotional service must be unmotivated and uninterrupted in order to completely satisfy the self."

Prabhupāda: So here the translation, dharma, I have purposefully given, "occupation." Actually dharma is generally translated by the English word "religion." But religion is misunderstood. It is taken as a faith. Faith I may believe, faith, or may not believe. But actually, dharma does not mean. Dharma means occupation, which you cannot change. Just like a carpenter. He earns his livelihood by his occupation as a carpenter. A lawyer, he lives by his occupation, profession as lawyer. So, so many things. Occupation you cannot give up. You have learned engineering. You cannot give up engineering. That is your livelihood. You cannot say, "No. Today I am engineer. Tomorrow I shall be sweeper." Of course, in the material world sometimes it is done so, but spiritual meaning means that the living entity has got a permanent occupation.

Lecture on SB 1.2.9 -- Detroit, August 3, 1975, University Lecture:

So original proprietor is Kṛṣṇa. He says, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca. Bhinnaṁ me prakṛtir aṣṭa... (BG 7.4). Me, "My." The earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence... Even your intelligence is Kṛṣṇa's. With your intelligence, with ingredients of Kṛṣṇa, if you manufacture something, the proprietor is Kṛṣṇa. Because the... Just like a carpenter. You give the wood, the instrument, these labor charges. So when he manufactures a nice closet, who, to whom it will belong? It will belong to the man who has supplied you all these things. Similarly, you may be changing the form of the material elements, but you are not proprietor. The proprietor is Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa conscious. If we understand this philosophy, that "Everything belongs to Kṛṣṇa..." That is the fact. And if you do not understand that, that is māyā. Māyā means not fact, mā-yā.

Lecture on SB 1.5.22 -- Vrndavana, August 3, 1974:

Either you take this wood or you take this water or this ether or chemical, the original cause is Kṛṣṇa. Now, to be ascertained, education, that why it is called Kṛṣṇa is the origin. That is research work. How it has been...? Just like I give you the hint of research work that, Kṛṣṇa says that "The earth is my energy, separated energy." And earth is the cause of the wood. And wood is the cause of the fire. Fire is the cause of melting... So many, so many. You can go. So idaṁ hi puṁsas tapasaḥ...kavibhir nirūpito (SB 1.5.22). Describe the attributes of Kṛṣṇa. You can write. Just like you can write volumes of books on this table. If you are intelligent enough, you can make research work on the table. But in that research work, conclude that Kṛṣṇa is the origin. A carpenter can, he can write about Kṛṣṇa, if he's thoughtful. Anyone. Therefore it is said, yad-uttamaśloka-guṇānuvarṇanam. Whatever your profession is there, you know that the original cause is Kṛṣṇa. Now make research work and find out how Kṛṣṇa is the original cause. That is education. That is wanted. Am I right?

Lecture on SB 1.7.16 -- Vrndavana, September 14, 1976:

Generally the sons of brāhmaṇa and kṣatriyas especially, these two sects, up to vaiśya, they were trained up as brahmacārīs. And śūdras were not interested. The door is open for everyone, but the lower class, except brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, they are not interested to become brahmacārī or their parents are not interested. Just like we are going to open this brahmacārī school, or āśrama, but I am doubtful whether we'll get many children. Because in this age people are interested to become śūdras. Nobody is interested to become brāhmaṇa. Technology. Technology means śūdra. Technology is not the business of a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, or vaiśya. No. Just like blacksmith, goldsmith, carpenter, craftsman. These are technology. They are meant for the śūdras. Brāhmaṇas, they are to be trained up how to become truthful, how to become controller of the senses, how to become simple, how to become tolerant. In this way.

Lecture on SB 1.8.24 -- Los Angeles, April 16, 1973:

So in that assembly of Draupadī's svayaṁvara there was Karṇa also. Draupadī knew... Draupadī's real purpose was to accept Arjuna as her husband. But she knew that Karṇa is there. If Karṇa competes, then Arjuna will not be able to succeed. Therefore she said that "In this competition, except the kṣatriyas, nobody can compete." That means Karṇa at that time was not known that he was a kṣatriya. He was the son of Kuntī before her marriage. So people did not know. It was secret. So Karṇa was maintained by a carpenter. Therefore he was known as a śūdra. So Draupadī took advantage of this and said that "I do not wish that any carpenter shall come here and compete. I don't want that." So Karṇa was not allowed. So Karṇa took it as great insult.

Lecture on SB 1.8.24 -- Mayapura, October 4, 1974:

So Karṇa is not a kṣatriya." Karṇa's history is that Karṇa is the pre-marriage son of Kuntī. Before her being married, he was born of Kuntī from the ear. Therefore his name is Karṇa. But still, out of social fear, Kuntī did not kill the child. Nowadays they kill. But he floated the child on a boat, and the boat was let loose, go anywhere. So one carpenter collected Karṇa and raised him. But he was kṣatriya. He was Kuntī's son, born by sun, sun-god, Sūrya. So Kuntī had the power of calling. He got the benediction from Durvāsā. Durvāsā gave her the benediction that "You can call any demigod, and at once he will come by this mantra." So when Kuntī was young, not married, so Durvāsā became the guest of her father, and she served Durvāsā Muni very nicely, attending as maidservant. Although she was king's daughter, but because Durvāsā was guest, he was taken care of very nicely. So Durvāsā became very pleased and gave her this blessing, that "You can call any demigod, as you like." So out of curiosity she chanted the mantra and called the sun-god, Vivasvān. So he came. So he wanted to give her a child, benediction. She said that "I am unmarried. I cannot have child." "No, this child will be born from your ear." Akṣata-yoni. Akṣata-yoni means a girl who has no union with any other man. That is called akṣata-yoni. So in this way Karṇa was born, but he was raised by a carpenter. Therefore he was not considered to be a kṣatriya. So Draupadī knew that Karṇa, if he contests, then he will be victorious, so she played a trick that "I cannot allow anyone else except the kṣatriyas to contest in this svayaṁvara."

Lecture on SB 1.8.26 -- Los Angeles, April 18, 1973:

You cannot manufacture bread. You have simply transformed God's grain... The grain, the wheat is given by God, and you have simply transformed. But transforming something from something, that does not become your property. Just like I give some carpenter some wood, some implement, and salary. And he makes a very nice, beautiful closet. To whom this closet will belong. To the carpenter, or the man who has supplied the ingredients? To whom it will belong? The carpenter cannot say that: "Because I have transformed this wood into such nice closet, it is mine." No. It is not yours. Similarly, who is supplying the ingredients, rascal? That is Kṛṣṇa's. Kṛṣṇa says: bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva... prakṛtir me aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4). "This is My property." You have not created this sea, the land, the sky, the fire, the air. It is not your creation. You can transform these material things, tejo-vāri-mṛdāṁ vinimayaḥ, by mixing and transforming. You take earth from the land, you take water from the sea and mix it and put it in the fire. It becomes a brick. And then you pile up all this brick and make a skyscraper building. But wherefrom you got this ingredient, rascal, that you are claiming this skyscraper yours? This is intelligent question. You have stolen the property of God, and you are claiming that it is your property. This is knowledge. This is knowledge.

Lecture on SB 1.10.4 -- London, November 25, 1973:

Everyone has to do his work according to his capacity. Just like in ordinary life also, we do not see that everyone is able to do everything. No. There are certain class of men. If you want some help for repairing your electric wiring, you must call for an electrician, not a carpenter. But when you want to repair a door, you require a carpenter. That is Vedic division. Therefore there was caste system.

Lecture on SB 1.10.7 -- Mayapura, June 22, 1973:

Generally, the son is born from the vagina, but Kuntī's son was born from the ear. Therefore Karṇa. The first son was Karṇa. Unmarried. Therefore Karṇa was, I mean to say, given away, because she could not show, and when Karṇa was floating on the water, that one carpenter picked up and he raised him. So Karṇa was known as the carpenter's son, śūdra's son. Actually, he is Kuntī's son. So when Karṇa was killed, Kuntī began to cry. And Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja inquired, "Mother, why you are crying?" At that time she admitted, "Karṇa was my son." "Oh? Such a secret you did not disclose? We treated Karṇa as our enemy. We could have taken..." There are so many incidences like that.

Lecture on SB 1.16.4 -- Los Angeles, January 1, 1974:

So this is the process, that the four castes—brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya... They were caste system when they actually things were going on. Just like a carpenter. His son naturally becomes a carpenter by seeing the father's work. So he can be very easily classified as a carpenter. Similarly, formerly, the brāhmaṇa family, kṣatriya family, vaiśya family, they were following the rules and regulations in such a way that naturally a brāhmaṇa's son became a brāhmaṇa. Because he has learned already the brāhmaṇa principle from the parent.

Lecture on SB 5.5.1 -- Delhi, November 28, 1975:

Everything God's property because Kṛṣṇa says, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). This microphone, what it is? It is made of some earthly metal, wood, but the material belongs to God. I may have taken advantage of taking this material and manufactured something. That does not mean it is mine. If a carpenter makes a good furniture and the wood is supplied by somebody else and the carpenter is paid his wages, when the nice furniture is made, to whom it will belong? To the carpenter or to the person who has supplied the ingredients? It is very commonsense question.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.281-293 -- New York, December 18, 1966:

Viṣṇu is the incarnation of the modes of goodness, and Śiva is the incarnation of the modes of annihilation, and Brahmā is the in-charge. Brahmā is secondary. Brahmā is the secondary creator. First of all, the everything is, the principle, the material principle ingredients and the guṇas and the everything is created by Viṣṇu. Then, the secondary creation, with those ingredients, all these planetary system, everything, is created by Brahmā. So Brahmā is also a secondary creator. And then Viṣṇu maintains. Just like to a carpenter you give wood and planks and materials and screw and other thing, and the carpenter makes a very good cabinet, and you maintain that, similarly, this brahmāṇḍa, the secondary creation, is Brahmā, and Viṣṇu is the maintainer, and when it is to be destroyed, it is destroyed by Lord Śiva.

Festival Lectures

Gundica Marjanam Cleansing of the Gundica Temple, Lecture (the day before Ratha-yatra) -- San Francisco, July 4, 1970:

Vasudeva is kṣatriya, and Nanda Mahārāja is a vaiśya. Kṣatriya business is royal family, and vaiśya, they are agriculturalists, traders, krsi-go-raksya, and protection of cows. These three business, livelihood of the vaiśya. Kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyam (BG 18.44). Kṛṣi means agriculture, and go-rakṣya, cow protection. This is Vedic civilization. A section of people, they are engaged in different activities. Not that a man is working as a carpenter and he's called, "Come on. You have to go to Vietnam to fight." This is not very scientific. He has been trained up as a carpenter, and now he's called to fight. That is not perfect division of... The fighting is required, but there must be a class fully trained up for fighting. That is kṣatriya. There must be a class of men simply for cultivation of spiritual knowledge. There must be a class fully for business, cow protection, agriculture. That is also required. Nothing is neglected.

Gundica Marjanam Cleansing of the Gundica Temple, Lecture (the day before Ratha-yatra) -- San Francisco, July 4, 1970:

The whole human society is suffering for want of good brain. (break) ...created a nonsense democracy. A carpenter is called to fight? A cow slaughterer is called to preside over the meeting? What is this? One must be fit for the business. If you want to make one king, he must be just like royal, ideas, always thinking of the welfare of the citizens. Just like Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja. The whole business was how the people will be happy. When Parīkṣit Mahārāja was born, the child, it is the Vedic system as soon as a child is born, immediately expert brāhmaṇas, astrologers, are called. Automatically, they... That is called jāta-kriyā. There is a function. There are ten kinds of functions. From the point of begetting a child up to the point of death, there are saṁskāras, or reformatory process. By that process a human being is made perfect. That is called daśa-vidha-saṁskāra, ten kinds of processes. This upanayana, this initiation, offering the sacred thread, that is also out of those ten processes.

General Lectures

Lecture -- Seattle, September 30, 1968:

Prabhupāda: So when you speak of God, do you know what is the definition of God?

Guest: Yes. I thought He was love.

Prabhupāda: Love is not definition; love is the action. Yes, love. I love God. Love is my activity. But there must be some definition of God. That also you know. You now forget. Now, in one word, they say "God is great." So how do you test one's greatness? Next point. If you say that "This man is very great," now there must be an understanding how you estimate that he is great. These are different stages of understanding. So how do you understand that God is great? What is your calculation, that from, on this point, God is great? Just like in your Bible it is said, "God said 'Let there be creation,' and there was creation." Is it not? Is it not statement? So here is greatness. He simply said, "Let there be creation," and there was creation. Can you do that? Suppose you are very nice carpenter. Can you say, "Let there be a chair," and at once there is a chair? Is it possible? Suppose you are manufacturer of this watch. Can you say that "I say, let there be watch," and there is immediately watch? That is not possible. Therefore God's name is satya-saṅkalpa. Satya-saṅkalpa. Satya-saṅkalpa means whatever He thinks, immediately it is present.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Charles Darwin:

Prabhupāda: You want to see my great-great-great-great-grandfather?

Śyāmasundara: But he must have left some remains.

Prabhupāda: I am the remaining. I am his descendant.

Śyāmasundara: But he made no tools, or he had no house?

Prabhupāda: Who said? You said. You said that there may not, but because my fore... I can make tools; naturally, my grandfather, he can make too. And what is there making tools?

Śyāmasundara: No. But why weren't there any tools left behind for us to find, remnants?

Prabhupāda: What?

Śyāmasundara: Why no remains of tools or other evidence of other men.

Prabhupāda: What is the use of tools? Tools are used for the carpenters, and we are not carpenters.

Śyāmasundara: But if there were high forms of men living...

Prabhupāda: Then he's (indistinct) with the carpenters, not the philosophers.

Śyāmasundara: ...they must have lived in cities.

Prabhupāda: My forefathers were philosophers. They did not require any tools.

Śyāmasundara: They required no houses?

Prabhupāda: No. Even they required, they called some carpenter and they did it.

Śyāmasundara: Yes. My point is that there...

Prabhupāda:Because there is no tools, therefore there is no civilization?

Śyāmasundara: But tools, not... Houses or anything that men have to use, there should be some remains left behind when their civilization...

Prabhupāda: What is remains? Remains means just like the coal, that is the remains.

Śyāmasundara: Coal.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Śyāmasundara: Coal is the remains of trees, plants...

Prabhupāda: Yes. This is the remains.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Coal, oil, petroleum.

Śyāmasundara: That means there was some evidence that there were... If we look in coal beds we find remains of trees that were very simple, no complex forms of trees. Now trees are much more complex.

Prabhupāda: Complex or simple, it doesn't matter. There were trees.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Actually, the coal doesn't say whether the tree was complex or not.

Śyāmasundara: No, but they find impressions from leaves and the carboniferous age, they find that the remains of trees, plants, twigs, all very simple forms like our (indistinct). Today they're more...

Prabhupāda: Our evidence is intelligence, not with tools and (indistinct). Our evidence is intelligence. We find, we get Vedic information by disciplic succession-highly intelligent. So that is our evidence. Not the tools.

Śyāmasundara: The Scripture. The evidence which is written and spoken in...

Prabhupāda: Yes. And that is coming by śruti, by hearing. Just like Vyāsadeva heard from Nārada, Nārada heard from Brahmā, millions and millions of years ago.

Philosophy Discussion on Charles Darwin:

Prabhupāda: So we get in the Vedas such intelligent information; therefore we understand that our forefather was very, very learned(?).

Śyāmasundara: For instance, the Sanskrit language was so perfect...

Prabhupāda: Yes, Sanskrit language, everything, wonderful. So we are not carpenters, that we have to find out tools. We are brāhmaṇas.

Philosophy Discussion on Thomas Henry Huxley:

Prabhupāda: The nature is dead body, matter. So how it can be rational? Just like this table is a dead wood. How it can be rational? That is nonsense. The carpenter is rational, who has made the wood in the shape. So he says the nature is rational. Nature is dead matter. How it can be rational? Therefore there is a rational being behind the nature. That is God. This, the wood, is dead. The wood, out of its own accord, cannot become a table. The carpenter is shaping the wood into table. That is rational. Therefore behind the dead nature, the rational being is God. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā. I think Mr. Huxley is supposed to have read..., understand he has given some comment on the Ramakrishna Mission Bhagavad-gītā, but he has not studied Bhagavad-gītā thoroughly.

Page Title:Carpenter (Lectures)
Compiler:MadhuGopaldas
Created:12 of Feb, 2010
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=22, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:22