Daughter (Conversations 1976 - 1977)

Expressions researched:
"daughter" |"daughter's" |"daughters"

Notes from the compiler: VedaBase query: daughter* not "son* and daughter*" not "daughter* in law*" not "daughter* of"

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 20, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Khanā was a woman, very intelligent. Wife... I think she was wife of Varāha Mihira. He was very great astrologer, and she learned from her husband, and then she explained in common language. That is Khanāra Vacana.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Who?

Prabhupāda: This Khanāra Vacana. She was... I think so... I don't know whether... She was the wife of a great, a very big astrologer.

Jayapatākā: There was nine ṛṣis of one rājā, and then she was the daughter of one of those ṛṣis.

Prabhupāda: Oh, maybe, daughter or wife.

Jayapatākā: Wife of a..., also.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: It's amazing how everything is so scientifically analyzed in the Vedas. The Westerners...

Prabhupāda: Therefore we say "perfect." Śruti-pramāṇam.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Even to the point of knowing about a certain amount of rain coming at the end of a particular season and how that indicates about the administration.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes, everything. Daṇḍa-rājā puṇya-deśa.

Morning Walks -- January 22-23, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Every śloka there is śabda, dhātu, everything. Nominative, objective. (break) ...some you are going to say, just study yourself, whether it is not the civilization of asses and pigs. You have to understand first of all. Is it not? They are working hard like an ass just to become an ideal pig. Is it not this civilization?

Harikeśa: Having sex with mother, daughter, sister...

Prabhupāda: Yes. How śāstra has picked up the example, just see. Śva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra. Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate... (SB 5.5.1). What is that?

Harikeśa: Viḍ-bhujāṁ ye.

Morning Walks -- January 22-23, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Viḍ-bhujāṁ ye. This is not civilization. This is civilization, tapasya: no meat-eating, no this, no this, that, and become perfect, ideal brāhmaṇa life, satya śama dama śuci jñāna vijñāna. This is civilization. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. Unless you become civilized like this, there is no opportunity of brahma-jijñāsā. And so long you do not inquire about Brahman, that you remain, that pigs and hogs and asses. If human civilization is wasted to cultivate the pig civilization, naturally, "All right, you come here. Become a pig now. Take this body." Kṛṣṇa will say, "Nature, prakṛti, he got this chance to become human being, but has misused. Kindly give him a body of pig."

īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ

hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati

bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni

yantrārūḍhāni māyayā

(BG 18.61)

Then you get this yantra, how you can become perfect pig, whole day and night eat stool, and as soon as you get another opposite party, have sex. Doesn't matter whether it is daughter or mother or sister.

Morning Walk -- February 9, 1976, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They marry within their family.

Prabhupāda: Yes. And uncle's daughter.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Uncle's daughter.

Prabhupāda: Yes. The father and his brother, so his daughter, his son can marry.

Bhavānanda: First cousins.

Prabhupāda: First cousin, yes.

Jayapatākā: There was some case of that in the royalty in France, and they got some bleeding disease from that, hemophilia. If they got any cut, then that would never heal. It would only bleed until they died.

Prabhupāda: So it is very scientific not to get married of the same blood.

Morning Walk -- March 19, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is mercy. When they excuse a saintly person, that is, that is their great mercy. Now, according to Vedic law, a saintly person is never subjected to any law. He's paramahaṁsa. He's never.... Rather, the order is he must be given all help that he wants. That is the Vedic civilization. And brahmacārī, sannyāsīs, they should be treated as children at home, so that wherever they go, they will be treated just like children: "Oh, he's my son. He's my dependent." They will treat like that. And they also go to every home: "Mother, give me some food." So he's children, as the child asks from the mother, "Give me some food." This is system. This is civilization. And M.A., Ph.D., and searching after woman, how to induce her, and being searched out in the airport, whether he's a rogue—what is this education? We don't want this education. (break) ...student life we have seen practically, one big professor, Dr. Brajendranatha Śrī. So he had another Ph.D. student, and that student kidnapped his daughter and went away. He was so educated that kidnapped his teacher's or the master's daughter and went away. . What is that word? Kāmātura.

Morning Walk -- April 12, 1976, Bombay:

Dr. Patel: These Vaiṣṇava ācāryas don't allow their feet to be touched because they feel that he should...

Prabhupāda: So why they do not utilize it proper?

Dr. Patel: This is a private thing. They want to be (indistinct) My daughter (indistinct) boy who is studying.... He has his M.D. of London (indistinct)

Prabhupāda: It is settled up. Very nice. And son? Your son?

Dr. Patel: My son is in the Caine(?) Hospital, a professor of medicine.

Prabhupāda: No, no, he is also married? No.

Dr. Patel: He is married, yes.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Father-mother's responsibility up to marriage. Then they are.... They are locked. They are locked.

Morning Walk -- April 13, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: You can do that. You can do that. People will read it, Bhagavad-gītā grammar. On the Bhagavad-gītā teach them grammar. Just like Jīva Gosvāmī compiled Hari-nāmāmṛta-vyākaraṇa, similarly, you write. You have got both the knowledge, Sanskrit, and through English, Bhagavad-gītā grammar. People will take it. I have no time; otherwise I have done it. Simply nominative case, objective case, śabda-rūpa. Jayapatākā's plan is prepared or not?

Saurabha: We are going to do that today, Śrīla Prabhupāda. (break)

Dr. Patel: (Hindi) That is taught by the mother.

Prabhupāda: They are killing their children. In the Western countries the mothers are killing children, advising girls, daughters, "Oh, you are pregnant? Kill." (Hindi) (end)

Morning Walk -- April 14, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: You'll get. As you get miserable condition of life—you don't like it but it comes—similarly, happy condition will also come according to your destiny. Why you are wasting time for this? This is the decision of the śāstra. You cannot change your destiny. If you have to be, have to work like a coolie, even after becoming Ph.D. you'll have to work like a coolie. You cannot change it. (aside:) Hare Kṛṣṇa. (Hindi) Jaya. This is.... Therefore formerly any man was satisfied in any position. They were not trying to develop economic condition, brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra. (aside:) Hare Kṛṣṇa. She is your daughter?

Indian man: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Morning Walk -- April 14, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: His wife received us very nicely.

Dr. Patel: Very cultured people. My cousin's daughter is married to his nephew, Modinagarawala. He's a big architect.

Prabhupāda: Yes. No, Modi, he...

Dr. Patel: This Modi, is, I mean, an industrialist, but his nephew, an architect.... My niece was studying in London, and she married with him in England. Intercommunal marriage.

Abhirāma: Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Morning Walk -- April 15, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: And they live in the forest.

Dr. Patel: They are sannyāsīs. (laughs)

Prabhupāda: But number-one rogue. Each of them keeping one dozen women, at least, and no discrimination between wife or daughter. No discrimination. Just like hogs. That's all. No discrimination.

Yaśomatī-nandana: Cows are also vegetarians.

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Yaśomatī-nandana: Cows, they are also vegetarians.

Morning Walk -- April 15, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: So he may say that "I have passed B.A., M.A., Ph.D., D.H.C.," and "Whether you are Kṛṣṇa conscious?" "No, sir." "Then you are a fool, rascal."

Dr. Patel: (laughs) The B.A., M.A., are māyā degrees.

Prabhupāda: This preaching is done by Śyāmasundara's little daughter, five years, six years. She goes to a gentleman, "Do you know Kṛṣṇa?" So he says, "No, I do not know." "The Supreme Personality of Godhead." Just see. This is preaching. A child can do this preaching work. She has learned from us, and she is convinced that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and she goes to anyone, "Do you know who is Kṛṣṇa?" He says, "No, I do not know." "The Supreme Personality." This is preaching. Then he is a good preacher. That's all. The rascal does not know Kṛṣṇa. He gets at least some information, "Here is Kṛṣṇa." And on this basis our Dr. Svarūpa Dāmodara, Ph.D.... You have read that book?

Room Conversation -- April 22, 1976, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: Not developed. But you cannot say there is no soul. Sometimes they say foolishly that the animal, there is no soul. That is foolishness. Everywhere there is soul. It is not developed. So just like a child is as good as animal, but you cannot say in the child there is no soul. The consciousness is not developed. You can say like that. Similarly, there are 8,400,000 species of forms. They are different on account of different development of consciousness. A tree, there is consciousness, but it is very, very covered. If you cut the tree, it does not protest, because the consciousness is not developed. I have seen in children surgical operation. They do not require anesthetics. I remember. My eldest daughter, when she was child, she had some boil here. So the doctor wanted to operate. So I asked him that "Apply anesthetic or do something." "No, no, they don't require."

Room Conversation -- April 23, 1976, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: ...misleader. But he himself has no character. So here it is open secret, to keep a beautiful girl as secretary, everywhere in Europe and America. So where is purity? Purity? Marriage is a taboo, and keep secretary is very good job. And you can get secretary even free of charge. Rather, she will pay. So this is going on. In Vedic civilization marriage is one of the important function of life. As death is important function, birth is important function, similarly, marriage is also important function. Janma-mṛtyu-vivāha. So in this age everywhere, not only.... The marriage is now farce. This is the symptom of Kali-yuga. There will be no more marriage. Svīkāra eva codvāhe. Even there is marriage, there will be simply an agreement. That is happening, and it was written five thousand years ago. Svīkāra eva. Svīkāra means by agreement, signing agreement. No marriage function. Otherwise marriage is a.... According to Vedic system, if one has got some money, he will spend the money in three functions. When the child is born, very gorgeously he will spend money, give in charity. Always in the Bhāg... Nanda Mahārāja is giving in charity cows and money, and Yudhiṣṭhira Mahārāja is giving. Kṛṣṇa, as family man, He was giving in charity. So when the child is born, the horoscope is made, and to make the child happy, blessings of saintly persons, brāhmaṇas, they are given. Ordinary men also sumptuously fed. So bhūribhiḥ.(?) Everyone gives some blessings so that the child is.... Then marriage. During marriage time.... You have seen Kṛṣṇa's mother's marriage? That was the system. The father gives to his heart content, as much as possible, to the daughter.

Morning Walk -- June 5, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They have palatial buildings in Ahmedabad, oh.

Prabhupāda: That, when I was staying there, that young girl, the daughter, she was always taking care, always taking care: "Swamiji, what do you want, what can I serve?"

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That was a wonderful stay. That was when Mrs. Nair surrendered. (laughs)

Prabhupāda: The Bhogilal was coming daily.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: To talk with you?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Morning Walk -- June 11, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Germany is little recouped, but England is finished. Therefore I say India got independence not due to Gandhi. It is due to Hitler. That is my opinion. I have got reason. The Hitler fighting with England made them smashed, so their political power became nil almost, and on this opportunity, Hitler helped Subash Chandra Bose, one of the leaders of India, to organize Indian National Army. This Indian National Army, when attacked, at least made a show of attack from Imphala(?), especially on Calcutta dropped bombs, and the whole Calcutta became vacant. Perhaps myself and a few others remained. I sent my sons.... Of course, daughter was married, but they sent to Navadvīpa, Śrīdhara Mahārāja's āśrama. My wife refused to go out of Calcutta. She said, "I'll be bombed maybe, but I'll not go out." (laughs) So I had to remain in Calcutta. So I've seen bombing and Calcutta all vacant. And one day I was eating in the evening, at night—immediately bombing. Kachori... I was hungry, (laughs) but the eating finished.

Interview with Jackie Vaughn (Black Congressman) -- July 12, 1976, Detroit:

Lekhaśravantī (Walter Reuther's daughter): This is Jackie Vaughn. He's a member of the House of Representatives of Michigan. He's come to speak to you.

Prabhupāda: Thank you very much.

Lekhaśravantī: He came also last year. He's very impressed by Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is black and we worship Him. (laughter) You have seen our Deity? Yes. Kṛṣṇa is from your community. (Prabhupāda laughs) There is no question of black and white. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is above the skin—the soul which is there. Either he's black or white or yellow, it doesn't matter. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). This is the first education, that do not take the body, but the living force within the body. That is important; we have to understand that. We are talking from that platform. Therefore sometimes it is little difficult, because people are very much absorbed with bodily concept of life. But our philosophy begins from that platform where there is no more bodily concept of life. Therefore it is little difficult. (pause) So any question also?

Room Conversation with Mother and Sons -- June 13, 1976, Detroit:

Prabhupāda: Very good. You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and be one of our members. Your son is also very good. Mother good, son good. According to our Indian estimate, son acquires the quality of mother and the daughter acquires the quality of the father.

Mother: I didn't understand.

Pradyumna: You didn't understand? The son acquires the quality of the mother and the daughter acquires the quality of the father. So like mother, like son.

Mother: When Frank(?) was living in the temple, I didn't tell Kim this, but he looked ten years younger than he does right now.

Garden Conversation -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Hari-śauri: And the daughter?

Prabhupāda: Daughter is also son. Son and daughter are the same position. If they are not educated, they become burden. Apaṇḍita, means not educated. Then they become burden, simply eyesore. That is another place he states: varam eko guṇī putro na ca mūrkha-śatair api. Ko 'rthaḥ putreṇa jātena yo na vidvān na bhaktimān. What is the use of such children, of son, who is neither a devotee nor a learned man? So, kāṇena cakṣuṣā kiṁ vā cakṣuḥ pīḍaiva kevalam. Just like blind eyes. What is the use of it? It is simply pains giving. You have got eyes, but if it is diseased, cataract or something, so what is the use of possessing these eyes? Sometimes it becomes so painful that the doctors, they pluck out. You know that? They get out the eyes completely, and decorate with a false eye. This is very delicate place. Even a small grain enters, it gives so much trouble. So if the eye itself is diseased, it is very, very painful. Therefore sometimes he plucks out. Kāṇena cakṣuṣā kiṁ vā cakṣuḥ pīḍaiva kevalam.

Room Conversation -- June 17, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: German people still hate England. They do not like to speak in English; that I have seen. In the bank they know English, but they won't speak it. English everyone knows. The Kaiser was against. They said that Kaiser is the grandson of Queen Victoria, from daughter's side. And King George from the son's side—Edward's seventh son. They were cousin brothers. So this Kaiser, when he was young boy, went to paternal uncle's house, when he was a young boy. So there was some playing, cut with a knife. So royal family, so many doctors came. So the boy was saying, "Why you are trying to cure it? Let the English blood go away." So from the childhood he was so inimical, that "I have got some English blood in my body, my mother is English, father German, so let the English blood go away." I do not know if that is fact, I heard it. (laughs) Maybe. It is joking also and serious. In our childhood in school, a book was there, "England's Work in India."

Morning Walk -- June 21, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: Temple is meant for rendering service to the Lord. So if anyone is rendering service to the Lord, he can live. But not for sense gratification. Those gṛhasthas who still have desire for sense gratification, they may live outside.

Indian man (5): What about the gṛhastha's duty toward his family, like looking after his family and children? In India, like when you have a daughter you have to get her married and...

Prabhupāda: Yes, when you have accepted family life, you must be responsible to carry out. Not that I become family man all of a sudden I give up everything. No, that is not wanted. But if one is actually advanced, he can give up everything. He has no more duty.

'Life Comes From Life' Slideshow Discussions -- July 3, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Whole day and night, work hard to find out some stool, and as soon as we get some stool, a little strength, then have sex without any discrimination. This is civilization. The Vedic civilization forbids: nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye (SB 5.5.1). If you have created a civilization like the hogs who are working day and night hard to find out some stool, and as soon as he eats some stool, his sex power is agitated, and he doesn't care whether mother, sister or daughter, that is hog's life, hog civilization. Work day and night, and have sex. This is hog civilization. And next life become a tree, become a dull-headed tree, a dull-headed stone, mountain. Or dull-headed elephant. Who knows the laws of creation, how one becomes elephant, how one becomes hog, how one becomes a demigod? Do the scientists know it? Then? Where is the knowledge? The knowledge is "Wait for million years, then you'll see life." Just see.

Room Conversation -- July 4, 1976, Washington D.C.:

Hari-śauri: I don't think it would be received very well.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: She might say, "See, I was right."

Prabhupāda: Mother advising young daughter to kill her child.

Rūpānuga: Actually there was a statement in the national magazine, the President's wife was advising her own daughter to the reporters that she should have illicit sex.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Yes, this President's wife, this present First Lady is very abominable. She actually came out and said, "If I were young I would also experiment with drugs." So many things.

Room Conversation -- July 4, 1976, Washington D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Purpose is that "You are young girl, you can have a young boy as friend and have your sex, but don't talk of marriage." This is the plain fact. "You need sex? All right, keep him as friend. Marriage, that I will select a better boy. When we find, then there is question of marriage. He's a clerk, how you can be married with him? He's coming as friend. You enjoy sex, that's all." This is the.... First of all, he was ordered not to come. Then the girl began to cry. Then he allowed, "All right let him come but there is no question of marriage." Why he? Our, that (name witheld). You know? He was Ambassador in Germany. His daughter is a devotee. That boy who was selling books? (name witheld).

Morning Walk -- July 5, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Sadāpūta: Do we accept the way bacteria's reproduce, by fission, splitting in half? I know Kapiladeva instructs there are four different methods—the egg, the lump of flesh, etc. The scientists are saying that bacteria split in half and produce two daughter cells.

Prabhupāda: Bacteria is produced from fermentation. Sveda-ja. Just like nasty bedding, from your perspiration, if you don't clean, then bugs will come. Sveda-ja. In India, the Europeans they eat meat, and automatically bugs and germs come within their coat and shirt due to bad perspiration.

Hari-śauri: When you say that they're born from perspiration like cockroaches, does that mean that the eggs are laid by the female and then the atmosphere of perspiration enables the eggs to be hatched? Like that?

Evening Darsana -- July 7, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: No, educated means they have knowledge, but real knowledge is taken away. He does not know God. Just like a man is rich, but he has no food. It is like that. māyayāpahṛta-jñāna. Therefore his knowledge is misused, duṣkṛtina. This knowledge, without any sense of God... Yes, come in. Sit down. (guests entering)

Vṛṣākapi: This is Mr. Davis, Mr. and Mrs. Davis, Prabhupāda. Their daughter is a devotee here, very good devotee.

Hari-śauri: There's chair if you'd like to sit in the chair. We can bring one more. Bring another chair.

Vipina: Used to be a senator.

Prabhupāda: Perfection of knowledge means to understand God. That is perfection of knowledge. Otherwise, it is imperfect knowledge. Therefore it is called Vedānta. Veda means knowledge. (more people enter)

Room Conversation -- July 7, 1976, Baltimore:

Prabhupāda: No, that is everywhere. But expectation, he is educated, he'll be able. The first thing is in due time, either the girl or the boy must be married, that is Indian system. In due time. Boy not exceeding twenty years or twenty-five years, at most, and girl not exceeding fifteen years, sixteen years, must be. Saṁskāra, this is one of the saṁskāras. Just like garbhādhāna-saṁskāra, this is also one saṁskāra, and marriage is also saṁskāra. Must be married. Daśa-vidha-saṁskāra, ten kinds of saṁskāras, out of which marriage is one of the saṁskāras. And kanyā-dāya. Kanyā-dāya, dāya means by law the father is bound to get his daughter married, by law. He cannot escape the responsibility. This is father's duty.

Room Conversation -- July 7, 1976, Baltimore:

Rūpānuga: You gave the example that if sometimes the man becomes bankrupt he goes to court and the judge says, "You must take this money you have left to your creditors and be satisfied," and he can escape in that way. But the one duty that a father has is getting the daughter married; that he cannot escape.

Prabhupāda: No, therefore it is called dāya, dāya-bhāk, legally he is bound. He may not get his son married, but the daughter must be married. This is father's duty.

Rūpānuga: It is sinful, actually considered sinful, if he doesn't do that.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Because without father the daughter cannot be properly married. Daughter or son, everyone, if the father, mother, by their supervision, the boys and girls get married, that is very good. They see how they will be happy. And without father, mother, simply by lusty desires, that selection may be wrong and that becomes actually happened. Therefore there is divorce.

Room Conversation -- July 7, 1976, Baltimore:

Rūpānuga: In this country the father and the mother, they tell the daughter that "You go out and bring a husband home. You go out and find a young boy and bring him home." And they make them go out in the street to find a husband.

Prabhupāda: I know that. Sometimes they are advised to do business. I know that. When, in our society, in the beginning, I started marriage, the father, mother, did not like it. Nowadays it has become custom, in India also, let the girl have many friends, but don't marry unless you find out a suitable man. Society degrades. Actually the Indian system is that when the girl is utmost twelve years, not more than that, ten to twelve years, she must be married. And the father would see, not necessarily in every case the boy is rich man or educated. If he's healthy and if he can work, he'll "Take charge." Then fortune, faith.

Evening Darsana -- July 8, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Yes. For killing, you cannot kill even vegetable.

Vṛṣākapi: This is Mr., ah, what's your name?

Mr. Boyd: Boyd.

Vṛṣākapi: Mr. Boyd. His daughter is a devotee in Germany.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Mr. Boyd: Barbara. I had the privilege of going to India a month ago and bringing her home, and I met two of your...

Prabhupāda: She is in India?

Evening Darsana -- July 8, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Mr. Boyd: The two that were taken in Philadelphia, they are not what I call quality work, but are the best I could do and run. You didn't sit still too long.

Prabhupāda: This child is your daughter's son?

Mr. Boyd: No, that little fellow came from Germany.

Prabhupāda: She has got children? No.

Mr. Boyd: No, she doesn't have children, but Haṁsadūta Mahārāja sent this child for Himāvatī to take care of at the school, and I guess the school was not ready yet, but she's taking care of him now, and he's a handful, too. She came up to New Delhi with us and spent a couple nights while we were getting some passports straightened around and visas cleared up. We had "Baldy," they called him—I never did know his name. We had a good time with him. It's a real pleasure having this opportunity to meet you.

Prabhupāda: Thank you.

Evening Darsana -- July 8, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: No, that is possible, I can become prime minister or any big man. But if I do not work properly, if I work like animal, then my next life is animal. There is no consideration that "Here is a prime minister, why he should become a dog?" Nature will act. If you infect some disease, you may be prime minister or you may be a common man, if you have infected that disease, you must suffer from that disease. That is nature's law. There is no consideration that "Here is prime minister. He has infected the malaria germs. He should not suffer." Nature's law if not like that. Just like you say that in India there is malaria. So your daughter was not excused, that "Here is a girl coming of very respectable, good family. She should be excused." No excuse. You have infected malaria germ, you must suffer. So similarly, kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya sad-asad-yoni-janmasu (BG 13.22).

Evening Darsana -- July 8, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: No, not necessarily. Who says that?

Mr. Boyd: Well, for two and a half years I've been getting this from my daughter, that women cannot be reincarnated, and it didn't make sense to me. But I've asked questions and looked through the books as much as I could, and I haven't been able to find anything that said that.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: That verse, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya (BG 9.32).

Prabhupāda: Yes, Kṛṣṇa says that even women, he can go back to home, back to Godhead. Striyo vaiśyās tathā śūdrās te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim. There is no such thing. Anyone who is devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he or she will go back to home, back to Godhead. There is no such discrimination. Ordinarily it is supposed that woman is less intelligent than the man. That's a fact. But that is in bodily understanding. But in the spiritual platform, either woman or man or cat or dog or brāhmaṇa or... Everyone is spirit soul. Paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ (BG 5.18). One who is learned, he sees everyone on the same level of spiritual platform.

Morning Walk -- July 11, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: So this is nonsense. Mercy killing. Killing mercy. (laughs) Just see. The action is killing, and that is his mercy. This is their mercy. All contradictory. Killing by mercy? Mercy is killing?

Hari-śauri: There's an example that's just going up to the courts now. There's one family, their daughter was being supported by one machine, so one day they went in early and pulled out the plugs. So now they are being taken to court. They stopped the machine because she'd been in a coma for so long, so they just pulled out the plugs and everything, the machine. So that's what they call mercy killing. They don't like the doctors just to keep them there uselessly.

Rāmeśvara: But then they want to kill the old people. This mercy killing, they think that "An old man is suffering, so let us kill him."

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: They think if someone dies in their sleep, they are very lucky.

Interview with Newsday Newspaper -- July 14, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: Not very much. Therefore I had to leave them and create another family. (laughter)

Interviewer: How many children do you have.

Prabhupāda: I have got two daughters and two sons. My wife is also still living.

Interviewer: Is she Kṛṣṇa conscious?

Prabhupāda: Not very much. Naturally women are after worldly opulence.

Interviewer: Was it difficult for you to give up what you had been doing in order to devote full time.

Conversation After Interview with Religious Editor, Associated Press -- July 16, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: What is Iran's business going on? I got some good report from Nandarāṇī that she is in contact with the Shah's daughter, princess. Is that a fact?

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Well, Nandarāṇī Prabhu is doing very well. She's got a Gurukula, a school for the Indian children, they are being well attended. Also Mahārāja, Parivrājakācārya Svāmī, he has been in touch with the Shah's daughter and he's been preaching to them.

Prabhupāda: Shah's son-in-law is interested, I have heard.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Yes, he is interested.

Conversation After Interview with Religious Editor, Associated Press -- July 16, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: That's good. They are enlightened, the daughter and the son-in-law both?

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Well, they are both interested, but they are also very much...

Prabhupāda: Biased. They are also biased.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Yes.

Prabhupāda: That is natural.

Hari-śauri: The Trans-India people, they'll come tomorrow, at four-thirty, if that's all right, and the doctor is on his way up now. He'll be here in five minutes.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Dayānanda Prabhu is doing very nicely.

Conversation After Interview with Religious Editor, Associated Press -- July 16, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: He is intelligent, but Nandarāṇī is still more intelligent. (laughs) I know that. Both of them are intelligent, but this girl appears to be more intelligent. That's all right. What about their daughters?

Ātreya Ṛṣi: They are there. They're very happy.

Prabhupāda: Where?

Ātreya Ṛṣi: In Tehran.

Prabhupāda: They have gone there?

Ātreya Ṛṣi: They have come.

Prabhupāda: Oh, when?

Conversation After Interview with Religious Editor, Associated Press -- July 16, 1976, New York:

Hari-śauri: Must have been just after we left there.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: A month ago, five, six weeks ago.

Prabhupāda: They have got two daughters.

Ātreya Ṛṣi: Yes. They are there, they also attend Gurukula. They have it regularly now.

Bali-mardana: So that reporter was very impressed. He's a very big reporter. He works for the API, the Associated Press. They give their news to papers all over the world, the news.

Prabhupāda: So let him represent properly.

Interview with Trans-India Magazine -- July 17, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: My first daughter's age is fifty-five. She was born in 1923. You were also born? (pause)

Interviewer: Prabhu, we want to ask you some questions. It's a monthly magazine we have, Trans-India. It circulates northern Indian immigrants in North America and North American, Canadian friends of ours. You know ever since Swami Vivekananda came here in 1896...

Prabhupāda: Ninety-three.

Interviewer: His first one was 1896, I think, his first visit.

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

Prabhupāda: Very nice season in Bombay. Best time.

George Harrison: You know, I think you met Laksmi Shankar, lady singer? Her daughter, who is also a singer, Viji, Viji Śrī Shankar, and she's marrying a South Indian violin player, L. Shankar.

Prabhupāda: He's also Shankar?

George Harrison: Well, he's called L. Shankar. You know that South India they have a funny way around them, they have like a surname. He's just called L. Shankar. His brother is called L. Subhramanyam.

Devotee (1): George says he wants to spend some time in Vṛndāvana.

George Harrison: I was only there for about thirty-six hours last time.

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

Prabhupāda: Find out this verse, brahmacārī gurukule.

Hari-śauri: I think that's in Seven, Two.

Harikeśa: Sixteenth Chapter, first verse, I think. It's the first verse, brahmacārī gurukule.

Jayatīrtha: One man came to the temple, he heard that his daughter had participated in one of our fire sacrifices, and he was afraid that...

George Harrison: Fire sacrifices?

Jayatīrtha: When we have initiations we have a fire sacrifice. He was afraid that she had been sacrificed. (laughter)

Room Conversation -- July 27, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: Even, say, hundred years ago, that Girish Chandra Ghosh, he wanted to introduce theatrical performances, imitating the European theatrical performances, man and woman taking part. So he wanted to invite woman artist. Not a single woman joined. Who will go to public stage to dance, respectable girl? They'll never. That is hundred years. I am speaking, say, about forty years ago. In one of our Dayanika(?) men, the girl was to be married, and it is the custom in India—the bridegroom's party comes to see the girl, whether she is right. Similarly, the girl's party goes to see the.... So they came to see one of my friend's daughter, and the daughter is very beautiful, rich man's daughter. So one of the bridegroom's party questioned, "You know how to dance?"

Room Conversation -- July 27, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: That was the question to the girl: "You have learned something about dancing and singing?" So she was my friend's daughter, my, that friend, Mukunda Mati. His elder brother was there. He became very angry, that "This rascal is asking our daughter whether she knows dancing and singing." She took it as.... He took it as insult, that "Respectable family, daughter should learn how to dance, how to sing?" So immediately he protested, "No, no, no, she does not know how to dance, how to sing. She's not meant for that purpose. We like, of course, a young girl dancing and singing, but we cannot teach our family members. We spend for that outside. You cannot expect our Mullik's family daughter dancing and singing. No. He is well, good(?)." Actually that is.... Dancing? Singing? What is this nonsense?

Room Conversation -- August 2, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Prabhupāda: At least, there was no question of need. We were receiving daily four, five guests, and my father was functioning so many festivals and he was asking... My father gave in marriage four daughters. There was no difficulty. The income was not more than 250 rupees. Of course, that 250 rupees at least ten times now. But still, there was no needy. Not very opulent, but there was no need. The first necessity is to feed and to clothe. So there was no such scarcity. May not be very luxurious life, but there was no scarcity for food and shelter or cloth. There was no scarcity. Happy. That is wanted. Happiness in whatever circumstance. Not that because we did not possess a motorcar, therefore unhappy. I purchased one motor car in 1925, Buick car. Not for personal use, but for using it as a taxi.

Room Conversation -- August 2, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Prabhupāda: Yes. Nephew was my sister's son. We had to maintain one sister and her family. She became widow. So this is Hindu family obligation. When the daughter is widow, she comes to the father's shelter with all family. The father has to maintain.

Hari-śauri: You wouldn't get that in the West. (laughs) They don't even maintain their own parents.

Prabhupāda: On the whole, during British time, people were happy, that I can... The thing is that Britishers were little afraid that "If the government is not good, it will go against our credit, that we may agitate." So they were careful to see that people are happy. But here nobody's careful. Everyone thinks "I'm in my own country. Whatever I do, it is all right." They were conscious, that "We are foreigners. If the management is not good, then it will go against our credit and it will be difficult working such a big England empire." So they were little careful. But these rascals are not... Just like the governor, he was friendly, but what is the report? Did he say? Did not behave very nicely?

Room Conversation With French Commander -- August 3, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Prabhupāda: She cannot be alone. Na sataritatam ananti(?). Woman should not be allowed... Just like children. Children cannot be alone. They must taken care of. Similarly a woman, in childhood, should be taken care of by the father; when she's young, she should be taken care of by the husband; and when she's old, she should be taken care of by elderly sons. You'll find in the Vedic literature, the father's responsibility is until she's handed over to a suitable young man. And the husband's responsibility is so long she hasn't got elderly children. At that time, when she has got elderly children, he can leave home and take sannyāsa. So the process is a woman is kept under protection always. There is no independence for woman. That is... Still, in India it is going on. The father is obliged to find out a suitable husband for the daughter and give her in his charge. Then his responsibility finished. Until that, she is, he's responsible to take care of the daughter. Unmarried girl to remain always under the protection of the father.

Room Conversation with Professor Francois Chenique -- August 5, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Yogeśvara: Professor's upstairs putting on a dhotī. He brought his daughter. Professor Chenique teaches a course in Bhagavad-gītā at the University, and he is also doing translations of Śaṅkarācārya and teaches for the Federation of Yoga. He considers himself a Christian Advaitist. (break) ...some questions regarding the publications in French. For example, on the front of Back to Godhead magazine, in the English edition and other language editions, they have kept the phrase "Godhead is light, darkness is nescience. Where there is Godhead there is no nescience." Now in French it is difficult to translate that. There is no word Godhead. And if you say "God is light," in French it sounds very impersonalist. In French, Dieux est lumiere, "God is light." Many groups say like that. We use the word Godhead, and that distinguishes us from the other groups. Now is the phrase very important, and do you want us to keep it on the front of the magazine? It should be there.

Prabhupāda: There is a little difference between God and Godhead.

Room Conversation with Professor Francois Chenique -- August 5, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Yogeśvara: This is Professor Francois Chenique and his daughter. They drove from Paris this morning to see you.

Prabhupāda: Thank you very much. You can come forward. I have read your review of our book. It is very nice. (translation is given) Very nice. Your study about this tradition, Indian tradition, I think he has mentioned. Indian tradition, the whole Vedic literature... He understands English?

Yogeśvara: Yes, but I should translate, he's asked me to translate.

Room Conversation with Professor Francois Chenique -- August 5, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Prabhupāda: Many thanks for his coming.

Yogeśvara: ...he is very happy to see you, and he does not have any questions. He appreciates very much the Vaiṣṇava point of view.

Prabhupāda: Take this to the daughter.

Yogeśvara: And he thinks that seeing the decline of religion in the West he says it is very important that we are pushing on this mission as we are doing.

Bhūgarbha: He doesn't think he'll be able to follow the life of the Vaiṣṇavas, because our life is too difficult.

Prabhupāda: That attitude will help him. That humbleness, that "I cannot follow," that will help.

Room Conversation with Professor Francois Chenique -- August 5, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Prabhupāda: No. The thing is that religion means to understand God. If one does not understand God, then his religion is still defective. Religion means to understand God. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje ahaituky apratihatā (SB 1.2.6). When you understand God and your relationship with God, then it is perfection of religion.

Bhūgarbha: He said that he feels very thankful that you've given him such a long darśana. He's very happy that you've given so much enlightenment in many subjects. He's just passing through with his daughter. He'd like to stay tomorrow to see the installation of the Deities, but he has to go to a Tibetan temple in the south of France. On Saturday he has to be there, so he has to drive, and he said that he's found the Tibetans are also very good devotees.

Prabhupāda: Very good. Jaya. (end)

Evening Darsana -- August 9, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: They appreciate?

Nandarāṇī: Yes, we have explained to some of them the concepts in "Who is Crazy?" and Īśopaniṣad is a good book for them.

Prabhupāda: So your daughter is good assistant in the matter of cooking?

Nandarāṇī: Yes, they are both very good in cooking. And they clean the altar and they do some maintenance of the altar and the temple room, and they cook and sew, and I give them class in the morning, Bhagavad-gītā in English.

Prabhupāda: Yes, teach them personally. That Aniruddha is always chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Nandarāṇī: They are?

Prabhupāda: No, Aniruddha.

Morning Walk and Room Conversation -- August 9, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda:

tāṅdera caraṇa-sebi-bhakta-sane bās

janame janame hoy ei abhilāṣ

Bhakta-sane bās, that is the essential part of progressing. Dayānanda's daughter came today, in my lavatory.

Hari-śauri: When you were in?

Prabhupāda: Yes, I was going... (break) Generally, this baḍā are made with paṭola(?) leaves, paṭola leaves mashed and mixed with this dahi.

Hari-śauri: Is that just as healthy as nim leaves? Paṭola leaves? Just the same.

Prabhupāda: It is better. (break) ...the influence of the moon planet, the vegetation grows. Do they accept, the modern botanists, influence of moon planet?

Evening Darsan -- August 10, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: Nobody. Do you think your king, Shah, is also happy? No. His sons, daughter, they are happy? No. He is also anxious how to keep his position, exalted position, he has to makes many plans, satisfy so many ministers, so many. He is also full of anxiety. And a small bird eating some grain here, he's attracted for the grain, but he's looking this way, "Oh, here is a man, here is man, he may not do some harm to me." So everyone is full of anxiety. Nobody can be free from anxiety. That is not possible. Sadā samudvigna dhiyam asad-grahāt (SB 7.5.5). Because we have adopted this material life, asad, our mind should always be full of anxiety. Nobody can be free from anxiety. That is not possible. Sadā samudvigna dhiyam asad-grahāt. Because we have accepted this temporary body, we have to be full of anxiety. This is law of nature. And if we act in this life to create another material body, then our all activities are spoiled.

Room Conversation -- August 11, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: So American immigration?

Guest: Yes, he must have taken immigration. Then he is going to America. His son or daughter must be there. All Iranians have daughters and sons in America or Europe. So...

Prabhupāda: What is the reason?

Guest: Reason is because from the last fifty years the education was a big problem here, and the government needed people to get educated. So they gave a lot of facilities that people should send their children out to get educated.

Prabhupāda: Foreign education.

Evening Darsana -- August 11, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: This Afghanistan, when they were Hindus, this Kandahar, the King of Kandahar, his daughter was married to the Pāṇḍavas. Gāndhārī. Gāndhārī(?)...

Guest: That's right.

Prabhupāda: Gāndhārī was the daughter of Kandahar king. Kandahar is still there?

Guest: Yes, well, there are quite a number of Hindus in Kandahar.

Prabhupāda: There are Hindus?

Guest: Oh, yes. Most of the business shops are controlled by Hindus. Also in the school, as well, there are lots of teachers, and education is managed by Hindus. But they are for years... (break) ...for hundreds and hundreds of years. You make this tour around the world once a year or twice a year.

Evening Darsana -- August 12, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: Khicuḍi? Where it is?

Ātreya Ṛṣi: It's here.

Prabhupāda: I'll take. How many children? You have children?

Mrs. Patel: Two sons and one daughter.

Prabhupāda: Two sons.

Mrs. Patel: And one daughter. They have gone to India for their holidays now. They wanted to go to India.

Prabhupāda: So, give everyone little, little prasāda. You have seen our Bombay temple? We are spending about one crore of...

Mr. Patel: We have seen this Vṛndāvana. Last year we went.

Prabhupāda: There we have spent more than fifty lakhs.

Room Conversation About Mayapura Construction -- August 19, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: So Indians did not like that Mohammedans may go away. Rather, when Shri Raj Birla (?) was arrested by flight, the Bengali zamindars, they protested. Rani Bhavani, she protested. Although it is alleged that Shri Raj Birla (?) kidnapped her daughter. But if Shri Raj Birla kidnapped her daughter, how he (she) supported Shri Raj Birla? There are so many falsehoods. On the whole, the Indians never planned to drive away the Mohammedans. They never. That's a fact. They were happy because there was no exploitation. All these Mohammedans, they made their home in India, so whatever lavishly they were spending, that was coming to the Indians. In Taliganj (?) there is a man. Now they are aristocratic family. He was servant of the nawab, and he stolen one shoes, one feet, which was bedecked with jewels. So by selling that jewel he became a rich man. So although they were using jewelled shoe, but it was in India.

Room Conversation -- August 22, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Nephew, nephew of Ford, that's a fact. Alfred is from the daughter's side. So the present Mr. Ford, his nephew, certainly, because daughter's side. His mother is the daughter, granddaughter of Henry Ford. Alfred's mother is the granddaughter of Henry Ford. Therefore the present Ford is the maternal uncle of Alfred.

Maṇihāra: "This will be a cultural gateway of India for the people of the world. Hyderabad is the South Indian headquarters for ISKCON in India. The magnificent Śrī Śrī Rādhā-Madana-mohana temple at Nampally Station Road, inaugurated by Swami Prabhupāda, will serve as a center of the cultural, spiritual, educational and social activities given to uplift the lives of people here. According to Śrī Mahāṁśa Swami, the president of the Society here, the devotees will hold seminars in colleges, factories, business centers, universities, schools, etc., to teach the techniques of spiritualizing the day-to-day life.

Room Conversation -- September 6, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: That is tapasya. Tapasya means brahmacārī. Tapasā brahmacaryeṇa śamena damena, tyāgena, satya-śaucābhyāṁ yamena niyamena (SB 6.1.13). This is tapasya. It is very strong power, this... Therefore Bhāgavata said that this power, sex power, is there in the hogs. They have no discrimination between mother, sister, daughter. And simply busy. The example is given. This capacity is there in the hog. Are you hog? How example is given. Do you like to remain like a hog? One should be saintly. Yes. Then where is the difference, I'm a human being? I am treating like hog. Therefore this very example. Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujām (SB 5.5.1). This is for the hogs. This hog civilization is going on as human civilization. That is the difficulty. Whole world is hogs and dogs. Big, big United Nations. And what are the assembly? Hogs and dogs. The politicians, as soon as he gets some time for relax, immediately he becomes hogs. Go to the hotel, prostitute, and drink and dance. Is it not?

Room Conversation -- September 9, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: The king and the daughter went to a great muni's house, a saintly person. Cyavana Muni, Cyavana Muni. And the daughter, young daughter, out of ignorance, she committed some offense. Took one straw and pierced through one insect. The muni was sitting there as insect. So the result was—because she offended—all the men of the king, means the soldiers, the secretaries, they stopped passing urine and stool.

Hari-śauri: The muni was there in the form of an insect?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Room Conversation -- September 9, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: So the result was all of them became without passing stool. So the king could understand there is some offense. So... Because formerly the kings were saintly persons. He asked all his men, "What you have done?" Then the girl said, "Father, I have done something." Then he made this plea that, "Kindly excuse this girl... Out of ignorance..." He was very angry, that Cyavana Muni. His attitude was always angry. Then all of them became very much aggrieved. Then he asked, "Whether your girl is married?" King could understand that "He wants to marry my daughter. Otherwise, why he's inquiring." And he was so old... I have got my skin still tight. All loose.

Room Conversation -- September 9, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: And he was old. So he had to agree. Otherwise, the whole thing was catastrophe. So the king said, "Yes. She's not married. If you like I can offer my daughter to you." Then everything was settled up. But the daughter was young, and he was like her grand, great-grandfather. Match was not at all suitable, but he had to offer. So this girl also took it seriously, and she was serving the old husband very faithfully like honest, chaste wife. Never mind. Then, some days after, the same saintly person was visited by two heavenly physicians, aśvinī-kumāras. The aśvinī-kumāras, they had some difficulty. They were not allowed in the society of the demigods while drinking soma-rasa. They had some defects, something like that. So when the physician came to see Cyavana Muni he said that "If you can give me young age, beautiful, you can make me by your treatment beautiful young man, which is very pleasing to young girls, then I shall give you the facility of drinking soma-rasa in the society of demigods." "Yes."

Room Conversation -- September 9, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: They dipped down in a certain lake. In this way, he became a very beautiful young man. Then for soma-yajña, his father-in-law, the daughter's father came. He came. So he was surprised, "How is that? My daughter is with another young man?" He became angry. "My dear daughter, what is this? You are defaming your husband's family and my family." He began to chastise like that. And just see. Because he sees that "I got my daughter married with old Cyavana. How is that, with a young man?" Just see. Condemned like anything. And she was laughing. She knew that "I have not changed my husband. A change of body." Then she said, "My dear father, don't be angry. He's your real son-in-law. He has become now young by treatment." Then he was very pleased and embraced his daughter, that "You are so nice." This is Vedic civilization. Even one has got old, going to die husband, she cannot change. This is the chastity.

Room Conversation -- September 9, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: It is a question of culture. Culture. She was king's daughter, royal, and married her with a muni, old, rotten. Older than me. All the skin has become slackened. But still she was serving him just like worshipable lord. The age difference is great-grandfather and great-granddaughter. You'll find in Bhāgavatam. Lord Śiva, he could not construct even a house. He was living underneath a tree. And his wife, Durgā, sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya-sādhana-śaktir ekā (Bs. 5.44). She can create a new world, so powerful, Durgā. She's living with her husband underneath a tree. Never claims, "My dear husband, if you cannot, I can make one." There is a story about that. That, "People criticize us.

Room Conversation -- November 11, 1976, Vrndavana:

Manīṣā: (Antardhyāna's daughter, terminally ill) But if one is not, Śrīla Prabhupāda, what will happen?

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Hari-śauri: If one is not complete in their Kṛṣṇa consciousness then what will happen?

Prabhupāda: She will get again birth in a human body. That is guaranteed so that he'll get again chance of chanting. That is also great gain. Ordinary person, he does not know what body he is going to get next body. But a person who is in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, chanting, he is guaranteed. Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe (BG 6.41). He is guaranteed to take birth as human being in a very sacred family like brāhmaṇa and very rich family. So I have to go.

Room Conversation -- November 20, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Oh. (chuckles) We can go some day.

Akṣayānanda: I think I met somebody from there.

Prabhupāda: Oh, his daughter came there.

Akṣayānanda: Yes, yes.

Prabhupāda: Daughter or granddaughter.

Akṣayānanda: Something like that, yes. He was talking about...

Prabhupāda: When I first came in Vṛndāvana I stayed in the Keśī-ghāṭa. That is very palatial building. My room was as big as this. Yes, as big. Plus one side room, plus one entrance room. I was paying fifteen rupees. And I could see whole Vṛndāvana, Yamunā, from the top my house. It is very nice, very palatial.

Evening Darsana -- December 3, 1976, Hyderabad:

Vāsughoṣa: They feel great anxiety to talk about God. Once, about three years ago, I had met one big scientist from University of Chicago. Just a chance there was one... My father had invited me back home for something. The scientist was there. We got in a big discussion with him and his daughter. They were just saying, "We don't see God. There is no evidence of God." Even logically we could show them. They still didn't want to accept. It was so obvious to them. Ultimately they couldn't say anything.

Prabhupāda: What is their logic to deny God?

Morning Walk -- December 5, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: It is an argument like this, that "You have gone to a physician for curing your disease. Why you are not cured?" This is nonsense question. It will take some time to be cured. Do you mean to say as soon as you go to the physician, you become cured? Do you think? Why don't you answer like that? A foolish man will say like that, that "You have taken to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Why you are now suffering?" Yes, suffering will be... Kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati (BG 9.31). So the assurance is there. You take the treatment. Why do you expect? Immediately you go to the physician. A father gets the daughter married, expecting a child. Does it mean as soon as she's married, immediately child? And if a rascal says, "Oh, she is married, and there is no child?" Because he's a rascal. You must wait. Now she is married, it is sure she'll have child. That's a fact. But if the rascal wants, "Now my daughter is married. There is no child?" What is this nonsense? This question is like that, that "You have come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Why you are suffering?" You cannot answer this?

Morning Walk and Room Conversation -- December 26, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: That is not possible. That is for you, Indians. But you have no time. You are busy with your daughter's marriage, and you simply advise.

Guest (1): I am busy?

Prabhupāda: Yes, everyone. Every Indian is busy with his own affair, he'll come and advise. That's all. Advise gratis. But he will not do himself.

Guest (1): No, but...

Prabhupāda: No, this is going... I have got full experience, that Indians, they will come and give some advice, and go away for daughter's marriage. That's all.

Guest (1): Well there are various types of Indians, you know.

Prabhupāda: That type of, 99%.

Morning Walk and Room Conversation -- December 26, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Then why don't you do that now? God will take care. It is called, my Guru Mahārāja used to say, "civil suicide." Civil suicide. Just like if you commit suicide, that is criminal. But this is voluntarily committing suicide. Now I am dead. Whatever you like, you do. So we have to commit civil suicide if we are actually attached to Kṛṣṇa. Sarva-dharmān parityajya... (BG 18.66). That is gṛha-dharma. But Kṛṣṇa says, "Give up that." But that attachment is there. I do not think... Suppose I die immediately. Who will take care of my daughter? At that time we say "God." And why not now?

Morning Walk and Room Conversation -- December 26, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Therefore wherever you stay, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. That will help. Thākā ekhana pāiyā.(?) Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, try for the daughter's marriage. That will help. (break)

Guest (1): Civil suicide is a good thought.

Prabhupāda: That is the thought only. Oh, Doctor comes.

Dr. Patel: I asked him where you were and he said that you are on the roof.

Prabhupāda: Jaya. (Hindi) (break) I do not know. (break)

Dr. Patel: You agreed, huh? (indistinct) is coming.

Prabhupāda: I am going within four days.

Morning Walk and Room Conversation -- December 26, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: You live in London?

Guest (6): No, he's studying. He's an executive with the German company over there via India this German firm. And she is my daughter.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi) Everyone be happy and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. This is our... A good family. (break)

Dr. Patel: So his friend is my friend. (Everyone talking at once.) Swamiji says, he gave a good comparison about the bulbs Some bulbs have forty candles, some have twenty-five, some a thousand.

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. Jaya. So where is our Guru Mahārāja?

Devotee: Gurudāsa Swami?

Room Conversation -- December 26, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: There is no difference. And if he makes such distinction, then how he's paṇḍita? Then he's not paṇḍita. But it is etiquette, mātā svasā duhitā vā. One should not very closely sit down even with mother, sister, and daughter. That restriction is there. But that does not mean that one should not see even a woman. So we are following that principle. Never mind, man or woman, she can offer her respect, but not very near. That restriction must be there. (break) We have support from very high circle. Scholar, priest, even father, mother, parent. Many old gentlemen come to congratulate me, "Swamiji, it is our great fortune that you have come to this country." In Los Angeles they have been very nice. Many parents used to come. (Hindi)

Morning Walk -- December 27, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Tapasya means to rescue the soul from this material condition, yena sattvaṁ śuddhyet, to purify your existence. What is the impurification? Impurification is that the soul is subjected to repetition of birth and... That is impurification. That he does not know. So he is missing the goal of life, and he's thinking this temporary so-called happiness for twenty years, forty years, fifty years, or, utmost, hundred years, that is his ultimate. That is a misleading. He does not know the aim of life. He thinks this material enjoyment to make this body stout and strong and enjoy senses like the hogs. Therefore it has been (called) na arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye. The sewer hog, he is thinking, "I am eating stool. I am getting fatty. That is my life. And I am enjoying sex without any discrimination." No discrimination of sex, either mother or sister and daughter—it doesn't matter. This is hog's life. He does not know. As soon as he becomes fatty he'll be captured, and the bhangis will, what is called?

Morning Walk -- December 27, 1976, Bombay:

Guest (2): No, I do, but...

Guest (1): (Hindi) My daughter.

Prabhupāda: I have not seen him?

Guest (1): He used to come.

Prabhupāda: So anyone's question about this, this misdirected civilization? In India there was no such misguided civilization. Now they have learned how to misguide people, and they have taken this ideal, that "Unless we become like the Europeans and Americans our progress is checked." This is going on. Actually there is no progress. We are condemned. Why they should waste so much energy not for progress. Before British period, India, there were cities, but not like this because their energy was utilized. Cities were constructed especially in pilgrimages, like Mathurā. Mathurā is very old city, but that is a pilgrimage. Dvārakā, that is also very old city. First of all there was no need of big, big cities because there was no industry. They did not know what is industry. And there were ample food-food grains, milk, vegetables. Those who were eating meat, they were eating small, nonimportant animals like goats, hogs, and they never touched cows. Cows are very important animals. Even the stool, urine, is important. In the agricultural field the cows, passing stool, they will also benefit. Natural fertilizing.

Morning Walk -- December 29, 1976, Bombay:

Dr. Patel: Biological necessity.

Prabhupāda: Necessity. What is the difference? Why not with sister, why not with daughter or even why not with mother? What is the wrong there? They say like that?

Dr. Patel: They consider themselves to be animals.

Prabhupāda: They are animals. Why consider? They are animals. Therefore śāstra says viḍ-bhujām. Not ordinary animals. A sewer animal. Suar. (Hindi) Animal society. Dvipāda-paśu. We'll say that "Why you are wasting your time in this so-called material advancement?" How they'll understand? So dull head. (Hindi)

Room Conversation -- December 31, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Oh no? Who said?

Dr. Patel: Mr. Shaheb, (indistinct) tulasī plant for his daughter.

Prabhupāda: No, we have got so many tulasī plants.

Hari-śauri: Every one of our centers has so many tulasīs.

Prabhupāda: Every temple we have got big, big tulasī. Especially Hawaii we have got six feet high tulasī.

Dr. Patel: I have (indistinct). They won't allow plant.

Prabhupāda: No, no. That is agriculture. You cannot take any plant. Not only tulasī. Any plant from India.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- January 3, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Five days?

Setterji: Five days. And I took my wife on the back and child in my hand, and the way was so difficult, and the darkness. And then we... Six miles...

Prabhupāda: What about your other children and daughters?

Setterji: They were also with us.

Prabhupāda: But they were grown up.

Setterji: My father took my..., that child who was one year old.

Prabhupāda: Oh, father, mother, everyone, whole family. Then how trial they had.

Setterji: Six miles from there, and then we got a...

Morning Walk -- January 6, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Hariramdas.

Girirāja: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Whose daughter, she called.

Girirāja: Yes. So Mota says that he's a very rich man and that man who came, we should approach his older brother and he says that they can give a very big donation. And they can introduce us to other Punjabis.

Prabhupāda: Mm. So whatever you sanction, it will not be good.

Room Conversation -- January 7, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. What he will do, more payment? (?) Then he will kill. This sex life in this material world is so strong, even in the heavenly planets. Big, big ṛṣis. Sex life with animals also there is... Sex life is so strong. Man cohabiting with animal. It makes blind. Vyāsadeva made one of her (his) students pregnant, what to speak of ourselves. Vyāsadeva was born, Satyavatī. She was low class. Although she was born by a king, but her mother was a low-class fisherwoman. And the fisherman raised her as daughter. And Parāśara Muni became attracted. And Vyāsadeva was born. Sex affairs, just see, in the highest circle. Bṛhaspati, the spiritual master of the devatās, he became so much mad for his brother's wife who was pregnant, and forcibly they had sex. Just see. These are examples. Brahmā became attracted with his daughter. Lord Śiva became attracted with the beauty of Mohinī-mūrti, even in the presence of his wife.

Room Conversation -- January 7, 1977, Bombay:

Dr. Patel: In Manipur where Arjuna made...

Prabhupāda: Babhruvāhana. And Babhruvāhana was the king's daughter's son, so he remained as the adopted son of the king. Putrikā-suta. He had no son so he took the daughter's son. So this is India's... The kṣatriyas, they're not (indistinct), and some śūdras are ruling.

Dr. Patel: The śūdras are ruling the world over, not only in India. Because Nixon was less than a śūdra, they way he carried out himself, the highest authority of the most advanced state materialistically.

Prabhupāda: Now they are going to take care of it, these brāhmaṇas.

Morning Discussion about Kumbhamela -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: No. Our government, they have to manage so many people. The Nagas... I learned it from Bhāgavatam.

Dr. Patel: Nagas come from Assam, no?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Arjuna married the Naga king's daughter. And he had a son.

Dr. Patel: Babhruvāhana.

Prabhupāda: No, Babhruvāhana is Manipur.

Dr. Patel: Ilavan.

Prabhupāda: Ilavan, yes.

Dr. Patel: Ilavan was the son of Nagas.

Prabhupāda: Nagakanya.

Morning Discussion about Kumbhamela -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes, they were kṣatriyas.

Dr. Patel: He did in the war.

Prabhupāda: Babhruvāhana was adopted by his grandfather. That is called putrikā, putrikā-putra, "daughter's son adopted as son." So our Dr. Svarūpa Dāmodara belongs to this family, Babhruvāhana family. His title is Singh. That means kṣatriya. And they are Vaiṣṇavas for the last five thousand years or more than that.

Dr. Patel: Now all the Nagas have turned into Christians. Only fifty years back they were headhunters. Fifty years back Nagas of Assam were more or less like cannibals.

Prabhupāda: No, the headhunters means they were killing?

Morning Discussion about Kumbhamela -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes. His forefathers from Sylhet. Jagannātha Miśra, His father came from Sylhet to Navadvipa for studying. Then Nilambara Cakravartī got him married with his daughter, Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mother. And he resided in Nabadwip.

Gurudāsa: There's one temple in Vṛndāvana where they have Deities of Lord Caitanya and Lord Nityānanda that look like Manipur. They made His eyes like that.

Prabhupāda: That is not so good. If you make any picture, then you paint according to the people's, local people's feature. Kata catur anana, mani mani yāvat. Vidyāpati. You have heard the name of Vidyāpati? He was a great poet of Darbhanga.

Arrival of BBT Manager -- January 9, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Oh. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham (SB 7.9.45). This material world means this sex. That is happiness. And we are saying, "Don't enjoy this happiness like hogs." Nāyaṁ deho deha-bhājāṁ nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān arhate viḍ-bhujāṁ ye (SB 5.5.1). "This kind of happiness available in the hog's life, dog's life. Why you are anxious for this happiness?" This is our philosophy. Real happiness? Tapo divyam: just undergo some austerity for attaining Kṛṣṇa. This is our.... How they will understand it? Therefore they are thinking, "Unless there is brainwash, how this philosophy is being preached?" Just opposite. They are thinking, "This is happiness," and we are condemning, "This is happiness of the hogs." Actually that is.... Hog is also enjoying that sex without any discrimination whether it is mother or sister or daughter. That is going on. Sex must be there. It doesn't matter who is. This is the world's position, hog civilization. Why a person is condemned as hog, especially in India? He's our "suar kavaca."

Room Conversation -- January 20, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Rāmeśvara: We have one mother in Los Angeles of a girl named Līlā-śakti. She's a big book distributor. And her mother, she loves this movement so much that when the deprogrammers start debating us, she stands up and yells at them that "My daughter was on drugs, hippie, before she came to this movement. This movement has saved her. If I had known about this movement when I was a young girl, I would have joined this movement!" On television she's speaking like that, very strongly. "You have no right to criticize! You don't know anything about this movement." She says, "You just come over to my house for lunch and I'll tell you all about this movement, how nice it is." She started this club, "Parents for Kṛṣṇa."

Prabhupāda: Oh, she is very sincere. And her daughter, this Līlā...? What is?

Rāmeśvara: Līlā-śakti.

Room Conversation -- January 21, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Rāmeśvara: They never existed in America.

Prabhupāda: During our wife's time they were not... And what about our daughter's time? Now, generation by generation, giving it up.(?)

Rāmeśvara: Now they're simply thinking of ways, the scientists...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Rāmeśvara: ...how to kill the baby or how to stop the baby body from developing. Different methods for birth control. Then they'll create heaven on earth.

Gargamuni: No, here they have forced sterilization.

Hari-śauri: Vasectomy.

Gargamuni: You can't have more than three...

Morning Walk -- January 24, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: Qualified, that is not very difficult. For the girl, find out a boy who is hard worker or a little educated. Bas. That's all. That was the selection. Then fortune. You give a daughter under the care of the boy who can work hard. That's all. They then will earn their livelihood. Even there is no education, a hard worker will do. A boy, as soon as has got the sense that "I have got a wife to maintain," he'll work. That is impetus to give him to work for the family. And if a boy gets wife or woman without any hard working, they why he should marry? And if he has got responsibility that "I have to maintain my wife; then I can enjoy," then he becomes responsible. Wooden bridge?

Evening Conversation -- January 25, 1977, Puri:

Prabhupāda: He is also... He becomes recognized by the master. "Oh, he is trying for this, what I want." Naturally he becomes immediately recognized, although he has no qualification. If he tries. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu... Yāre dekha tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa: (CC Madhya 7.128) "You become guru. No qualification required. Simply you repeat what Kṛṣṇa has said." Just see how simplified. Don't talk anything nonsense. Yāre dekha tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-bas. So who cannot do it? Anyone can do it, even a child. (laughs) Our Śyāmasundara's daughter. She was preaching, "Do you know Kṛṣṇa?" They said, "No I have got no..." "The Supreme Personality." This is preaching, simply if you say that "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality, supreme controller. Just be obedient to Him." Where is the difficulty? Anyone can preach. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Bas. Three words: Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead; surrender unto Him; and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Room Conversation -- January 26, 1977, Puri:

Prabhupāda: Yes. He comes, taking so much trouble for the wife. He will lie down with her from eleven at night up to three o'clock. For that, that is home. This is his home. And to maintain this home, he has to take so much trouble. And this is civilization. He does not think, "For this little happiness why I am here? Better to become a sannyāsī and live independently. Why I'm taking so much...?" No. And after working so hard, in old age if you ask permission from the wife, "I have done so much for you, for family. Now let me retire." "Eh? You'll retire? Then who will look after me?" The home member not satisfied, and you are not satisfied. You are working so hard—how you can be satisfied? And they find still insufficient income. They are not satisfied. But what is this home? To sense gratification. You are not serving this woman. Because this woman, as soon as she is not able to serve you by her sex, then there is divorce. Nobody's serving anybody, but everybody is serving his own senses. So actually the man is serving his own senses, uṣṭra. He's eating his own blood and thinking, "Thorn very palatable." He's eating thorn. What is his palatable? Cutting the tongue and blood is coming out, and when the thorn's chewed with this blood, it makes little taste. Blood has got taste. And he's thinking, "Thorn is very nice." Therefore they have been called as uṣṭra. Uṣṭra eats own, drinks or eats his own blood, and takes the thorn as very good. Śva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra-khara. These animals have been specially mentioned: dog; viḍ-varāha, means hog; uṣṭra; and khara means ass. How Bhāgavata has selected. (laughs) Śva means dog. Dog, after technical education, if he does not get a post where he can use this computer and other big, big..., he's a dog. He goes to a bank, "Sir, I am expert in this machine work. Can you give me a job?" "No, no. There is no vacancy." Then again he puts his tail, goes another, another. What is use, this? The big, big technologists, unless they get a suitable job, they're just like dog. Dog is loitering in the street, no food. So these men with all this high technological knowledge, if they do not get a proper master, they are nothing but dog. This is university education. So dog and hog. Hog means he can eat any nonsense thing, whole day working, if he gets sex. Never mind whether mother, sister or daughter or any.

Room Conversation -- February 2, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: No. Not yet. Vṛndāvana you have been. And Māyāpur?

Yugadharma: Māyāpur, yes. I have family. I have one wife and two children, two daughters there.

Prabhupāda: Oh, where?

Yugadharma: In Māyāpur.

Prabhupāda: Oh, that's nice.

Yugadharma: They are very nice. They are very excited. In Vṛndāvana I was walking with my daughter on Raman Reti, and she was saying... She is four years old. Her name is Yaśodā. She gave herself the name.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Room Conversation -- February 3, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Gargamuni: That Mrs. Lalita Bose, she compared you to Nethaji, that you went outside of India and organized an army, (laughter) then came back to India. She said that. She's the grand-daughter? That Lalita Bose?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Niece.

Gargamuni: She said, "Your Gurujī is just like Nethaji. He went outside of India and organized army of Vaiṣṇavas."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Now it is in the right hand. Resourceful, you Americans. You can do this. There is scientist. So we have got the framework very nice. Now you can push on. It is a good movement for the benefit of the whole world. Kṛṣṇa will help you. Kṛṣṇa will recognize you. Go on pushing rightly. Our only mission is para-upakāra—we don't want to exploit anyone—Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission. The people in general, human being, they have got this opportunity of being out of the clutches of māyā and they are kept in darkness. What is this? Is that civilization? This is our mission. Here is opportunity for his getting out of the clutches of māyā, daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā (BG 7.14), and they are being misled, the so-called science and nasty philosophy and economics and making them, training them as demons and rākṣasas. What is this civilization? So our movement is against this demonic civilization. It is really para-upakāra.

Evening Darsana -- February 15, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Some were, not all. And the Muhammadans, the could not convert any gentleman to Muhammadanism. Maybe one or two, say. Very... And similarly, Christian also. No high-class man became Christian. One or two. That is for some other purpose. Just like in Scottish Churches College, the Christian Indians were given more preference. There was one Mr. Raya. He would not speak in Bengali. Even if some Bengali student would like to talk with him Bengali, he would answer in English. (laughs) He was so sharp. (Bengali) (Hindi) You understand Hindi any of you? There is a song in the Howrah Bridge, pontoon bridge. So when this Howrah Bridge..., not this bridge. Up to 1900... When my daughter was married, in 1941, up to that time there was a bridge connecting Howrah and Calcutta, pontoon bridge. That we were seeing from childhood, from our birth.

Evening Darsana -- February 15, 1977, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: And burn part of the brain, destroy the brain. One girl in our temple in New York, her father is the owner of Financed Foods, which is a very big food market chain like A P supermarkets, very big, and her father owns it. So she... When she was young or before joining, she was a hippie. So her father didn't like that she was a hippie, so he had her put in the mental institution, and for 120 days in a row every day they gave her these shock treatments, and now she cannot remember hardly anything. When we talk to her she is just like, almost like a vegetable. I mean to say she cannot function as a normal person because her brain has been destroyed. Her father was trying to make her normal. Still, she has become a devotee. Now her father has again called her, telling her that he wants to have her go to the hospital to make her more "sane." He's destroyed his daughter, but he doesn't see that. I don't know if I told you about the person in Texas. Did I tell that story?

Hari-śauri: No.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No? Recently, about a month ago... This will give you an indication of the nature of how many people are becoming in America, and especially the authorities are becoming very unjust. One man had a son in Texas and the boy was smoking marijuana. He was smoking for about a month or two. So for two weeks, when his father came to know, his father was telling him, "You should stop this smoking of marijuana," but the boy continued to smoke it. So one night the father came into the boy's room, took out a gun and shot his brains, killed him.

Prabhupāda: Killed him?

Evening Darsana -- February 15, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: This is very dangerous.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: One of our devotees in California was kidnapped out of the airport. She was distributing books in the airport in San Francisco, and because the court gave an order to the parents that "For thirty days you can take your daughter and commit her," so they have brought her to Arizona, where they have a special center set up for deprogramming, legal psychological tests. So for thirty days they ran these... They did some... We don't know what's going on there, some horrible things. Now the girl has sent a letter, and it showed that she is no longer in a devotional attitude. She said, "I'm very glad that I was rescued. Otherwise I would have been made to collect money all my life for your society, and now I'm saved from this."

Prabhupāda: She had been dictated to write like that.

Room Conversation -- February 16, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: No... Even Hare Kṛṣṇa people. Nāviviktāsano bhavet, mātrā svasrā duhitrā vā (SB 9.19.17). It is strictly forbidden: "You should not sit alone even with your mother, sister or daughter, what to speak of wife." Balavān indriya-grāmo vidvāṁsam api karṣati: "The senses are so strong, even learned persons, advanced, they also become victimized." Balavān indriya-grāmaḥ. Balavān means very strong. When the... It is forbidden even with mother, sister or..., and daughter. That is the only capturing instrument in the material world. Maithunyam agāra, prison house of sex, this material world. It is a prison house, but locked up by sex. The ordinary prison house, they are locked up by guards, and here the locking process is sex. Maithunyam agāra. The words are selected in Bhāgavata. They are thinking free. (laughs) They are imprisoned, locked up. And everyone falsely thinking, "I am free. Our nation is free. I am free." What nonsense free? You are locked up already. That he does not... Now this word is used, maithunyam agāram ajñaḥ. He has preferred to remain in this prison locked up by sex because he is rascal.

Room Conversation -- February 17, 1977, Mayapura:

Ādi-keśava: And they're getting great satisfaction (indistinct).

Tripurāri: The devotee's mother in this particular case said, "I would rather see my daughter dead than be a devotee of Kṛṣṇa."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: She said that. That was the papers.

Brahmānanda: That was headline in the newspaper. "My daughter should better be dead than to be Hare Kṛṣṇa."

Hari-śauri: That's for her own good.

Prabhupāda: (Bengali) (break)

Tripurāri: People involved in this deprogramming have read most of the books. They have read and studied, and when they try to deprogram someone they quote from the books different things. So is it that they can't understand this philosophy even though they're reading it, or they just don't want to understand it? Just like this man Ted Patrick. He has read so many of the books.

Prabhupāda: How...? What does he say about our books?

Room Conversation -- February 18, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Real mother.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Everyone is from divorced family. Jayapatākā's mother, my parents, Brahmānanda's parents. Brahmānanda's mother called him. We think that they were trying to deprogram Brahmānanda, because the second day that Brahmānanda arrived in New York, suddenly his mother called. How could she have gotten news that he was coming to New York? We never told her. But as soon as he arrived in New York she called him. So we ascertained they are listening to all of our telephone conversations. And they know. They are writing. The deprogrammers are writing to all of the devotees' parents in the movement, and they are going and talking to the parents, saying, "Do you know what your son..." or "Do you know what your daughter is doing? Are you aware that your daughter has lost all of her free choice? That they're being brainwashed now by this cult? That they are giving her... They have spoiled her whole life?" In this way they try to pollute the minds of the parents who are innocent.

Hari-śauri: They're doing that everywhere, too. In Australia they're doing the same thing there, too.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: And they know all of the devotees' parents' names. Because the few devotees who do become deprogrammed, they give them all the names they know. And they have some informers within our temple also. All of our parents have told us that the deprogrammers contacted them.

Prabhupāda: They're organized.

Evening Darsana -- February 19, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Former paisa, when sixty-four paisa was one rupee. Now hundred equal to one. The purchasing power of money was big. Now thirty percent has gone up, but people's income has not gone up so much. Thirty percent, thirty times. Formerly gold was priced twenty rupees per tolā. Now it is six hundred rupees. So thirty times. But people have not increased their income thirty times. My father was earning two hundred fifty to three hundred per month. So we were middle class. So now thirty times of three hundred means nine thousand. So which middle-class man has increased so much? Middle class man now, if he's earning one thousand rupees he's considered very well-to-do. But what is that one thousand rupees? Nothing. My father had from one business, one hundred rupees, from another business sixty rupees, and we had a house rented, eighty rupees. Eighty rupees, sixty rupees and hundred rupees. How much? Two hundred forty, plus something more. Utmost, three hundred. And in our house four, five guests was always present. It didn't matter. Besides that, he was inviting some Vaiṣṇava, some sādhu. He married four daughters, and we were eating very sumptuously, daily two and half kg milk.

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: He was little crazy. Might have gone away from home. Very intelligent boy he was. His mother made him crazy. Very... He was standing first in school. Very intelligent. She spoiled the whole family life. It was good for... For my youngest daughter I selected one very nice boy, rich man. She did not give. She wanted to keep her as her assistant, and she's not married.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Even now. How old? She must be forty-five years old.

Prabhupāda: Not so much. Older than Vṛndāvana.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So she must be thirty-five.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Thirty-five. Most irresponsible and lethargetic.

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Very selfish to keep one's daughter not married.

Prabhupāda: But still, all the children are addicted to the mother. She does not do anything. I used to... Like that.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They should be addicted to you.

Prabhupāda: They all bokā, rejected. Let them become happy in their own way. (break) But because I talk with everyone, they are...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What will be the difference between the Vṛndāvana gurukula and this gurukula?

Prabhupāda: Nothing. The same thing. (break) Civilized man. "Beware of Dog." "Keep aloof, private place."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Fearful.

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Not real, but cousin.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your mother's...

Prabhupāda: My mother is the brother's daughter, and he was the sister daughter. Just like our this nephew, first cousin.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's a close relationship.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So he treated... Although my mother was first cousin, he treated my mother as younger sister. In that way he liked my father also, myself. That gentleman and one Dr. Kartik Chandra Bose, and two-one, my own father and my Guru Mahārāja. I knew that. He liked me. He liked me from the very heart. Guru Mahārāja liked me. I know. By his blessing it is, everything has happened. I was not worth. What did I...? I do not know why he liked. I was not worth. There were so many disciples. And still, he liked me.

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Maybe. Out of his affection, it is his good will. He can like anyone, any dog, doesn't matter. But I know he liked me. Anyone, by his choice of free will, he can love any damn thing. It doesn't matter. That is called kṛpā-siddhi. "I like this man. This man must be prominent." That is his will. It doesn't matter on qualification. So all these people, they liked me not on my qualification, but out of affection, out of good will. (laughs) Other, a woman. Woman means my mother-in-law. She was woman. Out of affection for her daughter, she would sacrifice everything for the..., so that her daughter may not be unhappy.

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your mother-in-law. You said that when you took sannyāsa, she could not take it.

Prabhupāda: No, I must admit she was very, very kind. Very, very kind. Although she's woman, but on account of her daughter... Whatever I'll command, she'll suffer. Devarṣi-bhūtāpta-nṛṇāṁ pitṟṇām (SB 11.5.41). We become indebted in this way with so many people. Devarṣi.

Room Conversation -- February 21, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Yes, your son will be able to answer all questions. Like Devahūti, you can take instruction from your son. That is in the history. Son is instructing mother. Generally mother instructs the son, but there is that history son is instructing mother. Because here we make such relationship—mother, father, son, daughter, relative. Actually this is material nature made, in different bodies. Otherwise, real father is Kṛṣṇa. (devotees exclaim—lights go out?) This is the benefit of modern science, (laughter) (Prabhupāda laughs) that in the evening you require light—there is no light in the evening. When you require, there is no light. Better depend on the natural oil.

Room Conversation With Artists and About BTG -- February 25, 1977, Mayapura:

Rāmeśvara: This first sketch shows Śiva and Pārvatī are passing on the road. These women were bathing, and they are running to cover themselves. And this is the beginning of the fight between the women over the clothing, and Śukrācārya's daughter was thrown into a well.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Rāmeśvara: Then because of that, Yayāti was cursed, because later on, the woman that threw her into the well, he, she became like a mistress.

Prabhupāda: Yes. They were friends. Then they became rivals. Hm. So that's all right.

Rāmeśvara: Then this is the painting showing Śukrācārya and his daughter, and they're cursing Mahārāja Yayāti. What's happening here is that...

Prabhupāda: No, Śukrācārya's cloth is why long? So?

Room Conversation -- February 27, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Yes. He should be given letter.(?)

Rādhā-vallabha: Anyway, he made one arrangement with another devotee to marry this devotee's daughter.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Rādhā-vallabha: He is nineteen years old, and he made arrangement with...

Prabhupāda: This boy?

Rādhā-vallabha: Yes. The boy that wrote that. And he made arrangement with another devotee to marry her daughter at a later date. She's only twelve. So I've told him not to do anything until I spoke to you, because I don't think this has ever been done in our movement yet.

Room Conversation -- February 27, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Man has no maximum. Even an eighty-years-old man can marry a sixteen-years-old girl. (laughter)

Rādhā-vallabha: Because this one devotee has a daughter twelve and he wanted to marry her to a man twenty-six, but he thought that was too much difference.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is too much difference. But eight years, ten years usual.

Rādhā-vallabha: Eight or ten years is best. So he also wanted to know if...

Prabhupāda: That is healthy.

Rādhā-vallabha: He wanted to know also...

Prabhupāda: And in no case... The girl must not be older than the boy. That's not good at all.

Morning Conversation -- April 11, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: No, any knowledge. Just like modern scientists, they do. When they discover something, they give it. Go from university to university. Whatever... They may be wrong. They want to give it. That is the way. In India such vast knowledge, it is kept for professional Bhāgavata readers. How much harm they have done! Some professional Bhāgavata readers, it is their profession. And they will gather some woman and talk of rāsa-līlā and Bhāgavata reading. Some lady, old men, some woman, they will gather and sit down with their grammar,(?) karma-kāṇḍa. So that his material position will be better off. And the reciter will gather so many dozens of (indistinct) and umbrella and cloth, and take it away and sell it in the market, and employ it for his son's marriage, daughter's marriage. And this is called Bhāgavata. This is going on.

Room Conversation -- April 13, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: (aside:) Fan.

Upendra: (bringing garlands) This one was made by a little girl. The boy who fixed the buzzers, his little daughter made.

Prabhupāda: This is our flower? Hm? Get all round, flower, the first land vacant. You should plant them. Puṇyo gandhaḥ pṛthivyāṁ ca.

Upendra: Paramparā mālās. There's five mālās here for the paramparā.

Prabhupāda: First of all hear. Then tomorrow they... Kṛṣṇa is helping. He'll help more, more. We are not going to be misled by their leadership.

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

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Mr. Rajda: Here is Mr. Raj(?) also.

Prabhupāda: Betiye.

Mr. Rajda: My wife, Mrs. Rajda, my daughter, Mitsu. This is my nephew, younger brother's son.

Mrs. Rajda: (Hindi)

Mr. Rajda: How is your health now, Swamiji?

Prabhupāda: Not very good, but as Kṛṣṇa's mercy going on. These are some of our latest publications.

Mr. Rajda: Latest publications. The get-up and all this is wonderfully attractive.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

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

Prabhupāda: Those who are married society. These boys are begetting mostly girl, because they have lost their potency.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I know most of our life members, because they're a little bit regulated, mostly sons-three sons, one daughter; four sons, one daughter. It's very common.

Prabhupāda: Yes. If not equal quality...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: At least...

Prabhupāda: So we have to touch all these. Then poverty... And "Drive away poverty. Give them more money." More money means cheating. You are employing; I am employed. Begins from government. More money and printing, they are coming. If I have got power to print paper and distribute it as money, you are dissatisfied, getting hundred rupees, you want two hundred, so what is to me? I print and give you. This is artificial inflation.

Morning Conversation -- April 30, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Women should be taken care of—as daughter, as wife, as mother, bas. No freedom. Then prostitution. Then spoiled the whole thing. Unwanted children, contraceptive, abortion. Very dangerous. In our society there are girls. They should live separately. They should be given full engagement, taken care of. No mixing. Then it will spoil. Both of them will be... We see big, big workers, sannyāsīs. (Name withheld) fell victim. The example is given: fire and butter. (laughs) You cannot say the butter will not melt even in fire. Woman is like fire, and man is like butter.

Morning Conversation -- May 29, 1977, Vrndavana:

Brahmānanda: Diamond Press. So his sons are in London, and he wants to start a business there in September, but he didn't want to do so without your blessing. Because you gave blessing for his daughter's marriage, so he's always thinking that if you give blessing, then it will come out nicely. (Prabhupāda laughs) He also wants to put Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa Deities in his home just outside of Birmingham, and he wants to invite the Indian community to come to his house for having programs. So he gave me some money to purchase Deities here in Vṛndāvana, but he also wanted your blessings for that.

Prabhupāda: Who will worship the Deity?

Brahmānanda: His wife. They have... The town where they live, there is no temple.

Discussions -- June 2, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: All right, don't make if it cannot be so worded(?).

Girirāja: "This direction is irrevocable. 5. I declare, say and confirm that all the properties, both movable and immovable, which stand in my name, including current accounts, saving accounts and fixed deposits in various banks, are the properties and assets of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness, and the heirs and successors of my previous family or anyone claiming through them have no right, claim or interest in these properties whatsoever save and except as provided hereinafter. Although the money which is in my personal name in every bank is being spent for ISKCON and it will belong to ISKCON, I have kept a few deposits specifically named for allocating a monthly allowance of Rs. 1,000 to the members of my former family—two sons, two daughters, and wife. After the deaths of the members of my former family these specific deposits, or this interest and savings, will become the property of ISKCON for the purpose of the trust, and the descendants of my former family or anyone claiming to be them shall not be allowed any further allowance."

Talk About Varnasrama, S.B. 2.1.1-5 -- June 28, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That means the husband is irresponsible. That means the man is irresponsible, to let his wife do that. And they let their unmarried daughters do.

Prabhupāda: And woman left alone means prostitution.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's what's going on now in Bombay, Calcutta. The men send their unmarried daughters to become secretary. She must be... And even before that, they go to college, freely mixing with the men.

Prabhupāda: As soon as they allow young girl to mix with young boys—finished.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This coeducation is very bad.

Room Conversation With Son (Vrindavan De) -- July 5, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Jackfruit is also called "vegetable meat."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: "Vegetable meat."

Prabhupāda: Lajpata.(?) Or a vegetable mutton. During my daughter's marriage, the hired cook, they made from this flour of banana, cutlet. Nobody could understand that it is vegetable.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You were present at that time?

Prabhupāda: No, no, I did not allow to cook fish, so the guests were given that vegetable cutlet. And they could not understand.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They were satisfied.

Prabhupāda: They said, "We could not understand that it is vegetable."

Room Conversation With Son (Vrindavan De) -- July 5, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: They have nothing to preach. What they have got to preach?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Here's a picture. It shows only two pictures. Here is the difference between the Moonies and us. Here is a picture of some Moon woman. She has a picture of Moon on her button and her daughter waving the American flag. And then here's us, the devotees. "Hare Kṛṣṇa followers parade on the street." This is in New York. These are some of the New York devotees. "The drop-out rate is high, but there is a slow though steady growth rate among the small membership." This is from the New York Times. I know all these devotees.

Prabhupāda: Slow but sure.

Room Conversation about Grhasthas -- July 17, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Imagine that. Whew! Boy!

Prabhupāda: He is maintaining it for his sons', daughters' marriage. That is...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: After all, Tīrtha Mahārāja did that too.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He says, "My son is the next in line." Whew.

Prabhupāda: The interest will go to the family, not to the Deity.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's not good.

Meeting With Governor of Tamil Nadu -- July 31, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: So give us little protection. That is my request.

Governor: We'll do it, no doubt. I'm meeting the Prime Minister tomorrow, and we are going to discuss that matter. This is my daughter. She stays in Delhi.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Thank you very much. She is married?

Governor: She is married. She has a husband. She was also an advocate in... This is husband. He's in the government of India agricultural department now.

Prabhupāda: Very good. We are very much interested in agriculture.

Governor: He's a scientist. Very, very great scientist. He is Ph.D. of California University.

Meeting With Governor of Tamil Nadu -- July 31, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Governor: He studied in California, and he's a Ph.D. of California University.

Prabhupāda: I have got two, three Ph.D.s.

Governor: And these two daughters, my daughter's daughters.

Prabhupāda: I see.

Governor: This is..., name is Rādhikā.

Prabhupāda: Oh! Very good. (laughs)

Governor: And this is Gopikā, younger daughter. This is Gopikā.

Prabhupāda: Very good. You have given them some prasādam? Arrange.

Room Conversation With Dr. Ghosh -- October 16, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: From monetary point of view, from family life, position. He is the biggest medical practitioner in Allahabad. Everyone knows. Even in the street, Dr. Ghosh they know. So take care of him very carefully.

Lokanātha: Yes, we'll take care of him. I'll promise. Actually his daughter was very much reluctant that he should not go or should not go immediately. But he did not hear her. He just decided to go. But I had to promise his daughter that I would take care of him. She was saying that he should not also become patient along with Śrīla Prabhupāda, as he is old and like that. We'll give him good room and nice accommodation.

Prabhupāda: Attendant, whatever he wants.