So the conclusion is when we forget Kṛṣṇa, that is materialism. And when we constantly remember Kṛṣṇa, that is spiritualism. The materialists means they are thinking of sense gratification. All these big, big buildings were constructed in your country, Edinburgh. The idea was that "We shall show something opulent that we are very great nation. We have got nice buildings, nice churches, nice roads." Puffed up. Everyone wants to be puffed up before his friends and relatives. So this is materialism. But the same thing done for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa, that "We shall construct this temple for Kṛṣṇa's inhabitation. We shall construct this building for providing the devotees of Kṛṣṇa so that they may be able to chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra without any disturbance..." It appears the same thing, karma and bhakti, but bhakti is always in relation with Kṛṣṇa and karma is always in relation with sense gratification. Therefore, the things, the ingredients is originally spiritual because it is Kṛṣṇa's energy. But ahaṁ mameti (SB 5.5.8), when we try to impose our proprietorship, that is materialism. Materialism means forgetfulness of Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise, there is no materialism; everything is spiritual.
Edinburgh
Lectures
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
Prabhupāda: What is that dogmatic?
English man: Dogmatic? You are very... When you have a question put to you, you are very clear what the answer shall be. (devotees chuckle) Have you any doubts yourself that have not appeared to us?
Prabhupāda: So you answer. You are American?
English man: I am Scottish.
Prabhupāda: Scottish, England. In Scotland we have got also. Edinburgh, we have got our temple.
English man: But you are very... You seem very... Your philosophy seems very clear cut.
Prabhupāda: Thank you very much. (laughter)
English man: Are you well satisfied with that, that there is no area of doubt?
Prabhupāda: Therefore it is appealing more to the Western countries, yes. Mostly it is very acceptable in the Western countries.
English man: Thank you.
Prabhupāda: So chant Hare Kṛṣṇa again.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1973 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: So you are staying here in Jakarta?
Guest (1): One year more. One year more. And I proceed to Beirut, Morocco. From Rabat, Morocco, I go to (indistinct) Frankfurt (indistinct)
Prabhupāda: We have got temple there.
Guest (1): Edinburgh.
Prabhupāda: What is the address, Edinburgh?
Devotee: Scotland. The address is here, Flat No. 6, 11 Greenhill Place, Scotland, Edinburgh.
Guest (1): But only one year, I'll be. I'll go back to Tokyo. I have my house, Tokyo. At about 1980. Still I have my house, my mother (indistinct) small house there (indistinct) 1980, I go back.
Prabhupāda: He has left Tokyo 1980?
Devotee: No. He said he is going back to Tokyo by 1980.
Guest (1): Yes. Go back Tokyo. My (indistinct) in Tokyo later. I left Tokyo '63 and go around India...
Prabhupāda: You have been in India?
Guest (1): Yes. Birla Mandir I stayed two years.
Prabhupāda: Birla Mandir. Delhi.
Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: They are bringing it. This is the record, Every Town and Village. They are bringing the machine.
Prabhupāda: We are arrested by the police sometimes. Sometimes there are big cases against us. In Ireland. Ireland?
Pradyumna: Ireland, Scotland, in Edinburgh, too.
Prabhupāda: (laughing) These impediments are always there, even in Caitanya Mahāprabhu's time. The Kazi, the Mohammedan magistrate, he wanted to stop. (pause) Kṛṣṇa tvadīya pada-paṅkaja-pañjarāntam (MM 33). So you are devotee of Rādhārāṇī. Eh? Yes, that is good. Through Rādhārāṇī, one should approach Kṛṣṇa. And therefore Vṛndāvana, they, everyone says, "Jaya Rādhe," first of all glorifying Rādhārāṇī. We have got many records. This is one of them, kīrtana.
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: How many devotees are there?
Ghanaśyāma: Bury Place, there's about... There are three traveling saṅkīrtana parties. There are about maybe thirty devotees there.
Prabhupāda: Ācchā. And Bhaktivedanta Manor?
Ghanaśyāma: I think about maybe thirty-five. Some of the boys go to Scotland frequently. So they sort of share the devotees with the three temples.
Prabhupāda: Edinburgh. So you have been in Edinburgh University?
Ghanaśyāma: No. I don't know. Prabhupāda, they have a program there with the Indians. The Indians are supporting the temple there now.
Prabhupāda: Hmm?
Ghanaśyāma: The Indians, they're paying for the devotees' prasādam and supporting the temple.
Prabhupāda: Ah, yes. Anna-dāna.
Correspondence
1969 Correspondence
Today I received letters from Guru das and Mukunda, and it is understood that Mr. George Harrison is arranging for a first class temple, better than the one to be had on Baker Street. In the meantime I have received a letter from Petamber Dindayal in Guyana, and he has invited me to go there. There is an invitation to go to Hawaii also, but above all I am very much anxious to see a London temple established first. So please let me know by return mail if there is an immediate chance of my going to London. Then I shall make my program in that way. I do not mind any climatic condition there; I am quite fit, and whenever required, I am prepared to go there. You have mentioned a very encouraging invitation that my visit there will be the biggest event in London since the time of the Roman Invasion. Actually this will be so. This time there is no question of invasion, but this time, if England is prepared, they will receive something sublime which they cannot produce in their country, neither in Manchester, Glasgow, nor Edinburgh. As I stated in my last letter to you that London is still a leading city of the world, and if Mr. George Harrison cooperates with us, certainly we shall be able to deliver something sublime to the world by joint endeavor.
1970 Correspondence
We are expanding every month. Recently I received one letter from my disciple in England and the report is very favorable. In the villages of England they are very much receptive to this movement and even children in grammar school are chanting Hare Krsna,
We have got many records and record albums out of which some produced by one renowned musician of London, George Harrison, has become very popular and many people from all parts of Europe are coming to see our temple in London. Recently we have opened two branches, one in Amsterdam and one in Copenhagen and another in Edinburgh.
So far as your plan for opening centers is concerned, that program sounds very encouraging. But one thing you should know is that we cannot have another situation like Edinburgh. Once a temple has been opened it must never be closed. So if you are confident in this regard, then continue as planned.
1972 Correspondence
So I am very pleased that you are determined to start a nice centre in Edinburgh, and this will please me very much to hear regular reports how you are doing, because I think we have been trying to start something there for some time. If you are able to present our philosophy to the student class, that will help, and also they will be interested to buy many books. So try for it and Krishna will give all assistance.
I am in due receipt of your letter dated 10th June, 1972, and with great pleasure I have noted the contents. I was wondering what you are doing, so I am very glad to hear your report of getting the very nice temple in Edinburgh. I think it is Krishna's desire that you have got that place in such perfect location, so now apply yourself very seriously and take advantage of this opportunity for spreading Krishna Consciousness all over that city and in other places in Scotland. The price of 13 Pounds a week for such a large place is not at all bad. Yes, take the place for as many years as they will agree to.
Now organize the temple very nicely and request tourists to come in, and with many flowers you can decorate the whole hall with flowers and it will be very much attractive. You can make a sign-board that says "Guests are requested to offer a flower to the Deity". The flower market is near-by and any gentleman will bring flowers, and give them prasadam. A gorgeous temple means many flowers, beautiful decorations, and prasadam distribution. Some sort of kirtana must go on continuously. Further, chanting 16 rounds must be completed, that is our spiritual strength. And I am very much stressing nowadays that my students shall increase their reading of my books and try to understand them from different angles of vision. Each sloka can be seen from many, many angles of vision, so become practiced in seeing things like this. If we are selling the books but we do not know what is inside the book, that will be a farce, especially if you are preaching and selling books to the students of Edinburgh.
Now I am coming to London very soon for your Rathayatra Celebration, and I shall be very happy to see you all, my beloved disciples there in England. You mention one very large festival being held there in Edinburgh from July 20 to August 9, so if you can arrange some big, big, meeting for me to speak there and address the public at large as well as the students, that will be very nice. One thing, I am already scheduled to speak in Paris on July 21, 22, 23, so if you arrange some meetings at the Edinburgh Festival, you should schedule them for last part of July or early August accordingly.
I do not know what you mean when you mention the government is discouraging Americans from Vrindaban area, and that Subala may be deported. Kindly elucidate. So far the Delhi deities, one man here in London, Dr. Shah, wants to pay for the freight to bring them to Edinburgh where we have got one nice center for installing them there. But I do no know how it will be done. Anyway, keep them safely and we shall see later on.
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated July 15, 1972, and I have noted the contents with great interest. From London now I am staying in Paris, and from here I shall go to Amsterdam and then to Edinburgh, again to London, and from there I shall go to Nairobi for installing Radha-Krishna deities in our own temple there. Your letter under reply gives me great pleasure when I understand from your childhood you are a great devotee of Lord Krishna, and now in your old age you are still anxious to preach the doctrine of Lord Krishna, namely, to surrender to the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter dated November 3, 1972, from Edinburgh, and I am so much pleased that you are doing the real work of a sannyasi, travelling, preaching and training the devotees to preach. I am too much proud of you on account of seeing the newspaper items. Yes, if there is good response for purchasing our books and asking intelligent questions, that is the test of your preaching capacity. I can well remember that Woodstock Hall or Woodside Hall in Glasgow, so I can very well appreciate how nice these Scottish people listen to our discourse. Now develop this field very carefully, it is one of the best places in the world for our preaching work to take hold and convince the population gradually.
I am in due receipt of your letter from Edinburgh dated December _ 1972, and I am so much pleased to hear from you again. Actually, I liked that place Scotland very much when I was there last time, and especially I saw that the Scotsmen were very much inclined toward our preaching, but the weather was for me unbearable. But I think by next summer they might have got a nice place in London, and because it is little warmer there, I may go and stay some time in London, and if there is opportunity I shall see Scotland temple also.
So you are the leader of London temple, one of the most important temples in the world, so your responsibility is very very immense. But it is also Krsna's blessing upon you. So try to please Him always by understanding the instructions of Krsna as He is giving in Bhagavad-gita, and by that understanding you will be able to manage everything without any difficulty at all. But I think you must be already very much advanced in your understanding of Krsna consciousness, otherwise how so many nice devotees are coming and how there is always such good report from London temple? And I am especially pleased by the newspaper clipping from Edinburgh, they have given very good write-up, just to the points.
1974 Correspondence
Why did you close Edinburgh without asking me? Paramahamsa reports that you have closed the Edinburgh temple. Edinburgh was doing nicely. You can't close a temple without asking me? Is this too much to do this? Our propaganda is opening temples, and you are closing them. We are not for closing but for increasing. I do not approve of this. If possible the Edinburgh temple must be re-opened again.
If you close the temple, what is the management? Sri Caitanya Mahaprabhu pushed the Sankirtana movement, but He never said to close the Jagannatha temple or the Govindaji temple. In Edinburgh we had a nice house, why you have closed it? Why you have whimsically done this? If possible the Edinburgh temple must be re-opened. Don't do anything whimsically without consulting me.
"One who considers the arca murti or worshipable Deity of Lord Visnu to be stone, the spiritual master to be an ordinary human being, and a Vaisnava to belong to a particular caste or creed, is possessed of hellish intelligence."
If the Edinburgh house is still available, it must be re-opened.
I am very shocked that he has closed the Edinburgh temple. This is very serious matter. Why has he done this? It is against the principles of devotional service to whimsically close a temple. I have written him that the temple must be reopened if possible.
Regarding Edinburgh temple, yes it should be re-opened. I have already explained that once a temple is opened it cannot be closed. Before opening we must consider very carefully, Worship in the temple means to personally call Krsna, and He personally comes, therefore the arrangement must be there for the temple worship to go on nicely before opening any temple. In Vrindaban there are many dilapidated, important temples started by the Gosvamis, but still they are not closed. They are becoming debtor and debtor and the temple building is practically falling down, but still the Deity worship is going on somehow or other. This is the principle. Closing a temple we cannot do. It becomes a farce and is against the bhakti cult. Our principle must be to carefully consider before opening any temple, and once opened it cannot be closed.
I am glad to hear about the Gita sales and the publishing of the new books. Therefore I have appointed you as BBT Trustee to publish the German editions of our books as much as possible. I quite appreciate that one main center may remain there and from there the preaching may go on, but no attempt may be made to open a new center without being confident that it will go on. Strictly this principle should be followed. Before opening a temple it has to be carefully considered, and once opened it cannot be closed. Henceforward completely forget the idea that any present temple can be closed. That you should forget. Don't do it again. At least you should re-open Hamburg and Edinburgh and the Deity should be transferred there again.
1975 Correspondence
Thank you very much for translating my books. It is so much important to me to have my books printed in all languages of the world. But, why are you sending the work to Ksirodakasayi for publication. I would rather have you send them to Bombay. You can send them to Yasomatinandana das adhikari here in Bombay. He can do the final editing as well as see to it that they are printed nicely. For the translation of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, you can say either Paramesvara or Bhagavan. Paramatma or Antaryami is good for localized Super-soul. If you can give the meaning of all the sanskrit words, that will be best. I am glad to hear things are going nicely in Edinburgh and Glasgow.
Regarding your idea for a Gujarati newspaper, no it is better to sell our Gujarati books. We shall print and sell our own books. Yes, you can open a restaurant in Edinburgh. Regarding Bharadraja, I have no objection to him coming. What is he doing in L.A.? Only on Sunday can you keep the Deity curtains open throughout the afternoon.
The Edinburgh temple may be moved. However Hamsaduta Prabhu has suggested that if it is to be moved why not move it to Birmingham or Manchester where there will be more facility to preach and make life members and devotees.
1976 Correspondence
Recently we have received many acclaims by prominent educators, scholars and scientists throughout the world for our books. Dr. R. E. Asher, Professor of Linguistics, University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, Scotland said, "It is axiomatic that no book can be expected entirely to satisfy all it's potential readers. Her is one, however, which can be said to come remarkably close to ideal...Here we have the ideal of what an edition of a Sanskrit text for a western audience should be...It is beautiful planned and printed..."
| Page Title: | Edinburgh |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, Serene |
| Created: | 05 of Mar, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=2, Con=3, Let=20 |
| No. of Quotes: | 25 |