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Fame (Conversations)

Conversations and Morning Walks

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Interview -- March 9, 1968, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: Unless God is all-attractive, he cannot be God. God cannot be Hindus' God or Christians' God or Jews' God or Mohammedans' God. No. God is for everyone, and He is all-attractive. He is fully opulent. He is fully in knowledge, perfect in knowledge, perfect in beauty, perfect in renunciation, perfect in fame, perfect in strength. In this way He is all attractive. So we must know our relationship with God. That is the first subject matter of this book, Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Then if we understand our relationship, we can act accordingly.

Questions and Answers -- Montreal, August 26, 1968:

Prabhupāda: So your question, Rukmiṇī's question, Lord Caitanya's opulence... There are six kinds of opulences: richness, then fame, strength, influence, beauty, education and renunciation. So He exhibited all these six. He was very beautiful; therefore His name is Gaurasundara. Very beautiful-tall and stout and strong. There was no comparison of His beauty at that time, He was so beautiful, fair complexion. This time He did not appear in black complexion because people after fair complexion.

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Discussion with BTG Staff -- December 24, 1969, Boston:

Prabhupāda: When one is completely merged in the ocean of love of Godhead, he will relish in any condition of life Kṛṣṇa, present. Kṛṣṇa present means, Kṛṣṇa present, His name present, His form present, His līlā present, His paraphernalia present. Everything. Kṛṣṇa is not alone. We are not impersonalist. As soon as we say, "Kṛṣṇa," Kṛṣṇa means with His name, fame, opulence, entourage, pastime, etc. So Back to Godhead generally deals in two stages of understanding, the, to awaken the relationship and to train them. Although our aim is... That is our aim, to come to the highest platform of loving exchange, but generally, we are dealing with the mass of people. Therefore our propaganda should be how to, by reasoning, by philosophy, by science, by argument, how to convince him that he is in illusory stage.

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation Vaisnava Calendar Description -- March 11, 1972, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Jīva Gosvāmī was so big scholar but sometimes one ordinary scholar, he approached Rūpa Gosvāmī that "I want to discuss with you about śāstra". Rūpa Gosvāmī could understand that this man is not a devotee, he will simply waste my time. He inquired from him, "What is your purpose of discussing with me about śāstras? He said that "I have discussed śāstras with many (aside: you sit down) big scholars and I have come victorious, so if I come victorious by discussing with you, then I will have very good fame and name." So Rūpa Gosvāmī could understand his view or his ambition, that "this man is a materialistic man, he wants some name and fame," so he told him, "All right, without discussing, if I give you certificate that I am defeated, will that do?" So, he said, "Yes, that will do." So he gave him in writing that "I had śāstric discussion with this man, and I found myself very much inferior and defeated." So he was very glad to take that certificate, but when he was going, Jīva Gosvāmī saw, "My dear sir, what is that paper you have taken?" "No your uncle has agreed that he was defeated, so I have got this certificate, I am going."

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Sir Alistair Hardy -- July 21, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: King means he has got his queen, he has got his kingdom, he has got his secretary, he has got his minister, he has got his palace, he has... so many things, king, royal. When we speak of Queen, we immediately remember the Buckingham Palace, his (her) bodyguards and so many, so many other things. Similarly, God means He has got His entourage also, everything. He's not alone. To understand God means to understand everything of God—His name, His fame, His līlā, His pastimes. So nāmādi. With all these blunt senses, how can we... We cannot understand even the Personality of Godhead, what to speak of other things? "God is a person:"—it is a very difficult subject matter for ordinary man to take it, very difficult subject. That is stated in the... Even the demigods they cannot understand.

Room Conversation -- September 19, 1973, Bombay:

Guest (1): But giving means, you know, giving part of what you earn, or some other way. When you say give...

Prabhupāda: Give means, you want to take something from God. "God, give me wealth, give me fame" Yaśo dehi.

Guest (1): No, if we want to give to God...

Prabhupāda: Yes, when you learn to give God. Generally...

Guest (1): Therefore, if a man feels empty, what he can offer?

Prabhupāda: No, no, empty... God says that you can give Him patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam (BG 9.26). You can give Him little flower, little fruit, little leaf, little water. He is satisfied. Not that you have to give millions of dollars. But if you have got millions of dollars, and if you think, "God will be satisfied with little fruit," that is cheating.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Professor Oliver La Combe Director of the Sorbonne University -- June 14, 1974, Paris:

Prabhupāda: He is a big man.

Bhagavān: Actually, it's not famous. It's infamous.

Prabhupāda: No, why infamous. They are famous. Why do you say infamous?

Bhagavān: Well, I thought fame is to be referred to for devotee.

Prabhupāda: That is your sentiment, but practical world, he is a scholar, he is a head man of a department, a university. He must be famous.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Sanskrit Professor, other Guests and Disciples -- February 12, 1975, Mexico:

Prabhupāda: God has all the qualities that you can conceive. It is generally not... Bhaga(?), it is taken as six, six opulences. Bhaga means opulence, and vān means possessing. Bhagavat. Bhagavat-śabda. Bhaga means opulence, and vat means one who possesses. And the first word in bhagavat-śabda is bhagavān. This bhaga means six kinds of opulences: riches, then fame, then bodily strength, influence, knowledge, beauty, and renunciation. These are opulences. If one is very rich, people are attracted. If one is very reputed, people are attracted. If one is very strong, people are attracted. Influential-attracted. If one is very beautiful, man or woman, he is also attractive. If one is very wise, he's attractive. And one who is renounced, he's also attra... So Kṛṣṇa has got all these qualification in full. That is the definition of God. Anyone who possesses all these qualities in fullness, not partially, that is God. This is the definition of God. Not that "I can produce one ounce of gold," but if he can produce all the mines of gold, he is God. Not cheap God. In that way everyone is God.

Morning Walk -- May 12, 1975, Perth:

Amogha: Now they are also thinking that different types of meat cause cancer, not only heart disease but cancer.

Gaṇeśa: What have the scientists got to gain by bluffing?

Prabhupāda: Position. Material world means they want some material gain, some adoration, and some fame. That's all. This is material world. So if by bluffing you I get some material profit and adoration and fame, why shall I not do it? Everyone is doing that.

Morning Walk -- May 12, 1975, Perth:

Amogha: That's the cheating propensity.

Prabhupāda: Yes. In material world they have come to imitate God—adoration, fame, material profit. Just like this man. He has come to this country. He is getting money, he is getting woman, and becoming God amongst the fools. He is satisfied. That's all. This is not gain? If I get woman, money, and adoration, is it not gain for me?

Gaṇeśa: Yes, just like Hiraṇyakaśipu.

Room Conversation with Reporter of The Star -- October 16, 1975, Johannesburg:

Prabhupāda: Take for example myself. I went to United States, unknown country, without any friend, without any hope, simply on theory (chuckles) that "I shall go and preach there," and with this expectation also, that "As soon as I shall ask them to give up all these habits, they will ask me to go away." (laughs) So in the face of so many odds and uncertainty, I went there, simply depending on my spiritual master and Kṛṣṇa, with this hope only, that "If they desire, everything can be done. But otherwise there is no hope. I am going there, hopeless, just to make an experiment. My other Godbrothers, they failed. All right, Guru Mahārāja asked me. In the beginning I did not do. Let me do it in this old age." So it became surprisingly success. Business started with forty rupees, and now we have got four crores. Where is that business in the material world, that a man started business with forty rupees and he has got four crores within ten years? Not only money, but also fame, respect. What do these kings and president or minister get respect?

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- March 26, 1976, Delhi:

Guru dāsa: He's desiring for fame.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Everyone can understand, "What is the use of this fame?" but he is desiring. This is going on. That is the cause of his bondage. This life he's desiring to eat motorcar, next life he is desiring to eat something, enjoy something, varieties of mano-dharma, mental concoction, and that is his bondage. Kṛṣṇa is so kind; whatever he desires, he is given the facility: "All right, take it."

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

Prabhupāda: Those who are worshiper of demigods, they are lusty. Kāmuka. And the kāmuka platform is material world, lusty. Everyone is trying to enjoy sense gratification. So demigod worship is for sense gratification. If you worship Durga, then you pray, "Mother Durga, give me name, fame, wealth, good wife, and so on, so on." Dhanaṁ dehi rūpaṁ dehi rūpavati-bhāryaṁ dehi. Simply demanding for sense gratification. So that is not love of Godhead. That is to select one agent of God and exact from him as much as you can for your sense gratification. That is not recommended in the Vedic religion. Vedic religion, although there are demigods, but the ultimate is oṁ tad viṣṇoḥ paramaṁ padaṁ sadā paśyanti sūrayaḥ. Those who are sūraya, actually advanced, they see to the Viṣṇu paramaṁ padam. Viṣṇor aradhanaṁ param. The worship of Viṣṇu is the supreme worship.

Morning Walk -- August 12, 1976, Tehran:

Prabhupāda: That Guljanajana(?) Nanda you know? He was one of the prominent member of the planning commission. He was very important member in the central government, home member, planning commission, president and so on, so on. Nowadays he is loitering on the street, coming me to talk as ordinary man. You have seen? You were giving me massage on the roof and he was sitting?

Hari-śauri: Yes. He's just trying to make some name and fame now by becoming a pious man.

Prabhupāda: So he's coming to me. He was very big man. Home member Ran Nitola(?) was president.

Hari-śauri: He was prime minister for about ten days.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Just like our Godbrothers. They are envious. What I have done to them? I am doing my business, trying to serve my Guru Mahārāja. But they are envious because I am so opulent. I have got so much fame, so many influence, so much influence all over the world. Everyone is praising me about... That is ignorance. And this is regrettable because they are posing themselves as Vaiṣṇava. Ordinary man can do that, but they are dressing like Vaiṣṇava, and they are so envious. That Tīrtha Mahārāja, unnecessarily he was envious, whole life fighting, fighting, fighting in the court and died. Simply planning.

Page Title:Fame (Conversations)
Compiler:Visnu Murti, Serene
Created:25 of Dec, 2010
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=15, Let=0
No. of Quotes:15