Older gentlemen are becoming interested, so much so that the fathers and grandfathers of my disciples are encouraging us by becoming life members of our great society, the International Society for Krishna Consciousness. In Los Angeles many fathers and mothers used to come to see me to express their feelings of gratitude for my leading the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement throughout the entire world. Some of them said that it is greatly fortunate for the Americans that I have started the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement in America. But actually the original father of this movement is Lord Kṛṣṇa Himself, since it was started a very long time ago but is coming down to human society by disciplic succession. If I have any credit in this connection, it does not belong to me personally, but it is due to my eternal spiritual master, His Divine Grace Oṁ Viṣṇupāda Paramahaṁsa Parivrājakācārya 108 Śrī Śrīmad Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Gosvāmī Mahārāja Prabhupāda.
Gratitude
Bhagavad-gita As It Is
BG Preface and Introduction
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 1
Then that supreme authority, personified by sound and unseen by eyes, but most wonderful, stopped speaking. Feeling a sense of gratitude, I offered my obeisances unto Him, bowing my head.
SB Canto 2
The impersonalists argue that there is no use in worshiping the Lord when everything is nothing but the Lord Himself. The personalist, however, worships the Lord out of a great sense of gratitude, utilizing the ingredients born out of the bodily limbs of the Lord. The fruits and flowers are available from the body of the earth, and yet mother earth is worshiped by the sensible devotee with ingredients born from the earth. Similarly, mother Ganges is worshiped by the water of the Ganges, and yet the worshiper enjoys the result of such worship. Worship of the Lord is also performed by the ingredients born from the bodily limbs of the Lord, and yet the worshiper, who is himself a part of the Lord, achieves the result of devotional service to the Lord. While the impersonalist wrongly concludes that he is the Lord himself, the personalist, out of a great gratitude, worships the Lord in devotional service, knowing perfectly well that nothing is different from the Lord.
SB Canto 3
For pure devotees of the Lord who are completely satisfied with the transcendental loving service of the Lord, there is hardly any necessity to visit the various places of pilgrimage. But those who are not so advanced have the prescribed duties of visiting pilgrimage sites and regularly performing the rituals. The part of the princely order of the Yadu dynasty who went to Prabhāsa performed all duties to be done in a place of pilgrimage and offered their pious actions to their forefathers and others.
As a rule, every human being is indebted to God, the demigods, great sages, other living entities, people in general, forefathers, etc., for various contributions received from them. Thus everyone is obliged to repay the debt of gratitude. The Yadus who went to the Prabhāsa pilgrimage site performed their duties by distributing land, gold, and well-nourished cows in royal charity, as described in the following verse.
The jungle animals are also maintained by the Lord with their respective foodstuffs, but they are not advanced in God consciousness. Similarly, human beings are provided with food grains, vegetables, fruits and milk by the grace of the Lord, but it is the duty of human beings to acknowledge the mercy of the Lord. As a matter of gratitude, they should feel obliged to the Lord for their supply of foodstuff, and they must first offer Him food in sacrifice and then partake of the remnants.
In Bhagavad-gītā (3.13) it is confirmed that one who takes foodstuff after a performance of sacrifice eats real food for proper maintenance of the body and soul, but one who cooks for himself and does not perform any sacrifice eats only lumps of sin in the shape of foodstuffs. Such sinful eating can never make one happy or free from scarcity. Famine is not due to an increase in population, as less intelligent economists think.
Here the four sages Sanat-kumāra, Sanātana, Sanandana and Sanaka are described as actually sincere devotees. Although they had heard from their father, Brahmā, about the personal feature of the Lord, only the impersonal feature—Brahman—was revealed to them. But because they were sincerely searching for the Lord, they finally saw His personal feature directly, which corresponded with the description given by their father. They thus became fully satisfied. Here they express their gratitude because although they were foolish impersonalists in the beginning, by the grace of the Lord they could now have the good fortune to see His personal feature. Another significant aspect of this verse is that the sages describe their experience of hearing from their father, Brahmā, who was born of the Lord directly. In other words, the disciplic succession from the Lord to Brahmā and from Brahmā to Nārada and from Nārada to Vyāsa, and so on, is accepted here. Because the Kumāras were sons of Brahmā, they had the opportunity to learn Vedic knowledge from the disciplic succession of Brahmā, and therefore, in spite of their impersonalist beginnings, they became, in the end, direct seers of the personal feature of the Lord.
We cannot bribe the Personality of Godhead. He is so great that our bribery has no value. Nor has He any scarcity; since He is full in Himself, what can we offer Him? Everything is produced by Him. We simply offer to show our love and gratitude to the Lord.
This gratitude and love for God is exhibited by a pure devotee, who knows that the Lord lives in every living entity. As such, temple worship necessarily includes distribution of prasāda. It is not that one should create a temple in his private apartment or private room, offer something to the Lord, and then eat. Of course, that is better than simply cooking foodstuffs and eating without understanding one's relationship with the Supreme Lord; people who act in this manner are just like animals. But the devotee who wants to elevate himself to the higher level of understanding must know that the Lord is present in every living entity, and, as stated in the previous verse, one should be compassionate to other living entities. A devotee should worship the Supreme Lord, be friendly to persons who are on the same level and be compassionate to the ignorant.
My dear Lord, by Your causeless mercy I am awakened to consciousness, although I am only ten months old. For this causeless mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the friend of all fallen souls, there is no way to express my gratitude but to pray with folded hands.
As stated in Bhagavad-gītā, intelligence and forgetfulness are both supplied by the Supersoul sitting with the individual soul within the body. When He sees that a conditioned soul is very serious about getting out of the clutches of the material influence, the Supreme Lord gives intelligence internally as Supersoul and externally as the spiritual master, or, as an incarnation of the Personality of Godhead Himself, He helps by speaking instructions such as Bhagavad-gītā. The Lord is always seeking the opportunity to reclaim the fallen souls to His abode, the kingdom of God. We should always feel very much obliged to the Personality of Godhead, for He is always anxious to bring us into the happy condition of eternal life. There is no sufficient means to repay the Personality of Godhead for His act of benediction; therefore, we can simply feel gratitude and pray to the Lord with folded hands. This prayer of the child in the womb may be questioned by some atheistic people. How can a child pray in such a nice way in the womb of his mother? Everything is possible by the grace of the Lord. The child is put into such a precarious condition externally, but internally he is the same, and the Lord is there. By the transcendental energy of the Lord, everything is possible.
SB Canto 4
Factually, the insulting words used by Dakṣa against Lord Śiva were enough to have him thrown perpetually into a hellish life. But Lord Śiva, being kind toward him, awarded him punishment to neutralize the offense. King Dakṣa realized this and, feeling obliged for Lord Śiva's magnanimous behavior, wanted to show his gratitude. Sometimes a father punishes his child, and when the child is grown up and comes to his senses, he understands that the father's punishment was not actually punishment but mercy. Similarly, Dakṣa appreciated that the punishment offered to him by Lord Śiva was a manifestation of Lord Śiva's mercy. That is the symptom of a person making progress on the path of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is said that a devotee in Kṛṣṇa consciousness never takes any miserable condition of life to be condemnation by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. He accepts the miserable condition to be the grace of the Lord. He thinks, "I would have been punished or put into a more dangerous condition of life due to my past misdeeds, but the Lord has protected me. Thus I have received only a little punishment as token execution of the law of karma." Thinking of His grace in that way, a devotee always surrenders to the Supreme Personality of Godhead more and more seriously and is not disturbed by such so-called punishment.
A devotee acquires all the good qualities of the demigods; he is guṇāyanam, the reservoir of all good qualities. His only asset is good behavior, and he is grateful. Gratitude for the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead is one of the qualities of brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas. Everyone should feel grateful to the Supreme Personality of Godhead because He is maintaining all living entities and supplying all their necessities. As stated in the Vedas (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13), eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān: the supreme one is supplying all necessities to the living entities. The living entity who is therefore grateful to the Supreme Personality of Godhead is certainly qualified with good characteristics.
The word vṛddhāśrayam is very significant in this verse. Vṛddha refers to one who is advanced in knowledge. There are two kinds of old men—he who is advanced in years and he who is experienced in knowledge. One who is advanced in knowledge is actually vṛddha (jñāna-vṛddha); one does not become vṛddha simply by advancing in age.
SB Canto 7
A brahmacārī should very strictly abstain from living with women and should not meet with gṛhasthas and those too addicted to women. Nor should a brahmacārī speak in a lonely place with a woman.
After completing one's education as a brahmacārī in this way, one should give dakṣiṇā, an offering of gratitude, to one's guru, and then one may leave for home and accept the next āśrama-the gṛhastha-āśrama-or else one may continue in the brahmacarya-āśrama without adulteration. The duties for the gṛhastha-āśrama and brahmacarya-āśrama, as well as the duties for sannyāsīs, are prescribed in the śāstras. A gṛhastha is not meant to enjoy sex life without restriction. Indeed, the whole purpose of Vedic life is to become free from sexual indulgence. All the āśramas are recognized for spiritual progress, and therefore although the gṛhastha-āśrama gives a kind of license for sex life for a certain time, it does not allow unrestricted sex life. Therefore, in gṛhastha life also, there is no illicit sex. A gṛhastha should not accept a woman for sexual enjoyment. Wasting semen is also illicit sex.
SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)
In return for my insignificant surrender, You have mercifully bestowed upon me, Your servant, the torchlight of transcendental knowledge. Therefore, what devotee of Yours who has any gratitude could ever give up Your lotus feet and take shelter of another master?
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Adi-lila
The Caitanya-bhāgavata confirms that Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, by His birth, has made the whole world peaceful, as in the past Nārāyaṇa protected this earth in His incarnation as Varāha. Because of His protecting and maintaining this world in the present Kali-yuga, Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu is known as Viśvambhara, which refers to one who feeds the entire world. The movement inaugurated by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu when He was present five hundred years ago is again being propagated all over the world, and factually we are seeing its practical results. People are being saved, protected and maintained by this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. Thousands of followers, especially Western youths, are taking part in this Hare Kṛṣṇa movement, and how safe and happy they feel can be understood from the expressions of gratitude in their hundreds and thousands of letters. The name Viśvambhara is also mentioned in the Atharva-veda-saṁhitā (3.3.16.5): viśvambhara viśvena mā bharasā pāhi svāhā.
CC Antya-lila
All the devotees present so greatly appreciated this verse that they expressed their gratitude to Śrī Rūpa Gosvāmī for his transcendental recitation.
Everyone, whether an insect or the King of heaven, is entangled and bound by the actions and reactions of his karma. However, when one becomes a pure devotee, free from material desires and from bondage to karma, jñāna and yoga, one is freed from material actions and reactions by the causeless mercy of Kṛṣṇa. One cannot express sufficient gratitude to Kṛṣṇa for being freed from the materialistic way of life.
It is my wish that devotees of Lord Caitanya all over the world enjoy this translation, and I am glad to express my gratitude to the learned men in the Western countries who are so pleased with my work that they are ordering in advance all my books that will be published in the future. On this occasion, therefore, I request my disciples who are determined to help me in this work to continue their cooperation fully, so that philosophers, scholars, religionists and people in general all over the world will benefit by reading our transcendental literatures, such as Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and Śrī Caitanya-caritāmṛta.
Other Books by Srila Prabhupada
Teachings of Lord Caitanya
He trains him from without as the spiritual master, and He trains him from within as the Supersoul. In this connection there is a very nice verse in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.29.6), in which Uddhava says to Lord Kṛṣṇa: "My dear Lord, even if someone lives as long as Brahmā, he would still be unable to express his gratitude to You for the benefits derived from remembering You. Out of Your causeless mercy You drive away all inauspicious conditions for Your devotee, expressing Yourself from outside as the spiritual master and from inside as the Supersoul."
If one somehow or other gets in touch with a pure devotee and thus develops a desire to render devotional service to Kṛṣṇa, he gradually rises to the platform of love of Godhead and is thus freed from the clutches of the material energy. This is confirmed in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.20.8) where the Lord says, "For one who, out of his own accord, becomes attracted to topics of My activities—being neither allured nor repelled by material activities—following the path of devotional service leading to the perfection of love of God becomes possible." However, it is not possible to achieve the stage of perfection without being favored by a pure devotee, or a mahātmā, a great soul.
Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Lord Brahmā continued: “My Lord, sometimes I am puzzled as to how Your Lordship will be able to repay, in gratitude, the devotional service of these residents of Vṛndāvana. Although I know that You are the supreme source of all benediction, I am puzzled to know how You will be able to repay all the service that You are receiving from these residents of Vṛndāvana. I think of how You are so kind, so magnanimous, that even Pūtanā, who came to cheat You by dressing herself as a very affectionate mother, was awarded liberation and the actual post of a mother. And other demons belonging to the same family, such as Aghāsura and Bakāsura, were also favored with liberation and achieved You. Under the circumstances, I am puzzled. These residents of Vṛndāvana have given You everything—their bodies, their minds, their love, their homes, their possessions. Everything is being utilized for Your purpose. So how will You be able to repay Your debt to them? You have already given Yourself to Pūtanā! I surmise that You shall ever remain a debtor to the residents of Vṛndāvana, being unable to repay their loving service.
On hearing this inquiry from Kṛṣṇa, Mahārāja Nanda replied, "My dear boy, this ceremonial performance is more or less traditional. Because rainfall is due to the mercy of King Indra and the clouds are his representatives, and because water is so important for our living, we must show some gratitude to the controller of this rainfall, Mahārāja Indra. We are arranging, therefore, to pacify King Indra because he has very kindly sent us clouds to pour down a sufficient quantity of rain for successful agricultural activities. Water is very important: without rainfall we cannot farm or produce grain, and without grain we cannot live. Therefore rain is necessary for successful religious ceremonies, economic development and, ultimately, liberation. So we should not give up this traditional ceremonial function; if one gives it up, being influenced by lust, greed or fear, then it does not look very good for him."
So please do not try to find fault with Me. Because you consider Me so dear to you, kindly excuse Me if I have done anything wrong. I cannot repay your continuous love for Me, even throughout the lifetimes of the demigods in the heavenly planets. It is impossible to repay you or show enough gratitude for your love; therefore please be satisfied by your own pious activities. You have displayed exemplary attraction for Me, overcoming the greatest difficulties arising from family connections. Please be satisfied with your highly exemplary character, for it is not possible for Me to repay My debt to you.”
The exemplary character of devotional service manifested by the devotees of Vṛndāvana is the purest type of devotion. It is enjoined in authoritative śāstras that devotional service must be ahaitukī and apratihatā. This means that devotional service to Kṛṣṇa cannot be checked by political or religious convention. The stage of devotional service is always transcendental.
Because Lakṣmī is famous as Cañcalā, Lord Nārāyaṇa indicated that she might not have been living perpetually by His chest, but because His chest had been touched by the feet of Bhṛgu Muni, it was now sanctified, and there was no chance that the goddess of fortune would leave. Bhṛgu Muni, however, could understand his position and that of the Lord, and he was struck with wonder at the behavior of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Because of his gratitude, his voice choked up, and he was unable to reply to the words of the Lord. Tears glided from his eyes, and he could not say anything. He simply stood silently before the Lord.
After testing Lord Brahmā, Lord Śiva and Lord Viṣṇu, Bhṛgu Muni returned to the assembly of great sages on the bank of the river Sarasvatī and described his experience. After hearing him with great attention, the sages concluded that of all the predominating deities, Lord Viṣṇu is certainly the greatest.
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Is He poor? Still, He says, universal: patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam. Anywhere, in any part of the universe, you can secure a little leaf, patram, a little flower, a little water, and offer Kṛṣṇa: "My dear Kṛṣṇa, everything is Yours. So just to offer my gratitude... I am very poor. I have no means to offer You nice things. So I have brought this." Kṛṣṇa says, "Yes, bring it." Tad aham aśnāmi. "I shall eat." Why? Bhaktyā. "Because you are offering Me with bhakti." This is Kṛṣṇa's want. You become bhaktas; Kṛṣṇa will be very satisfied. Not that you become very big man, very big leader. That will entangle you again. Bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). Simply waste of time. Just become bhakta of Kṛṣṇa. Then everything is all right. Otherwise you are spoiling your life. Bhṛtya.
Yes. Just see, a strong word is used. Suppose if there is mention, there is recommendation that you should perform sūrya-yajña. Sūrya means the sun. The sun is supplying you so much heat, warmth, and don't you want to give him some tax or satisfy him by sacrifices? So that is our duty. If you are receiving from me so many things and if you do not at least acknowledge your gratitude, then you are a thief. We are receiving so many benefits through the agents of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and if we do not acknowledge even, "God is great, He is so kind, in spite of our so many faults He's supplying us nice foodstuff, nice everything," so how much ungrateful the human society has become, just imagine. And they want peace and prosperity. Nonsense. Where is peace and prosperity? You must suffer. You must suffer. That is your due. Go on.
There are hundreds and thousands of preparation. But as soon as you prepare for yourself or you try to satisfy your tongue, then you are bound up by the laws of nature. Anything. Because that is sinful. Sinful. If you do not acknowledge, if you do not acknowledge the authority, if you do not feel your gratitude for the supplier, then you are a thief. Especially it is mentioned. "It is thief." I am taking your things, I am eating, but I am not feeling any gratitude for you, then I am a thief. Yes. Go on.
You should. Otherwise you are ungrateful. You are drinking milk, you are taking so much butter, milk product, and as gratitude you are killing cows? You should be ashamed. Even if you have no human feelings. You suck the breast of your mother and kill? Is that humanity?
So this will be, in due course, the milk supply will be stopped. That is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. There will be no more milk supply at the end of this Kali-yuga. Three, four things will be stopped—grains, sugar, and milk will be stopped. And fruits will not be... Without any pulp. It will be simply seed. Just like in mango there is seed and pulp. In future you'll simply have seed, no pulp. So you'll eat mango simply by tasting the seed. There will be no more mango pulp. These are stated in the Bhāgavatam.
So God is great, and I am dependent. So my sense of love has to be developed. We must accept that God is great, He is supplying our necessities, why not render some service in gratitude? Is there any harm? Suppose somebody is always supplying you everything, don't you think in your gratitude to supply, to render some service to him? If you develop that sense of gratitude, that is further development, attachment, service. Now that service has again to be further developed. How it is to be developed? Just like service to your friend. A friend does not demand service. Just like master, he demands service: "You must do it." But friend does not demand service, but dear friend: "Yes, why not?" That means voluntary service. More intimately. That is further development. That friendly service... One sort of friendship is with awe and veneration.
Similarly, we can develop friendship with God in two stages. The first stage is with awe and veneration. "Oh, God is so great. God is supplying us so many things, and in gratitude I must serve Him." Or, "He is my well-wisher; He's my friend."
But if you further development your friendship... Just like Arjuna. Arjuna developed friendship with Kṛṣṇa. When he saw Kṛṣṇa in His supreme universal form, he said, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, I have talked with You as friend. I have insulted You in so many ways." Friends and friends, sometimes they talk in insulting tone, but that is not insult, that is pleasure. Similarly, Arjuna also talks to Kṛṣṇa in so many insulting tones. But when he saw that "Oh, here is the Supreme Personality of Godhead," he was afraid. So friendship. Then further development of service is to accept the Supreme Lord as son. When I get somebody as my son, the full service is there from the beginning of his life.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1971 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Less than! Cow is supporting the whole society with milk. Every morning, without milk, we cannot live. The child, without milk, cannot live. She should be treated as mother. And they are being sent to the slaughterhouse. And still, they are thinking of becoming free from sinful life. Can anyone kill his own mother? "Oh, mother is old and useless. Let her be killed. Burden." Is that very gratitude for the mother by the son?
Revatīnandana: They do that. As soon as the cow is too old to give milk, immediately slaughterhouse. I was talking to one man, he was a cowherdsman here in England. He said he couldn't stand it. He said a nice cow, she would get old, she couldn't give milk anymore, immediately slaughterhouse. Just like that. The most disgusting thing.
Prabhupāda: Yes. I should feel grateful. "Oh, God has given me this thing, so whatever utility is there, first of all I must offer to God." God has given me this grain to eat, so I must cook and first of all offer to God, and then I shall eat." This is feeling gratitude, grateful.
Sister Mary: Would you use, say, cars if it were given you?
Prabhupāda: What is that?
Haṁsadūta: If someone gives us an automobile would we use it?
Revatīnandana: Things like that.
Prabhupāda: Yes, why not?
Revatīnandana: Just like this tape recorder.
Prabhupāda: Because originally, everything is possession of God.
Prabhupāda: No, what... We are therefore teaching. We are therefore teaching. Members are gradually learning how to sacrifice for God. So when he is completely trained up, he knows that nothing belongs to Him. Everything belongs to God. Therefore, whatever he possesses, it must be utilized for God's purposes. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or God consciousness. We take it for granted, and that is a fact. Everything belongs to God. God, whatever God has given me for my use, so I must use it, first of all expressing my gratitude to God, "O God, You are so kind that You have given me this. So first of all you taste it. Then I'll eat." This is our philosophy.
Sister Mary: What about pleasures like listening to music?
Prabhupāda: Yes, we chant the glories of God.
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Obligation we must follow. That I have already said, that you have obligation to the state, you must pay tax. Otherwise you are criminal. So obligation must be there. If somebody is giving you protection, you must be obliged. If you don't feel obliged, then you'll be punished.
Hari-śauri: Gratitude is a sign of intelligence.
Prabhupāda: Stena eva sa ucyate (BG 3.12). In Bhāgavata it is written that everything belongs to God. You take whatever is your necessity. You take more, then you'll be punished. This is Bhāgavata's statement. So now the business is to become capitalist. He's taking more, holding the whole stock, at least in India. It is not coming to the market, and people are starving. So they will be punished. (break) ...also. The excess grain they are throwing it into the sea. So they'll be punished. They are also waiting, (Sanskrit). (break) ...spiritual communism. Don't take more. Just like the natural birds, if you keep one bag of rice here, he'll come, but they will take three, four grains, and they'll go away. And if you ask a man,
Girirāja: In the Blitz in the bold type they quote the Endowments Minister that we owe a great debt of gratitude to Śrīla Prabhupāda for reminding us of the great treasure that we have in our own culture.
Prabhupāda: Then they've already owned (won) the case.
Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Actually, they don't know that you addressed the whole cabinet in that Endowment Minister's house. That Blitz doesn't know.
Girirāja: They mentioned that the Commissioner of Town Planning designed the temple. They mentioned that the Chief Minister came. They mentioned that we have a farm to help the poor people.
Prabhupāda: Oh, everything is there.
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Dr. Sharma: Yes. They do not know. The real principle behind the praying to a tree or praying to stones or praying to idol worship, it signifies how grateful we are to the nature that is going around in praise of the Lord. Even to go (indistinct) the tree, the tree which happens to give the leaf, the shelter, the fruits, the roots, the bark of the tree—it has got so bulk of the nature created by God. And we are grateful to these things, and it shows how grateful we are to things, it shows a lot of gratitude we have. But that aspect of it is not being appreciated.
Prabhupāda: They have not been educated. Therefore, actually speaking, there is no real knowledge outside India. Mūḍha.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He says, "We are always praying to Kṛṣṇa that He will give us the spiritual strength to help you in your mission of spreading Lord Caitanya's mercy. Now we are also constantly praying, 'Dear Lord Kṛṣṇa, if You desire, please cure Śrīla Prabhupāda.' Śrīla Prabhupāda, we are most grateful for Tamāla Kṛṣṇa's recent letter, in which he reports how much you enjoyed Back To Godhead issue number 7." This is number 8. "This is our only purpose in life, to give you some little amount of pleasure by our service. The devotees are also enjoying the magazine very much, especially your talks with Hayagrīva Prabhu on the bogus philosophers, and the 'Śrīla Prabhupāda Speaks Out' feature." The devotees like that too much, "Prabhupāda Speaks Out." "Please accept this Vyāsa-pūjā issue, Back to Godhead 12.8. We are offering to you this drop of gratitude for the ocean of love you are giving us. Please help us continue to work together in pushing on your great movement to benedict the world with Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Your insignificant servants..."
Prabhupāda: How many copies they have published?
Correspondence
1947 to 1965 Correspondence
According to Indian way of thought, every one is advised to do good to others namely not only to the human society but also to living beings other than human being. The Indians are not cow worshippers as others wrongly interpret it, but the Indians are gratitudeful to the species of cow for supplying milk to the human babies and the sentiment is so fine that simply for supplying milk the cow is accepted as one of the seven mothers. That is called Indian cultural mission. We should learn to look upon every living being as our own brother and treat him in that love. Mahatma Gandhi's philosophy began from this philosophy of universal brotherhood which is not restricted to the human kind but to all the species of life. That is the sign of real intelligence. In the Bhagavad-gita it is stated that a learned man looks upon a well educated Brahmin who is well behaved by education and so also upon a candala who is accustomed to eat the dogs.
1968 Correspondence
In the meantime, Gargamuni has come here and I have heard from him the details of your procession and it is so much engladdening to my heart. I thank you all very much for making the Rathayatra festival so successful. Please convey my gratitude to all the boys and girls who participated in this great transcendental service. This is the second year, and you have made a great stride from the first year, and in the third year, I hope it will be still more successful.
Regarding your pen-friend in South India: I have not as yet received any letter from him, but as soon as I receive any news from him, I shall be glad to give him necessary instructions. In the meantime, if you write to him you can convey this message to the gentleman. Any friend in any part of the world that you may contact, try to infuse him with this Krishna Consciousness idea. Never waste your time in any other talks. I think our students have already developed this attitude and they are not interested in idle talks.
1969 Correspondence
I am very glad to send you the beads for your initiation, but I think you wanted permission from your father, and I have received the following telegram from him: "Gopala Khanna at Montreal our only son pray his initiation to brahmanahood will doom and driven future of this small humble family. Pray abandon programme and earn our gratitude, cable. Accepting our prayers Lord bless every one and give us our joy back.—Mr. and Mrs. A. S. Khanna Aban Villa Santacruz East."
I do not know why you had wanted permission from your father. In the material world everyone is interested in pound-shilling-pence. Your parents must be thinking that upon your being initiated you shall become a mendicant and the pound-shilling-pence you are sending will be stopped, and they will suffer materially. But you can assure them they will be better off materially after you are initiated. Anyway, now I do not know what to do with you.
I am glad to learn that you have performed the Guru Purnima Ceremony by Kirtana that is all right. But this Guru Purnima is generally performed by the Mayavadi sects. The idea of Guru Purnima is to offer gratitude to the Spiritual Master by the disciple once in a year. That is called Guru Purnima. So far as we are concerned, Gaudiya Vaisnavas, we offer all our gratefulness to the Spiritual Master on His Appearance Day Ceremony, called Vyasa Puja. So kirtana is our daily function; whatever you have done is all right, but actual worship of the Spiritual Master will be done by all of my disciples on the fifth day of September, just one day after Janmastami.
1970 Correspondence
Actually I am not worthy of any one of the words spoken by you but all of them are due to my Spiritual Master Who was so kind to me. In fact I am a worthless person because my Spiritual Master ordered me to take up this work in 1922 but I did not carry his order until 1958, when I was obliged to carry out His order by His arrangement only. This means although I was not very enthusiastic to carry out His order He forced me circumstantially to accept it. So this is His special mercy upon me and I always think about this with gratitude to this exalted personality coming directly from Vaikuntha World and we had the great fortune to meet Him. I think that is the only credit on our part that we happened to meet Him by some "ajnata sukriti" or unknown auspicious activities. He is so kind upon me that when I came to your country, where I was completely unknown, He sent to me some good souls like you unsolicited. So I accept you all as assistants or representatives of my Guru Maharaja Who is still helping me because I am so feeble and unworthy.
1973 Correspondence
I am in receipt of your letter dated December 2, 1973. Thank you very much for pushing on our book distribution program so enthusiastically. Kindly offer all the devotees there my deepest gratitude for their wonderful service in this connection. I understand from Karandhara that you are one of the most staunch supporters and workers for distributing our books and I assure you that it is the highest service to my Guru Maharaja. Thank you very much.
I hereby accept the devotees you have recommended as my duly initiated disciples and their names are as follows:
1974 Correspondence
After all, this is my prime duty, to publish books on Krsna Consciousness. The printing of the book appears excellent, and that you are "profusely distributing" the book all over Sweden is the crowning success of our movement. We will conquer Europe with these books. I can only thank you again and again in sincere gratitude for producing this literature, and pray to Krsna to bless you with all spiritual advancement.
I am planning to go to Paris, France in the second week of May, and while I am there I can also visit you in Stockholm. Let me know if you can arrange a meeting at the university for that time and then I shall be able to go and join you in spreading Krsna Consciousness to the people of Sweden.
I wish to express my heart-felt gratitude for the kind treatment given me and my disciples, members of the Hare Krishna Movement on our recent two day visit in Tirumala. The special excess we were given for darsana before Balaji is something we will always remember favorably, and for my American and European followers it was a rarely given privilege for which they are fully appreciative. We all left Tirupati feeling very much inspired by the darsana and by your excellent management, and we hope to return when we are able again.
If there is any land available, either for purchase or donation, we would be interested in constructing a cottage for the exclusive use of members of our society when they make pilgrimage to Tirupati.
| Page Title: | Gratitude |
| Compiler: | Mayapur, RupaManjari |
| Created: | 02 of Oct, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=1, SB=12, CC=4, OB=5, Lec=6, Con=7, Let=8 |
| No. of Quotes: | 43 |