I am falsely thinking myself happy in possessing my home, wife, children, estate, property and friends. In this way I am acting as if in a dreamland, because none of these are permanent. I am a fool to be always absorbed in thoughts of such things, accepting them as permanent truths. My dear Lord, due to my false identification, I have accepted as permanent everything which is nonpermanent, such as this material body, which is not spiritual and is the source of all kinds of miserable conditions. Being bewildered by such concepts of life, I am always absorbed in thoughts of duality, and I have forgotten You, who are the reservoir of all transcendental pleasure. I am bereft of Your transcendental association, being just like a foolish creature who leaves a water hole covered by water-nourished vegetation and goes in search of water in the desert. The conditioned souls want to quench their thirst, but they do not know where to find water.
Not spiritual
Bhagavad-gita As It Is
BG Chapters 1 - 6
The Māyāvādī theory that after liberation the individual soul, separated by the covering of māyā, or illusion, will merge into the impersonal Brahman and lose its individual existence is not supported herein by Lord Kṛṣṇa, the supreme authority. Nor is the theory that we only think of individuality in the conditioned state supported herein. Kṛṣṇa clearly says herein that in the future also the individuality of the Lord and others, as it is confirmed in the Upaniṣads, will continue eternally. This statement of Kṛṣṇa's is authoritative because Kṛṣṇa cannot be subject to illusion. If individuality were not a fact, then Kṛṣṇa would not have stressed it so much-even for the future. The Māyāvādī may argue that the individuality spoken of by Kṛṣṇa is not spiritual, but material. Even accepting the argument that the individuality is material, then how can one distinguish Kṛṣṇa's individuality? Kṛṣṇa affirms His individuality in the past and confirms His individuality in the future also. He has confirmed His individuality in many ways, and impersonal Brahman has been declared to be subordinate to Him. Kṛṣṇa has maintained spiritual individuality all along; if He is accepted as an ordinary conditioned soul in individual consciousness, then His Bhagavad-gītā has no value as authoritative scripture.
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 1
The brahmāstra is similar to the modern nuclear weapon manipulated by atomic energy. The atomic energy works wholly on total combustibility, and so the brahmāstra also acts. It creates an intolerable heat similar to atomic radiation, but the difference is that the atomic bomb is a gross type of nuclear weapon, whereas the brahmāstra is a subtle type of weapon produced by chanting hymns. It is a different science, and in the days gone by such science was cultivated in the land of Bhārata-varṣa. The subtle science of chanting hymns is also material, but it has yet to be known by the modern material scientists. Subtle material science is not spiritual, but it has a direct relationship with the spiritual method, which is still subtler. A chanter of hymns knew how to apply the weapon as well as how to retract it. That was perfect knowledge. But the son of Droṇācārya, who made use of this subtle science, did not know how to retract. He applied it, being afraid of his imminent death, and thus the practice was not only improper but also irreligious. As the son of a brāhmaṇa, he should not have made so many mistakes, and for such gross negligence of duty he was to be punished by the Lord Himself.
SB Canto 3
It is described in the Viṣṇu Purāṇa that the living entities belong to the spiritual nature. The potency of the Supreme Lord is spiritual, and the living entities, although they are called marginal potency, are also spiritual. If the living entities were not spiritual, this description of impregnation by the Supreme Lord would not be applicable. The Supreme Lord does not put His semen into that which is not spiritual, but it is stated here that the Supreme Person puts His semen into material nature. This means that the living entities are spiritual by nature. After impregnation, material nature delivers all kinds of living entities, beginning from the greatest living creature, Lord Brahmā, down to the insignificant ant, in all varieties of form. In Bhagavad-gītā (14.4) material nature is clearly mentioned as sarva-yoniṣu.
One yojana is calculated to be eight miles, and he has to pass along a road which is therefore as much as 792,000 miles. Such a long distance is passed over within a few moments only. The subtle body is covered by the constables so that the living entity can pass such a long distance quickly and at the same time tolerate the suffering. This covering, although material, is of such fine elements that material scientists cannot discover what the coverings are made of. To pass 792,000 miles within a few moments seems wonderful to the modern space travelers. They have so far traveled at a speed of 18,000 miles per hour, but here we see that a criminal passes 792,000 miles within a few seconds only, although the process is not spiritual but material.
SB Canto 5
This Kāmadeva, who appears as Kṛṣṇa's son named Pradyumna, is viṣṇu-tattva. How this is so is explained by Madhvācārya, who quotes from the Brahmāṇḍa Purāṇa: kāmadeva-sthitaṁ viṣṇum upāste. Although this Kāmadeva is viṣṇu-tattva, His body is not spiritual but material. Lord Viṣṇu as Pradyumna or Kāmadeva accepts a material body, but He still acts spiritually. It does not make any difference whether He accepts a spiritual or a material body; He can act spiritually in any condition of existence. Māyāvādī philosophers regard even Lord Kṛṣṇa's body as material, but their opinions cannot impede the spiritual activity of the Lord.
SB Canto 7
A brāhmaṇa generally remains a brahmacārī throughout his entire life, but although some brāhmaṇas become gṛhasthas and indulge in sex life, they do so under the complete control of the spiritual master. The kṣatriya is allowed to marry more than one wife, but this also must be in accordance with the instructions of the spiritual master. It is not that because one is a gṛhastha he may marry as many times as he likes and indulge in sex life as he likes. This is not spiritual life. In spiritual life, one must conduct one's whole life under the guidance of the guru. Only one who executes his spiritual life under the direction of the spiritual master can achieve the mercy of Kṛṣṇa. Yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādaḥ **. If one desires to advance in spiritual life but he acts whimsically, not following the orders of the spiritual master, he has no shelter. Yasyāprasādān na gatiḥ kuto 'pi. Without the spiritual master's order, even the gṛhastha should not indulge in sex life.
SB Canto 8
The guru does not manufacture a new process to instruct the disciple. The disciple receives from the guru an authorized process received by the guru from his guru. This is called the system of disciplic succession (evaṁ paramparā-prāptaṁ imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2)). This is the bona fide Vedic system of receiving the process of devotional service, by which the Supreme Personality of Godhead is pleased. Therefore, to approach a bona fide guru, or spiritual master, is essential. The bona fide spiritual master is he who has received the mercy of his guru, who in turn is bona fide because he has received the mercy of his guru. This is called the paramparā system. Unless one follows this paramparā system, the mantra one receives will be chanted for no purpose. Nowadays there are so many rascal gurus who manufacture their mantras as a process for material advancement, not spiritual advancement. Still, the mantra cannot be successful if it is manufactured. Mantras and the process of devotional service have special power, provided they are received from the authorized person.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Adi-lila
Actually, any activities performed favorably for the satisfaction of the Lord, under the direction of the spiritual master, are spiritual. But for a person to disregard the order of the spiritual master and act by concoction, accepting his nonsensical activities to be spiritual, is māyā. One must achieve the favor of the Supreme Personality of Godhead through the mercy of the spiritual master. Therefore one must first please the spiritual master, and if he is pleased, then we should understand that the Supreme Personality of Godhead is also pleased. But if the spiritual master is displeased by our actions, they are not spiritual. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura confirms this: yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādo yasyāprasādān na gatiḥ kuto ’pi **. Activities that please the spiritual master must be considered spiritual, and they should be accepted as satisfying to the Lord.
CC Madhya-lila
In his Anubhāṣya commentary, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura says that this stage—devotional service mixed with speculative knowledge—is also external and not within the jurisdiction of pure devotional service as practiced in Vaikuṇṭhaloka. As soon as there is some conception of materialistic thought—be it positive or negative—the service is not spiritual. It may be free from material contamination, but because there is mental speculation the devotional service is not pure and freed from the contamination of material life. A living entity who wants to be completely pure must be above this material conception. The negation of material existence does not necessarily mean spiritual existence.
Other Books by Srila Prabhupada
Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Renunciation Through Wisdom
If a human being tries to exist without ego, desire, feelings, dislikes, and so on, he will be converted into inert matter. This is not spiritual elevation. When a person gradually progresses from materialistic perception to spiritual perception, he can clearly understand how trivial are his mundane desires, feelings, dislikes, and so on which were so long contaminated by ignorance. As this ignorance dissipates, mundane desires become insignificant. Desires remain, but they are no longer mundane. They become transcendental. In that state, one perceives Brahman, the Supersoul, and the Supreme Lord as one. Such higher perceptions are possible only when one's mind and senses are transcendental, a stage impossible to reach in one leap. Those who try the impossible are irrational and overambitious. Everyone has to proceed gradually, placing each step securely before taking the next one. In this way one will ultimately reach the goal.
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Everyone sees. We see the stars or planets. Now you have got the machine; you go there. No. You cannot go. You are so limited. Even you cannot go to the moon planet, which is so nearest. You cannot go. But still, we are proud of our these airplanes, sputniks. We are thinking, "Now we have become God." These rascals they do not know what is God. They are all rascals. They have no idea what is God. Therefore they have accepted another rascal as God. This is going on. You cannot reach. Panthās tu koṭi-śata-vatsara-sampragamyo vāyor athāpi manaso muni-puṅgavānām, so 'pyasti yat prapada-sīmny avicintya-tattve (Bs. 5.34). Śāstra gives you. Just like your material science also gives you information that there is one planet, highest planet, and one can go there by sputnik in forty thousands of years. So who is going to live forty thousand years to reach there? But they have got theoretically all these things. The highest planet. Material. That is not spiritual.
This is Kṛṣṇa, Hṛṣīkeśa. He's come simultaneously, not only within your heart, within the atom. Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-sthaṁ govindam ādi-puruṣaṁ tam aham... (Bs. 5.35). Not only within your heart, but within the atom. Just imagine. How many atoms there are. So Kṛṣṇa is everywhere. These are..., we have to take information of Kṛṣṇa from the śāstra. Śāstram eva cakṣusā (?). Vedānta-sūtra. Your eyes should be śāstra, not your so-called imagination. śāstra-cakṣusā. Yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma... (BG 16.23). If you give up the direction of the śāstra and manufacture your own way, yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ, as you like, then na sa siddhim avāpnoti: you will never get siddhi, perfection, never get. Na sa siddhim avāp..., na sukham, neither happiness. And what to speak of parāṁ gatim, going back to home, back to Godhead. So śāstra-cakṣusā. Everything we have to take from the śāstra. Because we are blind now. śāstra-cakṣusā. Our, the śāstra-jñāna, because the spiritual master enlightens the disciple with śāstra-jñāna, therefore he is spiritual master. If the spiritual master bluffs the disciple, then he is not spiritual master.
How he can give me one thousand dollars?" He's not giving; the money is sent by somebody else. He's simply handing you. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, āmāra ājñāya guru haya tāra sarva-deśa, tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). He's asking everyone to become a spiritual master. So how everyone can become a spiritual master? A spiritual master must have sufficient knowledge, so many other qualifications. No. Even without any qualifications, one can become a spiritual master. How? Now the process is, Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, āmāra ājñāya: "On My order." That is the crucial point. One does not become spiritual master by his own whims. That is not spiritual master. He must be ordered by superior authority. Then he's spiritual master. Āmāra ājñāya. Just like in our case. Our superior authority, our spiritual master, he ordered me that "You just try to preach this gospel, whatever you have learned from me, in English." So we have tried it. That's all. It is not that I am very much qualified. The only qualification is that I have tried to execute the order of superior authority. That's all. This is the secret of success.
Devotee: "The Māyāvādī may argue that the individuality spoken of by Kṛṣṇa is not spiritual but material. Even accepting the argument that the individuality is material, how can one distinguish Kṛṣṇa's individuality?"
Prabhupāda: They also think of Kṛṣṇa, therefore, as material. That is also condemned by Kṛṣṇa. You'll find, avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11). "Because I have appeared just like a human being, these rascals deride at Me that I am also one of them." Mūḍha. Mūḍha means rascal. Just like Dr. Radhakrishnan says, "It is not to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa... It is the soul within the Kṛṣṇa." That means he identifies Kṛṣṇa as one of us. His body and His soul different. But Kṛṣṇa is not... Kṛṣṇa said, sambhavāmy ātma-māyayā (BG 4.6). "I appear in My own, original stature. I do not change." We change. The individual soul... Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni (BG 3.27). He's conducted by, influenced by this prakṛti, nature, but He's not conducted or influenced by the nature. He comes in His own influence, as He is, ātma-māyayā. This is the distinction. Therefore He does not change body. When I come, I change bodies. This time I may have this body; next time I may have another body. That is material, and therefore I forget. Just like Kṛṣṇa says in the Fourth Chapter that "Many times you and I came. You have forgotten (BG 4.5)." Because we change our material body therefore we forget. These things all will be explained. Go on.
Madhudviṣa: He wants to know something about psychic phenomena.
Prabhupāda: Psychic phenomena is the subtle materialism. There are two material conditions: one gross condition, one subtle condition. Gross condition is created by the five elements—earth, water, fire, air, and ether. And the subtle elements are mind, intelligence and ego, false ego. So all these eight elements, they are material. One section is gross, and another section is subtle. So the psychology means the subtle material elements. It is material; it is not spiritual. It is subtle.
Man (6): At rebirth do we all return as a male if the previous existence was a male, or do we change. (laughter)
Madhudviṣa: He is asking when you take birth again do you take birth as the same sex or do you change your sex?
Prabhupāda: No, no. Just like you change your body, you change your shirts, it is not necessary that you will get the same type of shirt. No. That you... Just like if your present shirt, you want to change, and you go to the store and you purchase another shirt and coat, that will depend on your choice and the price you can pay. It is not necessarily that you will get the same type of shirt and coat. Therefore, when we change our body, there is no guarantee that we get the same type of body. A male can get a female body. There are many instances like that. And a female can get the male body. A man can get animal body, like that. So in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13), change of body. But what kind of body you are going to change, that will depend on your own work.
So the Lord says that kāmān sarvān pārtha mano-gatān. The mental speculation, so long we are on the platform of mental speculation, we should understand that we are on the material plane, because mind is material. Mind is not spiritual. So mano-gatān. The special word is used here, mano-gatān. Whatever we create in our mind, that is material, all creations. Mind is the leader of the senses. So the activities of the mind—thinking, feeling and willing—are expressed through our senses. And these sensual activities are known as our living condition. Therefore the Lord says, "When one shall be free from mental speculation, then he's to be understood that he is in the perfect stage of spiritual consciousness." Mental speculation. So by mental speculation we cannot understand what is our position. Generally, people, they indulge in mental speculation. Different philosophy of the world, they are established on the principle of mental speculation, especially in Europe, Aristotle, Schopenhauer, Kant.
Simply thinking, "Oh, it is material. It is not spiritual. Let me give it up," but I do not know how to utilize them in the purpose of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then that sort of renunciation is not very much appreciated by our Gosvāmī sampradāya. We should not decry anything. Whatever is produced now, welcome. But let it be engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then everything will be all right. The same example. Just like Arjuna was a fighter. He was a military man. But he was trying to mix with sense gratification. He was trying... He declined to fight just to make his own sense gratification. What is that sense gratification? He thought that "By killing my kinsmen, my brothers on the other side, I will be unhappy." So my happiness and unhappiness pertaining to this body, that is a kind of sense gratification. So when he was taught Bhagavad-gītā he gave up that process of sense gratification. He agreed to fight to satisfy the sense of Kṛṣṇa. So he remained the same fighting man. He remained the same military man. But only difference was that in the beginning he wanted to satisfy his own senses and at the end of studying Bhagavad-gītā, when he became a liberated soul, he engaged the same energy for the sense gratification of Kṛṣṇa.
So as part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, you have to serve Kṛṣṇa. That is your pleasure. Now we are trying to satisfy our senses, our material senses. When you become..., realize yourself that you are part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, then you'll satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa, Govinda. And by satisfying His senses, your senses will be satisfied. Just like crude example—this is not spiritual—just like husband is understood as the enjoyer and the wife is considered as the enjoyed. But if the wife satisfies the senses of the husband, his (her) senses also satisfied. Similarly, just like you have got some itching on the body, and the part of your body, the fingers, itches on that body, the satisfaction also felt by the fingers also. Not that the particular part only is feeling the sensation of satisfaction, but the whole body is feeling this satisfaction sense. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa being the full, when you satisfy Kṛṣṇa, sense of Kṛṣṇa, Govinda, then the satisfaction of the whole universe takes place. This is the science. Tasmin tuṣṭe jagat tuṣṭa. The another example is just like if you satisfy the stomach in your body, then the whole body is satisfied. The stomach will issue such energy by digestion of the foodstuff that it will transform into blood, it will come into the heart, and from the heart it will be diffused all over the body, and all over the body the depression, the exhaustion which has undergone, that will be satisfied.
So the material existence, external feature of the Lord, is the, are these eight elements, namely bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). They are subtle forms. Ahaṅkāra, egotism, mind and intelligence. They are also material. They are not spiritual. One who thinks that mental speculation is spiritual speculation, that is wrong. Here from Bhagavad-gītā we understand the mind is also subtle form of matter, and actually that is so. Because we get another body after death according to the mental situation at the time of death. The mind, intelligence, the subtle body... Just like at night our subtle body, mind, intelligence works, and we think that we have got a separate body and have gone somewhere else from our house, from our room. We forget this material body. Similarly, after death, my mind and intelligence carry me to another separate body according to my thinking at the time of death. So false ego. This false ego is that "I am something of material product." This is called false ego. Actually, though, ahaṁ brahmāsmi: "I am Brahman."
So the gross and subtle material energy are already explained in the previous verse. (aside:) The children must go. So the bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4)—earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence and ego—these are all material energies. It has nothing to do with the spiritual energy, and because it is not spiritual energy, it is called aparā, inferior.
There are five stages of evolution: śakta, then gāṇapatya, then saura, then śaiva, then vaiṣṇava. In this way, there are five stages. So the impersonalists, they worship in five ways, pañcopāsanā. They are called pañcopāsanā. So one, when he comes to the Viṣṇu stage, he comes to the real stage. But impersonal Viṣṇu, all-pervading Viṣṇu, but when he come to the personal Viṣṇu, then that is perfection of worship. So, so any kind of worship, the Lord accepts, in this way. But that acceptance and devotional acceptance is different. If you are worshiping materialism, that's all right. You get material benefit. Actually you are getting. You are getting. But that is not spiritual. Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham (BG 4.11). One who worships the Supreme Lord materially, he gets material benefit. And one who worships spiritually, he gets spiritual benefit. But you cannot expect spiritual benefit by material worship. That is not possible. Everything accepted as the worship of the Supreme, but they have got different result also.
Verse nine. Prabhavanty ugra-karmāṇaḥ. Prabhavanty ugra-karmāṇaḥ. Karma, you have to work. You cannot maintain yourself without working. That is material world. Material world is not spiritual world. In the spiritual world you haven't got to work, neither you have to eat. Everything is complete. But in the material world means for your maintenance you have to work. But that work is very simple. Grow some food grains and keep some cows, take the milk, and just prepare nice foodstuff and eat. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam (BG 9.26). Keep Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Deity, at home, and Kṛṣṇa is pleased even you simply offer little fruit and little flower.
Therefore, in our society we first of all try to reform the fallen soul or most infected materially person to reform, to come to the stage of flame, because without there being flame you cannot work. It is not possible. It is very practical example. We want flame. Just like yajña. Yajña... We perform fire sacrifice, but we want to see there is flame, not smoke, although the same thing. You cannot be satisfied: "Now there is smoke. It is all right. There is fire." Without there being fire, there cannot be smoke. Parvato mandimān dhūmāt(?). When there is smoke one can understand there is fire, even it is far away. When there is forest fire, people understand, when the smoke is coming from the forest, then can immediately understand there is forest fire. So smoke is, although indication of the fire, but it is not fire. So similarly, so-called meditation, so-called spiritualism, concocted idea, there is some touch of spiritual life, but that is not spiritual life. One should understand. That is not spiritual life. It is called ābhāsa. Ābhāsa means just like day, sunlight, full sunlight. But early in the morning, you cannot see the sun, but there is light. There is no darkness.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
So varṇāśrama-dharma is also material. That is not spiritual. Varṇāśrama-dharma is the beginning of spiritual life. How one can come to the standard of spiritual life? It is a regulated life, when executing... The spiritual life is viṣṇur ārādhyate panthāḥ. When one comes to the platform of worshiping Viṣṇu, that is spiritual life. But the people, they do not know what is the aim of life, what is the goal of life. They do not know. Not only nowadays, the material world is meant like that. They have forgotten, forgotten. They are thinking, those who are too much materialistic, they are thinking that "I am this body, and satisfaction of the bodily senses is the ultimate goal of my life." But that is not the goal of life. The goal of life is to find out the ways and means how to satisfy the Supreme Lord.
Of course, sad-dharma-pṛcchat, there must be, but whatever the spiritual master said, he accepted in toto. Sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye yad vadasi me keśava (BG 10.14). This is the principle. That is called āstikyam, theism. First of all, before accepting the spiritual master, you must find out whether Kṛṣṇa or Kṛṣṇa's representative is there. Arjuna surrendered to Kṛṣṇa. Śiṣyas te 'ham: "I am Your disciple." Similarly, everyone should surrender to Kṛṣṇa or Kṛṣṇa's representative. That is spiritual master. If one does not know what is Kṛṣṇa, neither he speaks, just vibrate the Kṛṣṇa's word, he is not spiritual master. He cannot be spiritual master. Spiritual master does not manufacture his own ideas. That is not spiritual master. Spiritual master is he who speaks exactly the words which is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. That is the secret. You cannot change.
I am speaking of you of my personal experience how this eagerness of hearing is a very important thing. When I first met my spiritual master in 1933... Not... I met him first in 1922. Then for several years I was out of Calcutta and I could not meet him. Again next meeting was in 1933. So at that time I was simply inquiring from other disciples of my spiritual master. At that time I was not spiritual master, I mean to say, disciple. "So when His Holiness will speak?" So this information was noted by my spiritual master, and he was pleased to accept me immediately, that "This boy is very nice. He's very inquisitive to hear. He does not go away."
The expansion of material advancement... Material advancement means expanding the sense gratificatory process. That is material. The more you expand how to satisfy your senses, that is material. And the more we expand how to satisfy Kṛṣṇa, that is spiritual. That is the difference between material and spiritual. It does not mean that material stone, material, and spiritual means it becomes zero. They are thinking like that. Śūnyavādi. They think spiritual means just the opposite number of material. "So material, we have got variegated experience, solid experience, so make it zero." That is not spiritual. That is simply negation. That philosophy is the Buddha philosophy, that "You are suffering from some disease painful, so I cut your throat. That's all. Everything finished. No more suffering. Zero. Make it zero." No. The process should be, if you are diseased, if you are suffering, the suffering should be stopped. Not that to kill you to stop the suffering. No. That is our philosophy.
Then dhāraṇā, meditation. And what is that meditation? That meditation... Here it is recommended, tad-viceṣṭitam: "meditation on the activities of the Supreme Lord." If the Supreme Lord is impersonal, then where is the question of activities? And how you can concentrate your mind something impersonal? Bhagavad-gītā says that kleśaḥ adhikataras teṣām avyaktāsakta-cetasām: "Those who are trying to meditate on the impersonal feature, impersonal feature, their process is very troublesome." Kleśo 'dhikataraḥ. Adhikatara means greater. Any spiritual realization, without painstaking, without accepting some voluntary trouble... And nobody can very easily..., eating, drinking, merrying. No, that will... That is not spiritual advancement. One has to accept voluntarily some principles. That is called tapasya. So dhyāna. Dhyāna means meditation. So that dhyāna.
You want to realize yourself as Brahman. We are Brahman—there is no doubt about it—but we have no realization because sammohita, yayā sammohitaḥ: the māyā has captured us. So immediately if you want to be liberated... Mukti means, mukti... Muktir hitvānyathā rūpam. Muktir hitvānyathā rūpaṁ svarūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ (SB 2.10.6). This is mukti, svarūpa. Our svarūpa is our spiritual life. When we give up other activities, anyathā, which is not spiritual... Material activities, that is not our actual business. Actual business is spiritual activity. Material activity means this body, to keep this body in comfortable position. And the body is changing. Now, today, I am Indian—I am very great Indian leader or very good philanthropist. Now, tomorrow, or the next life, I may not be Indian; I may be Chinese or I may be European. Then my whole business program changed. Again another nationality, another feeling. So in this way... And if I become cats and dogs, then another mentality. This is going on.
So in this way, if people become irreligious or not spiritual, the burden of the world becomes heavier, unbearable. That you can understand. I have already explained. This body, this body, you weigh it. Say, it is one man, fifty seras or something like... But as soon as it will be dead, the burden will... The weight will increase. Is it not? What do you think? The weight will increase. Not the same weight. So, so long people are materialistic, the burden will increase. And so long people are spiritualistic, there will be no burden. So bhārāvatāraṇāya anye bhuvo nāva ivodadhau. Just like if there is a boat, then you can cross over the sea or the river with the help, so when you are Kṛṣṇa conscious, then you can cross over the sea of nescience very easily. Bhuvo nāva iva udadhau, sīdantyā bhūri-bhāreṇa (SB 1.8.34). Bhūri-bhāreṇa, very heavily burdened. So she was lamenting, "My Lord, save me." So the conclusion is that if people become simply atheistic or materialistic... Materialistic means atheistic. And then the weight of the earth, or any planet, will increase and the situation will degrade, and everyone will be unhappy and there will be restlessness. And at that time, Kṛṣṇa comes. He says, yadā yadā hi dharmasya glānir bhavati (BG 4.7).
Therefore Kṛṣṇa's name is Kṛṣṇa-sakha here. Here it is said that śrī-kṛṣṇa kṛṣṇa-sakha: "My dear Kṛṣṇa, You are..." Kuntīdevī did not say that "You are my nephew." No. That is not spiritual relationship. But Kṛṣṇa-sakha, Arjuna, is related with Kṛṣṇa eternally. Eternally as friend. How eternally? What is the proof? There is in the Bhagavad-gītā. When Arjuna inquired... When Kṛṣṇa said that "This system of yoga I explained to the sun-god millions of years ago," imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam (BG 4.1), at that time, to clear the idea, Arjuna, for our sake, he inquired, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, we are contemporaries. You are born the other day along with me. How can I believe that millions of years ago You spoke this philosophy to the sun-god? So what is the answer?" The answer is, "My dear Arjuna, both you and Me, we take so many incarnations, but you forget. But I do not forget. I do not forget." Therefore Arjuna is always with Kṛṣṇa. It is not that in this age, this millennium, Arjuna is friend of Kṛṣṇa. No. He is eternal friend. He has made friendship with Kṛṣṇa. It is never to be broken. It is never to be broken. So if you want to relish the rasa, the mellow, the taste of friendship, make friendship with Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is prepared to make you friend. Therefore He comes: "Please come. Become My friend." But we are denying. Make Kṛṣṇa your friend. Make Kṛṣṇa your son. Then you'll never lament, "Oh, my son is lost" or "My son has gone bad."
So these are yogic, I mean to say, perfection. Anything you like... The most perfect yogi can create even one planet. They become so powerful. But still, that is all material power. That is not spiritual power. The real spiritual power is that you give up this body, you give up this material world, go to the spiritual world, go back to home, back to Godhead. That is your perfection, and that is very easily obtained by this Kṛṣṇa consciousness attitude.
Just like Kardama Muni. Kardama Muni was given the best, beautiful daughter of King Manu. So she was simply serving, not that immediately coming and sexually inclined. She was... So Kardama Muni saw that "This girl came to me, and I have accepted her as my wife, but she is engaged fully, although she is the prince, the daughter of king, very great king. But I'm not giving her any comfort. She has become lean and thin, skinny, but engaged." So he promised that "I am accepting your daughter, but as soon as she will have some children, then I'll leave her. On this condition, I can accept your daughter." The father came with the daughter, that "My daughter has selected you as the proper husband, please accept her." So he accepted, but he made this condition that "As soon as your daughter will have some children, then I'll leave home. Then I'll accept."
So these are the examples, how to become dhīraḥ. It is not spiritual consciousness, it is not so easy thing that you can go. But by the grace of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, it is being easily distributed. That is the grace of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. But if we misuse it, even this facility, we do not know what is the aim of life, then we are missing the opportunity. So go on reading.
This is not spiritual life. This is all cheating. Dhohka-bhaje(?) they are called, dhohka-bhaje,(?) cheaters. Don't be cheaters. Kṛṣṇa knows whether you are cheater or you are sincere. If you are sincere, then He will give you intelligence how you will make progress. Teṣāṁ satata-yuktānām... Find out this verse.
- teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ
- bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam
- dadāmi buddhi-yogaṁ taṁ
- yena mām upayānti te
- (BG 10.10)
To whom, He gives direct instruction? Satata-yuktānām: one who is twenty-four hours busy in His service. Twenty-four hours, satata. Satata means, read it.
So the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is very scientific, authorized. Try to understand Kṛṣṇa. We have got so many literature. Don't waste a single moment. Kālena. And Cāṇakya Paṇḍita, the moral instructor... He's not spiritual instructor, but moral instructor. But he has said that āyuṣaḥ kṣaṇa eko 'pi na labhyaḥ svarṇa-koṭibhiḥ. One moment of your life, if it is wasted without any profit, just imagine how much loss you have suffered. Because you cannot get back one moment of your life again even if you are prepared to pay millions of dollars. That you cannot get back. Nineteen seventy-four, 19th January, passed—you cannot get it back again. If you, any rich man comes forward, "Please get me back again 1974, 19th January," "No, sir, that is not possible." Any price you offer, it is not possible.
Comfortable situation is also sense gratification. Any situation, we shall have to serve Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Not that "If it is comfortable to me, I shall do it." That is sense gratification. That is sense gratification. That is not spiritual; that is material. "Comfortable or uncomfortable, it doesn't matter. If Kṛṣṇa wants it, I must do it." That is wanted. That is wanted. As soon as I discriminate "This is comfortable, this is uncomfortable," that is material.
To realize Kṛṣṇa and go back to Him, that should be our main business. But these karmīs, they do not know what is the mission of this human form of life. They are busy working hard, day and night, for a morsel of grass. That's all. Yan maithunādi-gṛha... There are many other verses. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tuccham (SB 7.9.45). So śāstra, intelligence, knowledge, means one should study everything very critically, "What is my position? What is my duty?" We should not be like the animals. Śva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra-khara. Now we have got our great personalities, leaders. They are praised, eulogized, our, these political leaders. "Our Hitler," "Our Gandhi," "Our Churchill," "Our Nixon." But śāstra says these leaders, those who are not spiritual leaders, those who cannot give our life, they are worshiped by these classes of animals, animals. These so-called leaders, politicians, they are eulogized very much by whom?
But actually, it is not different. It is the scene. It is the process. How the hands and legs will move, the picture is made in such a way that when it is put into the machine, you'll find the hands and legs are moving. So change... Sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya, sṛṣṭi-sthiti-pralaya. There are three kinds of changes. First of all change is the sṛṣṭi. Sṛṣṭi means creation, creation. This material world... There was no material world. Simply there was spiritual world. Just like when all of a sudden cloud appears in the sky. The sky was there, the cloud has appeared. Similarly, this material creation is like that. It is just like a cloud in the vast spiritual ocean, sky. The sky is spiritual. This sky in which we are now existing, that is not spiritual. Just like the sky, covered by the clouds, is the same sky, but it is covered. Similarly, we are living within the covered sky, and if you penetrate the cover, then you go to the spiritual sky. While going to the spiritual sky, you have to give up your body.
They do not go any restaurant or club. Why? Virakti! Don't want this! What to speak of here, poor country, but in the European, American countries, everything is available very cheap. But they are not interested. They are interested to sit down on the floor without any chair and follow me, whatever I say. They have no sufficient eating even. I cannot give them to their standard. Still... Why? Because they don't want this material happiness. That is the test. That is the test. Bhaktiḥ pareśānubhavo viraktir anyatra syāt (SB 11.2.42). When one will become detestful to material enjoyment, you will know, or he'll know. Personally one can understand how much he is advanced in spiritual life. Spiritual life does not mean that a sannyāsī is smoking and drinking tea, one gallon of tea. That is not spiritual life. He must be detestful. So this dharma, or spiritual life, means to have no more interest in material activities but only in the understanding of God, the Supreme, and His service. That is spiritual life.
There was a story, Alexander and the thief. The Alexander arrested one thief, big dacoit, plunderer. So when he explained, "My dear sir, Alexander, so what is the difference between you and me? I am also plunderer; you are also plunderer. I am a small plunderer; you are a big plunderer. So where is the difference in quality?" So Alexander the Great, he was very sensible. He released him: "Yes, there is no difference." So to become a big thief, big plunderer, does not mean that he is advanced. Similarly, our sense, for personal sense gratification or my family's sense gratification or for my nation's sense gratification—that is sense gratification. That is not spiritual activity. That is material activity.
Therefore those who have got complete knowledge, they never expect like that: "I shall become one with the Supreme." Na eka, ekātmatām. Na ekātmatāṁ me spṛhayanti. They even hate to desire it. They simply want to remain... That is the constitutional position. Here we are also part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, although we are now covered by this material body. That can be dissolved. This material, it can be easily dissolved by bhakti-yoga. Therefore it is said that jarayaty āśu yā kośaṁ nigīrṇam analo yathā. Just like if you have got good digestive power, you eat anything—it will be digested. You will not find any difficulty. Similarly, if you have got strong bhakti-yoga, then you are not any more in material body. You are free. You are in spiritual body. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā that māṁ ca yaḥ avyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena sevate. Avyabhicāreṇa means without any deviation. Śuddha-bhakti, pure devotional service. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). They... Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam means any kind of material desire. The, this desire, that "I shall become one with the Supreme," that is also material desire. That is not spiritual desire. That is artificial.
Especially mentioned, yantra. Yantra, just like a car is machine, but you are not the car. Suppose if you want a car to move. Your father gives you a car, maybe costly or not. That depends on the father's condition or your condition. But the father or the..., you purchase. But here it is said that the..., because we want to move in this material world under difference desires, so Kṛṣṇa gives us different types of bodies, 8,400,000 different species of yantra. They are just like machine, yantrārūḍhāni, and that machine is made by māyā, this material energy. That is not spiritual energy. I am spiritual energy; you are spiritual energy. But this vehicle, or the car, or the moving machine, that is not spiritual. That is material. Yantrārūḍhāni māyayā (BG 18.61). It is given by māyā. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ... (BG 3.27). We are in a machine made by māyā. And so long we are on this machine, the machine will be old and you will have to change it for another machine. That is going on. That is called janma-mṛtyu. That is called birth and death. Otherwise you and me, we have no birth and death. Na jāyate na mriyate vā kadācit. The soul, or the Brahman, he does not take birth or dies. Simply we change this machine, body. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). You are driving one car. If the car is broken or it is smashed, that does not mean you are smashed. You may have some accident, but you are not finished; the car may be finished. Similarly, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). Similarly, this body being finished, we are not finished. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13), we get another car, another body, just like we are getting different bodies in this life.
So if we can see even a material object that the heat being emanated for many millions and millions..., it remains the same heat, it maintains the same heat, same light, why it is not possible for the Supreme? Therefore Īśopaniṣad informs us that pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam eva avaśiṣyate. If you take the whole energy of Kṛṣṇa from Kṛṣṇa, then still, the whole energy is there. But you will be surprised nowadays. Modern Gods... There are so many modern Gods; I do not wish to name. But one modern God, he gave his power to his disciple, and the, when he came into consciousness, then he was crying. The disciple inquired from the guru, "Why you are crying, sir?" "Now I have finished everything. I have given you everything. I have given you everything; therefore I am now finished." That is not spiritual. That is material. I have got hundred rupees. If I pay you hundred rupees, then my pocket is empty. But Kṛṣṇa is not like that. Kṛṣṇa can make hundreds of thousands and millions of Kṛṣṇa; still, He is Kṛṣṇa. That is Kṛṣṇa. The potency is never exhausted. That is called pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam eva avaśiṣyate (Īśo Invocation).
He said that every man should execute his particular duty of life. That is called dharma. Now, we manufacture our duty, that is another thing, but according to śāstra, just like Kṛṣṇa says, cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). Duty means according to this cātur-varṇyaṁ, four varṇas and four āśramas. That is called dharma, sādharma. The brāhmaṇa must execute his brahminical duties, a kṣatriya must execute his kṣatriya duties, similarly vaiśya, a śūdra, a brahmacārī, a gṛhastha, a vānaprastha, sannyāsī. That is called dharma. This is material dharma, this is not spiritual dharma. Material dharma means so long we are under the concept of this body, there are certain duties. That is called material dharma. Just like we eat, this is also one of the duty, because if I don't eat, then I shall die. But what kind of food I shall eat, that is described in the śāstra, that sattvic, rajasic, tamasic bhojana. So if we follow the instruction of the śāstra, dharma-śāstra ... They are called dharma-śāstra, the regulative principles. There are twenty kinds of dharma-śāstra, just to regulate because every one of us come to enjoy this world. Just like government rules and regulation.
No, I am speaking not of you. I know what you are doing. But we should corroborate. But as a preacher we should simply speak the real truth. There is no question of corresponding with your ideas and another idea, no. We... Whatever we know, whatever we have heard from our authorities we'll speak. That's all. It may be somebody may know better than me. That is another thing. But I have to present what I have learned from the authority. That's all. And our authority is Kṛṣṇa, mainly. Yāre dekha tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upa... That is the spiritual master. Who does not add or subtract from the talks of Kṛṣṇa, he is spiritual master. One who adds and subtracts according to his whims, he is not spiritual master. He is not bona fide spiritual master. "I, my opinion..." "I give this interpretation..." He is not authorized. You are lawyer, you know better than me. In your law court you cannot change the law by your opinion. That is not possible.
Bibhrat kuṭumbam aśucir yātayām āsa dehinaḥ. Bibhrat, we have to maintain our body. This is called bibhrat. That is necessary. We have got this body in this material world. This is not spiritual world. In the spiritual world there is no necessity of maintaining the body. The body is spiritual. As we have got here in this material world, to maintain this body I require to eat, I require to sleep, I require to satisfy my sense, and I require to defend—the four necessities... Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca. And spiritual body means these four kinds of bodily demands, nil, no more. That is spiritual life. That means no eating, no sleeping, no sex, and no defense. The six Gosvāmīs in Vṛndāvana, they practiced it. (sic:) Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau **. They conquered over sleeping, eating, mating, and defending. Nidrā means sleeping, āhāra means eating, vihāra means sex. Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau. Conquered.
So Prahlāda Mahārāja, although he was born of a father who was atheist number one, godless, by the grace of Nārada Muni he became a great devotee. So his father was very careful that nobody comes and instructs his son about Vedic way of lfe or God consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. He was very careful not to allow anyone. He appointed teachers for his son, strictly prohibiting about... Just like nowadays it has become, what is called? Secular state. Don't talk of God. This is the present situation of the world, atheist class. Don't talk of God. But they do not know that they have not much improved by don't talk of God. The situation is becoming grimmer and grimmer. But they have no eyes to see. They have no eyes to see. This Godless civilization will not make them happy. That's a fact. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad guṇa manorathena asato dhāvato bahiḥ (SB 5.18.12). If one is Godless, then however qualified he may be from the material point of view, he is useless. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad guṇā. He cannot have any good quality. Why? Manorathena asato dhāvato bahiḥ. Because he is on the mental platform. So by speculation on the mental platform, he will accept which is not spiritual. Asata.
That is called paramparā system. Although He's God Himself, God also does not invent anything. Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā, brahma-sūtra-padaiś caiva hetumadbhir viniścitaiḥ (BG 13.5). He's giving reference to the Brahma-sūtra, Vedānta-sūtra. So our line is like that, even God Himself, He can say something new? No. He said to Arjuna, purātanam yogaṁ proktavān, that "I am speaking to you same old philosophy, purātanam yogam, which I spoke to the sun-god." We must stick to this, that a spiritual understanding is never changed. Now the modern days, we have to adjust things. No. That is not spiritual. There is no question of modern and old. Nitya, that is nitya, eternal. We should always remember that. The... Millions and millions of years ago, what was spoken by Kṛṣṇa to the sun-god, the same thing was spoken to Arjuna. He said that "I am speaking to you the same old, purātanaṁ yogam, but because the paramparā system is now broken, so I am making again the paramparā system through you, beginning from you." So the paramparā system, we can understand by Arjuna's behavior, by Arujuna's understanding. Everything is written in the Bhagavad-gītā. Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). So if we follow Arjuna then we can understand Bhagavad-gītā very easily.
In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, the Lord says, "Anyone who is engaged in unalloyed devotional service unto Me, so he is transcendental." Sa guṇān samatītyaitān. Guṇān means these modes, different modes—modes of ignorance, modes of passion, modes of goodness. Goodness is also material. That is not spiritual. If you become very good moralist or very religious, following all the rules and regulations, that is good but that is not spiritual. The spiritual is far above. So one... We have to transcend the position of worldly goodness. Somebody asked me this question, "Swamijī, if a person is moral and dutiful and benevolent, all the good qualifications, so what is the use of worshiping God?" My reply was that anyone who is not God conscious or Kṛṣṇa conscious, he cannot be good, cannot be moral. It is not possible. Harāv abhakta... I am not manufacturing this. This is the statement of Śrīmad-Bhagavatam. Harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇa mano-rathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ (SB 5.18.12). So take for example that, our, in our country, Mahatma Gandhi, he was considered to be a very good man... (break) They may be good, but they are not ultimate good. The ultimate good is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
So yogic exercise means to control the mind, dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā. In order to make the mind controlled and fully fixed up on the Supreme Personality of Godhead, that is required in yoga meditation. Dhyānāvasthita, one remains in meditation. What for? Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā, just in order to make the mind completely, completely absorbed in Kṛṣṇa. Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti. By concentrating the mind upon Kṛṣṇa, generally Lord Viṣṇu, dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ (SB 12.13.1). They are also material endeavor. They are not spiritual. Because spiritual life begins when one understands fully that he is not this body. That is the beginning of instruction in the Bhagavad-gītā. When Kṛṣṇa saw that Arjuna was talking on the platform of bodily concept of life, He was not talking seriously. Arjuna could understand that, that Kṛṣṇa was just talking as friend, not very seriously. Therefore, he submitted himself as a student. Śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ tvāṁ prapannam (BG 2.7). So... And He chastised him, that "You have no spiritual knowledge, still you are talking just like a great scholar." Aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ prajñā-vādāṁś ca bhāṣase (BG 2.11). "You are talking just like a very learned man." That means one who... (break)
So yoga, yoga, this bodily practice, that if I am not body, then what shall I get by bodily exercise? Bodily exercises can help me little, but that is not spiritual platform. The (indistinct), kuṇḍalinī, these are to the bodily concept of life. Actually, to tell the truth, those who are too much bodily absorbed, that "I am this body," for them this yoga practice is recommended. Not for the intelligent man. Because one who identifies himself with this body, he is not very intelligent. But because such persons are not very intelligent, for them this bodily exercise of yoga, aṣṭāṅga-yoga, is recommended. Not for the intelligent person. Intelligent person, they take immediately to the devotional service, immediate. Just like Kṛṣṇa..., Lord Caitanya begins immediately spiritual life, and He instructs Sanātana Gosvāmī, jīvera svarūpa haya nitya kṛṣṇa dāsa (Cc. Madhya 20.108-109). This is spiritual life. You... From the very beginning, you take it for granted that "I am eternal servant of Kṛṣṇa. I am not this body. Neither I have anything to do in relationship with this body." Because as soon as I identify with my body, then the family relation, the society relation, the national relation, the country relation, so many things in relationship with the body we accept as truth. But that is not truth. As soon as the body finishes, everything finishes. Therefore, Prahlāda Mahārāja says, yoga is also not helpful for approaching the Supreme Personality of Godhead.
Nectar of Devotion Lectures
No. These bodies are five elements. Earth, air, water, air, fire, ether. The subtle body, mind, intelligence and ego. So in some planet the earthly portion may be major, the fire portion may be major. In some planet the ether portion may be major. But they're all material bodies. They're material bodies. They're not spiritual bodies. Spiritual body is within. Within the universe, anywhere you go, you get the material body, and according to the body, the duration of life is different. Just like a germ's body. That is also material body. And a human body. That is also material body. But a germ takes birth and dies within second or minute. We live for a hundred years. Both of them material bodies. Similarly Brahmā has got also material body. Those who are living in the moon planet, they are also material body. In the sun planet, they have got material... But different varieties. They live ten thousand years of their... Daiva. Ten thousand. Daiva means our one six months equal to one day there. Such ten thousand years, they live.
Yoga siddhis, they are simply material arts. Just like one example is given, that aṇimā siddhi, aṇimā siddhi means to enter into the stone. So we see in the Western countries they are boring big, big hills and entering in the stone. So that aṇimā siddhi is being possible, is made possible by modern scientific research. So all the siddhis, aṣṭa siddhi, aṇimā, laghimā, prāpti, prākāmya, īśitā, vaśitā, these all siddhis are material. They are not spiritual. But people do not know what is spiritual perfection. They become amazed by seeing some magic by these yogic arts. They're simply material arts. Go on.
This kind of conception, that "I shall become God," or "I shall declare myself God," this is also material conception. This is not spiritual conception. Spiritually, nobody can become God except God. But he has no knowledge of God. He's thinking that he's God. Vimukta-māninaḥ. Tvayy asta-bhāvād. Ye 'nye 'ravindākṣa vimukta-māninaḥ. Māninaḥ means taking for granted that "I've become liberated. I have become God." And I advertise, and some foolish people, they adore me: "Oh, here is God. Here is Bala-yogi incarnation, God." So such cheap God, we don't accept. We want to see that Kṛṣṇa, at seven years old, He lifted Govardhana Hill. So if you are actually God, then show me that you can lift a hill, you can kill a Pūtanā. Then I can accept. What sort of God you are? We don't accept such cheap God. Go on.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
Therefore, we are forgetful of Kṛṣṇa. Our relationship with Kṛṣṇa is practically extinguished. And again, the fire, spark, if he falls down on a dry grass, then gradually, the grass becomes blazing. So even if we are... Because in this material world there are three modes of material nature. If we are associated with the goodness quality, then our spiritual energy again becomes blazing fire. From the modes of goodness, purity, knowledge, the brahminical quality... Satya śama dama titikṣa (BG 18.42). When you are put into that..., the dry grass... Although this satya śama dama, truthfulness or controlling the senses, or controlling the mind, knowledge, toleration, these qualities, they are all material qualities. They are not spiritual qualities. Don't think that if one is... One man is very truthful; that does not mean that he has attained spiritual quality. The spiritual quality is different thing. But these material qualities, satya śama dama titikṣa, all these, they can help you. They can help you to be situated in the transcendental, spiritual qualities. But don't think that they are themselves spiritual qualities. No. That is another.
Festival Lectures
Unlimited, but still, one. Advaita. Acyuta. The Māyāvādī philosophy is that because God has expanded Himself in so many, all-pervading, therefore he is finished. He is finished. Just like material conception. You take any big paper and make it into pieces and then throw it—the original paper is lost. There is no more existence. That is Māyāvādī philosophy. Māyāvādī philosophy means because God is all-pervading, therefore He has no form. He has finished His form. There cannot be any form. And this is material conception. This is not spiritual conception. Spiritual conception is pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya pūrṇam eva avaśiṣyate (Iso Invocation). If Kṛṣṇa is the complete, supreme, so even He expands Himself in millions and trillions of complete forms, still, He is complete. Still, He's complete. This is conception of Kṛṣṇa. So therefore avyaya. Avyaya means acyuta, avyaya. Acyuta means He does not fall. It is not like that, that in my bank I have got one hundred pounds; if I take one, two, three, four, five in this way, one hundred finished, my bank balance is finished. It is not like that. Kṛṣṇa is so complete that immediate forms may be expanded from Him; still, He is complete. Pūrṇasya pūrṇam ādāya. These verses you have already read in the Īśopaniṣad.
So he wanted this, and he is not... It is not that he is dead and gone. That is not spiritual understanding. Even ordinary living being, he does not die. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). And what to speak of such exalted, authorized personality like Bhaktisiddhānta. He is seeing. I never feel that I am alone. Of course, when I came to your country without any friend, without any means... Practically, just like a vagabond I came. But I had full faith that "My Guru Mahārāja is with me." I never lost this faith, and that is fact. There are two words, vāṇī and vapuḥ. Vānī means words, and vapuḥ means this physical body. So vāṇī is more important than the vapuḥ. Vapuḥ will be finished. This is material body. It will be finished. That is the nature. But if we keep to the vāṇī, to the words of spiritual master, then we remain very fixed up. It doesn't matter. Just like Bhagavad-gītā. It was spoken five thousand years ago. But if you keep to the words of Kṛṣṇa, then it is always fresh and guiding. Not that because Arjuna personally listened to Kṛṣṇa about the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā, therefore he knew it. That is not the fact. If you accept Bhagavad-gītā as it is, then you should know that Kṛṣṇa is present before you in His words in the Bhagavad-gītā. This is called spiritual realization. It is not mundane historical incidences.
Arrival Addresses and Talks
Materially, there is distinction, but when you come to the spiritual platform, then, when you discern the spirit soul within everyone, that is equal. That is... Just like you are differently dressed in red shirt; I am differently... This dress, this difference, must be there. There are so many men and women. They are differently dressed. You cannot say they are all equal by the dress. But within the dress, the living entities, they are all the same. We make this distinction: material, not spiritual.
Initiation Lectures
Prabhupāda: So? (Hindi) (break) Yes. Because some of them, they could not follow Hindi.
Pradyumna: I'll just do it fast. First nāma-aparādha is (Sanskrit verse) Paramam aparādham The saintly persons who are spreading the glories of the holy name, if we abuse them, if we make offense at the people who are spreading the glories of the holy name, then the holy name will never tolerate that. How can the holy name tolerate the abuse of those who are spreading the glories of the holy name? So we must understand that a saintly person, a sādhu, satām, spreading the glories of Kṛṣṇa, talking about Kṛṣṇa, must never be offended. Must always be very careful. Sādhu-saṅga (CC Madhya 22.83). You must know how to associate with the sādhus, to always honor them and worship them and not to make offense. The second offense is that we should not put the..., understand that the names of Śrī Kṛṣṇa or Viṣṇu-tattva personalities, which are completely spiritual, are the same as the material designations of jīvas like ourselves. There's Viṣṇu-tattva, there is jīva. Viṣṇu-tattva is God; jīva is this ordinary living entity. The name of the Supreme is the same as the Supreme. The name of the jīva is different from the jīva. So we should not confuse these. We should understand the name of Viṣṇu is the same as Viṣṇu. The name of jīva is not the same. So the names of demigods—the demigods are also jīvas—their names are not spiritual. If we call names of some demigods, it will not do us the same spiritual..., it will not give us this spiritual result as calling the name of Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Therefore during the time of initiation we change the name. A spiritual name is given.
General Lectures
Śrī Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura has explained about this, who is spiritual master. What is that? He says, sādhu śāstra guru vākya tinete kariyā aikya. If you want to advance yourself in spiritual science, then you have to test these three things. What is that? Sādhu, saintly person. Sādhu, śāstra, scriptures, and spiritual master. Now suppose you want to know who is a spiritual master. Then you have to test whether he's speaking just like other saintly persons and whether he's following scriptures. Sādhu śāstra. So you have to test a spiritual master by corroborating whether he is speaking according to the scriptural injunction, whether he's speaking to other saintly persons. So in the world, anywhere you go, the standard spiritual master... Take it, Lord Jesus Christ or Buddha or Śaṅkara or Rāmānujācārya or Caitanya—nobody will say that you make adjustment here and live peacefully. Everyone will say that you have to extinguish this material existence. Lord Buddha says nirvāṇa, and Śaṅkara says brahma satyaṁ jagan mithyā, and Kṛṣṇa says sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). Lord Jesus Christ says that "You have to go the kingdom of God. Just come with me." So nobody says that "Let us make United Nation organization and stick up to thousands of flags, and let there be peace and prosperity, and let the war go on in any part of the world." That is not spiritual master. Spiritual master means that he is interested with the other world beyond this material world. That is spiritual master.
Of course, there cannot be any interpretation in the Bible. Then there is no authority of Bible. If you interpret something... Just like "Call a spade a spade." So if you call something else, that is a different thing. He's not spiritual master. Just like this is watch. Everybody has called it watch, and if I call it spectacle, then what is the value of my being spiritual master? I'm misleading. (laughter) It is watch, that I must say. So when there is misinterpretation, he's not a bona fide spiritual master. He's not spiritual master, what is called a bona fide. If I want to teach you how to see this watch, I can say that "This is called watch and this is called hand and this is called time indication; this is, this called...," so that is nice. And if I say that "Everybody says it is watch. I say it is spectacle," then what kind of a spiritual master I am? Reject him immediately. That intelligence you must have, who is a pseudo spiritual master or real spiritual master. Otherwise you'll be cheated. And that is being done. Everyone is interpreting in his own way. The Bhagavad-gītā, there are thousands of editions, and they have tried to interpret in their own way, all nonsense. They should be all thrown away. Simply you have to read Bhagavad-gītā as it is. Then you'll understand.
I had an article sent to us by some Godbrothers from New York. It's really a pertinent article. Very interesting. It's from the Daily News, a big New York newspaper. The heading reads, "Drive and aid(?) retreat for priests who drink." It goes on to say, "Right now there are 5,000 alcoholic priests in the U.S., and the number is growing, according to a spokesman for Guesthouse, a sanatorium dedicated to preventing priests from wrecking their lives." These are the holy men. Now I'm not to say that all priests are like this. That's not at all what I'm trying to get at. But the point is that so many spiritual men in this age are not spiritual men at all. They're cheaters, they're deceivers. They are themselves drunkards. That's the problem that's stated here. It goes on to say that alcoholism is not treated as a moral failure, but as a disease. But that's absurd. It is a moral failure. These priests have the right to drink or not to drink. They chose to drink and get drunk. But these are men that are leading us back to God.
Sometimes I may become Brahma and sometimes I may become the insect or the germ in the stool. That is my position. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya. Because we have lost the original consciousness, I am being in contact with the material modes of nature, means sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgaḥ. We are mixing with the different types of material qualities, and as such we are developing different modes of material nature in our consciousness. This consciousness has to be cleared. This consciousness... Even our consciousness is goodness... Just like there are many people who are very charitably disposed: they want to make charity, they want to open schools, that want to open hospitals. That is goodness. That is all right. But still it is material; it is not spiritual. Similarly, there are others also who are contacting the modes of passion, just like big, big kings, they are very much anxious or very much ambitious to expand their kingdom. This is called association with the modes of passion. Similarly, there are mixture also, mixture of goodness, passion and ignorance.
Just like cloud takes the water from the sea-cloud hasn't got its own water; cloud takes water from the sea—similarly, a spiritual master brings mercy from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Just see the comparison. He has no own mercy, but he carries the mercy of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is the qualification of spiritual master. A spiritual master will never say that "I am God. I can give you mercy." No. That is not spiritual master. That is a bogus, pretender. A spiritual master will say, "I am servant of God. I have brought His mercy. Please take it and be satisfied." This is spiritual master's business. Just like a post peon. A post peon, when he delivers you some large amount of money, it is not his own money. The money is sent by somebody else. But he honestly delivers you: "Sir, here is your money. Take it." So you become very much satisfied with the peon. Although it is not his money, but when, in case of need, you get the money sent by your father or somebody else, brought by the peon, on oh, you get very much satisfaction. Similarly, we are all suffering in this blazing fire of material existence. The spiritual master brings the message from the Supreme Lord and delivers you. And if you kindly accept, then you'll be satisfied. This is the business of the spiritual master.
Philosophy Discussions
Śyāmasundara: He's seeing it but perhaps he doesn't have the knowledge of what it is.
Prabhupāda: That is different thing. But he's seeing.
Śyāmasundara: So supposing he has no knowledge what it is, but isn't that object still a spiritual...
Prabhupāda: Then he has to take knowledge from person who knows.
Śyāmasundara: My question is, is that object still not spiritual?
Prabhupāda: Yes. He knows or does not know, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. Fact is fact.
Śyāmasundara: It's still spiritual.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Śyāmasundara: Any object.
Prabhupāda: Yes. He has no see. He has not eyes to see it, that it is spiritual. He has no knowledge.
Śyāmasundara: So if he says that the physical world...
Līlāvatī: Does that mean that the spiritual body changes, Prabhupāda?
Prabhupāda: Not spiritual body, material body. Spiritual body cannot be changed.
Śyāmasundara: No. We're not talking about bodies, we're talking about the life force.
Prabhupāda: Life force means that the spirit soul has got spiritual body. That I have explained several times. Just like you have got this body. When you cut your coat, it is according to the body. Because we have hands, legs, therefore it is to be understood that this dress is made according to that real body. So originally the spirit soul has got body, so these physical elements are just like a covering, exactly to the size of the hands, legs, everything.
Śyāmasundara: He says that this life form is unpredictable, that it's always creating new things, new manifestations.
Prabhupāda: Yes. It is creating new things in the material phenomena. Otherwise how he is spiritually situated, there is no such changes. The only one business is to serve Kṛṣṇa, although when we satisfy Kṛṣṇa there are many varieties. That is spiritual varieties. At the present moment, because He is lover of varieties, we are creating this material (indistinct), varieties of body, and this is subjected to threefold miseries and difficulties—birth, death, old age, disease. So, so long we are materially entrapped, our so-called (indistinct) force is creating troubles. We are becoming more and more entangled.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1967 Conversations and Morning Walks
Hayagrīva: Did He have a spiritual master?
Prabhupāda: So He accepted spiritual... Not spiritual master, but a sannyāsa-guru. That is also master, but he's not spiritual master. But he's also considered as sannyāsa-guru, spiritual master who offers him sannyāsa. Just like myself, I took initiation from my Guru Maharaja, but I took sannyāsa from a Godbrother who is a sannyāsī. So my original guru is that spiritual master who initiated me, but he's also a śikṣā guru. Like that. Teacher. Then His renunciation of householder. He became sannyāsa. Now when He was, after taking sannyāsa, when He was going towards Vṛndāvana, He became always almost mad. So Nityānanda, He was with Him. When He saw that Lord Caitanya is in ecstasy, He misled Him just to... His plan was that "I shall take Lord Caitanya to the house of Advaita, and then I shall call His mother to see Him for the last time. If Caitanya goes away from this very point His mother will not be able to see Him." So out of sympathy He said, "Well, Śrīpāda Caitanya, this is not, this side is not Vṛndāvana. You go..." He just misdirected Him. So... And He sent one man to Advaita to receive Him that "He has taken sannyāsī, just try to make arrangement to receive Him. Then we shall meet." So when He came near the house of Advaita He saw that Advaita was waiting. So then He, I mean to say, came to His sense. "Oh, I am misled? I have come to Advaita's house? How is that Nityānanda? You showed Me this way Vṛndāvana."
1968 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Difficulty is that... If the women get married, then there is no difficulty.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No. But if they don't get married. When they are offered... Here is a woman. She was offered and... You see? It was suggested that she get married and because of her body she said no. She thinks she is, you know, she... That's the only reason she could say no, because material reason. Not spiritual reason. She said no because of her preference, material preference.
Prabhupāda: Of course, so long we have got this material body, some material consideration must be there. (chuckles) That is not possible to avoid completely.
Devotee (1): They shouldn't force her to get married, though. That was kind of a bad choice that they gave her, "Either get married or don't come on saṅkīrtana." You can't force somebody.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, that wasn't the situation. It was not that choice.
Devotee (1): What? You can't... I mean to say that you can't force somebody to get married. You know. That isn't proper.
Prabhupāda: There was no force. There was no force. Only proposal. That's all. When it was proposed before me, I also said, "It depends on the choice." So anyway, go on with your work, saṅkīrtana movement you have started. It is very nice. And it is being responded. So increase it. If simply brahmacārīs can do it, that is best.
Hayagrīva: Swamiji? Are there people living on the moon now or were they in other yugas living there? Are they in this yuga living there?
Prabhupāda: No, they're still living there. Yes. As we are living here, they are living there. Yes.
Reporter: And how would you describe these people that live there? Would they be invisible to us or visible?
Prabhupāda: Almost invisible, yes.
Hayagrīva: Spiritual body.
Prabhupāda: Not spiritual. That is also material.
Hayagrīva: Like ghost bodies? Subtle bodies?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Hayagrīva: Excuse me.
Reporter: Okay, thank you. Thank you. (door closes)
Hayagrīva: Their bodies are subtle bodies. They're not like gross bodies.
Prabhupāda: Just like... You try to understand me, that this matter, consisting of five elements, earth, air; earth, water, air...earth, water, fire, air, ether. And then, still subtler than ether is the mind, and then, subtler than the mind is intelligence, and subtler than intelligence is the spirit soul. So before we reach our spiritual platform, there are so many elementary material platforms. So in different planets one of the element is prominent. Just like we can experience in the ocean and sea the water is prominent. In the land earth is prominent. Similarly, in different, just like in the sun planet fire is prominent. So in each and every planet there are particular type of body, particular type of residents. You cannot expect that the same type of body and same type of residents are there.
1969 Conversations and Morning Walks
Guest (2): No. But just because you have two different kinds of energies, why do you have to differentiate them? Essentially what he was trying to say...
Prabhupāda: That is intelligence. That is intelligence. One energy is acting as cooling, and the same energy is acting as heating. Why do you say it is heat and it is cool?
Guest (3): It's all the same thing. Heat and cool is the same thing.
Prabhupāda: Why do you say the same thing? It is not the same thing.
Guest (2): Of course, it is the same thing.
Guest (3): Everything is "it." It's all it.
Prabhupāda: No. That is nonsense. Cold is cold, heat is heat. Only it is acting. You are talking on the material platform. You are not spiritual. You don't talk nonsense. (laughter) No. We have got enough time.
Guest (3): I'm not trying to argue with you. I'm just trying to understand, because from what I understand of it there is no difference between...
Prabhupāda: Just try to understand...
Guest (3): No wait. Wait. Just one moment. Cause and effect are all the same thing.
Prabhupāda: No, no, no, no.
Guest (3): Yes. Sure.
1971 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: ...a bona fide spiritual master. Bona fide spiritual master means who carries out the order of higher authorities. Otherwise he is not spiritual master. Anyone who manufactures his own process of religion, that is rascaldom. dharmāṁ tu sakṣād bhagavat-praṇitam (SB 6.3.19). Just like lawyer, representative of the law, means who carries the order of the supreme executive. He is lawyer. Similarly, a spiritual master means who carries the order of superior authority. We are carrying the order of Caitanya Mahāprabhu or Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa taught this Bhagavad-gītā, and He has said that "Anyone who will preach this confidential message of Bhagavad-gītā, he is very dear to Me."
Guest (1): (indistinct) ...and believers in Sai Baba and other we believe in an incorporeal God, nirākāra. So if Kṛṣṇa as Rāma or any other deity or devata, one who was definitely a superior ātman, no doubt about it, but Paramātman is all other religions' God, if something incorporeal is there, without referring to the...
Prabhupāda: Who says, "incorporeal"? Who says?
Guest (1): It is scripture. (?)
Prabhupāda: No, no. Who says, "incorporeal"?
Guest (1): Śiva-liṅga. You find it all over India, that, a summary of everything, that incorporeal form, jyotir-rūpa, incorporeal. Jyotir-liṅga, the Hindu svarūpa.
Prabhupāda: That's all right. You are bringing something else besides Bhagavad-gītā. Just try to understand. We are preaching... This International Society for Krishna Consciousness, we are preaching...
Guest (1): But you have to understand the relation between the two.
1973 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: In material world such competition is there.
Guest (3): Yes.
Prabhupāda: That is not spiritual world. That is material. So Droṇācārya gave Arjuna the benediction that "You shall be the greatest archer." So in order to keep his promise, he made that...
Guest (1): That wasn't, I think, what he did. (Paramahaṁsa or someone else enters.)
Paramahaṁsa: Śyāmasundara, Śyāmasundara is not in the temple.
Prabhupāda: Oh. What is that?
Devotee: Oh, this is just a little preparation, burfi and a little kheer.
Guest (3): Can't you bring him the plate like that?
Prabhupāda: No, that's all right.
Father Tanner: You say...
Mrs. Wells: I can see what Father Tanner means about the spiritual man on the outside not necessarily being pure on the inside.
Prabhupāda: No, he's not spiritual man. He's a hypocrite. He must be inside and outside correct. If one is outside correct, inside wrong, he's not spiritual man. We don't accept him.
Mrs. Wells: But you begin with the outside.
Prabhupāda: No. Inside and outside, both.
Mrs. Wells: But your principles pertain to the outside man.
Prabhupāda: Outside man?
Mrs. Wells: The actions...
Guest (1) (British young man): You said that the four pillars that you follow are outward manifestations. They belong to a material person.
Prabhupāda: Outward manifestation?
Guest 1: Hm.
Prabhupāda: Actually, You can see here.
Father Tanner: You can have a person who goes to church every Sunday, who says his prayers...
Prabhupāda: No, our program is not like that, we go after seven days. We are twenty-four hours engaged.
Father Tanner: Yes, yes. But all I'm saying is you can have this, and they are not spiritual.
Prabhupāda: No, why not spiritual?
Father Tanner: And, you know, I don't know your disciples...
Prabhupāda: That you have to learn. That you have to learn. Yes.
Father Tanner: I don't know your disciples, but it is possible that some of them, even with twenty-four hour a day, you know, exercises...
Prabhupāda: Yes, our program is like that.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Reporter: Yeah. But... It will be my last question. What about you in that? Would you be, you are a spiritual chief. Would you be...?
Prabhupāda: I am not spiritual chief. Kṛṣṇa is spiritual chief.
Reporter: Yeah.
Prabhupāda: Yes. I am simply explaining what Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā. I am acting on His behalf. I am acting on His behalf. Just like Kṛṣṇa says that there is no more higher authority than Him. I am speaking to my students: "There is no more higher authority than Kṛṣṇa." So, in other words, there is no difference between Kṛṣṇa's statement and my statement.
Reporter: I understand. But you know that if you want for changing society you must have a force...
Yogeśvara: You need the strength to change society.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Yogeśvara: You have to have sufficient strength to change society.
Prabhupāda: I may not have sufficient strength. I can... If I can convert a dozen of people, that is my success.
Yogeśvara: Very popular today is the idea that if we are use, misusing our independence, it's because of our upbringing, our childhood, our society, something is wrong in our psychology. Not that it's the soul, not that it's a question of spiritual problem, but material one, that our parents were cruel or our society, our education was imperfect or something. But not spiritual problem.
Prabhupāda: So that is independence. Your parents were cruel. Therefore you have revolted against the parents. That is your independence. Why you revolted against parents? Because you have got the independence.
Devotee: What shall we say to someone, Prabhupāda...
Prabhupāda: Otherwise, if you are doing stereotyping, then in spite of your father being cruel, you would not declare independence and go away from home. Because you have got this independence, therefore you can understand that: "Why shall I obey this father? I go out." That is independence. They do not understand the meaning of independence.
Prabhupāda: Although the same thing, but action is different. If you become devotee of Lord Śiva, you'll get opportunity of material opulences. Because Lord Śiva is the husband of Durgā, and Durgā is the superintendent of this material world. So Durgā is under control. If one becomes a devotee of Lord Śiva, then Durgā gives him, eh? Dhanaṁ dehi rūpaṁ dehi rūpavatī-bhāryāṁ dehi yaśo dehi. So you'll get all this, nice position, nice wife, nice power, famous... All this material, not spiritual. So to worship any other demigod than Kṛṣṇa is materialism. That is not spiritualism.
Guest (1): Worshiping Viṣṇu is also material?
Prabhupāda: No. Viṣṇu is not. Viṣṇu is Kṛṣṇa, Viṣṇu the same, expansion. That you have to understand.
Guest (2): Rāma also.
Prabhupāda: Rāma also.
Svarūpa Dāmodara: They have so many scientific tests like blood tests, the blood, circulation of the blood is improved, the mental condition is improved.
Prabhupāda: That is all material. That has nothing to do with spiritual. Blood is not spiritual. It is material.
Bali Mardana: It may have some material advantage.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Blood is there in the cats and dogs also. That is also circulating.
Karandhara: A combination of psychotherapy and (indistinct).
Bali Mardana: Yeah.
Prabhupāda: No,...
Svarūpa Dāmodara: No, they are saying...
Prabhupāda: Even an animal, the blood circulation is better. Therefore he's better than transcendental meditation. (laughter)
1974 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Now scientific improvement has been done, but that is on the gross material platform.
Dr. Patel: Spiritually, they must be worthy.
Prabhupāda: No, it is not spiritual. That is also subtle. Just like mind, the speed of mind. The mind is material. By mind speed, you can... Just imagine. You are here. Immediately, within a second, you go to Calcutta.
Dr. Patel: Because you think of the thing.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Dr. Patel: First going is mind going.
Prabhupāda: So this is the mind. Similarly, mental, then intellectual,... You are going?
Dr. Patel: No, no. You are going ahead. We have to come to that...
Prabhupāda: That's all right. Mind is also material. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ kham. khaṁ manaḥ (BG 7.4).
Dr. Patel: Khaṁ manaḥ eva ca.
Prabhupāda: Yes. They are all material.
Indian Man (1): It's not like that. The material thing we can see from our...
Prabhupāda: You are material, not spiritual. You are a material fool. Why do you interpret foolishly?
Indian Man (1): There's no doubt about it.
Indian Man (2): According to their brain and knowledge, they must have...
Prabhupāda: That means rubbish brain, rubbish brain. You go, interpret and change the law. You go in the law court and you interpret in your own way. Can you interpret in the law court? "Sir, I have got a different interpretation." "Get out. Get out, rascal, from this..."
Indian Man (1): No, no. Even the judges in the Supreme Court in India, they go after the interpretations, they go and they become also one with the...
Prabhupāda: No, no. That is extraordinarily. When the meaning of the law is not very clear, that takes place. But when the thing is very clear, there is no question of interpretation.
Indian man (4): That is another group of people, their own brain creation. That we should not...
Prabhupāda: What right you have got to interpret?
Indian Man (1): Whatever it is they are saying, but the real thing we should not interpret and we cannot.
Prabhupāda: But you are, after all, material. You are not spiritual. In order to get you on the spiritual platform, things are being spoken by Kṛṣṇa.
Indian Man (4): And to understand something we must have...
Prabhupāda: How you become all of a sudden spiritual? What is that spiritual? You do not understand what is spiritual, and you say, "It is spiritual."
Indian Man (1): Well, something which we cannot see by our own eyes, something which we cannot...
Prabhupāda: Then why do you interpret if you cannot see with your own eyes? You are blind. Why should you interpret? A blind man is interpreting? What is this nonsense? The blind man is just, "Oh, the elephant is big pillar."
Guest (1): In the sense of seeing the Lord in their own heart?
Prabhupāda: No, no. That is, of course, later on. First of all see here is God, vision of God. Everyone can see. It is public. Why you ask my disciples? You can see also. No, no. That like, vision of God, here is Kṛṣṇa.
Guest (1): That is physical vision.
Prabhupāda: That's all. Physical means vision; your vision is also physical. Your vision is not spiritual. Whatever you see with your eyes, that is physical. That is not anything beyond physical.
Guest (1): See with spiritual eyes.
Prabhupāda: Spiritual eyes, that's all right. But first of all you have to see whatever eyes you have got. You have got physical eyes. Why you are talking of spiritual eyes?
Guest (1): Well, sir, that only, we are, all these things would learn that spiritual eyes.
Prabhupāda: That you will learn. That is stated in the śāstra. Premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti (Bs. 5.38). When you develop love for God, then you can that spiritual eyes. Premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santaḥ sadaiva. He sees everywhere, always. Santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilo... That you have to develop that position. Immediately you cannot do that. Yes, immediately you have to see physically. Then gradually, when by offering service, you develop your dormant love for God, then you can see spiritual. It is not immediately or for everyone. So you have to wait for tha position.
Prabhupāda: Because you did not lead them, you did not teach them spiritual books. You allowed them to read Communist books.
Guest (5): Is it the failure of our spiritual leaders?
Prabhupāda: What is a spiritual leader? First of all we have to think..., if the businessman is not spiritual leader.
Guest (6): So you mean the lack of spiritual leadership has driven us to this state of affairs?
Prabhupāda: Yes. Because there have been so many. Just like Bhagavad-gītā, it is standard book. The so-called spiritual leaders, they give different interpretation. Why different interpretation? One interpretation is there. Anyone can understand. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). It is plain thing, Kṛṣṇa says that "You always think of Me." Man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ. "You become My devotee, you just worship Me, offer your obeisance." And Dr. Radhakrishnan says, "It is not to Kṛṣṇa personally." What right he has got to say like that? Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava. Dr. Radhakrishnan says, "It is not to Kṛṣṇa." This is going on. Just see. He is scholar, he is a philosopher. Even Gandhi says that "There was no Kṛṣṇa; it is all mythology." Then? How people will learn it? If Kṛṣṇa becomes mythology, the Bhagavad-gītā becomes imagination and anyone can interpret in any way. Then where is the teaching?
O'Grady: And you make a decision, therefore to try to sort this confusion, to make some...
Prabhupāda: Yes. Spiritual master means who solves all confusion. That is spiritual master. When one is confused, he goes to a spiritual master, and the spiritual master's duty is to save him from all confusion. That is the relationship between the spiritual master and the disciple. If the spiritual master cannot save him from confusion, then he is not spiritual master. That is the test.
- saṁsāra-dāvānala-līḍha-loka-
- trāṇāya kāruṇya-ghanāghanatvam
- prāptasya kalyāṇa-guṇārṇavasya
- vande guroḥ śrī-caraṇāravindam **
This whole world is confusion, just like a blazing fire in the forest. When there is forest fire, all the animals become confused, "Where to go? How to save life?" It is very good example. When there is fire in the forest, all the animals become confused. Similarly, this material world is just like a blazing fire in the forest. Everyone is confused. Now how the blazing fire in the forest can be extinguished? You cannot take there your man-made fire brigade. That is not possible. Neither bucketful of water. So in this confused state of the human society you cannot manufacture the solution. The only solution is that when there is rain from the cloud on the forest fire, then it is extinguished. That is not in your hand; that is mercy of God. So spiritual master means who has received the mercy of God and he can deliver to the confused man. Then the solution is there. This is very good verse, saṁsāra-dāvānala-līḍha-loka-trāṇāya kāruṇya-ghanāghanatvam, prāptasya **. One who has received mercy of God, he can become spiritual master. He can deliver the mercy of God.
Professor Durckheim: Yes, but this is a very good example because the dream of the tiger comes very often. And it always means that you are pursued by some of your inner instincts, yourself. So you discover in the image of the tiger something which is not right in yourself.
Prabhupāda: Yes, that experience is also material. That is not spiritual experience. That experience is going on continually so long we are materially attached. Because in the material world we are constantly changing our body. Your experience in childhood is different from the experience at this time. So as we are changing our body, we are getting different experiences, and all those experiences are photographed within the mind. And they sometimes come out and make an intermixture, and we see dreams and so many contradictory things. This is going on, mental speculation. That is hovering on the mental plane. That is not spiritual plane.
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
Guest (2): Is it determined by jāti, by birth?
Prabhupāda: No. His quality... He has no quality.
Guest (2): Spiritual type.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Not spiritual type, it..., material type. He cannot maintain himself independently. Nowadays people are being educated highly, but if there is no service he has no value.
Guest (2): So the tamasi.
Prabhupāda: Yes. He has no value. I have seen one doctor of chemistry—he could not get any service—in Allahabad. His name was Raghunātha Mitri(?), Dr. Raghunātha Mitri. So he was living at the cost of his father-in-law and making some soap and going to the shop for selling, doctor. That means he could not get any service. Now his independence was to manufacture some soap as ordinary man is doing. But he was chemist; he could not do anything. He could manufacture some soap. So in spite of high education, because he could not get a good job, he had no value. Just like the dogs. The dogs, if they do not get a master, nice, then street dog.
Reporter: Yes, I've understood your words, and I'm grateful for them, but again the problem, obviously, is with me and not with you. But the question still remains, what about being of material service. Material service, not just spiritual service?
Prabhupāda: It is material service, as I showed. If you put foodstuff in your stomach, all the parts of your body feel energetic. That is material service. That is not spiritual service. Spiritual service (is) beyond that. Similarly, the center is God. If you understand God, then you understand everything.
Reporter: Understood, Swamiji. But your disciples do not build houses, they don't work in hospitals, they don't perform—as far as I know, and I could just be swimming in ignorance here—as far as I know, they do not perform service to the outer world other than offering free meals at the temple and preaching the word of Lord Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: I, I quite follow. That is your ignorance. Because you do not know that what is the real service. You do not know. Do you know what is real service?
Reporter: The answer should come from you and not from me.
Prabhupāda: By birth they are advanced. They have got intelligence. But for Kṛṣṇa consciousness everyone can be purified, even the non-Āryans. It is without any check. Ahaituky apratihatā. Apratihatā means without any material check. It is not a disqualification that one is not an Āryan, therefore he cannot understand God. No. He can also be trained up. Because it is spiritual, and we are all spiritual identities, so it is not difficult. Even one who is not spiritual at the present moment, but by training he can also become spiritual.
Young man: In other words, one has to make an intellectual effort or at least in order to...
Prabhupāda: It is not very highly intellectual. One has to understand first of all that he is not this body. That anyone can understand, that "I am changing my body, but I am there. Therefore I am not this body." Just like a child's coat, when he is young man, that coat does not fit him. So that young man means he has got another body. But the young man knows, he remembers, that he was a child. He was on the lap of his parents or his relatives. So that body is no longer existing. I have got a different body, but I who had the childhood body, I am existing. Is it very difficult to understand, any one of you? The body has changed. That's a fact. But I am the same.
Indian man: What is bhideya or abhidheya?
Prabhupāda: Bhagavad-gītā says, sukham ātyantikaṁ yat tad atīndriya grāhyam (BG 6.21). Bliss which is supreme, that is to be appreciated by atīndriya. Atīndriya means beyond the senses. So those who are indulging in senses, the Tantra indulges in senses. Is that spiritual? That is not spiritual. That is material.
Indian man: You have to use the material, all the potential...
Prabhupāda: No. Atīndriya. You haven't got to use this material (break) ...enjoy the spiritual senses, one has to not only stop, but undergo tapasya, tapo divyam. Just like a man is diseased, he wants to eat, but due to the disease he cannot eat. So first of all, you have to cure the disease, then your eating will be a pleasure. And if you want to eat in the diseased condition, then the taste will not be proper; you cannot eat. A man suffering from jaundice, if you give him sugar candy, he will taste it bitter. The same man, when he is cured, he will taste the sugar candy as very sweet. Tapo divyaṁ yena putrakā śuddhyed sattvam (SB 5.5.1). You have to purify your existence by tapasya. And tapasya means stops material sense gratification. (Hindi) (Someone enters room) Ah, thank you. So you have translated in Parsi?
Dr. Movebhed: Yes.
Amogha: Śrīla Prabhupāda, can drugs sometimes be used to help us for spiritual realization?
Prabhupāda: No. That is nonsense. Spiritual realization means knowledge. Not to become intoxicated. The spiritual... Just like this is spiritual knowledge. So what the intoxicated person will understand? Even a sane man cannot understand. Then how he will understand in intoxication? It is foolishness. They are suffering material pangs. By taking drugs the suffering is forgotten, and he is thinking that is the solution. Spiritual means negation of material distress. So he is always suffering from material distress. By taking drug, temporarily he forgets it. Therefore he misunderstands "This is spiritual." That's not spiritual. Then committing suicide is also spiritual? One man is suffering, and the suffering is so great he cannot tolerate, therefore he sometimes commits suicide. Is that committing suicide spiritual? Spiritual means negation of material distresses, that's a fact. But that is a different thing. When you come to the spiritual platform, not by artificially forgetting your material suffering. That is not spiritual.
Jesuit: That's true. We don't say that sex is bad.
Prabhupāda: Why they are forbidden to marry?
Jesuit: Well, it's a question of something I freely accept, freely accept not to marry.
Prabhupāda: No. No, this is spiritual life. Sex life is not spiritual life.
Jesuit: That I find so hard to accept because everything that God makes is good. When God makes a man...
Prabhupāda: Good, what is good for you is not good for me, one man's food is another man's poison.
Jesuit: But everything that God makes is good.
Prabhupāda: That's all right, good for somebody. Just like stool, stool is good for the pigs not for the human being.
Jesuit: But everything that God makes...
Prabhupāda: Not everything is good. The pigs considers stool is very good, nice food.
Sandy Nixon: Are there different paths that one can learn to love God?
Prabhupāda: No. There is no different.
Sandy Nixon: I mean, are there other spiritual paths... Do all spiritual paths lead to the same end?
Prabhupāda: Spiritual paths are divided into four. Not spiritual. Real spiritual, mixed spiritual. Just like this, "God, give us our daily bread." It is mixed spiritual. One has approached God, God is spiritual, but one is asking for material profit. So this is mixture, matter and spirit. So there are four classes generally known as karmī, fruitive actors, they work for getting some material profit. They are called karmī. Just like all men, you will see, they are working so hard day and night, driving their cars, (makes noise of cars) this way and that way. The purpose is how to get some money. This is called karmī. And then jñānī. Jñānī means he knows that "I am working so hard. Why? The birds, beasts, the elephants, big, big..., eight million different types of..., they are not. They have no business. They have no profession. How they are eating? So why unnecessarily I work so much? Let me know what is the problem of life." So they understand the problem of life is birth, death, old age and disease. And they want to solve it, how to become immortal. So they have conclusion that "If I merge into God's existence, then I become immortal or immune from birth, death, old age and disease." This is called jñānī. And some of them are yogis. They try to acquire some spiritual power to make a show how he can play wonder. A yogi can become very small. If you put him in a room, he will come out. You lock it. He will come out. If there is little space, he will come out. That is called anima.
Hari-śauri: (break) ...last night, Śrīla Prabhupāda, and he was saying that if everything is ultimately spiritual, if one is spiritually advanced, he sees everything as spiritual. Then if everything is spiritual, then we can carry on just doing the same things that we're doing now, because it's all for God.
Prabhupāda: No. Kṛṣṇa says that "Everything is My energy, but..." Mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni nāhaṁ teṣu: (BG 9.4) "But I am not there." This is the answer. Everything is Kṛṣṇa's expansion, but not that everything is Kṛṣṇa.
Indian man (2): It is also not spiritual.
Prabhupāda: What is that?
Indian man (2): The energy is there, but it is not spiritual.
Prabhupāda: No, it is spiritual, but because I do not know Kṛṣṇa, therefore I see material. Just like this microphone. It is being used for Kṛṣṇa; therefore it is spiritual. Actually, originally, it is from Kṛṣṇa. So we are not using these material things. Everything, whatever we using, that is spiritual.
Devotee (3): Śrīla Prabhupāda, if this is spiritual, spiritual means eternal. But this microphone will fall to pieces.
Prabhupāda: Yes, but scientifically it will keep the energy, conservation of energy. Even it is destroyed, it will remain. The material manifestation means bhūtvā bhūtvā pralīyate (BG 8.19). It is sometimes destroyed and sometimes manifest. But the energy is there.
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: What is the beauty of having emptiness?
Prabhupāda: That is another.... Emptiness mean he is troubled by so many anxieties; therefore he wants to make it empty.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's simply negative.
Prabhupāda: Negative idea. That is material idea. That is not spiritual.
Mahāmṣa: Nowadays people are going in silence, but they write questions and answers by paper. They say, "I am observing silence..."
Prabhupāda: As if there is no sound.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In Allahabad we met a man like that. He was moving around so much that he was more active than if he had talked.
Prabhupāda: No, that "ooohh."
Prabhupāda: He's falling down? If he's falling down from regulative principles, that means he's falling down to the material world. Falling down means falling down.
Devotee (2): (break) ...from the regulative principles and feels anxiety, then that anxiety is material anxiety.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Devotee (2): It's not spiritual.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So anxiety for one's self is māyā?
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Anxiety for one's self is māyā?
Prabhupāda: That is material.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: And anxiety for Kṛṣṇa?
Prabhupāda: That is spiritual. (break) ...Gosvāmī's śloka. Kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa-bhāvitā matiḥ krīyatāṁ yadi kuto 'pi labhyate: "The anxiety for Kṛṣṇa, if it can be purchased, immediately purchase it." Rūpa Gosvāmī said. Kṛṣṇa-bhakti-rasa-bhāvitā matiḥ krīyatām: "Just purchase Kṛṣṇa anxiety if it is available somewhere." So the next question will be that "What is the price?" Tatra laulyam api mūlyam ekalam: "That anxiety can be purchased by anxiety." "So I'll do it." No. Janma-koṭi-sukṛtair na labhyate: "That anxiety is not available even by millions of births' pious activities." So this anxiety is not so easy.
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Devotee: Persons who are trying to eat less and less for spiritual life, they should...
Prabhupāda: No, less is not spiritual. Whatever you want to eat, your food must be.... Machine is going on by the order of God. It is not after your order. But if you violate laws, then it is disturbed. The more that the fire is disturbed, oblations to the fire—svāhā—that is eaten by God. (indistinct) Grains are offered, fruits are offered, in the fire yajña. It is through the fire, so as the part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa, we have got little fire, we eat through that. In the fire you put tons of grains, tons of ghee—everything will be consumed. Similarly, if the fire is there, whatever you eat...
Hari-śauri: Whatever is there in the universal form is found in small quantity in the bodies that the living entities get.
Prabhupāda: They are small universe. There is word, cha ache brahmāṇḍe, ta ache i bandhe.(?) The arrangement what is there, universally, the same as in the smallest entity (indistinct).
Prabhupāda: The whole basic principle is this, that people should understand, as I was explaining this morning, the sat and asat. So at the present moment we are living in the way that is asat. But there is another life, sat. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is an educational movement to raise a person from the asat platform to the sat. Under illusion they are, what is called, amock? They (laughs) have gone amock. So it is a humble attempt to stop their, this suicidal policy. They are practically committing suicide. They do not know what is the value of life and how they are spoiling it, this valuable life. Bahir-artha-māninaḥ. Durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ. They are trying to adjust things by the arrangement of external energy. That is not possible. Whatever adjustment they are making, so many big, big leaders, politicians, they came. Napoleon, Hitler, Gandhi, this, that, by the waves of material nature everything is driven away. In that way there is no possibility of adjustment. It is not... Kathacaturamanam mali mali javanam(?) How many, caturānana. Caturānana means Brahmā. They come and go, come and go. And there is no permanent life, it is all asat. So they should come to the sat platform, that is perfect. The more you remain strong in your spiritual life, then more it will be impressed, it will act. And if it actually is not spiritual life but theatrical performance, then it will not help.
Prabhupāda: Well, initiation or no initiation, first thing is knowledge. (break) ...knowledge. Initiation is formality. Just like you go to a school for knowledge, and admission is formality. That is not very important thing. (sound coming on and off, tape recorder faulty.) So our this movement is successful... On account of this movement... (break) ...learned scholars and those who are inquisitive, advanced... (break)... He Maharishi Mahesh Yogi says that this is material. If you perform this meditation, transcendental meditation, you will be materially benefited. That is not spiritual meditation.
Interviewer: You have said that India should take this movement seriously.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Interviewer: How do you want India to take this movement?
Prabhupāda: Seriously means that a spiritual movement is India's movement. So if some of our leading men take seriously, then whatever I am doing single-handed... I don't get any support either from the Indian public or from the government. But if they take it seriously, then we can present in more organized way and it will be more successful. So far it is done single-handed.
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Trivikrama: And the spiritual body? Spiritual body means...
Prabhupāda: Soul. Spiritual body is now covered with the material body. So anything material, that will not exist. So body is finished; then he has to find new body. Just like the dress is old; it is finished, you take another dress. And when you haven't got to take dress, or this material body, and you remain in your spiritual body, that is called mukti. That can be achieved only in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). Mad-yājino 'pi yānti mām (BG 9.25). If you practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness then it is possible; otherwise not. Tyaktvā deham. Everyone has to give up because this body will be old, and one has to give it up. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma (BG 4.9), he doesn't accept any more material body. Then? What does he...? He's finished? No, he's not finished. Mām eti. He becomes eligible to go back home back to Godhead, and there he dances with Kṛṣṇa. That is real mukti. Muktir hitvā anyathā rūpaṁ sva-rūpeṇa vyavasthitiḥ. Anyathā rūpam. Now this rūpa is not spiritual, it is material. And mukti means when he gives up this material body and no more accepts any material body, he is transferred to the spiritual world to play with Kṛṣṇa, to dance with Kṛṣṇa, to talk with Kṛṣṇa. That is real... Paramaṁ siddhi. Mām upetya kaunteya duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam (BG 8.15). (break) And so long one is the material things, he... The lowest stage is the karmīs, the little higher stage, jñānī, and little higher stage, yogi. And the highest stage? Bhakti-yogī.
Prabhupāda: India can have prosperity even now if they take their own culture.
Dr. Patel: No, even material prosperity I mean to say, sir.
Prabhupāda: Material. Mind is also material.
Dr. Patel: Europeans came here for material prosperity.
Prabhupāda: If you want satisfaction of the mind, that is material. That is not spiritual. Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni.
Indian lady: Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. (Hindi) (break) Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni. Mind and the senses, they're prakṛti-sthāni. They're not spiritual.
Dr. Patel: No, but, sir, if that is material...
Prabhupāda: Yes. Mind is subtle matter. Bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir.... Bhinnā prakṛtir aṣṭadhā (BG 7.4). They are separated five material energies. Apareyam. They are inferior. Those who are in the mental platform, they are also inferior. The so-called philosopher, scientist and others, they are on the mental platform. Therefore they're inferior. Apareyam. These eight elements, those who are dealing with these eight elements, apara, inferior. And they are advertising that "We are superior." "The spiritual consciousness is brainwashed. We are superior." This is the fault. Of the inferior position, they are claiming superior position. Apareyam itas tu... And Kṛṣṇa is giving practical example: "Apareyam: this is inferior. Beyond this there is a superior nature. What is that? Jīva bhūta." Immediately. And still the rascal cannot understand what is superior, inferior. (Indian lady converses in Hindi with Prabhupāda) Chase after them, "Get out! Get out! Your visa is finished." (Hindi) Hundred cases. Hundred times hundred.
Correspondence
1974 Correspondence
I beg to acknowledge receipt of your letter undated and have noted the contents carefully. If Kirtanananda Maharaja speaks what I speak, then he can be taken a siksa guru. Guru sastra sadhu. The spiritual master is one, that is a fact. Kirtanananda Swami may be taken a sadhu not spiritual master, or as instructor guru. I don't think he is saying anything against our principles, so what is the wrong?
You have written that the devotees here say that you cannot know me, but only Kirtanananda Maharaja can know me. But, if Kirtanananda is a disciple and he can know me, and you are also a disciple, why you cannot know me? I have no objection to your taking Kirtanananda's instruction. There is no harm in going through Kirtanananda.
1975 Correspondence
I am in due reciept of your letter dated Jan. 6th, 1975 and have noted the contents. Thank you for your donation of 20 dollars. We are Vaisnavas. We are not concerned with male or female position in life. That is simply bodily concept of life. It is not spiritual. Whether one is male or female, it doesn't matter, simply chant Hare Krishna and follow the four regulative principles and your life will be perfect.
Regarding initiation, it is required that you be recommend by one of our temple presidents to me and then I shall consider it. First of all, one must have followed the regulative principle for at least six months without deviation. It is not necessarily required to live in the temple, but you must observe the rules.
Regarding your question about the difference between the mind and the soul, in the Bhagavad-gita it is directly said that the mind is inferior energy in a subtle form, and soul, jiva, is superior energy. So they are completely distinct. Mind is not spiritual, but mind is a subtle material form. When the soul becomes captivated for enjoying the material world instead of rendering service to Krishna, that is the beginning of his falldown. When the living being thinks himself to be the enjoyer, that is called false ego. His constitutional position is to serve Krishna. So this false egotism degrades him to pollute the intelligence and the mind.
| Page Title: | Not spiritual |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, Mayapur |
| Created: | 07 of Mar, 2012 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=1, SB=6, CC=2, OB=2, Lec=56, Con=34, Let=3 |
| No. of Quotes: | 104 |