Palatable (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"palatable" |"palatably" |"unpalatable"

Notes from the compiler: VedaBase query: palatabl* or unpalatable not "palatable dish" not "palatable dishes"

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Interview -- September 24, 1968, Seattle:

Interviewer: What types of food, what types of things do you drink, such as juices or anything else do you drink?

Prabhupāda: Eatables are just within this jurisdiction of fruits, flowers, vegetables, grains, and milk. But we can prepare thousands of preparation, very nice palatable preparations. And I invite you to our temple. When love feast is distributed on every Sunday, you will see how they are nicely prepared. But they are prepared... Only if we get some grains and some butter and some fruits and some vegetables, we can prepare hundreds of preparations, hundreds, very, very palatable. You will forget all other eating.

1971 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- January 17, 1971, Allahabad:

So the society is very important thing. Any, anything, society... The businessmen, they have got their association, society, to improve. Therefore the standard of this International Society should be kept very carefully. Then who will come in touch with this society will be improved automatically by association. All right. Even in the bird society there are swans and there are crows, by nature, and the crows will never go to the swans, and the swans will never come to the crows. "Birds of the same feather flock together." Yes. Therefore society required. Unless you come to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness society, how you can develop Kṛṣṇa consciousness? The same principle. Satāṁ prasaṅgān... Satāṁ prasaṅgān mama vīrya-saṁvido bhavanti hṛt-karṇa-rasāyanāḥ kathaḥ (SB 3.25.25). Vīrya-saṁvidaḥ. It becomes very palatable, satāṁ prasaṅgāt, in the association of devotees, not otherwise. (end)

Room Conversation -- August 21, 1971, London:

Prabhupāda: No, no. Why not acceptable? No. Yes. Yes. That's all right. Let him take. We are paying Hayagrīva also. What can be done?

Haṁsadūta: And another thing I wanted to ask you about, Prabhupāda, is that Maṇḍalībhadra, he wants to make your literature perfect, which is natural because we want to make the nicest presentation. But the devotees are saying that the translation... For instance, this Easy Journey to Other Planets, has been in the process so long, it has so many times been reworked, that it's no longer palatable to them. They don't even read it. They'd rather have the English version. So I know that Your Divine Grace has said you have full faith in his ability to do the work...

Prabhupāda: No, no. If you... you find out somebody else. He can also do.

Haṁsadūta: Because my opinion is that he's becoming overworked, it's becoming strained, so much so that we're not even able to bring it to the printer because he insists on making every time more and more corrections.

Prabhupāda: (chuckles) It never comes to perfection.

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Talk with Bob Cohen -- February 27-29, 1972, Mayapura:

Bob: I found, specifically what I mean, is some was too spicy and hurt my stomach.

Prabhupāda: Well, that is also due to ... not appreciate. But Kṛṣṇa should be... The cook should have consideration that Kṛṣṇa must be offered first-class foodstuff. So if he offers something last class, that is not his duty. But Kṛṣṇa can accept anything if it is offered by a devotee, and a devotee also can accept any prasādam, even if it is spicy. (break) Hiraṇyakaśipu gave his son poison and he drank it nectarine. So for the devotee even it is spicy to other taste, it is very palatable to the devotee. What is the question of spicy? He was offered poison, real poison. (break) ...she also offered Kṛṣṇa poison, but Kṛṣṇa's so nice that "She took Me as My mother." So He took the poison and delivered her. Kṛṣṇa does not take the bad side. Any good man, he does not take the bad side; he takes only the good side. (break) He wanted to make business with my Guru Mahārāja. But he did not take the bad side. He took the good side that "He has come forward to give me some service. So whatever he wanted he gave him."

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Lord Brockway -- July 23, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: Not at all. Due to excessive heat, I could not eat. Therefore I came here. Yes.

Lord Brockway: I have had a big meal tonight.

Prabhupāda: A big meal?

Lord Brockway: And I do not eat very much usually.

Prabhupāda: I also do not eat, but when there is palatable, I eat. (laughs) (to devotee) Sit down. (Prabhupāda goes to wash)

Lord Brockway: Now listen, I do not wish to detain him long.

Śyāmasundara: All right, whenever you wish to go, you just tell me.

Lord Brockway: Yes, we will, we will go soon.

Śyāmasundara:All right, maybe in ten minutes, eight-thirty, seven-thirty?

Lord Brockway: Yes.

Room Conversation -- September 18, 1973, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: So we have no experience below zero degrees. But in Europe, America, there is places. In Russia also, below fifty degrees. But they do not stop their business. They know that "Winter season has come. It will go away again." So devotees, even they are in distressed condition, they know, "It has come due to my bad activities in the past. It will go away. Let me suffer and finish it." Just like if you become, all of a sudden, infected with some disease. So what? You'll go mad? No. You know that "I have infected this disease. Let me suffer a few days. It will go away. That's all." This is the mentality of the devotees. They are not disturbed. And if he's not disturbed, then he's fit for becoming liberated.

yaṁ hi na vyathayanty ete

puruṣaṁ puruṣarṣabha

sama-duḥkha-sukhaṁ dhīraṁ

so 'mṛtatvāya kalpate

And our aim is amṛtatva, how to become immortal. That is our aim of life. So we have to achieve that goal of life. We should not be disturbed with this temporary distress and pleasure. That is called tapasya.

tapasā brahmacaryeṇa

śamena ca damena ca

tyāgena satya-śaucābhyāṁ

yamena niyamena vā

(SB 6.1.13)

These are the processes to become perfect. Tapasā. First thing is tapasya. And nobody's prepared to undergo tapasya. And human life is made for tapasya. Therefore in Vedic civilization, you'll find tapasya. The brāhmaṇas, kṣatriyas, they were all engaged in tapasya. Rājarṣi, devarṣi. Bharata Mahārāja, under whose name this planet is called Bhāratavarṣa, at the age of twenty-four years, he gave up his young wife, children, and went for tapasya. Tapasya is the life of the human being. Not to live like cats and dogs. That is not human life. Restrained. Tapasya. But here there is no, at the present moment, there is no question of tapasya. Even one is ninety years old, he's still engaged in these material activities. Even a person like Gandhi, unless he was killed, he would not give up politics. The material activities are so palatable for the materialists, that even up to the point of death... In Bengal, there was a big zamindar. So his father, er, his sons asked him at the time of death, "Father, what we can do for you, last desires?" So he expressed that "That man is my enemy. If you can bring him here and beat him with shoes, I'll be very much satisfied." This is material world. Even at the time of death, he's thinking enmity with others. And he will, he wanted to be happy that "If you bring that man and beat him with shoes, I'll be very happy." The other day somebody said that one man was cut into two, and he was asked, "What do you want?" He said, "Give me a cigarette." (laughter) This is the position.

Morning Walk -- December 18, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That is their rascaldom. Rascals. Why no soul? What is the symptom of having soul?

Devotee: Consciousness.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So they have no consciousness? Then children? They treat like animals. They have no soul? Then better send all the children to the slaughterhouse. Their, children's flesh is very sweet and palatable.

Devotee: They made a movie like that, Śrīla Prabhupāda, about people... They give up their lives and they are sent to this place where they are mashed up and made into meat, and the people eat them.

Prabhupāda: Yes. They do that in many hotels. They, it was in India done. The childcatcher? What is called?

Girirāja: Kidnapper.

Prabhupāda: Kidnappers. They kidnap and they slaughter, and mix with other meat. It becomes very tasteful. In hotel, one body found a finger of a child. In Kanpur.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 12, 1974, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: That's like in England, House of Commons. And senator, House of Lords.

Prajāpati: Yes, that's right. (break) ...have been projected. One is that we preach very boldly and hold no bars, make it known completely what our platform is. The other attitude is one of making up propaganda more palatable by saying if elected we will reinstitute prayers into schools and not tell them much more than that.

Prabhupāda: Why in the school? In every home.

Prajāpati: Well, it was a very big issue several years ago. They used to have a prayer at the beginning of each school day. But then one demoniac lady, one atheist, she, by her, simply by her will-power got the Supreme Court to rule that unconstitutional. Now prayers are not allowed in schools anymore unless we make an amendment to the constitution, saying "Yes, we can have a prayer in school." Then it would be allowed.

Prabhupāda: Even prayers are allowed, unless there is scientific knowledge of God, that will not help. The prayer's still going on in the churches, but what improvement? They have become hackneyed. It requires training.

Morning Walk -- April 5, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: ...says, duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ narādhamāḥ, these words. (break) Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15).

Dr. Patel: Right, but we are prapadyante.

Prabhupāda: We are talking only... We are presenting Bhagavad-gītā as it is. That's all. That is our business. It may be palatable or not palatable. It doesn't matter. We have to place as it is. That criterion is there, that... (break)

Dr. Patel: ...whether he had come from the lowest of the low. (break)

Prabhupāda: ...realization is this, that anyone who has not surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, he must be one of these: duṣkṛtino mūḍhaḥ narādhamāḥ māyayāpahṛta-jñānā.

Dr. Patel: How can you say people are...?

Prabhupāda: Vedas, Kṛṣṇa says. We are fool, rascal. We simply repeat Kṛṣṇa's words. That's all. (break) ...Bhagavad-gītā, then you have to accept like that.

Dr. Patel: Bhagavad-gītā is not the secondary I mean other, literatures. (break) Why not? Have I no right to read?

Prabhupāda: You can have right to misinterpret. That's all right. But we are not going to do that.

Morning Walk -- May 30, 1974, Rome:

Prabhupāda: That you may think, but you do not know the nature's law. You have to accept. Just like this apartment, either you accept or somebody accept. Similarly, these bodies are apartment. You have to accept or your brother has to accept. Somebody must accept. They are also living entities. Wherefrom they are coming? As I am a living entity, they are also living entity. So changing body, I may change to that body, he may change to this body. Where is the unreasonableness? We are all living entities. These are different types of bodies. So we have to accept some body. Similarly, he has to accept some body. So he may accept my body, I may accept his body. This apartment change. I may go to this apartment, he may go to another apartment. But there are so many apartments, gṛha. Therefore it is called gṛhamedhī. If you say, "No, no, I am not going to accept that apartment." "No, no, it is not your judgement." Daiva-netreṇa. "What money you have got, sir, to occupy?" "I have no money." "All right, then go this apartment." You must accept. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). By your work it will be ascertained what kind of apartment you will get. It is not upon your decision. There are so many, many rascals. They think that after getting human body, he is never degraded. The theosophists think like that. That is very palatable. (laughing) But nature will force him to accept the body of a cat and dog. That is not your decision. Daiva-netreṇa, the superior decision. Just in office, you get promotion or degradation. That is not your decision. That is the decision of the higher directors. You cannot say that "No, no, I am not going to accept this post." No. You have to accept. Kāraṇaṁ guṇa-saṅgo 'sya sad-asad-yoni-janmasu (BG 13.22). These different types of birth are due to your association with different types of the modes of material nature. Otherwise, why there are so many varieties. One has become crow, one has become sparrow, one has become human being, one has become dog, one has become cat, one has become tree, one has become grass. But nature is so expert that in spite of different varieties of life, the nature assembles them in such a nice way that it looks beautiful. There is grass, there is tree, there is sparrow, there is human being, but arrangement is such nice that everything... (end)

Morning Walk -- June 8, 1974, Geneva:

Prabhupāda: A girl is pregnant, suppose, then, during her pregnancy period, ten months, there is no sex, and unless the child becomes six months old, there is no sex. The thing is that in the modern world, sex life has become the only pleasure. They do not know anything else. Therefore everything is discredited. And another thing is they are afraid of keeping more than one wife for population. But if they produce sufficient food, where is the question of overpopulation? Another thing they have made, especially in the western world, they don't want to produce food because they know, "We shall kill one animal and eat. Why take so much trouble? Let me increase industry, and I shall push my button. Money will come. And the slaughterhouse there. We shall eat." So they are getting money. By money, they are getting women to the choice. They are getting food, meat, and they're enjoying drinking. So money has become the whole thing. "Bring money some way or other and enjoy." This is the purport of civilization. They do not care what is God, that human body is meant for God realization. They have no such ideas. "There is nothing after death. So so long I am living, let me enjoy by the tongue, by the genital and by the belly. Use the tongue for eating anything which is palatable, which I like. Never mind what it is. And then genital also. Bring as many women..." This is civilization, modern. There is no question of sinful life or pious life, next life. (laughs)

Room Conversation with Monsieur Mesman, Chief of Law House of Paris -- June 11, 1974, Paris:

Prabhupāda: They have learned this preparation, these girls. We have taught them. We are strictly vegetarian. From grains, from milk and sugar, and just two three, things, we require, and we can prepare thousands of preparations out of that. From milk and grains and sugar... And? What else?

Pṛthu-putra: Fruit, vegetables.

Bhagavān: Fruits.

Prabhupāda: Fruits, vegetable, we can prepare thousands of preparations, very palatable. Some of them you can taste. Yes, take. Whatever you like, take.

Yogeśvara: Maybe you can also explain that this...

Prabhupāda: What is this preparation, explain. You explain.

Yogeśvara: This is burfi.

Bhagavān: This is cake, cookie.

Prabhupāda: No, not cookie. It is burfi like... What is this made of?

Bhagavān: This is...

Girl: This is sandeśa.

Room Conversation with Professor Durckheim German Spiritual Writer -- June 19, 1974, Germany:

Professor Durckheim: They are educated too.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So they are always engaged in devotional service. So unless there is some realization, how they can engage their time in this way? (break) "You are human being. You can eat. I have given you fruits. I have given you vegetables. I have given you food grains. I have given you milk, very nutritious, palatable, containing all vitamin ABCD. And why should you kill animals? Why should you give trouble to the others?" This is self-realization, that "Here is another self. The same active principle is working there. The body is different. Why shall I kill him?" So they have realized it. Samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu. Equal vision to all living entities, that the self, that active principle, is working in the fish, in the insect, within the tree, within the plant, within the animals, within the birds and within me. This is self-realization. That active principle is soul, and the soul is migrating from one body to another as you are migrating from childhood to babyhood, babyhood to boyhood, boyhood to youthhood. So the soul is the same. The body is different. The body is material and the soul is spiritual. When one comes to this understanding, that is self-realization.

Room Conversation with Scientists -- July 2, 1974, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: Let him take. Yes.

Guest (2): Oh, thank you.

Madhudviṣa: Give a napkin. It's a sweet preparation called gulab jamin. It is all prepared just from milk which has been made into curd, and then the curd has been fried in ghee, cooking ghee, and then after it has been fried, it has been soaked in sweet water and it is very palatable. It's called a gulab jamin. It is a very famous delicacy of Indian cooking. It requires great skill and art to prepare these. And as our spiritual master said, there is actually hundreds and hundreds of food which can be prepared from this, like the cheese you have there. Even cooking cheese and spicing it with asafoetida and ginger, meat taste can be simulated very, very nicely.

Prabhupāda: This cheese as it is you take, it is as beneficial as meat.

Madhudviṣa: Protein.

Guest (2): Yes, yes. Similar protein.

Prabhupāda: So why the animal should be killed? Take milk.

Guest (2): What is sweet water? You mean just sugar...

Madhudviṣa: Syrup.

Guest (2): Now is this made here or in India?

Madhudviṣa: Yes, we make it ourselves. Our spiritual master taught us how to make it. (laughter) An ancient science.

Prabhupāda: No, no, I am teaching them, "Eat nicely, live nicely, and be prepared for your next life, for going back to home, back to Godhead." You can take it. It is very nice.

Room Conversation with Scientists -- July 2, 1974, Melbourne:

Madhudviṣa: One thing that we would like to mention, as our spiritual master says, there is a definite, according to the Vedic scripture, there is a definite link between consumption of milk and development of fine brain tissues. And if your department of knowledge has some research in that area, we think it would be a great service to mankind if they can be informed how they can develop fine brain tissues. Fine brain tissues which are needed for coping with the problems of this day and age. Not that simply if I disagree with you we'll just fight. There has to be fine brain tissues in order to say, "Let us sit down and talk about this together." And we say, not we, but according to the scripture, there is a definite link between the consumption of milk products, not just milk, but cheese and all different milk products, the consumption of milk products and development of the necessary intellect. This is why, as our spiritual master said, the highly intelligent people of India have lived predominantly, not just drinking milk, but everything they ate was cooked in milk products. The vegetables, rice, even if rice was boiled, milk was put on, ghee was put on the rice. So that is like an unavoidable essential in their diet, not simply from the palatable standpoint, but actually from the relationship between the physical and the metaphysical progress.

Prabhupāda: And thousands of tons of ghee, clarified butter, was offered in the yajña. The smoke created a kind of cloud which is very good for cultivation.

Guest (2): Well, thank you...

Prabhupāda: Thank you very much. (end)

Room Conversations -- September 10, 1974, Vrndavana:

Devotee (2): They'll all be cheated.

Prabhupāda: No, not a single person. Actually he remains slave, artificially he thinks that "I am master." Just like Nixon was thinking. He was actually slave of the nation, but he was thinking, "I am master." When he was pressed too much, he had to admit, "Yes, I am your slave." He was pressed. Rather, oppressed. Nobody is thinking. Idam adya mayā labdham imaṁ prāpsye punar dhanam. Everyone is thinking, "I have got now so much money (indistinct) ...lot of money, so who is better than me?" (indistinct) She has become poet. Nonsense number one, and she is poet. Does not know the human psychology or animal psychology. The human psychology, animal psychology, that you have seen on the road, the sex. The animal does not require any education. The animal knows how to use sex; the man knows how to use sex. Where is the difference? Simply she is animal, she does the sex intercourse in a public street, animal (indistinct) an apartment, very nice apartment (indistinct). It is (indistinct), either you are dog or a human being, the fact is. He also sleeps. He sleeps on the street anywhere, and we sleep in a nice apartment. He also eats, and the human being also eats. He eats the stool and we eat very nice, palatable foodstuff. That sleeping propensity is there, sex life is there, and he is also afraid of enemies. Where is the difference? Difference is that dog cannot be taught Kṛṣṇa consciousness but a man can be taught. That is the difference. So if man does not take advantage of this human life, how to become Kṛṣṇa conscious, then he is no better than a dog.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- March 2, 1975, Atlanta:

Prabhupāda: First of all, killing is sinful. Christ said, "Thou shalt not kill." That is sinful, it doesn't matter whether you kill cow or goat or anything. But from economic point of view, cow is very important because it supplies milk. And milk preparation, we Indians know how many you can get nice milk preparation. Dahi, rābṛi, this, that, Huh? But how nutritious, how palatable. And that is good for human being. First thing is that why you should kill if you have got sufficient food, eh? Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam (BG 9.26). Eh? Vegetables, fruits, then food grains, then sugar, everything is there sufficient. At least we Indian, we know we can prepare hundreds and thousands of preparations, nice palatable, enjoyable. Why should you go to kill the animal?

Guest (2): Well scientists claim that meat ah...

Prabhupāda: Scientists, first of all we have rejected that.

Guest (2): ...provides excellent quantity of proteins. (laughs)

Prabhupāda: But however protein you may accumulate, can you stop your death?

Guest (2): No.

Prabhupāda: Then what is value of protein? If you think that protein will save you from death, then you collect the best protein. But after all, you are going to die. Nature will not allow you to live, even you take much quantity of protein.

Conversation with Devotees on Theology -- April 1, 1975, Mayapur:

Prajāpati: Actually a very interesting thing, in terms of this point, is that this Paul, Saul, was in conflict with the direct disciplic succession from Jesus in many points. Those who were his, Jesus's, direct disciples, Paul disagreed with them and cut out many of their teachings or the teachings that were coming down in direct disciplic succession to make it more palatable to the outlying areas.

Pañcadraviḍa: The government.

Prajāpati: Yes. So at that moment there, the disciplic succession was broken.

Ravīndra-svarūpa: What is the time difference between Paul and Jesus' (?) disciples?

Prajāpati: He was here at the same time. Peter, James... He was a contemporary, but he had never had any personal contact with Jesus while Jesus was in Gospel. (?)

Pañcadraviḍa: In fact, he lived... He... In the beginning, he was against Christianity. He was antithetical to it. And then he experienced...

Acyutānanda: He was a professional religionist who made it popular to the...

Pañcadraviḍa: And then he experienced a so-called conversion, isn't it?

Prajāpati: Yes.

Acyutānanda: He fell off his horse and saw...

Prajāpati: He heard a voice, fell off his horse, and he was blinded, and his eyesight would only be restored when he would approach a certain man in Jerusalem who was part of the Christian fold, and when he approached that man then his sight would be returned.

Acyutānanda: This story...

Prabhupāda: Now, another question, that we say that God's name and God-all-powerful. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, nāmnām akāri bahudhā nija-sarva-śaktis tatrārpitā: "In the name of God, all God's potencies are there." So have you got any name like that? That means if you chant that name, you get immediately contact with God.

Morning Walk -- May 10, 1975, Perth:

Prabhupāda: (laughing lightly) You cannot say that I have introduced it. It is already there. As it is there in India, it is also everywhere. It may be under different names. The four classes are already there, everywhere. The... Even in Muslim, they have also got the (indistinct), what is called, mohallas, priestly class. They have got. We are introducing the systematic caste system, but caste system is already there, everywhere. Maybe under different names. And it is necessary. The caste system is there as a matter of necessity. You cannot abolish it. But it is now existing in a deformed manner. People should be systematic and organized. That we are trying to. Not that a new thing we are trying to introduce. It is already there. Our proposition is that "You priestly class, you must act exactly as a priest-ideal priest. You are a drunkard, you are woman-hunter, you are doing everything nonsense, and at the same time you are passing on as priest—this should be stopped." This should be stopped. The priestly class, or the brāhmaṇas, they should be trained up to become truthful, how to control mind, how to control senses, and tolerant, and very learned, knowing God also—these things are required. They should be the first-class, ideal men. Similarly, the kṣatriyas, they must be fearless; they must be very boldly, face fighting the enemies; they must have the capacity to govern nicely so that people will not have any complaint against the government. In this way they should be trained up. And the mercantile class of man, they should produce enough food grains, not motor tires. That is śūdra's business—artisans—that is śūdra. The vaiśyas' business is first to see that in the country there is enough food for eating—both for the human being and the animals. The human being should not complain that there is no sufficient food grains, therefore they're eating flesh. No. Flesh is not for human being. They should live on food grains. Just like dahl. Dahl is as good as meat. It is from food grain. And there is sufficient varieties of dahl they can eat. They can make so many preparations, palatable preparations.

Room Conversation with Dr. Copeland, Professor of Modern Indian History -- May 20, 1975, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: What is that meaning?

Madhudviṣa: It means that you have finished him. (Prabhupāda laughs) They are... They have such a misunderstanding of the philosophy coming from India. When they come to see you they think that you will be very liberal-minded because they have received this liberal-mindedness from so many other bogus swamis, and when they come to see you, you are very conservative. You will not accept anyone else. So they cannot agitate their mind. They cannot do their muni thing. So many other swamis come, and they accept this, accept that, do this, and do that, and simply stress, "The follower is right."

Prabhupāda: They will say to him, "Love humanity."

Madhudviṣa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: And this is very palatable. "Oh, Swami is for humanity." He is a rascal, he does not know. "Love humanity. Do not love Kṛṣṇa. Love humanity." And then people believe him. "By loving humanity, you love Kṛṣṇa or God." These things are very palatable. This is Vivekananda's philosophy. And most people say like that. "Love humanity." Oh, why humanity? Why not tiger? That they shall not. All bogus. Don't be misled by the bogus. Stick to your own principles. That's all. People may come or may not come. We don't care for them. We must speak the right truth. Why "people not coming"? People are not coming? We are getting more and more devotees. (end)

Room Conversation with Director of Research of the Dept. of Social Welfare -- May 21, 1975, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: Indian society, the did not know how to drink tea even. In our childhood we have seen that Britishers started tea garden. There was no tea plants before Britishers. The Britishers saw the labor is very cheap, and they want to do business, they started. Just like they are doing in Africa. So many gardens, coffee and tea. So they started, and the tea was transferred to be sold in America. They were after business. So the... Now, so much tea, who will consume? The government started a tea sets committee. All the tea garden holders they would pay government. And road to road, street to street, their business was canvassing, preparing tea, very nice, palatable tea, and they advertising if you drink tea, then you will not feel very much hungry, and your malaria will go away and so on, so on. And people began to drink tea. Nice cup. I have seen it. Now they have got a taste. Now gradually now a sweeper also, early in the morning, is waiting in the tea shop to get a cup of tea.

Room Conversation with Director of Research of the Dept. of Social Welfare -- May 21, 1975, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: So we have got food grains, we have got fruits, we have got milk. By combination of milk and food grains we can prepare so many nice palatable, full of vitamins. Why we should kill the animal? Let the animal live and take it's milk and prepare nice food, full of vitamins. Milk is nothing conversion of blood. So why do you take the blood by killing? Take the blood in a different form, milk. This is our program. Let the animal live peacefully, and if you are meat-eaters, let the animal die and you eat. There will be no charge for it. The meat-eaters, let us keep some animal, take milk, and when it dies naturally, you call the meat-eater, "Please take this." You take the skin free, you take the bones free, you eat meat. Just wait for the death. It will die after all. That much concession I want. But let the animal live without any fear of being killed so it will supply more milk. Suppose if you know that I am keeping you here for killing. Will you be very happy?

Morning Walk -- June 29, 1975, Denver:

Prabhupāda: Yes, mosquito, flies, I have seen. Even the sparrows. Sex life is the center of happiness in this material world. In all forms of life. That is the only.

Brahmānanda: They think that sex life for humans is the best, is the better sex life, that the animals, they really don't know how to enjoy.

Prabhupāda: That is another foolishness. If you take some palatable thing in different pot, does it mean the taste changes? You take some juice in the golden pot or iron pot. Does it mean the taste of the juice is changed on account of golden pot? That is another foolishness. Taste is the same, either you drink it in golden pot or iron pot.

Kuruśreṣṭha: Bhāgavatam says, "Unless a person is influenced by māyā, how could he do such a thing?"

Prabhupāda: Therefore we say that whatever you are doing under the influence of māyā, it is suffering. It is not enjoyment. (break) This way? (break)

Kuruśreṣṭha: In Kṛṣṇaloka are there asses?

Prabhupāda: Yes, maybe. But they are not these asses. Kṛṣṇa... I don't... the cowherds boys, they are keeping only cows. I never saw any ass or goat.

Morning Walk -- July 8, 1975, Chicago:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You took a great risk also, Prabhupāda, by coming to us.

Prabhupāda: (laughs) Yes. I have already written that. I was thinking that "What shall I do here? I have come here. As soon as I shall impose these four principles they will say, 'Go home.' " But I took that risk. I never said anything palatable. Against their activities, "You don't do this, don't do this." (break)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: ...compromised at all, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: No, what is the use of compromise if there is no good result?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Someone who compromises, he actually wants followers.

Prabhupāda: That is not good. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu decried, na dhanaṁ na janam, "I don't want these followers." What is the use of follower if he does not follow? (break) ...idam. Everything is sufficient, complete. Why they are embarrassed with incompleteness? Everyone is trying to adjust incompleteness, but the Vedic information, "Everything is complete." That means lacking knowledge. The car is complete. One who does not know to drive, he will find it incomplete, "Where to push on, this way, that way." He does not know how to drive the car. (end)

Morning Walk -- July 25, 1975, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: ...interested, just like you give somebody two kinds of vegetables and spices, ghee, and he makes a nice preparation. So people, these so-called scientists, they are like that. But we are after wherefrom the vegetable came. That is the difference.

Brahmānanda: Who supplied.

Prabhupāda: Who supplied. That is the difference. He is trying to take credit by mixing these vegetable and spices and salt and ghee, and he is expert in preparing a very nice, palatable... But we say that "Where you got the vegetables? Where you got the spices? Where you got the ghee?" And they are not concerned about that.

Jayādvaita: They don't want to tell.

Prabhupāda: They do not know.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Less intelligent.

Prabhupāda: Our philosophy is yato va imāni bhūtāni jāyante: The original source of all these things.

Rāmeśvara: They think if they can make very palatable dishes, what is the need for God?

Prabhupāda: But without God where you get the ingredients?

Rāmeśvara: He is automatically supplying them.

Prabhupāda: Oh, therefore there is no need of God. I supply you everything and you say, "There is no need of you." It is very good intelligence. Ungrateful. The intelligence is ungrateful. So such men should not be given any credit, ungrateful.

Room Conversations -- July 26, 1975, Laguna Beach:

Prabhupāda: "Cheerful attitude." If cows know. They have got intelligence that "We will be killed." Therefore they are not supplying sufficient milk. They cannot, just like if your mind is full of anxiety, you cannot work fully. So because they are denied this cheerfulness, you are getting less milk. If you keep them cheerful, they will give more milk. This is nature's economic development. Artificially you cannot increase the production of milk. But according to the instruction of scripture, if you keep them cheerful without any fear, they will deliver double milk. So therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is recommended that cows should be protected in the human society. If you want to eat meat, you can kill insignificant, small animal, but don't kill cows. There are other animals-hogs, pigs, goats, lambs or birds, so many, fish—if you are at all interested in meat-eating; but don't kill cow. Find out this verse from Bhagavad-gītā, kṛṣi-go-rakṣya-vāṇijyam vaiśya-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.44). Those who are vaiśyas... Economic development... Vaiśya means economic development. They should produce ample food grains and give protection to the cows. Just like our Kṛṣṇa's life, His foster father was a vaiśya. So he is keeping so many hundred thousands of cows, and Kṛṣṇa was entrusted to take charge of the calves, Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma. So although They were very rich father's son, still They were taking the calves in the forest for tending in childhood. Still... You have seen in Māyāpur? The small children, they are taking care very nicely of the cows. After all, it is animal. The small child has got a stick, and he has been trained up how to allow them to graze. They have done. So according to Bhagavad-gītā... But that is very nice, that economic development means you produce more food grains and more milk. Then it will solve all posit... There will be no scarcity of food or happiness. Our, these Kṛṣṇa society young boys and girls, they have prepared so many nice things from milk. It is nutritious, very palatable, every..., everything. And we take food grains, fruits, milk preparation, that's all. That is very easily available. You can get enough fruits if you cultivate trees and plants. That is recommended in Bhagavad-gītā. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). What I have given, purport of that verse?

Room Conversation -- July 31, 1975, New Orleans:

Prabhupāda: This is our product, to produce for the animal, (indistinct). So the animal eats it and he gives you milk. He's not eating (indistinct). He gives you the nicest food, full of vitamins. And you can prepare from milk hundreds and thousands of so many palatable things. That is civilization. And this is not civilization: "Because cow is so potential, so let me eat the cow." "Guru is so sattvic, spiritual; let me eat guru. Then I will be..." (laughter) This is philosophy. Cow is so full of vitamin, valuable. But civilization is that "Why should you eat the animal? Take the milk." What is this milk? Milk is nothing but the blood. So civilization means let the cow live, and you take the milk, which is nothing but blood. When the mother feeds the child with milk, wherefrom the milk comes? Milk comes from the blood of the mother. Therefore the mother is supplied nutritious food so that she can produce milk for the child. Similarly, cow is mother. What is this philosophy, "Kill the mothers and eat?" "Kill the child and eat?" What is this nonsense? Such crude things are going on in the name of civilization. You are manufacturing billion motor cars, and you cannot manufacture your food? God has given you so much land. This is not civilization. Civilization is how to go back to home, back to Godhead. That is civilization. One should be intelligent enough. Education must be directed in that way. But they do not know. Actually, they do not know it, that "My aim of life is how to go home, back to home, back to Godhead. That they do not know it. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ durāśayā ye bahir-artha-māninaḥ (SB 7.5.31). These rascals are trying to adjust things here materially and becoming more complicated, killing father, mother, and child even. (break) This is not civilization. Human being must be civilized. To know the goal of life and do it properly. That is instruction in the Bhagavad-gītā: "You rascal, give up all these so-called engagements.

Morning Walk -- September 15, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Hm. (break) ...selling different types of religious system so that one may not have to surrender to Kṛṣṇa. This is going on.

Vāsughoṣa: Many people were... On the way to... Even on the way to here...

Prabhupāda: And big, big swamis are saying, "Yes, whatever you manufacture, it is all right." Yathā mat tathā path: "Whatever ways you manufacture by concoction, that is all right." So they are satisfied. If somebody says that "You surrender unto me," that is not very palatable. If somebody says, "No, you can surrender anywhere," that is very palatable.

Brahmānanda: Because that means no surrender. To surrender anywhere...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Brahmānanda: ...means no surrender.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Brahmānanda: Then they're satisfied.

Vāsughoṣa: Many people say, "We have to do our karma." They are telling me, "Do your duty."

Prabhupāda: This is the duty: you surrender to Kṛṣṇa. This is the only duty.

Room Conversation -- October 14, 1975, Johannesburg:

Prabhupāda: Defamy. So the last defamy is that you die. I say, "You are rascal. You are fool. You are this, and that." This is all not so dangerous. But if I say that "You die," that is the last defamy. So in spite of all their clever invention, they are going to die. Then what is the value? That you cannot check. "I have done wonderful things"—that's all right, invention, so many things. That's all right. "But what about my death?" Have you done anything that you can save yourself? You, Mr. Darwin, you have so experience. Millions of millions of years you have got. Why don't you stop your death? You cannot live more than a hundred years, and you are talking of millions of years. What is this nonsense? You stop your death, live for millions of years and see things. So where is that power? Then what is your value? You live for fifty years, sixty years, or utmost, hundred years, and you talk of millions of years?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Actually our theory, even taken as a theory, that the soul is there and enters the body, and when the soul leaves, the body is finished, it's very palatable, very palatable. Very few people argue with it. It's simply that they've been miseducated. Therefore they are cheated. They accept.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the difficulty, that, wholesale people have been miseducated. That is our protest. And this miseducated is ruling the whole world, all rascals (break)

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: ...cheated in some business transaction, they become very mad, angry, so much so sometimes they want to kill the opposing party. But when they are cheated in this way they don't mind so much, because their sense gratification, either way, is there. So only people who are serious about understanding the truth will accept these things.

Prabhupāda: We therefore submit our statement as it is stated in Bhagavad-gītā. You cannot say that we are cheating, because we are presenting something authorized, which is accepted. That's all. So we are not cheater. You may accept or not accept; that is your business. But we are presenting something standard. That's all.

Morning Walk -- December 7, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Not cchana but cānā. Cānaka dāhl?

Aksayānanda: Oh, cānā dāhl, yes.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Cānā dāhl is good nowadays.

Aksayānanda: Chick pea dahl for winter.

Prabhupāda: Mixed with little uraḍ dāhl, then it will be very palatable and very beneficial.

Aksayānanda: For at lunchtime?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Aksayānanda: Yes. Very good. (break) ...dāhl will give you as much energy as eggs will any time.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Aksayānanda: Practically the same thing.

Prabhupāda: It contains protein.

Harikesa: Actually it's a wonderful challenge. This big, big scientist, big, big brain...

Prabhupāda: Big, big monkey. (laughter) "Big, big monkey, big, big belly, Ceylon jumping, melancholy."

Morning Walk -- December 10, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: It may require... No, I said that "If you are equal rights, then make some arrangement: sometimes you become pregnant; sometimes he becomes pregnant. Why there is not right, equal right?"

Indian man: She was telling me when... She... I said that "Prabhupāda sometimes says these things that we feel all ashamed, you know, because..."

Devotee (2): The medicine is not always palatable for these people.

Prabhupāda: But in speaking spiritual understanding we cannot make any compromise. What to speak of in Mauritius, in Chicago I told. There was great agitation in papers.

Harikeśa: In the TV, on television.

Indian man: Same thing?

Devotee (2): In France also.

Prabhupāda: They were very upset. And when I was coming, I think, in Chicago, in the airplane, one of the host girl, she was seeing... (laughter) I asked her to supply one 7-up. And, "I have no key." She was so angry. But all the captains and others, they gathered around me. (laughter)

Morning Walk -- December 16, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: As soon as you say "progressing," that means they are rascals. Unless one is rascal, what is the meaning of progress? Hm? Rascal requires progress.

Dr. Patel: Whether they do progress or regress we don't know, but...

Prabhupāda: No, that progress means still rascals. After ten years they'll make no... This is progress. So they have no standard knowledge, and that is very much palatable, modern progress. Mūḍha.

Dr. Patel: But sincerely by all these six, six, I mean śāstra, I mean what you call darśanals(?), our forefathers have realized God, by all the six methods of darśanas.

Prabhupāda: You, why your forefathers? Everyone's forefather can understand.

Dr. Patel: No, no. Other civilized people's forefathers. (laughs) The Āryan race. Nyāya vaiśeṣika also has told the same thing. This, such śāstra, I mean darśanas, are all from the Vedas. They are all from the Vedas you see.

Prabhupāda: No, they are not strictly Vedas. They are partial. Just like mimāṁsa. They say that you do good work and you get the result. That is godlessness.

Morning Walk -- December 18, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Samāṣṭi, sama and aṣṭi together makes samaṣṭi. If you become devotee, I become devotee, everyone becomes.... Then samaṣṭi, devotee. And if you are nondevotee, I'm a nondevotee, then.... Combination of nondevotees. That's all. We have to therefore change this group, where we shall live. Satāṁ prasanga mama virya sambhava bhavānti nitkarma. (indistinct) If you live with the devotees, then these topics of transcendental subject matter becomes palatable. Otherwise it is nonpalatable. Therefore they do not like to come to the temple to hear our lecture. Nonpalatable.

Dr. Patel: You fire them! (raucous laugh)

Prabhupāda: No. How can I say anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa? Kṛṣṇa is.... Kṛṣṇa says, na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamā māyayāpahṛta-jñānā (BG 7.15). So we have got this test: if anyone has no interest in Kṛṣṇa, he must be with these groups, that's all. Duṣkṛtina, mūḍha, narādhama. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, yare dekha tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa-upadeśa' (CC Madhya 7.128). So how can I violate?

Dr. Patel: No.

Prabhupāda: Both ways. I cannot violate. Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that you simply speak what Kṛṣṇa has said, and Kṛṣṇa says that anyone who is not Kṛṣṇa conscious, he is a rascal. He is a most sinful man, he is the lowest of mankind. So why shall I not say? It is not firing; it is telling the truth. (laughs with Patel) But I am not loser. I am, I do not make any compromise. All these my students ask, I never made any compromise. But still they understand, and they are with me.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 21, 1976, Mayapura:

Harikeśa: There are a lot of restaurants in America which are very far away from the general mass of people, and because they have very high reputations, people come from miles around there.

Prabhupāda: Yes. This tongue is very, what is called? Susceptible? No?

Harikeśa: Voracious.

Prabhupāda: Not voracious. They want very palatable things, the tongue. Tā'ra madhye jihwā ati, lobhamoy sudurmati, very greedy. So if you supply them kṛṣṇa-prasādam at the same time to satisfy their greediness, then you conquer. This is the secret.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: You conquered a lot of devotees by prasādam.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Yes. Automatically he becomes devotee: "No, we shall become, remain here." This is the secret. Why the woman is liked? Because the woman, if she is trained up to give satisfaction to the tongue, to the belly and the sex, straight line, she becomes favorite immediately. This is woman's business. And people are hankering. The karmīs especially, they are hankering after these three things: palatable dishes, fill up belly, and sex. That's all. If the woman can do it, she conquers over the husband immediately because these three things they want. Take things very practically. Hm? Am I wrong or right?

Jayapatākā: You are always right.

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

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So it's not their fault.

Prabhupāda: The social system in India, that a boy, say, twenty, twenty-five years, and a girl, twelve to sixteen years, must be married. Must be married. And before marriage the girl should not see any boy, and the boy should not see any woman. Then the life is all right. Even in U.P. still, the system is that before marriage the boy should not see. The marriage takes place. Nowadays it has been practiced that boy goes to see the girl, but formerly it was not. She (he) should not see. She (he) should see the girl when the marriage actually takes place, not before that. The psychology is that when they require a man or a girl, so whatever she is or he is, they accept and they remain chaste, so there is no separation. This is the psychology. Whenever you are hungry, whatever nonsense foodstuff is offered to you, it is palatable. Is it not? Because, after all, it is the appetite which eats, not the foodstuff. Foodstuff may be very, very nicely prepared, but if you have no appetite, it is finished. You know the history of Ramakrishna? Did I say? Yes. So he had no appetite, and he very tactfully said, "Oh, you are not my wife. You are my mother." And he became Bhagavān.

Garden Conversation -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Prabhupāda: Bus way station? Railway station? Leave luggage. Put it and lock it, then not coming back. Then when there is bad smell.... This is going on. This is simply animal civilization. Taking the last drop of milk from the cow and immediately send it to the slaughterhouse. They are doing like that. Before sending to the slaughterhouse, they draw out the last drop of milk from the cow. And immediately killing. So you require the milk, you are taking so much milk, without milk you cannot.... And the animal from whom you take milk, she's your mother. They forget this. Mother supplies milk, she supplies milk from her body, and you are killing the mother? Is that civilization? Killing mother? And milk is necessary. Therefore you are taking the last drop of it. Otherwise, what is the use of taking the last drop of milk from the cow? It is necessary. So why not let her live and supply you milk, and you can make hundreds and thousands of very nourishing palatable preparation from milk? Where is that intelligence? Milk is nothing but transformation of the blood. So instead of taking the blood, take the transformation and live nicely, like honest gentlemen. No. They are not even gentlemen. Rogues, uncivilized.

Garden Conversation -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Hari-śauri: Kīrtanānanda Mahārāja was saying that we're very popular with the neighbors there.

Prabhupāda: That is good sign.

Devotee: One farmer called his tractor the Hare Rāma tractor.

Prabhupāda: (laughs) They are getting daily fresh vegetable, fresh milk. It is very palatable.

Mādhavānanda: We wanted to have a cow here, but they won't allow one within the city limits.

Prabhupāda: That is the difficulty. The government is rākṣasa. So you have to take charge of the government. First of all make propaganda, the majority of population may (be) in favor of you. Then you'll get vote. This is the easiest process. If majority people likes, that "These Kṛṣṇa conscious men are very nice," then you make a candidate—"Vote for Kṛṣṇa conscious person, such and such." They'll vote. In this way, you'll capture the Senate, then government, then President's office. It is very.... At least, there must be majority of the people sympathizers of this movement. Then it will be successful. So you do everything exemplified, and people will vote. But it is difficult in this way, that "These people are prohibiting intoxication and gambling. How we can live without this?" That is the difficulty. They cannot imagine even that without these things one can live. Is it not?

Interview with Professors O'Connell, Motilal and Shivaram -- June 18, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: But to accept this creed requires some big qualification. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says in the Caitanya-ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona bhāgyavān jīva guru-kṛṣṇa-prasāde pāya bhakti-latā-bīja (CC Madhya 19.151). Some selected, fortunate persons can accept. Kona bhāgyavān. Not everybody.

manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu

kaścid yatati siddhaye

yatatām api siddhānāṁ

kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ

(BG 7.3)

It is not very easy thing to accept Kṛṣṇa as everything and surrender there. It is not so easy. But it is possible if one is fortunate. Kona bhāgyavān. But anyone can accept it. What is the difficulty? But they'll not do it. Therefore unfortunate. What is the difficulty, Kṛṣṇa consciousness? Does Kṛṣṇa say anything extraordinary that we cannot perform? Nothing. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Four things: "You just think of Me always-man-manā. You just become My devotee, worship Me and offer your obeisances unto Me." Four things. Where is the difficulty? Anyone can think of Kṛṣṇa. Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare, Hare Rāma. Where is the loss? Is there any loss? Is there any tax if you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa? Just make an experiment and see the result. There is no loss, there is no tax, there is no botheration. Why don't you do it? Not at all difficult. If you compare with other system, this is the easiest. Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. The Gosvāmīs did. Kṛṣṇotkīrtana-gāna-nartana-parau. They taught us how to do it. Kṛṣṇotkīrtana-gāna-nartana-parau. They did this, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa and dancing. And the love was coming. Premāmṛtāmbho-nidhī dhīrādhīra-jana-priyau priya-karau nirmatsarau pūjitau śrī-caitanya-kṛpā-bharau bhuvi bhuvo bhārāvahantārakau vande rūpa-sanātanau raghu-yugau śrī-jīva-gopālakau. In the morning we have.... Always we have got kīrtana, in morning especially. You can see how these boys dancing and chanting only Hare Kṛṣṇa, how they are ecstatic. What is the difficulty? There is no difficulty. Chant, dance and take prasāda. Bas. Su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam. In the Ninth Chapter: Rāja-vidyā rāja-guhyam. Su-sukhaṁ kartum avyayam (BG 9.2). To execute this Kṛṣṇa consciousness business is very, very palatable and happy. And whatever you do, avyayam, that is your permanent asset.

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

Prabhupāda: For your direct whims you have to spend so much money? The people are so befooled they do not challenge them. Yes. Everyone knows, suppose one is coming to the western country, Europe and America, we knew it, that it is cold country, we must take proper dress. And we have come and we are staying. So this is knowledge. So if you do not know what is the atmosphere there, what do you spend so much money? And again you are going to the Mars. Are you fixed up what is the position there? Then you'll again bring something, some dust and rock. (laughter) This business will go on at the expense of the... You can do. You have got money. You can do that. But we are Indians, we are coming from poor country. If you spend so much money for nothing, that is very, not very palatable for us. If one tenth of the expenditure you would have given to us for spreading this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement... No. Not a single paisa they will give. And they'll spoil money for going to the moon planet and bring some dust. That's ... Kīrtanānanda Mahārāja is struggling to construct a small residential quarter here, and he has to beg, he has to collect, he has done... Why the government does not pay? "Here so many people are living. Let them live comfortably." But they'll spend this money, millions of dollars, and to bring some dust. Is that very sane government? And people are so fool that they do not challenge the government, "Why you are spending for nothing?" They can do that.

Room Conversation -- July 1, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: They do not know what is bhakti, what is Vedānta. They do not know. Simply aspiring, all after women and money, that's all. First-class rogues. I know all of them, all first-class rogues, after money and women. Beginning from Vivekananda. But they are so popular, if you say openly... Satyam bruhet ma bruhet satyam apriyam(?). "You can speak truth, but don't speak which is unpalatable." But we speak in a different way. And directly we don't speak. People will be angry. They're already fools and rascals.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: All of the others are trying to make some compromise.

Prabhupāda: That is also bad. How we can make compromise? Here is gold, here is iron, how you can compromise? Can we accept iron as gold? All right, let us accept. (laughs) Where is the possibility?

Hari-śauri: They don't see that clearly. They are looking at their iron and thinking it's gold.

Prabhupāda: They are seeing... They're tested. I don't make any compromise. All my speaking is also no compromise. Here is guru, here is Kṛṣṇa, here is God, here is Vedānta. Real version they neglect, and they stick to the rascal's version, Śaṅkara's version, Śārīraka-bhāṣya. All over India, they are reading Śārīraka-bhāṣya.

Arrival Room Conversation -- July 2, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Rūpānuga: You gave the example of a gold pot and an iron pot and a diamond pot. A diamond pot was a demigod, and the gold pot was a human being, and the iron pot the animal. But they are thinking that the food is more palatable in a different pot. But it is still the same food.

Prabhupāda: But they are simply interested with the pots. External. Bahir-artha-māninaḥ. Na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇuṁ durāśayā ye... (SB 7.5.31). They are thinking by changing the pot the advancement of civilization will increase. And that is going on. Just like America. You have got very big, big roads, nice cars, everything. You are changing the pot, but the eatable is the same.

Vipina: I heard a nice example given the other day about how living entities are suffering. A black widow, male and female black widow spiders, have sex life. After the sex life the female spider consumes the male spider, eats him alive.

Prabhupāda: What's that? Spider.

Vipina: Black widow. She will eat him after sex, kill him.

Prabhupāda: (laughs) So we are also killing by and by, and she kills immediately. That is the difference.

Vipina: Yes, little by little. (laughter)

Radio Interview -- July 27, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: Farina.

Hari-śauri: Farina and ghee, it's cooked.

Harikeśa: Clarified butter.

Prabhupāda: Most of our preparations are made from milk products. Therefore we are so much fond of cow protection. It gives the basic principle of palatable foodstuff. But these people, they do not know. They simply cut the throat of the cow and boil it and with salt. (laughter) They do not know how to keep the cow and take milk from it and prepare hundreds and thousands of nice preparations. That is a lack of civilization. Just like all the, what is called, aborigines, they find an animal, kill it and eat. They do not how to utilize the animals. Most aboriginal. We keep cows, we take milk, and from milk we make yogurt, we make ghee, and from ghee we prepare so many things.

Mike Robinson: What do you do with a cow when it dies? Do you just bury it?

Prabhupāda: Yes. If the cow-eaters can come and take it free of charge. (laughter)

Mike Robinson: Well, let me know, you know.

Prabhupāda: You can get the skin free of charges. In India still, there is a class, they, when the cow dies, they are called, they are called chamar. So he comes, take away the animal, dead animal, and they eat the flesh and take the skin, make shoes. They get all, everything free. There is no question of going to the butcher's place to purchase. So this much patience they have got, that "We want to eat this cow. All right, let us wait till her death." No, immediately. Just see, what a civilization. And cow is giving milk, she is mother. Killing the mother. Do you think it is civilization? Mother who has given you milk in your childhood, and maintained your life, and because she is old, cutting throat. Is that good civilization?

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

Prabhupāda: They asked, "What you want to eat?" "If you can, you make first-class kacuri." That is from my childhood. My friends also did it. They'd make the first-class kacuris in my youthhood. I am fond of kacuri. Kacuri is made first class in Mathurā. Agra and Mathurā. Very, very nice. The kacuri is being made, hundreds of customers waiting. At shops, there was many shops, waiting for purchasing. And as soon as it comes out of the pan, immediately sold. There is no question of waiting. They make spice nicest. That is India's craftsmanship. Nobody will starve. If you have no business, you prepare something palatable, and people will purchase, all over India.

Hari-śauri: There's so many people on the railway station selling.

Prabhupāda: There's no question of starvation for want of money. Anywhere sit down and do something palatable, and people will purchase. So your livelihood will go on. Pakorā, kacuri, jalebi, anything. You make some palatable, people are fond of eating some palatable things. That is their hobby. In Allahabad, there was a brāhmaṇa. I had my business, and he was neighborhood, he was living. So in the morning, the husband and wife would go to take bath in the Ganges. They would very nicely take bath, and while coming they will purchase some ingredients and then come home. The husband will perform pūjā, etc., and the wife will prepare many nice preparations-baḍā, pakori, puskar (?), this, that. Then he'll take his meals, rest awhile, and in the evening he will sit down, he was sitting just in front of my shop, about four or five o'clock. All the preparations his wife had made whole day, and the small shop. And the university students will come up to night, ten o'clock, he'll finish. Nothing will remain.

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

Prabhupāda: Very good, but I could not digest them. That is my fault, but, oh, it was so nice palatable. Chick peas, chick peas, grow fresh. Eat very nicely, keep strong, drink milk, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Bas. Don't depend on this outside work and then gradually become debauch, thief, rogues, prostitutes. Is that civilization? They cannot imagine that the modern civilization can go without all these things. Do they not? Slaughterhouse, brothel, cheating, diplomacy, roguery, drinking—without this, no civilization. We are quite opposed. We want to show it is possible, yes. You can stop all this nonsense and still you go on as a perfect civilized man. With character, knowledge, satisfaction, everything. They are trying to gather knowledge by sending so many machines up to date. We have already got. We say you cannot go there, you are simply wasting your time. We have got so much knowledge. No, you can attempt, just like a monkey, that's all right. But our verdict is already there. You cannot go there. Ten years before I said this moon excursion is simply childish and waste of money in my Easy Journey to Other Planets. I am not a scientist, but how I dared to say? Because I know, I have got full knowledge. That is the difference.

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

Prabhupāda: My mother used to make puffed rice at home. So there is special rice available for making puffed rice. Either you can prepare at home or you can purchase in the market, special rice. So she was preparing nice puffed rice, very, very nice. In a sand pot. My mother was always engaged in making some food preparation. Some pickle, some chutney, and this puffed rice, or something else, something else, something else. Besides cooking for the family, she was being assisted by my sisters. Always palatable foodstuff. So many guests were there, and if son-in-law would come, they would specially prepare food for him. To receive guests, give them nice food to eat, prepare nice food for the family, this is the Indian pleasure. They are not very much, nowadays, for upkeep of the home, very... That, in their own way, they keep it very nicely. Every utensils, very cleansed, they are kept ready for use, some cloth. If you go in a poor man's home, but you'll find everything very neat and clean. Ask these gṛhasthas to keep their home very neat and clean. Are they keeping?

Room Conversation on Farm Management -- December 10, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Make very nice palatable prasādam. We shall spend for that. Why miserly? There is no need of miserly. You are going to earn money by agricultural produce, so how the money will be utilized? It will be utilized for Kṛṣṇa's purpose. By prasādam, by chanting, by drama, somehow or other bring them. That is our mission. Congregational chanting. Always festival, and we shall spend for that. Immediately arrange. If there is scarcity of money, I shall pay, but from... Bring them somehow or other. Tomorrow I want to see at least 500 men. Make arrangement like that. I came here to see that, not to sit down in a room peacefully. So there also we shall inform the meeting that we want to propagate this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement town to town, village to village, by attracting them with musical demonstration of saṅkīrtana, dramatic play, movie, prasādam. Somehow or other they should come to the temple, to the pandal and congregationally chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, hear Bhagavad-gītā, Bhāgavatam. For this purpose, whatever expenditure is required, that you should collect and spend. This is the scheme of Hare Kṛṣṇa movement. You must come here, question, understand, and vigorous propaganda should be inaugurated town to town, village to village. Those who are educated, to them distribution of literature. The school, college, library, institution, university, by scholarly presentation. That is wanted.

Room Conversation on Farm Management -- December 10, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: To attract them to really nice prasādam, palatable food, we shall spend. And we shall argue (?) also by literature produced, and they're learning. Where is the difficulty? We shall take contribution from rich persons. We shall earn ourself, and spend it, to give them very nice prasādam. Gradually when they come, when you engage them in producing their own food, own shelter, own cloth... This should be organized. And they'll be glad. As soon as they understand, they will be glad to do. And they will stop all this nonsense: illicit sex, and meat eating. Then their life will be purified. And they'll make more and more advancement in this path. That is perfection. That you want. Is it clear or not?

Jagadīśa: Oh, yes.

Prabhupāda: Yes? This is our mission. If you give them very nice palatable prasādam... They go to hotel from miles together to take some palatable foodstuff, restaurant, hotel. And we cannot give nice Kṛṣṇa prasādam? Why? Why you cannot give? Arrange like that, first class. Simply for eating they will come. Immediately do it.

Room Conversation on Farm Management -- December 10, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Give them nice prasādam by which they are attracted. It doesn't matter khicuṛi, puri, kacuri, lāḍu. Whatever they are attracted, we must give. Whatever that will attract them. That I want. Kṛṣṇa-prasādam. Don't waste, give them nice palatable foodstuff. Give them one finest kacuri, one nice samosā, two puris, they will be very glad. Make very, very, nice prasādam. What is this rubbish, the dog cannot eat even? They have done a great mistake, all rascals. I am very angry. I say that if you have got no money, I'll spend, I will give you money. Why should you make such tenth class, and no food at all. It is to be thrown away. Simply waste of grains and energy. Engage nice professional cook, prepare nice foodstuff. I shall spend for that if you have no money. Gentlemen who are coming immediately should be offered some prasādam. "Please come here, take: puri, kacuri, samosā." Arrangement should be like that. The doctors came, he comes out of love, but there is no prasādam. Huh? What is this? The doctor comes, but we couldn't supply him prasādam at 12 o'clock.

Room Conversation on Farm Management -- December 10, 1976, Hyderabad:

Mahāṁśa: Some people I know, they said that yesterday the prasādam was not nice, and there was...

Prabhupāda: Not nice, it is not eatable even by the dogs. But you are less than the dogs if you (prepare) such thing. I was surprised. You allowed a sweeper to cook. I was surprised. We have distribution prasādam, not dog's food. Such rascals as here. You do not know. I do not wish to discuss anymore on this point. You have murdered the whole thing in two days. Now if possible, bring them, bring them first class prasādam, very palatable. Foodstuff means even one has no appetite he'll eat. That is food. Not that even one has got appetite, he'll forget. That is not food. So do like that and for money produce, use cane, sugar cane, rice. We shall spend for that. Don't spoil money, but do like businessman. He invests money, he gets a return. Spend it for Kṛṣṇa. That is wanted. There is no question of becoming a miser. I never did it. When I have got that farthing, I want to spend it. Immediately spend. Oh, what I have made this BBT? Immediately 50% for printing, and 50% for spreading this. (indistinct) and understand what I want to do. So whatever is done is done, now do it very nicely. I want to see at least 1,000 men coming from the villages. There are 20,000 men here, you cannot attract them?

Mahāṁśa: Do we announce that you will give darśana on the stage for five minutes?

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Mahāṁśa: Can we announce...?

Prabhupāda: Nobody will come for my darśana, but if you want I'll go.

Room Conversation on Farm Management -- December 10, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Then I am shall go. I shall go.

Mahāṁśa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: I shall go. I shall speak. Give them very nice food. From tomorrow I will... If there are rascals, you'll bring. I will pay nice cook. Make varieties, very palatable food. Kichranna,(?) puṣpānna, rice, there are so many preparations. Paramānna. You do not make paramānna, kichranna,(?) puṣpānna. There are varieties of rice preparation. They know, the southern people, with curd, yogurt...

Mahāṁśa: Tamarind.

Prabhupāda: Eh? Tamarind, so many preparations. So make like that. Why dog eating? They are not dogs. You cannot expect, because you are giving some dog eatable food, they will come. There must be one first class cook, and all our men should learn. There's no need of simply keeping unduly: Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa, and sleeping. We don't want such men. Make a show. And do not know anything how to preach. Useless. The householder, the women should be engaged in cooking. Their children should be gathered together. One man... I have said many times, all the children should be taken in a room by one woman, and others should be engaged in the cooking department. I have seen it. Your country, America. When they go to church, all the childrens are gathered together in a room. Is it not?

Devotees: Yes.

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

Prabhupāda: So if you kindly give us a camp, but we shall preach this.

Guest (5): You are at liberty. There is no ban on it. Actually, you see we, as we said, we are serving the humanity directly.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. That all right. Nice. But sometimes, if somebody differs, that is not very palatable .

Guest (5): No, no, Swamiji. There is no... We welcome you there. I told Mangala when she came that we are not preaching a particular thing. We are going there to serve the people who come who are intellectual.

Prabhupāda: For spiritual enlightenment. That's nice.

Guest (5): Yes. And practically since many, many years our camp is considered as one of the best from all point of view. Hygienic arrangements, food quality. We don't use dalda or anything. We have the pure ghee. There are people who give with heart.

Prabhupāda: Suppose if you give us one camp, so how many men we can provide there?

Guest (5): At least 50 to 100 people we can accommodate.

Prabhupāda: No.

Room Conversation -- December 29, 1976, Bombay:

Guest (3): But just as...

Prabhupāda: No, no. First of all let us settle, that Bhagavad-gītā begins

dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre

samavetā yuyutsavaḥ

māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāś caiva

kim akurvata sañjaya

(BG 1.1)

So Mahābhārata is the history and there was Battle of Kurukṣetra. And that Kurukṣetra is mentioned there in the Bhagavad-gītā, and it is dharma-kṣetra since Vedic age. So the word used, dharma-kṣetre and kuru-kṣetre, it is completely understood. Why should you interpret unless you have got a motive. And why a sane man accepts that interpretation? If you have got a different philosophy you can write your own book. Why should you cheat others, taking Bhagavad-gītā and interpreting in your own way? This has spoiled the whole thing. And Kṛṣṇa says that as soon as you deviate from the disciplic succession system then it will be lost. So what is the use of reading something which is already lost? If I want to supply you something food, it must be fresh and palatable. Then you'll enjoy. But if it is rotten, decomposed, and if we supply you that foodstuff, what you will enjoy and what you will get benefit out of it?

Guest (2): Most Hindus, they are not properly able to understand Kṛṣṇa direct.

Prabhupāda: No, I have already explained, that when you cannot understand, then you interpret. But when it is clearly understood why should you interpret?

Guest (2): How you explain the act of Kṛṣṇa taking away the saris of the gopīs?

Prabhupāda: First of all, try to understand Bhagavad-gītā. Then go to the sari of gopī. You do not know what is Kṛṣṇa and you are going to His gopīs. This is another malinterpretation. You are studying Bhagavad-gītā, talk of that. In the Bhagavad-gītā the gopīs' saris are not mentioned. So why you are bringing gopīs' saris now? This is our fault.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with C.I.D. Chief -- January 3, 1977, Bombay:

CID Chief: That is the truth, eternal truth. What you have said...

Prabhupāda: No, we are speaking about Kṛṣṇa. So if I say that Kṛṣṇa says like this and it is a fact, then what is our fault? But they are taking very serious, just like especially nowadays in Western country they are opposing that "This philosophy is a brainwash." So this is our position. Satyaṁ brūyāt priyaṁ brūyāt mā brūyāt satyam apriyam.(?) The world situation is that you can speak truth if it is palatable. And if it is unpalatable, don't speak. But this thing cannot be maintained when you are preaching spiritual life. There we cannot cheat. Spiritual life must be declared very frankly. Not that we have to declare; it is already declared. Kṛṣṇa says, dehino 'smin yathā dehe kaumāraṁ yauvanam, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). The spirit soul is within this body. The body is different from the spirit soul, and as it is changing—the body is changing—similarly, after death, so-called death... Because spirit has no death, no birth. Na jāyate na mriyate vā. So this knowledge is the beginning of spiritual life. And if you are preaching, they are opposing us. India also opposing. This is our position. They take Bhagavad-gītā and they mislead them. And we are presenting Bhagavad-gītā as it is. That is our fault. So what we can do. Can you suggest?

CID Chief: (laughs) I am a layman. What...?

Prabhupāda: No... You should be very kind upon... And what we can do? And if I cheat in the name of Bhagavad-gītā, then I become a great leader.

Room Conversation -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Fresh leaf, how can I chew it?

Hari-śauri: Too bitter. Hm. I'll get some dried. I can dry some on the roof tomorrow.

Prabhupāda: Not dry. You have to take fresh leaf. But you have to make...

Hari-śauri: Just mash it. I can just mash it and make it. That would be all right.

Prabhupāda: Or if you make two or three baras with nim, that is easy to take, and palatable. With chick pea flour, fresh nim leaf paste and equal quantity of chick pea flour. Just fry it.

Hari-śauri: Oh. Like those spinach pakoras.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Arundhati was doing that in Vṛndāvana.

Hari-śauri: With nim leaf?

Prabhupāda: Yes. She was doing nice.

Hari-śauri: You would like those for breakfast?

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is good for the... So if Arundhati makes, she can come and tomorrow make one or two baras in the morning.

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

Gurudāsa: The devotees, yes.

Prabhupāda: And rice also? No.

Gurudāsa: Once a day.

Prabhupāda: That's nice. Above all, manage. That's all right, nicely. The foodstuff must be palatable. That should not be rubbish thing.

Gurudāsa: No. How are we going to feed others if we are not feeding the devotees nicely?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Now, yesterday we made simple cooking. How it was nice.

Gurudāsa: We're making soup at night, simple soup, and devotees like it 'cause it's not hurting their digestion. And I'm having some flat rice on hand for anyone who needs it. So, I'm trying to care for everything.

Prabhupāda: There is milk supply? No.

Gurudāsa: Yes. We have one man from Vṛndāvana who's bringing milk at 2.70 a kilo, a little costly, but Mela time, and they have to bring it from a far distance. Anyway, 2.70, kilo, cow's milk.

Prabhupāda: Cow's milk...

Hari-śauri: They say. (laughter)

Prabhupāda: Cow's milk means buffalo with water.

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

Hari-śauri: Yes, I've seen that in Vṛndāvana.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Nature's study gives the... And therefore Bhāgavata gives the example: "Don't work so hard simply for hog civilization." So if we use this word—it is very, very harsh for the Western people—"It is the hog civilization," actually it is so. But you cannot say. Satyaṁ priyaṁ vada... Unless it is palatable, you cannot say straight. That is... They take it seriously that "You are criticizing our mode of life." Hare Kṛṣṇa. (Dr. Patel enters) Aiye, aiye, aiye. (Hindi—"Please come in")

Dr. Patel: You're not going to walk upstairs?

Prabhupāda: Yes. It is not yet six.

Dr. Patel: I did not go for a walk today.

Prabhupāda: Oh. You want to go to Māgha Mela? Er...

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Kumbhamela?

Dr. Patel: See, the thing is I am prepared to come, but difficulty would be to come back.

Prabhupāda: Why?

Dr. Patel: I would not stay all the time that you are there.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: We can help him get a ticket, because we have a letter of introduction from a very big Central Railway officer for the chief man in Allahabad at the Central Railway. He got us the tickets.

Prabhupāda: Or let us go by car.

Room Conversation -- January 19, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: If you arrange for prasāda distribution, you become very popular.

Rāmeśvara: None of the tourists who are Westerners ever takes Jagannātha prasādam, do they?

Prabhupāda: No, if there is good prasādam, they'll take.

Gargamuni: Tourists... We'll send in the sweet shops, but...

Prabhupāda: If they understand they are very palatable.

Gargamuni: But that beachfront, if we're on there, we can use that beach as a place to feed thousands of people.

Rāmeśvara: Of course, all the pilgrims that come to Purī for the temple festivals, they'll also come to our temple if it is very big.

Prabhupāda: Yes, naturally.

Rāmeśvara: But what style will it be? It will be a different style of architecture.

Prabhupāda: Vṛndāvana? That will be new introduction here.

Hari-śauri: Vṛndāvana's not a very big temple.

Prabhupāda: Not big, but... Bombay.

Room Conversation -- January 26, 1977, Puri:

Gurukṛpā: The poor man, his office is cheating him, and then his wife stays home and spends all his money and he is being cheated by her.

Prabhupāda: Yes. He comes, taking so much trouble for the wife. He will lie down with her from eleven at night up to three o'clock. For that, that is home. This is his home. And to maintain this home, he has to take so much trouble. And this is civilization. He does not think, "For this little happiness why I am here? Better to become a sannyāsī and live independently. Why I'm taking so much...?" No. And after working so hard, in old age if you ask permission from the wife, "I have done so much for you, for family. Now let me retire." "Eh? You'll retire? Then who will look after me?" The home member not satisfied, and you are not satisfied. You are working so hard—how you can be satisfied? And they find still insufficient income. They are not satisfied. But what is this home? To sense gratification. You are not serving this woman. Because this woman, as soon as she is not able to serve you by her sex, then there is divorce. Nobody's serving anybody, but everybody is serving his own senses. So actually the man is serving his own senses, uṣṭra. He's eating his own blood and thinking, "Thorn very palatable." He's eating thorn. What is his palatable? Cutting the tongue and blood is coming out, and when the thorn's chewed with this blood, it makes little taste. Blood has got taste. And he's thinking, "Thorn is very nice." Therefore they have been called as uṣṭra. Uṣṭra eats own, drinks or eats his own blood, and takes the thorn as very good. Śva-viḍ-varāhoṣṭra-khara. These animals have been specially mentioned: dog; viḍ-varāha, means hog; uṣṭra; and khara means ass. How Bhāgavata has selected. (laughs) Śva means dog. Dog, after technical education, if he does not get a post where he can use this computer and other big, big..., he's a dog. He goes to a bank, "Sir, I am expert in this machine work. Can you give me a job?" "No, no. There is no vacancy." Then again he puts his tail, goes another, another.

Room Conversation -- January 26, 1977, Puri:

Gurukṛpā: Sausage.

Prabhupāda: Very good food. What is that? Hog intestine. Hog is eating stool, and the intestine is filled up with the stool, and they have to clear it out. When it is boiled there is a so bad smell. And that is very palatable. And by eating, as soon as he gets little strength, then sex without any discrimination. So hog. Śva-viḍ-varāha. And the uṣṭra. Uṣṭra I have already explained, camel. And then ass. Śva-viḍ-varāha-uṣṭra-khara. Khara means ass. Now, why ass is mentioned? Means he's work with the washerman, and he loads tons of cloth to take him to the ghāṭa where he'll wash, and give him a little grass. And he'll stand whole day. And again load and again come. He has no eyes to see that "Grass is everywhere, every... Why I am engaged in this washerman? Whose cloth? It is neither my cloth nor his." But he is working: "Oh, washerman is giving me grass."

Room Conversation -- January 31, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: But they are the topmost devotees. These (chuckling) uneducated, without any town life, cow-men, they are Kṛṣṇa's best friend. Unsophisticated, no education, but love intense—that is perfect. That attracted Kṛṣṇa more. Vṛndāvanaṁ parityajya na padam ekaṁ (sic:) na kartavya... Kṛṣṇa is so much attached to Vṛndāvana that He goes nowhere... What is that? They are not educated girls, up-to-date fashion, (indistinct) or nothing. Crude. As soon as there was blowing of the flute, immediately they began to run towards Kṛṣṇa. Somebody is taking care of children, somebody is engaged in boiling milk, and somebody was even lying down with her husband. Still, immediately... Very crude, unsophisticated, but intense love for Kṛṣṇa—that is Vṛndāvana. We want to introduce this farm project means intense love for Kṛṣṇa. And other things—very simple: little milk, little food grain, little vegetable, that's all. And that is very nice. If you get fresh vegetable, fresh milk, and food grain, what do you want more? And from milk you can prepare so many nice preparations, unlimited number, all very palatable, sweet. This civilization we want to introduce, not so-called rascal civilization and become implicated in this cycle of birth and death. This is not civilization. This is killing civilization. Human being got the opportunity to get out of these clutches of birth and death. They do not understand. They're so rascal, they do not understand how they are implicated in this cycle of birth and death, nor they do take it seriously, that this is the problem, janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). They are so blind rascals, they do not see that this is real suffering. They do not know it. Simply theorizing, making plan, and they do not know what is the suffering. Such a rascal civilization. So we have to introduce real civilization. Therefore we are struggling so hard. So make in such a way. That's a very nice place, center of Europe and very nice place. What is the condition of rainfall?

Evening Darsana -- February 24, 1977, Mayapura:

Hari-śauri: Hare Kṛṣṇa. (break)

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. Yajñād bhavati parjanyaḥ (BG 3.14). (sound of thunder and rain) This time rainfall is very beneficial for crops. This is the way of living. You perform yajña, there will be rain. And as soon as the ground is moist, you can produce anything, whatever you want. Sarva-kāma-dughā mahī. From the field, you can get all your necessities of life. The first necessity is the food grain. So food grain you can eat, and the rejected grass portion, you give to the cows. So both the animal and the man get sufficient food. And the cows will give you nice milk, and from milk you can get butter, ghee, yogurt, so many nice sweetmeat. And there is ghee, and here is food grain, then you make kacuri, puri, samosā. Then sufficient foodstuff, nice, palatable, nutritious. First necessity is āhāra. You get sufficient āhāra. Then make little cottage for shelter. Just like there is rainfall. Now you require little... (thunder sounds) Āhāra, nidrā, bhaya, and sex. So marry. Then the whole problem is solved. And then, rest time you save and advance in Kṛṣṇa conscious... This is civilization. Why you create unnecessary necessities of life and become complicated and forget Kṛṣṇa? What is this civilization? Rascal civilization. Instead of giving protection to the cows, you are cutting the throat. Is that civilization? So this is a civilization of duṣkṛtina, means mischief monger.

Room Conversation with Ratan Singh Rajda (Member of Parliament) -- March 27, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Why not government make people God conscious? It is very simple thing. God personally is explaining how to become God conscious. Very simple thing. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Four things. Even a child can do it. So why not leaders? Then their example should be followed.

yad yad ācarati śreṣṭhas

tat tad evetaro janaḥ

sa yat pramāṇaṁ kurute

lokas tad anuvartate

(BG 3.21)

Why don't they do this, this God consciousness? Do it seriously. Then everything will be all right. They are defying the existence of God and reading Bhagavad-gītā. This is their position. And if I go to the details, it may not be very palatable. But big, big leaders say like that. We have got everything in India, and to become God conscious, to establish the Lord's kingdom, not at all difficult. But we manufacture our own ideas. But we want that rāma-rājya, but without Rāma, how rāma-rājya will be? So those who are leaders of the society, if they take it seriously, will there not be an ideal state? And you can make an..., set an example to the whole world. The whole world will be happy. But we must be very serious about it. That is our this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We are trying, but we have no support from the government, from the leaders. We are alone. Now, after twelve years, they have recognized in the United States and London, Germany. Otherwise I was, twelve years before, I was not (Rajda coughing). Loitering in the streets of New York, who was caring for me? Now these boys, they have joined, they are doing something, they are fighting.

Room Conversation -- April 10, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Nim is good.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Very cleansing, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Fresh nim, it must be.

Prabhupāda: Nim you cannot take in any other way.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I don't follow.

Prabhupāda: Nim, you cannot take it in other way.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: One way I have seen it is in suktā.

Prabhupāda: Hm. By cooking?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Hm. Yes. That is possible.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: It's really Kṛṣṇa's mercy how such a bitter thing is yet palatable. (pause)

Prabhupāda: Take one.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Thank you very much. (end)

Conversation with Yadubara (after seeing film) -- April 17, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes, I have taken two, more than two. I could have taken...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: More. You had a good taste for them.

Prabhupāda: But I did not try it. Very nice.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: As a result of your restricting yourself to only two or three, we each got to taste one. Very palatable.

Prabhupāda: And the nim is very, very good.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: She says that she will make some further nim preparations for you for lunch.

Prabhupāda: Have suktā-nim also. Pick the nim. So this Karachi, he has given correct report. Very nice report. You have seen?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: And he is very intelligent boy. Open this. This is the real United Nations. These rascals, they are barking simply for the last thirty years, and "United." Simply barking.

Talk with Svarupa Damodara -- April 18, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Jackfruit is very nice, both unripe and ripened. The...

Svarūpa Dāmodara: It is full of jackfruits, this Vishnupur.

Prabhupāda: ...jackfruit is very nutritious, very palatable, both ripe and unripe.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Pineapple is also very nice.

Prabhupāda: Pineapple also.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: And we also have some sandon(?) trees.

Prabhupāda: You can simply live on jackfruit. It is so nice. And mango must be there.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Oh, yes, there are many mangoes.

Prabhupāda: Very nice.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Paradise.

Prabhupāda: Season time, this mango and jackfruit is sufficient food. And little milk.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: They also told me that there are also some sandon(?) trees, like sandalwood and some other sandal on the hillside.

Prabhupāda: Sandalwood, no?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Here. But I didn't see it, that it actually grows there. And it is all these nice hills, beautiful scenery.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: How did you leave there?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: (laughs) Very beautiful, natural scenery. And the climate is very mild.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We have to wait until September. He's giving so many attractive points.

Prabhupāda: No, heat we can accept very well(?). What is that? He can accept in behalf. So if they are eager to give, so make a committee, Gopāla Kṛṣṇa, yourself, and some other Indian. You can take immediately.

Short Dissertations -- May 24-25, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: They don't mind. "We must have mangoes." Money is very insignificant thing. Gold is the... And as soon as there is enough money, there is debauch, debauchery. Still there are Oriental moral principles. Girls who have become modernized... Otherwise they do not mix with any man. Their husband, that's all. And covered body, they are, very beautiful girl. And those who have become modernized, they are just like European girls. There is no difficulty to become modernized. They have got money. And they tour from one country to another extensively. Formerly for Muhammadans, drinking was the greatest sin. Now it has become... Drinking is strictly prohibited amongst the Muhammadans, according to their religious system. And sex? Before Muhammadan religion was introduced, they used to have sex even with mother. And woman could be purchased as slaves. Marketplace, women were standing for being sold. They would like to be sold. Just like animals. The animals, if somebody purchases, it is, if they are well fed, it is a great fortune for the animals. Just like the dogs here. When they have got a good master, they are fortunate. So it is the fact. If there is civilization, that is this Aryan civilization in India, Vedic civilization. Otherwise, throughout the whole world... These people were within Aryan civilization. Aryan, Iranian, their names are given. Up to Iran, their field(?). Europeans also, Indo-European. Gradually they declined. Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission is to make them civilized. Paścimera loka saba mūḍha anācāra. They are all fools and misbehaved. Teach them this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They'll be happy. This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu. That is our next step, how to make one civilization, Kṛṣṇa conscious. (break) It is very palatable. Not this ordinary medicine, some of them very bitter, some pungent. It is always palatable. So kindly administer this medicine. It doesn't matter whether I survive or die. It doesn't matter. Both ways it is beneficial.

Room Conversation -- June 17, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: This is the foodstuff for the tourists.

Upendra: For the tourists?

Prabhupāda: A man is working. Now he has got with him rice, ḍāl, āṭā. Now anywhere he can collect this dry gobar and set fire. And he has got his loṭā, and he's cooking. Very palatable and digestive.

Upendra: The balls, laktha, they're looking... I mean, when they are finished, they are looking brown or black?

Prabhupāda: No, brown. Brown and blackish spot.

Upendra: Black spots.

Prabhupāda: Then it is prepared, very... Just like loaf.

Upendra: Yeah, bread loaf.

Prabhupāda: Then put it into ghee. That according to your... Put it long time or keep it or take it, as you can digest.

Room Conversation -- June 17, 1977, Vrndavana:

Upendra: When earthen pots are cooked with, they are finished afterwards?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Throw it. That was the Hindu system. The earthen pot is used daily, and it is thrown away, specially for Deity. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu was sitting on the rejected earthen pots. Philosophy discussion was going on.

Upendra: With His mother.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So earthen pot is so nice. Jagannātha Purī, they cook it in earthen pot and throw it away. It is very palatable. You can try an earthen pot.

Upendra: Yes. (aside:) I will make rice, ḍāl, and preparation called laktha, bread balls that go around a cow dung fire, in an earthen pot.

Prabhupāda: You can begin experiment, one, two, three, and become perfect.

Upendra: Yes.

Prabhupāda: It is very digestive, very palatable and suitable for me, this kind of food. Yes. It will automatically increase appetite. It is so nice.

Conversation with Svarupa Damodara -- June 21, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: And so palatable.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Very palatable. They're quite impressed. Puris, samosās, kacuris... They couldn't dream to come to New York and get these things. Therefore they eat meat. They think it's not available. There's only one other pure vegetarian restaurant in New York.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Besides ours, there's only one other Indian pure vegetarian restaurant. And it's always packed. Indian people want vegetarian. But we... On the other hand, we only get... About one third of our customers are Indian. Mostly we get Americans. The businessmen come and the secretaries, theater people, families.

Prabhupāda: They like prasādam.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, very much. Because vegetarian is becoming now a very popular thing. People are thinking that it is more healthy to eat vegetarian. They call it health food. It's called health food. In fact, they have places called "health food bar." Instead of getting a whiskey, they get carrot juice, like that. People come... They comes sometimes just for one glass of juice. They'll pay dollar and a half, any price. They'll pay anything in America. If you know how to sell it, you can ask any price. Now, this month of June, now the prasādam carts will be doing more and more, all day long, because New York...

Prabhupāda: No, I have seen. They are always busy. Always.

Conversation with Surendra Kumar and O.B.L. Kapoor -- June 26, 1977, Vrndavana:

Surendra Kumar: Yes, I know, you have always been telling that is not what you're saying. What Kṛṣṇa said, you tell them...

Prabhupāda: That's all right. This is very easy. So I am not a scholar. I am simply... Whatever is said there, I am trying to distribute in a palatable way. That's all. It is not my manufacture. And that is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). You all become guru. "How can I become guru? I have no education. I have no knowledge." No, you haven't got to acquire all these things. That is already... Yāre dekha tāre kaha. Finished. So I never tried to become a scholar. But I tried, whatever is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, deliver. That's all. And that is guru. If some...

Dr. Kumar: Śrīla Prabhupāda, you should rest now.

Prabhupāda: Eh? No...

Surendra Kumar: Talking too much with Your Divine Grace, we have put you through lot of strain.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi)

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: He has here nice room. He's had prasādam. He had lunch with us.

Surendra Kumar: Everything is your mercy, Divine Grace.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi conversation) How long we have left Bombay?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We left Bombay about a month and a half ago.

Prabhupāda: (Hindi) ...recommended that... What is that?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Hrishikesh.

Morning Talk -- June 27, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Lime has a special flavor.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, it does have a special flavor. It's a nice flavor. In drinks people put lime.

Prabhupāda: In Bengal a first eating hot rice with little ghee, salt and this lime flavor, it becomes so palatable, with smashed potato.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Smashed?

Prabhupāda: Potato. With little chili. Oh, you can eat half the quantity of rice immediately.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Sounds very nice.

Prabhupāda: They do that, especially in villages. (pause) (break) If I would have possessed the lands, money, I would have developed.

Devotee (1): Did you want honey with it?

Prabhupāda: Who told you?

Devotee (1): Well, I didn't put it in yet.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. What is that?

Devotee (1): This is a nimbu.

Prabhupāda: Hot water? There is... (pause) (break) ...advertised here. Why thousands of Americans come here, did not inquire about Vivekananda? They never inquire. Do they? Eh?

Devotee (1): No.

Conversation with Bhakti-caitanya Swami-New GBC -- June 30, 1977, Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: Temple is not very important thing. First important thing is distribution. That is our main business.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The restaurant was filled again today. So opulent.

Prabhupāda: What is the special feature of restaurant?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I haven't figured that out. I know what it is though. The special feature is this, Śrīla Prabhupāda. There's a number of things. One thing, there's no other place in Vṛndāvana where you can sit in such a good atmosphere. That room is very large. The tables are first class, marble. There are very nice decorations, and the service is very good. And they serve ice water. And the prasādam is also better than at the Jaipuria guesthouse or most of the other guesthouses. And it's very inexpensive, four rupees for as much as you want to eat, palatable. And it's right in our own guesthouse. The people live here, and then they don't have to go anywhere. They just walk down to the dining room, and they get very good prasādam, good service, inexpensive, good atmosphere. It's become a very popular place. But it's too hot for me. I have difficulty eating the sabji because it's very spicy, but I think it's liked by the Indian people.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Conversation about Old Days in Calcutta -- July 1, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: And especially for (indistinct), the branch of Ganges, it is full of fish, hilsa fish, very famous. You know hilsa fish?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, I've heard you talk about it previously.

Prabhupāda: It is full of oil.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah. Very palatable for the fish-eaters. Bengalis, they are too much fond of fish-eating. They don't even... Sometimes people say, "Fish-eating is nonvegetarian."

Prabhupāda: Non... Yes, "Fish is a vegetable, water vegetable."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, that's what they say, "water vegetable." I noticed that these banana trees, they don't seem to have any bananas on them. Growing in your garden?

Prabhupāda: Hm, why?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: My guess is that in order for bananas to grow... Like I have not seen normally banana trees growing in this side, you know what I mean, Vṛndāvana. I suspect it has something to do with the soil. You can't just take a tree and plant it wherever you want. Soil has to be such that it can give the proper nutrition for bananas to grow. It looks good, but it's not banana.

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

Prabhupāda: In India they make lobster and loki.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: And loki?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh. They mix the two.

Prabhupāda: It becomes a very palatable delicacy. Lauciṁṛi.(?)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Bengalis are very fond?

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Still, there is nothing so palatable as nice prasādam.

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa baṛo doyāmoy. From milk you can make. From ḍāl. Urad ḍāl.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Grains.

Prabhupāda: Jackfruit, this banana. Then banana fruit... Banana, what is called? Flour.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Banana flour.

Prabhupāda: If it is made properly, you can taste lobster.

Room Conversation -- October 25, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Just so it becomes palatable.

Bhavānanda: So Bhakti-caru Mahārāja will take charge of mixing that?

Prabhupāda: Where he is?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Bhakti-caru? He's here.

Prabhupāda: (Bengali)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I'll keep it locked in the almirah, and I will give one dose at a time to Bhakti-caru.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: And he will mix it with honey and give to you.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Bhavānanda: Very good. So let's mix a little...

Prabhupāda: What is date today?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Today is the 25th. It's an inauspicious day. So it's the proper day to begin taking it.

Prabhupāda: So let us begin tomorrow morning.