Potential (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"potential" |"potentialities" |"potentiality" |"potentially" |"potentials"

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Interview with LA Times Reporter About Moon Trip -- December 26, 1968, Los Angeles:

Reporter: Right. What I mean is that when Dan Donnelley told me that in some of your lectures you had said that it would be impossible for man to land on the moon and that they would be opposed by beings on the moon, those sounded like very definite statements that if those things did not happen, then there would be a similar potential for a crisis within the Kṛṣṇa movement of people hearing one thing said and it doesn't happen in the future. Then if those things are said that definitely, then there's always a danger that...

Prabhupāda: No. Danger... When the scientists said that 1965 they would go. Did not happen. What danger has happened?

Reporter: The danger to the faith of those who felt, say, in jehovah's Witnesses, those who believed that the jehovah's Witness knew and nothing happens. They say, "Well..."

Prabhupāda: But they're still believing. First of all, they say that 1965 they're going to the moon planet. That has not happened. Now you say 1975. So they are still believing. So a class of men will always be cheated like that. A class of men. So there will be no danger of cheating such persons.

Interview with LA Times Reporter About Moon Trip -- December 26, 1968, Los Angeles:

Reporter: Right. What I mean is that when Dan Donnelley told me that in some of your lectures you had said that it would be impossible for man to land on the moon and that they would be opposed by beings on the moon, those sounded like very definite statements that if those things did not happen, then there would be a similar potential for a crisis within the Kṛṣṇa movement of people hearing one thing said and it doesn't happen in the future. Then if those things are said that definitely, then there's always a danger that...

Prabhupāda: No. Danger... When the scientists said that 1965 they would go. Did not happen. What danger has happened?

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- July 5, 1972, London:

Prabhupāda: (laughter) Best place in Vṛndāvana. All (indistinct). And we have got potential. There are so many buildings, they are not being properly utilized. If we want to, you can purchase the whole area.

Devotee: How is the Gauḍīya...

Prabhupāda: Now you have got enough place in Vṛndāvana, in Navadvīpa, in Bombay. There will be no difficulty if you go by thousands to India. You can live very comfortable. So you can go, purchase, you can go and come back. We saw that foreigners, they visit, and gradually, there will be unity between the so-called Hindu, Muslim, all Kṛṣṇa's servant. This is the idea behind Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- May 1, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is asking you that "You realize Me." "No, I cannot see You." "No, why cannot see you? Here is water. You are drinking water." "Yes." "I am water, I am the taste of the water. Why don't you see Me?" Prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ: "I am the sunshine." So who is not seeing the sunshine? Why the rascals says, "I do not see God"? God says, "I am here." But he says, "I do not see." Liar. If you are in my front, if I say, "Here I am," if you say, "No, sir, I don't see you," what is this? Similarly, God is before you in the form of sunshine. Don't you see the sunshine? Why do you say that I do not see God? Who has not seen the sunshine? In the morning, very early in the morning, you see God. That is Gāyatrī mantra. Oṁ bhūr bhuvaḥ svaḥ tat savitur vareṇyaṁ bhargo devasya. That is the obeisances to the sun. Savitṛ. Savitṛ means, savitā means sun. In the very beginning we see God by the sunshine, and then think of the sunshine, how much potential it is, how everything is being produced by the sunshine.

Morning Walk -- December 6, 1973, Los Angeles:

Hṛdayānanda: Well, they say that "Even, even if I have the potential... Even to say that I ha..."

Prabhupāda: You have got the potential. That's it.

Hṛdayānanda: But if I say that... If I, I'm originally in the spiritual world, but even the potential to fall down is an imperfection in the creation.

Prabhupāda: No, potential does not fall down. Just like a child has got the potency to pass the M.A. examination. So he has to be educated. If you don't educate him, he'll remain a foolish child. So we are educating to develop that potentiality.

Morning Walk -- December 6, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: No, potential does not fall down. Just like a child has got the potency to pass the M.A. examination. So he has to be educated. If you don't educate him, he'll remain a foolish child. So we are educating to develop that potentiality.

nitya-siddha kṛṣṇa-prema sādhya kabhu naya

śravaṇādi-śuddha-citte karaye udaya

(Cc. madhya 22.107)

They, that potentiality is eternal. God is eternal. We are eternal. Our relationship, eternal. Everything is eternal. But because we are small, minute fragments, sometimes we fall down.

Morning Walk -- December 6, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: He is potential. That means you manufacture God. Sometimes you manufacture God as male, sometimes you manufacture God is female. Is it not? Is it not your theory? As you say, "Now we accept female as God," that means you manufacture God. Is it not?

Prajāpati: Yes.

Prabhupāda: And what you manufacture, is that God?

Prajāpati: They see...

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- April 24, 1974, Hyderabad:

Akṣayānanda: Many of those young boys and girls, they are potential devotees. They are just in it for a bit of fun. A bit of fashion or fun.

Prabhupāda: Similarly Rajneesh. (break) ...very good intelligence, Lieberman.

Satsvarūpa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Yes, he's speaking very nicely. He's fit for that position. Similarly our, what is his name?

Satsvarūpa: Balavanta.

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

Guest (2): You should read the book. I have a very good friend, a brāhmaṇa friend in the Indian Atomic Energy Commission. How do you view the development of the potential for nuclear explosions in India?

Prabhupāda: Yes, from the revealed scripture we can understand from... You have got the first part of Bhāgavatam?

Cāru: Yes, right here.

Prabhupāda: The Aśvatthāmā released the brahmāstra?

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Yoga Student -- March 14, 1975, Iran:

Indian man: You have to use the material, all the potential...

Prabhupāda: No. Atīndriya. You haven't got to use this material (break) ...enjoy the spiritual senses, one has to not only stop, but undergo tapasya, tapo divyam. Just like a man is diseased, he wants to eat, but due to the disease he cannot eat. So first of all, you have to cure the disease, then your eating will be a pleasure. And if you want to eat in the diseased condition, then the taste will not be proper; you cannot eat. A man suffering from jaundice, if you give him sugar candy, he will taste it bitter. The same man, when he is cured, he will taste the sugar candy as very sweet.

Morning Walk -- (World War III) -- April 4, 1975, Mayapur:

Jayādvaita: Potential.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: His question was... It was sort of a dual question. At what time, or what...? Just like at the time of disintegration of this body, the living entity leaves this body and the body disintegrates, so does the atomic body also disintegrate when the living entity leaves it and moves to a higher body?

Evening Discussion -- May 6, 1975, Perth:

Amogha: In verses like this one, when there is the multi-use of one word, like the word ātmā is mentioned here to refer to four potential meanings. Sometimes professors and some scholars argue on the point, how do we know which one of the meanings is used in this verse?

Prabhupāda: Any one you can take, and it will be explained.

Amogha: So any of the four meanings is also the same true meaning.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Room Conversation with Ganesa dasa's Mother and Sister -- May 14, 1975, Perth:

Sister: Has everyone the potential to accept Kṛṣṇa?

Prabhupāda: Everyone, yes, oh, yes, everyone.

Sister: But what about people that are never..., that are always kept in ignorance. There's a lot of people...

Prabhupāda: He does not take. He does not take willingly.

Sister: That's what I mean, yeah. There's a lot of people that just don't even know He exists.

Room Conversation with Ganesa dasa's Mother and Sister -- May 14, 1975, Perth:

Prabhupāda: But if he takes, he has the potentiality. If you agree... Kṛṣṇa said, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam... (BG 18.66). If you agree to Kṛṣṇa's proposal, then you will, that potentiality is manifested.

Sister: But what about people that are never exposed to Kṛṣṇa consciousness?

Prabhupāda: Then he will suffer. He will constantly change his body one after another, sometimes good body, sometimes bad body, and he will suffer. So as soon as you accept a material body, you will suffer. It may be good body or bad body. It doesn't matter. Suffering is there.

Morning Walk -- June 10, 1975, Honolulu:

Prabhupāda: And there was no necessity. Still, we shall go. It is very pleasant. (break) One umbrella, if you push, it will open, and if you push down, it will come back. Machine. (break) ...mantra is described in the śāstra just like a potential medicine. If you take it, either you know it or not know it, it will act. And another example is given. Just like fire. If one, the father knows, "This is fire," and throws to the grass, it will be burned. Similarly, if a child—he does not know what it is—if he throws, then that will also burn. (break)

Ambarīṣa: I won't become become involved in any other project besides Kurukṣetra? Just Kurukṣetra.

Morning Walk -- July 21, 1975, San Francisco:

Brahmānanda: What does it say? "Kundalini-yoga as taught by Yogi Bhajan is a highly developed science of awareness. Join with us early in the morning to revitalize the body, mind and spirit. Daily practice of kundalini-yoga under the guidance of a teacher helps you release the highest potential within the individual."

Devotee (1): One of his devotees has recently said that if he really wanted spiritual knowledge that they should come to you.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Devotee (1): One of Yogi Bhajan's devotees has said that Yogi Bhajan recently said if you really want spiritual knowledge to come to Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Devotee (2): That's intelligent.

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.

Morning Walk -- October 5, 1975, Mauritius:

Prabhupāda: So why do they not accept it?

Cyavana: Gradually they will. They are attracted. They will accept. (break) ...only here I have seen. All the islands on the Pacific and Indian Ocean are all potential. Philippines, very... The Philippine boys, I saw, very nice. They are not guided. Fiji also.

Prabhupāda: Fiji. Fiji also. Fiji, mostly Indian, but the original Fiji Fijians, they are also very nice.

Cyavana: What about Bali? There are also many...

Morning Walk -- October 5, 1975, Mauritius:

Prabhupāda: The climate is nice. There is good potential for producing food, keeping cows. Everything nice.

Devotee: It is all volcanic. The soil here is all from volcano, volcanic soil, very rich.

Prabhupāda: Oh? Volcanic or not volcanic, pūrṇam idam (Īśopaniṣad, Invocation). When it is created by Lord, it is complete. You are originally from India? No.

Indian boy (2): No, Mauritius.

Indian boy (1): Our father from India.

Room Conversation -- October 21, 1975, Johannesburg:

Guest: ...all the potential audience, and I'm hoping we'll see the documentary. So it's just a couple of questions I'd like to ask you, if I may? And if I can record them, we can have them typed out. I hope my little tape recorder works.

Prabhupāda: You sit down. Actually ours is not in search of truth, but we are presenting the truth as it is. We are not searching out.

Guest: Right. Well, this is what I want to... I wanted to ask you... I'll put the questions in order. The questions in order is... The first one is, "Within Vedic culture, what is meant by bhakti-yoga?" The second one... Shall we take it in...

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- February 5, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Was active, He is active, but you, you rascal, you cannot see. You cannot say, "Once He was active. Now He is no more active. He has finished His activity." That you cannot say. Dormant? What do you mean by dormant? Huh? Dormant means potential. He can act. And He is acting. That acting you have to learn, how He is acting. He appears to be not acting, but He is acting. That is knowledge. Just like airplane is running. A intelligent man knows that "The pilot is there. He is acting. Therefore it is running." And a foolish man will say, "The airplane is going automatically." That is the question of observation. A foolish boy... I have given this example many times, that I was thinking that in the fan there is a ghost. But the idea is, there must be somebody.

Morning Walk -- March 25, 1976, Delhi:

Prabhupāda: He said, "Engage me in Your servant's service."

Guru dāsa: So if we see people in the world as potential devotees, we should also serve them so they can become good devotees.

Prabhupāda: That is not service. That is mercy. One who is potential devotee, to show him mercy, develop him to become a devotee, that is mercy. That is not service. Service can be rendered to the higher person. And to the lower person you can show your mercy.

Guru dāsa: Oh, that's a good distinction.

Morning Walk -- June 8, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: As soon as they say "certain people," that is not fact.

Candanācārya: Actually, they say that potentially everyone has these powers, but some are more developed than others. Also the powers to understand each other's thoughts. (someone passes with a portable radio hearing a news broadcast)

Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Rāmeśvara: The only hope is to read your books, Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Devotees: Jaya.

Prabhupāda: Not my books, Kṛṣṇa's books.

Room Conversation -- July 18, 1976, New York:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, Prabhupāda. That's why if you concentrated here, just by your presence, even if you only spoke to a few important gentlemen... We have so many senior men here. We could do wonderful things. Within two or three months we could expand our movement so broadly here in New York, I think the whole country would take note. I really feel that there is a great potential.

Prabhupāda: That is right.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's why I'm not very eager to...

Prabhupāda: Yes, this is fact. Let me see what Kṛṣṇa desires. The roof is very nice.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: For open air.

Room Conversation -- August 10, 1976, Tehran:

Ātreya Ṛṣi: To find those few potential devotees that are in, let us assume, in New York, big city, there were a few potential devotees, and materially speaking, it may be very difficult to find them. But when the devotee is sincere, Kṛṣṇa will give opportunity that those people will be found, even if they are one in that big city. Kṛṣṇa will arrange that they will find a pure devotee if they are sincere. So no material advertising will accomplish the task.

Prabhupāda: Yes, Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that it is only for the fortunate persons. But we must present. Only the fortunate will come forward.

Room Conversation -- August 25, 1976, Hyderabad:

Indian man: He has forgotten means simply the potential that you have within you, you have to realize it and come closer to the Paramātmā. That is what it means...

Prabhupāda: If you have got the potency to become Paramātmā, then how you became ātmā?

Indian man: The potential to come near to Paramātmā.

Prabhupāda: Near, that is one thing. You are near to me. That means we are not equal. You are a separate person, I am a separate person.

Press Conference -- December 16, 1976, Hyderabad:

Mahāṁśa: Kanaipali. And the lands were originally in the Venkateshvara Gorakshini Trust, and they have transferred these lands to ISKCON Venkateshvara Trust under the chairmanship of His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupāda. So our interest here is to... This area, the whole area here, is very dry. Although there is potency of..., there is potential for tapping water, it has been left dry and unused just like so much land all over. You can see. There is so much land which is unused, vacant, just like this. So we have been given this piece of land. We want to set an example of how such wasted land can be, with proper management and organization, it can be made usable to grow food, abundant food grains and fruits and to feed unlimited...

Prabhupāda: And offer them to Kṛṣṇa and distribute prasādam.

Room Conversation with Life Member, Mr. Malhotra -- December 22, 1976, Poona:

Mr. Malhotra: But potentiality?

Prabhupāda: Potential different, because a lump of gold and a small particle of gold, the value is not the same. Gold it is quality, but not the value the same. That you cannot say.

Mr. Malhotra: Qualitative it is gold, but...

Prabhupāda: But quantity it is different. God is all-pervading. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). God is all-pervading, He is in everyone's heart. Can you live in everyone's heart? Can you know what I am thinking? Then how you can become God?

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Conversation and Instruction On New Movie -- January 13, 1977, Allahabad:

Prabhupāda: Mm. That is natural.

Rāmeśvara: But commercially there's some good potential.

Prabhupāda: But do not neglect book sales.

Rāmeśvara: No.

Prabhupāda: That will not do. This is our first business.

Rāmeśvara: Prabhupāda, in the Back to Godhead magazine, one question has come up. Now that England is printing their own, India is printing their own, so this magazine that we print in America, ninety percent, ninety-five percent is sold in America.

Room Conversation -- January 31, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Yogeśvara: The potential is wonderful.

Prabhupāda: And therefore I'm asking. Potential is wonderful, so why they are not attracted to live in the farm and be self-independent and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa? That is our farm project. Our farm project is they should be satisfied with simple living. That is nice living. If you get milk, if you get fruit, if you get grain and open air, it is very healthy life. Why they should not be attracted?

Yogeśvara: It is still the beginning, and because it's the beginning, it is a little difficult sometimes.

Room Conversation Varnasrama System Must Be Introduced -- February 14, 1977, Mayapura:

Hari-śauri: If that's done then how will those who have some potential to be educated, how will we recognize them?

Prabhupāda: Either educate them or control them. Give them facility of education. But there is no education at all. Even for the whites there is no education. So we are stressing on the point of education. You educate certain section as brāhmaṇa, certain section as kṣatriya, certain section as vaiśya. In that education we don't discriminate because he's coming of a śūdra family. Take education. Be qualified. Then you talk. Not by votes.

Room Conversation -- February 19, 1977, Mayapura:

Hari-śauri: There's tremendous potential for book distribution in India.

Prabhupāda: Therefore I say, take five lakhs and print and distribute. All languages.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Someone was giving me the report today that in Delhi the boys go out, and each man sells eighty to a hundred rupees' worth of books.

Prabhupāda: Just see.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They go out in a party, just like in America.

Prabhupāda: Now we have got Hindi books we can sell very nice.

Room Conversation -- February 19, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Vṛndāvana locally you cannot do. Mostly they rogues, the bābājīs. But there is good potential. (door opens and closes)

Hari-śauri: I can't find him.

Prabhupāda: Oh. He's not in his...?

Hari-śauri: He's not in his room.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He may be taking prasāda now. He was... I had a talk with him today. He was a little... I was surprised that he was complaining that the prasādam is the same every day. In other words, his complaint is that although we are giving... Of course, he may be critical, overcritical. I think that is a fact. But still, we should listen a little bit. Now every day there's at least seven sabjis. I mean, that's a big variety. But his point is that every day it's the same seven sabjis.

Room Conversation -- March 2, 1977, Mayapura:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: How much hopeful? I think there's a great potential. It is a great future, and I can see that if we start publishing the first journal, volume, then it's going to attract many people from the academic circles and intellectual surroundings, and in some time I can see there will be a whole new field of preaching in the academic circles all over the world, not only in India and United States, Canada, but Europe. Europe is going to be observe better centers along these lines. In fact, there are some very leading men in Cambridge and Oxford going to open the whole...

Prabhupāda: So arrange for that, what to do, immediately.

Conversation with disciples of Chinmayananda and Shivananda Ashram -- April 22, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: At least you do not understand. That's all.

Indian man (2): Are we not, potentially, not to understand Bhagavad-gītā, then?

Prabhupāda: Everyone. What is the difficulty? But you understand in a different way. It is simple thing. Everyone understands. This is expected. But you understand in different way. That is difficulty. You create your own meaning.

Indian man (3): I request, Swamiji, on what basis we can say that it is a different meaning or distorted meaning and not the meaning which the Gītā says...?

Prabhupāda: Because you say that nobody knows. You say. And whatever meaning, that is in your mind, but you said nobody knows.

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

Jayapatākā: But he had stopped it. So the potential looks very good. Some devotees I sent there for visa extension to come back to India, and they have requested to stay there and preach because it was such, such receptive. Many young men are coming and asking very intelligent questions. They ask questions about Deity worship, about guru, about hari-nāma, very intelligent questions. There's no CIA rumor. There's no any type of bad talk about us there, no envy at all. Very open-minded. And because they are a little bit oppressed, so they're always being challenged about believing in Kṛṣṇa, so that's why they're eager to understand.

Prabhupāda: What about the Muhammadans?

Room Conversation -- October 14, 1977, Vrndavana:

Śatadhanya: So we all became very much enlivened from this conference. I think that it has very great potential for preaching Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world, because they cannot challenge. Even Svarūpa Dāmodara, he asked, "Can anybody debate?" And all the scientists were quiet. They could not offer any challenge. So it's very effective, a very good means to preach, and we all became enlivened by attending this conference.

Prabhupāda: What is the time now?