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Real life means

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Their life is aimless, not actual life. Real life means with aim. The asuras, they have no aim.
Lecture on BG 16.6 -- South Africa, October 18, 1975:

Nāpi cācāro na satyaṁ teṣu vidyate. And they do not know what is truth or what is truthfulness. Or, in other words, everyone is liar. I have seen many big, big gentlemen that for nothing they will speak lies, for nothing, without any profit. They will speak so many lies. Na satyaṁ teṣu vidyate. To become truthful is one of the brahminical qualifications. Satyam. That is required. But the asuras, they don't care for. They will go on, telling lies, volumes of lies. They don't mind for it. These are the symptoms. Na śaucaṁ nāpi cācāro na satyaṁ teṣu. And their life is aimless, not actual life. Real life means with aim. The asuras, they have no aim. They do not know what is the aim, neither they follow.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Real life means you have to minimize your bodily activities so that you can save time and devote for spiritual understanding. That is real life.
Morning Walk -- August 30, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: These people are like frogs rotting in the well, and what they can understand of the Vedic knowledge?

David Lawrence: Yes. One of the themes, really, that interested me was this yearning, certainly it was true amongst the Jews, to return to a rural background, you know, to a rural sort of setting. I wondered if you felt much of the Vedas was in fact a firm belief an affirmation if you like, that the most true form of life, the most pure form of life is one that's lived alongside nature, not against nature as we seem to be doing in our urban setting.

Prabhupāda: What, I don't...

Śyāmasundara: In the Jewish tradition, they yearn for a life of living on farms, villages, small communities with cows and agriculture.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Śyāmasundara: Is this also expressed in the Vedas.

Prabhupāda: Oh yes.

David Lawrence: You feel that strongly.

Prabhupāda: Oh yes. That is real life. Real life means you have to minimize your bodily activities so that you can save time and devote for spiritual understanding. That is real life. And the present civilization based on bodily concept of life is animal life. It is not civilized life. Civilized life means athāto brahma jijñāsā. When one is advanced so much so that he inquires about the spirit soul. But there is no such inquiry. Like the cats and dogs, they cannot inquire what is spirit soul.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Real life means vairāgya.
Evening Darsana -- May 14, 1977, Hrishikesh:

Prabhupāda: But people are not following Vāsudeva. They are creating new Vāsudeva. And somebody told that Kṛṣṇa is an ordinary man? Trivikrama Mahārāja or somebody told me. Avajānanti māṁ mūḍhā mānuṣīṁ tanum āśritam (BG 9.11).

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, the people who are coming in at night are saying that.

Prabhupāda:

vāsudeve bhagavati
bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ
janayaty āśu vairāgyaṁ
jñānaṁ ca yad ahaitukam
(SB 1.2.7)

In order to come to the position of that mahātmā, one has to render service to Vāsudeva. Vāsudeve bhagavati bhakti-yogaḥ prayojitaḥ. Then jñāna-vairāgya automatically will be manifested. Janayaty āśu vairāgyam. Real life means vairāgya. Just like these boys known as hippies. They are trying for vairāgya. They are coming from countries, very opulent, rich father, mother, but they do not like, inclined to vairāgya, renunciation. But renunciation must be based on knowledge, jñāna-vairāgya. So that they are lacking. They are not fixed up. But there is a tendency of vairāgya. Is it not? That is also good. (Hindi) Therefore, according to Vedic civilization, there is compulsory vairāgya. As soon as one is fifty years old, he must give up family life.

Page Title:Real life means
Compiler:Visnu Murti
Created:15 of Aug, 2010
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=2, Let=0
No. of Quotes:3