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Sunya means

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Śūnya means zero.
Lecture on BG 16.13-15 -- Hawaii, February 8, 1975:

"No desire" does not mean no desire for serving Kṛṣṇa. That is real desire. Other desires are artificial. That is material. But the desire to... That is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. When all our desires are for serving Kṛṣṇa... Desires you cannot give up. That is not possible. Desires will remain there, but at the present moment, in the conditional stage, the desires are being misused. That is the defect. Therefore the definition of bhakti means anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). Śūnya means zero. That is called nirvāṇa. The Buddha philosophy advocates nirvāṇa, no more desire. That is their philosophy. "By desire, you are becoming implicated, so make all your desires extinct. Then there will be no more feelings of pains and pleasure. Desirelessness."

But that is not possible. Desire must be there. Because I am living there, living being, I must have desires. That is the symptom.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Śūnya means zero.
Lecture on SB 5.5.25 -- Vrndavana, November 12, 1976:

If we want to enjoy something material, oh, there is no question of bhagavad-bhajana, because even if you have little pinch of desire to enjoy material comforts, you'll not be admitted. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66). Fully. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). Then Śūnya means zero. Unless you make material, ara nare bapa(?): "No more. Enough of this mateial enjoyment," then bhakti-yoga begins.

Śūnya means zero.
Lecture on SB 6.1.17 -- Honolulu, May 17, 1976:

Pure devotees means who has no material desire. That is pure devotee. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). Śūnya means zero, one who has made all material desires zero. That is the way. In the Buddha philosophy it is called nirvāṇa. Nirvāṇa means make zero, śūnyavādi. But we cannot remain in the śūnya. That is not possible. Śūnyavādī-nirvāṇa means to give up material desires. It is not possible to give up desires.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Śūnya means nothing.
Room Conversation -- July 16, 1968, Montreal:

Mr. Khanvar: Many people don't know about temple. Many people are not aware of the temple.

Prabhupāda: Well, these are..., so many people came on that day. At least, they know. They have no interest. That is the thing. That this life is meant for perfection in self-realization or Kṛṣṇa consciousness, their dull brain does not allow to understand this fact. Therefore I was explaining last night, su-medhasaḥ good brain substance. So people are becoming dull, and talking all nonsense. They are interested with so many nonsense things. Just like yesterday that gentleman came. You were present?

Devotee: Yes.

Prabhupāda: Oh, he was talking that on zero some great swami spoke four hours. And he was very proud that on zero one can speak throughout his whole life. Now I did not... (laughs) But if you can speak on some subject matter for four hours, how it is zero? Just see the contradiction. Gaurasundara, you were present when he was speaking? You heard? If I can speak something on a subject matter, is that subject matter zero? Zero means śūnya. Śūnya means nothing. So how you can speak on nothing? If you can speak on nothing, then nothing is no more nothing. It is something. Just see. But you are so proud. "Oh, he spoke on zero for four hours." I did not contradict because he is newcomer, but I talked on other subject. But this is the position. Suppose you can talk on zero for four hours. Then either you waste your time... Because after all it is zero. The result is zero. Just like you add one million zeros. So what is the value? Zero. So who is a fool that knowing that one million zeros makes zero, why shall I waste my time making so many zeros? So either he is a fool or if zero has so much substance to speak, then how it is zero? If zero has so much value that one can speak on it for hours and hours together, then how it is zero? So people do not understand things very properly. They're so dull. Then he was eulogising the man who spoke on zero for four hours. Yes. That is the system, if you hear a man talking nonsense and people will give cla... Oh! And he's asking what you have understood, "Oh! it is very difficult to explain." Then why you are wasting time? If you cannot express, if you do not understand. Simply people wants jugglery of words, they don't want substance. They don't want substance. That is the difficulty in the mod..., in the present age. Sva-karmaṇā tam abhyarcya saṁsiddhiṁ labhate param (BG 18.46). Svanuṣṭhitasya dharmasya saṁsiddhir hari-toṣaṇam (SB 1.2.13). So you should learn this nice simple fact, that whether by your work Kṛṣṇa or the Supreme Personality of Godhead is being satisfied. Just like a student, how he is prosecuting his studies will be tested at the examination how he can satisfy the examiner. Similarly, whatever we may do, we have to enquire or to understand whether by that work the Supreme Personality of Godhead is satisfied. Unfortunately, they do not believe in God, or if they had some ideas of God... Now they say God is dead. So they do not think that it is necessary to please God. That is the difficulty.

Page Title:Sunya means
Compiler:Sahadeva, Vaishnavi
Created:11 of Apr, 2010
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=3, Con=1, Let=0
No. of Quotes:4