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Tail

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 3

SB 3.13.27, Translation:

Before entering the water to rescue the earth, Lord Boar flew in the sky, slashing His tail, His hard hairs quivering. His very glance was luminous, and He scattered the clouds in the sky with His hooves and His glittering white tusks.

SB 3.18.24, Purport:

No one is unhappy when a serpent is killed. It is a practice among village boys to catch a serpent by the tail and play with it for some time and then kill it. Similarly, the Lord could have killed the demon at once, but He played with him in the same way as a child plays with a snake before killing it. Brahmā requested, however, that since the demon was more wicked and undesirable than a serpent, there was no need to play with him. It was his wish that he be killed at once, without delay.

SB 3.21.44, Purport:

Musk deer are not found in every forest, but only in places like Bindu-sarovara. They are always intoxicated by the aroma of musk secreted from their navels. Gavayas, the species of cow mentioned herein, bear a bunch of hair at the end of their tails. This bunch of hair is used in temple worship to fan the Deities. Gavayas are sometimes called camarīs, and they are considered very sacred. In India there are still gypsies or forest mercantile people who flourish by trading kastūrī, or musk, and the bunches of hair from the camarīs. These are always in great demand for the higher classes of Hindu population, and such business still goes on in large cities and villages in India.

SB Canto 4

SB 4.16.23, Translation:

When the lion travels in the forest with its tail turned upward, all menial animals hide themselves. Similarly, when King Pṛthu will travel over his kingdom and vibrate the string of his bow, which is made of the horns of goats and bulls and is irresistible in battle, all demoniac rogues and thieves will hide themselves in all directions.

SB Canto 5

SB 5.23 Summary:

The head of the śiśumāra form is downward, and its body appears like that of a coiled snake. On the end of its tail is Dhruvaloka, on the body of the tail are Prajāpati, Agni, Indra and Dharma, and on the root of the tail are Dhātā and Vidhātā. On its waist are the seven great sages. The entire body of the śiśumāra faces toward its right and appears like a coil of stars. On the right side of this coil are the fourteen prominent stars from Abhijit to Punarvasu, and on the left side are the fourteen prominent stars from Puṣyā to Uttarāṣāḍhā. The stars known as Punarvasu and Puṣyā are on the right and left hips of the śiśumāra, and the stars known as Ārdrā and Aśleṣā are on the right and left feet of the śiśumāra. Other stars are also fixed on different sides of the Śiśumāra planetary system according to the calculations of Vedic astronomers. To concentrate their minds, yogīs worship the Śiśumāra planetary system, which is technically known as the kuṇḍalini-cakra.

SB 5.23.5, Translation:

This form of the śiśumāra has its head downward and its body coiled. On the end of its tail is the planet of Dhruva, on the body of its tail are the planets of the demigods Prajāpati, Agni, Indra and Dharma, and at the base of its tail are the planets of the demigods Dhātā and Vidhātā. Where the hips might be on the śiśumāra are the seven saintly sages like Vasiṣṭha and Aṅgirā. The coiled body of the Śiśumāra-cakra turns toward its right side, on which the fourteen constellations from Abhijit to Punarvasu are located. On its left side are the fourteen stars from Puṣyā to Uttarāṣāḍhā. Thus its body is balanced because its sides are occupied by an equal number of stars. On the back of the śiśumāra is the group of stars known as Ajavīthī, and on its abdomen is the Ganges that flows in the sky (the Milky Way).

SB Canto 6

SB 6.7.2-8, Translation:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: O King, once upon a time, the King of heaven, Indra, being extremely proud because of his great opulence of the three worlds, transgressed the law of Vedic etiquette. Seated on his throne, he was surrounded by the Maruts, Vasus, Rudras, Ādityas, Ṛbhus, Viśvadevas, Sādhyas, Aśvinī-kumāras, Siddhas, Cāraṇas and Gandharvas and by great saintly persons. Also surrounding him were the Vidyādharas, Apsarās, Kinnaras, Patagas (birds) and Uragas (snakes). All of them were offering Indra their respects and services, and the Apsarās and Gandharvas were dancing and singing with very sweet musical instruments. Over Indra's head was a white umbrella as effulgent as the full moon. Fanned by yak-tail whisks and served with all the paraphernalia of a great king, Indra was sitting with his wife, Śacīdevī, who occupied half the throne, when the great sage Bṛhaspati appeared in that assembly. Bṛhaspati, the best of the sages, was the spiritual master of Indra and the demigods and was respected by the demigods and demons alike. Nevertheless, although Indra saw his spiritual master before him, he did not rise from his own seat or offer a seat to his spiritual master, nor did Indra offer him a respectful welcome. Indra did nothing to show him respect.

SB 6.9 Summary:

The demigods all worshiped Him because ultimately no one but Him can protect a living entity from fear and danger. Seeking shelter of a demigod instead of worshiping the Supreme Personality of Godhead is compared to trying to cross the ocean by grasping the tail of a dog. A dog can swim, but that does not mean that one can cross the ocean by grasping a dog's tail.

Being pleased with the demigods, the Supreme Personality of Godhead advised them to approach Dadhīci to beg him for the bones of his own body. Dadhīci would comply with the request of the demigods, and with the help of his bones Vṛtrāsura could be killed.

SB 6.9.22, Translation and Purport:

Free from all material conceptions of existence and never wonder-struck by anything, the Lord is always jubilant and fully satisfied by His own spiritual perfection. He has no material designations, and therefore He is steady and unattached. That Supreme Personality of Godhead is the only shelter of everyone. Anyone desiring to be protected by others is certainly a great fool who desires to cross the sea by holding the tail of a dog.

A dog can swim in the water, but if a dog dives in the ocean and someone wants to cross the ocean by holding the dog's tail, he is certainly fool number one. A dog cannot cross the ocean, nor can a person cross the ocean by catching a dog's tail. Similarly, one who desires to cross the ocean of nescience should not seek the shelter of any demigod or anyone else but the fearless shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

SB Canto 7

SB 7.4.21, Purport:

The well-wishing friend of the perfect order is Lord Śrī Kṛṣṇa. Therefore all the inhabitants of the various planets, being unable to find any other shelter, were obliged to seek shelter at the lotus feet of the supreme friend. If from the very beginning we seek shelter of the supreme friend, there will be no cause of danger. It is said that if a dog is swimming in the water and one wants to cross the ocean by catching hold of the dog's tail, certainly he is foolish. Similarly, if in distress one seeks shelter of a demigod, he is foolish, for his efforts will be fruitless. In all circumstances, one should seek shelter of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Then there will be no danger under any circumstances.

SB 7.5.46, Translation and Purport:

Although he is very near to me and is merely a child, he is situated in complete fearlessness. He resembles a dog's curved tail, which can never be straightened, because he never forgets my misbehavior and his connection with his master, Lord Viṣṇu.

The word śunaḥ means "of a dog," and śepa means "tail." The example is ordinary. However one may try to straighten a dog's tail, it is never straight but always curved. Śunaḥ śepa is also the name of the second son of Ajīgarta. He was sold to Hariścandra, but he later took shelter of Viśvāmitra, Hariścandra's enemy, and never left his side.

SB Canto 8

SB 8.7 Summary:

With the understanding that when the nectar was generated from the churning they would share it equally, the demigods and the demons brought Vāsuki to be used as the rope for the churning rod. By the expert arrangement of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the demons held the snake near the mouth, whereas the demigods held the tail of the great snake. Then, with great endeavor, they began pulling the snake in both directions. Because the churning rod, Mandara Mountain, was very heavy and was not held by any support in the water, it sank into the ocean, and in this way the prowess of both the demons and the demigods was vanquished.

SB 8.7.3, Translation:

The leaders of the demons thought it unwise to hold the tail, the inauspicious portion of the snake. Instead, they wanted to hold the front, which had been taken by the Personality of Godhead and the demigods, because that portion was auspicious and glorious. Thus the demons, on the plea that they were all highly advanced students of Vedic knowledge and were all famous for their birth and activities, protested that they wanted to hold the front of the snake.

SB 8.7.3, Purport:

They say that according to their scientific way, they have discovered that milk is dangerous and that the beef obtained by killing cows is very nutritious. This difference of opinion will always continue. Indeed, it has existed since days of yore. Millions of years ago, there was the same competition. The demons, as a result of their so-called Vedic study, preferred to hold the side of the snake near the mouth. The Supreme Personality of Godhead thought it wise to catch hold of the dangerous part of the snake and allow the demons to hold the tail, which was not dangerous, but because of a competitive desire, the demons thought it wise to hold the snake near the mouth. If the demigods were going to drink poison, the demons would resolve, "Why should we not share the poison and die gloriously by drinking it?"

SB 8.7.4, Translation:

Thus the demons remained silent, opposing the desire of the demigods. Seeing the demons and understanding their motive, the Personality of Godhead smiled. Without discussion, He immediately accepted their proposal by grasping the tail of the snake, and the demigods followed Him.

SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13

SB 10.8.24, Translation and Purport:

Within the house of Nanda Mahārāja, the cowherd ladies would enjoy seeing the pastimes of the babies Rāma and Kṛṣṇa. The babies would catch the ends of the calves' tails, and the calves would drag Them here and there. When the ladies saw these pastimes, they certainly stopped their household activities and laughed and enjoyed the incidents.

While crawling in curiosity, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma would sometimes catch the ends of the tails of calves. The calves, feeling that someone had caught them, would begin to flee here and there, and the babies would hold on very tightly, being afraid of how the calves were moving. The calves, seeing that the babies were holding them tightly, would also become afraid. Then the ladies would come to rescue the babies and gladly laugh. This was their enjoyment.

SB 10.11.43, Translation:

Thereafter, Śrī Kṛṣṇa caught the demon by the hind legs and tail, twirled the demon's whole body very strongly until the demon was dead, and threw him into the top of a kapittha tree, which then fell down, along with the body of the demon, who had assumed a great form.

SB 10.13.30, Translation and Purport:

When the cows saw their own calves from the top of Govardhana Hill, they forgot themselves and their caretakers because of increased affection, and although the path was very rough, they ran toward their calves with great anxiety, each running as if with one pair of legs. Their milk bags full and flowing with milk, their heads and tails raised, and their humps moving with their necks, they ran forcefully until they reached their calves to feed them.

Generally the calves and cows are pastured separately. The elderly men take care of the cows, and the small children see to the calves. This time, however, the cows immediately forgot their position as soon as they saw the calves below Govardhana Hill, and they ran with great force, their tails erect and their front and hind legs joined, until they reached their calves.

SB Cantos 10.14 to 12 (Translations Only)

SB 10.36.2, Translation:

Ariṣṭāsura bellowed very harshly and pawed the ground. With his tail raised and his eyes glaring, he began to tear up the embankments with the tips of his horns, every now and then passing a little stool and urine.

SB 10.36.9, Translation:

Thus provoked, Ariṣṭa pawed the ground with one of his hooves and then, with the clouds hovering around his upraised tail, furiously charged Kṛṣṇa.

SB 10.37.1-2, Translation:

Śukadeva Gosvāmī said: The demon Keśī, sent by Kaṁsa, appeared in Vraja as a great horse. Running with the speed of the mind, he tore up the earth with his hooves. The hairs of his mane scattered the clouds and the demigods' airplanes throughout the sky, and he terrified everyone present with his loud neighing.

When the Supreme Personality of Godhead saw how the demon was frightening His village of Gokula by neighing terribly and shaking the clouds with his tail, the Lord came forward to meet him. Keśī was searching for Kṛṣṇa to fight, so when the Lord stood before him and challenged him to approach, the horse responded by roaring like a lion.

SB 10.43.8, Translation:

Lord Kṛṣṇa then grabbed the powerful Kuvalayāpīḍa by the tail and playfully dragged him twenty-five bow-lengths as easily as Garuḍa might drag a snake.

SB 10.43.9, Translation:

As Lord Acyuta held on to the elephant's tail, the animal tried to twist away to the left and to the right, making the Lord swerve in the opposite direction, as a young boy would swerve when pulling a calf by the tail.

SB 10.68.26, Translation:

Only because we looked the other way could they enjoy the pair of yak-tail fans and the conchshell, white umbrella, throne, and royal bed.

SB 10.69.13, Translation:

In that palace the learned brāhmaṇa saw the Lord of the Sātvatas, Śrī Kṛṣṇa, together with His wife, who fanned Him with a gold-handled yak-tail fan. She personally served Him in this way, even though she was constantly attended by a thousand maidservants equal to her in personal character, beauty, youth and fine dress.

SB 10.81.17, Translation:

He treated me just like one of His brothers, making me sit on the bed of His beloved consort. And because I was fatigued, His queen personally fanned me with a yak-tail cāmara.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta

CC Madhya-lila

CC Madhya 4.62, Purport:

In his commentary on this occasion, Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura quotes from the Hari-bhakti-vilāsa. Barley powder, wheat powder, vermilion powder, urad dhal powder and another powder preparation called āvāṭā (made by mixing banana powder and ground rice) are applied to the Deity's body with a brush made from the hair at the end of a cow's tail. This produces a nice finish. The oil smeared over the body of the Deity should be scented. To perform the mahā-snāna, at least two and a half mānas (about twenty-four gallons) of water are needed to pour over the body of the Deity.

CC Madhya 13.20, Translation:

The decorations included bright mirrors and hundreds and hundreds of cāmaras (white whisks made of yak tails). On top of the car were a neat and clean canopy and a very beautiful flag.

Other Books by Srila Prabhupada

Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead

Krsna Book 6:

When the gopīs saw little Kṛṣṇa fearlessly playing on Pūtanā’s lap, they very quickly came and picked Him up. Mother Yaśodā, Rohiṇī and other elder gopīs immediately performed the auspicious rituals by taking the tail of a cow and circumambulating His body. The child was completely washed with the urine of a cow, and the dust created by the hooves of the cows was thrown all over His body. This was all just to save little Kṛṣṇa from future inauspicious accidents. This incident gives us a clear indication of how important the cow is to the family, society and to living beings in general. The transcendental body of Kṛṣṇa did not require any protection, but to instruct us on the importance of the cow, the Lord was smeared over with cow dung, washed with the urine of a cow, and sprinkled with the dust upraised by the walking of the cows.

Krsna Book 8:

When the babies were sucking their breasts, the mothers would see small teeth coming in. Thus their joy would be intensified to see their children grow. Sometimes the naughty babies would crawl up to the cowshed, catch the tail of a calf and stand up. The calves, being disturbed, would immediately begin running here and there, and the children would be dragged over clay and cow dung. To see this fun, Yaśodā and Rohiṇī would call all their neighborhood friends, the gopīs. Upon seeing these childhood pastimes of Lord Kṛṣṇa, the gopīs would be merged in transcendental bliss. In their enjoyment they would laugh very loudly.

Krsna Book 11:

Once, when Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma were playing on the bank of the Yamunā, a demon of the name Vatsāsura assumed the shape of a calf and came there intending to kill the brothers. By taking the shape of a calf, the demon could mingle with the other calves. Kṛṣṇa, however, specifically noticed this, and He immediately alerted Balarāma about the entrance of the demon. Both brothers then silently approached him. Kṛṣṇa caught hold of the demon-calf by the two hind legs and tail, whipped him around very forcibly and threw him up into a tree. The demon lost his life and fell down from the top of the tree to the ground. When the demon lay dead on the ground, all the playmates of Kṛṣṇa congratulated Him, "Well done! Well done!" and the demigods in the sky showered flowers with great satisfaction. In this way, the maintainers of the complete creation, Kṛṣṇa and Balarāma, used to take care of the calves every day, beginning in the morning, and thus They enjoyed Their childhood pastimes as cowherd boys in Vṛndāvana.

Krsna Book 12:

Some of them went to the monkeys and silently sat down by them, and some of them imitated the dancing of the peacocks. Some of them caught monkeys by the tail and played with them, and when the monkeys jumped into a tree, the boys followed. When a monkey showed its face and teeth, a boy imitated and showed his teeth to the monkey. Some of the boys played with the frogs on the bank of the Yamunā, and when, out of fear, the frogs jumped into the water, the boys immediately dove in after them, and when the boys came out of the water and saw their own shadows, they would stand imitating, making caricatures and laughing.

Krsna Book 13:

The cows were so melted with affection for the calves that they did not care about the rough path from the top of Govardhana Hill down to the pasturing ground. They approached the calves with their milk bags full of milk, and they raised their tails upwards. When they were coming down the hill, their milk bags were pouring milk on the ground out of intense maternal affection for the calves, although they were not their own calves. These cows had their own calves, and the calves that were grazing beneath Govardhana Hill were larger; they were not expected to drink milk directly from the milk bag but were satisfied with the grass. Yet all the cows came immediately and began to lick their bodies, and the calves also began to suck milk from the milk bags. There appeared to be a great bond of affection between the cows and calves.

Krsna Book 36:

In this way, Kṛṣṇa challenged the demon, and the demon became very angry by the words of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa stood before the bull, resting His hand on the shoulder of a friend. The bull proceeded toward Kṛṣṇa in anger. Digging the earth with his hooves, Ariṣṭāsura lifted his tail, and it appeared that clouds were hovering about the tail. His eyes were reddish and moving in anger. Pointing his horns at Kṛṣṇa, he charged Him just like the thunderbolt of Indra. But Kṛṣṇa immediately caught his horns and tossed him away, just as a gigantic elephant repels a small inimical elephant.

Krsna Book 37:

After being instructed by Kaṁsa, the demon Keśī assumed the form of a terrible horse. He entered the area of Vṛndāvana with the speed of the mind, his great mane flying and his hooves digging up the earth. He began to whinny and terrify the whole forest. Kṛṣṇa saw that the demon was terrifying all the residents of Vṛndāvana with his whinnying and his tail wheeling in the sky like a big cloud. Kṛṣṇa could understand that the horse was challenging Him to fight. The Lord accepted his challenge and stood before the Keśī demon, calling him to fight.

Krsna Book 43:

Being able to see only to the end of its trunk, the elephant could not see Kṛṣṇa hiding behind its legs, but it tried to capture Him with its trunk. Kṛṣṇa again very quickly escaped capture, and He again ran behind the elephant and caught its tail. Holding the elephant by its tail, Kṛṣṇa began to pull it, and with very great strength He dragged it for at least twenty-five yards, just as Garuḍa drags an insignificant snake. Kṛṣṇa pulled the elephant from this side to that, from right to left, just as He used to pull a calf by its tail in His childhood.

Krsna Book 60:

Once upon a time, Lord Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the bestower of all knowledge upon all living entities, from Brahmā to the insignificant ant, was sitting in the bedroom of Rukmiṇī, who was engaged in the service of the Lord along with her assistant maidservants. Kṛṣṇa was sitting on the bedstead of Rukmiṇī, and the maidservants were fanning Him with cāmaras (yak-tail fly-whisks).

Renunciation Through Wisdom

Renunciation Through Wisdom 2.8:

Puny human beings can manufacture only insignificant items like pots, pans, and factories. Therefore, when a personality who was born not so long ago in Mathurā and who looks like a human being is introduced as the Supreme Controller of the entire cosmic manifestation, the Lord of all lords and possessor of all absolute qualities, then, no matter how clearly one explains these truths, ordinary people cannot absorb them, due to their tiny dog's-bent-tail intelligence. Thus they embrace monistic, impersonal philosophy. Denying that Lord Kṛṣṇa alone is God, they insist that they are also "Gods." In this manner they embrace grossly foolish ideas about themselves and God and try to compete with Him, completely disregarding all etiquette and sound philosophical conclusions.

Light of the Bhagavata

Light of the Bhagavata 47, Translation:

From the Transcendence, which is called Kṛṣṇaloka, there emanates a glowing effulgence that resembles the tail of a comet. This glowing effulgence is unlimited, immeasurable, and unfathomable. Within this effulgence there are innumerable glowing planets, each of them self-luminous. Somewhere, a limited part of that glowing effulgence is covered by material energy, just as a part of the sky is covered by a cloud. Within this material energy there are innumerable universes, in every universe there are innumerable material planets, and the earth is one of these planets. Thus we can understand what an insignificant part of the entire cosmos is this globe on which we live.

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Los Angeles, December 2, 1968:

All right. Chant. (pause) The disease is that... Material disease is just like the tail of the dog. You see. The dog's tail is like this. And however oil it and try to make it straight, it comes like this. (laughter) You see. So these people, they want material enjoyment. "If Swamiji can offer us material enjoyment cheaply by some mantra," they'll come. You see. "When Swamiji says 'This is all rascaldom; come to Kṛṣṇa,' this is not good. This is not good." Because he wants to keep the tail like this. However apply ointment, it comes like this. (laughter) This is the disease. They want material things. That's all. "If by mantra, if by some tricks, we can enhance our material enjoyment, oh, it is very nice. Let us take some drug and become in the fools' paradise and think, 'Oh, I am in the spiritual world.' " They want like this. They want to remain in fools' paradise. But when we offer real paradise, they reject.

Lecture on BG 7.7 -- Bombay, February 22, 1974:

If you accept that "There is no more superior authority or supreme being than Kṛṣṇa," then you study Bhagavad-gītā. And if you cut the head and the tail and accept something and reject something, that is not Bhagavad-gītā. Take it as it is. Therefore we are presenting Bhagavad-gītā as it is, not curtailing this or that: "This meaning is that; that meaning is that." No such nonsense. We accept... This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Kṛṣṇa says that He is the supreme authority. We are preaching "Kṛṣṇa is the supreme authority." Where is the difficulty? We don't manufacture anything. We don't say, "I am the supreme authority." No. I am rascal. I am fool. I am imperfect. But Kṛṣṇa is Supreme, Kṛṣṇa is perfect. That is our preaching. As servant of Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 9.18-19 -- New York, December 4, 1966:

Just like there is a very nice story. A monkey... Monkeys, they are very busy. Do you know? But their business is to simply destroy. You will find monkey always busy, very active. So in the village there was a carpenter who was bifurcating one big beam by saw. So at the end of his work, half of the beam was cut into two, so he put one block between the two pieces and he went away. And then one monkey came, and he pulled out the block, and his tail was captured in that, between the two, and it was cut. So he went to his society, and he said that "This is the fashion. This is the fashion." Langulim segar(?). He advertised, "To cut one's tail, this is the latest fashion." Similarly, I saw one cinema in my childhood, a similar story. One Mr. Maxlin or something like that, he played that. He was sitting in park, and some naughty boy nailed his tail, that tail coat, when ball dancing. So when he got up that half part of that tail was taken away. So when he was dancing in the ball, everyone is looking to his back side: "What is this? His tail is cut." So he saw in the mirror that "My tail is cut." So he began to dance more nicely, and everyone asked him, "What is...?" "Oh, this is the latest fashion. This is the latest fashion." So everyone began to cut his tail. You see?

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.10 -- Bombay, December 28, 1972:

So those who are anxious to understand the Absolute Truth by dint of imperfect knowledge, this is right conclusion. If your senses are imperfect, whatever your knowledge may be, that is imperfect, because you are gathering knowledge from..., by imperfect senses. You know the story of studying..., blind man studying an elephant. So blind man is going, somebody is catching the leg. So they, "Oh, elephant is just like a pillar, a column." And somebody is studying the tail, somebody is studying the trunk.

Lecture on SB 1.8.36 -- Mayapura, October 16, 1974:

So who can see unless he is advanced spiritually? First of all, everyone is under the impression there is no God. And another way of denying God: "Yes, there is God, but He has no form. He has no head, He has no tail, He has no leg, He has no... He has no, no, no..." It is another way of denying God, definition by negation. I... One says directly, "There is no God," and another man says, "Yes, there is God, but He has no leg. He has no hand. He has no mouth. He has no this. He has no that." Then where is God? It is another way of denying God. This Māyāvādī philosophy... (aside:) What is that? Crows? No.

Lecture on SB 1.16.12 -- Los Angeles, January 9, 1974:

That is Malthus's theory also, that as soon as there is overpopulation, there must be something disturbance, war, pestilence, epidemic, and finished, finished. The extra population, unnecessary. Varṇa-saṅkara. They are called varṇa-saṅkara. Varṇa-saṅkara... Because by nature there must be brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, by nature. That should be organized. Head is head, tail is tail, not that head, tail, everything is one. That is called varṇa-saṅkara. Kṛṣṇa, Arjuna has argued that if the family members... If the woman becomes widow, then there will be varṇa-saṅkara population. Varṇa-saṅkara population means a population who cannot say who is his father. That is varṇa-saṅkara. Or which caste does he belong, what is his father, what is his family.

Lecture on SB 2.3.18-19 -- Los Angeles, June 13, 1972:

Therefore, after education you'll have to write application, "My dear sir, I am such and such qualified dog. (laughter) If you'll kindly give me some service." And the tail is like this. (laughter) You see? Just imagine. If by education he becomes independent ... Just like Vedic culture. The brāhmaṇas, the kṣatriya, the vaiśyas, they are independent. The śūdras are compared with the dogs because they cannot live without a master. Brāhmaṇa, he will not accept anyone's service. That is real brāhmaṇa. A kṣatriya will never accept anyone's service. Why the battle of Kurukṣetra was there? The Kurus, they took away the whole kingdom of the Pāṇḍavas.

Lecture on SB 2.3.19 -- Los Angeles, June 14, 1972:

You see. Produce huge quantity of milk, and make so many preparation out of it, and become happy. This is the instruction Kṛṣṇa is giving. Otherwise what Kṛṣṇa business, He has got to do some such business? No. He is teaching us. Even the urine in cow is valuable. Stool of cow is valuable. Kṛṣṇa in His..., while He is crawling on the yard, He captures the tail of a calf and he drags him, and he is smeared with all stools and urine of the cows. Kṛṣṇa enjoys. He is showing that even the stool and urine of cow is valuable, what to speak of its milk. Cow is so important.

Lecture on SB 3.25.35 -- Bombay, December 4, 1974:

So it is indirectly saying, "God is blind." So if I say, "You are blind. You nonsense, you are blind," is it favorably talking? Most unfavorable. Directly insulting. So those who are talking about God, nirākāra—no eyes, no leg, no head, no tail, nothing, nirākāra—they are simply blaspheming, not spṛhaṇīyām. God does not want to hear such nonsense things. Therefore it is said, sākaṁ vācaṁ spṛhaṇīyāṁ vadanti. You cannot say that "Kṛṣṇa is blind. Kṛṣṇa is lame. Kṛṣṇa has no hands. Kṛṣṇa has no nothing, nothing." Indirectly saying, "Kṛṣṇa has..., does not exist." This kind of addressing Kṛṣṇa, nirākāra, is not favorable talking with Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on SB 3.28.20 -- Nairobi, October 30, 1975:

So this is understanding. So we have to return to that understanding. Therefore it is advised how to make our relationship stronger with Kṛṣṇa. That is recommended here. Tasmiḻ labdha-padaṁ cittaṁ sarvāvayava-saṁsthitam. Don't think that Kṛṣṇa or God has no head, no tail. No. Sarvāvayava saṁsthitam. Virāṭa-mūrti. They are repeatedly said in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. But His avayava, different parts of the body, they are different from our, this material, at the present moment the material conception.

Lecture on SB 6.1.6 -- Bombay, November 6, 1970:

Prabhupāda: They're appreciating. You see?

Revatīnandana: There's a story I read. Sometimes the... In South America there's a small wild cat called ocelot. And they are like tigers but very small. They eat monkeys. They eat monkeys in the tree. They're cats, about twice as big as a house cat, called ocelots. And sometimes these ocelots, they'll lay on the branch of a tree like they're dead. They don't move. They don't even blink their eyes. And all the monkeys come and they gather around to see the dead ocelot. And finally the monkeys get very crazy and they go, one of them, and pull the tail of the ocelot, and then it's all over. That's how they kill the monkeys.

Prabhupāda: Therefore monkeys are considered very fools.

Lecture on SB 6.1.45 -- Laguna Beach, July 26, 1975:

So servant of desire means just like the street dog. He is also desiring: "If these gentleman will accept me as his dog?" But he is going there, and he is driven away: "Hut! Hut!" He is going to some house, moving his tail, "My dear sir, will you give me some food?" "No, no. Go away." We are also going also: "My dear sir, will you give me some service?" "No vacancy. Get out." This is our position. Hana māyāra dāsa kori nāna abhilāṣa. Because we are constitutionally servant of God, but we have given up that service, we have now become the servant of māyā.

Lecture on SB 7.6.1 -- Madras, January 2, 1976:

The Buddhists say, "There is no God." And the Māyāvādīs say, "There is God, but He has no head, tail, nothing." It is in the indirect way to say there is no God. What is difference? If somebody says, "There is no God," and if somebody says, "There is God, but He has no head, He has no tail, He cannot eat, He cannot sleep," negatively. The same definition in a negative way. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that veda na māniyā bauddha haila nāstika. Our standard of philosophy, especially Vaiṣṇava philosophy... Anyone who does not accept the Vedic principle... Because vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyam (BG 15.15). If you do not accept the Vedic authority, then how you can understand God, Kṛṣṇa? That is not possible. So anyone who says "There is no God. I don't care for the Vedas," he is calculated as nāstika.

Lecture on SB 7.9.2 -- Mayapur, February 12, 1977:

Be careful not to mix with nondevotee who imagines about God. They do not believe in God actually. This pāṣaṇḍi means who do not believe in God. They think that there is no God, but they simply say, "Yes, there is God, but God has no head, no tail, no mouth, nothing." And then what is God then? But these rascals say nirākāra. Nirākāra means there is no God. Say frankly that there is no God. Why do you say, "Yes, there is God, but He has no head, no tail, no leg, no hand"? So what is there? So this is another cheating. Those who are atheist, they say frankly, "I do not believe in God.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.98-99 -- Washington, D.C., July 4, 1976:

Of course, in your country dog is very pet. Now we are learning also, India, how to keep a dog and become aristocratic. (laughter) So now there is big, big dog show in New Delhi. But actually in India, although dog was not neglected, in a neighborhood, if there is a dog, people will give him food but not allow to enter into the house. He'll be not allowed. A dog is also trained up. They'll come to a door and sit down and move his tail: "Give me some food." And people will give. But he's not allowed to enter, the dog or caṇḍālas are not allowed.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.119-121 -- New York, November 24, 1966:

Just see the foolishness. For bread, which is already settled by the nature, he'll submit to everyone. Just like dog goes from door to door and moves its tail that "Give me a bread. Give me a bread." Yes. So this application is a doggish... In the Bhāgavata it is stated that the, the brāhmaṇa, a kṣatriya, if he's poverty-stricken, he may accept something mercantile, but don't be a dog. This modern civilization is teaching people to become dog. Go door to door! (break) ...the saintly person, the representative of Kṛṣṇa, they are always trying to distribute this mercy. So if somebody by his fortune accepts this mercy then he can become, mean, aloof from these material troubles.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.395 -- Hyderabad, August 17, 1976:

There is no difference. It is spiritual. In spiritual... Just like either you worship Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet or you offer a garland to Kṛṣṇa on His head, it is the same thing. It is no such thing as "This is head, this is tail." No. This is absolute conception of... So Bhagavān, His līlā, His form, His pastimes, His place, they're all Bhagavān. Even higher, those who are highly elevated devotees, they do not see even this material world different from Bhagavān. Idaṁ hi viśvaṁ bhagavān ivetara. That is described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Nārada Muni says. The whole universe is Bhagavān, although it appears different from Him. Bhagavān ivetara. So actually everything is Bhagavān, but it is not this Māyāvāda philosophy, that because everything is Bhagavān, there is no Bhagavān. No. Everything is Bhagavān, and still Bhagavān is there.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.395 -- Hyderabad, August 17, 1976:

There is no difference. It is spiritual. In spiritual... Just like either you worship Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet or you offer a garland to Kṛṣṇa on His head, it is the same thing. It is no such thing as "This is head, this is tail." No. This is absolute conception of... So Bhagavān, His līlā, His form, His pastimes, His place, they're all Bhagavān. Even higher, those who are highly elevated devotees, they do not see even this material world different from Bhagavān. Idaṁ hi viśvaṁ bhagavān ivetara. That is described in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, Nārada Muni says. The whole universe is Bhagavān, although it appears different from Him. Bhagavān ivetara. So actually everything is Bhagavān, but it is not this Māyāvāda philosophy, that because everything is Bhagavān, there is no Bhagavān. No. Everything is Bhagavān, and still Bhagavān is there.

General Lectures

Town Hall Lecture -- Auckland, April 14, 1972:

He is immediately referred that "You are brahmaṇya-deva go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca, the benedictor of the cows and the brāhmaṇas." Why? Jagad... "Next You are benedictor to the general people in the world. First the go-brāhmaṇa-hitāya ca." Why? Why Kṛṣṇa should be especially interested with go and brāhmaṇa? These are things. Now, when Kṛṣṇa was child, He was crawling. This is His pastime. By crawling He used to go to the cowshed and catch one calf's tail, and the calf will drag Him and smear His body in cow dung. He enjoyed it. So cow dung is actually so pure.

Morning Lecture -- Allahabad, January 15, 1977:

So māyāvādī-bhāṣya śunile haya sarva... (CC Madhya 6.169). For kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, to avoid this Māyāvādī philosophy that "Everyone is God. I am God. You are God..." This is atheism. It is cheating atheism. One class of atheism is Śūnyavādī: "There is no God." That we can understand, that he is atheist. "There is no God." He publicly declares, "We don't believe in God." But the Māyāvādīs are dangerous because they say that there is God, but without any form—no head, no leg. If you make "no, no, no," then where is...? It becomes zero ultimately. Go on making "no, no"—"No head, no tail, no hand, no..." So what remains? So this is another trick for saying there is no God. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said that this class, who gives the negative definition of God—"Not this, not this, not this, not this"—the Māyāvādī, Māyā... They say, "Not this. This is māyā." So this Māyāvādī, they are greater atheist.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Carl Gustav Jung:
Prabhupāda: Masculine, that means the symbolic representation in the material body is called masculine. Just like we (indistinct)... Just like in Bengali it is said, when you see cow, whether you see male or female, you just raise up the tail and you will understand. So a cow, I mean to say, vagina is covered by the tail, so if you raise on the tail of a calf by, simply by raising the tail you can understand whether it is a male calf or female calf. So this science is a representation of the mentality.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1967 Conversations and Morning Walks

Discourse on Lord Caitanya Play Between Srila Prabhupada and Hayagriva -- April 5-6, 1967, San Francisco:
Prabhupāda: So Nityānanda Prabhu described about the Kṣīra-corā-gopīnātha, the story of Kṣīra-corā-gopīnātha. It was very nice story, that formerly one ācārya, Madhavendra Purī came to this temple, Gopīnatha, and while that condensed milk which is called kṣīra was being offered to the Deity, Madhavendra Purī wanted to taste it so that he would also prepare such condensed milk and offer to his Gopāla. So after that he thought, "Oh, it is being offered to Kṛṣṇa and I wanted to taste it. So I am so greedy." So he left the temple, that "I am not worth to visit this temple." He went outside the temple and sat down underneath a tree and was chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Then at dead of night, Gopīnatha, the Deity, was awakening His priest by dream, that "You please get up. I have kept one pot of condensed milk behind My..." What is called... That (pid?) vastra, kings, sometimes they have got, very long tail-like. What is that called?

Hayagrīva: Robe or something? Prabhupāda: Yes. What is the name? Hayagrīva: I don't know. Prabhupāda: In Sanskrit it is called (pid?) vastra, backside robe.

1969 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Allen Ginsberg -- May 13, 1969, Columbus, Ohio:
Prabhupāda: So he thought, "It is a log," and he took the help of the log and went the other side. And it was heavy raining. And then, when he reached that Cintāmaṇi's home, he saw the door is locked already. Blocked. So he jumped over the wall, taking the tail of a serpent, and when he reached inside, he knocked the door, and Cintāmaṇi was astonished. "How did you come? So heavy rain. You had to cross the river." He said everything, that "Oh, I cannot stay without you."

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- April 2, 1972, Sydney:

Devotee (4): A tail like a beaver.

Śyāmasundara: A bill like a duck.

Devotee (1): And a tail like a beaver, and a body like a wolverine or something.

Prabhupāda: So the Vedic literature says 8,400,000.

Devotee (1): This is all in one.

Prabhupāda: This is Kṛṣṇa's mercy. If somebody is thinking, "If I had like this, like that, like that, like that." "All right you will have all." (laughter) Just like Hiraṇyakaśipu wanted to save himself in this way, that... "Yes, all are granted," but still he had to die. All granted. So we are trying to take facilities from Kṛṣṇa beginning from "O God, give us our daily bread, then give me motorcar, then give me airplane, then give me this, give me that." "Take all, but you will never be happy unless you surrender to Me. You take all." This is going on.

Room Conversation -- August 1, 1972, London:

Prabhupāda: He was sitting in a park, so that English dress, that tail coat? What is called?

Devotee: Coattails, yeah.

Prabhupāda: So the tail was hanging, so some naughty boys, they fixed up nails, you see? So when he got up, the whole tail gone, you see? But he could not understand. He went to the ball dance. So he's dancing, so everyone's seeing his tail, in this way. So he thought, "Oh, what is the matter?" He went to the mirror and he saw, "Oh, my tail is lost." (laughs) Then he came again in the ball dance and he was pushing everyone, just to show. And everyone was asking, "What is this? What is this?" "Oh, you do not know? This is latest fashion. This is latest fashion." Then all of them cut the tails. I think he had taken the idea, (Sanskrit). This is Sanskrit story, that (Sanskrit), or monkey, he lost his tail, and he began to advertise, "This is the latest fashion." So that ball-dancing without tail, that was, I remember, it is very enjoyable. They say that Charlie Chaplin is the student of Max Linder. He learned this funny play from Max Linder. So I knew Charlie Chaplin is an Englishman.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with Educationists -- July 11, 1973, London:
Prabhupāda: Just like dog goes, moves the tail, "Can you give me some food." Somebody gives him, "Eh! Hut!" This is the position. Therefore in this age kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ. In Kali-yuga, there is no brāhmaṇa, no kṣatriya. There are some vaiśyas. And all śūdras. Because they cannot live without being engaged by somebody else. And the whole civilization is going on, big, big factories, big, big... What is that? Śūdras. They are creating śūdras. "People should be dependent." Unless you work... Therefore people are going fifty miles away, going... I have seen in New York.
Morning Walk -- December 16, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Yes. (break) There was a snake. He was living under my bed. So you know katiya? (?) The rope, katiya? So I saw something is hanging like snake tail. So I called my servant, "There must be some snake. Some tail is hanging." So the servant, they called all their friends. They came with stick, about a dozen. And as soon as the mattress was taken, there was snake. So I told them, "Don't kill it. No, no." "Nei saheb, yei nei hatya." (?) Ah, immediately killed.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 3, 1974, Los Angeles:

Karandhara: The tail.

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Karandhara: The tail is 83 million miles. It's going fast, very forward, so it's emitting a tail of gases.

Prabhupāda: So who is supplying the gas? (laughter) The Arabians?

Jayatīrtha: There's no shortage.

Gurukṛpā: When it comes to doing the kīrtana, there's no energy shortage for us. We have unlimited stock.

Prabhupāda: By presence of the comet, the atmosphere is also polluted. Last time, what I saw, it was like this. Round and then tail. It is like that?

Gurukṛpā: No.

Prabhupāda: No.

Morning Walk -- May 9, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Ah. They cannot understand what is the meaning of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They are such dull headed men. They have no brain to understand. They are coming down again. Just like the dog's tail. Know, dog's tail. You may, however grease it... (laughs) They are hearing about this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. The aim is the body, the dog's tail. They are hearing daily about Kṛṣṇa na..., but they cannot understand. It is very difficult. These karmīs... Now they say... Because we are reading this Bhāgavatam, now gradually they dispersed. Gradually they dispersed. They are not interested. Hare Kṛṣṇa. And if you talk politics and all nonsense, oh, they will gather.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation with three Trappist Monks, Psychologists from the University of Georgia, and Atlanta Lawyer, Michael Green -- March 1, 1975, Atlanta:

Prabhupāda: Yes, one who is seeking service like dog. The dog goes door to door and moves his tail: "Give me some food. Give me some..."

Guest (2): Is it determined by jāti, by birth?

Prabhupāda: No. His quality... He has no quality.

Morning Walk -- May 14, 1975, Perth:

Prabhupāda: No, no. They will be sent to your house. Pay for it. Hotel. In the Kali-yuga the sex impulse is so strong, but it is utilized in so many ways. The yogis, swamis, school, college, philosophy—at the end sex, that's all. That example, dog's tail. Whatever you do, greasing, the tail will be like this. (break) I think it is sooner. It takes time less than for going there.

Morning Walk -- May 22, 1975, Melbourne:

Devotee 2: Prabhupāda, I have seen in New Zealand that the dairy farmers they cut the tails off the cows.

Prabhupāda: Hmm?

Devotee 2: The farmers have cut the tails off the cows in New Zealand.

Prabhupāda: Tails?

Devotee 2: Yeah, they cut the tails off so that when they're milking the tails won't hit them in the face. They do this to all their cows in the milking sheds.

Prabhupāda: For what purpose? The tail, cut the tails?

Śrutakīrti: When you milk the cow, they sometimes hit you in the face with their tail.

Prabhupāda: Oh, oh.

Morning Walk -- May 31, 1975, Honolulu:

Prabhupāda: Dice, yes. If the dice falls on the face of the serpent, immediately it comes down. We have to come to the tail.

Śrutakīrti: Back to the start.

Prabhupāda: Yes. It is like that. Goloka nadha(?). One is trying to go to back to home, back to Godhead. A little discrepancy... Mahārāja Bhārata? Yes, he became deer. Therefore we should be very careful. That is the instruction. Even Mahārāja Bhārata, he fell down. So therefore how much careful we should be. These are the instructions to become careful. Kīrtanīyaḥ sadā hariḥ (CC Adi 17.31), always chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa. That will save you. That Kṛṣṇa chanting and hearing, that will keep us safe. Example is given: just like a polluted woman is doing all household work, but she is always thinking when she will meet with her paramour at night. This example is... Similarly, we may be engaged in different material activities, but if we keep our faith in Kṛṣṇa, then it will save us. It is possible. Just like the example: the woman is engaged in household affairs very diligently, but she is always thinking when she will meet her paramour.

Morning Walk -- June 7, 1975, Honolulu:

Prabhupāda: No, veri means lamb or sheep. Their walk... If you can push one of them in the slaughterhouse, all of them enter. This is called veriya dāsan. You haven't got to endeavor to push others. You just push one only. "Fut, fut, fut, fut, fut, fut, fut," they all enter. (Laughter) In Hindi it is called veriya dāsan. Just cheat one veri, and all others will be followers. (break) Long ago, when we were boys, we saw one comic cinema. That old cinema player was... His name was Max Linder. Max Linder. So this Max Linder was going to a ball dance, and he was waiting in the park, and the ball dance coat, you know? It has got a tail. So he was sitting in a bench, and some naughty boys came and they nailed the tailing part. So when he got up it became torn, like... So his, this hip was visible. So when was dancing in the ball others were seeing his, "What is this?" (laughter) So he went to the mirror, he saw, "Oh?" So he began to dance and show everyone like this. So others said, "What is this?" "This is the latest fashion. This is the latest fashion in ball dancing." "Oh?" Then all cut their tail coat. You see? "The latest fashion."

Morning Walk -- June 7, 1975, Honolulu:

Prabhupāda: This is the veriya dāsan. (break) ...taken the story from the Aesop's, no, Hitopadeśa. Laṅguli-hīna śṛgala, a jackal without tail. So this is the world. Any nonsense you do and if you say, "It is the latest fashion," everyone will do. The miniskirt. One girl made it, so all girl. The veriya not only amongst the sheeps, and the so-called animal sheeps also do that, human sheeps. (break) ...very deep there, the water? They are standing.

Morning Walks -- June 18-19, 1975, Honolulu:

Prabhupāda: ...go-kharaḥ. Anything evolving on the bodily concept of life, he remains an animal. That is the defect of the western philosophy. (break) ...philosophy, the dog's tail. He is always this way, material way.

Morning Walk -- July 18, 1975, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: ...there is one word, sva-langulena atithi tīrtvā sindhum. We see sometimes the dogs are swimming. (greets someone:) Good morning. If somebody thinks, "Oh, the dog is swimming, so let me capture the tail, and I shall swim. I shall cross." So similarly, those who are thinking, the so-called scientists, philosopher, will solve the problems, it is exactly like to cross over the Pacific Ocean by capturing the tail of a dog. (laughter) If one thinks that "Dog is sufficiently strong to carry me. So he is swimming, so I shall swim also," so following the dogs, capturing their tail, if one thinks that he will cross over the Pacific Ocean... Similarly, these so-called scientists, philosophers, are like dogs, and if anyone thinks that he will cross by capturing his tail, he will be baffled. (break) ...bomb scientist still living?

Bahulāśva: Yes, he's still living.

Morning Walk -- July 18, 1975, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: No, that is lust. That is not love. And as soon as my lusty desire is not fulfilled, then you are my enemy. (break) If we take shelter of any materialistic person, that is like to take the..., capture the tail of a dog and try to swim over the Pacific Ocean. It is like that.

Morning Walk -- July 18, 1975, San Francisco:

Brahmānanda: Catching the tail of the dog.

Bahulāśva: Of the crab. Then they come to conclude that since all the animals do is eat, sleep, mate and defend, man should also just do that.

Prabhupāda: Then why he has become man? Why not animal? Therefore the śāstra says, "One who is engaged in these animal activities, he is animal. He is not man." Yasyātma-buddhiḥ kuṇape tri-dhātuke sva-dhīḥ kalatrādiṣu bhauma idya-dhīḥ (SB 10.84.13). Actually, man is doing like that. In the jungle the similar animals, they flock together. This nationalism is like that. It is nothing better than that. So our defending, that "We are Americans," "We are Indians," "We are Germans"—the same thing. Because they are animals, they have this United Nations. The animals will fight, so they are trying to compromise, "Let us live peacefully." That is not possible because they are animals, all failure.

Morning Walk -- July 18, 1975, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: Everyone is dying, your father is dying, your mother is dying, your friend is dying, and still if you cannot understand, then how it will be possible to make you understand? Every day you see so many people are dying. Ahāny ahāni lokāni gacchanti yamālayam iha. Every moment, every day, we see so many animals or men are dying. Śeṣaḥ sthitam icchanti kim āścaryam... But those who are living he is thinking, "I will not die." Death is inevitable but still, he is thinking, "I will not die." Therefore that is the problem. Everyone is dying, and everyone is trying not to die. This is the problem. Nobody wants to die, but everyone is dying. That problem this rascal scientist cannot solve. Therefore they are like dogs, and to catch their tail is like that. Yes. And that is the real problem. Everyone is dying, and everyone is trying not to die.

Morning Walk -- September 13, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Cutting the tail of the jackal. (Bengali) "My tail is cut, so your tail must be cut." This is a fashion. (pause) That is practical. The world is working so hard but where is the peace and happiness?

Brahmānanda: It's coming.

Prabhupāda: (laughs) When it will come? That is unknown.

Morning Walk -- October 7, 1975, Durban:

Prabhupāda: This is open. We can walk. (break) Nirākāra, impersonalist, "God is formless"—that is another way of denying God, gentlemanly way of denying God. "Yes, there is God, but He has no head." (chuckles) What kind of God? "He has no head. He has no tail, He has no leg, He has... He cannot see. He cannot eat." Then what He is? This is another way of denying God.

Morning Walk -- October 7, 1975, Durban:

Prabhupāda: That means... You say directly, "There is no God. It is a false conception only." You say directly. That is understandable. But why do you say all these nonsense, that "God is there, but He has no head, He has no tail, He has no hands, He has no...?" What is this? Tell directly that "There is no God." The Buddhists say, "There is no God." That is understandable. Why do you cheat? The Christian also believe like that?

Harikeśa: Nowadays they do.

Room Conversation -- October 15, 1975, Johannesburg:

Prabhupāda: Syphilis. In Ayur-Vedic it is called phairanga, means this disease is imported from Western countries. Every dog has syphilis, and they contaminate the woman, and that is distributed to man. According to Vedic civilization, dog is untouchable. Now in India also, to keep a dog is aristocracy. Yes. Especially the tail cut. Now half-cut tail, that is aristocratic dog. Now they are making dog show in New Delhi. (break) Adjust. Kleṣada asa deha. Material body means different ways of giving trouble. I have got one trouble. He has got one trouble. He has got another trouble. He has got another. But nobody is coming to the senses that it is troublesome. And troublesome, at the same time you'll not be allowed to continue. It has to be ended. Then another change of body, and what kind of body you are going to get? That you do not know.

Morning Walk -- November 7, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes. There are so many things in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavata. Just like a dog is swimming, and somebody captures the tail of the dog, and he thinks that "The dog will help me to cross the ocean," this kind of. So everyone is trying for liberation, but they are catching the tail of a dog for liberation.

Dr. Patel: He must get the ship in the form of God's name. Hm?

Prabhupāda: In this way, practical instruction. Taking to yoga system, karma system, this system, that system, but he does not know that these are like the dog's tail. Nobody...

Dr. Patel: (laughing) They are criticizing you.

Prabhupāda: No, it is practically. Yes. You cannot cross over the sea by capturing the tail of a dog because you see the dog is swimming. So all this karma, jñāna, yoga, they are all failure. It is just like dog tail. You cannot cross over the nescience by capturing dog's tail. You must capture the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa.

Morning Walk -- November 7, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: No, it is practically. Yes. You cannot cross over the sea by capturing the tail of a dog because you see the dog is swimming. So all this karma, jñāna, yoga, they are all failure. It is just like dog tail. You cannot cross over the nescience by capturing dog's tail. You must capture the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. Tan aham... Eh?

Yaśomatīnandana: eśa tat...

Prabhupāda: No. Samuddhartā mṛtyu-saṁsāra-sāgarāt. And explain the Bhagavad-gītā śloka. Mṛtyu-saṁsāra-sāgarāt. From this ocean of birth and death, if one wants to be saved, he must come to Kṛṣṇa, not to the dog's tail.

Morning Walk -- November 17, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes. The modern education means to create dogs. The dog goes door to door and moves the tail, "Please give me if you have anything." So this educated person with application goes, and they say, "No vacancy. Get out." Therefore they are dogs. Educated means dogs. They are creating dogs. In Vedic culture no brāhmaṇa will accept any job. No kṣatriya will accept any job. No vaiśya will accept any... Only śūdras. Only śūdras.

Morning Walk -- December 10, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Not subordinate actually. The occupations are different. It does not mean... That is another mistake. Just like the leg is walking, and the head is directing, so although the occupation is different, both of them are important. We require the head and leg also. If simply head is there, if there is no leg, then who'll walk? This is the understanding, not equal. Everyone must have his separate duties to serve the whole. That is the arrangement. This is real understanding. The most important part of the body is head, but that does not mean the leg is not important. Leg is important in its work, and head is important in its work. So we require both, head and tail both, not that simply leg or simply head. But when we make comparative study, we can understand that head is more important than the leg. If you cut your leg, you can live, but if you cut your head, you'll die. Therefore the conclusion is: head is more important than the leg. Comparative study.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- April 23, 1976, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: So many. This tail, dog's tail. Either you become sannyāsī or gṛhastha or anything, the tail is this side. You may grease it as much as possible, but the whole tendency is sex, that's all, in different dresses only. The objective is sex. This is going on. Some of them are openly declaring that "I am for sex," and some of them showbottle. But the objective is sex. This is the whole world. Yan maithunādi-gṛhamedhi-sukhaṁ hi tucchaṁ kaṇḍūyanena karayor iva duḥkha (SB 7.9.45). And the sannyāsīs like Rajneesh, they are advocating, "This is life—sex. By sex indulgence you get salvation." These Brahma-kumārīs. Not brahmacārī but Brahma-kumārī. Kumārīs are available very easily. And they keep. And the rich men, they are supplied with nice, beautiful kumārīs. They pay money. This is going on. Brahma-kumārī. They enjoy and they invite the karmīs to enjoy and get money. Kumārī is there; money is there, that's all. Everywhere this is going on.

Room Conversation -- April 27, 1976, Auckland, New Zealand:

Guru-kṛpa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, for the abhiṣeka, do we require cow urine and cow dung and tail of cow? Is it...

Prabhupāda: If available, not?

Devotee (1): Yes, we can get it.

Garden Conversation -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Prabhupāda: Daughter is also son. Son and daughter are the same position. If they are not educated, they become burden. Apaṇḍita, means not educated. Then they become burden, simply eyesore. That is another place he states: varam eko guṇī putro na ca mūrkha-śatair api. Ko 'rthaḥ putreṇa jātena yo na vidvān na bhaktimān. What is the use of such children, of son, who is neither a devotee nor a learned man? So, kāṇena cakṣuṣā kiṁ vā cakṣuḥ pīḍaiva kevalam. Just like blind eyes. What is the use of it? It is simply pains giving. You have got eyes, but if it is diseased, cataract or something, so what is the use of possessing these eyes? Sometimes it becomes so painful that the doctors, they pluck out. You know that? They get out the eyes completely, and decorate with a false eye. This is very delicate place. Even a small grain enters, it gives so much trouble. So if the eye itself is diseased, it is very, very painful. Therefore sometimes he plucks out. Kāṇena cakṣuṣā kiṁ vā cakṣuḥ pīḍaiva kevalam.

Hari-śauri: One of the peacocks has opened its tail.

Room Conversation on New York court case -- November 2, 1976, Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: That Bhavan's Journal, he did not dare to publish my statement. Everyone is combined to kill Kṛṣṇa. Everyone, all over the world. God... "There is no God," the scientists, these philosophers, the politicians, everyone. This is the only movement talking of God. Nirviśeṣa-śūnyavādī. Everywhere, impersonalists and zero. There is no God. The zero-vādīs, they are little frank but these rascals, nirviśeṣavādīs, God has no head, no tail, they are dangerous. Zero-vādīs, they call him zero, that's alright. That is, we can understand, they admit. But these rascals, zero, nirviśeṣavādīs, "Yes, there is God, but He has no head, he has no tail, he has no hand, he has no leg." Then what he has? They are greatest cheater. More dangerous than the śūnyavādīs.

Room Conversation -- December 7, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: A head means you have to train head. If you cut head, then how there will be head? Neither tail, neither head. Head means you have to train them, head. There is no need of so many men here. Why?

Jagadīśa: Many of the men who are here are on Haṁsadūta's party.

Prabhupāda: So do they require here?

Press Conference -- December 16, 1976, Hyderabad:
Prabhupāda: So we are God's servant. We are giving with these groups of food. And after He's eating, we are taking. We are servant. We cannot say, "My dear master, I like this flesh. You take it." That is not service. So therefore fool has to do everything because God wants it. And if you say, "God is nirākāra. He has no mouth, no head, tail," then you can manufacture. But here God says.

Guest (6): In order to establish the āśrama will you be spending part of the year here? Prabhupāda: Yes, I have got so many centers that if I stay in each center three days, the whole year is finished. What can be done?

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 2, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Yes. There are big, big tigers, big, big snakes. That Bengal tiger is famous. That tiger, his tail sometimes ten feet.

Morning Walk -- January 9, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: We must. That is the science. That is... You do not know, because your tail is cut you want others also to cut his tail.

Room Conversation -- January 21, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: Wherefrom?

Hari-śauri: I don't know. I couldn't make head nor tail of what he was saying.

Prabhupāda: Ask him. Is it fresh?

Hari-śauri: He just said he went out and begged some from somewhere. I don't know.

Prabhupāda: Oh, begged from some house.

Room Conversation -- January 26, 1977, Puri:
Prabhupāda: 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. What is use, this? The big, big technologists, unless they get a suitable job, they're just like dog. Dog is loitering in the street, no food.
Room Conversation with Svarupa Damodara -- January 30, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Prabhupāda: "I remember well the time when the thought of the eye made..." What is that? "...eye(?) made me cold, when the eye(?) made me cold all over, but I have got over this stage of the complaint, and now a small trifling, particulars of structure, often make me very uncomfortable. The sight of a feather in a peacock's tail, whenever I (sic?) crease at the neck..."

Svarūpa Dāmodara: "Make me sick."

Prabhupāda: "Make me sick." What does he mean by this?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: He says... See, his theory of evolution cannot explain how these eyes are evolved, our eyes. So he felt very uncomfortable just seeing in the beginning these eyes, our eyes. But he says that stage he has overcome to some extent. But still, one particular phenomenon is bothering him very much. That is the eye in the peacock's tail. It is the delicate, nice design with is colorful structure.

Prabhupāda: How it evolved.

Room Conversation -- March 22, 1977, Bombay:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Wagging it's tail.

Prabhupāda: "Give me some food." "Hut hut hut!" Then another animal.(?) And as soon as you give some food, oh, so many—"ka,ka,ka,ka,ka,ka,ka." For five hundred posts, 300,000 applications. Did you see that?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Coming in Churchgate.

Prabhupāda: No, there was a newspaper publication. For some post there is five hundred posts vacant.

Room Conversation -- July 17, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: It is not my manufactured idea. Kṛṣṇa consciousness, śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇaṁ pāda... (SB 7.5.23), this is the only way. In our childhood we used to play golo dhana.(?) You... What is called? Dice, going, going, going. Then it comes in the mouth of a serpent, and the serpent immediately had to come again. All progress you have made, if you are in the mouth of a serpent, then you have to come to the tail of the serpent. Suppose you are on the fifty point and there is mouth of serpent, then you have to come to point three. Again you have to rise. So dice. Golo dhana(?) We used to play in our childhood.

Correspondence

1970 Correspondence

Letter to Satsvarupa -- Los Angeles 11 April, 1970:

Regarding the third question, generally these airplanes are constructed in the shape of a swan with wings and beak and tail, etc. and on the back they put a dome like on a chariot for sitting and driving. I have drawn you one picture to convey the idea, please find it enclosed herewith. You are at liberty to make many questions like that. So long I can, I must make answers to your questions, but when I fail, I shall ask you to excuse me.

Page Title:Tail
Compiler:Rishab, Mayapur
Created:13 of Jan, 2011
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=26, CC=2, OB=11, Lec=21, Con=40, Let=1
No. of Quotes:101