Go to Vanipedia | Go to Vanisource | Go to Vanimedia


Vaniquotes - the compiled essence of Vedic knowledge


That is perfect civilization

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 6

SB 6.16.43, Purport:

The criterion must be guṇa and karma. In other words, one should acquire the qualities of a brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya or śūdra and act accordingly. This is the civilization accepted by the Āryans. Why do they accept it? They accept it because they are very much eager to satisfy Kṛṣṇa. This is perfect civilization.

Āryans do not deviate from the instructions of Kṛṣṇa, nor do they have doubts about Kṛṣṇa, but non-Āryans and other demoniac people fail to follow the instructions of Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. This is because they have been trained in sense gratification at the cost of all other living entities. Nūnaṁ pramattaḥ kurute vikarma: (SB 5.5.4) their only business is to indulge in all kinds of forbidden activities for sense gratification. Yad indriya-prītaya āpṛṇoti: they deviate in this way because they want to gratify their senses. They have no other occupation or ambition. Their method of civilization is condemned in the previous verse. Kaḥ kṣemo nija-parayoḥ kiyān vārthaḥ sva-para-druhā dharmeṇa: "What is the meaning of a civilization that kills oneself and others?"

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 2.2 -- London, August 3, 1973:

So these things are there in the Bhagavad-gītā. We may be very much puffed up by our mental concoction, that "I am doing very nice work." but it may not be accepted by God. It may not be accepted by Kṛṣṇa. You may concoct. And naturally, one who is not guided by Kṛṣṇa, one who is not guided by the Kṛṣṇa's representative, he's fool. He must be misguided. He must be misguided. Anārya. Ārya, anārya, yes. Therefore we have to take shelter of Kṛṣṇa through His representative so that we may become Ārya. Ārya, āryan. Āryan civilization means being guided by the Supreme Person, Vedic culture. That is called Āryan civilization. Vedic culture. And what is the purpose of Vedas? Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyam (BG 15.15). Therefore the ultimate goal of civilization should be, Aryan civilization, progressive civilization, how to understand Kṛṣṇa. That is perfect civilization. And Kṛṣṇa, everything minus Kṛṣṇa, that is not civilization. This is anārya-juṣṭam asvargyam akīrti-karam (BG 2.2). We should not waste our time in such thing which is devoid of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. This is first-class civilization.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.5 -- New Vrindaban, September 4, 1972:

The so-called distress and happiness, they come and go like seasonal changes. Just like we have got summer season, winter season. The winter also not staying for good, neither the summer is staying for good. It will change. Cakravat parivartante sukhāni duḥkhāni ca. There are so many. So we should not bother about this material happiness and distress. That is perfect civilization. We shall depend on the arrangement of God, as lower animals, they are depending. The birds, rising early in the morning, they chirp, but they are not hampered, "Where to find out food?" They know, "There is somewhere our food." They go and get it. Similarly, our real problem is that we have forgotten Kṛṣṇa or God. We must revive our God consciousness again—that is not very difficult task—and save time, how to reestablish our relationship with God.

Lecture on SB 1.2.24 -- Vrndavana, November 4, 1972:

Without being a graduate, nobody should enter the law college. Similarly, Vedas, they are meant for brāhmaṇas, not for the śūdras, not for the kṣatriya. Kṣatriya also, they, they are, but under the instruction of the brāhmaṇas.

So this is perfect civilization. One must know his own business. Everyone should not attempt to understand Vedic literature, remaining himself in the rajo and tamo-guṇa. Kāma-lobhādayaś ca ye. There are many so-called sannyāsīs who went to your country. He was in fully in rajo and tamo-guṇa. He wanted to preach Vedānta. Therefore it was failure. Nobody can do so. So it is very clearly stated: tamasas tu rajas tasmāt sattvaṁ yad brahma-darśanam. One must come to the platform of sattva-guṇa. Therefore we have got so many restrictions, just to keep him fit in the sattva-guṇa: no meat-eating, no illicit sex, no intoxication, no gambling. If one indulges in these affairs, he cannot come to the platform of sattva-guṇa, neither the things will be revealed to him. He'll remain in the darkness. Simply by academic scholarship, it is impossible to understand what is Vedas, what is Bhāgavata, what is Bhagavad-gītā.

Lecture on SB 1.15.39 -- Los Angeles, December 17, 1973:

Yes. We have referred to the politicians, because king means he is also politician. As soon as we speak of king, he is in politics. So these are the example. Although he was also great politician, he had to fight in the Battle of Kurukṣetra, he had to adopt diplomacy, everything, but not that he would forget his real duty. This is perfect civilization, that one should not forget the real duty. The real duty is to fulfill the mission of the human life. The mission of human life is to understand God. And God is there, you cannot deny, God is there. But we do not know what is God, what is our relationship with Him. That we do not know. Just like in your country, the currency notes are advertised, "In God We Trust." But if we ask anybody that "This is the slogan of your state. What do you know about God?" nobody can reply. They will say, "It is something like this, something like that." But no... Everything vague idea. Nobody knows what is God, neither he knows how to trust in God. That is instructed in the Bhagavad-gītā: what is God and how to trust in Him. This is the subject matter of Bhagavad-gītā. But the people do not know. They simply have the slogan, "In God We Trust." Nobody knows what is God.

Lecture on SB 6.1.12 -- Honolulu, May 13, 1976:

These are the different steps, how one person can become civilized. So first thing is tapasā. Tapasā brahmacaryena (SB 6.1.13), austerities. Therefore in the Vedic civilization the children, they are taught from the very beginning brahmacarya. Tapasā brahmacarya. A small boy, five-years-old boy... That is gurukula. Brahmacārī guru-kule vasan dānto guror hitam (SB 7.12.1). This is a way of life, to teach the brahmācārya, brahmacarya, celibacy, to restrain from sex life. That is brahmacarya. So this is the beginning of civilization. The unlimited, unrestricted sex life like hogs and dogs, that is not civilization. Civilization, the first of all, to learn how to observe celibacy, to come to the point, no sex life. That is perfect civilization: no sex life. Therefore in the Vedic civilization you'll find the human society is divided into four orders and four spiritual or..., material and spiritual, varṇāśrama. Varṇa and āśrama. Brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra, brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, sannyāsa.

Lecture on SB 6.1.63 -- Vrndavana, August 30, 1975:

The civilization is... That is really Vedic civilization, that ayaṁ deha. Nāyaṁ deha nṛloke kaṣṭān kāmān. We should make our life so simple and easy that we can get our necessities of life without any hard labor and save time to advance in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is perfect civilization. This is not perfect civilization. There is every chance of being influenced by these lusty desires, and that is going on, especially in the Western country. They lusty for fulfilling these lusty desires there are so many clubs at night, nightclubs, bottomless and topless and so many advertisements. This is not civilization. Civilization is peaceful life, and we should be satisfied in simple mode of life and always think of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore Vṛndāvana life is like that, Vṛndāvana life, especially those who are engaged in devotional service. So we have opened this temple to give facility to the elderly section of the human being to come and live with us. We invite all elderly persons, especially retired person. They should come and live with us. We have got a nice guesthouse, and if required, we can construct many other guesthouses.

Lecture on SB 7.12.1 -- Bombay, April 12, 1976:

Just like in our society, even gṛhastha, he is also under restriction, and what to speak of brahmacārī. But we should always remember that this human life is meant for controlling the senses. Athāto brahma jijñāsā. It is simply meant for inquiring about our spiritual life. That is perfect civilization.

Therefore brahmacārī means living under direction of guru, guror hitam. And guror hitam... How he can be simply thinking of benefiting the spiritual master? Unless that position comes, nobody can serve guru. It is not an artificial thing. The brahmacārī, the disciple, must have genuine love for guru. Then he can be under his control. Otherwise why one should be under the control of another person? Therefore it is said, ācaran dāsavat. Dāsa. Dāsa means servant. Not only servant, but menial servant. Menial servant means just like the sweeper, the cobbler, like that. They are called menial servants. So in India there is system. The sweeper class is different, the cobbler class is different, and domestic servant is different, and the barber, he is also servant, different. The washerman, he is also servant.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

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

Prabhupāda: But I know, all educated and advanced educated Englishmen, they were coming to Australia for good job. Therefore most of the technical posts, they are occupied by Indians in London. As soon as one is highly qualified medical man, he comes to Australia. So who will take care of them? So therefore they imported some brain from India. Anyway, our time should be saved for self-realization. That is perfect civilization. And not for creating unnecessary necessity of life. That will increase problem. So scientists, they disagreed or agreed with us?

Madhudviṣa: They did not want to get... They did not want to...

Prabhupāda: But they could not answer "Who is the manufacturer of the brain of the scientist?" That they could not.

Madhudviṣa: You have said in one of your tapes, "They want to start half way." Like they say, "All of a sudden there is an aeroplane, appeared in the sky." They do not trace out where that aeroplane is coming from. So similarly, they are interested in the problems of today, but they do not want to delve into the essential problem. They are talking about building nice houses, using this, that. They do not want to delve into...

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: The human society should be divided into four classes of men: the most intelligent class, brāhmaṇa; the next intelligent class, kṣatriya; then next intelligent class, vaiśyas; and the fourth-class men, who cannot become brāhmaṇa, neither kṣatriya, nor vaiśya, they are called śūdra. Śūdra is meant for giving service to the others. Paricaryātmakaṁ karyaṁ śūdra-karma svabhāva-jam (BG 18.44). So in this age, 99% people are engaged as śūdra, working for others. No independence. Otherwise brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, they are independent. They are nobody's servant. But at the present moment, education means how to become expert servant. That means śūdra. So we cannot expect any good things from śūdra. That is not possible. Formerly there was monarchy, and the kings were called rājarṣis, saintly king. Imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). These instruction are meant for the rājarṣis, not for the śūdras. So the rājarṣis, they would take instruction from superior authority, brāhmaṇas and Vaiṣṇavas, and they will accordingly rule over. And the vaiśyas would produce food grains sufficiently and milk sufficiently. People would eat very nicely, and they keep their health fit and save time for understanding his relationship with God. That is perfect civilization.
Room Conversation -- July 31, 1975, New Orleans:
Prabhupāda: This is civilization. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). This is civilization. Then you will be all right. Ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣa... You are engaged in so many sinful activities, as... Don't manufacture civilization. Take the idea of civilization from Kṛṣṇa. That is perfect civilization. The perfect civilization, Kṛṣṇa has giving idea, there must be first-class, second-class, third-class, fourth-class \en. And less than fourth-class, fifth-class. So, first-class man is described, śamo damaḥ tapaḥ śaucaṁ kṣāntir ārjavam, these are the qualifications, second-class these are the qualifications, third-class, fourth-class. So there are different varieties of men, so divide them according to the instruction of Bhagavad-gītā, then whole human society will be... There are four division of your body—the head division, the arm division, the belly division, the leg division. If you engage the head for walking, that is mistake, and if you engage the leg for thinking, that is mistake. Similarly, there are different types of men, combine together, and it will be nice body, the leg will walk, the hand will protect, the head will give instruction, and the belly will get energy by eating food. Those divisions are required. Not that everyone is all. No, there must be division of labor. So that is described, how to make civilization perfect, who is going to hear and take it. Cātur varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). If you can adjust things, you can utilize things, then everything will be useful. And if you do not know how to utilize things, then everything will be useless.
Page Title:That is perfect civilization
Compiler:Visnu Murti, RupaManjari
Created:28 of May, 2013
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=1, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=7, Con=3, Let=0
No. of Quotes:11