Prof. Hopkins: There are some worshipers of Śiva who would be personalists.
Prabhupāda: No.
Prof. Hopkins: You would deny that.
Prabhupāda: They are all impersonalists. They are pañcopāsana. Pañcopāsana means the ultimate, Absolute Truth is impersonal, and Śaṅkarācārya recommended that you cannot worship the impersonal, so you conceive a personal form. So that he recommended five: the sun-god, Lord Śiva, Durgā and Gaṇeśa and . . .? What else? And Viṣṇu.
Prof. Hopkins: Viṣṇu. Pañca-ātma. Pañcātma.
Prabhupāda: But after you are per . . . become, you are perfect, then you merge into the impersonal. That is Śaṅkara.
Prof. Hopkins: You would see all worshipers of Śiva as following basically that idea.
Prabhupāda: Yes. No, there are devotees. Just like we, we offer all respect to Lord Śiva. We consider Śiva as the best of the Vaiṣṇavas. Vaiṣṇavānām yathā śambhu. And we have got sampradāya from Śiva. He is considered one of the authority of Vaiṣṇavism.
Prof. Hopkins: So you would, you would include . . .
Prabhupāda: Our conception of Śiva is different.
Prof. Hopkins: Where would Basavanna fit in?
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Prof. Hopkins: Where would you place Basavanna in relation with . . .
Prabhupāda: Who?
Prof. Hopkins: Basavanna.
Prabhupāda: Basavanna?
Prof. Hopkins: Lingayat. Lingayat teacher. The Śaivite, Śaivite . . .
Prabhupāda: He is impersonalist.
Prof. Hopkins: You would say impersonalist.
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. They say śivāham, "I am Śiva." They are impersonalist. If you are Śiva, then why you worshiping Śiva? That is impersonalist.
Prof. Hopkins: So any position which would deny the difference between the devotee and God, you would see . . .
Prabhupāda: He is impersonalist.