View source for One should not sleep more than five to six hours. Minimize as far as possible. The Gosvamis used to sleep not more than one and a half hour, or two hours. Sleeping is not very important thing. Even big politicians, they used to sleep for two hours

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[[Category:One Should Not]]
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[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - Lectures, 1966 - 1977]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - Lectures, 1971]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - Lectures, Festival]]
[[Category:Prabhupada Speaks - in Europe, England - London]]
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<div id="Lectures" class="section" sec_index="4" parent="compilation" text="Lectures"><h2>Lectures</h2>
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<div id="Festival_Lectures" class="sub_section" sec_index="6" parent="Lectures" text="Festival Lectures"><h3>Festival Lectures</h3>
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<div id="HisDivineGraceSrilaSaccidanandaBhaktivinodaThakurasAppearanceDayLectureLondonSeptember31971_0" class="quote" parent="Festival_Lectures" book="Lec" index="30" link="His Divine Grace Srila Sac-cid-ananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Appearance Day, Lecture -- London, September 3, 1971" link_text="His Divine Grace Srila Sac-cid-ananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Appearance Day, Lecture -- London, September 3, 1971">
<div class="heading">So, this Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was gṛhastha, very responsible officer, magistrate. And he was so exalted that he would come from his office generally at five o'clock, then take his supper and immediately go to bed. Immediately. Say at seven o'clock in the evening he goes to bed, and he wakes up at twelve o'clock. So suppose he goes to bed at seven o'clock in the evening and wakes up at twelve o'clock at night; it is sufficient sleep, five hours. One should not sleep more than five to six hours. Minimize as far as possible. The Gosvāmīs used to sleep not more than one and a half hour, or two hours. Sleeping is not very important thing. Even big politicians, they used to sleep for two hours.
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<mp3player>https://vanipedia.s3.amazonaws.com/clip/710903BA-LONDON_clip.mp3</mp3player>
<span class="link">[[Vanisource:His Divine Grace Srila Sac-cid-ananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Appearance Day, Lecture -- London, September 3, 1971|His Divine Grace Srila Sac-cid-ananda Bhaktivinoda Thakura's Appearance Day, Lecture -- London, September 3, 1971]]: </span><div style="display: inline;" class="text"><p style="display: inline;">
So this Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was ''gṛhastha'', very responsible officer, magistrate. And he was so exalted that he would come from his office generally at five o'clock, then take his supper and immediately go to bed. Immediately. Say at seven o'clock in the evening he goes to bed, and he wakes up at twelve o'clock. So suppose he goes to bed at seven o'clock in the evening and wakes up at twelve o'clock at night; it is sufficient sleep, five hours. One should not sleep more than five to six hours. Minimize as far as possible.

The Gosvāmīs used to sleep not more than one and a half hour, or two hours. Sleeping is not very important thing. Even big politicians, they used to sleep for two hours. So especially in spiritual line, they should minimize as far as possible eating, sleeping, mating, defending. Minimize. Gradually it come to nil. Raghunātha dāsa Gosvāmī, he was eating only a little piece of butter every alternate days, not daily.

So this Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, regularly he was coming from his office, and after taking his supper immediately he goes to bed, and wake up at twelve o'clock, and he used to write books. He wrote . . . he left behind him about one hundred books.

And he excavated the birthplace of Lord Caitanya, organized how to develop that birth site, Māyāpur. He had so many business. He used to go to preach about Caitanya's philosophy. He used to sell books to foreign countries. In 1896 he attempted to sell ''Life and Precepts of Lord Caitanya'' in the MacGill University in Montreal. So he was busy, ''ācārya''. One has to adjust things. Not that "Because I am ''gṛhastha'', householder, I cannot become a preacher. It is the business . . ."

(aside) Give me water.

"It is the business of the ''sannyāsī'' or ''brahmacārī''." No. It is the business of everyone. The whole world is suffering for want of knowledge. The present civilization is animal civilization. They do not know anything beyond eating, sleeping, mating and defending. That's all. This is animal civilization.

Animal does not know beyond these four principles of life—eating, sleeping, mating and defending. That's all. No. Human life is meant for something else, "What I am? What is God? What is my relation with God? What is this material world? Why I am here? Where I have to go next?" So many things one has to learn. ''Athāto brahma jijñāsā''. This is human life. Not that eat and sleep and have sex life and die someday like cats and dogs.

Therefore, there is need of ''ācāryas'', teachers, for propagating spiritual knowledge, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was . . . although he was a ''gṛhastha'', householder, a government officer, magistrate, but he was ''ācārya''. So from his dealings, from his life, we should learn how one can become a preacher in any stage of life. It doesn't matter what he is.

There was one incidence, very interesting. When he was magistrate in Jagannātha Purī . . . the system is . . . Jagannātha temple is a very big establishment. In the temple, fifty-six times daily ''bhoga'' is offered. And you'll find in the temple always at least five hundred to one thousand people gathered. And they come from outside, and ''prasāda'' is ready. If you go and ask in the Jagannātha temple that "We are one hundred men come from outside. We want ''prasāda''," yes, immediately ready. So it is a huge temple.

This is one temple, but there are many other thousands of temple in India where ''prasāda'' is distributed. Now it is minimized by our present government. They think that it is unnecessary expenditure. They are minimizing. But not unnecessary expenditure. They do not understand. Formerly, in India there was no necessity of hotel. Anyone goes anywhere, even in a village, he goes to a temple—''prasāda'' is ready.

There is no need of going to a hotel. You pay or don't pay. If you say that, "I want little ''prasāda''," "Yes, take it." That is the system still. There is the Nāthadvārā temple in Rajasthan. You pay two ''annas'' only. Two ''annas'' means one cent. You get sumptuous ''prasāda'' for two ''annas'', all very nice ''prasāda'', still. So ''prasāda'' distribution in temple is longstanding usage.

So Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura . . . the Jagannātha temple is managed by a body, and it is the custom that the local magistrate of the district, he becomes the president, or manager. So Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura was manager in that sense, because he was magistrate. The managing committee was being presided by him. So there was a complaint in Orissa. This Jagannātha temple is situated in Orissa. Utkāla. Utkāla, this state, was originally belonged to Dhruva Mahārāja. His son's name was Utkāla, Mahārāja Utkāla.

Anyway, so this Utkāla, there was a pseudo ''yogī''. He declared himself that . . . just like you'll find nowadays also, there are so many rascals declaring that, "I am incarnation of God." And they know some mystic power, play some jugglery, and foolish people take them, "Oh, he's God."

So there appeared one like such pseudo God, Viṣṇu, in a village of Orissa. And he was dancing ''rāsa'' dance, and foolish people were sending their daughters and wife to dance with him. You see? There were so many, not only that. People are so foolish, they do not know . . . they want to be cheated, and these cheaters come. He declared that, "I am God. I am Viṣṇu."

So there were sane men also. They took objection, "What is this nonsense? This man is dancing with ladies and gentlemen, er, girls." So they filed a complaint. At that time it was British rule. They complained to the governor or the commissioner, very high officer. The commissioner knew that Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura . . .

His name was Kedāranātha Datta. Datta. Kedāranātha Datta, his household name. So the commissioner of the division, he knew that Kedāranātha Datta is a religious man, and he's magistrate in charge. So he handed over the case for inquiry, "What is this complaint? You please inquire and do the needful."

So he was a pure devotee, and he understood that, "This rascal is a bogus man, cheating people. I must inquire." So he went to the village in plain dress with some constables, police constables. They were also in plain dress. And as soon as he approached that rascal ''yogī'', he said: "Oh, you are Kedāranātha Datta. So, very nice. You are . . . I shall make you king of India. Please don't try to bother me." Because he could know that, "He has come to inquire about my ''rāsa-līlā''."

So Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura first of all said: "Sir, you are such a great ''yogī''. Why you are in the village? Why don't you go to Jagannātha Purī? There is temple, and Lord Jagannātha is there. Better you go there and see the Lord and be happy. Why you are in this village?" "Oh, Jagannātha? Ah, that is made of wood. I am personally the Supreme Lord. That is made of wood." Oh, then Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura—he was a devotee—he became fire. (laughter) He was insulting. ''Arcye śilā-dhīr guruṣu nara-matiḥ'' (''Padma Purāṇa'', ''Brahma Khaṇḍa'' 25.15-18).

According to ''śāstra'', if somebody thinks . . . just like here is Deity. If somebody thinks, "Oh, it is made of stone . . ." It is stone to the eyes of the nondevotee, but it is personally Supreme Personality of Godhead to the devotees. It requires the eyes to see. So devotee sees in a different angle of vision.

Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu, when He entered Jagannātha temple, immediately He fainted, "Oh, here is My Lord." And the nondevotee is seeing, "It is wood, a lump of wood." Therefore, to the nondevotee, He remains always as wood, but to the devotee He speaks. That is the difference. ''Premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena'' (Bs. 5.38).

If God is everything, why wood, through wood and stone, God cannot manifest? If God is everything, according to Māyāvāda philosophy . . . that's a fact. God, omnipotent. He can express Himself even through wood and stone. That is God's omnipotency. That is called omnipotency. Not that God is unable to express Himself through wood and stone. Then how He's omnipotent? Omnipotent means His potency can be expressed through anything.

Because anything, everything is the expansion of God's energy. ''Parasya brahmaṇaḥ śaktis tathedam akhilaṁ jagat'' (''Viṣṇu Purāṇa'' 1.22.52). The whole world is manifestation of different energies of God. Therefore . . . just like through the energy of electricity the electric powerhouse, although far, far away from this place, was expressing: there is electricity. Through this glass, through these wires, the power can be expressed. There is a process.