Economic development (Lectures)

Expressions researched:
"economic development"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 1.23 -- London, July 19, 1973:

The Vedic culture is that "You be satisfied with your position." There is no question of starving in any position of life. People are trying to make economic development, but according to śāstra, it is not possible to develop your economic position simply by endeavor. You are destined to have some portion mixed up with happiness and distress. That is the nature.

Lecture on BG 1.23 -- London, July 19, 1973:

He is working, working, working, "More money, more money, more money, more money, more money." The Bhāgavata says, "No, no. This is not your business." The four capātis is already destined to you; you will get, any circumstances. You don't waste your time simply under some false impression of economic development. Don't waste your time. You cannot get more, you cannot get less. That is already there. So you utilize your time for understanding Kṛṣṇa. That is your business.

Lecture on BG 1.23 -- London, July 19, 1973:

So that opportunity is there in bhakti-yoga. Kṛṣṇa is anxious to take you back. Why you are wasting time? Economic development. What economic development you'll do? You cannot get more than what is destined to you. That is not possible. Then everyone would have been big man, big, educated, very beautiful.

Lecture on BG 1.23 -- London, July 19, 1973:

Kālena, by time, whatever you are destined you will get. Don't bother about so-called economic development. So far food is concerned, Kṛṣṇa is supplying. Eko bahūnāṁ yo vidadhāti kāmān. Even cats and dogs and ants. Why not you? There is no need of bothering Kṛṣṇa, "God give us our daily bread." He will give you. Don't bother. Try to become very faithful servant of God.

Lecture on BG 1.41-42 -- London, July 29, 1973:

Wife can help one to be elevated to the heavenly planets, and dharmārtha-kāma, to become helpful in the matter of advancement in religious and spiritual knowledge: dharma; artha, economic development; kāma, satisfying the husband for sense gratification; dharma artha kāma; and mokṣa also, also for salvation. The wife is so important.

Lecture on BG 2.1 -- Ahmedabad, December 6, 1972:

Everyone is working... Even a great economist, Mr. Marshall, he says that economic development begins from family affection. Family affection. So unless one thinks that he has to maintain his wife, children, family, there is no question of economic development. Impetus.

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- Pittsburgh, September 8, 1972:

We are different sons of God in different dresses. We have got right to enjoy the property of father, God, without infringing others' right. Just like in family, we live, so many brothers. So whatever father, mother gives us to eat we eat. We don't encroach upon others' plate. That is not civilized family. Similarly, if we become God conscious, Kṛṣṇa conscious, then the whole problems of the world—sociology, religion, economic development, politics—everything will be solved. That's a fact.

Lecture on BG 4.9-11 -- New York, July 25, 1966:

However make your plan to live here permanently, you cannot live here. You have to give up. You can spoil your energy for making this material world very comfortable or you may live for some years very comfortably, but cruel death will come and snatch from comfortable position and put you into another position which is beyond your control. You cannot say that "I have made my position very secure. I am very comfortable with great endeavor by advancement of economic development, by advancement of material science. Let me remain here. I am very happy." The time will say, "No, that will not be allowed. You must leave immediately, immediately, without delay."

Lecture on BG 4.19 -- Bombay, April 8, 1974:

There is one Mr. Marshall, economist. Marshall's economics we read in our economic class. He said that "Family affection is the impetus for economic development." He said that.

Lecture on BG 4.21 -- Bombay, April 10, 1974:

Children, as you teach them, they learn. They are innocent. Unfortunately, we do not give them training about Kṛṣṇa consciousness. We give them education for sense gratification, how you can earn money, economic development.

Lecture on BG 4.21 -- Bombay, April 10, 1974:

Economic development means to get more money and to satisfy senses more and more. This is the modern theory. But Kṛṣṇa says that to achieve the perfection of life, one should be nirāśīḥ. Nirāśīḥ means unnecessarily desiring for sense gratification, unnecessarily. Everyone has got right to live and live nicely. For that purpose there is sufficient arrangement by the Lord. Eko yo bahūnāṁ vidadhāti kāmān. There is sufficient arrangement. No living being will starve. There is such arrangement. But when we forget more and more Kṛṣṇa and God, nature will punish. There will be restriction of supply of foodstuffs. That is nature's law.

Lecture on BG 4.34-38 -- New York, August 17, 1966:

So your struggle should be—human form of life—the struggle should be how to realize yourself, how to go to, to go back to Godhead, back to Kṛṣṇa. That should be your struggle, not for economic development. The economic solution is there. If it is there for the elephant, for the ant, why not for you? Because we are in ignorance, we are thinking that we have to devote more time for economic development than to spiritual realization. No. The whole thing is planned like that, that for economic development you need not, you need not try, you need not attempt. You simply try for spiritual realization, for getting out of this entanglement of material life. That is knowledge. And that will make your solution.

Lecture on BG 4.37-40 -- New York, August 21, 1966:

We take economic development as the most important thing, forgetting that how long I shall live here in this material world? So fifty or sixty or hundred years. So economic development or no economic development, my life will be finished. Suppose I develop my economic life in a very... I accumulate millions of dollars. But when I leave this body I'll leave everything. Then again I take my birth according to my reaction, either in poor family or old, I mean to say, rich family or even animal life. There is no guarantee.

Lecture on BG 5.14-22 -- New York, August 28, 1966:

Just like at the present moment... Not present moment. Always. People are engaged in the matter of economic development for sense gratification. So that is also ignorance. That is also ignorance. Because advancement of economic development... There is a nice song by a Vaiṣṇava. He says that jaḍa-vidyā, saba māyāra vaibhava. Jaḍa-vidyā means the material advancement of knowledge is a manifestation of this illusory energy. The illusory energy manifests herself in different ways, and that is called material advancement of knowledge. The material advancement of knowledge means we are becoming more and more illusioned. Illusioned.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Madras, February 14, 1972:

Kāmān means the demands of the body. But we should not take up a civilization which teaches to fulfill the necessities of our life with great labor, kaṣṭān kāmān, because that kind of civilization is existing amongst the hogs and dogs. They are working whole day and night. So perfection of human life is not (to) increase our industrial enterprise or economic development or so many things we are now planning. The perfection of human life is to understand Kṛṣṇa, to understand God.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Madras, February 14, 1972:

For, for satisfying our sense gratification we require money, and generally we perform religious rites, ritualistic ceremonies, yajña, dharma for getting some economic development. Dharma artha kāma. Artha is required, money is required for fulfilling our sense gratification, and when we are baffled in gratifying our senses... Because here the whole struggle is going on. Everyone is trying to be the "Lord of all I survey". So there is baffle, there is confusion sometimes, and at that time they want mokṣa, relief for all these struggle for existence. But Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam says that in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam these four things are rejected: dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra (SB 1.1.2). Śrīdhara Swami has commented that mokṣa-vañcapa yajñaṁ nirastam. Then what it is for? It is for simply developing your lost consciousness, Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Lecture on BG 7.3 -- Montreal, June 3, 1968:

Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi-duḥkha-dosanudarśanam (BG 13.9). We may think very..., that we are very safe and we are making good advancement in economic development, but there is no solution for these four problems, as enunciated by Bhagavad-gītā, janma, mṛtyu, jarā, vyādhi.

Lecture on BG 7.3 -- Vrndavana, August 9, 1974:

Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, bhārata-bhūmite haila manuṣya-janma yāra (CC Adi 9.41). So those who are Indians present here should know that after many pious activities, one gets birth in India, bhārata-bhūmite. They should try to understand Kṛṣṇa. There is facility. There are śāstras. Kṛṣṇa personally speaks Bhagavad-gītā. Vyāsadeva speaks about Kṛṣṇa in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. We are neglecting, we have become so rascal and fools. This is not India's business, to imitate how economic development: "Money, money, money, money, money." This is not India's business. India's business is to understand Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 9.4 -- Calcutta, March 9, 1972:

This is human civilization. Then what is it meant for? Tapo, tapasya. That is Vedic civilization. That is Vedic civilization. But we have made program for economic development, working hard day and night like hogs and dogs. This is going on. This is going on under the name of civilization. And to satisfy me after hard labor, there is wine and women and flesh. That's all. This is not civilization. This is hog civilization. Real civilization is for tapasya. Everything, God has given us everything you need. For human being, Kṛṣṇa has given you nice fruits, nice flowers, nice grains, nice milk, nice sugar. Why don't you eat them nicely? That is Vedic civilization.

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

So suhṛt prabhavaḥ, development. You are trying to make economic development, but how we can develop economic development provided there is no material supplied by God? Can you manufacture, can you build, construct, a big skyscraper building without the materials being supplied by God? Can you manufacture wood? Can you manufacture stone? Can you manufacture lime? You cannot manufacture. Can you manufacture iron? You can work, labor. The materials supplied by God, by your labor, by intelligence, you can transform from one thing to another.