Thank you very much. Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Guru-gaurāṅga: (has conversation with someone in French) The president would like to talk to you for a few minutes.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Give me little water. (more French conversation) I was formally received by the French Cardinal.
Guru-gaurāṅga: Danielou.
Prabhupāda: Daniel. (French)
Guru-gaurāṅga: He says that the discussion you had with the Cardinal was very interesting.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Unless you come to that position of understanding, that "I am not this body," real spiritual knowledge does not begin. (French conversation)
Guru-gaurāṅga: Understanding the philosophy, Monsieur de President does not understand why we find it necessary to dress differently, though.
Prabhupāda: The different dress means as you have paid for it. Just like we can go to a tailor, he will supply you dress according to the payment you can make. Similarly, according to our karma, according to our work, we are given a type of body by the material nature. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). According... Because actually I do not possess this material body, but because I am in this material world, I am given a type of body by the material nature according to my work. (French conversation)
Guru-gaurāṅga: Speaking about clothes, Monsieur le President says that he has been to India, and he understands that one dresses like this in India. But why would the disciples dress in America or in Europe in this way? Is it necessary?
Prabhupāda: No. It is not necessary. Dress you can have as you like. It doesn't matter, because dress is a dead thing. Real thing is that we want a living being who can understand. That is real the position.