My Guru Maharaja ordered me, "You do this." I was trying to save my business, my family, with two hands, and Krsna took it in ten hands. And now, after making me beggar, He is giving me, ten hands: "You take as much as you like"

Expressions researched:
"I was trying to save my business, my family, with two hands, and Kṛṣṇa took it in ten hands" |"And now, after making me beggar, He is giving me, ten hands"

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

I am practically experiencing. My Guru Mahārāja ordered me, "You do this." I was trying to save my business, my family, with two hands, and Kṛṣṇa took it in ten hands. And now, after making me beggar, He is giving me, ten hands: "You take as much as you like." Now I am thinking of my father's instruction.

Morning Walk -- February 10, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: What is this meaning?

Hari-śauri: They say that's just a figure of speech.

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Hari-śauri: A figure of speech. Not meant to be literal.

Prabhupāda: Everything is theory. No practical. (break) . . .ten direction. Eight direction, corner, and north-east, east-west, and up and down. So everywhere He is present. So Kṛṣṇa has got ten hands. So my father used to say, "If when Kṛṣṇa takes your money or possession in ten hands, how you can protect it with two hands? And when He give you in ten hands, how much you can take in two hands?" (laughs) So in my case it has become practical. Everything He has taken in ten hands, and now He is giving in ten hands. (laughter) I am practically experiencing. My Guru Mahārāja ordered me, "You do this." I was trying to save my business, my family, with two hands, and Kṛṣṇa took it in ten hands. (laughs) And now, after making me beggar, He is giving me, ten hands: "You take as much as you like." Now I am thinking of my father's instruction. (break) . . .ambition was that I become a great devo . . . bhāgavata. That was his . . . He used to invite so many saintly persons, and he would pray, "Please bless my son"—I was very pet son—"that he may become a devotee of Rādhārāṇī. Rādhārāṇī may bless him." That was his only prayer.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Fulfilled.

Prabhupāda: Yes. He was inviting so many saintly persons. That is the old system, to receive saintly person.

Hṛdayānanda: Śrīla Prabhupāda, you said that you were not so much impressed by the saintly persons that were coming.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Hṛdayānanda: Why was that?

Prabhupāda: Not all of them were real Vaiṣṇava. That was my discrimination from the beginning of my life. I never liked these bogus svāmīs and yogīs. I never liked. But my father had no discrimination: "Never mind whatever he is. He is a saintly person. Receive him." He was giving fortnightly . . . There was one Māyāvādī sannyāsī in Kālīghāṭa. So first of all the father was sannyāsī, then his son was sannyāsī. So we had very good relationship with him. I also used to . . . Because father was going. So he would carry gāñjā for him—in those days gāñjā was very cheap—so much gāñjā and so much butter. Whenever he would visit, he'd give some red cloth, gāñjā and butter.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your father would give him gāñjā?

Prabhupāda: That, to sannyāsī.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Why?

Prabhupāda: Well, he was smoking gāñjā.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But why did he supply him?

Prabhupāda: He did not discriminate that "This is bad." He smokes, and he had some regard for him. "All right, take gāñjā."