Absolutely (Lectures)

Expressions researched:
"absolutely"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 1.37-39 -- London, July 27, 1973:

Why one should marry? Putrārthe kriyate bhāryā. Bhāryā means wife. One accepts a wife. Why? For a putra. For a son. Why son is required? Putraḥ piṇḍaṁ prayojanam. Offering oblations by the putra to deliver the forefathers. That is prayojanam, that is absolutely necessary. Each and every one should leave a putra before his death. He has got so many duties. This is Vedic civilization. But nobody now cares for that. Neither it is possible. Therefore the only remedy is to surrender. Śaraṇyam.

Lecture on BG 2.4-5 -- London, August 5, 1973:

Nṛsiṁha-deva offered Prahlāda Mahārāja, "Now you can take any kind of benediction you like." So Prahlāda Mahārāja replied, "My Lord, we are materialists. I am born of a father absolutely materialist. So I am also, because I am born of a materialist father, I am also materialist. And You, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, You are offering to give me some benediction. I can take any kind of benediction from You. I know that. But what is the use of it? Why shall I ask You for any benediction? I have seen my father. Materially, he was so powerful that even the demigods, Indra, Candra, Varuṇa, they were threatened by his red eyes. And he gained over, control over the universe. He was so powerful. And riches, wealth, power, reputation, everything complete, but You have finished it in one second. So why You are offering me such benediction? What shall I do with them?

Lecture on BG 2.11 -- Edinburgh, July 16, 1972:

Man: Yes, but I am also part of this controller.

Prabhupāda: Therefore, you are not absolutely controller. You are both controlled and controller. That everyone is. Just like you are controller in your family, but you are controlled in the office. Similarly, everyone is dualistic. He's controller and controlled. But if you find somebody that He's only controller, not controlled, that is God.

Man: If God is the controller and I am a part of God, then I'm a controlled part.

Prabhupāda: Yes, part of controller, part of God means you have got little power of controlling. But that you are not absolute controller. (man speaks—too faint) But first of all you have to ascertain whether you are an absolute controller or you are controlled. First of all you answer this question. Are you absolutely controller?

Man: I am not...

Prabhupāda: Therefore, nobody is absolutely controller. He's controlled by the laws of nature. How he's absolutely controller? You are controlled by death, you're controlled by birth, you're controlled by disease, you're controlled by old age. How you became controller? So therefore you are not God!

Lecture on BG 2.49-51 -- New York, April 5, 1966:

Every particular man. You have got some duty, I have got some duty, everyone. Nobody is dutiless. Now, Nārada says, "Even sacrificing the so-called duties, if one takes absolutely unto the spiritual life, then he is not loser. He's not loser. On the contrary, one who does not take up this important path and remain engaged in the so-called duties, he's a loser. He's a loser." It is a very important point.

Lecture on BG 4.11-12 -- New York, July 28, 1966:

Others, of course, as it is said, that those who are distressed or those who are in need of some wealth, they also go to worship Kṛṣṇa, but for some temporary relief. But the benefit is that even such persons go to Kṛṣṇa worship for some temporary relief, but the benefit is that because he has gone to Kṛṣṇa, therefore, at the ultimate end, he will be devoid of all these material desires and will absolutely take shelter of Kṛṣṇa. There are many instances of that type, of that type.

Lecture on BG 4.14-19 -- New York, August 3, 1966:

Just like take the example of Arjuna. He also fought just like ordinary military man, but because he fought in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, therefore he was not bound up by the reaction of such fighting. Fighting is not necessary. Fighting is not necessary. Peace, peace is necessary. But sometimes peace is disturbed. At that time, fighting is also necessary. You cannot, you cannot absolutely give up the process of fighting in this material world. That is not possible. Because there are persons who will create trouble. Just like we are experiencing. We are not going to do any harm to anybody. But sometimes they are coming and creating disturbances. So these disturbing elements are there, and this is always there. The material nature is like that. Therefore fighting cannot be abolished in the, when it is necessary, absolutely necessary. In the battle of Kurukṣetra, Lord Kṛṣṇa advocated this fighting because it was absolutely necessary.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Auckland, April 15, 1972:

Tattva means Supreme Truth, and vit means one who knows. So vadanti tat tattva-vidas tattvam (SB 1.2.11). Those who know what is Absolute Truth, they say that is the Absolute Truth which is advaya-jñāna. Advaya-jñāna means without any duality. Just like here in this material world it is called dual world, duality. Everything cannot be understood absolutely. If I say... It is a, rather in ordinary language, relative world. Here everything is relative. Just like if I say "father," "father" has no meaning if there is no son. Duality. If I say "good," so unless I have got idea of bad, I cannot understand good. If I say "light," unless I have got conception of darkness, I cannot understand light.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Fiji, May 24, 1975:

So these are indirect attachment. And direct attachment, just think of what is the result of direct attachment. If by indirect attachment they became so exalted, when you become directly attached with Kṛṣṇa by love, just see what is your position. So that is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. So this has to be done under the direction of mad-āśrayaḥ, a person, a devotee or the spiritual master, who has absolutely taken shelter of Kṛṣṇa. He is also mad-āśrayaḥ. He has no other business. So either take the shelter of the person or directly the Supreme Person, the same thing. Better to take the shelter of a person who is under the protection of Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 7.15-18 -- New York, October 9, 1966:

So even we have no facilities for the primary necessities of life, āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithuna: eating, sleeping and defending and mating. These things are, I mean to say, absolutely necessary for keeping the body fit. But we have no such arrangement even that, you see, in this age. There are so many people who have no shelter, so many people who have no food, so many people who have no married life, no sex life, and there are so many people not defended from the onslaught of nature or anything. This age is like that.

Lecture on BG 9.24-26 -- New York, December 12, 1966:

So Kṛṣṇa gives here hint that mad-yājino 'pi mām: "As others are going, trying to go in other planets, similarly, those who are in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, those who are absolutely worshiper of the Supreme Lord, they will come to Me. They will come to Me." Mām upetya tu kaunteya. In other place... There are several places mentioned, this fact.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.5 -- New Vrindaban, September 4, 1972:

So Nārada Muni replied that—these things will be discussed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam—that "You have considered so many things, but if..., you have not written anything absolutely for the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Without discussing about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, you cannot be happy."

Lecture on SB 1.4.25 -- Montreal, June 20, 1968:

When Vyāsadeva was not satisfied in his heart even by writing Mahābhārata and Vedānta-sūtra, he was sitting morose, and he was thinking that "I have written so many nice literatures. Why I am not happy?" At that time his spiritual master Nārada came, and he instructed him that "You have written the history of Mahābhārata. It is very nice. But there is some idea of Kṛṣṇa, or God, but not absolute. You write some book in which simply, absolutely about Kṛṣṇa is there." So under his instruction he wrote the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Lecture on SB 1.8.21 -- Mayapura, October 1, 1974:

The brāhmaṇa, their duty is how to practice to control the mind, to control the senses, śamo damas titikṣā, to be tolerant, to be very simple, simple living, not very gorgeous living. Whatever is absolutely necessary, a brāhmaṇa will accept, not more than that. That is simplicity, simple living, high thinking. So this is brāhmaṇa's... Śamo damas titikṣā ārjavam. And then jñānam. Jñānam means to understand what is what.

Lecture on SB 1.8.42 -- Los Angeles, May 4, 1973:

Simply renouncement will not help you. It may be a helping process, but that will not help you absolutely. When you increase attachment for Kṛṣṇa, then this renouncement will be perfect. So make renouncement perfect, or, if you increase attachment for Kṛṣṇa, automatically your attachment for this world will diminish. Two things cannot go.

Lecture on SB 1.8.44 -- Los Angeles, May 6, 1973:

For Kṛṣṇa, everything is spiritual. Kṛṣṇa has no material body. It is for us to distinguish between matter and spirit. But Kṛṣṇa, being the original source of everything, He is absolutely spirit. That's all. The Supreme Spirit. He has no such distinction.

Lecture on SB 2.3.13-14 -- Los Angeles, May 30, 1972:

By taking bath, by washing cloth, keeping the kitchen very clean, everything clean. Temple... Tan-mandira-mārjanādau. Śrī-vigrahārādhana-nitya-nānā-śṛṅgāra-tan-mandira-mārjanādau **. The temple should be bright always, clean. Then nonpossessive. Materialistic persons, they are trying to possess more, more, more. A Vaiṣṇava, simply what is absolutely necessary, must have.

Lecture on SB 3.22.20 -- Tehran, August 9, 1976:

Sanātana Gosvāmī, he practically became Muhammadan. Why practically? Absolutely. He was rejected by the brāhmaṇa society because he was minister, he was mixing with the Muhammadan and everything. He was eating with them. So the brāhmaṇa society rejected him. The name was also changed, Sakara Mallika. Nawab Hussain Shah's very confidential man.

Lecture on SB 5.5.14 -- Vrndavana, November 2, 1976:

Mad-deva-saṅgāt means one who has absolutely taken the shelter of Kṛṣṇa's lotus feet, mad-deva.

Lecture on SB 6.1.6-8 -- New York, July 21, 1971:

Temporary happiness. Therefore, in the Vedic civilization, a sannyāsa, renounced order of life, is recommended for prosecuting spiritual life absolutely without any anxiety. If one can execute Kṛṣṇa consciousness in family life, that's very good.

Lecture on SB 6.1.14 -- Bombay, November 10, 1970:

So karma-mārga is the path of enviousness. Therefore Śrīmad-Bhāgavata says paramo nirmatsarāṇām (SB 1.1.2). The Bhāgavata is meant for persons who are absolutely free from enviousness.

Lecture on SB 6.1.15 -- Los Angeles, June 27, 1975:

So the root of our material enjoyment cannot be taken away, cannot be uprooted by... The first process is called karma, and the second process is called jñāna, and the next, it is suggested, bhakti. So he is suggesting that kecit. People are more inclined to take to the... Those who are absolutely in the rotten condition of life, not for them, but those who are little above the rotten condition... Animals.

Lecture on SB 6.1.20 -- Honolulu, May 20, 1976:

So this is going on. Not only in the human form of life, in the animal form of life, in trees and so on, so on, it is going on. Eight million, four hundred... So this is a chance given, human form of life. Just like after imprisonment you are again given little freedom. You cannot be completely free; however, you may declare that "I belong to free nation..." Free nation means you are free, certainly, but not absolutely free. You are dependent on the state laws.

Lecture on SB 7.6.6-9 -- Montreal, June 23, 1968:

Just like in every country... You are American. You are considered to be independent. But that does not mean that you are absolutely independent, you can do whatever you like. But you have got the right to do whatever you like.

Lecture on SB 7.6.15 -- New Vrindaban, June 29, 1976:

This is the demonic mentality. We shall require money, yāvad artha-prayojanam, whatever is absolutely necessary, that much money I must get. That is order. That is an order. We cannot take more than what is necessary. This is actually spiritual communism.

Lecture on SB 7.6.15 -- New Vrindaban, June 29, 1976:

That is real philosophy. It is not recommended that you get more than what you require. No. Yāvad artha-prayojanam. Especially for Kṛṣṇa conscious persons. Everyone has got right to claim what is absolutely required. In the Bhāgavata, it is stated if anyone takes more than that, then he's a thief and he's punishable.

Lecture on SB 7.12.4 -- Bombay, April 15, 1976:

Just like we take some blankets, we can spread anywhere and sit down. Deerskin, it is said that if you have got deerskin, you can sleep in the jungle; the snake will not touch you. That is the dravya-guṇa, the special effect of deerskin. Either tigerskin or deerskin, if you sit down, if you sleep, the snakes will not come. This is also very scientific. Therefore, because the brahmacārīs used to live in the jungle, it was essential. But on the whole the huts are(?) recommended, not that gorgeous dress, very nice bedstead or... As far as possible, yāvad-artha, whatever is absolutely necessary... That is Vedic civilization.

Lecture on SB 7.12.4 -- Bombay, April 15, 1976:

So if you want to be peaceful, happy, you have to again bring in the Vedic culture, simple life and high thinking. That is wanted. If you introduce more and more anarthas only, unwanted things, how you can be happy? We have to minimize even whatever we absolutely require. Absolutely we require āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca. It has to be curtailed. That is civilization, not that increasing. This is a misguiding civilization.

Lecture on SB 7.12.6 -- Bombay, April 17, 1976:

So now, actually behavior, the first thing is suśīla, very well behaved, gentle. Śīla means behavior, and su means very good. Suśīlo mita-bhuk. This can be attained only when one practices eating whatever is absolutely necessary, not eating more. This is also enjoined by Rūpa Gosvāmī: atyāhāraḥ prayāsaś ca prajalpo niyamāgrahaḥ (NOI 2). Atyāhāra, eating more than necessary, is condemned everywhere.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.66-96 -- New York, November 21, 1966:

Whatever is absolutely necessity, he should accept, not more. Yes. That is renounced order of life, not that in the name of renounced order of life he should live at the expense of the householders, very gorgeously. No. This is not sannyāsa. It is not accepted by Caitanya Mahāprabhu's sampradāya.

General Lectures

Lecture -- London, September 14, 1969:

Everyone is engaged in some activity of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And that will make him praśānta. Niḥśeṣa-mano-rathāntaraḥ kadāham aikāntika-nitya-kiṅkaraḥ. That stage of pacified condition of life can be attained, as it is stated by Yamunācārya, kadāham aikāntika-nitya-kiṅkaraḥ. Aikāntika. Aikāntika means absolutely, without diverting my mind in any other thing; nitya-kiṅkaraḥ, eternally servant of God, eternally servant of Kṛṣṇa.

Speech -- New Vrindaban, August 31, 1972:

Although we cannot be absolutely independent as God, but the tendency is there that "I shall become independent." So the living entities, we—we are part and parcel of God—when we want to live independently of God, that is our conditional stage.

Lecture What is a Guru? -- London, August 22, 1973:

It is Vedic injunction. Somebody was asking whether guru is absolutely necessary. Yes, absolutely necessary. That is the Vedic injunction. The Vedas say, tad-vijñānārtham. Tad-vijñāna means spiritual knowledge. Spiritual knowledge; for acquiring spiritual knowledge. Tad-vijñānārtham. Sa—one; gurum eva—eva means must; gurum—to a guru. Must go to guru. Not "a" guru; "the" guru. Guru is one. Because as it is explained by our Revatīnandana Mahārāja, guru is coming from the disciplic succession.

Lecture Engagement at Birla House -- Bombay, December 17, 1975:

We are forgetting that we are absolutely under the control of the material nature.

prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni

guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ

ahaṅkāra-vimūḍhātmā

kartāham iti manyate

(BG 3.27)

We are fully under the control of material nature, and foolishly, ahaṅkāra, on account of being bewildered by false egotism, we are thinking that "I am independent." This is called material illusion.

Morning Lecture -- Allahabad, January 15, 1977:

So tamo-dvāraṁ yoṣitāṁ saṅgi-saṅgam. Therefore you'll find in the Vedic way of life, sex indulgence is restricted. If we indulge in sex life than it is absolutely required, then we are gliding towards hellish condition of life. And if we follow the path of mahātmās, mahat-sevā, that is dvāram āhur vimukteḥ. We are making progress towards liberation.

Evening Lecture -- Bhuvanesvara, January 23, 1977:

Actually it is absolutely necessary for any person at the last stage of life to accept sannyāsa. This Rāmānanda Rāya also retired from the government service. He met Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and Caitanya Mahāprabhu advised him that "Now you retire from your governorship and come to Jagannātha Purī, your home, and let us talk together about spiritual life." So in this way he retired. So all the associates of Caitanya Mahāprabhu-śrī-rūpa sanātana bhaṭṭa-raghunātha śrī-jīva gopāla-bhaṭṭa dāsa-raghunātha-Six Gosvāmīs, the direct disciples of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, they were all in renounced order of life.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz:

Śyāmasundara: Because it is impossible to conceive of not God. In other words, God is absolutely necessary because to conceive not-God is impossible.

Prabhupāda: That is artificial. The atheists say there is no God, so God is there, but he refuses to accept. Otherwise why does he say there is no God? The idea of God is there, but he refuses to accept. And unless God is there, wherefrom the idea is coming? The atheist... God is there, but he is refusing to accept. Just like the impersonalist: unless you have got personal understanding, how will you try to make it impersonal? The first is personal. You try to make it impersonal.

Philosophy Discussion on Gottfried Wilhelm von Leibnitz:

Śyāmasundara: He says that God is an absolute necessity because we cannot conceive not-God. But man, individual men, are relative truths because they are not absolutely necessary. Because I can conceive that I am not here, that I may die. So he says that we are conditioned, that men are conditioned. They are governed by the principle of sufficient (indistinct).

Prabhupāda: That we can see. There are so many politicians, they are very busy. They think that "If I do not remain in the state, everything will collapse." But when he dies, everything goes on nicely without him. That is māyā. So many politicians work so hard, up to the last point of his death he is thinking that "Without me, everything will be topsy turvy." But he dies in spite of his not willing to die. He dies, but things go on without depending on him. Therefore God's will is working, the Supreme Will. You may think so many ways—that is a different thing. Actually God's will is working.

Philosophy Discussion on Immanuel Kant:

Śyāmasundara: His fourth antimony relates to the modality of the world, whether or not the world requires an absolute being. First of all, that is the thesis: "There exists an absolutely necessary being, which belongs to the world either as a part or as a cause of it," and the antithesis is, "There nowhere exists an absolutely necessary being, either in the world or outside of the world, as its cause." So by reason alone one can either say that there is a God or that there is not a God.

Prabhupāda: There is a God. That is reason. And how can one support that there is no God? What is that reason?

Philosophy Discussion on Immanuel Kant:

Hayagrīva: He writes, "Absolutely no human reason can hope to understand the production of even a blade of grass by mere mechanical causes."

Prabhupāda: Yes. Therefore he has to know everything from the person or authority who knows that thing. That means this is perfect way of understanding, to take knowledge from the authority who is actually cognizant and knows things as they are.

Philosophy Discussion on Immanuel Kant:

Hayagrīva: He writes, "It does not enter men's heads that when they fulfill their duties to men they are performing God's commands and are therefore, in all their actions, so far as they concern morality, perpetually in the service of God, and that it is absolutely impossible to serve God directly in any other way, since they can effect and have an influence upon earthly beings alone and not upon God." He said we can only relate to man. We can only serve man and not serve God directly, but only serve god through man, like a humanitarianism.

Prabhupāda: So if he does not serve God, then how he will get direction how to serve the humanity? If he does not know how to serve humanity from God, then what is the value of his service to humanity? (break) ...giving direction that "You serve humanity in this way, by preaching His message, Bhagavad-gītā, to all humanity." Then he becomes very faithful servant of God. So to give service to the humanity means when one is a faithful servant of God, he can service to the humanity or to all other living entities, and if he manufactures his service, that is useless.

Philosophy Discussion on Jacques Maritain:

Śyāmasundara: So the method of... An authoritative basis for right and wrong, given by God Himself, then we can never know absolutely...

Prabhupāda: Unless one comes to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his conscience has no value.

Philosophy Discussion on Edmund Husserl:

Śyāmasundara: He says that only this knowledge is absolutely certain.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is called brahma-jijñāsā. In the Vedānta-sūtra it is called brahma-jijñāsā, inquiring about brahma. That is the prerogative of human life. In the human life one can make inquiries what is the ultimate source, cause. And in animal life it is not sought. So if such inquisitive is not there, then it is animal. Just like at the present moment the newspaper is full of fighting news. But these things are animal news.

Philosophy Discussion on Johann Gottlieb Fichte:

Śyāmasundara: He says that philosophy must begin with the assumption that being is nothing but that duty is absolutely everything.

Prabhupāda: That is nonsense. Without being how you can do your duty?

Philosophy Discussion on Thomas Aquinas:

Hayagrīva: So he concludes that Divine revelation is absolutely necessary, because by the philosophical method very few men could arrive at the truth, and only after a long time and many errors.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That's a fact. The so-called philosophers, they are imperfect, so there is no need of consulting them. Our path is that you directly contact the Supreme Person in knowledge, who has got complete knowledge—Kṛṣṇa—and we take His instructions and try to follow Him.

Philosophy Discussion on Thomas Hobbes:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Vena. So everything depends on the king's accepting the absolute instruction of God. So king, in Vedic civilization, the king was absolutely following the regulation given by God, and it was confirmed by saintly persons, sages. Then it was executed; not whimsically. There was advisory board of the monarchy always. They were not politician, diplomat, but they were all saintly person, knew very well the Vedas, and they used to guide the monarch.

Philosophy Discussion on Blaise Pascal:

Hayagrīva: Whereas Descartes stressed reason, Pascal says that the principles that are understood by the heart are absolutely certain and that they are certainly adequate to overcome all skepticism or doubt in God. Is this something like the Supersoul speaking in the heart? Or how can one be certain that it is the Supersoul?

Prabhupāda: Yes, he is speaking. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, that buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi taṁ yena mām upayānti te: "I give him intelligence by which he can always live with Me," upayānti. He is living along with... Every living entity is living with God. But out of his ignorance, he does not know. So what for the other bird is there? What He is doing? And He is living as witness.

Philosophy Discussion on Benedict Spinoza:

Hayagrīva: He does not believe that God has a body because by body, he says, we understand a certain quantity possessing life, breadth and depth, limited by some fixed form, and that to attribute these to God, a being absolutely infinite, is the greatest absurdity.

Prabhupāda: No. God has body, but not this material body. The material body is limited. That does not mean... This is imperfect knowledge of the spiritual quality. God has got body. That is confirmed in Vedic literature, sac-cid-ānanda vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1). Vigraha means body, a form. But His form is eternal. He is all-aware, sat-cit, and He is always blissful. So this body is neither eternal nor blissful nor all-awareness. Therefore this body is different from God's body. But God has got a body which is different in quality. That is spiritual body.

Purports to Songs

Purport to Bhajahu Re Mana -- New York, March 30, 1966:

Everyone is very busy, very busy. But he does not see that "All these, what I am doing, all these body ultimately become either ash or animal stool or turn into earth. So why I am taking so much trouble?" Therefore the revealed scripture advises that "You have to maintain your body. That's all right. But for simply material comforts, you should not devote time more than it is absolutely required." That means don't increase your bodily necessities. Don't increase your bodily necessities. That was the standard of Indian civilization.