Prajāpati: Śrīla Prabhupāda, throughout the Western theology, there is a conception of the wrath of God, God's anger at man's disobedience or his unwillingness to follow God and live by God's commandments.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Prajāpati: But in our literature we find Kṛṣṇa has some transcendental pastimes of anger, but that He does not . . . it is man's own reaction . . . activities, that bring upon his destruction. How are these two . . .?
Prabhupāda: No. All the qualities that we find within this material world, all of them must have come from God. If there is wrath within this material world, it must have come from God, because God is the origin of everything. That is the Vedānta-sūtra. Brahman, Absolute Truth, means the source of everything. Whatever you have got experience within this material world, everything is there in God. That is perfection of God. You cannot say, "This thing is not in God." So aiśvaryasya samagrasya (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 6.5.47).
Everything is there. Just like Kṛṣṇa stealing as a child. But apparently sometimes He does something which is not very moral. So this immorality, the so-called immorality, it is there also. That is the full conception of God. He's not lacking in anything. Under the circumstances that God is in wrath, that is correct. But that is not His only characteristic. He has got mercifulness also. Everything is there. That is God. Therefore as theologician, you should understand the correct conception of God. They have no complete conception of God. Now, God is described in the dictionary as the Supreme Being. Is it not?
Hṛdayānanda: Yes. Everyone agrees on that.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Hṛdayānanda: Everyone agrees on that.
Prabhupāda: Yes. So what is the conception of "Supreme"? That you have to define. What is the conception of Supreme? How do we accept here in this world a person supreme? What is the conception of supreme? No . . .
Prajāpati: No one equal to or greater than.
Prabhupāda: No, that you cannot find here in this material world. Anyone has relative position. Everyone will find somebody is greater than him, somebody is lower than him. He's not absolute. Nobody. A rough estimate of supremacy: if one man has got . . . is very rich, he's considered great. If he has got influence, if he has got bodily strength, bodily beauty, wisdom or renunciation . . . these are the six items for calculating a man's greatness. Therefore when you speak, "God, the Supreme," He must possess all these things. That is the definition given by Parāśara Muni. The other day we were discussing. Somebody said: "This is all imagination." Why imagination? Who was telling me?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Scientist.
Prabhupāda: Scientist. (laughs) So how . . . why it is imagination? Your idea of supremacy, you must define. How do you accept here in this material world a person as supreme? Why? Why you accept Nixon as supreme person within your state? What is the cause?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Because he has some power.
Prabhupāda: Eh? Yes.
Karandhara: He's elected.
Prabhupāda: No, no, he's elected, that is same. But his position is supreme. Why he's supreme? As government servant, he gets the highest salary, he has the, all the best facilities, amenities, and his order is final. In this way . . .
Svarūpa Dāmodara: He has the command of convincing others.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: He has the power or the command of . . .
Prabhupāda: No, you may not agree with him; still, you have to accept him. That is his supremacy. You may not agree with him, but because he's supreme, you have to accept his order. That is his position. It does not depend on your acceptance or not acceptance. That is supremacy. Is it not?
Hṛdayānanda: Yes.