Iśvare means kṛṣṇa-prema, love, to love Kṛṣṇa. Maitrī means friendship. Maitrī with whom? Tad-adhīneṣu, those who are under the control of Kṛṣṇa. Everyone is under the control of Kṛṣṇa by this way or that way, but those who are given to Kṛṣṇa voluntarily, surrendered soul, I am speaking of them. Tad-adhīneṣu.
Everyone is . . . just like any citizen in the state are under the control of the state, rules and regulation. But some of them, they say, "I don't care for the government." So they are forced to obey the government laws in the prison house. And the free citizens means who are voluntarily abiding by the laws of the state. Similarly, any living entity is under the laws of God. There is no doubt about it. But those who are voluntarily accepting the laws of God and giving service to the Supreme Lord, they are called devotees. And those who have revolted, and being forced by māyā to abide by the laws of God, they are called non-devotees. This is the difference between devotees and non-devotees.
But both the devotees and non-devotees, they must obey the laws of Kṛṣṇa. There is no exception. There is no exception. This is māyā. He is being forced, the non-devotee is being forced to act. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). He's under the spell of the modes of material nature, and he's being forced to act under the spell of material nature, but he is thinking, "I am free. I don't care for God." This is called māyā. He is being kicked by māyā, but he'll not agree to abide by the orders of Kṛṣṇa. He'll agree to be kicked by māyā. That is his business. That he will agree: "Yes, let me be kicked by māyā."
So nobody is free. By constitutional position nobody is free from the laws of God. But those who are voluntarily accepting, they are devotees. And those who are not accepting, falsely declaring themselves independent, they are non-devotees. This is the difference.
Any question? (devotees offer obeisances)
Uttamaśloka, you were not here? I did not see you.
Uttamaśloka: I was in town, kind of urgent . . . (indistinct)
Prabhupāda: Ācchā. So, any question on these topics? Question means on the topics, not other, outside.
Śyāmasundara: What is gambling?
Prabhupāda: Gambling you do not know? (laughter) You never played gambling?
Śyāmasundara: Yes.
Prabhupāda: They why do you . . .?
Śyāmasundara: Only the game?
Prabhupāda: Yes, gambling means betting. That is gambling. People are betting. You put one dollar, and if you gain, you get ten dollars. Otherwise, you lose this one dollar. This is gambling. They're gambling in Christian churches also, in the Western countries. But gambling is considered sinful activity. I do not know . . . one Mr. Bhattacarya, a barrister, he was educated in England. So he told there is some island, Monte Christo, here? There is gambling?
Devotee: Monte Carlo.
Prabhupāda: Monte Carlo, yes. He said that there are gamblers, and one gambler loses everything, he commits suicide immediately, and he'll go. That's all. Nobody cares for him. He told me. It is a fact?
Devotee: Yes.
Prabhupāda: So just see the gambling. They bring all their fortunes to stake, and they lose everything. And then, out of frustration, takes revolver and shots himself, dies, and it is thrown on the street or in somewhere. Nobody cares. Just like cats and dogs. So there is free gambling, Monte Carlo?
Devotee: Very, very wealthy people, they . . . (indistinct) . . . there.
Devotee lady: There is free gambling in London.
Prabhupāda: Oh, everywhere. Any big city. In Calcutta, Bombay, everyone gambling. When you get money, then gambling. The horse race is also gambling. Horse race. This gambling, drinking, meat-eating, these things were all unknown in India. They did not know how to drink. These Britishers introduced.
There is still a lane, a street, Porterly Street. There was a woman of suspicious character. She was supplied big bottles of wine, and she used to canvass rich men's son to take wine, and it was distributed free. In this way wine was distributed, and people began to drink, gradually. And I have seen a tea set committee. They . . . advertising tea, preparing tea nicely, "You take this tea, you'll not feel hungry, you'll be cured from malaria . . ." and so many things. And people come and take tea in this way. Now any man is taking tea. In the morning they'll gather in the tea stall. You see?
So people, they did not know what is gambling, what is drinking, what is meat-eating. So these things were introduced gradually. Still, no rigid Hindu house will allow meat cooking in the house. Still. No. If you want to . . . if you want to eat meat, you can go to hotel, but at home they cannot cook, meat-eating. Yes
Yamunā: Guru Mahārāja, in our missionary work, if we're forced to live with . . . (indistinct) . . . should we just talk about that same topic, or should we avoid the people at all?
Prabhupāda: No. If we can find out a suitable place; but it is difficult nowadays. That we have to tolerate. What can be done? Let others do whatever they like. We can preach that "Do not do it," but you cannot force, because the whole world has gone in these four principles of life, this eating . . . meat-eating, drinking, gambling. And so our regulation is very strict.