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Consensus

Lectures

Philosophy Discussions

No, he will say that this is my happiness: "I will take meat. You may say that you take Kṛṣṇa prasādam, no it is nonsense." If majority of the people are meat-eater, then meat is very good, full of vitamin. Therefore it is folly to be wise where ignorance is bliss.
Philosophy Discussion on Jeremy Bentham:

Śyāmasundara: He says that the pleasure of one person will coincide with the pleasure of others, we're all more or less desiring similar pleasures.

Prabhupāda: Coincide?

Śyāmasundara: He will be similar to what other people...

Prabhupāda: That may not be on the similar standard. The standard of pleasure is according to the body. The same example, if you give halavā to the hog, he'll not be satisfied. He wants stool. He has got a body which will not allow him to accept halavā.

Śyāmasundara: But if we take a consensus of all the citizens in the state that we must try to satisfy the majority, for what they expect to be good and happy, happiness.

Prabhupāda: No, he will say that this is my happiness: "I will take meat. You may say that you take Kṛṣṇa prasādam, no it is nonsense. (indistinct)."

Śyāmasundara: But the majority will take meat so...

Prabhupāda: Therefore meat is very good.

Śyāmasundara: That is the standard of pleasure, yes.

Prabhupāda: Therefore to these rascals meat is very good.

Śyāmasundara: Yes, utility.

Prabhupāda: If majority of the people are meat-eater, then meat is very good, full of vitamin. Therefore it is folly to be wise where ignorance is bliss. But we have to see what is the standard. Standard is given in the Bhagavad-gītā: that which increases duration of life, which increases strength, which increases feeling of pleasure, they are sattvika. These are stated in the Bhagavad-gītā.

Śyāmasundara: His idea is that the standard is decided by the majority of the people.

Prabhupāda: Majority of people, they are asses. Then what is the help of that votes of the asses. Why don't you take votes from so many animals? Why you take votes from the human beings? In the country, the animals are also there. Therefore a standard of happiness, he must know and if we take that type of happiness, that is Kṛṣṇa conscious.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

So give me, what is called, consensus.
Morning Walk -- April 19, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Then how you are getting money? If you are selling only twenty lakhs' worth books, how you are spending forty lakhs?

Rāmeśvara: We are selling more books.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: More than twenty lakhs.

Prabhupāda: So give me, what is called, consensus.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: The idea is the Book Fund, if the book is sold, it's sold at a profit. So although you may be getting only twenty or thirty lakhs, much more is being collected. That is the point.

Prabhupāda: So why did you not correct me in the meeting? (laughter)

General consensus of opinion... Let them say that there will be no more death, and how it will act? General consensus of opinion... Let them vote, "We do not want death anymore." Will it be accepted?
Morning Walk -- October 21, 1975, Johannesburg:

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: But there are so many millions and millions of people who hold the opposite view. They feel that their position is very safe because it's the general consensus opinion that life comes from matter.

Prabhupāda: General consensus of opinion... Let them say that there will be no more death, and how it will act? General consensus of opinion... Let them vote, "We do not want death anymore." Will it be accepted?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: No.

Prabhupāda: Then? What is the value of your vote? You are madmen. Just like Gandhi made civil disobedience here, and government did not accept it. What could he do? (break) ...truth. If the majority says, "No, it is truth," it will be truth?

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: No.

Prabhupāda: Then untruth is untruth.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Therefore I am asking what is the conception, why they need, why they do not need.
Morning Walk -- May 28, 1976, Honolulu:

Hari-śauri: The basic principle is that God is there, so you either accept or reject Him.

Prabhupāda: Yes. (laughs) One is doubtful or one is convinced. God is there. One is doubtful, he says "There is no God." My question is why the question of God is there?

Devotee (1): General consensus is that when one is in need of God, then they accept God. They don't think that out of knowledge...

Prabhupāda: Therefore I am asking what is the conception, why they need, why they do not need. First of all describe food. There is some idea, that food is like this. Then the question of food. If there is no need of food, then why is this food question?

Now, either democracy or monarchy, the population is śūdra. So either you make it democracy or any "crazy," śūdra will be on the power.
Morning Walk -- August 14, 1976, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Because we have no, that cātur-varṇa system. Cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭaṁ guṇa-karma-vibhāgaśaḥ (BG 4.13). You have given up Kṛṣṇa's instruction, now you have to suffer. You do not train brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, śūdra. So anyone who is in power, he is good. That is Kali-yuga. Kali-yuga means anyone gets vote, he's in power. They can misuse the power. There is no kṣatriya.

Dr. Patel: I think that is a wrong system (much airplane noise-indistinct) this open Democracy is not a (indistinct) by consensus...

Prabhupāda: No, no. Now, either democracy or monarchy, the population is śūdra. So either you make it democracy or any "crazy," śūdra will be on the power. So they can...

Dr. Patel: In Kali-yuga, sir, the śūdras will rule according to the...

Prabhupāda: Everyone is śūdra. Kalau śūdra-sambhavaḥ. Who is going to become brāhmaṇa? We are inviting everyone, "Come here, become brāhmaṇa." Who is interested? He'll go to the factory. Instead of becoming brāhmaṇa he'll be hammerman.

Page Title:Consensus
Compiler:Labangalatika, Alakananda
Created:29 of Sep, 2009
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=1, Con=4, Let=0
No. of Quotes:5