There is no hindrance for anyone to become Harijana. Harijana means God's person or devotee. Hari means God, Kṛṣṇa, and jana means His person. Just like we have got here government servant, special, or ordinary person. So Harijana means the servants of the Supreme Lord. So that is not ordinary thing. There is no harm to create Harijana by regular process, but you cannot make Harijana simply by stamping. Bhagavad-gītā says, equal opportunity for everyone. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Low-class born birth is understood due to sinful activities. Low-class birth, animal birth. Sinful activities. But Kṛṣṇa says, pāpa-yonayaḥ, born in sinful families, never mind. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā... If he becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious by bona fide process, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā. Vyapāśrityā means bona fide process. Not an imitation, bona fide. And bona fide means as they are depicted, as they are described, as they are enjoined in the authorized śāstra like śruti-smṛti-purāṇādi-pañca... (Brs. 1.2.101). Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ. Never mind in whatever family one is born, sinful family, never mind. Striyaḥ śūdrās tathā vaiśyaḥ, including woman and śūdras and vaiśyas, they are considered as less intelligent. They are considered as less intelligent. Therefore, according to Vedic system, a boy born in a brāhmaṇa family, he is allowed all the saṁskāras, reformatory, purificatory process, but the girl is not. Why? Now, because a girl has to follow her husband. So if her husband is brāhmaṇa, automatically she becomes brāhmaṇa. There is no need of separate reformation. And by chance she may be married with a person who is not a brāhmaṇa, then what is the use of making her a brāhmaṇa? That is the general method.
Equal opportunity
Lectures
Festival Lectures
There is no hindrance for anyone to become Harijana. Harijana means God's person or devotee. Hari means God, Kṛṣṇa, and jana means His person. Just like we have got here government servant, special, or ordinary person. So Harijana means the servants of the Supreme Lord. So that is not ordinary thing. There is no harm to create Harijana by regular process, but you cannot make Harijana simply by stamping. Bhagavad-gītā says, equal opportunity for everyone. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Low-class born birth is understood due to sinful activities. Low-class birth, animal birth. Sinful activities. But Kṛṣṇa says, pāpa-yonayaḥ, born in sinful families, never mind. Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā... If he becomes Kṛṣṇa conscious by bona fide process, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā. Vyapāśrityā means bona fide process. Not an imitation, bona fide. And bona fide means as they are depicted, as they are described, as they are enjoined in the authorized śāstra like śruti-smṛti-purāṇādi-pañca... (Brs. 1.2.101). Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ. Never mind in whatever family one is born, sinful family, never mind. Striyaḥ śūdrās tathā vaiśyaḥ, including woman and śūdras and vaiśyas, they are considered as less intelligent. They are considered as less intelligent. Therefore, according to Vedic system, a boy born in a brāhmaṇa family, he is allowed all the saṁskāras, reformatory, purificatory process, but the girl is not. Why? Now, because a girl has to follow her husband. So if her husband is brāhmaṇa, automatically she becomes brāhmaṇa. There is no need of separate reformation. And by chance she may be married with a person who is not a brāhmaṇa, then what is the use of making her a brāhmaṇa? That is the general method. So therefore the, even born in a brāhmaṇa family, a woman is taken as woman, not as brāhmaṇa. But Kṛṣṇa says, "Never mind. Even if she is woman, even she is śūdra, even she is vaiśya, or any other, I mean to say, family born in, never mind." Māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśrityā (BG 9.32), if anyone is bona fidely made Kṛṣṇa conscious, te 'pi yānti parāṁ gatim, so his way is open to the path of Vaikuṇṭha, parāṁ gatim. Kiṁ punar brāhmaṇāḥ puṇyā bhaktā rājarṣayas tathā (BG 9.33). So Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so nice, it opens the door of highest perfectional platform for everyone provided he follows the rules and regulations. That's all. That is the only condition.
Philosophy Discussions
Śyāmasundara: My only interest is in the dictatorship of the proletariat, that everyone should have an equal opportunity, equal pay, equal property, everything.
Prabhupāda: That is theory, but it will never be successful. Why in Russia there is manager's pay and the worker's pay? Why not equal pay?
Revatīnandana: He says, "Abolish that." Mao says, "Abolish that system."
Devotee: No, Russia is not a Communist state.
Revatīnandana: The Chinese scoff at the Russians, that they are not Communist. They say we will not abide by this different manager... Only one pay scale for everybody.
Prabhupāda: First of all, this Communistic idea came from Russia and China imitated.
Devotee: Well, it came out of the proponent philosophers.
Prabhupāda: Anyway, the Russia is supposed to be leader of the Communistic idea.
Revatīnandana: They don't accept anymore. There is Mao...
Prabhupāda: Similarly, sometimes after, he will not be accepted. That is my proposition. As Russia is not accepted now, some days after, he will not be accepted. Similarly, your also theory will fail. That is my proposition. Because I challenge that your theory is not perfect. Because Russia's theory was not perfect, it has failed. Similarly, I say your theory is also imperfect, therefore it will fail. Anything imperfect will fail. That is my proposition.
So if one man is extraordinarily learned, it is to be understood that it is the result of his previous culture. Similarly, if anyone is extraordinarily rich, it is to be understood it is due to his past pious activities. Janmaiśvarya-śruta-śrī (SB 1.8.26), these four things are achieved on account of previous pious activities: good birth, good opulence, aiśvarya, and good education, and good beauty. These are the results of pious, good activities. So you can see practically in your country between the black and white. The white men are more advanced in everything, and the black man, although he has got the same facilities, they are in inferior position. Why? It is putra-janma dṛḍham. That is the proof of past life. But so far we are concerned, we are not concerned about one black man or white man. Both of them are in the clutches of māyā. We want to educate all of them to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and they have got equal opportunity, it is stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ (SB 2.4.18). Never mind what is his body, if he is willing to become trained to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that is the platform of the soul, that we can do.
Conversations and Morning Walks
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: It's in the American Constitution that all men are created equally.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is real idea!
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: So they complain that "If all men are created equally, then each man will have equal opportunity."
Prabhupāda: Yes. You can become a brāhmaṇa. Equal oppor... We are giving. Any man, he may be caṇḍāla but we give them opportunity: "Come on, you become a brāhmaṇa." We don't deny: "Oh, you are coming from a caṇḍāla family. You cannot become brāhmaṇa." No. We don't say that. We give equal opportunity. (break) ...is that before this movement, really Vedic culture was never broadcast. Therefore they are finding somewhere contradiction, something astonishing. But Vedic culture is meant for the whole world.
| Page Title: | Equal opportunity |
| Compiler: | Visnu Murti, MadhuGopaldas |
| Created: | 15 of Sep, 2009 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=4, Con=1, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 5 |