Prabhupāda: Any principles of religion current in the world, they are all included in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, any principle. But just like if you have got two millions of dollars, the ten dollars, fifty dollars, five hundred dollars, five thousand dollars, or go on increasing, everything is included there, similarly, Kṛṣṇa consciousness is perfect. Just like in New York there is a building, Empire State Building. It is 102 stories. So one who has gone up to the topmost story, 102, it is to be understood that he has passed over the fiftieth story or fortieth story or tenth story or all the stories. So one who has become Kṛṣṇa conscious, he knows everything, the meditation, the yoga, this practice, that practice. Everything is there. That we can give proof. It is practically. So we have to simply become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then everything will be included there.
Know everything (Conversations)
Conversations and Morning Walks
1968 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Any principles of religion current in the world, they are all included in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, any principle. But just like if you have got two millions of dollars, the ten dollars, fifty dollars, five hundred dollars, five thousand dollars, or go on increasing, everything is included there, similarly, Kṛṣṇa consciousness is perfect. Just like in New York there is a building, Empire State Building. It is 102 stories. So one who has gone up to the topmost story, 102, it is to be understood that he has passed over the fiftieth story or fortieth story or tenth story or all the stories. So one who has become Kṛṣṇa conscious, he knows everything, the meditation, the yoga, this practice, that practice. Everything is there. That we can give proof. It is practically. So we have to simply become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then everything will be included there.
1969 Conversations and Morning Walks
The same thing, obverted, perverted reflection. Just like in the original tree the topmost part has come down to the down. Similarly, in the spiritual world the highest, topmost level of love, parakiya... Parakiya means love not by marriage life, by friendship. That is there. But there is no such inebriety. It is pure. So perverted means the topmost thing has come down to the lowest. Here, this parakiya, loving other's wife or other's husband, is most abominable, adultery. Not allowed by society, not allowed by the state. But tendency is there. Even one is married, he wants to love another's wife. Or if the girl married (s)he wants to love another husband. Why? That is there. But without inebriety. That is the beauty. So everything is there, but here, that thing is reflected, pervertedly. Therefore misunderstood. There is so many other corollaries. You see? But you must know everything, that without being in the Absolute Truth there cannot be relative manifestation. This world is relative manifestation. So these things are not to be understood in the beginning, but as the questions came we discussed something.
The same thing, obverted, perverted reflection. Just like in the original tree the topmost part has come down to the down. Similarly, in the spiritual world the highest, topmost level of love, parakiya... Parakiya means love not by marriage life, by friendship. That is there. But there is no such inebriety. It is pure. So perverted means the topmost thing has come down to the lowest. Here, this parakiya, loving other's wife or other's husband, is most abominable, adultery. Not allowed by society, not allowed by the state. But tendency is there. Even one is married, he wants to love another's wife. Or if the girl married (s)he wants to love another husband. Why? That is there. But without inebriety. That is the beauty. So everything is there, but here, that thing is reflected, pervertedly. Therefore misunderstood. There is so many other corollaries. You see? But you must know everything, that without being in the Absolute Truth there cannot be relative manifestation. This world is relative manifestation. So these things are not to be understood in the beginning, but as the questions came we discussed something.
Prabhupāda: Forgot, you forgot. That is your nature. You forget so many things. You cannot remember what you were doing exactly at this time yesterday. Can you remember immediately? Forgetfulness is our nature. We are very minute; therefore our..., we are subjected to the quality of forgetfulness. Just like Arjuna. Arjuna was asking Kṛṣṇa that "How I can believe that you told this philosophy of Bhagavad-gītā to Vivasvān?" He said that "In... I, first of all, I told to Vivasvān." So in reply to that question, Kṛṣṇa said that "Both you and I had many, many births before, but you have forgotten; I remember." That is the difference between the Supreme Lord and ourself. He does not forget. He remembers everything, past, present, future, all, but we forget. That is the difference between God and living entity. We are subjected to forgetfulness. So we forget; again, if it is reminded, we remind. That is our nature. So at the present moment we are forgetful of our eternal relationship with Kṛṣṇa. And then, by good association, by constant chanting, hearing, remembering, we again revoke our old consciousness. That is called Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So forgetfulness is not wonderful. It is natural. We forget. But if we keep constant touch, we may not forget. Therefore this association of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, devotees, and constant repetition of the chanting, scripture, that will keep us intact without forgetting. Satataṁ kirtayanto māṁ yatantaś ca dṛḍha-vratāḥ (BG 9.14). We have to continue this service constantly. Then we shall not forget. Forgetfulness is not wonderful. That is our nature. That is our nature. And that is the difference between ourself and God. God does not forget. We forget. We are claiming, some of us, foolishly claiming, that "I am God, but I forget." God does not forget. Therefore I am not God. Is that clear? That is the difference between living jīva and Śiva, God. He does not forget. In the Bhagavad-gītā He says, vedāhaṁ samatītāni: (BG 7.26) "I know everything of this present, past, future, everything."
>>> Ref. VedaBase => Room Conversation -- April 27, 1969, Boston
1971 Conversations and Morning Walks
Guest (5): Thank you for listening. Time and place. He's already said that.
Prabhupāda: Yes. If you are liberated, you have nothing to go anywhere because you know everything.
Guest (2): May I again submit with the honor that you have bestowed on me of having said that I am already liberated according to the version of Gītā...
Prabhupāda: If you have understood Kṛṣṇa, then you are liberated.
Guest (2): I still feel... I still feel...
Prabhupāda: Then you haven't got to seek knowledge.
Guest (2): I still feel that...
Prabhupāda: You be satisfied with yourself. You are liberated.
Prabhupāda: So better open. Deity will be there. Just like Kīrtanānanda Mahārāja is doing. Install the deity for one week. You know everything. You have done in Calcutta, Bombay and other. Same thing. You were in Allahabad also?
Devotee: Yes, I was there.
Prabhupāda: Allahabad, Gorakhpur. So same thing. And for persons spiritually inclined, for them this traveling is very good. Traveling means with this occupation. It is very good. You'll be more popular and there will be no difficulty, mind will be steady.
Śyāmasundara: It takes away our attachment for everything materially.
Prabhupāda: The Gosvāmīs, they did not stay underneath a tree for more than one night. So you decide; then you do the needful.
Prabhupāda: They like. And you have got so many ingredients. So now you realize how many things you have to speak to the world, economic development, everything. We are not simply so-called religious people. We know everything in right way. Everything, what is to be... That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all round, all included.
Revatīnandana: The people who listen, they become very impressed. At many programs, the students, after I finish speaking and I answer some questions, they realize that we know something very completely. They become very interested. They come around and bring more questions. Very nice.
Prabhupāda: Yes. And you will get all ideas from our books. That is Indian śaṅkha? That in your hand, bangle, white bangle.
Prabhupāda: A Kṛṣṇa conscious person is never afraid of anything. Bhayaṁ dvitīyābhiniveśataḥ syād. One who has conception of anything other than Kṛṣṇa, he is afraid. One who knows everything is Kṛṣṇa, why he should be afraid? If bomb is coming, he will see, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa is coming." Yes. That is the vision of the devotee. So he thinks, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa wants to kill me as bomb. Oh, that's all right. I will be killed." That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Reporter: We do not fight?
Prabhupāda: Huh?
Reporter: We do not fight?
Prabhupāda: No, he will fight. He will fight. By the direction of Kṛṣṇa.
Reporter: By God inside?
Prabhupāda: Yes. He is not..., he is not afraid of fighting, but he will fight under direction of Kṛṣṇa.
1972 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Because He knows everything. A scientist means one who knows a subject matter thoroughly. He's scientist. Kṛṣṇa, He knows everything.
Bob: You said... I told you I teach science. You had said something about teaching, or teaching of science.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Teaching, unless you have got perfect knowledge how you can teach? That is our proposition.
Bob: Without perfect knowledge, though, you can teach what knowledge you have.
Prabhupāda: No, that is cheating. That is not teaching, that is cheating. Just like the scientists said, "There was a chunk, and the creation took place, perhaps..." What is this? Simply cheating. It is not teaching, it is cheating.
Prabhupāda: That's very natural. It is costly here. But these children and their parents also very much interested. So I think you should have a nice institution here to train the children in this country. And after their education, they may take to any line of livelihood. That doesn't matter. But the foundation... Just like in our Vedic system, first of all brahmacārī. That brahmacārī system is very nice. Even Kṛṣṇa, God Himself, He has nothing to learn. He is abhijñā. In the Vedas He is described as abhijñā: He knows everything. But just to teach us, He also became a brahmacārī in the Gurukula. Lord Rāmacandra, He also accepted a guru, Vasiṣṭha. So that is our Vedic system. Anybody may be anything, but the process is tad vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). In order to learn the value of life, spiritual value of life, one must go to a guru. Tad vijñānārtham. In order to understand the spiritual value of life one must go to a guru. Gurum evābhigacchet. What is that guru? Śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham: "He is well learned in Vedic literature," and brahma-niṣṭham, "and firm faith in the Supreme Personality of Godhead."
Prabhupāda: What medical science? Can they stop disease? That is the problem. If they can stop disease then I can accept that they know something. What is their...
Devotee: In India the doctors, simply by feeling your pulse they know everything that's wrong with you.
Prabhupāda: No. Even that. No physician can stop disease. He can suggest, "This is very nice medicine," but my problem is, "Why shall I become diseased?" That is my problem.
Ian Polsen: They only treat the symptoms, not the cause.
Prabhupāda: Huh? Well, you can give me some medicine, and for the time being I am cured, then again I fall diseased. You cannot stop disease. Suppose you have got a very nice coat. That's all right. But one who has got not so nice coat, so what is the difference?
Devotee: Coat.
Prabhupāda: Coat, yes. So this so-called scientific improvement, nice medicine, nice medicine or not nice medicine, what is the difference? I fall..., I become diseased. You cannot stop disease. Therefore Bhagavad-gītā says, janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi duḥkha-doṣānudarśanam (BG 13.9). You may think that "I have overcome so many distresses," but real distress is birth, death, old age and disease.
Prabhupāda: And the Joshi is the manager here?
Devotee (1): That's her manager here.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Devotee (2): Oh, then he's the one who should know everything. She said she would carry everything for us practically around the world...
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Devotee (2): ...on her boats. We have many mṛdaṅgas, everything...
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. In Calcutta. From Calcutta, there she starts for all over the world. So simply... But Calcutta manager is rascal. Calcutta manager, that is difficult.
Devotee: Why don't we send... Why don't we send a hundred, two hundred mṛdaṅgas to America and Europe, big shipments sometime? We really use them down through the years.
Prabhupāda: But I know that Calcutta manager is a (Hindi). (laughs)
Prabhupāda: (Hindi) Don't be sorry. Indians, generally they say, "Oh, we know everything about Kṛṣṇa. What we have to learn?" Yes. When they go to some Indian, they say like that. What do they say?
Śyāmasundara: "We know all these things."
Guest (2): I don't say I know everything.
Prabhupāda: Yes. What is that Madrasi gentleman?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Chiwari? Dr. Chiwari?
Prabhupāda: Yes. In your...
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Oh, Krishnamurti.
Prabhupāda: Ah. They think, "Oh, what we have to learn from them about Kṛṣṇa? We are all-knowing." (Hindi) And you were speaking, some of your Madras colleagues. They come here and immediately they learn how to eat meat.
1973 Conversations and Morning Walks
Śyāmasundara: Everybody here knows everything. (laughter)
Devotee (2): And it goes up very quickly because the people are automatically attracted. And then you teach them, you train them. So less Americans and just one or two people who want to manage and then start with the people here, the Indian people. And as they develop and become strong, then develop a center. It may take a long time but it will be solid. It will be more solid then. Just bring a bunch of Americans here and then the whole thing just falls to pieces. And then we ruin our reputation in that particular area where we want to open a...
Prabhupāda: Then what is your suggestion?
Devotee (2): That we start a small center and then you develop it gradually with less, with less inexperienced people...
That's all. Is it not? You are a qualified scientist. Why I challenge you? Not that because you are my disciple, you are accepting all my challenges. You have got your reasons. You are not a fool. So how it is possible? Practically, how it is possible? Because we are trying to know little about Kṛṣṇa. That's all. Therefore this Vedic injunction, yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati, yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābhaṁ manyate nādhikaṁ tataḥ. These statements are there. If you get Kṛṣṇa, then you will not hanker after any more profit. Bas. All profit is there. Yaṁ labdhvā cāparaṁ lābham. If you get Kṛṣṇa, then all other kinds of profit, you'll not hanker after. And what kind of profit this is? Yasmin sthito na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate (Bg. 6.20-23). If one is situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, in the greatest calamity of this world, he'll not be disturbed. This is the greatest profit. Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja. A big giant, Hiraṇyakaśipu, is putting him always in difficulty, but he's confident: "Yes, there is Kṛṣṇa." A five years old boy. He's not at all disturbed. Father is giving poison. "All right, give me poison." And throwing him from the hill on down. But he is steady. How it is possible? Na duḥkhena guruṇāpi vicālyate. Guru. Guru means heavy, very heavy difficulties. But na vicālyate. He's not perturbed, not disturbed. How it is possible? It is such a thing, that if you know Kṛṣṇa, you know everything. If you are in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then you are not disturbed in the heaviest type of calamity. So these things should be given to the human society. One thing. That will make his life perfect. Is it not?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: So the varieties of living entities that we find in the material world, can we explain because of the desire of the living entities, to make..., to live in different houses?
Prabhupāda: Yes. He knows. Just like government constructs a prison house. Government knows there will be rascals, criminals. So already is there prison. Before the judgement the prison house is already there. Sarva-jña. God is sarva-jña. He knows everything. So He knows that some of them will come out criminal. Just like king knows that not that always everyone will be honest. There will be dishonest. So construct this prisonhouse. Like that. God knows, Kṛṣṇa knows that this material world, the varieties of desires according to the modes of material nature... So there are three modes of... You can calculate also. Just like there are three modes of material nature, sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa. Now if you make variety, three into three, it becomes nine. And nine into nine, it becomes eighty-one. So there is eighty-four. What is the difficulty to understand? These three qualities, just like three colors, blue, red and yellow, you mix. Oh, thousands of different colors you will find. It is the expert color combination. That's all.
Prabhupāda: What is that? I do not follow.
Paramahaṁsa: Well, like, many devotees, they experience the difficulty that although they sincerely want to love God and serve Him, yet their body is almost like another dictator within them.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That means he is strongly under the grip of māyā.
Paramahaṁsa: Even though the desire exists.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Just like a thief, he knows that "If I steal, I will be arrested. I will be put into jail." And he has seen that one thief, he has stolen, he is arrested. Still he commits theft. He knows everything. Why does he commit theft?
Paramahaṁsa: Why?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Paramahaṁsa: Ignorance?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Śrīla Prabhupāda gives the example of the elephant.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Why do you take covering? Does man walk naked?
Paramahaṁsa: No.
Prabhupāda: Why do you take covering? You know everything will be cleared after few hours. Why do you cover?
Paramahaṁsa: It is dangerous now.
Prabhupāda: Whatever it may be, why do you take this step to avoid this?
Kṛṣṇa-kāntī: It's uncomfortable. It's not natural.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the Māyāvāda theory; that everything will uncover automatically, why do you bother? That is nonsense.
Karandhara: They will not be able to be so philosophical in their next lives when they're a dog.
Prabhupāda: Eh? Eh?
Karandhara: The Māyāvādīs will not be able to be so philosophical in their next lives when they're dogs or cats.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Prabhupāda: (laughs) Yes, people will criticize like that. People are becoming advanced. How long you can cheat them with so-called science, so-called religion? Now you take up this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement seriously. He will give real thing. Try to understand. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati (Muṇḍaka Upaniṣad 1.3). If you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, everything will be known to you. This is the process. If you simply understand Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā—you know everything. You know everything. And that is the Vedic injunction, Yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati: "By knowing Kṛṣṇa only, you know everything." That science you try to understand and preach; people will be happy. Now, our question was that we say that the man... I say man. Other living entities, they are also living entities. So in Christian religion also, they say, "The man is made after God." Is it not?
Paramahaṁsa: "In the image of God."
Prabhupāda: But... And nobody can talk with Kṛṣṇa also. Nobody is so qualified. So somebody who would talk with Kṛṣṇa who must be very qualified, but he's playing the part of a befooled man. Otherwise, he's not misguided. He knows everything. Yes.
David Lawrence: One other point, and again a practical point really, this one. This is about the nature of the book. I suggested early on that I hoped that I might get the cooperation of somebody like George Harrison. What would you think about this? Do you think, with your knowledge of the young mind, particularly the young western mind, that this might be a good means through to the young people...?
Prabhupāda: It is not the question of western mind, eastern mind. Any sincere student will take to.
David Lawrence: No, I was thinking in terms of the western mind with its culture, more than of philosophy.
Prabhupāda: Hm. Western mind... I, I do not find any difference between western mind and eastern mind. Because so many western mind is changed. Yes. So there was no difficulty. Two, two plus two equal to four is to be understood by the western mind and the eastern mind. You cannot say, because you are western mind, you'll say, "No, two plus two equal to five." You cannot say that. So there may be some influence of the culture, but that is superficial. When you speak the real truth, science, that is equally applicable to the western mind and eastern mind. There is no difference. If you speak the real truth... Two plus two equal to four, mathematical calculation, nobody will deny, either western mind or eastern mind.
Prabhupāda: Here?
David Lawrence: Yes. Well, no, in the Bury Place. And they were thrilled to bits. We had one or two who made the usual silly comments, you know, which you'd expect. But they were embarrassed, you know. Everything that came over, which was interesting, was that they found that all the devotees were very kind, very loving and very sincere. This, this came from even really the most secular of boys with a very, very low intelligence. He could see and perceive and understand that this was how it was.
Prabhupāda: That is our general certificate, everywhere. Even the Americans, they are surprised. They inquire, "Are you Americans?" (laughter.)
David Lawrence: Yes.
Prabhupāda: The, the priest also, he's surprised, that "They are our boys. They did not come to church, never cared for religion. And now they are after God, mad after God. What is this?" They are surprised.
Prabhupāda: But they think... Familiarity breeds contempt. "Oh, Kṛṣṇa, we know. What you have got to teach us?" Although he doesn't know anything, because he, he belongs to the country where Kṛṣṇa appeared, therefore he knows everything. That... You know that Hindi. (Hindi)
Ambassador: Poetic. "The prophet is not honored in his own country."
Prabhupāda: Yes. (Hindi) That is this position. So do you think I shall submit some name?
Ambassador: Certainly, Your Grace, and I will look into it and if I have got right, I will do it, or I will send...
Prabhupāda: No. You are... Why you have not right? Because...
Ambassador: Yes, I've got, there are discretions.
Prabhupāda: Then, then it will be useless. Because as soon as you send to Delhi, they'll refuse. So then don't try for it. If you can, if you can help personally, then we'll submit the names. Otherwise, if you go in official channels, I don't expect.
Prabhupāda: (indistinct) Bhāgavata verse, janmādy asya (SB 1.1.1), asya janmādi (indistinct) concise word but volumes of meanings. Volumes. Each word is like that. Vidyā bhāgavata-vali(?). Therefore one's learning is complete when he reads Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Otherwise he remains imperfect, in spite of all learning. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1), from where? Now the creation of this cosmic world, from where? But you do not know from where. This is explained in Bhāgavatam. Paraṁ satyaṁ dhīmahi. That is actually true. In this way simply if you analyze one verse, you'll find each word is full of volumes of meaning. Janmādy asya yataḥ, anvayāt (SB 1.1.1). Like the creation, anvayāt, directly and indirectly, itarataś cārtheṣu, in the matter of understanding, abhijñaḥ. Abhijñaḥ means completely cognizant. That is the Absolute Truth. He knows everything—how this universe is created, how it is maintained, how it annihilated, directly and indirectly. Just like, I always, regular, everyday thing, when I am massaged by my student, I see so many veins so I think that I claim, "This is my leg," but I do not know what are these veins. Directly I know this is my leg, but indirectly I do not know how this leg is working with these veins and nerves and muscles. I do not know. But so far God is concerned, He has created. He knows every veins and everything. That is called abhijñaḥ. In this way you analyze every word, you'll find volumes of meaning. The next question, "Where you got this experience?" You say He's abhijñaḥ, He knows everything. To get experience one must have teacher. But the next word is svarāṭ, He's experienced and self-sufficiency, svarāṭ, independent. He hasn't got to go anywhere for experiencing. In this way each word is full of meaning. Janmādy asya yataḥ, anvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ svarāṭ, tene brahma hṛdā ya ādi-kavaye muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ (SB 1.1.1). We have very shortly described this one verse. I think five, six pages. You've got that verse?
Prabhupāda: Just try to understand that you must know how to discharge your duty. Because you do not know what is duty, therefore you are placing so many other duties, "Nationality, this is, this is..." kṛṣṇa-bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya. If you become devotee... Just like your son. Is he not maintaining his family, is he not respecting his father, mother, he is not doing his duty in the service, he is doing his spiritual master? But the main principle is that he is devotee of Kṛṣṇa. So if you become devotee of Kṛṣṇa, you can discharge your duties properly; otherwise you cannot. It is not possible. If you want to pour water, leaf after leaf, it will be useless waste of time. But if you pour water in the center, on the root, it will go everywhere. Because he is devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he knows how to discharge his duty towards his parents, how to discharge his duty to his wife, how to discharge his duties towards his spiritual master. He knows everything. But one who is not a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, he does not know. He is simply confused. Sometimes jumping here, something jumping there, something jumping there. He does not know how to pour water.
Bali Mardana: It's their envious attitude. They are envious.
Prabhupāda: No, no. It is not the question of envious. Because you are thinking that He is inconceivable, because you cannot say... But how can you say that another person cannot say? There are so many things I do not know. That does not mean that somebody else does not know. You may not know. Your experience is not mature. But how you can say, "Another person cannot have the experience"? So that is answered in the Bhagavad-gītā, vedāhaṁ samatītāni, māṁ tu veda na kaścana: (BG 7.26) "I know everything, but nobody knows Me." There is the answer. So nobody knows Kṛṣṇa. That's a fact. But Kṛṣṇa reveals Himself to the devotee. That is also said, teṣāṁ satata-yuktānām (BG 10.10).
Prabhupāda: Then kick on their face with boot. With boot, rascal. You are trying. That is rascaldom. We protest against this. "We are trying." What is this nonsense, trying? Do it immediately. Then we shall accept. Trying, everyone is trying. Just like a child is trying to build a house with this sand. So is that very nice proposal, that here will be house? That is childish. Then you accept that you are child in the field of knowledge. Don't pose yourself that you know everything, or your knowledge is everything. That is our protest. "We are trying." Trying, everyone is trying. What is the difference between the scientists and ordinary man?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: They are saying that they are coming very close.
Prabhupāda: Oh! That is also another foolishness. That is called will o' the wisp. The ass. Ass is trying to get the grass, and the washerman is showing only, and the ass is advancing, the grass is advancing. (laughter) You see. This is their thing.
Prabhupāda: When? Guru or... First of all, try to understand what is the meaning of guru. Guru means heavy. So one who knows more than you, or one who knows perfectly, that, he is guru. So if you know anything perfectly, then you are guru. But if you do not know anything perfectly, then you are not a guru. You are rascal. So guru means one who knows perfectly. So if you find out somebody, that he knows everything perfectly, then he is guru. That is the first prayer of Gurvaṣṭaka. Saṁsāra-dāvānala-līḍha-loka-trāṇāya kāruṇya-ghanāghanatvam **. Everyone is in the blazing fire of this material existence. It is just like forest fire. Just like if there is fire in the forest, all the inhabitants of forest, all the animals, they become so much in perturbed condition. So guru means to rescue from this forest fire. So therefore it is said, ghanāghanatvam. A forest fire can be reduced or can be extinguished... Fire, there must be water. But wherefrom the water will come? Your fire brigade, bucket full of water, will not save. The water must come from cloud. So therefore guru is the cloud. He has taken the mercy from the ocean, or from God, and he pours the mercy. Immediately the fire is extinguished, and you are saved.
1974 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Ah?
Devotee (1): I think the dog knows you're talking about him.
Prabhupāda: He knows everything. (break)
Prajāpati: Everything looks brand new, looks very different.
Prabhupāda: Ah?
Prajāpati: This is the first time we've gone this direction, everything looks different, looks like a total different place.
Prabhupāda: (chuckles) This is material life. We are rounding sometimes this way, sometimes that way, and we are thinking "new." (devotees laugh) Ei rūpe brahmāṇḍa bhramite kona (CC Madhya 19.151). In this way you are wandering all over the universe. Find out something new. But there is nothing new. Everything is old. (break) ...a living entity is offered change of the body. You see? When he becomes fatigued of this life, "It's so troublesome"—old men generally think like that. So he has to change another, another new body, child. Since born he is taken care, he thinks "Now, I have got so comfortable life." And again becomes old, disgusted, so he cannot live disgusting, therefore Kṛṣṇa is so kind: "All right, change body again." Punaḥ punaś carvita-carvaṇānām (SB 7.5.30). Chewing the chewed.
Dr. Patel: From the second line of the sūtras.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Answer Brahma-sūtra's question. The answer is Bhāgavata: janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Then what is that janmādy asya yataḥ? And he says, Vyāsadeva says, anvayāt itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ. That... The... Abhijñaḥ. That the Absolute Truth, from whom everything has emanated, He knows everything directly and indirectly. He knows. Because He's abhijñaḥ.
Dr. Patel: He is knowing everything.
Prabhupāda: Knowing every... Knows everything.
Dr. Patel: Knowing everything. Knowing everything.
Prabhupāda: Ah, yes.
Dr. Patel: Abhijñaḥ.
Prabhupāda: Because...
Dr. Patel: All-down-knowing, all-down-knowing.
Prabhupāda: Yes. So He's not a stone. Just like some philosopher says there was a chunk and creation came from that. So here Bhāgavata says, "No. The origin of creation, He's a person—abhijñaḥ. And He knows everything, directly and indirectly." Directly, I know this is my body, but indirectly, I do not know what is going on in this body. Therefore we go to physician that: "Please tell me what is the ailments in my body." So I do not know what is the cause. But the original Absolute Truth, He knows everything, directly and indirectly. Therefore He is abhijñaḥ. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayāt itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ (SB 1.1.1). In this way, concludes: satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi.
Prabhupāda: But I must know everything because I am a teacher.
Hṛdayānanda: So, for example, if I become a teacher at varṇāśrama, say, the first teacher at the varṇāśrama college, then I have to also become expert at how to fight, how to...
Prabhupāda: Not all of you, but some of you must be, must learn the art of fighting also. But in a practical you are not going to fight. If required, you can fight. I say that we are above all these varṇāśrama, but we must train others or ourself also for material activities, everything, under these divisions.
Viṣṇujana: For example, in New Vrindaban we have brāhmaṇas that are very expert at tilling the soil and taking care of cows.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Prabhupāda: ...men, so everyone should be very alert in their behavior. Rising early in the morning, taking bath, be prepared for maṅgala āratik immediately. Then class. Everything in regulated way. (break) ...and still everyone comes to the point, "I know everything." This point.
Devotee: Yes.
Prabhupāda: On the basis of Bhagavad-gītā, then nobody can supercede. (break) ...he turns back all our money invested, (indistinct) people. (break) ...if he's prepared to pay double the price, so why not pay the full price, fourteen lakhs? We have paid two lakhs, let him pay twelve lakhs and he'll immediately transfer, and we'll take double price from him, so that... (break) ...if he's so eager. These, these are practical. If he's prepared to pay double, why not pay us? (break—switches to room conversation) Sun is the same. The power observation, this is a morning sun, this is noon sun. The sun is the same. We sometimes say that because this noon sun, it is so strong. So sun is always powerful. It is our appreciation, relative appreciation, that we consider in the morning it is less scorching and in the noon it is very scorching. Kṛṣṇa is always Kṛṣṇa. ...tābhir ya eva nija-rūpatayā kalābhiḥ. Nija-rūpa kalā taya.
Guest (1): According to His will.
Prabhupāda: Yes. He knows everything. Sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭaḥ (BG 15.15). He knows what you want. And He's always... Aiye. He knows what is your want. Just like father know what is the want of the child. But the child never orders father, "Give me this."
Guest (1): Nowadays, children order. They...
Prabhupāda: No, he's simply surrendered to father. He's confident, "My father is there. Everything is all right."
Guest (2): Surrender then, that is not even my family, even I myself, I...
Prabhupāda: Therefore Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura says, "My family also I surrender."
Guest (2): Then there is no remainder, my family. When I surrender...
Prabhupāda: Yes. Actually, it is not... You are thinking... It is an illusion. You are illusioned that you are maintaining them. That is an illusion.
Prabhupāda: Kālātītaḥ because He, He's all spirit. Therefore He knows everything.
Dr. Patel: Kāla is an illusion.
Prabhupāda: No, kāla is also Kṛṣṇa, another form of Kṛṣṇa.
Dr. Patel: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Kālo 'smi. In the Eleventh chapter He has said.
Mr. Sar: Icchā-dveṣa-samutthena dvandva-mohena bhārata (BG 7.27).
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Mr. Sar: Sarva-bhūtāni sammohaṁ sarge yānti parantapa.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Sarge. Those who have come to this material world, they are envious of Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: No, why trouble? Kṛṣṇa knows everything.
Dr. Patel: For himself. Arjuna is creating trouble for himself.
Prabhupāda: No, he is creating trouble for himself because the rascals will represent that "I am incarnation of God." Therefore Arjuna is asking him, "Now show me your virāṭ-rūpa." So these rascals, bewildered by these so-called gods, they should ask, "Show me your virāṭ-rūpa. Then I shall accept you." That is the process. Not that "I am incarnation of God." How you become incarnation? Just lift one hill. Or show me virāṭ-rūpa. Or show me that you have sixteen thousand wives and you are maintaining them in sixteen thousand palaces. Then you call yourself that "I am incarnation of Kṛṣṇa." Otherwise, you rascal, I cannot believe you. For them. Otherwise Kṛṣṇa... He knows what is Kṛṣṇa, but because in future some rascal will come and will say that "I am incarnation of God," therefore it is a warning that before accepting one rascal as incarnation, you ask him to show virāṭ-rūpa.
Prabhupāda: ...purāṇas, not new manufactured. (break) If I have to offer my obeisances and surrender, why not to Kṛṣṇa? Why an imitation Kṛṣṇa? Why? Just like if you go to purchase some medicine, the shopkeeper may say, "Now, here is a medicine equal to this medicine, and its price is less." So no sane man will purchase. "Why I shall purchase the imitation for being less price? Give me the original." (break) ...the life of Ramakrishna. It is said that at the time of his death he said to his disciples, especially to Vivekananda, that "I am the same Rāma, I am the same Kṛṣṇa," and he took it. And he preached that "This Gadadhara Chatterjee, Ramakrishna." That's all. Then if he is referring to the original Rāma and Kṛṣṇa, so why not take the original Rāma and Kṛṣṇa? What is the proof? Simply by his words one can accept? Just like he is taking the proof, Arjuna. Yes.
Girirāja: "You are the original Personality, the Godhead. You are the only sanctuary of this manifested cosmic world. You know everything, and You are all that is knowable. You are above the material modes. O limitless form, this whole cosmic manifestation is pervaded by You."
Prabhupāda: Now, instead of accepting the original, real thing, why people accept imitation? What is the reason?
Prabhupāda: That's it. And if you think that I do not know, then why do you ask me, and waste your time and my time? Therefore śāstra says that "Ask from guru." If you accept somebody as guru, then ask from him. As soon as you ask, the man to whom you ask, he is your guru.
Satsvarūpa: Some people say they don't like to talk to Hare Kṛṣṇa people because we're like that. We always say we know everything about everything.
Prabhupāda: Yes, we know everything. That's a fact.
Satsvarūpa: They resent it, and they say, "Oh, you people, we can't talk with you."
Prabhupāda: You may resent, but we know everything. That is a fact.
Satsvarūpa: So how do we deal with that attitude if they're turned away by our...?
Prabhupāda: No, no. He's a rascal. How we can...? We know everything, and he denies. Then what is the use of talking with him? And waste your time. Let him know everything. We have nothing, no business.
Satsvarūpa: We can't compromise and just say that we don't know.
Satsvarūpa: What does he...
Prabhupāda: No, no. How you can...? You know everything. How you can say, "I don't know."
Satsvarūpa: Yes.
Prabhupāda: You do not know practically that. You must be also a man of knowledge. Otherwise, you cannot say. You cannot be falsely say that "Yes, I know." You must know. Then you say. But if you think that you do not know, don't say foolishly like that. Then you'll be slapped. You must know also. So how do you know? The next question will be: "How do you know everything?"
Satsvarūpa: It's not that I am great, but it's the authority of my spiritual master and the śāstras.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Or Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is great. So I am talking of what Kṛṣṇa has said. Therefore I am great, I am knowing everything. It is not that I know everything. I do not know anything, but I, I am surrendered to a person who knows everything. Therefore I know everything. I take my knowledge from Him. So you should think how much knowledge you have assimilated. The knowledge is there, guru-kṛṣṇa. Guru is there. Kṛṣṇa is there. So we have to take advantage of guru and Kṛṣṇa, sad-dharma-pṛcchā, ask him, and become man of knowledge. Then you can say. If you simply think that "I have my guru, and there is Kṛṣṇa. Now I am perfect," no. You should ask and know. You must be man of knowledge. Then you can say, "Yes, I know everything." Dīkṣā. Dīkṣā, initiation, dīkṣā, this Sanskrit word, dīkṣā, means divya-jñānaṁ kṣipayati. To ask from spiritual master with service and surrender the transcendental knowledge. The more you ask, you become a man of knowledge. Then you can challenge, "Yes, I know everything." Hare Kṛṣṇa Hare Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa Hare... Actually, we know everything. Just like when I speak, I immediately ask reference from Bhagavad-gītā, and we stop the man's argument. So if you become well-conversed with the whole Bhagavad-gītā, then you have full knowledge. There is no need of saying that "I do not know." You'll become full knowledge, man of knowledge. But you must study. Who is this man?
Bhagavān: It's his son.
Prabhupāda: Now first of all, let us understand what is God. Then prayer. If you do not understand God, then what you'll prayer? If we understand that there is the active principle, then the prayer we have already described, janmādy asya yataḥ anvayāt itarataś cārtheṣu abhijñaḥ: (SB 1.1.1) "I pray to the Supreme Personality of Godhead Vāsudeva who is the origin of all creation." This is the active principle. There is. So... And how He is working? (To Jyotirmayī:) You have to explain. (French) In the beginning of Bhāgavatam, I offering the prayer. So the process is that I offer my all respect to the Absolute Truth, Supreme Truth, from whom the creation has taken place, everything is resting, working nicely, and after annihilation, it will go there. And when you study what is the nature of the original source, it is said, abhijñaḥ, cognizant. He knows everything. Just like I am the owner of this body, I, the soul, but still, I do not know how the body is working. I am eating, but I do not know how my eatables transformed into secretion, then goes to the heart, then... Of course, they have discovered something, but not fully. So I do not know what is going in within my body. I do not know how many hairs are there. But God knows everything, nook and corner of the whole universe. But if we compare ourself with God, that is impossible, because naturally we get knowledge from others, we may question, "Wherefrom God got knowledge?" Therefore it is stated there, svarāṭ. He hasn't got to take knowledge from anyone else. He's independently full of knowledge.
Prabhupāda: I cannot waste.
American Man: If you cannot explain to me what is God... I speak of light, so...
Prabhupāda: But you know everything. What can I explain? You know everything.
American Man: I speak of light. I don't say I know everything, but I speak of light, that's all. That's all I said.
Dhanañjaya: You're wasting our spiritual master's time. What is the point in coming here if you're just going to talk nonsense? Please come.
American Man: Oh, I'll come. (leaves)
Bhagavān: Why was he brought in in the first place. Anyway, we can continue, but...
Madame Devi: (French)
Yogeśvara: "Is there some, any qualities, in the sense that some people have more receptivity towards the divine than other people?"
Prabhupāda: Yes. That I explained, sattva-guṇa, rajo-guṇa, tamo-guṇa. Those who are in sattva-guṇa, they can understand easily. Those who are in rajo-guṇa, they have got difficulty. And those who are in tamo-guṇa, they cannot.
Prabhupāda: (laughing) How they have made easy life, that see. They are... There is a story that a boy went for examination. So when he came back, his father asked, "My dear boy, how you have written your question paper?" "Yes, very nice." "How?" "No, those questions which were very difficult, I could not answer. And the easier questions, what is to write? I know everything. (laughter) Easier questions, there is no need of writing. I know everything." Both ways he has not written anything. So these rascals, both ways they will not follow anything. And still, they will credit... Not only Christians, everywhere these people want to banish God. Simply we are canvassing "God, God, God." Otherwise nobody cares. Say about 1945, so in front of my house there was an old man. So as neighbor, we had very good talks always. So as soon as I say, "Bhagavān," he will be angry. "God." So one day he said, "Why you always say Bhagavān, God?" Just see, an old man and still he is such a rascal. He did not like. That is called demonism. Even the father of Prahlāda Mahārāja, that five years old boy, he was doing nothing harm, simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa—he became angry: "No, no." So big enemy that he wanted to kill him. This is demoniac.
Prabhupāda: Hmmm. Find out. Jarā-maraṇa-mokṣāya.
Satsvarūpa:
- jarā-maraṇa-mokṣāya
- mām āśritya yatanti ye
- te brahma tad viduḥ kṛtsnam
- adhyātmaṁ karma cākhilam
"Translation: Intelligent persons who are endeavoring for liberation from old and death, take refuge in Me in devotional service. They are actually Brahman because they entirely know everything about transcendental and fruitive activities."
Reverend Powell: What does devotional service mean in that context?
Prabhupāda: Purport?
Satsvarūpa: "Purport: Birth, death, old age and diseases affect this material body, but not the spiritual body. There is no birth, death, old age and disease for the spiritual body, so one who attains a spiritual body, becomes one of the associates of the Supreme Personality of Godhead and engages in eternal devotional service, is really liberated. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi: I am spirit. It is said that one should understand that he is Brahman—spirit soul. This Brahman conception of life is also in devotional service, as described in this verse. The pure devotees are transcendentally situated on the Brahman platform, and they know everything about transcendental and material activities."
Reverend Powell: "Transcendental" means spiritual, does it?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Prabhupāda: To the qualified physician, not to the storekeeper. Similarly, first thing is, when you want to solve the problem, you must go to the right person. First of all you have to select. So we understand that Kṛṣṇa is the right person. So therefore, it is guaranteed. He knows everything. Others, they do not know. May know to some extent, not perfect. The first thing is that we have to select from whom. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). In Vedas it is stated in order to solve the problem or to understand the situation, you should go to the guru. So who can be better than Kṛṣṇa as guru? He taught, He gave lessons to Brahmā, the original living creature in this universe. Tene brahma hṛdā. He gave lessons to Brahmā how to create. Therefore, who can be better guru than Kṛṣṇa? Or even Brahmā. Brahmā, (indistinct) he has created this universe, but He taught Brahmā. And Kṛṣṇa is accepted as the supreme guru. To take instruction from Him or His pure representative, that is wanted.
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
Guru-kṛpa: It is a very humble approach.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Humble approach for giving a slap, (chuckles) that "You forget everything, what you have learned." First of all, this is the first condition. He sādhavaḥ sakalam eva vihāya dūrād caitanya-candra-caraṇe kurutānurāgam. We can go this way. This is our business. We know they are all rascals, but they are thinking that "We know so many things. We are learned scholars." So humbly approach them and flatter him that "You are so nice man, such a learned scholar." Just like a child is flattered, "My dear boy, you are such a nice boy. You take these lozenges and return me the hundred dollar note. Don't spoil it. You are such a good boy, yes." This is our... Therefore to approach these rascals we have to learn tṛṇād api sunīcena taror api sahiṣṇunā. That is the preaching method. Everyone is puffed up. Even most insignificant man, he is also puffed up: "Oh, I am so rich man, I know everything. I have got so much bank balance. These poor fellows, they cannot earn livelihood; therefore they have become Vaiṣṇavas." This is their policy. (break) You immediately print 100,000, that "Scientific Basis."
Prabhupāda: Means calculation. It is going on, regulated way. Just like everyone knows that this month is February. In the month of June the summer will begin. Everyone knows. It is not conclusion; it is experience. There is no need of calculating. So one who has got better experience, he can say like that. Calculation and experience. Just like if somebody says, "Two plus two plus two plus two," somebody says immediately, "Six." And another calculates, "Two plus two plus..., six." So experience and calculation. Lacks experience, he calculates. One who has better experience, he doesn't calculate. One who knows past, present, and future, he doesn't require to make calculation. He knows everything. So God knows past, present, and future, and others who are favored by God, he also knows by the grace of God. Because he hears from God. God knows past, present, and future. Then he simply reproduces God's words, that's all. He doesn't require to calculate. Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, sahasra-yuga-paryantam ahar yad brahmaṇo viduḥ (BG 8.17). The Kṛṣṇa says. Now, we can say what is the age of Brahmā by Kṛṣṇa's words. I don't require to be a very expert astrologer or astronomer. I hear from Kṛṣṇa, and I reproduce. Just like child. Father said, "This is this;" I say, "This is this." That's all. The child is not perfect, but when he says, "Father said this is this," that is perfect. Therefore our process of gathering knowledge from the father—we don't calculate or don't concoct or put theories, no. We don't do that. This is called śruti, śruti-pramāṇa, evidence from śruti.
Hanumān: The way you have come is that you have come as though you've not come from a religion or nothing. You've come and everybody fall in love with you, you preach, and, Prabhupāda, we cannot deny you are the authority because you know everything, and your...
Prabhupāda: Any way you take it, then you become happy. That's all. Of course, when you take it out of love... That is a fact. So without love, this transaction, because there is no price for it... All other transaction, there is exchange of price. Here there is no price, so out of love only, one can take it, not by paying any price. It is not possible. To pay the price of Kṛṣṇa consciousness is not possible. Yes.
Hanumān: You cannot force anybody to say, "I am the guru. I'm the (indistinct). Fall in love with me."
Prabhupāda: Why shall I force? What is my... That is not my business. I am Kṛṣṇa's servant. I simply say, "Here is good thing. You take it." Now, Kṛṣṇa also says that. He does not force. Kṛṣṇa is God. He can force, but He does not do that.
Prabhupāda: Because I have approached the Supreme, the supreme brain, Kṛṣṇa. He is the perfect person in knowledge. Aiśvaryasya, jñāna. Vedāhaṁ samatītāni (BG 7.26). He knows everything. He is conducting nature. Mayādhyakṣeṇa prakṛtiḥ suyate sa-carācaram (BG 9.10). Yasyājñayā bhramati sambhṛta-kālacakro. Janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). So we know from the perfect. Therefore my knowledge is perfect. I am not perfect; that's a fact. But my knowledge is perfect. Just like I am not an electrician. But the electrician has told me that "You push this button. There will be light." So I am doing that. What is the use of becoming electrician? I want light, and the electrician told me, "Just push this button." I am doing that, and light is there. That's all. You cannot say, "You are not a electrician. How you can say the light...?" And I know from the perfect person, and it is acting. This is our position. It doesn't require that I will have to become electrician. The electrician has told that "You push this button," and there is light. That's all. Does it require that I will have to become a electrician to conduct this light?
Prabhupāda: That is the second line. First line?
Santoṣa: Sa evaṁ guhyatamaṁ vakṣyāmy aśeṣataḥ.
Prabhupāda: Vakṣyāmy... Yes, that is the verse. Yaj jñātvā anyaj jñātavyam na avaśiṣyate. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is such a great science that if one becomes expert, then he knows everything.
Haṁsadūta: So Prabhupāda, is there something we should do to prepare ourselves for this disaster?
Prabhupāda: What?
Haṁsadūta: This coming war.
Prabhupāda: You should simply prepare for chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Haṁsadūta: That's all?
Prabhupāda: That's all.
Jayapatāka: So then we should desire not to go back to Vaikuṇṭha but to go back to..., to be situated in our pure service to Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Pure devotee does not aspire anything, simply to be engaged in loving service of the Lord, wherever it may be. It doesn't matter. (break)
Jayādvaita: ...they know everything and they're perfect in everything. But sometimes, from our material viewpoint, we see some discrepancies. Just like we think that...
Prabhupāda: Because material viewpoint. The viewpoint is wrong; therefore you find discrepancies.
Jayādvaita: So we should think that we have the defect.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Ācārya is explained, bhakti-saṁsanaḥ: "One who's preaching the cult of devotional service, he's ācārya." Then why should you find any discrepancy?
Jayādvaita: Because we see... For instance, sometimes the ācārya may seem to forget something or not to know something, so from our point of view, if someone has forgotten, that is...
Prabhupāda: No, no, no. Then...
Jayādvaita: ...an imperfection.
Prabhupāda: That is not the... Then you do not understand. Ācārya is not God, omniscient. He is servant of God. His business is to preach bhakti cult. That is ācārya.
Satsvarūpa: Prabhupāda, in one purport in the Bhagavad-gītā, you write that a disciple of a bona fide spiritual master is supposed to know everything.
Prabhupāda: Yes, if he follows the spiritual master.
Satsvarūpa: But how could he know...? What does that mean, "everything"?
Prabhupāda: Everything means whatever his guru knows, he should know, that much. Not like God, everything. Within his limit, that's all. If he tries to understand whatever his guru has said, that much is "everything." Otherwise, "everything" does not mean that we know everything, like God, like Kṛṣṇa. That is not possible. If he regularly chants and follow the regulative principles, follows the orders of guru, then he knows everything. That's all. Not very much... Knows everything, then what is the use of reading books when he knows everything? (break) ...everything—except Kṛṣṇa. Aham... Sarvasya cāhaṁ hṛdi sanniviṣṭo (BG 15.15). He knows past, present, future, everything. You cannot expect anyone to know like Kṛṣṇa, everything.
Jayādvaita: Kṛṣṇa says in Bhagavad-gītā that one who knows Him knows everything.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Because if he knows that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then he knows everything. That's all. Not that he should know as Kṛṣṇa. If he... Yasmin vijñāte sarvam eva vijñātam... If he accepts Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the Absolute Truth, then he knows everything. That is finish.
Jayādvaita: Just like Gaura-kiśora could not write. So it appeared that he did not, there was something that he did not know, although he knew Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Yes. He knows everything. Otherwise how Bhaktisiddhānta accepted him as guru? He knows Kṛṣṇa. That's all.
Nalinī-kānta: Whatever the spiritual master says, that is also perfect?
Prabhupāda: Yes. Because he says nothing concocted. Whatever he says, he says from śāstra, and guru.
Devotee (2): Śrīla Prabhupāda, is there any instance when you were chastised by your spiritual master?
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Devotee (2): Is there any instance when you were chastised by your spiritual master?
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. Oh, yes.
Devotee (2): Can you tell us?
Prabhupāda: I remember the moment was very valuable. Yes.
Prabhupāda: So that is his position. Either he is a foolish rascal or he is not a gentleman, falsely preaching Bhagavad-gītā. That is his position. If you do not know a subject matter, why do you talk about it? Either you mislead or cheat or you are a foolish, you have no science. Similarly, here is a tape recorder, I do not know how the machine is working. If I talk about it authoritatively is it not my foolishness? I can talk about Bhagavad-gītā or something else, but that does mean I know everything about this machine? But he did it like this. He was dealing in politics, and he took up as a mahātmā, a religious man. That was his cheating.
Paramahaṁsa: So because people are so much in darkness about religion, therefore they say...
Prabhupāda: Yes, everyone is in darkness. If you can make propaganda, the people will be misled. That is not very difficult. Just like from Russia, nobody is communist. But it is going on—the Russia is communist country. I have studied thoroughly. Nobody is communist. Maybe a few only. But it is going on by propaganda that Russia is a communist country. The people in general, they are forced to accept it. That book was written by some man, terrorism. It is terrorism. That's it. By force.
Prabhupāda: Then all-knowledgeable means you must know, all-knowledgeable. You just explain what is the nature of God.
Śrutakīrti: She's saying God knows everything, that is her conception.
Prabhupāda: Oh. God knows everything, but everything means then, if you, we accept this formula, then He knows past, present, and future.
Sister: No, that's right. No past, present, or future. No, I don't think that. Just eternal.
Prabhupāda: No, no. God knows everything means He knows past, present, and future. That is all-knowing. So if He knows past, present, and future, then you should accept His instruction. That should be the next. So what is His instruction? His instruction is man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru.
Prabhupāda: This is complete understanding, that "Everything is Kṛṣṇa." That's all. That is a fact. Everything is the energy of Kṛṣṇa. Just like in this material world everyone knows everything is the sunshine. Due to the sunshine, everything is coming. That's a fact. Science...
Guest (2) (Woman): I've seen your pictures many times in the books.
Prabhupāda: Where?
Guest (2): I've seen your pictures many times in the books.
Bali-mardana: In your books.
Prabhupāda: Oh, you have got my books?
Guest (2): That's amazing. For the first time I can see you really.
Gurukṛpa: You have got our books?
Guest (2): Yes, I have got some at home, and I read some of them too.
Guest (1): What do you say about the weather or the sun or what... You just were talking before she interrupted.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Weather is changing. Weather is changing. Śītoṣṇa, it is called śītoṣṇa. Sometimes it is cold; sometimes it is hot.
Prabhupāda: But we don't follow that process. We follow one standard knowledge. That is Kṛṣṇa. That is our distinction between the ordinary scholars and our... And we are on the safe side because we don't manufacture, speculate. That is troublesome. If I have to defeat you, then I will have to speak so many things. I will have to find out the device how can I defeat you. But we have got one standard knowledge. I may be fool, rascal, but we repeat Kṛṣṇa. So our method is very easy. We are challenging everyone. Just like there are many scientific disciples. So I am not a science man. I have never studied science. But scientists, they are becoming my disciple. From material point of view, I have no education in science, but why the scientist is becoming my disciple? Is he becoming fool? After taking his doctorate title, he is becoming fool so that he is accepting me as spiritual master? Therefore the Vedic injunction is correct when it says, yasmin vijñāte sarvam evaṁ vijñātam bhavanti. "If you know Kṛṣṇa perfectly well, then you know everything well." That is the Vedic injunction. So unless you know Kṛṣṇa well, your knowledge is imperfect. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyam (BG 15.15). Veda means knowledge. So there are different departmental knowledge. So Kṛṣṇa says, vedaiś ca sarvaiḥ. All departmental knowledge, when they come to the understanding of Kṛṣṇa, then it is perfect. So long he does not come to Kṛṣṇa, he is imperfect.
Prabhupāda: Oh, that... We are not... Chanting... We are also working. It is not that we are simply sitting down and chanting. Because we are chanting, therefore we are loving everyone. That is a fact. These Hare Kṛṣṇa chanters, they will never agree to kill any animal, even a plant, because they know everything is part and parcel of God. Why unnecessarily one should be killed? That is love.
Dr. Pore: Love means never killing?
Prabhupāda: There are so many things. It is one of the items. Yes, that is one of the... Do you kill your own son? Why? Because you love him.
Dr. Judah: Would you explain the other side of it, the fact that, of course, the Bhagavad-gītā was, has its setting on a battlefield in which Kṛṣṇa enjoins Arjuna to go out and fight his kinsmen because it is his duty as a kṣatriya.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Because in the material world, for the maintenance of equilibrium of the society, sometimes killing is necessary. Just like fight, war. When the enemy has come to your country, you cannot sit idly; you must fight. But that does not mean that you are allowed to kill everyone as you like. That is a special circumstances when fighting must be there. Therefore the kṣatriyas are required to give protection. Like the government is keeping military, police, soldiers, that does not mean government is after killing only. That department will be utilized when there is necessity, not that government is meant for killing. Government has other departments also. But this is also maintained.
Devotee (1): I understand. Okay? But they are saying, the general conception of you is that because you know Kṛṣṇa...
Prabhupāda: You can... You...
Devotee (1): (interrupting) Excuse me. Because you know Kṛṣṇa, therefore you know everything about the material world and can answer all questions.
Prabhupāda: So whatever I know I have explained in my books. Beyond that I have no knowledge.
Devotee (2): If that is the case, Śrīla Prabhupāda, that does not diminish our respect for you in the least because we have always held...
Prabhupāda: So what can I do? I say that whatever I have got experience, I am explaining in my books. I have explained. So it is not possible for me to answer every individual person. It is not possible.
Prabhupāda: Still there is a science, Bhṛgu-saṁhitā, which will give you prediction of your next birth. Still there is science, Bhṛgu-saṁhitā. He'll give you description of three lives: your past life, present life, and future life. Bhṛgu-saṁhitā. (break) ...Bhāgavata it is said bhaviṣyati. Kikaṭeṣu bhaviṣyati. Bhaviṣyati means "He will appear." Why it is not possible? You haven't got that knowledge, that is another thing. But it is possible. (break) ...one word: tri-kāla-jñā. Tri-kāla-jñā means "one who knows past, present, and future." Kṛṣṇa says, vedāhaṁ samatītāni (BG 7.26). "I know everything past, present..."
Brahmānanda: Equally, He says. Sama tītāni. He knows the past, the present and the future.
Prabhupāda: And He says in another place, "It is not that we were not existing in the past, and neither it is that we shall not exist in the future." So this is past, present, future. Tri-kāla-jñā. So we are not going to the temple?
Śrī Govinda: Oh, yes. (break)
Prabhupāda: ...sataḥ syāt. This frightfulness is due to unawareness of God. The more one is unaware of God, he is more frightened. One who is fully conscious of God, he is not frightened because he knows, "Everything is God. Why shall I afraid?"
Paramahaṁsa: Even death.
Prabhupāda: Death is already declared that "I am death." Kṛṣṇa says. So there is no question of.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: There's a description in the Bhāgavatam of Dhruva Mahārāja when he's fighting all of those demons, that he wasn't frightened at all.
Hrdayananda: So the devotee sees Kṛṣṇa in death also.
Prabhupāda: Yes, Kṛṣṇa is everything. Without Kṛṣṇa, there cannot be anything. Janmādyasya yataḥ. The example is given: Just like the rope. Somebody is taking it is snake. He is frightened. And one knows this is rope, he is not frightened. So actually the one thing—God is one—He is distributed in so many manifestations. So one realizes that it is God. By His energy He is manifested in so many forms. So why he should be frightened?
Prabhupāda: It is tamo-guṇa. He knows everything; still, he is forced to act criminally. That is tamo-guṇa. Everyone knows that he will be punished. He has seen that criminal is punished. Still, he acts criminally. That is called ignorance. Heart is unclean. Therefore our first process is ceto-darpaṇa-mārjanam (CC Antya 20.12), to cleanse the heart.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Pāpa-buddhi, sinful intelligence.
Prabhupāda: To cleanse the heart, beginning of cleanse the heart, that everyone is cats and dogs and so-called human beings... They are under the bodily concept of life. It has to be cleansed, that "You are not this body." If he understands that, then he will understand other things. This is the beginning of knowledge. But where is that knowledge? No school, no college, teaches this thing. So they remain in ignorance. What is this education if he remains in ignorance? (break) ...kinds of advertisement.
Prabhupāda: Huh? You know everything, where, what is where? Do you know? Then why do you ask this question? There is. There is. There is planet, hellish planet.
Indian man (4): I don't know, I have thought about this, that the hell of the pradas(?) exists only in this world itself.
Prabhupāda: Because you are the frog of the well. The frog of the well thinks, "This well is everything." And if you say, "There is Atlantic Ocean," he cannot imagine, the frog of the well. You know frog of the well?
Indian man (4): Yes, yes.
Prabhupāda: A three-feet well, and a frog is there and he is thinking, "This is everything." And some friend comes and informs, "Oh, I have seen very big water, Atlantic." He simply imagines, "Oh? It's big? How much big? One feet more? All right, two feet. All right, three feet," like that. So the frogs in the well, they cannot understand. You should be not a frog in the well; you should be liberal to hear from the authorities, Vedas. Then you will understand. And if you remain a frog in the well... All these rascal scientists, they are all frog in the well. They have got little calculation of this planet, and they have no information of... There are so many millions of planets. What do they know? They cannot, could not study even this moon planet. Wrongly study. The moon planet is above the sun planet, 1,000,600,000 miles above. What do they know? They are thinking the moon planet is in between the earth and the... So the all wrong calculation.
Prabhupāda: Well, knowledge means it is meant for few men. If you want men without any university degree, you will get many thousands. But as soon as say, "We want graduate," it will be minimized. Or as soon as you say "postgraduate," it will be still minimized. So as soon as there is question of knowledge, the number of people will be diminished. So we cannot expect mass of people. But if there are good persons, exemplified person, vivid example, that will help the whole society—"There is ideal class. They know everything."
Reporter: You're going to be delivering two addresses next week at one of our biggest universities.
Prabhupāda: That he knows.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Monday and Wednesday. It would be nice if you would mention that in your article.
Reporter: Yes, I will. But I want to know what will you tell the people.
Prabhupāda: These things in different way, that "Come to your pure knowledge and make your plan. Then you will be happy. And if your basic principle is wrong, then whatever plan you make, it is useless."
Prabhupāda: Busy intelligent means at least whatever he is doing, there is some meaning, busy intelligent. And lazy intelligent means he is doing higher things. Lazy intelligent means brāhmaṇa, and busy intelligent means kṣatriya. So the cātur-varṇyaṁ mayā sṛṣṭām (BG 4.13). The society should be divided into four classes. The śūdras, they are busy fools. Therefore they are to be guided. They are to be guided. If there are, hundred workers are there, then one leader must be there to give the direction: "Why you are doing this? Why you don't do this?" Otherwise he'll create havoc. Busy fool. So the whole world is full of busy fools. That's all. In the Bhagavad-gītā you will find that for brāhmaṇa, śamo damaḥ satyaṁ śaucaṁ titikṣa ārjavam, jñānam vijñānam āstikyaṁ brahma-karma sva... (BG 18.42). There is no recommendation that "You work hard day and night." The brahminical qualification is controlling the senses, controlling the mind, truthful, clean, knows everything nicely, practical application of the knowledge, full faith in śāstra and Bhagavān. Jñānaṁ vijñānam āstikyam. These things are recommended, not that a brāhmaṇa should become very busy whole day and night for getting food. So śāstra says, "There is no use of becoming busy for your food. Food is there already."
Prabhupāda: Bhakti... Just like I have got some official servant, and I have got very confidential servant. So to my confidential servant everything is disclosed. He knows everything. But official servant, he may not know everything. Therefore bhakti is the confidential part of understanding God. Otherwise they understand vaguely, impartially, not sufficiently. In the Bhagavad-gītā there is a verse, mayy āsakta-manā pārtha yoga yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ, samagram, asaṁśaya samagra mā yath jñās... You can quote it. That is the first śloka of the Seventh Chapter.
Prabhupāda: And a big fish, they'll remain in the middle, whale fish. And a small fish, (makes noise) "phrr, phrr, phrr, phrr, phrr." Sapari phora phoraya. So he is a small fish. He is thinking that he knows everything. What does he know about these five vargas? Does he know anything? Ka-varga, ca-varga, ṭa-varga. So ṭa-varga means ṭa, ṭha, ḍa, ḍha, ṇa. So the ṇa is there. So it can be replaced by ṭa.
Harikeśa: I think he was also the same one who was saying the Aquarian Gospel was just somebody's dream.
Prabhupāda: Yes, but you are also dreaming. Why do you claim that your dream is all right; his dream is wrong? Dreaming is wrong. If his dream is wrong—you are also dreaming—you are also wrong. Why do you claim that your dream is all right? That is nonsense. Everyone thinks that he is right and everyone is wrong. We do not think like that. We take the words of the authority, that's all. Or we have no respect(?). This is our program. That is the way of paramparā. Not only we accept, but our previous ācāryas, all the big, big ācāryas, they have accepted. Śukadeva Gosvāmī said. He is ācārya. Vyāsadeva says from the very beginning. Kṛṣṇa says. That's all right. We take these authorities. We do not dream. That is not our process. Dream, your dream or my dream, this is all rascal. Dream is dream.
Prabhupāda: Will is given to you. Living being means there is will—thinking, feeling and willing. Don't question if you do not know. Everything comes from God. What is the use of "Where will comes?" Janmādya asya yataḥ. Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavo mattaḥ sarvam... (BG 10.8). Everything is coming from Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa has got will; you have got will. Why do you ask? This is foolishness. Kṛṣṇa has got independence; you have got independence. You are a small Kṛṣṇa. A particle of gold is also gold. Everything is there. All chemical composition is there. It has come from Kṛṣṇa. Why you are asking wherefrom it comes?
Dr. Patel: How he became this.
Prabhupāda: Yes. (laughter) Ask submissively, that "Forget all rascaldom, whatever you have learned, because you do not know what is knowledge. You have simply learned all rascaldom. So please forget it." This is our preaching.
Dr. Patel: Tell me that knowledge by which I know everything, according to that..., that boy? In Upaniṣad?
Prabhupāda: So that is, Kṛṣṇa is speaking. You know everything. By hearing Kṛṣṇa, you know everything. But we'll not do that. We shall stick to that rascaldom, what you have learned. Kṛṣṇa says mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat (BG 7.7). Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām... (BG 18.66). (Hindi) (break)
Dr. Patel: ...man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65).
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu was eulogized by Rūpa Gosvāmī, namo mahā-vadanyāya kṛṣṇa-prema-pradāya te (CC Madhya 19.53). (aside:) Hare Kṛṣṇa. "You are, Caitanya Mahāprabhu, You are the most munificent because You are giving kṛṣṇa-prema, which is very, very difficult." (aside:) Jaya. (break) ...not because he... In the beginning I said they will not. (laughter) (Hindi) (break) ...rise early.
Prabhupāda: Huh?
Harikeśa: We're civilized, so we have so many things we know now, so we don't need God.
Prabhupāda: No, we know everything. Who says we do not know? We know everything.
Harikeśa: I'm playing the part... (laughs)
Prabhupāda: We know everything. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idam vijñātaṁ bhavanti. This is the Vedic statement. If you know God, then you know everything. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idam vijñātam.
Harikeśa: The materialists think, though, that the less you know, the more you need God.
Prabhupāda: Huh?
Harikeśa: The less you know, the more you need God.
Prabhupāda: Therefore we say they are rascal and fools. This is the... What is this "House of Soviet Culture"? So why don't you arrange a meeting here? Yes.
Prabhupāda: ...anything, any ideas made by imperfect man is useless. That is our, our proposition. You are imperfect, and the sun is so perfect, physically, that how you can theorize unless you know the whole expert. If you say "I know everything," then the question will be: "Who made this sun? So powerful, so extraordinarily heated and light. Who made it?" You did..., you have not made it. Where is your, that knowledge?
Harikeśa: As I read on, I find out that it's...
Prabhupāda: These are all speculation. That's all.
Harikeśa: Definitely. Useless book.
Prabhupāda: Useless speculation.
Harikeśa: But this, this argument that's being brought up here, actually people are thinking about a lot, that there's an idea and there's, there's a fact...
Prabhupāda: That argument is.... Just like I told you, in my childhood I was thinking in the gramophone box there is a man. I could not think at that time without a man how this gramophone can sing so nicely. So there is a man, and as soon as the record is..., he gives, he sings. That.... I was thinking like that.
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: He's asking that "You... I'll save you. You surrender to Me."
Acyutānanda: But that means He knows everything in advance.
Prabhupāda: He knows. He knows that you are a rascal, you'll fall. Therefore He says that "Do this. You'll not fall."
Acyutānanda: And they don't seem to take that answer, and they're very...
Sudāmā: No, they become very embittered: "Why He permits us...? If He is all-loving God, why He permits us to suffer?
Prabhupāda: No, He's not permit... He forbids, but you...
Acyutānanda: You insist.
Prabhupāda: ...that you have to understand, that you have got little independence. That... Actually they do not understand that.
Prabhupāda: That does not mean he knows everything. That does not mean...
Acyutānanda: No, but he can say...
Prabhupāda: Suppose you, you, if you can make a nice vegetable preparation, but that does not mean you know everything of the vegetable. That does not mean. You are still rascal. Although you can prepare a nice preparation with vegetable. But that does not mean you know everything of the vegetable. That is karu kārya. That is called karu kārya. Just like this mason worker. They know how to set up the bricks and doing nice work. But that does not mean... Wherefrom the brick has come? You can take this flower, make a, what is called, in a vase, can make a beautiful...
Devotee (1): Bouquet.
Prabhupāda: Eh?
Devotee (1): Bouquet?
Acyutānanda: Arrangement.
Prabhupāda: Yes, bouquet, yes. That does not mean you know how the flower has come out. That is called visarga. Sarga and visarga. Just like Brahmā has created this universe, but that does not mean he is the ultimate cause. Tene brahma hṛdā ya ādi-kavaye (SB 1.1.1). Brahmā got knowledge from Kṛṣṇa how to do it. What is this? (break) ...āṇu-cayānthara-stham. (break) ...tejaḥ, heat, the sun, supplying heat and water, vāri and mṛt, and the earth, combination. These things are coming out. Tejo-vāri-mṛt-vinimayam. How these flowers and trees are coming out? There is sunlight, there is water, and there is earth. And there is Kṛṣṇa also, the seed. Bījo 'ham sarva-bhutanam (Bg 7.10). So without Kṛṣṇa, nothing can be... (break) ...there is spirit atom?
Prabhupāda: "My only responsibility is to surrender to Kṛṣṇa"—then this very conception will save you.
Rāmeśvara: I spoke with one man who argued that "Kṛṣṇa is very cruel because He knows everything past, present and future, so He knew that we would all fall down from the spiritual sky, but still, He gave us the independence to fall down."
Prabhupāda: Hm?
Rāmeśvara: "Even though He knew we would fall, because He knows everything..."
Acyutānanda: That's a common question.
Prabhupāda: That is another foolish question. Unless you have got independence, what is your life? Then you are dead stone. You want to become a dead stone? That is not Kṛṣṇa's concern. Kṛṣṇa does not give such perfection, that you become a dead stone.
Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa.... If everyone knows, why Kṛṣṇa does not know? "He knows everything" means this common sense everyone knows.
Madhudviṣa: Does He know what you will choose?
Prabhupāda: Eh? Just try to understand. Future means like this: nature's law; and it will happen. After summer there will be rainy season; it will happen, and they will call, I am foretelling future. It is not future; it is natural sequence, automatically happened.
Satsvarūpa: But that's predictable. If I have my own free will, what I'm going to do, you don't know.
Prabhupāda: No, no, if you are in knowledge, you can predict. But if you are fool, you cannot say. If I see that in July there will be rain, and if you are a fool, you'll protest. That is your foolishness. It is natural sequence, one after another.
Prabhupāda: So anyway, that is the test. If you don't believe in Kṛṣṇa, you are rascal. That's all. We are simple child, and Kṛṣṇa has said that anyone who does not surrendered, he's a rascal. So we say, "Are you surrendered to Kṛṣṇa?" "No." "You are a rascal." (laughter) No. Our test is very simple.
Dr. Patel: And what do you mean by surrendering, sir?
Prabhupāda: He does not know anything but Kṛṣṇa. He knows everything...
Dr. Patel: Surrendering means by mental process if I do through my mind. This is my definition. My mental process in the...
Prabhupāda: No, no.
Dr. Patel: Everything happening is.... By Kṛṣṇa's grace he's surrendering to...
Prabhupāda: Not mental. No mental concoction. Factual. Factual.
Dr. Patel: That is factual. That everything is...
Prabhupāda: No, mental concoction is not factual.
Prabhupāda: He's thief; he's not servant. He's a thief. He has taken service as a matter of means that "If I remain as a servant, I'll get the opportunity of stealing." So he's not a servant, he's a thief. Stena eva sa ucyate (BG 3.12). (break) ...becoming a thief, if you have got some desire, you ask, "Kṛṣṇa, I am very poor. Please give me some money." That you can do. That is mentioned in the Bhagavad-gītā. Ārto jijñāsur arthārthī jñānī ca bharatarṣabha. Ārtaḥ, one who is distressed, he's praying. That is beginning. But when he's advanced.... Just like Dhruva Mahārāja. He'll say, svāmin kṛtārtho 'smi varam..., "Now I'm satisfied. I don't want anything." That is perfect stage. But even one goes to God and prays for something, he's called pious. Because he has approached God. And because he has approached God and he's asking God, there is some transaction in this way, by association of God, he'll be purified. One day he will say, svāmin kṛtārtho 'smi varaṁ na yāce (CC Madhya 22.42), "Now, I am fully satisfied. I don't want anything. I don't trouble You. Let me serve You." (break) Why the devotee will ask from God? Kṛṣṇa says, yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham, teṣāṁ nityābhiyuktānām (BG 9.22). He says the responsibility, "I shall supply everything, whatever you want." So why the devotee will ask? If the child knows, "My father is there, my mother is...," why he shall ask? The father will take care whatever he wants. It is unfaithful that "God cannot supply my necessities. I'll have to ask Him." He knows everything. Why shall I ask Him? That is pure knowledge.
Prabhupāda: There is fire within the earth, just as there is fire within the stomach-fire. That helps digestion. In the Ayurvedic śāstra, when one does not feel an appetite, it is called agni-māṁdya (indistinct), rest and (indistinct) of the fire.
Devotee: How can the fire within the stomach be increased?
Prabhupāda: You know everything?
Devotee: No.
Prabhupāda: Then?
Hari-śauri: He said that by taking cold milk, that dampens the fire. I thought that was what we said. That's what I was always told.
Devotee: Certain foods are cooling to the stomach.
Prabhupāda: Appetite is increased on account of the fire. The fire creates different secretions: blood. This is a big machine. It is mentioned in Bhagavad-gītā, yantra. How this yantra is working? Electricity, everything, air.
Prabhupāda: It's not a question of religious process. You must know things are there. Religion is... Religion is that, because religion means to know the real law. That is religion. Not, religion does not mean sentiment. Religion means to know the real law. That is religion. If you do not know the definition of religion, this is it. Religion means to know the real law, how this world is going on, what is the law. That is religion. Religion is not a sentiment. They have made it a kind of faith. You may have some faith, but the law is different. So faith, a dogmatic faith is not religion. To know the real law, this is definition of religion. ...sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. If you know that law, then everything is revealed to you. That is religion. Religion means not a blind rascal. Religion means he knows everything. That is religion. This is the Vedic injunction. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. Just like we are talking with so many philosophers. It does not mean that I'm scientist, philosopher, everything. No. We know one thing, Kṛṣṇa, immediately we can catch up what is the...
Hari-śauri: It's very surprising to people how we have such a wide scope of knowledge.
Prabhupāda: Immediately catch up, "Here is a rascal." Sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. If you simply know Kṛṣṇa, you know everything. That is religion.
Prabhupāda: Yes, therefore the demand is "You surrender, rascal. You are suffering, you surrender. That is your good..." Therefore He comes, He loves His sons, "You rascals, why you are creating plans? You come here. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). I shall give you all comforts."
Rāmeśvara: Kṛṣṇa knows everything in the past, and everything in the future.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Rāmeśvara: So when Kṛṣṇa.... Kṛṣṇa knows that I will misuse my independence, but still He gives me independence.
Prabhupāda: That is Kṛṣṇa's mercy.
Rāmeśvara: Even though it is bad for me.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: You say Kṛṣṇa knows you are going to misuse your independence.
Rāmeśvara: Because He knows everything in the past and everything in the future. So He must.... Kṛṣṇa is all-knowing.
Prabhupāda: This present, future, means, just like a father knows the..., how the child is. Now if the child changes, and touches the fire, Kṛṣṇa knows it will burn. He knew when the child did not touch the fire, his future. And when he touched the fire, Kṛṣṇa knew the result. So He always knows. His position is to know the future. He's always.... Now you are changing, what is the future due to your little independence?
Prabhupāda: No, this is the answer. Kṛṣṇa's position is always the same. He knows past, present and future.
Rāmeśvara: This is Karandhara's problem, this point of philosophy. He cannot understand it. His argument is that he is having so much trouble due to his sense attraction. And Kṛṣṇa gave him the sense attraction, or Kṛṣṇa gave him senses; now he is having trouble controlling his senses. But he argues that Kṛṣṇa knows everything, so Kṛṣṇa knew that he would have trouble controlling his senses; therefore why did Kṛṣṇa give him senses?
Prabhupāda: That is nonsense.
Rāmeśvara: He says Kṛṣṇa is playing games.
Prabhupāda: I have given you charge of this BBT, millions of dollars you are dealing, but it is not for your misuse. As soon as you misuse, that is your responsibility.
Rāmeśvara: Yes, but he says but still, you'll know that I'm going to misuse it.
Prabhupāda: No. That Kṛṣṇa knows, when something charge is given. But because you are independent, I know that "Rāmeśvara is very good boy; let him be in charge." But you can misuse at any moment, because you have got independence. You can misuse at any moment. At that time your position is different. That is this Karandhara's, he was in this position, but as soon as he misused it, immediately, Kṛṣṇa changed his position.
Prabhupāda: That is our foolishness, that we cannot understand. That is our foolishness. How you can understand Kṛṣṇa's activities?
Rāmeśvara: That's the only answer.
Prabhupāda: What Kṛṣṇa is doing.... You are little independent, but He is fully independent. He knows everything. His independence is not under condition; your independence is under condition. If you misuse your independence, you'll suffer.
Rāmeśvara: His argument is that "I should never be allowed to misuse my independence."
Hari-śauri: There's no question of independence then.
Rāmeśvara: Yes.
Prabhupāda: That is not independence. Independence means you can use properly or improperly.
Rāmeśvara: He cannot understand that.
Prabhupāda: He wants to become a machine.
Prabhupāda: No clear conception, scientific idea. Therefore educated persons, they are not interested. "God, give us daily bread." They will say, "Why we shall go to church for begging bread? We can manufacture it, large quantity." (laughs) Why they should go? Formality: "God, give us our daily bread." "Just open a big factory and eat as much bread as we like. Why should we go to God?" (break) ...Jawaharlal Nehru, he took this view, that "For economic development why should you go to the temple, ask this demigod, that demigod, 'Give me this. Give me this'? Develop industry and get money to enjoy." That is his.... (break)...description of God in Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam begins: janmādy asya yato 'nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ sva-rāṭ (SB 1.1.1). This is God, the origin of everything. Who is there who can challenge this explanation, "The origin of everything"? Now, what is that origin? Whether it is matter or sentient? No. Janmādy asya yato 'nvayād itarataś ca abhijñaḥ (SB 1.1.1). He knows everything. Therefore He's a person. Otherwise, how He can be origin of everything? Anvayād itarataś ca. Suppose I.... If I have manufactured this car, then I know every nook and corner of this car, how I have manufactured. One who has manufactured, he knows how it is working, every minute feature. Even an expert driver, he knows how many parts are there, which part is.... Anvayād itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ. If he's abhijñaḥ, if he's completely cognizant of every part of the whole creation, then He has created. (pause) All Santa Monica city?
Jayādvaita.: "Material perplexities are like a forest fire that somehow blazes without being set by anyone. Similarly, the world situation is such that perplexities of life automatically appear, without our wanting such confusion. No one wants fire, and yet it takes place and we become perplexed. The Vedic wisdom therefore advises that in order to solve the perplexities of life and to understand the science of the solution, one must approach a bona fide spiritual master who is in the disciplic succession. A person with a bona fide spiritual master is supposed to know everything. One should not therefore remain in material perplexities but should approach a spiritual master. This is the purport of this verse. Who is the man in material perplexities? It is he who does not understand the problems of life. In the Bṛhad-āraṇyaka Upaniṣad the perplexed man is described as follows: yo vā etad akṣaraṁ gārgy aviditvāsmāl lokāt praiti sa kṛpaṇaḥ."
Prabhupāda: Yad viditvā yaḥ prayāti sa brāhmaṇa, etad avidyāt yaḥ prayāti sa eva kṛpaṇaḥ. Read.
Jayādvaita: " 'He is a miserly man who does not solve the problems of life as a human and who thus quits this world like the cats and dogs, without understanding the science of self-realization.' This human form of life is a most valuable asset for the living entity, who can utilize it for solving the problems of life; therefore, one who does not utilize this opportunity properly is a miser. On the other hand, there is the brāhmaṇa..."
Prabhupāda: They do not know even what are the problems of life. People are so uneducated, they do not know even what are the problems of life. They do not know. What generally people think the problems of life?
Hari-śauri: Purport. "While discussing the subject of this body and the owner of the body, the soul and the Supersoul, we shall find three different topics of study: the Lord, the living entity, and matter. In every field of activities, in every body, there are two souls: the individual soul and the Supersoul. Because the Supersoul is the plenary expansion of the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa says, 'I am also the knower, but I am not the individual owner of the body. I am the superknower. I am present in every body as the Paramātmā, or Supersoul.' One who studies the subject matter of the field of activity and the knower of the field very minutely, in terms of this Bhagavad-gītā, can attain to knowledge. The Lord says: 'I am the knower of the field of activities in every individual body.' The individual may be the knower of his own body, but he is not in knowledge of other bodies. The Supreme Personality of Godhead, who is present as the Supersoul in all bodies, knows everything about all bodies. He knows all the different bodies of all the various species of life. A citizen may know everything about his patch of land, but the king knows not only his palace but all the properties possessed by the individual citizens. Similarly, one may be the proprietor of the body individually, but the Supreme Lord is the proprietor of all bodies. The king is the original proprietor of the kingdom, and the citizen is the secondary proprietor. Similarly, the Supreme Lord is the supreme proprietor of all bodies. The body consists of senses. The Supreme Lord is Hṛṣīkeśa, which means controller of the senses. He is the original controller of the senses, just as the king is the original controller of all the activities of the state, and the citizens are secondary controllers. The Lord also says, 'I am also the knower.' This means that He is the superknower; the individual soul knows only his particular body. In the Vedic literature, it is also stated..."
Prabhupāda: Just like pains and pleasure. You know your bodily pains and pleasure, I know my body. But I do not know your bodily pains, neither you know mine. But God knows everyone's pains and pleasures. That is the difference between God and individual soul.
Prabhupāda: Just see. This rascaldom is going on in the name of civilization. Īśāvāsyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1), they do not know. Everything belongs to God, and are all sons of God. So by God's arrangement there is enough land to live, enough land to produce food. They're misusing. Therefore the whole trouble.
Indian man (4): Prabhu, then what that means, what we mean is they should have rsabandutra(?)
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is, a rsabandutra(?) means, unless you have got the central point. How we can have? First of all you know Kṛṣṇa.
Indian man (4): They must have a common background, common ground whereby you can...
Prabhupāda: That they haven't got. Common.... He is trying to become Kṛṣṇa. Everything is rolling around. So this is the mistake. He's trying to become center, that foolish rascal. How he's center? Center is Kṛṣṇa.
Indian man (4): So the only hope for humanity is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Prabhupāda: Yes, only hope. Therefore this verse I was explaining.
Prabhupāda: One minute. That Absolute Truth is explained in the Vedānta-sūtra, janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Absolute Truth is that from whom everything comes into existence, everything emanates. Now that has been discussed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, because Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the natural commentary by the same author. So he begins janmādy asya yato 'nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ (SB 1.1.1). This word is used. He's not dead body, dead matter-abhijñaḥ, like that. In the beginning. That source of everything... Janmādy asya yato 'nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ (SB 1.1.1). Just like a mother gives birth to a child. She knows everything, how the child was born in the womb, how it developed, how it is coming. At least, on the whole, she knows everything. Similarly, the original source of everything is immediately informed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that abhijñaḥ, experienced, knows everything. Anvayād itarataś ca, directly and indirectly, everything it knows. So the origin of everything cannot be a dead man. That is the beginning of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.
Prabhupāda: In Bhagavad-gītā it is said bhaktyā mām abhijānāti: (BG 18.55) "One can understand Me through bhakti." And the Vedic injunction is that "If one knows Me, or knows the Absolute Truth, God, then he knows everything." Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. If somehow or other one knows the Absolute Truth, then he knows everything. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. That is the benefit of knowing the Absolute Truth. So a devotee knows everything. How it is possible? That is explained in Bhagavad-gītā,
- teṣām evānukampārtham
- aham ajñāna-jaṁ tamaḥ
- nāśayāmy ātma-bhāva-stho
- jñāna-dīpena bhāsvatā
- (BG 10.11)
One may challenge, "How a person can know everything?" So Kṛṣṇa immediately replies that "I help him specifically." Teṣām evānukampārtham. "Just to show My personal, especial favor upon him, I light up the torch of knowledge, and he knows everything." So if Kṛṣṇa helps one to know everything, who can check it? That is not possible. This science must be there. We are not all-powerful. Kṛṣṇa is all-powerful means He can do everything.
Prabhupāda: These are miracles, that's all. It has no value. People are after miracles. So in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ yajante 'nya-devatāḥ (BG 7.20). Those who are worshipers of other demigods, they are hṛta-jñānāḥ. Hṛta-jñānāḥ. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura gives his comment, hṛta-jñānāḥ naṣṭa buddhayaḥ, one who has lost his intelligence. So by worshiping the demigod Kali he is to be considered as hṛta-jñānāḥ, one who has lost his intelligence—and he becomes God. Is it possible? One who has lost his intelligence, he becomes God. With that lost intelligence. And this is the proof that on account of lost intelligence, he says yata mata tata pat. Kṛṣṇa says mām ekam. Sarva dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66). And when he became Ramakrishna, same Kṛṣṇa is speaking, yata mata tata pat. So he has changed his view. We have to accept this? And how he gave up his wife, that's a long history, I don't wish to discuss. We know everything. So we cannot accept something which is beyond the instruction of śāstra.
Prabhupāda: That is greatness. This is the distinction. God is great. I know about my body, you know about your body, but God knows about your body and my body and his body and every... That is greatness. That is explained. That is the distinction. I am small, He is great. I cannot think beyond the scope of this body, or little more. But he knows everything. Vedāhaṁ samatītāni (BG 7.26). That is His greatness. So in this way, we study the greatness of God, then we can understand what is God and what is not God.
Guest (4): Thanks.
Prabhupāda: That's another thing. A fool is accepted by another fool. That is another thing. They're getting Nobel Prize and so on and so on. That is different thing. Fool's paradise. All of them are fools. And they have created their own paradise. Do you know that story? That one was drinking, so his friend said, "Oh, you are drinking, you'll go to hell." "No, why? My father drinks." "Well, he'll also go to hell." "Oh, by brother drinks." "So he'll also go to hell." "My brother..." In this way, the whole list was (indistinct). Then he said, everyone will go to hell. Then where is hell? It is paradise! If father is going, then mother is going, then I am going, then brother is going, then where is hell?" It is like that. They're all fools, then where is fool? Everyone is intelligent. That is (indistinct). There's no question of fool. If everyone, all of us are fool, then where is the question of intelligent? "Hey, we are intelligent." (indistinct) This is their conclusion. We can give credit to something, just like I can see up to this wall. But if I say, "Now I am seeing beyond this world, everything, the forest and everything, I know everything." That is going on. Cheating.
Dr. Sharma: You are so very kind you have given us the temple, and these devotees are such saints.
Prabhupāda: Yes, it is for this purpose. People may come, see God, then you can think of God. There is no difficulty. If you see something, you think of it. That is man-manā bhava. And if you regularly do it then you become a devotee. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī. And when you come to the temple you worship Him. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam (BG 9.26). Worshiping means give and take. Take blessings and offer little fruit or little flower. Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyam. And if you cannot do anything, just offer your obeisances. Very simple thing. Even the child can perform it. But they will not do it. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhā prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). Why does he not do it? That is explained. Because unless one is sinful, duṣkṛtina... He has got merit, but he's utilizing his merit for sinful activities. Kṛti, kṛti means meritorious, but duṣkṛti, he has got merit, intelligence, but he's utilizing merit and intelligence for sinful activities. Therefore duṣkṛtina. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ. Mūḍha means rascal. He knows everything except God. Narādhama, the lowest of the mankind. The human life is meant for this purpose, to understand God. But he does not. Therefore we say narādhama, lowest of mankind. "But he is very educated." māyayāpahṛta-jñāna. He is so-called educated. Actually, he is not educated, because he does not know what is God. Māyayāpahṛta-jñānā āsuraṁ bhāvam āśritāḥ. The basic principle is atheistic attitude. So these class of men will never offer obeisances or surrender to God.
Prabhupāda: ...to keep their service in order. This is going on, all cheating. To keep people in darkness and exploit them. The so-called swamis exploiting, yogis exploiting, politician exploiting, scientists exploiting, philosophers exploiting. What is the position of the world? And this is the opportunity, human life, to know everything, to solve all the problems. They are not given the opportunity, they are kept in darkness. The demons. "There is no God, science is everything, life is produced from chemicals, and there is no living entities on other planets." They are simply show. This planet is full of..., it is all scientists, and they are vacant. And we have to believe that. Perhaps for the first time I am raising protest against all this nonsense.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: It is such a challenge. Your statements are such a challenge to their so-called science that they're still in shock. I still think that they do not take us seriously yet because it's such a difference to what they are saying. Soon, gradually, they'll take...
Prabhupāda: Therefore we have engaged these scientists. They are going to publish one paper.
Prabhupāda: (Hindi) Now all Indians, they should take Bhagavad-gītā as it is and make their life fruitful. The Europeans and Americans, they are taking. Why Indians are not taking?
Indian lady: Is it because the Indians think that they know much about Bhagavad-gītā? Being born a Hindu, they might think they know the religion, but not very much. They are not Kṛṣṇa conscious at all.
Prabhupāda: But if he knows everything, he does not know Kṛṣṇa? How he knows everything if he does not know Kṛṣṇa? If you think that you know everything, then you must know Kṛṣṇa. But if you do not know Kṛṣṇa, then what do you know? Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. If you simply know Kṛṣṇa, then you know everything. And if you know everything and you do not know Kṛṣṇa, then you are rascal, that's all. Mūḍha. That is the test. If you know everything but do not know Kṛṣṇa, then you are a rascal. And if you know Kṛṣṇa, then you know everything automatically.
Indian lady: I think they think they know it, but I'm sure they are not aware of it.
Prabhupāda: If they know Kṛṣṇa, why they do not come to the Kṛṣṇa's temple?
Indian man (2): Quite a number of them come here. I remember the days when I used to be the only Indian in the temple, seven, eight years ago.
Prabhupāda: Even though they are not coming, they should now come, and we can open many other temples if you come. We can maintain many other temples. You come and take advantage of it. Why you are losing your own culture? That is foolishness. You are Indians and you do not know Kṛṣṇa. That is not a very good credit.
Prabhupāda: And besides that, even we are claiming to be very materially advanced, we do not know everything of the material world. Just like so big universe, material, what do you know about that? We have no knowledge practically. Even of the material world we have no sufficient knowledge, what to speak of the spiritual world.
Interviewer: Could you tell me something about your altar?
Prabhupāda: Which altar? This Caitanya Mahāprabhu, Lord Nityānanda, we are worshiping Him.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā.
- sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya
- mūrtayaḥ sambhavanti yāḥ
- tāsāṁ brahma mahad yonir
- ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā
- (BG 14.4)
That's all. That study will be nice. Ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ. Just like father gives the seed, similarly, Kṛṣṇa gives the seed. The seed, when pushed into the womb of the mother and properly nourished, a rose plant comes out. This plant comes out. The seed is there. It is very easy. The father injects the seed within the womb of the mother, and the childs come out. Similarly, whatever is coming out from the earth, the seed-giving father is Kṛṣṇa, and when the seed is pushed within the womb of the mother, then the plant is coming, and everything. This nature's law is going on. Where is the necessity of understanding more than this? We understand the mother is pregnant. Now how she has been, how the child is growing, that is not under your control. It is going on. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi (BG 3.27), immediately it is in hand of the nature. Even if you study, you cannot understand how things are arranged—the intestine is joined to the navel of the child and the food is supplied, how it is mechanical: do you know everything? Can anyone do? Can anyone understand? But things are there. That is being done by prakṛtiḥ. Even if you study, you cannot understand. So best thing is to understand that it is being done by nature under the instruction of Supreme Lord. Let us chant Hare Kṛṣṇa instead of studying these.... There are many students, many botanists, many.... They, vaguely they are studying, and the have no understanding of Kṛṣṇa. They're denying, rather the father. The child has come into existence without father. This is their knowledge. So instead of becoming such a fool and rascal it is better not to study.
Hari-śauri: Seems everything is devolving at a phenomenal rate. Every decade that passes, everything breaks down twice as fast. Just in the last twenty years or thirty years everything has become so much degraded and...
Prabhupāda: No, I have got experience. I am Calcutta born. What Calcutta was in our childhood days and what is now, I know everything. How we were happy during British days and what is now position, I can speak from my personal experience. We do not belong to the richest class nor to the poor class-middle class. So we have got practical experience. My father's income was not more than 250 rupees. How opulent we were. At least, there was no question of need. We were receiving daily four, five guests, and my father was functioning so many festivals and he was asking... My father gave in marriage four daughters. There was no difficulty. The income was not more than 250 rupees. Of course, that 250 rupees at least ten times now. But still, there was no needy. Not very opulent, but there was no need. The first necessity is to feed and to clothe. So there was no such scarcity. May not be very luxurious life, but there was no scarcity for food and shelter or cloth. There was no scarcity. Happy. That is wanted. Happiness in whatever circumstance. Not that because we did not possess a motorcar, therefore unhappy. I purchased one motor car in 1925, Buick car. Not for personal use, but for using it as a taxi. My one nephew, he was a good driver, so my father, "Why don't you give him? He can do that, we can use it our own car also taxi." So I took it, Buick car, I think I paid eight thousand rupees.
Bhūgarbha: He asks, What about the opposite, people becoming devotees without knowing anything? He asking...
Prabhupāda: No, devotee cannot be without knowing anything. A devotee means, a devotee means he knows everything. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. This is Vedic injunction. One who knows the Absolute, he knows everything.
Yogeśvara: Śrīla Prabhupāda? That verse, does that mean that one who is neophyte...
Prabhupāda: Neophyte is neophyte. Why do you bring him to become a devotee? A devotee is different. A "one plus one equal to two," he's not mathematician. He's learning. There is hope one day he'll be a big mathematician. There are three stages, kaniṣṭha-adhikārī, madhyama-adhikārī, uttama-adhikārī. So when you speak of devotee, that is this uttama-adhikārī. So he knows everything. Rather, the so-called jñānī, he does not know. Because he does not know Kṛṣṇa. The so-called jñānī, he does not know what is Personality of Godhead. He's impersonalist. Therefore he is still unaware of the Absolute Truth. Therefore he's not jñānī. His jñāna, his knowledge, is lacking.
Prabhupāda: That's very good, very good idea. When we want God, to understand, we must try to understand what is God. What do you mean by God? The God definition is given in the dictionary, what is that? "Supreme being, supreme controller." So how do you understand that supreme controller? What do you mean by supreme controller? In this way we should try to understand what is the idea carried by the word God. We have got, in our Vedic language, we have got definition of God, that
- aiśvaryasya samagrasya
- vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ
- jñāna-vairāgyayaiś caiva
- ṣaṇṇāṁ bhaga itīṅganāḥ
- (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 6.5.47)
"God" means He must possess all the wealth. Just like in Persia you have got so many wealthy persons, but nobody can claim, even the Shah cannot claim, that he possesses all the wealth. That is not possible. Persia. Do you follow what I say? So this is one of the items, that God is the richest, or He possesses all the wealth. Similarly, He possesses all the strength, He possesses all the beauty, He possesses all knowledge, and He is the renouncer also, the most exalted renouncer. Although He possesses so many things, He is renounced. Just like this universe is the property of God, but He has given to you, all the living entities. "Now you wanted to enjoy, enjoy it to your best capacity." He doesn't interfere. "All right, you go on." And we are trying to enjoy this material world to our best capacity. Just like in Iran, you are trying to enjoy by exploiting the oil. Similarly, somebody is exploiting. It is all God's property. He doesn't interfere. "All right, enjoy." This is renouncement. His property, He does not come to interfere. God knows how this universe is made. So many big, big scientists, they are trying to understand what is the constitution, how this universe is made, how it is created. Nobody knows, but He knows. Just like you have got this body, I have got this body, but we do not know everything of this body.
Hari-śauri: Self-interest.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is very important thing. That is important, yes. But love means two persons, there is exchange. Giving something, taking something, feeding something and to eat something, and speaking everything, no secrecy, and to know everything of the other person. When these things are transacted, then there is love. Dadāti pratigṛhṇāti bhuṅkte bhojayate caiva guhyam ākhyāti pṛcchati. If I love you and if I have got some secrecy, I don't disclose to you, that is not perfect love. I must deal with you open-hearted, you must deal with me open-hearted, then there is love. This is one of the basic principles. I shall invite you to eat with me and I shall accept your invitation to eat with me. I shall give you some presentation, you shall give me some presentation. In this way love develops. So if you want to love Kṛṣṇa, God, then these things must be there. Otherwise, where there is question of love? To appreciate God is great, that is not love. That is simply appreciation. But when we actually give everything to God and take everything from Him, you talk with Him of your mind, He talks with you. You give Him to eat and whatever He gives you eat. In this way there is question of love. Simply appreciation of the greatness of God, that is good, in God consciousness, but that is not love. The love stage is different.
Prabhupāda: So who is from Aligarh? You go to we have got a best friend in Aligarh.
Dhanañjaya: Surendra Kumar. Surendra Kumar.
Prabhupāda: Ah. He'll get you all those things.
Harikeśa: He should know everything about that because he's making lots.
Prabhupāda: And another... Aligarh is the best place. What is that?
Devotee: It's the gentleman who was with you last night Śrīla Prabhupāda, Prem Yogi. He has come with his luggage.
Prabhupāda: Prem Yogi. So give him that place vacated by the old man.
Hari-śauri: Next to Akṣayānanda's room. Seventeen. Take him up there.
Harikeśa: Actually you can just bring him to Bhakti Pradhāna and tell him. Bhakti Pradhāna is the manager of the guest house, so he should take care of it.
Prabhupāda: No, this old man has gone. So give him that place. Yes.
Prabhupāda: ...one horse within the mouth—that is God. One hill. One Pūtanā, sucking the breast, her life goes. That is God. Why shall I take some cheap God? We are not so foolish. Here is the... So many great saintly persons hearing about God. Śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtanaḥ (SB 1.2.17). They are fools, hearing about Kṛṣṇa? Such great, great personalities? And Śukadeva Gosvāmī is speaking. Are they fools? All of them fools? One, two may be fool. They were wholesale fool? All the great personalities, they're all fools? Asita, Devala, Vyāsa, Nārada—all big personalities. Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Caitanya Mahāprabhu—they're all fools? I may be fool. They are not fools. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). Why shall I accept a rascal God? Varīyān eṣa te praśnaḥ (SB 2.1.1). "Oh, you want to hear about Kṛṣṇa?" Varīyān eṣa te praśnaḥ. Śukadeva was praising: "Oh, glorious, you have taken... Yes." Here is God. Breathing, and innumerable universes are coming. Here is God. Sleeping and breathing is not unnatural. He is also. Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaḥ-like us. But like not us. He can breathe and... That is the difference. Breathing is common. I breathe, He breathes. That's all right. But His breathing, my breathing is not the same breathing. He eats, I eat. That's all right. But when He eats, Mother Yaśodā sees all the universes are within Him. They cannot understand this. That we are equal, that's all right, but there is difference. So far, I am a living being, He's also a living being, but He's supreme living being. How? Because I breathe, some dust comes and goes out, and when He breathes some universes come out. This is the difference. So because He is breathing and I am breathing, therefore equal. No. Paśyaty acakṣuḥ. He sees, but not like us. Kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu bhārata. He's seeing every particular thing, anywhere. Kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu. I can see within my limit, or I can feel pains and pleasure within my... But He knows everything, everywhere.
Prabhupāda: But you must agree. Therefore it is advised, tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum evābhigacchet, samit-pāṇiḥ śrotriyaṁ brahma-niṣṭham (MU 1.2.12). Tad viddhi praṇipātena (BG 4.34). First of all, you have to surrender. But if you don't surrender, how you'll get knowledge? If you think you are very big man, then how you get knowledge?
Indian man (4): No, we don't think that we are big men.
Prabhupāda: No, no, everyone thinks that, not you. I don't say particular. Everyone thinks, "I know everything."
Indian man (4): No, no. We think that we are ignorant, petty creatures. Correct. And we know...
Prabhupāda: But if you think so, that you are ignorant petty creatures, then you take knowledge from the authority. Why don't you take it? What is the meaning that you think you are ignorant petty creature, at the same time, when the most learned person is giving you knowledge, Kṛṣṇa, you don't take it? What kind of...?
Indian man (4): But there are so many authorities presented to me. But there is the Bible, there is the Koran, there is...
Prabhupāda: No, first of all, you are born in India. Why you are jumping to Bible? (laughter) This is another foolishness. You take care of your own house. You are jumping like monkey to Bible. (laughter)
Prabhupāda: And advertising, communists are so rich, so happy.
Haṁsadūta: I know, everything, all their literature concerns itself with struggling. Struggling against capitalists, struggling to...
Prabhupāda: And mass of people they are very morose, unhappy.
Haṁsadūta: Yes.
Prabhupāda: In the street you see there is no happiness in their face.
Haṁsadūta: Silent.
Prabhupāda: Hm. Means terrorism, if they do anything against, then (snaps fingers) finished.
Hari-śauri: Subdued.
Prabhupāda: Very miserable.
Prabhupāda: You can take help from Detroit. He knows very well. That was rezoned. You did it.
Jagadīśa: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Yes. He knows everything. That was a residential quarter. Now we have made it a temple.
Devotee: So we...
Prabhupāda: What is the process?
Jagadīśa: Well we had, because we were dealing with a Ford, the grandson of Henry Ford, because he was wealthy, he had a lawyer friend who had a connection in the zoning board so...
Prabhupāda: Influence.
Jagadīśa: Yes.
Prabhupāda: But what was the law point? You cannot influence by...
Jagadīśa: No, we... The point was that that particular property was secluded. By making it a multi-residential dwelling with a public worship facility there was no inconvenience to the neighbors. That was the main thing. We went around to all the neighbors in the neighborhood. We got them to sign a petition saying they had no objection to our holding meetings there and having multi-residential and that was our strongest, besides our connection with this lawyer, having the neighborhood support was our strongest weapon. And the neighbors all were very warm.
Prabhupāda: The black people, they are simple. They are not so (indistinct). If they are satisfied...
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: I know everything, but I did not say anything.
Yogi Amrit Desai: You knew him before?
Prabhupāda: No. When I went to America one gentleman here, Paramananda Mehra, he gave me an introductory letter. So he received me well. In the beginning I was staying in his care. But I did not say anything, but I knew everything.
Yogi Amrit Desai: I'm sure you did.
Prabhupāda: I was his guest. He was receiving nightly. Of course, I was indirectly saying him that "You are not doing nice," but what more I could do?
Yogi Amrit Desai: I have so much love for you, and I said I must come for a darśana.
Prabhupāda: Thank you.
Prabhupāda: This is argument! This is argument. This is fact. These rascals keep these women unmarried to enjoy daily new, new young women, these karmīs, these rascals. There is club. There is club. These young women are paid for that topless, bottomless. You do not know.
Dr. Patel: No. I have never seen a girl naked. I refuse to...
Prabhupāda: I have... I know everything.
Haṁsadūta: Prabhupāda, you gave the example that what is the use of keeping a cow if you can get milk in the marketplace.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. Cow-keeping is expensive.
Dr. Patel: Why keep a cow when milk is available. (laughs)
Trivikrama: It's a fact. The young men think like that.
Prabhupāda: They make pregnant and they go away. And this poor girl, either she has to kill the child or beg from the government, "Give me welfare; otherwise..." Is that freedom? These rascal woman...
Prabhupāda: That means he is going to learn. He is not learned. That is another word of rascal.
Satsvarūpa: He's new on the scene, so don't expect too much, but he'll soon know everything.
Prabhupāda: What is new? History, whole history, is the same. Your forefathers, his forefathers, never have done that? Why it is new?
Satsvarūpa: Well, they say there's been regular improvements, medicines...
Prabhupāda: What is that improvement?
Satsvarūpa: Medicines have done away with so many diseases.
Prabhupāda: What is that? Disease... Does it mean there is no disease? You die by this disease or that disease. What is the improvement?
Gurukṛpā: They say that people used to live much longer, that they live longer now.
Prabhupāda: So what is the use of living longer, a tree is living longer, five thousand years. Does it mean that it is important life? A tree is standing for seven thousand years. There is a tree in San Francisco.
Yaśodānandana: Yasmād kṣaram atito 'ham akṣarād atito 'ham.(?) One who knows Kṛṣṇa knows everything.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Yasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati. If you simply study Kṛṣṇa, then you'll study everything. Janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ (BG 4.9). He becomes immediately liberated. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti. He becomes competent to enter in the spiritual world and associate with Kṛṣṇa.
Devotee (1): Śrīla Prabhupāda, just like that story with the scissors, how can we force the scientists to accept Kṛṣṇa and the Bhagavad-gītā. How can we force the scientists to accept Bhagavad-gītā? The problem seems to be...
Prabhupāda: No, if it is a fact, you can force, if it is a fact. And if it is not fact, then it is obstinacy. If it is reality, you can force, just like the father forces the child, "Go to school." Because he knows without education his life will be frustrated, so he can force. I was forced. I was not going to school. Yes. My mother forced. My father was very lenient. My mother forced me. She kept one man especially to drag me to the school. So force is required.
Prabhupāda: Yes. These chances are there. Kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati (BG 9.31). Find out this verse. Kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati. At the time of death, if you simply offer Kṛṣṇa, He will know everything, what I have tried to do. "Now You consider my position. Send me wherever You like." Kaunteya pratijānīhi na me bhaktaḥ praṇaśyati.
Prabhupāda: Guru more mūrkha dekhi' karila śāsana (CC Adi 7.71). Caitanya Mahāprabhu also presented Himself as idiot number one. He said to Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī. Prakāśānanda Sarasvatī asked Him that "You are a sannyāsī. You do not read Vedānta and You chant and dance. What is this?" So He answered, guru more mūrkha dekhi' karila śāsana. "My guru found Me a fool number one, so he has chastised Me, 'You rascal, You are fool, You cannot read Vedānta. You Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.' " So it is good that we remain as fools and idiot. Then we can make progress. And if we think, "Oh, I know everything," then finished. It is a good attitude. Guru more mūrkha dekhi' karila śāsana.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Little confirmation...
Prabhupāda: Yes, that's all right. I know everything.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I think, more than anything, you want confirmation just in case... (break)
Prabhupāda: That is my request, that I remain unconscious... (break) ... kapha-pitta-vāyu.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Conscious, unconscious and...
Prabhupāda: Hm. But never put me in hospital. You can refuse that "This is our Guru Mahārāja's order." Chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. Bas. Let me die peacefully.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: When Caitanya Mahāprabhu was unconscious, all that His disciples would do is they would chant in His ear.
Prabhupāda: That's all.
Prabhupāda: There is no question of... That small amount is sufficient, according to the circumstance. Just like in the desert they don't require much water, the camels. Once drunk, they can go on the desert for three days. You cannot do that. There is water. Otherwise how watermelon is coming?
Brahmānanda: Even the cactus plants, they're able to grow, and they store the water...
Prabhupāda: Everywhere there are these... These rascals, they do not know. Everything is there, every planet.
Svarūpa Dāmodara: The five gross elements is present all the...
Prabhupāda: Kṣitir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ. Must... (aside:) Give me. Give me that.
Indian devotee (4): Still down?
Prabhupāda: Hm. (break) Everywhere there is life, there is everything, varieties. Here you see in the water there is life, in the land there is life, in the air there is life, within the silicate there is life. So many, many millions. These crabs... What is called?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Crab.
Prabhupāda: And they are all intelligent in sense gratification. Quite equal in intelligence, like the man. There is no scarcity of intelligence. Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithuna. How to sleep, how to eat, how to enjoy sex, how to protect from danger—they know everything completely. (break) ...he's trained up. And how to enjoy according to the body, place, that complete intelligence is there. Lord Brahmā has got that intelligence, and the small insect, he has got. And Kṛṣṇa is giving everyone facility: "All right, enjoy." Bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni yantrārūḍhāni māyayā (BG 18.61). Sarva-bhūtāni. Everyone is getting opportunity. According to his karma, he's getting a suitable body. You want to become Brahmā? All right. And you become, want to become a hog? All right. If you want to become worm in the stool, all right. This is going on. And devotion begins when one does not want to become anything. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). Then he likes. So when you desire, either you desire like a Brahmā or the worm in the stool, that is material. And when you give up this desire, then spiritual life begins. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (CC Madhya 19.167). Sarvopādhi-vinirmuktam (CC Madhya 19.170). So to become anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (CC Madhya 19.167), that is required. Who will understand this philosophy?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Now with your books, the whole world may understand.
Prabhupāda: Yes. So what is that?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah, I... I mean, everything sounds rather nice to me, and there's always... You know, everything has to be done so that nobody... People should not be sentimental.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But since they are sentimental, we have to work in such a way that even the sentiments aren't hurt. That's all I'm trying to say.
Trivikrama: But also that bill should be paid. The BBT should be paid.
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Under the table. Unofficial.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Mean I am paying on the table hundred rupees and under table two hundred rupees.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, I think you know everything spiritual and material.
Prabhupāda: Hm? So my fear is that after training our men so much, if he's lost, that's a great loss. Then future of society becomes very hopeless.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So the principle is that if a householder has outside employment and can pay, then he can live inside our temple buildings.
Prabhupāda: That's nice. What is the wrong?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: At least for five or six years now the system has been that no man and woman should live together in the same building as where the Deity is.
Prabhupāda: That is the system. Temple is meant for retired men. Brahmacārī, sannyāsī, vānaprastha.
Guest (1): Or I can let you know everything to him.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah. The main question's just that... And actually there is no need to...
Guest (1): But if you have power of attorney, then everything will be... But you have to collect it from bank. That would be easier.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. We will do it through the bank, not directly.
Prabhupāda: So why don't you do that?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's what we're doing.
Prabhupāda: It is going to be due within fortnight.
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: First thing that has... Prabhupāda, one thing is that this power of attorney is to Girirāja and myself. So, one thing Girirāja is doing when he-he's reaching Bombay tomorrow—is that the power of attorney doesn't show our authorized signatures. In other words, a notary has to notarize our signatures, that these are actually the signatures.
Prabhupāda: This Asnani has gone? Asnani already left? That...? Our lawyer friend?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Mr. Asnani executed a power of attorney to Girirāja and myself for signing on your behalf.
Prabhupāda: Where is Gopāla?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He's in Bombay. He's gone to Bombay. I mean we'll know... Personally, I think that within a day's time you'll know everything about this kavirāja. If there's no such thing, then you'll know that. If there is, you'll either see him here or you'll get news of when he's coming. Or you may get news that there's no way he can come; we have to come there. But I think within a day's time you'll get the news.
Prabhupāda: No, this boy Śatadhanya, he said, "I have personally talked. He is very responsible."
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Adri-dhāraṇa. He personal... Yeah.
Prabhupāda: But what kind of responsible?
Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Well, I don't think it's irresponsible.
Prabhupāda: So science means to know everything, not only theoretically. They say "automatically."
Svarūpa Dāmodara: Their knowledge is so unscientific, Śrīla Prabhupāda.
Prabhupāda: Huh?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: The knowledge that they propose, chance, is so unscientific. Sometimes I wonder. In the name of science they make the most unscientific remarks.
Prabhupāda: The answer is there: "Here is my father." They'll not accept. Without father, how there can be son? You do not know who is the father. Why the particular tree is giving particular fruit, particular flower, and this is exactly like...? What do they answer?
Svarūpa Dāmodara: They actually have no answer.
| Page Title: | Know everything (Conversations) |
| Compiler: | Mayapur |
| Created: | 06 of Oct, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=0, Con=121, Let=0 |
| No. of Quotes: | 121 |