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Never understand

Bhagavad-gita As It Is

BG Chapters 7 - 12

BG 10.11, Purport:

The Lord tells Arjuna that basically there is no possibility of understanding the Supreme Truth, the Absolute Truth, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, simply by speculating, for the Supreme Truth is so great that it is not possible to understand Him or to achieve Him simply by making a mental effort. Man can go on speculating for several millions of years, and if he is not devoted, if he is not a lover of the Supreme Truth, he will never understand Kṛṣṇa, or the Supreme Truth. Only by devotional service is the Supreme Truth, Kṛṣṇa, pleased, and by His inconceivable energy He can reveal Himself to the heart of the pure devotee. The pure devotee always has Kṛṣṇa within his heart; and with the presence of Kṛṣṇa, who is just like the sun, the darkness of ignorance is at once dissipated. This is the special mercy rendered to the pure devotee by Kṛṣṇa.

Srimad-Bhagavatam

SB Canto 3

SB 3.19.33, Purport:

Lord Caitanya Mahāprabhu has warned that no description of the pastimes of the Lord should be heard from the Māyāvāda, or impersonalist, school. He has clearly said, māyāvādi-bhāṣya śunile haya sarva nāśa: if anyone hears the Māyāvādīs' interpretation of the pastimes of the Lord, or their interpretation of Bhagavad-gītā, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam or any other Vedic literature, then he is doomed. Once one is associated with impersonalists, he can never understand the personal feature of the Lord and His transcendental pastimes.

SB 3.26.33, Purport:

Mental speculators or so-called philosophers who are researching what is actually God will never understand the nature of God. The science of God has to be understood in disciplic succession from Brahmā, who was first instructed about knowledge of God by God Himself. We can understand the knowledge of God by hearing Bhagavad-gītā from a person authorized in the disciplic succession.

SB Canto 7

SB 7.5.30, Purport:

Hiraṇyakaśipu wanted to know where Prahlāda had gotten this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Who had taught him? Prahlāda sarcastically replied, "My dear father, persons like you never understand Kṛṣṇa. One can understand Kṛṣṇa only by serving a mahat, a great soul. Those who try to adjust material conditions are said to be chewing the chewed. No one has been able to adjust material conditions, but life after life, generation after generation, people try and repeatedly fail. Unless one is properly trained by a mahat—a mahātmā, or unalloyed devotee of the Lord—there is no possibility of one's understanding Kṛṣṇa and His devotional service."

SB Canto 8

SB 8.5.31, Purport:

Everyone was afraid of Hiraṇyakaśipu's atheistic principles. Nonetheless, when Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva appeared in order to kill him, Hiraṇyakaśipu's atheistic principles could not save him. Lord Nṛsiṁhadeva killed Hiraṇyakaśipu and took away all his power, influence and pride. Atheistic men, however, never understand how everything they create is annihilated. The Supersoul is situated within them, but because of the predominance of the modes of passion and ignorance, they cannot understand the supremacy of the Lord.

SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13

SB 10.10.37, Purport:

In this age, many pseudo incarnations are advertised simply for having exhibited some magical performances, but except for persons who are servants of Nārada and other servants of Kṛṣṇa, no one can understand who is God and who is not. This is confirmed by Narottama dāsa Ṭhākura. Chāḍiyā vaiṣṇava-sevā nistāra pāyeche kebā: no one is delivered from the material conception of life unless favored by a Vaiṣṇava. Others can never understand, neither by speculation nor by any other bodily or mental gymnastics.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta

CC Adi-lila

CC Adi 4.107, Purport:

Sometimes materialistic scholars think He was diseased or crazy. Their problem is that they always engage in material sense gratification and can never understand the feelings of the devotees and the Lord. Materialists are most abominable in their ideas. They think that they can enjoy directly perceivable gross objects by their senses and that they can similarly deal with the transcendental features of Lord Caitanya.

Other Books by Srila Prabhupada

Teachings of Lord Caitanya

Teachings of Lord Caitanya, Chapter 21:

All these various speculative philosophers are one in denying the existence of the Supreme Lord Viṣṇu, and they are very much enthused to propagate their own theories and be recognized by the people. Unfortunate people become enamored of these atheistic philosophers and consequently can never understand the real nature of the Absolute Truth. It is far better to follow in the footsteps of great souls (mahājanas).

Nectar of Devotion

Nectar of Devotion 1:

In Bhagavad-gītā when Kṛṣṇa appeared in His universal form Arjuna prayed, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, I thought of You as my cousin-brother, and so I have shown disrespect to You in so many ways, calling You 'Kṛṣṇa' or 'friend.' But You are so great that I could not understand." So that was the position of the Pāṇḍavas; although Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the greatest among all greats, He remained with those royal brothers, being attracted by their devotion, by their friendship and by their love. That is the proof of how great this process of devotional service is. It can attract even the Supreme Personality of Godhead. God is great, but devotional service is greater than God because it attracts Him. People who are not in devotional service can never understand what great value there is in rendering service to the Lord.

Renunciation Through Wisdom

Renunciation Through Wisdom 4.3:

The Māyāvādīs try hard to look like spiritualists, but in fact they are gross materialists. They may be able to confuse and mesmerize the public with word jugglery, but in truth their so-called renunciation is as false as the monkeys', for they have become mere beggars looking for distinction, adoration, position, and wealth. They are busy only with worldly progress; forgotten are the spiritual message and spiritual goals and ideals. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (1.1.2) has defined such showbottle religion as kaitava-dharma, "cheating religion." Those who are attracted to such cheating religious groups are themselves deceitful. Their show of spirituality is abominable; they have no desire for either liberation or devotion and surrender. They are addicted to speculation and can never understand Kṛṣṇa.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 4.4:

It is strange but true that political leaders can never understand that the Absolute Truth cannot be impersonal or formless but must be the Supreme Personality of Godhead. The scriptures are filled with passages that describe incarnations such as the gigantic form of Lord Mahā-Viṣṇu lying on the Causal Ocean, but Lord Kṛṣṇa is the source of Mahā-Viṣṇu. Still the demented political leaders cannot comprehend the truth. But if out of His mercy Lord Kṛṣṇa wishes to bless such atheists, then their rocklike hearts will soften and they will see the two-handed form of Kṛṣṇa playing His flute in Vṛndāvana.

Renunciation Through Wisdom 5.1:

Through logic and sophistry one can never understand how the Supreme Lord created this unlimited cosmos, but the demoniac atheists will never tire of using these methods. Lord Kṛṣṇa describes their mentality in the Bhagavad-gītā (16.8): asatyam apratiṣṭhaṁ te. "They say that this world is unreal, with no foundation, no God in control." In fact, the very brain that thinks these childish thoughts is also a most insignificant creation of the Supreme Lord. Hence to expect that such pea-brains can grasp the mysteries behind the Supreme Lord's extraordinary plans is to hope for the impossible.

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 2.6 -- London, August 6, 1973:

If you want to forget God, then God will put you in such a condition that you can never understand what is God. That is demonic life. That time is also coming. At the present moment, still a few men are interested, what is God. Arto arthārtī jijñāsu jñānī (CC Madhya 24.95). But time is coming ahead when there will be no sense to understand God. That is the last stage of Kali-yuga, and at that time Kalkī avatāra, Kalkī avatāra will come. At that time there is no preaching of God consciousness, simply killing, simply killing. Kalkī avatāra with His sword will simply massacre. Then again Satya-yuga will come. Again golden age will come.

Lecture on BG 2.14 -- Germany, June 21, 1974:

You can speculate who is your father, but that speculation will not help you. You will never understand who is your father. But you go to your mother, the supreme authority. She'll immediately, "Here is your father." That's all. And you cannot know father in any other way. There is no other way. This is practical. You cannot know your father without the authoritative statement of your mother. Similarly, things which are beyond your perception, avan mānasa-gocara, you cannot think of, you cannot speak of.

Lecture on BG 4.1 -- Montreal, August 24, 1968:

If one is not bhakta, if one is not Kṛṣṇa's devotee, that rascal cannot understand Bhagavad-gītā. Plainly. Plainly it is stated here. First of all, try to become the devotee of Kṛṣṇa. Then try to understand what is Bhagavad-gītā. Not by your scholarship or by your speculation. Then you'll never understand Bhagavad-gītā. If you have to understand Bhagavad-gītā, then you have to understand by the process as stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, not by your own mental speculation. This is the process of understanding. Bhakto 'si me sakhā ceti.

Lecture on BG 4.3 -- Bombay, March 23, 1974:

This is Bhagavad-gītā. Nobody wants to know this. They manufacture their own commentaries. In that way you'll never understand. You'll understand as Kṛṣṇa says, sa eva ayaṁ purātanaḥ. The same thing. What is that same thing? That "I am God. I am Kṛṣṇa. You are My part and parcel." This is an eternal relationship. It cannot be broken, but you have forgotten. You have forgotten your relationship with Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 6.13-15 -- Los Angeles, February 16, 1969:

So athāpi te deva padāmbuja-dvaya-prasāda-leśānugṛhīta... jānāti tattvaṁ bhagavan-mahimno na cānya eko 'pi ciraṁ vicinvan (SB 10.14.29). Therefore it is said, "My dear Lord, a person who has received a little favor from You, he can understand You very quickly. And others who are trying to understand You by the ascending process, they may go on speculating for millions of years, they will never understand." They will never understand. They will come to the point of frustration and confusion. "Oh, God is zero." That's all, finished. If God is zero, then how from zero so many, I mean to say, figures coming out? God is zero. Bhāgavata says, Vedānta says janmādy asya yataḥ (SB 1.1.1). Everything is generates from the Supreme. Now we have to study how it is generated. That is also explained, what is the way, what is the process, how to know it. This is Vedānta-sūtra.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- San Diego, July 1, 1972:

The Supreme Lord, He's the Supreme Self. We are part and parcel. So by this process, Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, God, Ajita, one who is never conquered... If you... By challenge, if you want to know God, you'll never understand. God never accepts challenge. Because God is great. Why should He accept your challenge. If you say, "Oh, my dear God, please come here. I shall see You," so God is not like that, that He will carry your order. You must carry His order. Then God realization.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Calcutta, January 27, 1973:

Don't read Bhagavad-gītā where the attempt is to kill Kṛṣṇa. Don't read. Then it will be spoiled. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said: māyāvādi-bhāṣya śunile haya sarva-nāśa (CC Madhya 6.169). Sarva-nāśa. If you hear the rascal commentary that "Kṛṣṇa means this, Kurukṣetra means this, body means, Pāṇḍava means this," in this way, if you drag some concocted meaning, then you'll never understand what is Bhagavad-gītā. You'll simply spoil your time. Śrama eva hi kevalam (SB 1.2.8). That is simply wasting time. Read Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Kṛṣṇa says, "I am the Supreme."

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Nairobi, October 27, 1975:

Because this book, Gītā, is very famous, so if they can distribute their nonsense philosophy through Gītā, it will be taken very easily. Otherwise they do not know Kṛṣṇa; they do not know what is Bhagavad-gītā. But they take advantage of the popularity of Bhagavad-gītā and push their nonsense philosophy through Bhagavad-gītā. The purpose is to kill Kṛṣṇa, Kaṁsa philosophy. So, then, that way, they'll never get Kṛṣṇa. They'll never understand Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says that "If you want to know Me," asaṁśayaṁ samagram, "if you want to know Me in full, completely, without any doubt, then you have to follow this yoga system," mayy āsakta-manāḥ pārtha yogaṁ yuñjan mad-āśrayaḥ. Otherwise it is not possible.

Lecture on BG 7.9-10 -- Bombay, February 24, 1974:

So Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Person. Kṛṣṇa is the original of everything, original source of everything. That is the verdict of the... Therefore Arjuna accepted; sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye yad vadasi keśava: (BG 10.14) "My dear Kṛṣṇa, whatever You are saying, I accept Him, accept all these in toto, not deducting, not giving my own commentation." This is the way of studying Bhagavad-gītā. So if you study Bhagavad-gītā as it is, as it is said in the..., and if you accept it, then your life is successful. Otherwise, panthās tu koṭi-śata-vatsara-sampragamyo vāyor athāpi manaso muni-puṅgavānām (Bs. 5.34), you'll never understand what is God or what is ultimate source, what is Absolute Truth.

Lecture on BG 10.2-3 -- New York, January 1, 1967:

Surrendering unto him means surrendering unto God because he is God's representative. But you are allowed to make questions, not to waste time, but for understanding. That is called paripraśna. These are the process. So everything is there. We have simply to adopt it. But if we don't adopt the process and simply waste our time by intoxication and speculation and all nonsensical activities, oh, that is not possible ever. You'll never understand what is God. Because God is not understandable even by the demigods and by the great sages. What is our teeny efforts?

Lecture on BG 13.3 -- Paris, August 11, 1973:

So if anyone wants to become a demons, Kṛṣṇa is within. He'll give him intelligence in such a way that he becomes a first-class demon. What is the duty of the first-class demon? That he'll never understand Kṛṣṇa. (laughter) That is first-class demon. And if you want to hear Kṛṣṇa, then he will give you such instruction as you will be relieved from this miserable condition of material life and go back to home, back to Godhead. He's ready. But He does not speak generally, to the nondevotee.

Lecture on BG 18.67 -- Ahmedabad, December 10, 1972:

My Guru Mahārāja used to say, "It is just like licking the honey bottle." One may come to the bottle filled with honey, but simply by licking the bottle, what taste he will get? The honey must be opened. Then if you taste, you will know what is honey. Similarly, simply by taking Bhagavad-gītā and trying to understand it by so-called scholarship is licking up the honey bottle. That's all. There will be no taste. There will be no taste. You go on for many millions of years, licking up that bottle. You'll never understand.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.7.34-35 -- Vrndavana, September 28, 1976:

You cannot approach Kṛṣṇa by material sense perception. It is not possible. Therefore His name is adhokṣaja. Still you have to offer your service to the Supreme. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje (SB 1.2.6). Adhokṣaje. This is the idea, that unless we approach the adhokṣaja, Kṛṣṇa... And Kṛṣṇa... Ataḥ śrī-kṛṣṇa-nāmādi na bhaved grāhyam indriyaiḥ (CC Madhya 17.136). Those who are trying to study Kṛṣṇa by these blunt senses, they'll never understand Kṛṣṇa. They'll never understand.

Lecture on SB 3.25.25 -- Bombay, November 25, 1974:

If you happen to hear from a Māyāvādī, impersonalist, who does not accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, or does not know what is Kṛṣṇa, if such person reads Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, you will never derive any benefit. You can go on hearing them for hundreds of years; still, you will never understand what is Kṛṣṇa. That is forbidden. Sanātana Gosvāmī has forbidden, that avaiṣṇava-mukhodgīrṇaṁ pūtaṁ hari-kathāmṛtam. Hari-kathā, talks, discussion on Hari, or Kṛṣṇa, that is amṛta. Amṛta means nectarine. If one hears, then he gets his amṛta. Amṛtatvam.

Lecture on SB 3.25.37 -- Bombay, December 6, 1974:

This is the mission of Caitanya Mahāprabhu, that don't try foolishly to speculate about God. Stop this foolishness. The same example: the frog in the well is thinking of the Atlantic Ocean. He has never seen Atlantic Ocean. He's speculating. Some friend told him, "My dear friend, frog in the well, I have seen a vast mass of water." "What is that?" "Now, Atlantic Ocean." "What is that Atlantic Ocean?" "Very great mass of water." "Oh? Bigger than this well? Maybe four feet or ten feet or...?" In this way, if you speculate, you will never understand what is God.

Lecture on SB 3.26.32 -- Bombay, January 9, 1975:

If you follow the instruction of ācārya, then you understand perfectly everything. Tad viddhi praṇi... But you have to understand by praṇipātena, by submission, not by challenging. If you challenge, then you will never be able to understand. This whole process is submission. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). If you are not prepared to submit, then you will never understand. You will remain in this tamas, tamas. Tamasi mā. But don't remain in tamas. Come to the light.

Lecture on SB 5.5.35 -- Vrndavana, November 22, 1976:

If you become pious... Because pious is the good position. Yeṣām anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. So to become pious is good because there is hope of understanding Kṛṣṇa. Otherwise, if you remain impious, na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). If you remain sinful, then you'll remain always rascal. You'll never understand Kṛṣṇa. You'll never understand. Therefore we must try to become pious. And that pious means no sinful activities. Therefore we proscribe four sinful things, the pillars of sinful life: no illicit sex, no meat-eating, no intoxication, no gambling—four pillars. If you break these four pillars from the very beginning of your spiritual life, then you stand on the platform.

Lecture on SB 6.1.1-4 -- Melbourne, May 20, 1975:

In the beginning Arjuna was arguing with Kṛṣṇa to support his decision that he would not fight, but he could not convince Kṛṣṇa very nicely. That he understood, that "Although I am speaking so many things, Kṛṣṇa is not changing. He is fixed up." Then he surrendered himself: "My dear Kṛṣṇa, we are now talking as friends. No, we shall talk now as master and disciple. You I accept You as my master." Śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ prapannam (BG 2.7). He accepted Him as the master and he became disciple to understand Bhagavad-gītā. This is the way. If you have got your own opinion, you will never understand Bhagavad-gītā. You have to take lessons from the master.

Lecture on SB 6.1.1 -- Melbourne, May 21, 1975:

So Kṛṣṇa says, yatatām api siddhānām: (BG 7.3) "Those who have become perfect, out of many millions of them, one can understand what I am." It is not so easy to understand God. But if you take the process as is recommended in the śāstras by saintly person, then it is easy. Otherwise it is not easy. If you speculate to understand God, that is not possible. Then you go on and many, many years speculating. You will never understand God. Either you take the shelter of Lord Jesus Christ or Kṛṣṇa, if you follow his instruction—this is the way of understanding—then you will understand. But if you don't care for his instruction, then you will never understand. This is the process.

Lecture on SB 7.9.13 -- Montreal, August 21, 1968:

We can understand, if the United Nation passed resolution that "The whole planet belongs to God; we are sons of God; so let us live peacefully as sons of God," oh, there is no quarrel. But that they will never understand. They'll simply try to divide. Just like some gangs of thieves, they have stolen some property. Now they have come out, and they're dividing, and one of them is asking, "My dear brothers, let us divide piously. Let us divide piously." (laughs) Nonsense. The whole property is impious. So what is the meaning of your piously divided?

Lecture on SB 7.9.53 -- Vrndavana, April 8, 1976:

I have several times explained, one man had one chicken. So, and he was getting one egg daily. So he thought that "The rear side of the chicken is very nice. It is giving one egg daily, and the front side it is eating, expensive, so cut it. Cut the mouth and simply take the egg." The rascal does not know that if he cuts the mouth, there will be no egg. Similarly, if you make cut short of Bhagavad-gītā according to your whims, you'll never understand what is Bhagavad-gītā. You have to follow. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). Arjuna understood. Sarvam etam ṛtaṁ manye: "Whatever You have said, I understand. I have accepted it." So you accept it blindly even; then you are benefited. We may not understand.

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Nectar of Devotion -- Vrndavana, November 12, 1972:

In the Bhagavad-gītā when Kṛṣṇa appeared in His universal form, Arjuna prayed, 'My dear Kṛṣṇa, I thought of You as my cousin-brother, and so I have shown disrespect to You in so many ways, calling You Kṛṣṇa, or friend, but You are so great that I could not understand.' So that was the position of the Pāṇḍavas; although Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead, the greatest among all greats, still He remained with those royal brothers, being attracted by their devotion, by their friendship and by their love. That is the proof of how great this process of devotional service is. It can attract even the Supreme Personality of Godhead. God is great, but devotional service is greater than God because it attracts Him. People who are not in devotional service can never understand what great value there is in rendering service to the Lord.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 1.1 -- Mayapur, March 25, 1975:

So if you push on this movement, unadulterated Kṛṣṇa, it will go on. It will go on. And as soon as you adulterate Kṛṣṇa, it will not go on. It will not be effective. You may be very good scholar or very good politician or this or that, but you'll never understand what is Kṛṣṇa. Nāhaṁ prakāśaḥ sarvasya yoga-māyā-samāvṛtaḥ (BG 7.25). If you want to pollute Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa will never be revealed to you. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ (Brs. 1.2.234). So by the grace of Kṛṣṇa you have taken the shelter of the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa. It is great fortune for you. So do not adulterate Kṛṣṇa. That is my request. Try to understand Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.98-102 -- April 27, 1976, Auckland, New Zealand:

If you don't accept aśraddadhānāḥ, then you'll never understand what is God, and you'll be rotating in the cycle of birth and death. Mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani. You have to accept this path. There are two paths. Either you accept Kṛṣṇa, go back to home, back to Godhead, or you accept the path of repetition of birth and death. Two alternatives in this human life. Now it is up to you to make your choice which way you want to go.

Festival Lectures

Nrsimha-caturdasi Lord Nrsimhadeva's Appearance Day -- Srimad-Bhagavatam 7.5.22-34 -- Los Angeles, May 27, 1972:

These boys, they haven't got to eat anything; therefore they are chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa on the street. That's all." They think like that. "They're needy. All right, they are needy. Give them some money." That's all. They don't like to take anything from us because the same business, matir na kṛṣṇe parataḥ svato vā. They'll never understand, because their aim is gṛha-vratānām. They want to be happy... Although they are seeing there is no happiness, they never can be happy, still... This is called punaḥ punaś carvita-carvanānām (SB 7.5.30), chewing the chewed.

General Lectures

Pandal Lecture -- Bombay, April 6, 1971:

Similarly, if we want to know the supreme father, Kṛṣṇa, or God, we have to take instruction from the supreme father, not speculating, just like by speculating we cannot understand our ordinary father without the instruction of mother. If you go on speculating, "He may be my father. He may be my father. He may be father," go on speculating, but you will never understand who is your father. But you accept the authoritative statement of your mother, that "He is your father"—that is perfect knowledge. That process should be accepted. Otherwise, our position is very precarious.

Rotary Club Lecture -- Hyderabad, November 29, 1972:

So my interpretation..." Just like "Kurukṣetra means this body," or "The five Pāṇḍavas means the five senses." If we interpret in that way, Bhagavad-gītā, according to our whims, we'll never understand what is the purport of Bhagavad-gītā. We have to learn Bhagavad-gītā as it is; otherwise, we'll miss the opportunity. Just like Kurukṣetra. Kurukṣetra is still there, existing. Everyone, you know. While passing through Delhi to Punjab side you find the Kurukṣetra. The, the field is also there. It is a very big field, and in the śāstra, in the Vedas, it is said, kurukṣetre dharmam ācaret. So people go as a place of pilgrimage.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Soren Aabye Kierkegaard:

Prabhupāda: So their process is like this. You go on like this—existential—one problem, one problem, one problem, go on. But he does not know "If I continue in this way millions of lives, I will never come to perfection," unless the teacher shows, "Do like this." That is their foolishness. Ciraṁ vicinvan. That is described, athāpi te deva padāmbuja-dvaya-prasāda-leśānugṛhīta eva hi, jānāti tattvam (SB 10.14.29). One can understand the truth, simply one who has got a little, little, fractional portion of Your mercy, he knows the truth. Others, athāpi te deva padāmbuja-dvaya-prasāda-leśa. Prasāda means mercy; leśa, "a little fragment of Your mercy." One who has this, jānāti tattvam, he knows the truth. Others, na cānya eko 'pi ciraṁ vicinvan. Eko 'pi. There are many mental speculators, philosophers, all of them, if they go on thinking like that for life after life, they will never understand. Simply waste time. That's all. So why not try to have a little fraction of mercy of Kṛṣṇa? And Kṛṣṇa says, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti: (BG 18.55) "Simply by devotional service one can understand Me." So why not take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness immediately? That is perfection. That is perfectional stage.

Philosophy Discussion on George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel:

Prabhupāda: They, they will worship any nonsense, but here it is God consciousness. God has said that "I am this," so "I am...," I will worship. That is God, God consciousness. God has said. He has complete faith in God. Just like praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu: "Of Vedic knowledge I am the oṁkāra." Therefore they follow: oṁ tad viṣṇu paramaṁ para..., every mantra is followed by. How he has known oṁkāra is God? That God has said: praṇavaḥ sarva-vedeṣu. So God is giving instruction how He should be realized. So they are following that. They are realized; they realize actually. And what is the use of speculating? He will never understand God because he is speculating with his limited knowledge. God is unlimited.

Conversations and Morning Walks

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- April 2, 1972, Sydney:

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is so kind. As Māyāvādī philosopher you want to do something, Kṛṣṇa will "All right, dance in this way. Dance, all right dance. You talk like this." Kṛṣṇa gives him capacity to talk. Otherwise, he cannot talk even. So Kṛṣṇa gives him intelligence, counterargument: "All right, let the rascal speak as he likes." Therefore, yāre yaiche nācāya, He is allowing to dance everyone as he desires. But He says that "You give up all this nonsense, you simply surrender unto Me." That is His verse. Otherwise, if you want to dance, "All right, I give you facility to dance." The karmīs are dancing. "All right, dance." The jñānīs are dancing. "All right, dance. Go on speculating, but you will never understand Me."

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- April 25, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Yes. He's directing you also. But these, how this direction takes place? According to your desire. If you want to be cheated, Kṛṣṇa will direct you how you become cheated.

Brahmānanda: From Him comes forgetfulness as also remembrance.

Prabhupāda: Yes. You don't want to understand Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa will give you such direction you'll never understand Kṛṣṇa, life after life. So Kṛṣṇa has got two kinds of direction, according to my desire, positive and negative. (pause) Ye yathā māṁ prapadyante tāṁs tathaiva bhajāmy aham (BG 4.11). As, as you want direction, Kṛṣṇa will give you direction.

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 10, 1974, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Just like Kṛṣṇa says, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja: (BG 18.66) "Give up all nonsense engagement. Just become My devotee," we say like that. But if somebody does not give, give up, also not, then Kṛṣṇa also does not interfere. Let him suffer. (break) ...how long one suffers. He can stop his suffering immediately, but if he does not take the medicine, then what can be done? Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (BG 18.66). If Kṛṣṇa withdraws all his sinful activities, then where is the question of suffering? But he will not do. Now, because he is not surrendered soul to Kṛṣṇa, so he is suffering from time immemorial, and nobody can say how long he will suffer. He will go on suffering. It cannot stop. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, mūḍha: "Rascal." Na māṁ prapadyante mūḍhāḥ (BG 7.15). He does not know, by simply surrendering to Kṛṣṇa, everything will be nice. That he does not know. And if you advise, he will not accept. matir na kṛṣṇe parataḥ svato vā. That is explained by Prahlāda Mahārāja, that "These rascals who have got this idea that 'By adjustment, we shall be happy in this material world,' they will never understand what is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. They will never understand because their aim is..." That picture we gave in Back to Godhead, anchor? Yes. Their anchor is to remain here and enjoy. That is their main disease. They do not... Just like the Russian astronaut has gone so high, he was seeing, "Where is Moscow?" The anchor is there in the Moscow. Therefore he has to come down. Āruhya kṛcchreṇa paraṁ padaṁ tataḥ patanty adho 'nādṛta-yuṣmad-aṅghrayaḥ (SB 10.2.32). So everyone wants to keep this anchor of this material attachment. They say that "Yes, I am ready to accept Kṛṣṇa consciousness, provided Kṛṣṇa gives us so many material..."

Morning Walk -- March 23, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Then Bhāgavata is compared to the body of Kṛṣṇa. And Kṛṣṇa worships begins from the feet.

Dr. Patel: I started and come up to His mouth.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is avidhi-pūrvakam.

Dr. Patel: Avidhi... Then let me do it for avidhi-pūrvak, then I'll do it, vidhi-pūrvakam.

Prabhupāda: Then you'll never understand. Yes, you'll never understand.

Morning Walk -- April 18, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: ...advised and all the ācāryas advised, Caitanya Mahāprabhu's advised. Why should we go somewhere else? Take shelter of His lotus feet. That's all. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekam (BG 18.66). This is right conclusion. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19). (break) Mahātmā, immediately by surrendering to Kṛṣṇa. Immediately. (break) A child, if he is informed, "God is everywhere," he will never understand what is God. He knows that God is there, that this God consciousness is there. So what is the use of educating him, "Oh, God is everywhere. You don't require to go to temple?" This is nonsense. It is kaniṣṭha-adhikārī. He must know, "Here is God." He goes there, offer respect. All the children come. (break) ...a man, military man like Arjuna.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- July 21, 1975, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: They are faithless; therefore they will never make any progress. Their first principle is sacrifice. And in the śāstra it, ādau śraddhā: "First of all faith." And these rascals, they have no faith. Therefore they do not make any progress. And Rūpa Gosvāmī says, ādau śraddhā: "Begin with faith." So they cannot realize, condemned, because Kṛṣṇa will withdraw the knowledge. Mattaḥ smṛtir apohanaṁ ca. So Kṛṣṇa will say, "Oh, this rascal is faithless. All right, make him more faithless. He will never understand." That is atheist.

Morning Walk -- July 21, 1975, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: To become faithful, surrender. That is. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, "You rascal, surrender. You are not faithful; therefore you are condemned. You surrender first. Then next thing." So unless he becomes a surrendered soul, there is no hope. There is no hope. He will never understand.

Morning Walk -- November 2, 1975, Nairobi:

Prabhupāda: They... Whatever they say, you forget that. You do your own duty. You follow the rules and regulation and do the needful. Why you...?

Indian man (4): But we have to make them understand very clearly.

Prabhupāda: But they will never understand. You don't waste your time. Go on with your duty. When they will see that you are actually acting as brāhmaṇa, they will appreciate.

Morning Walk -- November 3, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Full attention. And attention means with good intelligence, (dog barking) not foolishly. (Hindi) That "You are not body. Why you are fighting?" Will they hear? (Hindi) That "My dear dog, you are not this body. Why you are fighting?" He will never understand. Similarly, if a man does not understand, he is no better than the dog.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- May 2, 1976, Fiji:

Prabhupāda: If you have no faith, then loser, you are loser. You will never understand. Therefore śāstra says, Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). Big, big stalwart ācāryas, mahājanas, they are accepting. Therefore we accept. That is sense. And if you sit down, "No, no, I have no faith," you'll sit down and remain a rascal, that's all. Ādau śraddhā. Therefore faith is the first thing. Ādau śraddhā. If he has got intelligence, he'll see: "So many big, big.... Lord Brahmā accepts. Lord Śiva accepts. Vyāsadeva accepts. Nārada accepts. The ācāryas accept. So am I more than them? No. I will accept." And that is perfection of.... Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). And if still you remain faithless, then you are rascal.

Interview with Kathy Kerr Reporter from The Star -- June 17, 1976, Toronto:

Kathy Kerr: Are you doing anything to try and contact people, the educated men, to...

Prabhupāda: Yes, many. Many educated. They are coming, trying to understand. But it requires little brain. So-called educated with dull brain cannot understand. So to make their brain finer to understand, we are prohibiting four things: no illicit sex, no meat-eating, no intoxication, no gambling. If one refrains from these four prohibited things, then he can develop his brain to understand. And if one indulges in these four things, his brain will never be able to understand. Just like a dog having sexual intercourse on the street, so if I request the dog that "Don't do this, it is not very good," he'll never understand.

Interview with Professors O'Connell, Motilal and Shivaram -- June 18, 1976, Toronto:

Prabhupāda: A child may not have seen his father. There are many children, but that does not mean that he has no father. There must be father. And so if there is father, no father, how you know it? Suppose you have not seen. You ask the mother, "Mother, am I born without father?" Mother says, "No, you have got your father." Or she can show, "Here is your father." So you cannot understand the father by your research work. You have to take the knowledge from the mother, authority. There is no other way. You cannot make any experiment or research knowledge who is father. That is not possible. You'll never understand who is father. You have to take the authority of the Vedas to understand what is God, or what is the supreme father. And here in the Bhagavad-gītā the supreme father personally is coming and teaching you, "I am the father." So what is the objection to accepting Him? All the ācāryas have accepted, as you spoke of the ācāryas. Caitanya Mahāprabhu has accepted. So what is my objection? That means I am defying all the ācāryas. All the Vedas says kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam.

Evening Darsana -- July 6, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: They say! What they say, they have no value. Because if it is a fact that one can understand God through bhakti, so whatever bhakta says, that is value. What a nonsense says, it has no value. It has no value. "They say." First of all, you have to think what they are. Are they speculator or bhakta? Just like beginning of Bhagavad-gītā Kṛṣṇa said bhakto 'si, "I am talking to you Bhagavad-gītā because you are My bhakta." So it is the subject matter..., bhagavān is the subject matter for the bhakta, not for others. Others, they will speculate only. They will never understand what is Kṛṣṇa.

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversation -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Mass of people, let them chant and dance and take prasāda. So these centers are being opened for mass movement as well as class movement. In the village there is... Hardly you'll get good, educated men. So there is no question of philosophy. Given them chance of chanting and take prasāda. It is useless to talk before them our philosophy. They'll never understand. But they will understand prasādam. Prasādam is so nice. If there are few grains of prasāda, even the crows will come, the condemned bird. (laughs) He will also come. You do like this. So if this has been settled, do that.

Room Conversation -- January 8, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: They're ordinary men, third-class men. Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati... (BG 7.3). What they'll understand about Kṛṣṇa, third-class men? Manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu kaścid yatati. When one is siddha, out of them, one may understand. And how these third-class men will understand Kṛṣṇa? If they want to remain on the third-class position, they'll never understand Kṛṣṇa.

Morning Darsana and Room Conversation Ramkrishna Bajaj and friends -- January 9, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Some reason anyābhilāṣitā. He has got other purpose, not the purpose of preaching Bhagavad-gītā. That is called anyābhilāṣa. So people are infested with anyābhilāṣa, everyone. Therefore he is living this material life. But that should be zero. Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11). That you have to... That is sarva-dharmān parityajya (BG 18.66). If you have got other purposes within yourself, then you'll never understand Bhagavad-gītā. This is bhakti.

Evening Darsana -- May 9, 1977, Hrishikesh:

Prabhupāda: Bhakta means he must be a servant, sakha or father or conjugal lover. They are bhaktas. There are five rasas. So a bhakta is situated in one of them: śānta, dāsya, sākhya, vātsalya... That is Vṛndāvana atmosphere. So bhakta means either of them. Arjuna sākhye. By friendship Arjuna became perfect, by making Kṛṣṇa as friend. Hanumān dāsye. Vajrāṅgajī, Hanumān, he, by serving Lord Rāmacandra, the order... He was not even human being, animal, (indistinct), not very intelligent, but by giving service constantly, he worshiped with love. So as soon as you become a bhakta, you must be related with Kṛṣṇa with some rasa, in some particular position. That is bhakta. So the point is that without becoming a bhakta, nobody can understand bhakta. A politician cannot understand. They simply make their artificial attempt to understand. They'll never understand. It is locked.

Correspondence

1971 Correspondence

Letter to Umapati -- Los Angeles 9 July, 1971:

You write to say that you do not understand this movement, but if you do not understand this movement after so many years then when you will understand? You have been in this movement since the very beginning and you say that you don't understand. How is that? And you have so many questions. That is all right, but you will go on questioning throughout your whole life and never understand. So what is the use of asking questions?

1973 Correspondence

Letter to Acyutananda -- New Delhi 1 November, 1973:

This was the statement of Srila Sukdeva Goswami when he saw Krsna carrying the cowherds boys on His shoulders. To be in such a position could only be the result of the performance of many, many pious activities. They were putting their legs on the Supreme Personality of Godhead and were forgetting who He is, and Krsna is taking the feet of His devotee on Himself. Krsna is so nice. The mayavadis can never understand this exchange of devotional activities.

1976 Correspondence

Letter to Brahmananda -- Hyderabad 2 December, 1976:

One may remain perpetually illiterate, but if one practices the devotional service activities, he will become a devotee. That's all, train them up to become devotees. How to play mrdanga, how to play karatalas, take prasadam, attend arati, etc. They'll never understand the books. They are less than sudras, candalas. Just train as Vaisnavas, then all education is there.

Page Title:Never understand
Compiler:Rati, Serene
Created:25 of Nov, 2008
Totals by Section:BG=1, SB=5, CC=1, OB=5, Lec=29, Con=17, Let=3
No. of Quotes:61