Go to Vanipedia | Go to Vanisource | Go to Vanimedia


Vaniquotes - the compiled essence of Vedic knowledge


Possible only... (Lectures)

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- New York, March 11, 1966:

You see? So because it is sense, it is imperfect. So by mental speculation we cannot have a into right conclusion, by mental speculation. Those are simply speculating on mind, they can make some progress to a certain extent, but they cannot reach the ultimate goal. It is not possible by mental speculation; neither it is possible by direct evidence. The only, only possible evidence is authority, authority. Just like yesterday also I gave you that example. Just like if a child asks his mother that "Who is my father?" now the mother says, "Here is your father." Now, if the child says, "I don't believe it," so he has no other source of knowledge. Except the mother's version, that "Here is your father," he has no other alternative to know who is father. It is such a thing that neither he can imagine, speculate, "Oh, he may be my father, he may be my father, he may be my father." Lots of father he can gather. That is not possible. And neither it is possible for direct perception. The only possibility is the mother's evidence. Similarly, as the mother is authority for the child, similarly, the śruti, the Vedas, they are called mother, mother of knowledge.

Lecture on BG 2.14 -- London, August 20, 1973:

Or no fire. Yes, still there is fire. Because you dry it in the sunshine, therefore there is fire. Earth, water, fire, and there is air, there is sky—but there is no soul. That is the difference. You can prepare a doll with earth, water, air, fire, all these things, material elements. But you cannot give the soul. That is not possible. That is possible only by Kṛṣṇa. Ahaṁ garbhaṁ dadāmy aham.(?) Just like man and woman. Actually the woman is giving the ingredients of developing body of the child. But when it is possible? When the man gives the seed. Otherwise a woman could produce a child without the aid of a man. No, that is not possible. When the seed, with the seed the soul comes. And when the soul is situated in the womb of the woman, the woman can assist by supplying the ingredients to develop the body. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa jantur deha upapattaye (SB 3.31.1). So by nature's process, when one gives up this material body, the subtle body is there, mind, intelligence and ego. The subtle body carries the soul and it is just...

Lecture on BG 2.18 -- Hyderabad, November 23, 1972:

No competent brāhmaṇa. Therefore performance of sacrifices is not possible. The only performance of sacrifice is this, as we are performing—Hare Kṛṣṇa festival. That is stated: yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi su-medhasaḥ (SB 11.5.32). Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana. In this age, Kali-yuga, no other sacrifices are..., is possible. Only sacrifice... This is sacrifice. Yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana. Just like we are doing, in a small scale. But it can be done in larger scale. But people are not interested. People are not interested. They have lost all brain. Su-medhasaḥ, and alpa-medhasaḥ. These two words, two words are used in the śāstras. Alpa-medhasaḥ. Medhā means brain substance. So those who are alpa-medhasaḥ, they, means less brain substance. Antavat tu phalaṁ teṣāṁ tad bhavaty alpa-medhasām (BG 7.23). Alpa-medhasaḥ, less intelligent, less brain substance, they worship different demigods. Kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ yajante anya-devatāḥ (BG 7.20). The anya-devatās are there, but who are attracted to worship other demigods?

Lecture on BG 2.58-59 -- New York, April 27, 1966:

We have to always, cent percent, be engaged in spiritual activities. That should be the program of our life. Rather, in spiritual life you will hardly find any time to get out of it. You have got so much engagement. Rasa-varjam. And that engagement can only be possible when you find some transcendental pleasure in it.

So that will be done. That will be done. Ādau śraddhā tataḥ sādhu-saṅgaḥ (Cc. Madhya 23.14-15). Spiritual life begins, first of all, śraddhā, some faith. Just like you are coming here kindly to hear me. You have got little faith. This is the beginning. Without faith, you could not spare your time here because here there is no cinema playing, there is no political talks, nothing of the... It may be, to some it is very dry subject. Very dry subject. (chuckles) But still, you come. Why? Because you have got some little faith, "Oh, here is Bhagavad-gītā. Let us hear it."

Lecture on BG 3.31-43 -- Los Angeles, January 1, 1969:

The so-called love... A young boy is trying to love a young girl, or young girl is trying to love a young..., but the background is lust. There is no love. It is simply a show of love. Therefore, after satisfying lust, there is divorce, there is separation. So in the material world there is no possibility of love. It is all lust. Love is only possible when you love God. There is no lust. There is no question of sense gratification. Simply for love: "Kṛṣṇa is my lover. Kṛṣṇa is my master. Kṛṣṇa is my friend."

Just like Arjuna. Arjuna is loving Kṛṣṇa as friend. So he is so great lover that in the beginning he hesitated to fight, "How shall I kill my kinsmen?" But when he understood, "Kṛṣṇa, my friend, desires. Oh, never mind." So there was no lust. Simply love of Kṛṣṇa. So lust and love, that means the same thing is there. Simply one has to change the account. That's all. Lusty people, they are working on account of sense gratification, and lover of Kṛṣṇa is working for Kṛṣṇa's satisfaction. The activity may appear superficially the same.

Lecture on BG 4.22 -- Bombay, April 11, 1974:

"Live like this" means you live in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, nirmatsara, siddhāv asiddhau samaḥ. That can be possible only when you live in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Then all our actions will not be binding upon us. Otherwise any little thing we do, yajñārthāt karmaṇo 'nyatra loko 'yaṁ karma-bandhanaḥ (BG 3.9), we shall be entangled. And that is material life. If we become entangled more and more, then the process of changing body, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13), it will go on. Na sādhu manye yata ātmano 'yam asann api kleśada āsa dehaḥ (SB 5.5.4). Although this body is temporary, it is full of miseries. That we do not understand. We are thinking that we are very happy. Where is your happiness?

Lecture on BG 6.4-12 -- New York, September 4, 1966:

And if we do not do that harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇāḥ. Mahad-guṇāḥ means the material acquisition, material education, material wealth, or so many material qualification. That will not help me to control my mind. That is not possible. Only thing is that if I put on the mind Kṛṣṇa, or God, harāv abhakta..., Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then my mind will be very easily conquered.

So jitātmanaḥ praśāntasya. Praśānta means who has ceased to desire material enjoyment. Bhavantam evānucaran nirantaraṁ praśānta-niḥśeṣa-mano-rathāntaram. A devotee to the Lord, bhavantam evānucaran nirantaram, that "When I shall be able to act twenty-four hours in Your service, or when I shall be able to think of You cent percent?" And praśānta-niḥśeṣa-mano-rathāntaram.

Lecture on BG 6.47 -- Ahmedabad, December 12, 1972:

Why don't you do something so that people will not be anymore in famine, any more in distress. There will be no more scarcity of water. That is required. So these are the problems and so however we may solve all these problems, the problem of material existence, birth, death, old age and disease, that cannot be stopped, either you become Brahmā or something like that. That is not possible. That is possible only by Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā:

mām upetya punar janma
duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam
nāpnuvanti mahātmānaḥ
saṁsiddhiṁ paramāṁ gatāḥ
(BG 8.15)

Mām upetya tu kaunteya, duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam. This world is recommended by the Creator of this world as duḥkhālayam aśāśvatam. It is the place for miseries. And that also temporary. If you make, want to make compromise, "All right, it may be miserable life. I will stay here."

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.1.1 -- Caracas, February 21, 1975:

He wanted to discover India. He did not go to the eastern side; he went to the western side. So he found America, that's all. So if you want to find out God, then you have to take the right path. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ (BG 18.55). He never says, "By jñāna, karma, yoga one can achieve God." That is not possible. Only by bhakti. So if you want to have God, then you have to take to these devotional activities, but if you want to have māyā, you can take different paths. (break)

Lecture on SB 1.1.3 -- London, August 20, 1971:

The Supreme Lord's pastimes are more attractive to liberated souls than to mundane people. He is of necessity not impersonal, because it is only possible to carry on transcendental rasa with a person. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam the transcendental pastimes of the Lord are narrated, and the narration is systematically depicted by Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Thus the subject matter is appealing to all classes of persons, including those who seek liberation and those who seek to become one with the Supreme Whole. In Sanskrit the parrot is also known as śuka. When a ripened fruit is cut by the red beaks of such birds, its sweet flavor is enhanced. The Vedic fruit which is mature and ripe in knowledge is spoken through the lips of Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī, who is compared to the parrot not for his ability to recite the Bhāgavatam exactly as he heard it from his learned father, but for his ability to present the work in a manner that would appeal to all classes of men. The subject matter is so presented through the lips of Śrīla Śukadeva Gosvāmī that any sincere listener that hears submissively can at once relish transcendental tastes which are distinct from the perverted tastes of the material world.

Lecture on SB 1.2.6 -- Montreal, August 3, 1968:

There is no other method. If you want to be happy, free from all cares and anxieties, then you have to engage yourself in devotional service of the Lord. That will make you free from all material anxieties and all material miseries. We are all seeking after that position, how to become completely happy. Our whole struggle for existence... Anyone, in any place, any country, they are all struggling for existence, either human being or animal or birds or beasts, how to become happy. This happiness of the mind, ātmā, is only possible when we are engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That is the only remedy. There is no other alternative.

Lecture on SB 1.5.24 -- Vrndavana, August 5, 1975:

At the same time, service must be there. And simply, "I'm chanting, but no, I'm not giving service..." That may be possible for Haridāsa Ṭhākura. He was simply chanting 300,000 times. That was possible by Haridāsa Ṭhākura. But if we imitate Haridāsa Ṭhākura, that "I shall chant only," that is not chanting. You'll sleep only. That's all. That is not possible. It is possible only for the liberated person. Therefore we should not imitate. Our Guru Mahārāja has condemned this. Mana tumi kisera vaiṣṇava, pratiṣṭhāra tare nirjanera ghare, tava hari-nāma kevala kaitava. In Vṛndāvana you'll find there are so many, they imitate. In a secluded place they are chanting, but they cannot give up even smoking biḍi. You see? So this kind of imitation has no value. Therefore śuśrūṣamāṇe. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ (Brs. 1.2.234). You must give service to the spiritual master.

Lecture on SB 1.5.32 -- Vrndavana, August 13, 1974:

So we should stick to the position of devotional service, execute regularly the orders of the spiritual master and the śāstra, and try to understand Kṛṣṇa. And you can understand Kṛṣṇa only by service. There is no other way. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ (Brs. 1.2.234). If you want to see Kṛṣṇa or want to understand Kṛṣṇa, then it can be possible only by your service, nothing else.

So the best service, as recommended by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, is this preaching work. Yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa-kathā, kṛṣṇa-kathā. Āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra' ei deśa, yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa-upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). That's all. This is preaching. Doesn't require any good academic qualification. You have got your tongue. You chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, and whomever you meet, you ask him, "You become a devotee of Kṛṣṇa." That's all. In this way preach and live very nicely by eating kṛṣṇa-prasāda, chanting, dancing, and then get a life like Nārada Muni.

Lecture on SB 1.7.32-33 -- Vrndavana, September 27, 1976:

Everyone has got the experience. Therefore the recommendation of the śāstra, harer nāma harer nāma harer nāma eva kevalam (CC Adi 17.21). Kevalam. You cannot rectify all these difficulties, because this is the age for all these difficulties. You must know it. They are trying to mitigate all these difficulties in different ways, but śāstra says that it is not possible. Only, it is possible only by chanting the harer nāma, the holy name of the Lord. The holy name of the Lord is Kṛṣṇa, Rāma. Other names are there, but they are subordinate. Not subordinate. There is no question of "superior" or "inferior" in the holy name of the Lord. But we have to pick up the order of the śāstras. Tasmād śāstra-vidhānokta As the śāstra gives regulative, we have to accept that. And if we do not accept that, yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ (BG 16.23), if we do whimsically, then na siddhiṁ sāvāpnoti, you cannot get any perfection of life, na sukham, neither you'll be happy.

Lecture on SB 1.7.49-50 -- Vrndavana, October 7, 1976:

So we have to understand that, how Bhagavān, ṣaḍ-aiśvarya-pūrṇa. Bhagavān means ṣaḍ-aiśvarya-pūrṇa. Aiśvaryasya samagrasya vīryasya yaśasaḥ śriyaḥ (Viṣṇu Purāṇa 6.5.47). All powerful. He can appear anywhere, without any restriction. But still, He appears as Devakī-suta. Janma karma ca divyaṁ me yo jānāti. We have to understand through the śāstra. And that tattvataḥ understanding is possible only through bhakti. Not by any other means. Not by jñāna or yoga. That is not possible. It is simply through... Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ (BG 18.55). The jñānīs, yogis... Karmīs, they are third-class, they cannot. The yogis, jñānīs, yogis, they have got spiritual advancement, but still, until they come to the platform of bhakti, it is not possible to understand. Janma karma ca me divyaṁ tattvataḥ (BG 4.9).

Lecture on SB 1.15.47-48 -- Los Angeles, December 25, 1973:

So anyone can do that. Kṛṣṇa consciousness is so nice. If in our ordinary life we deal with Kṛṣṇa as Arjuna did and the Pāṇḍavas did, so where is the difficulty for us? There is no difficulty. Simply we have to practice it. And that practice is bhaktyā. This is only possible through devotional service. Kṛṣṇa was so near to the Pāṇḍavas on account of their devotion. Nārada Muni eulogized the Pāṇḍavas that "Jñānīs and yogis, they cannot reach even, but by your devotion, He is living with you as friend. Not only as friend, but sometimes as your order-carrier." Pāṇḍavas sometimes, during their negotiation with Duryodhana, sometimes asked Kṛṣṇa, "Kṛṣṇa, You take this letter and deliver to Duryodhana." Agreed, "Yes, I will go." So ordinary peon. Then ordinary chariot driver, Pārtha-sārathi.

Lecture on SB 2.3.1-3 -- Los Angeles, May 22, 1972:

And ultimately, they want to merge into the brahmajyoti. So up to that point, everything that we want—that is material—and that is lust. Therefore it is said kāma. The...just the opposite word of kāma is prema, love.

So in the material world there cannot be prema. Prema means love. The prema is only possible in the spiritual world. Here, what is going on as love, that is not love, that is lust. A boy loves a girl, a girl loves a boy. That is not love, that is lust. As soon as there is some disturbance in lusty affair, they divorce. So therefore that is not love. So we should note it, that so-called love is bogus in this material world. Love cannot be possible. This very word love, prema, is specially reserved for Kṛṣṇa. Premā pum-artho mahān. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's preaching, that the highest perfection of life is to evoke one's dormant love for Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on SB 2.3.20 -- Bombay, March 24, 1977, At Cross Maidan Pandal:

Spiritual understanding is nothing like an electrical charge from the master to the disciple, as foolishly claimed by some propaganda-mongers. Everything is full of sense and logic, and the exchange of views between the master and disciple is possible only when the reception is submissive and real. In the Caitanya-caritāmṛta it is said that one should receive the teaching of Lord Caitanya with intellect and full senses so that one can logically understand the great mission.

In the impure state of a living being, the various senses are fully engaged in mundane affairs. If the ear is not engaged in the service of the Lord by hearing about Him from Bhagavad-gītā or Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, certainly the holes of the ear will be filled with some rubbish. Therefore the messages of Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam should be preached all over the world very loudly.

Lecture on SB 2.9.2 -- Melbourne, April 4, 1972:

Yes. It is for the first, at least the first time. And Congress arranged during Congress session, Hindus and Muslims But that was not with heart. And after the Congress meeting was finished, they But here they daily, they are daily coming, taking prasādam. Why not? Prasādam is Kṛṣṇa's prasādam. So actually, the United Nations or united people can be possible only in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Otherwise it is not possible. The māyā. Everyone is under the influence of māyā, bahu-rūpayā. So long he is under the influence of māyā, he must think in terms of his own form. That is temporary, but he is attached to that temporary form. He must think that "I am this, I am that, I am..." So it is a very important verse. Read it again?

Lecture on SB 3.25.43 -- Bombay, December 11, 1974:

Very insignificant, very abominable combination of man and woman. And they are working so hard day and night. That is the only pleasure. So vairāgya means when you will be detestful to this sex pleasure. That is called vairāgya. "No more." Yad-avadhi mama cetaḥ kṛṣṇa-padāravinde. That is possible only when you are perfectly Kṛṣṇa conscious. Otherwise it is not possible.

Therefore Kṛṣṇa's name is Madana-mohana, and the material is madana-dahana. In the material world everyone is suffering by the piercing arrow of Cupid, man or woman. The Madana, Cupid, is piercing the arrow to man and woman, and the woman is mad after man, and man is mad after woman. But when you see Kṛṣṇa actually, then you see Madana-mohana. Then there will be no more suffering of the piercing arrow of the Cupid. That is called akuto-bhayam, no more fear. No more fear. Now you become fearless. And when... If you want to become fearless, akuto-bhayam, then Kṛṣṇa says that, Kapiladeva says, praviśanty akuto-bhayam.

Lecture on SB 3.26.5 -- Bombay, December 17, 1974:

So we have to become at least one inch above these material qualities. Then you are liberated, immediately.

So who can do that? That is done by Kṛṣṇa. Not the demigods can do that. It is not possible. Only Kṛṣṇa can give. Just like if you..., one is condemned to death, nobody can save him. Only the king can save him, the president can save him. Nobody can save him. It is not... By law, nobody can save him, one who is condemned to death. Everyone knows that. By king's mercy, by president's mercy... So similarly, we are here in this material world just like condemned to death. Condemned... That's a practical, condemned to death. Who is not condemned to death here? Who can say, "No, I am not condemned to death." Can anyone say? Everyone is condemned to death. "As sure as death." That is condemned to death. Why shall I die? If my nature, constitutional position, is na jāyate na mriyate—I do not take birth; I do not die—then why I am dying? That is condemned to death.

Lecture on SB 3.26.15 -- Bombay, December 24, 1974:

Saguṇa Brahman, nirguṇa Brahman, we should distinguish, that Kṛṣṇa is always nirguṇa Brahman, but we are saguṇa Brahman. We are Brahman, but because we are not Parabrahman or Supreme Brahman, we are subjected, we are prone to be covered by these material qualities. Therefore our business is again to recover ourself from these twenty-five elements, material elements. And that is only possible, as it is prescribed by Kṛṣṇa, sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate. What is that? Māṁ ca yo 'vyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena sevate (BG 14.26). You just engage yourself in bhakti-yoga process, mām avyabhicāreṇa, without any mixture, without any deviation. And how it can be, deviation? Anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam (Brs. 1.1.11), without any material desire, without any motive. Jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam (CC Madhya 19.167), not mixed up with fruitive activities or speculative knowledge-pure, simple.

Lecture on SB 3.26.26 -- Bombay, January 3, 1975:

So we have to revive this old consti... That is the whole subject matter of the Sāṅkhya philosophy, Kapiladeva, how we are becoming degraded from the original state of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So our only business is how to revive again. That revival is possible only by this process, bhaja vāsudevam. Vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ (BG 7.19). Sudurlabhaḥ mahātmā, not ordinary mahātmā. Mahātmā, mahān ātmā yasya iti mahātmā. Not cripple ātmā: "This is my community. This is my nation. This is my family. I have to maintain it. I have to make them..." This is not mahātmā. Mahātmā means one who is broader, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Sarva-yoniṣu. Kṛṣṇa is the supreme father of all living entities, and they are suffering. Tato vimukha-cetasa māyā-sukhāya bharam udvahato vimūḍhān (SB 7.9.43). Prahlāda Mahārāja says that "I am simply anxious, perplexed only for these persons who are bereft of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So I am thinking of them." This man is mahātmā.

Lecture on SB 3.28.19 -- Nairobi, October 29, 1975:

So this yoga system is recommended, but that it is very, very difficult. Five thousand years ago, when Kṛṣṇa explained this haṭha-yoga system in the Sixth Chapter to Arjuna Arjuna was honest man. He flatly denied, "Kṛṣṇa, these things cannot be done by me." Because in those days, especially a person like Arjuna, why he should speak lies? This meditation is not possible. It was only possible in the Satya-yuga when people were very peaceful, long duration of life, there was no artificial necessities of life. Kṛte yad dhyāyato viṣṇum. At that time, to meditate upon Viṣṇu and for years Just like Vālmīki Muni. He practiced meditation for sixty thousands of years. Then he got perfection. At that time people used to live for 100,000.

Lecture on SB 5.5.3 -- Boston, May 4, 1968:

"Where is Kṛṣṇa? Where is Kṛṣṇa?" That's Rādhārāṇī's separation, love in separation. So love means without any return, without any sense gratification, without any consideration. That is love. Āśliṣya. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Āśliṣya vā pāda-ratāṁ pinaṣṭu mām adarśanān marma-hatāṁ karotu vā (CC Antya 20.47). The lover is saying to the beloved, "Either You embrace me with love or you kick me, trample me down under Your feet. And if You make me brokenhearted without meeting me, so whatever You like, You can do. Still I love You." That is love. That is only possible to love Kṛṣṇa. That is not materially possible. Here the so-called love means he or she wants some return for sense gratification. So there the so-called love is lust. It is going in the market in the name of love. There is no love.

Lecture on SB 5.5.3 -- Stockholm, September 9, 1973:

This is due to our past action. Now if you create again the same action, then you'll have to accept another body. Then your, this miserable condition of life will continue. Will continue. Just finish it.

Therefore life, the..., whatever time we have got, whatever opportunity you have got, we have to prepare ourself. No more taking material body. That is only possible if you are transferred to the spiritual world. Then it is possible. And how it can be done? Kṛṣṇa says, janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ: (BG 4.9) if you simply try to understand what is Kṛṣṇa. Simply by this understanding. Otherwise, you'll have to accept this material body if you have got any desire to enjoy in this material world. Therefore, bhakti means anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyaṁ jñāna-karmādy-anāvṛtam (Brs. 1.1.11). If you take the path of jñāna-kāṇḍa karma-kāṇḍa, or without knowledge of... People do not know what is jñāna-kāṇḍa, karma-kāṇḍa. They are just like animals. So they are desiring like animals. Therefore anyābhilāṣitā-śūnyam.

Lecture on SB 5.5.5 -- London, September 3, 1971:

That is the difference between gopī's love and people's lust.

So love cannot be possible within this material world because every one has got the intention to satisfy his senses. Therefore love is not possible in the material world. Love is possible only in the spiritual atmosphere. When we know how to love Kṛṣṇa, or God, then our life is... Yayātmā suprasīdati. By that love you'll be fully satisfied. Ahaituky apratihatā yayātmā suprasīdati. Sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmo yato bhaktir adhokṣaje (SB 1.2.6). So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to train people how to satisfy the senses of Kṛṣṇa. Then all problems will be solved.

Lecture on SB 5.5.31 -- Vrndavana, November 18, 1976:

"Sir, you have infected smallpox. Now you suffer from this smallpox." No, automatically it takes. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi sarvaśaḥ (BG 3.27). Everything is going on systematically. You cannot change. That is called destiny. Destiny means that so long we are under the laws of nature, that is to happen. You cannot change it. That is not possible. Only... Such law can be changed by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi (BG 18.66). You cannot. That is not possible. Nobody can do it. If you have done something wrong, sinful, you must suffer. There is no escape. But He can do that. Just like if you are condemned by the law court to be hanged, nobody can change it. Even the judge who has given you the punishment, even if you appeal to him, "Sir, excuse me," no, he cannot excuse you by law. But if you file petition to the president or the king—that is called king's mercy—he can change. Similarly, whatever we are doing, we must enjoy or suffer.

Lecture on SB 6.1.16 -- Honolulu, May 16, 1976:

And below fourth class, from fifth class, they are not human being. So taste of different classes are different. But one thing is that in whichever class we may belong, if you take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then you'll become one. People are wanting unity. There is United Nation organization, but so long we keep ourself on the material platform there cannot be unity. That is not possible. Only in the spiritual platform there can be unity.

So here it is said that aghavān. Aghavān means sinful. Agha means sin and vān means... Just like Bhagavān. Bhagavān means one who has bhaga, or opulence, or fortune. That is called bhagavat. And just the opposite is called aghavat. This is Sanskrit language. Bhagavān means the most opulent, topmost place, Bhagavān. And aghavān means lowest place. So here it is said that one has to become aghavān to the stage of Bhagavān. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness: not to remain aghavān, but to become Bhagavān. Bhagavān, of course, means the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

Lecture on SB 6.1.31 -- San Francisco, July 16, 1975:

Just like a person dressed in dramatic performance, his relative cannot see him, similarly, Kṛṣṇa is everywhere, aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). Simply one has to make his eyes purified to see Him. Then he can see always Kṛṣṇa, within and without.

Premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena (Bs. 5.38). This seeing is possible only in bhakti, not in jñāna, karma. No. No other way. Premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena. No other method is prescribed. In Bhagavad-gītā also, it is said, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ (BG 18.55). If you want to know Kṛṣṇa as He is, then you have to know Him through bhakti-yoga, not any other. Others, they may go on speculating for many, many millions of years. Still, they will not be able to understand.

Lecture on SB 6.1.34-39 -- Surat, December 19, 1970:

Nityo nityānāṁ cetanaś cetanānām (Kaṭha Upaniṣad 2.2.13). There are plural number living entities; they are all being provided with one cetana, the supreme cetana. So these two classes of men are known... One is known as demigods or servant of God. And another is called a servant of māyā. Both of them are servants. Nobody is master. That is not possible. Only one master is God, or Kṛṣṇa. That is stated in the Caitanya-caritāmṛta, ekale īśvara kṛṣṇa: (CC Adi 5.142) "Only īśvara, or the controller, or the master, is Kṛṣṇa." Āra saba bhṛtyā: "And any other, either demigods or ordinary (break) living entities(?), they are all servants." Yāre yaiche nācāya se taiche kare nṛtya: "Now, under the direction of the Supreme Lord, everyone is dancing or working." In the common word we say that "We are dancing dogs." Because under the direction of the master... The master says "You please dance," the dog will dance. So master, because the dog knows that "He is my master. If I don't dance, then I will starve."

Lecture on SB 6.1.34-39 -- Surat, December 19, 1970:

They did not know that although throughout his whole life he was sinful, but because at the time of his death he simply remembered Nārāyaṇa... But that is also difficult. We may not think that "Let me now go on committing all sinful activities. At the time of death I shall remember Nārāyaṇa or Kṛṣṇa." That is not possible. It is only possible for persons who had some intimate relationship with Nārāyaṇa. This Ajāmila had very intimate relationship with Nārāyaṇa. When he was boy, when he was being trained up by his father, he was very faithful to Nārāyaṇa, to his father. Up to twenty years, he served very nicely Nārāyaṇa. Therefore he had the effect of remembering Nārāyaṇa at the time of death. Therefore in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, svalpam api asya dharmasya trāyate mahato bhayāt. If even slight of this Nārāyaṇa-dharma is practiced, it can save you from the greatest danger. So why not take to this Nārāyaṇa consciousness or Kṛṣṇa consciousness always, twenty-four hours?

Lecture on SB 6.2.11 -- Allahabad, January 16, 1971:

The whole thing will be remembered and that will make him liberated. Offenseless chanting means liberated. We should therefore (be) very much careful not to commit offenses. Then we remain always... So long you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, you remain liberated. And actually ayi mukta-kalir upaśyamāna. Śrīla Rūpa Gosvāmī has said that the chanting is possible only by the liberated soul. Ayi mukta-kalir upaśyamāna. When he is addressing the holy name he says mukta-kalir upasya: "Those who are liberated, they can chant offenseless or pure holy name of the Lord." Ayi mukta-kalir upaśyamāna. And Parīkṣit Mahārāja also has stated in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam... What is that verse? I immediately forget. Bhavauṣadhāc chrotra-mano-'bhirāmāt. What is that śloka? Catur-māsa, can you remember? Bhavauṣadhāc chrotra-mano-'bhirāmāt ka uttamaśloka-guṇānuvādāt, virajyeta pumān vinā paśughnāt (SB 10.1.4). Nivṛtta-tarṣair upagīyamānāt. Yes, I remember now.

Lecture on SB 6.2.14 -- Vrndavana, September 17, 1975:

They went to Kātyāyanī: "Mother Kātyāyanī, please give Kṛṣṇa as our husband." Their only prayer was that. They did not go to Kātyāyanī for begging: dhanaṁ dehi, rūpaṁ dehi, yaśo dehi—no. "Give me Kṛṣṇa. Give me Kṛṣṇa." So there is no harm to worship the deity, I mean to say, other demigods. But that is not possible for anyone. That was possible only for the gopīs, because they did not know anything except Kṛṣṇa. Wherever they go, they want Kṛṣṇa. But we worship demigods not for Kṛṣṇa—for my sense gratification. Kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñāna yajanty anya-devatāḥ (BG 7.20). When we worship any other demigods... Just like you worship Gaṇeśa for siddhi, ṛddhi-siddhi. You will find in mercantile shop, namo gaṇeśāya namaḥ ṛddhi-siddhi kurdan mile(?). So similarly, we worship Goddess Durgā for beautiful wife. These are prescribed in the śāstras, that "If you want this, then you worship this Deity. If you want this, then you worship this Deity." So different worshipers of demigods, they are meant for satisfying the senses.

Lecture on SB 7.6.1 -- San Francisco, March 3, 1967:

So Caitanya Mahāprabhu has said that the real goal of life is premā pum-artho mahān, prema, to attain love. Of course, in this material world, so many things are going on in the name of love. But actually there is no love. They are all lust. But going on in trade in the name of love. Love is possible only with Kṛṣṇa, or God. Premā pum-artho mahān. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Not any other thing.

Dharma artha kāma mokṣa (SB 4.8.41, Cc. Ādi 1.90). Generally, people understand eating, sleeping, mating and fearing. That is the lowest grade of life. A little higher grade of life, they try to understand about some religious principle, and they are generally become religious for some gain, some material gain. Just like in the churches or in the temples they go. They ask some benefit from God, "O God, give us our daily bread." Or somebody goes to temple, asks some benefit. So dharma, artha, kāma. Why they ask some benefit? Now, just to satisfy their senses, that's all.

Lecture on SB 7.6.7 -- Vrndavana, December 9, 1975:

The general process is that unless one is born in brāhmaṇa family, he is not śuddha; he is impure by birth. That is fact. But the devotee can change. This is new birth, undoubtedly. Just like these, our European, American students. They are new birth. They have given up their old birth practices. So birth is changed. Punar janma. So that is possible only by Kṛṣṇa consciousness. If one has to change his body without changing body... The body is changed, but we see that the same body..., but it is not the same body. It is cin-maya. The same example, that the iron rod put into the fire, it becomes red hot, so it is no longer iron; it is fire. Similarly, if we constantly keep ourself in touch with Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then the body is no longer material; it is spiritual. Therefore a spiritual body is not burned. They are kept, samādhi. Just like in Western countries they give samādhi to any, everyone, tomb, entombing. In India the tomb is offered to a very advanced spiritually person. You'll find many tombs in Vṛndāvana because their body is spiritual. No, no...

Lecture on SB 7.9.54 -- Vrndavana, April 9, 1976:

Those who are foolish persons, they are after śreyas..., er, preyas, immediately palatable. And those who are intelligent, dhīra, they are after śreyas. Śreyas-kāmāḥ. Without becoming śreyas-kāmāḥ, nobody can be Kṛṣṇa conscious. If one is preyas-kāmāḥ, if one wants to enjoy this material world, sense gratification, he cannot become Kṛṣṇa conscious. That is not possible. Only śreyas-kāmāḥ.

So how to... "Yes, I am śreyas-kāmāḥ. I... Yes, I want what is the ultimate goal of life. Yes." That is... Just like Sanātana Gosvāmī went to Caitanya Mahāprabhu. This is a fact. So śāstra also says, tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam (SB 11.3.21). The śreyas-kāmāḥ. If you are actually serious about the ultimate goal of life, then you approach a guru. Tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ. If you are actually inquisitive to understand what is sreyas, that is śreyas-kāmāḥ. kāmāḥ means desiring, and śreyas means ultimate good. Not preyas-kāmāḥ.

Nectar of Devotion Lectures

The Nectar of Devotion -- Calcutta, January 25, 1973:

Yes. Satatam, satataṁ smartavyaḥ viṣṇuḥ. This is the injunction. One should always remember Viṣṇu, the form of Viṣṇu. That is possible only when we have enhanced a little in the path of loving Kṛṣṇa, or Viṣṇu. Premāñjana-cchurita-bhakti-vilocanena santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti (Bs. 5.38). So everything is possible provided we are serious. Then everything is possible. Go on. Otherwise why Rūpa Gosvāmī has taken so much trouble in the matter of giving us Bhakti-rasāmṛta-sindhu, quoting from so many, innumerable śāstras? Sad-dharma-pravarta. Nānā-śāstra-vicāraṇaika-nipuṇau sad-dharma-pravartakau. The Gosvāmīs were so compassionate with the fallen human society that he, especially Rūpa Gosvāmī... All the Gosvāmīs, they first of all searched out all the datas of spiritual life and quoted them, in each and every line. Sufficiently he quoted from śāstras. This is the business of sādhu. Sādhu-śāstra-guru. They'll act in the same way. There is no difference of opinion. Sādhu-śāstra-guru-vākya tinete kariyā aikya. One has to see a sādhu by corroborating his statements according to the śāstras or another sādhu.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Adi-lila 1.8 -- Mayapur, April 1, 1975:

When it is red-hot then it is no more iron rod. It is fire. Anywhere you touch, it will burn.

So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is for that purpose. Increase Kṛṣṇa consciousness and there will be no more kuṇṭha, no more anxiety. People are trying to be anxiety-less, and that is only possible by this movement. Put always in touch with Kṛṣṇa. And the method is very simple—Hare Kṛṣṇa. That all. If you keep yourself in touch with Hare Kṛṣṇa... We have already been known as Hare Krishna people all over the world, Hare Krishna people. So increase this population, Hare Krishna people, and it will be Vaikuṇṭha.

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 20.105 -- New York, July 11, 1976:

Prabhupāda: Śrī-guru-carane rati, ei sei uttama-gati. You want advancement in spiritual consciousness, but it is possible only—śrī-guru-caraṇe rati. If you keep your faith only on the lotus feet of your guru, then you'll make advance. There is no doubt about it. Then?

Dhṛṣṭadyumna: Ye prasāde pūre sarva āśā.

Prabhupāda: Ye prasāde pūre... We have got so many desires, but if we have got strong faith at the lotus feet of guru, everything will be fulfilled automatically. Ye prasāde pūre sarva āśā. Then?

Dhṛṣṭadyumna: Cakhudāna dilo yei...

Prabhupāda: Cakhudāna dilo yei, janme janme prabhu sei. Guru's business is cakhudāna. We are kept in the darkness of this material existence, and guru's business is to open it, bring him to light. That is guru, not to keep him again in the darkness. Cakhudāna dila yei janma janma prabhu sei. Prabhu means master. Then?

Festival Lectures

Janmastami Lord Sri Krsna's Appearance Day -- Montreal, August 16, 1968:

So similarly we're made out of spirit. Qualitatively the same as Kṛṣṇa, but quantitatively many millions of times less. Qualitatively the same, quantitatively different. Fragmental portion. So if we fragmental portions, separated parts and parcels, can serve the source or the whole, then we can be cured of this material disease which is rampant nowadays. And this is possible only by mercy. By mercy alone we can transcend this material existence and know that I am part and parcel of the Supreme, Kṛṣṇa, or God, and I can erase all of my karma and situate myself in pure consciousness. But this consciousness cannot be purified unless there is mercy. And in this age, Kali-yuga, as we know, mercy is diminished to being almost nonexistent. And Kali-yuga is just beginning.

His Divine Grace Srila Bhaktisiddhanta Sarasvati Gosvami Prabhupada's Disappearance Day, Lecture -- Hyderabad, December 10, 1976:

The fact is that gopīs used to dress themselves nicely because by seeing them, Kṛṣṇa will be satisfied, not that for their sense gratification. Generally a girl dresses also to attract the attention of the boy. So the same thing is there but it is Kṛṣṇa's sense gratification, not the gopīs'. The gopīs did not want anything. But Kṛṣṇa will be satisifed. That is the difference between lust and love. Love is there, only possible, when it is diverted towards Kṛṣṇa. That is love. And beyond that... Not beyond that... Below that, everything is lust. So we should always remember this. The senses are not stopped, but when the gratification of the senses is directed towards Kṛṣṇa, that is bhakti, or love. And when the sense gratification is directed towards personal self, that is lust. This is difference between lust and love.

So Śrīla Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī Ṭhākura knew this art, how to turn our activities for the satisfaction of Kṛṣṇa. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.

Arrival Addresses and Talks

Arrival Address -- London, July 7, 1973:

So Kṛṣṇa is not so easy to approach by the nondevotees. Vedeṣu durlabha. Or even by studying Vedas, durlabha. Durlabha means not approachable, not approachable. Vedeṣu durlabha adurlabha ātma-bhaktau. But to His devotees He's very easy. He's very easy. Just like the gopīs. Gopīs, they are village girls, not educated, not brāhmaṇa, not Vedantist. But Kṛṣṇa is within their palms, within their hands. So this bhakti-yoga is so nice that Kṛṣṇa, or God, who is unapproachable by any other method-however efficient it may be, it is not possible—only by love and devotion in service He can be approached. It is clearly stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: bhaktyā mām abhijānāti (BG 18.55). Kṛṣṇa has explained in the Bhagavad-gītā all systems-jñāna-yoga system, haṭha-yoga system, karma-yoga system, rāja-yoga system. But at the end He says that "If anyone actually wants to know Me, that is bhakti." Bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ. If anyone wants to know Kṛṣṇa as He is...

Arrival Address -- New York, July 9, 1976:

So you have got this opportunity, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Everything is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, what is what. Do not lose this opportunity. Do not be foolish, misled by so-called scientists or philosophers or politicians. Take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. And that is possible only guru-kṛṣṇa-kṛpāya (CC Madhya 19.151). By the mercy of guru and by the mercy of Kṛṣṇa you can achieve all success. This is the secret.

yasya deve parā bhaktir
yathā deve tathā gurau
tasyaite kathitā hy arthāḥ
prakāśante mahātmanaḥ
(ŚU 6.23)

So this guru-pūjā which we are doing, it is not self aggrandizement; it is real teaching. You sing daily, what is that? Guru-mukha-padma-vākya āra nā kariyā aikya **. Bas, this is translation. I tell you frankly, whatever little success is there in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, I simply believed what was spoken by my Guru Mahārāja. You also continue that. Then every success will come.

Initiation Lectures

Initiation Lecture and Ceremony -- New Vrindaban, September 4, 1972:

Dṛḍha-vratāḥ: "firm determination." That kinds of devotional life is possible only when one is completely free from the resultant action of sinful activity, yeṣāṁ tv anta-gataḥ. Anta-gataḥ: "one who has finished." We are suffering and enjoying in this life. So, what we are enjoying, that is due to our pious activities in the past. Just like in our daily business, if you have to take some money from somebody, that is your income. And if you have to pay somebody that is your expenditure. Two things are going on. You cannot expect here in this material world simply income. There must be expenditure. So two things, they are known as sukha and duḥkha Sukha means "happiness" and duḥkha means "distress." So, as Prahlāda Mahārāja says, that this sukha and duḥkha-happiness and distress—is already destined. And soon as I get a certain type of body, my life's happiness and distresses are fixed up. That's all—you cannot change it. That is called destiny. But, the ātmā is—although encaged within this body—is always separated, apart from. Just like I give you so many examples: that a dog—the body is dog's body—it must be as dog.

General Lectures

Lecture -- Seattle, October 9, 1968:

That is also not new, not manufactured. It is recommended that in this age... Just like during winter season the process is to protect your body from being affected of cold. So that process is not new. Similarly, in this age... This age is called Kali-yuga. So it is recommended, kalau tad hari-saṅkīrtana, where God realization is only possible by this chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. Simple process. You come on. Sit down. It doesn't matter what you are, whether you are Indian or you are American, or Christian, or Hindu, or man, woman, black, white. It doesn't matter. You simply come, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa and realize God. Because in this age very severe method cannot be followed. The people are so fallen that even four principles we have ordered, that "Don't take meat, don't have illicit sex life, don't participate in gambling, and don't," I mean to say... What is the other?

Lecture -- Seattle, October 11, 1968:

So we should recommend not to waste your valuable time following something which is not possible to be done by you. That is our recommendation. But if you have got some hobby, that is a different thing. But it will never be successful. It is very difficult to perform. At the present age, as it is recommended and it is followed, practiced, and experienced, this bhakti-yoga is the only possible way for self-realization. It is made very simple: simply chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma... Anyone can do it. Any part of the world can people practice it, of any age, it doesn't matter, either old, young, or child. We have got many children of our devotees, they are also chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. And many old men like me, they are also chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. And these young boys and girls, they are also chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. So it is universal. And all these boys and girls, they are neither Hindus nor Indians, nor they have any knowledge of Sanskrit. But they easily pick up this Hare Kṛṣṇa and chant and getting the result.

Lecture -- Seattle, October 18, 1968:

Their life is based on the sex. That's all. Everyone is working so hard, culminating in sex. That's all. This is material life. So energy. The material energy means sex. So that is energy. If a person who is working in the factory, if you stop sex, he cannot work. And when he's unable to enjoy sex life, then he takes intoxication. This is material life. So energy must be there. Here in the material world the energy is sex, and in the spiritual world the energy is love. Here the love is misrepresented in sex. That is not love; that is lust. Love is only possible with Kṛṣṇa, nowhere else. Nowhere else love is possible. That is misrepresentation of love. That is lust. So love and lust. Love is yogamāyā, and lust is mahāmāyā. That's all. (long pause) Is that all right?

Lecture with Allen Ginsberg at Ohio State University -- Columbus, May 12, 1969:

Then the next stage is samaḥ sarveṣu bhūteṣu. Then you can see everything, or every living entity, on the equal status. People are trying to come to that platform of oneness, but that is only possible when you come to the spiritual platform, or Kṛṣṇa consciousness. In the material platform it is not possible. Practically we see the United Nations, they are trying to come to oneness of all nations, but they failed. Simply the flags are increasing. Instead of being united, we are increasing our flags. So if you want actually oneness, then you have (to) come to that platform of brahma-bhūtaḥ prasannātmā (BG 18.54)—prasannātmā, joyfulness. Everyone is hankering after joyfulness. How that joyfulness can be attained? That is explained in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam.

Lecture -- London, September 16, 1969:

Lord Kṛṣṇa said that one who acts for the sake of duty, not for enjoying the fruit, when it is possible... Now, if you are family man you have to work for maintaining your family; therefore you have to enjoy the fruits of your work. So this is possible only for a person who had completely dedicated for service of the Lord.

So Ṛṣabhadeva recommends that human form of life is specifically meant for austerity, regulative principles, not to do anything according to whims. Very regulative life, that is human life. We require, so long we have got this body, we require four things for maintenance of the body: āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithunaṁ ca. We require to eat something, every one of us. We require to sleep; therefore we must have an apartment or sleeping place. That may be very nice or... But we must have some place to sleep, shelter. So eating, sleeping. Then some protection, defense, and sense gratification. We have got our senses; they want some satisfaction. So these are, these principles are bodily needs. These are not the needs of the spirit soul. So long we have got this body, we have to satisfy it, but not, I mean to say, unrestricted. That is not human life. That is the difference between human life and animal life. But at the present moment human life has become more than animal life.

Lecture -- Bombay, November 2, 1970:

So we shall gradually discuss all these points. The preliminary is that the present moment, although we are trying to be united—United Nations, united society, united religions, united... So many things, we are trying to be united-communism, united community—but this unity can be possible only when we are actually learned in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

vidyā-vinaya-sampanne
brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
śuni caiva śva-pāke ca
paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ
(BG 5.18)

One has to become learned. And the process of learning is not very difficult. It is very easy, especially for the men of this age—that is this chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. If you chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, is it very difficult for you? God has given you tongue. We are talking so many things, whole day and night. But if we utilize this tongue for chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, what is the loss there? That is the injunction of the śāstras: Kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty gatir anyathā. Harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam (CC Adi 17.21).

Lecture Excerpt -- Los Angeles, June 7, 1972:

Or the United Nations also. I do not know what is their center. Their center is politics, that's all.

So in this way there cannot be complete harmony. Complete harmony will be possible only when you bring in Kṛṣṇa. That will be explained in the next verse. Īśāvasyam idaṁ sarvam (ISO 1). Unless you bring Kṛṣṇa, or īśa... Īśa means the supreme controller. He is actually controlling. Īśa. Īśa means the controller. So there is a supreme controller. We see in the, in our experience, that some of the objectives are living and some of them are not living. Animate or inanimate—these two things we see in our experience. But above this animate and inanimate there is supreme animate. That supreme animate is called īśa. Īśa or īśvara means controller. So there are many īśvaras, or controllers, but the supreme controller is Kṛṣṇa.

Pandal Lecture -- Bombay, January 14, 1973:

So we shall gradually discuss all these points. The preliminary is that at the present moment, although we are trying to be united, United Nation, united society, united religion, united... So many things we are trying to be united—communism, united community... But this unity can be possible only when we are actually learned in Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

vidyā-vinaya-sampanne
brāhmaṇe gavi hastini
śuni caiva śva-pāke ca
paṇḍitāḥ sama-darśinaḥ
(BG 5.18)

One has to become learned. And the process of learning is not very difficult. It is very easy, especially for the men of this age. That is this chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. If you chant this Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra, is it very difficult for you? God has given you tongue. We are talking so many things, whole day and night. But if we utilize this tongue for chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, what is the loss there? That is the injunction of the śāstras. Kalau nāsty eva nāsty eva nāsty eva gatir anyathā. Harer nāma harer nāma harer nāmaiva kevalam (CC Adi 17.21).

Departure Talks

Departure Lecture -- London, March 12, 1975:

The neighbor is envious: "Oh, this man is going ahead. I could not." This is... Even if he is brother, even if he is son, this is the nature of the... So therefore this Bhāgavata-dharma is not meant for such persons, who are envious. It is meant for the paramo nirmatsarāṇām, who has given up this envy or envious attitude ultimately. Now, how it is possible? It is possible only when you have learned how to love Kṛṣṇa. Then it is possible. Then you will see that "Everyone is Kṛṣṇa's part and parcel. So he is suffering for want of his Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let me speak something about Him, about Kṛṣṇa. Let me give some literature to him about Kṛṣṇa so that one day he will come to Kṛṣṇa consciousness and become happy." This is śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ smaraṇam process. We should ourself also continuously hear from authoritative literature, person, and continuously go on chanting the same thing, repetition. That's all. Then everything will be happy atmosphere. Otherwise the crows assembly in the garbage will continue, and nobody will be happy.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Soren Aabye Kierkegaard:

Prabhupāda: So man's general position is as good as animal. Therefore in the human society there is system of education. But man, being advanced in consciousness, he can be properly educated so that he can understand what is God by the teachings of authority, and that is our Vedic system. In the human form of life—not generally but in special cases—they are very much inquisitive to understand about God. That is technically called brahma-jijñāsā. inquiring about the Absolute. And that is only possible in the human form of life. Generally, any human being can be educated in the spiritual life or God consciousness, but if anyone awakens his inquiry, as it is stated, tasmād guruṁ prapadyeta jijñāsuḥ śreya uttamam (SB 11.3.21), if one is actually anxious to inquire about God or the supreme knowledge, then he has to approach a guru. That's a fact. Without approaching a bona fide guru there is no possibility of understanding the nature of God and our relationship with Him. So one has to approach a guru. To accept a guru is not a fashion, it is necessity. If one is actually inquisitive, it is a necessity. So the qualification of guru is also given there, that what sort of guru you should search out. Śābde pare ca niṣṇātam (SB 11.3.21).

Philosophy Discussion on Arthur Schopenhauer:

Śyāmasundara: This aesthetic salvation...

Prabhupāda: (aside:) Where is Rūpānuga? Inform them that we will come.

Śyāmasundara: This aesthetic salvation is only possible momentarily. Contemplation of poetry and art and music, these are...

Prabhupāda: No, that is possible. Just like practice. A child is practiced to play, but if he is constantly practiced to read and write, he becomes educated. So not momentary. It is a practice. If you practice Kṛṣṇa consciousness, then other consciousness will automatically vanish.

Śyāmasundara: But he is describing only one type of salvation, called aesthetic salvation, where one transcends the normal state of desire by seeing art or hearing music or poetry. Only this momentary transcendence.

Prabhupāda: So why momentary? It can continue perpetually.

Śyāmasundara: By seeing pictures and art...

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. You see Rādhā-Kṛṣṇa picture, you see the Deity, well-dressed Deity, artistically, flowers. So always see. Why momentary?

Philosophy Discussion on Benedict Spinoza:

Prabhupāda: Yes. We call it māyā. So that can... The body and soul in the material world is there, and therefore the aim of life is how to separate this soul from material body and remain in his original, spiritual form. That is the whole ideal objective for human life, because as long as he remains attached to the body, and... But he has to change the body. That is our practical experience also. We are changing always the body, one after another, and if we give up our attachment for this body, then we are liberated. That is called mukti, to remain in a spiritual body. That is possible only by always thinking of God. That is meditation. That is actual meditation. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakta, always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. To become Kṛṣṇa's devotee, to become worshiper of Kṛṣṇa, and always offering obeisances: "My Lord, I am Your eternal servant. Kindly keep me engaged in Your service"—that much prayer; nothing more. Then he remains always in... (break)

Purports to Songs

Purport to Bhajahu Re Mana -- San Francisco, March 16, 1967:

So foolish people, they do not know what, how much important this human form of life. They are simply wasting in sense gratification like animals. So this is very instructing, that he is training his mind that "You engage your mind in the worship of Lord Kṛṣṇa." Durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge. And this training of the mind is possible only in good association, sat-saṅga. Sat-saṅga means persons who are simply, cent percent, engaged in the service of the Lord. They are called sat. Satāṁ prasaṅgāt. Without association of devotees, it is impossible to train the mind. It is not possible by the so-called yoga system or meditation. One has to associate with devotees; otherwise it is not possible. Therefore we have formed this Kṛṣṇa consciousness society so that one may take advantage of this association. So Govinda dāsa, poet and devotee, is advising, durlabha mānava-janama sat-saṅge: "You have got this very nice, rare human body. Now associate with devotees and engage your mind on the fearless lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa." He is requesting his mind.

Page Title:Possible only... (Lectures)
Compiler:Visnu Murti, RupaManjari
Created:22 of Oct, 2012
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=58, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:58