Reducing (Conversations)

Expressions researched:
"reduce" |"reduced" |"reduces" |"reducing"

1968 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk at Stow Lake -- March 23, 1968, San Francisco:

Devotee (1): Is there something wrong with sleeping eight hours?

Prabhupāda: Sleeping and eating, this is the material disease. Sleeping, eating, mating... So they should be reduced as much as possible.

Devotee (1): If you're still tired...

Prabhupāda: No, you can sleep till you are refreshed. Somebody's refreshed by sleeping four hours. Somebody is refreshed by sleeping ten hours.

Mālatī: But we should not sleep when we have, in place of our devotional service.

Prabhupāda: No, of course not. Devotional service is first.

Morning Walk at Stow Lake -- March 23, 1968, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: People are, in modern day, they cannot sit down in a place for a long time. Therefore so much traveling. The traveling business is very prosperous. Everyone wants to travel. They cannot fix, fix up. So the processes recommended, they're very valuable, but it is not possible to follow them all in the present age because everything is reducing. So our method is to pray to Kṛṣṇa to give us the necessary strength. That's all. Otherwise, by regular practice, this age is very difficult. Unfavorable. First thing is memory is very short. We cannot remember. Life is very short. Life is short, at the same time, so much disturbed by anxiety, by disease, by natural disturbances. Roga-śokādibhiḥ. Short life; that is also disturbed by disease and lamentation.

Morning Walk at Stow Lake -- March 23, 1968, San Francisco:

Devotee (1): Swamiji, would it be all right for Cathy to become a devotee?

Prabhupāda: I don't follow.

Devotee (1): To be initiated. Cathy. To be initiated. She's the girl with the baby.

Prabhupāda: Oh. If she can perform the..., there is no objection.

Devotee (1): She would like to.

Prabhupāda: You are very kind upon her. (laughs) Yes. Vaiṣṇava is very kind. (pause) It is very heavy?

Devotee (2) (boy): No, not too heavy. If I had a memory I wouldn't need this. (Prabhupāda laughs)

Mālatī: So you're carrying your memory in your hand?

Devotee (2): Yes.

Prabhupāda: Because memory is reducing, therefore nature is helping to manufacture so many machines.

Mālatī: Is that why people are making these machines, because they can't remember? Is that a sign of Kali that there's more machines to help people?

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. And nowadays in the courts, they use machines. The judges also cannot remember what has been argued between the parties. So they take this tape recorder and give judgement. Because the argument is going on for two days, three days, how much he can remember? And when he gives judgement he has to take consideration of all the arguments, then give his judgement. So this machine helps.

1971 Conversations and Morning Walks

Darsana -- June 28, 1971, San Francisco:

Prabhupāda: Find out some work. I have no work now. Of course, the sixteen rounds must be chanted hundred percent. Rest time, simply find out where is Kṛṣṇa's work. Why sixteen rounds? It only takes two hours, you have got twenty-four hours. What you will do twenty-four hours? You cannot sleep more than six hours, seven hours, that's all. So two hours chanting and seven hours sleeping. Sleeping is a very important thing in your country, but reduce it. As much as you reduce sleeping and eating, you will become advanced.

Room Conversation -- August 14, 1971, London:

Revatīnandana: It's fundamentally a God conscious attitude, that this body, this human body is meant for spiritual realization. The fact that the body has got sexual desire, therefore we make a concession for that. We use it for begetting good children. If one wants to marry, he can marry and have good children, and raise them to love God. But the real purpose of human life is not just to enjoy sex life like the cats and dogs. Human life has got a higher purpose. So therefore we believe that our human energy should be utilized in that way, for reducing the eating, the sleeping, the sex life. Reducing these things to the minimum, as much as necessary, rather than as much as possible. And having as much as necessary, that leaves most of our time and energy for cultivating our God consciousness. See what I mean? Therefore the idea is that sex life is the highest happiness for man, we don't subscribe to that. It's the biggest happiness in this material world. But spiritual life means unending happiness. A human being can experience this. The dog or cat can't. So for them there is eating, sleeping, sex life, defending themselves. But a human being can experience higher pleasure in God consciousness. So we think that... Therefore we use our energy in that direction.

Guest (1): So it isn't a negation of pleasure, but it's a higher pleasure.

Guest (2): Can I ask...

Prabhupāda: This is very important point, that we are not negating pleasure, but we are trying to bring them to the highest pleasure.

1972 Conversations and Morning Walks

Talk with Bob Cohen -- February 27-29, 1972, Mayapura:

Bob: The attachment between man and woman.

Prabhupāda: Man and woman. So if you want to get liberation from this material world, then that attachment should be reduced to nil. Otherwise, simply for that attachment, you'll have to take birth and rebirth, either as human being or as demigod or as an animal, as a serpent, as a bird, as a beast. You have to take birth. So this basic principle of attachment, increasing, is not our business. It is decreasing. Pravṛttir eṣā bhūtānāṁ nivṛttis tu mahā-phalam. This is the general tendency, but if one can reduce and stop it, that is first class. Therefore our Vedic system is that first of all a boy is trained as a brahmacārī, no sex life. Brahmacārī. He goes to the teacher's home. (pause—a devotee chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa over loudspeaker is very loud.) Who is this? Stop it. (break) The whole principle is, Vedic principle is, to reduce it, not to increase it. Therefore the whole system is varṇāśrama-dharma. Our, the Indian system is called varṇa and āśrama, four spiritual orders and four social orders. The social order is brahmacārī, gṛhastha, vānaprastha, and sannyāsa. Uh, this is spiritual order. And social order is brāhmaṇa, kṣatriya, vaiśya, and śūdra.

Talk with Bob Cohen -- February 27-29, 1972, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: So this science is not known in the world, that how the soul is transmigrating from one body to another and how he's being entrapped in different types of body. This science is unknown. Therefore when Arjuna was speaking from the bodily concept of life that "If I kill my brother, if I kill my grandfather, the other side..." So he was simply thinking on the basis of bodily concept of life. But when it was not solved he surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, accepted Him as spiritual master. And when Kṛṣṇa became his spiritual master He chastised him in the beginning. Aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ prajñā-vādāṁś ca bhāṣase (BG 2.11), that "You are talking like learned man, but you are a fool number one because you are talking on the bodily concept of life." So this sex life increases the bodily concept of life. Therefore the whole process is to reduce it to nil.

Bob: To reduce it over the stages of your life?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Reduce it, just like a boy is trained up as a student up to twenty-five years, restricting sex life. Brahmacārī. So, some of the boys they remain naiṣṭhika-brahmacārī. He, because he's given education, so if he becomes fully conversant he doesn't like to marry. But one who has not such restraint, he's allowed to marry. That is also restricted, that he cannot have sex life without being married. Therefore in the human society there is marriage, not in the animal society. But we are reducing human society gradually to animal society. We are forgetting marriage. That is also written in the śāstras. Svīkāra eva codvāhe. In the Kali-yuga there will be no marriage performances, but the boy and the girl, they'll simply agree to live together. Dāmpatye 'bhirucir hetuḥ. And their relationship will exist on sexual power. If the man or the woman is deficient in sex life, then there is divorce.

Talk with Bob Cohen -- February 27-29, 1972, Mayapura:

Śyāmasundara: (indistinct) ...if you don't undergo voluntary austerity, you must be forced to undergo...

Prabhupāda: Yes. (pause) That is the difference between man and animal. Animal cannot accept austerity. But man can accept austerity. That is the difference between. Just like there is a nice foodstuff in a confectioner's shop. So a man wants to eat it, but he sees that he has no money. So he can restrain. But an animal, cow comes, immediately he pushes his mouth in that. You can beat him with stick, it will tolerate, but it will do that. Therefore, animal cannot undergo austerity. (Someone else speaks inaudibly about volume of loudspeakers) Yes, yes, reduce. (break) Our austerity is very nice. We chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, dance, and Kṛṣṇa sends nice foodstuff, we eat. That's all. Why your people are not agreeable to such kind of austerities? Chanting, dancing, and eating nicely? (indistinct) I see austerity, call my mother.

Room Conversation with John Griesser (later initiated as Yadubara Dasa) -- March 10, 1972, Vrndavana:

Yadubara: It's a new magazine, and this is the second issue out in America. It promised to be a very good magazine, and it hasn't turned out to be so. It's just another slick magazine.

Prabhupāda: Well, unless magazines are reduced to such position, it will not be sold.

Yadubara: Yeah.

Prabhupāda: They want to make business... All these pictures are yours? No.

Yadubara: No, just the ones on Kṛṣṇa consciousness...

Prabhupāda: Oh, thank you.

Morning Walk Conversation -- September 28, 1972, Los Angeles:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Another thing that is coming up is genetic engineering, which they are afraid about, just like they say remember like atomic bomb incident. The politicians will utilize the...

Prabhupāda: So why they discover all these nonsense and waste their time? Why do they not discover something which will stop all problems of life—no death, no disease. Why do they do not know? They are also rascals, combination of rascals. Why do they expend their energy and intelligence for this nonsense purpose? (break) ...which will be reduced.

1973 Conversations and Morning Walks

Room Conversations with Sannyasis -- March 15, 1974, Vrndavana:

Devotee (2): If the temple is constructed, it would have to be more rigidly controlled. It would have to be managed by people that by their preaching and by their Kṛṣṇa consciousness can make it so that the people who come and stay in that temple will want to practice bhakti. It can't be a negative (indistinct) thing. The negative motivation is not going to keep a person.

Prabhupāda: Now, such camps, because you are not established, so, under the circumstances, what is to be done? To reduce our devotees?

Śyāmasundara: We have our base in Calcutta, we have our base in Bombay, those two places.

Prabhupāda: Ah.

Śyāmasundara: Those are important cities in the world.

Prabhupāda: Vṛndāvana, as long as our temple is not constructed, we are minimized. So therefore automatically there is no question of negotiating (indistinct).

Morning Walk -- May 4, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Just see. So why don't you become a brick layer instead of scientist? (laughter) You get more money. Dr. Bose, he called me... I told you. He asked me, "What you are doing?" "Now, I am going to the share market." So he immediately said, "Then what is the value of your education if you are going to the share market like the Marwaris who are illiterate?" Share market means to have some tricks how to sell and purchase shares. That by practicing anyone can do. It is not very difficult. (break) ... life from life. Make vigorous propaganda. Let them come to argument, scientific discussion. (pause) The man and woman in your country, they have got equal rights. Why not here? (laughter) In the lavatory? Why this discrimination, "woman," "man," why? Equal rights, must be equal rights. (pause) What is the basic philosophy for contraceptive action? Why do they prefer contraceptive method?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Their point being to reduce the population, not to increase.

Prabhupāda: But population is reducing, it is increasing. You take the statistics, the world population is increasing, it is not decreasing.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: It is increasing, but not as fast as the...

Prabhupāda: Anyway it is increasing; it is not decreasing. And besides that, there is no such restriction among the birds and beasts. How you can make more for... A cat, a dog, a hog, this birth—one dozen children at a time. And twice in a year. So increasing population is more there, they have got more capacity. So they are not fasting.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: They are saying that because of our medical science, the number of deaths are decreasing. The number of births are increasing and death the rate is decreasing because of medical science.

Prabhupāda: Due to medical science, death is...?

Brahmānanda: Decreasing. People are living longer.

Prabhupāda: It is all nonsense. Who lives now hundred years. Thirty, forty, fifty, finished. It is another nonsense. At the present age, does anybody live like his grandfather? No. No. That's not a fact. At the present moment the maximum years-eighty years. Formerly they were living a hundred years. My grandmother lived for ninety-six years.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: They take a statistical average, they call. That means the average number of people living now, they have longer lives, on the average.

Prabhupāda: Average duration of life in India is thirty years. Thirty years. It has decreased. (end)

Room Conversation with Indian Guests -- July 11, 1973, London:

Guest (10): So does faith develop from accepting?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Faith means acceptance. When you accept, then your faith begins. If you have got hesitation, then the faith has not begun. Or it is on the hazy state. (pause) Get the lights on.

Revatīnandana: So in the human life the distinguishing feature is that his spiritual independence can show itself; whereas the animal is completely under the modes, but the human being, the modes' influence is reduced sufficiently so that he can make this decision, from, whether to accept or reject Kṛṣṇa?

Prabhupāda: Animals also can be delivered, provided he follows a devotee.

Room Conversation with Two Buddhist Monks -- July 12, 1973, London:

Buddhist Monk (1): Remove this greed: where is the suffering? Where is the fear?" And, of course, being tolerant and understanding, man being a bundle of habits and customs, we cannot eradicate all grief overnight. But certainly we can start reducing this greed. Reduce and reduce. And then that's the only way to purify the mind. And then ought show such a society where greed has been reduced will be relatively a peaceful society. Simple living, high thinking and high practice. That's the cornerstone of our philosophies. Multiplication of so many (indistinct), colonational output, flying to the moon and not going into one's mind, and producing these things and calling them (indistinct). What is...

Prabhupāda: Sometimes we find that peaceful living is visible even in animal society. Just like the cows. They're very peaceful. There are other animals, dogs and others. They fight. But hundreds and thousands of cows, they live very peacefully. Birds also... Just like the swans, they live very peacefully. So is that the highest goal of life, to live peacefully? Because that is also found in animal society. Is that the perfection of life?

Room Conversation with Two Buddhist Monks -- July 12, 1973, London:

Prabhupāda: Let them come. They want to see me. Let them come.

Buddhist Monk (1): And (Sanskrit or Pali:) tan moha veda krati dhanacari. (?)

Prabhupāda: Come. (People coming in.) This greediness... That is a good suggestion, that you reduce your greediness, but unless they get a substitute, they cannot. That is the difficulty.

Room Conversation -- September 18, 1973, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: By air. So somebody killed, but he did not cut or burn. So he again, into life. So a wood-cutter, what is called? Who cuts trees and wood? He felt sympathetic. He took away the snake and kept at home and gave him some milk. So one day, when he was strong. (makes hissing sound) So he thought, "Oh, I gave you life, I gave you milk, and now you are trying to attack me?" He cut into pieces. Therefore in the śāstra it is said, modeta sādhur api vṛścika-sarpa-hatyā (SB 7.9.14). When Prahlāda Mahārāja's father was killed by Hiraṇya, I mean to say, Nṛsiṁhadeva, Prahlāda Mahārāja prayed, "Sir, You reduce Your anger now. Nobody is displeased with You because my father was just like a scorpion and snake, and when a scorpion and snake is killed, nobody's unhappy. So nobody is unhappy. Your action is not decried by anyone. Please now become in Your sense."

Morning Walk -- December 3, 1973, Los Angeles:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: This idea Śrīla Prabhupāda, about the chemical evolution, this idea came from, I think, in 1920 by a Russian scientist. He is a biologist. His name is Oparin. So he demonstrated that before biological evolution the atmosphere of the earth should be, he called, very much reducing. Reducing, that means it must be mostly full of hydrogens, no oxygen, very little oxygen, but mostly hydrogen. Then in due course because of the reaction in these hydrogen compounds and the radiation from the sunlight, then these compounds form into different chemicals which are...

Prabhupāda: That is a side study. But there was hydrogen. Wherefrom the hydrogen came? The scientists, simply they study in the middle. But they do not know what is the origin. Just like here is one aeroplane is coming, and you can say, "All of a sudden a light came out of the sea." Is that the study of this aeroplane? If we... the foolish person will see, "All of a sudden, in the sea there was a light." Is that scientific study? So your study is like that. "There was this, and all of a sudden, by chance..." That's it. That is not scientific study. We have to find out the original cause.

Morning Walk -- December 3, 1973, Los Angeles:

Yaśomatīnandana: If these people are allowed to live forever then they will make this place more than a hell, worse than hell.

Prabhupāda: Yes. (laughs) God has given them everything actually, to live peacefully and try to understand God, but that they will not do. They will do something to try to forget God. That is their aim.

Yaśomatīnandana: Prabhupāda, is it true that if a person is very sinful, he reduces some years from his life? If a person is very, very sinful, extremely sinful, then he reduces some...

Prabhupāda: Reduce or increase, what is the profit?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: We see the practical example. If you are alcoholic...

Prabhupāda: Even if you reduce or increase, suppose you are to live for hundred years, if you make it hundred and ten, so what is your profit? And if you are to live for hundred years, reduce time ten years, so what is the profit? You cannot live here, that is a fact, reduce or increase. This is all nonsense. What is increase? The trees, they have more longer period, increased the period, of life. Is, that kind of living is very profitable? What for increasing? To suffering? Your life is already suffering. Why you are covering this body? You cannot stand here, open body. That is suffering. You are trying to save yourself from the suffering. This is life, struggle for existence. Manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati (BG 15.7). Simply struggle. So if you increase your life for struggling again, then what is the profit? This is... The rascals, they do not understand. Even if you increase, what profit you will get? Your life is all suffering. So the foolish persons, they cannot understand. The real problem is how to stop your suffering, reduce or increase, it doesn't matter. But that you cannot do. You'll have to die. This is your suffering. Nobody wants to die. You have to become old man. Suppose an old man, suffering from so many diseases, and he increases his life. What is the profit there?

Yaśomatīnandana: That is what they do by heart transplant.

Prabhupāda: This is all nonsense. Stop death; then it is an achievement. That's all. Stop disease, that is achievement. But that you cannot do. What is the profit reducing, and increasing or decreasing?

Morning Walk -- December 3, 1973, Los Angeles:

Karandhara: Looks like the water is coming up, Prabhupāda.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: The waves are very big.

Prabhupāda: Now, such a huge quantity of coloring, wherefrom coming, red color? And it will disappear after few minutes. Have you got any control over it, scientist?

Karandhara: Now there is a big scarcity of dye, coloring dye.

Prabhupāda: Ah, take from here red color. Yes, they can increase the scarcity. That's all. That is in their power.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: But they will try to make more, reduce the scarcity.

Prabhupāda: Where is more? Now, because the petrol stock is decreasing, they are disturbed, increase it, increase it.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: So they are trying to make synthetic...

Prabhupāda: Again "trying," the same disease, "trying." (laughter) Same disease. Again "trying." That is called... That is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, manaḥ ṣaṣṭhānīndriyāṇi prakṛti-sthāni karṣati (BG 15.7). They are simply struggle, struggling with the mind. That is their business. Prakṛti-sthāni karṣati. Because he is in this prakṛti, under the control of the material nature, prakṛti-sthāni—simply a struggle. And mental concoction: "Now we shall do it. Now we are trying. In future it will be done." Manaḥ. This is mind, mental concoction. Prakṛti is doing their own duty, by nature's law. Now, by nature's law, the winter season is coming. Stop it. Stop it. Make it summer season. What you can do? Why so many cloths are required? Turn it into summer. You cannot do anything. Prakṛteḥ kriyamāṇāni guṇaiḥ karmāṇi... (BG 3.27). The prakṛti is going on, doing its own duty. You cannot check. Now the sun is rising. Now make it dark. Or in the darkness, ask the sun, "Get up." Where is your power? And still you are thinking, that "We are scientists. We are advancing." All foolishness. Just surrender to Kṛṣṇa. Sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇam (BG 18.66). What you can do? You cannot even know how many stars and planets are there. Still unknown.

Morning Walk -- December 4, 1973, Los Angeles:

Devotee (2): So how we can get them to willingly come...

Prabhupāda: Ah?

Devotee (2): ...to the guru?

Prabhupāda: Just like if you are diseased, you are suffering the pains, so naturally you shall be inclined how to reduce the pain, how to get out of...

Devotee (2): But the scientists...

Prabhupāda: But these rascals, even though are suffering three kinds of pains, tri-tāpa-yatna. Just like why you are covered? Because there is pain. Severe cold, similarly severe heat. So we are suffering, either summer season or winter season. We are suffering, tri-tāpa-yatna. There is suffering from our mind, from our body—this is natural suffering. There is bodily suffering, mental suffering, then suffering caused by other living entities. So we are always suffering. But still they're thinking that "We are happy." The disease is already there. Ah? Just like the Arabian do not want to give you petrol. That means there's suffering caused by other nations. So this is going on. They're simply trying to settle up. But the suffering is there. But they're not in their knowledge, that in spite of all their endeavors, the sufferings are there. What is the cause? Then whom shall I go to ask why the suffering is there? Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum (MU 1.2.12). Therefore you must approach a person who knows how the suffering should be mitigated.

Morning Walk -- December 15, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: So if you find out somebody, that he knows everything perfectly, then he is guru. That is the first prayer of Gurvaṣṭaka. Saṁsāra-dāvānala-līḍha-loka-trāṇāya kāruṇya-ghanāghanatvam **. Everyone is in the blazing fire of this material existence. It is just like forest fire. Just like if there is fire in the forest, all the inhabitants of forest, all the animals, they become so much in perturbed condition. So guru means to rescue from this forest fire. So therefore it is said, ghanāghanatvam. A forest fire can be reduced or can be extinguished... Fire, there must be water. But wherefrom the water will come? Your fire brigade, bucket full of water, will not save. The water must come from cloud. So therefore guru is the cloud. He has taken the mercy from the ocean, or from God, and he pours the mercy. Immediately the fire is extinguished, and you are saved. This is the saṁsāra-dāvānala-līḍha-loka-trāṇāya kāruṇya-ghanāghanatvam, prāptasya... **. One who has received mercy from the Supreme, he can save. Nobody can save. Your so-called fire brigade bucket or bucket full of water will not save. That is not possible. So as these rascals are simply trying to extinguish the blazing fire of material existence by so-called bucketful of water, it will not save. It will be waste of time. If the cloud comes, then it will be saved. So guru is the cloud.

Morning Walk -- December 20, 1973, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: What he has said, Karandhara?

Karandhara: He doesn't say specifically. He just said that generally the country is degraded and people have become apathetic, and the morals have reduced. He was referring to things like Watergate, political scandals, and the youth degradation.

Prabhupāda: But why they have degraded? That is to be understood... Not known to them.

Karandhara: Yes. Actually they don't have the scientific analysis. They just have some vague understanding that things are falling apart.

Prabhupāda: Here are the causes. Sinful life. (break)

1974 Conversations and Morning Walks

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

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Now they have reduced the output of big cars because previously they were making big cars.

Prabhupāda: Just see. Now how the business will... Another problem. The factory... How will so many men...? So they will create problem. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, "You give up all this nonsense desire."

Room Conversation -- February 13, 1974, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: In the beginning also I requested them to publish the whole, but they said, "No, it will be very big, it will be costly. You reduce it to 400 pages." So that 1100 pages were reduced to 400 pages. Now when people are demanding this Bhagavad-gītā As It Is, people are coming. When our saṅkīrtana party goes in the street many gentlemen comes and demands "Have you got Bhaktivedanta's Bhagavad-gītā As It Is?"

Morning Walk -- March 27, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: ...still going on.

Dr. Patel: Much more than...

Prabhupāda: Due to introduction of Sadananda's principles, the debauchery has not reduced. It has increased. So that is a failure.

Guest (1): The more we try to stop, it is increasing.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Morning Walk -- April 8, 1974, Bombay:

Mahāṁsa: This śloka is... Where is that śloka, Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: It is in the Tenth Canto. Bhavāmbudhir vatsa-padam. Just like this ocean, if it becomes a small pit, then don't require a big ship to cross over. You just... Like this. It can be reduced. By Kṛṣṇa's desire, it can be done so. Just like at the present moment... Formerly, people used to go to London from India, from Bombay, at least, in fifteen days. Now it doesn't take even fifteen hours. It takes only nine hours. How it has been reduced? Because there is a process to reduce. Similarly, the supreme spiritual process is like that. It can be reduced to any quantity. Aṇi... This is called aṇimā-siddhi. It can be expanded also, to the greatest length. Mahimā-śakti. All-powerful means not that "I cannot do, I cannot, I can do this only." No, anything He can do. That is all powerful. Aṇimā, laghimā, mahimā. Just like all these big, big planets, they are floating in the sky. This is called laghimā, weightless, no weight. Those who are going to the moon planet, they are finding out weightlessness. How it has become weightless? Such a big, huge... Just this planet. With so many seas and mountains and cities and buildings. But it is floating. That's a fact. It is floating like a swab. How it is floating? You can say something nonsense, but the actual fact is this.

Morning Walk -- April 14, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Supersonic, what is that? Any circumstance, the ruling power is nature. He cannot avoid that. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). (break) ...more their senses are turbulent. This is also... Therefore there is one tapasā brahmacāryena (SB 6.1.13) and the word anaśana, anaśana, "not eating." Eating should be reduced.

Morning Walk -- April 17, 1974, Bombay:

Dr. Patel: And the night clubs.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Naked woman, that's all. Both sides it is there. They advertise. Here... In America, anywhere you deposit forty dollars. Next day you get everything. (break) ...they say, "This year it is now reduced." Mean "Criminality, let go on, but from the last year, this year it is now reduced." That's all. (break) "...are drinking. Therefore you cannot call me drunkard." This is the logic. (break) These rogues and thieves will increase. That is the law of nature. Men... (breaks) They have a fire(?). (break) ...took down. (break) ...police, they simply only note down.

Morning Walk -- April 18, 1974, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Then what is this? He's... Give him dress. (break) Give him lesson how to make tilaka. He has come to your shelter. You teach him. (break) Just like a diseased person, if he is a little careless, he is not very strict in following the..., it will take some time. It is exactly like that. He, because of his material opulences, he thinks that "Oh, where is the disease? This is all right. I am happy." That is the defect. We have to reduce. That is called tapasya. Not that "Because my tongue is asking me to eat something, therefore I must eat." Not that. That is the difference between ordinary man and gosvāmī. Gosvāmī means one who has conquered over the dictation of the senses. My sense dictates to do something, but when I am able to dictate the sense, "No, you cannot do it," that is called gosvāmī. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (break)

Morning Walk -- April 20, 1974, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: So the mercifulness has gone. And what to speak of religiosity? That is completely gone. These things will reduce: mercifulness, religiosity, memory, bodily strength, and so many, eight, eight. They are mentioned in the Bhāgavata. Religious principles.

Morning Walk Excerpts -- May 2, 1974, Bombay:

Girirāja: (break) "...that this creature, appearing in the body of a serpent, must have been overburdened with all kinds of sins. Otherwise how could he have the body of a serpent? Your dancing on his hoods reduces all the sinful results of actions caused by his having this body of a serpent." (break)

Prabhupāda: ...to becomes angry by Kṛṣṇa is auspicious, auspicious. It is a very nice verse. "It is very auspicious that you have become angry upon him. He is getting salvation." (break) ...the punishment of Kṛṣṇa, one has to execute many pious activities in his past life, just to get the punishment of Kṛṣṇa. And what to speak of love of Kṛṣṇa, how much pious activities one has to do. If for being punished by Kṛṣṇa, one has to undergo lots of pious activities in the past life, then just see, to be loved by Kṛṣṇa, how much one has to undergo pious activities. Kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ (SB 10.12.11). That is described. Kṛta-puṇya-puñjāḥ. Puñja means heaps, volumes, volumes of pious activities. Then one can come to Kṛṣṇa. Yeṣām anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. Nobody can come to Kṛṣṇa unless he has background of pious activities and one who has become freed from all sinful activities. Yeṣām anta-gataṁ pāpaṁ janānāṁ puṇya-karmaṇām. This is the qualification. (break)

Room Conversation -- May 20, 1974, Vrndavana:

Indian man: You have to leave just now?

Prabhupāda: Yes. I was to leave this morning, but I was to eat Yamunā's cooking. Cooking was very nice, but I had no appetite.

Yamunā: Appetite. No appetite.

Prabhupāda: From yesterday lost my appetite.

Devotee (3): Because I was massaging you from yesterday.

Prabhupāda: (chuckles) No, that's not. It is Kṛṣṇa's grace to have less appetite, I think. Less sleep, less appetite, it is good. Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau **. They conquered over, but I have not conquered it. By Kṛṣṇa's grace, it is reduced.

Room Conversation with Mr. C. Hennis of the International Labor Organization of the U.N. -- May 31, 1974, Geneva:

C. Hennis: I don't consider myself to be a leader of mankind. I am very much a servant of mankind with a view to helping people to reduce the differences between them, with a view to helping people to understand one another better. In my own particular branch in which I'm concerned we endeavor to make people understand one another in the manner of an interpreter, if you like, to show, to allow people to speak and understand with one another, and to enable them to comprehend each other's problems and understand...

Prabhupāda: No. If there is actual brain, there is no problem. Just like if I have got good brain... I want to take this thing in my pocket. But if I have got brain, "No, this will be stealing," then I can refrain from it. But if I think that "It is lying here. I can take," what is that?

Room Conversation -- June 20, 1974, Germany:

Prabhupāda: Yāmunācārya, a great saintly person, he was formerly big king, so he said, "Since I have become Kṛṣṇa conscious and enjoying, since that time, as soon as I remember even sex life, I spite (spit) on it and my mouth becomes turned." (laughter) This is the test. Not that you become very advanced spiritualist and at the same time advance in sex life. That is not. (Sanskrit) That is the test that as soon as you are advanced in spiritual life, all these materialistic habits will be rejected automatically. This is the test. Four things are material demands-eating, satisfaction of the tongue or belly and satisfaction of the genital, āhāra, and sleeping and to become a good defender, defense measure. These are material necessity. And the one who is spiritually advanced, these things will be reduced, almost nil. What Christ says, Jesus Christ about sex life? What does he say?

Devotee: Only in the married life.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Devotee: Only.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Morning Walk -- June 21, 1974, Germany:

Prabhupāda: Not very few hours. Say, four, five hours altogether. Altogether. Maximum five, minimum four.

Professor Durckheim: All the night or do you at the day sometimes?

Prabhupāda: No. At night I get up at one, at half past one, sometimes half past twelve. But I take a little rest, one or two hour in the daytime. So two hours at night, two hours at day, or three hours at night, two hours in day. In this way, altogether five hours, not more than that. Our predecessor gurus, Gosvāmīs, they were taking rest not more than two hours or 2-1/2 hours. So we should come to that standard, yes. Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau **. About them this description is: they reduced their sleeping, nidra. Nidra means sleeping. And āhāra. Āhāra means eating and collection. Collection is also āhāra. Yes. So they were mendicant. They had no collection. And they had no preaching mission. They were simply writing books.

1975 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk Through the BBT Warehouse -- February 10, 1975, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: So they are going or simply stock?

Rāmeśvara: No. It is greatly reduced since they have arrived.

Prabhupāda: So Haṁsadūta, he has to make a go-down like this.

Haṁsadūta: Yeah.

Prabhupāda: Then he'll defeat these charges. Eh? When the nation, German nation, will accept these books, then that will be proper reply, charges.

Morning Walk -- February 21, 1975, Caracas:

Prabhupāda: Philosophy is philosophy. Why they talk of Eastern, Western?" Eastern sun, Western sun." Sun is always Eastern, never Western. How one can say, "Western sun?" (break) Just see. It is in the water, but the water is not over it. If the water increases, it also increases. See? There is no water on the leaf. Here you see. The water must be always down. (break) ...falling from the top of the Sumeru Hill, a big tree, and the juice, after falling down, turns into a river of mango juice. And the blackberries, they are just like the body of elephant and small seed. They also turn into river, Jambu-nada. And the both sides of the river, being moistened by the juice and dried by air and interacted by the sunshine, it becomes gold. And that gold is used for the denizens of heaven for their ornaments, helmets, bracelet, belt. Where is gold here? Paper. They cannot make even gold coins. They are reducing into poverty. In our childhood we have seen gold coin currency, silver coin. And now there is no such thing. Plastic. Paper and plastic. This is their advancement. Yes, it is a nice garden.

Morning Walk -- February 21, 1975, Caracas:

Hṛdayānanda: Things are very rapidly reducing.

Prabhupāda: Yes. There will be no rice, no wheat, no sugar, no fruits, gradually. So much sinful activities, they must be punished like that. (break)

Room Conversation with Canadian Ambassador to Iran -- March 13, 1975, Iran:

Prabhupāda: How long you have come here in Iran?

Ambassador: Nice to see you again. Not that I have felt that far away.

Prabhupāda: You are looking little reduced than before, in health.

Ambassador: Oh, perhaps slightly older.

Prabhupāda: You are not as old as I am. What is your age?

Ambassador: I am fifty-six.

Prabhupāda: Oh, you are just like my child. My first child was born 1921. What is your birth date?

Ambassador: That was three years earlier. So there you are.

Prabhupāda: 1918? In that year I was married. I was student at that time. I was student, 1900 up to '20. Then I joined Gandhi's noncooperation movement and gave up my education. His points were to give up English education, English court, English-manufactured goods, in this way.

Conversation with the GBC -- March 27, 1975, Mayapur:

Prabhupāda: Well, if every temple cannot contribute, I shall manage from the BBT fund. That is not a problem.

Atreya Ṛṣi: You want...? I am using that merely as a...

Prabhupāda: And if you can pay, it is all right. If there is deficit, BBT will pay. You don't bother.

Atreya Ṛṣi: Yes. But in this Gurukula project, Śrīla Prabhupāda, temples are having difficulty in paying their debts to BBT already. I don't think they will respond, respond. On one hand, BBT, Ramesvara Prabhu is recommending that we reduce the cost of books, and on the other hand, it's being recommended that the tax for Gurukula be collected.

Prabhupāda: No, no, cost of book... Cost of books?

Atreya Ṛṣi: Not cost. Price of books.

Jayatīrtha: Yes, price of...

Prabhupāda: Cost of selling price.

Jayatīrtha: That we discussed with you in Dallas, Ramesvara and I.

Prabhupāda: No, no. There is no need. There is no need.

Atreya Ṛṣi: So what I was...

Prabhupāda: It is not a fact that by reducing the price you'll sell more.

Jayatīrtha: No, no. Not reducing the price to the public. Reducing the cost to the temple, so the temple can make more profit.

Prabhupāda: That you can do.

Morning Walk -- April 3, 1975, Mayapur:

Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa says, "Produce foodstuff." Annād bhavanti bhūtāni. If you produce foodstuff, then both your animals, yourself, will be happy, becoming strong. Why do they manufacture other things? All these people are engaged in manufacturing, and nobody is manu..., er, growing food. Therefore the price of food grain is rising. Suppose I am growing food, and you are not growing, so you have to purchase from me. I'll ask, "You have to pay this price." And you have to pay. And if you grow your own food, there is no such question. The simple economic problem, solution, this rascal cannot take. If you grow your own food, I grow my own, then who is going to purchase? The price will be reduced automatically. If you have no customer, then you have to reduce your price. But they do not understand even the simple thing that "God has given us enough land to produce food grain, and we must eat." They do not understand this. And still, they are scientist, philosopher, politician. Just see. That is the difficulty. All rascals, fools, they are leading the whole human society.

Conversation with Devotees -- April 14, 1975, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: Instead of food you'll get television. (laughing) Advanced. This is going on. "I am hungry, sir. What shall I do with television?" That is the real answer. Say "I'm hungry. What shall I do with the television?" But he's pacifying, "Don't worry, you'll get television." This is science.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Cheaters.

Prabhupāda: This is science. People, for want of sufficient nourishment, they are becoming dwarf and they are discovering scientific method.

Brahmānanda: Intoxication... By increasing the intoxication the desire for food reduces. You eat less.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Therefore they are very much dizzy. And little hunger satisfied with meat. That's all. That is going on in the western country. The drinking... I have seen in airplane, bottles after bottle, they are drinking.

Morning Walk -- May 14, 1975, Perth:

Devotee (1): Śrīla Prabhupāda, how can the position be reconciled if in Kṛṣṇa consciousness one of the two, the husband or the wife, wants to enjoy sense gratification, but the other does not? Should there be separation then?

Prabhupāda: No... They should be trained up. Sense enjoyment means not advanced in Kṛṣṇa consciousness. As soon as one is advancing in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his sense enjoyment spirit will be reduced. That is the test. Bhaktiḥ pareśānubhavo viraktir anyatra ca (SB 11.2.42). The test is, how you are advancing in Kṛṣṇa consciousness is the proportionate diminishing of sense enjoyment. That is the test. Just like cure of the disease means diminishing the fever, temperature. This is the test.

Morning Walk -- May 15, 1975, Perth:

Prabhupāda: So how they will relieve the mankind? This proposal Vivekananda used, to serve the mankind. How they will serve? In spite of all arrangement there are so many suffering humanity, so many unemployment, so much disease, so much death. So what is the meaning of this serving? Huh? You cannot stop it. That is the nature's way. How you can stop by so-called bluffing that "We are serving the humanity"? You are opening hospital. Does it mean that the suffering is reduced? Because the suffering has increased therefore your number of hospitals have increased. Where is the mitigation? Nature's way, we are feeling pain, this cold wind. Who can stop it? And where is the question of decreasing human's suffering or stopping?

Morning Walk -- May 15, 1975, Perth:

Amogha: But in this country everyone, all these houses have heaters.

Prabhupāda: In the... Why do you take in this country? Why not other country?

Amogha: Well, so many countries.

Prabhupāda: Where? That is simply bluff. You cannot do it. Cannot do it. Suffering must be there.

Paramahaṁsa: Well, we accept the suffering is there, but we will still try to reduce it. That's all.

Prabhupāda: Reduce...

Paramahaṁsa: By inventing so many things.

Prabhupāda: That is another bluffing. You have already invented so many things. Where is the reduction of suffering?

Amogha: Well, there are less diseases, we are finding so many cures now that...

Prabhupāda: I don't find less diseases. You are increasing hospitals.

Śrutakīrti: Well, now we're taking care of the diseased people. Before, no one ever took care.

Paramahaṁsa: Like in India, for example.

Prabhupāda: No, no, no. Even if you take care, what is the result? You have to increase hospitals.

Room Conversation with Director of Research of the Dept. of Social Welfare -- May 21, 1975, Melbourne:

Director: But how do we reconcile the fact that our doctors tell us we should eat meat because of the protein?

Prabhupāda: That is a foolishness. They are not eating meat for the last ten years. Do you think they are reduced in their health? Rather people say bright faces. In Boston one priest, I was going from Los Angeles to Hawaii. One gentleman in plain dress, he is a priest, he said, "Swamiji, how your students look so bright?" And sometimes we are advertised as bright faces. In Boston or somewhere the ladies were asking, "Are you American?"

Morning Walk -- May 27, 1975, Honolulu:

Bali-mardana: Yes, but by Darwinism they become reduced to just animals, no better than monkeys.

Prabhupāda: Yes, it is meant for the monkeys, not for any sane gentleman. Sane gentleman will think that "I have become now... By evolution I have come to this stage human being. What is next? And that is sane.

Room Conversation with Mr. & Mrs. Wax, Writer and Editing Manager of Playboy Magazine -- July 5, 1975, Chicago:

Nitāi: Unless one is situated in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his material consciousness will oblige him to transfer from one body to another because he has material desires since time immemorial. But he has to change that conception. That change can be effected only by hearing from authoritative sources. The best example is here: Arjuna is hearing the science of God from Kṛṣṇa. The living entity, if he submits to this hearing process, will lose his long-cherished desire to dominate the material nature, and gradually and proportionately, as he reduces his long desire to dominate, he comes to enjoy spiritual happiness."

Prabhupāda: They are trying to dominate the material nature, the so-called scientists. But they do not know that they are under the domination of material nature. They are forgetting that. If you are more powerful, if you are dominating me, how I can dominate you? That they do not know, that we are under the domination of material nature. Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9). The domination is manifest by four things: birth, death, old age, and disease. I cannot dominate my birth, death, old age, and disease and I am trying to dominate over nature. Just foolishness. Big, big scientist, did he dominate over death, Professor Einstein? Did not he die? Why he could not find out any means that he will not die? What is the meaning of the science? If you are dominated by the laws of material nature, how you are thinking that you shall dominate over material nature? When death comes can you dominate? "No, no, I am scientist. Just wait." No, you must die immediately.

Morning Walk -- August 29, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: No. We must have quality. Our Godbrothers, they publish tenth-quality papers. Nobody... Nobody cares.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: In Madras we are printing a big Tamil Īśopaniṣad, and one Sindi man, he has donated eight thousand towards the cost. The total cost is eleven thousand, and he has donated about eight thousand. If we can get this... One way we can reduce our cost is by getting advertisements.

Prabhupāda: No, no.

Morning Walk -- September 6, 1975, Vrndavana:

Dhanañjaya: An intelligent man will go completely insane because he can't solve the problems...

Prabhupāda: The solution is there.

Dhanañjaya: ...without referring to the Vedic philosophy.

Prabhupāda: The solution is there. Take it. Take Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Dhanañjaya: They're so much implicated by sex life.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Gradually they'll become ... understand that this is not good. Therefore gṛhastha āśrama is allowed under rules and regulation. The purpose is to restrict sex life.

Brahmānanda: The wife of the President, she recently said that sex life before marriage is good because it will reduce the divorce rate.

Prabhupāda: Yes. If everyone is prostitute then where is the question of divorce? (laughter)

Nitāi: There's also no question of marriage.

Prabhupāda: Yes. And that is going on. (end)

Morning Walk -- September 18, 1975, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: What is the sale proceeds of the prasāda?

Dhanañjaya: During the week it's about sixty to eighty rupees, and at the weekends, over a hundred rupees. At weekends there are far more people coming to the temple from Delhi.

Prabhupāda: So average, eighty rupees. So you are purchasing ghee, four kilos or more.

Dhanañjaya: Now we have stopped that.

Prabhupāda: Eh?

Dhanañjaya: Now we have stopped. We've reduced the quantity.

Prabhupāda: Why you were purchasing more?

Dhanañjaya: We were purchasing because the ghee was being used in all the preparations, in all the vegetable preparations...

Prabhupāda: That's all right. So what is the price of four kilos?

Devotee (2): Eighty-eight rupees.

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Dhanañjaya: Eighty-eight rupees.

Prabhupāda: So you collect only the ghee price. And what about others? Other, attar and sugar and so many things? That means you are spending hundred rupees, and the kitchen department, you are is collecting eighty rupees. So twenty rupees lost. Hm? So what is this business? What you are spending, you must collect also. Or balance you are eating?

Morning Walk -- September 26, 1975, Ahmedabad:

Kartikeya: Do you believe in the Vedas?

Indian man (5): Yes, we believe in Vedas.

Kartikeya: Who gave Vedas?

Indian man (3): Īśvara.

Kartikeya: Who is that?

Indian man (3): God. God.

Kartikeya: No, without a personality nobody can write. You cannot write your signature without a body.

Indian man (3): How did you get your actually words? From where? From where did you get your words?

Kartikeya: Well, I have got my body, so I can speak with my body. I cannot speak without my body.

Indian man (5): At that time He acted like a magician, that God. How can He reduce it into writing?

Prabhupāda: Bhagavān, original Absolute Truth... (Hindi) Janmādy asya yataḥ: (SB 1.1.1) "The Absolute Truth is that from whom or from which everything emanates." (Hindi) Everything is manufactured, everything. Now, that original source...

Indian man (3): (Hindi)

Prabhupāda: (Hindi)

Indian man (3): There are three things: jīvātmā, Paramātmā or prakṛti. (Hindi) Who is not connected with anything, He is, simply is a guide. He guides.

Prabhupāda: So formless guidance... (Hindi)?

Indian man (3): Formless guidance, Īśvara... (Hindi)

Indian man (2): If you want a guidance, then you have to become formless.

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. You are talking. You are not formless. You are giving us guidance, you are talking, but you are not formless.

Room Conversation -- October 15, 1975, Johannesburg:

Prabhupāda: So does it mean that the situation is changed? No more heart disease or heart is never failure? It will continue? Where is the change. You may be proud with your puffed-up, false knowledge, but where is the change of situation? Futile attempt.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: But they will say that the duration of life years ago was much shorter than it is now, that now the duration of life is sixty-five or seventy years average.

Prabhupāda: That may be in few cases. Generally the duration of life is reduced. Nobody lives nowadays like his forefather. So where is extension? It is reduced. And what is the extension? In old age the body becomes subjected to so many ailments. What is the use of living with ailments, with toothache and many other things? What is the use of such life? Better die young, in good health, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa. What is the use of prolonged life? The prolonged life... The trees are also prolonged life. Does it mean it is happy? They live for five hundred years, five thousand years. Hundred, two hundred years' living for tree is not at all difficult. But they live for thousands of years. So is it very pleasing to live like a tree for many thousands of years?

Room Conversation -- October 15, 1975, Johannesburg:

Harikeśa: She forgot to ask to always be young. So she was very, very old and decrepit, and finally they just put her in a jar, and some young boys were playing with the jar and they asked, "What do you want?" And she said, "I want to die."

Prabhupāda: Yes. When one suffers too much he commits suicide. Life becomes very troublesome. When the suffering is too much acute, they commit suicide. So that is not a solution, we have prolonged li... First of all there is no prolonged. Even accepting it is prolonged, what is the benefit?

Harikeśa: Actually, even if they didn't do anything, they would live the same amount.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Everyone is destined to live for a certain period. You cannot prolong it, neither reduce it.

Harikeśa: What about all the sufferings of the body? Let's say one has a toothache or something like that.

Prabhupāda: No. That I have already said, that as soon as you accept this material body, you must suffer. That is the way.

Harikeśa: So if you fix one thing, another thing will just go bad?

Prabhupāda: Yes. You cannot fix anything. You can simply think that "I am now fixed up." That is not possible. Even if you fix up one type of suffering, another type of suffering will come. So suffering must be there. The body means suffering.

Morning Walk -- October 18, 1975, Johannesburg:

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: You once said that anyone who has a material body is a rascal.

Prabhupāda: A rascal, that's all. And they are trying to maintain this body, although the rascals know it will not be maintained. You cannot. You are not allowed to maintain, neither you'll be allowed. Still, they are trying. Punaḥ punaś carvita-carvaṇānām (SB 7.5.30). Which is impossible, cannot be allowed, and they are trying for it. How this body can be maintained? "Yes, we are trying. Now the disease has been reduced. Now they are living more days." These are their foolish. They will never say "No, it is impossible." Still, they will support their rascal endeavors.

Morning Walk -- October 18, 1975, Johannesburg:

Prabhupāda: "It is impossible. It will not be allowed, and they are trying for it. How this body can be maintained? 'Yes, we are trying. Now the disease has been reduced. Now they are living more days.' These are their foolish. They will never say, 'No, it is impossible.' Still, they will support their rascal endeavors." Modern advancement of science, what actually they have done? We are talking on that point. Simply misleading. The Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura has sung one nice... (tape recorded section accidentally plays) "eating meat and drinking wine." (Prabhupāda and devotees laugh at interruption. Harikeśa apologizes) That... He says, jada vidy saba māyāra vaibhava. Jada vidyā means material education, the so-called material science. So jada vidyā. Vidyā means education, so this expansion of knowledge means expansion of the influence of māyā. Jada vidyā saba māyāra vaibhava. And the result is tomāra bhajane bādhā. People will forget God.

Morning Walk -- November 2, 1975, Nairobi:

Brahmānanda: The quality of the chanting he's asking. How can we make the quality the best?

Prabhupāda: Quality, you'll understand first of all come to the quality. Without having quality, how he'll understand the quality? You follow the instruction of your spiritual master, of the śāstra. That is your duty. Quality, no quality—it is not your position to understand. When the quality comes there is no force. You will have a taste for chanting. You will desire at that time, "Why sixteen round? Why not sixteen thousand rounds?" That is quality. That is quality. It is by force. You'll not do it; therefore at least sixteen rounds. But when you come to the quality, you will feel yourself, "Why sixteen? Why not sixteen thousand?" That is quality, automatically. Just like Haridāsa Ṭhākura was doing. He was not forced to do. Even Caitanya Mahāprabhu, He requested, "Now you are old enough. You can reduce." So he refused, "No. Up to the end of my life I shall go on." That is quality. Have you got such tendency that you will go on chanting and nothing to do? That is quality. Now you are forced to do. Where is the question of quality? That is given a chance so that one day you may come to the quality, not that you have come to the quality. Quality is different. Athāśaktiḥ. Aśakti, attachment.

Morning Walk -- November 16, 1975, Bombay:

Girirāja: He said the population will go on increasing more and more, and there won't be enough food, so everyone will starve.

Prabhupāda: He said, the scientist. Then what your scientific knowledge will help?

Brahmānanda: Well, if they drop some bombs they will reduce the population. (laughter)

Prabhupāda: That is very easy. The bomb is also ready. Everyone has got now nuclear weapon, bomb. So the scientists gave the solution. So what is the use of scientific knowledge? This is going to happen.

Morning Walk -- November 30, 1975, Delhi:

They've reduced the gold backing behind the currency now. Every day they're reducing because when they want money they just print more notes.

Prabhupāda: And you cannot hold gold also. That is illegal. Somehow or other, even if you secure gold, you cannot keep it.

Morning Walk -- December 14, 1975, New Delhi:

Tejas: The Supra House, I enquired before, so they want about five or six hundred rupees per day.

Prabhupāda: So that's alright! Five, six hundred, suppose if we continue for one week, they may reduce. Hm? Even five hundred, then we pay one week about 3,500, so why that LA... What is that?

Tejas: LIC grounds.

Prabhupāda: Hm. That is 50,000, 60,000.

Tejas: There is one big Vijñāna Bhavan. Three thousand people can sit there. Should I organize like that?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Tejas: For when the devotees come.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Tejas: It is better than Ram līlā grounds. We'll get the educated and sophisticated people.

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Morning Walk -- December 24, 1975, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: That is Kṛṣṇa's favor. Yes. Kṛṣṇa is favoring to finish this job.

Indian man: Now we know that janma is.... I told him they may not be having many other janma, that may be why they are suffering like this now.

Prabhupāda: No. There is no suffering. Their material existence is being reduced on account of serving Kṛṣṇa.

Indian man: One lady is there in Bombay, whole family, old lady, young children die.

Prabhupāda: Yasyāham anugṛhṇāmi hariṣye tad-dhanaṁ śanaiḥ (SB 10.88.8). This is special favour of Kṛṣṇa because they, by this pious activity, they wanted this material enjoyment, which you are complaining, that they are reducing material enjoyment. But that is Kṛṣṇa's favor. He doesn't want reduction of material enjoyment; at the same time, they want to worship Kṛṣṇa. So Kṛṣṇa is seeing that these fools, they want Me, and at the same time material enjoyment. So "Finish their material enjoyment; they will simply think of Me."

bhogaiśvarya-prasaktānāṁ

tayāpahṛta-cetasāṁ

vyavasāyātmikā buddhiḥ

samādhau na vidhīyate

(BG 2.44)

So long one will be too much absorbed in this material enjoyment, he cannot be perfectly devotee. Therefore sometimes Kṛṣṇa, when He sees "Someone is serious to get Me," and at the same time he wants material enjoyment, so indirectly or directly He finishes that material enjoyment. That is a special favor.

1976 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 9, 1976, Madras:

Yaśodānandana: It has been seen everywhere we travel that there is plenty of rice everywhere, there is plenty of food growing everywhere, but yet the government is advertising that there is scarcity of food in everything. But there is plenty growing everywhere.

Prabhupāda: And reduce population, kill it. Hiraṇyakaśipu was doing that.

Acyutānanda: Birth control?

Prabhupāda: Yes. Prajāpati. He stopped Prajāpatis to beget children.

Indian man (2): They said they are giving employment to many people.

Prabhupāda: Who?

Indian man (2): The government says they are giving employment by opening these mica mines and so many things. The government says they are giving employment and work to many people.

Prabhupāda: Hm. So you like to be employed?

Acyutānanda: In one mine recently there was a big cave-in, and how many people...? Three hundred men were killed.

Prabhupāda: Mica mine?

Acyutānanda: Coal. In...

Prabhupāda: In Bihar.

Room Conversation -- January 16, 1976, Mayapur:

Prabhupāda: Combination of matter and soul, moving animals. Some of them are standing as trees and plant, and some of them are moving. Where is the science to study? What is your value of knowledge? Hm? If they do not know the fundamental things, then what is the value of their knowledge? Simply observation, superficial, externally. There is good scope. They are receiving these books. We should take chance of preaching this Bhāgavatam, and the classes should be held especially.... No, the religious classes are already there. Let them study Bhāgavatam, Bhagavad-gītā. And they will accept it. They are not fools. Simply we have to introduce it. The Western people, they are not fools, but misguided. So you take the charge of guiding them; then Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement will be successful. They will appreciate, they will take it up and reform, and their life will be successful. And if they utilize their intelligence how to reduce population and kill child within the womb and "There is no soul in the womb. When they come out then the soul becomes"—what is this nonsense? Unless there is soul, how it becomes manifest?

Morning Walk -- January 18, 1976, Mayapur:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You know those quotations you gave from your guru mahārāja? Yesterday you wrote some quotations?

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Here is a place where they might be displayed. This is a blank place.

Prabhupāda: Yes, yes. There it should be written.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: This is very prominent.

Prabhupāda: Not only there, here also.

Jayapatāka: In big letters here.

Prabhupāda: Yes. And there are so many places. Yes. First of all you place this and the other. We can give the upadeśa of Prabhupāda. I'll give you matter for writing. So writing, that charges should be reduced. One...

Jayapatāka: Yesterday Caitya-guru, the man he brought from Calcutta, he only wanted one rupee, seventy-five paisa.

Prabhupāda: For painting. And for writing that should be...

Jayapatāka: Writing, maybe one twenty-five.

Prabhupāda: No. One. One. Make it one.

Jayapatāka: One rupee.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Which way we shall go?

Morning Walk -- January 20, 1976, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: Hm. Jaya. He is also. (break) Vedic conception is that the birds and beasts, they should not be driven away. Let them eat as much as it like. They must eat also.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: So we shouldn't do that in our field?

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the Vedic.

Jayapatākā: Then we won't have anything to eat.

Prabhupāda: No, you produce more.

Jayapatākā: What ha... In the... Because now this field is the only field that is ripening, so that if he doesn't scare the bird away, all the bird will come and eat his field. When all the wheat is ripening at the same time, then nobody cares. They let the birds eat. But if one man only is growing one crop at one time, then all the birds come. They will clean out and they all get...

Prabhupāda: No, therefore everyone should grow seasonal grains. Everyone should take wheat. I think the number of men is more than the number of bricks. (break) ...rooms will be finished. They are not being finished. This? (break) ...Calcutta. So landlords became very perplexed. So one landlord asking, "You don't go. I shall reduce the rent." "Yes, that's all right, but your house is also not very good. There are so many rats." "All right, you can remain without rent." "And still, there are rats." "All right, I shall give you one cat so there will be no dis..." "Ah, who is going to keep a cat? I will require milk also to feed." "All right, I shall give you half kilo or one kilo milk also." "All right." So then he says, "Now no rent and one kilo milk, that's all right." This was in 1942.

Morning Walk -- February 12, 1976, Mayapura:

Hṛdayānanda: Consider a rich man. A rich man can sleep, a poor man must work.

Prabhupāda: Oh.

Hṛdayānanda: They're always making agitation to reduce what they call the work week. Formerly they were working so many hours per week, now they want to reduce it down to forty, thirty, twenty hours per week.

Prabhupāda: So why they're inventing machine? Machine means no work.

Hṛdayānanda: They think this is progress, everyone can lie down and the machines will work.

Prabhupāda: Yes, machine, inventing machine means one machine can work for fifty men. The banks are using this, what is that, computer?

Hṛdayānanda: Yes, everyone is using computers.

Prabhupāda: To save money. Machine means unemployment for many. Tractor, they're using, they're unemployment for bulls and plowmen and then they, bulls have to be killed. This is going on. Unemployment, then kill them. Vietnam, send all the men to fight and kill them. As soon as there is overpopulation, they declare war so that people may be killed.

Room Conversation -- April 22, 1976, Melbourne:

Prabhupāda: First World War, yes. That was futile. Again you have started United Nation. Where is the benefit? There cannot be benefit. If you keep the dogs as dog, you bring them, "You Australian dog, come here, and American dog, come here, and European dog, come here. Live peacefully," will they live peacefully? So if you keep the human society as cats and dogs, how can you expect peace? They must be human being. Then there will be peace. So this is the training how to make human being, this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Now these boys, they are also Europeans, Americans. They are coming from respectable, very educated.... They'll never ask for a chair. "Sit down. That's all." The necessities of life, artificial necessities, reduced, and time is saved for understanding the value of life. Without motorcar your life will not be spoiled. You can walk. But without Kṛṣṇa consciousness your life is spoiled. So how.... We recommend that "First of all understand yourself." Athāto brahma jijñāsā. This is your prime business. And so far necessities of body, that can be done according to the circumstances. So if we simply waste our time for increasing unnecessary necessities of life and do not try to understand the value of life, then we remain animal.

Garden Conversation -- June 10, 1976, Los Angeles:

Prabhupāda: Hm. Āyur-vyayaḥ. Simply spending the duration of life. Just like you have got some bank balance, and if you spend it for useless purposes. Similarly, we have got some bank balance or duration of life balance. Our death begins.... From the next moment of our birth, death begins. Suppose I'll live hundred years. So I am born, one day passed means one day is reduced from hundred years. The friends come, "How old is your child?" the parents says "He is three years old." That means three years he has died. Ninety-seven years balance. So if we waste our, this balance of life for nothing, that is forbidden. Kevalāyur-vyayaḥ. You utilize the balance for some good purpose. No, we are wasting it. The so-called economic development means we are wasting the balance of our life. This is the philosophy.

Morning Walk -- June 11, 1976, Los Angeles:

Rāmeśvara: They will not waste their time making nuclear bombs and so on without using them.

Prabhupāda: That means it is ordained by God that "You have manufactured this, and use it for your destruction." That is nature's way. Film companies, these are?

Hari-śauri: Twentieth Century Fox. It is a very well known film company.

Rāmeśvara: Movie company. This is that park where we sometimes go. When they have this war it will reduce everything, just finish off all the industries and factories. So everything will be reduced to a primitive stage.

Prabhupāda: No, they will again repair.

Rāmeśvara: Again rebuild everything.

Prabhupāda: In Germany.... Just like Germany was finished. The American planes bombed in such a way that Germany was finished, very heavily bombed. One lady in Hamburg, she was showing me one wall, big wall building dismantled, and it has become black on account of bombing. She was showing me how far injustice they have been done.

Rāmeśvara: So then after the war, nothing will change. System of government, the industries, everything will just be rebuilt.

Prabhupāda: They'll try at least. Just like after the Second World War, Germany or England finished. They could not recoup. They are now poverty-stricken.

Garden Conversation -- June 14, 1976, Detroit:

Prabhupāda: (laughing) All concoction. That is not explanation. This is nice explanation, that in this season the sun goes faster and in this season the sun goes slower. That is quite understandable. Just like you are walking. Sometimes you walk slow, sometimes you walk fast. That is possible. (pause) So you can convert the down room, one of the down room as reception, like this. This should be Deity room.

Hari-śauri: They'd have to section that big room off, though, to make a Deity room there. It would considerably reduce the size of that room.

Prabhupāda: Which room?

Hari-śauri: This big room upstairs? I was just looking because you mentioned it. But then they'd have to put a section for the Deities, so the actual temple space left would be very small.

Prabhupāda: No, it is bigger hall than the down.

Hari-śauri: It's not very much bigger.

Prabhupāda: I think...

Room Conversation and Reading from Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 1 and 12 -- June 25, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: Dayā, mercifulness. People will have no mercy. It has already begun. If somebody is attacked, being killed, nobody takes care; he goes in his own way. There is no mercy. There is no mercy to the animals. Now there is no mercy even to one child, one's own child, they killing. Just see how degraded, dayā. What to speak of no dayā, no mercy for the animals—all right, you are not so advanced—but the mother's mercy to the child will be diminished. This is foretelling. This is called tri-kala-jñā. Who expected that mother will kill the child? But Vyāsadeva, five thousand years ago, said, "Yes, mercy will be reduced." Then?

Pradyumna: Āyur.

Prabhupāda: Āyur, duration of life. The maximum duration of life in Kali-yuga is hundred years, but who is living hundred years? It is being reduced, and it will be so reduced that if a man would live twenty years, he is an old man. It will come to that stage. Now it reducing, from hundred years to ninety years to eighty years.

Hari-śauri: The average is seventy-three years now.

Prabhupāda: Seventy, then sixty then fifty. In this way, if a man lives from twenty to thirty years he will be considered grand old man. These are the symptoms, āyur.

Room Conversation and Reading from Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 1 and 12 -- June 25, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Pradyumna: Balam.

Prabhupāda: And bodily strength. Bodily strength... In India we, in our childhood, I have seen when British rule was there, all the Europeans were coming, very tall and stout and strong. Now such Europeans are not coming. Even bodily strength reduced. Then?

Pradyumna: Smṛtiḥ.

Prabhupāda: And memory. It will reduce. Just see, compare everything, religiosity and the power of mercifulness, pardoning, truthfulness, cleanliness, bodily strength, duration of life—they're all reduced. Now who can say it is not reduced? Can you say? This is called tri-kala-jñā. Tatas, what is that? Cānu-dinaṁ rājan?

Pradyumna:

tataś cānu-dinaṁ dharmaḥ

satyaṁ śaucaṁ kṣamā dayā

kālena balinā rājan

naṅkṣyaty āyur balaṁ smṛtiḥ

Prabhupāda: Kālena, in due course of time, all these items, there are eight items it will be reducing, reducing, reducing, reducing, reducing so much.

Room Conversation and Reading from Srimad-Bhagavatam Canto 1 and 12 -- June 25, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Prabhupāda: So whatever they may do, things will happen like this. This is a fact. Can they increase the duration of life? People, can they make any scientific discovery that no man will die less than hundred years? Is there any such discovery?

Hari-śauri: The only discoveries they have made so far are how to kill people quicker.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Is there any discovery that here is a pill, you go on taking it, you'll not die before hundred years? Is there any discovery? Then what is the use of talking nonsense? They are reducing their life, that's a fact. And so far as mercy is concerned, we see how much it is reduced. The mother is killing child. Where is mercy now? So they may say anything like madman, but we see practically what is happening.

Garden Discussion on Bhagavad-gita Sixteenth Chapter -- June 26, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Devotee (1): In Cleveland, also, Prabhupāda, there are so many churches, only five, ten, fifteen people attend, and they are all elderly, elderly ladies.

Hari-śauri: Due to the Pope's taking a firm stand over the not allowing abortion and contraception, like this, they said that the number of practicing Catholics was reduced from seventy-five percent to fifty percent, just simply because of that one principle that he'd stuck to. So twenty-five percent immediately left.

Prabhupāda: Where they have gone? (laughter)

Hari-śauri: Well, they gave up going to church at least.

Dhṛṣṭadyumna: Hopeless life.

Prabhupāda: No, why hopeless? There is hope—Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Dhṛṣṭadyumna: Yes.

Hari-śauri: Hopeless for them.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: This very much describes modern civilization also. They are such aśuci-vratāḥ, they are given much respect in modern-day society. And the devotees, sometimes we go preaching and put into jail.

Prabhupāda: It is very fortunate they are not crucifying you. Putting into jail, but they crucified Lord Jesus Christ, they were so intelligent. Because he was preaching God consciousness, he was crucified. What was his fault? He was talking of God, therefore he was crucified.

Answers to a Questionnaire from Bhavan's Journal -- June 28, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Ask any religious system what is the conception of God. Can anyone tell clearly? Nobody can say. We shall immediately say, veṇuṁ kvaṇantam aravinda-dalāyatākṣaṁ barhāvataṁsam asitāmbuda-sundarāṅgam (Bs. 5.30). Aṅgāni yasya sakalendriya-vṛttimanti... immediately description, "Here is God." Then there is religion. And if there is no God, where is religion? Bogus. Therefore declining. They have no conception of God, and therefore there is no understanding of religion. Therefore it is declining. So this is the cause of declining. And because it is declining, human being becoming more animals. Animal means there will be no memory. A dog comes... Here is some eatables. He comes. I say, "Hut!" He goes away. Again he comes. No memory. So when this memory is reducing that means human quality is reduced. So in the Kali-yuga these eight things will reduce. That means they are becoming like cats and dogs. This is the answer to the first question.

Answers to a Questionnaire from Bhavan's Journal -- June 28, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Pratihatā means suppose you are destined to suffer. So apratihatā means in spite of your so-called suffering, the suffering will be reduced or there will be no suffering. But in spite of suffering, you can make progress in spiritual life. Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja himself, his father was putting him in so many suffering conditions but it was not impeded. He was making progress. He was making progress. He didn't care for father'sputting him into so many suffering. That is called apratihatā. If you want to execute Kṛṣṇa consciousness, your material condition of life cannot check it. That is the progress (?) (indistinct). But so far material condition, that cannot be checked. You have to suffer. But in case of devotee that suffering also, can be stopped. Otherwise Kṛṣṇa's version is false: ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi. Suffering is there on account of my sinful activities but Kṛṣṇa says ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ. Make it clear. Ordinarily destiny cannot be checked.

Garden Conversation -- June 28, 1976, New Vrindaban:

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Bodily strength decreases. Then smṛti, intelligence...

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Memory is decreasing.

Prabhupāda: Dayā, dharma, religious principles—everything will be reduced. And the government men, instead of giving you protection, they will act like thieves and rogues. You cannot say anything. Very, very precarious condition, all freedom lost. In Russia, all freedom lost. They have no freedom. The professor giving that testimonial, and "Don't publish it." They are appreciating this book, but they cannot say "That is good book." Just see what kind of freedom is there. A nice book, I appreciate; I cannot give in writing.

'Life Comes From Life' Slideshow Discussions -- July 3, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Now understanding these basic differences, to study the origin of life has some meaning. But scientists studying the origin of life, they have no idea about these fundamental differences. So they claim that life actually is a manifestation of matter. In other words, life comes from molecules. They call it "molecule to man" theory. That we will see in the next slide. Now in this slide the molecules is called primordial chemical soup. Now these chemicals are supposed to be formed from simple, reduced substances like water and ammonia and carbon and hydrogen compounds. They are called hydro-carbons. Now these somehow, under the action of ultra-violet radiation or cosmic force, they combine together and form these amino acids. Now these amino acids, in due course of time, form the polymers called proteins. And similarly, several polymeric compounds develop and, given a long period of time, we've shown there chance and given a long period of time, then it's going to bring life, it's going to give life. That is the fundamental background of the scientific study of origin of life. This is what they have proposed. These molecules, somehow they combine, given enough length of time, billions of years as the time period, and then it's bound to happen. They say, given enough length of time...

Prabhupāda: Provided he lives billions of years. But he's finished within fifty years. (laughter) And his theory remains. The rascal cannot remain more than fifty years, and he's talking of billions of years. This is the defect. Who will see after billions of years? He is finished within hundred years. These are theories only. We see practically. Egg appears like chemical combination, but if you give, proper fermentation will come, fermentation?

Devotee: Fermentation.

Prabhupāda: It comes within few days. Why billions of years? Why should we wait for billions of years? This is nonsense. We see practically a bird can give birth to a child within few days, within a week. Why should we wait for billions of years? What kind of scientist you are? (laughter) Proposing to wait for millions... You nonsense. Who's going to accept your foolish theory? We see practically that within a week, and you say billions of years. Nonsense, stop that. Tell them, "You are nonsense, stop. Don't expose yourself any more." We see here, practically, within a week the life comes. Suppose the egg is a chemical composition. It is, it is chemical composition, that's a fact. But it gives life within a week. Why shall I wait for billions of years? Just see their foolishness. And this is being accepted as scientific.

Conversation with Prof. Saligram and Dr. Sukla -- July 5, 1976, Washington, D.C.:

Prabhupāda: Eating, sleeping, sex and defense. Āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithuna. They're required. So long we have got this body, we require to eat something, we require to sleep sometimes, we require a little sense gratification, and we require defense. But it should be minimized, not increased. That is tapasya. In the human life this is possible, this is possible. Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau **. One can conquer over these things, by practice. The more we minimize this āhāra-nidrā-bhaya-maithuna, this means we are advanced in spiritual taste.(?) It is practiced. My, my personal life, I don't sleep at night. And nowadays, at most, one hour. Yes. But I take rest in the daytime, at least two to three hours. So it is not that I am sleeping one hour. I sleep three to four hours total. But if practiced, it can be reduced, practiced. We see in the life of Gosvāmīs. About them, it is said: nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau **. They conquered over sleeping, eating. If we conquer over eating, then we can conquer over sleeping and other things also. If we can control over this tongue, then we can control over the other senses very easily. That is a fact.

Evening Darsana -- July 13, 1976, New York:

Prabhupāda: What is the usual price?

Devotee (5): $7.95 which would be like too many, eighty rupees or something like that. It would be very expensive for India for one volume.

Prabhupāda: So you have reduced the price?

Devotee (5): To forty-five rupees. Gopāla Kṛṣṇa made it very, very reasonable for them that they can partake.

Prabhupāda: That's all right. They are taking the book. That is wanted. We don't want much profit.

Devotee (5): Many, many reviewers also from those big Sanskrits, the largest in the world (indistinct) professors here they also read the reviews and very much appreciate the books. All of the different parts we visited, from north to south, east to west.

Prabhupāda: They're welcome. That's fine. So make world party.

Room Conversation -- July 27, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: "I shall fight, give my all best, and Kṛṣṇa will be satisfied." So that.... Arjuna for his personal, he did not..., decline, but when he saw that "Kṛṣṇa wants it? All right." That is kṛṣṇa-prema. "Never mind I shall be aggrieved by killing my kinsmen, but Kṛṣṇa will be satisfied. That's all right." This is Kṛṣṇa philosophy. We cannot find this philosophy in the material world that "I shall work, and so many will be satisfied." That is not possible. "If I work, I must be satisfied." So these communists, they will work according to.... Everyone will show that "I have no capacity." So the production will reduce. And they'll have to beg.

Room Conversation -- July 27, 1976, London:

Prabhupāda: There will be great catastrophe. The unemployment will increase, and people will be very dissatisfied with the.... Especially the black. They will create havoc. This is artificial. They are increasing the production of tire tube and lid. So who will purchase? Nobody lives in the tire tube. Therefore unemployment. So therefore reduce production. You cannot go on increasing. You very much trade this tire tube and so many artificial.... It is very artificial civilization. If you produce.... (break) Here so far milk and food grains are concerned, whatever sumptuously you want to eat, eat. Balance you can keep stock. The milk can be converted into ghee, then keep stock, and the grains can be stocked. Whenever you like, you just grind the grains and have to eat, halava.

Morning Walk -- August 14, 1976, Bombay:

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, you can't go more than that. This is near the airport. Now they've introduced a new law that you can't go even below this. What we did is the new law has just come into effect, and so we did the slabs in the night.

Prabhupāda: Huh?

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: There's a new law which reduces the height even further. You can't have any big buildings in Bombay now.

Prabhupāda: Why?

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: I don't know the reason, but apparently Indira Gandhi doesn't like big buildings. So actually according to the new law we have already built more than what the legal limit is. So what we did...

Prabhupāda: No, we have got some assetship(?) for the road? We have left over? Where is Saurabha?

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Saurabha is in the front. Shall I call him?

Prabhupāda: Yes. (break) ...quite nice place for walking. Why it is drying? The leaf?

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: People are coming just to see the building now.

Prabhupāda: Ācchā?

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: When it is built it will be I think just like Vṛndāvana. Many people think that the temple is these two towers. They think that the actual temple are these towers.

Prabhupāda: Yes, this is included in the... (break)

Room Conversation About Mayapura Construction -- August 19, 1976, Hyderabad:

Jayapatākā: Favorable reply. He said, "This is a good project. It will help the district." He only said that they should maybe get three hundred acres instead of 350 or like that. He reduced something. Then that went back again to the Commissioner, who was a Christian. He's the one I mentioned. He wrote bad report. Then when Choudhuri got it, he wrote a very good report. He wrote a very good report. He said that there's no question of Hindu or Muslim. Just like in Bangkok they have that one big Viṣṇu Temple. Or the Taj Mahal. This is no longer any type of religious. This is for all mankind. Similarly this Māyāpura will be a monument for the whole mankind.

Prabhupāda: For the whole world.

Jayapatākā: For the whole world. So in this way he gave a very good, very good statement. Then that went to the Chief Secretary again, who had to give it to the Chief Minister. So the Chief Minister he does not have a good opinion. He did not have a good opinion of our society.

Prabhupāda: Who is the Chief Minister?

Jayapatākā: Siddhanta Shankaraya.

Prabhupāda: He is very expert man.

Room Conversation -- August 20, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: But if we remain Kṛṣṇa conscious Vaiṣṇavas, then our position is strong, If there is slackness, then they will come to kill us. That we have to see. Āpani ācari' prabhu jīve śikhāilā. Our behavior should be very clear. "Caesar's wife must be above suspicion." Then it will be... This Aghāsura, Bakāsura, will come and... In the beginning there was Aghāsura, Pūtanā. That Devānanda, "Hare Kṛṣṇa Film," he wanted to do some harm. And he is gone, finished. Nobody talks of Devānanda. They talk of our movement. So if you remain strong in your spiritual activities, these Aghāsura, Bakāsura will come, go. But we should take precaution and counteract to reduce them. Real strength will remain from Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma's strength. Balarāma. Balarāma means strength. Nāyam ātmā bala hīna na labhyaḥ.(?) If you are not supported by Balarāma, then it is not possible. So we have got our Balarāma, Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma temple. Now in Europe we have got Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma.

Room Conversation -- August 20, 1976, Hyderabad:

Prabhupāda: And this Paramānanda, he is expert. He's very expert.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: He was in New Vrindaban before.

Prabhupāda: Yes. So he could not keep in line with Kīrtanānanda. (laughs)

Gargamuni: I thought he was in New York farm.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: That is the New York farm.

Prabhupāda: That is.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: It's in Philadelphia.

Gargamuni: Yes, I heard it is very good there.

Prabhupāda: His wife is... They are making...

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Satyabhāmā.

Prabhupāda: Cāpāṭis. When she brought, it was so thick. And "How shall I eat this?" But when I ate it was so nice. Soft and sweet. I ate everything.

Jayapatākā: Devotees have brought from the farm.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Maybe she should come here to cook for you.

Prabhupāda: Oh, maybe. No, they are very happy. All the boys and girls are very happy. Sit down. So that I want, that I live happily and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa. That's all. We don't want unnecessary luxury. Anartha. Anartha-nivṛttiḥ syāt. Anartha should be reduced, nil, bare necessities. Anartha... Just like this material thing we require for preaching. That is not anartha. But when it is used for sense gratification, that is anartha. Anything for sense gratification, that is unwanted, anartha. And anything for Kṛṣṇa consciousness, that is spiritual.

Meeting With Member of Parliament, Mr. Krishna Modi -- August 31, 1976, Delhi:

Krishna Modi: Indian economy is better. Income tax also they have got 67% more. Because they have reduced the rate.

Prabhupāda: What is the percentage?

Krishna Modi: Before that the percentage is 97 but last year, is 1976, in the March they have reduced the income tax from 97 to 65. 67.

Prabhupāda: In America it is 25.

Krishna Modi: No, not 25, that is 45... But there is a system in West Germany that if you earn more, the tax will be less. That is their system. If people will earn 200 crores, then the tax percentage will be lower. Lower.

Prabhupāda: That is good. That is good. The psychology is that if you earn more and government will tax more, then the impetus for earning more is cut.

Letter to Sai Baba -- September 13, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: So?

Pradyumna: Here he says, "The mission of the present avatāra is to make everybody realize that since the same God or divinity resides in everyone, people should respect, love, and..."

Prabhupāda: No, no. If he resides in everyone, then why he has special claim?

Pradyumna: Yes, well he says he has remembered.

Prabhupāda: He remembers? How God can forget?

Pradyumna: That he says. That he says here. He says that, "Take paddy or rice by way of an illustration. Every grain of rice is enclosed in a husk. You have to remove the husk to get the grain of rice. Now husk and rice both come from the same seed. Rice is the equivalent of God in man."

Prabhupāda: But still husk is not rice. You cannot say husk is rice.

Pradyumna: He says the husk... He says "Rice is the equivalent of God in man while the husk can be compared to desire which reduces God to man."

Prabhupāda: No, no.

Pradyumna: Therefore my desire is life plus desire equals man. Life minus desire equals God."

Prabhupāda: (dictating:) You are desiring to become God. There cannot be no desire. But you're unceremoniously desiring to become God. Although there is no proof in the śāstras. In the Bhagavad-gītā it is accepted that the living entities are sparks of..., part and parcel of God, Kṛṣṇa.

Pradyumna: "In the Bhagavad-gītā it is accepted that the living entities..."

Prabhupāda: Are part and parcel of God. But part is never equal to the whole. (break)

Press Interview -- October 16, 1976, Chandigarh:

Interviewer: One question. You have priced these books very high comparatively for the poorer countries. Do you have any plans to reduce...

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: You have priced these books very high for poor countries.

Haṁsadūta: We're printing locally now. The same books, but local printing so that they can be afforded by the public.

Prabhupāda: Yes. When we print locally it will be sold at half-price.

Room Conversation with Dr. Theodore Kneupper -- November 6, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Very dark, yes. First thing, there will be no rainfall. Due to the sinful activities of the people, from nature the punishment will be, there will be no rainfall. I have seen already in Europe. Everywhere there is scarcity of rainfall. And on account of scarcity of rainfall, food production will be reduced. They will try to eat meat, killing, and maintain themselves. But that is also not very prospective. How long you will...? The animals will also die. Then in Europe they are doing that, that on account of scarcity of rain there is no grass, so they are thinking, "These animals die for want of food. Let us eat them." This is their intelligence.

Room Conversation with Dr. Theodore Kneupper -- November 6, 1976, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: If your energy is all engaged in manufacturing tires and wheels, then who will go to the... Actually I have seen in your country. Now the farmers' son, they do not like to remain in the farm. They go in the city. I have seen it. The farmers' son, they do not like to take up the profession of his father. So gradually farming will be reduced, and the city residents, they are satisfied if they can eat meat. And the farmer means keeping the, raising the cattle and killing them, send to the city, and they will think that "We are eating. What is the use of going to..." But these rascals have no brain that "If there is no food grain or grass, how these cattle will be...?" Actually it is happening.

Room Conversation with Life Member, Mr. Malhotra -- December 22, 1976, Poona:

Mr. Malhotra: Sleeping, eating and sex. (break) ...sleeping at all or some little sleep.

Prabhupāda: Practically no sleeping. Practically no eating and no sex life.

Mr. Malhotra: Sleeping means, actually sleeping or awareness, I mean awakening of the mind or awakening...

Prabhupāda: No, actual sleeping. Sleeping means waste of time. So long you sleep, it is a waste of time. Better reduce sleep.

Mr. Malhotra: But you have to sleep sometimes.

Prabhupāda: Yes, some, some.

Mr. Malhotra: Some part of the day...

Prabhupāda: That also you will find, those who are highly elevated, they can avoid.

Room Conversation -- December 31, 1976, Bombay:

Hari-śauri: When we go out and preach and we just repeat or try to repeat whatever we've heard from the spiritual master, but we may not have fully realized what we're speaking about, does that somehow or another reduce the potency of the Gītā or the Bhāgavatam or...

Prabhupāda: Yes, realization takes time. Therefore there is no question of realization. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says you simply repeat as Kṛṣṇa says. That will save you. The so-called political leaders, they have no realization, but they manufacture their ideas. That is dangerous. Mislead themselves and others. In Bhagavad-gītā it is clearly said, ācāryopāsanam. Amānitvam adambhitvam. This is the process of knowledge. These so-called scholars and politicians, they have no ācārya. Instead of being amānitvam, they're mani... "I have become a leader, so whatever I shall say, it will be accepted." This is going on. Very bad. It is clearly said, as soon as you give up the ācārya system it is rotten. Sa kāleneha yogo naṣṭaḥ parantapa. So things which is rotten, what you'll get benefit? That is going on. Therefore in spite of so many Gītā commentators, big, big leaders, scholars, not a single person is converted into a devotee. Not a single person amongst their followers. It's useless talking. Therefore it is forbidden. Avaiṣṇava-mukhodgīrṇaṁ pūtam... Because they are not Vaiṣṇava, politicians and—reject them immediately. Immediately. That is the injunction. I wrote Mahatma Gandhi that "You are so respectful. People have got... Now you have got your svarāja. Please take Bhagavad-gītā seriously and let us preach."

1977 Conversations and Morning Walks

Morning Walk -- January 4, 1977, Bombay:

Girirāja: That he's not going to give any more public lectures and he's not going to give any more advice to any institutions.

Prabhupāda: But, now he's thinking that it is useless. Otherwise why he would say like that? And mokṣa? He's going to try for mokṣa?

Girirāja: Yes. He's saying that by reducing these activities he wants to get mokṣa.

Prabhupāda: So, our point is that if he was not on the platform of mokṣa, liberation, why did he waste his time by spoiling himself and for spoiling others? Now he has come to his senses, it is good, but it is to be understood that he simply spoiled his time and spoiled others' career by misleading them. Thus, without being liberated, nobody can guide anyone. That is useless. That is andhā yathāndhair upanīyamānāḥ (SB 7.5.31). If you have no eyes, then how can you lead others? If you are blind and they are blind, then what is the use of becoming their leaders? Actually all the so-called leaders and scholars, they are blind themselves and they have become big, big leader. That is the misfortune of the present life. And, therefore, our proposition is you take direction from Kṛṣṇa and His representative. That's all. That will help you. Try to understand this point. Our system, paramparā system, is that I am just like disciple of Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī. I don't say that I am liberated. I am conditioned. But because I am following the instruction of Bhaktisiddhānta, I'm liberated. This is the distinction between conditioned and liberated.

Room Conversation -- January 9, 1977, Bombay:

Rāmeśvara: The price of this printing...

Prabhupāda: Very cheap. No, we are supplying also very cheap.

Rāmeśvara: Yes. But last year we printed 500,000 copies, this year, one and a half million copies, and the savings was $200,000. We have gotten them to reduce the price so much that now, just because we have ordered so many books, we will save 200,000...

Prabhupāda: Why not spend some money for advertisement? It will be noticed.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: We can advertise them in prestigious papers like Reader's Digest or printer's...

Prabhupāda: Nice advertisement. Spend some money.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: That will increase our prestige.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: But we should advertise in America as Bhaktivedanta Book Trust, not Hare Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: No, no. As Bhaktivedanta Book Trust. Actually, we have to keep ourselves.

Room Conversation -- January 10, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Don't make duplicity pricing.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Exactly. That is why I'm discussing with you right now, Śrīla Prabhupāda. Our pricing will be consistent. So I think forty-five rupees is reasonable. Above that, in India people will hesitate on buying. I'd like to get everyone to think it is available at...

Prabhupāda: Why forty-five? We can reduce more even, do you think.(?)

Jagadīśa: (indistinct)

Rāmeśvara: He's already charging the libraries forty-five rupees.

Prabhupāda: That's all right.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: So we can't go below that...

Prabhupāda: No.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: ...because then they...

Prabhupāda: That's nice.

Conversation on Train to Allahabad -- January 11, 1977, India:

Rāmeśvara: Śrīla Prabhupāda, should we be thinking in our minds that one day the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement will have to manage the cities and the nations of the world?

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Rāmeśvara: So there are so many different departments in managing such a big thing. It requires a lot of...

Prabhupāda: No, no. We shall... If people become Kṛṣṇa conscious, then the so many nonsense departments will be reduced.

Hari-śauri: Simplified.

Prabhupāda: Yes. The department, the sinful departments, illicit sex, meat-eating, this will be closed, and that will make simple.

Rāmeśvara: Completely?

Prabhupāda: No, at least we shall try to make closed. And if people become localized, then this traffic will be little. Just like I am trying to organize the farm. If people do not come out of home, then this system will be obsolete. There will be no more department. They have created hundreds. They do not know how to manage it. For livelihood they have to go to Bombay, and therefore they require so many local trains. But if they localized, they can get their livelihood locally, there is no question of these all...

Rāmeśvara: In America this is becoming the number-one problem—unemployment.

Prabhupāda: Yes. They must be. Artificial employment.

Room Conversation -- January 19, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Hari-śauri: That's what this guy told me, not to massage very much.

Gargamuni: Oh.

Hari-śauri: At least not while the swelling is there. Actually that medicine that Shiv Sharma gave you, that was reduced. I don't think this homeopathic medicine is any good.

Prabhupāda: So you can give me that.

Gargamuni: My father, he also used to get swelling, but this was due to diabetes.

Prabhupāda: I have got diabetes also.

Gargamuni: He was getting swelling in his legs and hands. But he had to take this insulin, and this kept the swelling nil by taking insulin. Every morning he would give himself a shot. But he had no more swelling.

Hari-śauri: He'd just stick a needle in his arm every morning.

Prabhupāda: There are many gentlemen who take insulin twice, at least once.

Room Conversation -- January 21, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Rāmeśvara: So it seems that as our movement grows more and more...

Prabhupāda: Strong.

Rāmeśvara: ...then America will more and more be considering active stopping of Communism. It'll be logical.

Prabhupāda: Everything will be stopped, all bogus social, political or religious systems. They will be all stopped.

Rāmeśvara: Then this will be a natural development of the growth of the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Yes. Two things: paritrāṇāya sādhūnāṁ vināśāya ca duṣkṛtām (BG 4.8). As the duṣkṛtā—na māṁ duṣkṛtā mūḍhāḥ—will be reduced, the sādhu will increase. Or the sādhu will increase, the duṣkṛta will decrease.

Rāmeśvara: This conflict will be global. It will affect the whole world.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes. That doesn't matter.

Hari-śauri: We're already in every country now.

Prabhupāda: Yes. That is the Kurukṣetra fight.

Room Conversation with Svarupa Damodara -- January 30, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Gargamuni: I think in America that we cannot say that the general public is against us, because the book sales are increasing. It is only when the book sales decrease...

Prabhupāda: No... So how many pages these are?

Svarūpa Dāmodara: We plan to print up to at least hundred pages each volume. But this is already about two hundred pages. So we are going to reduce it little bit so that we can print it in next volume.

Prabhupāda: Life From Life, we are already advertising in our BBT list.

Hari-śauri: Yes. It's already listed there.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: We plan to have our book about five hundred pages. And we should finish it by fall. We feel it's major work. The difficult part is that establish from science, comparative study... And we have finished that. Next stage is... It's not very difficult. It's about, they call, fossil, these bones... We're going to say something about it, but that's not much. Then conclusion...

Prabhupāda: So you are scientist, devotee, and kṣatriya. As kṣatriya you'll force: (laughing) "You must believe this, or I will kill you." (laughter) And as scientist, the convincing argument... And as devotee, Kṛṣṇa will help you. That's all Yuddhyasva mām anusmara (BG 8.7). That is Kṛṣṇa's word, "Fight! And remember Me." That's all. Combination kṣatriya, devotee, and scientist. Very good combination. Kṣatriya does not know beyond two things—victory or death. No third thing. That is kṣatriya. In a fighting, if I do not gain victory, then I must die. Two things. That is kṣatriya spirit. Whenever there is fight between the two kṣatriya, one must die. That is last word. No compromise. Jarāsandha and Bhīma, fighting for twenty-eight days, in the evening they were friends, but the fighting went on until one is dead. That is kṣatriya's fighting. Where is that spirit now? I think in Europe also there was the knights.

Morning Walk -- February 1, 1977, Bhuvanesvara:

Svarūpa Dāmodara: They're somehow confused.

Prabhupāda: Hm? That means less intelligent.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: We need to show the alternative.

Prabhupāda: No, a child can see there are two things, that what is the difference between a living man and dead man. So my father was living one moment before. Now he is dead. The something is missing. The two things are there. Where is the difficulty? And these big, big scientists, they cannot understand. How less intelligent they are. Immediately understood two things, but something is missing.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Somehow they have developed this false understanding that everything can be reduced to atoms and molecules.

Prabhupāda: That is still less intelligence, still less intelligence. Kartāham iti manyate.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Because life is something which is beyond experimental knowledge...

Prabhupāda: That means they do not know. Say that, "beyond experimental knowledge" or "beyond your capacity."

Room Conversations -- February 20, 1977, Mayapura:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I've gotten a week's supply of these other tablets. I got the prescription filled.

Prabhupāda: Keep it here.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: That has given me great relief.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh. Swelling is reduced, Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: That I do not know. But internally I am feeling relief.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Swelling here?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No. His feet.

Prabhupāda: Not very much, but there is.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Not so much. I think that pill works for swelling. The swelling is due to urine, not...

Prabhupāda: So now we have to push on this movement as the (heavy coughing) bona fide religion, but the most scientific, not dogmas. That we have to do.

Room Conversation -- February 27, 1977, Mayapura:

Prabhupāda: So I think the wording is little more. It can be reduced.

Brahmānanda: Reduced.

Prabhupāda: Hm. That you can... Otherwise it is all right. Try to reduce the wording little more. Then it will be all right.

Harikeśa: Rohiṇī-suta Prabhu, who's probably going to win this, he never wants to come to this festival because he never wants to stop distributing your books, not for one day.

Prabhupāda: Oh. Then his certificate should be sent at least.

Room Conversation -- March 26, 1977, Bombay:

Karttikeya Mahadevia: We have enough time one hour. And K. K. Dattrey and I are working together in one association for the psychic surgery. He is the president, I am the vice-president, so I know him very well, personally.

Prabhupāda: Cardiologist.

Karttikeya Mahadevia: Cardiologist. He was cardiologist to the president also. He is very well known. And he is utilizing yoga for reducing the blood pressure in the heart, āsana and all those things. He is very much interested in yogic philosophy also. Yoga, haṭha-yoga.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: God conscious? Is he God conscious?

Karttikeya Mahadevia: I think so. He is a very open minded man to find out good things about anything, whether herbal medicine or yogāsana.

Prabhupāda: So after one hour we shall go?

Guest (1) (Indian man): And about these two people, Girirāja Prabhu and (indistinct) who are willing to come, I will take them whenever possible, in April-May or June-July.

Prabhupāda: We have to take the proper... (break) ...is not good. You should avoid it.

Girirāja: I think it was Kṛṣṇa's grace.

Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.

Morning Conversation -- April 11, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: Calcutta and Bengal has got a facility. Every evening there is a small shower of rain. That keeps the temperature mild. During this April-May, you will find every evening there is a thunderstorm and little shower. That is in Bengal's special... A good wind will come. Sometimes it is cyclonic. And immediately the whole atmosphere will be reduced temperature. Sometimes in U.P. also.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Another advantage of these months is that the mango starts to come into season.

Prabhupāda: Hm. In Bombay mango is the first-class.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But you are leaving Bombay.

Prabhupāda: Doesn't matter. I am not after eating. There is no scarcity of mango, but who will eat?

Morning Conversation -- April 19, 1977, Bombay:

Prabhupāda: How it can be... This money must be reserved for scientific propaganda, twenty thousand rupees. They have agreed to save half, and half is twenty thousand. This must be saved.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Somewhere between fifteen and twenty thousand.

Prabhupāda: That's all.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I asked him offhand how much he thought he could save. He said, "I think I could reduce the expenses by half."

Prabhupāda: Half, this should be set aside for scientific...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We'll have to see if he... I mean, that was a very quick statement that he made on the telephone.

Prabhupāda: No...

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But I'm just saying that on his behalf. I hope he can make it.

Prabhupāda: Now we have now Hindi books. So make nice propaganda. Because they supply from... All temple may be short. So we are also supplying some books for... So here we shall have to compensate by selling Hindi books. Or English books. We have to make some... Let Gargamuni be alert. If money's not coming from there, we shall have to supply money from here.

Morning Conversation -- April 30, 1977, Bombay:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Still looks like there's a lot space.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: No, that's okay because when it is shot it will be reduced even further. This is... You shouldn't go by the space. It's already bigger than a normal size page. But when it is... It'll be shot by the camera and reduced.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: But relatively, it looks like there's a lot of space here.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. You can make it even more, but then it's going to become very small. It is all done proportionately. This is another sample. This is about thirty-five lines. One, two, three, four, five, six...

Prabhupāda: This is better composition than the former.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. I've improved it now. Seventeen, eighteen, twenty... This is thirty-six lines.

Prabhupāda: So this is good.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: So we'll use this print, then.

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Okay. Of course, because they are paragraphs, I've also counted this. Otherwise, normally, there would be one line here. So this is better, eh? We're using better art paper, so now, with the reproduction, it will come out better. So this is your decision?

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Evening Darsana -- May 9, 1977, Hrishikesh:

Prabhupāda: They are young boys, and they are coming from very respectable family, rich family, rich nation. They have no economic problem. They have not come here to earn their livelihood, as we go to England to learn something, technology, and earn our livelihood. They have not come here for that purpose. They have enough food, enough everything, material. They are hankering after some spiritual... So there are two sides. (aside:) Why you are reducing? So our leaders, rather, they are misinterpreting śāstra, our leaders, and trying to mold it to the material way of life. This is the pity of the thing. Now you should reform them in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, and real United Nations will be formed. There will be no question of nationalism. In the Bhagavad-gītā... Big, big leaders, they are reading Bhagavad-gītā, but is there any word as "nationalism"?

Discussions with Devotees and Conversation with Dr. Ghosh -- June 1, 1977, Vrndavana:

Dr. Sharma: (indistinct) We create in our mind problems.

Prabhupāda: Because sometimes I become morose that I became lazy, so therefore, if I see you busy, this moroseness will reduce. When I see that you are working and the whole thing is busy, oh, that gives me pleasure. Yes

Svarūpa Dāmodara: I'm also thinking of writing some books for children, for Gurukula.

Prabhupāda: Write.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: For the Bhaktivedanta Institute.

Prabhupāda: Write. That's a very good idea. (Bengali) This is real life. You are all qualified to do this. Idaṁ hi puṁsas tapasaḥ śrutasya vā (SB 1.5.22). (Bengali)

Conversation, 'Rascal Editors,' and Morning Talk -- June 22, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Your original work that you're doing now, that is edited by Jayādvaita. That's the first editing.

Prabhupāda: He is good.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He is good. But then, after they print the books, they're going over. So when they reprint...

Prabhupāda: So how to check this? How to stop this?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They should not make any changes without consulting Jayādvaita.

Prabhupāda: But they are doing without any authority.

Svarūpa Dāmodara: I think we should make whole survey, all books already printed, before printing the next batch and check any mistakes so that it should be all corrected. Otherwise, if the scholars find out that there are so many mistakes in the books, then the quality and the appreciation will be reduced.

Girirāja(?): (indistinct)

Svarūpa Dāmodara: Yes. We find so far that they are appreciating so much within the scholarly circle, and we want to maintain that actually.

Prabhupāda: Very serious feature. It is not possible for me to check, and they are doing all nonsense, freedom. (pause)

Yaśodā-nandana: Jaya Śrīla Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: What to do?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I think Svarūpa Dāmodara's point, that all the books should now be checked before they're reprinted again... And they have to be checked not by some so-called learned Sanskrit man but by a learned devotee. Just like you always favored Jayādvaita because his Kṛṣṇa consciousness...

Prabhupāda: Jayādvaita, Satsvarūpa...

Room Conversation with Alice Coltrane -- July 1, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I don't know... I have a desire to do it, but I don't know if I'll have much opportunity.

Prabhupāda: Well, we have no opportunity, but we'll have to find out opportunity. And that is intelligence. Even those who have opportunity, who is taking care of? Nidrāhāra-vihārakādi-vijitau **. We have to reduce these things, nidrāhāra. It is for this, only writing. That's all. We have written so many books only for selling?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: No, we have to read them still.

Prabhupāda: No, that, you do not take care. I said three times, "yaḥ." Now you simply saw "y-a." Why did you not see "y-a-ḥ"?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes. I didn't realize it was spelled that way. It's my lack of learning.

Prabhupāda: Spelling... But yaḥ, you do not know, "So let me see how to this 'yaḥ.' Which yaḥ is there."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That I didn't know. I didn't know that. I mean, I know it's my fault. I was looking for y-a-s, and I should have seen y-a-ḥ. I was looking for ya śāstra, y-a-s, instead of y-a-ḥ.

Prabhupāda: So you know how to read phonetical.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Phonetical.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Yaḥ. What is that mark? Diacritic.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes.

Prabhupāda: You must know thoroughly that, that how yaḥ is spelled. This is standard. Practice. Everything practice. (break) Y-a-ḥ... This is determined by the diacritic mark. But this, everything is there. So this was beginning... (break)

Room Conversation about Grhasthas -- July 17, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: This is system in Bombay. Without paying, you cannot get even inch of land.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Trivikrama Mahārāja told me in Japan it's getting like that also, Tokyo.

Prabhupāda: Wherever there is scarcity, that is the system.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In America that is not there.

Prabhupāda: America, enough places.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: They have paying a few months' rent, but not pagri.

Prabhupāda: There are so many houses. Why they should pay?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yeah. That's true.

Prabhupāda: Multi-story building. Why people should pay? Now Bombay have got many multi-story building; therefore that demand is reduced. But still, you have to pay in important place, pagri or underhand. What is called?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Bribe.

Prabhupāda: Bribe is very bad word. "Under table." (chuckling)

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Under the table. Unofficial.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Mean I am paying on the table hundred rupees and under table two hundred rupees.

Room Conversation -- July 19, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Everywhere... My maternal uncle. They were very... They were not rich. Formerly they were rich, then reduced, but so much devotee. My aunt's house, mother's elder sister, mean this was the society. So all Vaiṣṇavas. Not strictly following the Vaiṣṇava regulation, but still, they were Kṛṣṇa conscious. Even our maidservants, they were Kṛṣṇa conscious. They were inviting their guru. They were trying to satisfy them. Used to keep the guru for learning Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Such was the atmosphere, even maidservant.

Room Conversation -- October 6, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Although drinking nothing, cough is coming.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Cough is again coming.

Prabhupāda: No medicine, no drinking.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Swelling is reducing.

Prabhupāda: Hm?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Not very much reducing. Why you're not drinking anything, Śrīla Prabhupāda? I noticed yesterday you did not drink much.

Prabhupāda: First of all there is no inclination to drink anything.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: You don't feel thirsty at all?

Prabhupāda: And secondly, if I drink, then there is cough.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Even when you drink fruit juice there is cough?

Prabhupāda: Um, hm.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: There's a lot of coughing today again?

Prabhupāda: I think so.

Room Conversation -- October 8, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: When you have come back?

Bhāgavata: I just came just now, a half hour before, from America.

Upendra: And he's real skinny, Śrīla Prabhupāda. He's skinny.

Prabhupāda: Why?

Bhāgavata: Because I am following cāturmāsya. I have reduced to 160 pounds. Before I was 260. Now I am 160.

Prabhupāda: Very nice.

Bhāgavata: Shall I chant?

Prabhupāda: Yes. (kīrtana begins) (Bengali conversation) Who is here?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Tamāla Kṛṣṇa.

Prabhupāda: Have kīrtana. (pause) So after my passing away, these, all the temples, they should receive some money for holding utsava.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: In your honor.

Prabhupāda: Yes, in the temple.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, Prabhupāda.

Gurukṛpā: Jaya Prabhupāda.

Prabhupāda: Who is he?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Gurukṛpā Swami.

Prabhupāda: Go on kīrtana. (kīrtana begins)

Room Conversation -- October 12, 1977, Vrndavana:

Jayapatākā: Since I left you in Bombay, then I returned and presented the Show Cause to the additional district magistrate. And he just looked at it and postponed it till November 18th. He postponed, so as far as that goes, there's nothing until November 18th. Then, I think, Bhavānanda Mahārāja gave the report about the court. They released... They reduced the bail restriction on the devotees. I went on a tour of Orissa to the two temples there, Bhuvaneśvara and Bhadrak. In Bhuvaneśvara they have nice garden (Prabhupāda coughing up mucus) and about six or seven devotees. They had a nice Vyāsa-pūjā and Janmāṣṭamī festival.

Prabhupāda: Magistrate wants my presence?

Room Conversation With Dr. Ghosh -- October 16, 1977, Vrndavana:

Dr. Ghosh: Massage is good, but gentle massage. The object of massage is to improve the circulation. To improve the circulation. So massage should be from below, upwards towards the heart. From below, upwards towards the heart. There is a way, proper way of doing a thing, and wrong way of doing a thing. So the right way of doing a thing is massage... The object of massage is to improve the circulation. And the way is to squeeze the blood towards the heart. First squeeze, squeezing motion. You see every tip of the finger like... So that this swelling will also be reduced if you do it properly. This is called petrissage. Squeezing towards the heart. Every nerve and muscle should be petrissage. And then just like twisting gently, very gently, always towards the heart. Squeeze the blood towards the heart. That will improve the flow and deportment. Petrissage first, then efflurage is like this. (demonstrates) And deportment. Chest should also be just like this. There's hardly any muscle left. And stomach, just like the hands of a clock. From right to left, like that. This is the way, how peristalsis occurs in the intestine. You see? Towards the rectum always, like the hands of a clock. Not this way, anticlockwise. Just like that. Legs too. Similarly, from below, upwards. That is very important. That will reduce the swelling and improve the circulation. Gentle, should be very, very gentle. You know? Left side is more so. And you should change him from side to side. His body shouldn't be kept in one position for a long time. That is increase the hypostasis and increase the... Look at this.

Prabhupāda: Who is taking the...

Trivikrama: Chanting, you want?

Prabhupāda: No. The instruction.

Upendra: We're all watching, Śrīla Prabhupāda, Bhakti-caru, Upendra, Bhavānanda, Śatadhanya.

Doctor Visit and Conversation -- October 20, 1977, Vrndavana:

Dr. Gopal: So I think the time of his rest or sleep, when he has..., the same as from usual... Because previously he used to wake from twelve to four in the night, or... So you want to change your sleep hours?

Prabhupāda: No, no.

Dr. Gopal: No. You want to provoke the sleep? You just take little more liquids, number one. Two: whatever you like, you take. I will reduce your medicine by fifty percent. And don't worry for these loose stools. You are passing everything. Right?

Trivikrama: You want to come back, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Would you like some kīrtana, Śrīla Prabhupāda?

Prabhupāda: You have got any (indistinct). Where is Girirāja?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: He went into the city today for picking up the fixed deposit receipts. That was the main thing.

Prabhupāda: City?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Delhi. Because the receipts are being turned over to the head office, so they have to be endorsed there. So he went for that purpose. There's not much more to do now with this Panchashil flat, because we're going to give it. So simply it will be up to Vrindavan to make up the necessary document for transferring it. I think it doesn't even require a big document. Simply a letter on behalf of Your Divine Grace saying that "We give this apartment to you."

Prabhupāda: But one thing, if they can dispose?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, they may try and sell it.

Prabhupāda: No, no, I don't want that.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, but when you give them that, that's what they may do.

Prabhupāda: Then don't give him. Let them live there, but...

Room Conversation -- October 27, 1977, Vrndavana:

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Śrīla Prabhupāda, we have twenty-two books in print.

Prabhupāda: Oh!

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: In various stages of production. Printing or composing or color... In the next two months, twenty-two books are coming out. By the end of December there will be twenty-two books given to you.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Now you must have good godown. Otherwise books will be stolen.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: At the market.

Prabhupāda: And market it will be sold at cheap rate. Then it will reduce its importance.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That was happening in Calcutta many...

Prabhupāda: Hm.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: I also got the loan for the godown. So in November we are starting construction of the BBT godown in Bombay.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That four lakhs, two lakhs was for the godown and two lakhs for book printing.

Prabhupāda: Money you'll get. There is no scarcity. Ātreya Ṛṣi will give you.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: Yes, he is very rich.

Prabhupāda: Their country is very rich now.

Gopāla Kṛṣṇa: We used to send devotees to collect from these Middle East countries.

Prabhupāda: Richest country now, Middle East. Everywhere we can make Vaikuṇṭha by Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Let people understand gradually.

Room Conversation -- November 3, 1977, Vrndavana:

Prabhupāda: Bābājī Mahārāja also I have consulted that "Being afraid, don't move me in the hospital." He also says, "No, don't do."

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: We're not going to do that, Śrīla Prabhupāda. That Saṁjāta dāsa? You know Saṁjāta dāsa, the architect from Bhuvaneśvara? He passed away recently. So I asked Gaura-govinda what were the circumstances. So he explained that he had been very ill for four or five days. They took him to the hospital. So the doctors gave some drugs for reducing the fever. But suddenly he died. When he died he was unconscious. Gaura-govinda said maybe it was due to the drugs that caused some severe reaction. We see one example after another that these hospitals, they are simply meant to kill, not to save life. I mean, I don't think we have any faith either in them, Śrīla Prabhupāda. And apart from our faith, which makes no difference, you strictly ordered it. So we're not going to disobey your order under any circumstance, even if we risk our own life. If someone says to us that "We will kill you if you don't let us take your Guru Mahārāja," then we'll say, "Then kill us." Your order is our command.

Prabhupāda: What does he say? They will kill?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: I said supposing someone threatens us with our life, that "We will kill you if you don't let us take your Guru Mahārāja to the hospital," still, we will not let them take you. Your order is our business to follow, even at the risk of our life. So we are not going to take you to the hospital under any condition. Neither... Not only is it your order, but we also see absolutely no benefit from these hospitals. Your order is sufficient, but apart from that, also, from our own limited intelligence, we also see that the hospitals are condemned. These doctors are blind, these allopathic doctors.

Prabhupāda: That is my only request, that at the last stage don't torture me and put to death. So I am not eating anything, and if we chant, by batches chant, I'll hear. (Bengali)

Room Conversation -- November 8, 1977, Vrndavana:

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's one point about... Actually, I simply asked him for the name of his bank and the bank account, but he doesn't seem to want to give that at this point. Seems to have some other idea. Very legally worded letter. "3) Panchashil. I do not stay there, albeit my daily visits. Once I have read somewhere, not the copy sent by you, this draft conveyance, and this is a bunkum." He calls it a bunkum. Are you familiar with that word, Śrīla Prabhupāda? I think it means like a hoax or something. "The wordings are incoherent and contradictory. The assigners, promoters, are described as overlord. The lessers, superlord, and assignees, purchasers, have been reduced to a transient resident, if not fugitive debtor. In my opinion, causes are there for criminal prosecution against the promoters. Without capable and competent lawyers' help, this legal matter should not be handled. Until then, keep it in abeyance. Your all the papers as mentioned..." I sent him a copy of the scheme, Śrīla Prabhupāda, as well as a copy of the draft... "All of your papers, as mentioned, are sent herewith back to you." He didn't choose to keep them. "While awaiting the bank's comments, I beg to remain respectfully yours, M.M. De." He says, "The enclosures are sent under ordinary post to avoid heavy postage in this cover." He decided to send them by a separate post because it would have been a few extra paisa.

Prabhupāda: Unless the bank confirms, he does not take it seriously. Is it not?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: That's more or less what he's suggesting.

Prabhupāda: So let the bank confirm. What is the harm? Hm? The bank is not going to confirm?

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: Oh, the bank will do whatever we ask them to do.

Prabhupāda: Then let them confirm.

Tamāla Kṛṣṇa: If he gives us the bank name and the account of his, then by getting the first monthly installment, then automatically it's confirmed.

Prabhupāda: I think you should send him Panchashil. If the bank can send the money, Panchashil?