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Regardless (Lectures)

Lectures

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 13.24 -- Bombay, October 23, 1973:

Pradyumna: Translation: "One who understands this philosophy concerning material nature, the living entity and the interaction of the modes of nature is sure to attain liberation. He will not take birth here again, regardless of his present position."

Prabhupāda: So the aim of life is always being stressed by Kṛṣṇa, to stop this process of undergoing different changes of body. Janma-mṛtyu-jarā-vyādhi (BG 13.9). Na bhūyo 'bhijāyate. In many place Kṛṣṇa has said this. Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). This is the aim of life. But people are misled by the blind leaders. We can say, "rascal leaders," but it may be very strong language. Kṛṣṇa has said. All persons who are not interested in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, all such persons have been described as mūḍhas, rascals. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). Narādhamāḥ. He has chastised and used very strong words. Ajasram andha-yoniṣu: "I push them into the darkest region of material existence." Actually that is happening. People without God consciousness, without Kṛṣṇa consciousness, gradually becoming entrapped in ignorance.

Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures

Lecture on SB 1.2.8 -- Hyderabad, April 22, 1974:

Pradyumna: (leads chanting, etc.)

dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ
viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ
notpādayed yadi ratiṁ
śrama eva hi kevalam
(SB 1.2.8)

Translation: "Duties, or dharma, executed by men, regardless of occupation, are only so much useless labor if they do not provoke attraction for the message of the Supreme Lord."

Prabhupāda:

dharmaḥ svanuṣṭhitaḥ puṁsāṁ
viṣvaksena-kathāsu yaḥ
notpādayed yadi ratiṁ
śrama eva hi kevalam
(SB 1.2.8)

Dharma (is) generally translated into English as "religion." I have already explained several times. The dictionary meaning of religion is "a kind of faith." But actually, dharma means occupational duty, or the characteristic. Just like a snake. The snake, its religion is to bite, and fatal bite. That is his dharma, occupational duty. Everything has got... Just like this microphone, it must work, it must expand the sound. That is its dharma. If it does not expand the sound, it is useless. So everything you take, there are characteristics. That is the meaning of dharma. Dharma is not an artificial faith. Faith you can change, but your occupational duty, you cannot change.

Lecture on SB 1.7.44 -- Vrndavana, October 4, 1976:

Pradyumna: "So this is a finer military science than that of the gross military military weapons used nowadays. Arjuna was taught all this, and therefore Draupadī wished that Arjuna feel obliged to Ācārya Droṇa for all these benefits. And in the absence of Droṇācārya, his son was the representative. That was the opinion of the good lady Draupadī. It may be argued why Droṇācārya, a rigid brāhmaṇa, should be a teacher in military science. But the reply is that a brāhmaṇa should become a teacher, regardless of what his department of knowledge is. A learned brāhmaṇa should become a teacher, a priest and a recipient of charity. A bona fide brāhmaṇa is authorized to accept such professions."

Prabhupāda: So there is nothing especial to be explained. The only important part of this verse is, that don't learn guru-māra-vidyā. Even if you become more learned that your guru, you should not exhibit it before your guru. You should always remain a fool number one. Just like Caitanya Mahāprabhu showed Himself by His example. Guru more mūrkha dekhi 'karila śāsana (CC Adi 7.71). Caitanya Mahāprabhu was not mūrkha, but He has taught us that before guru, we shall always remain a mūrkha. That is advancement. Not that "I know more than guru. I don't care for guru. Now give me blessing that I can find out some better guru." This nonsense, if you don't find... If your guru is not perfect, then why you are asking blessing to find out another?

Lecture on SB 2.3.17 -- Los Angeles, June 12, 1972:

Pradyumna reading purport: The ultimate end of Vedic knowledge is to realize the Personality of Godhead Lord Kṛṣṇa, as it is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā: vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15). There is guarantee of money being returned if given in charity regardless of the proportion. Similarly, a moment passed in the association of a pure devotee by hearing and chanting the transcendental messages of the Lord is a perfect guarantee for eternal life for returning home back, to Godhead. Mad-dhāma gatvā punar janma na vidyate. In other words, a devotee of the Lord is guaranteed eternal life. A devotee's old age or disease in the present life is but an impetus to such guaranteed eternal life."

Prabhupāda: So āyur harati vai puṁsām. The sunshine, sunrise, and sunset means decreasing our life. It is very nice example. The sun's business is to take away a portion of your span of life. That is business. But he cannot take away the portion of the life of a devotee. Because a devotee is going to live. This Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is to give a living entity a permanent span of life. Uttama-śloka-vārtayā. Uttama-śloka is Kṛṣṇa. Uttama-śloka. Bhaktir bhavati naiṣṭhikī bhagavaty uttama-śloke. In another place it is stated, tadā... naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu. Naṣṭa-prāyeṣv abhadreṣu nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā (SB 1.2.18). Nityam ... Just like we are holding class daily. Nityam, regularly. Nityam means regularly, daily, always. So nityaṁ bhāgavata-sevayā. The beginning... Just like when a man is infected with a disease, he is subjected to death. Crude example. So when a man falls diseased, the physician tries to get him relieved from that infection. So our material body is an infection.

Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures

Lecture on CC Madhya-lila 8.128 -- Bhuvanesvara, January 24, 1977:

Hari-śauri: Translation: "Whether one is a brāhmaṇa, a sannyāsī, or a śūdra, regardless of what he is, he can become a spiritual master if he knows the science of Kṛṣṇa." Purport: "This verse is very important to the Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. In his Amṛta-pravāha-bhāṣya, Śrīla Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura explains that one should not think that because Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was born a brāhmaṇa and was situated..."

Indian translator: Kindly read one sentence.

Prabhupāda: One sentence. Yes. One sentence, finish talk. Then he'll explain.

Hari-śauri: "One should not think that because Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu was born a brāhmaṇa and was situated in the topmost spiritual order as a sannyāsī it was improper for Him to receive instructions from Śrīla Rāmānanda Rāya, who belonged to the śūdra caste." (break)

Prabhupāda: ...prabhu said,

yei bhaje sei baḍa abhakta hīna chāra
kṛṣṇa bhajanete nāhi jāti-kulādi-vicāra
(CC Antya 4.67)

This is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's vision. There is no such distinction that one is lower and higher in the matter of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. In the śāstras it is clearly stated that unless one is Kṛṣṇa conscious, he cannot become guru.

Philosophy Discussions

Philosophy Discussion on Immanuel Kant:

Śyāmasundara: Individual circumstances should not have any bearing.

Prabhupāda: Yes. Then the basic principles of civilization should be that those who are unable to do it, they should be trained up. That is our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. We are elevating persons from the lowest level to the highest level. That we are actually doing. So these four classes of men exist, but by education, by training, the lowest class of men can be elevated to the highest class. That is our movement, Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Śyāmasundara: It is true that if there are certain laws, moral commandments, that I should follow them regardless of individual exception? There are no exceptions, regardless...

Prabhupāda: That is brahminical qualification. A brāhmaṇa shall be truthful in all circumstances. Even before his enemy, he will disclose everything, what is truth. That is brahminical qualification, whereas kṣatriya, he is a diplomat. Although he is truthful, but he will not be truthful before his enemy.

Philosophy Discussion on Immanuel Kant:

Prabhupāda: Yes. Suppose if I say that "You do this," just like Kṛṣṇa says that "You go and say Droṇācārya." So unless he has got implicit faith... Yudhiṣṭhira was lacking that implicit faith. Therefore he said, "How can I say such lies?" But Arjuna is better than Yudhiṣṭhira. He thought that "Although I am thinking it is very moral not to kill my relatives, but Kṛṣṇa likes it, I must do it." That's all.

Śyāmasundara: He says that ethics or morality should be institutionalized, regardless of the individual circumstances.

Prabhupāda: He comes to the circumstances. Therefore the morality should be according to the circumstances.

Śyāmasundara: He says the opposite: regardless of individual circumstances, everyone should follow the moral imperative. But we say that circumstances determine how one follows.

Prabhupāda: Then suppose the (indistinct) state, "Thou shalt not kill." So why killing is going on?

Śyāmasundara: In wars.

Prabhupāda: In any circumstances. It is not that killing is stopped, although the state is meant for prohibiting killing. But there is still in the slaughterhouse killing is going on, in war killing is going on, and so many other places killing is going on.

Philosophy Discussion on Henri Bergson:

Prabhupāda: What is the purport?

Śyāmasundara: "All kinds of weapons, swords, flames, rains, tornadoes, etc., are unable to kill the spirit soul. It appears that there were many kinds of weapons made of earth, water, air, ether, etc., in addition to the modern weapons of fire. Even the nuclear weapons of the modern age are classified as fire weapons, but formerly there were other weapons made of all different types of material elements. Firearms were counteracted by water weapons, which are now unknown to modern science. Nor do modern scientists have knowledge of tornado weapons. Nonetheless, the soul can never be cut into pieces nor annihilated by any number of weapons, regardless of scientific devices. Nor was it ever possible to cut the individual souls from the original Soul. The Māyāvādī, however, cannot describe how the individual soul evolved from ignorance and consequently became covered by illusory energy. Because they are atomic individual souls (sanātana) eternally, they are prone to be covered by the illusory energy, and thus they become separated from the association of the Supreme Lord..."

Prabhupāda: The vital source of the soul can be temporarily covered by physical elements, but it is not belonging to the group of physical elements. That is our system.

Philosophy Discussion on B. F. Skinner:

Śyāmasundara: It seems that Skinner should be very ripe(?), or he is very ripe, because he wants it to be a society where it is controlled and it is...

Prabhupāda: So let him come and study the society. He is a philosopher and intelligent. Invite him.

Śyāmasundara: What about this statement? He says that "I can take any person at young age, any person with me, any person, and I can, at random, and I can train him to be any kind of specialist I might select-doctor, lawyer, even beggarman or thief, regardless of his talents or his nature, his tendencies or abilities."

Prabhupāda: So that means training should be given from childhood. That is the whole idea.

Śyāmasundara: But is that true?

Prabhupāda: Yes.

Śyāmasundara: We can train anyone to become anything.

Prabhupāda: Anything. Just like there is a story, the Tarzan. Tarzan. And he was living in the society of monkeys, and he learned how to jump from one tree to another. (laughter)

Philosophy Discussion on Blaise Pascal:

Hayagrīva: This is a section, a continuation of Pascal, Blaise Pascal. P-A-S-C-A-L. Pascal saw man situated in the universe between two extremes-between the abyss of infinity and the abyss of nothingness. Man has a body like the animals and an intellect like the angels or demigods. As such, he is neither a demigod nor an animal but somewhere between the two. Due to this situation, man is intelligent enough to know that he is in a miserable situation. Nonetheless, he has a great desire to be happy and to rid himself of his misery. Pascal saw that all men complain and suffer regardless of the situation. According to him, man engages in all kinds of hobbies and games and diversions in order to divert himself from his misery. But ultimately nothing really helps. What man once possessed and now has lost is perfect happiness. Pascal believes that the emptiness felt by man can only be filled by God. Isn't..., is this the same as...

Prabhupāda: Bhagavad-gītā.

Hayagrīva: Bhagavad-gītā (laughs).

Prabhupāda: Mūḍhā janmani janmani mām aprāpyaiva (BG 16.20). Because he does not get under the shelter of Kṛṣṇa, so life after life he is trying to be happy and he is becoming baffled. He is manufacturing new way of sporting—sometimes diving in the water, sometimes flying in the air. So this sporting, as soon as, according to his desire, God is supplying, "All right, you want to fly, you become a bird. You want to dive in the water, all right, you become a fish, big fish." So God is giving you and trying to see whether giving up all this nonsense plan he comes to God and surrenders unto Him: "Sir, I have, I have tried all my plan; I could not become happy. Now, my Lord, you say that 'You give up all this nonsense business, you surrender unto Me, I will make you happy.' "

Page Title:Regardless (Lectures)
Compiler:Visnu Murti
Created:11 of Mar, 2012
Totals by Section:BG=0, SB=0, CC=0, OB=0, Lec=10, Con=0, Let=0
No. of Quotes:10