Kṛṣṇa-kathā means narrations about Lord Kṛṣṇa. There are two kṛṣṇa-kathās: narrations spoken by Kṛṣṇa and narrations spoken about Kṛṣṇa. The Bhagavad-gītā is the narration or the philosophy on the science of God, spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is the narration about the activities and transcendental pastimes of Kṛṣṇa. Both are kṛṣṇa-kathā. It is the order of Lord Caitanya that kṛṣṇa-kathā should be spread all over the world, because if the conditioned souls, suffering under the pangs of material existence, take to kṛṣṇa-kathā, then their path of liberation will be open and clear. The purpose of presenting this book is primarily to induce people to understand Kṛṣṇa or kṛṣṇa-kathā, because thereby they can become freed from material bondage.
Spoken by Krsna
Bhagavad-gita As It Is
BG Chapters 1 - 6
It is necessary that everyone, for his own interest, know the science of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, when Kṛṣṇa Himself speaks about Himself, it is auspicious for all the worlds. To the demons, such explanations by Kṛṣṇa Himself may appear to be strange because the demons always study Kṛṣṇa from their own standpoint, but those who are devotees heartily welcome the statements of Kṛṣṇa when they are spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself. The devotees will always worship such authoritative statements of Kṛṣṇa because they are always eager to know more and more about Him.
Srimad-Bhagavatam
SB Canto 3
There are two important kṛṣṇa-kathās current in the world—Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Bhagavad-gītā is kṛṣṇa-kathā because it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, whereas Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is kṛṣṇa-kathā because it narrates about Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya advised all His disciples to preach kṛṣṇa-kathā all over the world without discrimination because the transcendental value of kṛṣṇa-kathā can purify one and all from material contamination.
SB Canto 4
The sum total of devotional qualities is development of unalloyed love for Kṛṣṇa. This unalloyed love for Kṛṣṇa can be achieved simply by hearing about Kṛṣṇa. Lord Caitanya accepted this principle—that if one in any position submissively hears the transcendental message spoken by Kṛṣṇa or about Kṛṣṇa, then gradually he develops the quality of unalloyed love, and by that love only he can conquer the unconquerable. The Māyāvādī philosophers aspire to become one with the Supreme Lord, but a devotee surpasses that position. Not only does a devotee become one in quality with the Supreme Lord, but he sometimes becomes the father, mother or master of the Lord. Arjuna also, by his devotional service, made Lord Kṛṣṇa his chariot driver; he ordered the Lord, "Put my chariot here," and the Lord executed his order. These are some examples of how a devotee can acquire the exalted position of conquering the unconquerable.
SB Canto 7
Our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is directly in the line of the Brahma-sampradāya. Nārada Muni received instructions from Lord Brahmā and in turn transmitted the instructions to Vyāsadeva. Vyāsadeva instructed his son Śukadeva Gosvāmī, who spoke Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. The Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is based on Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam and Bhagavad-gītā. Because Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam was spoken by Śukadeva Gosvāmī and Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, there is no difference between them. If we strictly follow the principle of disciplic succession, we are certainly on the right path of spiritual liberation, or eternal engagement in devotional service.
Another specific description here is śṛṇvan bhagavato 'bhīkṣṇam avatāra-kathāmṛtam. It is not that because one has once finished Bhagavad-gītā he should not hear it again. The word abhīkṣṇam is very important. We should hear again and again. There is no question of stopping: even if one has read these topics many times, he should go on reading again and again because bhagavat-kathā, the words spoken by Kṛṣṇa and spoken by Kṛṣṇa's devotees about Kṛṣṇa, are amṛtam, nectar. The more one drinks this amṛtam, the more he advances in his eternal life.
SB Canto 8
Even though we may not have the fortune to contact the Supreme Lord personally, the Lord's representative is as good as the Lord Himself because such a representative does not say anything unless it is spoken by the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu therefore gives a definition of guru. Yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa: (CC Madhya 7.128) the bona fide guru is he who advises his disciples exactly in accordance with the principles spoken by Kṛṣṇa. The bona fide guru is he who has accepted Kṛṣṇa as guru. This is the guru-paramparā system. The original guru is Vyāsadeva because he is the speaker of Bhagavad-gītā and Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, wherein everything spoken relates to Kṛṣṇa. Therefore guru-pūjā is known as Vyāsa-pūjā. In the final analysis, the original guru is Kṛṣṇa, His disciple is Nārada, whose disciple is Vyāsa, and in this way we gradually come in touch with the guru-paramparā. One cannot become a guru if he does not know what the Personality of Godhead Kṛṣṇa or His incarnation wants. The mission of the guru is the mission of the Supreme Personality of Godhead: to spread Kṛṣṇa consciousness all over the world.
SB Canto 9
Mahārāja Ambarīṣa always engaged his mind in meditating upon the lotus feet of Kṛṣṇa, his words in describing the glories of the Lord, his hands in cleansing the Lord's temple, and his ears in hearing the words spoken by Kṛṣṇa or about Kṛṣṇa. He engaged his eyes in seeing the Deity of Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa's temples and Kṛṣṇa's places like Mathurā and Vṛndāvana, he engaged his sense of touch in touching the bodies of the Lord's devotees, he engaged his sense of smell in smelling the fragrance of tulasī offered to the Lord, and he engaged his tongue in tasting the Lord's prasāda. He engaged his legs in walking to the holy places and temples of the Lord, his head in bowing down before the Lord, and all his desires in serving the Lord, twenty-four hours a day. Indeed, Mahārāja Ambarīṣa never desired anything for his own sense gratification. He engaged all his senses in devotional service, in various engagements related to the Lord. This is the way to increase attachment for the Lord and be completely free from all material desires.
SB Canto 10.1 to 10.13
The description of Vṛndāvana forest as given herewith was spoken by Kṛṣṇa five thousand years ago, and the same condition prevailed during the time of the Vaiṣṇava ācāryas three or four hundred years ago. Kūjat-kokila-haṁsa-sārasa-gaṇākīrṇe mayūrākule. Vṛndāvana forest is always filled with the chirping and cooing of birds like cuckoos (kokila), ducks (haṁsa) and cranes (sārasa), and it is also full of peacocks (mayūrākule). The same sounds and atmosphere still prevail in the area where our Kṛṣṇa-Balarāma temple is situated. Everyone who visits this temple is pleased to hear the chirping of the birds as described here (kūjat-kokila-haṁsa-sārasa).
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta
CC Adi-lila
Aham means "I"; therefore the speaker who is saying aham, "I," must have His own personality. The Māyāvādī philosophers interpret this word aham as referring to the impersonal Brahman. The Māyāvādīs are very proud of their grammatical knowledge, but any person who has actual knowledge of grammar can understand that aham means "I" and that "I" refers to a personality. Therefore the Personality of Godhead, speaking to Brahmā, uses aham while describing His own transcendental form. Aham has a specific meaning; it is not a vague term that can be whimsically interpreted. Aham, when spoken by Kṛṣṇa, refers to the Supreme Personality of Godhead and nothing else.
The original speaker of these scriptures is Nārāyaṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. This is especially mentioned in the Mokṣa-dharma (349.68), which is part of the Śānti-parva of the Mahābhārata. Liberated sages like Nārada and Vyāsa, who are free from the four defects of conditioned souls, are the propagators of these scriptures. Śrī Nārada Muni is the original speaker of the Pañcarātra-śāstra. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is also considered a sātvata-saṁhitā. Indeed, Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu declared, śrīmad-bhāgavataṁ purāṇam amalam: "Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is a spotless Purāṇa." Malicious editors and scholars who attempt to misrepresent the Pañcarātra-śāstras to refute their regulations are most abominable. In the modern age, such malicious scholars have even commented misleadingly upon the Bhagavad-gītā, which was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, to prove that there is no Kṛṣṇa. How the Māyāvādīs have misrepresented the pāñcarātrika-vidhi will be shown below.
CC Madhya-lila
This verse from Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam (11.20.8) was spoken by Kṛṣṇa at the time of His departure from this material world. It was spoken to Uddhava.
Other Books by Srila Prabhupada
Krsna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead
Lectures
Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures
Therefore, when Arjuna understood that simply friendly discussion could not solve the problem, he became His disciple. Kṛṣṇa... Arjuna surrendered to Kṛṣṇa, śiṣyas te 'ham śādhi māṁ prapannam: (BG 2.7) "My dear Kṛṣṇa, so long we are talking as friend. Now I become Your regular disciple. Kindly save me by instruction. What I have to do?" Therefore, when this stage was arrived, Kṛṣṇa is advising Arjuna as follows: śrī-bhagavān uvāca. Now, it is said here... Who is saying to Arjuna? The author or the recorder of Bhagavad-gītā... Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa. It was a discussion between Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna, and it was recorded by Vyāsadeva, and later on it became a book. Just like when we speak it is recorded and later on it is published as a book. Therefore in this book it is said, bhagavān uvāca. Vyāsadeva is the writer. He does not say that, "I speak." He says, bhagavān uvāca, means "The Supreme Personality of Godhead said."
Therefore, a pure devotee, who does not say anything beyond which was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, therefore his statement is also without mistake. Common man within this material world, he commits mistake: "To err is human." Even big, big personalities, they commit mistake. But nārāyaṇa paraḥ. He is transcendental. Kṛṣṇa is transcendental. There cannot be any mistake; there cannot be any illusion. Those who are in this material world, they have got four defects: they commit mistake, they are illusioned, and their senses are imperfect, bhrama, pramāda, vipralipsā, and they're cheaters. Because... Just like modern-day scientists and philosophers, they propogate so many branches of knowledge, but when, on the crucial point, they are caught, they say, "I do not know perfectly.
So here the same instruction is there in the Bhagavad-gītā, which is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So when Arjuna was perplexed whether to fight or not to fight, he was very much perplexed, and he accepted Kṛṣṇa as his spiritual master. Śiṣyas te 'haṁ śādhi māṁ prapannam: (BG 2.7) "My dear Kṛṣṇa, just now we are talking like friends, but this is a very important factor. I have to decide. Now I accept You as my spiritual master and You give me the right guidance." The whole transaction of the Bhagavad-gītā is based on the talking of Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna only. So when Arjuna decided that "I am not going to fight with my kinsmen, the other side, unless I am convinced that I have to do it."
Bhaga means opulence. So there are six kinds of opulences. One opulence is to become very rich, another opulence is to become very powerful, another opulence is to become very strong, another opulence is to become very famous, another opulence is to become very wise, and another opulence is to become very much renounced. So these six kinds of opulences, when present in the superlative degree, that is Bhagavān. This means, as it is stated in the Vedic literature, na tasya samaḥ adhikaś ca dṛśyate: "Nobody is found equal to Him or greater than Him." In this material world any person you take, next moment you'll find somebody equal to him and somebody greater than him. But the Vedic information is: God means who has no equal and who has no greater person than Him. Actually Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, and here it is said, bhagavān uvāca. So Bhagavān, the Supreme God, means Kṛṣṇa. That is the statement in all Vedic literature.
This is contradiction." But this is not contradiction. You practically make experiment. You take cow dung and apply anywhere, you'll find it is pure. Immediately purified. So this is Vedic injunction. They are perfect knowledge. We... Instead of wasting time arguing and putting forward false prestige, if you simply accept the perfect knowledge, as they are stated in the Vedic literature, then we get perfect knowledge and our life is success. Instead of making experiment on the body to find out where is the soul... The soul is there, but it is so small that it is not possible to see by your these blunt eyes. Any microscope or any machine, because it is stated it is one ten-thousandth part of the top of the tip of the hair. So there is no machine. You cannot see. But it is there. Otherwise, how we can find distinction between the dead body and the living body?
So here, the perfect knowledge is spoken by Kṛṣṇa:
- dehino 'smin yathā dehe
- kaumāraṁ yauvanaṁ jarā
- tathā dehāntara-prāptir
- dhīras tatra na muhyati
- (BG 2.13)
And for understanding Kṛṣṇa, here is the nutshell spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself about Himself. If I, what I am... You can go on thinking that Swamiji is... Like the other day Paul was speaking that somebody has informed that I have got fifteen children. Now, I do not know how one can understand that I have got fifteen children. I never told in this meeting, but he told me that somebody told him I have got fifteen children. This is misunderstanding. If I say... He asked me, "Swamiji, how many children you have got?" I told him I have got at home three boys and two girls. And he told me that "I understood that you have got fifteen children." So that means, anyway, if you want to know about me, then you must know from me. That is authentic. That is authentic. Or from a confidential person who is confidence of me. Similarly, if you want to know Kṛṣṇa, then here is Bhagavad-gītā, spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself. You just try to understand and you learn Kṛṣṇa. Or you learn confirmation. Suppose if you cannot understand Kṛṣṇa by reading Bhagavad-gītā, or by hearing Bhagavad-gītā, then you know that Bhagavad-gītā was spoken to Arjuna, and Arjuna has admitted about his understanding in the Tenth Chapter. So just try to understand Arjuna. How he understands? Either you understand Kṛṣṇa directly, or you understand through the authority who was spoken directly by the Lord.
He comes. He's so kind. He comes, He gives personally instruction, and He leaves the instruction recorded. Just like Bhagavad-gītā. This Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna, and it was recorded by Sañjaya, by the grace of Vyāsadeva. And then Vyāsadeva put the conversation in the Mahābhārata. Mahābhārata means "The History of Greater India." That is Mahābhārata. The whole planet is called Bhārata, Bhāratavarṣa. And the history of the whole planet is called Mahābhārata. In this Mahābhārata, this Bhagavad-gītā is set in for the knowledge of the all human being. It is not meant for the Hindus, for the Indians, for the brāhmaṇas, for the... No. It is meant for everyone to take perfect knowledge from Kṛṣṇa and be happy. If you want to become happy actually, then Kṛṣṇa's instruction you accept. We are already fallen. Now if we want to save ourselves from this fallen condition, take instruction from Kṛṣṇa and do not try to deviate, do not try to interpret in your own whimsical way, in a rascal way. Simply try to understand what Kṛṣṇa says. That's all. Then your life will be perfect.
Paramparā means Kṛṣṇa explained the knowledge, Vedic knowledge, to Lord Brahmā, ādi-kavaye. Janmādy asya yataḥ anvayāt itarataś ca artheṣu abhijñaḥ sva-rāṭ tene brahma hṛdā (SB 1.1.1). The spiritual knowledge, brahma, brahma-vidyā, śabda-brahma, the Vedic knowledge... Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā, the words written in this book, Bhagavad-gītā, although it appears like ordinary letters, they are not like that. It is Vedic vibration. The things which are being spoken by Kṛṣṇa, they are not ordinary language. Had it been ordinary language, how...? Because it was written five thousand years ago. How it is still going on? There are many literatures written by great, great poets within two thousand, two hundred years, three hundred years, or, say, thousands of years. But they are being forgotten. But therefore the character of the Vedic knowledge, they are not material things. They're all spiritual. Why we are giving so much importance to the words of Kṛṣṇa? Because this language is absolute. Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's words, Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's language, or Kṛṣṇa's words, they are the same. Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's forms... We are worshiping Kṛṣṇa's form. That is also Kṛṣṇa.
So the... That is ācārya. So we have to accept. At the present moment, the ācārya, Kṛṣṇa, is instructing Arjuna. So Arjuna is ācārya. One who is speaking exactly like Arjuna, he's ācārya. Not that one is speaking nonsense according to his own opinion. What is he? What is his value? We are all defective. We cannot give our opinion. That is the disagreement with our preaching and others." We are preaching that nobody can give opinion on the Bhagavad-gītā if he does not come in the disciplic succession as it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam (BG 4.2). Otherwise it is naṣṭaḥ. Sa kāleneha yogo naṣṭaḥ parantapa. It is lost. So kāma, this kāma, lusty. "I am very learned scholar. I can give my opinion on the Bhagavad-gītā. I can translate it in a different way. I can screw out some meaning by jugglery of words, grammatical jugglery.
So suppose you do not believe, that "Oh, they have been written, so many things for Kṛṣṇa, just to make Him very great." You may not believe that. But at least you have got in your presence one thing—this Bhagavad-gītā. This is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. And you'll find here entire knowledge. Entire knowledge. Any knowledge of the world, and knowledge—even material, spiritual, social, political, scientific, philosophical—any knowledge you'll find entirely in this Bhagavad-gītā. So at least this is the proof that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead because there is no other parallel book like this Bhagavad-gītā. Therefore the Bhagavad-gītā is accepted and adored by all classes of men and all over the world.
We are after some fame. I want to be famous, you want to be famous, but we are famous in a circle, in a circle, in a country, in a society. But nobody is famous like Kṛṣṇa. You see? Nobody is famous like Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa approached, advented Himself on this earth five thousand years before, but just see how much famous He is still. Can you give any example in the history? So many Hitlers, so many Mussolinis, so many Gandhis born and went away. They were famous for several years only. That's all. Nobody can be famous like Kṛṣṇa. All over the world He is famous, and what to speak of India? Complete fame. Similarly, complete strength, complete riches, complete beauty, complete knowledge... Just see, Bhagavad-gītā. It was spoken by Kṛṣṇa. There is no parallel, and there is no competition of Bhagavad-gītā. It is such a knowledge. You see? Complete knowledge.
Take for the present Lord Caitanya. Lord Caitanya is a great authority, a recognized, great authority. Oh, He is mad after Kṛṣṇa. He is mad after Kṛṣṇa. Then after Him, His six disciples, Gosvāmīs, the Rūpa Gosvāmī, Sanātana Gosvāmī, they have written immense literature, valuable literatures—especially Jīva Gosvāmī—volumes of literature on Kṛṣṇa. So... Then, under disciplic succession also, we have come to this point, and if you take past history, bygone, long, long ago, Vyāsadeva, who is known as Vedavyāsa, he has written book, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, on Kṛṣṇa. Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is nothing but description of Kṛṣṇa. Vyāsadeva is also writer of Bhagavad-gītā. The Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa and noted down by Vyāsadeva. And he has put this Bhagavad-gītā in the Mahābhārata. So Vyāsadeva accepts Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality. He has, in the Bhāgavatam, he has specifically mentioned, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam. He has given description of different other incarnations of God. There are about twenty-five incarnations. In the conclusion he said that ete cāṁśa-kalāḥ puṁsaḥ kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28), that "All the descriptions that are given of different incarnations, they are partially or part of the partial representation of God, but this Kṛṣṇa whom I have mentioned, He is the Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself." He is not part. Cent percent. Cent percent God.
So the same Personality of Godhead, He is speaking to Arjuna personally about Himself. Then how you can say that somebody, simply by speculation, speaks something about God which is more important than what is being spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself? It is not possible. Nobody can speak better than Kṛṣṇa about God, because God Himself is speaking about Himself. If you speak about yourself personally, who can speak more than you? So if we have faith, if we believe theoretically and practically Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead, then by the speeches which is being delivered by Kṛṣṇa in this chapter, you can understand God. There is no difficulty.
Ladies and gentlemen, I beg to thank you for giving us the opportunity to preach Kṛṣṇa consciousness in this meeting. So this is the essence of Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, this verse spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself. Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself, and we are preaching kṛṣṇa-kathā, the words, the message of Kṛṣṇa, as it is, without any wrong interpretation.
This is, this age is Vaivasvata Manu age. There are so many things we have to learn, but we are neglecting. In one day of Brahmā, there are fourteen Manus, and each Manu's age is forty-three lakhs of years multiplied by seventy-two. So now it is the age of Vaivasvata Manu. This is the, out of the fourteenth Manu, this is the seventh Manu. It is going on. So this age is called Manu. Manu, the father of the humankind. Manuṣya. There is Manu-saṁhitā, to give direction to the people, how to act, how to live. That is Manu-saṁhitā. So in this way, we have to learn the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa which is directly spoken by Kṛṣṇa, not interpreted by anyone. That is Kṛṣṇa philosophy. If it is interpreted, or misinterpreted by some so-called scholar... We cannot accept them scholar who misdirect people by misinterpretation of Bhagavad-gītā. That is not very good. Otherwise why people are so much misdirected? Because the so-called scholars and philosophers, they have misdirected. They have tried to kill Kṛṣṇa from Bhagavad-gītā and pusḥ forward their own rascal philosophy. So that is not good. We have to learn Bhagavad-gītā directly from Kṛṣṇa. That is mayy āsakta. That is real Bhagavad... Because Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa says evaṁ paramparā prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). By the paramparā system, all the great kings, rājarṣayaḥ, they understood Bhagavad-gītā. So we have to accept the Bhagavad-gītā by the paramparā system. Not we manufacture our own interpretation. That is not Bhagavad-gītā. That is misusing the Bhagavad-gītā.
If God has no head, no leg, no body, no mouth, then what is that God? That is also another way of explaining God as zero. The voidists, they directly say, "There is no God. We don't believe in God." That is understandable. But this impersonal explanation of God, that is not understandable. What is this? "God has no leg, neither God has no head, God has no hand, God has no mouth." Then what is that God? They cannot say.
So this impersonalists and the voidists, they are of the same group, denying the existence of God. But that is not the fact. There is God. The devotees know there is God, and He is Bhagavān. God is called Bhagavān Therefore although it is said here... Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, everyone knows. But in some places in the Bhagavad-gītā it is described as bhagavān uvāca. Bhagavān and Kṛṣṇa—the same person. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). Bhagavān, there is a definition of the word bhagavān.
So, mayy āsakta, mad, mad-āśrayaḥ. Mad-āśrayaḥ means, mat-āśrayaḥ, one...., guru means...., who has taken full shelter of Kṛṣṇa, he is guru. A, a guru does not mean that he has taken shelter of somebody else and he has become guru. That is not. Guru means one who has taken full shelter, complete surrender to Kṛṣṇa, he is guru. Or he speaks only what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Just like we have, speaking in this Bhagavad-gītā, as it is. There is no malinterpretation. Kṛṣṇa says sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja. The guru will teach his disciple that "You surrender to Kṛṣṇa." Kṛṣṇa is God, He is saying "Surrender to Me," and guru is saying "You surrender to Kṛṣṇa." Therefore the statement is the same. Kṛṣṇa says, man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru, so guru will say the same thing, that "You always think of Kṛṣṇa, you become a devotee of Kṛṣṇa, you offer worship to Kṛṣṇa, you offer your obeisances." This is guru's business. Not that because in the śāstra it is said that guru should be honored as Kṛṣṇa, as bhagavān, therefore guru will think, "I have become bhagavān." No. That is māyāvāda. The disciple will offer as respect, as much respect he offers to Kṛṣṇa, to guru. That is the śāstric injunction. For that reason the real guru will not think that "I have become Kṛṣṇa." Kintu prabhor yaḥ priya eva tasya. Yasya prasādād bhagavat-prasādo. By the mercy of guru, you get the mercy of Kṛṣṇa. If, if guru approves, that "Here is a nice devotee," then Kṛṣṇa accepts, "Yes, here is a nice devotee."
Kṛṣṇa consciousness is always there. You are calculating with reference to your age, but Kṛṣṇa consciousness is there. In the Fourth Chapter, you read, imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ proktavān aham avyayam: (BG 4.1) "I spoke this Kṛṣṇa consciousness science first of all to the sun-god." Then how do you say five thousand years? There is reference to the Manu. And if we take the, all these advanced calculation, then it becomes that forty millions of years ago Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa to the sun-god. Have you got forty millions' history? (laughter) You haven't got even five thousand years' even history. Your history is so imperfect. So don't bring it into historical reference. It is eternal.
So the Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa personally when He was present for the benefit of the human society, for all nations. It is not for the Hindus or the Indians, it is for everyone. God is for everyone. Kṛṣṇa also says, sarva-yoniṣu kaunteya sambhavanti mūrtayaḥ, ahaṁ bīja-pradaḥ pitā (BG 14.4). Mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ (BG 15.7), every living entity is part and parcel and He is the supreme father of everyone. So our Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is trying to re-establish the real dharma, not fictitious dharma. That is bhāgavata-dharma. In the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam also the same thing is spoken where Kṛṣṇa ends Bhagavad-gītā: sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). From the same point Vyāsadeva begins Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, janmādy asya yato 'nvayād itarataś cārtheṣv abhijñaḥ svarāṭ (SB 1.1.1), and he describes about dharma: dharmaḥ projjhita-kaitavo 'tra (SB 1.1.2). All cheating type of religious system are projjhita. Projjhita means to throw away, kick out.
So Bhārata-varṣa means not only India, but the whole planet. At least five thousand years ago it was known as Bhārata-varṣa. Bhārata-varṣa name is there, but it indicates only India. So this Bhagavad-gītā is a chapter of Mahābhārata. Perhaps you know the book Mahābhārata, "Greater Bhārata-varṣa," "The History of the Greater Bhārata-varṣa." That is Mahābhārata. So the background of this Bhagavad-gītā is that there was worldwide fight, battle, called the Battle of Kurukṣetra. Kurukṣetra, the place is still there. If some of you went to India, (you) might have seen it is near Delhi, New Delhi. The railway station is called also Kurukṣetra. So there was a battle five thousand years ago. The parties were two cousin-brothers, and this Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, Bhagavān. Therefore it is called bhagavān uvāca.
Therefore Kṛṣṇa says that out of many, many thousands of people, somebody is interested for making perfection of his life. And out of many, many thousands of men who are actually trying to make perfection of their life, you'll find somebody—or you may not find out—who knows God or Kṛṣṇa. But Kṛṣṇa is so kind that He comes Himself to be known by everyone. And He's so kind also that before His departure from this material world, He leaves behind Him this Bhagavad-gītā so that you can know from His personal talks what is God. So if you read Bhagavad-gītā rightly, as it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, not foolishly interpreting nonsensically, but as it is, as it is... Call the spade a spade. Kṛṣṇa says that "I am the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Don't interpret this version with your foolish interpretation, but accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead. And by His acts, by His sastric knowledge, wisdom... Everyone accepted previously, all the ācāryas.
Just (take) Lord Buddha. He is śaktyāveśa-avatāra. Many śaktyāveśa-avatāra. So in this way Kṛṣṇa is always existing along with His expansion and incarnation. But the real original Personality of Godhead is Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). Therefore Bhagavad-gītā is being spoken by Kṛṣṇa. But in order to distinguish Him, Vyāsadeva is writing śrī bhagavān uvāca. He does not say, śrī kṛṣṇa uvāca just to make it distinguished that kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān. So we are pledged to receive knowledge from the Supreme Personality of Godhead. That is our mission, Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Here is knowledge given by Kṛṣṇa. Idaṁ tu te guhyatamaṁ pravakṣyāmy anasūyave. "Now I am giving you this knowledge, very confidential knowledge." Guhyatamam. Guhya means confidential and guhyatama, more confidential. Comparative, superlative. Positive, comparative and superlative. Guhya is positive. Guhyatara is comparative. And guhyatamam. So this brahma-jñāna, Brahman, is guhya, is very confidential because if you achieve brahma-jñāna, immediately you become the most important person within this material world. Brahma-bhūtaḥ. Brāhmaṇa. And brahma-bhūtaḥ means above brāhmaṇa or brāhmaṇa. So that is guhya. Guhya means confidential. To become brahma-bhūtaḥ, brahma-jñānī, that is guhya.
Very important chapter, the most confidential knowledge, guhyatamam. And it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Even those who are liberated from this material contamination, they are called mukta-jīva, liberated soul. And there are nitya-mukta. Nitya-mukta and nitya-baddha. Nitya means eternally, and mukta means liberated. And again, nitya, eternally, baddha, conditioned. So just like there are many persons in the state who have never seen what is the prison life, and there are many persons in the state, the majority of one's life is passed in the prison. Similarly, there are two nature, material nature and the spiritual nature. What we are seeing, this nature, this universe, within the material nature... Similarly, there is another spiritual nature. That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, paras tasmāt tu bhāvo 'nyo 'vyakto 'vyaktāt sanātanaḥ (BG 8.20).
So mat-sthāni sarva-bhūtāni: "Everything is resting on Me, but don't think that I am finished because you cannot see there. I am here." Na cāhaṁ teṣu avasthitaḥ. It is not necessarily that we have to see everywhere. Ataḥ sa bhakti udi, uditam adbhūtam aiśvaryam ahaḥ.(?) Now, this transcendental nature of God, all-potential nature of God, to a devotee it will give pleasure, and to a nondevotee it will be seeming like, oh, so many bluff is being spoken by Kṛṣṇa. As soon as I become a nondevotee, I'll think all these statement as bluff given by Kṛṣṇa. And as soon as I am a devotee, oh, I'll think, "Oh, my Lord is so powerful." He becomes full with love and adoration. That is the difference. One who believes, he becomes, oh, puffed-up with pleasure, "Oh, my Lord is so powerful."
This is called varṇāśrama-dharma, not to become... It is said in a Bengali poem, janame janame sabe pitā-mātā pāya: "In every life everyone gets a father and mother." Because without father and mother there is no question of birth. Janame janame sabe pitā-mātā pāya, kṛṣṇa guru nāhi mile bhaja hu diya (?): "But you cannot get the proper guidance, guru and Kṛṣṇa, in every life. You can get father-mother in every life, but you cannot get Kṛṣṇa and guru in every life." So we have got this chance this life, how to get Kṛṣṇa, how to get guru. We have got intelligence. We should not miss this point. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Take advantage of this movement. This is not a manufactured thing. It is authorized, spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, and accepted by big, big ācāryas from very old time, Nāradadeva, Vyāsadeva, Asita. Then, in the recent years, Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Nimbārka, and then Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Everyone has accepted this Vedic literature, and they have preached. Formerly they were preaching within India. Now, by Kṛṣṇa's grace, the preaching is going on all over the world. Take advantage of it. Make your life perfect. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.
So those who are Kṛṣṇa conscious, about them the Lord is saying, ananyāś cintayanto mām. Ananyāś cintayantaḥ means always, twenty-four hours, without any deviation, always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. Naturally, if you are engaged in the business of Kṛṣṇa, then you will always think of Kṛṣṇa. Anyone who is absorbed in certain particular business, he's always thinking of that thing. So anyone who is engaged in Kṛṣṇa consciousness, his business is to think of Kṛṣṇa always. Just like you are reading, hearing on this Bhagavad-gītā. It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. And if you think at home that "This sort of speeches was given by Lord Kṛṣṇa. This is the essence," so that is Kṛṣṇa cintayantaḥ. To think of Bhagavad-gītā is also Kṛṣṇa thinking because Bhagavad-gītā is not different from Kṛṣṇa, absolute. It is from the absolute one. There is no duality.
Therefore Arjuna is asking not to a third-class so-called philosopher and chemist and economist, but to Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa. Because whatever answer Kṛṣṇa will give, that is fact. And śāstra means the things which have been spoken by Kṛṣṇa. That is śāstra. And guru means who speaks... Guru means who speaks on behalf of Kṛṣṇa. Sādhu-śāstra-guru. This is called. So Kṛṣṇa is asked. And the answer for Kṛṣṇa, which He gives, that is final. No experiment. No "future." Whatever answer He gives, that is final. Otherwise, why people read Bhagavad-gītā so carefully? Not now. Thousands of years. Thousands of years. Not only in India, in other countries also. So answers, real answers are there.
So this chapter, thirteenth chapter, is very important chapter. So many rascals are there. They're talking so many things. But if you want real answer, that is described by Kṛṣṇa to the six questions, Kṛṣṇa immediately answers in nutshell.
"This confidential knowledge may not be explained to those who are not austere or devoted or engaged in devotional service, nor to one who is envious of Me." So Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, He knows very well that there will be so many rascals who are envious of Him. Actually, everyone is trying... Because Bhagavad-gītā is very popular book of profound knowledge, everyone is trying to prove his own theory through the medium of Bhagavad-gītā, excluding Kṛṣṇa. This is going on. They want to kill Kṛṣṇa, demonic. Anyone who is trying to kill Kṛṣṇa, he's a demon. So to warn the devotees from these demons, this śloka was spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself.
If we want to understand the real fact, then we must receive from the paramparā system. Just like we have got our genealogical table. I understand my great-great-grandfather by the paramparā system. Not that I manufacture some name. No. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says that imam, evaṁ paramparā-prāptam (BG 4.2). The Bhagavad-gītā, knowledge must be received by the paramparā system, as it was spoken by Kṛṣṇa and as it has been received by the later ācāryas. Although there are different parties... Just like the Śrī-sampradāya, Brahma-sampradāya, Rudra-sampradāya. They are all in agreement that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. All these ācāryas. They'll not say anything that "Because I belong to Brahma-sampradāya, I speak something else." No. We are all in agreement that kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). That is accepted.
So Kṛṣṇa said that "I shall speak to you this same old philosophy of Bhagavad-gītā again." "Why unto me?" Why Kṛṣṇa selected Arjuna? There are many others, learned scholars. Now, Kṛṣṇa says, bhakto 'si priyo 'si. Kṛṣṇa was a military man, er, Arjuna was a military man. He was not a Vedantist. He was a gṛhastha, not even a sannyāsī. Why Kṛṣṇa selected to instruct Arjuna as the disciple of the renovated paramparā system? That is also spoken by Kṛṣṇa: bhakto 'si priyo 'si me (BG 4.3), rahasyam etad uttamam: "Because you are My dear friend, because you are My devotee, you can understand the mysteries of Bhagavad-gītā." Kṛṣṇa did not select a so-called Vedantist to understand Bhagavad-gītā. Because Arjuna was not a Vedantist.
Srimad-Bhagavatam Lectures
So here also, what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa in Bhagavad-gītā, that is confirmed in the Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Here it is said, sa vai puṁsāṁ paro dharmaḥ. Para and apara. Para means superior or transcendental. There are two kinds of prakṛtis: parā-prakṛti, aparā-prakṛti. That is also described in the Bhagavad-gītā. Material, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ khaṁ mano buddhir eva ca (BG 7.4). Material things, earth, water, fire, air, sky, mind, intelligence, ego. Prakṛtir me aṣṭadhā, bhinnā prakṛtir me aṣṭadhā. Kṛṣṇa says, "They are My prakṛti. My nature, My energy." Similarly, Kṛṣṇa says, next verse, apareyam: "This material prakṛti is inferior. But beyond this material prakṛti, there is a superior prakṛti." What is that? Jīva-bhūtāṁ mahā-bāho yayedaṁ dhāryate jagat: (BG 7.5) "That is living entity."
Of course, sad-dharma-pṛcchat, there must be, but whatever the spiritual master said, he accepted in toto. Sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye yad vadasi me keśava (BG 10.14). This is the principle. That is called āstikyam, theism. First of all, before accepting the spiritual master, you must find out whether Kṛṣṇa or Kṛṣṇa's representative is there. Arjuna surrendered to Kṛṣṇa. Śiṣyas te 'ham: "I am Your disciple." Similarly, everyone should surrender to Kṛṣṇa or Kṛṣṇa's representative. That is spiritual master. If one does not know what is Kṛṣṇa, neither he speaks, just vibrate the Kṛṣṇa's word, he is not spiritual master. He cannot be spiritual master. Spiritual master does not manufacture his own ideas. That is not spiritual master. Spiritual master is he who speaks exactly the words which is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. That is the secret. You cannot change.
So na te viduḥ svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum (SB 7.5.31). People do not know. (break)... svārtha-gatiṁ hi viṣṇum. Real self-interest is to become Vaiṣṇava, servitor of Viṣṇu. Viṣṇur asya devatā iti vaiṣṇava. That is real self-interest. Why people do not become Vaiṣṇava? Generally they worship various demigods-devotee of Lord Śiva, devotee of Goddess Kali, Durgā, so many. But they have been condemned by Bhagavad-gītā, spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself: kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānā yajante anya-devatāḥ. Hṛta-jñānāḥ. Śrīla Viśvanātha Cakravartī Ṭhākura gives his comment: hṛta-jñānāḥ naṣṭa-buddhayaḥ, "One who has lost his intelligence, they are inclined to worship other demigods." Kāmais tais tair hṛta-jñānāḥ (BG 7.20). Because they do not know what is his self-interest. He thinks that his self-interest is to give comfort to this body, the senses, sense-gratification. That is his misguided self-interest.
So one has to know Kṛṣṇa in tattvataḥ, as He is. So this tattvataḥ means accept the process of devotional service. Tattvataḥ, Kṛṣṇa as He is, cannot be understood by the other methods, namely by mental speculation or mystic yogic exercises. Kṛṣṇa cannot be understood in that way. If we want to understand Kṛṣṇa, then we have to accept the Kṛṣṇa method, bhakti method. That is plainly spoken by Kṛṣṇa: bhaktyā mām abhijānāti (BG 18.55). Kṛṣṇa does not say that you can know Him by mental exercises or yogic practices. No. Yogi can know... Tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ (SB 12.13.1). Dhyānāvasthita-tad-gatena manasā paśyanti yaṁ yoginaḥ. Yogi also, by meditation, they see Kṛṣṇa. That is real yoga. As it is explained in the Bhagavad-gītā, the first-class yogi is he who always thinks of Kṛṣṇa within himself.
So we should not miss this. And the whole thing begins just what we have begun now, now, this chanting and hearing. I wanted to point out that this chanting and hearing is as good as actual association of Kṛṣṇa. That is stated in the Bhāgavata, that śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ puṇya-śravaṇa-kīrtanaḥ (SB 1.2.17). This, this process is called kīrtana. Even one does not understand the language, still, by hearing only, he acquires some piety. His, his assets become pious life, even he does not understand. It is such powerful. Śṛṇvatāṁ sva-kathāḥ kṛṣṇaḥ... kṛṣṇa-kathā means topics in, in the matter of Kṛṣṇa. The topics in the matter of Kṛṣṇa, there are two, two kinds of topics. One topic is this, Bhagavad-gītā. It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. And another kṛṣṇa-kathā, I mean to..., topics about Kṛṣṇa, is this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. That is spoken about Kṛṣṇa. So there are two types of kṛṣṇa-kathā, and both of them are equally potent because it is connected with Kṛṣṇa.
So this opportunity is there. Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, etādṛśī tava kṛpā: "My Lord, You have..., You are so kind, You have given us this chance." Durdaivam īdṛśam ihājani nānurāgaḥ. "But I am so unfortunate, I have no attraction for this chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa." This is our position. So if you are serious about peace of mind, if you are serious about advancing in spiritual culture, spiritual life, then you must follow what is there in the śāstra and spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself, spoken by Lord Caitanya Himself. Then life is successful.
Thank you very much.
He may be child. But because he has accepted the words of his father, the statement is correct. So our process is that. Take the version of the authority, Kṛṣṇa, and you repeat it. Your version is perfect. This is our policy. Therefore Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, "You rascal scholar, philosopher, scientist, don't manufacture anything. Yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa-upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). That's all. You become master." Yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa-upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). You become master. You can teach others. A spiritual master. That's all. And if, whatever little success I have got—only for this reason. I have never said anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa. I never said, "In my opinion." I never said. You are so many students. I never said that to you. What is my opinion? One should know, "What is the value of my opinion? I am imperfect being." This is called tṛṇād api sunīcena taror api sahiṣṇunā. If one thinks, "Oh, I am big scholar. I am this. I am that," you are rascal. You have to simply carry the message of Kṛṣṇa. But for your understanding you can make research work.
So Kṛṣṇa personally giving the most confidential knowledge. And here it is also mentioned that the saintly persons, the mahātmās, they simply spoke what was spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself directly. That's all. Here it is stated, anvavocan gamiṣyantaḥ, guhyatamam yat tat sākṣād bhagavato... This is very important statement. Jñānaṁ guhyatamam, the most confidential part of knowledge is that which is given by the Supreme Personality of Godhead directly. Anyone who is interested in spiritual knowledge, they will benefit simply by accepting what Kṛṣṇa says in the Bhagavad-gītā. This is jñānam. That is also stated by Kṛṣṇa. Etaj jñānam. Etad anyathā yad ajñānam. Anything beyond this knowledge, what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, that is ajñāna, ignorance. That is not jñāna.
Here the, I mean to..., saintly persons, the mahātmās, gamiṣyantaḥ, when they were going, they confidentially said what was spoken by Kṛṣṇa directly. This is the secret of success. Try to understand. Anvavocan gamiṣyantaḥ kṛpayā dīna-vatsalāḥ. Guru, or mahātmā, they are very merciful, merciful in this way that they know how a person can be elevated to the topmost platform of knowledge, and they can give him. And this is not very difficult. It is said here that yat tat sākṣād bhagavatoditam. This is mercifulness. A guru's business is to deliver the same message as Kṛṣṇa said. Then he's dīna-vatsala. Otherwise, if he says something else, he's a cheater. He's not guru. He must be, to the suffering humanity, being kind upon them. Dīna-vatsala. Dīna means very poor, poor in knowledge. At the present moment, the... Not only at the present moment, always. Those who are in the material world, they are very, very poor. Very, very poor. Gṛhiṇāṁ dīna-cetasām. Because their mind is very crippled.
If the guru is not in his proper way according to śāstra... Guru means he must be abiding by the rules and regulation of the śāstra. Sādhu-guru-śāstra. Sādhu means one who is obeying the rules and regulation of śāstra. Śāstra must be the medium. Without śāstra nothing is acceptable. That is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Tasmād śāstra-vidhānoktaḥ. Yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma-kārataḥ (BG 16.23). So nobody can transgress the rules and regulation of śāstra, and what to speak of a guru. Guru is ācārya. Acinoti yaḥ śāstrāṇi. One who knows the rules and regulation of the śāstra and he teaches his disciple according to the śāstra, he is called ācārya. So ācāryaṁ māṁ vijānīyān nāvamanyeta karhicit (SB 11.17.27). Ācārya should be respected, as Kṛṣṇa says, as good as Kṛṣṇa.
So the beginning is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam means Kṛṣṇa. It cannot be otherwise. This is kṛṣṇa-kathā. The Bhagavad-gītā is also kṛṣṇa-kathā. Kathā means words. So Kṛṣṇa words spoken by Kṛṣṇa, that is Bhagavad-gītā. And words spoken about Kṛṣṇa, that is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam. Or about Kṛṣṇa's devotees, that is bhāgavata. So bhāgavata, there are two kinds of bhāgavata. One, this book Bhāgavata and another, the person bhāgavata, the devotee. He is also bhāgavata. Caitanya Mahāprabhu recommends that bhāgavata para giya bhāgavata sthāne(?): "You should go and read Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam from the bhāgavata, person bhāgavata." Otherwise you will misunderstand.
So this Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is a question and answer. The beginning, the... This Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, first of all it was narrated by Vyāsadeva, and it was heard by his son, Śukadeva Gosvāmī. Then Śukadeva Gosvāmī narrated this Bhāgavatam to Parīkṣit Mahārāja at the time of his death. And from Śukadeva Gosvāmī, the Sūta Gosvāmī heard. This is the paramparā. (aside:) Not yet. This is the paramparā. Kṛṣṇa says in the Fourth Chapter of Bhagavad-gītā, evaṁ paramparā-prāptam imaṁ rājarṣayo viduḥ (BG 4.2). Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa millions of years ago to the sun-god. Imaṁ vivasvate, proktavān avyayam. Imaṁ vivasvate proktam, vivasvān manave prāha manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt. This is the paramparā system.
So we should try to learn, get it by heart, at least one śloka, two ślokas in a week. And if we chant that... Just like you are chanting so many songs, similarly, if we chant one or two verses of Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, that will make you very quickly advanced for spiritual realization. We are therefore taking so much trouble to get this transliteration, the meaning, so that the reader may take advanced step, full advantage of the mantra. It is not that to show some scholarship, that "I know so much Sanskrit." No. It is just offered with humility to learn the mantra because one who will chant the mantra... They are all transcendental vibration. Just Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra... This is mahā-mantra, but they are also mantras, all the verses from Bhagavad-gītā, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, spoken by Kṛṣṇa, spoken by... Bhāgavata also, spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Vyāsadeva is incarnation of Kṛṣṇa. They're also mantras, infallible instructions. So try to get it by heart, chanting. Either you chant by seeing the book or get it by heart, it is all the same. But try to chant one, two ślokas daily. Chant.
Sarva deśa, or ei deśa, wherever you are living, it doesn't matter. Just like our Atreya Ṛṣi, he's gṛhastha, he's living in Iran, Tehran, but it doesn't matter. If he speaks kṛṣṇa-kathā, then he's guru. It is very simple thing. We should not speak beyond what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Take Bhagavad-gītā and try to preach the principles, speak whatever is spoken in the Bhagavad-gītā. Then it doesn't matter whether you are a gṛhastha or a sannyāsī or brahmacārī. You become guru.
So we are all Brahman; simply we have to understand it. It is not that we are abrahman; by some practice we become Brahman, no. Just like gold is gold, but if it is covered with some dirt, the dirt can be removed, and the gold is gold; similarly, we are Brahman, spirit soul. Somehow or other we have come in contact with these material elements, bhūmir āpo 'nalo vāyuḥ (BG 7.4), and we have got this body, covered, and I am thinking, "I am this body." This is ignorance. This is ignorance. So unless one is enlightened by the spiritual knowledge, he remains only just like cats and dogs. And to understand spiritual identification, that is called dharma. Dharma means that. And the ultimate goal of dharma is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇaṁ vraja (BG 18.66). We have created so many dharmas: Hindu dharma, Mussulman dharma, Christian dharma. These are manufactured. Of course, there is indication how to execute dharma, but real dharma—when you come to the conclusion, vāsudevaḥ sarvam iti sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ (BG 7.19).
So if we simply take the words of Bhagavān and preach, then it is very easy for us to become, each and every one, to become guru. Not to exploit. No. But to give knowledge. And what is that knowledge? What Kṛṣṇa has spoken. That's all. So even one is not very learned scholar, Sanskrit scholar, everyone has got this ear. He can hear from Kṛṣṇa and Kṛṣṇa's representative and assimilate what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, and he can repeat the same. Then he becomes guru. That is the mission of Caitanya Mahāprabhu. He said,
- bhārata-bhūmite haila manuṣya-janma yāra
- janma sārthaka kari' kara para-upakāra
- (CC Adi 9.41)
So in the Kali-yuga we do not expect everyone to be very great scholar. That is not possible. But if he knows what is the aim of education, what is the objective of education, then he is also scholar. Just like our Gaura-Kiśora dāsa Bābājī Mahārāja. He was illiterate. He could not sign his name even. But he became the spiritual master of the best scholar of his time, Bhaktisiddhānta Sarasvatī. So it is not the education, ABCD. In Bengal we say anguam(?). No. What is the purport of education? The purport of education is spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself: vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyam (BG 15.15). If one understands Kṛṣṇa and takes to the shelter of His lotus feet, he is also the biggest scholar.
So I was person before the beginning of my this body, and after my death, I shall remain a person, and I shall accept another body. Dhīras tatra na muhyati (BG 2.13). Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ. So when I become imperson? Past, present, future, there are three different phases of time. So in the past I was a person, at present I am a person, and in future I shall remain a person. So where is the question of imperson?
This is spoken by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā in the Second Chapter, that "My dear Arjuna, it is not that we did not exist in the past. We existed in this way, and we are existing now in the same way, and we shall exist." That means our personality is never lost. And therefore we see so many varieties of men. Each one is a person. You cannot find anyone exactly similar to the other, because everyone has got his personal propensities. And according to the personal propensities and desires, Kṛṣṇa is giving us different opportunities, and that is different body. Karmaṇā daiva-netreṇa (SB 3.31.1). Just like in the court, the..., everyone is judged as person, not wholesale.
This is definition. What is that? Aiśvarya means wealth, riches. Everyone has got riches, some money, either at home or in the bank. So you may have two millions dollars; I may have ten dollars; you may have hundred dollars. Everyone has got some riches. That is admitted. But nobody can say that "I have got all the riches." That is not possible. If somebody can say that "I have got all the riches," he is God. That is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Nobody has said in the history of the world. Kṛṣṇa said, bhoktāraṁ yajña-tapasāṁ sarva-loka-maheśvaram: (BG 5.29) "I am the enjoyer of everything, and I am the proprietor of all the universe." Who can say that? That is God. Aiśvaryasya samāgrasya. Samāgra means total, not that partial, that "I have got so much. Now I have distributed." I do not wish to mention by name—one artificial God, he was teaching his disciple, and the disciple was feeling electrical shocks.
So in the Kali-yuga, this age, there is no such king. There is no such government. Therefore people are becoming polluted. It is the duty of the guru, the duty of the parents, duty of the government to train people in such a way that they may become pious, sinless. But they do not believe, even in the next life, that "If we act impiously, then we have to suffer next life." They avoid to believe that there is next life. But there is next life. In the morning we were talking about this. How you can say there is no next life? The child has got next life: a boy. The boy has got next life: a young man. And the young man has next life, to become old man. Similarly, the old man has got next life. It is very common logic. And it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the supreme authority. Even if you do not understand, your dull brain, but we have to accept the words of Kṛṣṇa. That is the critical point. If we take Kṛṣṇa's instruction, everything will be solved. There will be no problem.
There is no other creature. How he understood Vedas? Now, that teacher was Kṛṣṇa, and He is situated in everyone's heart. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). So He is teaching from the heart. So Kṛṣṇa teaches—He is so kind—as caitya-guru, from the heart, and He sends His representative from outside. Caitya-guru and guru, both ways, Kṛṣṇa is trying. Kṛṣṇa is so kind. So therefore Vedas, they are not man-made books. Veda, apauruṣeya. Apauruṣeya means not made by... We should not take Vedas as ordinary mental speculation book. No. It is perfect knowledge. It is perfect knowledge. And one has to take as it is, without any adulteration, interpretation. So it is spoken by God. Therefore Bhagavad-gītā is also Veda. It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. So you cannot make any addition, alteration. You must take it as it is. Then you get the right knowledge. Vedas, how... The example is given. Perhaps you know several times that the Vedas, how it should be accepted as it is without interpretation. Just like Vedas says that if you touch stool, immediately you have to take your bath.
So here it is said that it is anumīyate. As here we find varieties, similarly, in other planet or in next life there are varieties. This is intelligence, human intelligence. Why you should say there is no next life or there is no life in other planet? Therefore we have to refer to the śāstras, śāstra-vidhi. Yaḥ śāstra-vidhim utsṛjya vartate kāma... (BG 16.23). If you unnecessarily becomes too much intelligent and theorize, then he is never successful, he is never sukhi. Na sukhaṁ na... Na siddhiṁ sa avāpnoti na sukhaṁ na parāṁ gatim. Such a rascal, who does not consult the śāstras and thinks whimsically according to his mad conception, such person, na siddhim avāpnoti. That is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. He will never get success. He will simply speculate. There is no, definite knowledge. Na sukham, and he is not happy. And what to speak of going back to home, back to Godhead. He is a rascal. There is no hope. So do not conclude in your foolish way anything. Just refer to the śāstra, authority, śruti. Therefore it is called śruti. We cannot imagine that there is possibility of living entity in the sun planet or moon planet, but śruti... Just like Kṛṣṇa says that "I spoke to sun-god." So by hearing this śruti, we understand that there is also life and there is also system, the government, the chief executive. Everything is there. And that is by śruti anumīyate. Anumīyate means you can imagine it is a fact.
So the contradiction was answered by Śukadeva Gosvāmī, not personally. He took authority. What is that authority? He said immediately, "My dear king, this answer I shall not give you, but a similar answer was put forward by your grandfather, Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira, to your other grandfather, Kṛṣṇa." Kṛṣṇa also happened to be grandfather of Mahārāja Parīkṣit. Because Kṛṣṇa's sister was married to Arjuna and Mahārāja Parīkṣit is the grandson of Subhadrā, Arjuna's wife. Therefore Kṛṣṇa also happens to be grandfather of Mahārāja Parīkṣit, and Mahārāja Yudhiṣṭhira also happens to be grandfather, being the eldest brother of his grandfather. So Kṛṣṇa is the authority. Therefore Śukadeva Gosvāmī is giving authoritative answer as it was spoken by Kṛṣṇa. This is the way of speaking. One should cite authority. Śukadeva Gosvāmī was not less authority. As I described the other day that there are twelve authorities. Out of them, Śukadeva Gosvāmī himself is one of the authorities.
I am speaking from the human point of view. But that consciousness is, I mean to say, subdued for a few days, a few months, then you get another body. Again consciousness is there, and you begin your work. Even you get human form of life, but if you do not utilize it properly, then what is the use of getting human form of life? That is the defect, but there is no training. There are so many university departments, but there is no department for understanding what is the soul or what is God. No department. This Bhagavad-gītā teaches this department of knowledge. Beginning. From the very beginning. The Bhagavad-gītā is begun from the understanding that Arjuna was spoken by Kṛṣṇa, aśocyān anvaśocas tvaṁ prajñā-vādāmś ca bhāṣase (BG 2.11). "My dear Arjuna, you are talking like a very learned man but," gatāsūn agatāsūṁś ca nānuśocanti paṇḍitāḥ, "but actually one who is learned man, he does not bother about this body either dead or alive." This is not the subject matter, to supply the necessities of body. This is not the subject matter of study for a learned man. In other words, the whole world is absorbed in the study of this body only.
So our line is like that, even God Himself, He can say something new? No. He said to Arjuna, purātanam yogaṁ proktavān, that "I am speaking to you same old philosophy, purātanam yogam, which I spoke to the sun-god." We must stick to this, that a spiritual understanding is never changed. Now the modern days, we have to adjust things. No. That is not spiritual. There is no question of modern and old. Nitya, that is nitya, eternal. We should always remember that. The... Millions and millions of years ago, what was spoken by Kṛṣṇa to the sun-god, the same thing was spoken to Arjuna. He said that "I am speaking to you the same old, purātanaṁ yogam, but because the paramparā system is now broken, so I am making again the paramparā system through you, beginning from you." So the paramparā system, we can understand by Arjuna's behavior, by Arujuna's understanding. Everything is written in the Bhagavad-gītā. Arjuna accepted Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead, paraṁ brahma paraṁ dhāma pavitraṁ paramaṁ bhavān (BG 10.12). So if we follow Arjuna then we can understand Bhagavad-gītā very easily.
So they are going on like that. Therefore one must be warned, as Prahlāda Mahārāja said. This is mahājana yena... Prahlāda Mahārāja means... He... As he is saying, we must accept. We should not indulge in speculation in..., or literature, literary career, which is never touched by the mahājana. So it is that one must be... The literature must be viriñca-gītāḥ. Why you are giving so much stress on Bhagavad-gītā as it is? Because it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Similarly, anything written by Kṛṣṇa's pure devotee, that is important. Otherwise it's not important. It is not important. So 'haṁ priyasya suhṛdaḥ. We should be engaged always. Reading book is very good, but it must be written by authorities. Then it is good. Now, otherwise, if you read twenty-four hours the newspaper or ordinary book, that kind of reading is simply waste of time.
We don't approach Kṛṣṇa directly. We must begin our service to the Kṛṣṇa's servant. And who is Kṛṣṇa's servant? One who has become the servant of another Kṛṣṇa's servant. This is called dāsa-dāsānudāsa. Nobody can be independently servant of Kṛṣṇa. That is another foolishness. Kṛṣṇa never accepts anyone's service directly. No. That is not possible. You must come through the servant of the servant (CC Madhya 13.80). This is called paramparā system. As you receive knowledge by the paramparā system... Kṛṣṇa spoke to Brahmā, Brahmā spoke to Nārada, Nārada spoke to Vyāsadeva, and we are getting this knowledge. Just like Kṛṣṇa... Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna.
That conquered means you have understood the whole science of Kṛṣṇa, whole special science. This is recommended by Caitanya Mahāprabhu, and this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement follows this principle. We are trying to give opportunity, every man, to hear about Kṛṣṇa. There is no need of practicing in the beginning. If you can practice, it is all right. But there is no need. Simply you hear about Kṛṣṇa. The Bhagavad-gītā... To hear about Kṛṣṇa means the Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, you can hear. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam you can hear. And you remain in your position. We don't want to disturb your position. Whatever you are, you remain. But you hear about Kṛṣṇa. Then gradually Kṛṣṇa will be conquered by you. Ajita Allah(?) Kṛṣṇa.
Sri Caitanya-caritamrta Lectures
So there is no difficulty to understand the Absolute Truth. It may be presented in a different way... Not different way. It is directly. Kṛṣṇa says directly that "You surrender to Me," and Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that "You preach this cult," yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128), the same thing. We are not going to teach anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa and which is not supported by Kṛṣṇa Caitanyadeva. This is our principle. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Kṛṣṇa preached Kṛṣṇa Himself, Caitanya Mahāprabhu preached the same principle, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28), and we are preaching the same thing. We do not preach anything else. We do not manufacture anything. That is not our business.
This is the statement of Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura. Not that I am manufacturing. We cannot manufacture anything, but we can repeat the words of our predecessors. Bhaktivinoda Ṭhākura, in his Jaiva-Dharma, or in Caitanya-śikṣāmṛta, he has stated like that. In the Bhāratavarṣa, Bengal is the most important place, and in Bengal, the district Nadia is most important place, because Caitanya Mahāprabhu appeared. Don't take it leniently. It is very serious thing that Bhāratavarṣa is meant for cultivation of Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Unfortunately, the present leaders, they are misleading them. Anyway, you are fortunate. You take advantage of this cult of Kṛṣṇa consciousness which was spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself, in this land of Bhāratavarṣa, dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ (BG 1.1).
So this is the ultimate knowledge, that, this Māyāvāda philosophy, that to become one, merge into the existence, merge into the existence means we merge into the order of Kṛṣṇa. Our individuality at the present moment is māyā, because we are planning so many things. Therefore your individuality and my individuality clashes. But when there will be no more clashing—we shall agree, "Central point is Kṛṣṇa"—that is oneness, not that we lose our individuality. So as it is stated in all Vedic literature and spoken by Kṛṣṇa, we are all individual, all individual. Svayaṁ bhagavān ekale īśvara. But the difference is that He is the supreme ruler, īśvara. Īśvara. Īśvara means ruler. Actually He is ruler, and we are also ruler, but we are subordinate ruler . Therefore He is ekale īśvara, one ruler. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇa, in the Brahma-saṁhitā. Ekale īśvara. Īśvara cannot be many. That is not īśvara. The Māyāvāda philosophy that everyone is God, that is not very right conclusion. That is rascaldom.
That surrendered soul is a great soul who has surrendered, "Oh, God is great." That is Vedānta. Not that giving his own interpretation, as if Vyāsadeva was a fool, and he left Vedānta for being commented by another rascal. No. Then what is the authority of Vedānta? If you can... You are a common man. Your intelligence is so imperfect. You are cheaters, and your senses are imperfect. How you can comment on Vedānta which was compiled by Vyāsadeva, the most perfect personality, liberated personality? How you can comment on Bhagavad-gītā? It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. So you have no right. If you at all want to study Vedānta-sūtra, you have to accept it as it is, without any change. That is understanding. Vedānta-sūtra... Just like, several times I have given this example in this class, that it is... Lord Caitanya said to Sārvabhauma Bhaṭṭācārya that "In the Vedas, it is stated that if you touch the stool of any animal, you'll be, I mean to say, infected.
They may comment, they go on talking all nonsense, but no sane man will accept them. That is a different thing. But those who are sane, they should judge over this, that "Why we should deny, that 'God is impersonal'? God is person. Kṛṣṇa came." Kṛṣṇa exhibited His godly potencies, energies, when He was present. There is no... In the history you won't find another second person like Kṛṣṇa in the whole history of the world. Apart from other points of view, Bhagavad-gītā, that is admitted, spoken by Kṛṣṇa, such deep, profound knowledge—there is no second imitation or second copy like Bhagavad-gītā in the whole world. That is admitted by all scholars, all religionists. Therefore He is pūrṇa-jñāna, pūrṇa-brahma. Bhagavad-gītā is pūrṇa-jñāna. The Bhagavān's one qualification—He is fully wise. Nobody is wiser than Him. That is one of the qualifications. Nobody is richer than Him, nobody is powerful than Him, nobody is influential than Him, nobody is beautiful than Him, and nobody is renouncer than Him. Ṣaḍ-aiśvarya. That will be explained.
You find stronger and weaker, both. You'll find weaker than you and stronger than you. Even if you find an elephant-he's supposed to be the strongest animal-oḥ, the lion is stronger than him. If you think that lion is very strong, oh, you'll find gorilla is stronger than him. So there is no limit who is the strongest. When you come to the limit... So śāstra says that īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). There are so many īśvaras, gods, that's all right. But the Supreme Lord is Kṛṣṇa because nobody is found greater than Kṛṣṇa. When Kṛṣṇa was actually present and He manifested as ordinary man like us, in the history we find that nobody was greater than Him. At least, we can find out the Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. There is nobody in the world who could speak more than Bhagavad-gītā. Up to date. The man is so much advanced his knowledge, so-called, that they cannot put a literature like Bhagavad-gītā or they can understand fully. Even Dr. Radhakrishnan fails and other fails.
Festival Lectures
Just like try to understand. I am caused by my father. My father is caused by his father. He is caused by his father, his father... Go on searching, then you'll ultimately come to somebody who is the cause. But He has no cause. Anādir ādir govindaḥ (Bs. 5.1). I may be cause of my son, but I am also result of the cause, my father. But the śāstra says that anādir ādir, He is the original person, but He has no cause. That is Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, Kṛṣṇa says that janma karma ca me divyaṁ yo jānāti tattvataḥ (BG 4.9). The advent of Kṛṣṇa, it is very important thing. We should try to understand Kṛṣṇa, why He advents, why He comes on this material world, what is His business, what are His activities. If we simply try to understand Kṛṣṇa, then what is the result? The result is tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya (BG 4.9). You get that immortality. The aim of life is to achieve immortality. Amṛtatvāya kalpate.
So in the advent of Kṛṣṇa, we shall try to understand the philosophy of Kṛṣṇa. His Excellency was speaking of peace. The peace formula is there, spoken by Kṛṣṇa.
He comes once in a day of Brahmā. So Brahmā's days, even one day, the span of one day, it is very difficult to calculate. Sahasra-yuga-paryantam arhad yad brāhmaṇo viduḥ (BG 8.17). The Brahmā's one day means about 433,000,000's of years. So in each day of Brahmā, Kṛṣṇa comes, once in a day. That means after a period of 433,000,000's of years He comes. Why? To give perfect knowledge of life, how a human being should live to make his life perfect. So the Bhagavad-gītā is there, spoken by Kṛṣṇa in this millennium, in this day. Now Brahmā's one day we are passing through the twenty-eighth millennium. No, twenty-eighth... In Brahmā's day there are seventy-one Manus, and one Manu lives for... That is also many millions of years, seventy-two millenniums.
Now, only request is that you take very active part in this temple business. Especially in the matter of śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇu. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanam. We have got so many books books, pages each. If you simply finish this reading and hearing of these book perhaps your whole lifetime will be engaged. So kindly do this. Everyone come hear what is spoken about Kṛṣṇa, kṛṣṇa-kathā. Kṛṣṇa-kathā means words or narration or description about Kṛṣṇa. There are two kṛṣṇa-kathās especially. One is the Bhagavad-gītā, the kathā, the words which is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. This is kṛṣṇa-kathā. And another is Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam which is spoken about Kṛṣṇa. That is also kṛṣṇa-kathā. So kṛṣṇa-kathā, the temple should be always filled up with kṛṣṇa-kathā and distribution of Kṛṣṇa prasādam. In this way develop your Kṛṣṇa consciousness and be happy in this world and in the next. It is compulsory.
Arrival Addresses and Talks
Guru means representative of Kṛṣṇa—Kṛṣṇa and His representative. We have repeatedly discussed this fact that guru means the bona fide servant of Kṛṣṇa. Guru does not mean a magician or jugglery. That is not guru. Guru means, it is explained by Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu very easily, how to become guru. He has asked everyone, especially those who are born in India, bhārata bhūmite manuṣya-janma haila yāra (CC Adi 9.41). Especially. Because we Indians, bhāratīya, we have got facilities to become guru of the whole world. We have got the facility. Because here we have got the literatures, Vedic literatures, especially the Bhagavad-gītā, which is spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself. If we try to understand what is the aim of life and preach all over the world, then you become guru. And if we want to cheat others in the name of so-called yogis, swami, scholar, that will not make you guru. Guru... Caitanya Mahāprabhu says you become, all Indians, all Bhāratīyas, guru. Āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). Wherever you are. And how shall I become guru? Yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa upadeśa. That's all.
General Lectures
So here in the Bhagavad-gītā, the Supreme Personality of Godhead explaining Himself, Kṛṣṇa. So if you say, "How can I believe that Kṛṣṇa said? Somebody has written in the name of Kṛṣṇa that 'Kṛṣṇa said,' 'God said.' " No. This is called disciplic succession. You will see in this book, Bhagavad-gītā, Kṛṣṇa, what Kṛṣṇa said, and how Arjuna understood. These things are described there. And the sādhu, saintly person, beginning from Vyāsadeva, Nārada, down to many ācāryas, Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Viṣṇu Svāmī, and latest, Lord Caitanya, in this way, they have accepted: "Yes. It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa." So this is the proof. If saintly persons have accepted... They have not denied. Authorities, they have accepted, "Yes." This is called sādhu. And because sādhu, saintly persons have accepted, therefore it is scripture. That is the test. Just like... It is common sense affair. If the lawyers accept some book, then it is to be understood that this is lawbook. You cannot say that "How can I accept this is law?" The evidence is the lawyers are accepting. Medical... If the medical practitioners accept, then that is authoritative medical.
So Kṛṣṇa said to Arjuna, "My dear Arjuna, this Bhagavad-gītā was first spoken by Me to the sun-god, Vivasvān. Vivasvān spoke to his son Manu. And Manu, by his turn, spoke to his son Mahārāja Ikṣvāku." So if you take the history of Manu, then it becomes 400,000's millions of years ago Bhagavad-gītā was spoken. So Bhagavad-gītā is not a new thing. If we accept Bhagavad-gītā as it is, if we believe in the words of Bhagavad-gītā, or Kṛṣṇa, then Bhagavad-gītā is the oldest. It is not a new thing. It was long, long ago spoken to the sun-god Vivasvān. The sun-god, the president or the predominating Deity in the sun planet, is known as Vivasvān. So we have to study Bhagavad-gītā as it is by the paramparā system. As Śrī Kṛṣṇa says, evaṁ paramparā-prāptam (BG 4.2). Not that whimsically somebody purchases a book from the market and he takes his pleasure to make an interpretation of his own intelligence. Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa. He did not leave it for being interpreted by an ordinary man. There is no need of explaining Bhagavad-gītā in a different way.
Everyone's heart, there is Kṛṣṇa bhakti. Otherwise, how these Europeans, Americans, Canadians, Japanese, they are taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness? We have Muhammadans also. Many Muhammadans, they are taking to Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Therefore it is to be understood that Kṛṣṇa consciousness, or love for Kṛṣṇa, is existing in everyone's heart. It is simply to be awakened. Nothing more. How it is awakened? Śravaṇādi-śuddha-citte karaye udaya. if you simply give your aural reception to the Kṛṣṇa kathā. Kṛṣṇa kathā means what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the Bhagavad-gītā, and Kṛṣṇa kathā means speeches and words which are spoken about Kṛṣṇa. The Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam is also Kṛṣṇa kathā, and Bhagavad-gītā is also Kṛṣṇa kathā. One is directly spoken by Lord Kṛṣṇa, end one is spoken by Lord, I mean to say, Vyāsadeva, the great saint Vyāsadeva, about Kṛṣṇa. So Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that "You preach this Kṛṣṇa kathā to everyone and then you become a spiritual master under My order."
So similarly, if we get information from the authority, and if the authority is not a cheater, then our knowledge is perfect, and very easy. Just like father, mother, never cheats. When the son inquires from the parent, the parent gives exact information, right information. Similarly, if we get right information from the right person, that is perfect knowledge. If you want to reach to the conclusion by speculation, that is imperfect, inductive process. That will never become perfect. It will remain imperfect for all the time. So we get information from the perfect person, Kṛṣṇa. Therefore whatever we speak, that is perfect because we don't speak anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa or authorities who have accepted Kṛṣṇa. That is called disciplic succession. So our process is, process of acquiring knowledge, is very easy and perfect. That is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.
Then He will reveal Himself, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. He'll reveal yourself. He is within yourself. Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe 'rjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). Īśvara, the Supreme Lord, is situated as Paramātmā in everyone's heart. But if you become submissive, teṣāṁ satata-yuktānāṁ bhajatāṁ prīti-pūrvakam (BG 10.10). Those who are cent percent engaged in the loving service of the Lord, buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi tam, He speaks from within. Then you can understand. He comes out, He exhibits Himself, manifests Himself the spiritual master, as spiritual master. Kṛṣṇa is trying to help you from within, from without. Evaṁ paramparā prāptam (BG 4.2). You take advantage of it. From within, He, as Paramātmā, caitya-guru, He'll help you. buddhi-yogaṁ dadāmi tam. And from without, as spiritual master, He'll give you instructions from the śāstra, from the Bhagavad-gītā. The Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, and the Kṛṣṇa's representative, Kṛṣṇa's manifestation, the spiritual master, will rightly inform you. That is the position.
We are actually struggling with material nature to become happy. But it is not possible to conquer over the material nature. That is not possible. Daivī hy eṣā guṇamayī mama māyā duratyayā (BG 7.14). It is very difficult. You cannot do it. Then how I can get from the clutches of the hands of material nature? Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te: "You simply surrender unto Me," Kṛṣṇa says, "and you immediately get rid of this māyā." There are many greatly, great saintly persons. They are trying to get out of the clutches of māyā, to become liberated. But here is the simple process: simply you surrender unto Kṛṣṇa. He personally advocated. It is not that we are manufacturing in some way. It is spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself, that "You simply surrender unto Me, and immediately you are out of the clutches of māyā." Mām eva ye prapadyante māyām etāṁ taranti te.
So I do not wish to take much of your time, but the thing is that the whole world is struggling hard. They are not in peace. One man is enemy of another man. One nation is enemy of another nation. This is going on.
Madhudviṣa: This afternoon His Divine Grace will be speaking from the Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Some of you university students are familiar with the book the Bhagavad-gītā. The Bhagavad-gītā translated means "the song of God." Bhagavad-gītā is spoken five thousand years ago, and the peculiarity about this presentation of the Bhagavad-gītā is that it is the Bhagavad-gītā as it is, not the Bhagavad-gītā as we think it was, but the Bhagavad-gītā as it is, as it was spoken by Kṛṣṇa to Arjuna five thousand years ago. Our spiritual master is sitting before you. His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Gosvāmī Mahārāja Śrīla Prabhupāda is in a direct disciplic succession from Kṛṣṇa. Five thousand years of masters and disciples have passed this knowledge of the Bhagavad-gītā down purely. So therefore, when our spiritual master speaks on the Bhagavad-gītā, he does not speak on the Bhagavad-gītā as he thinks it is. He speaks on the Bhagavad-gītā as it is. So without any more verbiage, I'll present our spiritual master.
Prabhupāda: (chants maṅgalācaraṇa prayers) Ladies and Gentlemen, I thank you very much for your joining us in this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Kṛṣṇa, when I utter the word Kṛṣṇa, it means God. It is Sanskrit word, Kṛṣṇa. Those who are Sanskrit student, you know kṛṣ-dhātu, "attraction," "one who attracts." God is the Supreme Being, full with six kinds of opulences; therefore He attracts everyone. This is the definition of the word Kṛṣṇa. This Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the perfect person.
How can I become a guru? How can I instruct?" Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, "Yes, that I know. But you take My order." Āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). "Then what shall I do?" Yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa-upadeśa: "You become guru. You haven't got to manufacture anything, any philosophy. You simply instruct whatever is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. That's all. You become a guru." So our request is that you are so many Indians living in this foreign country for generations. So take this instruction of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu. Because you are coming from India, therefore it is special request to you that "By the order of Śrī Caitanya Mahāprabhu, every one of you become a guru." And what shall you have to do? Āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). Ei deśa. This South Africa, you are staying here. So you preach as a guru. And what shall you preach? Caitanya Mahāprabhu says, yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). You haven't got to do anything. The instruction of Kṛṣṇa is there in the Bhagavad-gītā. Don't distort it, but put it as it is. That's your duty. If you do simply this thing... Because in the Bhagavad-gītā it is clearly said that Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead... Kṛṣṇa says Himself that mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya (BG 7.7).
Unfortunately, at the present moment especially... It was done formerly also five thousand years, that they make addition and alteration on the version of Kṛṣṇa. Just like Bhagavad-gītā is misinterpreted by so-called scholars and politicians. Just like in the Bhagavad-gītā it is said, dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ (BG 1.1). Somebody interprets, "This dharma-kṣetra is this body." Why? Why one should interpret in that way? Interpretation is required when things are not very clear. Dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre is still there. People go to Kurukṣetra for executing religious rituals. And in the Vedas it is stated, kuru-kṣetre dharmam ācaret. So why it should be interpreted as "body"? And where is the dictionary where dharma-kṣetra means "body"? So in this way, if we interpret Bhagavad-gītā, then we spoil the whole thing. I spoil myself and spoil others. Therefore the conclusion is we shall accept Bhagavad-gītā as it is, as it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa.
Mr. Reddy and Ladies and Gentlemen, I cannot speak in Telugu. Kindly excuse me. This Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is very, very old, at least five thousand years old. And if we take history before that, then it is at least forty millions of years old. This Kṛṣṇa consciousness was spoken by Kṛṣṇa before the Battlefield of..., Battlefield of Kurukṣetra took place. Kṛṣṇa instructed this same Bhagavad-gītā philosophy to the sun-god. He says in the Fourth Chapter,
- imaṁ vivasvate yogaṁ
- proktavān aham avyayam
- vivasvān manave prāhur
- manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt
- (BG 4.1)
- sa kāleneha (mahatā)
- yogo naṣṭaḥ parantapa
So this transcendental science, bhakti-yoga, means to surrender unto the Supreme Lord. This is the simple thing. God is great and we are small. God is prabhu, and we are aṇu. We have got the God's quality as part and parcel, mamaivāṁśa jīva-bhūtaḥ. Kṛṣṇa says that "These jīvas, they are My part and parcel."
Philosophy Discussions
Prabhupāda: The peon delivering you four hundred dollars, he is not rich man but he is actually delivering four hundred dollars. That is our position. Therefore we say, evaṁ paramparā-prāptam (BG 4.2). I may be rascal, it doesn't matter, but because I am carrying the message which is not rascal, therefore I am fit. This is our... We don't say anything rascaldom because we don't say anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa or by authorities like Vyāsadeva. That is our position. Don't teach anyone else, except what Kṛṣṇa teaches. Kṛṣṇa says, "Surrender unto Me." We say, "Surrender unto Kṛṣṇa." Just like Śyāmasundara's daughter, she says, "Do you know Kṛṣṇa?" (indistinct) "No, I don't know." "Supreme Personality of Godhead." She may be child, but the message she is delivering is perfect. The message she is delivering, that is perfect. Is it not? She says, "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead." Now the child may (not) be perfect, that's all right, but the message she is giving, it is perfect. So there is no suspicion about the message. That message is above suspicion. So our position is: you don't change it. Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam (BG 4.2), receive message by paramparā. (indistinct) is the same. Kṛṣṇa says, "Surrender unto Me." We say, "Surrender unto Kṛṣṇa."
Conversations and Morning Walks
1968 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: The original guru is Kṛṣṇa. And just like He taught first the Kṛṣṇa consciousness principle to Arjuna. And how Arjuna understood, that is also there. So anyone who follows the principle... Just like my great grandfather told something, "This is watch." Then my grandfather told, "This is watch." Then my father told, "This is watch." So I am also telling, "This is watch." So there is no difference of opinion between the old great grandfather and me because we are following the same principle. Similarly, whatever is spoken by Kṛṣṇa five thousand years or forty millions of years, it doesn't matter. If you are simply following the same principles, then you are spiritual master.
1969 Conversations and Morning Walks
Yoko Ono: So what's the difference between one and the other?
Prabhupāda: Therefore we say that sampradāya-vihīnā ye mantrās te viphala mataḥ. If we then don't take from the disciplic succession of the authority... Just like Kṛṣṇa. Now, take for example. We have explained this in our introduction, that nobody is authority. Don't care. Kṛṣṇa is authority because Bhagavad-gītā is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. That you cannot deny. Can you deny that?
Yoko Ono: Is Kṛṣṇa translated...
Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is authority. Kṛṣṇa is authority.
Yoko Ono: Yes, all right. Did He translate it into English?
Prabhupāda: Just hear me.
Yoko Ono: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Kṛṣṇa is authority, you accept?
Yoko Ono: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Is that all right?
John Lennon: Yes.
1971 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: That's all right. (Hindi?) Kṛṣṇa is also there.
Guest (1): They must evolve with that idea because...
Prabhupāda: No, no. First thing is that when we speak of Bhagavad-gītā, it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. So why there is no Kṛṣṇa photograph?
Guest (1): They didn't put the picture.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That means you have not understood Kṛṣṇa. Therefore your, this so-called Gītā society is not bona fide. At least even in ordinary feature, suppose if there is political meeting, you keep Gandhi, this photo, Jawaharlal Nehru's photo because they are the political leaders. You are preaching Bhagavad-gītā, Gītā Samītī, and there is not a single picture of Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Ramakrishna Mission, if I say it frankly, they distorted the Bhagavad-gītā to the greatest extent. Because they presented somebody, Ramakrishna, as God. Ramakrishna said that "I am the same Kṛṣṇa, I am the same Rāma," and they accepted it. But one thing is, anybody can say that "I am the same Rāma, I am the same Kṛṣṇa." First of all we have to see the proof. So many, there are many ways of to understand. So Ramakrishna Mission is pushing on this wrong idea. And another thing is that, supposing this Ramakrishna is the same Kṛṣṇa, then the philosophy is different. Ramakrishna's philosophy and Bhagavad-gītā's philosophy is different, because Ramakrishna says that you can accept any method, every method is all right. But Kṛṣṇa says only unto Him, sarva-dharmān parityajya mām ekaṁ śaraṇam (BG 18.66). "Give up everything, simply surrender unto Me." Now Kṛṣṇa says one: "Simply surrender unto Me," and Ramakrishna says that we can accept anywhere. So which one we shall accept? Kṛṣṇa's or Ramakrishna's? What is your opinion? If something is spoken by Kṛṣṇa and something is spoken by Ramakrishna, so which one we shall prefer to accept?
Mohsin Hassan: Kṛṣṇa.
1973 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: Yes yes. Because he will try to understand Kṛṣṇa. Even Lord Brahmā could not understand Kṛṣṇa. (laughs) No. (Hindi) Therefore, to understand Kṛṣṇa he desired to take birth in Vṛndāvana.
- manuṣyāṇāṁ sahasreṣu
- kaścid yatati siddhaye
- yatatām api siddhānāṁ
- kaścin māṁ vetti tattvataḥ
- (BG 7.3)
Out of many millions of persons, they try to understand what is the perfection of life, and out of many such millions of persons who are in the line of understanding perfection of life, some of them or some one may understand Kṛṣṇa. Muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ. Just like Brahmā was also bewildered whether Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Brahmā, the first creature of this universe, he's also... muhyanti yat sūrayaḥ. Therefore we should take advantage of this opportunity. Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself in the Bhagavad-gītā, about Himself. That is the highest perfection of life, simply to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is. As spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Then one's life is perfect.
1974 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: ...places that "Swamiji, how you have done this wonderful thing?" And I do not know what is wonderful thing. But I know this that I do not adulterate. That's all. (break) That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's mission. He says, yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa' upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). That's all. Āmāra ajñaya... Caitanya Mahāprabhu says... Dr. Patel, hear. Kṛṣṇa says, Caitanya Mahāprabhu says that āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra' ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). "You become a guru." Just see. "You become a guru by My order." Then one may say that "What qualification I have got that I can become guru?" That only qualification: yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa' upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). You don't require to manufacture any upadeśa. Whatever is there already spoken by Kṛṣṇa, you distribute it. You become guru. This is guru. Not that you are fool. Yes, I am fool. But I am not so fool like you that I adulterate.
Dr. Patel: No, I...
Prabhupāda: That's all.
Indian Man (1): Whatever it is they are saying, but the real thing we should not interpret and we cannot.
Prabhupāda: But you are, after all, material. You are not spiritual. In order to get you on the spiritual platform, things are being spoken by Kṛṣṇa.
Indian Man (4): And to understand something we must have...
Prabhupāda: How you become all of a sudden spiritual? What is that spiritual? You do not understand what is spiritual, and you say, "It is spiritual."
Indian Man (1): Well, something which we cannot see by our own eyes, something which we cannot...
Prabhupāda: Then why do you interpret if you cannot see with your own eyes? You are blind. Why should you interpret? A blind man is interpreting? What is this nonsense? The blind man is just, "Oh, the elephant is big pillar."
Indian Man (1): Same thing will say that elephant is only trunk.
Prabhupāda: That's it. This kind of interpretation, what is the meaning?
Indian: They don't have that complete view of the whole.
Prabhupāda: If you are blind, you accept that "I am blind man. I cannot study what is this elephant," that is another thing. That is good. And if you are blind and by blind eyes you, "Oh, elephant is a pillar."
Prabhupāda: Ah. (break) ...spoken by Kṛṣṇa,
- annād bhavanti bhūtāni
- parjanyād anna-sambhavaḥ
- yajñād bhavati parjanyo
- yajñaḥ karma-samudbhavaḥ
- (BG 3.14)
Satsvarūpa: Prabhupāda, in the Kṛṣṇa Book, Kṛṣṇa Himself argues that you don't need... He argues at the time of the Indra sacrifice that you don't need yajña. The rain will come anyway. That's what they say nowadays.
Prabhupāda: That was to irritate Indra. (laughter)
Haṁsadūta: There are many guests downstairs, some professors. We were wondering if you would like to lecture this evening.
Prabhupāda: No, let them come here. (break) We are publishing all these books, what is spoken by Kṛṣṇa or His representative. We don't speculate, because already there is so much profound knowledge given by Kṛṣṇa and His representative. There is no necessity of researching. If we simply take advantage of things which are already there, we become perfect. I have published about fourteen books like this.
1975 Conversations and Morning Walks
The whole world is in darkness without Kṛṣṇa consciousness. So enlighten them, para-upakāra. Human life is for para-upakāra; it is not animal life. To do good to others. Cats and dogs, they are selfish. But human life should be for para-upakāra. So this is the biggest para-upakāra movement. And it is very easy to take part in it. You don't require to be very expert. You... Everything is there. You simply carry the message like peon. Kṛṣṇa says this; kindly follow; that's all. We don't say that "I say this. I have manufactured this. I have become very big man, God." We don't say nonsense. It is all nonsense. Simply carry the message of Kṛṣṇa; then you are perfect. In the Western countries they are little fond of yoga. So the yoga system is also spoken by Kṛṣṇa in the Sixth Chapter. But the conclusion is, when Arjuna refused, "My dear Kṛṣṇa, it is not possible for me. This meditation, this praṇāyāma and dhyāna, dhāraṇā, yama, niyama, dhyāna, it is not possible for me. I am a politician. I have no time either"—he said frankly—then Kṛṣṇa satisfied him that "You are already the best of the yogis."
Kīrtanānanda: Things equal to the same thing are equal to each other.
Prabhupāda: Yes, that is the duty. Paramparā system means the spiritual master shall not give anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa. That is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa: "You become guru under My order." "But I do not know anything nicely, how can I become guru?" "No, you have no botheration. You simply take Kṛṣṇa's word and say, and you become guru."
- āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa
yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa
If the child says to another man, "Father said, 'This is this,' " then he is perfect. He has learned from the father, and the father is perfect, then whatever he says, it is perfect. Why should he take so much botheration? So our, process is that, that we become guru not like that rascal Guruji, no. We speak whatever Kṛṣṇa has spoken. That's all. Of course, we try to impress upon you with your reason, logic, but we shall speak the same thing, not anything else. Kṛṣṇa says, "I am supreme;" We say, "Kṛṣṇa is supreme." That's all. Where is the botheration? I haven't got to find out by my logic and induction whether Kṛṣṇa is supreme. That I have already done. So Kṛṣṇa is supreme. There is no doubt about it. Now, whatever Kṛṣṇa says, it is all right. That's all.
Harikeśa: Your method is also the perfect method, the books in the colleges and libraries, educated people and... Wonderful. Actually, you have set everything up to do this.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Everything is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. I am simply putting them for modern man's understanding. That's all.
Harikeśa: Yes.
Prabhupāda: Because they cannot understand, they think, "Dogmatic." It is not dogmatic. Most scientific.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: But they're all dull-brained. Satisfied with a few scraps, work like dogs. Would you like to walk here, Śrīla Prabhupāda?
Prabhupāda: Where?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: This place is okay?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Dr. Patel: You fire them! (raucous laugh)
Prabhupāda: No. How can I say anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa? Kṛṣṇa is.... Kṛṣṇa says, na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamā māyayāpahṛta-jñānā (BG 7.15). So we have got this test: if anyone has no interest in Kṛṣṇa, he must be with these groups, that's all. Duṣkṛtina, mūḍha, narādhama. And Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, yare dekha tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa-upadeśa' (CC Madhya 7.128). So how can I violate?
Dr. Patel: No.
Prabhupāda: Both ways. I cannot violate. Caitanya Mahāprabhu said that you simply speak what Kṛṣṇa has said, and Kṛṣṇa says that anyone who is not Kṛṣṇa conscious, he is a rascal. He is a most sinful man, he is the lowest of mankind. So why shall I not say? It is not firing; it is telling the truth. (laughs with Patel) But I am not loser. I am, I do not make any compromise. All these my students ask, I never made any compromise. But still they understand, and they are with me.
Prabhupāda: That is their foolishness. You were a child; that body is finished. So you have got a different body. But this simple truth they do not understand; that is their folly. If the body is finished, then why you were a child, you have become a young man? Body is finished, but not everything is finished, everything is there. Only the body is finished. Na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre (BG 2.20). This is explained. So when the body is finished, that does not mean that you are finished. You have to accept another body. That is real truth, and it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, not any so-called scientist. The Supreme Person says, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre. What do they say about this statement of Kṛṣṇa, na hanyate hanyamāne śarīre, that when your body is finished you are not finished?
Lokanātha: Well they won't accept Kṛṣṇa either.
Prabhupāda: Then, how rascal they are!
Indian man: (indistinct) you know there is soul.
Prabhupāda: Ha.
Indian man: Body is finished and ātmā is emerged. So, what, why the ātmā suffers next generation for the deeds done by the body in this life?
Prabhupāda: Because ātmā is continuation.
1976 Conversations and Morning Walks
Acyutānanda: It already has our name. If the Bhagavad-gītā is in the Mahābhārata—that's itihāsa—how did it get the name Upaniṣad, Gītopaniṣad?
Prabhupāda: Because it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Itihāsa also Vedic literature. Pañcama-veda, Mahābhārata, for understanding of the common man. Strī-śūdra-dvija-bandhūnāṁ trayi na śruti-gocarāḥ (SB 1.4.25). Woman, śūdra, and dvija-bandhu, they cannot understand directly the Vedas.
Acyutānanda: But even Bhisma, when he was on the battlefield, he said, "I have given up my bheda-jña," so he became one.
Prabhupāda: One you are already. Because you are foolish, you cannot understand. That is abheda. I am not different. Just like my finger is not different from me. If the finger thinks, "I am different from the body," that is ignorance.
Yaśodānandana: Just as we say that ignorance consists of not understanding the difference between the jīva and the Paramātmā, the Māyāvādīs say that ignorance means to understand the difference between jīva and Paramātmā.
Prabhupāda: So then they difference. They admit that there is difference, if they say like that, that "There is difference."
Prabhupāda: Hare Kṛṣṇa. Jaya. Hare Kṛṣṇa. (break) Make the bullock cart an international. They'll be surprised. Hare Kṛṣṇa. Bhakti kaile sarva-karma kṛta haya. We must be always convinced that if we simply take up the knowledge given by Kṛṣṇa, then you are perfect. That's all. If little success is there for me than other swamis and yogis, it is due to my conviction on this point. I never compromised with anything which is not spoken by Kṛṣṇa. Did you mark it or not?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Yes.
Devotee: One time you told us, Śrīla Prabhupāda, to meet every man at his door and ask him to give up everything he knows and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Yes. That is simple. "You rascal, you give up whatever you have learned, you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa." Don't say "rascal," but indirectly (laughter), that "Whatever you have learned, it is all nonsense." Sakalam eva vihāya dūrāt, "You give up everything, kicked out, and simply become adherent to Caitanya." This is our preaching. And what Caitanya Mahāprabhu said, yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128), that's all. Because ultimately He is Kṛṣṇa.
Prabhupāda: Yes. It is true. By sentiment you can say "I'm inspired." But hear directly then there is no question.
Devotee (3): People sometimes ask, "If Bhagavad-gītā was spoken by Kṛṣṇa and it was recorded by Vyāsadeva in the Mahābhārata, was Vyāsadeva actually present there on the Battlefield of Kurukṣetra, or did he see it by revelation?"
Prabhupāda: No. Here, just like something's happening ten thousand miles away. You can record it by modern machine.
Devotee (3): (break) ...mercy he was able to...
Prabhupāda: Three millions miles, sun is, eh?
Hari-śauri: That's what they say.
Prabhupāda: So from so far distant place the heat is coming, and there is no brain behind it?
Devotee (4): It takes five minutes for the sunlight to reach us, and light travels at, what, 193,000 miles a second? I don't know. Whatever it is.
Prabhupāda: Whatever it may be, such a wonderful things is there, and there is no brain behind it? Is it very reasonable proposal? It has come automatically. There is a chunk. Childish.
Dr. Ramachandra: Some śāstras after, existing before Kṛṣṇa and Arjuna.
Prabhupāda: Śāstra? Śāstra means it is authorized. Just like Bhagavad-gītā is śāstra because it is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, the supreme authority. Therefore all the ācāryas, they accept it. Still the ācārya-sampradāyas are there. Rāmānujācārya, Madhvācārya, Viṣṇu Svāmī, Śaṅkara, they accept all this. And at the time of...
Guest (2): Do you accept the supremacy of the Vedas, veda-pramāṇam.
Prabhupāda: Yes. Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15). And if you do not understand Kṛṣṇa, then you do not know what is Veda. Your knowledge of Vedas will be accepted when you understand Kṛṣṇa. So if you do not know what Kṛṣṇa, then what is the use of taking so much trouble to study Vedas? You do not know anything. Bahūnāṁ janmanām ante jñānavān māṁ prapadyate (BG 7.19).
1977 Conversations and Morning Walks
Prabhupāda: "I am sādhu. I am the leader of the, this society. And the animal-killing is going on. I don't care for it." Suhṛdaḥ sarva-bhūtānām. So titikṣavaḥ kāruṇikāḥ suhṛdaḥ sarva... These are the qualities. And ultimately, summary, sādhu is spoken by Kṛṣṇa Himself that bhajate mām ananya-bhāk sādhur eva sa mantavyaḥ: (BG 9.30) "One who has no other business than to execute Kṛṣṇa consciousness, he is sādhu." "Well, he is a foreigner. He is not brāhmaṇa. He is accustomed to so many habits." Sādhu is always in good habit. But due to past practice, sometimes we may see some discrepancy. You can find out some fault. But Kṛṣṇa says that "Never mind there is some fault. Still, he is sādhu." "Why?" Now bhajate mām ananya-bhāk: "He has taken Me as everything." So sādhu descriptions are there. Sādhavaḥ sādhu-bhūṣaṇaḥ. A sādhu means ultimately bhajate mām ananya-bhāk. So tīrtha-sthāna, one should try to associate with sādhus. This is the purpose to go to the tīrtha-sthāna. Otherwise, if you simply go to the tīrtha-sthāna and take bath in the Ganges and Yamunā, and if you think, "My business is finished..." Everywhere, all tīrtha-sthāna... In Gayā-actually, begins from Gayā—there is Phalgu River. Then Benares, there is Ganges. Then there is Prayāga. There is also Ganges, Yamunā. Then go to Mathurā, Vṛndāvana. Everywhere there is the sacred river. So if we simply think that going to the holy place and taking bath... In Kali-yuga it is general hobby. Dūre parjakanam(?) tīrtham.
Prabhupāda: That's all right. This is very easy. So I am not a scholar. I am simply... Whatever is said there, I am trying to distribute in a palatable way. That's all. It is not my manufacture. And that is Caitanya Mahāprabhu's... Āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra ei deśa (CC Madhya 7.128). You all become guru. "How can I become guru? I have no education. I have no knowledge." No, you haven't got to acquire all these things. That is already... Yāre dekha tāre kaha. Finished. So I never tried to become a scholar. But I tried, whatever is spoken by Kṛṣṇa, deliver. That's all. And that is guru. If some...
Dr. Kumar: Śrīla Prabhupāda, you should rest now.
Correspondence
1970 Correspondence
The next point is that religion without philosophy is sentimentalism or fanaticism. Simply performing empty ritual without understanding is condemned by Srila Rupa Goswami in his Bhaktirasamrta sindhuh—pure devotional service which ignores the injunctions of the scriptures is simply a disturbance to the society. In Bhagavad-gita it is stated "One should approach a spiritual master and inquire from him submissively, render him all kinds of service. The self-realized soul can impart knowledge unto you because he has seen the Truth." One has to hear the message of Godhead from the lips of the pure devotee of the Lord or Acarya. The religion is originally spoken by Krsna Himself and that message or science is coming down directly through the chain of disciplic succession and one who is in that chain is called acarya or one who teaches by his life. Religion is practically presented by the bona fide spiritual master or acarya.
1973 Correspondence
This verse is spoken by Krishna, or God, Himself in Bhagavad-gita so who can be more final authority? That means that anyone who has understood that the material worlds are places of misery and temporaryness, duhkhalayam asasvatam, they never return here again, and because they are mahatmanah, the great souls, Krishna keeps them with Him, having qualified themselves to escape this nasty place by becoming His pure devotees. So the point is that to make advancement in spiritual life, everything material, unless it is utilized to serve and please Krishna, must be viewed with a pessimistic eye. We are not very much hopeful for any lasting pleasure or satisfaction for our deepest cravings within this realm of gross matter.
| Page Title: | Spoken by Krsna |
| Compiler: | Rishab, Mayapur |
| Created: | 21 of May, 2011 |
| Totals by Section: | BG=1, SB=7, CC=3, OB=1, Lec=79, Con=21, Let=2 |
| No. of Quotes: | 114 |