Rāmeśvara: So the seed of.... The soul is within the vapor?
Prabhupāda: The seed, when it is put into the earth, a situation is created so the soul can develop into a tree.
Rādhāvallabha: But how would the soul develop a particular body...?
Prabhupāda: That is Yamarāja is.... We are reading the Yamarāja incident(?). That's all.
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: Just like how can a living entity take birth in the fire?
Prabhupāda: Hmm?
Puṣṭa Kṛṣṇa: The argument is that how can an entity take birth in perspiration? His question. So how can a living entity take birth in the fire? Mostly our experience is that entities are taking birth from the earth, but according to the understanding...
Prabhupāda: So how the fishes are born in the water? How the other living entities, they remain in the air? Or without air? There are five elements: earth, water, fire, air.... Anywhere, the living entities can take birth. Sarva-ga. Sthāṇur sarva-gataḥ acalo 'yam. You read all these words of Bhagavad-gītā. Sarva-ga. From anywhere, he can take birth.
Devotee: Do the living entities who are born from perspiration require a mother and father?
Prabhupāda: No. No. There is mother. That perspiration is mother.
Rādhāvallabha: So the reason why they get a particular body...
Prabhupāda: And the father is God.
Rādhāvallabha: So they are just getting a particular body just due to Yamarāja.
Prabhupāda: Yes, according to the decision of the Yamarāja, he has to get a particular type of body.
Rādhāvallabha: The scientists don't know this.
Hari-śauri: It's very confusing, Prabhupāda.
Prabhupāda: Confusing must be. How you can understand the subtle laws of God? You have dull brain, with cow dung. (laughs) You cannot understand.
Arcita: So according to the Christians, Śrīla Prabhupāda, Jesus Christ was born without contact of any material father. He was divinely placed in the womb of Mary.
Prabhupāda: That's all right. Divinely placed by the Father is God. That's all. You cannot deny the fact. And he claims: "I am son of God." Then, what is the argument?
Arcita: Is there any such experience in the Vedic literatures, Śrīla Prabhupāda? An example we can cite also?
Prabhupāda: No, no, Vedic literature, apart from. Your argument, that without father, how it is without father? Without father, there is no question of birth; without mother, there is no question of birth. Our point is that without father there is no creation.
Rāmeśvara: Prabhupāda, when a living entity is in an animal body, and when he quits his body, there's no karma, he's just automatically promoted to a higher body?
Prabhupāda: Yes.
Rāmeśvara: So then...
Prabhupāda: Animal life means there is no sin. It is promotion. Because they are animal, their consciousness is not developed. Just like a child—a child, if he steals, that is not sin. He will not be criminally charged. He is child. A dog goes left to the right or right to the.... He is not criminal. But if you do, you are criminal.
Rāmeśvara: So Yamarāja does not direct the movements of the living entities as they are going automatically from animal body to higher body.
Prabhupāda: An animal is not jurisdiction of Yamarāja. The man is in the jurisdiction of.... Just like law is meant for man, not for the cats and dogs.
Rāmeśvara: So what determines the different varieties of dogs and cats if they are just automatically being...?
Prabhupāda: Not automatically. You are man. If you develop a dog's mentality, the Yamarāja puts you in the dog's body. And then you again develop, come to the man's body. That means your term of imprisonment finished. You become again man. Now again decide. And again if you become a dog's mentality, again go. This is going on.
Rādhāvallabha: The different varieties of suffering within the animal species are due to the different varieties of sinful activities in the human life?
Prabhupāda: Yes. And they, then they automatically come. Just as your term of imprisonment, by day's gone, it is finished, again you are free. Similarly, by natural development from dogs or cockroaches or from this or that, there is a process of development. You come to the human form of body. Then again you decide whether you go down or you go back to home, back to Godhead. That is your choice. If you want to go down, go again. Otherwise, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9), come here. So make your choice.
Rāmeśvara: So the living entity who is in the lower body like insects or plants...
Prabhupāda: Yes. They will come automatically to the human form of body, by promotion.
Rāmeśvara: And he passes through all the species?
Prabhupāda: Oh, yes.
Rāmeśvara: So he has no desire to fly, but still he passes through bird species.
Prabhupāda: No, just like child is taken care of. Child does not know what he is doing, but the father, mother, taking care of.
Hari-śauri: He's taken through stages.