There is no difficulty (Lectures, BG)

Expressions researched:
"there is no difficulty" |"there was no difficulty"

Bhagavad-gita As It Is Lectures

Lecture on BG 1.20 -- London, July 17, 1973:

This is the difference between a bhakta and not bhakta. A bhakta knows that "I am insignificant, a small spark of Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is individual person. I am also individual person. But when we consider about His power and my power, I am most insignificant." This is understanding of Kṛṣṇa.

There is no difficulty. Simply one must be sincere, not sinful. But a sinful man cannot understand Him. The sinful man, he will say, "Oh, Kṛṣṇa is also man. I am also man. Why I am not God? He is simply God? No, I am also. I am God. You are God, you are God, every God." Just like Vivekananda said, "Why you are searching after God? Don't you see so many gods are loitering in the street?" You see. This is his God realization. This is his God realization. And he became a big man: "Oh, he is seeing everyone God."

This foolishness, this rascaldom, is going on all over the world. One does not know what is God, what is power of God, what is meant by God. They are accepting some rascal as God. As nowadays, that is going on. Another rascal has come. He is also declaring himself God. So it has become very cheap thing. But they have no brain to think that "I am claiming God; what power I have got?"

Lecture on BG 1.20 -- London, July 17, 1973:

He is fighting for Kṛṣṇa. So he is also following the footsteps of Vajrāṅgajī.

Vaiṣṇavism is like that. Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ (CC Madhya 17.186). Mahājano yena gataḥ sa panthāḥ. Vaiṣṇava should follow his previous mahājana, authority. That is Vaiṣṇavism. We don't manufacture ideas. We don't commit such rascaldom. We simply accept the behavior or the activities of previous ācāryas. There is no difficulty. There is no difficulty.

So in the fighting principle, Arjuna is fighting for Kṛṣṇa. He is following the previous fighting ācārya, Hanumānji. Therefore he has depicted his flag with Hanumān, that "Hanumānji, Vajrāṅgajī, kindly help me." This is Vaiṣṇavism. "I have come here to fight for Lord Kṛṣṇa. You fought also for the Lord. Kindly help me." This is the idea. Kapi-dhvajaḥ. So any activities of the Vaiṣṇava, they should always pray to the previous ācārya, "Kindly help me. Kindly..." This is, Vaiṣṇava is always thinking himself helpless, helpless. And begging help from the previous ācārya.

Lecture on BG 2.1 -- Ahmedabad, December 7, 1972:

Kṛṣṇa personally says that mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya: (BG 7.7) "There is no more superior element above Me." Ahaṁ sarvasya prabhavaḥ (BG 10.8). "I am the origin of everything." Aham ādir hi devānām (Bg 10.2). Then... There are so many statements, "Kṛṣṇa is the Supreme Personality of Godhead." So anyone who is actually serious about understanding about the Supreme Personality of Godhead, there is no difficulty. But because we are obstinate, because we are sinful, because we are lowest of the mankind, because our knowledge has been taken away by māyā, and because we are atheists, we do not accept Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality. Otherwise, there is no reason. Kṛṣṇa therefore describes: na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). Unless one is duṣkṛtina, always miscreants, full of sinful life, he cannot deny Kṛṣṇa as the Supreme Personality of Godhead.

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

The body takes development. So... Now, that development—from this small child, he becomes a bigger child, then he becomes a boy, then becomes a youth, then gradually a old man like me, and then gradually, when this body is no longer useful, then it is, it has to be given up and another body has to be taken—this is the process of transmigration of soul. I think there is no difficulty to understand this simple process. Now, the soul is there, and the body's transforming every moment, every moment, imperceptibly. Just like if you have seen some, some your friend's child small, and after five years, you go to that friend's house and see the child: "Oh, you have grown so big? You have grown so big." But the father, mother cannot see. Because they are seeing daily, they do not see that "How my child is growing, daily," but a man who comes all of a sudden after five years, he says, "Oh, the child is grown up." So imperceptibly we are changing our body every moment. Every moment. That is also medical science, that we are changing our blood corpuscles every moment. You see? Similarly, what is the difficulty to understand that, that the soul transmigrates from one body to another? It is very nicely explained here. "As the owner of the body is there within the body, but the body is changing, one after another, one after another..." Dehino 'smin yathā dehe, kaumāraṁ yauvanam (BG 2.13). Here two examples are given: kaumāram... Kaumāram means the age up to fifteen years, the age up to fifteen years, that is called kaumāra.

Lecture on BG 2.13 -- Mombassa, September 13, 1971:

Try to understand clearly. This is my shirt, I am not this. I am different. I am within the shirt. Similarly, this body, this is gross coat. Just like you, when you put on your dress, you have one underwear, shirt, and then over that shirt there is coat. It is very easy to understand, there is no difficulty. Similarly, the spirit soul is within this coat and shirt. What is this coat? This gross body. There are five..., eight material elements: earth, water, fire, air, ether, mind, intelligence, and ego. These are eight material elements. And out of these eight, gross elements we can see or perceive with your material senses. I can touch this earth; I can taste the water; I can smell the air; I can feel the sky; in this way. These are gross. And still there are finer elements, just like mind. Everyone of us knows that there is a mind, but we cannot see it. What is that mind? Everyone knows that there is intelligence, but nobody can see what is that intelligence. Similarly, everyone has his individuality, "I am this," "I am very learned," "I am very beautiful," "I am white," "I am black," "I am Indian," "I am American," this is called ego.

Lecture on BG 2.14 -- Mexico, February 14, 1975:

Nobody is allowed to enter kingdom of God without becoming bhakta. (break) And there is no difficulty of becoming bhakta because the..., to become bhakta means four principles. One thing is to always think of Kṛṣṇa. Man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ. That is bhakta. Simply by thinking of Kṛṣṇa... That is Hare Kṛṣṇa. When you chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, you think of Kṛṣṇa. You become bhakta immediately. Then after becoming man-manā bhava, mad-yājī: "You worship Me," māṁ namaskuru, "and offer obeisances." It is very simple thing. If you think of Kṛṣṇa and if you offer little obeisances and if you worship Him, these three things will make you bhakta and you go back to home, back to Godhead. We are teaching this thing: chant Hare Kṛṣṇa, offer obeisances unto Deity and worship. Finish all business. So why they should go to the jñāna path? It requires so much knowledge and so much grammatical, so much nose pressing, so many things. You avoid all these things. Simply do these three things and you become bhakta. Why don't you take the easiest process and go back to home, back to Godhead? Thank you very much. (end)

Lecture on BG 2.15 -- Mexico, February 15, 1975:

So if you are actually anxious and serious to stop this repetition of birth and death, then we must take to Kṛṣṇa consciousness, because without Kṛṣṇa consciousness nobody can stop the repetition of birth and death. Therefore Kṛṣṇa advises in this verse that "Accept this little difficulty." Actually there is no difficulty, but because we are practiced, in the beginning we find little difficulty. Therefore here Kṛṣṇa says, yaṁ hi na vyathayanty ete: "All these so-called difficulties, if they do not bother or give some pain to a person..." Yam... All these difficulties... Just like I am feeling difficulty. I am habituated to smoke. Now I am forbidden, "Not to smoke." So I am feeling difficulty. So therefore Kṛṣṇa said, "Although it is not difficulty, but although one feels difficulty—still he sticks to the principle—then he becomes fit for going back to home, back to Godhead." So indriyāṇi pramāthīni, in the Bhagavad-gītā you'll find. Our senses are very strong, like mad snakes. There is some statement in Vedic literature, indriya-kāla-sarpa-paṭalī. Indriya, the senses, are just like dreadful snakes. But there is a means to subdue the snake. It is said, indriya-kāla-sarpa-paṭalī protkhāta-daṁṣṭrāyate, means the snake may be very dangerous, but somehow or other, if you take out its poison teeth, then it is no more dangerous." The snake is dangerous on account of the poison teeth. So if, somehow or other, the poison teeth extricated, then the snake is no more dangerous. So our strong senses, snakelike senses, can be bereft of the poison teeth by accepting Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

Lecture on BG 2.15 -- Mexico, February 15, 1975:

And for this, we have to become dhīra. Dhīra means, I have already explained, not to be disturbed, even the cause of disturbance is there. So that is the qualification of becoming immortal. So little tolerance of the sensation... Just like there is some sensation. If you have got some itches and you are feeling that "I should itch," but if you stop itching, this will be cured, and if you go on itching, it will increase. So itching... Anyone who has got some experience of itching... Itching is very pleasing at the time of itching, but next time it is not very pleasing. It has created so many disturbing condition. Therefore śāstra says that we should try to control the itching of our senses. Then he is dhīra. And as soon as you become dhīra, you are the first-class candidate for going back to home, back to Godhead. So there is method; there is practice; there is process. If you like, you can adopt them—actually there is no difficulty—and solve all the problems of your life. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Try to understand and adopt it. Now any question?

Lecture on BG 2.22 -- Hyderabad, November 26, 1972:

So the basic principle of spiritual understanding is to know one's self. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi. That, to come to that point, Kṛṣṇa is explaining that this body is like the dress, and the person who is dressed, that is within the dress. Dehino 'smin yathā dehe (BG 2.13). Here also, it is said, tathā śarīrāṇi vihāya jīrṇāny anyāni saṁyāti navāni dehī. Very simple thing. There is no difficulty. But the so-called scientists, philosophers, educationists, they will not believe that there is soul. They, they'll not believe. They'll simply argue. They cannot establish the real fact, how this body is moving. There are so many theories. But, except, accept, they will not accept that the..., actually, because the soul is within this body, everything is happening. And without the soul, immediately this body, so nice body of such and such great personality, becomes a lump of matter. Not that the body is working... They are finding out the brain substance, how it is working. But the brain substance is already there in the dead body. Why don't you work with that? No. That is not fact. The fact is the brain substance is a machine, but the man, or the person, is within the body. He's working with the brain substance. Just like you have got a nice machine. But it must be worked by somebody. At the present moment, the computer is a very subtle machine. But this computer cannot work without an experienced mechanic who pushes the button and it works. These people, they cannot understand that without spiritual touch, matter cannot work.

Lecture on BG 2.27-38 -- Los Angeles, December 11, 1968:

Yes. There is no difficulty to find out a madman. Any man you find out, he's a madman. And that is medical version also. That is medical version. In India, there was a case. A man was murdered, and the criminal lawyer pleaded that he was in madness. So the expert medical practitioner was invited and he was asked to examine whether this man is in madness. So he said that "So far my experience goes, I have studied, every man is a madman, more or less." Every man in the material concept of life is a madman because he does not know his identification. Therefore he's a madman. Piśācī pāile yena mati-cchana haya. Just like a ghostly-haunted man. His father is standing before him and he's calling the father by ill names, because he's ghostly-haunted. Similarly, a living entity who is entrapped by this material energy, illusion, he's a madman. And the whole treatment is to get out of this disease of madness, misidentification, misconception of life. So it is not difficult to find out a madman. Any man is a madman. Yes?

Lecture on BG 3.13-16 -- New York, May 23, 1966:

So yajña is not difficult. Now, if by doing that yajña, if we become free from all reactions, then why should we not do it? Why should we not do it? There is no difficulty. There is no question of difficulty. Rather, it is a thing of pleasure, ānanda. The whole thing is ānanda. Ānanda means pleasure. Enjoyment. Spiritual life does not mean that void of enjoyment, no. It is full of enjoyment. We are seeking after enjoyment, but that enjoyment is hampered by our material existence. We do not know. We are trying to squeezing out the senses and trying to have material pleasure. This is nonsense because we do not know what is spiritual life. Spiritual life means unlimited, unlimited pleasure.

There is a verse describing about Rāma. Hare Rāma Hare Rāma Rāma Rāma Hare Hare, we chant. Now, what is the meaning of Rāma? That is described.

Lecture on BG 3.17-20 -- New York, May 27, 1966:

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.

So there is no difficulty to understand Kṛṣṇa. And if you understand Kṛṣṇa, your life is perfectly, I mean to say, all right. Then you get your life, complete perfection of your life. That is the whole literature. So here the Lord says, yas tu ātma-ratir eva syāt. Ātma-rati, one whose focus of life is simply for self-understanding... Ātma-ratiḥ, syād ātma-tṛptaś ca mānavaḥ. He is simply satisfied with his self-understanding, that "I am pure consciousness. My relation with Kṛṣṇa is such and such. My relation with this world is temporary. My real relation with Kṛṣṇa because Kṛṣṇa is permanent and I am permanent. I am His part and parcel," these simple things. So one who has understood these things nicely and he is satisfied in himself...

Lecture on BG 3.27 -- Madras, January 1, 1976:

Where is the difficulty? There is no difficulty.

Therefore our request is, take to this Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is... If the foreigners can take to it very seriously, so why not Indians? It is Indians' knowledge. Bhagavad-gītā was spoken in India. Why you are neglecting it? Why you are not taking advantage? Why you are falsely proud that you are independent? These are our questions. You are not independent. You are under the full control of prakṛti. So you have to rectify. Tapo divyaṁ yena śuddhyet sattvaṁ yasmād brahma-saukhyam anantam (SB 5.5.1). That is the..., that we want happiness, but here any happiness... There is no happiness. It is simply distress. But even if we take as happiness, that is temporary. But we want unlimited, unending happiness.

Lecture on BG 4.1 -- Montreal, August 24, 1968:

There are many yogis who daily take bath in four places: in Prayāga, in Rāmeśvaram, in Jagannātha Purī, and in Hardwar. Still there are some yogis in India. So they can transfer themselves, transport themselves, from one place to another very quickly. So there was no difficulty in communicating with Manu or Manu's son, Ikṣvāku. The communication was there, or the radio system was so nice that communication could be transferred from one planet to another.

So here it is said that vivasvān manave prāha manur ikṣvākave 'bravīt. First of all, this was spoken to sun-god Vivasvān, and Vivasvān spoke to his son Manu, and Manu spoke to his son Ikṣvāku. This Mahārāja Ikṣvāku happened to be an ancient emperor on this planet, and in his dynasty Lord Rāmacandra appeared, Mahārāja Ikṣvāku. He is kṣatriya. These are all kṣatriya. Sūrya, Vivasvān is also kṣatriya. There are two kṣatriya families, one from the sun and one from the moon, candra-vaṁśa and sūrya-vaṁśa. They're existing. And the Indo-European stock, they are also coming from the kṣatriyas. From the history of Mahābhārata, we can understand the Aryan families who migrated to Europe, they also belonged to this sūrya-vaṁśa or candra-vaṁśa. Anyway, that is another department of knowledge. Here it is said that..., Kṛṣṇa says that "I spoke this philosophy or this system or this doctrine of Bhagavad-gītā, yoga."

Lecture on BG 4.1-2 -- Columbus, May 9, 1969:

Spiritual master does not become grown just like tree. No. It is carrying the message from higher authorities as it is stated. "I told this message," Kṛṣṇa says, "to Vivasvān, the sun-god. He told to his son Manu. Manu told to his son Ikṣvāku. In this way this is coming down. Now it is broken. Therefore I am saying unto you, Arjuna."

So there is no difficulty in administering this Vedic message to the world provided we simply carry the same message as it was delivered by Kṛṣṇa unto you. That is not very difficult. Anyone can do it. You simply try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is and distribute it: "Kṛṣṇa says this." That's all. You haven't got to comment or add anything, something. But to present, you can speak something, but the central point should not be missed. Then people will be benefited. Then people will be benefited. They will receive the message as it is, and this is transcendental message. Caitanya Mahāprabhu says,

āmāra ājñāya guru hañā tāra' ei deśa

yāre dekha, tāre kaha 'kṛṣṇa'-upadeśa

(CC Madhya 7.128)

Lord Caitanya says that "Every one of you become the spiritual master, every one of you. Why one, two? Every one of you." "Oh, spiritual master is very difficult job." No. No difficult job. Caitanya Mahā... Āmāra ājñāya: "Just try to carry out My order. That's all. Then you become spiritual master."

Lecture on BG 4.3 -- Bombay, March 23, 1974:

God is speaking. Why don't you see God? God is speaking. You'll find in the Seventh Chapter. If you cannot see God, if you cannot see Kṛṣṇa in the temple, if you cannot see Kṛṣṇa within Bhagavad-gītā, then Kṛṣṇa says, raso 'ham apsu kaunteya prabhāsmi śaśi-sūryayoḥ (BG 7.8). You see while you drink water. Or anything you drink, you can see Kṛṣṇa there. Rasa. That taste is Kṛṣṇa. So there is no difficulty to see God. These rascals, they said, "Where is God?" Here is God. You are drinking water. Why don't you see... Give me water.

So Kṛṣṇa can be seen always, provided you want to see God. But we don't want to see God. That is the difficulty. Otherwise, you can see sadaiva. In the Brahma-saṁhitā, it is said, santaḥ sadaiva hṛdayeṣu vilokayanti. Santaḥ, if you are santa... Santa means saintly person. If you become saintly person... But if you remain rogues, thieves, cats and dogs, then how you can see God? You have to become a santa.

Lecture on BG 4.13 -- Bombay, April 2, 1974:

Therefore it is very essential to understand this verse. Cātur-varṇyam, train a class of men. Everyone required. There is intelligent class of men, but there brain is being misused, and intelligent man is being taught technology, how to manufacture machine. This is śūdra's business. This is śūdra's business. Misuse, brain misuse. There must be university where brain is properly utilized. Here is a child or here is a boy. He has good intelligence. Train him as brāhmaṇa. Less than that, train him as kṣatriya, train him as vaiśya.

Everything is there in the Bhagavad-gītā. There is no difficulty. So if you actually want happiness, prosperity of the society, not only of this society, that, whole human society, they must accept this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement and then they will be happy. Thank you very much. (end)

Lecture on BG 4.13 -- Johannesburg, October 19, 1975:

We are part and parcel of God. We have come from God to enjoy this material world, but we are suffering. But if you want to go back to home, back to Godhead again then try to understand Kṛṣṇa. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness.

And there is no difficulty to understand Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa is explaining in the Bhagavad-gītā what He is. You read this book very carefully and try to understand Kṛṣṇa. And as soon as you understand thoroughly Kṛṣṇa, then tyaktvā... You have to give up this body. That's a fact. Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti (BG 4.9). Then no more accepting material body. Then what happens? Mām eti, Kṛṣṇa says, "He comes to Me, back to home, back to Godhead." That is the solution of life, and everything is described in the Bhagavad-gītā and all the Vedic literature.

We have published about hundreds of books. If you simply read these books regularly, then you will understand everything very clearly. And first of all you try to read Bhagavad-gītā As It Is. Then the life's problem will be solved.

Lecture on BG 4.14 -- Bombay, April 3, 1974:

Simply by His willing. Sa īkṣata, sa asṛjata. These are the Vedic information. Simply by His glancing, there was the whole material cosmic manifestation. So if we understand Kṛṣṇa like that...

Therefore Kṛṣṇa says... Study Kṛṣṇa. Study Kṛṣṇa. And Kṛṣṇa is describing Himself. There is no difficulty. You can study Kṛṣṇa. If you know now, "What Kṛṣṇa says is all right," simply if you know definitely, then iti māṁ yo 'bhijānāti, simply by knowing this, karmabhir na sa badhyate, he is no more under the condition of this fruitive resultant action. He is free. So why don't you do that? So nice thing. Simply study. Now how can I study? Here is Krsna's instruction, you study and you become devotee. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Don't require education. If you cannot read, if you are illiterate, it doesn't matter. You hear. Satāṁ prasaṅgān mama vīrya-saṁvidaḥ. You hear from the realized soul. God has given you ear you can hear.

It doesn't require education. Formerly everyone was taking education simply by hearing. There was no book. Formerly everyone was taking education simply by hearing. There was no book. Therefore all the Vedic knowledge is called śruti. Śrutibhir apanya.(?) Śruti-gatāṁ tanu-vāṅ-manobhiḥ. Śruti. So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is opening centers just to give you chance to hear about Kṛṣṇa, only hearing. Sthāne sthitāḥ śruti-gatāṁ tanu-vāṇ-manobhiḥ. Simply by hearing, you become perfect. Just like Parīkṣit Mahārāja.

Lecture on BG 4.27 -- Bombay, April 16, 1974:

Why not take this? You can go on on, Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, about Kṛṣṇa. Bhagavad-gītā. Go on talking, and go on eating kṛṣṇa-prasādam. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau, chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau svayam eva sphuraty adaḥ. Then self-realization is guaranteed.

There is no difficulty, not at all. And that is also described, sa mahātmā sudurlabhaḥ. Simply says, sudurlabhaḥ. But what is the symptom?

mahātmānas tu māṁ pārtha

daivīṁ prakṛtim āśritāḥ

bhajanty ananya-manaso

jñātvā bhūtādim avyayam

(BG 9.13)

This is mahātmā. Mahātmānas tu māṁ pārtha daivīṁ prakṛtim. They are under the protection of daivī-prakṛti. There are two prakṛtis, spiritual prakṛti and material prakṛti. The devotees are not under this material prakṛti. They are under the spiritual prakṛti. The activities of Kṛṣṇa, they are all spiritual. And the devotees, because they are engaged in spiritual activities, they are above the material prakṛti. Sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate. Who? Māṁ ca yo 'vyabhicāreṇa bhakti-yogena sevate (BG 14.26). Anyone who is engaged in devotional service without any impediment, avyabhicāriṇī, without any stoppage, continuously, sa guṇān samatītyaitān brahma-bhūyāya kalpate (BG 14.26), he is not on the material platform.

Lecture on BG 4.39-42 -- Los Angeles, January 14, 1969:

Revatīnandana: "...of the Bhagavad-gītā as it is can very easily understand these two important divisions of spiritual knowledge. For him there is no difficulty in obtaining perfect knowledge of the self as part and parcel of the Lord."

Prabhupāda: Because the subject matter of Bhagavad-gītā is to know five things, to know what are these living entities, what is God, what is nature, and what is time, and what is work. These five subject matters are there: God, the living entities, the nature, the time, and the work. These things are there.

Everyone is engaged in some sort of work, and there is time control. Your life, my life, everyone's life is controlled by time. We have to live for so many years, no more than. So to study time, to study our work, then what is God, "what I am," and what is this material nature—these five things are very nicely explained. One has to study. Then one becomes perfect in knowledge, and he can act accordingly.

Revatīnandana: "And such understanding is beneficial for such a person, who easily understands the transcendental activities of the Lord. In the beginning of this chapter, the transcendental activities of the Lord were discussed by the Supreme Lord Himself. One who does not understand the instructions of the Gītā is faithless and is considered to be misusing the fragmental independence awarded to him by the Lord. In spite of such instructions, one who does not understand the real nature of the Lord as the eternal, blissful, all-knowing Personality of Godhead is certainly fool number one.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- San Francisco, March 26, 1968:

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.

(Sanskrit commentary) Mat-parataṁ yanis cayāvanityārthaḥ, samagraṁ sādhiṣṭhānaṁ sāvibhūtiṁ sāparikaram. And if you believe Kṛṣṇa, then the result will be that you can understand God, how He is working, how His energies are acting, how He is manifested, what is this material world, what is the spiritual world, what are these living creatures, what is their relationship. So many things in God's creation. The whole Vedic literature are dealing in three things. First thing is that what is your relationship with God. Then the next step is that as soon as we understand our relationship with God, then we can act in that way. Just like a man and woman, they are not known to each other. But as soon as the relationship is established, that one is husband and the other is wife, then the reciprocal dealing begins. So unless you understand what is your relationship with God... Generally, people believe that God is the father. Therefore son's business is to ask from father whatever we need. But that is very minor relationship. If you understand God perfectly well... And there is intricate relationship also. That relationship will be revealed when you are perfectly liberated. Each and every living creature has got a particular relationship with God. We have forgotten that. So when that relationship will be revealed in the process of devotional activities, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, you should know that is the perfection of your life. That is the perfection of our life.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Hong Kong, January 25, 1975:

Of course, it is not possible to take the shelter of Kṛṣṇa directly. That is not possible. May be possible by Kṛṣṇa's special mercy, but general process is you have to go through the mercy or process of accepting a guru. Tad-vijñānārthaṁ sa gurum eva abhigacchet (MU 1.2.12). Guru. And who is guru? Yei kṛṣṇa-tattva-vettā sei guru haya (CC Madhya 8.128). There is no difficulty to find out. Sometimes they plead that "Whom I can accept as guru?" That is... Caitanya Mahāprabhu has cleared: ye kṛṣṇa-tattva-vettā sei guru haya. You haven't got any trouble to find out guru. Anyone who knows about Kṛṣṇa, he is guru.

So mad-āśrayaḥ means directly we cannot take shelter of Kṛṣṇa. Therefore, one who has taken shelter of Kṛṣṇa, one who knows the science of Kṛṣṇa, one who knows what is Kṛṣṇa—you take shelter of that person. Mad-āśrayaḥ. Taking shelter, ādau gurv-āśrayam, that is the process of this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Ādau, in the beginning, you have to take shelter of guru. Ādau gurv-āśrayaṁ sad-dharma-pṛcchā: "Then you inquire from him about Kṛṣṇa." Sad-dharma-pṛcchā, sādhu-mārgānugamanam: "Then follow the footstep of big, big devotees." Just like Prahlāda Mahārāja, a great devotee; Kapiladeva, a great devotee; and similarly, Brahmā, a great devotee. Lord Śiva is great devotee; Nārada Muni, a great devotee. There are... Especially twelve names are given in the śāstras, that we have to follow them. That is called sampradāya. Sampradāya means coming in disciplic succession from the original guru.

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Durban, October 9, 1975:

In the Vedic literature it is said, kasmin vijñāte sarvam idaṁ vijñātaṁ bhavati: "If you understand that one Supreme, then you will understand everything." So Rāmāyaṇa, Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, not other Rāmāyaṇa, the so-called Rāmāyaṇa... Authority, Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa... If you read Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, that is also as good as reading Bhagavad-gītā. But if you read Bhagavad-gītā, you understand the transcendental science very easily. There is no difficulty. So we shall advise to read Bhagavad-gītā. It is very widely read all over the world, not only by the Hindus, but others also, by all scholars, all philosophers. They read Bhagavad-gītā. So we recommend you all to read Bhagavad-gītā as it is. Do not distort the meaning. Try to understand as it is. Just like in the beginning the Bhagavad-gītā is mentioned,

dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre

samavetā yuyutsavaḥ

māmakāḥ pāṇḍavāś caiva

kim akurvata sañjaya

(BG 1.1)

The dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre... This is a fact. The kuru-kṣetra is a pilgrimage, dharma-kṣetra. Still it is. There is a railway station of the name Kurukṣetra, and that Kurukṣetra place is very big field. So why should we misinterpret, "Kuru-kṣetra means this body, and Pāṇḍava means the senses"? Why?

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Nairobi, October 27, 1975:

"How he has got this life, and how I have got this life?" There is no university education wherefrom they are coming, no knowledge. Still, they are passing on as great scientist, great philosopher. This is the position.

So our real business is to understand Kṛṣṇa. So Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself. Then there is no difficulty. If you want to know me, you can imagine so many things: "Swamiji may be this. Swamiji may be that, like that, like this, like that." They are all imperfect. But if I tell you about myself openly that "I am like this," then your knowledge is perfect. Everyone says, "There is no God." Somebody says, "God is there, but He has no form," and somebody says, "He has any form you like. Imagine any form." In this way speculation is going on all over the world. Actually they are not interested in God. That is the plain simple thing. They do not want to know God, and they think there is no need of understanding. But that is the only need, to understand God. That they do not know. Therefore they are called fools and rascals, mūḍha. Mūḍho nābhijānāti mām ebhyaḥ param avyayam. So Kṛṣṇa therefore left His instruction behind Him that "These mūḍhas, rascals, after studying Bhagavad-gītā they may understand Me. I am keeping behind Me."

Lecture on BG 7.1 -- Bhuvanesvara, January 22, 1977:

So my request is that you people of Orissa, you are ordinarily Vaiṣṇava, so take this seriously. Don't be misguided by rascal who is not guru. There is no difficulty. Suppose, as Caitanya Mahāprabhu: yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa-upadeśa (CC Madhya 7.128). You become guru. Whomever you meet you simply speak what Kṛṣṇa has spoken. That's all. It is already there. You have to repeat only, and you become guru. Our request is that you all respectable gentlemen, you develop this center of ISKCON. We have published so many important books. They are being appreciated all over the world by scholars, by universities. You also study them, learn Kṛṣṇa science, Kṛṣṇa consciousness, and preach in your country. That is my request. Our books, mostly they are published in English, and we are getting them translated in other languages of the world, especially in Europe, French language, German language, in Japanese language, Chinese. So those who are very (indistinct) they may come, translate these books into Oriya, and we shall publish them for mass distribution.

Lecture on BG 7.1-3 -- London, August 4, 1971:

You accept another body after death. Dehāntaram. So instead of accepting a material body, you accept a spiritual body. That's all. What is the difficulty to understand? Just like you have accepted now this body, American body or English body. You cannot say, "I have an Indian body" or Chinese body or Russian body. In the same way, after giving up this body you can accept spiritual body. What is the difficulty to understand? There is no difficulty. Just like if you take birth in the sun planet, you have to take a body of fire. There are different planets, and the climatic influence are different, but here the scientists, they are calculating from their own point of view. They do not know that God's creation there are different types of body, different types of atmosphere. Just like the fish. They are living in the water. But you take out the fish on the land, immediately he dies. So your body, you have got a particular type of body. If you are thrown in the water you immediately die. But you can understand that within water there is life, on land there is life, there is body. So when you go to a certain different atmosphere, you have to accept a different type of body. Similarly, when you go to the spiritual world, you'll accept a spiritual body. What is the difficulty to understand? Tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti (BG 4.9). One should be qualified to enter into certain association, atmosphere. That... If you spiritually qualify yourself, then after giving up this body you get a spiritual body and you enter in the spiritual world. That's all. Very easy. You make yourself spiritualized in this life.

Lecture on BG 7.1-3 -- Stockholm, September 10, 1973:

Prabhupāda: Yes, we have got our books. You can see in our books, every word, Sanskrit word, is given, the equivalent English. We give the roman transliteration, explanation, so there is no difficulty. Just like here is one of my students. He has learned Sanskrit now. He can read, he can write, he can edit. So it is a question of learning. There is no difficulty.

Swedish man: (Swedish) (break)

Devotee: He's asking if this religion is a matter of reason or is it a matter of feeling?

Prabhupāda: Because it is a science. Religion means a kind of faith. It is not faith. It is a science. Science must be based on logic and philosophy. Science means that. And religion means sometimes sentiments. So religion without philosophy is sentiment, and philosophy without religion is mental speculation. Both must be combined. Then it is perfect. You cannot have religion without philosophy. That is sentiment, fanaticism. And if you simply take philosophy without religion, without sense of God, this is mental speculation. So religion must be on the basis of science and logic. That is first-class religion.

Lecture on BG 7.2 -- Hyderabad, April 28, 1974 :

That tattvataḥ, you can understand Kṛṣṇa tattvataḥ. Then another place Kṛṣṇa says, bhaktyā mām abhijānāti yāvān yaś cāsmi tattvataḥ. So our aim should be to understand Kṛṣṇa tattvataḥ in truth, not superficially, not by foolish commentary. If we simply try to follow what Kṛṣṇa has said, what is the difficulty? There is no difficulty, but foolishly we interpret in a different way, and māyā takes away our knowledge, māyayāpahṛta-jñānā. He is thinking that he is very learned scholar, but he is fool number..., rascal number one. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says māyayāpahṛta-jñānā. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ. Kṛṣṇa is speaking so many ways about Himself. Without understanding Kṛṣṇa in His own way, we are trying to understand Kṛṣṇa in different way. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says māyayāpahṛta-jñānā, āsuri bhāvam. The atheistic class of men, they interpret in a different way, because theirknowledge has been taken by māyā. And why it is so? Because they are sinful. duṣkṛtinaḥ, mūḍhāḥ, narādhamāḥ. These things are there. You will find in Bhagavad-gītā. It is not our manufactured word. Therefore, our proposal is, try to understand Kṛṣṇa. Try to understand Bhagavad-gītā as it is! Do not misinterpret, do not be misled by the misinterpreters. Then your life will be successful. You will understand what is Kṛṣṇa, and you will become Kṛṣṇa conscious. Then, tyaktvā dehaṁ punar janma naiti mām eti kaunteya.

So, the, in the Western world, they are taking more and more seriously about this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement.

Lecture on BG 7.3 -- London, March 11, 1975:

That is already stated. There is no difficulty. Why do you ask this question? It is said, raso 'ham apsu kaunteya (BG 7.8), that "I am the taste of the water." So where is the difficulty? You take the taste of the water. There is taste, and Kṛṣṇa says, "I am that taste." So you understand that, that "This taste is Kṛṣṇa." Where is the difficulty? You do not know what is Kṛṣṇa, but Kṛṣṇa says "I am this taste." Why don't you accept it? Then you know Kṛṣṇa. According to your position, you understand Kṛṣṇa. Kṛṣṇa says, "I am this." So take it, that taste of water... As soon as you drink water, "Oh, here is Kṛṣṇa." So you will... Smaraṇam. Śravaṇaṁ kīrtanaṁ viṣṇoḥ smaraṇam (SB 7.5.23). Then you will at least memorize Kṛṣṇa. That will enlighten your spiritual life. Because you will say... You take... Just like I am taking water several times, and if each time I remember, "Here is the taste, Kṛṣṇa," then Hare Kṛṣṇa. Chanting of Hare Kṛṣṇa, whatever you will be going.

Lecture on BG 7.7 -- Vrndavana, August 13, 1974:

"He has appeared as the son of Devakī and Vasudeva." He admits.

So Kṛṣṇa is admitted as the Supreme Personality of Godhead by all authorities. There is no doubt about it. And Kṛṣṇa personally confirms, mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat: (BG 7.7) "There is no more superior being than Myself." So where is the difficulty to understand what is God? There is no difficulty. But if we are obstinate, if we do not try to understand what is God, that is a different thing. But everything is there. So we should take it for acceptance that nobody is superior than Kṛṣṇa. Bhāgavata says, kṛṣṇas tu bhagavān svayam (SB 1.3.28). Brahma-saṁhitā says, īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ (Bs. 5.1). So it is concluded. There is no controversy. Mattaḥ parataraṁ nānyat kiñcid asti dhanañjaya, mayi sarvam idaṁ protam: (BG 7.7) "Everything is in Me."

It is already explained that Kṛṣṇa has got two energies. Just like heat and light, the energies of the fire. Similarly, Kṛṣṇa is enjoying His spiritual, blissful life. He is spiritual, sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ ānanda... (Bs. 5.1). Ānandamayo 'bhyāsāt (Vedānta-sūtra 1.1.12). So He is in Vṛndāvana having His ānanda, spiritual bliss, enjoyment, with His associates, ever associ..., eternal associates, the gopīs, the cowherds boys, His mother, His father, Mother Yaśodā, Nanda, Nanda Mahārāja. So He is enjoying in His abode, Goloka. That is also confirmed: goloka eva nivasaty akhilātma-bhūtaḥ (Bs. 5.37). Still, He is present everywhere. Ekāṁśena sthito jagat (BG 10.42). Aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham (Bs. 5.35). He is within this universe, He is within your heart... Īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ hṛd-deśe arjuna tiṣṭhati (BG 18.61). In one word: without Him, nothing can exist. Therefore it is said, mayi sarvam idaṁ protam: "Everything is existing in Me." Sarvam idam.

Lecture on BG 7.7 -- Vrndavana, August 13, 1974:

Therefore so long I am in this body, I feel pains and pleasure because the consciousness is spread. In the same way... As Kṛṣṇa says, He's the Supreme Soul. I am individual, very, very minute, small particle, and Kṛṣṇa is the supreme whole. So as I am controlling over this body, so where is the difficulty? Kṛṣṇa is controlling over the whole universe. Where is the difficulty? There is no difficulty. But we'll not understand. That is the difficulty. Here it is clearly said, mayi sarvam idaṁ protaṁ sūtre maṇi-gaṇā iva. There is no difficulty. In another place also, Kṛṣṇa says, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam. Mayā, the original is person, mayā, aham. Mayā. So "by Me." Sarvam idaṁ tatam. How? That is already explained. By the two energies, the spiritual energy and the material energy. Parā and aparā-prakṛti. That is expanded all over the universe, creation. So where is the difficulty? Mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam. Anything, that is Kṛṣṇa's energy. Therefore those who are devotee, Vaiṣṇava, they can understand that everything is Kṛṣṇa's. I am also Kṛṣṇa's energy. You are also Kṛṣṇa's energy, jīva-bhūtaḥ. Apareyam itas tu viddhi me prakṛtiṁ parām, jīva-bhūtām. We are parā-prakṛti, all of us, living entities, part and parcel of Kṛṣṇa.

So the living entity and this matter, two combination, makes the whole creation. Everywhere the creation is going on. So therefore the conclusion is mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam, "Everywhere I am expanded." Where is the difficulty to understand?

Lecture on BG 7.8 -- Bombay, February 23, 1974:

Similarly, when you see the sunshine, the moonshine, or you chant oṁkāra... There are other, so many ways prescribed in the later verses. So try to understand Kṛṣṇa in this way. It doesn't require any advancement of education or Vedic knowledge. A simple thing.

So there is no difficulty. And as soon as it is purified... Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau (Brs. 1.2.234). The purification... That is bhakti. Bhakti-mārga, devotional service means purifying the senses. That's all. The, at the present moment, our senses are covered by māyā, and this māyā can be moved away simply by remembering in every step Kṛṣṇa. Sevonmukhe hi jihvādau. That, that sevonmukha, that is the devotional service. Jihvādau. You simply engage your jihvā. Jihvā means tongue. The tasting is also tongue. Without tongue, you cannot taste. Therefore it is said, sevonmukhe hi jihvādau: "The beginning, beginning of purification, is to use your tongue in this devotional service." So our prescription is therefore that you use your tongue for chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra and employ your tongue for tasting Kṛṣṇa's prasādam. It is not at all difficult. There is no need of studying, mean, higher knowledge in the Vedic principle. That will auto, automatically will be revealed.

Lecture on BG 7.9 -- Vrndavana, August 15, 1974:

All the Vaiṣṇavas, all the ācāryas, Gosvāmīs, they acted accordingly and preached. Therefore they are ācāryas. And Kṛṣṇa says, ācāryaṁ māṁ vijānīyān nāva-manyeta karhicit (SB 11.17.27). These are the instructions.

So this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is there. It is very simple. There is no difficulty. We have to always... Man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ (BG 9.34). Now, for us, those who are materially attached, we cannot think twenty-four hours of Kṛṣṇa. It is very pleasing, but because we are materially attached, we cannot do that. Therefore Kṛṣṇa is prescribing that "You see the varieties of this material world and try to remember Me." These are the varieties: puṇyo gandhaḥ pṛthivyāṁ ca tejaś cāsmi vibhāvasau. "You study, nature study." Just like we study nature study, similarly, "You study nature and see these important points. And there I am." It is very scientific. You study nature and pick up some point and Kṛṣṇa says that "This is I am." Where is the difficulty? This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness. You drink water—you remember Kṛṣṇa. You see the light—remember Kṛṣṇa. You see the flavor, aroma of very nice flower, puṇya gandhaḥ—immediately remember Kṛṣṇa. Practice this. It is not difficult.

Actually, we have to think of Kṛṣṇa... Hare Kṛṣṇa, Hare Kṛṣṇa, Kṛṣṇa Kṛṣṇa, Hare Hare/ Hare Rāma, Hare Rāma, Rāma Rāma, Hare Hare. Always thinking of Kṛṣṇa. Man-manā bhava mad-bhaktaḥ. Here is Kṛṣṇa's form.

Lecture on BG 7.11-16 -- New York, October 7, 1966:

As soon as we surrender ourself to the Supreme Lord... That is not very difficult. A son's surrender to the father, is it very difficult job? Do you think is it very difficult job? A son is surrendering to his father. It is quite natural. There is no insult. Father is always superior. So if I touch the feet of my father, if I bow down before my father, it is glory. It is glorious for me. There is no insult. There is no difficulty. Why should we not surrender unto Kṛṣṇa?

So this is the process. Mām eva ye prapadyante. "All these bewildered living entities, when they surrender unto Me," māyām etāṁ taranti te (BG 7.14), "he has no more any miseries of life." He becomes at once under the protection of the father. You will find in the end of Bhagavad-gītā, ahaṁ tvāṁ sarva-pāpebhyo mokṣayiṣyāmi mā śucaḥ (BG 18.66). When the father... When the child comes on the breast of his mother, the mother protects. If there is any danger, the mother is prepared to give her life first, then the child's life. Similarly, when we are under the protection of God, then there is no fear. We becomes fearless under the protection of God. The child... Small children, they have got this faith in the father and the mother. So we should take shelter of Kṛṣṇa—mām eva ye prapadyante. "Anyone who takes shelter unto Me, he is out of this danger at once." At once. So why not do this? Is it very difficult job? No. Then why the person do not take shelter? If it is so easy thing, a certain child is going to surrender unto the care of his father, it is so simple thing. Why people do not do this? Why?

Lecture on BG 7.11-16 -- New York, October 7, 1966:

Now, the simple thing is to surrender unto the father. Anyone can do it. There is no difficulty, there is no insult, and it is all prospective. Everything is good. But still, people do not do it. Why? These are the qualifications. What are the qualifications? That he is impious, he is fool number one, he is lowest of the mankind, his knowledge has been plundered by illusion, and he is atheistic. Anyone who is qualified all by these qualifications, he cannot surrender to his father. He is still to be punished by the agent of father, the material nature. He is still to be slapped and caned very good and kicked. He has to suffer. Just like the father chastises the unruly boy, so the father, Kṛṣṇa or God, has employed this material nature, nurse. She is nursing also. She is giving us very nice foodstuff, at the same time giving good slap. Both things are going on. Because we are all rich man's sons. We are not poor man's son, poor man's son. No. So we are getting all supply of food. That is all right. God is kind. Even we are rebelled, even we do not surrender unto Him, still, He is so kind. He is sending us grains, He is sending us fruits, so many things. And duṣkṛtina, instead of so many things for foodstuff, he is still doing impious acts for his eating, which is not sanctioned. So these things are going on.

So these kinds of people who are fool number one, impious, lowest of the mankind, and whose knowledge has been exploited by this illusory energy and who is atheistic, these people, they do not go to God.

Lecture on BG 8.5 -- New York, October 26, 1966:

Paraṁ bhāvam ajānanto mama bhūta-maheśvaram (BG 9.11). Therefore we have to understand the Supreme Personality of Godhead from authoritative sources, just like the Bhagavad-gītā. The Supreme Personality of Godhead Himself speaking, "What I am." This is the science of God. If we take Him as He is saying, then we become perfect knower of God. There is no difficulty. But if we deny, then we are in difficulty. Those who have accepted Kṛṣṇa as He is, God as He is, they have attained perfection also. It is practical. Not that we are. There are millions and billions followers of Kṛṣṇa in India. Not only ordinary followers. Just like many great stalwarts, educationists, I mean to say, saintly person like Śaṅkarācārya, Madhvācārya, Rāmānujācārya, great educated and learned scholars, they have accepted. Lord Caitanya has accepted. And... There are so many others also. And there are millions and millions of temples of Kṛṣṇa. They are being worshiped by millions and billions of devotees still. Still, if you go some Kṛṣṇa temple in South India, you'll find thousands of thousands of people always assembled. You have no imagination. You see? In Jaipur temple, Jaipur temple, the king's palace... Within the king's palace there is Jaipur temple. So whenever you go in that Jaipur temple, you'll find at least one thousand men assembled. At least. If you go Jagannātha Purī, you'll find at least two thousand men, daily coming and going. If you go to Vṛndāvana, you'll find at least five thousand men, daily coming and going.

Lecture on BG 9.2 -- Calcutta, March 8, 1972:

Everyone can give up illicit sex life, meat-eating, intoxication and gambling. That's all. This is the restriction of sinful activity. And chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra. If these European, American boys can chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra day and night while walking in the street, while going in the car, while in the temple, everywhere, where going to sell books, what is the difficulty for the Indians? There is no difficulty. But they will not do it. That is the difference. They'll not agree to do it. If we simply accept these principles, these four restraining principles—no illicit sex, no gambling, no meat-eating and no intoxication—and chant Hare Kṛṣṇa mantra, your life is success. This is Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Anyone can accept it, but they'll not do it. Therefore Kṛṣṇa says, na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāh prapadyante (BG 7.15). Because they are rascals and too much attached to sinful activities, they'll not do it. This is the position. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāh prapadyante narādhamāḥ. And they, they have become narādhamāḥ. Because this human form of life is meant for accepting these principle, they're not accepting, therefore they are the lowest of the mankind.

Lecture on BG 9.2 -- Calcutta, March 8, 1972:

This is direct order. We execute this direct order; therefore we know that "I am carrying out the direct order of Kṛṣṇa, of Caitanya Mahāprabhu." Then, pratyakṣāvagamaṁ: directly you can understand, "Yes. We are right." There is no difficulty.

So then Kṛṣṇa says,

aśraddadhānāḥ puruṣā

dharmasyāsya parantapa

aprāpya māṁ nivartante

mṛtyu-saṁsāra-vartmani

(BG 9.3)

This is very important. Mṛtyu-saṁsāra. What is this saṁsāra? Saṁsāra means that you take your birth once and live for some time, then you die, then you accept another body, then again live for some time, then you die, then you accept another body, and that body you do not know what kind of body you are going to accept. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). Kṛṣṇa says, dehāntara-prāptiḥ: another..., transfer to another body. But what kind of body, that is not mentioned there. That will depend on your work. You may get the body of a demigod, you may get the body of a dog, you may get the body of a tree, you may get the body of a snake—according to your karma. So here it is said, aśraddadhānāḥ puruṣā (BG 9.3).

Lecture on BG 9.2 -- Melbourne, April 20, 1976:

You'll find in the Bhagavad-gītā that śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate (BG 6.41). This is called bhakti-yoga. Suppose somebody is enjoying, but māyā is very strong. If he falls down... He could not execute the Kṛṣṇa consciousness program completely in this life. Mostly if you simply stick, there is no difficulty. But if voluntarily we give up, that is another thing. What is the wrong there? Chant, dance, and take prasādam. You haven't got to work. You haven't got to go to the field work or to the factory. Still, if you don't accept it—you fall down—so that is your choice. But even if you fall down, because for a few days you joined Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement, your the resultant actions for so much time is permanent asset. Permanent asset. What is that permanent asset? That is stated in the Bhagavad-gītā, that śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe yoga-bhraṣṭo 'bhijāyate. Those who have fallen from this Kṛṣṇa consciousness, their next life is guaranteed a human life.

Because others, there is no guarantee. Tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ (BG 2.13). According to one's karma he can get the body of a dog, cat, hog or demigod. There is no guarantee that... Kṛṣṇa says, tathā dehāntara-prāptiḥ. Antara means another. He does not say that "This body he'll get." But if one is Kṛṣṇa's devotee, then there is guarantee. What is that guarantee? Śucīnāṁ śrīmatāṁ gehe (BG 6.41). He'll take birth in a very rich family or in a very nice brāhmaṇa and Vaiṣṇava's family.

Lecture on BG 9.3 -- Toronto, June 20, 1976:

And what is the means of worship? Very simple. If you can offer very valuable things, that is all right. But if you think that you are poor man, you cannot supply any valuable things, Kṛṣṇa says, "Never mind." Patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalaṁ toyaṁ yo me bhaktyā prayacchati (BG 9.26). "Simply little flower, little fruit, if you offer Me with devotion, I accept." So there is no difficulty.

Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). These four things. Very, very easy to do it. It is universal. There is no restriction. It is not that "I am not a brāhmaṇa, I am not an Indian, I am not a Sanskrit scholar, I cannot go to the temple." No, that is not. Kṛṣṇa says, māṁ hi pārtha vyapāśritya ye 'pi syuḥ pāpa-yonayaḥ (BG 9.32). Never mind whether he is Indian, brāhmaṇa or this or that. Even if he's born in the lowest, lowest grade of family, pāpa-yoni. They are kirāta-hūṇāndhra-pulinda-pulkaśā ābhīra-śumbhā yavanāḥ (SB 2.4.18), there are so many. They're pāpa-yoni, almost animal. Śudhyanti, they also become purified and comes to Kṛṣṇa. It is so wide, universal, easy and especially you are Indian, why you should not take advantage of this facility. You take it and be happy. That is my request. Thank you very much.

Lecture on BG 9.4 -- Melbourne, April 23, 1976:

So if it is possible by ordinary material thing—Kṛṣṇa, God, is full spiritual—how much spiritually powerful He is, that He can expand Himself all over the universes? This is called thoughtful consideration. So Kṛṣṇa... When Kṛṣṇa says, mayā tatam idaṁ sarvam, "I am expanded everywhere," where is the difficulty to understand? There is no difficulty—if we are sane person. If we can see that "In one universe there is one sun and the sun is so powerful, it is a material thing, and there are innumerable universes and there are innumerable suns. One who has created these suns, how much powerful He is, "this is the calculation, common sense. If one sun, which is material, if it is so powerful that for millions and millions of years it is giving its energy, heat and light—still, it is so bright and powerful and temperature is so high—how much powerful temperature is of God, you can just imagine.

Lecture on BG 9.34 -- August 3, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

Prabhupāda: Huh? Then there is no question of love, that is another thing, but if you actually want to love Kṛṣṇa, where is the difficulty?

Devotees: There is no difficulty.

Prabhupāda: That is my point. (laughter) If you don't want to love somebody, then there is no question of process. But if you know, by loving such and such person you'll be happy, then there is process and the process is very easy. And open to everyone. That is my point. Now discuss on this point.

Devotee: Sometimes devotees, they want to love Kṛṣṇa, but they fall down, they can't seem to

Prabhupāda: No, no. They want to love Kṛṣṇa, but they divert their love to other things. That is the difficulty. If you want to love Kṛṣṇa, then follow this—man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru. If you love Kṛṣṇa, then why you are diverting your attention? You are worshiping Deity, you are thinking of loving some woman. That's all. Huh? Why you are diverting? If you love Kṛṣṇa, you are engaged in Kṛṣṇa's service, just decorate nicely. Why you are diverting your attention? That means I'm not yet convinced that by loving Kṛṣṇa I'll be perfect. That is the difficulty.

Lecture on BG 9.34 -- August 3, 1976, New Mayapur (French farm):

So Kṛṣṇa is supplying. Everything is being supplied by Kṛṣṇa, actually, but because we do not know Kṛṣṇa and do not love Kṛṣṇa, cannot understand. But supply is being made by Kṛṣṇa, yoga-kṣemaṁ vahāmy aham (BG 9.22), even for the nondevotees. So what to speak of the devotee? It automatically comes. This is the way. So the point is there is no difficulty to become Kṛṣṇa conscious, and the result is so big that mām evaiṣyasi asaṁśayaḥ (BG 18.68). Yad gatvā na nivartante tad dhāma paramaṁ mama (BG 15.6). So for such great benefit of life, if you simply think of Kṛṣṇa and become His devotee, why shall I lose this opportunity? What is that intelligence? Therefore unless one is a rascal, miscreant, lowest of the mankind, he cannot give up Kṛṣṇa consciousness. It is not possible. Na māṁ duṣkṛtino mūḍhāḥ prapadyante narādhamāḥ (BG 7.15). Unless he is rascal number one, lowest of the mankind, full of sinful activities, he cannot avoid Kṛṣṇa consciousness. That's all. This is the position.

Lecture on BG 13.4 -- Miami, February 27, 1975:

Similarly, we have got different types of body and we are working on this body in the bodily concepts of life. That is not advanced life. If we are in the bodily concept of life, that is animal life. When we understand that "I know that I am not this body; I am working with this body," that is knowledge. Abhidhīyate.

And not only I. One should understand. It is clearly stated here. There is no difficulty. Kṛṣṇa says that "The living entity and Myself, we are both within this body." Kṣetra-jñaṁ cāpi māṁ viddhi sarva-kṣetreṣu (BG 13.3). The difference—we are individual soul. We are living, every one of us, living within this body, and there is another living entity. God is also living entity like you and me. The difference is that He is great, and we are subordinate. Otherwise... Just like you have got your president. He is a big man of your nation, and we are small men or you are a small man. But he is also a human being; I am also a human being or you are also. Similarly, God is exactly like us, with two hands and two legs. To see Kṛṣṇa, He hasn't got a hundred legs or a hundred... He has got the same, two legs and two hands, exactly like our body. In the Bible also it says, I think, that "Man is made after the feature of God"? So it is not that we have imagined God with two legs and two hands like us, no. Our this body is made imitating God's body. And the animals, they are also imitating God's body. God has got many forms. Advaitam acyutam anādim ananta-rūpam ādyaṁ purāṇa-puruṣaṁ nava-yauvanaṁ ca (Bs. 5.33). He has got many other forms, innumerable.

Lecture on BG 13.6-7 -- Bombay, September 29, 1973:

There is perspiration. This water is perspiration of Mahā-Viṣṇu. We can understand because we are minute particle of Mahā-Viṣṇu. Mamaivāṁśo jīva-bhūtaḥ (BG 15.7). So sometimes we perspire and create some water, say, half an ounce water. But if somebody has unlimited power to perspire and create water, where is the difficulty to understand? There is no difficulty. If you take it for acceptance that this vast mass of water has come from the perspiration of the Supreme Personality of Godhead. So there is nothing to deny this fact. Acintya-śakti. Acintya-śakti means inconceivable power. We have got inconceivable power. Because we are minute particle of God, we have also minute inconceivable power. We do not know how the hairs are growing, but the energy is there within me. Similarly, so many things come out from the inconceivable power of Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 13.8-12 -- Bombay, October 5, 1973:

They are most unclean at the present moment, so deteriorated. Publicly it is being advertised, "Here is beef shop. Come on. Equality. Equality by eating beef, drinking wine." Now this is coming. Śaucam. Śaucam. Cleanliness. Cleanliness is next to godliness. You must take twice bath at least. It is required. And in tropical countries like India, there is no difficulty taking bath three times. Of course, if your body does not permit... But that is Śaucam, to clean. Śaucam. Śaucaṁ bāhyābhyantaram.

apavitraḥ pavitro vā

sarvāvasthāṁ gato 'pi vā

yaḥ smaret puṇḍarīkākṣaṁ

sa bāhyābhyantaraṁ śuciḥ

The brāhmaṇa is called therefore śuci. He is always clean, taking three times bath, cloth washed, mouth, hands, legs, all clean, with tilaka. That is brāhmaṇa. Śaucam. This is externally. And internally you have to become also śaucam. Bāhyābhyantaram. Bahya mean externally you have to cleanse yourself with water, soap or earth. And internally you have to be cleansed by chanting Hare Kṛṣṇa mahā-mantra. Ceto-darpana-marjanam (CC Antya 20.12). Because if you remain unclean within the heart, simply by washing your external body and cleansing your cloth, that is not complete cleanliness. That may be called hygienic. But real cleanliness is internally and externally. Yaḥ smaret puṇḍarīkākṣaṁ sa bāhyābhyantaraṁ śuciḥ. So you have to cleansed yourself externally and internally.

Lecture on BG 1322 -- Hyderabad, August 17, 1976:

Therefore it is the essence of Vedic knowledge. Because if it is a fact that by studying Vedas one has to understand Kṛṣṇa. Vedaiś ca sarvair aham eva vedyaḥ (BG 15.15). So Kṛṣṇa is explaining Himself, what He is. So therefore it is essence of Vedic knowledge. This essence of Vedic knowledge is there. It is very simple. Anyone can understand. There is no difficulty.

When Kṛṣṇa says dharma-kṣetre kuru-kṣetre samavetā yuyutsavaḥ (BG 1.1), where is the difficulty? The Kurukṣetra is still there. Everyone knows. There is a railway station of the name Kurukṣetra and there is a place Kurukṣetra. Now it is being developed by the government. So how you can explain Kurukṣetra otherwise? Kurukṣetra is a fact, and it is a dharma-kṣetra. Still many millions of Indians go there to visit, especially during the solar eclipse occasion they go there. And when Kṛṣṇa was staying on this planet He, His brother Balarāma, and His sister Subhadrā also visited Kurukṣetra. That ceremony is observed as Ratha-yātrā. Three persons, two brothers and one sister. We are celebrating, introduced this Ratha-yātrā system in the Western countries and recently we had this festival in New York. Very successfully. Perhaps you have read in the paper.

Lecture on BG 16.1-3 -- Hawaii, January 29, 1975:

And I have understood by Your personal explanation and I accept You." Sarvam etad ṛtaṁ manye yad vadasi keśava: (BG 10.14) "Whatever You have said, I accept it because You are Bhagavān." This is Bhagavān.

So if you accept Bhagavān's word with firm conviction, then your life is perfect immediately. Immediately you become perfect. There is no difficulty. Because I may be imperfect, but if I say that "I have understood. This is glass. This spectacle is spectacle. I have learned it from authority," that is a fact. I may be imperfect, but because I have learned from authorities that "This is a spectacle. This is called spectacle," then this statement is correct. Similarly, we may be imperfect, it doesn't matter, but because we are accepting the words and statement of Kṛṣṇa then our knowledge is imperfect..., perfect. It is not imperfect. (Scraping noise in background) (aside to devotee:) It does not shoot very...? All right.

Lecture on BG 16.5 -- Calcutta, February 23, 1972:

No, you come here. Here is Kṛṣṇa. You always think of Kṛṣṇa, man-manā. You become devotee of Kṛṣṇa. Whatever you can, offer to Kṛṣṇa. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī: you worship Kṛṣṇa. If you don't come here, you can do it in, at your home. Man-manā bhava mad-bhakto mad-yājī māṁ namaskuru (BG 18.65). Somehow or other, you become Kṛṣṇa conscious. There is no difficulty. "No, I have no money. I cannot worship Kṛṣṇa in this way, so gorgeously." No. That Kṛṣṇa does not say. Kṛṣṇa says, patraṁ puṣpaṁ phalam: "If you are poor man, all right, you give Me little fruit, little flower, little water, I'll eat it." Then what do you want more? Or if you cannot do anything, chant Hare Kṛṣṇa.

So Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement is so easy. Everyone can take it and make his life successful. Daivī sampad vimokṣāya nibandhāyāsurī matā, mā śucaḥ sampadaṁ... (BG 16.5). Here, just to tell the devotees that even they are engaged, that Hanumān become engaged in fighting with Rāvaṇa, but he became the greatest devotee of Lord Rāmacandra. Arjuna also became engaged with, in fighting with the Kauravas, and he is the greatest. Bhakto 'si priyo 'si me (BG 4.3). Kṛṣṇa gives (indistinct) to him: "You are My dear friend, priyo 'si bhakto 'si." Similarly, we can do everything for Kṛṣṇa.

Lecture on BG 16.5 -- Calcutta, February 23, 1972:

Yāre dekha tāre kaha kṛṣṇa... Everyone, you can do that. There is no difficulty. Prāṇair arthair dhiyā vācā. Any..., somebody can dedicate his life, somebody can dedicate his money, somebody can dedicate his intelligence, somebody can dedicate his words. So it is not at all difficulty. In this way, simply by accepting the process of Kṛṣṇa consciousness, one develops the daivī sampat, divine quality. Yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiñcanā sarvair guṇair tatra samāsate surāḥ. As soon as one becomes devotee, with all the divinely, godly qualities one becomes developed.

yasyāsti bhaktir bhagavaty akiñcanā

sarvair guṇair tatra samāsate surāḥ

harāv abhaktasya kuto mahad-guṇā

mano-rathenāsati dhāvato bahiḥ

(SB 5.18.12)

Because people are not devotees of God, therefore despite all education, all advancement of scientific knowledge, still they are dealing like cats and dogs. They are not peaceful. The peace cannot be attained without Kṛṣṇa consciousness. Ahaṁ hi sarva-yajñānāṁ bhoktā ca prabhur eva ca. Simply by practicing Kṛṣṇa consciousness there can be peace, there can be prosperity, there can be happiness. Otherwise we shall be entangled. It is clearly mentioned here by Kṛṣṇa, daivī sampad vimokṣāya. And daivī sampat means, the example is Arjuna. He immediately takes up, Arjuna: mā śucaḥ. "You are, you are already developed with daivī, daivī sampat." Mā śucaḥ: "You haven't got to worry."

Lecture on BG 16.6 -- Hawaii, February 2, 1975:

And the sun has got so much effulgence, bodily rays, that it is illuminating and heating the whole universe. You cannot deny it. This is the position of the sun. And there are millions and trillions of suns, each one sometimes bigger than this sun. This is the smallest sun. There are bigger, bigger suns. So we can understand what is the bodily rays. There is no difficulty. That bodily rays of Kṛṣṇa is called Brahman. Yasya prabhā prabhavato jagad-aṇḍa-koṭi-koṭiṣu vasudhādi-vibhūti-bhinnam, tad brahma: (Bs. 5.40) "That is Brahman, that prabhā."

So similarly, Kṛṣṇa is present in everyone's heart, localized. This is impersonal expansion. Just like sunshine is impersonal expansion of the sun rays, so similarly, Brahman effulgence is the impersonal expansion of Kṛṣṇa's bodily rays. And the portion by which He is present everywhere, aṇḍāntara-stha-paramāṇu-cayāntara-stham... (Bs. 5.35). He is within this universe. He is within your heart, within my heart. He is within everything. "Everything" means even within the atom, paramāṇu. That is His Paramātmā feature. And the last and ultimate feature is Kṛṣṇa's personal body. Sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ. Īśvaraḥ paramaḥ kṛṣṇaḥ sac-cid-ānanda-vigrahaḥ (Bs. 5.1).

Vigrahaḥ means form. That form is not like ours. That is sat, cit, ānanda. The body has also three features. Sat means eternal. So therefore, His body is distinct from our body. Our, this body is not eternal within the history.

Lecture on BG 16.7 -- Tokyo, January 27, 1975:

Because there, in America, there is no such thing. Any inquisitive person inquires. The priest said that "These boys, they are our boys, and they never came to church to inquire about what is God. Now they are mad after God. What is this?" Because they have become suras by training. By training. So asuras can be turned into suras. There is no difficulty. Provided they abide by the rules and regulation, orders of the spiritual master, they can be suras. Because they do not know... Na śaucaṁ nāpi cācāro na satyaṁ teṣu vidyate. They do not know what is satyam. Satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi (SB 1.1.1). Therefore we are teaching them Śrīmad-Bhāgavatam, satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi, the ultimate truth. They do not know what is satyam. This is the movement, to give them education to understand what is the Absolute Truth, satyaṁ paraṁ dhīmahi, to teach them how to behave in life, how to become purified in life. This is very scientific movement. If anyone wants actually to become sura, the perfect man, they must join this Kṛṣṇa consciousness movement. Then his life will be successful. Thank you very much. (end)

Lecture on BG 16.8 -- Tokyo, January 28, 1975:

And factually you will see. If you think of only the sunlight, moonlight as instructed in the Bhagavad-gītā—Kṛṣṇa says, "I am sun...,"—then one day very soon you will understand. You will see Kṛṣṇa in sunlight. It is not bogus thing, that Kṛṣṇa says, "I am the sunlight." He is. And He asks you to see. You see minutely, and you'll see Kṛṣṇa. So where is the difficulty? You want to see Kṛṣṇa. You see Kṛṣṇa as Kṛṣṇa advises. Kṛṣṇa says, raso 'ham apsu kaunteya: (BG 7.8) "I am the taste of the water or any liquid substance. The taste I am." Now, whenever you drink water or drink any liquid thing or milk, the taste... There is... Everything has got a different taste. And if you think, as Kṛṣṇa advises you, that "This taste is Kṛṣṇa," then on that taste you will find Kṛṣṇa. You begin as Kṛṣṇa says. Then you will see Kṛṣṇa. There is no difficulty. There are so many examples given by Kṛṣṇa in the Bhagavad-gītā. Find out that chapter.

Lecture on BG 18.67 -- Ahmedabad, December 10, 1972:

This is paramparā understanding. If you want to understand Bhagavad-gītā, if you want to understand Kṛṣṇa, then you have to follow the footprints of the mahājanas. Evaṁ paramparā-prāptam (BG 4.2). As Arjuna understood it. How Arjuna understood it? Paraṁ brahma, "the Supreme Brahman." We are all Brahman. There is no difficulty to understand ahaṁ brahmāsmi. That's all right. But we are not Param Brahman. We are Brahman because part and parcel of Brahman, qualitatively one with Brahman. Ahaṁ brahmāsmi.

Just like if you say, "I am Indian," so there is no harm. But you cannot say that you are as big, as powerful as Indira Gandhi. She is also Indian. Similarly, you may become Brahman, but you cannot become Param Brahman. That is Kṛṣṇa, the Supreme Personality of Godhead. Similarly, ahaṁ brahmāsmi: "I am not this body, I am not this material form. I have got my spiritual identity." That is called ahaṁ brahmāsmi. And when one understands this fact, that he is not this material body, that is called brahma-bhūtaḥ. Without understanding this: jīva-bhūta.